BTV’s Sarstoon Ritual, Will GAF Stop Them?

Every September, Wil Maheia loads his boats and heads for the same stretch of river. And every September, the government tries to talk him out of it.

The Belize Territorial Volunteers (BTV) are set to make their annual pilgrimage to the Sarstoon River on Thursday, a trip that, in years past, has ended in tense standoffs involving Belizean civilians, the Belize Defence Force, and Guatemalan forces patrolling the disputed border. This year, the warning came early, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs cautioning citizens about the risks of heading into contested territory.

Maheia has heard this before. Fifteen years of it, in fact. “I would say that every year we have pushback. For more than fifteen years we have been going there now, and the pushback is more so some years than the other years. The pushback this year, yes, I think, was not really necessary. But it is expected that there would have been some pushback.”

To him, the warning reads less like caution and more like discouragement, an attempt to quietly talk Belizeans out of visiting their own country’s edge. And with independence celebrations in full swing, he’s leaning into the timing rather than backing down from it. “Our idea is to just go down to the Sarstoon peacefully as Belizeans, and this is the spirit of independence. This is our independence month. Show Belize where our borders are. And that is all we plan to do, go down there and show Belize where our borders are and have a celebration.”

Here’s the twist, though: the very pushback Maheia criticises may have actually worked in his favour. In the days leading up to the trip, BTV opened direct lines with both the Belize Defence Force and the Belize Coast Guard, walking them through exactly what tomorrow will look like on the water.

“I think that the pushback from the ministry worked out well, because in the end we have had dialogue with the Belize Defence Force personnel and the Belize Coast Guard, and we have assured them of our plan. They have accepted our plan, and it is going to be a great day tomorrow. We are going down to the Sarstoon, we are going down to the forward operating base, and we will let the Belizean public know that the border starts at the Sarstoon.”

Maheia says the group’s plan hasn’t changed. He says no weapons on board, for anyone, is allowed at any point.