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Kirk Smith Jr. Dies from Sunday Bullet Spree
Kirk Smith Jr. on Thursday succumbed to his injuries from Sunday night’s wild spray of bullets at a graduation party at the Brown Sugar Marketplace, one of three shooting incidents over the weekend. This week there have been as many as six shooting incidents, including one this morning in...
Tulio Caceres Murdered in Belize City
This morning around 10:30 a.m., gunshots rang out, not far from the downtown area on North Front Street, near its intersection with Pinks Alley. When all had settled, one man lay dead at the North Front and Pinks Alley junction. All around him lay expended shells, a total of...
Dr. Brendan Bain Sues the University of the West Indies
This afternoon, Professor Brendan Bain filed a suit in the Supreme Court of Jamaica challenging the termination of his contract as director of CHART. Professor Bain is claiming In his suit, that the action of the University of the West Indies breached his constitutional rights of freedom of expression...
Minister of Tourism Speaks about Puerto Azul Project
In the latter part of May, Minister of Tourism, Manuel Heredia Jr. and Minister of Economic Development Erwin Contreras were photographed at Cannes Film Festival in France. There they attended an exclusive party hosted by the Italian investors of the Puerto Azul Project, which, according to international media, signaled...
Valle De Paz Farmers will not Move!
Green tropics, also registered in Belize as Santander Sugar and Santander Farms wants the Farmers of Valle de Paz to evacuate the property by the end of the week. To be more specific, by 3:00 p. m. on Sunday, June 15th, they sent an official letter to the members...
University of Belize Appoints New President
Alan Slusher is the new President of the University of Belize with effect June 1, 2014. This appointment conforms with section 26 (1) of the University of Belize Act under which the Governor General appoints a President on the advice of the Prime Minister, after consultation with the Leader...
Belizeans Represent the Nation Abroad in Fashion and Dance
This week, four Belizeans are leaving the Jewel for the United States and Kingston, Jamaica to participate in various training activities in the arts. We begin with fashion designer Joris Hendrik, who will be participating in the annual Caribbean Fashion Week which is ongoing. We hear more from NICH...
New Mental Health Unit Inaugurated at WRH
The acute mental health unit in Belmopan this morning was inaugurated at a ribbon cutting ceremony. The new hospital wing was built by the U.S. New Horizons Military Team which has been working across the country doing humanitarian work. The mental health unit will serve those patients with mental...
Amandala
Leaked Auditor General’s Report brings new heat for GoB!
The community activist group Citizens Organized for Liberty through Action (COLA) held a press conference today at the Radisson Fort George Hotel, at which they confirmed that the preliminary Auditor General’s Report on the Immigration Department which was leaked to them mentions at least five unqualified persons who were granted Belizean nationality through the former Minister of State for Immigration, Elvin Penner.
COLA is pursuing a private prosecution of Hon. Penner, the Cayo North East area representative who was booted out of Prime Minister Dean Barrow’s Cabinet last September when the immigration scandal broke and the country discovered that Penner had approved a Belize passport and Belize nationality papers for Won Hong Kim, a South Korean criminal who was in a Taiwanese prison when he was granted Belize nationality.
241 new HIV cases; male population dying more
Sixty percent of the 241 new HIV cases reported in 2013 were males, according to information Amandala has received from the Ministry of Health. There were also 25 HIV patients who were also diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) during the same year. In several instances the TB led to the patient’s death.
Specifically, there were 89 HIV-related deaths and 18 deaths due to TB, including 7 HIV patients.
Health statistics indicate that HIV-related deaths rank in the top ten causes of death, along with heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
“The male population is also dying more as a result of HIV and unless specific programs are established, tailored towards engaging males earlier in the health system and in the overall national response, it is unlikely that the goals as set out in the National Strategic Plan will be met,” said the Ministry in a report titled, “National TB, HIV/AIDS & other STIs Programme”, published by the Epidemiology Unit.
It’s final – 6% salary adjustment!
Just before the close of the working day today, Thursday, Financial Secretary Joseph Waight and Budget Director Artemio Osorio concluded meetings at the headquarters of the Belize National Teachers’ Union in Belize City, with union officials having reached a consensus—after months of tense negotiations—that teachers and public officers will be paid a 6% salary adjustment effective the end of July but retroactive to the start of the budget year, April 1, 2014.
