A Belize City man drowned while swimming at a sand pit in the Fresh Pond community over the weekend. Twenty-one year old Jalee Mitchell and his brother had gone for a Saturday afternoon swim, and it was when Mitchell was in the deeper portion that he began struggling to stay afloat. A resident in the […]
Police are investigating an incident in Southern Belize that left one woman dead. Iris Miranda was reportedly inside a Ford Escape with a male driver when she jumped out of the moving vehicle. She sustained several head and body injuries which led to her death. Police have since detained the driver as they investigate. […]
Two Lemonal cousins got in a dispute over a turtle shell, and it turned violent. William Bull alleges that he caught Ryan Sutherland attempting to steal the shell from his yard. When he confronted Sutherland, a physical altercation with a machete reportedly ensued, leaving Sutherland injured. ASP Fitzroy Yearwood, Communications Director, Belize Police Department […]
The Belize Co-generation Limited, Belcogen, has brought a claim against the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association and four of its members. Belcogen is seeking relief for special damages to the tune of five hundred thousand dollars. They allege the association instructed and encouraged the other four defendants to trespass over B.S.I.’s land and unlawfully block […]
As the next fiscal year for G.O.B. is quickly approaching, the presentation of the budget is already underway. For the last two years, a high percentage has been pumped into the COVID response for the country. While we were with PM John Briceño this afternoon, News Five asked what is the 2022-2023 Budget looking like. […]
Belize currently holds the pro-tem chairmanship of CARICOM; and, next week, heads of state from member countries will converge in San Pedro for a summit. Chief among their discussions will be issues affecting the region, including the COVID-19 pandemic and regional trade. Prime Minister John Briceño says that the final details are being ironed out. […]
The two-day meeting with CARICOM leaders will then transition into a CARICOM/SICA Meeting. According to PM Briceño, it has been almost a decade since a meeting has been held between both regional organizations. Belize, as a member to both, plays a crucial role as the bridge between Central America and the Caribbean. It is his […]
On Tuesday, Minister of Health and Wellness Kevin Bernard will be presenting a paper to Cabinet that ask to have the curfew removed and other restrictions eased. He confirmed to News Five today that the official announcement will be made to the public on the changes later this week. But even if curfew goes, the […]
Prime Minister John Briceño says he will support the removal of curfew. He confirms that there won’t be a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, but that a retreat will be held later this week when the proposal by Health Minister Kevin Bernard will be presented. PM Briceño says that he has been a proponent for its […]
In speaking about the relaxing of COVID restrictions, Minister Kevin Bernard also spoke about the Ministry of Health and Wellness now focusing on getting paediatric vaccines in country. As it currently stands, forty-nine percent of the population aged twelve and older are fully vaccinated. Among those unvaccinated are predominantly primary school children between five and […]
Wear masks or no expo – that’s the message being sent to the Mennonite community of Spanish Lookout, who will be hosting an expo from March third to the fifth. Thousands of persons usually attend this event to take advantage of the great deals, but there is concern that area residents are not adhering to […]
Today, the Cleopatra White Poly Clinic in Belize City got a new designation as a “Smart” Healthcare facility. The changes are the result of a project supported by the U.K. Government and PAHO. The three million U.S. dollars invested was for improvements to infrastructure and equipment, and in building the capacity of those employed at […]
The upgrade to five health care facilities in Belize brings into sharp focus the need for infrastructure improvements across the country. Minister of Health and Wellness, Kevin Bernard says that he is going to seek funding to retrofit and upgrade the Southern Regional Hospital, the Northern Regional Hospital as well as the Karl Heusner Memorial […]
Some quarters of the tourism industry had criticized the Belize Tourism Board for introducing mandatory travel insurance. For eighteen dollars U.S., it covers hotel stays and medical treatment of tourists who fall sick with COVID once they enter Belize. But less than two weeks after the implementation of the scheme, B.T.B. Director, Evan Tillett, says […]
There have been photos circulating of long lines of tourists waiting to be processed at the Philip Goldson International Airport on Saturday. Some blamed the Belize Tourism Board’s recent mandate of mandatory travel insurance as the cause for the bottleneck. But B.T.B. Director, Evan Tillett, told News Five today that the long lines, particularly on […]
“They were led like sheep to the slaughter”. That is what the Minister of Youth, Sports and Transportation, Rodwell Ferguson, had to say about the Senior Women’s National Football Team in their match against Panama over the weekend. The game ended in a painful eight-nil defeat against team Belize. After the match, Minister Ferguson made […]
During the interview, Minister Ferguson pitched the idea of paying athletes to train so that they can spend more time in training. This has always been a complaint of athletes in Belize. Internationally, they go up against teams whose players spend the majority of the year in training. Minister Ferguson says he is prepared to […]
This morning members of the media were at the National Assembly, but not to cover a House Meeting. This time, they were participating in a consultation on an amendment to the Defamation Act that governs libel and slander. It is an important issue for both traditional media houses, or mainstream media, and newer online-only entities. […]
The owner of Plus TV based in Belmopan, Louis Wade, also attended today’s consultation on the amendment to the Defamation Act. He says the fact that G.O.B. is presenting this instead of a Freedom of the Press Act or other amendments to protect freedom of expression reveal the government’s priorities. He is asking some basic […]
The news director for LOVE FM was also present today. Renee Trujillo says that while many want to be in the news, some are also quick to threaten lawsuits. She too called for a Freedom of the Press Act, but welcomed the opportunity to comment on the current amendment to the Defamation Act under committee […]
But Minister Francis Fonseca, a member of the House Committee that was conducting the consultation on the amendment to the Defamation Act, says media input is valued. He also believes that the changes will offer more, not less, protection for media houses. Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education “There is an opportunity now, if people […]
The Leader of the Opposition says he believes the amendments to the Defamation Bill and the suggestions given today by those most affected in the media will provide a balance between protecting reputations and guaranteeing free speech. Moses ‘Shyne’ Barrow, Leader of the Opposition, Defamation Bill Amendment Committee “I think it has to strike […]
Who will be the next Chief Environmental Officer? As News Five found out today, the interview process has concluded and an announcement is soon to be made on the successful applicant. By natural progression, Deputy Chief Environmental Officer Edgar Eck could be considered suited to the post – given his twenty plus years of experience […]
Some senior public officers in the Department of Environment are questioning a change in the qualifications for the Chief Environmental Officer post. They say that according to an internal circular on the vacancy, dated December twenty-third, an applicant no longer needed to possess a master’s degree in an environmental-related field – that is, environmental science, […]
P.S.U. President Dean Flowers says that the long and short of the story is that based on the Procedural Manual of the Department of Environment, no vacancy should have been advertised, and the deputy Chief Environmental Officer should have been elevated to the post. Flowers says that changes in the regulation creates animosity among public […]
