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Today, N.G.O.s continue to express serious concerns with two pieces of legislation allegedly tabled before Cabinet. This first is the brand new National Protected Areas System Bill and the second is an amended PACT Bill. While there is general agreement that there is a critical need for legislation, there seems to be almost unanimous belief […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Another concern with the N-PAS Bill is that it would establish a National Protected Areas Council, but only in an advisory capacity and not an administrative capacity as sought by co-management N.G.O.s and other stakeholders. In terms of the PACT ACT, there are also concerns – one of which is the proposal to expand the […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Says Amendments Would Negatively Impact PACT’s Function
And then there is a concern with the composition of the PACT Board of Directors, which would change significantly with the amendments which have been proposed. Via Phone: Osmany Salas, President, B.T.I.A. “There is currently a fairly healthy balance on the PACT Board in relation to government representation and non-government representation. If the amendments […]
At the top of the newscast you heard the Court of Appeal decisions. But the Magistrate Court was also busy with immigration matters. On Thursday, the Immigration Department was on a routine check on the Northern Highway when they visited Dream Like Bar where they found the owner along with a number of female immigrants […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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An American writer who came to Belize legally in December 2013 on a one month permit has been detained for over staying his welcome. Allan David Head was in court today to answer to a single charge of Failure to Comply with the Conditions of a Visitor’s Permit. He pleaded guilty to the immigration offense […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on American Writer Overstays Welcome in Belize
A woman from San Pedro, Columbia in Toledo has just found out that forty-five acres of land which has been in her family since 1952 has been sold out from under her. The land was given to Aurelio Buul in 1952. He in turn transferred it legally to his daughter Magdalena Buul in 1993. She […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Attorney Godfrey Smith on behalf of another attorney, Marcel Cardona, has today issued statement on Cardona’s behalf. It is in respect of a recent media report that the General Legal Council of the Bar Association had taken a decision to suspend him from practicing law. The GLC did discuss complaints made by one of Cardona’s […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Marcel Cardona’s Attorney Says his Client Not Sanctioned by the GLC
More and more persons in the Jewel are living with mental health conditions, particularly in the elderly population. Today, a mental health and ageing workshop was held at the Belize Institute of Management in Belize City. The main focus is to provide mental health staff and stakeholders with updated knowledge on identifying disorders of the […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Another setback says Nurse Eleanor Bennett is that Belize does not have the trained persons in geriatric psychology and health care that should be provided to those elderly persons that have been institutionalized, placed in homes and left neglected by loved one. Nurse Bennett says service specialized for elderly persons is the goal that they […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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The tenth annual Belize International Film Festival is set to open with a bang in the next few weeks at the Ocean Club in Placencia. The festival is competitive and showcases innovative films with a focus on cultural diversity. It features high quality, unique productions from around the world in various genres that provide a […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Placencia to Host 10th Annual Belize International Film Festival
The categories for which trophies will be awarded are for Best Narrative Feature, Best Documentary Feature, Best Short Film and Best Short Documentary and Best Animation. A new category introduced this year is the Best TV Dramatic film which is opened to Belize and the rest of the Caribbean as well as the Youth Audience […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Film Director Discusses Award Categories
Carnival Season is almost here and the Belize Carnival Association is inviting you to their launch this weekend. Mas Bands, entertainers and fans will kick off the season that organizers say has been missing and will be unlike any other on Saturday at the Rogers Stadium. You will get a chance to see what some […]
Written on June 19, 2015 | Posted in
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Within days of the big win against the national football team of the Dominican Republic, the goalkeeper who pulled off amazing saves for Belize is moving on from the Jaguars. The sensational goalie, Woodrow West, has signed on a three-year contract to play with a Honduran team. He was scouted immediately following the game on […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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Relatives of murder suspect, Maurice Felix, confirmed to us today that early this morning, he handed himself into police custody. But strangely, when Maurice and his sister visited the police station at around six this morning, they were told he was not wanted even though police have been looking for him since June fifth. This is the […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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This evening, a group of four persons, who were busted inside a Cherokee jeep, were remanded to the Belize Central Prison, after the prosecutor objected to bail due to the huge amount of drugs found in their possession. The bust netted police sixty-seven kilograms of marijuana which is equivalent to one hundred and forty eight […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on 67K of Marijuana Found by Checkpoint Cops
Amendments to the PACT Act which were allegedly tabled at Cabinet have been the cause of much speculation and even concern among N.G.O.s in Belize. Some representatives we spoke to told us that while they have been lobbying for amendments to the Act since 2006, they just don’t know that the final draft tabled in […]
Among the complaints we’ve heard about the proposed amendments is that there is much more power being vested in the Minister, and apparently less inclusion of N.G.O.’s and less dependence on technical consultations with those in the know. Edilberto Romero, Executive Director, Programme for Belize “One of the concerns was the composition of the […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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On Monday, the new Guatemalan Ambassador to Belize, Manuel Estuardo Roldan, was sworn in to assume his diplomatic mission in Belize. He begins his appointment at a time when there is a strong public anti-Guatemalan sentiment because of recent incidents such as the Guatemalan gunboat that crashed into the reef and the detention of four […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Guatemalan Ambassador Admits Incursions Are Not Being Controlled
Ambassador Roldan says that his primary focus will be to build the relationship between Guatemala and Belize. And one of his priorities is to help alleviate the pressures on the border by establishing economic opportunities for Guatemalans. When he leaves office, he says that he hopes that he would be known for improving the relations […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on He Hopes to Rebuild Relationship Between the Countries
On Wednesday, Moody’s Investors Service reported that Belize’s debt is unsustainable. Tonight, we report that Belize is among fourteen Caribbean countries blacklisted by the European Union as the world’s worst tax havens. The others are Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts and Nevis, and the British Overseas […]
Nestled in the far reaches of the Belize River Valley is the Rio Bravo Protected Area, a large and lushly forested zone where flora and fauna thrive. But like other protected areas countrywide, there is the need for constant surveillance and on the ground management to ensure that the nation’s natural riches are conserved and […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
Environment,
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Comments Off on New Fire Tower for Rio Bravo Protected Area
Can the Government of Belize make agreements with a private party concerning another private party’s operation of his/her business? Can the Government cede collection of revenue by taxes to a statutory body without legislative support? These and other questions are being asked in the Supreme Court in the case of developer Michael Feinstein, the mastermind […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on Supreme Court Examines Feinstein/FSTV/G.O.B. Relationship
The so-called head tax, paid by cruise ship passengers to enter Belize, is collected by the Belize Tourism Board (B.T.B.) and shared with the Belize City Council, Protected Areas Conservation Trust (PACT) and FSTV, which receives a majority. However, despite being in existence for several years, there is no legislative support for it, according to […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
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Comments Off on No Legislative Support for Head Tax
Feinstein agreed that the original agreement for the village in 2001 designated it the only port of entry for cruise ships in Belize District for fifteen years, this has subsequently been extended three times and now ends in January 2028, after the sale of the Village to Royal Caribbean/Diamonds International and after the failure of […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
Trials |
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As of midnight tonight, there will be a drop in the cost of butane gasoline. The government, in a press release from the Supplies Control Unit, announced today that effective this Friday, the new controlled price for a hundred pound cylinder of butane will go down by three dollars across the board. For Belize Gas […]
Written on June 18, 2015 | Posted in
Economy |
Comments Off on Butane Prices Down
