February 10, 2012

San Pedro Asked to Conserve Water - Alerted on Possible Shortage!
In his letters to the SPBA, Mr. Clifford Dillon, GM of CWBL, stated the community of San Pedro needs to be aware of that there is a serious issue with the water supply on the island. He continued by saying that since 2008, the Reverse Osmosis plant has run full time during high season and has just barely met demands. He warned that if we get a high season with as little as 5%-10% increase in demand over any of the last four years, CWBL will in all likely not be able to meet that demand.

LightHawk takes ACES over Northern Ambergris Caye
On Wednesday January 25th, the American Crocodile Education Sanctuary/ACES partnered once again with LightHawk for another excursion over northern Ambergris Caye. Taking off from the John Grief Airstrip, around 2PM, the team comprised of volunteer LightHawk pilot Chuck Haywood; Anthony Pine, Marine Biology and Zoology student from California, USA who is volunteering with ACES; Research Biologist Cherie Rose, ACES Crocodile Behaviorist Vince Rose and The San Pedro Sun reporter Dennis Craft.

26th Meeting of Bank Governors hosted on Ambergris Caye
Bank Governors from Central America and the Dominican Republic are on Ambergirs Caye for the 26th meeting of Governors ahead of the annual Bank Governors meeting scheduled to take place in Montevideo, Uruguay. The meeting was declared open by acting Prime Minister of Belize Gaspar Vega following an official statement by the President of Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno. The two-day meeting started today, Thursday February 9th at the Coco Beach Resort, located north of San Pedro Town.

Simms Fishing Products Represented in Belize
Simms Fishing Products is proud to announce that Wil Flack of San Pedro, Belize will have sales representation for the iconic brand in Belize and Mexico - including the Yucatan Peninsula. Born and raised in British Columbia, Flack worked as a steelhead guide before moving to Belize where he owns and operates the Tres Pescados Fly Shop (www.belizefly.com) in downtown San Pedro.

Caribbean Cave Tubing in Belize: A Serious Family Adventure
What does the family that wants a little history and archeology mixed in with their adventure, relaxation, and water, do when they're on holiday in the Caribbean? They go Caribbean cave tubing through the underground Sibun Reserve in Belize!

Maya Research Program Wins Excavation Outreach Contest
The Maya Research Program, which has sponsored fieldwork in northwestern Belize for the past two decades, garnered nearly one third of the votes-a testament to the devotion of past participants. The Maya Research Program encourages public participation on their excavation projects and each year 120 students and volunteers work with them in Belize. Just this past year, the Maya Research Program's participants raised money to purchase the site of Grey Fox and prevent its destruction.

Work on weather radar station has begun
With a coverage radius of 250 miles, Grand Cayman's radar is the final link in the early warning system covering the Caribbean. It will overlap with radar stations in Jamaica and Belize. Currently, imagery of weather disturbances, such as thunderstorms and hurricanes, is produced by satellite, which is not as timely or detailed as digital radar.

The Road to Caracol
In more than 25 years of research, the Chases, husband-and-wife anthropologists at the University of Central Florida, have pieced together what Diane describes as "a much more complete story about Caracol," one of the largest Maya cities. Through stable isotope analysis they can tell you what Caracol's residents ate -- which residents had a high-maize, high-protein diet, and which didn't -- and they can also tell you how the relatively uniform distribution of pottery suggests a strong sense of shared identity across social classes. Read more: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/02/10/husband-and-wife-anthropologists-study-ancient-maya-city#ixzz1lywrkA19 Inside Higher Ed

Mayan people battle oil giants as Belize's rainforests threatened
Forest communities are fighting increasing incursions onto their land by US oil companies. Now the Belizean government is seeking to reverse a court ruling preventing them allowing oil exploration, logging or mining. The visiting Maya describe current threats to their communities as including nickel mines, African Palm plantations, and oil companies, in addition to the cattle ranchers who deprived them of most of their land...

