Things got heated over the weekend along the Rio Hondo River. News Five confirmed that members of the Mobile Interdiction Team were shot at on Saturday evening. No injuries were reported. We understand that a shot was fired by an individual across the Mexican border near the illegal border crossing in Santa Cruz Village. Sources […]
The Port of Belize remains on security level two following the violence of last Wednesday when an unlawful protest turned ugly. Today, P.B.L. was open for business, but there has been no loading and unloading of cargo since last week. The situation remains tenuous as stevedores have kept away, adding to the economic woes of […]
Suspected arsonist Kareem Arnold has been arrested and charged for setting fire to several used car tires on the Belize Bank property in downtown Belize City. The incident happened on Thursday morning, following the unrest that had taken place across town at the Port of Belize compound a day earlier. It is not clear what […]
The infamous Won Hong Kim who illegally received a Belizean passport while sitting in jail, shed light on the illegalities taking place at the Immigration Department over the years. Kim was not the only case; tonight, we have the case an alleged notorious Turkish leader of an organized crime ring. He is Yakup Sut, who […]
The Supreme Court has handed down a major decision in respect of the situation at the Port of Belize. It has denied the injunction brought by the Attorney General’s Office to stay the termination of the thirty-six employees of P.B.L. That’s the decision that Justice Sonya Young handed down this morning. Justice Young also rejected […]
Following the court’s proceedings, attorney Anthony Sylvester spoke on behalf of the Christian Workers Union. Now, the matter that was before the court today wasn’t taken by the C.W.U. and its members – that was strictly the AG on behalf of the Labour Commissioner. In this matter, the C.W.U. was solely an interested party. Sylvester […]
Three senior police officers have been placed on administrative leave following the series of riotous activities that happened at the Port of Belize’s compound on Wednesday. Those officers, in this first instance, have been placed on five days administrative leave. They are Eastern Division Commander, ACP Alden Dawson; Region One Commander Senior Superintendent Daniel Dawson […]
So, what has the preliminary investigation revealed about what happened at the Port of Belize compound on Wednesday? Deputy Commissioner of Police Dezerie Philips-Magdaleno shares the sequence of events that happened, which ultimately led to the GSU confronting workers of the Port of Belize and injuring several persons. In a nutshell, there appears to have […]
The Commissioner of Police Chester Williams also spoke on the sequence of events that transpired that led up to the GSU’s actions on the grounds of the Port of Belize. Williams says that a breakdown in communication but there also appears to have been a breakdown in chain of command when the GSU was deployed. […]
As the court was handing down its ruling on the injunction and reinstatement, the Prime Minister made a statement on the state of affairs in the House this morning. Now, the Port of Belize maintains that its property was vandalized on Wednesday during an illegal protest by C.W.U. members inside its compound. It has also […]
Opposition Leader John Briceño also chimed in on the events of the past two days at the Port of Belize Ltd. He points to the two-facedness of the Barrow administration for coming to the aid of the Christian Workers Union from a legal perspective, but siccing the Gang Suppression Unit on its members who were […]
The state of emergency that prohibited movement in and out of the communities of Blue Creek and San Felipe in Orange Walk District have been lifted, as those villages now return to a sense of normalcy having been locked down since July tenth. The S.O.E. came into force two weeks ago, amid an increase in […]
There is another COVID-19 cluster in the Orange Walk District. Four new cases were reported on Thursday night. A family of four, two adults and two minors tested positive for the novel coronavirus. They are border jumpers and just before our newscast tonight, another case of COVID-19 was confirmed. The fifth case is another family […]
Tonight, we start the news with a reaction from the Port of Belize on the tumultuous events of Wednesday. First, the Port was closed today and that is because P.B.L. says it is carrying out a full assessment of the extent of damages caused during the violence that erupted there. Members of the Christian Workers […]
Turning to a shocking murder in the north; a six-year-old boy in Carolina Village is recuperating tonight after he witnessed his father’s murder on Wednesday afternoon. Forty-six-year-old Raymond “Snow” Jenkins was inside his car with his son in front of a residence in Calcutta Village in Corozal when two men on a motorcycle rode up to […]
Five days after Egbert Baldwin was executed in a hail of bullets in Ladyville, police have arrested and charged two men for his murder. Camryn Lozano and Albert Gill, both nineteen years old, were today arraigned in the Belize City Magistrate’s Court for the crime. Lozano is an aero dispatch ramp agent of Marage Road […]
The 2019-2020 Sugar Cane Crop Season came to an end on Tuesday. It was a difficult season for cane farmers in the north. It was a year during which famers and the factory faced a myriad of challenges. One of the biggest challenges was the effects of the extended drought in 2019. A.S.R./B.S.I. says that […]
Government announced on that it was awarding Brads Gaming Company another ten year contract for the administration of the lottery. That company, everyone knows, maintains a close relationship with a number of members of cabinet so the fact that they got the new contract was not exactly breaking news but except for the approval there […]
U.S. Chargé d’Affaires, Keith Gilges visited the Chiquibul Forest Reserve on Wednesday with Friends for Conservation and Development to learn more about the environmental challenges that forest faces. A US embassy release states that the United States is committed to the preservation of the Chiquibul, which plays a vital role in the cultural and environmental […]
Today, the Ministry of Education has reacted to a report on the alleged termination of teachers at Anglican schools. The release is in respect of reports made to the Belize National Teachers Union by several of its members that schools were overstaffed and that there is risk of redundancy. According to the ministry, the Belize […]
While we spoke with National President of the Belize National Teachers Union, Senator Elena Smith today, News Five asked for an update on the situation at the University of Belize, where the livelihood of a number of teachers as well as faculty and staff hang in the balance. The administration and board of the university […]
There is a projected loss of seven million dollars in the university’s cash flow. Back in June, a questionnaire was issued to poll whether faculty and staff would accept a cut in salaries. Among the recommendations, we are told, is the termination of members of support staff, including security and maintenance workers. But are the […]
Mayhem broke out at the port and escalated mid afternoon in the shooting of a stevedore. As early as six-thirty, buses blocked the entrance of the compound of the Port of Belize. It was anticipated that thirty-six staff members were to be terminated and so union members came out in solidarity. The police and the […]
As the chaos subsided after the shooting; the Attorney General who is also the Minister of National Security, sought to disown the use of force on the protesters by the Gang Suppression Unit. AG Michael Peyrefitte says that the behaviour of the GSU is unwarranted. Here is Isani Cayetano. Isani Cayetano, Reporting The extreme […]
As the situation played out on its compound, the Port of Belize issued a release stating that at eleven o’clock it was obliged to proceed to terminate thirty-six employees due to redundancy. It explained that the affected workers will receive the full benefits and compensation they are entitled to. The Chief Operating Officer, Pablo Salinas […]
