AmbergrisCaye.com Home
Posted By: Marty Today's Belize News: June 25, 2015 - 06/25/15 11:57 AM

The news will be a bit brief for the next week or so due to time constraints


FOR TODAY'S BELIZE WEATHER, CLICK HERE

Click for our Daily Tropical Weather Report.

Specials and Events

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


The San Pedro Sun

La Bajada and El Alba honors local fishermen's Saint
The San Pedro House of Culture (SPHC) and the San Pedro Roman Catholic Church, under the auspices of the National Institute of Culture and History (NICH), hosted La Bajada del Se�or San Pedro and El Alba on Saturday, June 20th. The event marked the opening of the Dia de San Pedro celebrations which honors the patron saint of fishermen, St. Peter. Both La Bajada and El Alba are part of the religious activities held throughout the week long celebrations. Followers of the Catholic faith converged at the Catholic Church at 4AM for the special opening mass. At La Bajada (the lowering), the statue of St. Peter is brought down from its permanent elevated altar in the church and kicks off the novenas (evening prayers) leading up to Dia de San Pedro. The joyful mass includes the singing of songs of praise to St. Peter. Local artist, Natalie Arceo was among those that serenaded the island's patron saint.

American Gymnast Simone Biles vacations in Belize
American artistic gymnast, Simone Biles recently took holiday on Ambergris Caye. Simone was staying at Ramon's Village Resort where she joined family and friends celebrating her brother Ronald's tropical wedding to his new wife Lindsay. She is a two time US National All-Around Champion for 2013 and 2014, two-time World All-Around Champion for 2013 and 2014, two-time World Floor Champion for 2013 and 2014, the 2014 World Beam Champion, and a member of the gold-medal-winning US team at the 2014 Word Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Despite being only two years into her senior career, Biles is the first African-American to be World All-Around Champion. At her early age of 18 she is already one of the most decorated gymnasts in US history and considered the best gymnast in the world.

FFB's Grassroots Program comes to San Pedro
Football Federation of Belize (FFB) in collaboration with the San Pedro Sports Committee hosted a four- day football development workshop for talent identification and capacity building on Ambergris Caye. The event was part of the FFB Talent Academy and Grassroots Program, and is evaluating the skills of young athletes accompanied with a course for coaches and aspiring coaches. The workshop began on June 17th and culminated with an all - day football fair at the Ambergris Stadium on Saturday, June 20th, where football lovers displayed skills learned during the training program. Heading the workshop was FFB Technical Director Renan Cowo. He indicated that FFB is conducting the Grassroots Program to bring structure to the sport of football in Belize. The ultimate goal is to improve the national selection of Belize and the sport on a whole.

Belize Armed forces to benefit from Exercise Tradewinds
As part of the United States Southern Command's Exercise Tradewinds, a team of 31 Canadian Army personnel were in San Pedro training with the Belize Coast Guard. Exercise Tradewinds is hosting its second phase of activities in Belize, and it encompass land operations. The program started on Saturday, May 30th with the first phase, maritime operation taking place in St. Kitts and Nevis. The first phase ended on Thursday, May 30th with the fleet moving to Belize to start phase two on Sunday, June 14th. Exercise Tradewind involves training designed to conduct joint, interagency capacity building exercises for participating nations with the support of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI).

Ambergris Today

Celebrity Spotting: Gymnast Simone Biles Visits San Pedro
One of the most decorated gymnasts in United States history just recently visited San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize, Simone Biles stayed at Ramon's Village as her family celebrated the wedding of her older brother this past week in La Isla Bonita. Ramon's Village shared this pic of Simone with staff members of Pineapples On The Beach Chief, Jack and Vidal on its Facebook Page, while Simone shared a few images of her vacation on the island on her personal Instagram profile. Simone Arianne Biles is an American artistic gymnast who is a two-time US National All-Around Champion (2013 and 2014), two-time World All-Around Champion (2013 and 2014), two-time World Floor Champion (2013 and 2014), the 2014 World Beam Champion, and a member of the gold-medal-winning US team at the 2014 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Biles is also the first African-American to be World All-Around Champion.

Misc Belizean Sourcesmzz

Ten day Weather Outlook for Belize: June 20, 2015
An upper level low in the Bay of Campeche and NW Yucatan will provide the uplift for increasing convective activity over southern Mexico and northern Central America over the next five to seven days. An approaching Tropical Wave (TW) around middle of the week, coupled with a surge in the easterly airflow over the Caribbean, will provide low level instability for increasing widespread convection over Belize this Wednesday through Saturday. Residual moisture will provide the fuel for more showery conditions persisting through the last three days of June, 2015. Figures 1 - 3 below are the NOAA forecast precipitation maps for June 24 - June 26, 2015. Maximum, daily rainfall rates will be in the range of 20 - 40 mm (0.80 - 1.60 inch) over northern Central America during this period, with higher rates in the elevated terrain later on Thursday through Friday (June 25-26). Cumulative rainfall by the end of the working week will favor flooding in low-lying areas and localized flashfloods in the hilly terrain.

