Attorney-General Wilfred Elrington is taking aim at the Bar Association and it is not the first time. This time though, he is using legislation that could result in a further splintering of the Bar. Last week, through a letter from Solicitor-General Cheryl Krusen to the Chief Justice and the Bar Association, the AG made known […]
And while those recommendations will be forwarded to Attorney General Wilfred Elrington and Solicitor General Cheryl Krusen, President of the Bar Eamon Courtenay also dealt with the very pointed criticisms that have been heaped on the Association by Elrington. The AG has stated very clearly that he believes that the Bar Association does absolutely nothing […]
With the debate focusing now on the referendum, our last question was if viewers thought that government was soft on Guatemala. An overwhelming ninety-two percent voted yes while the rest said no: Turning to tonight’s question: Should Belize proceed to hold a referendum on October 6, if Guatemala does not? Send your comments and responses […]
Earlier in the newscast we showed you the response from Bar Association President Eamon Courtenay to criticism that the Bar is inactive, a waste of time, and does nothing for its members or for the community. But there is also that other matter which comes up time and time again, and always from U.D.P. […]
And putting aside the criticisms, founded or unfounded, and removing the government perception of a politically skewed Association, Courtenay says the move just doesn’t make much sense, period. If the amendment is passed as proposed, attorneys would be able to practice free of association with any legal body, which translates to no regulation and no […]
To round out his openly critical response to the Attorney-General’s very blatant and apologetic targeting of the Bar Association, Eamon Courtenay touched on a very sensitive topic, the General Legal Council. Currently that oversight body is appointed by the Bar Association, but if the amendment goes through, it will be appointed by the Attorney General. […]
A Belize City man was spared jail time after being convicted on March fourteenth of arson on the house of the mother of his ex. Thirty-five year old Brian Barrella appeared on Monday evening before Justice Adolph Lucas for sentencing. During the mitigation plea, family members and friends spoke on Barrella’s behalf asking for leniency. […]
The death penalty is still in Belize’s constitution even though the last person to have been executed was over twenty-five years ago when Kent Bowers was hung for the murder of Robert Codd. There are eight persons on death row but only one person has served over fifty years in prison and cannot be executed […]
Belize is considered a main transit point for drugs that make their way to the United States by land, sea and air. In the fight against drug trafficking, the US has established a major anti-drug operation center in Florida and because of its sensitive nature; it is off limits to the public. Last year alone, […]
The Belize Jaguars are preparing for play against the Soca Warriors of Trinidad and Tobago in anticipation of the Gold Cup in which Belize will be going up against the United States, Cuba and Costa Rica. Members of the visiting team began arriving today for the match which takes place this Saturday. But instead of […]
Belizean singer, Tanya Carter has opened for Etana, Luciano, Lexxus and Morgan Heritage, so it’s not unusual that she has flown to Jamaica, the home of reggae music to work with some of the best producers on the island. She has collaborated with Christopher Birch of Birchill Records, who produced and co-wrote her newest single, […]
A high-level Foreign Ministry delegation headed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred “Sedi’’ Elrington travelled to OAS headquarters in Washington DC on Saturday to meet Guatemalan counterparts and OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza. While officials balked at referring to the encounter as an emergency gathering, it was held on a Sunday coming at a […]
Because of the absence of Guatemala’s Foreign Minister Fernando Carrera, Belize’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington returned to his hotel room to wait for a de-briefing of the Vice-Ministerial meeting. Even though Elrington was disrespected, he said that notwithstanding the absence of his counterpart he considered the meeting to be a good one. And […]
Leader of the Opposition Francis Fonseca was a guest on OYE this morning, just in time to be apprised of the latest developments coming out of the meeting at the OAS in Washington. At a recent press conference Fonseca had committed to putting forward an official party position by early next month after carrying out […]
The weekend’s murder victim is Leon Humes; he was shot on Friday night when he was purchasing food in the Mahogany Street area of the city. A single bullet landed on his head and Humes died within hours during emergency surgery at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital. The grieving family says his life could have […]
While Leon Humes was fatally shot, less than twenty-four hours later three persons in Ladyville survived a barrage of bullets that headed their way when they stood across a popular supermarket on the highway. A thirteen-year old female student from Nazarene High School, another minor and Errol Andrews were waiting for a bus when someone […]
In the south, the Customs Department seized a large quantity of contraband cigarettes. The bust took place on Saturday when customs personnel were alerted by the Belize Defense Force of the movement of the cargo in Jalacte. News Five was reliably informed that a business in the Corozal Free Zone sold two shipments of cigarettes […]
While cigarettes were seized in the south, the smuggling of sugar across the border is a lucrative business. According to an article published in Novedades Quintana Roo on Sunday, the local sugar continues to find its way across the Mexican border. The Rio Hondo has become the illegal crossing point for sugar into Quintana Roo. […]
Changes in the hierarchy of the police command were announced today as was the zoning of the city. The changes, the police say, will provide for better policing and give the community more accessibility to the police in their anti-crime efforts. News Five’s Jose Sanchez. Jose Sanchez, Reporting There were several changes made to […]
It was Day One of the Primary School Examinations and more than seven thousand five hundred students sat the exams across the country; about three hundred and eighty more than last year. The students were fairly confident of their performances in the English and Science tests. Of note is that last year, science passes averaged […]
Last Friday, Belize faced its first review by the Human Rights Committee in Geneva since its accession to the Convention. We are among one hundred and sixty-seven state parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is one of the primary international human rights treaties. A total of eleven topics ranging from […]
One of the first items for review was over Mayan land rights. On August seventh 1998, a petition was presented by the Indian Law Resource Center and the Toledo Maya Cultural Council against Belize stating that the government is responsible for violating rights under the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man. The […]
One hundred years ago, on March seventeenth, 1913 four nuns made their way to Belize, and from there up the Belize River by boat to Cayo, then by horse and buggy to Benque where they settled. That was the birth of the Pallottine movement in Belize, and their achievements to this day, especially in the […]
Three children of very young ages are complaining that they have been sexually abused. In San Pedro, a twenty-four year old Honduran national is detained by police following allegations by two minors of indecent crimes. A nine year old boy reported to police that on Saturday the Honduran national allegedly kissed him on the mouth […]
This morning, twenty-seven year old Brandon Smith, a resident of Port Loyola Area of Belize City was escorted in hand cuffs to the Belize City Magistrate’s Court to face Attempted Murder charges. He appeared before Chief Magistrate, Anne Marie Smith where he was read four offenses of Attempted Murder upon four police officers, namely, […]
