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Specials and Events

Last night's TV news on Channel 7, Channel 5, LOVETV, PGTV, West Vision (Cayo) and CTV 3. Also with the most recent Open Your Eyes, Rise and Shine Morning Show, and the Dickie Bradley Specials


The San Pedro Sun

Wolfe's Woofer: What's for Dinner
"How did Juan get that big bruise on his face?" Mario asked me. "He won't tell me but I know you were with him yesterday." I told Mario how it happened. When my phone rang yesterday it was Juan asking, "Hey, you gonna come over and watch the football match with me?" "I'm not sure," I told him. "I have some things I should be doing." "Oh, come on over. I got the air conditioner on with the big screen TV. We'll drink some beers and my old lady will fix us a nice dinner." When I got to Juan's house his wife didn't seem too happy. "You promised me you were going to chop the yard today," she said to him. "Cruz Azul is playing Guadalajara. I can't cut the grass during that game."

Police Report
CAYE CAULKER FOUND PROPERTY: On Thursday, April 14th at 12PM, Customs and Belize Agricultural Health Authority personnel in Caye Caulker conducted operations to check for undeclared goods and illegal commodities. Upon checking a local airline cargo section, they observed a white foam icebox on a shelf and discovered five parcels emitting a strong smell of Cannabis.
SAN PEDRO FOUND PROPERTY: On Saturday, April 16th at 8:15PM, San Pedro Police patrolled in the Boca Del Rio area in San Pedro Town and conducted searches around the western portion of a store. The search led to the discovery of 3 transparent plastic bags, one of which contained a piece of transparent plastic wrap with 10 transparent plastic bags of Cannabis. The other transparent plastic bag contained 5 small transparent zip lock plastic bags and the bigger transparent plastic bag contained white powdery substance suspected to be Cocaine.

Doctor Love: Abuela and Betrayed
Dear Doctor Love, My daughter-in-law is not very honest with me. Whenever I tell her how to do things she smiles and agrees with me. Then she goes ahead and does whatever she wants. When my son first married her I tried to tell her that men will always be men. I explained that men are going to go out drinking with their friends and there is nothing that can be done to stop them. She would not have any of that. She fought with him for nearly a year and they almost split up because of her attitude. Finally, because my son is crazy for her he just gave up. I think this also has something to do with her first baby. She is only twenty years old and her mother is not here to advise her so she is raising the baby however she wants. I have told her over and over what to do. She smiles and says yes but then does something completely different. What can I do? /s/ Abuela

Ambergris Today

25 Years Ago - The Pride of Being the Teacher's Favorite
Okay let us find out about this favoritism thing in the classrooms? Let us immediately dismiss this idea that teachers had favorites and gave them free grades. In order to be a teacher's favorite, one had to earn it by being obedient, maintaining good grades, being neat in physical appearance, and other things of that nature. Now here is the fun part! The student who became the teacher's favorite got to erase the chalkboard; as simple as that. At the end of the subject period, the teacher simply turned to face the class and there would be several hands in the air volunteering to do the honors of erasing the blackboard. One of the favorites got to do it. That child would be so proud of being selected would smile at his classmates and proceed with this honorable task. Very often when a child got home, mom would ask, "Did you get to erase the blackboard today?" You can bet that the child would be all too excited to boast that he was the teacher's favorite. What a beautiful relationship developed by teachers with their students in the Good Old Days.

Pet Parrot Inspection/Registration in San Pedro
The Forest Department, through this medium, notifies the public that it will be conducting a sweep in San Pedro on Monday April 25, 2016, visiting households with parrots. The primary inspection serves to assess the conditions and housing of parrots in your possession and to give recommendations on how to improve conditions. It is strongly suggested that if the dietary requirements for parrots are not being followed, that they must be improved for healthier and longer lifespans. Please see dietary conditions in the "Minimum Care Standards - Husbandry". It is highly recommended, that if the housing for the parrots are not up to the minimum requirements based on size, materials and or perches required, for this to be tended to as soon as possible, preferably before the first inspection.