Dia de San Pedro Calendar of Events
Join us for this festive and traditional celebration!

Cayo Wellness Symposium
The Cayo Wellness Symposium had it all this time around. Honey, remedies, fruit, greens, soaps, cambucha, and even massages. A big thanks to Maya Mountain Lodge for hosting the event.

Butterflies on the Road 2015
Butterflies on the Road is a project sponsored by Chaa Creek, where their naturalist guides visit local Cayo primary schools to teach the students about the big role butterflies play in the eco-system. Looks like the 415 students they taught this year had a fun time learning about them. Great job! "The 'Butterflies on the Road' initiative main focus is reaching out to the rural community schools in western Belize in an effort to educate our young children on the conservation of butterflies and the significant roles that they play in our eco-system. This year the program saw the participation of six schools at the primary level and a total of 415 students within the ages of 5 and 12 years of age."

Channel 7

11 Mayans Charged For Detaining Black Man
For the past 2 days, we've been telling you about the story from the Toledo District where the Mayan residents of Santa Cruz Village handcuffed and tied Creole Belizean Rupert Miles. He says that they unlawfully detained him and tried to kick him out because he's black. They say that they did it because he destroyed a portion of the Uxbenka Archaeological Site when he built his house on village lands without the proper permission. Well, it seems that the police agree with Rupert Miles - that he should not have been detained. Today, they marched 11 Mayans to the Punta Gorda Magistrate's Court for the offence of unlawful imprisonment. They are all Santa Cruz villagers, namely 24 year-old Michael Sho, 30 year-old Alfredo Mes, 20 year-old Timoteo Sho, 26 year-old Pedro Teul, 43 year-old Basilio Teul, 34 year-old Renato Canti, the 2nd Alcalde, 28, year-old Isabel Canti, 23 year-old Oliegario Sho, 44 year-old Raymundo Sho, 24 year-old Armando Mas, and 33 year-old Aran Canti, the Village Chairman. The eleventh person to be arraigned today was 34 year-old Cristina Coc, the well-known spokesperson for the Maya Leaders Alliance. She was charged, however, with the separate offence of conspiracy to commit unlawful imprisonment. Viewers will remember that Rupert Miles told us that they arrested him on the orders issued by Coc.

Gun Misfires, Woman Escapes Death, but Not Injury
There was another shooting last night in the City - it happened on Fabers Road and the victim is a woman. Around 9 last night 28 year old Jamelia Neal was walking on Fabers Road when a gunman approached her and pointed a firearm in her direction. He pulled the trigger but the gun misfired. She seized on the opportunity, pushed him to the ground dashed for her life. But, he scrambled to his feet and shot her as she escaped. She was transported to the KHMH and was listed in a stable condition. Police recovered one 9mm expended shell from the scene and are looking for a known suspect. We were told that Jamelia Neal is the niece of 34 year-old Tyrone Neal - who was murdered on Kraal Road in April of this year. The shooting appears to be the result of a turf war between Faber's and Krall Road two adjoining streets in the Port Loyola area.

Head Tax Court Case Coming To A Head
The power players in cruise tourism were back in the Supreme court today resuming arguments over - fundamentally - who will control the future of cruise tourism in Belize: will it be the Fort Street Tourism Village, or will it be The Feinstein Group and their Stake Bank Project? Feinstein can't start his stake Bank project because of legal hurdles put in his way by previous arrangements signed by the Musa administration. That gives the FSTV owners some level of domain over his project. And so now, as means of counter-attack, he's going for their money maker: the head tax, arguing that only government - through parliament - can levy taxes. The FSTV and the Belize Tourism Board don't have that authority - so he argues that the head tax is illegal. Now, that represents millions od dollars in earnings annually for the Fort Street Tourism Village - so they are prepared to fight it tooth and nail. Caught in the middle is the Government of Belize. And so the case, which is sure to be a marathon hearing started last week with the presentation of Feinstein's case - and it continued today with

Teenaged Gunshot Victim Tyrique Still In Induced Coma
15 year old second form shooting victim Tyrique Thompson is still in an induced coma at the KHMH after he was shot in the head on Monday night. His family says he is still critical but they are hoping and praying for the best. The teenager was shot on Lakeview Street - and his family believes it was just to send a message to his neighbourhood.

