VZCZCXRO5340
RR RUEHGR
DE RUEHBE #0072/01 0321745
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 011745Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY BELMOPAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0209
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE
RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BELMOPAN 000072 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/CEN (MACK) 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV EIND BH
SUBJECT:  BELIZE BATTLES OVER SHARE OF TOURIST FEES 
 
 
------- 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1.  A dispute between the Belize City Council (CitCo), the Belize 
Tourism Board (BTB), and the Government of Belize (GoB) continues to 
dominate the news.  At issue is the division of the USD 7.00 head 
tax every cruise ship passenger must pay to the GoB.  While the GoB 
is amenable to giving the CitCo a portion of the head tax, the CitCo 
says their offer is not enough.  It wants not only a share of the 
head tax, but the autonomy to spend its share as it sees fit.  End 
summary. 
 
--------------------------------------------- 
"Respectable Increase" in Tourists Presents a Mixed Picture 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  The recent release of preliminary figures from the Belize 
Tourism Board (BTB) - Belize's official tourism and tourist 
information organization - indicates that 2006 showed a "respectable 
increase" in visitor arrivals.  Figures for January through November 
2006 show a 2.9 percent increase in visitors arriving at Philip 
Goldson International Airport, the country's primary port of entry 
for overnight tourists.  That number grows to 4.3 percent once other 
ports of entry (i.e., the border points of Benque Viejo and Santa 
Elena and the sea ports of Dangriga and Punta Gorda) are included. 
BTB also reports that after the December numbers are calculated, the 
organization expects the total number of such tourists entering 
Belize in 2006 to approach 250,000. 
 
¶3.  The numbers for cruise ship arrivals, however, were 
disappointing.  According to BTB figures, less than 650,000 cruise 
ship passengers visited Belize in 2006 - a significant drop from 
2004 when BTB recorded over 850,000 arrivals.  But since cruise ship 
passengers spend less than one day in Belize (and, therefore, have 
less opportunities to spend their U.S. dollars here), BTB continues 
to focus on attracting more overnight visitors who traditionally 
spend more while in the country. 
 
--------------------------- 
Butting Heads Over Head Tax 
--------------------------- 
 
¶4.  All of this has been overshadowed by the current dispute between 
BTB and the Belize City Council over the USD 7.00 head tax that is 
collected from the passengers of every cruise ship that docks in 
Belize. The dispute has reignited in the last few weeks in response 
to citizens' complaints about the poor quality of Belize City 
services and streets.  Under current law, the head tax is divided 
three ways:  USD 1.60 to BTB, USD 1.40 to the Protected Areas 
Conservation Trust (PACT), and the remaining USD 4.00 to the Fort 
Street Tourism Village - an extensive strip of privately owned 
waterfront stores and restaurants catering to cruise ship 
passengers.  The Belize City Council (CitCo), led by Mayor Zenaida 
Moya, argues that it deserves a piece of the head tax pie because it 
is mainly Belize City streets and services that are impacted by the 
increased tourist traffic. 
 
¶5.  Two weeks ago, with little communication between the central 
government administration (controlled by the People's United Party) 
and the CitCo (all of whom are members of the opposition United 
Democratic Party), Moya threatened unspecified but visible public 
action such as blockage of streets leading to/from the tourist 
village.  Such action was avoided last week, when the GoB agreed to 
allocate USD 1.00 of the USD 7.00 head tax to the Belize City 
Council.  However, the CitCo has yet to accept the deal because the 
GoB's proposal calls for depositing the monies into a special 
account in the name of the Belize City Tourism Development Fund, to 
be administered by the Minister of Local Government and used for 
tourism projects as specified by BTB.  Thus far, Moya has objected 
to the GoB's proposed oversight, preferring instead that the funds 
be given directly to the CitCo to use as it sees fit.  Moya and her 
councilors planned to meet with her party's leadership over the 
weekend to decide whether or not to accept the GoB's terms. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶6.  When it comes to tourism - a major industry in Belize - the GoB 
appears to suffer from some sort of split personality.  GoB leaders 
trumpet the importance of the industry to the country's economy, but 
fail to invest in the infrastructure that tourists (and Belizeans) 
rely on.  The head tax feud is no different.  The Belize City 
municipality has been suffering from a shortage of funds since the 
current mayor and councilors took office last March.  (Former mayor 
David Fonseca admitted to taking several hundred thousand dollars in 
salary and cash advances before leaving office, but no criminal 
charges were filed).  While a share of the head tax will certainly 
benefit the CitCo, it presumably will benefit the national economy 
 
BELMOPAN 00000072  002 OF 002 
 
 
as well by making Belize a more attractive port for the cruise ship 
industry.  But partisan politics continue to trump any larger 
vision.  Municipal governments have very limited sources of revenue 
outside the annual subjections controlled by central government. 
This struggle for control of revenue, if successful, could be a 
significant step toward more local autonomy.  End comment. 
 
DIETER