But while the Culture Minister was excited to celebrate this positive development, he was quiet when Chief Magistrate Ann Marie Smith found his Orange Walk UDP Colleague, Denny Grijalva, guilty of destroying the Noh Mul Maya Site about 2 months ago.
So, yesterday we asked Aragon about the politics of the Noh Mul judgment:
Daniel Ortiz
"Why we are here celebrating this important discovery the reality is that your colleague, your UDP colleague was responsible for the destruction of one of these important cultural heritages. This issue sort of went under the rug, nobody from the UDP party said anything about it let's just leave it like that. What is going to happen with Mr. Denny Grijalva, will he be facing any political consequences for the destruction that happened?"
Hon. Elodio Aragon Jr – Minister of State/Culture
"You bring up politics into this thing you know. I didn't want to get into politics because this is not about politics today this is about our Maya heritage and what is happening here today. But to kind of answer you your question I believe that matter has been before the courts, the courts have dealt with that and as far as I concern that is the end with that. Of his political career my brother nothing is guaranteed to no one when it comes to politics, you all know that so that will be left with him to decide what course he takes from here on. All I could tell you right now and I want to bring you guys back here to Xunantunich because this is where we are right now. You've been invited to come out here because we want to highlight the kind of work that is taking place out here."
Daniel Ortiz
"Your response tends towards avoiding the question and the public embarrassment that was involved in that particular situation."
Hon. Elodio Aragon Jr – Minister of State/Culture
"Like I said I'm not; you're trying to get an answer from me to pick a side. Listen at the end of the day he went to court, the system dealt with him and that is that with that you understand. I guess everybody understands the situation and by the end of the day everybody has their own opinions you know. At this point in time like I said our focus on looking on what we are doing here in Belize in terms of moving forward with our excavations and the slow process of how to get and move things forward to enrich these sites of ours in Belize."
Grijalva, his wife, his foreman, and his company were fined a total of $24,000 for the destruction.
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