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Tourists’ Interest In Belize Heightens, Says Stastistics
The Belize Tourism Board is reporting an increase in tourist arrivals for the third quarter of 2014. Statistics released by the BTB today points out that airport arrival for the third quarter increased by three point nine percent compared to last year. The month of July saw the most tourist arrival via the PGIA when compared to July 2013. Overnight arrivals for the third quarter have seen an increase of eight point eight percent over 2013. As it relates to cruise arrivals statistics show that from July through to September, a seventy seven point nine percent increase was recorded. Director of Marketing & Industry Relations for BTB, Alyssa Carnegie, says that with increases over forty percent for each month this quarter, it marks one of the best years for cruise visitor arrivals in Belize's tourism history.
ALYSSA CARNEGIE
"We're really excited to announce that arrivals for both overnight and cruise are doing really well; not only for this month but for this quarter, we've been up, I believe it is 12.1 percent this September over last September and I think we've done for Cruise 90.1 percent increase this September over last September. So, that's a tremendous indication to us of how well the country is doing, how interested people are. For Cruise it's really great because we normally, see we have a schedule of calls that are made every year so while the calls haven't increased what we are seeing is that more and more people are getting off the ship; that's a really good sign that they're interested to experience Belize and that they're engaging and interacting and liking that experience.
World Mental Health Day Recognized in Belize
October 10 each year, countries around the globe, including Belize, recognize the day as World Mental Health Day. A ceremony was held today to bring together stakeholders with the overall objective of raising awareness of mental health issues around the world and mobilizing efforts in support of mental health. The event was held under the theme, 'Living with Schizophrenia'. Love News spoke with Nurse Eleanor Bennett, the Nursing Administrator for the National Mental Health Program.
NURSE ELEANOR BENNETT
"For Belize and many other countries all over the world, it signifies a day where we should stop and think about our mental health and about mental illness but more importantly about our mental health. We go on everyday not realizing how important having good mental health is and we hope to get from days like this for people to at least stop for a minute and think, 'Is my mental health okay?'
High School Attendance in Southern Belize Dismal
School officials in the Stann Creek District have raised concerns about the low enrolment at some of the educational institutions in the District. Correspondent Harry Arzu has the story.
HARRY ARZU
"There are six secondary learning institutions in the Stann Creek District and there are reports that a large number of young people who've graduated from the various primary schools recently is not attending any of these institutions and are not participating in any other constructive alternative program that can advance their personal development�..but what are some of the reasons for this state of affairs in this municipality and by extension, the district? Furthermore there are a number of high school dropouts, while some of these high schools have a very low student population, for example, the Agriculture Natural Research Institute has a student population of less than 100 and the authorities there say that they are in dire need of more students. Likewise ITVET Stann Creek has a small population of less than 100 students while Delille Academy has a decrease in their student population hence the reason for their urgent campaign to attract more students to their school since they have a little over 300. Dina Villafranco is the principal of Delille Academy."
Honduran Waitresses Employed Illegally; Employer Charged
Thirty-five year old Ray Herrera, a Belizean who is the manager of MJ's Bar, located on West Collet Canal Street, was fined four thousand dollars today by Magistrate Herbert Panton after he pled guilty to two counts of employing a person not in possession of a valid temporary employment permit. Herrera was fined two thousand dollars for each count. He paid half of the money forthwith. Yesterday two immigration officers, who were on routine patrol, went to MJ's and upon their arrival they saw two women working there as waitresses. When they asked the women for identification the women gave them their Honduran passports but were not in possession of valid work permits. As a result, the officers detained Herrera and charged him.
Quick Police Response Nabs Armed Robber
A 29-year-old man who allegedly held up a 29 year old woman with a gun and tried to steal her belongings, was charged with attempted robbery when he appeared today before Senior Magistrate Sharon Fraser. He is Kevin Lewis, a laborer of an Aloe Vera Street address. Lewis pled not guilty to the charge. He was told by Senior Magistrate Fraser that it was an offence for which she cannot offer him bail. He was remanded into custody until November 7. The incident occurred around 3:30 p.m. yesterday. The complainant reported to the police that she was at an address on Cemetery Road when she was approached by a man who pointed a gun at her and demanded that she give him all her belongings; luckily for her, before she could accede to the demand, the police, who were in the area, arrived and apprehended the culprit.
