Today's Belize News: April 19, 2013

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Re: Today's Belize News: April 19, 2013 Marty #462678 04/19/13 06:39 AM
Joined: Oct 1999 Posts: 84,398 oregon, spr Marty OP
OP Marty	More News: Scroll up from here LOVE FM GREAT Program Graduates Hundreds of Primary School Students on Gang Resistance Training This morning over two hundred students from Queen Street Baptist Primary School, Buttonwood Bay Nazarene Primary School and Saint Luke Methodist Primary School graduated from the Gang Resistance Education and Training, GREAT, Program. The graduation ceremony was held at the Nazarene Ch... Second Recognition Within A Month For Police Southern Zone For the second consecutive month the Southern zone has been recognized for recording the lowest level of major crimes in the country. On Wednesday Minister of National Security John Saldivar made the presentation. A certificate for the best performance was presented to the ... Two Ladyville Residents Caught Red Handed; Police Shoots One and Apprehended Both A man was shot by a police officer earlier today. Preliminary reports are that about 12:20 this afternoon, police responded to a burglary in progress in the Los Lagos area. Upon arrival, police apprehended 27 year old Lenny Benguche who was hiding behind the house. Police say after... Cancer Support Group Prepares For Annual Awareness Walk In Orange Walk The Orange Walk Cancer support group will be holding its fifth cancer awareness walk this Saturday, April 20. The walk is both to create awareness of the illness and the fifth anniversary of the support group. President, Badrah Coleman tells us more. BADRAH COLEMAN ... Villagers Plead For Water In Cayo District The village of Armenia located a few miles outside the City of Belmopan on the Hummingbird Highway, in the Cayo District was initially settled by immigrants from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras who were fleeing civil war. Later on Mopan and K'ekchi Maya moved into the a... Central Bank of Belize Spearheads Caribbean Credit Reporting Conference "Achieving the Possibilities Through Credit Information Sharing" is the theme for a Caribbean Credit Reporting Conference spearheaded by the Central Bank of Belize, CBB, the International Finance Corporation, IFC, and the Canadian International Development Agency, CIDA, now... Evangelistic Campaign Makes Its Way To Belize City Preparations are underway for an Evangelistic Campaign entitled "Experience God" an initiative of the Seventh Day Adventist Church scheduled to kick off this Sunday in the Belama Phase One Park in Belize City. Pastor Osborn Collins, who is organizing the campaign spok... Grace Primary School Choir Recruited For International Program Grace Primary School Choir has been in existence for fifteen years and has touched the lives of many school children that have entered the gates of Grace Primary School. Presently the choir has about 60 members and has had the opportunity of performing in different neighbour countries ... Aviation Fuel Found; Owners Unknown A quantity of what may be aviation fuel was found in an area known as Back Landing in the Orange Walk District. Based on information received by Ladyville Police, on Wednesday at about 3pm, a team of Police officers from the Ladyville sub-formation along with members of the Belize Spec... Association Involved in Management of Protected Areas Calls On Government To Rethink Amnesty On Rosewood The Association of Protected Area Management Organizations (APAMO) has called on Government to rethink its position to implement an amnesty period, allowing the export of illegally harvested Rosewood. APAMO says while it was in full support of the moratorium declared one year... CTV3 Five Year Old Stung By Bees Sent Home To Bury His Younger Brother On Monday afternoon a four year old Mennonite boy from the community of Little Belize in Corozal lost his life after he was stung more than 500 times by killer bees. Five year old Pedro Thiessen and his younger brother 4 year old Enrique Thiessen were playing in an open lot located a few feet away from their home in Camp 70 when they were swarmed by killer bees. The boy's father, Jacobo Thiessen and neighbor Issac Shmith aided the children and were also stung in the process. Four year old Enrique Thiessen was pronounced dead on arrival at the Northern Medical Plaza while his brother and father were admitted under critical condition. According to Doctor Marco Tulio Mendez, while Jacob Thiessen is out of the woods, the same cannot be said for his five year old son. Doctor Marco Tulio Mendez "Pues el ni�o se nota que est� mejorando. Todav�a est� un poco hinchado pero el d�a de hoy sacamos algunas pruebas que le hab�amos hecho el d�a anterior y nos dimos cuenta que hab�a m�s inflamación en el h�gado afortunadamente las otras pruebas de su ri�ón y las otras pruebas est�n normales. Lo �nico que se elevo es el h�gado que era lo que esper�bamos. El d�a de hoy el padre nos pidió que lo di�ramos de alta por un rato porque iban enterar a su hermanito. Pero no m�s termine eso va a regresar. Los mayores ya est�n bien y ya les dimos de alta claro ellos no fueron severamente picados como el ni�o a quien vamos a tener con nosotros unos dos d�as m�s bajo observación." 