Tuesday, November 10 2009

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Dean Oliver Barrow ...

The Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting begins in Port-of-Spain on November 27 and continues for three days. Fifty-one heads or their representatives will assemble at the Hyatt for the talks. Two countries have been suspended—the Fiji Islands which was suspended from membership on September 21, 2009 and Nauru, which is in arrears. We continue today a daily feature on the Commonwealth and feature the Heads of these States who are expected in Port-of-Spain in November.

Dean Oliver Barrow, 58, is the Prime Minister of Belize. He is also the leader of the United Democratic Party (udp). An attorney, he served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1993 to 1998 and was then Leader of the Opposition until the UDP won the February 2008 election. Following his party’s victory in the 2008 election, he became Prime Minister.

Barrow has four children. The oldest is rapper Jamal “Shyne” Barrow, born November 8, 1978. (His mother is the sister of Barrow’s longest political colleague, the Hon Michael Finnegan). His second son is a successful entrepreneur, and runs a small lending institution. His daughter Deanne practises law out of her mother’s (Barrow’s first wife Lois Young) firm.

Barrow married for a second time February 7, 2009 (exactly one year after winning the elections that made him Prime Minister) in Savannah, Georgia to his long-time girlfriend Kim Simplis. They have one daughter, Salima.

Barrow attended St Michael’s College in Belize and the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill, Barbados (LLB 1973); Norman Manley Law School, Mona, Kingston, Jamaica (Certificate of Legal Education, 1975); University of Miami School of Law (LM, 1981); University of Miami (MA International Relations).

Barrow, a senior counsel (the local equivalent of the British ‘QC’), is also considered one of Belize’s more successful attorneys and has appeared in several high profile cases. He began his legal work in the law firm of uncle Dean Lindo in 1973 and became a partner in 1977. He would eventually leave to form his own law firm. He is currently senior partner in the local law firm Barrow and Williams (with Rodwell Williams), and frequently appears in court to argue sensitive cases. Among his more controversial clients was Lord Ashcroft and the businesses he is in charge of, particularly the Belize Bank and Belize Telemedia Limited, formerly Belize Telecommunications Limited.

In 1983 Barrow entered electoral politics as a candidate for Belize City Council elections in December 1983, which he won as part of a nine-man slate. He then participated in general elections of December 1984 as a candidate for the Queen’s Square electoral division against, ironically, former fellow MP Ralph Fonseca. Barrow defeated Fonseca handily and was nominated to Cabinet as Attorney General and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In the 1989 general election, Barrow defeated Thomas Greenwood but his party lost the election. Barrow continued in his law practice. In 1990, he became Deputy Party Leader to Manuel Esquivel after the death of the Hon Curl Thompson. In 1993, Barrow won his third straight general election, over Juliet Soberanis, and returned to Cabinet in the posts he held from the previous administration in addition to Minister of National Security. His detractors called him “Minister of Everything” during this period because he appeared at most major functions on behalf of the UDP government.

After the 1998 elections loss in which he was one of only three representatives who retained a seat for the UDP, Barrow was elevated to Party Leader and Leader of the Opposition, replacing Manuel Esquivel in both positions. Barrow has presided over the smallest Oppositions (three and seven respectively) in the House of Representatives since 1974 and ever in the UDP’s history. Barrow has won his last two elections by closer margins than his previous elections over attorney Richard “Dickie” Bradley. Barrow was re-elected for the sixth time in 2008 against the PUP’s Anthony Sylvester and Ebony Babb of the NRTCP.

The UDP won a massive victory, with 25 out of 31 seats, in the general election held on February 7, 2008, and Barrow was sworn in as Prime Minister on February 8. He is the country’s first black Prime Minister. He announced his Cabinet, including himself as Minister of Finance, on February 11. Barrow has made himself readily available to local media regarding various issues.



Belize

Belize (formerly British Honduras), is a country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, composed of many cultures and speaking many languages. Although Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official language. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, Guatemala to the south and west, and the Caribbean sea to the east. With 8,867 square miles (22,960 km²) of territory and 320,000 people (2008 est.), the population density is the lowest in the Central American region and one of the lowest in the world. However, the country’s population growth rate, 2.21% (2008 est.), is the highest in the region and one of the highest in the western hemisphere.

Belize is culturally unique among Central American nations. It is the only nation in Central America with a British colonial heritage, and is the only constituent nation of the Commonwealth of Nations in its region. Culturally, Belize considers itself to be Central American but keeps ties to the Caribbean Islands.

Economy

Belize has a small, essentially private enterprise economy that is based primarily on agriculture, agro-based industry, and merchandising, with tourism and construction recently assuming greater importance. In 2006, the cultivation of newly discovered crude oil in the town of Spanish Lookout, has presented new prospects and problems for this developing nation. It has yet to be seen if significant economic expansion will be made by this. To date, oil production equal 3,000 bbl/day (2007 est.) and oil exports equal 1,960 bbl/day (2006 est.). Sugar, the chief crop, accounts for nearly half of exports, while the banana industry is the country’s largest employer.

The new government faces important challenges to economic stability. Rapid action to improve tax collection has been promised, but a lack of progress in reining in spending could bring the exchange rate under pressure. The tourist and construction sectors strengthened in early 1999, leading to a preliminary estimate of revived growth at four percent. Infrastructure continues to be a major challenge for the economic development of Belize.

Belize has the most expensive electricity in the region. Trade is important and the major trading partners are the United States, Mexico, the European Union, and Central America.

Belize has five commercial banks, of which the largest and oldest is Belize Bank. The other four banks are Alliance Bank of Belize, Atlantic Bank, FirstCaribbean International Bank, and Scotiabank (Belize).

A combination of natural factors — climate, the Belize Barrier Reef, 127 offshore Cayes (islands), excellent fishing, safe waters for boating, scuba diving, and snorkeling, numerous rivers for rafting, and kayaking, various jungle and wildlife reserves of fauna and flora, for hiking, bird watching, and helicopter touring, as well as many Maya ruins — support the thriving tourism and ecotourism industry. It also has the largest cave system in Central America. Development costs are high, but the Government of Belize has designated tourism as its second development priority after agriculture. In 2007, tourist arrivals totalled 251,655 (more than 210,000 from the U S ) and tourist receipts amounted to $183.3 million.

Belize is a parliamentary democracy, a Commonwealth realm, and therefore a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

The structure of government is based on the British parliamentary system, and the legal system is modeled on the common law of England. The current head of state is Elizabeth II, Queen of Belize.