Misc Belizean Sourcesmzz

Front Street mural on Caye Caulker
To create this beautiful Front Street mural Ocean Academy students Alessa, Lilly and Annabella worked together with Oceana artists Roxanne Gentle and Kirkland Smith, Uriel Cowo, Chelsea Johnstone. The mural depicts the beauty and vibrancy of our reef. Oceana is spearheading the Belize Coalition to Save our Natural Heritage working to conserve and protect our oceans from the devastating effects of potential oil spills.

Letter: Guatemala ups the ante by amassing troops at the Belize-Guatemala border
On Wednesday, 20 April, a Belize Defence Force (BDF) unit in the Chiquibul Forest Reserve (inside Belizean territory) became engaged with illegal Guatemalan usurpers. Matters escalated with those who were illegally operating in Belize and unfortunately, there was a loss of life, in this instance that of a minor, unquestionably, the loss of life is always regrettable, yet given the aggressive nature of the Guatemalans who operate illegally inside Belize's sovereign territory, our security forces must remain vigilant. A case in point involves the recent shooting of a BDF staff sargeant, Richard Lambey, on 26 March 2016. The Guatemalan president, Jimmy Morales, in keeping with his nation's opportunistic and belligerent disposition, seized the opportunity to exponentially escalate his country's aggression against Belize. In effect, he has begun to amass troops on the border between the two countries. Of note, this is in line with his earlier, illegal move in which he claimed the entire Sarstoon River for Guatemala. This is something that requires regional coverage. I have provided a few links from the local media houses, in addition to a statement from the Belize Progressive Party (BPP), concerning this egregious move by the Guatemalans.

The Reporter

New AIDs report will help guide NAC's future plans
The National AIDS Commission this week said that the recently released National HIV surveillance Report 2015 will assist in planning future interventions in the national HIV response. Executive Director of the NAC, Enrique Romero, explained that the report, released by the Ministry of Health, has pointed out key successes and challenge areas that the NAC will use in preparation of its National Strategic and Operational Plan 2016. Romero said that two areas highlighted in the report that requires the NAC's attention are the level of HIV testing done among Belizean men and the number of diagnosed HIV positive patients who maintain their Anti-Retroviral (ARV) treatments. "If you look at the statistics compiled by the Ministry of Health, women are tested significantly more than men," Romero said. "Sixty-four percent of the tests done in 2015 were women and only 35 percent were men."

Global heat streak up to 11 months and counting
The temperature in March 2016 brought the global record breaking heat streak up to 11 months. This is according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). "Most of Earth's land surfaces were warmer than average or much warmer than average � with record warmth notable across eastern Brazil, most of eastern and central Africa, much of southeastern Asia, and large portions of northern and eastern Australia," NOAA explained on its website. Climatologists attribute the heat streak to El Ni�o, a weather phenomenon which occurs every few years. During El Ni�o, an area within the equatorial Pacific Ocean has unusually warm sea surface temperatures because surface winds that usually help to cool the area die down. This warming of the sea dictate long-term weather patterns for much of the world. Another major factor is said to have been ongoing, man-made global warming caused by the use of fossil fuels, among other climate-unfriendly activities.

PUP issues statement regarding Belize/Guatemalan relations
The People's United Party (PUP) has issued its own statement following Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales' decision to place Guatemalan troops along the Adjacency Zone with Belize. Morales, who has been receiving criticisms from his own native Guatemalans for cutting that country's health and social budget within the first 100 days of taking office, is now viewed by observers as a reactionary. On Thursday, several hundred thousand indigenous protested in Guatemala City against his decision on the budget affecting their lives and some critics believes he could be using the territorial claim to Belize as a distraction. The PUP shares the same opinion. Following an emergency executive meeting on Friday, the party's new representative on the Belize/Guatemala negotiating team, Eamon Courtenay was candid in addressing the media on Morales' grounds for his decision to line our border with troops.