Relief Supplies Delivered to Maskall Following Freak Storm
This past week brought some heavy showers and strong winds to the country as a tropical wave passed through on Wednesday night. While some of the natural elements were bearable for most parts of the country, the villagers in Maskall in the Belize District were taken aback following extremely strong winds and torrential rains. The winds were so strong that several homes received extensive damages as roofs were ripped off their structures and household furniture and appliances were damaged with the rains. On Thursday morning, the Area Representative for the Belize Rural North, Edmond Castro along with official from the National Emergency Management Organization was in the rural area doing an assessment of the seven homes that fell prey to the winds and rain. Love News was there and we had managed to get first-hand account from the residents of what transpired on Wednesday night.
Prime Minister Travels for Meeting With IADB
Prime Minister Dean Barrow left the country on Thursday. The Prime Minister will be meeting with representatives from the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington. He is expected to return home next Tuesday. Deputy Prime Minister Gaspar Vega is acting as Prime Minister during his absence.
PlusTV
Construction of Coast Guard Facility at Hunting Caye has ceased
The killing of Special Constable Danny Conorquie has sparked outrage especially since he died at the hands of Guatemalan Nationals...
BDF Uniforms Made In Guatemala!
The image you are seeing now is a picture of a typical BDF camouflage uniform. It portrays a digital pixelated design first introduced by the Canadian forces in the late 1990's. Since then a number of countries and Special Forces have adopted the same design concept and made many variations to it...
World Mental Health Day is observed
Schizophrenia is an illness that is largely misunderstood and can lead to ostracization from the community and even family. Feelings of paranoia, isolation, repeated mannerisms and actions,�depressive�and�occasionally suicidal thoughts are among the symptoms...
Kevin Lewis Charged With Robbery
Police have quickly apprehended the man they suspect robbed 29 year old Kimana Thompson on Cemetery Road, Belize City,�on Thursday�afternoon.
29 year old Kevin Lewis, a labourer of Aloe Vera Street in Belize City, pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted robbery before Senior Magistrate Sharon F...
Night Club Owner Convicted Of Immigration Charges
Manager of MJ’s Night Club, 35 year old Ray Herrera, must pay fines of $4,000, after pleading guilty to two counts of employing persons not in possession of a temporary employment permit.
Immigration officers on routine patrol in the area of West Collet Canal Street, Belize City, where the club is l...
Outstanding Growth Reported In Tourism
The third quarter of 2014 has registered increases in tourist arrivals across the board. According to reports from the BTB, there has been outstanding growth in arrivals for both overnight and cruise ship tourism.
Overall for the first nine months of this year, overnight arrivals are up by 11 %; air...
National Convention on Initiative For Justice And Reparations held in Belmopan
On Friday the Belize Commission: Initiative for Justice and Reparation held a National Convention, at the UB Campus, in Belmopan, to engage the four major groups that were affected, in different ways, by the colonial rule of the United kingdom...
Law Enforcement Agencies Join Forces To Support Special Olympics
Ahead of December’s National Special Olympics Games in Belmopan, the organization dedicated to raising awareness of persons with intellectual disabilities through sports accepted a donation from a group of law enforcement organizations ,which worked together to raise funds through the annual torch r...
Prime Minister and Inter-American Development Bank representatives meet in Washington
Prime Minister Dean Barrow left the country on Thursday. He left to meet with Representatives from the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, USA, and is expected to be back on Tuesday next week.
In the wake of his absence the Deputy Prime Minister Gaspar Vega is the acting Prime Minister.
Amandala
US halts Guat construction at Hunting Caye
In a press release which was sent from the office of the Ministry of National Security late this evening, the Government of Belize (GOB) has announced that "the United States Army Corp of Engineers, the US agency responsible for the construction of the Hunting Caye Forward Operating Base, has issued a letter to the Guatemalan company BINARQ, which has had the effect of causing all construction at the Base to cease," an action that came about, it said, "after consultations between the Ministry of National Security, the Belize Coast Guard and the United States agencies in Belize", and which will remain in effect "until a satisfactory policy decision can be arrived at among all parties that takes into consideration the sensitivities expressed by sections of the Belizean population."