Wildwood Native Produces Documentary After Traveling to Belize
Frank Weiss, a native of Wildwood Crest and a junior Visual Communications major at Stockton College, traveled to Belize, a small country bordered by Mexico and Honduras, in July of 2011. He arrived with his camera and a diverse assortment of wide angle and telephoto lenses, tripods, and additional video equipment. After five days, he returned with over 1,000 gigabytes of video footage. Over the past few months Weiss has been editing the footage he captured in Belize, and Scott Stagliano, a Wildwood native and a 2009 Stockton graduate, has been writing the text for the narration of a film. "The Road is Coming" is a documentary that captures the culture, environment, and political state of Belize and touches upon its history.

Telemedia and Belize Electricity Limited: the economics of nationalisation
The proposed Ninth Constitutional Amendment, whether it is legally or constitutionally valid or not, must be looked at in the context of Belize's socio-economic realities. The Ninth Amendment seeks to accomplish one primary objective: to entrench nationalisation of certain utilities - in particular, Telemedia and Belize Electricity Limited (BEL). Concerned that such entrenchment may be the subject of a successful legal challenge under the basic structure doctrine applied by the Supreme Court in Barry Bowen v Attorney General,(1) the legislature has sought to place the entrenchment beyond all legal challenge in the courts. By doing so in such a broad and expansive manner, the amendment subverts constitutional supremacy and the separation of powers doctrine, and purports to assert parliamentary supremacy at the risk of undermining the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms.

The February 9th, 2012 issue of The Northern Star is online HERE

This Week's Stories:

  • ORANGE WALK CENTRAL GONE RED!
  • ORANGE WALK TEAM ANCHORED BY WOMEN
  • Editorial: A Huge Vulture Waits!
  • THOUGHTS ACROSS THE MILES: Dr. Errol Elrington - TWO ELECTIONS! DUTY AND MEMORY
  • MESSAGE FROM THE CLERGY: Rev. Dr. Rudolph Anthony Priest of the Anglican Diocese of Belize - 3rd Sunday after Epiphany
  • FROM THE PUBLISHER: Recycling POLITICIANS?
  • FOOD AND NUTRITION: Becoming a Stepparent
  • Chicken Quesadillas Recipe
  • EMBRACING History: Philip S. W. Goldson, Dr. Manuel Esquivel
  • Your Weekly Horoscope
  • Jokes of the Week
  • INTERNATIONAL NEWS: Is The Multimillionaire A Belizean?
  • INTERNATIONAL NEWS: Months after his death, Libyan leader's weapons arm a rebel movement in Africa

Retirement In Belize Advice From Emory King
Every once in a while people ask about retiring in Belize. Following is the answer I send them. So you want to retire in Belize? If you have the money and the right attitude come on down and plan to stay two weeks to a month at least. Visit the whole country and talk to people everywhere. That may tend to confuse you, but in the end you will know where you want to live in our Paradise.

DATE SET FOR ANNUAL AGRICULTURE AND TRADE SHOW
The dates for the National Agriculture and Trade Show have been announced. According to a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture, this year, the committee overseeing the show has decided that NATS 2012 will be held on the 27th, 28th and 29th of April. The three-day event, staged at the Agriculture Show grounds in Belmopan is the premiere showcase and promotion of agriculture and its contribution to the development of the country.

CLOSER LOOK AT BELIZE'S FILM INDUSTRY
The Stakeholders consultation on Belize's Film Industry began this morning in Belize City. The consultation is aimed at putting together policy papers to regulate the film industry in Belize. The consultation included an introduction of legal counsel and an overview of the Belize Film Industry by the Facilitator of the Belize Film Commission Suzette Zaiden. Zaiden also outlined many pros and cons of the industry and outlined how much Belize has been gaining from the production of registered films. Where in 2009 the commission made ninety seven thousand one hundred and fifty eight dollars and forty-three cents in half the year, there was a whopping one million sixty six thousand seventy three dollars and seventy three cents for three quarters of 2011. For this month of February, there are already four projects in development.

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATIONS PRESENTS REPORT
Elaine Berry reporting� "Today the Food and Agriculture Organization held its annual review meeting at the San Ignacio Hotel. The presentation was given by Dr. Jerome Thomas, FAO representative for Jamaica and Ricardo Thompson, FAO representative for Belize. Dr. Jerome Thomas told us more about the meeting. The closing remarks were delivered by Gabino Canto, CEO in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

VEHICLE FIRE AT NORTHERN BORDER BRIDGE
Traffic was held back for approximately 30 minutes last night at the northern border as a result of a fire. While according to Corozal police no formal report has been made, Love News understands that a little before eight last night a black KIA sportage with Orange Walk license plates was crossing the international bridge that connects Belize and Mexico when it caught fire.

