Happy Independence Day 2018
- Posted by Frantz Smith
- 0 Comment(s)
Happy Independence Day !!!
A pleasant morning and a blessed Independence Day to you.
I just wanted to remind you all that the independence movement started from December of 1949. This set the stage for the elections of 1954 which confirmed the population of Belizeans wanted independence. In this elections there was one mass party, a new mass party called the PUP. It took 8 of the 9 seats. Featured in this Belize Billboard photo are the winners of the elections:
- Mr. Leigh Richardson
- Mr. Jose Chin
- Mr. George Price
- Mr. Enrique Depaz
- Mr. George Flowers
- Mr. Philip Goldson
- Mr. Herman Jex
- Mr. Charles Westby
Apparently the Billboard did not have a picture of Mr. Nathaniel Cacho from Stann Creek.
At this point, Mr. Leigh Richardson, Mr. Philip Goldson and Mr. George Price all belonged to the PUP. Two years later however, Mr. Richardson and Mr. Goldson went to form the Honduran Independence Party (HIP) which became the National Independence Party (NIP) which, with two other parties, led to the UDP.
This was a bold and sacrificial move that these two men made. If they had not gone out and formed an opposition, it is possible that Belize could have gone down the road of one party rule. This would most likely have caused a very extractive form of government and set the stage for revolutions and counter revolutions.
My points for this post are that:
- The quest for Independence started off as a common noble goal
- Differences of opinion arose as to how independence should be achieved
- The opposition chose to pursue the principles of democratic opposition and Belizeans should be grateful for the choices of pluralist politics thus far
- There may be need for more pluralism on the political landscape
Just a few things to think about on our birthday.
Happy Independence Day Belize, and don’t forget to be grateful to God for sending the people who worked for this achievement!!!