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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

National Policy Monitoring Tool launches
On Tuesday, September 27th, the Ministry of Human Development, Social Transformation and Poverty Alleviation (MHDSTPA) met at Our Lady of Guadalupe Mercy Centre in Belize City to launch BelizeInfo, a new website that will be used as a national policy monitoring tool for the country. BelizeInfo is a two-tier management information system that came as a result of the Community Action for Public Safety project (CAPS) five years ago. The website publicizes data in a structured manner, and is composed of over 65,000 data values. It is designed to also strengthen the monitoring and evaluation in the country to include: project, sector, thematic, national strategic plans, and the growth and sustainable development strategy.

GOB and churches proceed with appeal of section 53
After Chief Justice Benjamin Kenneth issued his judgement on August 10th, striking down section 53 of the Criminal Code that outlawed sodomy for decades, the Government of Belize (GOB) decided not to appeal the decision. However, after several meetings with members of the Belize Council of Churches (BCC), the Government has now decided to partially appeal the amended criminal code, which the churches have appealed in its entirety. The outcome of the last meeting, held on Friday, September 9th, will now see the Attorney General filing an appeal in the days ahead. GOB's case will be heard by the superior court individually while allowing all interested parties to appeal Section 53 in its entirety. The part of the ruling that the Government is appealing, according to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, is the piece which deals solely with sex and sexual orientation. "Government will appeal the aspect of the Chief Justice's decision which extends of expands the definition of sex in the Constitution to include sexual orientation," said Barrow. "That is the context of the constitutional protection to non-discrimination, which is the position government came to after an extensive review of the judgement and the advice of the Attorney General."

Help us in building a scrapbook of our memories from the last 25 years
The San Pedro Sun has the incredible opportunity to hold an exhibit honoring its 25th anniversary as the island newspaper. It's been an honor to be the historian of this community for a quarter century, and we look forward to showcasing some of our fondest moments. It's you the community that has made us who we are today, and now we ask you to help us in building a scrapbook of our memories from the last 25 years. Call 226-2070, email us at [email protected] or visit our office located upstairs of Love Belize gift shop on Barrier Reef Drive to share what you can with us as we prepare a fabulous showcase for the public.

SPHS Female Basketball Team participates in CODICADER games
Ambergris Caye and Belize were proudly represented by the San Pedro High School (SPHS) female basketball team and sub-champions of the National Secondary Schools Sports Association (NSSSA), at the 19th Under-17, Council for Sports and Recreation of Central America (CODICADER) tournament. They competed valiantly at the sporting event held from September 22nd through September 30th in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Despite failing to win any games in all six outings, they played their personal best each time they stepped on the court. All members of the team are thankful for the opportunity to represent Belize in the regional competition. They had the experience of a life-time and learned a lot during the competition, and look forward for another opportunity to represent the island and the country.

Hol Chan leads coastal clean up
The Hol Chan Marine Reserve on Ambergris Caye joined the 2016 Coastal Clean Up campaign for the fourth time. The international clean-up movement was spearheaded in Belize by the Belize Scout Association, and while Hol Chan did a massive clean-up on the North Ambergris Caye beach, there are still a lot of reports of illegal dumping in that area. During the weekend of September 24th, students from San Pedro High School and San Pedro Junior College joined members of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve for a day of hard work. The clean-up activity took participants at the island's northern point, known as Robles - a favorite spot for turtles during the nesting season. To track the success of the clean-up, everyone was provided with a 'Volunteer's Ocean Trash Form' in which all the garbage picked up was categorized and recorded. According to personnel from Hol Chan, this form of recording is done to provide data on the amount of and types of garbage in our water bodies, as well as to compare to clean-up campaigns of previous years. The official statistics for 2015 reported that 16,948 pounds of garbage were collected from the coastal areas countrywide, which accumulated to 39 miles of coastal areas covered by volunteers.

