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The Guatemalan Government has also gone on the offensive. President Jimmy Morales also met with the Secretary General of the O.A.S., Luis Almagro, and with the Secretary of the Commission of Human Rights, Emilio Alvarez Icaza Longoria, to request their involvement in the investigation in the death of Guatemalan minor. Guatemala is also seeking an […]
The body of thirteen year old Julio Alvarado Ruano, who was killed inside the Chiquibul last Tuesday, was laid to rest over the weekend in his home village of La Rejoya. It’s a tragedy that has spurred increased aggression by the Guatemalan military along the adjacency zone and the Sarstoon River. According to B.D.F. Commander […]
There is an escalating crisis between Belize and Guatemala that is reaching tipping point. In recent days, Guatemala has adopted an aggressive stand against Belize especially in the Sarstoon where Belizean vessels are now required to get their permission to enter the Sarstoon. The death of a minor near Cebada in the Chiquibul on Wednesday […]
Guatemala earlier today issued a statement saying that ten Guatemalan civilians had been killed by Belizean troops. But there is also the murder of Danny Connorquie and the shooting of Sergeant Richard Lambey within Belize territory, which remains unresolved. While Belize has not placed responsibility at the hands of Guatemalans, everything points to them. According […]
As tensions continue to mount, the Prime Minister is meeting with high level officials from the United Nations, the O.A.S. and the international community. Here on the ground, the government is briefing the U.S., the U.K. and other allies. Prime Minister Dean Barrow “I am meeting with the deputy secretary general of the UN […]
Courtenay goes on to say that the internationalization of the Belize/Guatemala crisis, in light of the shooting death of a minor in the Chiquibul, is being used by Guatemalan army generals to push an aggressive military position against Belize. The full story, he says, must be told in the international community in the manner in […]
Secretary General of the O.A.S., Luis Almagro, was sitting comfortably witnessing a Culture for Peace Program at the Adjacency Zone on Wednesday removed from what was happening at the Sarstoon where the Guatemalan Armed Forces were making their presence known immediately in front of the Forward Operating base. As far as we can tell, the […]
Apart from the O.A.S. and Mexico issuing statements on the latest developments between Belize and Guatemala, the U.S. State Department made a brief comment on the escalated tension. The press statement by Assistant Secretary and Department Spokesperson John Kirby, says, “We are deeply concerned by reports today that a child was killed and two family […]
Tonight, there is heightened tension on both Belizean and Guatemalan fronts following the death of a Guatemalan minor and a very strong and disturbing message to Belize from Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales. First, the shooting….News Five has confirmed that at around six-thirty Wednesday evening, seven B.D.F. soldiers and seven FCD rangers were destroying farms within […]
The release from the Government of Belize does not respond to the bold statement of Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales. News Five has been reliably informed that Prime Minister Dean Barrow and Morales are meeting in New York tonight, where both have gone to sign on to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. We’re assuming that […]
As you heard just now, Belize has asked the O.A.S. for a verification exercise for Wednesday’s shooting near Cebada. This morning, just before he left the country, O.A.S. Secretary-General Luis Almagro made reference to the urgent need for just such an exercise in the interest of keeping the peace between both countries. Luis Almagro, […]
The Secretary General’s brief interview at the Phillip Goldson International Airport was essentially a continuation of an ad hoc question and answer session at the western border on Wednesday which ended abruptly. While Almagro’s itinerary did not necessarily include formal discussions on protocols governing the Sarstoon area, he did meet with Prime Minister Dean Barrow […]
Before that shooting near Cebada, the biggest thing in the news would have been the actions by Guatemala on Wednesday, as the Ministry of National Security inaugurated its Forward Operating Base at the Sarstoon. Vessels from the Guatemalan base stationed themselves well within Belizean territory, and at one point were less than one hundred feet […]
And where the Opposition’s participation in the Belize/Guatemala talks is concerned, there is very significant news. Ambassador Assad Shoman is out, and Ambassador Eamon Courtenay is in. We could not confirm whether the very sudden removal of Shoman as P.U.P. Representative is based on the fact that last week he stated that he is not […]
This morning, Briceño also briefed News Five on the meeting with Secretary-General Almagro which included the participation of former P.U.P. Foreign Ministers Said Musa, Lisa Shoman, Godfrey Smith and Eamon Courtenay. He told us that the Opposition took great pains to reject Guatemala’s claim and recent actions and also to let him know that the […]
As we reported earlier in the newscast, there is a build-up of Guatemalan troops on the Sarstoon and along the adjacency zone. It comes immediately after President Jimmy Morales issued a statement saying he would beef up his security forces and recalled his ambassador. Now PM Dean Barrow is in New York for the signing […]
While the Belize/Guatemala dispute remains an ongoing geopolitical issue, the option of going to the International Court of Justice for resolution is one that is as openly supported as it is frankly balked at. Political and grassroots organizations, including the Belize Progressive Party and COLA, respectively, have emphatically rejected the idea of going to the […]
While Almagro has met with proponents of the ICJ alternative, is he open to hearing what COLA or BTV has to say? In short, his answer is yes, but they would have to meet with him in Washington. Reporter “Sir, you’re meeting with public officials who support going to the ICJ here in Belize. […]
The New Orleans Jazz Festival, one of the most anticipated events in that genre, kicks off this weekend. Half a million persons are expected to visit the fest which runs for two weeks. The forty-seventh festival features top artists who will be performing from jazz to rock to rap to pop to R&B and even […]
Tonight, there is a lot of news from the Sarstoon in southern Belize, where the Ministry of National Security inaugurated its long awaited Forward Operating Base. There were uninvited guests from Guatemala, up close and personal in Belizean waters and we’ll have all that for you. But we start our coverage with official ministerial confirmation […]
While Guatemala was considering the proposals, or claimed to be giving them due consideration, Belize’s Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington claimed that there was an agreement between generals to keep the peace, without interference from either side. But that was last week, before Guatemala rejected the Sarstoon proposals. So what does it mean for the movement […]
While all that was playing out in the Sarstoon, a culture of peace was being promoted in the west. Secretary General Luis Almagro, of the Organization of American States, is on an official visit to Belize and has been engaged in a series of high-level meetings with government officials and O.A.S. representatives. During his brief […]
As we’ve said, Guatemala has rejected all eleven proposal put forward by Belize at a recent round of discussions held between Foreign Ministers Wilfred Elrington and Carlos Raul Morales on April eighth. The sudden turn of events is not lost on Secretary General Almagro. In responding to a question asked about the unexpected breakdown in […]
The rejection of the Sarstoon proposals is not sitting well in many quarters. Today, the Belize Progressive Party likened this development to failed diplomacy. Party Chairman Paco Smith says the B.P.P. does not endorse taking the unfounded claim to the ICJ. Paco Smith, Chairman, Belize Progressive Party “For us that’s a foregone conclusion. It’s […]
One of the highlights of the visit of the O.A.S. Secretary General was a visit to the Adjacency Zone. There he witnessed a program dedicated to the culture of Belize. Belizean children were joined by students from neighboring Melchor de Mencos, the Guatemalan side of Arenal and Santa Cruz for renditions promoting peace. Secretary General […]
