The Gang Suppression Unit is apparently headed for a much narrower mandate within the Belize Police Department. This is after their run-in with Cameron Usher Senior and Kelvin Usher, which caused the teenager to flee into the bushes near Lucky Strike for four days, terrified by gunfire from a team approaching to destroy a marijuana […]
The Police Department is also tackling continuous egg on its face from officers breaking the law with impunity. Whether it is extorting members of the community, or stealing the proceeds of crime like cocaine, or overreacting to citizen protest, it has not been a good few weeks for the men and women in khaki and […]
After four sessions, the Senate Special Select Committee finished its questioning of Director of Immigration Diana Locke this afternoon at the National Assembly. Among the first things discussed was the phenomenon revealed last week of taxi drivers holding the numbers for service at the Immigration Department and seeking favour with visitors. Locke discussed a recent […]
The Committee has been questioning Locke on how the department intends to implement certain recommendations of the Auditor General. While some are easier implemented than others, there are some recommendations that will require assistance further afield. One example is the use of bogus stamps under the seal of the Immigration Department. Most of these have […]
Another important recommendation is the installation of background checks for persons applying for nationality. The Immigration Department, according to Director Diana Locke, is now at least partially linked to the International Criminal Police Organization or Interpol and is no longer accepting checks of criminal records solely from the Criminal Investigation Branch. But the director was […]
Emmy award winning journalist Kendis Gibson is back in Belize. The Belizean-American ABC News Anchor is here courtesy of the US Embassy. He will visiting with different students to speak to them about pursuing their goals and the importance of education. In his schedule he will be hosting a brief session with local journalists, as […]
On Thursday morning at ten, weeks of frustration surrounding the ever-increasing cost of gas will blow up in what is intended to be a peaceful protest march from Constitution to Battlefield Park. The Belize Leaders for Social Justice, an umbrella group of activist organizations, is hoping for a successful turnout to send a message to […]
The simmering feud between Assistant Commissioner of Police Chester Williams, former head of Eastern Division South, and successor Senior Superintendent Marco Vidal reached boiling point earlier in September. Responding to a press question on September twelfth, Vidal alluded to the widely held perception that certain gang groups were allowed to thrive in the marijuana trade […]
Commissioner of Police Allen Whylie says he is not quite fifty years old and has held his current job for nearly five years. He politely disagreed with our position that his tenure has not been the best in terms of addressing crime, but the question remains: is his time as top cop winding down? Whylie […]
Back in 2012, a national shark working group was established to devise a national plan of action for the conservation and management of sharks. That plan now provides for a framework for the management of domestic small-scale shark fishery. In order to build on what we know of the shark populations and their management, the […]
It has been weeks since hurricanes Maria and Irma devastated parts of the Caribbean whose economies depend heavily on the tourism dollar. Today, the Belize Tourism Board, in collaboration with the Belize Tourism Industry Association and the Belize Hotel Association, launched a relief campaign to support our Caribbean brothers and sisters affected by the impact […]
No worker likes to be left high and dry at the bank or credit union on payday, and so the complaints of sanitation workers since Friday have been reaching ears in the press. The Belize City Council, which effectively assumed responsibility from the private company Belize Maintenance Limited following unrest five years ago, says it […]
Shortly after our interview, the Council’s Director of Finance Marilyn Ordonez confirmed through public relations officer for the Council, Shane Williams, that the H.R.C.U. problem had been resolved and workers would get time off to go get their pay. But the Credit Union fired back this afternoon with a statement calling the criticism unfair and […]
Paul “Chicken Dread” Ferguson is once again at odds with the City Council. Back on September fifth, we reported that Ferguson had a fallout with members of the police department and CitCo special constables who threatened to remove his food trailer because of improper documentation. The trailer, according to Traffic Manager Kevan Jenkins, was not […]
Time does fly, and it is now exactly one year since the Belize National Teachers’ Union walked out of their classrooms and took to the streets in green t-shirts. They called for action from the government on oversight, from the Senate Special Select Committee on Immigration to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption. Most importantly, […]
B.N.T.U. President Elena Smith pronounced herself satisfied with the documentary and said that proceeds from sales would be split with Kremandala Limited as producers. The B.N.T.U.’s portion, she said, would go to its Strike Fund to benefit any potential future action by the union. Elena Smith, National President, B.N.T.U. “Satisfied, overwhelmed, touched… just a […]
At the next meeting of the House in mid-October, a bill will be introduced on the indefinite moratorium against offshore oil exploration activity. The content has not been circulated and it is highly anticipated by environmentalists and conservationists. Over the weekend, OCEANA Belize Vice President Janelle Chanona pronounced at the Ocean Hero Awards ceremony that […]
After reaching some of their highest levels this year, fuel prices are expected to moderate with the coming shipment of petroleum from Venezuela, as part of a restarted Petrocaribe program. Last week, Prime Minister Dean Barrow gave a lengthy explanation for the price increases, repeating blame on the sputtering Petrocaribe program and the impact of […]
Fallout continues from Prime Minister Dean Barrow’s decision to stop further allocations to the Senate Special Select Committee beyond November. At first the Prime Minister contended that further funding was needed for the Integrity Commission and implementation of the provisions of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. But the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry […]
On Saturday, following the National Party Council of the P.U.P., Briceño reiterated a party position on the Gang Suppression Unit. He has recommitted to disbanding the unit in a future P.U.P. Government and railed against their lack of effectiveness and dangerous tendency to act as muscle for the Police Department. But before banishing the elite […]
There are rumblings on the streets that the B.N.T.U. is ready to resume their strike, and the hard, militant talk at today’s launch certainly stirred up old emotions and feelings. But the union is nothing if not practical and deliberate, and President Elena Smith has learned well from predecessor Luke Palacio about giving nothing away […]
As you heard earlier, the Teachers’ Union has not taken kindly to Prime Minister Dean Barrow attempting to go around them in his response to their letter seeking an update on their eight demands made during last year’s strike. According to the union, the P.M. copied the letter to the National Trade Union Congress of […]
The disappearance and return of Kelvin Usher last week touched many, especially students of Saint John’s College Junior College, which counted him as a classmate and friend. Many of them unprecedentedly walked out of classes last Wednesday and unto the streets in protest of the lackadaisical response by police and authorities. And they were there […]
Earlier this year, the Auditor General’s annual report for 2012-2013 cited multiple instances of irregularities in several government departments, particularly the Ministries of Works and Education and the Belize Defence Force. Another concerns monies lost by the General Sales Tax Department in respect of collections. The Belize City Council and Belize Maintenance Limited/Belize Waste Control […]
A team of thirty-nine professionals completed training and took the oath as Court Connected Arbitrators under the Supreme Court of Belize in late September. The Chairman of the Court’s Mediation and Arbitration program, Justice Abel Courtney, addressed the group stating that the future reputation and conduct of the court and any arbitration proceedings is now […]