Mayor Guerrero attends instalment of Quintana Roo's new governor
The neighbouring Mexican State of Quintana Roo has a new governor, Carlos Joaquin Gonzales. He was officially sworn in on Sunday, September 25th, in the state's capital city of Chetumal where San Pedro's Mayor Daniel Guerrero, along with a Belizean delegation, attended the grand ceremony at the state's Hall. After delivering his message, the Governor invited his special invited guests to a feast in which he spoke to the Belizean delegation. Governor Gonzales and Deputy Prime Minister Faber briefly spoke on the long standing relationship between Belize and Mexico and their commitment to working together. Next to speak and congratulate the new Governor were the different mayors from Belize, including Mayor Guerrero. They all committed to foster good relationship between their municipalities and the state of Quintana Roo. Gonzales will hold the title of State Governor for six years.

Ambergris Today

Lady Dixie Bowen Inducted in Brentwood High School Hall of Fame
Lady Dixie Bowen was among six inductees into the Brentwood High School Hall of Fame Class of 2016, that took place on Friday, September 16, 2016, at Brentwood Missouri. She was nominated by Brentwood Alumni Association for being an exemplary alumna of the school. Lady Dixie just recently arrived from her trip back to her hometown to receive the recognition. She graduated from Brentwood High School, Brentwood Missouri in 1970, and her early travels on a scuba diving trip to San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize resulted in Dixie Bowen falling in love with the island that she now calls her home. In 1995 her dream of building a private school on the island for local children became a reality. Dixie credits Brentwood High School as the foundation for her success. The guidance and enthusiasm provided by the faculty and staff in her young live always stayed with her. Today, at the Island Academy, she continues to apply the principles and disciples of those formative years with her entire student body.

Misc Belizean Sourcesmzz

SBDC Workshop: MARKETING YOUR PRODUCT
Presented by: Mr. Jorge Gentle. Location: BTEC Training Room, ITVET Compound, Free Town Road, Belize City. Workshop Date: October 6th, 2016. Time: 9am to 12noon. The objective of this workshop is to stress the importance of selling, branding, labeling and packaging when marketing your product. Objectives include: Highlighting the importance of branding as a marketing tool, stress the importance of developing a good brand strategy ad, consequently an effective brand, importance of labeling as a marketing tool, Provide participants with the tools to develop an attractive label that conforms to Belize's labeling standard, Highlight the importance of packaging as a marketing tool. To sign up for the workshop contact our office at 223-315 or email us at [email protected]. Cost: $30.00, Includes snacks and refreshments.

2016 Coastal Cleanup on Ambergris Caye
Thanks to students of San Pedro Highschool and San Pedro Junior College who participated in this year's Beach Cleanup.

Silky sharks are in trouble and need your support at CITES!
We are getting close to voting day for listing Silky sharks on Appendix II at CITES. This will finally help to regulate the international trade in a species which is seeing rapid declines in populations. Conch is on Appendix II so why not silky sharks which does not even form part of Belize's local fisheries... only the high seas fisheries that are conducted by foreign countries under Belize's registration and flag. Please take a moment to urge our Departments of Forestry and Fisheries to support the listing and align themselves with many supporting countries.

Amazing season for the Scarlet Macaw conservation efforts
Release! My apologies for low quality i-phone pics but we are elated to share that an amazing season for the Scarlet Macaw conservation efforts culminated in the release and reintroduction of 5 hand-reared at risk chicks into the Chiquibul on Wednesday. We are fortunate to still see all 8 chicks released in 2015 thriving, but thanks to our partners from WCS in 2016 we were able to equip one of the chicks with a satellite collar so hopefully we will learn even more how to protect these amazing birds for future generations. The best news of this joint effort: since starting the hand rearing of at risk chicks in 2015 none of the chicks in the monitored area were poached for the pet trade (and all at risk nests were climbed by poachers after extraction!) and the numbers of successfully fledged macaw chicks have more then doubled.

Belize Wildlife & Referral Clinic's annual Gala on Garifuna Settlement Day
The Belize Wildlife and Referral Clinic is having it's 3rd annual Gala on Garifuna Settlement day. They'll be having it at the San Ignacio Resort Hotel, and the dinner will be Garifuna inspired, and as always, lionfish is on the menu. Nov. 19th! Silent auction Gala! A fundraiser event. 6pm, $85. "Join your friends at the Belize Wildlife & Referral Clinic for another Wild Night Out on Garifuna Settlement Day! To reserve tickets call 615-5159 or purchase at the San Ignacio Resort Hotel front desk. RSVP by Nov. 1st. Includes Garifuna inspired Lionfish dinner, silent and live auction and music."

