Important Note: This Internet version of 7 News is a verbatum
transcript of our evening television news script. Many interviews on our newscast
are conducted in Creole. In the interest of clarity for our foreign readers,
we attempt to paraphrase the Creole quotes in English
Tonight, you may not know it, but Belize is under an unprecedented mid November storm threat. Tropical Disturbance 19 is hovering off the coast of Central America and at this hour hurricane and tropical storm watches have been issued for portions of Honduras and Nicaragua.
Right now what is being called "Potential Tropical Cyclone Nineteen" is expected to become Tropical Storm Sara and the government of Honduras has issued a Hurricane Watch from Punta Castilla eastward to the Honduras/Nicaragua Border, while the government of Nicaragua has issued a Tropical Storm Watch from the Honduras/Nicaragua Border southward to Puerto Cabezas.
Presently the system is only presenting sustained winds of 30 miles per hour and is moving west. But, over the next few days, it is expected to meander in this area off the northern coast of Honduras and slowly strengthen.
The system is forecast to become a tropical storm on Thursday and continue strengthening as it moves near the coast of Central America.
The track is unclear due to atmospheric conditions but the national hurricane center believes it will make landfall in Belize as a tropical cyclone, possibly on Monday afternoon.
NEMO will have a press briefing tomorrow morning.
Belize has never in its recorded history seen a storm so late in the year. Hurricane Lisa made landfall on November second, 2022, one of only two hurricanes to hit the country in November.
And while NEMO is slow to move, the city below sea level is as ready as it can be, come what may. Today the Mayor said that they're closely monitoring the weather system. But their work of repairing streets has to be paused for the meantime just in case there are heavy showers.
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City "Our city emergency management organization works very closely with NEMO and the MET office and we're closely monitoring the track of this system here. But we stand ready as a city, we hope it never comes to fruition, we never want to be impacted by any hurricane or disaster because the fact is that it really sets you back as a country and especially as a municipality, it has it's own struggles."
"We have done some work and you have seen it, MIDH, I must commend them for putting some work on the highways coming into the city. We are still getting the sort of resources we need to rehabilitate those streets but it doesn't make sense that you go and fix streets right now and by weekend a lot of rain come again so you have to hold on, people have to have a little patience, exercise patience, and we get things done together."
We'll have the latest from NEMO tomorrow. We have been asking them to comment on the system for days.
Elmer Nah, who was indicted for the triple murders of the Ramnarace family that occurred in Belmopan on December 31st, 2022, has yet to begin trial. And the judge says he is not impressed with the prosecution's response to questions in the Elmer Nah case because his first court order has not been adhered to.
The attorney for the 40 year old ex police officer, Godfrey Smith appeared before Justice Nigel Pilgrim for case management while Nah himself and the attorney for the Crown appeared virtually.
Godfrey Smith pointed out that they had not received the important disclosures they had asked for including the video showing the killer entering the Ramnarace property. Pilgrim then made another court order today informing the Crown that Smith should be given access to the requested items before November 29th. Smith gave more details about today's proceedings.
Godfrey Smith, Attorney "We're at a very preliminary stage. We're still at the disclosure stage. We're trying to prepare our defence as fully and comprehensively as possible. We have been trying to get a list of ....access to them from the Crown, from the State, and have not been very successful in doing so."
"You would have heard the judge say today that he was not impressed with the Crown's responses and explanations as to why the defence has not been so provided and he set a further date. Well, he asked that by the end of the month, by the 29th November, these things be provided. So, we look forward to receiving that."
Nah and his attorney are due back in court on December 16th.
And in political news, there's a lot of speculation, but the PUP is still tightlipped about when elections will be called, despite strong rumors that it is slated for February or March 2025. Today when we asked the party chairman, he said he's ready whenever the PM is.
Henry Charles Usher, PUP Chairman "PUP is ready for elections whenever the prime minister is ready to call those elections. As you know, we went through our convention process, we have team 31 in place. We are getting all of the campaigners and computer operators, etc, ready and that's what we're working on right now so when the prime minister says let's go, we're ready to go."
Reporter: "Don't you think it was be opportune or a strategic move to hold the elections before March next year?"
Henry Charles Usher, PUP Chairman "I leave strategy up to the prime minister, but whenever he says chairman, it's time for us to go to the polls, we'll be ready."
But while the PUP's slate is set, the UDP's remain in a state of flux. Yesterday you heard Tracy Panton say that she will be running for the UDP. But Shyne Barrow and Michael Peyrefitte have said that there are no more olive branches left to extend, Panton and Faber remain expelled.
