The same cannot be said for Pedro Colomer, a coast guard officer from Dangriga. His fate is entirely up to the Guatemalan justice system and his bosses here in Belize aren’t lifting a finger to go beyond wishing him well. That’s because Colomer failed to show up to work in Belize City last Friday; neither […]
Thirty-six-year-old Belizean Jermaine Belgrave remains incarcerated in the U.S. Reports from Erie County in Pennsylvania suggest that Belgrave’s possible long criminal history and gang affiliation here in Belize was factored in a judge’s decision. Belgrave made a request to reduce his bond to ten percent of one hundred thousand U.S. dollars. The sitting judge denied […]
The University of Belize is hosting its counterparts from Central America and the Dominican Republic this week. A two-day event is discussing the quality and standards of education offered by the various universities that form part of the body. The thinking is that regional integration strengthens higher education at the universities. One area of particular […]
As part of the Confidence Building Measures to keep the peace along the adjacency zone, the Group of Friends of Belize and Guatemala has been providing funding. These countries form part of the O.A.S. and others are observers. On Monday, Prime Minister Dean Barrow was asked was has been the reaction of the international community […]
The Pentecostal Assembly is hosting a national crusade in Belize over the next few days. Visiting members from Pentecostal Diocese in the U.S.A. are in country to spread the word of God. They say that everyone is invited to the jubilee as they continue the work of the assembly in country. Bishop Donnie N. […]
Belize is among five countries that have been named as “drug transit” countries by the U.S. government in the latest International Narcotics Control Strategy Report. The other four countries are: the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica. The report states that Belize was also named a transit country for illicit drugs destined for the […]
Interpol says Argentinean fugitive, seventy-one-year-old Alberto Samid is hiding in Belize. International Criminal Police Organization issued a red alert for the Samid who is wanted in Argentina for tax evasion. Investigators believe that Samid escaped the country through Paraguay, later flew to Panama before making his way to Belize which does not share an extradition […]
Traversing the Sarstoon is a tense and perilous journey. The Guatemalan Armed Forces are there to impede Belizeans from freely travelling upstream so Belizeans require escort from the B.D.F. and Belize Coastguard on the journey on our side of the river. That is in the south, but in the west, it is a different case. […]
On Tuesday, we showed you the encounter between a News Five team on an excursion in the Sarstoon and members of the Guatemalan Armed Forces. While the Belizean vessel and its passengers were quickly supported by the coastguard and B.D.F. to circle the Sarstoon Island, the GAF verbally expressing rights over the Sarstoon has enraged […]
News Five’s reporters have been deployed to various border communities to test the pulse of Belizeans as we prepare for that historic vote on April tenth which will decide if the International Court of Justice is to determine on the boundaries of Belize. We will be reporting from areas far-flung, as well as communities where […]
Next stop: Jalacte, a bordering community of some eight hundred residents. The experience there is much different. People from both sides of the border cross unimpeded; there is no immigration points, just the B.D.F. on duty at an outpost. We found out that the residents are more interested in trade than on going to the […]
Eight days from now the public will vote either YES or NO to determine Belize’s next step to address Guatemala’s claim over the country. As the day nears, opposing camps are intensifying their campaign. A few legal opinions have been penned including one by the late Gian Gandhi. During Open Your Eyes this morning, attorney […]
Police normally report about drug busts, small or big, contraband beer and the sorts, but tonight, they are tight-lipped about an incident in the south. Since Friday, there have been persistent reports that a vessel was intercepted with a significant amount of cash, forty thousand U.S. dollars. Images were obtained of the bundles of cold […]
We’ve been following regional news; you would know that the government of Guyana was thrown into turmoil last December when a vote of no-confidence was passed in parliament. That motion has been challenged in the various courts and this morning before the Caribbean Court of Justice, a teleconference session was held between attorneys for the […]
A week ago, Guyana’s Court of Appeal ruled two-to-one that thirty-four votes were needed for the no-confidence motion to succeed. Before then, at the end of January, the government resorted to the High Court where Acting Chief Justice Roxane George ruled that the motion was legitimate and that regional and general elections should be held […]
There are new details tonight in respect of the crisis at the Atlantic International Bank Limited. We can confirm that AIBL has started a voluntary winding up and representatives from the Central Bank of Belize have been deployed to the bank to ensure that the process is smooth and clients are protected as much as […]
Prime Minister Dean Barrow presented the latest legal opinion on the Belize/Guatemala territorial dispute. It comes on the heels of another put forward recently by the Bar Association which commissioned preeminent international law professor Stephen Vasciannie to weigh in on the strengths and weaknesses of the claim should it go before the I.C.J. for resolution. […]
While it can be argued that Judge Schwebel is essentially rehashing what has been posited in the 2001 legal opinion, PM Barrow went on to say that it is Schwebel’s view that Belize would be granted temporary relief from the World Court should there be a yes vote in the upcoming referendum. This means that […]
The Prime Minister’s campaign has been to promote a ‘yes’ vote come April tenth. It is also the position of former foreign minister Lisa Shoman, who shared the stage with him at the press conference and has also become a lawyer for the government. Today’s event was a push to convince the electorate to support […]
There are more questions than answers to the legal and financial troubles looming over Atlantic International Bank Limited. Reports reaching our news desk tonight are that AIBL is facing serious crisis in the offshore sector, following a civil suit filed in Michigan, United States and is allegedly facing voluntary liquidation. The signage at the headquarters […]
The Commissioner of Police along with representatives of Ministry of Human Development, UNICEF and B.D.F. were on a working visit to Jamaica to learn more about the island’s model to tackle sex crimes and child abuse. It is called CISOCA, the Center for Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse, which is a part of […]
A contingent of athletes returned home today victorious. The team of twenty-five drawn from the three arms of law enforcement brought home the three feet tall trophy after securing the top spot in the Baker to Vegas Relay Competition in Las Vegas. This is the fourth time they compete and they placed first, breaking a […]
We take a break from the local news for two major developments in the region. Today, Guyana’s Court of Appeal ruled that a no-confidence motion against the government of David Granger was not valid because it was passed with thirty-three votes. That vote took place in December 2018 after Charandass Persaud switched his allegiance, setting […]
Today, President Donald Trump met with leaders from five Caribbean countries in Florida; namely Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Dominican Republic, Haiti and the Bahamas. Notably, these countries voted with the U.S. and against the Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, at the O.A.S. in January. Belize was not invited to participate. Central to the meeting was the situation […]
The Belize International Financial Services Association, BIFSA, has issued a release supporting government’s position in rejecting the country’s inclusion on the EU’s list of Non-cooperative Jurisdictions for Tax Purposes. BIFSA notes that while Belize may not be a large player in the international financial services sector, it met the deadline set by the OECD’s Forum […]