9 Gallons Of Aviation Fuel Confiscated By Police In Orange Walk Yesterday Orange Walk Police received several calls from residents of Carmelita Village claiming to have heard the sound of a low flying airplane circling in the area, on Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning. We understand that police, along with members of the anti drug unit, combed the area from Carmelita Village to Crooked Tree but found nothing. Ladyville Police received the same information from residents living in Crooked Tree and the search was extended. At around 3:00pm a team of police officers from the Ladyville sub-formation along with members of the Belize Special Assignment Group visited an area known as Back Landing in the Orange Walk District which borders the village of Crooked Tree in Belize. There they found these nine plastic blue drums containing aviation fuel and sixteen empty white plastic five gallons hidden in some bushes. The items were discovered about 300 feet from an airstrip that had been destroyed previously by the Belize Defense Force. At the time of the discovery no one was in the area and all items recovered were transported to the Ladyville Police Station where they were labeled and kept as found property. So, what were 9 gallons of aviation fuel doing the in the area? Could it be that a drug plane was about to refuel and something went wrong? Those are questions that may never be answered, but one thing is for sure, residents of Carmelita say they are positive of what they saw and heard. New System To Be Set In Place For Guatemalan Visitors Since the news broke out that Guatemala's new passports will feature a map in which Belize is included as part of the country's territory, only demarcated by a dotted line to indicate the ongoing dispute between both countries, Belizeans have been up in arms. The People's United Party has stated on the record that a PUP government will not allow any person holding a Guatemalan passport which shows Belize as a part of that country to enter Belize. But the Government of the day is not being so passionate about the situation. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Honorable Wilfred Elrington, has indicated that if Guatemalan passports include Belize; residents will still be allowed to enter the country. According to Elrington Belize cannot put to risk the good business relationship shared with Guatemala. But according to Minister of Immigration Honorable Godwin Hulse, there are certain measures that will be set in place. Villagers Of Ranchito Tell GOB Leave Our Land Alone On our newscast of April 3rd we brought you the story of the Pol family from the Village of San Joaquin in the Corozal District who claimed that Government was taking away their 3.6 acres of land located behind the village. Tonight, there is a similar scenario in the village of Ranchito only that this time it involves more than two hundred parcels of land and more than one family is being affected. Elmer Cornejo Reports. Elmer Cornejo - Reporting Tonight residents of Ranchito Village in Corozal are up in arms and are pointing fingers at the Government of Belize particularly the Ministry of Natural Resources. According to Orvin Rancharan, chairman of Ranchito Village, more than two hundred parcels of land are in the process of being taken away from villagers who already have a lease. Rancharan says that the lands in jeopardy were issued back in 2007 by the P.U.P Government. A year after there was a change in government as the United Democratic Party took office and that is when the struggle began. Orvin Rancharan: Ranchito Village Chair "We had never had a problem except since 2007 when these lands were issued in the Rancharan Layout and the reason we called it Rancharan Layout it was because we acquire it from Nataniel Rancharan almost 80 lots. We start facing a serious issue when the government change in 2008 but before that we had acquire lands in all areas in fact there are ten loan in Ranchito, with the latest land Rancharan Layout is where the problem is right now. What is happening to those lots is that we had surveyed the land and we charge $200 per person, all who were interested paid their $200 we didn't discriminate got their lot and their file with official government receipt which they had gone to the lands." Land Grab In San Felipe Village While that land dispute is taking place in the Village of Ranchito Corozal, trouble is also brewing in the Village of San Felipe Orange Walk. On Sunday, Israel Olivera, a resident of San Felipe Village was brutally attacked by two men from the same village, who by force wanted him to vacate the property on which he built his house on, four years ago. Olivera admits to not having the proper documents for the property which is located on the outskirts of the village. According to him, he has tried to obtain the lease papers for the land but it's easier said than done. The men who attacked him are allegedly supporters of the United Democratic Party who have set their eye on the property. But that is not the only piece of land that is presently in dispute in the Village. Sixteen years ago, Terencio Magana took possession of a quarter acre parcel of land on which he planted several coconut and fruit trees. He has been taking care of the land ever since even though he has no proper documents. And that's not because he hasn't tried to take them out, the process is just too slow, he says. The bad news is that parcel 420 has been given to another resident of the village who is ready to construct. The only problem is, Magana says that land is his because he has squatter's rights. The Fight Against Cancer Is On The Orange Walk Cancer Support Group has been providing much needed support for cancer patients over the past few years, and this coming Saturday the group will be hosting its 5th annual Cancer Walk in celebration of their 5th anniversary. The walk will be followed by a health fair at the Orange Walk Central Park. "The Fight is on against Cancer", is this year's theme and according to President of the group Badra Coleman, this year's message is more than clear. Badra Coleman-President, Orange Walk Cancer Support Group "I think we are ready and we have been working for the past three months on this and so it is crunch time but we are fitting all in and we are ready and we know we will feel the support of our community. We have had good response and all our shirts are finished we might have just maybe ten shirt available it is a first come first serve but it is great to see the response throughout the country and we have raffle tickets going since March and we have raffle tickets all over the country and they have been sending and big up to Corozal also we have friend there and he is working for us every year. Lions Zone 59 To Hold 35th Convention In San Estevan Orange Walk Lions Zone 59 is