Commander US SOUTHCOM visits Belize
The Commander of United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), Admiral Kurt Walter Tidd concluded a two-day visit to Belize on Thursday September 29th, 2016, with a tripartite meeting held with Commander Belize Defence Force Brigadier General David Jones and Chief of Defence Staff of the Guatemalan Armed Forces, Major General Juan Manuel Perez Ramirez, at Caracol Ruins in the Mountain Pine Ridge Thursday evening. The main purpose of the tripartite meeting was to encourage dialogue and cooperation, particularly on border issues between Belize and Guatemala. Also discussed was the important role that the armed forces must play in regards to regional security. During his stay in Belize Admiral Tidd along with US Ambassador, His Excellency Carlos Moreno, held meetings with key officials within the Ministry of Defence including Minister John Saldivar, CEO Min of Defence, Commandant of the Belize Coast Guard and Commander of the Belize Defence Force, to discuss US support to the BDF and Coast Guard and joint collaboration of operational and training activities between the two countries.

Over 600 Belize City Students Will Soon Benefit from New Queen's Square Anglican Primary School Project
Ground-breaking Ceremony to officially commence the construction of Queen's Square Anglican Primary School Substitution Project, Belize City, will be held at the school's compound at 2:00 pm on Friday September 30, 2016. The Government of Belize in recognition of the critical role of education for social, economic, cultural and political development by way of empowering future leaders with knowledge, skills and values to enhance Belize's socio-economic development; is funding the construction of the new Queen's Square Anglican Primary School at an estimated cost of $950,000.00 courtesy of a loan from the Caribbean Development Bank. The completion of the school project means that Belize City students will have greater access to a better learning environment in a newly spacious and pleasant setting; as well as address increasing demand of enrollment and alleviate over-crowding in existing classrooms.

Two 20 minute power interruptions 7:00am to 7:20am & 4:40pm to 5:00pm on Saturday, October 1, 2016: entire Orange Walk & Corozal Districts
BEL to replace poles, downguys & ground wires on transmission system.

BEL Light the Night for Kids!
Sept. 30, 7:15pm. "Light the Night for Kids" walk hosted by the Inspiration Center, streetlights will remain off along the route of the walk. Streetlights will be turned on after the "Light the Night for Kids" walk has passed these streets.

Commentary: Donald Trump convinced many that he is not qualified to be president
By Wellington C. Ramos. I have been living in the United States for 38 years now and I have never seen a candidate running for the presidency who is so unqualified like Donald Trump. He became the Republican nominee for their party because his campaign was built on assuring some white men and anti-immigrants that if he is elected he will give them back their country. He is not the first Republican candidate running for president to use this strategy. Others used it before but did not engage in straight talk like him. Some of them were elected and others were rejected. Over the years the American population has changed from a majority white to other ethnic groups. It is not possible for any candidate to win the presidency with only the white vote.

San Pedro Kids Club
Register now for this great opportunity! Free for Kids!

Newly elected Garifuna Council visits San Pedro
On Thursday, September 29, the newly elected Garifuna Council visited the Mayor and Councilor Hector Tito Alamilla to present its new members and its future objectives. The new council consists of Mr. Alex Noralez as the president, Virginia Melendez as Vice President, Eden Velasquez as Secretary, Elsy Guilty as Assistant Secretary, Elroy Castillo as Treasurer and Amancia Martinez as the Assistant Treasurer. Both Mayor Guerrero and Councilor Tito congratulated them on their triumph and expressed their best wishes on a successful term. Mayor Daniel Guerrero and the San Pedro Town Council are looking forward to working with this new team to further promote the Garifuna culture in San Pedro.

Belize Workers Union in Solidarity with Teachers
In a press release dated Friday September 30th, the Belize Workers' Union (BWU) expresses solidarity with the strike staged by the Belize National Teachers' Union (BNTU) and are prepared to move their cause to the next level. In its release it states "The Belize Workers' Union (BWU) writes on behalf of its members to inform the public and parents in particular, that it stands firmly in support of the Belize National Teachers' Union (BNTU) in its decision to strike as a result of its agitation with the Government of Belize over issues pertaining to the economic and social well-being of our beloved country. The teachers are on the side of right! Their fight is a noble fight on behalf of all citizens of this country and their cause and the decision to strike is protected according to right to strike principles set out by the International Labour Organization (ILO). For the BWU to stand aside and do nothing is to abdicate its moral responsibility to not only the teachers and the BNTU but also to all our Belizeans brothers and sisters who are victims of ministerial and Government corruption and mismanagement of the nation's financial resources. The BWU stands in solidarity to move the cause to the next level".

Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association will close its offices on Monday, October 3, 2016
In solidarity with the Belize National Teachers Union (BNTU) and is members.

Taiwanese Food & Cultural Festival
The Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) will host "Taiwanese Food & Cultural Festival" at Fort George Memorial Park between 10AM to 3PM of October 15, 2016 as part of the activities in celebrating the country's Double Tenth National day. 20 booths from Taiwanese community will sell indigenous Taiwanese food, including Taiwanese fried chicken, Taiwanese sausage, beef noodles, beef puff, fried rice noodles, tea eggs, spring rolls, thick soup noodle, vegetable balls, savory rice cake, turnip cake, caozaiguo, sushi, tempura, yakitori, fried silk thread rolls, mochi, wheel pies, nougat, cake, cookie, taro crispy cake, Moringa tea, herbal tea, juice, coffee and bubble tea. It is an opportunity for all and gourmets to savor the flavor and treat your palates to genuine Taiwanese food. Taiwan Embassy welcomes everyone along with his/her family to participate in the event and enjoy Taiwanese tasty food.

National Team of BELIZE vs The National Team of HONDURAS!!!
WHERE: FFB Stadium, Belmopan WHEN: Saturday, October 8th, 2016 More details coming soon..... Here is a list of players called up for this MATCH UP of a LIFE TIME.. BELIZE vs HONDURAS

Memo from Corozal Junior College
26 teachers in solidarity with the BNTU

Commander US SOUTHCOM visits Belize
The Commander of United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), Admiral Kurt Walter Tidd concluded a two-day visit to Belize on Thursday September 29th, 2016, with a tripartite meeting held with Commander Belize Defence Force Brigadier General David Jones and Chief of Defence Staff of the Guatemalan Armed Forces, Major General Juan Manuel Perez Ramirez, at Caracol Ruins in the Mountain Pine Ridge Thursday evening. The main purpose of the tripartite meeting was to encourage dialogue and cooperation, particularly on border issues between Belize and Guatemala. Also discussed was the important role that the armed forces must play in regards to regional security.

Benque HoC 15th Anniversary
Happy 15 years to the Benque House of Culture! They have the Pillars of Benque HoC exhibit up right now. Fun pictures from the party. They have a great little video of the fireworks at the party too. "We bid farewell to one of our most festive seasons, one that leaves us with great memories, friendships and a journey to continue embracing our Belizean Identity! Images of our Benque HOC Quince A�os- A walk down through memory lane ceremony & opening of our in house exhibition 'Pillars of Benque HOC' - depicting 15 personalities that have contributed invaluably towards the growth & development of the Arts, Culture & History, locally and internationally."

Yesterday, Mr. Giovanni Pinelo presented at SCA.
We (NICH) are always happy to conduct presentations at schools. The students were interested to learn about the origins of the Anglo-Guatemalan Dispute.

Protecting the Mopan River means working with Guatemalan communities
Thanks to the British Embassy a 5,000 plant nursery was constructed at the village of El Cruzadero. The trees are ready and distribution has started across the 9 communities that form part of the Bi-national Watershed Alliance.

Channel 7

Teachers: One Day Strike, For Now
It's confirmed, the BNTU will strike on Monday. The Union held a press conference this afternoon after their Council of Management met earlier today. There were reports circulating that the teachers would strike for a week others were even saying a month. Well the BNTU clarified that it will only be a one day strike�for now!! BNTU's National President Luke Palacio gave the announcement while National Secretary Endevora Jergenson reiterated their main demands. Luke Palacio, BNTU National President: "So on Monday we call on all our teachers throughout this country not to go to school. We have said to our membership throughout this country and contrary to what the other side is saying we have massive support for the actions we are taking. We are saying to our teachers stay tuned to the media, we will be giving you updates accordingly."