ARMED ROBBERY IN ORANGE WALK TOWN
An armed robbery has been reported in the Orange Walk District. Reports are that it happened on Tuesday night. According to Juan Carlos Perdomo, he was the on duty watchman at Fido's Scrap yard on Belize Corozal Road in Orange Walk when he was accosted by three men of Creole descent. Perdomo says one of the men was armed with what appeared to be a handgun and they demanded his possession.

CAYO TEENAGER INJURED IN SHOOTING INCIDENT
A teenage boy was wounded in a shooting incident last night in Santa Elena town. Sixteen year old Jamin Sharshante was shot in the back around seven thirty last night on Carmen Street in Santa Elena town. Police say that when they went to the scene, they found Sharshante on the basketball court with a single gunshot to the lower part of his back. Police say that as they were transporting the wounded teenager to the hospital, the observed a man riding on a bicycle in front of the Norman Broaster Stadium with what appeared to be a sawed off shot gun in his possession.

UNIVERSITY OF BELIZE AND TAIWANESE EMBASSY SIGN AGREEMENT
Students of the University of Belize will have an increased range of studies to choose from in a very short time. Today, President of UB, Dr Cary Fraser, signed a Letter of Intent" with Taiwan's Ambassador to Belize, David Wu in the presence of the Minister of Education, Patrick Faber. The signing aims to strengthen bilateral ties in areas of culture, academia and education. UB will disseminate information to its students, faculty and staff on the scholarship opportunities under the Taiwan Scholarship Fellowships programme and facilitate in exchanging relevant information and publications. The Taiwan Scholarships and Fellowships comprise nine awards in three categories: fellowships, Mandarin Enrichment Scholarships and Scholarships for Degrees. Love News was present for the signing at the Taiwanese Embassy and noted key excerpts from the parties involved.

PREPARATORY MEETING OF IDB GOVERNORS HELD IN SAN PEDRO
Governors of Central America and executives of the Inter American Development Bank are in San Pedro Town for the inauguration of the 26th meeting of governors in the region. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is holding its 26th annual meeting of the Central American Governors in San Pedro Town to discuss the developmental challenges faced by Central American countries and the Dominican Republic. President of the IDB Luis Alberto Moreno announced today that IDB will play a role in confronting those issues including citizen security and combating crime.

GSU VS GSG Part 2?
In August - the conflict between the George Street Gang, GSG and the Gang Suppression Unit flared out into naked hostility after the GSU rained down on the GSG's base. Well tonight, tensi...

Police Shoot Suspected Santa Elena Shooter In San Ignacio
A shooting in Santa Elena Town has resulted in two people being admitted to the hospital - both the victim and the suspected criminal. At 7:40 last night, responding to reports of a shooting...

IDB Governors Meet In Belize
Thirty thousand young Belizean women and children are expected to benefit from the Salud Mesoamerica 2015 initiative, a project that aims to reduce maternal and infant mortality among the po...

Arthur, Again?
Here at 7news, we have reported very frequently on Arthur Young's trips to the courthouse. He is a man very well known to police and to the media, and he once claimed that the police had m...

Telemedia Signs agreement For 4G
In January at the last House Meeting of this Administration, the government passed a BTL Loan Guarantee Motion. It provides a government guarantee for an eight million US dollar loan from...

Independent Candidate Says He'll spend 40K On Campaign
And while BTL got those funds with a government guarantee that went to the house, try asking any politician where he or she gets their campaign financing - and the subject melts into myste...

Justin Goff for Robbery
Justin Goff, a 23 year-old resident of Marigold Lane was arraigned for theft today. According to court details, on Tuesday, he grabbed Julio Lopez's beach cruiser bicycle. When Lopez wou...

UB and Taiwan Team Up
A letter of intent was signed today between the University of Belize and Taiwan, that will establish a contact of point between UB and the Taiwan Academy. The signing seeks to strengthen ...