hosting its 35th Annual three day Convention starting tomorrow, Friday April 20th 2013, through Sunday April 21st, in the village of San Estevan. "Lionism" has existed in San Estevan since 1978 and is one of four Lions Clubs in Belize. According to Zone Chairman, John Wongsam, the celebration is also an opportunity to seek new ways on how to make the community a more peaceful and safer place to live in. Today when we visited the Lions Crew in San Estevan we found them hard at work preparing for this year's convention. The Official Welcome Ceremony kicks off at 8:00pm tomorrow with addresses from a number of guest speakers including Yolanda Gomez, General Manager of La Inmaculada Credit Union Limited. Ariel Munoz-President San Estevan Lion's Club "El S�bado a las siete queremos comenzar y vamos a tener el pageant de las reinas y durante las ceremonias vamos a tener presentaciones de cada club y entre medio unos muchachitos van a dar una serenata a las reinas y acabando la ceremonia vamos a tener el baile con Super Furia band y hasta amanecer. The Importance Of Donating Blood The Northern Regional Hospital will be hosting a blood drive at this year's health fair scheduled to be held immediately after the Cancer Walk on Saturday, April 20th, 2013. The drive is hoping to see more volunteers, as the need for blood is always very high and they are pleading for more public participation. A few recommended tips for donors are: Maintain a healthy iron level in your diet by eating iron rich foods such as red meat, fish, poultry, beans, spinach, iron-fortified cereals and raisins. Get a good night's rest, drink an extra 16 ounces of water or non-alcoholic fluids before the donation, avoid fatty foods such as hamburgers, fries or ice-cream before donating since fatty foods can affect the tests performed on the blood. And if you are a platelet donor, your system must be free of aspirin 2 days prior to donation. PlusTV APAMO comments on recent Rosewood amnesty The Rosewood Saga continues, as today, the Association of Protected Area Management Organizations (APAMO), the leading network of non-governmental conservation organizations, voiced its objection to and disappointment with the decision by the Ministry of Forestry, Fisheries and Sustainable Development to implement an amnesty period; which is now allowing for... Bus Association meets with Transport Department President of the Belize Bus Owners Cooperative (B.B.O.C.) Mr. Thomas Shaw, along with the Commissioner of Transport, the General Manager for Westline; Mr. Castillo and other relevant representatives; met this morning at the Belmopan Bus Terminal to bring resolution to a recent problem between both bus carriers. Plus news... Washington University of Health and Science said it graduated 200 students All this week we have been covering medical school operations in Belize. Yesterday we featured the concerns of one protestor who feels that the American Global University School of Medicine (AGUSM) has not been doing enough for Belize, and that school's response. Today, vice president of operations for American... Professional Standards Branch investigates two shootings by Police A mid-day burglary took an unexpected turn for the culprit today. Police say that they responded to a burglary in progress in the Los Lagos Area and when they arrived there, they saw 27 year old Lenny Bengueche, a Ladyville resident, hiding behind the house. Shortly after, 23 year... Arguement turns into brawl in Valley of Peace An argument in the Valley of Peace Village turned into an all out brawl. On Tuesday night, a 19 year old resident of village was hanging out with another man at a local bar. They then decided to go to La Cabana night club in Belmopan on the man's... Belize hosts 3rd annual Caribbean Credit Reporting Conference Credit is essential to businesses to obtain goods and services and to individuals to advance their livelihoods. Belize is in the process of establishing a credit reporting service and today the Central Bank of Belize hosted the 3rd annual Caribbean Credit Reporting Conference featuring representatives of financial institutions and... UB hosts 3rd Annual Research Conference The University of Belize (UB) has as part of its mandate the delivery of key research for national development. Its students are subject to numerous research classes where they learn the ins and outs of preparing and presenting research papers and have the option to do a final thesis... UB hosts Earth Day Activities Earth Day will be recognized globally on April 22nd of next week, but festivities have already begun to bring awareness to environmental conservation. For as we learned today, Earth Day is every day, as we should all seek to protect the earth and its natural resources daily. Today the... Southern Zone maintains lowest levels of crime For the second consecutive month, the Southern Zone and Dangriga Formation have maintained the lowest levels of major crimes throughout the country for the month of March. And yesterday, they were awarded by the Ministry of National Security for this success. Senior Superintendent Robert Mariano who heads the Southern ... Hon. Lisel Alamilla recognized for work in natural resource management Though she recently came under scrutiny for the Rosewood newly amnesty, the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Sustainable Development, the Hon. Lisel Alamilla is being recognized internationally for her work in natural resource management. The Minister has been honored by the University of Idaho's College of Natural Resources, as... The Guardian UDP Chairman readies the troops for Village Council Elections Every since Party Chairman, Alberto August took the reins of the office he's been moving around the country energizing the party's political machinery, getting it ready for the village council elections. Last weekend it was no different as he paid visits to five- constituencies in three districts. The weekend tour began on Thursday April 11th when he visited San Jose Palmar in the Orange Walk East constituency. Friday it was