PUP Senators Pounce on Hulse
It's been just over 5 weeks since the Special Audits on the Immigration Department were made public. In 700+ pages spread out across three reports, Auditor General Dorothy Bradley details a very frightening picture of widespread irregularities and rampant corruption in the department. She names public officers, political cronies, and elected UDP officials as being involved with visa, passport and nationality irregularities. It has dominated the public and political discourse, and the news tonight is that a Senate Select Committee has been set up to investigate the reports. That's what came out of a special Senate sitting today to agree on the composition of the Senate Select Committee. But, before the meeting could properly start, Lead PUP Senator, Eamon Courtenay tried to move a motion to excuse Godwin Hulse, the Leader of Government Business from the day's debate. He's the Minister of Police and Immigration. That is the Ministry which will be under the microscope, and so, the PUP says that he cannot be involved because it will be a conflict of interest.

Church Senator Ashley Rocke's Motion Met With Jeers
So, back to the business of the day, which was to appoint a Senate Select Committee - the culmination of so many weeks of agitation. And the agitation continued in the senate Chamber as both sides argued over who would sit on that Committee. The Prime Minister conceded to only 2 UDP members on the Committee, after insisting that it should be 3. But, the Teachers, the Opposition, Business Community, and a faction of the Churches say that the only possible configuration of this Senate Committee is a 1:1:3, one from the Government, one from the Opposition, and 3 from the Social partners. Church Senator Ashley Rocke tabled a motion today that Senate configuration be 2:1:3. That's in line with what the Government is prepared to support, and though his motion was scheduled to go after Eamon Courtenay, the acting president, Dr. Carla Barnett, allowed him to table his first. Here's his presentation to his colleagues:

PUP Motion Was Defeated
PUP's Lead Senator, Eamon Courtenay got his opportunity to make his presentation before the division was called for. Instead of moving his own motion, which was already prepared, he decided to propose amendments to Ashley Rocke's motion, to ensure that while they do not agree on the composition, the objective of a comprehensive Senate Investigation will take place. Here he is making the point that Government should have only one Senator on the committee to investigate the Immigration Audit Reports: After all members of the Senate spoke on the two motions, Acting President Carla Barnett temporarily suspended the Senate meeting. This was to allow for the senators to have an informal discussion amongst themselves about the changes Courtenay proposed. When they returned, there was still the dispute about the composition of the Committee. As we told you, Courtenay's motion recommended only 1 Government Senator, to firewall against Government influence, and possible misdirection of the Senate Probe. When his configuration was voted on, it was defeated. The Senate then took a vote on Rocke's Government friendly configuration, and that's when a division was called for. Here's how it went:

Rocke Under Sustained Fire
So, as you saw, at the end, when the Senate took that short recess, the members went to figure out what to do with Ashley Rocke's motion. There appeared to be consensus among the senators that it was deficient in some areas, and it was not as legally thorough as Senator Courtenay's motion. So, in those deliberations, it was decided that they would improve his motion with portions of Courtenay's - a rare moment of all sides coming together. Of course, they left out Courtenay's part about the composition of the Senate Committee which would reduce the Government's representation from 2 to only 1. They put that and Rocke's more Government-friendly configuration to a division, and as you saw, his recommendations passed, while Courtenay's was defeated. Notably the PUP - while they didn't vote for Rocke's motion -they didn't vote against it.

An Inquiry With Intrigues
So, that's more or less how today's Senate meeting went, and while there will be a raging debate on Church Senator Ashley Rocke's controversial motion, the bottom line is that there will be a public, televised Senate Inquiry on the Auditor General's Report. That's something that the general public has been calling for, and with the working compromise, it's now going to be a reality. But as we told you, there were some amendments recommended by Senator Eamon Courtenay. Some were adopted, and some were rejected. 2 of the rejected recommendations caught our attention this evening. The first is the ability of any member of the Senate Committee to call anyone he or she deems important as a witness. The other is that a clearly defined budget was not identified in this first meeting.

