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Army on Belize's streets after riots, one dead
22 Apr 2005 20:01:00 GMT
Source: Reuters
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GUATEMALA CITY, April 22 (Reuters) - Army troops and police patrolled the streets of Belize's main city on Friday after one person died during anti-government protests and looting, government officials said. More than 100 people have been arrested since demonstrations broke out in Belize City last week at the government's handling of the sale of the state-run Belize Telecommunications Limited, or BTL, phone company. "The police have acted with all restraint. We will not prevent people from protesting but they must adhere to the law," government spokesman Seth Hernandez told Reuters in neighboring Guatemala by telephone. Telephone, Internet and international banking services have been badly interrupted as workers try to pressure Prime Minister Said Musa's government to increase employee participation in the company. Hernandez said workers had sabotaged phone lines. Central America's only English-speaking nation, the former British colony in the Caribbean is famous for its barrier reef. Tourists drawn to the country by its scuba diving were unable to withdraw money from broken bank teller machines this week. The government said one person was killed as shops and petrol stations were looted by protesters. The cause of the death is unclear. Musa told local reporters the violence was orchestrated by opposition politicians. Belize is a kaleidoscope of ethnic groups from Afro-Caribbeans to Asians and from Mayan Indians to Mennonites, who speak German. Sandwiched between Mexico and Guatemala, it has a tiny population of 270,000. The government has been hit by a series of corruption and investment scandals in the last year, and Standard & Poor's recently cut Belize's foreign-currency debt to CCC, citing the country's increasing debt load and lack of access to financing. Britain's Lord Ashcroft resigned as treasurer of the Conservative Party in 2001 in a row over his business activities in the former colony
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