OCEANA Says Failed Referendum Was Not A Waste
It was the big news last week that the OCEANA Referendum was rejected by the Elections and Boundaries Office after eight thousand of their twenty thousand signatures were rejected. So, wh...

Citco's Break On Property Tax
Two-thirds of the city council's revenue derives from property taxes - but very many of the city's property owners do not pay their property tax - and the council has 7.6 million dollars in ...

Man Busted By GSU Goes To Court
Yesterday, we told you about 22 year-old Jason Reynolds who was arrested and charged for drug trafficking and keeping unlicensed ammunition, after GSU conducted a search on the home of Mar...

Lessons In The Craft OF Kite-Making
The art and craft of kite making may be fading into memory, one of those cultural pastimes lost to modernity and plasticity, but the Taiwanese Embassy is helping NICH and Restore Belize to...

Placencia's Sidewalk Festival
On Saturday and Sunday the 9th annual Placencia Sidewalk Arts Festival will be held in the peninsula village. Dozens of artists and performers will be showcasing all kinds of creative wo...

BDF Celebrates
The Belize Defense Force celebrated its 34th anniversary this year with last Friday's passing out parade of new recruits. And as tradition would have it, the following day ought to have been celebrated with the popular open day fair. But heavy rains made for wet field conditions, and the fair had to be postponed for this coming Saturday, February 11th. But as the saying goes, 'every dark cloud has its silver lining'. As a result of the postponement, the BDF has increased its gate prize winnings from 2 Thousand dollars to 3 Thousand Four hundred dollars, giving the public even more reasons to attend this Saturday. Two soldiers of merit told us more:.

Chinese nationals heading where?
A group of twelve Chinese nationals arrived in the country on Wednesday. They made their way across the world to get to Havana, Cuba where they boarded a charter flight to Belize. Their arrival is raising red flags because less than two years ago, a huge scandal broke when private charter flights brought Chinese nationals [...]

Social Security Board to meet on Insider Trading
The Social Security Board will meet this Friday. It will receive the report of an audit done by Pannell Kerr Forster on the allegations of the insider trading at the S.S.B. The future of Merlene Bailey, the C.E.O., is at stake. She remains on suspension since January eleventh when the board found that she had [...]

Regional Governors and IDB meet at Coco Beach
Governors from this region of the Inter-American Development Bank are meeting under tight security at the exclusive Coco Beach Resort in northern San Pedro. According to a report on Belize, crime and violence are getting in the way of progress, negatively impacting the country's gross domestic product. And while there has been progress, the IDB [...]

Shooting victim and suspect both in hospital
A shooting victim and the suspected gunman are both hospitalized tonight after an incident in Santa Elena on Wednesday. A sixteen year old minor was shot on a basketball court and while police were taking the youth the hospital, eighteen year old Blake Bradley was spotted riding away, with what looked like a gun sticking [...]

5 year old accident victim needs help
At the start of this month, we brought you the unfortunate story of a five year old boy who was knocked down on a pedestrian crossing by an inattentive driver in Santa Elena. Damion Flowers was on his way to school with other relatives on January twenty-sixth when a Toyota Tacoma ran him over. His [...]

5 years behind bars; Not Guilty of Murder
Back in January 2007, the then sixteen year old Kevin Santos was arrested and charged for Murder. Santos was with a group of friends who got into trouble with another group of young men on Christmas Eve of 2006. Chris Rosales was walking with friends on Burns Avenue in San Ignacio when they were assaulted [...]

Arthur Young accused of assaulting cop
Arthur Young is a well known street figure with a checkered past. But these days he is a supervisor with the CYDP. Young has kept a low profile in more recent times, but this morning he was slapped with two criminal charges in court. The Cairo Street resident is accused of assaulting police officer, Sheddon [...]

Fergy accused of pulling gun on Fergie
Thirty-seven year old Belize City resident, Anthony Ferguson, appeared in court to answer to two counts of threatening words and one count of aggravated assault with a firearm. It is alleged that on Tuesday of this week, Ferguson pulled a gun on Pamela Ferguson and threatened her life twice. Anthony, who appeared unrepresented, pleaded not [...]

Clarifying housing write-off discrepancies
Since Monday, several persons have come forward to say that they have received letters from the Housing and Planning Department stating that loans they never made or have already paid were written off. Today News Five spoke with Lawrence Sylvester, C.E.O. in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, and he categorically stated that these [...]

