The pressure should be on Guatemala - but instead, it's on Barrow's government. And that's because of how the information was put out there. Apparently, it was mishandled by the foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington. He gave the scoop to Amandala and Channel 5 when the Prime Minister instructed him to send out a press release - one that would have first gotten the approval of the opposition. And that's because the Prime Minister had already been in discussion with the leader of the opposition - who said he had gotten his party's approval. And so it should have proceeded from there, but Elringotn departed from the script when the timeline for the signing changed:
Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"And I imagine the Foreign Minister - because he was not going to go that following Monday - delayed issuing the press release. I didn't follow up. Next thing I know I saw on the news that the Foreign Minister had a one on one with you and presumably that's how he informed the nation of the proposed change. I would have preferred if as we had agreed in cabinet, a press release would have preceded that and I certainly would have preferred as I had ask be done that I would have preferred the Opposition to have been sent a draft of the press release. Which is what I had in fact committed to the Opposition Leader. I don't know that he ask me. I offered and I did say in cabinet and we agreed. I am just back and I have to find out from the Foreign Minister why it didn't proceed in that fashion. Why there was never a press release issued and why therefore as it turned out since he never issued a press release - there is nothing to send to the Leader of the Opposition. So, I regret that sort of confusion, but I repeat, the Leader of the Opposition had immediately told me a time of our first conversation, it was not a problem for him and 5 or so days later call me to say it was not a problem for his party."
But it is a problem. The Leader of the opposition said he was waiting to hear from the Foreign Minister and he believes the Belizean people should have been consulted. Today Barrow said he doesn't think consultation was necessary:..
Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"I honestly do not think that this change, I have even discussed with the Opposition, having received the approval of the Opposition, was something that required a referendum, a series of public meetings? I don't think so. There are people who disagree. I respect the Opposition, but I don't see the change as in fact being of any material prejudicial consequence to Belize or of any prejudicial consequence to Belize. And in those sorts of circumstances, I do not feel that the decision to make the change or the decision to proceed now with the signing is the kind of thing that requires government to go about the country in terms of some sort of formal consultation. Honestly, I think that making too much of what as I said is something that in my view can do us no harm and works to our advantage."
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