We asked Usher which faction he believes the Elections and Boundaries will allow to use the color red.
Henry Charles Usher, Minister of the Public Service "That's a decision that the Chief Elections Officer would need to make bu you have to remember I think one of the sides was asking the Elections and Boundaries to determine who was the real UDP. But that's not something that the Elections and Boundaries gets involved in. As a matter of fact they don't recognize parties. When we're nominated as candidates, I am nominated as Henry Usher. Now I have to choose a color that I am going to run with and of course I will choose blue. But it's not that we are nominated as a member of the PUP or anybody else is nominated as a member of the UDP. You're nominated as an individual in the particular constituency that you want to represent. Now in terms of the decision as to who gets which color, that's up to the Chief Elections Officer. The tradition has been that the chief will always say, ok PUP, who is your slate of 31 candidates and those 31 candidates get the blue color, same thing to the UDP who are your candidates so that they can get the color red, but that's just a tradition, that's not found in any law and certainly it's a decision that the chief elections officer will need to make."
And we also asked Usher about the Senate blocking the government's appointment of the Auditor General. He said it was an attempt by the UDP to spite the PUP, but that ended up spiting the auditors instead. Here's how he put it.
Henry Charles Usher, Minister of the Public Service "I think this was a move spearheaded by the opposition to spite the government but it was a really short sighted move for two reasons. It's better to have an auditor general in place, even an acting auditor general. The process is ongoing in terms of the advertisement for the post, i think 5 individuals had applied for the post, the deadline was last week Thursday and there's a procedure to go through in terms of the interview, etc, so eventually a full time auditor general will be in place but in that interim, that 4 month interim, you want to have an acting auditor general."
"There are certain things that the auditor general has to sign off on and one of them is the allowances for auditors. What I found surprising is that the representative for the unions also did not support this resolution because the unions, especially the PSU, have been advocating that these allowances for these auditors be paid."
"There was an issue with the last auditor general in terms of she didn't agree with all of the allowances but the investigation has been done by public service, by finance and these allowances need to be paid."
"But now, instead of spiting the government, the union representative is spiing his own members because now they can't be paid if you don't have an auditor general to sign off on these particular allowances so really it was short sighted."
"And let me just clear up this point that I think the senator for the UDP tried to make that after the 4 months, Ms Rodriguez does not have a job. Absolutely false, absolutely misinformation. Ms Rodriguez is currently the deputy auditor general, she was appointed, or the resolution was attempted to be passed for her to be acting auditor general, but after 4 months, she still has a job as deputy auditor general. It's not like she will lose a job so that point he was making about oh they would not want to do anything against the government because it's only a four month contract, total misinformation and I'm surprised that he would try to mislead the Belizean people that way."
20 year old Paul Smith Jr, was only 17 years old when he was charged for the murder of 19 year old Tyreak August in 2022. Smith was accused of fatally shooting August in his home in La Democracia village. But after only 2 years on remand Smith's murder charge was dropped, after the crown discontinued his murder case and entered a nolle pros.
Despite this Smith still has two other charges against him for keeping an unlicensed firearm and ammunition and so he could not be set free.
His attorney Ronnell Gonzalez asked the court to consider granting bail to Smith since the murder case was discontinued and he would only be spending time in prison for the gun related charges. Gonzalez filed an application for bail which won't be heard until Friday November 15th. Ibn the interim, Smith was remanded to prison, and his attorney spoke more about today's proceedings.
Ronnell Gonzalez, Attorney "He has one pending matter for a possession of a firearm before the magistrate court. It is a matter that is young in the court. It is a matter that has not even had a full disclosure as yet. It is a matter involving other persons that were present around at the time of the discovery of such firearm. So I am hopeful for him in that matter."
Last month we gave you details behind the murder that happened in Red Bank Village, where the body of the deceased was found at the village dumpsite. Police investigations have led them to arrest and charge 21 year old Armando Coc for the murder of 29 year old Wilmer Che that occurred on October 29th 2024. Che was reportedly mentally challenged and was found with a number of stab wounds to his body.
Another man has died in a motorcycle accident. It happened last night on Tate Street in Orange Walk Town and claimed the life of a young construction worker. Around 8:30, 23 year old. Juan Carlos Castellanos, crashed into a towhead as it was turning. The impact sent both the rider and the bike flying onto the pavement. Castellanos died from his injuries on the spot.
