§ Mr. Fisherasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what representations he has received from British Honduras about the most recent Guatemalan claims to sovereignty; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydYes. When my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary was in British Honduras last week he received a joint petition from the Honduran Independence Party and the National Party, which reads as follows
We, the leaders of the National Party and the Honduran Independence Party representing many of the people of British Honduras, have noted with deep concern and resentment the recent actions and pronouncements of the President of the Republic of Guatemala.104WWhile we continue to desire the most friendly relations with our neighbours in Guatemala, we consider that the present attitude of President Ydigoras Fuentes towards our country represents a grave threat to our peaceful political and economical development.The people of British Honduras reject entirely and absolutely any pretensions to sovereignty over their territory by Guatemala and, on behalf of the people we represent, we urge you to call upon Her Majesty's Government vigorously to resist any claims of this sort which are totally repugnant to the people of British Honduras.I regret to add that, under the leadership of Mr. Price, the Peoples United Party flatly refused to be associated with the petition. They sent my hon. Friend a letter purporting to explain why they had refrained from making common cause with the other two parties, but Mr. Price, who addressed a special rally, did not reject Guatemalan claims.
However, a resolution in terms precisely identical with the last sentence of the petition was passed unanimously by the Governor's Executive Council, which includes the deputy leader and one other representative of the P.U.P., both of whom were present at the time. All this can leave no doubt of where the people of British Honduras stand on this issue.
I am informing the petitioners that I share the regret of the people of British Honduras that their relations with the neighbouring country of Guatemala should be disturbed but that, while I still hope the Guatemalan Government will respond to our offer to discuss means for improving economic relations between the two countries, we have not the slightest intention of abandoning our friends in British Honduras.