Conflict In the Catholic Church And Schools
Last night we told you about the explosive release from the Catholic Diocese -presumably under the hand of Bishop Dorrick Wright - standing by the striking teachers and taking a few well-placed jabs at the government. Well, the Manager of Roman Catholic Schools put them in check when she told LOVE TV that the release was not in line with the official position of Catholic Schools. Here's how she put it. As Sister Barbara explained - she called in the Papal Nunce from Honduras to come and clear up the matter. And while the Diocese release stated that the 50 thousand children in the Catholic school System should stay home on Monday and wait for further order, the school manager said that they want to keep schools open:

Paumen Got Back His Passport
Earlier this year, American-Belizean tour operator Bradley Paumen was charged with abetment to murder Michael Modiri. The hit was allegedly placed after the court ordered Paumen to pay Modiri, his next door neighbor, $300,000 for trespassing on his land to conduct his tours. After being charged, Paumen was forced to forfeit his passport and ordered not to leave the country. Today, Paumen's attorney, Herbert Panton, submitted an application to Supreme Court Justice Antoinette Moore, asking permission for Paumen to get back his passport, and for him to travel to the US state of Missouri for twenty days in October. After reviewing the application and deciding that there was no risk of Paumen fleeing, Justice Moore accepted.

BTL Boasts Strong Growth In Revenue and Profits At AGM
BTL has been in the news a lot recently, but mostly because of the ballooning cost of the settlement with the Ashcroft Alliance. But, ultimately, that is a matter for the government which took over the company from the Alliance in 2009. For BTL as a private entity - that company is unfettered by those huge compensation payouts - and is trying to keep up with a rapidly changing telecommunications landscape. Last night at their annual general meeting the company was boasting of sharply increased earnings and profits - but still, nagging questions persist - and we were there to ask them:... Audrey Wallace, Director - BTL: "The fiscal year 2015/2016 has been an exceptional year for BTL in terms of revenues and achieving corporate milestones." Nestor Vasquez, 14th year as Chairman - BTL: "We added over 25,000 new mobile customers to our customer base. We more than doubled the number of postpaid mobile customers and we more than tripled the number of customers using 4g data on a regular basis."

BTL Chairman Takes On Briceno on Value of Phone Company
And that wasn't the end of it for the BTL Chairman, Nestor Vasquez. He took on Opposition Leader John Briceno who told us yesterday that BTL is hardly worth 100 million dollars, and government is paying the Ashcroft Alliance over 500 million dollars for it. Well the Chairman didn't like to hear that one bit, and he scolded the opposition leader:... Nestor Vasquez, 14th year as Chairman - BTL: "The leader of the opposition is misinformed or is just not telling the truth. He should know better than that because what we have right now is already worth over 400 million dollars. The company is worth that with the building, the property, the machinery, the equipment, the train stop, we already own that in assets but the point to remember is that if you add all the profits that they would have made between 2009 when we took over to 2025, you get it from the Price Water House evaluation, their evaluation."

BNTU We Shall Not Be ...Intimidated
So the teachers will strike on Monday, and at this point, no one really knows what will happen because as you heard the Ministry of Education has been working on an emergency plan to keep schools open. One of those measures is to bring in substitute teachers. The BNTU members expressed how they felt about these tactics from Government. Kesha Young Flowers, Executive Secretary - BNTU: "What I will attempt to do is to highlight the intimidation and the attacks that have come fast and furious at the BNTU since Sunday when the prime minister made a public statement to the nation of Belize. A statement that was almost 10 minutes long, and you have seen that statement go countrywide during prime time constantly attacking the BNTU. We have to question, where is the money coming from that this government has invested in vilifying the BNTU? We have also seen on the news items in this week and we have heard from people on the ground that ministers of government have been visiting schools, making calls, reaching out to teachers trying to intimidate them and to stop them from striking on Monday. We have to ask again, why is it that all 31 ministers, caretakers are representatives of this government have been called out and asked to undertake such actions against the teachers of the BNTU. We have also seen letters that have come from managements going directly to teachers and principals indicating that they would initiate action against the teachers if they participate in Monday's industrial action."

BNTU Says Faber Never Wanted to Talk Education Issues
And the teachers union council of management also had some choice words for Education Minister Patrick Faber. He said that the teachers should be focusing on classroom issues, not national issues. They say Faber never game them a chance to ventilate those issues:.. Luke Palacio - National President, BNTU: "Let Minister Faber not continue to try and mislead this nation. We have asked for meetings with Minister Faber, in fact when he first got elected for the previous government, there was an arrangement where we met with the minister on a quarterly basis. He said 'no that's too long, I'll meet with you every 3 months', he has not met with us in over 3 years. So how can we be bringing up education issues with him? Whenever we go to a meeting it's either with his chief education officer or his chief executive officer. Whenever we are to have meetings he agrees to it and when we get there, 'we apologize for the minister, he cannot be here'. If he were so sure of what he's talking about, he should have listed the things that he believes teachers and the BNTU should be addressing because he has not given us that opportunity."

