A release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicates that progress is being made to salvage some momentum on stalled efforts to end the Guatemalan claim to Belize. The word from a meeting held Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington is that work is proceeding on a draft agreement that will establish a process of transition […]
The meeting took place without much fanfare, as befits a young organization that has yet to find a strong voice in the international arena. But the A.C.S., which includes CARICOM and its non-English speaking neighbours in the Caribbean and surrounding mainland, is a natural for multi-cultural Belize. News 5’s Janelle Chanona reports. Janelle Chanona, Reporting […]
It was an issue that was not discussed at the meeting of the Association of Caribbean States, but early next week, Foreign Minister Assad Shoman heads to Washington, D.C. for more talks with the Guatemalans. According to Shoman, two main points will be on the agenda. Assad Shoman “One of them is to preserve the […]
This week Belize will be hosting high level delegations from around the region. The occasion is the eighth regular meeting of the Ministerial Council of the Association of Caribbean States. The A.C.S., headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago, includes all the nations of CARICOM plus Cuba, the Dominican Republic and the mainland nations stretching from Mexico […]
It has been a fixture on the southern coast of Belize for almost two decades, but today the Voice of America compound south of Punta Gorda was handed back to the Government of Belize. The shortwave facility, which began broadcasting in 1984, ceased operations on September fifteenth. With the end of the Cold War and […]
There’s another big immigration story making the news tonight and many viewers will find that it’s a bigger scandal than the illegal selling of passports. What I’m talking about is the cost of a tourist visa to visit the States. A release by the U.S. embassy today announced that on November first the price of […]
It seems that Belize’s decision to amend the constitution to facilitate capital punishment has caused quite a stir in the international community. This week, the Organisation of American States joined the European Union in asking Belize to scrap the plan, which is viewed in some quarters as a barbaric deprivation of human rights. On Friday, […]
With a growing number of Caribbean countries planning to eliminate the Privy Council as their final appellate court for class A murders, today, the European community formally put in their two cents on the issue. Via a press release from the British High Commission in Belmopan, the European Union characterizes attempts by Belize and Barbados […]
Prime Minister Said Musa today flew to Santo Domingo where he began the final leg of an extended trip, which has already taken him to London and Washington, D.C. Over the next several days in the Dominican Republic Musa will open a cultural exhibition and meet with President Hipolito Mejia and other government officials. According […]
The proposals to end the Guatemalan claim to Belize are yet to be approved by the voters of both countries, but today in Washington that considerable hurdle was–for the moment at least–sidestepped, as diplomats toasted the unique success of the facilitation process. News 5’s Janelle Chanona was on hand in the U.S. capital and this […]
It may seem a bit anti-climactic to Belizeans, who for the last ten days have been immersed in the details of the Ramphal/Reichler proposals. But on Monday in Washington, D.C., the Organisation of American States will hold a formal ceremony marking the successful conclusion of the facilitation process. That event will feature the involvement of […]
What is interesting is that one thing you don’t see in the Guatemalan press is any reference to the three point three square miles that country stands to gain from a more accurate alignment of the border line. This morning prior to our interview with the Prime Minister, we asked Mexican Ambassador Arturo Trejo if […]
While Belizeans were busy today trying to digest the proposals and wade through the political spin, our thoughts could not help but wander across the border. After speaking to Guatemalans and reading their newspapers on the internet, the clear impression is emerging that not only are anti-government elements opposed to the proposals, but the government’s […]
The government of Belize also received some good news today. It took the form of a cheque from the government of Taiwan for over eight hundred and thirty-three thousand dollars. The contribution toward the modernisation of our foreign ministry is part of an agreement between Taiwan and several other nations of Central America. The money […]
Leaders from around the world continue to meet in Johannesburg, South Africa tonight at the World Summit on Sustainable Development. The delegates are discussing the protection of natural resources and recommending ways forward, ten years after environmental goals were set at the Rio Summit. Representing Belize is Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources […]
It was signed almost six years ago by Dean Barrow when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs in the last government… and today a treaty for the return of stolen vehicles between the U.S.A. and Belize was finally brought into effect. The ceremony took place this morning in Belmopan between Foreign Minister Assad Shoman and […]
There are not many countries in the world that can claim to be best friends with both Cuba and Taiwan, but today with the visit of the Taiwanese Premier, Belize proved that our diplomatic balancing act is on a secure footing. A relationship that began in the previous PUP administration as an act of cold […]
Throughout his visit, Premier Yu has stressed the importance of self-determination, going so far as to praise Belize for seeking a peaceful end to Guatemala’s territorial claim. But it was Taiwan’s own independence that the Premier emphasised in his message to both the Taiwanese community and those from the Peoples Republic of China who are […]
A diplomatic faux pas has led to the recall of Belize’s Ambassador to Guatemala and strained relations with that country at a crucial point in the negotiating process. The incident is still mired in the muddy language of diplomacy, but News 5 has been able to ascertain that the flap concerns an internal foreign ministry […]
There is a swirl of controversy tonight surrounding Belize’s Ambassador to Guatemala, Moises Cal. Official confirmation could not be obtained, but following initial reports on Krem Radio we were made to understand that Cal has been recalled from his post in Guatemala City, allegedly for major diplomatic gaffes committed on Friday. However, News 5 spoke […]
Last month it was a sister city mission; this time it will be a trade mission that hopes to foster friendlier ties between Belize and Guatemala. A release from BELTRAIDE today announced that a delegation of government officials and business people will travel to Guatemala City from the twenty-seventh to thirty-first of August to promote […]
One week from today Belize will host a top-level delegation from the Republic of China on Taiwan. Leading the thirty-eight-member group, which includes four Cabinet ministers, is Premier Yu Shyi-kun. The visit, which will take place on August twelfth and thirteenth, is the last stop on Yu’s official tour of Central America. The fifty-four year […]
A briefing was held for the press today by Foreign Minister Assad Shoman and Ambassador Fred Martinez. According to reports emerging from the meeting, the pair will travel to Washington, D.C. for a meeting on Monday with their Guatemalan counterparts and facilitators Sir Shridath Ramphal and Paul Reichler. It is hoped that the final presentation […]
Details are slowly being released of what went on between Belizean and Guatemalan leaders during their recent meeting in Guatemala City. According to a release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Minister Assad Shoman and Ambassador Fred Martinez, along with their Guatemalan counterparts, met for an hour with Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Pope’s Secretary […]
With his problems mounting at home, Prime Minister Musa sought respite from the controversy in a most unlikely place: Guatemala. Two events mark his agenda. The first, occurring this morning, was to act as a witness of honour at the signing of a sister city agreement between the mayors of Belmopan and Guatemala City. The […]