August Pine Ridge and San Felipe in the Orange Walk South constituency. Then it was the Calcutta Community on Saturday in the Corozal South East constituency. That very day he travelled to Corozal North and on Sunday it was Cayo Central. Three-Week Amnesty but Rosewood Moratorium Remains in Effect On the 14th of March, 2013, at the sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) a decision was taken to regulate the international trade of rosewood and now the harvest and exportation of rosewood from Belize will fall under the CITES regulations. In order to regulate the trade of rosewood, the Ministry of Forestry, Fisheries and Sustainable Development needs to account for the entire pre-convention volume of harvested rosewood currently available in the country. The best way to make such an exercise successful in what has become an extremely shady trade is the implementation of an amnesty period. Chetumal Boulevard ready Mayor Darrel Bradley and Leader of the Opposition Francis Fonseca cut the ribbon officially declaring the Chetumal Boulevard open on Tuesday April 16th. According the Mayor Bradley it took over three months and 708 thousand dollars for the contractor RJB Construction to complete the plans which were designed by M & M Engineering. Most of the finances, he noted, went to the construction of drains alongside the boulevard. The road also consists of other features which include proper lining with therma-plastic lining and a beautified median which will be adopted by Westrac. According to the Mayor, the plan is to extend the paving to meet the river and await the construction of the 4th bridge which will link the north side of Belize City to the south side on Chetumal boulevard. Irrelevant Victory on Illegal PUP Oil Contracts Audrey Matura Sheppard, Vice President of Oceana in Belize, stood outside the Supreme Court and posed for the Guardian Newspaper holding a judgment by Justice Oswell Legal on Tuesday April 16th. Oceana along with Citizens Organized for Liberty Through Action (COLA) and the Belize Coalition to Save Our Natural Heritage had filed a claim in 2011 against the Minister of Natural Resources. They were seeking that the Supreme Court declare that offshore drilling agreements signed by the PUP government in 2004 and 2007 for 6 companies be declared illegal because they were in breach of the Environmental Protection Act, the Petroleum Act, the Fisheries Act, and the National Parks System Act. It is noteworthy that the 6 Production Sharing Agreements signed were all done under the People's United Party Government's tenure. Island Oil's contract was signed on 25th May 2004, Miles Tropical Energy, Petrol Belize Company Limited, Princess Petroleum Belize Limited, Providence Energy Belize Limited and Sol Oil Belize Limited secretly signed their contracts on 12th October, 2007. Give it a Rest Now If you haven't drawn this conclusion so far by way of inference, let me cue you in: I am a sympathizer of the United Democratic Party. And the Party I support has taken some big hits this past week, no maybes about it. Truly, the only good news "in the rush" since last Friday was the opening of Chetumal Street by the Belize City Mayor, Darrel Bradley. But that aside, it was downhill all the way and one can actually feel the excitement at Channel Fox when news time comes around. Dean Dawson Jr. Charged for Wallace Donald Matura's Murder On Friday, April 12, police charged 22-year-old Dean Dawson Jr. for the murder of Wallace Donald Matura. On February 15, 48-year-old Wallace Donald Matura was shot while standing in front of VIP Wireless at the corner of Orange Street and East Canal. Minutes earlier he had intervened to stop an older male from harassing a female child. The man later returned with another male and opened fire with a handgun in the direction of Matura. He was shot to the stomach, left leg and left arm. He died six weeks later, on March 27, as a result of complications from the gunshot injuries. Father and Son Taken to Court for Weed Police conducted a search at a tire shop on Central American Boulevard owned by 67-year-old Genaro Gallego at 12 noon on Thursday, April 11th. Inside they found a bag containing 213 grams of cannabis stashed inside a tire. Gallego and his 33-year-old son, Jose Gallego, were arrested and charged with drug trafficking. Later that day they were escorted to the Belize City Magistrate's Court to answer to the charge before Magistrate Dale Cayetano. Jose Gallego took responsibility for the drugs and pleaded guilty to the offense. Magistrate Cayetano issued a non-custodial sentence and fined him $10,000 plus $5 cost of court. Densfield Lemott Charged for Snatching Wallet On Tuesday, April 16, 33-year-old Densfield Lemott appeared in the Belize City Magistrate's Court before Magistrate Dale Cayetano to answer to a charge of theft. 60-year-old tour guide, Errol Belisle, reported to police that he was in a Chinese shop at the corner of Raccoon and Allenby Street where he met two other men. Belisle had his wallet inside a bag while in the shop. However, when he later reached into the bag for his wallet it was missing. That was when he approached one of the men in the shop who he knew as Densfield Lemott and asked for his wallet. Lloyd Alexander King's Charge Upgraded to Murder of Ronald Rivers A little before 11 a.m. on Monday, March 4, 28-year-old Ronald Rivers was doing mechanical work on a Ford Escape that had shut down in the Uno Gas Station compound on Youth for the Future Drive when he was approached by a gunman who rode up on him and fired a single shot. The bullet caught Rivers in the face. He was rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital and died ten days later when he was removed from life support. Police responded quickly to the incident and managed to detain Mayflower Street resident, 18-year-old Lloyd King, for the shooting. One Dead One Critical in Roaring Creek Robbery Police are investigating a robbery that took place in Roaring Creek Village that has left one man dead and another in critical condition. According to police report, sometime around 7:50 p.m. on Tuesday night, April 16, a lone ski mask wearing gunman entered Hyde's Meat and Grocery Shop and demanded money. While executing the robbery, the gunman fired several shots. 