A HISTORY OF BELIZE - A NATION IN THE MAKING

6 de enero de 2008

PART TWO
Dependent Belize in the World Economy
To understand our history, we must understand the place of Belize in the world economy. Over the last few hundred years more and more countries of the world have joined together in one global economic system. But the countries that make up this world economy are not equal. Those countries that began with more wealth and power were able to control and exploit poorer countries.
The Western European nations controlled the economies of their colonies - dominated their capital, land, labour and markets. As a result, the Western European countries benefited from the profits made in the colonies. They became richer while their colonies became poorer.
Belize was totally dependent on the changing demands of the European markets. Its development- or lack of it - was defined by the needs of Europeans. Although our land was rich in resources, our people stayed poor.
In Part Two we will find out how the market forces shifted forestry exploitation from logwood to mahogany and how the early settlers monopolized the land. We will also find out how development of an import trade led to the raise of a merchant class and the suppression of agriculture, although some people did engage in subsistence farming. Part Two also discusses the role of new immigrants- Garifuna, East Indians and Mestizos in the expansion of the colonial economy.

Chapter 6
The Dominance of Forestry

The extraction of forest products in Belize created conditions different from British colonies in the Caribbean.
First, because forest work required less labour than sugar plantations, there was no need for a large population. This is why even today Belize has only 7 per cent of Jamaica's population, although we are twice the size of that island. Secondly, forest exploitation as practiced in Belize did not require much machinery, capital, or roads. Thirdly, there was no attempt to replace the trees that were cut. Eventually, slow-growing mahogany trees became scarce.
Logwood
We have already learned that the first product exported from Belize was logwood. But logwood did not remain the main economic activity in Belize. By 1770 there was more logwood in the market than was needed, and the price fell. Later, the development of cheaper man-made dyes in Europe lessened the need for logwood even more.
When settlers were driven out from Belize by the Spanish in 1779, they had already found an alternative that was more profitable and longer lasting - the export of mahogany.
Mahogany
Mahogany dominated the economic, social and political life of our country until the middle of the 20th century.
In the 18th century, mahogany was valued in Europe by cabinet makers, by the shipbuilding industry, and later by builders of railroad carriages. The forests of Belize contained a great deal of mahogany. The British settlers were ready to log it.
The shift from logwood to mahogany cutting produced several dramatic changes in the settlement. The cutting of mahogany required more land, workers and capital and resulted in the creation of a small wealthy class who owned most of the land and labour.
Trade
Like logwood before it, mahogany suffered from rises and falls in demand and price. The years 1819 and 1826 were good years for mahogany, 1903 was bad. From 1834 to 1844 mahogany trading was very good but at the same time that exports were increasing, prices were going down. Between 1835 and 1841 the price dropped by half.
The rise in demand encouraged the cutting of trees, but no new trees were planted. Since mahogany takes many years to mature, the loggers had to move farther and farther inland to find trees. The time and effort increased the cost of logging. Since prices were going down at this time, the mahogany trade became less profitable.
The market continued to fluctuate. In the 1850's there was a severe decline in exports. By 1870, only two and three quarter million feet of mahogany were exported, the lowest yearly figure since the 1700's. By this time the settlers began to look for other economic activities.
A report of the Public Treasurer in 1860 noted that "agriculture is beginning to command a larger share of public attention." However, mahogany remained the most important export, and timber still earned the most money for the colony until 1959. It was only then that the combined value of sugar and citrus products was greater than the value of forestry products.
The total control of the economy by the logging companies meant the complete dependency of the colony on the mahogany trade. When the price of mahogany fell, it affected the whole economic and social life of Belize. At times, when companies went bankrupt their property was bought by other companies. This meant more land and capital ended up in the hands of a few.
The Merchant Class
Ever since the establishment of logwood settlements in Belize, The British settlers imported almost everything they needed to live and work. Most of what was needed but specially flour and salted pork, was imported.
The merchants and traders in Belize became rich and powerful. In 1885 the United States Consul in Belize wrote about "the tendency for persons to be disparaging about local agriculture efforts, least success in the direction might reduce the profits from imported foodstuffs".
At first, imports were totally controlled by the same people who controlled the export of timber. Then, in the 1920's, the entrepot trade with Central America grew and about four-fifths of the Central America trade went through Belize. Goods from Britain and the United States were imported into Belize first and then exported to other countries of the region. In 1860's, during the USA's civil war, the Belize merchants also profited by contraband trade with the Confederates.
Even without the entrepot and contraband trades the merchants were still very rich and powerful. They continued to be so long after forest exploitation declined.