7 News Belize

GOB And AA Fight Over Compensation In USD: CCJ Says Work It Out
posted (September 20, 2016)
For almost 2 months, the attorneys for the Government of Belize and the Ashcroft Alliance have been preparing for a hearing before the Caribbean Court of Justice. As we told you in July, they've settled the Government takeover of BTL, and the bill for it to be nationalized is a half a billion dollars. But, they still can't agree how the award should be paid. On July 13, the Barrow Government made the first half of the payment of just over 130 million dollars in Belize currency, and just over 30 million dollars in US currency.

The problem is that the Ashcroft Alliance is complaining that this was not what they signed in the Settlement agreement at the Permanent Council on Arbitration. They say that payment should be strictly in US currency, but Government had a different interpretation and paid the majority in Belizean dollars.

So, they took the case to the Caribbean Court of Justice for them to settle it. That hearing happened today where Denys Barrow and Eamon Courtenay was allowed an hour each to make their case before Justices Jacob Wit, Rolston Nelson, and Winston Anderson. When that hearing was over, we spoke to both sides right outside of the court:

Eamon Courtenay, SC - Attorney - Dunkeld/Ashchroft Alliance
"Our position is that the settlement agreement required the government to make all of that amount in US dollars. The government disagree. As a result we brought an application to the Caribbean Court of Justice seeking a declaration from the court that the government is oblige to make a payment all in US dollars and 2) to order them to pay that amount in US dollars. The court heard us, Mr. Barrow and myself for an hour each this morning and at the end of it the court did not make a ruling. It told us to go away and suggested very strongly that the matter should be settled, that the indication, not a decision and I want to be clear, was that we are entitled to be paid in US dollars and therefore the party should try to resolve it."

Denys Barrow, Attorney for GOB
"Today's hearing concern an application by the Dunkeld/Lord Ashcroft related entities to have an interpretation given to the settlement agreement which would allow them to get an amount greater than what the government says is due to them. It would allow them on their view, their interpretation to diminish the amount of the award which the parties have agreed should go for thr benefit of the people of Belize."

Home | Archives | Downloads/Podcasts | Advertise | Contact Us

7 News Belize