42-year-old Randolph Hyde sustained gunshot wounds over his right eye and on the left side of his chest while 36-year-old Mark Hyde received gunshot injuries to his upper left chest and upper left back. Randolph passed away at 8:15 p.m. while receiving treatment. Mark is in a critical but stable condition. At this point in their investigation, police have not determined the amount of money stolen and no one has been arrested and charged. Five Months in Prison for Grabbing Woman's Buttocks 39-year-old Fernando Tun, a laborer and resident of the Gugulung area, appeared before Senior Magistrate Sharon Frazer on Monday, April 15, to face a charge of aggravated assault upon a 28-year-old woman. According to reports, at about 4 p.m. on Thursday, April 11, the woman was in front of Downtown Plaza on Albert Street when Tun grabbed her twice on her buttocks. The woman was offended by Tun's actions and as a result she reported the incident to police, requesting court action. In court Tun pleaded guilty to the offense, claiming that he was drunk at the time of the incident. He was sentenced to 6 months at the Belize Central Prison for the offense. The maximum sentence for the offense is 3 years in prison. UDP Chairman readies the troops for Village Council Elections Every since Party Chairman, Alberto August took the reins of the office he's been moving around the country energizing the party's political machinery, getting it ready for the village council elections. Lowest Levels of Major Crimes registered in Southern Zone and Dangriga Hon. John Saldivar (c) and Compol Allen Whylie(r) make presentation to Sr. Superintendent Robert Mariano On March 17, 2013, Minister of National Security, Hon. John Saldivar presented a Certificate of Award and a Cheque of $1,000 to Senior Superintendent Robert Mariano who heads the Southern Zone and is also the Officer Commanding the Dangriga Formation which forms part of the Southern Zone. National Agriculture and Trade Show Farmer of the Year The National Agriculture and Trade Show Committee is pleased to announce the winners of this year's Farmers of the Year 2013: OAS says Guatemala Will Not Offend Belize at General Assembly On Tuesday April 16th the Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Albert Ramdin, held a press briefing to update the media on activities of the organization in particular, the OAS' General Assembly which will be held in Antigua, Guatemala on June 6th. At the last meeting of the general assembly in Bolivia in February of this year and again in Washington there was an offensive video presented by Guatemala which showed no differentiation in territory between Belize and Guatemala. At the time it was met with great displeasure by Belize's ambassador to the OAS, Nestor Mendez and a formal protest was launched. Belize's Foreign Minister has since reported that if such a video is again presented Belize will be walking out of the meeting. Government of Belize and CDB launch $12.8M Poverty Alleviation Project The Ministry of Economic Development, in collaboration with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), officially launched a BZD$12.8 million project on Thursday, 11th April, which will finance a number of poverty alleviation projects throughout Belize. The project will be implemented by the Social Investment Fund (SIF). Rainbow Park in Corozal expanded The Rainbow Park in Corozal Town is currently undergoing massive renovations thanks to the vision of Corozal Bay Area Representative, Hon. Pablo Marin. RF&G Adopts Town Clock The Belize City Council and the insurance company, RF&G officially inaugurated the town clock located on Barrack Road in Belize City on Monday April 15th. The clock was constructed in memory of Scottish doctor, Frederick Gahne by residents of Belize City in 1913. Solid Waste Consultations begin along the Western Corridor The Solid Waste Management Authority (SWaMA) within the Ministry of Natural Resources and Agriculture held a public consultation on April 10. The event was held at the Cayo Welcome Center in San Ignacio Town. A similar consultation has been scheduled for Belize City at the Young Women Christian Association YWCA at 6:30 pm on April 18. Special Envoy Launches Children Sex Abuse Awareness Campaign Belize's Special Envoy for Women and Children, Kim Simplis-Barrow, has launched an awareness campaign aimed at reducing the prevalence of sexual abuse against childred. The key instrument in the campaign is a children's book entitled "my body is precious". The book was written to appeal to students from Infant II to Standard II and an audience made up mostly of this age group gathered at the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts on Monday, April 15, for its official release. Million Dollar Chocolate Museum for Toledo District The Toledo District will benefit from a significant economic investment which will create educational and job opportunities for its residents. The Toledo Cacao Growers Association (TCGA) has received a grant of �500,000 or BZ$1,250,000 through the Belize Rural Development Project II. This grant will be used for the construction of the Maya House of Cacao and Chocolate Museum. Young Bank residents now enjoy potable water Hon. Godwin Hulse, Minister of Rural Development (2nd from right) and Mr Alberto August (far right) inaugurate the Young Bank water project Residents of Young Bank, a community on the outskirts of Camalote Village in the Cayo District, now enjoy quality, potable water twenty four hours a day thanks to a Social Investment Fund (SIF) and Belize Water Services Limited (BWSL) project, which aims to improve and expand water supply to rural communities in Belize. Belize City Primary Schools Basketball Competition opens The 2012-2013 Belize City Primary Schools Basketball Competition opened on Monday April 15, 2013, at Bird's