Dylan Reneau, president of the National Trade Union Congress of Belize, told Amandala this evening that the adjustment would be applied to an estimated 12,000 teachers and public officers, including military officers and police.
Waight told Amandala that this will mean an additional $22 million in budgetary outlays over the next year, which reflects 50% of additional recurrent revenue which the Government received during the financial year (2013-2014) from sources such as the shipping and international business corporation registries over which the Government assumed full control in 2013 after rescinding its contractual agreement with the private parties which were managing them on the Government’s behalf.
Legendary activist, Ismail Omar Shabazz, passes at 76
Amandala regrets to announce the passing of Muslim leader, renowned activist, and one of the earliest writers and publishers of the Amandala newspaper, Ismail Omar Shabazz, 76, which occurred at his home in Belize City this morning around 10:00 a.m..
Shabazz (formerly George Tucker) – who is described as a devoted Belizean nationalist and man of faith – is accredited as one of the country’s best historians and revolutionary philosophers who avidly campaigned for various causes for over the past 50 years as an advocate for both meaningful change in the society, and for the overall liberation of black people in Belize.
The passing of the iconic figure constitutes a significant loss for the country, and an even greater loss to his family, with whom he had been staying in Belize City since returning from the United States, where he had been seeking medical treatment up until January of this year.
Kirk Smith, Jr., succumbs to gunshot injuries
Amandala understands that one of five persons who suffered gunshot wounds at a graduation party this past Sunday night has died today.
Kirk Smith, Jr., 22, who investigators believe was actually one of the shooters, was later shot in the head and back, and had since remained in a very critical condition at the Intensive Care Unit at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) until late this evening, when he succumbed after fighting for his life for the past four days.
Smith was suspected to be one of five armed persons from a rival gang who went to the graduation party, which was being held at the Brown Sugar Marketplace on North Front Street, and indiscriminately opened fire on the crowd at the height of the celebration.
When the gunshots subsided, Smith – an alleged affiliate of the George Street Gang – was discovered bleeding profusely from his injuries outside the building.
Barrow says “definitely no!” to BGYEA
A previously rejected agricultural proposal put together by the Belize Grassroots Youth Empowerment Association (BGYEA), which eventually sparked a spirited citizen’s rally in Belize City’s Battlefield Park last Saturday, is not going to be revisited anytime soon – Prime Minister Dean Barrow has again given the “thumbs down” on the grassroots project.
BGYEA wants to plant corn along 29 acres of the Harmonyville’s Buffer Zone at Mile 41 on the George Price Highway; however, at his Prime Ministerial press conference today, PM Barrow confirmed that he and the Government of Belize (GOB) are sticking to their guns and certainly do not intend to entertain any sort of agricultural activity on the road reserve.
After censuring the National Trade Union Congress of Belize (NTUCB) for taking the issue out of context, Barrow maintained that by no means will any permission be granted for BGYEA to plant corn in the buffer.
Cross-dresser robbed in Belmopan; robber shot by police
A man who police said robbed a male cross-dresser is recovering in the Belmopan Hospital from a gunshot wound to the hand after he was shot by police in the process of arresting him. “Vanessa Champagne,” [...]
Alfredo Ortega, PUP Orange Walk North aspirant, detained by police
Vice chairman of the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association (BSCFA)’s Committee of Management and the lead negotiator in the current bagasse faceoff, Alfredo Ortega, was detained for outstanding child maintenance debts by Orange Walk police yesterday in the heat of his campaign for the post of PUP Orange Walk North standard-bearer.
Ortega was picked up from his Trial Farm home about 2:00 p.m. yesterday on the strength of a Committal Warrant based on an estimated $11,000 fine which was levied on him in connection with arrears he supposedly owed to his ex-common-law wife, Alba Luz Galeano, for child support.
Editorial: Power speaks to the people
The sense of urgency in UDP Prime Minister Dean Barrow’s voice when he spoke to the people of Belize in a Wednesday afternoon press conference had to do, we think, with his needing to assure/reassure the oligarchy of Belize that he has matters well in control on their plantation.
Formation of the umbrella group “Rod of Correction” (ROC) last week Thursday would have created unease amongst Belize’s shadowy socio-economic power structure. It would have raised concerns with respect to the Prime Minister’s street dominance. The concerns would have arisen in the ranks of those who put him in office, those who live well and are happy with the status quo. The relatively sudden arising of the Rod of Correction sounded some alarm bells; it hearkened back to the street instability which doomed the Said Musa PUP government in 2005.
