A bartender from Cow Pen says he was attacked and injured for no apparent reason early this morning. The victim, thirty-seven year old Jose Gonzalez says he went outside around 2 o’clock this morning, when suddenly a man armed with a machete came towards him and began chopping. Gonzalez was injured on his left hand, […]
Even though it is the largest eagle in the world, the Harpy Eagle has remained elusive with the last unconfirmed sighting in Belize reported in 1994. So you can imagine how excited the Belizean Audubon Society got when a group of North Americans saw it in the Chiquibul forest this month and videotaped the encounter. […]
It ain’t over till it’s over. Workers of the Hummingbird Citrus Limited II, are in their fifth day of a strike and say they won’t go back to the fields until they get want they want: more money. Yesterday, accompanied by their advisors, the Christian Workers Union, the workers marched on Belmopan to show their […]
There was a bit of panic in the tourism community today concerning a circular issued by the Government of Guatemala. The announcement, distributed in the western Cayo district, seems to indicate that beginning February 15th, no tourist vehicles from Belize would be allowed to cross the border into Melchor de Mencos. If true that would […]
Quarantine checkpoints for the Pink Hibiscus Mealy Bug have been removed, but the Ministry of Agriculture says the bug still poses a threat to agricultural areas. The Ministry is asking for continued public cooperation to limit the movement of plants from Belize City, Belmopan and Hopkins. Although the P.H.M.B. task force has determined that wasps […]
Valentine’s Day…you might be thinking…Oh no! Is it that time of year AGAIN? All you lone rangers out there may be planning to batten down for the weekend and ignore the whole thing. But if you’re a die hard romantic, then Valentine’s Day is the perfect opportunity to show your significant other how much you […]
The move was telegraphed on Wednesday when Mesopotamia Representative Michael Finnegan proclaimed a linkage between the construction of government houses on land he claimed belongs to the UDP and his party’s participation in a unified commission on the Guatemala issue. Today Leader of the Opposition Dean Barrow left no room for doubt. Calling the construction […]
For his part, Prime Minister Musa had a few choice words of his own. Although he spoke to News Five on Wednesday, well before receiving Barrow’s letter, the P.M. made it clear that Guatemala’s present position is identical to that advanced while the UDP was in office…and that the UDP’s five years and three months […]
Belizeans at home lament that some of our most well educated have left for greener pastures. Those abroad often wish they could come back and put their knowledge to good use in developing the country. Now the Belize Trade and Investment Development Service, BELTRAIDE is looking for Belizean Ph.d’s to become partially or fully attached […]
Today nine families from Maya Mopan, got the keys to their new wooden, zinc roofed homes. Nine four hole tabletop stoves were also handed over as a donation from the BWEL gas company. The homes were destroyed when a strong wind sent sparks from an indoor fire hearth into a thatch roof and quickly spread […]
It was supposed to have been received by all as good news and a positive step towards addressing the issue of a single minimum wage. However, the recent appointment of one of the members of the Wages Council by Valdimar Castillo, minister of Labour is being protested by the Women’s Issues Network. WIN – Belize […]
Violent outbursts inside the walls of the Hattieville prison seem to be weekly events these days and this week was no different. Initial media reports were that two prisoners got into a fight in the prison yard on Wednesday morning over the spoils of a robbery on the “outside”. One was stabbed. Today Lloyd Augustus […]
When he traveled to Guatemala last month for the inauguration of President Alfonso Portillo, Prime Minister Said Musa took an honoured and equal place at the table with visiting heads of state from all over Central America. But only a few weeks later the shooting of a Guatemalan civilian by a BDF patrol and the […]
It was a hot issue for a while but lately things have been pretty cool in the area around UDP headquarters near the Bel-China Bridge. That is until today, when the steady noise of a pile-driver marked the beginning of Government’s construction on land which the UDP claims belongs to the party. We found the […]
As befits the month before town board elections, Representative Finnegan and the UDP have also been attacking the Government on other fronts: notably the recent purchase of equipment by the Ministry of Works for projects in the Toledo District. According to a UDP release, Finnegan requested on January twenty-fourth that Government provide him with the […]
While police have yet to make an arrest in the attack on shopkeeper Uan Wuu Ming on Tuesday morning, they have found a .38 caliber revolver. Police say they believe one of the assailants dropped it when he ran away from the scene at the corner of Dean Street and Euphrates Avenue. Although police initially […]
It’s day three and the employees of Hummingbird Citrus Limited II are still not in the fields. Today, representatives of the company, the workers, and Labor Commissioner Edney Bennett, tried to work something out, but reached a deadlock after several hours of discussion. They have asked the Christian Workers Union to represent them and as […]
While members of the citrus industry will have to rely on unions to help them meet their demands for higher wages, domestic workers and shop assistants will have their pay reviewed by the new wages council. This week Cabinet Ministers discussed the recently established council, chaired by Phyllis Cayetano. It will advise government on a […]
The days of building what you like, the way you like may soon be at an end. The Government intends to adopt stricter building codes and to enforce them. A committee was established last year to review past attempts to bring buildings up to international standards and assess current needs, especially in light of Hurricane […]
Representatives of the NGO community, government officials and environmental agencies met in Belize City to discuss the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). You might be thinking…A desert? In Belize? Impossible! But according to the experts, the possibility isn’t so far from reality. Oswaldo Sabido, Chief Forest Officer, Forest Department “Our colleagues in the […]
Many people these days believe that the way to get things done is to form a committee or council, conduct an assessment and develop a strategic plan; hand it over to the appropriate minister of government; solicit international funding and/or donations from the business sector; get a consultant from abroad and then proceed to implementation. […]
One week ago grocer Wu Wuo Zheng on Jane Usher Boulevard was hit in the head with a gun as two men robbed his shop. On Monday night it happened again to Lee Chao Jheng on Gill Street. This morning a third attack: Uan Wuu Ming was hit repeatedly with a gun butt in front […]
Workers of the Hummingbird Citrus Limited II are in their second day of strike. Orlando Guzman, senior foreman for the company, told News Five this afternoon that the employees did not show up for work again today. The workers are asking for a thirty-cent raise per hour but Manager Bertran Faux told us yesterday that […]
Today investigators still have no clue about what caused a building in Ladyville to explode, destroying three walls and the roof, early Sunday morning. Residents nearby say they heard two loud bangs and when they looked outside, they saw San Benito Grocery in ruins. The owner, Edward Bennett Sr., says he has no idea what, […]
Since the beginning of the year, the Department of Corrections has certainly taken its fair share of criticism, especially after a series of stabbings on the compound, one of which resulted in a fatality. Trying to correct this image, a board of governors has been appointed to manage the affairs of the prisons. The board […]