In the statement, the Ministry claimed that BINARQ, the Guatemalan company in question, was contracted to build the Hunting Caye base in 2011, months before the current Minister of National Security, John Saldivar, assumed the portfolio, and that "Saldivar was briefed on the ongoing Hunting Caye and San Pedro projects shortly after being appointed as the Minister of National Security in the second term of the United Democratic Party government", which means, the statement said, that "there was no obligation or requirement on the part of the new Minister to report the details of these contracts to Cabinet," given that the projects were approved prior to the current administration's second term in office.
Ebola death in the US; Belize rushes to get ready
The first case of Ebola diagnosed in the United States has ended in the death of a Liberian, Thomas Eric Duncan, who reportedly contracted the virus in his home country before traveling back to the United States. When Duncan first sought medical attention in the US, he was sent home with antibiotics, but he was later admitted for treatment and quarantined in Dallas, Texas, after his situation worsened. There is no indication yet if Duncan had passed on the virus to others with whom he had made contact while he was manifesting symptoms of Ebola Viral Disease (EVD).
The US Center for Disease Control says that there are 8,033 Ebola cases, mostly in Africa: 4,461 laboratory-confirmed cases and 3,865 deaths, with 2,210 of those deaths reported out of Liberia. So far, 20 cases and 8 deaths have been reported out of Nigeria, where localized transmission has occurred.
Editorial: The colossus and the compromised
A week has passed since Mose Hyde broke the news on his KREM Radio/TV WUB morning show that the United States had hired Guatemalan contractors using exclusively Guatemalan workers to construct a base for the Belize Coast Guard at Hunting Caye. For you Americans, listen here, the outrageous arrogance in the choice of contractors has to do with the fact that Belize is a sovereign nation-state which is embroiled in a territorial dispute with the Guatemalan republic which is home for the Hunting Caye contractors/workers. (This dispute is inherited by Belize from our former colonial masters, Great Britain, who granted Belize independence in 1981.)
So far, the United States, the colossus of the Western Hemisphere, and indeed of the world, has gotten away with ignoring the righteous indignation of the Belizean people, an indignation which has been confined to Belizeans in Belize. Construction has proceeded on Hunting Caye, and there has been no indication by the United States Embassy in Belmopan that they have heard the Belizean voices of protest.
Professor Beckles addresses the Congressional Black Caucus
My host, the extraordinary, John Conyers, Congressman without comparison, other distinguished members of the Congress of the United States of America, members of government, both State and Federal, Excellences of the diplomatic corps, Dr. Julius Garvey, ladies and gentlemen.
I am privileged to be here this afternoon standing in solidarity with this most important organisation, the Congressional Black Caucus of the United States of America. I am honoured to be able to pay respect to all its members in recognition of your historic achievements, contemporary advocacy, and evolving agenda in respect of reparatory justice for all.
It is humbling to be in the company of Congressman Conyers, who for the last 40 years has championed the reparatory justice movement in the Congress of this country, and in the world beyond.
Philip Willoughby Cup Five-A-Side commences at Yabra
The Yabra Football Field was the scene of football action on Sunday, October 5, as the first 4 games were played in the Philip Willoughby Cup Five-A-Side Football Tournament.
There are reportedly 10 teams (8 players per team roster) in the competition - Survivors, Rangers, Heights, Tulish, Silent Assassin, Livity Lane, Eiley FC, Honduras, Kulture and Caribbean Shipping.
Tournament coordinators Jerome "Peeloff" Meheia and Gazden Ferguson said yesterday that the tournament, which is for non-semipro players, will emphasize strict discipline, and they have compiled a list of rules and regulations that participating teams, officials and players "shall automatically undertake to." Penalties include fines, suspension from games, or expulsion from the tournament.