B.D.F. Open Day this Saturday
The Belize Defence Force is having its annual family open day on Saturday. It's an annual event for family of the force and the public to see some of the work that takes place inside Price Barracks. According to Warrant Officer Class Two Ciego Cayetano, it's an event that no one should miss. Ciego Cayetano, [...]

Opposition meets with Rice Farmers in the South
Leader of the Opposition Francis Fonseca met with rice farmers in the south on Wednesday to discuss a way forward for the struggling industry in the Toledo District. The sit-down, according to Dennis Usher, Chairman of the Toledo Rice, Beans, Corn Producers Association, came after months of failed attempts to engage the Barrow Administration in [...]

Toledo Alcalde Association and NGO discuss Rosewood
On Wednesday night, we told you that Ya'axche Conservation Trust is sitting out a Rosewood inventory exercise that will be carried out in Toledo by the Ministry of Natural Resources. The illegal extraction and exportation of rosewood has become a hot button issue in the south because while the exporters are making millions, the villagers [...]

State of Belize Reef Skyped to MSNBC
Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico are responsible for maintaining the health of the Mesoamerican Reef. The reef is deteriorating and the countries have recently participated in ecological audit of the mechanisms in place to protect it. The results of that audit were released on February seventh. And earlier today the results were featured on MSNBC. [...]

Taiwan and UB sign bilateral agreement
The Republic of China and Taiwan and the University of Belize signed a "Letter of Intent on the Designation of Taiwan Academy Contact Points and Bilateral Cooperation". Simply put, it means that Taiwan will provide more higher-education opportunities for students and promote the exchange of culture with Belize. U.B. will be disseminating the information on [...]

Healthy Living explores memory loss
Not all Memory loss is normal! In fact, it can be a sign of Alzheimer's, a disease that is typically tied to genetics and aging. But diabetes, hypertension and high blood pressure can be added risks to dementia. Healthy Living also found out that Alzheimer's can worsen over time. Marleni Cuellar, Reporting Having difficulty with [...]

P.U.P Orange Walk Town Council Candidates Holds 4th Neighborhood Meeting
With just about four weeks before the Municipal and General Elections the P.U.P Town Council Candidates in the Orange Walk division are wasting no time in ensuring Orange Walkenos that their team comprised of 6 vibrant males and one female will bring change to the community. Yesterday Mayoral candidate Kevin Bernard and his team of councilor candidates met with residents of San Victor Street and surrounding areas as they held their fourth neighborhood meeting. The meeting gave way for residents to voice out their concerns as well as for the candidates to speak on why they should be elected this coming election.

Orange Walk Resident Robbed At Gun Point
Around 11:00 on Tuesday night Juan Carlos Perdomo, a watchman of Sparrow Street in the Village of Trail Farm in the Orange Walk District was robbed at gun point. Perdomo told police that while he was on duty at Fido's Scrap Yard, located on Belize Corozal Road, he was approached by three male persons of dark complexion one of whom was armed with a firearm.

No One Detained For Hit And Run Accident
So far Corozal Police has been unable to detain anyone for the hit and run accident that claimed the life of 30 year old Isaias Castillo, a resident of Concepcion Village in the Corozal district. Isaias was standing on the left hand side of the highway when he was knocked down by a Tilletts Bus which is leased to another company. Reports are that the driver of the bus who has yet to been identified by police was traveling under high speed when he lost control of the vehicle, swerved into Castillo's direction and knocked him down. When Castillo's family arrived at the scene of the incident he was still alive but died a short while after. CTV3 News understands that while several individuals have been questioned there are still no leads as to who the driver of the bus is.

UDP Canibalizes Soy Plant Instead Of Making It Work
n 2008 when the Peoples United Party was in Government options were being looked into, to get the Soy Bean Plant located in the Village of Yo Creek working. One prospect was to sell the plant to the Mennonite Community among other groups who had expressed interest in the Soy Bean Plant to produce animal feed, extract soy bean oil and generate other by-products.

