Belize Times March 13, 2016 by Belize Times Press

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The Belize Times

Established 1957

13 MARCH 2016 | ISSUE NO: 4984

The Truth Shall Make You Free

www.belizetimes.bz | $1.00

OPPOSITION SLAMS BUDGET “Worse” than expected, says Hon. John Briceno

BREAKING

BTL Launches

Teachers Got Your Back, Who Got Theirs?

NEWS! 4G AGAIN

GAPI TO RESIGN!! Pg. 4

Pg. 8

Pg. 3

WHO ROBBED THE COROZAL TOWN COUNCIL?? Gapi Vega

Pg. 4

Pg. 23

Shyne Barrow

Anwar Barrow

WOMAN CHARGED FOR HUSBAND’S MURDER IN SAN PEDRO

Pg. 23

Pg. 9

TOP MODEL

0 22 OUT HEAD-YOU cation!!!! The Special Permit to DIE 5th March 2016

Dear Editor, The Ministry of Education recently made a big announcement that ALL TEACHERS better get their paper work in order, specifically their LICENCE. So they quickly put in place one more bureaucracy, a high-powered committee, to vet thousands of files, applications, and other various assortments of paper. I sympathize with the members of the new committee. Wow! While our system melts under a 19th century philosophy of compliance, regulation and authority, our most creative act to deal with the nation builders (teachers) is to put one more boot on top of their necks and press down. In the video game mortal combat when the end is near, the voice declares, “finish him!” Here I am reminded of two “ancient” reports (a) Dr. Herbert Gayle’s comprehensive research on youth, 2010 and (b) the IDB report on challenges and opportunities in the Belize Education sector, 2013. Both reports make many recommendations, but my takeaway is that we need to put LOVE at the centre of our approach to learning and teaching, and to do this we must build from the ground up a dynamic system where CREATIVITY can flourish AND TECHNOLOGY utilized. If training is so important to the brilliant thinkers in Belmopan then perhaps the time has come to build an in service training sys-

LOCAL 10 Mar

Belize City, March 9, 2016 Prime Minister Dean Barrow gets an A for rhetoric. For propaganda and twisted language he gets an A+. On Tuesday March 8th, the physically-worn out, ailing and beleaguered Prime Minister was at his best. After eight years of presiding over a sluggish economy barely standing on wobbly stilts, he rose before the House of Representatives to present his ninth budget of nothingness and despair. In those eight years, the Prime Minister has survived on mere political smartness, the same kind that saw him trying to convince Belizeans that somehow the pittance of a salary raise for teachers and public officers was grander that a salary increase for public officers in the United Kingdom. Barrow must have overdosed on his pain medications, because he was declaring that his Government’s 3% salary raise for public officers outdid and was more meaningful than the 1% salary increase in the UK. While mathematically speaking indeed 3 is obviously more than 1, the Prime Minister was totally wrong about his administration having any reasons to beat their chest claiming better than the UK. Firstly, Belize’s economy and the UK’s cannot be placed on the same scale. Second, workers’ wages including

tem - a mobile + online TEACHERS college for the mind, heart and soul. Teaching is a performance activity, so the best place for those who give out qualifications to look, observe and evaluate is inside the laboratory of action – the schools of Belize. Teachers should receive on going evaluation onsite in their classrooms. Also they should log on to the online classroom courses developed by the Ministry in collaboration with the Church and other partners to grow, interact and learn the way the rest of the corporate, creative and 21st century communities do. Yesterday I listened to an evangelist say that Jesus, the greatest teacher, chose a B team to deliver the Gospel. He didn’t go out and find the most brilliant scholars to make up his teaching team; he went down by the sea to link up with the fishermen. If my twenty-one years in the “system” has any value, let me offer some advice, from the heart - teaching works when the moment becomes awkward, when it spirals up into a calamity of chaos and creativity. When the curious becomes the engine of the mind. When the force of our thoughts become so overpowering that we become expressive, we want to explore, and we want to experiment. The new special permit is permission to die. I was shocked when I saw the Teacher’s Union president cosy up to the establishment on this new paper stacking initiative. Lack of creativity can be fatal. What about the vaunted Church-State partnership? Shouldn’t the church, in this year of Mercy, advocate for some? Shouldn’t the people of the church make the point that the teacher from Nazareth be given some consideration here?