Breaking Belize NewsPJ

Belize ranked as most dangerous Caribbean Nation
An article published on the "News America" website earlier this week, ranks Belize as the most likely Caribbean country that a tourist would be killed while visiting, on its list of the 10 "dangerous Caribbean Nations". The article, entitled "Ten Caribbean Nations More Dangerous [�]

La Cabana bar owner withdraws anti-BDF social media post
A Belmopan bar owner has lost face after having to retract a social media statement in which she appears to go after the Belize Defence Force for their actions in the death of the Guatemalan minor in the adjacency zone on Wednesday. According to [�]

Belize drops in press freedom ranking
According to the Reporter, The Reporters without Borders annual World Press Freedom Index ranks Belize 36th of 180 nations, a drop of six places from last year's ranking. The Index measures pluralism, media independence, quality of the legal framework and the safety of journalists [�]

BPP Condemns Military Provocation by Guatemala
The Belize Progressive Party (BPP) is offering to organize a Belize People's Brigade, which it says will support the active forces with citizen volunteers to be trained to respond to further escalation of aggression by Guatemalan forces. The offer comes in a party press [�]

Blogs

The Farmers' Market at The Truck Stop in San Pedro is a RAGING SUCCESS
HOLY MOLY. A monthly farmers' market certainly seemed like a great idea�a few merchants selling veggies, fruits and homemade goodies. But I had no clue what a GREAT IDEA IT WAS. The event was yesterday, Saturday April 23 from 11am to 2pm and when I arrived at 10.45am, I can only call it an organics riot� There were a number of vendors including Sue Blair with her Home Baked Breads and her GORGEOUS boules. I can guarantee you much happiness with a Walnut and Cranberry and a stick of Philly cream cheese or the Cheddar & Jalapeno, a toaster and some salted butter� I still think she should name her business "I Pity the Boule" but she is resistant to my idea and obviously, Mr. T. Sue sold all 35 breads within the first hour. Debbie from Pirate Girl Treats and the GORGEOUS cakes, brownies and CARROT CAKE! I'm not sure you are going to find moister cakes. Good lord delicious. Ian Anderson from Cayo (namely of the Farm House Deli - but also of Ian Anderson Cave Branch arrived in San Pedro with 100s of pounds of cheeses, breads, organic veggies and fruits, fermented drinks, pickles, and most popularly, cured and smoked meats. Ian and 6 employees (most of whom had never been to San Pedro) brought 80 loaves of bread - from rye to molasses brown - and returned home with 7.

International Sourcesizz

Guatemala Admits Having Little Presence in Border with Belize
Guatemala has little presence on the border with Belize and only in case of conflict situations between both countries, like the one that occurred this week, the attention is drawn to that place, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Carlos Martinez recognized today. During a meeting with journalists in connection to the controversy surrounding the murder of a 13-year-old by Belizean soldiers in the so-called adjacency zone, the official confirmed that the marked poverty in that area obliges residents to redouble efforts in trying to earn a living. He also admitted the lack of projects or actions in that part of the northern department of Peten in order to reverse these kind of situations. He explained that the Ministry only has two officials to deal with all the issues concerning the area of the border with Belize and therefore, they can not cover everything that happens there. He also considered that it is necessary to take the case of the border dispute to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague.