Isle in Belize City. There are seven (7) girls' schools and 16 boys' schools participating in this year's primary schools basketball competition. The schools in the girls' competition are Muslim Community, Belize Elementary, Holy Redeemer, St. John Vianney, St. Martin De Porres, Queen Square Anglican and Buttonwood Bay Nazarene. Meanwhile, the schools in the boys' competition are St. John Vianney, Buttonwood Bay Nazarene, Queen Square Anglican, Belize Elementary, Wesley Upper School, New Horizon Academy, St. Mary's Primary, St. Luke Methodist, Trinity Methodist, Ephesus SDA, Hummingbird Elementary, Queen Street Baptist, St. Ignatius Primary, Holy Redeemer School, Unity Presbyterian and St. Martin De Porres. Belmopan Bandits open its lead in Premier League Competition The Premier League of Belize Closing Season Tournament for 2013 continued over the last weekend with a number of games across the country. On Saturday April 13, out at the Isidoro Beaton Stadium in Belmopan, the defending champions and the current leaders in this year's competition the Belmopan Bandits blanked FC Belize by the score of 1-0. The only goal of the game was scored by Deon McCaulay in the 61st minute of play. The competition then continued on Sunday April 14, with three more games. At the MCC Grounds here in Belize City, Police United also blanked Verdes FC by the score of 1-0. Devon Makin scored the only goal of the game in the 34th minute of play. Out at the People's Stadium in Orange Walk Town, Belize Defence Force blasted FC San Felipe Barcelona by the score of 6-0. The goals for the Belize Defence Force were scored by Shane Flores in the 45th minute of play, Harrison Tasher in the 61st, 79th and 90th minutes of play, Jeremy Gentle in the 77th minute of play and Carlton Thomas in the 85th minute of play. Football Federation calls players to tryout The Football Federation of Belize in preparation for Gold Cup 2013 has called the following players to camp. According to the FFB, the camp commenced on Tuesday April 16, 2013, at the FFB Headquarters. The players called are: Woodrow West (Belmopan Bandits), Frank Lopez (Belize Defence Force), Darrel Novelo (San Felipe Barcelona), Shane Moody (Marathon FC), Elroy Smith (Vida FC), Ian Gaynair ( Belmopan Bandits), Dalton Eiley (Placencia Assassins), Tyrone Pandy (Belize Defence Force), Cristobal Gilharry (FC Belize), Jermaine Jones (Police United), Bernard Linares (Placencia Assassins), Andres Makin (Police United), Floyd Jones (Belmopan Bandits), Harrison Tasher (Belize Defence Force), Trevor Lennan (Police United), Kalil Velazquez (Belize Defence Force), Everal Trapp (Verdes FC), Keshawn Pech (Police United), Gilroy Thurton (Verdes), Danny Jimenez (Police United), Lennox Castillo (Police United), Deon McCaulay (Belmopan Bandits), Harrison Roaches (Belize Defence Force), Evan Mariano (Police United), Clifton West (San Felipe Barcelona), Jaron Myvette (Brown Bombers), Ashley Torres (Placencia Assassins), Devon Makin (Police United), Luis Torres (Placencia Assassins) and Collin Westby (Placencia Assassins). Interoffice Basketball to begin next Friday night The 2013 Interoffice Basketball League Tournament is scheduled to commence on Friday April 26, at the Bird's Isle in Belize City. This year's tournament will see the participation of eight elite teams with representation from Belize City and San Pedro Town. The teams participating in this year's tournament are Department of Youth Services, CYDP, Police, Allied Insurance, Belikin Under Dogs, Alamillas Furniture's, Digi Cell 4G and the defending champions Tuff "E" Nuff Tours. The sponsors' Interoffice Basketball League tournament includes Sprite & Belikin, Smart and Brothers Habet Ltd. Camalote United open on right foot in the Miley Garcia Cayo Softball Competition The 2013 Cayo District Softball Competition regular season opened on Sunday April 14, at the Joan Garbutt Stadium in Esperanza Village. This year the teams will be playing for the Miley Garcia Softball Trophy, as he is the official sponsor of the Cayo Softball Association's premier competition. In the first game played, the defending champions Camalote United continued its winning ways when it blasted Belmopan Capital City Emeralds by the score of 16-0. The winning pitcher was Francine Salazar and the losing pitcher was Dana Mae King. In game two, Roaring Creek Grace Kennedy employed the services of young pitcher Shanika Anderson who bested Ontario Rebels and the veteran Kenreen Gillett by the score of 9-3. The competition will continue this coming Sunday April 21, at the softball pitch in Ontario Village. In the first game scheduled for 12:00 midday it will be Las Flores against Camalote United; followed by roaring Creek Grace Kennedy against the Capital City Emeralds and in the final game of the day Esperanza Wolverines will be entertained by Ontario Rebels. Oceana pays tribute to Marine Conservationist And Calls on all Belizeans to never forget his work, which we must continue Oceana is saddened by the news of the passing of one of Belize's first Marine Conservationists, Lionel "Chocolate" Heredia, who was a true Belizean patriot contributing immensely to the protection of marine resources, especially the manatees. In 2012, Oceana presented "Chocolate" its Ocean Hero Award for his outstanding work spanning over five decades as a conservationist when that term had not even become popular or even considered a career field. "We must celebrate the life of our brother Chocolate and always remember him as a role model because even though he has parted this earthly life his works and contribution to this nation remain with us. And it is his work all of us in the conservation community must continue as we stand on the shoulder of this conservation giant," said Oceana V.P. Audrey Matura-Shepherd. A brief History: Lionel "Chocolate" Heredia spent much of his adult life in and around the sea as a fisherman and later as a tour guide. He built up a healthy respect for the environment, knowing how important conservation was without even knowing what the word meant. New