A new initiative by the Ministries of Home and Foreign Affairs is bringing some common sense to the problem of illegal immigration. Over the last two weeks around forty people charged with illegal entry have been removed from prison and deported to their home countries of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Today the latest […]
It got its name from the late Dr. Marla Holder, one of the founders of this home for children in need of protection. Today, News 5’s Janelle Chanona was in Belmopan as the kids got a helping hand. Janelle Chanona, Reporting Since it was established in 1997 hundreds of Belizean children have found safety from […]
The Youth for the Future Initiative is better known for its grand gestures than any major accomplishments…but success in turning young lives around is invariably measured in millimetres and not miles. Today News 5’s Jacqueline Woods looked in on one of the initiative’s first small steps in what may be a very long journey. Jacqueline […]
Former director of immigration Paulino Castellanos will not testify. That’s the latest out of the Commission of Inquiry charged to review the procedural irregularities at the Immigration Department. According to Chairman Paul Rodriguez, the commission has decided it will not ask Castellanos to appear before them, because his testimony could possibly jeopardize the ongoing police […]
In his address on Friday to new recruits, Minister of Home Affairs Ralph Fonseca emphasized the importance of community policing. Today in Belize City law enforcement authorities were taking that advice. News 5’s Jacqueline Woods has the story. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting The police alone cannot eradicate crime, but criminal activity can be drastically reduced when […]
With law and order still a major concern of most Belizeans, the police department on Friday welcomed thirty-six new recruits into the war on crime. Members of the seventy-seventh squad have spent the last four months learning about the nation’s laws, court procedures, crowd control and even human rights. According to Minister of Home Affairs, […]
It’s no secret that over the years ministers of both government have sold off some of the nation’s most valuable land, including cayes, at fire sale prices. And as reprehensible as that practice is, it hurts even more when government winds up buying the property back. Yeah, here we go again. Janelle Chanona, Reporting The […]
They are cited across the Caribbean as the prime cause of violent crime. What I’m talking about is the hundreds of convicted criminals, who after serving their jail terms in the U.S. are put on a plane back home–a home that many have often not seen for decades. This morning News 5’s Jacqueline Woods visited […]
Breaking news out of Belmopan tonight is that the deadline to set a date for the simultaneous referendum to end the Guatemalan claim has been suspended… indefinitely. According to a government press release, the facilitators informed the Foreign Ministers of both countries that “…practical difficulties may make it unrealistic to adhere to the deadline for […]
The “party” continued at the Central Bank today, but there were no treats in the testimony of acting Director of Immigration Colonel Peter Parchue, who spoke for more than two hours. The audience, up now to three members of the press and another member of the public, listened as Parchue flatly told the commissioners that […]
The fact that nobody, except two members of the press, showed up at the Central Bank this morning to hear the findings of the Commission of Inquiry appointed to investigate the Immigration Department, may be a definite sign that nobody is expecting much. But commissioners Paul Rodriguez, Mark Hulse and Sylvester Romero Palma remain undaunted […]
With Christmas two months away, the heat is on for the post office to reorganize itself in the wake of the Paslow fire and prepare for the seasonal onslaught of mail. In Cabinet this week, Government decided to put a temporary roof on the building to allow the restoration of some of the postal services […]
Belize’s sole supplier of electricity, B.E.L., took time out last night to meet with residents of mile eight on the Western Highway. The purpose was to discuss the effects of the proposed installation of a large gas turbine generator not far from the growing suburb. B.E.L is now in the process of forwarding the environmental […]
Young people may not believe it, but there was a time not too long ago when bicycles in Belize far outnumbered cars, when a luxury sedan was any sedan and the nation’s only SUV. was a beat up Land Rover. All that may have changed, but as News 5’s Marion Ali discovered, not all that […]
The Commission of Inquiry appointed to investigate irregularities at the Immigration Department this morning began its balancing act. Chairman of the Commission, Paul Rodriguez, flanked by Bishop Sylvester Romero Palma and accountant Mark Hulse, called the meeting to order at approximately nine a.m. with testimony from its first and only witness of the day, Director […]
As the debate continues over Belize’s proposed constitutional amendment to maintain the death penalty, the Government of Belize is already defending itself in the international community. On Friday Attorney General Godfrey Smith appeared before the Inter-American Commission in Washington to respond to its request that Belize withdraw the amendment and keep the Privy Council as […]
The bill to amend the constitution was tabled in early September and should be debated in the House of Representatives by early December. But while government continues to stand by its decision, according to Simeon Sampson, President of the Human Rights Commission of Belize, the move is part of a political game. Simeon Sampson, President, […]
While the debate over capital punishment has Attorney General Godfrey Smith formally answering critics in the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights in Washington, a statutory instrument has been signed in Belmopan which ensures that those murderers not put to death remain behind bars forever. The S.I., which amends the 1998 legislation establishing the parole system, […]
Earlier this week, our newscast featured a story about the Sapodilla Cayes, and in it, we listed the names of those Belizeans with leasehold rights to the islands. But while our sources had indicated that Hunting Caye was still crown land, it turns out that in part, it is private property. Since 1997, the Fuller […]
There are new developments tonight in the case of a baby that died last month at the K.H.M.H. It is believed that Ashton Chun, age one year four months, died of complications arising from AIDS…and that disease was allegedly contracted through a transfusion of tainted blood products last May at the Southern Regional Hospital in […]
As strikes go, it was hardly a classic. Hastily called, poorly observed and ultimately ineffectual, the attempted mass closure by the nation’s forty-four gas stations served only to inconvenience drivers and panic them into pouring their last few dollars into their gas tanks instead of more pressing pursuits. For the record, it appears that all […]
If the man on the other side of the negotiating table was incensed by the petulant action of the fuel dealers, he wasn’t showing it. According to Budget Minister and designated political fire-fighter, Ralph Fonseca, there were no hard feelings. Ralph Fonseca, Min. of Budget Management “We’re not angry, we just continue to talk and […]
If you are employed to work in Belize, then by law your employer is obligated to enrol you in the Social Security system. But what if you are one of the thousands of Belizeans who work for yourself? Until now you could not take advantage of the many health and retirement benefits of Social Security. […]
So far it’s been better known for its lavish launch at the Marion Jones stadium than for any concrete achievements on the streets. But according to its creators, the new initiative for young people, whose headquarters was dedicated this afternoon, is no nine days wonder. Marion Ali has more. Marion Ali, Reporting Hundreds of youths […]
It started as a few random rumours late this afternoon, but by five, long lines were already spilling onto the street from the nation’s gas stations. The reason: an alleged decision by the Belize Service Station Dealers Association to shut down operations at 6:00 p.m. tonight. The dealers had been seeking an increase in their […]