The most powerful grouping within the Rod of Correction was clearly the National Trade Union Congress of Belize (NTUCB), whose president, Dylan Reneau, was chosen as the ROC’s spokesman when the new organization met the media immediately after their constituent parts had agreed to work together. Representing all the trade unions of Belize, the NTUCB theoretically has the power to shut down Belize’s economy, so that the NTUCB president is someone, even in his mere NTUCB capacity, who is not to be taken lightly.
From The Publisher
Ismail Omar Shabazz passed quietly at his daughter’s home on Mahogany Street Tuesday morning. He had been suffering from diabetes complications.
A strong and steady man, Shabazz was the glue who held the United Black Association for Development (UBAD) together from its foundation in February of 1969 until he resigned UBAD in November of 1972 to work full time in Nuri Muhammad’s revived Nation of Islam. Within a couple months after Shabazz’s resignation from UBAD, the organization began to fuss and feud and divide. During his years in UBAD, Ismail was the secretary/treasurer.
Sometime in the late 1970s or early 1980s, Ismail spent some years in Los Angeles, where he worked with Nuri Akbar and Bilal Morris, younger Belizeans living in L.A., to establish BREDAA. Shabazz also re-connected with the late Edgar X Richardson, a UBAD officer who had left Belize around September of 1969 to live in Los Angeles. I don’t know much about Ismail’s time in L.A., except that he did important work with BREDAA and young Belizean Muslims. I’m sure Nuri Akbar will be telling us about this segment of Shabazz’s life.
http://amandala.com.bz/news/belize-countries-observing-antigua-elections/
Barrette Woodye of the Belize Elections and Boundaries Department is in Antigua and Barbuda where she is with a CARICOM Electoral Observer Mission which will observe and report on tomorrow’s election in that country.
A statement from the CARICOM Secretariat said that the mission, headed by Orrette Fisher, Director of the Electoral Office of Jamaica, follows an invitation from the Government of Antigua and Barbuda.
The mission is made up of 11 representatives from the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago, 2 members of staff of the CARICOM Secretariat.
Alleged mastermind behind immigration documents ring facing 20 more charges
A Guatemalan woman, who Immigration officers believe is the mastermind behind a ring which has fraudulently issued Belize nationality documents to at least 30 persons who were not entitled to them, was brought to court today [...]
Cashier charged with theft of $5
A woman who was employed as a cashier at a local business in the Fort Street Tourism Village is accused of stealing $5 from her boss. The theft was allegedly caught on a video surveillance camera. [...]
Southside father, 41, charged with sexually assaulting daughter, 8
A father from the southside of Belize City was released on bail after he was arraigned before Chief Magistrate Ann Marie Smith on a charge of “sexual assault” on his 8-year-old daughter on May 25, 2014, [...]
Shaquille Meighan, 18, arraigned for shooting incident on Victoria Street
Police have charged Shaquille Meighan, 18, a former Wesley College student, with a shooting that occurred on Victoria Street on Tuesday, June 10. This morning, Meighan was arraigned before Senior Magistrate Sharon Frazer on a single [...]
“Battered Woman Syndrome” in Lavern Longsworth’s life sentence appeal
It may be the first time in Belize, maybe even in the Caribbean, that Battered Woman Syndrome will form a part of criminal proceedings The Court of Appeal heard submissions today and new, expert evidence was [...]
Fired destroys $17,000 vehicle – arson suspected
A vehicle valued at $17,000, a Mazda Tribute SUV, was completely destroyed by fire while it was parked in front of the house of the owner on Blue Marlin Boulevard in the city. Police suspect arson. [...]
3 thieves on robbery spree in Orange Walk
Less than three days after three robbers held up and robbed the Money Gram Store on Otro Benque Road, in Orange Walk on Monday evening and got away over $6,000 cash, another store was held up, [...]
Alexander Sutherland, 18, fined $2,200 for robbery and harm
Alexander Sutherland, 18, who was arrested and charged with robbery and harm for beating and robbing Delwyn Tun, 43, of San Joaquin, Corozal District, was yesterday fined $2,000 for the robbery and $200 for the charge [...]
Kenrick Williams’ murder conviction and life sentence affirmed
Williams, 36, was found guilty of murdering a 16-year-old student, after raping her Kenrick Williams, 36, a convicted murderer whose first trial ended in a hung jury, but who was nonetheless convicted after a second trial [...]