Talking football - Part 3
A 1962 Souvenir Programme for the visit to Belize of cricket and football teams representing St. George's College Old Boys of Kingston, Jamaica, chronicles the list of football champions in Belize going back to the first competition on record, held in 1919-20. The souvenir booklet was "issued by the Belize Cricket Association" and, judging from the names of Belizean players listed, one would have to assume that the selection to represent Belize was taken from players active in Belize City, the population, administrative and commercial center of the country at that time. Nevertheless, the sporting exchange was obviously considered an international contest by the Belize Association, as the souvenir booklet featured messages by a number of the colony's dignitaries, starting with then Governor, Sir Peter Stallard; and including First Minister and Minister of Finance, Hon. George Cadle Price; Belize Cricket Association President and Minister of Public Works, Power and Communications, Hon. A. E. Cattouse; Minister of Local Government, Social Welfare and Cooperatives, Hon. Louis Sylvestre; Minister of Natural Resources, Commerce and Industry, Hon. A. A. Hunter; Minister of Education, Health, Housing, Information and Broadcasting, Hon. J. W. Macmillan; Minister of Labour, Prisons and Cinemas, Hon. C. L. B. Rogers; the representative of The West Indies Extra-Mural Department British Honduras, Mr. Vernon Leslie; Chairman Secondary Schools Competition, Rev. C. W. Cousins; Secretary, Belize Cricket Association, D. R. Gill; President of The Rural Cricket Association, Fred O. Moody; President The British Honduras Football Association, Russel S. Grant; and Secretary The British Honduras Football Association, P. S. Hall.
KREM Radio rolls out novel initiative for its 25th anniversary
KREM Radio, which has earned the bragging rights as Belize's first privately owned radio station, has engaged in a wide range of community-based initiatives since its inception in 1989, and this year, for its 25th anniversary, the proprietors are planning an unprecedented initiative which will enable 25 first-time landowners to claim a fraction of the Jewel for themselves.
The popular roots radio station will celebrate a milestone achievement on November 17 of this year, which will mark 25 years of its existence on the airwaves across the length and breadth of the country, and as a show of gratitude to its faithful listeners and fans, the station has an ongoing promotion known as "KREM's Big Shilling Giveaways," in which listeners are allowed to call in to the station at intervals during the morning and afternoon programs, and get a chance to win hundreds of dollars in gifts and prizes every week.
Today however, KREM Radio's Evan "Mose" Hyde informed us that the administrators have made the effort to take the initiative a step further through a second phase of their anniversary promotion, which will be effective tomorrow, Friday, October 3.
Bill which Opposition says will dismantle the Bar sparks fiery House debate
Ne bated Firearms legislation at Thursday's House Sitting, and triggered a spirited debate on the changes which the Opposition People's United Party contends have been engineered to "break up" the Bar Association of Belize, the organization to which all lawyers must currently pay subscription fees before they can practice law in Belize.
"Speaking for myself, I do not want to belong to your Bar Association. How can that be democratic? You are coercing me. You can't force me, man, I don't want to be forced," said Prime Minister Dean Barrow, in Parliament Thursday, maintaining his stance on the bill.
Barrow said that by means of the amendment, the requirement for lawyers to join the Bar and pay fees to it, will be removed, as it is not only unconstitutional but morally wrong to mandate lawyers to pay fees to the Bar Association.
Churches and GOB break impasse over Revised Gender Policy
Officials of the church community in Belize met Friday, October 3, with a delegation led by Prime Minister Dean Barrow in Belize City in an attempt to resolve their differences over the Revised Gender Policy (2013), which sparked national street protests by religious groups opposed to provisions in the policy which they contended were clearly engineered to pave the way for a foreign-backed agenda to establish mainstream rights for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) community here in Belize.
During Friday's meeting, the parties struck an accord on how gender would be defined. In the 2013 policy, gender is fluidly defined as: "The social constructed roles allocated respectively to women and men in particular societies and in particular historical and cultural contexts. Such roles, and the differences between them, are conditioned by a variety of political, economic, ideological and cultural factors and are characterized in most societies by unequal power relations."
Nearly 700 cases of dengue nationally
Roughly 700 cases of dengue have been documented in Belize since the year began, and while this figure is substantially lower than the amount of cases documented in the 2010 outbreak in Belize, the data include an unusually high percentage of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) cases, according to the Ministry of Health.