Hung Jury For Alleged Killer
When we left you last night, a jury was deliberating the fate of Daniel Myvett, charged with the murder of Nigerian security guard Kimaru Olongondudu. Well, it's a hung jury. After deliberating for a little less than 4 hours, a jury of 7 men and 5 women was unable to reach a verdict for Daniel Myvett, Myvett's attorney, Alifa Elrington said she is going to apply for bail for her client. Two other persons, Jamal Jackson and Talbert Mena, were charged with the offence but they were acquitted on a no case submission that was made by their attorneys, Simeon Sampson and Alifa Elrington. The Crown was represented in this case by Crown counsel Sheneiza Smith.

Tradewinds Blowing Through
Operation Tradewinds 2015 concluded today and a ceremony was held at the Price Barracks this morning to honour the soldiers who participated in this year's session. The Trade Winds was separated into two phases: the Martime phase which was done in St. Kitts and Nevis and the Land Phase which was completed in Belize. It was a long and grueling week of challenging military training operations but it wasn't all about the test of strength or the level of preparedness for combat - more importantly it was about building meaningful relationships among nations. H.E. Carlos Moreno - U.S. ambassador to Belize "My impression, my view of what all of you have been engaged in this past week has been not so much about engaging in an enormously complex, physical logistically challenging operation. It's not so much about engaging in a joint response capability of various nations to fight the threat of counter terrorism - preparing for national disasters relief or engaging in humanitarian assistance. Of course it is all that. It's also not so much about testing or comparing the equipment or facilities of one military organisation with another. And in kind of a larger sense to me it's not even about one nation cooperating with another nation. In my mind, what I see is not so much hand to hand but hand in hand cooperation. And yes at one level it involves military organisations but on another level it's what I would foresee and speak about the human element."

Rhaburn's Route To Court
A few weeks ago we told you about former Ruta Maya champion Jerry Rhaburn - who was charged for possession of Hicatee during the closed season. Well they just went to court today where the 36 year old Rhaburn and his 21 year old wife Anisa Vernon, both residents of Burrell Boom, pled not guilty. Their case was adjourned until August 11. According to the allegation they were found with one Hicattee on May 22 - the fisheries department believes that Rhaburn was involved in a alrger trade of game species. They were represented by attorney Arthur Saldivar. And, in another fisheries story, Forty year old fisherman Moises Flores, a resident of 208 Albert Street, was charged with engaging in the fishing of sea cucumber without a special license when he appeared today before Senior Magistrate Sharon Fraser.

Monitoring Manatees
Late this evening 7news received information of an injured manatee and its calf behind the Bella Vista Canal. So far a team from the Coastal Zone Management is on the scene closely monitoring the situation to see if the mammals will need to be rescued. 7news was also on the scene and spoke with Program Coordinator Jamal Galvez -who told us the manatees were spotted from yesterday. Jamal Galvez - Program Coordinator "Yesterday we got a call about a baby manatee and a mother in this canal. My colleagues came out to look for it - we found it and it seems that nothing was wrong with it. We came out again today to make sure that the animal is okay. We realise that the animal has a boat strike on it's shoulder and it has been swimming a little bit on it's side which is signs of injuries. Normally they come into these quite areas to try and recover from the injury they may has sustained from any water craft or any thing of that sort. We're closely monitoring the animal to see what it does and we hope that it stays in here so it doesn't leave. Our plan is trying to block the canal off so it doesn't leave so we can monitor it to make sure it's okay."

Deondray Got Off Attempted Murder But Still In Jail
The family of 23 year-old Deondray McKoy says he is being held in jail for no reason. Mckoy was serving a 12 year sentence after being convicted in November 2013 of attempting to murder Everald Gray. But on June 16th he successfully appealed his conviction when he convinced the Justices of Appeal that he should be acquitted. He was not set free because he was awaiting a verdict for other attempted murder charges. But according to his family he has been offered bail and all charges have been dealt with - so today they came to our studio irate and demanding his freedom: Sister of Deondre Mckoy: "When we went to prison Friday, my sister-in-law carry a paper stating that yeah, it's for whatever but the prison officer said no, this a paper that shows his feedback. So I said alright, well she bring out a next paper. The man said it kind of legit but they want a paper that's signed and stamped from the magistrate court - a removal form. So I said okay. They need a removal from courts of appeal. So I said why I need that and he done win the case from the court of appeals? They said they just a paper that stating it's signed and stamped. So why? That no sound correct to me. Why they have my brother back there, they don't give me the reason why yet. When we talk to the people they say appeal, so why they have we the push round? Just say one thing, if we need lawyer, tell we. If we need something, just tell we. Why they going to have us push round push round mommy? I done frustrated you know."