San Ignacio cops criminally charged
3 were granted bail, while 1 was remanded to prison A group of four police officers who are all attached to the San Ignacio Police Formation faced criminal charges today in that municipality after having been [...]
TIDE Junior
TIDE Junior FWC reg. season ends, semifinals Monday TIDE Junior Freshwater Cup (FWC) games continued on Tuesday and Wednesday, June 10-11, to complete the regular season and set the stage for playoffs, which begin next week. [...]
Don’t cry
Don’t cry for me, Argentina This was an old song composed after a football game when Brazil lost to Argentina. That was a tearful game. The heading of this essay could well fit in as the [...]
Newcomer Blazers
Newcomer Blazers defeat defending champions BTL in opener of Belize City Female Softball Competition On Wednesday, June 11, the 2014 Belize City Female Softball Competition kicked off at Rogers Stadium with the first game of the [...]
FIFA World Cup
Group stage games of 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Group stage Thursday 12 June Group A – Brazil vs Croatia – 14:00 Friday 13 June Group A – Mexico vs Cameroon – 10:00 Group B – [...]
No Limit’s 2014
No Limit’s 2014 playoff run comes to an end The Belize City No Limit Soldiers’ run in the 2014 National Elite Basketball League (NEBL) playoffs came to an end last week Friday night in the third [...]
Green Tropics evicts farmers
The company says it will not compensate nearly 30 farmers for crop destruction Green Tropics, a member of the Santander Group of companies from Spain, with an arm in neighboring Guatemala, is again at the center [...]
ROC wants to “provoke the kind of crisis that we saw in 2005” under PUP
PM says NTUCB’s “creation” of ROC was a “matter of self-interest” Prime Minister Dean Barrow called an afternoon press conference today at the Radisson Fort George Hotel in Belize City to announce the government’s position on [...]
Of vices and victors
“There is a code of complacency in our country and we must not fall into it and there is an air of invasion over us and we must repel it and be the victors over the [...]
In L.A., BREDAA mourns its founder – Ismail Omar Shabazz
June 12, 2014 The Belize Rural Economic Development of Agriculture through Alliance (BREDAA) issues the following official statement on the passing of BREDAA’s founder, Brother Ismail Omar Shabazz. The Belize Rural Economic Development of Agriculture through [...]
2014 PSE out – Math continues to bedevil students
The 2014 results for the annual Primary School Examination (PSE) are out, and while they show a slight increase in student performance on English papers, the results also indicate further slippage in Math performance – the [...]
Father of 4 shot on Vernon Street
The Mayflower Street resident is in a critical condition Rafael Cruz, 30, a father of four children of a Mayflower Street address, who lives in the area known as Ghost Town, is in a critical condition [...]
Illegal loggers arrested in the Orange Walk District
Police and officers of the Forestry Department on operation in the Orange Walk District seeking illegal timber cutting in the area of the New River Pine Ridge, about six miles away from Crooked Tree, which stretches [...]
Headaches for a landlord in Otro Benque
He tried to collect $800 back-rent, and the tenants sued him for $6,500 Benjamin Popper, a landlord of Otro Benque Road in Orange Walk Town, who took a couple who are his tenants to court to [...]
The Reporter
Building inspector shot dead near city hall
Tulio Caceres, 30, a building inspector of Taylor’s Alley, was shot and killed at around 10:30 a.m. on Friday at the corner of North Front Street and Pinks Alley in Belize City.
Caceres was sitting along with two other men when his killer, a youth on a bicycle, emerged from through Pinks Alley and shot him. Though struck, Caceres was able to get up and run, but he collapsed just outside the park on the pavement where the shooter caught up with him and shot him multiple times at close range. Caceres suffered seven bullet wounds to his upper body, including one that ripped through the centre of his back and another that penetrated the right portion of his chest. The choice of weapon was a nine millimeter gun.
According to Officer Commanding the Precinct III substation, Superintendent Gualberto Garcia police are following a couple leads and are looking for two men, but they also appeal to eyewitnesses who were in the busy area to come forth with information. Garcia says that informants can use the 922 hotline number to impart anonymous details.
Dominica battles Chikungunya disease
Dominican health officials are faced with what is described as a major battle in the fight against Chikungunya because of the reluctance of Dominicans to accept that the disease is transmitted by mosquitoes.