As we reported to you last week, 77 cases of DHF had been documented in the City between January and September 2014, and 82% of dengue cases reported for the district had actually been reported out of Belize City and primarily out of three hot spots on the Southside.
Test of DCP Segura's blood confirms high level of alcohol
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Miguel Segura, who has been charged with manslaughter by negligence, causing death by careless conduct, driving a motor vehicle without due care and attention, driving with alcohol concentration above the prescribed limit, negligent grievous harm and failing to alter direction to give way, was brought back to the Belmopan Magistrate's Court today, where his trial was adjourned until November 10, when he is to be returned to court.
Segura was released on bail of $6,000.
Police have stated that a blood alcohol level test confirmed that Deputy Commissioner Segura had more than the legal limit of alcohol in him at the time he was involved in a road traffic accident in which a Succotz woman was killed on the spot and her driver seriously injured. The test was conducted at the National Forensic Services in Ladyville on blood samples taken from DCP Segura on Saturday, August 16, and confirmed that the alcohol content in his blood was above the legal limit, which is 70/100.
Christmas comes early for some San Pedranos!
A security officer from the DFC area of San Pedro Town was stabbed during a daring afternoon jacking by a pair of robbers while en route to making a bank deposit at around 1:30 p.m. yesterday in downtown San Pedro.
The robbery occurred at the corner of Barrier Reef Drive and Caribe�a Street when Cleofosio Robert Assi, 28, a security officer who is employed at Milo's Center in San Pedro, was reportedly accosted by two armed culprits, one of whom stabbed him in the right shoulder, while the other wrested a deposit bag with what police have now confirmed to be more than BZ$39,000, after which they both fled toward the beach on foot.
Assi told police that he had been transporting the deposit bag with the money - which were the proceeds of Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) payments from a Western Union office located inside Milo's Center, which also operates as a collection agency for BEL and other companies - inside a backpack, but upon reaching in front of a store near the bank, he suddenly felt someone grab the backpack, after which a struggle ensued between him and two thieves, one of whom stabbed him.
COLA's private prosecutor files grounds of appeal against Penner's acquittal
On Thursday, July 24, the Hon. Elvin Penner, area representative for Cayo North East, walked out of the Belmopan Magistrate's Court, having been freed of the two criminal charges that Citizens Organized for Liberty through Action (COLA) had filed against him. Penner hugged his wife and walked to his vehicle and disappeared from the public's radar.
It has been almost 70 days since Penner last snubbed reporters by maintaining the stony silence he has had in the face of public probing into his involvement in the granting of a Belizean passport to the imprisoned South Korean convict Won Hong Kim, in violation of policies and procedures which should govern the granting of citizenship.
And even now, a year after the scandal broke, there has not been a word from government sources about Kim's passport that was supposed to have been returned to the country. According to the Commissioner of Police, the police are still investigating the scandal.
Letters: Remembering Recommendation #29 of 2000
I draw your attention to Recommendation # 29 of the Political Reform Commission Report 2000.
For the record, I hereby associate myself unequivocally and unconditionally with the bold editorials of the Amandala of October 3rd and 7th 2014, captioned "Respect Our Army; Equip our Army" and "Belize's Survival Option" respectively, both pointing to the need for Belize to become militarized, and for us to truly take charge of our own destiny and survival.
14 years ago, and as a member of the Political Reform Commission in 1999-2000, I recommended that there be a constitutional amendment to provide for mandatory military service for every Belizean. The records will show this was rejected as Recommendation # 29 of the Report.
Letters: Neri O. Brice�o writes President of Guatemala
General Otto Fernando Perez Molina
President of the Republic of Guatemala
Office of the President
Guatemala City
Guatemala
SUBJECT: The Belizean Resolve
Dear Mr. President:
I write to you as we all were born before humankind bestowed upon us medals, honors, positions and titles; just an ordinary man. Belize for us is as Guatemala is to you, our home, our land, our country and our nation. The idea of dividing our nation in any form is as repelling as the 36 years civil war which threatened to destabilize your nation just a few years ago. As a military man you took up the ultimate challenge to put your own life at risk to preserve what you felt was right and just; for that I give you respect. Similarly for those of us on the opposite side of the Sarstoon all we can simply promise to do is just the same. As a former military man I am certain that you more than anyone else understands the notion of love of country.