Vendor Cries Foul
40 year old Martha Mcgregor has been selling fruits and snacks on the sidewalk beside First Caribbean Bank for about 8 years - overall she has been a street vendor for 25 and Mcgregor and her husband came to our studios this evening claiming that city council moved them from that spot on Monday after 3 in the evening. They are saying that it's simply unfair and that if they are forced to move, the other vendors shouldn't be allowed to stay there either. "The first time since they fix the street, I stayed right there on the sidewalk on Church street. They done the street, it touch the sidewalk. They touch the sidewalk and I set my table right there because it no dry yet. The worker that use to work for me, he set the table on the sidewalk front of Albert street but against First Caribbean; they people have enough space to walk on the sidewalk." "The issue right now is that we get to understand that we can't sell out there because we are on the sidewalk - we're taking up space. What happen about the other ones that are on the sidewalk and they move. I get to understand that they give the person permission to stay there. They give him letter but even if they give him letter, we no see no letter and we can't ask about letter. What about we that are out there long time, why can't they give we letter? They come and say let's go because you can't sell out here, you can't sell out here, nobody can sell can sell on the sidewalk. But yet you look over your shoulder we see other people sell on the sidewalk too. And the thing is when the say nobody to sell on the sidewalk that means nobody should sell on the sidewalk at all. No particular person is supposed to sell."

Profile...
Tonight the I am Belize profile is back and it focuses on Lauren Panting - a Belize City mother who has an all too familiar story: left home and school at the age of 15, and pretty soon after that had a pair of boys and no way to support them. But, hers is a success story - a success built with the help of others and a unique mentoring programme that her sons qualified for by being less than exemplary students. Here's more:..

Rewarding Long Service
Yesterday in San Pedro, the Ministry of the Public Service observed public service day with an awards ceremony where they recognized outstanding and long serving public officers. And while they had already been rewarded with an 8% increase - they also got some nice plaques and a chance to shake hands with the Head of State. Chairperson of the Public Service Day National Committee Freya Parham underscored the importance:� Public officers and teachers have gotten a 14% salary increase over the past two years costing the public purse about 65 million dollars annually.

Channel 5

Cristina Coc and Mayas Charged in PG Court
A News Five crew is in Punta Gorda tonight where the situation is a volatile one. We'll have much more on this story later on in the newscast, but at [...]

Mayas Were Detained in Pre-dawn Raid
As we said, Cristina Coc and ten others were arraigned this morning in the Punta Gorda Magistrate Court following an early morning operation. Several persons in detention were reportedly injured [...]

Was Former U.D.P. Minister Juan Coy Selling Mayan Lands?
Also in the south� On Friday, Magdalena Buul came forward with a story alleging that former U.D.P. Minister of State Juan Coy sold off a forty-five acre tract of land [...]

S.S.B. Explains Loans to Companies Allegedly Operated by John Zabaneh
Did the Board of Directors of the S.S.B. approve loans to Belizean businessman and banana magnate Johnny Zabaneh? That's the report which came out of the S.S.B. last week, and [...]

Woodrow West Departs for Honduras
Woodrow West is minutes away from touching down tonight in Honduras where he will join the Club Deportivo Honduras de El Progreso, the Honduras Progresso Football Club. The star goalkeeper [...]

Two Hospitalized in Separate City Shootings
There was yet another shooting in the city in less than twenty-four hours. Just before nine p.m. on Tuesday night, shots rang out on Old Fabers Road in the Caesar [...]

Myvett Remanded After Hung Jury in Murder Trial
There is a development tonight in respect of a decision reached on Tuesday night in the trial of Daniel Myvett who is accused with the murder of a Nigerian security [...]

Arguments Continue in Feinstein vs. G.O.B./B.T.B./FSTV
The Government of Belize, the Fort Street Tourism Village, the Belize Tourism Board and developer Mike Feinstein, or at least their legal representatives, were back in court this morning. Just [...]

BET Arraigned for Lord's Bank Shooting
A Lord Bank, Ladyville, man was shot multiple times on the night of June sixteenth, 2015. But Jorge Carlos Lozano rolled over and pretended he was dead and when the [...]

SIB Releases Latest Statistics
The May figures in respect of the cost of living have been released by the Statistical Institute of Belize. SIB says the prices remain almost one percent lower than in [...]

Retired Public officers Honoured
Public Service Day is celebrated every year on June twenty-third. On Tuesday, a number of public officers with twenty-five years of service were honored at the tenth Annual Belize Public [...]

Benefit Concert for Stann Creek Ecumenical This Weekend
There are currently one thousand students attending the Ecumenical High School in Dangriga in the south. With the school reaching its maximum student capacity and bursting at its seams, there [...]

Rotary Club Facilitates Orthopaedic Clinics
Scoliosis, osteoporosis hip fractures, and rheumatoid arthritis are among a long list of orthopedic diseases that affect adults. In the case of young children, they are affected by flatfeet; toe [...]