Dr. Candia Jacob, the district medical officer has said that “one of the major barriers is that people are reluctant to believe that the mosquito is involved. If they are not convinced, they are not going to do much.” She said that the matter has gotten so bad that environmental health officers have resorted to threatening people with the law if they don’t get rid of containers that breed mosquitoes.
“We have the environmental health officers actually having to go to homes and overturn the drums and threaten people that they are going to put them in jail”, Jacob said.
Jamaica considers drug law reform
Jamaica is considering to reform its drug laws. That country’s Justice Minister, Mark Golding, has said that the cabinet supports a proposal that allows for the possession of up to two ounces of marijuana. Golding also said that marijuana would be decriminalized for religious, […]
PM and opposition leader argue over AG’s report on Penner scandal – story coming
Murder near Majestic Alley…details coming shortly
Public service CBA negotiations deadlocked
The three major public service unions are to meet jointly and with their membership after failing to get the Government to agree to several key proposals that they want to form part of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which has […]
HARMONYVILLE MUST LIVE AND NOT DIE; Plant the corn!
By Louis Wade BGYEA and the Harmonyville movement is NOT a Civil unrest movement. It is a People’s movement, and one based on a genuine Belizean need; Housing and shelter… and if the movement fails, we all fail. Lest anyone forgets, the group has been agitating for land since march […]
Belize City gets ready for hurricane season
Belize City gets ready for hurricane season
The City Emergency Management Organization (CEMO) this week publicized its efforts to get Belize City residents prepared for the oncoming hurricane season. CEMO has prepared detailed plans to address key concerns from shelter management to mandatory evacuations. Mayor of […]
Municipalities present development plans
Representatives of seven municipalities across the country of Belize met in Belmopan on Wednesday to present their development plans on how to modernize and improve their respective communities. The presentations were made at a National Workshop at the George Price Center. The workshop, which lasted […]
VIP: Government will never appoint Integrity Commission
This current government will never appoint an Integrity Commission to scrutinize their actions, Vision Inspired Thursday. “I don’t see it happening under this United Democratic Party government,” Rogers opined. He added that even if […]
Supreme court upholds Magistrate’s decision on extradition hearing
Deon Bruce, 28, lost another round in his fight against extradition when the Supreme Court upheld a decision of Chief Magistrate Ann-Marie Smith, who has granted the American authorities’ extradition request for Bruce. Justice Courtney Abel ruled that there was no merit to the allegations […]
Battered women’s syndrome introduced as appeal defense for Antichrist
Convicted killer, Lavern Longsworth, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of her common-law partner, David White, may receive a reduced sentence, because new evidence brought before the Belize Court of Appeals on Tuesday seeks to show […]
Man shot Tuesday on life support
A Belize City man is on life support after he was shot multiple times early Tuesday morning at the corner of Vernon Street and Central American Boulevard. Thirty-year-old Rafael “Jaggy” Cruz was shot four times and received wounds to the stomach, chest, back and […]
Vector Control Unit short of ULV spraying trucks,Dengue cases in Belize City still down
The Central Health Region’s Vector Control Unit, responsible for spraying Ultra Low Volume (ULV) insecticide to control the population of the Aedes aegypti mosquito which causes dengue, has only one working spraying truck, but dengue cases are still lower when compared to the same […]
Ten-year-old wins 20th national Coca Cola Spelling Bee
Ten-year-old Shanalee Gayap, a Standard IV student at Solid Rock Academy in the Stann Creek District, became one of the youngest winners of the annual Coca Cola Spelling Bee when she edged out 11 older contestants from across the country on Friday, June 6. All 12 participants survived the first […]
PAC debate continues
The Auditor General will soon be submitting new reports for the Public Accounts Committee to review but PAC still isn’t functioning efficiently, according to AG Dorothy Bradley. Bradley told The Reporter that she is also still waiting to meet with Pro-tem Chairman John Saldivar […]
Editorial
The decision last week by the Ministry of Health to deny entry of the Chief Pharmacist to a technical meeting which was called to deal with matters related to the importation of pharmaceutical supplies was unfortunate and ill advised. This was a bigotted and small-minded decision, and it resonated in […]
Cola: AG’s damning report finds Penner prosecutable many times over!
