In the last few months we told you about the surplus of onions, but rice has also been produced in excess. In April of this year the Belize Marketing Development Corporation (BMDC) announced that they would be purchasing approximately two million pounds less than they did in 2010 because of an existing surplus. It’s a […]
On Wednesday, Nora Sierra visited our newsroom to make a complaint against the Kolbe Foundation. Nora says her twenty-two year old son Joel Sierra, who is incarcerated at the Belize Central Prison, has been diagnosed with Tuberculosis and despite recommendations from a doctor; Kolbe is refusing to allow her son to receive proper medical treatment. […]
On Wednesday night the P.U.P. Standard Bearer of the Cayo West Division, Oscar Sabido spoke of the lack of developmental infrastructure in that constituency. As a result, Sabido said he is bringing an economist to assess the Cayo West with the objective of formulating a policy for economic development. Oscar Sabido, P.U.P. Standard Bearer, Cayo […]
The ninth amendment bill, on its surface, aims to enshrine the government’s majority control of shares in utilities. But several attorneys, including those from the Human Rights Commission of Belize, the Bar Association of Belize and Senator Godwin Hulse, have all spoken about grave concerns on the Belize Constitution (Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2011. On Wednesday, […]
The bar issued a statement on Wednesday in which it says “the bar does not support the proposed amendment to the extent that it seeks to deny rights of property owners to access the courts to challenge nationalizations.” But according to the Foreign Minister, any aggrieved party would still be able to access the court. […]
In addition to Minister Elrington and the Bar Association, Senator Henry Gordon, who represents the Council of Churches, also spoke about the Proposed Ninth on Open Your Eyes. Gordon said that because of government’s super majority in the House, even if the Senate is granted a thirteenth senator, the ninth amendment would still allow parliamentary […]
And while the report card on the joint patrols in the Chiquibul show that a lot needs to be done to solve environmental issues and prevent poachers, the report card on another sector is also pointing out some weaknesses. A recent report about the performance of prosecutors in Belize showed failures in proper education of […]
Conflict of interest is only one of several ethical issues that are waiting to be tackled, which is why ABA ROLI dedicated Wednesday afternoon to the police prosecutors. According to ABA ROLI’s Country Director, Antoinette Moore, seventeen of the eighteen prosecutors from across the country attended the training session. Antoinette Moore, Country Director, ABA ROLI […]
Over the past week there has been a lot of discussion over the proposed ninth amendment. Meanwhile we’ve been hearing from the attorneys and politicians, but the grassroots organizations have been out of sight. That is because they have been preparing for a massive demonstration this Saturday. The event, which is being organized by Belizeans […]
Summer Camps aren’t the only staples that we report on regularly in July and August. It’s also a time when parents are trying hard to cut down on expenses while looking for extra income to pay for the upcoming school year. Books, fees, and uniforms are only some of the baggage that parents carry with […]
Are you still trying to locate your college or sixth form books? If so, then you can head out to the BTALCO parking lot this Saturday and exchange some of your used books for the ones you need. Shari Williams, one of the facilitators of the book exchange program, tells us more. Shari Williams, Facilitator, […]
The Prosecutorial Reform Index (PRI) is the current in assessment tools developed by experts in criminal law reform at the American Bar Association’s Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI). And after months of dialogue with attorneys, judges, police officers, media, and stakeholders in the justice system, the ABA ROLI team, headed by its Country Director, […]
While the ABA ROLI team were examining and questioning members of the judiciary, change was occurring in the system. After the presentation, the President of the Bar offered comments on how public prosecution can be strengthened while the legal advisor for the Ministry of Police and the Police Department said that some training for public […]
On Monday, July twenty-fifth, Reginald Cumberbatch was charged with one count of aggravated assault after he allegedly tried to sodomize a fourteen year old boy. The incident took place on Thursday night in the western village of Succotz. The minor went to accompany Cumberbatch out to the road after his mother completed a transaction with […]
You’ve just heard one politician’s view about developments in the area where Reginald Cumberbatch is accused of taking advantage of a youth. But who exactly is Reginald Cumberbatch and why was the Belize City man offering services in Succotz? Believe it or not, Cumberbatch is a Justice of the Peace. According to the President of […]
The hit American reality show “Gene Simmons Family Jewels” was in the Jewel back in May, filming in San Pedro. That episode was the show’s season finale, which aired Tuesday night on the A&E cable channel. Simmons, the rock and roll legend from the band Kiss, has long proclaimed that he would never get married, […]
If family time for you is not sitting in front of the television watching reality shows, then perhaps one of summer’s litany of camps is what your child needs for stimulation. News Five Isani Cayetano reports on a football camp. Isani Cayetano, Reporting Dog days for primary school students are usually accompanied by a cornucopia […]
The debate is heating up on the newly proposed ninth amendment to the constitution. But there is the eighth amendment which entails the controversial and dreaded preventative detention. Last Wednesday, the prime Minister told News Five that the eighth was chilling in the refrigerator, but today, Cabinet decided to send the eighth to the garbage […]
The fate of the sugar industry has been the subject of several high level meetings over the past week. The Honduras based Banco Atlántida has proposed a buyout of majority shares in the Belize Sugar Industry, an investment of ninety million US dollars that could make the difference to keep the mill grinding. Who controls […]
As we said, Public Consultation on the Ninth Amendment Bill will begin in the next two weeks; the Eighth Amendment Bill, however, has now been formally withdrawn. And though several attorneys from different sides of the political divide have expressed their concern regarding the Ninth Amendment Bill, News Five posed the question to Godwin Hulse, […]
The proposed Ninth Constitutional Amendment was crafted to take action, in this case, to protect government’s usurping of B.E.L. and Telemedia from private ownership. The extent of that proposed law, however, would dangerously place beyond dispute any future amendments to the Constitution which will no longer be exposed to review in the courts. The piece […]
Discussions on this newscast about the deterioration or proposed amendments to section eight and nine of the constitution would not be complete without one on section seven. That section of the constitution prohibits torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. To combat crime, the current administration has decided that implementation of the death penalty […]
A sixteen year old French tourist and his mother are tonight both free to roam the Jewel following a prank pulled while onboard a flight en route to Belize from Atlanta on Monday morning. The minor reportedly wrote the word ‘help’ on an immigration form and on its reverse drew what appeared to be an […]
The City Council’s stray dog eradication program has been a contentious issue for over a decade because of the use of strychnine poisoning, which is considered cruel and inhumane. Still, the program continues and is carried out up to three times a year. It falls under the Public Health portfolio, which is held by Councilor […]
At Friday’s sitting of the House of Representatives, Prime Minister Dean Barrow introduced a dangerous amendment to the constitution that is also being described as a wolf in sheep’s clothing. On the heels of the nationalization of B.E.L. and the re-nationalization of Telemedia, the PM made it clear that measures would be implemented to enshrine […]