The Reporter
$86,000 disappears in free-for-all frenzy Manhunt on for daylight robbers
Money was plentiful last Monday afternoon on Barrier Reef Drive in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye - 5's and 10's, 20's and 50's, but only for a few minutes as people scooped up the bills and hurried off.
Some $38,000 in cash disappeared in a flash following a brazen armed robbery and citizens' arrest turned free-for-all frenzy.
It all began around one on Monday afternoon when two brazen robbers attacked security guard Cleofosio Assi as he made his way towards Barclays Bank on Barrier Reef Drive.
Assi intended to make a deposit on behalf of his employer, Milo Paz of the Paz Collection Agency.
One of the robbers stabbed Assi in the right upper shoulder while his accomplice grabbed the knapsack with the money Assi was carrying and fled.
Special Envoy Mrs. Kim Barrow raises $300,000 for Paediatric Intensive Care Unit
Belize's indefatigable Special Envoy for Women and Children, Mrs. Kim Simplis Barrow, through her fundraising efforts, has raised some $300,000 for the Belize Children's Trust.
The Special Envoy raised the funds through the 2nd Annual Fundraising Gala Dinner in aid of the Belize Children's Trust, held at the Old Town Manor in Bristol, United Kingdom. The money raised from the event will go towards completing the specialized Paediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital.
A release issued by her office this week reaffirms the commitment of the Special Envoy to completion of the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit to ease the mental, physical and financial burdens families in Belize bear in having to take their children abroad for special intensive care treatment.
Belize and Mexico sign agreements to improve bilateral relations
Belize's Foreign Minister, Wilfred Elrington and his Mexican counterpart, Jose Antonio Meade last Friday led the 8th Meeting of the Belize-Mexico Bi-National Commission during which the Foreign Ministers reviewed the Bilater signed three new bilateral agreements. The first was a Memorandum of Understanding in tourism […]
City Council and Chamber will partner for equitable tax solutions
The Belize City Council and the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry have reached an understanding to introduce a new format for calculating annual trade license fees, which are more rational and less arbitrary. The Belize City Council has also agreed to a moratorium […]
Guests gather for an exhibition of Student art, sponsored by Taiwan
Belize and Taiwan have been working on a cultural programme where Belizean students participate in a summer school to develop and hone their art skills in a project called Primary Schools Art Skills Training Pilot Project. . Last week there was an exhibition at […]
Underground canal network will drain northside area including Cinderella Plaza
A new underground canal, like the one on Princess Margaret Drive, is to be dug to drain low-lying areas of Cinderella Plaza and Baymen Avenue. Ground-breaking work began this week on a Flood Mitigation Programme under the supervision of the Ministry of Works. Rolando […]
Former teacher stabs estranged wife then hangs himself
A former teacher of Seine Bight Village has committed suicide by hanging himself after stabbing Nicole Swazo, 34, his estranged common-law wife and leaving her for dead. Officials arriving at the scene pronounced Byron Castillo, 33, dead shortly after noon on Saturday, October 4. They […]
Food Vendor from Barrack Road Shot dead during black-out
Belize City food vendor, 27 year old Gerald Palmer of # 20 Barrack Road was shot and killed at the corner of Card's Alleys near his home last Thursday night. The shooting occurred during a blackout and no one seems to know who did […]
Macheteman attack in Teakettle! Victim loses his left wrist.