Elvin Penner, former minister of state in the Ministry of Immigration, is prosecutable many times over, according to the preliminary Auditor General’s Report on the passport scandal. The document, according to Citizens Organized for Liberty through Action, contains damning evidence that links Penner directly to […]
Police intensifies efforts to quell escalating gang violence
Police intensifies efforts to quell escalating gang violence
Police say they have intensified their crime-fighting efforts in Belize City in an attempt to suppress the recent spike in gang-related-violence. According to Miguel Segura, O.C. Eastern Division, the department has been making every effort to control the situation since the first incident on […]
PSE Results – Performance still unacceptable
Ashton Tillett, a student of Crooked Tree Government School, is the highest scorer on this year’s Primary School Exams, with an overall 371 out of 400 points. Andres Hung of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Kenyah Hyde of Bernice Yorke ranked second with 369 points. […]
Prime Minister to Rod of Correction: “I will not be moved!”
Prime Minister Hon. Dean Barrow held a press conference this week to address a host of national issues, many of which the newly formed, syndicated pressure group Rod of Correction has raised. Barrow spoke on the ROC movement as a whole, but also dealt with […]
GOB says DAVCO supports oil exploration in southern Belize
Prime Minister Dean Barrow met on Friday with the executive of the Toledo District Association of Village Councils (DAVCO) to discuss oil exploration in the south. The government’s press office issued a press release which stated that the association has put full support behind […]
Patrick Jones
Murder in Belize City
A Belize City man was gunned down this morning. Tulio Caceres was shot and killed at the corner of North Front Street and Pink’s Alley. According to reports, Caceres was walking through Majestic Alley and upon reaching at the junction with North Front Street, he was accosted by […]
Traffic accident near San Marcos village, Toledo
No one was seriously injured when a minivan was rear-ended on the Southern Highway last night. According to reports, around 9:30 pm on Thursday, Rafael Chuc was about to make a turn off the Southern Highway into the road to San Marcos village when a Toyota Hilux pickup […]
A Tale of Two Young Ladies
Yesterday I saw two young ladies that I have not seen in a long time. One was well dressed and groomed, looking upbeat and smiling, with a bible under her arm, obviously going to a church or prayer group meeting. I first met her when I used to go to dispose garbage at the garbage […]
San Pedro’s LobsterFest 2014: The Official Schedule
It IS official because I saw Belikin posters in town…and well…the festival starts TOMORROW so here is the full schedule. I’ve added a few “unofficial” events you want might want to attend…have fun!
And businesses, please email me any changes/additional information so I can update this. If I’m going to call it official, then the information should be accurate…it’s the least I can
but always remember to…
BELIZE HACKATON 2014 – Unlocking ICT Innovation
A national competition bringing in the greatest minds in IT at the tertiary level....
UB E-Bulletin
Tips for Surviving low season on Ambergris Caye
Unfortunately when there is economic hardship anywhere in the world there is a higher potential for crime. Low season on Ambergris Caye is no exception. Although for many, low is now as slow as it has been in the past, there is still a decrease in cash flow on the island and sadly this can result in more petty crime.
This post is a reminder to both locals and tourists to be smart.
Tips for Surviving low season on Ambergris Caye
For those on vacation, do not bother with flashy jewelery, after all you are on a beach vacation and it is nice to go simple once in a while. At night do not bring out more than you need cash wise and do not flash a large wad around – I have seen people do it. Do not walk the beach at night. [We do the odd time but only on special occasions and in a larger group]
For new businesses, during high season try to put your business a few months in advance cash flow wise this way if things get a little tight during low season you will be able to handle it easily. Not the best idea to double your drink prices at the start of low season.
For those of us that live here, it is important pay attention and be vigilant. When you notice things in your neighborhood do not just keep it to yourself, tell your neighbors and neighborhood watch group. Take pictures if you see something not quite right, if that includes a person in the picture be cautious and put your safety first.
For anyone anywhere separate your cash when going out at night and find yourself in a situation where someone wants your money, you can pull $20 out and say you were going to the store for eggs and bread and that is all you have – or what ever is appropriate to say depending on where you are.
“No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems” in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize.
With my selections for the World Cup taken care (dreaming of getting my hands on the prize money already!) of I was free yesterday morning to revert to my usual routine. You know, out on the veranda early (yesterday it was around 04.30 hours) with the mug of black coffee and my iPad.