Severe Cases Referred Overseas for Specialized Treatment
For the severe cases that require medical treatment overseas, the children are transferred to the Shriner's Hospital for Children in Saint Louis, Missouri where they are provided free medical care. [...]

CTV3

Mexican Authorities Confiscates Thousands Of Boxes Of Cigarettes
Mexican authorities are reporting that over 30 million individual contraband cigarettes were confiscated in a raid in Chetumal on Monday. According to Mexican law enforcers, they received an anonymous tip and with the strength of a search warrant; they visited the town of Huay-Pix in the municipality of Othon P. Blanco. The area is located a few miles outside of the Belize/Mexico Border. Authorities searched a building and found 10 vehicles loaded with boxes of cigarettes. The team further searched the vehicles and found 3,342 boxes, and when they counted up all the packs, inside each box, the total amount was just over 33 million individual cigarettes. The origin of the load or its final destination has not been ascertained. Authorities in the past have said that the Commercial Free Zone in Corozal has been a hot spot for illegal cigarette trade.

Lets All Protect The Manatees
In the past sailors mistook them for mermaids. Today they are called sea cows and generally travel solo. They have no known natural enemies and with this fact, it could lead them to a life span of over 60 years. They are gentle and their name is the manatee. Unfortunately, these majestic and magnificent creatures have become very much unappreciated, causing human related manatee deaths to rapidly increase. They increase in deaths is primarily due to coastal development; boat propeller kills and habitat destruction. These factors remain the major threats to the survival of these creatures. And so in an effort to protect these gentle creatures, conversationalist Jamal Galves is organizing a Small Boat, Trailer and Truck fundraiser to help save our manatees. Galves, is the Belize Manatee Program Coordinator for Sea to Shore Alliance and works in collaboration with the Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute (CZMAI) to protect threatened coastal species and their habitat, in particular the West Indian manatee. And in an effort to be fully resourced, the fundraiser seeks to raise enough funds to purchase a truck and a small boat that will aid the team greatly in our response to the growing numbers of reports.

Consumer Prices Remian Almost One Percent Lower Than One Year Ago
Consumer prices remain almost one percent lower than one year ago reports the Statistical Institute of Belize. The SIB reports that figures for the month of May 2015 showed that the inflation rate stood at negative 0.9 percent, as the Consumer Price Index declined from 103.6 in May of 2014 to 102.7 in May 2015. Falling prices is due largely to transport as the average price per gallon of premium gasoline, regular gasoline, and diesel fuel all fell by more than $2.50, or well over 20 percent, in comparison to the same month last year. International airfares were also significantly lower, declining by almost one fourth compared to last May. Liquefied petroleum gas prices continued to trend downward, with the average price per 100-pound cylinder falling from almost $120 to $111 from May of last year to May 2015. On average, food prices remained largely unchanged. Some items though continued to see fluctuations and these include beef products which were up by more than 10 percentage points and Red Kidney beans, which were down by more than one third compared to last May. Hospital or clinical consultation fees increased by five percent reports the SIB. Also seeing increases was the cost of household domestic services by 4.5 percent. By district, Dangriga was the only municipality seeing an overall increase in consumer prices in May, with an inflation rate of 1.8 percent. Belmopan saw the biggest drop with a rate of negative two percent, followed closely by San Ignacio/Santa Elena with a negative 1.8 percent.

Stakeholders Assess 2014/2015 Crop Season
The 2014/2015 sugar cane crop is nearing its end yet officials are continuously assessing the industry's performance. In an interview with Chair of the Sugar Cane Production Committee, Jose Novelo yesterday, he spoke on the issue of farmers who have not delivered any cane to the mill. Novelo says this is a recurrent problem and that the SCPC will need to look more closely at the issue. "It's a problem that has been in existence for quite a while some group leaders for instance will deliver their qouta first and then the others will come after but I can also say that we have some very good group leaders that would ensure that the rest of their group members deliver first an then they deliver towards the end but it is a matter where the SCPC will need to look more closely at in the future to ensure that everybody has a fare chance of delioveing their cane, in fact the schedule delivery was intended to serve part of that purpose because we need to have confidence that a farmer that has cane will be able to dliver that cane with as little difficulty as possible to the factory."

East Indian Council Of Belize Weights In On Myles Issue
And today the East Indian Council of Belize issued statement on its position surrounding Myles detention and the way he was treated by villagers. In their statement, EIC says that the incident has served to highlight a situation that has prevailed within the Mayan communities for a long time. The statement goes on to make reference to an incident that took place in the late 1990's when a Rastafarian was allegedly killed at Medina Bank Village in quote, "very unusual circumstance," end of quote. It also references the incident where Mayan villagers reportedly set fire to the crocodile sanctuary on the Rio Grande in San Marcos. The EIC says that the incident involving Myles is being cloaked by using the Alcalde System and is calling on the government to eliminate that system as it is quote, "antiquated and has outlived its usefulness," end of quote. The statement ends calling on Mayan villagers to cease their actions as quote, "we cannot, as a people, long survive if bias, grudge, prejudice and racial discrimination pervades our societies," end of quote.