The mighty Hawkesworth Bridge in San Ignacio closed in May for urgent rehabilitation works and it re-opened yesterday, just a shade over 6 months later.
It was a much needed maintenance break for the 75 year old bridge and it included repairs to the suspension cables, girders, the deck, and the footpath - basically everything.
Well, it was re-opened today and the Minister discussed its rebirth:
Julius Espat, Minister of Infrastructure Development "We just do a periodic analysis of all bridges countrywide and we put it on a priority list and this was one of them that was in urgent need of repairs. It has not been repaired for quite some time and it's a historic bridge."
"It leads San Ignacio to the rest of the country. It has historical factor. It is important to the residents of the Cayo District and the country on the whole. We put it as one of our priorities and that's why it was done."
But how much longer can the bridge last? Can it make it to the century mark in 2049?
The engineers say that with this round of maintenance it is good for another 10 to 20 years, but the Minister sees it as longer than that:
Julius Espat, Minister of Infrastructure Development "We normally put, engineers would normally put a specific lifespan, but this bridge, I think, would last much more than that. Once it's properly maintained, that's the problem we have. The lifespan is determined by the amount of time and money you put to maintain anything."
"And so if the ministry, which we are administering right now, continues to do maintenance on structures like these, it could go for 50 years. If you do absolutely no maintenance and you leave it the way it was, yeah, it would be less than 10."
In other infrastructure news, if you've had to "circle" around the streets of downtown Belize City looking for a parking space, your troubles should now be over. Today the Belize City Council opened the David Fonseca Parking Lot, named after the former mayor. The lot is on Regent Street and has a small fee, but is open 24 hours and secured with cameras.
And CitCo says it's only the first of its kind for the city.
Courtney Menzies was there today and has this story.
Parking has always been a problem in downtown Belize City, but now there are 34 spaces available for shoppers, diners, or anyone who just wants to make a bank run.
The David Fonseca parking lot was opened today as a means to rejuvenate the dying downtown area - at a small cost, of course.
Henry Charles Usher, Area Rep., Fort George "I think it's all part of the rejuvenation of Belize City that you see as the main focus of the Belize City Council since being elected in 2018. This area, Regent Street was once a vibrant area with shopping, dining, movie theaters, culture with Bliss. We need to bring back that type of atmosphere, that type of community initiative and parking is just a small part of it but it's certainly part of it. Most Belizeans now have a vehicle and they want to be able to park their vehicle in a secure location. With the cameras that are here, the fact that this is a 24 hour facility it will certainly encourage persons to come here and enjoy all Belize City Downtown has to offer."
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City "We were very proactive in getting this facility completed. I know it has been a long and drawn out process but we wanted to get it right. It will enhance off street parking in the downtown area, it's a safe area, it is manned by cameras, fully automated, all the sort of modern smart solutions are integrated into the system so it should enhance the parking meters, because it's two sort of parking you have, off street and on street and so the parking meters really facilitate on street parking and this would facilitate parking."
Courtney Menzies: "Do you believe that residents have the appetite for more paid parking?"
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City "Yes they do. People visit areas all across the city, this is our urban setting, and they're always driving around looking for parking, safe parking areas. People have that appetite. Romac's parking lot has been doing great in this area and so this will enhance Romac's. There's always been more parking and I see where this first model will be expanded all across the city. We have over 2,000 abandoned lots."
And they're projecting major revenues from the parking lot and a 3 year return on the investment - leading the council to plan for many more:
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City "We see it, based on our projects, that we could earn revenues in the neighborhood of $4.5k per week so if you quantify that across a month you're looking at close to $18,000. Over a year you're looking at close to $200,000 in revenue from this parking facility. If we do ten of these all across the city, you could do the maths, but we need the collaboration with the Ministry of Natural Resources. We did an exercise where we identified 40 abandoned lots in the city and we sent that to the ministry to have them see how they could acquire those abandoned lots to turn them from just being nuisance to society and turn them into productive spaces."
"I believe based on our projections and our financial model, in roughly about 2 and a half years. The total project ran us about $295,000 with the hot mix being the most expensive component along with the smart technology. But we see where we are identifying and investing in assets that are revenue generating. If we are able to turn abandoned lots all across this city into smart parking facilities, community parks, community playgrounds, community student hubs, this is the sort of rejuvenation we need in our city."
But the downtown doesn't just need parking - it needs activities to attract more people. Usher says they're working on that.
Courtney Menzies: "In terms of the amenities you mentioned, how do we encourage more people to build these restaurants and these movie theaters here?"