Passport Services Will Be Temporarily Interrupted
A passport is one of the most important documents a person can own. But tonight there is some bad news for Belizeans who do not have a passport and want to apply for one or have applied for one. According to the Ministry of Defense due to the fact that the Passport System is down, passport services will be temporarily interrupted until further notice. With the service unavailable at the moment Belizeans are informed that all passports due with effect from 7th February, 2012 will not be ready for pick up. Persons whose passport was to be issued on the 7th of February are asked to check with the Department during the week of 13th to 17th February, 2012. The good news is that the department has made provisions in case of emergencies.

Doctor Marco Tulio Mendez Welcomes Cardona's Endorsement
During his press conference yesterday Marcel Cardona lashed out at the Dean Barrow Administration like never before. Apart from saying that the U.D.P is corrupt and backing up his statement by listing out a number of cases where corruption and nepotism was involved, Cardona also publicly announced his distaste for UDP Orange Walk East Standard Bearer Orlando Burns and his full support for PUP Orange Walk East Standard Bearer Doctor Marco Tulio Mendez.

Carmelita Government School PTA Receives Donation For Feeding Program
On Friday February 3rd we featured the nine hard working women that make up the Carmelita Government School's PTA. While they were engaged in a cleanup campaign at the school, the women spoke to CTV3 News about their plans to start up a feeding program for students of the school. They asked for assistance from

BHOC Promotes Juan Carnaval
Apart from language and religion, culture is one of the pre-dominant aspects which determines ones identity. With modernization at its peak it is not uncommon that traditional and cultural beliefs are not past down from generation to generation. On Sunday February 12th however, a festive and enlightening display of culture will be presented to the public by way of a Mestizo festival known as Juan Carnival. The Carnival will take place at the Queen Elizabeth Park at 4:00 in the afternoon. Coordinator Yvette Torres told us what this festival entails and why it is important that you attend.

Melanie Cawich Kidnapped Still No Arrest Made
And another case that has gone cold is that of Melanie Cawich, a resident of Concepcion Village who was kidnapped by five armed masked men on January 29th. When we spoke to police today we were informed that while several persons have been detained for questioning no charges have been levied against anyone. After leaving a ransom note behind demanding $1,000, the men took Cawich to a nearby cane field where they tied her up. Luckily, a few hours after, Cawich was found by her common-law-husband and a search party. The men who were hiding in some nearby bushes made good their escape after the victim's father-in-law fired a number of shots in their direction.

No One Detained For Hit And Run Accident
So far Corozal Police has been unable to detain anyone for the hit and run accident that claimed the life of 30 year old Isaias Castillo, a resident of Concepcion Village in the Corozal district. Isaias was standing on the left hand side of the highway when he was knocked down by a Tilletts Bus which is leased to another company. Reports are that the driver of the bus who has yet to been identified by police was traveling under high speed when he lost control of the vehicle, swerved into Castillo's direction and knocked him down. When Castillo's family arrived at the scene of the incident he was still alive but died a short while after. CTV3 News understands that while several individuals have been questioned there are still no leads as to who the driver of the bus is.

BMHS To Hold Business Fair
Tomorrow Bishop Martin High School will be hosting their annual Business Fair at the school grounds starting at 12:00pm. Today, as preparations got underway, we visited the school in order to find out more about the Business Fair. From what we were able to gather the main purpose of the fair is for students to put in place business aspects that will enhance their ability to become entrepreneurs.

PUP object to Guardian front page article
There is another development on the political scene as the People's United Party is taking strong umbrage at a front page article in today's edition of the Guardian Newspaper. Chairman of the PUP is Henry Charles Usher. Late this evening, communications director Lisa Shoman confirmed to Love News that the matter is in the hands of her attorneys.

PUP leaders meet in Toledo
A meeting finalizing plans for a united Toledo PUP was held on Wednesday afternoon in Punta Gorda town.

IDB governors meet in San Pedro
Governors of Central America and executives of the Inter American Development Bank are in San Pedro Town for the inauguration of the 26th meeting of governors in the region.

Incentives for Belize City property tax payers
It has been accused of neglecting Belize City streets and falling short on sanitation contracts over its term in office but now the Belize City Council is offering city residents an incentive if they pay up on their property taxes and make them current. City Councilor, Roger Espejo, says that while the incentive is offered every year around this time, this year the discount is even greater, through the passage of a statutory instrument about a month ago. Espejo says that the offer is for property owners to visit the Council's North Front Street office or use their Scotiabank online account.