New Executive leads Bar Association of Belize March 9, 2016 The Bar Association of Belize informs the public that at its Annual General Meeting held on Tuesday, 8 March 2016 at the Radisson Fort George Hotel, the following persons were elected to serve on the Executive Committee for a one-year term: Ms. Priscilla J. Banner, President; Mr. Fred Lumor SC, Vice President; Mr. Wayne Piper, Secretary; Mr. Jose Alpuche, Treasurer; Mrs. Cheryl-Lynn Vidal SC, Bar Committee Member; Mrs. Ashanti Arthurs Martin, Bar Committee Member; and Mr. Mikhail Arguelles, Bar Committee Member.

yasser musa teacher and artist

WEATHER 11 Mar

12 Mar

13 Mar

2016

Deceitful PM!

OPINION

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2614Mar Mar

Dean Barrow the minimum wage in the UK are distinctly superior to Belize’s. The UK’s is U.S. $9.24 while Belize’s is U.S. $1.55; therefore a 1% salary increase for UK wages that are 800% higher than Belize’s low wages is better than a 3% increase here at home. Barrow might have the title of Minister of Finance but we all know he is no financial whiz. Like a household living off pawn shops and bank loans, Barrow has managed Belize’s affairs dismally and running into deep debt. Barrow’s attempts to make his administration seem to be doing amazing things and that the public officers’ and teachers’ meagre salary raise is better than higher standard of living and higher minimum wage is a sick political attempt to deceive Belizeans. It appears he has forgotten that teachers’ request was for 30% salary increase to buffer the 30% plus increase in the cost of living between 2008 and 2014. Let’s talk 30% PM, not 3%. Only then you would be entitled to your self praises.

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The Belize Times

Established 1957

14 APR 2013

ISSUE NO: 4840

The Truth Shall Make You Free

www.belizetimes.bz

$1.00

serving Belize since 1957 as the longest continuous newspaper. Founder: Rt. Hon. George Cadle Price, People’s United Party Leader Emeritus EDITOR

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Exchange rate of One Belize Dollar

United States (USD): $ 0.50

Barbados (BBD): $ 1.00

Eastern Caribbean Euro (XCD):$ 1.35 (EUR) : $ 0.46

Sterling Pound Guatemala Quetzal CANADIAN DOLLAR (GBP): $ 0.35 (GTQ): $ 3.85 (CAD): $ 0.67

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INDIAN RUPEE (INR): $ 33.71

13 MAR

2016

THE BELIZE TIMES

BTL Launches 4G AGAIN

Anwar Barrow Belize City, March 4 2016 On February 9th, 2012 the state-owned BTL announced a $20m contract signed with Ericsson for the provision of a 4G Network. Back then BTL’s Chief Operations Officer Karen Bevans trumpeted the signing of the contract by saying that with the millions spent on this network “The Company commits to making the user experience of DigiCell customers ‘faster than ever’ and to introducing the latest in mobile broadband services and devices. This will ensure that we keep Belizean Customers on par with those in the region, while allowing BTL to remain the number one telecommunications provider in Belize”. Last week for the second time BTL announced the launch of ANOTHER 4G Network. The Chairman of the Executive Man-

agement Committee, Anwar Barrow, announced that a contract was signed with the Chinese company Huawei. This time the investment announced by a high profile launch would come with a price of $40m BZ dollars.

