Every year at this time Belize’s school children get a chance to have their own special celebration. This morning I was on hand as the city’s students traded their chairs and desks for bleachers and wide open spaces. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting Thousands of Belize City Primary School students filled the bleachers inside the City Centre […]
It has led the U.S. newscasts for several weeks: The story of how millions of defective Firestone tires were loosed on an unsuspecting public, causing perhaps hundreds of highway deaths and injuries. All the publicity prompted News Five’s Jose Sanchez to see if any of those deadly tires made their way down to Belize. Jose […]
The Cash for Guns programme and its accompanying amnesty are now history. Whether it will be successful in curbing violent crime may never be known, but what is certain, is that the arsenal of illegal guns available for use by criminals has been significantly reduced. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting A total of 184 guns plus a […]
With incidents of police brutality being reported in record numbers it is perhaps fitting that Belize is the venue for an international conference on human rights. News Five’s Jose Sanchez was on hand for the opening. Jose Sanchez, Reporting Over 40 lawyers from Belize, the United States, United Kingdom and the Caribbean have come together […]
With only a week to go before the opening ceremonies the main issue facing the Belizean broadcasting media has been the controversy over the Olympics. But while the games have dominated the headlines, a more significant event took place quietly on Thursday afternoon. Sources close to the Belize Broadcasting Authority have confirmed reports in Amandala […]
The Cash for Guns program is down to its last three days and there is still a steady flow of guns into the exchange center. Today the program safely removed eighteen firearms off the streets, including two 22’s, five 25’s, one 32, one 38, one 9-millimeter, one 357, one pen gun, two shot guns, two […]
Officially known as Hidden Valley, it’s more popularly known as the Thousand Foot Falls, even though its true height is closer to fifteen hundred. This week it was in the news, not due to any discovery by ecologists, but because of one made by lawyers. Stewart Krohn, Reporting Before Belize even contemplated a tourism industry, […]
The Cash for Guns program traveled to Dangriga today and continued its record of success. A total of twelve guns were removed from circulation including two 22’s, two 25’s, one 38, one 9 millimetre, four pen guns, and two 22 rifles. $1,040 was spent to purchase the illegal firearms, with the Dangriga business community contributing […]
It has been a point of contention for many years…and today it was finally resolved. The Hidden Valley Falls, also known as Thousand Foot Falls, was this morning returned to the national patrimony. In a ceremony held overlooking the falls Minister of Natural Resources Johnny Briceno and Julien “Bull” Headley signed a document under which […]
The Belmopan based NGO Help for Progress today received a helping hand from the government of Canada. Canadian Honourary Consul Lester Young presented a cheque for $65,000 to the organisation’s programme director, Elias Awe. The money will be used to purchase a vehicle and office equipment to assist Help’s rural development projects as well as […]
The Cash for Guns scheme has entered its second and final week. And it seems that as long as the business community can find the money, the guns keep coming in. Lascelle Arnold, Chairman, Cash For Guns “For half day Saturday we collected 7. Today we collected 17 guns. We’ll be stepping up tomorrow, going […]
As the first week of the Cash For Guns programme comes to a close, the organizers say the effort so far has been a success. A tally of today’s haul includes a variety of weapons and according to vice chairman, Darrel Carter, the organisers are optimistic that next week will be just as productive. Darrel […]
With controversy over both crime and the police department’s often brutal reaction to it, running near an all time high, last night’s “One on One with Dickie Bradley” offered some special drama. Guests Assistant Commissioner Hugh Cain and Superintendent Crispin Jeffries came across as no nonsense cops whose attitude toward those arrested was tough but […]
The Santiago Castillo group of companies is sponsoring a fair and telethon at the BTL Park on Saturday in order to raise funds for the Child Care Centre. The fair runs from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and the environment will be safe and secure. According to Anuar Flores, Managing Director for Santiago Castillo Limited, […]
You may buy your groceries at BTL Park, but to eat your afternoon meal you may want to head across the bridge. On Saturday the Restoration Committee for Saint John’s Cathedral is holding its annual International Food Fest. The Church was built with bricks brought over from England and since its completion in 1826, has […]
The Cash For Guns programme continues to run at full bore as more firearms and ammunition are handed in. Today the centre received its usual complement of heavy iron, but the biggest catch of the day had to be a Tech Nine machine gun, which was brought in this morning along with a loaded ammo […]
The reports aired earlier this week about the beating of football stars Charlie Slusher and Norman “Tilliman” Nunez was hardly the first time that Channel Five has highlighted allegations of police brutality. While authorities acted promptly to investigate the incident and discipline four officers pending further inquiries, the question remains whether such quick official action […]
Since the Cash For Guns programme started on Monday, close to seventy-five weapons have been collected. Up to four this evening, twenty guns and a quantity of ammunition had been collected thus far today. The collection includes five twenty-two’s, four twenty-five’s, one thirty-two, two thirty-eight’s, one nine millimetre, one three-eighty, one shot gun, one sawed […]
In a move toward transparency that was as welcome as it was sudden, the Social Security Board today released a full breakdown of its investment portfolio. A quick look at the figures shows that over the last decade the role of the social security fund has been transformed from a depository for cash into the […]
The Sister Cecilia Home for the elderly has been providing high quality residential care for Belize’s senior citizens. Today its occupants had one more reason to celebrate as they witnessed the opening of a new activity centre. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting Although the Sister Cecilia Home has improved tremendously over the past six years, the facility […]
Day two of the Cash For Guns programme has taken some new weapons off the street including an undisclosed number of hand grenades. The British manufactured grenades were part of the day’s haul, which ranged from pen guns to M-16 ammo clips. Project coordinator Nuri Muhammed told News Five that by this evening he had […]
Fifteen months ago ground was broken on an ambitious project that promised to change the face of one of Belize City’s most well known neighbourhoods. Fifteen months later phase one of the programme has been completed. Jacqueline Woods, Reporting The First phase of the project includes the construction of nine new homes, a police booth, […]
It has not been scientifically proven that the purchasing of illegal guns off the street will result in the reduction of violent crime, but authorities believe that it’s worth a try. Today the ambitious two-week project, combined with a daytime amnesty, got underway in Belize City. Judging by the quantity and particularly the quality of […]
Today, police and citizens of Caye Caulker were out on the sea looking for a young man who is feared dead after he fell off a boat late Saturday night. According to reports from the island, the skiff with four passengers onboard left Belize City around 9:00 that night to go to the island. Sources […]
A financial arrangement between the Social Security Board and the Government of Belize will result in some improvements to the town of Dangriga. A release from the Press Office reports that SSB has purchased the property on which the old Dangriga Hospital was located for one point five million dollars and that money will be […]
