As both Belizeans and Guatemalans wait to hear what the facilitators will recommend, according to Belize’s Ambassador to Guatemala, Moises Cal, the feelings from top to bottom are positive. Moises Cal, Belize’s Ambassador to Guatemala “There is a will from the President of Guatemala to have this issue resolved as early as possible, for various […]
Belize is hoping to strengthen its human and social development efforts with a bit of help from our Caribbean partners. Today, Prime Minister Said Musa officially launched the National Council for Human and Social Development, COHSOD, making Belize the eighth CARICOM state to establish such a council. The group will co-ordinate work in the areas […]
It’s not what you’d call hard news, but for many Belizeans, the combination of oppressive heat, no breeze and swarming insects has made life miserable from Santa Elena to Barranco. Today, News 5’s Jacqueline Woods found out that while you can’t change the weather, there is something you can do about the bugs. Jacqueline Woods, […]
Acting on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions, police have arrested seventeen year old Kira Plunkett. Plunkett is the aunt of four-year-old Honey Flowers, who accidentally shot herself with a gun that Plunkett left in a bag on her bed. The case against Plunkett will question the level of responsibility gun owners must […]
It has not been widely publicised, but earlier this week word reached News 5 of the death of a Belizean in the United States. Richard Burn, formerly of Belmopan, died of a heart attack on Monday in Mesa, Arizona. He was forty-seven years old. In 1994 we featured Burn as he, along with his wife […]
A labourer on a San Pedro, Ambergris Caye work site is dead, presumably due to electrocution. Rufino Santos, a twenty year old Honduran, was employed on the construction of the new Belize Bank building on Barrier Reef Drive in the centre of town. On Monday at 5:15 in the evening the workmen were in the […]
The Belize Social Security Board is celebrating its twenty-first anniversary. To commemorate the occasion, S.S.B. is holding a week of activities across the country to sensitise the community about its work and the benefits afforded to the general public. Today officials invited both primary and secondary school students to an all day presentation at their […]
Elections are a regular part of life in democratic societies and in Belize they have become a particular form of social event, with their own etiquette, protocol and rules of engagement. Today, the Elections and Boundaries Commission held a seminar to help us understand more about this sometimes mysterious process. News 5’s Ann-Marie Williams was […]
The message of staying drug free is one that should be re-enforced daily, especially since latest statistics reveal that children as young as age six are experimenting with addictive substances. Today, the National Drug Abuse Control Council hit the streets of Belize City once again to push the idea that we don’t need drugs to […]
With the images of destruction and despair left in the wake of Hurricane Iris still vivid in the minds of most Belizeans, the official start of the hurricane season this weekend is being viewed with more than a little anxiety. While there is no certainty that a storm will or will not hit Belize this […]
Everyone agrees on the nature of the problem: disaffected youths with too few marketable skills and too much temptation. A sure-fire recipe for a fatal subculture of crime, drugs and poverty. The hard part is finding the elusive answers. This afternoon government launched a new effort to provide some. And although the project started with […]
It doesn’t support the traffic of O’Hare in Chicago, J.F.K. in New York or London’s fabled Heathrow. In fact, the total number of passengers landing at Belmopan’s Hector Silva airstrip in a year would be hard pressed to fill a single 747. But numbers are always relative and in an emergency the lone runway in […]
Although he has been described in the local media as an “NBA superstar” Milton Palacio would be the first to disagree with the hype. In three years of professional basketball, Palacio has displayed his solid and occasionally spectacular talents at Vancouver, Boston and now Phoenix. Prior to that he led the Belize National Team to […]
I don’t know how much longer we can do this same story, but until someone picks a winner, we’ll have to just stay with it every Wednesday and Saturday. In case you’re not a player, that’s when those magic ping-pong balls start to fly. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting No one knows for sure that they’ll win, […]
When the Government of Belize announced that it had decided to privatise the port in 2001, immediately it became a source of controversy. And that controversy escalated dramatically when it became clear that well-known Belizean contractor Luke Espat was looking to become the lead investor in the deal. Today, the Government of Belize announced that […]
But while Espat outlined the objectives of the investment, Public Relations Officer for the Ministry of Budget Management, Norris Hall, struggled to provide the elusive details of the deal. Norris Hall, P.R. Officer, Min. of Budget Management “What will happen let me explain, the Espat group will begin to be a part of the board […]
On Monday’s newscast we reported that because of a robbery on Friday afternoon at a factory in Belmopan, management had laid off their employees and threatened to leave Belize. Tonight we are pleased to report that since then, the people from Caribbean Investors Limited have reviewed that move and opted to stay put. Speaking with […]
It’s an idea, like many, that has been around for a good while. But unlike most, this one is rapidly becoming a reality. News 5’s Jacqueline Woods reports. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting It took some time, but finally work on the country’s first Hospice and Cancer Centre has commenced. The building’s first floor is scheduled to […]
We hate to admit it, but when News 5 is summoned to Mayflower Street, it’s usually because a shooting has just gone down or there’s a police raid in progress. Tonight we are pleased to bring you a very different sort of story from Mayflower Street. As News 5’s Ann-Marie Williams found out, the residents […]
Last Thursday night, a traffic accident on the Northern Highway left one young man dead and another fighting for his life. Tonight the survivor, thirty-two year old Jerry Matura remains in critical condition in a Merida hospital, while family members here pray for a speedy recovery. But their hopes and prayers don’t translate into the […]
Today, a local non-governmental organisation marked its thirty-third anniversary of service in Belize. The Society for the Promotion of Education and Research, SPEAR, was officially established on May sixteenth, 1969. Since then, they have been active advocates on a wide range of issues in order to improve the quality of life and standard of living […]
If you’ve had problems with your water pressure this week, it might make you feel better to know that you weren’t alone. Residents from several sections of the Northern Highway from Coral Groves to mile four have been complaining of a significant drop in water pressure, usually about the time they’re ready for a shower. […]
This afternoon, traffic on Cesar Ridge Road was temporarily interrupted as members of the fire service, traffic department and employees of the Esso Depot participated in a fire simulation. Okay, so by now a simulation in Belize City is no big deal, but according to Esso, even though the company has never had an actual […]
Almost two weeks ago, former Assistant to the Commissioner of Police Carmen Zetina, officially took over as the top cop of the Belize Police Department. This afternoon, Commissioner Zetina, eleven days into his new job, sat down with members of the press corps to discuss how he will manage things at the helm. News 5’s […]
With sixty percent of the Belizean population under the age of thirty-five, the government has begun to plan ahead to deal with all that youthful energy. Today, the “Youth for the Future Initiative”, scheduled to be officially launched later this month, was explained to the press. According to co-ordinator Nuri Muhammad, this is not just […]