Appraisal of the National Forest Policy of Belize conducted in workshop
The Forest Department through its national forest programme facility partnered up with the United Nations Food and ...

UB forms alliance with universities in Taiwan
The Ambassador of the Republic of China (Taiwan) H.E. David Wu and President of the University of Belize, Dr. Cary ...

Young Belizean ballers granted opportunity to participate in Lebron James camp
Second, third and fourth form high school students who have dreams of playing basketball professionally as a future...

Shooting in Cayo leaves two teenagers injured
Two teenagers were shot in the cayo district, one of those persons was shot by police. Police were called to the sc...

S&P lowers Belize's ratings
Standards and Poor's Ratings Services has lowered its long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings...

First human trafficking conviction in Belize's courts
Human Trafficking is a global problem that rarely ends in convictions because victims are reluctant to go before th...

Elderly woman held up at gunpoint
A 74 year old woman was robbed at gunpoint. Neri Acevedo was walking on New Road in Belize City on Tuesday when she...

Persons charged for attempted robbery of tacos vendor
Three persons were arraigned in court yesterday for allegedly trying to rob a tacos vendor. Those persons are 18 ye...

Man faces attempted murder charge in non-jury trial
Belize's first attempted murder trial to be done without a jury present got on the way this week. Ricky Valencia an...

GSU makes ammunition and drug bust
The Gang Suppression Unit continues to conduct searches to rid the streets of ammunition and drugs which are integr...

The PUP's State
ohnny neva wah di bucket.Mark sit down pah di bucket and when he done he skin-up eh face afta di bucket.Mahler, he jump out ah di bucket.Then Cordel he kick ...

PUP Peddling Pornography
The People's United Party finds itself in such a state of disunity that it made an egregious error of judgment on Monday night when it aired a tasteless and downright repulsive advertisement during Channel 7 and 5's newscasts. We won't ...

Orange Walk Central is Red
The United Democratic Party's Orange Walk Central committee proved without a shadow of a doubt that the constituency is ready and geared up for the General Elections. Prime Minister Dean Barrow concluded his fourth visit of his national tour on ..

"Belize Weathered the Financial Crisis Relatively Well"... K
In late 2011, the IMF issued a statement categorically saying "Belize weathered the financial crisis relatively well, when compared to other countries in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM)." It attributes expanding output in 2010 to activity in electricity and wholesale retail ...

Marcel Jumps Head First Into the Bucket
The political dunce has officially returned to his party. On Wednesday, February 8, Marcel Cardona, former Area Representative, for Orange Walk East announced that he and his committee is supporting the People's United Party for the March 7 elections. His ...

First Trial without Jury
The first trial without a jury has been set to commence in the Supreme Court before newly appointed Chief Justice, Kenneth A. Benjamin. That first trial will be that of Ricky Valencia and Akeem Thurton, who stand accused of attempted ...

High schools softball competition opens
The Central Region Secondary Schools Softball Competition opened on Monday February 6, 2012, at Rogers Stadium.The schools that are competing in this year's girls' competition are: Anglican Cathedral College, Gwen Lizarraga High School, Ladyville Technical High School, Nazarene High School, ...

Belize to host regional anti-doping meeting and training
The National Sports Council, Belize Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association, Central America and Colombia Regional Anti-Doping Organisation (RADO) in collaboration with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will be holding the Annual Board of Directors Meeting and the Doping Control Officers Training in Belize City from February 13-17, 2012.

Gwen Lizarraga High School boys and girls Central Region Football Champions
The 2011-2012 Central Region Secondary Schools Football Competition came to an end at the MCC Grounds on Monday February 4, 2012, where Gwen Lizarraga High School boys and girls captured the region's football title. In the female championship game two, Wesley College defeated Gwen Lizarraga High School by the score of 2-1 to force the pivotal game into a penalty shootout.

Denny Grijalva - Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers!
In an unprecedented occurrence UDP Standard Bearer for the Orange Walk Central, Denny Grijalva gathered the entire Indian and Chinese Communities at a social gathering with the Prime Minister, Hon. Dean Barrow at Grijalva's residence immediately following the Prime Minister's tour on Sunday February 5th.