A village man who used a machete to chop off the left wrist of Aldo Moro, 24, in Teakettle Village is now in the Hattieville jail, charged with attempted murder. Moro was heading for his car after making a few purchases at the J […]
Ebola Watch
Ebola, the highly contageous epidemic sweeping through West Africa, has produced its first casualty in the United States. Its presence also in Spain has caused consternation because a nurse's assistant in Madrid who has been taking all the sterilization precautions, has come down with the disease. Thomas Eric Duncan, the […]
Editorial
Belizeans, normally docile and easy-going, became enraged this week on learning that a Guatemalan company BINARQ has been given the contract to build a forward naval base at Hunting Caye in southern Belize. The news came on the heels of the murder of Special Constable Danny Conorque at the hands […]
Cease Operations! Hunting Caye construction stopped due to public outcry
The United States government has told the Guatemalan company building the military outpost on Hunting Caye to cease all operations. On Thursday the Ministry of National Security announced that Army Corp. of Engineers, the US agency responsible for the construction of the Hunting Caye operation […]
Deadlock continues at BSI
The impasse between the Belize Sugarcane Farmers Association, and the American Sugar Refineries (ASR)-owned Belize Sugar Industries, continues this week as the parties failed to finalize a commercial purchasing agreement. Vice Chairman of the BSCFA, Alfredo Ortega, said that he is "disappointed"at the result of […]
KHMH audit complete Another more in-depth report warranted for Central Health Region
The audit of the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital has been completed and the results of that audit will be submitted to the Chairman of the KHMH Board of Directors on Friday, Auditor General Dorothy Bradley disclosed this week. Bradley said it wasn't a comprehensive […]
Patrick Jones
Belizeans: Chiquibul Needs Your Help
On Saturday October 18th, the NGO Friends for Conservation and Development (FCD) will be holding a telethon from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm at the Memorial Park in Belize City.
The purpose of the telethon is to raise the complement of park rangers to 24.
At an estimated cost of $24,000 for salaries, equipment, training and insurance for one of the toughest jobs in Belize, the NGO needs nearly $600,000 for the program.
New Hostel Opening Soon - Name Needed! I'm Thinking Doughnut Inn and Here's Why�
Since I first arrived on Ambergris Caye about 8 years ago, there has been a bit of a building boom. The main streets have been paved and resorts, particularly on the north end of the caye, have sprung up like sunset mosquitos in September.
Much of the building has been aimed towards the higher-end customers. And�get this. San Pedro, the largest tourist destination in Belize, has only one hostel. ONE HOSTEL! With cheaper rooms, some dormitory style, for backpackers, students and budget travelers. Caye Caulker has been the spot for these guys - for the most part, they never set foot on Ambergris Caye.
But in just the past few months, TWO hostels (both with prime locations) have been slated to open on AC.
Hopefully we will attract a whole new type of traveler. Because based on what I've seen, what I've read and what I have blogged about (please refer to my Finn Kardashian episodes below), these globetrotters travel on a budget but they secretly have wads of cash.
"Another One Bites the Dust" in San Pedro,Ambergris Caye,Belize.
It's been a while since the last edition. I just didn't know what to write about. I mean it shouldn't be too difficult should it? It's not like I compose (allow me this rather grandiose description - I know it's not the case but egos need massaging occasionally. Yes, even mine!) literary works of art. I'd like to describe myself more as a raconteur. I'd like to but �
Now I know I could have taken a walk along the beach or around the 'Town and taken a few snaps, wrapped some words either side of them and voil�. Job done. Edition produced.
For sure I like to include photos of the beautiful sights around Ambergris Caye. And no matter how often I see them they still remain beautiful. I also like to let you know about changes that take place on the island. You know, what new bars and restaurants are opening or have just opened. What's the condition of the roads. What the weather is like (especially if it's raining and my water tank is filling up!).
International Sources
Teacher- and parent-led trip heads to Belize
Situated on the northeastern coast of Central America and bordered by Guatemala and Mexico, Belize is the destination for a teacher/parent-led student expedition slated for spring break in 2016.
#It is the only country in Central America that has English as its official language. Pioneer Middle School Explorer teacher Dan Calzaretta and parent volunteer Kathryn Southwick Hess are planning the trip.
UT Tyler hosting Mayan culture trip
The University of Texas at Tyler, in collaboration with the Maya Research Program, will offer a public Friends of UT Tyler tour that explores the ancient and modern Mayan culture, Dr. Teresa Kennedy, UT Tyler Office of International Programs executive director, announced.