Banquitas House Of Culture Announces Summer Programs
School is almost over for primary school children and if you are a parent who is looking for extracurricular activities to enroll your preteen into, you may want to visit the Banquitas House of Culture as the Sugar City Artisan Group will be hosting a number of summer programs in July. The group has been activity providing numerous classes for adults throughout the year and this summer they have decided to focus on children says group Secretary Cindy Rivero. "Every week we are going to be having something diferent we are going to offer for kids and for adults, for example we have the instructors from within the group tha will be teaching the students what is it that they do and we are going to be having some foamy ornaments that we are going to be doing, crotchet and some bows from cloth and we are going to be doing some bandoos and hair accessories and we also going to be doing 3D embroidery and to finalize we are going to be doing basic acrylic nail and manicure so we are going to be having these session going on for the entire month of July, each of them has different age range and we have minimum cost so if any one is interested you could call us at 322-0517 to resgister if you are interested."

LOVE FM

CIBC First Caribbean International Bank holds fundraising initiative for Cancer Society
A fundraiser for cancer is being planned by the CIBC First Caribbean International Bank. It is an annual event, as we hear from Sandra Mahler of Bel-Caribe Communications. Sandra Mahler, Representative Bel Caribe Communications "CIBC First Caribbean everywhere helps the Belize Cancer Society in raising funds for the cause. This year we are going to [�]

Students on expedition trip to Beize
A group of nineteen students and teachers from the United States arrived at the Philip Goldson International Airport yesterday as part of a team called the Belize Expedition Crew 2015. We spoke to the head of the crew, Sheryl Mortel, who teaches biology in Rochester, Minnesota, USA. Sheryl Mortel, Teacher "We do a trip every [�]

BDF Commander speaks of upcoming changes
A few months ago, former Chief of Staff, Raymond Sheppard went on pre-retirement leave from the Belize Defense Force. Since then there has been constant changes in that department. But according to Commander David Jones, things will be cleared up soon. Brigadier General David Jones, Commander, BDF "Colonel Shepherd officially is on preretirement leave. He [�]

Retired public officers honored
Today the Belize City Public Service Committee honored 15 retired public service officers. The ceremony was held in Belize City and in attendance were the honorees along with the Minister of Public Service and Elections and Boundaries, Charles Gibson. The Keynote address was given by Lizbeth Castillo. Lisbeth Castillo - Guest speaker "Public service has [�]

Mexican Naval Ship visits Belize
Officials of Belize Coast Guard and a group of Port Honduras Marine Reserve dignitaries yesterday made a courtesy visit to a visiting Mexican Navy ship. Paul Mahung reporting�. "The Mexican Naval Ship named Independence which is on exercise with the Trade Winds in Belizean waters was in the Port Honduras Marine Reserve PHMR area in [�]

Sugar cane farmers looking for extension of crop season
Arturo Cantun reporting � "Belize Sugar Industries, BSI, has broken the all-time record of sugar production in the history of Belize. The record was broken this past Saturday when the factory surpassed the 125,769 metric tons of sugar produced in the crop of 1997. Up until six this morning which marks 149 days of milling, [�]

Goalkeeper Woodrow West off to Honduras
Last week Belize's premiere goalkeeper Woodrow West signed up to play with a professional team in Honduras. Today West left the country and we were at the Philip Goldson International Airport. He told us it is a bittersweet moment however it is a step he must take to move up to the next level. Woodrow [�]

Two women injured in a robbery
Two women were injured during an armed robbery in Cotton Tree Village in the Cayo District on Tuesday. Angelica Cruz reporting�. "Two women are lucky to be alive following an armed robbery in Cotton Tree Village. According to Romelia Dominguez, on Tuesday afternoon June 23 sometime around 1:30, she was working inside Guerra's shop [�]

Military Tradewinds exercise concludes
Phase two of Trade Winds 2015 came to an end earlier today. The joint military forces exercise ended with a reception that included awards for all participants. The exercise focused on several areas. Brigadier General Coffman Commander of the U.S. Marine Corps Forces South, elaborated on the objectives of the exercise. Brigadier General Coffman [�]

Latest figures show decrease in imports; fall in consumer price index
Last month, Belize imported goods valued at 162 million dollars, 32.8 million dollars less when compared to May in 2014. According to the Statistical Institute of Belize, importation of 'Mineral Fuels and Lubricants', 'Food and Live Animals' and goods destined to the Commercial Free Zone were among those which decreased. Purchases of goods destined for [�]