Market Trends for Belizean Farmers Belizean consumers regularly use products from Nestle, Kraft Foods and other food imports. These popular products can be found at the dinner tables on the farthest reaches of the country. However; these food products which have attained the highest level in value added form, contain constituents that can be produced by our local farmers. University of Belize to Present a Wide Range of Research Findings On Thursday, April 18, students and members of faculty at the University of Belize will be making presentations on a wide range of research topics in the institution's Third Annual Student Research Conference. The Student Research Conference is being conducted by the Faculty of Management and Social Sciences (FMSS). The topics researched includes the Prevalence and Identification of HIV/AIDS, Risk Factors in Recovering Addicts, The Economic Impact of DFC's MSME Loan Program on Loan Beneficiaries, Determinants of Risk in the Commercial Banking Center, Facebook's Impact on Sales on Two Small Belize City Businesses, Texting and English: Factors Affecting Proper Writing at the University of Belize, Factors Contributing to Out District Students' GPA, among others. Belize Welcomed Home Her Very Own Yoga Master, Yogi Charu! The 37 year old yoga practitioner and teacher, Yogi Charu, was born in Belize City and grew up on Prince Street. He was first introduced to yoga at age 15 through his classmate and lifelong friend, Alexander Aguet. By age 16, determined to deepen his yoga practice and his understanding of life through the science and philosophy of yoga; the young Belizean set off on a journey that took him to places like California, Hawaii, India, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia, Germany, Poland, Sweden, several countries in Africa, and New York where he currently resides. More than 20 years after leaving Belize; after years of studying yoga and meditation with adept yogis, after living as an ascetic yogi in the Himalayas, after years of teaching yoga around the world, after making a name for himself as an authentic yoga master; Yogi Charu has returned home to Belize to share his knowledge of yoga with us. Blogs Sometimes You Don't Want to Catch & Release - Belize Weddings One of the wonderful things about being a destination wedding photographer in Belize is that we get to meet all sorts of people, from all over the world, with different lifestyles, jobs and hobbies... These are some awesome wedding photographers in Belize ... A Passion. A Love. University of Belize Calabash Caye Field Station -- My Office! :D Great video, worth watchng. Life in a Banana Republic - Raymond Auxillou Jr., My hero RAYMOND DENNIS AUXILLOU Jr., my father, was fondly known as "Captain Ray" by the local Reef community of Caye Caulker and his Sail buddies worldwide; "Raymundo the Magician" by some of his oldest & dearest friends who remember his brief early years as a traveling magician; the familiar "RAY" or "DAD" or "Grandpa" as his children and grandchildren referred to him, was 75 at the time of his death, after fighting a valiant battle he eventually lost to Cancer. Belize Fan Pages Taking A Gamble? Ok I have to admit this is a bit of a pet peeve for me and I've hesitated writing this blog for this same reason. It seems that there are seasons on Facebook where contests of all sorts keep springing up or a new page is hosting a promotion to create awareness. Most of them are really good and I even won an overnight stay from a contest I saw posted on a Facebook page. However this is where it gets a bit sticky. It seems that very few people are aware that the contests or promotions are not in compliance with Facebook rules and they are in danger of getting their page shut down! I myself was ignorant of the rules when I just started with Facebook, I mean how many people actually sit down and read the Terms and Conditions? Unless of course you're into that sort of thing. So I want to use this post to encourage those who are running contest, promotions, etc or thinking of doing one to take some time to familiarize yourself with the rules. You've already put a lot of work, time, energy into your page, probably built some really good connections, have a great fan base etc� are you willing to take a gamble and risk all that? April 7, 2013 - April 13, 2013 Fishing Report The second Orvis Saltwater seminar was a huge success with half day of classroom and practical work, provided by Orvis' Jim Welch. The class was then followed by 3-1/2 days of fishing. Overall the wind slowed down the catch of tarpon but the guests and guides still managed some good fishing for permit and bones by hiding on the west side of the island, as much out of the wind as possible. Brian asked Kristen to marry him on this trip and she said yes! Wow! --Ed Tacoboy's 24h SURPRISE party As of last Monday, the picture below was the only real clue tacoboy about his 24h surprise party and he was baffled by it. As far he knew he was having a party at Victoria House with an international DJ and 900 people on the guest list. Not long after his facebook invite and picture clue went out, Paul was at work and got a call from Maya confirming reservations Cindy had made under Pedro's Hotel. The cat was a little more out of the bag, now he knew we were flying somewhere and that he had to bring slogger shoes just in case. International Sources Blacklisted? There was an attack on Hostmonster Wordpress installations three days ago, and hostmonster added a lot of IP addresses to a blacklist. I think they used the kitchen sink method to determine who was attacking, because too many folks are having this problem. http://SanPedroDaily.com, http://BelizeNews.com, http://BelizeSearch.com, http://sagahumanesociety.org are among sites hosted by hostmonster, and might be giving you a problem. Of those sites, only the SAGA site is a WordPress installation, so you don't have to be running a wordpress site to have your site be affected if your website is hosted by hostmonster. If you are unable to get onto certain sites