Intuitively feeling that it won’t be long before we get the call from Louis to let us know that he has fixed the engine of the boat we have bought I started to give thought to what we need to buy for the boat and drew up a short list for the shopping trip I was going to make later.
With the list ‘out of the way’ I turned my attention to The Times online where I found at article about a Swedish ecommerce start-up that has introduced a number of employee perks. One of which made me think of Ambergris Caye.
Apparently Tictail, that’s the name of the company, offers it staff “mindfulness breaks” (“set times in the day during which employees use no tech, have good food, take exercise”) and flat hierarchies (“using first names for senior positions”). It’s now introduced shoelessness or, as the company email describes it, “shoes at the door, everyone barefoot to keep the space pleasant”. Ambergris Caye , although behind the times in many things, saw the merit of this approach years ago with its ” No shoes, no shirts, no problems” slogan.
Caye Caulker Sailing Club: Our Second Fundraiser – The Split Challenge
Our first Split Caye Caulker Challenge, combined with our BBQ fundraiser was held this past weekend (June 7th 2014) at the Split with enormous success!
The kids were all out from early – ready to get into one of the 9 sail boats. Those with and those without experience combined together to form ‘teams/ pairs’. Various race challenges from relays to races including picking up coconuts to even dancing in their boats in the split were created by the imaginative Commodore Jimmy Jones and his partners in crime Trenton Miller and Steve Gangware. The Split Challenge was set up to the more recreational side of the sailing whilst ensuring that the sailors skills are tested at the same time. The idea of this event will be to hold this bi-monthly for Caye Caulker residents to witness the skills of the youths in the club and for all to be involved in the fun of the sport.
International Sources
Bogus GFS Model Forecasts of Atlantic Tropical Cyclone Genesis
There are no tropical cyclone threat areas in the Atlantic to discuss today, and none of the reliable models for forecasting tropical cyclone genesis is predicting development over the coming five days. However, the 00Z Friday run of the GFS model predicts that a low pressure area will develop over the Western Caribbean by Wednesday, and push northwards into the Gulf of Mexico and become a tropical storm late in the week. The GFS has been fixated on variations of this idea in all of its runs for the past five days--though the timing of when the predicted storm will form has bounced around from 5 - 11 days into the future. Should we be concerned? A 2013 study by a group of scientists led by Florida State's Daniel Halperin found that we have three models that can make decent forecasts of the genesis of new tropical cyclones in the Atlantic: the GFS, European (ECMWF), and UKMET models. The study only evaluated the model skill for forecasts out to four days in the future, and the forecast skill declined markedly for three- and four-day forecasts.
Under the Sea: Vanessa Treviño
Vanessa Treviño, 21, a senior biology major at the University of Texas at Brownsville, does not know how to swim. But she did not let it deter her from taking a class and a trip she learned about seeing informational flyers in the Life and Health Sciences Building.
“Fortunately, I was able to take a short lesson and become a certified scuba diver so that made my decision that much simpler,” said Treviño, a 2011 graduate of La Joya High School. “I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to see if marine biology could be a step in the right direction.”
UTB’s Department of Biological Sciences recently conducted its first research trip to Belize for students taking Coral Reef Ecology during Maymester.
Dr. David Hicks, associate professor and department chair, led a group of students for a week at the Calabash Caye Field Station managed by the University of Belize’s Environmental Research Institute in Belomopan, Belize. The facility is Belize’s first nationally owned and managed marine research facility.
“The reef environments we visited were pristine, and some, particularly the Blue Hole, were truly unique,” Hicks said. “I am already planning for next year.”
Videos
Video: Fairtrade in Belize, 4min.
In the cane fields and social projects in the villages. Interviews with Alfredo Ortega, Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association, Mauricio Mejia, WWF Agriculture Programme Officer, and cane farmers. Technical assistance for cane farmers, better pest control. Learning to work a different way.
Video: San Ignacio Resort Hotel, 2min.
Belize's Hotel of the Year, The San Ignacio Resort Hotel is a premier full-service Belize resort, located in the Cayo district.
Video: I Belize in a thing called love, 2min.
from Alex Coates, Shark Ray Alley
Video: , 8min.
Diving with dolphin and sharks in Belize with Scuba School Belize.
Video: Belize Dive Trip 2014 - GoPro Hero3+ Black, 5min.
It was quite an amazing experience to explore some of the best Belize has to offer. After 7 days of endless scuba diving and adventures with incredible friends, it was a trip for the books....
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