Henry Charles Usher, Area Rep., Fort George "Well you're seeing the government pass certain legislation to encourage MSME's, encourage businesses and I think that is a good first step. But really it's about directing people downtown as well, you have to be able to say, visitors come and see what all we have downtown. And we have to be able to have the facilities, the attractions that people want to come to. Certainly we would want the Bliss to always be filled when there is an event happening there, the commercial sector is going to do their part because they realize if more persons come down there they will have more customers so I think it's a community, it's a joint effort and this will really focus on bringing back Belize City downtown."
The People's Constitutional Commission has received a first draft of the final report of recommendations. The 26 page document is being reviewed and will be made into a final report for presentation to the government.
For that, they had to get an extension which was approved in the house yesterday.
The Minister of Constitutional and Political reform gave us an update:
Henry Charles Usher, Minister of the Public Service "They asked for an extension and they were granted that extension in the House yesterday. It was passed unanimously for an extension of a further six months for a drafting of the report. For our representatives, we know that all the raw data that was accumulated from all of the consultations, that is in place right now, they're putting together that data, they're giving stakeholders to respond and comment on that data before they prepare the final report. The reason why they asked for the extension is because the deadline to submit the report would have been November the 17th, which is this weekend, and they would not have had enough time to go back to the stakeholders and prepare the report, so it was felt that it would be better to have full participation of the stakeholders in terms of commenting on the raw data before that report could be submitted so the extension as requested by the chairman was granted. I have to say, there's no other cost that will be coming with this so no other sums of money will need to go to any supplementary appropriation or anything like that."
There was a sort of showdown at Stake Bank Caye today. According to multiple sources, the OPSA group - which is trying to sell the island - took a group of international investors out there to show them the asset they're trying to sell.
But when they got to the island, they were turned back by Mike Feinstein's security - on the basis that they can't disembark on the pier or the outer part of the island, because Feinstein still owns that. Viewers will recall that the compulsory acquisition is not yet complete.
According to our sources, the investors were seriously interested in the island, but as it presently stands the receiver only owns the inner 16 acres, while Feinstein owned the outer 23 acres.
The death of a 24 year old volunteer firefighter is currently being investigated by health authorities, after allegations emerged that his medical care was negligent.
According to sources, Jair Padilla was first hospitalized for a broken leg, which was placed in a cast and he was later discharged. After some time he returned and complained to hospital staff that he had felt some discomfort in the leg. Allegedly he was told that his symptoms were normal, but then he was rushed to the hospital yet again, this time with a fever. Upon removing his cast, the medical staff discovered that his leg was exhibiting an advanced state of gangrene.
Padilla reportedly passed away at the KHMH this morning. And while his cause of death has not yet been released, his family suspects that hospital negligence may have been a contributing factor. The regional health manager for the northern regional hospital spoke to CTV-3 about the case this evening:
Voice of: Felix Rhaburn, Regional Manager, NHR "First of all, I can see as much as the individual leg was not broken, and secondly, the individual did have a follow-up visit with the institution, however, on the night when he arrived to the emergency department, it was not due to the injury he had to his leg, and thirdly, there was no gangrene."
"The age of the individual we're talking about is 24 years, and the individual, I can't really speak much as to his medical consult as those information are patient privacy, but in regards to, I can see as much as he did visit the NRH to get treatment, and from there, in the night that we're talking about the situation, needed to be escalated to Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, and we did exactly so."
Reporter "Okay, are investigations being carried out at this time, have you reached out to the family?"
Voice of: Felix Rhaburn, Regional Manager, NHR "We have reached out to the family, and we have reviewed all our documentations that we have in this regard to trying to ascertain the details of the incident."
We also got a comment from the Director of Hospital Services & Allied Health Dr. Jorge Polanco who says that the investigation is ongoing, and has no comment at this time.
Yesterday we showed you the moment the Marriage Amendment Bill was passed in the House of Representatives. It had the support of both sides of the house, but it was first initiated by the youths of the Children's Parliament in 2023. And those youths were right there yesterday to see their debates influence what will now become the law.
Courtney Menzies spoke with them yesterday and has this story.
As of yesterday, persons under 18 can no longer enter into marriage, even with parental permission. The Marriage Amendment Bill was passed with full support from the House of Representatives.
The bill was born from the 2023 Youth Parliament. It was the topic that 31 young persons debated. And so outside the House, some of these youths were in the makeshift gallery with their signs, eager to see their hard work become legislation.
Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human Development "I think this is really about them. We have only carried forward what they presented to us a year ago in November and it was a robust discussion and debate in parliament for the Youth Parliament, they call is Children's Parliament but I prefer to say youth. This is all about them and big kudos to every single one of the youth parliamentarians today."
"At the moment before we pass the legislation today, it is that you can get married, yes at 18, but also with parental consent at 16. Now I don't believe that should happen and like I said, they have made the case. As a matter of fact, and I will say it in the House later this afternoon, some of the Youth Parliamentarians in the Opposition even asked for the age of marriage because marriage really is a contract and somebody under 18 shouldn't be allowed to sign a contract."
And the topic is one that became very significant to these youths, and seeing it being debated in the House has filled them with motivation.
Victoria Usher, OW South Rep., Youth Parliament 2023 "Coming into a marriage at an early age can cause different situations, possibly girls dropping out of school, even the males dropping out of school. Many people think it only affects the females, no it also affects the males."
"It was quite significant because I am proud to say that my voice is being heard. We thought that it was probably just for sakes but we're here today."
Carlos Nah, Leader of the Opposition., Youth Parliament 2023 "It's really impactful to see the brilliant minds that we had last year and it's very inspiring because we are the future generation of Belize and when we heard about this bill, we didn't know anything about it. And when we were doing the research they barely had any information but thanks to this movement that we did recently, I did an essay about it and I really was inspired by looking at the new research they had this year. And I'm really inspired because the little impact we did is really changing a movement and that is what I like to see when it comes to youths and just like I said, we are the future of Belize and if we could do this one little thing, we could change several things about our country."
And Nah's opposition actually argued on the age being increase to 21 - but he says that may be a task for future young parliamentarians.
Carlos Nah, Leader of the Opposition., Youth Parliament 2023 "Some of the argument is the development of the brain, age 25 is when the brain is fully developed so then if you had it at age 21 it would have been a little more closer to it but right now, the age of 18 is still a good step towards that so maybe later in the future a next set of youths could change that to 21 as well so let's see."
Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human Development "We're definitely keeping the young people engaged. So whereas I wouldn't be able to make a promise of this setting a precedent for further legislation, of course the adults must listen to our young people."
While the government won't tell us when it is - conventional wisdom strongly suggests there's going to be an election in the first quarter of 2025. And they don't call it the silly season for nothing! Every election cycle fuels the hope of a few political mavericks who believe they can break the stranglehold that the two major mass parties have on the election cycle.
Today, one such group, the "Belizeans Justice Movement" sprang up with a press conference at the BIM building. They say they are advocating for justice, equality, and social change in Belize. Here's what they said about their motive for getting into the political conversation and providing what they call a "united voice for change":
Friday Pfizer, National President, Belizean Justice Movement "This movement was created to educate our people, to bring our people together so that we can start, not lead, but stand shoulder to shoulder so that without justice, the government cannot continue to govern because justice belongs to the people. That is the fact of and the reason for the creation of this group."
Rudy Wade, President, Belizean Justice Movement "We have a new movement, right? And, we have not, we didn't have the opportunity to to run the funds from the taxpayers. So, right away, we eliminate any funds coming from the taxpayers, whatever funds we whatever, movement we those comes from our very own pocket. Right?"
Reporter "So what makes you so confident that the people will vote for you?"
Friday Pfizer, National President, Belizean Justice Movement "Their policies. We are not coming with promises. We're coming with policies. Promises are for a few policies is for me and for you. That's what policies are all about. We're not coming with any promise to no certain individuals. We are coming to legislate with and for the people with policies."
"Why? You should vote for us. Because we are the only one that will bring down the cost of living. Because we believe in competition. Competition is the answer to the inflation in our country."
And while they worry about the cost of living, the Prime Minister is off to Mexico to participate in - of all things - a meeting of the Board of Directors of COCESNA."
The current Prime Minister is the first to hold the Civil Aviation portfolio.
He returns to Belize on Saturday, 16th November.
During the Prime Minister's absence, Deputy Cordel Hyde will hold over as Prime Minister.
Entrepreneurs and public and private sector representatives gathered together today to partake in Belize's first Digital Leadership Conference. Its agenda includes a series of panel discussions, master classes and practical sessions designed to equip participants with the knowledge and strategies to lead effectively in a rapidly changing digital landscape. Jomarie Lanza attended the conference and here's what she gathered.
