At a ceremony this afternoon which was delayed by two hours, Jimmy Morales became the new president of Guatemala. Before president Morales took the oath, the outgoing president Alejandro Maldonado delivered his parting shots saying he agreed to step into the presidency because it was his duty to so do. Maldonado took office when the […]
In our coverage in Guatemala, we interviewed Foreign Minister Carlos Raul Morales on Wednesday. We asked him about the Cuban migration crisis which has caused a rift in the Central American region. A request by Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis to allow the passage of eight thousand Cuban refugees through Belize and Guatemala was […]
According to Foreign Minister Morales, specific guarantees should first be put in place before allowing the transit of Cuban migrants through Central America, en route to the United States. Carlos Raul Morales, Foreign Minister, Guatemala “We request two issues. We request two guarantees. The first one is that Mexico will accept these Cubans because […]
On Tuesday, government announced that members of the Toledo Maya Land Rights Commission have been named. The official appointment of former minister Lisel Alamilla, Noreen Fairweather and Randall Sheppard as chair and members, respectively, precedes their work in implementing the Consent Order of the Caribbean Court of Justice. The order mandates government to adopt affirmative […]
As part of the B.D.F.’s 2016 schedule, plans are underway to establish air support for ongoing patrols near the Belize/Guatemala border. On Monday, two UH-1H helicopters, commonly known as Hueys, are expected to arrive in the country. The pair of military aircrafts will form a fleet of three, including another helicopter that has been obtained […]
In less than twenty-four hours, Jimmy Morales will assume office as the new president of Guatemala. It’s an important event for Belize because of that country’s unfounded territorial claim to the country. Tonight, we begin our coverage of that event with a one-on-one interview by Marleni Cuellar with the Foreign Minister of Guatemala, Carlos Raul […]
In June 2014, the first arguments in the Belize Tourism Industry Association versus the Government of Belize/Norwegian Cruise Lines were heard in the Supreme Court. It is a little over a year and a half since the case began and this morning, Justice Courtney Abel read his two-hour decision in the matter. B.T.I.A. had sought […]
As Salas pointed out, the B.T.I.A. at no point sought to stop the project, which is nearing completion. But it is a significant slap-down of government by the Supreme Court, and paves the way for affirmative action if government does not choose to adhere to the procedures in the future. To add insult to injury, […]
On the political front…The battle for leader of the People’s United Party continues to heat up, in a most unpleasant way. It’s gotten so bad in social media that at the recent National Party Council, all three candidates signed a commitment that they would keep it clean and civil. Those signatures weren’t worth the paper […]
We also took the opportunity to quiz Briceño about some of the challenges he will certainly be facing if he is indeed elected leader of the P.U.P. on January thirty-first. He spoke candidly about former Minister Ralph Fonseca and former Prime Minister Said Musa. John Briceño, Candidate for P.U.P. Leader “I consider both Said […]
One man who is certainly no stranger to the P.U.P. or to contentious conventions is Godfrey Smith. The last time there was a convention in which Briceño and Fonseca faced off, in 2008, Smith was Fonseca’s Campaign Manager. Since then he has had an on again, off again relationship with the Party. Most recently, in […]
As much as seventy-six million dollars worth of marijuana went up in smoke last year as a result of anti-drug operations conducted by the Belize Defense Force working along with the U.S. Army. At a review of its scope of duties undertaken in 2015, the B.D.F. also acknowledged success in other areas as it pushed […]
With the return of the British Army Training Support Unit in Belize, BATSUB, having been announced in October of last year, it is expected that the annual influx of British soldiers will bring much needed revenue to the country. Similarly, the expansion of the Jungle Warfare Instructor Course to include military personnel from other countries […]
The formulation of a well-crafted plan of action to guide the Belize Defense Force into the near future has been a work in progress for Commander David Jones. Since taking up the baton three years ago, a Strategic Defense Review has been among the top priorities for the army general. That proposal will look at […]
The government announced today the appointment of Daniel Gutierrez of Belize Natural Energy as Ambassador to CARICOM. Gutierrez presented his letter of credence to Secretary General Irwin LaRocque in Georgetown, Guyana where a committee of CARICOM Ambassadors are discussing the Community’s Reform Process. The appointment coincides with the assumption of the six-month chairmanship of CARICOM […]
On Tuesday, industry giant Bowen and Bowen launched its brand new, state-of-the-art bottling line. That line, located at the company’s Ladyville plant in the Belize District, will significantly increase production – to meet heightened demand currently, but also to meet expected demand over the next decade. The impressive structure, representing a significant part of forty-million […]
On February twenty-third of 2015, Justice Shona Griffith, struck out a writ of mandamus brought to the courts by Attorney Audrey Matura-Shepherd on behalf of cane farmer Lucilo Teck and the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association. The application would have sought to persuade the court that the Sugar Industry Control Board was compelled, by law, […]
Since mid 2015, the Eastern Division of the Police Department has embarked on meet and greet initiative to bring the community closer to the police as a strategy to curb crime. The police say it has been met with success and this afternoon we caught up with the top brass of the police in both […]
Today, Cabinet sent out a release on an application by Stake Bank developer Mike Feinstein for exclusivity under a twenty-five year contract where that project is concerned. Last week, Feinstein told us that if he could not get some sort of guarantee from G.O.B., he would put a halt to the mega-million-dollar Stake Bank Project. […]
This Thursday, a new president will be sworn into office in Guatemala and News Five will be there to bring you coverage of the event in both our newscasts as well as on Open Your Eyes beginning on Wednesday’s newscast. The ex-comedian Jimmy Morales will take the oath in the presence of world leaders, including […]
John Briceño…he’s a candidate for a position he held from 2008 to 2011, Party Leader of the People’s United Party. On January thirty-first, he will face immediate past Party Leader Francis Fonseca and Cordel Hyde at a National Convention. Briceño stepped back in 2011, so the immediate question would be – why get back in? […]
When Briceño stepped down in 2011, a major factor was allegedly the turmoil in the Party which could not be quelled. Briceño was unable to gain the support of those who would take over the leadership after his ouster. He reportedly spent and lost almost three million dollars during his time in that office, and […]
After spending six days in detention at a jail in Roatan, Honduras, Belizean businessman August Tabony is back home. The sixty-five year old businessman was detained at the Juan Manuel Gálvez Roatan International Airport on January fifth after he failed to declare more than sixteen thousand four hundred and ninety U.S. dollars in cash. This […]
Tabony is the proprietor of several gift stores in Belize and has also invested in Roatan for decades. He told the media today that the incident has left a bad taste and he is reconsidering his investments in Honduras. August Tabony, Vindicated of Money Laundering “Today I have a very negative feeling about Roatan. […]
The Toledo Maya Land Rights Commission has been named. Before we get to the names, the scope of work of the Commission is the implementation of the Consent Order of the Caribbean Court of Justice, which requires Government to take measures to protect rights arising from Maya customary land tenure. The Commission will also establish […]
