Last night, we brought you extensive coverage of yesterday's Senate Meeting. One of the motions which we didn't get a chance to tell you about, was a resolution tabled by the Government. It authorizes the Barrow Administration to ratify a Framework agreement between the Governments of Belize and Guyana for bilateral cooperation.
Now, viewers will remember that rice war between the local producers and importer Jack Charles. He wanted to import cheap Guyanese rice, which he said was a higher quality, at a lower cost to consumers. That happened right around the start of the Christmas season last year. To protect the local producers, Belize had to send back 3 containers of Guyanese rice which Jack Charles already had shipped to the Port of Big Creek.
Well, to ensure that Belize didn't offend the Government of Guyana for the refusal of that product, the then Minister of Agriculture, Gaspar Vega, and his CEO, Jose Alpuche, travelled to that CARICOM country to have face to face talks with their Guyanese counterparts. Those talks have resulted in this Framework agreement for the deepening of bilateral cooperation between both countries.
The Senate passed this motion, which allows the Government to sign this agreement. But, before they did so, PUP Senator Eamon Courtenay expressed his concern that Belize may be giving up the trade protections afforded to Belize as a lesser developed country under the CARICOM's Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas. He told the Senate that in his opinion, Belize did not need to craft this special arrangement with Guyana, since as two members of CARICOM, they already enjoy a well-developed relationship. He says that now Belize's local market is not protected from being swallowed up by Guyana:
Hon. Godwin Hulse, Leader of Gov. Business, Senate
"A resolution authorizing the ratification by Belize of the framework agreement between the government of the corporative Republic of Guyana and the government of Belize for deepening of bilateral corporation motion 2016. Mr. President I move the -- framework agreement between the corporative Republic of Guyana and the government of Belize for the deepening of bilateral corporation herein after called the agreement was signed on the 6th day of July 2016 and whereas the objective of the agreement is to provide a legal framework to encourage corporation interlaid trade investment tourism energy, marine affairs, education, agriculture and any other area of mutual interest now therefore be resolved that the senate authorize the government of Belize to gratify the agreement of full text of which is here to a next. Madam President this bilateral between two CARICOM partners, Peter Achaveramos gives authority to this as I recall and this is really two sister countries within CARICOM agreeing on certain things which cannot be greater that what the treaty of Achaveramos describes and it is no less but it kind of selects it out between two sister CARICOM countries."
Hon. Eamon Courtenay, PUP Senator
"Madam President I do not understand what the government of Belize and the government of Guyana are doing. We have a revised treaty of Chaveramos, a treaty that all members of CARICOM are parties to, a treaty that covers all the areas in this so-called framework agreement. Whether it be trade investment, tourism, marine affairs, education, agriculture, sports, culture, security, youth affairs, and other areas of mutual interest. I am signaling dangers, Guyana is a more developed country, Belize is a least developed country. The structure of the revised treaty with which you Madam President and Senator Hulse are very familiar, provide special and differential treatment for least developed countries like Belize visive more developed countries like Guyana. Is this framework agreement attempting to treat us as if we are on the same level within the CARICOM framework? and thereby conceding the special and differential treatment that we Belize are entitled to? we cannot erode the benefits the benefits that Belize has under the revised treaty of Chaveramos and when I did my consultation with members in the government I was told this is just an agreement for us to agree, a framework agreement. So nothing is given up, nothing is lost, and I wanted to complete the sentence, then nothing is gained. Why are we signing this is we do not have an intention to enter into substantive agreements? and if we enter into substantive agreements then we are starting to talk about delegations from the existing treaty."
Sen. Vanessa Retreage, Attorney General
"The signing of this agreement for the deepening of bilateral corporation is not contrary in any way to the treaty of Chaveramos firstly. Secondly, it does not erode any right that Belize has as an LDC under that treaty and neither does it grant on Guyana any more rights than it currently has as an NBC under that treaty."
We should note that in his private capacity, Courtenay was the attorney for the local rice producers - who led the challenge against the Guyanese rice.
After the debate on the topic, the motion passed with the Government's majority in the Senate.
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