Organized by Rhics Technology based in the UK and Chamberlain Consulting, Belize hosted its very first Digital Leadership Conference this morning at the Biltmore. It's organized to address the urgent need for digital transformation across Belize's private and public sectors. With over 70% of Belizeans connected online, there are numerous opportunities to harness digital tools to enhance businesses, improve government services, and drive inclusive economic growth. The Chairman of the Belize Coalition of Service Providers told us what was the catalyst for this conference.
Dr Dionne Chamberlain, Chairman, Belize Coalition of Service Providers "After Belize's signing agreements, EPA. agreements with the UK and Croatia and foremost importance they have assigned that, we must focus on exporting our services sector initiatives in terms of spa and wellness, digital and music and entertainment and of course architectural and construction services. So we are celebrating services week right now and we realized that we need to do something in reference to the sectors we are trying to push so today we are doing digital leadership and tomorrow is Human Resources which we are going to have here in the same room. So digital leadership is absolutely important in this point in time because it is not only the tools and the tactics and the programs and all of that there is a mindset shift that needs to occur between the leaders of all these organizations for them to embrace the changes that are needed understand that there is money that needs to be spent and understand that technical people are rare and we must respect them and their craft and their trade and grow them and help to upscale our entire nation of individuals to be able to move towards this digital landscape which is not something that we want to do it's something that we have to do it's a priority so we can stay relevant and be able to thrive within this new economy that is being created worldwide."
This morning's presentations were focused on digital strategy, cybersecurity, and innovative workforce engagement. The Presenter, Christian Junior from the UK gave us more details on some of the key point objectives in his presentation.
Christian Junior, Managing Director, Rhics Ltd "So today I spoke at the first digital leadership conference in Belize. I spoke about creating strategies, digital and cybersecurity strategies and my talk is focused on exposing participants to a lot of emerging technologies, particularly Ai, blockchain and all of the things that are out there, well most of it so businesses can start understanding how to tap into these tools and platforms to actually improve their outcomes in Belize. The second part of my talk focuses on cybersecurity strategies as well how to help businesses safeguard their data protect their infrastructure, protect their computers and systems because with all of this digitization it actually exposes businesses to a lot of risks around cybersecurity because you have a lot of barriers, hackers and criminals that just want to steal data like what happened for example with Belize Electricity recently where they stole a lot of customer data and exposed it on websites. So this conference really is to teach businesses how to protect their data how to safeguard their data to ensure that things that happened with Belize electricity doesn't repeat itself over and over again. So these are the kinds of conversations we are having here and digital strategies and cybersecurity."
The conference will focus tomorrow on Human Resources, which will include some of today's participants and stakeholders. The President of the Belize Association of Human Resource Professionals told us how today's conference ties into tomorrow's Summit.
Consuelo Waight, President, Belize Association of Human Resource Professionals "Not today but tomorrow we are hosting the first ever HR Summit. It's a day where we are coming together and learning from each other. The focus is to share knowledge and hopefully we have some self organization that occurs among the HR professionals so that they can continue learning from and with each other after the summit."
"One of the core roles of HR professionals today is to be outside thinkers and subsequently you need to understand your external environment not only here in Belize but in Central America within the Americas and also around the world because everything that occurs are potential triggers for us here in Belize so learning from the outside so that you can then help your organization be more competitive and you know successful and everything that HR does is linked to the business and as a result of that HR has to be a strategic positioned by learning from the outside In."
And in other information technology news, local company Cellular world has partnered with DELL and EPSON to improve services and sales for products here in Belize. They held an informative session today at the Biltmore with experts who are in country to discuss concerns involving cyber security, A.I technology and how their commercial products can benefit Banks, schools and tech companies. Here's more:
Joel Cervantes, General Manager "Yes today we have both Epson and Dell making a presentation Seminar like. Epson on the recent printers they have eco tank and also the work force and other commercial printers that are worth purchasing. We will be partnering with them and also be their authorized service center for those printers so the presentation just concluded with Epson and it's a great opportunity for schools in the education sector especially and for businesses that do copies and so forth. There is a vast difference between the present Epson printers versus the laser printers. Our next presentation after that will be with our partners Dell as we are all aware if not we are gold partners with Dell and we carry for them computers laptops and we are also partnering with them eventually to be able to do servicing. Well we presently do that, and today they will be presenting on the AI and Cyber security so which is what we are going into and it is something very good for Belize and us partnering with Dell as Gold Partners and being able to deal with cybersecurity and the artificial intelligence is going to be a great impact in Belize."
Reshmi Ramnarine, Strategic Account Manager, EPSON "The aim for this particular visit is to really help the Belizean people understand what is the value proposition and the value add on that EPSON can bring to their local corporate and home environments."
