Last Friday in the House of Representatives, the Prime Minister bid farewell to Francis Fonseca as the Leader of the Opposition in the House. Well tonight, the outgoing P.U.P. Leader has made an about-turn and is now an aspirant for new Party Leader. In the wake of general elections Fonseca announced that he was stepping […]
A US Coast Guard Officer is reportedly in critical condition after she was stabbed three times on the beach in San Pedro. Twenty-six year old Jennifer Smith, reportedly on vacation on the island, was walking back to her room at the popular Ramon’s Reef Resort at around midnight on Thursday when she was attacked and […]
The United States Embassy in Belize is reaching out to the injured naval officer. While details of the near-fatal attack were sparse this morning, Ambassador Carlos Moreno told the media that the Military Liaison Office is looking into the incident. Carlos Moreno, U.S. Ambassador “I just learned about that this morning when you probably […]
Dangriga police, meanwhile, are reporting tonight a disturbing case of the alleged rape of a pregnant woman. The victim is a nineteen year old resident of Stann Creek District. She claims that on Thursday afternoon, at around three o’clock she was at a bus stop at mile six on the Hummingbird Highway when she was […]
There have been more arrests and charges laid in the high-profile and very brutal home invasion on December third in Burrell Boom. At around seven that night, eight men stormed the home of Lebanese Consul Sarkis Abou-Nehra. Abou-Nehra and his wife were out of the country, but the men viciously beat the caretaker, raped his […]
Jeffery Buller was arraigned this afternoon for abetment to commit aggravated burglary and was denied bail. Mark Pitts and Paul Jex were arraigned for handling stolen good and both pleaded not guilty. The duo claimed that the police placed and a bag over their heads to coerce them to talk. They were all remanded until […]
The fate of approximately four thousand Cuban migrants marooned in Costa Rica continues to hang in the balance as countries along their intended route to the United States decide on whether to allow them transit north to the U.S./Mexico border. Nicaragua and Guatemala have refused them passage through their countries and on Tuesday, the Government […]
David Nanes Schnitzer, the Houdini of international fugitives, remains at large since absconding from Belize after receiving bail on November twentieth. But the story won’t go away and in fact the call for an investigation was narrowly defeated in the Senate on Wednesday. In fact it is known that the government of Mexico has expressed […]
Ambassador Moreno acknowledges the personal interpretation of Justice Hanomansingh while presiding over the Nanes matter. His disappointment however, is twofold. Firstly, the former judge says that a court order to temporarily suspend the execution of the ruling would have allowed the prosecution to appeal. Secondly, bail should have been set at a much higher cost […]
At news time tonight, we can confirm that a total of three shipping containers en route to Belize from Guyana are presently in port at San Tomas, Guatemala. The consignment of rice is scheduled for delivery by barge to the port at Big Creek next Thursday. The quantity, imported by businessman Jitendra Chawla, Jack Charles […]
Five months after a rate decrease, it is likely that electricity rates will go up. The last decrease in July, afforded consumers a thirty-five cents cut per kilo watt hour. Today, the Public Utilities Commission announced that BEL has submitted a request for a rate increase because of a “underestimation of the Cost of Power […]
The Pagola cargo ship from Jamaica has been offloaded and operations are back in full swing at the Port of Belize where days of industrial action taken by the stevedores have come to an end. On Monday, gang seven stevedores headed by Guy Neal started an impromptu strike that was reportedly sanctioned by the Christian […]
The point of contention that led to the strike by the stevedores was a pension plan. The stevedores want an increase to six percent retroactive to 2004. While the Port has agreed to the six percent, C.E.O. Vasquez says that their position is that it cannot be retroactive to the past eleven years. The discussions, […]
Now, there are three options that were being explored as solutions to the strike at the Port of Belize. The first option for cargo vessels to call to port at Big Creek in the south was also the most costly. The second was to acquire other stevedores, even police officers, to offload and on-load the […]
On Wednesday, ground was ceremoniously broken for the construction of a joint forward operating base near the mouth of the Sarstoon River. Present for the brief formality were a number of government officials, including the ministers of National Security, Education and Public Service. Noticeably absent were other invited guests, particularly the United States Ambassador and […]
But the ambassador was present for a groundbreaking ceremony to commence a pair of multimillion dollar projects on the U.S. Embassy compound held this morning in Belmopan. Over the next two years, a new Marine Security Guard Residence will be built on the site at an estimated cost of twenty-two million U.S. dollars. Additionally, the […]
In October when Belize City was inundated by floodwaters impoverished zones in the south-side took the hardest hit. In some cases homes held together by little more than faith collapsed. One such case was that of mother of three Kayla Stevens. Her home on Neal Penn road literally fell apart, and somehow Kayla fell between […]
Tonight, at least three persons are left homeless and three others are staying with relatives after the two storey house they were living in was gutted by flames. Just before four this morning, a fire broke at the corner of Hopkins and Third Streets in the King’s Park area of Belize City and within minutes, […]
Notorious street figure Tyrone Meighan was charged for rape in that home invasion, following an identification parade. That brings up an issue which has plagued the prosecution in serious crimes for years – witnesses who refuse to testify because there is a legitimate risk that they will be targeted. Today Senior Superintendent Edward Broaster confirmed […]
On Tuesday, the General Sales Tax Department will be drawing the first of a series of winning tickets in a raffle. Shoppers will have the opportunity to win five thousand dollars on December fifteenth by redeeming GST receipts from purchases made from October at various businesses. The five-thousand dollar cash will be up for grabs […]
The home invasion in Rural Belize has also brought into stark focus the reality of vulnerability in rural areas. Christmas is a time for celebration and giving, but it is also a time for taking, and some criminals are all too happy to take very forcefully. Today Broaster outlined some tips on Christmas security for […]
A strike is called off and after four days off the job at the port, stevedores finally went back to work this afternoon. Vessels bringing hams and turkeys as well as other items being imported or exported this Christmas season, will be loaded and offloaded. The Pagola from Jamaica which has been moored at English […]
The strike by stevedores has been called off and they are back on the job. But the four-day standoff with the Port of Belize over retirement packages has had dire consequences for businesses large and small. The disruptions in operation were hurting the bottom line for businesses and the livelihood of stevedores. Duane Moody set […]
The C.E.O./Receivership at the Port of Belize, Arturo Tux Vasquez was away in Guatemala during the negotiations, but remained active throughout. He was part of a delegation from the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry that met with their counterpart in Guatemala. But on leaving Guatemalan today, Vasquez got into some trouble with immigration on […]
Three weeks ago a particularly vicious assault caught the attention of the nation. A seventy year old woman told San Pedro Police that as she walked home she was followed by a man on a bicycle and brutally beaten. That man has been at large, but tonight police believe that they have him in custody […]