NEMO Sends Out Advance Notice For Hurricane Matthew
As we showed you earlier in the weather report, Hurricane Matthew is out there in the Caribbean gaining strength at a frightening rate. And that's why NEMO has issued what it calls an early advance notice. Now, to be clear, the storm is not forecast to come our way, but NEMO says it is monitoring the Category 4 Hurricane which is presently more than 1, 000 miles from Belize. NEMO stresses that Matthew is expected to make a turn to the North over the weekend. And even though the superstorm poses no threat to Belize and the extreme western Caribbean, persons living on the cayes, in flood prone areas, fisher folks, and farmers are advised to monitor Hurricane Matthew in the event that the northward turn does not materialize over the weekend. NEMO says that national and district committees will be notified to monitor and prepare for any developments associated with the storm.

Honoring The Aged
Stand Up Against Ageism: that was the theme for this senior week. There were a number of activities including an arts and craft display and movie night. Well today, to end off the week HelpAge held a Senior Spa Day where about 50 elderly persons got their nails done. The chairperson for HelpAge Belize City Branch told us more about today's pampering session. But Clarke told us that beyond the pampering, there are a lot of problems affecting the older persons, including neglect and abuse. If you would like to help out an older person or volunteer at the HelpAge you can call 224 5282.

High Level Military Meeting In Belize: Guats, US, Bze
It didn't get a lot of publicity, but this week, military leaders from the United States and Guatemala had a tripartite meeting. Brigadier General David Jones met with the US Admiral Kurt Walter Tidd, Commander of Southern Command, and Major General Juan Manuel Perez Ramirez to discuss strategies for ensuring cooperation and peace in the region. Today Felix Enriquez, CEO of the Ministry of Defense, gave us more details: The military leaders also spoke about the possibility of joint training exercises and the role of the armed forces in the security of the entire region. Admiral Tidd, along with US Ambassador Carlos Moreno, also donated $15,000 US dollars in cleaning supplies to NEMO to assist in the relief efforts after Hurricane Earl, part of US$215,000 pledged by US Southern Command to restock NEMO's warehouses in preparation for another disaster.

Mexican Ship Visits
Today marked the 35th year of diplomatic relations between Belize and Mexico, and to celebrate our port was visited by the "Independencia" Mexican Navy vessel. A ceremony was held to welcome the 282 foot vessel and Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington and Ambassador Carlos Quesnel spoke about the amicable relationship the two countries share. And after the celebrations on the Independencia concluded, the Chamber Orchestra and Choir of the Mexican Navy performed traditional Mexican folk music at the Bliss.

Channel 5

Breaking News: Hurricane Matthew, A Category 4 Storm, Lurks in the Caribbean
The National Met Service is asking Belizeans to keep an eye on Hurricane Matthew over the weekend. In an advisory sent late this evening, the Met Service says that they [...]

Ashley Rocke Gets Senate Inquiry Motion Passed; Did He Betray Social Partners?
The Upper Chamber of the National Assembly today had a very high-stakes meeting in Belmopan. Its sole purpose: to come to an agreement about the constitution and composition of a [...]

P.U.P.'s Lead Senator Says They Were "Caught Off-Guard" by Change in Motions
The Leader of the Opposition in the Senate admitted following the meeting that they were caught off-guard by the sudden change to the Order Paper putting Senator Rocke's motion above [...]

Godwin Hulse Saved From Being Thrown Out of Debate - But Should He Have Been?
But, before the Rocke motion could even be heard and debated, there was an intervention by Lead Opposition Senator Eamon Courtenay, asking Minister of Immigration and his opposite number in [...]

COLA Interrupts Senate and Fires Off at Senators Rocke and Hulse
While Senator Ashley Rocke was making the ultimately successful motion before the Senate, he was interrupted by Geovannie Brackett, the President of Citizens Organized for Liberty through Action and activist [...]