The question everyone is asking is where is the Ericsson 4G, the one launched in 2012? Was this a flawed investment that ultimately cost tax payers? Is this another shady BTL deal? We demand to know when and how

A Road to Nowhere! City of Belmopan, March 9, 2016 The Barrow Administration on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 approved the borrowing of over $11 million for the construction of a road that will connect the Phillip Goldson highway and the George Price highway from the Mile 8 area (Western) and the Mile 11 (Northern) sections. Questions were raised by the Opposition as to the urgency of the

borrowing since the bill to authorise the loan was rushed through all three readings at the House sitting. The questions are legitimate. Why rush through a loan for a road that is not an imperative at a time when the country would use the resources for priority areas? The only ones to benefit are the special contractors who will be awarded the multi-million dollar con-

03 3 will this investment be recovered. On the wake of this fake 4G investment and the endless problems being aired by BTL customers we are now faced with another venture of $40M for another 4G Network, now with Huawei. This too is touted as a network that will make BTL one of the fastest broadband providers in the region. Haven’t we heard that before? How can we be assured that in another two years’ time we won’t be told that another multimillion dollar investment will be needed to maintain BTL competitive and a forerunner in the telecoms industry? As a majority state owned company, and as shareholders, the Belizean people should be up in arms to learn that this company is being run to the ground by a political appointee at the top. People are now wondering if the tech savvy guy is so savvy after all. Or maybe it’s shady.

tract. Will it be Gaspar Vega’s nephew? Or perhaps BIL’s favourites: the Arguelles crew? There is already a road that connects the western and northern highways. It’s called the Boom road. Recently, the Government also dumped millions on the Chetumal Street bridge and the Chetumal street from Belama area. To suck in more millions, they also awarded contracts for two roundabouts on both ends of the road. Talk about wasting millions. The Barrow Administration has become an expert on it.

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THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

Opposition slams budget GAPI “Worse” than expected, says Hon. John Briceno

Belize City, March 9, 2016 Opposition Leader Hon. John Briceno has described the “highlights” presentation of the 2016/2017 draft Budget presented by Prime Minister Dean Barrow as “worse” than expected. Hon. Briceno noted that the flurry with which the Prime Minister normally makes during budget announcements has apparently fizzled. There was no “Prometheus unbound” on Tuesday, March 8th, as Barrow introduced his budget. The estimates propose to spend $1.211 billion, but $142.9 million in revenue has not been identified. This widening deficit has become a prominent feature in budgets presented by the Barrow Administration, along with miniscule Gross Domestic Product growth. In the past two years, this deficit has been plugged by Venezuela’s Petrocaribe loan funds but with that programme not reaping benefits the Barrow Administration says it will have to squeeze the needed funds out of taxpayers. Several weeks ago, the Government increased its taxes on fuel, collecting almost double than previous. “The Prime Minister, because of the crunch that he finds himself in, decided to increase the taxes

on fuel. And so now we are starting to get that hit. When you look at the overall budget, there is no excitement in that budget. The Prime Minister is usually robust and energetic and uses all kinds of flowery words but in this case we had none of that. He knows that he has a bad budget,” declared Hon. Briceno. Fuel is not the only commodity which has seen a rise in cost. Utility rates have gone up over the past two years, and don’t seem to go down at the same pace. The cost of health services at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, which should be the poor man’s hospital, increased. To access non-emergency cases Belizeans would have to pay 150% more, as the cost went

up from $10 to $25. Physiotherapy clinic fees also climbed by 100% from $15 to $30. The Prime Minister’s budget presented this week was ironically dubbed “Stability in a Time of Change”. The Prime Minister chose to avoid any discussions of the rising instability in the productive and banking sectors. It was his own political advisor Doug Singh who also announced to Belizeans that Commercial Free Zone in Corozal is “dying”. Over the next two weeks, the Opposition will be preparing a proper response to the budget. Belizeans must pay keen attention as the Opposition speaks the truth and exposes Barrow’s lies.

