Belize today played host to the fourth gathering of the heads of government of the Caribbean and Mexico. Mexico is one of the most populous nations surpassing by far the combined population of the Caribbean islands, but there is plenty that the two sub-regions share. Most recently, natural disasters impacted the two so that the […]
The CARICOM/Mexico Summit concluded just after five o’clock this evening at the Best Western Hotel and it was immediately followed by a press conference led by Doctor Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada, who is the current chair of CARICOM. Doctor Mitchell summarized the top-level diplomatic conference by stating that Mexico has pledged to strengthen […]
Among the other areas of focus is an aim to bolster trade and investment between CARICOM and Mexico, through investment promotion agencies. Likewise, the announcement of a high-level private/public sector meeting among CARICOM member states was made. That gathering will be held in Grenada in December and will feature billionaire investor Richard Branson of Virgin […]
President Enrique Peña Nieto aside from reaffirming Mexico’s commitment to assisting the hurricane-affected island nations of the Caribbean also spoke about the need for improving bilateral cooperation in other areas of common interest. Enrique Peña Nieto, President of Mexico [Translated] “Mexico has participated since 1974 as an observer to CARICOM; this organization that unites […]
In mid-September of this year, the island country of Barbuda was deemed uninhabitable after category-five hurricane Irma flattened the island. Thousands were displaced and transferred to the twin island of Antigua. One week later, another category-five hurricane, Maria, swept through the Caribbean, devastating Dominica in its path; they too sought refuge on Antiguan soil. Today, […]
But even as Barbuda is in the early stages of rebuilding, the next hurricane season starts in seven months. According to Minister Greene, the greatest challenge facing the island is that even as the recovery process takes place, there is no access to concessionary funding because they are told that the gross domestic product in […]
Just before news time on Tuesday night shots rang out on New Road. As sixty-year-old Judith Rocke and her grandchildren sat inside their house to watch the television evening news, reports are that a gunman standing at a nearby alley fired up to six shots at the house. Rocke was hit to the right arm, […]
There is another shooting to report as violence continues to grip the south side of Belize City. Twenty-eight-year-old Cardinal Andrews is said to be in critical condition after he was critically injured in a shooting incident on Partridge Street. Sometime around four this afternoon, the Burrell Boom resident was in the area when a single […]
Up and coming local artist Unlimited was slapped with three charges today when he appeared in court. Unlimited, whose real name is Bernard Cayetano, was charged with obstruction, resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer. The charges stem from an incident on Wednesday that happened at the house of Kenneth ‘Big Tom’ Flowers – Unlimited’s […]
On Tuesday’s newscast, we reported on a question asked of the commissioner of police by a reporter which suggested that the officer referred to in the video posted by Cross di Nitro was charged with extortion several years ago. We are able to confirm tonight, however, that the officer who was charged with extortion is […]
The loss of correspondent banking, also known as derisking, was a sticking point for Antiguan Minister of Trade, E.P. Chet Greene. His government has taken the lead for the Caribbean in exposing the effects of delinking countries from the international money chain. CARICOM member states, including Belize, have been adversely affected after U.S. financial institutions […]
Even before the arrival of Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, the official delegations including heads of states from CARICOM and the respective foreign ministers, met at the Best Western Belize Biltmore Plaza in two sessions this morning, ahead of the CARICOM-Mexico Summit. But in the case of Antigua and Barbuda, Prime Minister Gaston Browne was […]
The upper chamber of the National Assembly met in regular session today to consider multiple motions and bills, most brought from the House of Representatives after it met last Friday. One motion and one bill in particular provoked extensive debate which took up most of the day’s proceedings. The OFID Haulover Bridge Loan Motion was […]
In response, Minister of State for Finance, Doctor Carla Barnett, noted that the impact of climate change has forced new thinking in the design and development of infrastructure. She was with the Caribbean Development Bank at the time and knows of the origin of the project and its associated hiccups. But in addition to warning […]
Other bills including amendments to legislation on land, protection of married persons, immigration and temporary residency and BELTRAIDE were also debated, with the International Banking Bill still to come this evening. But the afternoon session was mostly dominated by the debate of the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Act, intended to decriminalize possession of ten grams […]
Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte, among others, tried to make a correlation between use of legal drugs such as alcohol and tobacco in public, and the use of marijuana which is mostly private. He contended that the Bill does not encourage anyone to begin smoking marijuana. But Peyrefitte says the law is there to encourage those […]
On Monday, we reported that the Guatemalan government has decided that the referendum on taking the territorial claim to Belize will be held on March eighteenth 2018. That country is expected to spend some forty million U.S. dollars to carry out the poll to decide the question: “Do you agree that any legal claim by […]
Around eleven-twenty five this morning a fire broke out inside a house on Tigris Street. Five family members, three adults and two children, were inside the house at the time of the blaze. The family escaped unhurt and managed to take out some of their belongings, but most of the bigger items were lost to […]
In less than two weeks over two hundred youths from around the world will gather in Belize for the World Youth Conference. The conference will convene national, regional and international youth leaders under the theme: “Globally running to 2030, Becoming Sustainably Strong” from November sixth to the ninth at the Princess Hotel in Belize City. […]
This evening, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is hosting representatives of several Caribbean countries at a forum at the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts here in Belize City. The forum is intended to discuss confronting challenges with respect to boundary disputes in the Caribbean. In addition to Belize’s ongoing dispute with Guatemala, Guyana has […]
