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Congress of Maya Teachers speaks on Santa Cruz incident

By on July 7, 2015
Santa Cruz incident

Santa Cruz incident

Punta Gorda town, Belize. Tuesday, July 7, 2015. The Congress of Maya Teachers, a group of educators from rural and urban Toledo district today issued a statement on the incident in Santa Cruz village which happened on June twentieth.

Viewers will recall that in that incident, villagers of Santa Cruz had detained, handcuffed and tied up Rupert Myles, purportedly in an attempt to evict him from where he had taken up residence without permission and more importantly allegations that he caused destruction to a sacred Maya archaeological area known as Uxbenka.

The statement from the Congress of Maya Teachers, lays out a well put together analysis of the situation and says that last month’s incident brought to light important issued that need urgent attention and resolution, suggesting that through education is an effective way of achieving that goal.

The first issue arising out of the Santa Cruz incident which the Congress of Maya Teachers addressed is the role of the Alcalde system.

There have been those who suggested that perhaps that system ought to be abandoned.

It is an assertion that the Congress of Maya Teachers soundly rejects, explaining that the Alcalde system, which is a part of the Laws of Belize, exists and plays an important role in promoting peace and harmony, maintaining a caring community and governing the village resources and lands.

With specific regards to the Rupert Myles incident, the Congress explains that under the Alcalde system, anyone wishing to become a resident of a Maya village must first obtain the permission of and the acceptance of the residents via the village meeting.

“We therefore do not believe that the Santa Cruz case was a matter of racism or discrimination,” the CMT statement said.

The Congress says that from the accounts given by the villagers, including documents provided, there was “a breakdown in respect of the village norms and the Alcalde’s court.”

The Congress statement goes on to say that the Maya people in southern Belize have and continue to contribute to the development of the country in various fields, including as teachers, police officers and soldiers.

“Our Maya people embrace diversity and inclusiveness as we mingle with various cultures of people,” the statement said.

The CMT also goes on record expressing its “distaste to the comments made by many, but more so by the leaders of our nation that blasts the Maya people as violent, ignorant, and racist.”

Says the statement: “we want to categorically state that such negative labeling and false accusation only serves to sink us into a deep level of mistrust and divide our people and country.”

Finally, the CMT statement ends by affirming the Congress of Maya Teachers’ commitment “to collaborate with the Ministry of Education and the Government of Belize to ensure that Maya and African history is advanced in meaningful ways in all our primary schools in the Toledo District.”

The Congress also calls on the government “to dialogue with the Maya people and to act quickly to find solutions that will allow us to put the past behind and encourage us to celebrate our unity as one Belize.”

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