The marijuana debate has fizzled with the decriminalization of a small quantity for personal use in 2017. Weed smokers across the country continue to enjoy the freedom of possessing up to ten grams of cannabis without fear of prosecution, while farmers and retailers remain under close scrutiny by law enforcement for cultivation, trafficking and retailing. […]
A group of Belizean media sat down with an international law lecturer at the Mexican Autonomous University in Mexico City last Friday. Professor Carlos Bernal shared his experience as a legal advisor for Mexico in its case at the I.C.J. Bernal asserts that Belize should take the claim to the I.C.J., he also acknowledges there […]
An issue in the minds of many is whether there could be any geopolitical influence on the judges sitting at the International Court of Justice? Bernal says decisions are about international law. Carlos Bernal, Professor of International Law, Mexican Autonomous University “Politics is politics. I am sure all the judges read the papers every […]
There are more details tonight on a number of persons who were held at the western border on Thursday for hours. About two hundred Guatemalan nationals arrived at the border in buses and were initially not allowed entry by immigration officials. Subsequently, the officials were able to verify that the group had travelled here for […]
The B.N.T.U. is also upset that there has been no progress regarding Proposal Twenty-Two which covers a number of issues including a proposal to have government pay one hundred percent of teachers’ salaries who are employed at grant aided secondary schools. Last week the B.N.T.U. pointed out that dates set for a meeting to discuss […]
A group of reporters from various media houses are tonight in Mexico City in anticipation of a visit to the International Court of Justice in the Hague sometime in November. That tour is called Fear to Facts: Demystifying the I.C.J. and is being organized by the United States Embassy and sponsored by the U.S. State […]
Litigation risk is always a consideration when legal matters go before the courts. In this case, the resolution of the territorial dispute between both countries also comes with the possibility of Belize losing the case before the I.C.J. It is a serious and careful thought to be made ahead of the April 2019 referendum. Professor […]
Earlier today the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Patrick Faber, also expressed his view on the I.C.J. He says persons who are opposed in taking Guatemala’s claim to the court for final resolution have taken that decision based on emotions. While Faber is a pro-I.C.J., he says that the constituents in Collet will […]
There is some relief tonight as a strike by stevedores has been averted at least for now. This afternoon, the stevedores, the Port of Belize and the Labour Department met in Belize City as the deadline for the start for the proposed strike approached. The meeting was testy but after three o’clock the two sides […]
The Christian Workers Union and the Port of Belize have made some progress in respect of their negotiations towards a Collective Bargaining Agreement. Reducing the number of stevedores by one person per gang, however, is another contentious matter that is bubbling below the surface. It is an issue that the union, as well as its […]
In respect of a tribunal to be put together to oversee the concerns of both parties, letters are being sent out to the National Trade Union Congress of Belize, as well as the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to select persons who will form the panel. The extension, says Doctor Carla Barnett, will also […]
The National Committee for Families and Children has joined the public outrage in condemning the disturbing rape report, saying that “our children need our help.” In a release, the N.C.F.C. states that the children remain under attack by those who should be in the position of keeping them safe. The N.C.F.C. says it has been […]
Bennett’s legal representative, Audrey Matura, explained the arduous process of seeking and securing his release. The life sentence was initially appealed at the Court of Appeal where it was dismissed. As a final attempt, Matura applied for leave for the matter to be heard before the C.C.J. Audrey Matura, Attorney for Japhet Bennett “After […]
There is word tonight that buses loaded with Central American nationals are at the western border. The immigration department however has denied them entry because of a developing story involving Honduran nationals. Those Hondurans are attempting to make their way to the United States but the US President has vowed to cut off at least […]
A Belize City woman is lucky to be alive tonight after someone attempted to burn down her house while she slept inside on Wednesday night. Twenty-one-year-old Andre Diaz was in deep slumber inside her Consuelo Street house when she heard the sound of sirens. When she exited, Diaz realized that someone had thrown a plastic […]
Egbert Ferguson and his family today officially received the keys to a newly constructed house courtesy of Hand in Hand Ministries and Heritage Bank Limited. It was the three hundred and sixtieth house that Hand in Hand Ministries hand over at a cost of a little more than seventeen thousand dollars which Heritage Bank provided. […]
A notice of intended industrial action to come into effect on Friday remains intact, despite a lengthy meeting between the Christian Workers Union and the Port of Belize Limited. The ongoing negotiations are in respect of working hours and remuneration for stevedores who are presently working in excess of fifteen hours in some instances. Since […]
Chief Executive Officer Arturo ‘Tux’ Vasquez has been at the helm of the company since the Port of Belize went into receivership in 2012. Despite the hostilities between P.B.L. and the stevedores, he says that progress has been made during this latest round of talks with the Christian Workers Union which is yet to submit […]
Progress was reached by both parties in the matter of outstanding salary increases which have been due to stevedores since 2015. According to Hyde, the agreement is important since it is an act of goodwill on the part of the union and the port to make good on that promise. Vasquez also said that the […]
On Friday the B.N.T.U. fired off a heavily worded statement to the Ministry of Education saying that the ‘continued and blatant disrespect’ against teachers will not be tolerated. The latest disagreement between the powerful union and the Ministry is as a result of the ministry’s move to re-categorize hardship allowances for teachers and time-off to […]
Over the past months, fear has been building among Orange Walk Town residents as gun violence in that municipality is in an upward trend. Five persons have been fatally shot since July; four of them are known gang members. A sixth person, also a known gang member, was shot but he survived and then there […]
As April tenth draws nearer, the discussion on whether to take Guatemala’s claim on Belize to the I.C.J. is intensifying. While the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been tasked to carry out a national wide I.C.J. educational campaign, Area Representation for the Albert Division Tracy Taeger-Panton has organized a forum for her constituents. While Taeger-Panton […]
Since Monday, thirty-eight law enforcement officers, including fifteen cops from outside of the country, started an intense two-week course in Gang Resistance Education Training. GREAT is a widely implemented gang and violence prevention programme in primary and high schools. And so a new set of officers who want a make a difference in the lives […]
Turning to political news…In August, the People’s United Party’s Southern Caucus announced that it will vote against taking the Belize/Guatemala dispute for resolution to the International Court of Justice. The caucus’ stance is based on a notion that the southern section of the country stands to lose the most if the I.C.J. rules in favor […]
As of next week, P.U.P. Leader John Briceño will embark on a nationwide ‘listening’ tour. It’s his way of getting to know how the party’s standard bearers, area representatives, and supporters feel about taking Guatemala’s maritime, insular and territorial claim to the International Court of Justice for final resolution. Briceño will visit all thirty-one constituencies, […]