RESIGNS! Orange Walk Town, March 9, 2016 The ground beneath the United Democratic Party shook today with the reports that Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader Gaspar Vega is preparing to give up his official title in the Barrow Administration and the United Democratic Party. The specific reasons for the announcement are unknown but for weeks the BELIZE TIMES has been receiving and report on the internal divisions in the UDP as the prepared to hold a convention later this month which would have endorsed Barrow as leader for the next four years. We note that Gaspar Vega has had his eyes on the leadership of the UDP for several years. With Barrow preparing to step down any time now, he has been moving to secure his rise. At a UDP National Party Council meeting two weeks ago, Barrow held down calls for his early resignation. These are interesting time in the UDP and we will have more to report next week.

Belizeans Protest UDP Sellout to Guatemala

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

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EDITORIAL Barrow Needs Reality Check

he budget speech which Prime Minister Dean Barrow presented as Minister of Finance in the House of Representatives on Tuesday is loaded with twisted lies, ironies and mistruths. He certainly did not present a balanced budget. The deficit is the largest it has ever been. The national debt in relation to GDP is far too high by any acceptable economic standards. By his own and unavoidable admission economic growth has “flatlined” except for minor gains in the fragile tourism industry. The most dismal is in farming and Argorelated industries. A lack of an agricultural policy is a clear indication of a red litmus test. This is a clear indication that any farm programmes are misguided without measuring the long term impact. The massive land clearing by a Guatemalan company to plant thousands of acres of sugar cane could have a short-term positive impact for a government desperate to move the economic needle for growth. But in the absence of a development policy, and even worse, an agricultural policy, such development does not take into consideration, the considerable positive impact the ecology and environmental protection has on our Gross Domestic Product. Such massive development is destroying wildlife habitats, threatening the very ecology that makes the country’s much-needed tourism industry attractive and other rural industries, including the beekeeping and honey industry. The hush-hush tacit approval for the importation and use of GMOs (although officially denied) ‘will in the long term, hurt traditional

farmers and in to long term kill the system of milpa farming that has been practiced for thousands of years. The government of Prime Minister has very little the boast about. During its tenure, a number of industries have collapsed or are on life support. Gone belly-up is the Cobia fish industry that was established off the coast of Belize City, the Tilapia fish farm as a result of a massive investment and a viable growth market in the United States, and most recently the Papaya export industry, which was able to recover even after Hurricane Dean in 2006 but was unable to survive the misguided policies another Dean. The once vibrant banana industry is also under threat for a number of reasons including the immense threat of a new fungal disease and the government’s fool-hardy decisions to ignore American Financial regulations and certain regimes established by the WTO. The Prime Minister’s grandstanding a few years ago, with citrus growers, got him flourishing praises and his path strewed with rose paths also. Today, however, the industry is plagued with frustration, a lack of cash flow and diminishing returns. The banking industry continues to be in crisis with no signs of an early resolution. This alone does not bode well for trade and foreign exchange, especially with a depleting foreign reserve. But for some in the tourism industry and who are friends with the Barrow regime, there is no need for worry, as most of their clients make their reservations with credit card by using 1-800 numbers with payments made in American Banks.

06 6 Marshalls Moving Forward March 3, 2016 A new Marshalls Unit was sworn in Esperanza Village, Cayo District, on Friday February 19th 2016 at a meeting held at Mrs. Martha Young’s residence. The group pledged to work hard in the upcoming Village Council elections and to continue our Party’s political work. Some members of the group are already involved in community work and are in discussions to adopt a community project. They will focus on increasing membership, carrying out fundraising and other activities. At the swearing in meeting National President, Mr. Stephen Latchman was present and led the open discussions. Chairman Mr. A Smith chaired the meeting. The group and National President thanks and pledges cooperation to work for their small but unique community better known to many as “Ranza”.

