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An accident involving a Belize Defense Force soldier stationed at the forward operating base near the mouth of the Sarstoon River is raising serious questions about the conditions of the facility. The F.O.B. was officially launched in April 2016 and is staffed on a twenty-four-hour basis by military and coast guard personnel. The unfortunate incident […]
The Ministry of National Security, through the Belize Crime Observatory, received a donation of GPS equipment earlier today from the United Nations Development Programme. The handing over of thirty-seven devices took place this morning and there to receive them was Chief Executive Officer George Lovell. The donation succeeds a local training session on the use […]
Written on November 6, 2018 | Posted in
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Perhaps the most striking of his many responses during the subsequent question and answer session is the fact that Cabinet has not discussed or sanctioned a series of proposed excursions to Gracias A Dios via the Sarstoon River. Last Tuesday, the Ministry of National Security announced on its social media page that planned visits to […]
The top brass at the Ministry of National Security has publicly come out in support of a ‘YES’ vote to take the Guatemalan claim to the International Court of Justice. The ministry’s C.E.O. Felix Enriquez, Deputy ComPol Chester Williams, Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Borland and B.D.F. Commander Steven Ortega did so in Open Your […]
Written on September 25, 2018 | Posted in
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Taking such a public position is unprecedented because the I.C.J. vote is a controversial and emotional issue with political implications. The position of the top brass of the security forces begs many questions: what if the officers and rank and file feel differently? Have the security forces taken a political position, and given up their […]
Written on September 25, 2018 | Posted in
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The three arms of the Ministry of National Security have taken a collective position as it relates to the International Court of Justice. Appearing in uniforms this morning on Open Your Eyes, were Deputy Commissioner of Police Chester Williams, Rear Admiral John Borland of the Belize Coastguard and Brigadier General Steven Ortega from the Belize […]
Written on September 24, 2018 | Posted in
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The Belize Defence and the Belize Coastguard are charged with protecting the sovereignty of Belize and its internal security. The B.D.F. and the Coastguard are both active in the Sarstoon where the Guatemalans have been turning Belizeans back from traversing the river. This morning, the B.D.F.’s Steven Ortega said that it was his view that […]
Written on September 24, 2018 | Posted in
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While the government is protesting the GAF, Elrington also spoke about the actions of the Belize Territorial Volunteers. He says that for the BTV to take citizens to the Sarstoon without following protocol to notify the B.D.F is not only reckless but also irresponsible. He says that BTV puts women and children at risk and […]
Minister of National Security John Saldivar also weighed in on the Sarstoon incidents. He says that they have made it clear to Belizeans that in an effort to ensure safety; they must check in with the B.D.F. to escort them on the Sarstoon River. In this case, Saldivar says that the Belize Territorial Volunteers failed […]
Written on September 19, 2018 | Posted in
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Today, the Governments of Belize and the United Kingdom signed the revised Status of Forces Agreement and its Memorandum of Understanding concerning the Status of the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom. The revised agreement sets out the new legal framework within which personnel of the UK Armed Forces will operate while in Belize. The […]
The Belize Territorial Volunteers claim that twice on the weekend, they had a face-off with the Guatemalan Armed Force on the Sarstoon River. Today, a press conference was held to denounce the GAF’s actions and to call on the government to take note and report the matter to the Organization of the American States. On […]
The Minister of National Security held its second annual Military Parade. As a highlight of the national September Celebrations, the parade featured the Belize Defense Force Infantry, Maritime and Air Wings, the Belize Coast Guard, the Belize Police Department, and some elements of our Special Forces. The parade started today at the quality poultry traffic circle […]
Written on September 18, 2018 | Posted in
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On Friday, we reported on the planned Sarstoon Island Eco Challenge. BTV volunteers led by Wil Maheia, had gone to the area to install a flag when they were confronted by the Guatemalan Armed Forces within Belizean waters. Despite that setback, the third annual challenge proceeded. At the event this weekend, the BTV say that […]
Written on September 17, 2018 | Posted in
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Smack in the middle of the national celebrations there has been encounter in the Sarstoon. The Belize Territorial Volunteers, lead by Wil Maheia, was up the Sarstoon River prior to this weekend’s eco-challenge. As the group was on the river, a vessel with at least five members of the Guatemalan Armed Forces drove up and […]
The Belize Coastguard is recording its largest number growing from strength to strength in its thirteenth year history. Today, just under eighty new members joined its ranks which have swollen to four hundred and fifty. The new recruits graduated in a ceremony also attended by proud family members at the Coastguard headquarters in Belize City. […]
Written on August 31, 2018 | Posted in
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About one point two million dollars in equipment was handed over today to the Belize Coast Guard and the Belize Defence Force by the U.S. government. The Coast Guard received equipment to be used to fight illicit activity relating to narcotics. The B.D.F. received similar equipment and a secondary entry control point. The upgraded control […]
The top brass of the Belize Coast Guard headed today to Bacalar Chico, a national park. The occasion was the groundbreaking ceremony for a forwarding operating base at the strategic site, which is the nearest point between Belize and Mexico near the bay of Chetumal. The area has mushroomed into a hotspot for drug trafficking […]
It took two months to clean up a long standing problem at the western border where pedestrian and vehicular traffic, as well as illegal activities, were posing persistent challenges to law and order. A perimeter fence that has been erected will allow for the efficient flow of traffic and assist authorities to better control illicit […]
Written on July 19, 2018 | Posted in
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Today’s ceremony at the western border was twofold. Not only was the Benque/Melchor facility inaugurated, ground was also broken for the construction of a Belize Defense Force outpost atop a hill overlooking the immigration and customs department offices. The lookout station will be put together by B.D.F. personnel attached to the Light Engineering Company and […]
Written on July 19, 2018 | Posted in
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A training programme by the Israeli government that started with controversy, ended quietly today in Belmopan. For a week, the police department and civilians received training from the Israeli instructors on best practices in community policing. The concept is one that is already being implemented in crime infested areas, but it is the instructors that […]
Written on July 3, 2018 | Posted in
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Deputy Commissioner Chester Williams, an advocate of strong community relations, credits the Israelis for their success in that area of outreach, despite what has been said by detractors of the initiative. Chester Williams, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) “As much as there may be critics out there, the Israelis are one of the best […]
Written on July 3, 2018 | Posted in
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A forward operating base was launched on Wednesday at Hunting Caye in southern Belize. The base was long in coming; work started in 2014, but was abruptly halted after it was revealed that a Guatemalan company had been contracted to carry out the building of the strategic base which has national security importance. At Wednesday’s […]
Written on June 28, 2018 | Posted in
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On Thursday night you heard Cristina Coc of the Maya Leaders Alliance outline growing Guatemalan incursions and the impacts on the bordering Mayan communities. On Wednesday, the Ministry of National Security John Saldivar, accompanied by Ambassador Alexis Rosado, went to the village of Dolores where they met with members of bordering communities that are experiencing […]
The village of Otoxha in Toledo has become a hot spot for illegal incursions by farmers from Guatemala who have been clearing of tracts of land for farming purposes. Other communities such as San Vicente, Jalacte and Dolores and San Benito Poite are also confronted by encroachers and the lives of leaders are threatened. The communities have […]
Coc continued that in Dolores, Guatemalan farmers had first put markers and then replaced them with posts even as trespassing and incursions continued in the San Benito Poite and San Vicente. Minister John Saldivar sought to assure the communities that security and sovereignty was of high importance. John Saldivar, Minister of National Security “We […]