COLA President Calls for Continued Civil Disobedience and Support for Teachers
In anticipation of the Rocke motion being passed, C.O.L.A. president Brackett vowed to continue civil agitation alongside the Belize National Teachers' Union. He called for a national shutdown on Monday [...]

Business Community and Union Senators Distance Themselves from Motion
After the debate began, it quickly became clear that the social partner Senators - Mark Lizarraga for the business community and Elena Smith for the trade unions and civil society [...]

Chamber Reserves Judgment on Motion; Supports B.N.T.U.
The Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry has said it will review its options in light of today's successful motion in the Senate. However, in a statement issued just before [...]

Junior Education Minister Calls Composition of Committee a "Concession" by P.M.
While the opposition, social partners and civil society were of the opinion that the motion presented by the Church Senator did not go far enough; the major discontent was the [...]

B.N.T.U. Rallies for Monday's Strike - But Will It Go Further?
It is for more than the three-it is for country�That was the message from the Executive of the Belize National Teachers Union this afternoon at a press conference in the [...]

Teachers Under Attack! B.N.T.U. Wonders Why?
According to the B.N.T.U., since Sunday, the teachers have been under attack by the Government of Belize. The teachers are known as nation builders, but according to Executive Secretary Keisha [...]

Potential Replacement Teachers Warned as B.N.T.U. Contemplates Extending Strike
The actions taken by government have teachers riled up and ready for Monday's strike. But they are even more incensed by a statutory instrument that is expected to be signed [...]

Union Stalwart George Frazer Cries Shame on Education Minister
Union executives also called out the government for what they say are acts of Union Busting. Former Union Leader, George Frazer says he's ashamed of Minister of Education Patrick Faber [...]

Will Stevedores Strike As Well?
For the past few days, it has been rumoured that the stevedores would be striking in solidarity with the teachers union. But both the CWU & the Port of Belize [...]

Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association Issues Support for Teachers
In a late evening press release on Thursday, the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association declared their support for the teachers. The B.S.C.F.A. release states that the demands of the teachers [...]

Are Roman Catholic School Managers and Bishop Still at Odds?
Is there division between the Management of Catholic Schools and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belize and Belmopan? Today, the Belize Catholic Association of Principals of Secondary Schools sent out [...]

Junior Minister Defends Against Claims of Union Busting
Earlier this week we told you about Government ministers on the ground talking to teachers - asking them not to strike on Monday. So, today we caught up with Elodio [...]

Queen Square Anglican School Will Get New Building
Over six hundred students will benefit from a major upgrade to the Queen Square Anglican Primary School in Belize City. The nine hundred and fifty thousand dollars project will include [...]

3 teenagers detained for home invasion in Trial Farm
On Thursday night in Trial Farm Village in Orange walk, twenty-eight year old Salvadoran Kenny Carranza and her neighbors and a few children were the victims of a brazen burglary. [...]

Bradley Pauman Off to U.S. with Supreme Court's Approval
American Bradley Pauman, has been in the news for over a year�as the businessman accused putting a hit on fellow businessman and neighbour Michael Modiri. He was back in court [...]

Elderly Man Freed of Sexual Assault Charge
Well known Belizean tailor, sixty-six year old Felipe Santiago Montejo, is a free man tonight after the charge of sexual assault of a minor was struck out in court today. [...]

A Rape Case is Dropped in the Supreme Court
Another man also walked free of a sexual crime today. Only in the case of Long Caye resident, Pedro Trujeque, he was reminded that the rape charge against him can [...]

Mexican Naval Ship's Visit Marks Milestone of Diplomatic Relations with Belize
It's a celebration of thirty-five years of friendship! Our friends from the North are celebrating that anniversary by bringing their prestigious naval vessel for a ceremonial visit. The Embassy of [...]

U.S. SouthCom Commander Visits Belize
On Thursday, the Commander of the United States Southern Command, Admiral Kurt Walter Tidd concluded a two-day visit to Belize with a tripartite meeting held with Brigadier General David Jones [...]

Regional Youth Conference Concludes in Belize
Today, the Caribbean Youth Leaders Summit officially came to a close. The theme for the summit was From Rhetoric to Action Agenda 2030. �Were the dynamic youths able to achieve [...]