Questions to Ministers! Can the Minister of Sports Minister of State Elodio Aragon say when former Minister of Sports Herman Longsworth will complete the $2 million fence around the Marion Jones Sporting Complex? Can the Minister of Sports Elodio Aragon commit that the contract to turn the MCC Grounds into a parking lot with Princess Ramada is not a sellout? Can the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance confirm whether his son Anwar Barrow collected $175,000 in Christmas bonus as the Executive Chairman of Belize Telemedia Limited? When will the Minister of Human Services provide a full and comprehensive report on the tragic deaths of 14 year old Elizabeth McKoy, 16 year old Ana Carlos, and 16 year old Shadisha Arnold which occurred at the Youth Hostel at Mile 21 ½ on the George Price Highway? Can the Minister of Works say when the San Estevan to Progresso Road will be completed? Can the new Minister of State in the Ministry of Lands and Immigration say from which Government Boards is larger than life Juliet Thimbriel feeding from?

THE BELIZE TIMES

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2016

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THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

PUP Appoints New Senators

Belize City, March 3 2016 After consultations by Party Leader Hon. John Briceno, the People’s United Party is pleased and proud to announce the appointment of Eamon Courtenay, S.C., Valerie Woods and Paul Thompson as its new Senators to represent the Opposition and the country and people of Belize. We are confident that they will discharge their duties honourably and will serve with respect and integrity. The Party takes this opportunity to recognize and extend our sincere gratitude for the sterling work of former Senators Lisa Shoman, Patrick Andrews and Anthony Sylvestre Jr. They have been the strident, passionate and effective voice of the people’s Opposition in the Senate, and they have served well. The new Senators of the People’s United Party will be officially sworn in at the first occasion of a meeting of the Senate in the very near future.

Eamon Courtenay, S.C.

Eamon Courtenay has twenty five years of professional experience. He was an active member of the Belize Negotiating Team on the Resolution of the Belize Guatemala Territorial Dispute (1999-2012, W.H. Courtenay and Co. (1988-1999), a Senator, Leader of Government Business in the Senate, an Ambassador for Trade and Investment (Belize), Executive Chairman of BELTRAIDE (19992002), Senator and Attorney General and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (2003-2004), Deputy Chairman, Belize Bank (2004-2006) In November 2007 he was elected to the Standing Commission of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement; former President of the Bar Association of Belize and is currently an Attorney-at-Law at Courtenay Coye LLP.

Valerie Woods

Valerie Woods is a business manager who holds a MA in Tourism Administration from George Washington University, Washington D.C. and a BSc in Business Administration from Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y. She is currently the Country manager of Chukka (Belize), a tour operating company. Ms. Woods has significant experience in tourism management in Belize (both at the private sector and public sector levels). After a stint as a Sales and Marketing Director at the Radisson Fort George in Belize, Ms. Woods, at age 25, became the youngest Director of Tourism for Belize. Prior to that, she had served as Director of Marketing and later Deputy Director for Belize Tourism Board. Ms. Woods was instrumental in the restructuring of the board’s operations and in the decision to contract out Belize’s advertising and public relations to a professional international firm. In 1999, Ms. Woods became the Executive Director of the country’s only national conservation trust fund, the Protected Areas Conservation Trust (PACT). She has been instrumental as a volunteer in assisting the well-respected NGO, Friends of Conservation and Development (FCD) in its efforts to raise awareness and funding for the management of the Chiquibul Forest Reserve in Belize. Volunteering with FCD continues to rank among her priorities.

Paul Thompson

Paul Thompson is currently the PUP’s Standard Bearer in the Albert constituency, and has been active in politics for over two decades. He is a consummate sportsman and sporting enthusiast, and is the President of the Belize Basketball Federation. It is under his Leadership that the National Elite Basketball League was formed and has continued to grow. He also led the BBF in defending Belize’s constitution at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland while overseeing numerous international victories for both our junior and senior national teams. Paul graduated from the University of North Florida with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with emphasis in Marketing. He has always championed grassroots issues and programs and is married with two daughters.