Breaking Belize NewsPJ

CARICOM's Round Table on Adolescent Pregnancy commences today
Caribbean countries will unite in Belize City today, to discuss Adolescent Pregnancy in the Caribbean. The discussions, organized under the umbrellas of the United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, and the Spouses of Heads of State in the Caribbean, are part of the CARICOM Integrated Strategic Framework, aimed at the reduction [�]

Own a Belize island for $1 and help raise millions for charity
The World's First Crowdfunded Charity Island Thursday, June 25th 2015. BMG: A crowdfunding effort has been put forward in hopes of purchasing Belize's Secret Island for $500,000 US dollars. The 'Charity Island' Project was recently featured on popular crowdfunding site, Indiegogo, and offers one share in the island for $1.00 USD. [�]

Mayan Leader,Christina Coc and others slapped with Unlawful Imprisonment charges
Following the detention of Toledo resident Ruperto Miles on Sunday, much have been said and stated in the public domain. Since the incident, Miles has made a formal complaint to the police about his wrongful detention. And today, police were seeking several of the angry mob for questioning. This afternoon, [�]

The Statistical Institute of Belize issues its monthly report
The Statistical Institute of Belize has issued its monthly report on inflation and Belize's external trade. Prices are down by 0.9% for the month of May, 2015, over the same month in 2014. Driving the drop is lower gas prices, which fell by over 20 percent or $2.50 [�]

San Pedro hotel owner defends LGBT pride event
Owner of Caribbean Villas Hotel, Peter Lawrence, has spoken to local media defending plans for a gay pride event at the resort in September. It has been billed as the biggest gay pride event in Belizean history, but it is more a matter of finance and good business. According to [�]

Melvin Hulse apologizes for leaked recording
His position with the United Democratic Party as standard bearer for Stann Creek West under threat, former Minister and area representative Melvin Hulse moved quickly to apologize for a recorded conversation with friends in which he blasted his party leadership and made certain statements which have been labeled as potentially [�]

PM comments on Santa Cruz incident
The buzz about the incident in Santa Cruz Village in The Toledo District remains to be in the public domain. As we've reported, Rupert Myles was handcuffed, hogtied and escorted through the village because of what the villagers claimed to be a violation of "Mayan Land Rights". Mr. Myles refuted [�]

Pretty Streets with Bad Drainage in Santa Elena
Over the past few months there has been mass infrastructural development of the streets in Santa Elena and San Ignacio Town. Residents were happy to see a change but now that it is the beginning of the rainy season, and they realize that all this infrastructural development was [�]

Mayan Leader, Christina Coc in police custody
Reports reaching our news room is that Christina Coc, a member of the Mayan Leader Alliance is presently in police custody and about to be taken to Punta Gorda Magistrate court. Our correspondent is presently at the scene and will be providing an update to this developing story.

TIDE Freshwater Cup 2015
Every year, the Toledo Institute for Development and Environment (TIDE) hosts a football tournament for primary school students, promoting the importance of conservation and a clean environment. This annual event, named the 'TIDE Freshwater Cup', unleashes the potential of young people as agents of change and environmental protection [�]

Blogs

Mymula Ceviche and A Film Star: Lunch at Hurricane's Ceviche Bar
I have walked past it 1000x but just recently, I've been asking around town about THE BEST CEVICHE. And Hurricane's CEVICHE Bar keeps popping up. Oddly, though, they have been around for about 5 years now, I've never eaten there. But yesterday, with the sun out and the breeze blowing, it seemed like a perfect time to visit. PLUS, it's fly season here on the island. Wait�they don't mention that "season" in the visitors' guides? House flies galore�just for a few weeks�best to eat in the breeze. You will see clear plastic bags filled with water hanging over fruit stands and eateries. Apparently the fly sees his reflection GIANT and is scared off. Even MythBusters and Snopes.com investigated this common practice. It ain't just a Belize thing. Here's a photo of Hurricane's Ceviche Bar from a few years ago. Remember the days without sargasso seaweed? We were there to try the ceviche�and eat lunch and enjoy the breeze�and bartender Josh is a bonus.

International Sourcesizz

Casey: With 'Bookbag Santa' heading to Belize
A few times over the years I've written about the tribulations and triumphs of Bookbag Santa, a tiny, funky international charity based right here in Roanoke. It collects usable school supplies, discarded by Roanoke-area students each June, and transports that stuff to impoverished kids in the Central American nation of Belize. Bookbag Santa was conceived and created by Gary Hunt, a kindly artist/environmentalist/handyman I've known for about 20 years. One of his attributes is that he's mastered the art of living cheaply and with a low impact. Another is, "I'm good at talking people into donating something they're going to throw away anyway," the modest Hunt once told me. The outfit's world headquarters is an 8-by-20-foot donated metal shipping container in northeast Roanoke. Back in 2010, the land it rested on, gratis, was sold, and the container needed immediate moving. With an uncharacteristically anxious edge in his voice, Hunt called me to dish that news.