Punta Gorda Next Stop on PM's Tour
The Prime Minister of Belize, Hon. Dean Oliver Barrow, will continue his national tour on Sunday, February 12. The tour now takes him south of the country as he will be visiting Punta Gorda Town in the Toledo District. Residents are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Prime Minister and plan to welcome him in grand fashion.

New PUP, Old PUP, Same PUP
As a result of the irresponsible spending, in 2007 the PUP Government defaulted on its foreign debt services to all loan note holders. This sovereign default led to the MONSTER known as the SUPER BOND. This monstrosity gave the PUP a perfect way to cover up all those unserviceable loans to Novelo's, Glen Godfrey and the likes. One has to remember all the sovereign guaranteed loans afforded to PUP cronies became the responsibility of government after these businesses failed. There are no tangible benefits to the people of Belize from these failed adventures. However, these were packaged as part of the SUPER BOND and now being repaid by the Belizean Public who did not benefit. Also forming a part of the SUPER BOND is over US $120 Million dollars that one AGENCY claimed the PUP Government could not account for. By not being able to account for it, government at that time could not show the public any tangible results from those disappearing funds. THE SUPER BOND HAS US PAYING BACK LOANS FOR PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS THAT IN NO WAY BENEFITED THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

Commemorative Stamps for Elizabeth's 60th Year as Queen
On Monday, February 6, 2012 Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 60th year of reign. According to British High Commissioner, Pat Ashworth, celebratory events were being held across the Commonwealth in honour of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. She made an official visit to Norfolk, England, which was one of the first places she visited upon being crowned Queen 60 years ago. There, she visited infant and nursery students at Dersingham School. A 62-gun salute was held in her honour at the Tower of London. 41 and 21-gun salutes were held in other parts of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth as well.

Raggamuffin's Team are basketball champs!
This weekend on Caye Caulker basketball was in the air. Islander Terry Ganza had long dreamed to sponsor/ organize a basketball tournament for neighboring San Pedro, Belize City and of course Caye Caulker and this weekend was the date and he did an excellent job!! Two teams came from San Pedro, two teams from Belize City and two representing Caye Caulker. Raggamuffin, not well known for our basketball prowess, did not enter a team but sponsored one of the Belize City teams - who turned out to be the eventual winners!!!

King of the Beach Volleyball competition in Caye Caulker
We, the Caye Caulker Volleyball Association) have decided to begin with a head start on the 2012 Beach Volleyball Calendar by having our first Local League. The Caye Caulker "King of the Beach Tournament" MVP's league. The Tournament is intended to boost the level of playing for all players competing and to get them prepared for the upcomming National and International Events. The Tournament started on Wed., Feb 1st, 2012 and is scheduled to be played for 10 weeks. Games are scheduled to be played on Wednesday and Friday evening starting at 6:30 pm. Every night there will 9 to 12 matches going up to 9:30 pm.

A Mopan wedding in beautiful Belize!
So after our crazy drive across Belize we arrived back in San Antonio at 3.30pm and still had a good list of jobs to do. We hadn't managed to get in touch with the cacao plantation until the morning of the wedding and so hadn't been able to confirm the location of the wedding to anyone�including the pastor, the marimba players or even Reyes! Everybody THOUGHT the wedding would be at the plantation�BUT�sadly we just couldn't afford it! Our budget is so small and although the cost was nominal things very easily add up.

The AD that is Causing Epic Wedgies and Getting Panties in a Bunch
OK, so I finally got to see the Dean Barrow AD that everyone is getting their panties all bunched up and giving themselves Super Wedgies over. People are getting tired of Political Bullshit. People are starting to practice their Constitutional rights of freedom of speech. People are starting to act out in the way that Dean Barrow himself edged people to do before they won the last elections. Civil Unrest he called for. Anybody memba dat?

Meeting My Mayan Match In Barton Creek Cave
Barton Creek Cave is one of thousands of limestone caves formed by the rivers running underground in the Cayo District of western Belize. Inside the cave's gloom, Mayan ritual artifacts remained preserved and hidden for hundreds of years from archeologists, known only to local looters.

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