Led by Dr. Thomas Guderjan, UT Tyler associate professor of anthropology, the "Maya Highlands New Year's Eve Tour" will feature certain parts of Mexico and Guatemala. Cost is $3,600 per person and includes ground transportation, room and board and most meals. There is a $500 non-refundable deposit.
"During this 13-day journey, we will explore ancient Mayan sites in the spectacular highlands of Mexico and Guatemala," said Guderjan, who also serves as the Maya Research Program president and oversees the Blue Creek Archaeological Project in Belize.
"We will also visit the World Heritage site of Palenque and remote Tonina, explore the colonial cities of San Cristobal and Antigua and meet traditional Maya people who live our contemporary world."
Choco-lypse And The Looming Chocolate Revolution
Enjoy that chocolate this Halloween because in the next five years, we could be facing a major shortage. Cocoa farmers, who grow all of the cocoa beans for the world's chocolate, aren't paid fairly and are ditching the crop. Global cocoa production has actually declined since 2011.
Here are the three most important things chocolate lovers need to know about why their favorite sweet is in peril:
Smallholder cocoa farmers are underpaid and impoverished: Ninety percent of the world's cocoa is produced by five million smallholder farmers in West Africa, Latin America, and Asia. These farmers are getting minimal pay, with the majority of cocoa farmers globally living on less than $2 per day. Farmer poverty is widespread, while big manufacturers are capturing the vast majority of profits from the nearly $100 billion global chocolate industry.
Not All Coral Are 'Losers' With Climate Change
A team of researchers are now saying that despite the dangers of climate change across the globe, not every species of coral is doomed. A new study details how some coral species are actually moving into new territory as their vulnerable cousins continue to decline with rising ocean temperatures.
The study was recently published in the journal PLOS ONE and details how a team of 20 scientists from universities in California, Hawaii, and New Hampshire set out to asses who would be the "winners and losers" among coral populations as climate change and human stressors press in. To determined this, the researchers analyzed contemporary and fossil coral reef ecosystem data sets from two Caribbean locations in the US Virgin Islands and Belize, and from five Indo-Pacific locations in Moorea, Taiwan, Hawaii, Australia's Great Barrier Reef and Kenya.
Caribbean nations: UN and specialized agencies must prevent Ebola spread
Act now and avert a global public health emergency.
That, in essence, was the urgent demand of Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Guyana, Barbados and their Caribbean neighbors and the plea was made at the United Nations in New York at a time when the U.S. was seeking to tame rising domestic worries about the potential spread of the deadly Ebola epidemic to America's shores. Essentially, what the island-nations and coastal states that belong to Caricom are asking is that the UN's specialized agencies and rich states ramp up their aid to the African states which are now bearing the full brunt of the deadly Ebola virus disease.
The Caribbean also fears that the outbreak of the highly contagious disease would jump from Guinea, Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone and spread to the rest of Africa and to developing nations in the Caribbean, Latin America, the Pacific and the Middle East. Thousands of victims have already died from Ebola in four African states.
"The specter of the deadly Ebola disease and the scourge of HIV/AIDS and non-communicable diseases have the potential to significantly impact our people and threaten the gains made so far by Small Island developing states," warned Senator Arnold Nicholson, Jamaica's Foreign Minister in an address to the General Assembly.
Fears over Venezuela's Petrocaribe grow in Caribbean and Central America
Highly indebted countries in the Caribbean and Central America could be facing a potentially devastating setback to their already vulnerable economies if Venezuela decides to end its supply of subsidised oil to the region.
Venezuela's government has claimed that its PetroCaribe programme will stay in place, but doubts have been increasing recently over the credibility of that claim.
PetroCaribe was designed to allow members to take advantage of a deferred payment system, technically paying full price for oil but receiving credit for up to 50% of the market prices. The deferred amount is payable up to 25 years with an interest rate of 1%-2%.
The programme includes 17 countries, with El Salvador joining in June. Of the participating nations, 13 are receiving oil shipments. Two of the three countries in Latin America and the Caribbean with the highest debt to GDP ratios, Belize and Jamaica, participate in PetroCaribe. El Salvador has the fifth highest debt to GDP ratio in the region, according to the World Bank.
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