And while the Prime Minister has argued - perhaps not so convincingly - that Castro's Visa might have just come to a natural end - he cannot say the same for John Saldivar's use of a Coast Guard vessel for his basketball team. Let's just say, it's almost an international incident - because we are told the US has made its displeasure known at the official level, and in the press. Today the Prime Minister said it's an exercise of poor judgement but not the end of the world:...
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"We heard the Americans, the US Embassy officials have made some level of official complaint, made their displeasure known, and they've made it known as well to the press in a statement to the reporter."
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Oh, they did?"
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"Yes, they made a statement to the Reporter saying that the vessels are X, Y, Z purposes."
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Well, they certainly haven't made any complaint to me, personally."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"The Foreign Minister?"
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"They may have spoken to the foreign minister. But, where that issue is concerned, look, let's leave aside the question of people gifting you material and then telling you how exactly you are to use the material, let's leave that aside. Because the Americans apart, the question arises whether even if these were boats bought and paid for entirely by the government of Belize, it was the right thing to do so in terms of the minister's use of the vessels. I am very much impressed by the fact that the commander of the coast guard Admiral Borland who is a fellow as you know fiercely independent, seems to fear no man alive, impressed by the fact that he spoke to the press, and made clear that in his view there was nothing wrong with the Minister's use of the vessel for that purpose. That leads me to the position where I can say with confidence, with conviction, that very clearly the minister genuinely did not think that he was doing anything in the slightest bit improper and the fact that the admiral, the person immediately in charge of the vessel felt the same way, I think has to count for a great deal. My own opinion, my own sense of what ought to be done, and what ought not to be done, differs from that of the minister."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"You wouldn't have done it?"
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"I wouldn't have done it."
"It's not anything to, in my view, keep going on about. The minister certainly knows now that that cannot be done again, ah, certainly from the point of view of the government, I regret that this developed into a sort of incident, but indeed, let us go forward knowing that, that sort of use, is now absolutely and completely off the table."
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