he ordered riot police to disperse the crowd, which they did using teargas and rubber bullets. Some union workers laid down and refused to disperse; they were physically dragged from the area. This is only the third time that this kind of unrest has hit Belize. The most recent occasion was in the 1980s, when a proposal was drafted to cede part of the country to Guatemala occasioned the Heads of Agreement Crisis. Reports indicate that the police were very calm throughout the day, although some police cadets were said to have employed unnecessary force against orders. There were reports of fully trained officers restraining cadets and removing them from the police lines, and some people assert that no rocks were thrown until after a protester was hit in the head by a club wielded by a cadet. Between the protests After the conclusion of the Friday protest, the Belize National Teachers' Union, led by President Anthony Fuentes, began a prolonged strike action that left the majority of schools closed going into February. Shortages of water and electricity were also common. Initial agreements were made as of January 26 between the government and the Congress; in support of these deals university and college students took to the streets that day, representing the University of Belize and ATLIB affiliated institutions. But by Friday January 28, talks had broken down again as the Public Service Union of government workers left their jobs and forced a new round of negotiations that dragged on in the early days of February even as teachers began to return to school. Taking advantage of numerous faults in communication between the union representatives, Government negotiators Carla Barnett and Assad Shoman came up with an agreement on February 11. The NTUCB received a review of the budget, salary increases for its members, various reform measures tied to national development corporations and a promise of cooperation. The budget's tax increases were suspended to March 1, pending their review. A planned national shutdown and strike was averted. Almost an aberration in the midst of the storm and fury was the takeover of Belize Telecommunications Limited by the Government following investor Jeffrey Prosser's failure to pay for his batch of shares bought the previous year. That deal would be more closely examined in the months to come. Conditions leading to March and April unrest The Union Congress and GOB met in talks