Home » Featured Foreign Affairs People & Places Politics Regional / International
You are currently browsing entries filed in: Featured Foreign Affairs People & Places Politics Regional / International
Opposition Leader John Briceño, the only member of the People’s United Party to address the amendment in the house today, spoke on the P.U.P.’s willingness to work with the Barrow administration on behalf of the country. Aside from calling for transparency and accountability, Briceño also supports the allocation of financial resources to cover all expenses […]
Ambassador Assad Shoman continues to be a key figure in Belize’s move towards resolving the age-old territorial dispute with Guatemala at the International Court of Justice. He is one of two individuals representing government that have been named as agents to supervise the handling of Belize’s case before the world court. As such, the question […]
Parliamentarians will meet on Monday for a Special Sitting of the House of Representatives. The special sitting will be to primarily amend the Maritime Areas Act. While this step was expected given the May eighth I.C.J. results, it was not until earlier in the week that government announced that Cabinet had approved the amendment. In […]
The People’s United Party is meeting on Friday to determine a position ahead of a collective vote on the proposed amendment to the Maritime Areas Act. The House of Representatives will convene a special session on Monday to table specific changes to that piece of legislation. Earlier today, we caught up with Cayo South Area […]
In an update to the referendum…A sitting of the House of Representatives will be held on Monday, May twentieth, to amend the Maritime Areas Act of 1992. That decision was taken in cabinet today and comes within days of the May eighth referendum. Fifty-five percent of Belizeans voted to take the territorial dispute between Belize […]
Belizeans have voted decisively to proceed to the International Court of Justice in an effort to bring an end to the longstanding territorial dispute with Guatemala. On Wednesday, thousands of voters participated in the I.C.J. referendum, despite pending litigation before the local courts. As it turned out, a YES vote was the majority during the […]
At the press conference on Thursday, the prime minister said that the team of international lawyers who will represent Belize at the I.C.J. is already on government’s payroll. But what are they making and how much are they billing taxpayers for their services? While PM Barrow could not come up with a concrete figure, he […]
As you heard, the P.M. is proposing to go back to a two-party approach between government and the opposition, following the May tenth I.C.J. referendum. But how much input will the People’s United Party be allowed in shaping Belize’s argument before the world court? PM Barrow says the P.U.P. can chime in as much as […]
This afternoon, the Guatemalan Government issued a recorded statement by President Jimmy Morales alongside his Foreign Minister Sandra Jovel. Morales celebrated Belize’s decision to take the territorial dispute to the International Court of Justice and expressed hope that the issue be resolved soon. Here is an excerpt from the two and a half minute statement. […]
The Prime Minister also spoke of the P.U.P.’s challenge of the 2008 Special Agreement. While the Chief Justice has ruled that the Special Agreement is not a serious issue to be tried, the P.U.P. has appealed that particular ruling which is now before the Court of Appeal. Those who have been following the legal battle […]
In the south, Sarstoon Island and River have been an irritant since Guatemala has been exercising authority in the area. The latest incident in which a Belizean flag was removed from Sarstoon Island after being planted by Belizeans caused a great uproar. The flag was removed by Guatemalan Armed Forces and returned to Wil Maheia […]
Written on May 6, 2019 | Posted in
Defense,
Foreign Affairs |
No comment
The Sarstoon remains a hotspot in southern Belize because the Guatemalan Armed Forces has consistently behaved as if the entire island is under their control. Now, today is the anniversary of the 1859 Treaty which is very significant in the resolution of the Guatemalan claim to Belizean territory. The signing of the treaty took place […]
Two weeks ago, Cabinet approved an amendment to the Fisheries Regulations which removes the category of “permanent residents” from those persons eligible in obtaining a fishing license in Belize’s territorial waters. The decision is seen as a move to ultimately curb illegal fishing practices occurring in the south. In the Sarstoon, particularly, Guatemalans who have […]
Three cases relating to the referendum have been unsuccessful for the government, but tonight, the referendum proceeds. The legalities started on April first when the Chief Justice ordered an interim injunction on the then April tenth referendum. That decision was taken to the Court of Appeal by the government, but the court said it did […]
Both parties are expected back before the Chief Justice until the end of June on the substantive matter which is on the legality of the Compromis. As you know, the claimants, the People’s United Party, have maintained that the 2008 Special Agreement is unconstitutional and have filed a cross-appeal in the Court of Appeal which […]
Prime Minister Dean Barrow has made it quite clear that the I.C.J. referendum will be held on May eighth. Now, on April twenty-sixth, the Elections and Boundaries Department notified the public that the cut-off date for registration as electors for persons wishing to vote was moved to April tenth, 2019. So if you did not […]
On Friday, the Ministry of National Security rejected claims made by Wil Maheia of the Belize Territorial Volunteers that three Guatemalan gunboats blocked citizens of Belize from entering the Sarstoon and stopped them at the mouth of the river. Maheia claimed the Coastguard and the B.D.F. were not at the Forward Operating Base, but the […]
May eighth will be a historic day for the country when voters will make a monumental determination on whether or not the territorial claim will be taken to the International Court of Justice. Both major political parties a gearing up for the day and today, U.D.P. Cabinet Minister and Pickstock Area Representative Wilfred Elrington says […]
And to bring out every single voter will take some serious resources, especially money. Reports are emerging that U.D.P. standard bearers and area representatives are expected to received tens of thousands of dollars in preparation for the May eighth I.C.J. referendum. Foreign Affairs Minister and Pickstock Area Wilfred Elrington says he doesn’t know of that […]
The Ministry of National Security has issued a release essentially rejecting a claim by the BTV’s Wil Maheia in respect of his attempted visit to the Sarstoon on Thursday. According to Maheia, three Guatemala gunboats were blocking Belizeans from entering the Sarstoon. Maheia also said that there was no presence of the Belize Coastguard or […]
So while that plays out, the People’s United Party has reacted to the ministry’s release on the incident at the Sarstoon. Party chairman, Henry Charles Usher, told News Five that it not only shows Guatemala’s aggression, but shows the GAF violating international law. Henry Charles Usher, Chairman, P.U.P. “Again, it’s just another case in […]
Earlier this month, on April fifteenth, we reported that the Guatemalan Armed Forces attempted to block the Belize Coastguard from travelling on the Sarstoon. Wil Maheia of the Belize Territorial Volunteers was leading a team of Belizeans on the trip on the Belize side of the river. Maheia is the point man in Punta Gorda […]
With a new date for the I.C.J. referendum set for May eighth, we revisit an old story in which former News Five reporter Janelle Chanona journeyed south to the illegal community of Santa Rosa. Her maiden visit to the southern village revealed a number of new details that weren’t common knowledge in 2002. The settlers […]
A new date of May eighth, 2019 has been set for the I.C.J. referendum to be held. It succeeds the signing into law of the Belize Territorial Dispute Referendum Act earlier this week, following the introduction and passage of that piece of legislation in the House of Representatives last Friday. A writ of referendum dated […]
At around ten-thirty this morning, tensions were running high as members of the Guatemalan Armed Forces attempted to block the path of members of the Belize Coast Guard. Video footage of the event captured by Wil Maheia of the Belize Territorial Volunteers clearly shows three Guatemalan gunboats in Belizean waters. Late this evening, the Ministry […]
