Pensionable officer dying after injury or contracting disease

(1) Where an officer while in public service under the Government of Belize, (a) is injured in the actual discharge of his duty by some injury specifically attributable to the nature of his duty which is not wholly or mainly due to, or seriously aggravated by, his own serious and culpable negligence or misconduct; or (b) contracts a disease to which he is exposed by the nature of his duty, not being a disease wholly or mainly due to or seriously aggravated by his own serious and culpable negligence or misconduct, and dies as a direct result thereof and such death occurs within seven years of the date when he was injured or contracted the disease, the Governor- General may grant, in addition to the grant, if any, made to his legal personal representative under section 16 of this Act, (i) if the deceased officer leaves a widow, a pension to her at the rate not exceeding ten-sixtieths of his annual pensionable emoluments at the date of the injury or seventy-five 24 dollars a year, whichever is the greater; (ii) if the deceased officer leaves a widow to whom a pension is granted under paragraph (i) and a child or children, a pension in respect of each child until such child attains the age of eighteen years, of an amount not exceeding one-eighth of the pension prescribed under paragraph (i); (iii) if the deceased officer leaves a child or children but does not leave a widow or no pension is granted to the widow, a pension in respect of each child until such child attains the age of eighteen years of double the amount prescribed by paragraph (ii); (iv) if the deceased officer leaves a child or children and a widow to whom a pension is granted under paragraph (i) and the widow subsequently dies, a pension in respect of each child as from the date of the death of the widow until such child attains the age of eighteen years, of double the amount prescribed in paragraph (ii); (v) if the deceased officer does not leave a widow or if no pension is granted to his widow and his mother was wholly or mainly dependent on him for her support, a pension to the mother of an amount not exceeding the pension which might have been granted to his widow; 25 (vi) if the deceased officer does not leave a widow or mother or if no pension is granted to his widow or mother and if his father was wholly or mainly dependent on him for his support, a pension to the father of an amount not exceeding the pension which might have been granted to his widow; (vii) if the deceased officer does not leave a child or children who is or are eligible for a pension under the provisions of this section and if any brother or sister was wholly or mainly dependent on him for support, a pension to any brother or sister until he or she attains the age of eighteen years, of the same amount and subject to the same conditions as the pension which might have been granted under paragraphs (ii), (iii) or (iv) as the case may be, Provided that, (a) if in the opinion of the Governor-General there are compassionate grounds for so doing, he may grant to any child of a deceased officer being a child who at the date of death of the officer was wholly or mainly dependent on him for support and who has attained the age of eighteen a pension for such period as the Governor-General may determine, of an amount not exceeding the pension which may be granted under paragraphs (ii), (iii) or (iv), as the case may be; 26 (b) where a deceased officer leaves a child who was incapacitated at the time of the officer’s death (hereinafter in this section referred to as an “incapacitated child”) the Governor- General may, notwithstanding any pension which may have been granted under paragraphs (ii), (iii) or (iv) grant an additional pension in respect of such incapacitated child after he has attained the age of eighteen years and so long as his incapacity shall continue, of an amount not exceeding one-half of the pension which might have been granted under paragraphs (ii), (iii) or (iv) aforesaid, as the case may be; (c) where compensation in respect of the death is payable under any law in force in Belize provides for the payment of workmen’s compensation or where benefits corresponding to benefits granted under this section are payable under the Overseas Superannuation Scheme or under the law in force in respect of any other public service in respect of death, the Governor-General may reduce or withhold any pension which may be payable under this section in such manner as he may consider reasonable; (d) no pension shall be payable under this subsection at any time in respect of more than six children exclusive of incapacitated children and where there are more than six such children in respect of whom but for this proviso a pension would be payable, then the amount payable in respect of six children shall be divided equally among all such children during the period in which there are more than six children of pensionable age; 27 (e) in the case of a pension granted under paragraphs (v), (vi), or (vii), if it appears to the Governor-General at any time that the mother or father or any brother or sister is adequately provided with other means of support, such pension shall cease as from such date as the Governor-General may determine. (2) No pension shall be granted to the widow of the deceased officer if she was not married to him at the date of (3) No pension shall be payable to the widow of the deceased officer or to any other female if, (a) in the case of the widow, she was at the time of the death cohabiting with a person other than the deceased officer or after the death she marries or cohabits with any person; (b) in the case of a female who is not the widow of the deceased officer, she was at the time of the death married to or cohabiting with any person or after the death she marries or cohabits with any person; and if after the grant of pension to the widow or other female she marries or cohabits with any person, the pension shall cease from the date of the marriage or the commencement of the cohabitation, Provided that where, (i) a pension is withheld or ceases under this subsection; and (ii) the Governor-General is satisfied that at a subsequent date the marriage or 28 cohabitation has come to an end or that there are compassionate grounds for the payment of the pension notwithstanding marriage, the Governor-General may, if he thinks fit, grant or re-grant the pension as from that date. (4) In the case of an officer not holding a pensionable office the expression “pensionable emoluments” in subsection (1) of this section, shall mean the emoluments enjoyed by him which would have been pensionable emoluments if the office held by him had been a pensionable office. (5) If an officer proceeding by a route approved by the Governor- General to or from Belize at the commencement or termination of his service in the public service of the Government of Belize or for a period of secondment, duty leave or leave therefrom, dies as a result of a damage to the vessel, aircraft or vehicle in which he is travelling, or of any act of violence directed against such vessel, aircraft or vehicle and the Governor- General is satisfied that such damage or act is attributable to circumstances arising out of war in which Her Majesty may be engaged, such officer shall be deemed, for the purposes of this section, to have died as a result of the circumstances described in subsection (1) (a) of this section. (6) An officer who dies as a result of an injury received while travelling by air in pursuance of official instructions, which injury is not wholly or mainly due to or seriously aggravated by his own serious and culpable negligence or misconduct shall be deemed for the purpose of this section to have died in the circumstances described in subsection (1) (a) of this section, Provided that in such a case the rates of pension prescribed in sub- section (1) (i) and (ii) of the section, shall be fifteen- sixtieths and one-sixth respectively. 29 (7) (a) Where the Governor-General is satisfied that damages have been or will be recovered in respect of the death for which a pension may be granted under subsection (1) of this section, the Governor-General may take these damages into account against such pension in such manner and to such extent that he may think fit and may withhold or reduce the pension accordingly. (b) For the purposes of this subsection an officer shall be deemed to recover damages whether they are paid in pursuance of a judgment or order of a court or by way of settlement or compromise of his claim and whether or not proceedings are instituted to enforce that claim. (8) For the purposes of this section the following words have, in relation to an officer, the meanings hereby respectively assigned to them, (a) “brother” includes, in relation to a person, every male child of his father or his mother; (b) “child” includes, (i) a posthumous child; (ii) a step-child or illegitimate child born before the date of the injury or contracting the disease, as the case may be, and wholly or mainly dependent upon the deceased officer for support; and (iii) an adopted child, adopted in a manner recognised by law, before the date of the injury or contracting the disease, 30 as the case may be, and dependent as aforesaid; (c) “incapacitated” means in relation to a child incapable by reason of some specific bodily or mental disability of earning his own living and a child who is in any event too young to earn his own living shall be treated as incapacitated for the purposes of this section if it appears that by reason of any special bodily or mental disability, he will be incapable of earning his own living when he attains the age at which he would otherwise be capable of doing so; (d) “father” includes a step-father and a male person by whom an officer has been adopted in a manner recognised by law; (e) “mother” includes in relation to a person a stepmother and a female person by whom he has been adopted in a manner recognised by law; “sister” includes every female child of his father or his mother.