because it says your IP is blacklisted, here is why Travel to Cuba I have been researching a trip to Cuba and was made aware of the National Lawyers Guild and their links to the travel organization below. I have provided a link here which is literally a mini-counter-intelligence manual as to how the travel restrictions work and how to disrupt and evade them. As a bottom line it appears no matter that even if one is tagged at the airport or by mail later (and the vast majority are NOT anyway), all one really needs to do is request a hearing within 30 days and then Treasury backs off. There will be no hearing, no fine, no nothing. Only suckers and cowards have paid fines and not one single person has ever been actually prosecuted. If confronted one needs only to stand up for their rights and refuse to answer any questions, other than the ones answered on the customs form. You are not required to answer any other questions coming back into the U.S. other than what is on that form -- period. Caithness pupils to work in Belize rainforest Caithness pupils are to work with the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh as part of efforts to conserve plants and habitats in Belize. The teenagers from Wick High School will spend four weeks in the Central American country this summer. The trip will involve staying at Las Cuevas in the Chiquibul rainforest. More than 3,700 plants have been recorded in Belize and hundreds of other species are thought to remain undiscovered. The country's forests also provide habitat for big cats such as ocelot and jaguar. Teacher Chris Aitken, who will be accompanying the fifth and sixth pupils, said the June trip offered the youngsters an "amazing opportunity". Cuba and Belize Determined to Promote Bilateral Co-op The governments of Cuba and Belize expressed their bilateral cooperation during a visit to this capital by Deputy Premier Gaspar Vega, who was received by Vice President Jos� Ramón Machado Ventura. The two officials reviewed the links between their countries and discussed ongoing integration processes in Latin America and the Caribbean. According to an official note, Machado Ventura and Vega, who is also Minister of Natural Resources and Agriculture of Belize, showed satisfaction for the good state of relations and talked about mechanisms like the Caribbean Community and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. Court rescues Belizean coral from offshore oil drillers The world's second-largest barrier reef was saved from offshore drilling by activists who successfully sued the government of Belize over the issue. Belize issued contracts to energy companies in 2004 and 2007 that allowed them to drill around the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. But the government officials awarded the contracts to inexperienced drillers and didn't bother studying the environmental impacts first. That's actually kind of understandable: I mean, what could go wrong? Oceana and two other nonprofits sued the government over the contracts. They won the lawsuit this week in Belize's Supreme Court. Offshore Oil Drilling Stopped in Belize - WSJ.com Yesterday, Belize's Supreme Court declared offshore drilling contracts issued by the Government of Belize (in 2004 and 2007) null and void, providing a dramatic and potentially definitive setback to The Government of Belize and the petroleum prospecting companies issued the contracts. Inspired Travel: The Great Blue Hole If you're an avid scuba diver or adventure junkie, you've probably heard of, or maybe even experienced the Great Blue Hole in the Belize Barrier Reef (an UNESCO World Heritage Site). Around 10,000 years ago, the hole's roof collapsed to reveal the previously concealed cave below. Measuring at around 1,000 feet in diameter (and around 412 feet deep), the cave sits in the Lighthouse Reef and it is close to a perfect circle. How an Unexpected Delay Led to a Wonderful Trip to San Ignacio, Belize Sometimes, when it seems like things are going from bad to worst, all you gotta do is hang in there for a bit until the sun comes out again. After barely being allowed into Belize, we were able to get to the insurance office on time. At 3:00p.m. we were still harboring hopes that we'd be able to get down to Belize City in time to catch the 4:30p.m. Water Taxi to Caye Caulker. "So, Insurance Guy, how far are we from Belize city?" Insurance Guy, who looked suspiciously Guatemalan, responded in perfect Belizean-accented English: Oh, about 2� maybe 2 and a half hours." Our hopes dashed, I mentally made a note to check the wireless signal on my Guatemalan Tigo modem when the vehicle's paperwork was complete. The Mayans the Mass and Me While in Belize we had the chance to visit some Mayan ruins. I climbed to the top of the main pyramid in Caracol and sitting up there on a beautiful day in April, the jungle birds crying and the jungle trees and neatly trimmed lawned-I imagined the priests offering their sacrifices of grain and human lives to their sky gods. It was a different scene then. The forests all cut down, the barbaric rites continued in fear and desperation as famine and starvation loomed. The critics of Catholicism-both Protestant and atheist-might say, "Geesh, it's not really any different than what you do is it Father?" They'd argue, "Don't you also get dressed up and ascend to the heights of the holy place where you offer a sacrifice of bread and blood? Don't you say this is the Body of Christ? Aren't you making the same pagan sacrifices of body and blood and grain to the sky god hoping that he will bring you prosperity and peace?" The Protestant will turn away in horror at the idea that Catholicism is simply brutal paganism warmed up and the atheistic materialist will turn away in ridicule and disgust that we still believe such superstitious ideas and practice such crude religious magic.

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Subject	Posted By	Posted
Today's Belize News: April 19, 2013	Marty	04/19/13 12:38 PM
Re: Today's Belize News: April 19, 2013	Marty	04/19/13 12:39 PM