Falconer in Belize for adolescent pregnancy forum
Senator Sandrea Falconer, information minister, left the island for Belize this morning to attend a specially convened Round Table on Adolescent Pregnancy in the Caribbean. She will be representing Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller. The forum will take place tomorrow in Belize City. Minister Falconer will deliver the prime minister's address to the meeting and participate in the call to action discussion on the issue. The regional round table is being held within the context of the CARICOM Integrated Strategic Framework for the reduction of adolescent pregnancy in the Caribbean and seeks to mobilise, support and establish a strong network of spouses of Caribbean heads of State to champion the cause.

Tourism Ministry hosts Belize Delegation
Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, has credited Jamaica's Tourism Master Plan for Sustainable Tourism Development with providing guidance for the development of the industry, its current success and ability to contribute significantly to the nation's economic growth. He was addressing a six-person tourism delegation from Belize yesterday (June 23) that is being hosted by his Ministry to assist that country with further development of its tourism industry. The weeklong visit is an initiative of the Interregional Cooperation in Tourism. "Because of how Jamaica has been positioned, there is now a great demand for the island as a vacation destination, with measurable growth in both stop over and cruise arrivals as well as investment by both international and local investors," the Minister stated. Head of the delegation, Belize's Chief Tourism Officer, Abil Castaneda, explained that his country is a crossroads with regard to its tourism development.

Can we (should we) put a price tag on nature?
For businesses, natural capital has often been seen as the environmental economics equivalent of a free lunch. Companies could use water or timber, or emit vast amounts of carbon with little recognition to the actual impacts or value it had on the natural world. Yet, as any student of business or economics knows, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Meaning that as the impacts of climate change, severe droughts and ravishing natural disasters are being seen throughout the world, the value of nature's finite resources will eventually be felt by businesses.

U.S. Slips In World Well-Being Rankings; Panama Is No. 1
Very interesting....Belize is ranked #5 in the world's top 10 - percent thriving. "Latin Americans in particular have higher levels of well-being than any other regional group," the polling firm says. "Residents of many Latin American countries are among the most likely in the world to report daily positive experiences such as smiling and laughing, feeling enjoyment, and feeling treated with respect each day."

Videos

  • Belize Public Service Awards, 8min. from GOB Press Office

  • DIVING BELIZE, PARADISE CANYON SAN PEDRO, 4min. DIVE TWO ON THIS RAINY DAY- ALL MARINE LIFE IMAGES WERE CAPTURED ON TWO DIVES TODAY~~NO STOCK IMAGES~~

  • DIVING BELIZE, PARADISE CANYON SAN PEDRO, 4min. Featuring Special Guest Divers Emily and Andrew.

  • Snorkeling in Belize, 2min. Snorkeling in Hol Chan and Shark Ray Alley with Tim

  • Scuba School Belize, 5min.

  • Catch of the Day - Belize Trip 2015, 3min.

  • Scuba Diving in Belize with Sharks and a Sea Turtle, 8min. Take a moment to see what it's like under the sea.

  • Takes Two to Tango, Belize 2015, 1min. This is probably my favorite shark video for various reasons.. Shot at Half Moon Caye in Belize june 9, 2015, running out of air at the end of the dive.. I had pretty much given up on getting good shark footage on the dive when I decided to break away from the dive group and go back to find a shark.. Now, that's not a good idea for a variety of reasons, but what the hell! Luis, one of the dive masters, followed me (unbeknown to me at the time) to make sure I didn't do anything mega-stupid, since I was already breaking about 6 of the cardinal rules of diving.. So, I'm on the beach side of the reef, just HOPING a shark breaks through the reef and gives me a shot.. About the time I give up, this guy comes strolling by and I get the camera rolling and catch up to him on the ocean floor, where I was able to keep up with him for a little while - you can briefly see Luis at the end of the vid... I eventually spooked him and he took off, but I really dug the footage I got.. Hope you do as well!

  • HEFY Belize 2015, 28min. Meagan and Calli's Humanitarian Trip to Orange Walk and Guinea Grass Belize.

  • Our Trip to Belize, 34min. In February 2015, we took a family vacation to Belize. We stayed in Belize City the first night at the Chateau Caribbean. We went cave tubing the next day which was awesome. That evening we took a puddle jumper to Ambergris Caye and stayed at Captain Morgan's Resort. I dove the next day. The diving was incredible. Took the family snorkeling with nurse sharks and stingrays. What a great experience. Thanks Katie, you did a great job putting this video together.
  • © Ambergris Caye Belize Message Board