The B.T.B. is forecasting that it will be reaching the million mark number of cruise tourism visitors to the jewel this year. It has already contracted the Brighter Group firm of the UK to promote Belize in Europe and specifically in the UK. In the first quarter of this year, January to March, overnight visitors […]
In January 2015, the Government of Taiwan publicly announced that it will be gifting the Government two helicopters that are required to expand Belize’s military training program. That announcement was followed with the arrival in July of a team of seven mechanics from Taiwan to ensure that the B.D.F. air wing had the equipment and […]
According to Ambassador Ho, the helicopters will be used for emergency evacuations and to crack down on illegal drug trafficking or illegal human trafficking. Benjamin Ho, Taiwanese Ambassador to Belize “As you know the relation between our two countries is always so cordial and so close; it grows each year. We cover not only […]
The top brass of the police was present today for an award ceremony recognizing its finest officers who performed impressively in the first quarter of this year. More than twenty officers based in Belize City made the cut and received certificates as well as monitory compensation. News Five’s Isani Cayetano was present for the ceremony […]
The Ministry of Health is working overtime in southern Belize where samples are being collected by personnel to be sent for testing at the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) laboratory in Trinidad. The data gathering activity is being conducted to determine the presence of ZIKA in Belize. Despite the notice sent by the Centers for […]
Former People’s United Party Secretary General Myrtle Palacio appeared before Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin today, after filing a civil suit against the Guardian Newspaper. The case originates from an article and a cartoon published in the U.D.P. party organ purportedly depicting Palacio as someone who practices witchcraft. She took umbrage with the piece of writing, […]
In court this morning, Palacio gave a sworn statement. The article and the accompanying cartoon were also tendered as evidence. The argument, however, brings to the fore the issue of fair comment, a legal term for a common law defense in defamation cases involving libel or slander. Said Musa, Attorney for Myrtle Palacio “Mrs. […]
Newspaper editor Alfonso Noble, who is named in the suit, is being represented by Senior Counsel Michael Young. Both Young and his client reiterated that what was published in that edition of the Guardian is based on the freedom of the press to express statements on matters of public interest. Those statements, they contend, were […]
Since Assistant Commissioner of Police Chester Williams effected a citywide curfew roughly one month ago, various sectors, including parents, government departments and non-government organizations have raised concerns about the housing of minors picked up off the streets of Belize City after nine p.m. That disquiet prompted ACP Williams to return to the drawing board in […]
On Tuesday night, we brought you extensive coverage of a Ministry of Foreign Affairs press conference in Belmopan. The issue on the table, of course, was the recent meeting with top diplomatic and military officials at O.A.S. headquarters to discuss rules of engagement in the Sarstoon. At that session, the Belize delegation presented eleven draft […]
As we showed you in Tuesday night’s newscast, both Minister Elrington and Opposition representative Ambassador Assad Shoman believe that the protocols were well received. They are also hopeful that a positive response will be forthcoming within a week even though Guatemala has so aggressively asserted its sovereignty on the entire Sarstoon. Still, Elrington says that […]
On Holy Saturday, B.D.F. Staff Sergeant Richard Lambey was shot near Valentin Camp in the Chiquibul. Days after, a report into the incident commissioned by the Ministry of National Security was leaked to News Five. In that document, the claim is that Lambey was ambushed, possibly in retaliation for the arrest of a Guatemalan one […]
Turning to politics…the U.D.P. Deputy Leadership convention has been set for May twenty-ninth. In the ongoing campaign, on Tuesday, Minister John Saldivar, who is running for first deputy party leader, released photographs of parliamentarians and others who endorse him, including the Deputy Prime Minister himself, Gaspar Vega. But interestingly others in the Orange Walk caucus […]
There’s more tonight on the eleven protocols that were presented to Guatemalan officials. On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington asserted that there is an unofficial understanding at the Sarstoon, a sort of agreement to keep the peace. In fact, Elrington claims that the understanding has been in place since March fifteenth when both parties met […]
While the discussion on the new Sarstoon protocols was no doubt the primary item on the agenda of last Friday’s meeting at the O.A.S., it wasn’t the only one. Both parties, Belize and Guatemala, are also in earnest talks to source funding which will allow the O.A.S. to maintain a presence in the adjacency zone […]
A second Belize Sign was installed today in the area of the Baron Bliss Lighthouse in the City. The first, which is erected at Buttonwood Bay, has been evoking nationalism and pride so much so that the City Council decided to put up two others at strategic areas in the City. The launch was held […]
The Council has been working closely with the Belize Tourism Board and the National Institute of Culture and History on a series of programs to enhance the character of Belize City. These include projects to address the issue of sanitation as well as working with the police to ensure a reduction in crime and making […]
Classes on Friday for primary schools across the country have been cancelled as all teachers are expected to head west to Benque Viejo to attend a forum on the Belize/Guatemala differendum. The meeting is to discuss ongoing tension between both countries due to recent hostility along the southern border at Sarstoon. The objective of the […]
According to Palacio, it is now necessary to revise the existing curriculum to reflect a broader knowledge of the civics and history of Belize. Luke Palacio, National President, B.N.T.U. “We are hoping that they will also make a commitment or at least give an indication as to what other activities they would be engaged […]
The weekly meet and greet exercise conducted by Belize City police was concentrated in the Saint Martin’s area this afternoon where officers of varying ranks descended on the streets of that neighborhood. While the men and women of law enforcement made their rounds, they were being commended on the implementation of a recent curfew for […]
The official jury is still out on the shooting of B.D.F. Staff Sergeant Richard Lambey on Holy Saturday. There has been progress in the multiple subsequent investigations, enough for a determination that it is very likely the shooters were Guatemalan residents of a small community known as La Rejoya. But there is also a suggestion […]
The Friends for Conservation and Development is responsible for the monitoring and management of the Chiquibul, an area roughly the size of Belize City. It’s a challenging task, to say the least, and Manzanero says that part of the challenge is that the dynamics of encroachment are constantly changing. Rafael Manzanero, Executive Director, FCD […]
Illegal milpa farming may be the biggest challenge facing rangers in the Chiquibul, but the most dangerous one is drug cultivation which has been on the rise. Manzanero says that in some areas which are hotspots for marijuana growing, rangers stay away. He continues to call on the Belize Defense Force to have an active […]
And our question for tonight is: Do you think the Guatemalan Armed Forces can be stopped in exerting sovereignty over the Sarstoon? Send your comments and responses using your SMART phones to 8686 or post your vote on our e-poll at channel5belize.com. You can also send an email with your comments to questions@channel5belize.com
Several Belizean artists and bands have been selected for an opportunity of a lifetime; to represent Belize in the 2016 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Popularly known as the Jazz Fest, Belize and our artists will be featured in the event that runs from April twenty-second to May first. Artists such as Supa G, […]