Agreement concluded to advance small-scale fisheries in the Caribbean
The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) last week concluded an agreement with a UN agency to strengthen governance arrangements for the flyingfish fishery in the Caribbean, with special emphasis on maximizing the long-term potential of the fishery, which employs several thousands in the region and feeds many more. Milton Haughton, executive director of the CRFM, signed the memorandum of agreement for Caribbean states; while Kirk Bayabos, senior cluster manager, signed on behalf of the project executing agency, United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), a subsidiary of the UN. The agreement is under a five-year umbrella project, the UNDP/GEF Catalysing Implementation of the Strategic Action Programme for the Sustainable Management of shared Living Marine Resources in the Caribbean and North Brazil Shelf Large Marine Ecosystems (CLME+) Project, designed to catalyze the implementation of a ten-year Strategic Action Programme (SAP), focused on the sustainable management of shared living marine resources harnessed from the large marine ecosystems in both the Caribbean and the North Brazil Shelf.

New British Defence Attach� strengthens the UK's defence relationship with the Guatemalan army
Colonel David Strawbridge MBE, a serving officer in the British Army, paid a three day visit to Guatemala to initiate his new role as the UK's Defence Attach� to Guatemala. He assumes the role with over 34 years of military experience including time spent in operational theatres such as Northern Ireland, Kosovo and Iraq as well as peacekeeping in Africa. During this initial visit, Colonel Strawbridge met with the Guatemalan Deputy Minister of Defence, Mynor Francisco Mus Tujab and other high level officials including the Chief of the Defence Staff Brig General Perez Ramirez. The British Ministry of Defence's (MOD) mission is to protect the security, independence and interests of the UK at home and abroad, working closely with allies and partners. During his visit, Colonel Strawbridge reiterated the United Kingdom's eagerness to work alongside Guatemalan counterparts and to share operational experiences. Whilst remaining resident in Mexico City he hopes to visit Guatemala on a regular basis.

Sorry, birdwatchers: People think you're creepy
Here's what most American birdwatchers are, according to a 2013 government study: White, older than 45, fairly well-off and pretty highly educated. Here's what many people think birdwatchers are: Creepy. That's according to a recent study that says it is the first "empirical study of 'creepiness.' " Led by psychology professor Frank McAndrew at Illinois's Knox College, the study set out to introduce "a theoretical perspective on the common psychological experience of feeling "creeped out," and to figure out what makes us think other people are creepy. As a public service to everyone who wants to avoid being viewed as creepy, we'll go over some of the other highlights before we get to birdwatching.

Videos

  • I LOVE BELIZE: HARRINGTON TRAPP!, 5.5min. The legendary Belizean musical artist, Harrington Trapp's 2016 hit single, I Love Belize, that will be an instant hit both in Los Angeles and Belize. The hit single from Trapp's upcoming album celebrates Belizean patriotism and nationalism.

  • Central America, 4min. Another solo backpacking adventure, this time in Central America! Countries visited were Mexico, Guatemala and Belize over 6 weeks in 2016. Enjoy!

  • Diving Belize 2016, 12min. Dive trip to Belize. January 2016. Dive resort, Ramon's Village. Sony RX100 in a Nauticam NRX100 housing

  • My Summer Trip: Belize, 6min. Here's a little taste of what I got to experience in Belize! May be a part 2. I totally recommend visiting a third world country.

  • Belize, 15min. So I took 6 hours worth of video on this trip, and I condenced it down to the best of the best... I present the Cozumel/Belize highlights.

  • AIDAaura in Belize City, 2007, 7min. Rundrang durch Belize City.

  • My Trip to Belize, 5.5min. Took my Phantom 3 Advanced drone, my GoPro Hero 4 Silver, and my Nikon P610 to Belize for two weeks. I snorkeled the Belize Barrier reef, climbed Mayan ruins, and trekked through the jungle.

  • Belize Trip 2015, 2.5min. San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize Shot using a GoPro Hero 4 Silver.

  • Just A Glimse Of An Extraordinary Mission Trip to Belize 2015, 5min.

  • Howler Monkey's at the Belize Mayan ruins near San Ignacio, 2.5min. Howler Monkeys up close at the Mayan ruins in Belize between San Ignacio and the Guatemala border. Beautiful to see these amazing animals so close up in the wild.

  • Belize coco beach pick up, 1.5min.