Politics of Belize :: Essays on Politics

Politics of Belize The political system of Belize is fairly new. Belize gained its independence from Britain on September 21, 1981, and the Constitution of Belize was born with this newly autonomous state. Since its independence, Belize has remained a commonwealth of the British Monarch and owes allegiance to the queen of England. Belize's government is modeled after the British Parliamentary system. Although the country of Belize has been independent from Britain since 1981, the Caribbean country maintains many of the British practices and procedures in its political, governmental and judicial systems. The Federal Parliamentary government of Belize is comprised of two unified branches of government: the executive and the legislative branches. The Prime Minister and the cabinet make up the executive branch. They are chosen from the majority party in the Lower House of the legislature. The Prime Minister is the head of the cabinet. A governor-general, appointed by the United Kingdom monarch also possesses some appointing power in Parliament. The governor-general is an extension of the Royal Family, and his/her duties are rather superficial and more of a formality. According to Latin America Profiled, the UK appointed Governor-General of Belize is Sir Colville Young. Said Musa is the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Foreign Affairs of the Belize's Parliament. Those who Prime Minister Musa appointed to his cabinet include: George Price, John Briceno, Ralph Fonseca, Josà © Coye, Maxwell Samuels, Cordel Hyde, Richard "Dickie" Bradley, Marcial Mes, Garcà ­a Balderamose Oolores, Ruben Campos, Jorge Espat, Godfrey Smith, and B.Q. Pitts as the Speaker. This cabinet works on projects ranging from foreign affairs, hea lthcare, to civil society agendas. These representatives are chosen because of their experience and their party identification. It is expected that these officials will produce results, which are conducive to the opinions of the constituents, as well as to the loyalty of their party. A bicameral National Assembly forms the legislative branch of Parliament. The two branches of this bicameral body are called the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are twenty-nine elected members in the House of Representatives and eight appointed members in the Senate. Administrators in the House of Representatives are elected by universal suffrage. Five of the officials of the Senate are appointed by the governor-general on the advice of the Prime Minister, two by the leader of the less powerful party and one by the Belize Advisory Council.