"The whole concept behind EPSON and our product portfolio is a couple things. One we can save you money in terms of consumables and we can save you the cost of energy consumption and we can save you time in terms of failure of the products because we have a very reliable product and we are also forming a partnership with cellular world right now where they will be become our authorized service center so they will be able to back on warranties in country do people can have a reliable service."
And, finally tonight the Ombudsman of Barbados, Dr. Nigel Taylor,is visiting his counterpart in Belize Gilbert Swaso. His visit is to learn about the National Human Rights Institute which is being set up within the Belize Ombudsman's office.
They spoke about the importance of this in a press briefing this morning:
Gilbert Swazo, Ombudsman "So we are now moving fully forward to establish this Human Rights Institute. Now similar so, I'm certain that Dr Taylor will, will also mention that Barbados is on the road to establishing their national human rights institutes like Belize."
"So the visit is to look up what' successes, what strategies we implemented to establish our National Human Rights Institute and to see how best they can utilize what best practices."
Dr. Nigel Taylor, B'dos Ombudsman "So yes, for us be here, just the first day alone, I mean, the analysis, the the procedural patterns, all that you guys have done here, all that the office has done here with the support of the Ombudsman's staff, with the support of government, with the support of, of the UN. You have to be fantastic. You guys have a working formula."
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Tonight, you may not know it, but Belize is under an unprecedented mid November storm threat. Tropical Disturbance 19 is hovering off the coast of Central America and at this hour hurricane and tropical storm watches have been issued for portions of Honduras and Nicaragua.
And while NEMO is slow to move, the city below sea level is as ready as it can be, come what may. Today the Mayor said that they're closely monitoring the weather system. But their work of repairing streets has to be paused for the meantime just in case there are heavy showers.
"Our city emergency management organization works very closely with NEMO and the MET office and we're closely monitoring the track of this system here. But we stand ready as a city, we hope it never comes to fruition, we never want to be impacted by any hurricane or disaster because the fact is that it really sets you back as a country and especially as a municipality, it has it's own struggles."
Elmer Nah, who was indicted for the triple murders of the Ramnarace family that occurred in Belmopan on December 31st, 2022, has yet to begin trial. And the judge says he is not impressed with the prosecution's response to questions in the Elmer Nah case because his first court order has not been adhered to.
"We're at a very preliminary stage. We're still at the disclosure stage. We're trying to prepare our defence as fully and comprehensively as possible. We have been trying to get a list of ....access to them from the Crown, from the State, and have not been very successful in doing so."
"PUP is ready for elections whenever the prime minister is ready to call those elections. As you know, we went through our convention process, we have team 31 in place. We are getting all of the campaigners and computer operators, etc, ready and that's what we're working on right now so when the prime minister says let's go, we're ready to go."
20 year old Paul Smith Jr, was only 17 years old when he was charged for the murder of 19 year old Tyreak August in 2022. Smith was accused of fatally shooting August in his home in La Democracia village. But after only 2 years on remand Smith's murder charge was dropped, after the crown discontinued his murder case and entered a nolle pros.
"He has one pending matter for a possession of a firearm before the magistrate court. It is a matter that is young in the court. It is a matter that has not even had a full disclosure as yet. It is a matter involving other persons that were present around at the time of the discovery of such firearm. So I am hopeful for him in that matter."
Last month we gave you details behind the murder that happened in Red Bank Village, where the body of the deceased was found at the village dumpsite. Police investigations have led them to arrest and charge 21 year old Armando Coc for the murder of 29 year old Wilmer Che that occurred on October 29th 2024. Che was reportedly mentally challenged and was found with a number of stab wounds to his body. 
Another man has died in a motorcycle accident. It happened last night on Tate Street in Orange Walk Town and claimed the life of a young construction worker. Around 8:30, 23 year old. Juan Carlos Castellanos, crashed into a towhead as it was turning. The impact sent both the rider and the bike flying onto the pavement. Castellanos died from his injuries on the spot.
The mighty Hawkesworth Bridge in San Ignacio closed in May for urgent rehabilitation works and it re-opened yesterday, just a shade over 6 months later.
"It leads San Ignacio to the rest of the country. It has historical factor. It is important to the residents of the Cayo District and the country on the whole. We put it as one of our priorities and that's why it was done."
