About Belize

By Chris Rahmani
Chris_Rahmani@excite.com

Zee Edgell’s origin, Belize, is a beautiful independent state in northeastern Central America, bounded on the north and northwest by Mexico, on the east by the Caribbean Sea, and on the south and west by Guatemala. Belize, until 1973 was known as British Honduras, and became independent in 1981 and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The total area of Belize is 8867 sq mi.

"Belize in Natural Colour" A mural by San Ignacio's Court House, Cayo District. Photo by Debra Wilks.

History of Belize

In pre-Columbian times Belize was part of the territory of the Maya. It was included in the viceroyalty of New Spain in the 1500s, and sometime later English woodcutters from Jamaica established a settlement on the Belize River. During the wars between England and Spain in the 1700s, Spain failed to dislodge the British from the area. In 1836, after the emancipation of Central America from Spanish rule, the British claimed the right to administer the region; it was declared a British colony, subordinate to Jamaica, in 1862 and an independent crown colony in 1884. Long-range constitutional reforms were initiated by the British in 1954, resulting in a new constitution ten years later. Progress toward independence, however, was hampered by an old Guatemalan claim to sovereignty over the territory. When Belize finally attained full independence on September 21, 1981, Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation; about 1500 British troops remained to protect Belize from the Guatemalan threat. Prime Minister George Price of the United Party, who had led the country to independence, was replaced by Manuel Esquivel when Belize held its first national elections, on December 14, 1984. Price returned to power after the elections of September 1989. In May 1993 the United Kingdom announced that it would end its military involvement in Belize. All British troops would evacuate the country by October 1994. Esquivel regained the prime ministership in June 1993 elections. In July Esquivel announced the suspension of a pact reached with Guatemala during Price’s prime ministership, claiming Price had made too many concessions in order to gain Guatemalan recognition. The pact would have resolved a 130-year-old border dispute between the two countries.

"The Future Meets the Past" Corozal children discovering their history through Manuel
Villamor's vivid fresco.   Corozal Town Hall, Northern Belize.      Photo by Debra Wilks.

Population of Belize

The majority of the population of Belize, 224,663 (1997 estimate), is of mixed racial descent. The largest group is of black or partly black ancestry. Other groups include Native Americans, principally Carib and Mayan, located in the north and west; people of European descent, mainly English and Spanish; and people of mixed Native American-European descent.