In other infrastructure news, if you've had to "circle" around the streets of downtown Belize City looking for a parking space, your troubles should now be over. Today the Belize City Council opened the David Fonseca Parking Lot, named after the former mayor. The lot is on Regent Street and has a small fee, but is open 24 hours and secured with cameras.
There was a sort of showdown at Stake Bank Caye today. According to multiple sources, the OPSA group - which is trying to sell the island - took a group of international investors out there to show them the asset they're trying to sell.
Voice of: Felix Rhaburn, Regional Manager, NHR
Yesterday we showed you the moment the Marriage Amendment Bill was passed in the House of Representatives. It had the support of both sides of the house, but it was first initiated by the youths of the Children's Parliament in 2023. And those youths were right there yesterday to see their debates influence what will now become the law.
"I think this is really about them. We have only carried forward what they presented to us a year ago in November and it was a robust discussion and debate in parliament for the Youth Parliament, they call is Children's Parliament but I prefer to say youth. This is all about them and big kudos to every single one of the youth parliamentarians today."
"Coming into a marriage at an early age can cause different situations, possibly girls dropping out of school, even the males dropping out of school. Many people think it only affects the females, no it also affects the males."
And Nah's opposition actually argued on the age being increase to 21 - but he says that may be a task for future young parliamentarians.
While the government won't tell us when it is - conventional wisdom strongly suggests there's going to be an election in the first quarter of 2025. And they don't call it the silly season for nothing! Every election cycle fuels the hope of a few political mavericks who believe they can break the stranglehold that the two major mass parties have on the election cycle.
"This movement was created to educate our people, to bring our people together so that we can start, not lead, but stand shoulder to shoulder so that without justice, the government cannot continue to govern because justice belongs to the people. That is the fact of and the reason for the creation of this group."
Rudy Wade, President, Belizean Justice Movement
Entrepreneurs and public and private sector representatives gathered together today to partake in Belize's first Digital Leadership Conference. Its agenda includes a series of panel discussions, master classes and practical sessions designed to equip participants with the knowledge and strategies to lead effectively in a rapidly changing digital landscape. Jomarie Lanza attended the conference and here's what she gathered.
"After Belize's signing agreements, EPA. agreements with the UK and Croatia and foremost importance they have assigned that, we must focus on exporting our services sector initiatives in terms of spa and wellness, digital and music and entertainment and of course architectural and construction services. So we are celebrating services week right now and we realized that we need to do something in reference to the sectors we are trying to push so today we are doing digital leadership and tomorrow is Human Resources which we are going to have here in the same room. So digital leadership is absolutely important in this point in time because it is not only the tools and the tactics and the programs and all of that there is a mindset shift that needs to occur between the leaders of all these organizations for them to embrace the changes that are needed understand that there is money that needs to be spent and understand that technical people are rare and we must respect them and their craft and their trade and grow them and help to upscale our entire nation of individuals to be able to move towards this digital landscape which is not something that we want to do it's something that we have to do it's a priority so we can stay relevant and be able to thrive within this new economy that is being created worldwide."
Christian Junior, Managing Director, Rhics Ltd
Consuelo Waight, President, Belize Association of Human Resource Professionals
And in other information technology news, local company Cellular world has partnered with DELL and EPSON to improve services and sales for products here in Belize. They held an informative session today at the Biltmore with experts who are in country to discuss concerns involving cyber security, A.I technology and how their commercial products can benefit Banks, schools and tech companies. Here's more:
"Yes today we have both Epson and Dell making a presentation Seminar like. Epson on the recent printers they have eco tank and also the work force and other commercial printers that are worth purchasing. We will be partnering with them and also be their authorized service center for those printers so the presentation just concluded with Epson and it's a great opportunity for schools in the education sector especially and for businesses that do copies and so forth. There is a vast difference between the present Epson printers versus the laser printers. Our next presentation after that will be with our partners Dell as we are all aware if not we are gold partners with Dell and we carry for them computers laptops and we are also partnering with them eventually to be able to do servicing. Well we presently do that, and today they will be presenting on the AI and Cyber security so which is what we are going into and it is something very good for Belize and us partnering with Dell as Gold Partners and being able to deal with cybersecurity and the artificial intelligence is going to be a great impact in Belize."
Reshmi Ramnarine, Strategic Account Manager, EPSON
They spoke about the importance of this in a press briefing this morning:
"So yes, for us be here, just the first day alone, I mean, the analysis, the the procedural patterns, all that you guys have done here, all that the office has done here with the support of the Ombudsman's staff, with the support of government, with the support of, of the UN. You have to be fantastic. You guys have a working formula."