Fundraising For Jane Usher Basketball Court By Gilroy Usher, Sr. “Don’t give up; don’t ever give up!” – Jim Valvano, an American college basketball coach The youths of the Jane Usher Boulevard Area in Port Loyola and I are planning a bar-b-q sale on April 30th 2016 to raise funds to assist in the much needed rehabilitation of their basketball court. The event will be held near 88 Shopping Center cor. Central American Blvd and Pen Road. Due to the continued neglect of the division by Area Representative Anthony “Boots” Martinez the ball court is in its most disgraceful state. The backboards are so rotten that they are falling apart. Grass has overtaken the court including the two bleachers and there is no light for night games. The situation pains my heart when I see youths playing basketball on a court that is in that state. Some also play basketball on a makeshift court on Jane Usher Blvd. The top of a drum perched on a lamppost is the rim while the bare ground is used as the court. It is directly opposite the home of Minister Martinez’s driver. They all see the struggles the youths are experiencing to survive. They just don’t care about them. For the past five years the Area Representative has done absolutely nothing to promote sports in the division. The basketball courts on Pen Road and Caesar Ridge Road and the two football fields in Port Loyola are also experiencing similar neglect. That is no exaggeration. If I, the PUP Standard Bearer for the area, do not take the initiative to promote sports in the division, such entertaining and healthy disciplines remain an elusive dream. Funding for sport is not the problem in the constituency.The Area Representative receives over $10,000 of taxpayers’ money every month to assist the people of the area with basic things. That’s over $120,000.00 per year. That’s a lot of cash, brothers and sisters. Nevertheless out of all that money Martinez does not even buy a

single ball to promote sports in the division. There is absolutely nothing tangible in the community to account for all those funds.To add insult to injury, the Area Representative drives past these neglected basketball courts and football fields every day in his expensive, private SUV which costs well over $50,000. Over the last five years this UDP administration also channeled millions of dollars through the Belize Infrastructure Limited (BIL) for the so-called development of sports throughout the county. How is it then that the Area Representative for Port Loyola has gotten nothing from BIL for his constituency? He simply does not care about the welfare of the people. Today the administration is building a basketball court for $8 million at the former site of the Civic Center on Central American Blvd. When the new court is completed, how will the youths of Port Loyola be able to participate competitively in basketball matches at the facility, if absolutely nothing is being done to promote the sport in the Jane Usher area and other parts of the division? All Belizeans are therefore asked to support the Bar-b-q sale on Saturday April 30 to assist in the rehabilitation of Jane Usher Basketball court. This can be done by calling 207-0970/6296560 to purchase tickets at $6.00 each, donate supplies, or assist in any other way possible.

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THE BELIZE TIMES

13 MAR

2016

Teachers Got Your Back, Who Got Theirs? Contributed A contributing article by Dorian Barrow entitled “THE VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACRE: 1,300 Teachers to Face MOE’s Firing Squad” has our educational system, specifically teacher training, under the microscope. Belize’s educational system has not come full circle since the establishment of formal education and the introduction of the Jeane’s Teachers System circa the late 1920s. This program was funded by the Carnegie Corporation in the name of philanthropist Anna T Jeanes. The existing problem in our educational system has become the focus of first Dorian Barrow’s contribution cited above then the editorial in Amandala dated Sunday, February 21, 2016 entitled “Dorian recants” (although it was mostly an attack on Dorian Barrow’s person) and recently PhD Alvaro Rosado’s article published in various newspapers including the BELIZE TIMES entitled “Quo Vadis University of Belize?” Collectively, these articles gave full blow to our education system and its managers spending blame that “the national University has failed to do an adequate job of training teachers to acceptable standards”. At this juncture and due to Dr. Rosado’s “bona fides” working as a lecturer at the Belize Teachers’ College and thereafter his appointment as Vice President of the University College of Belize, the question is: was anything done to stem the anomaly in his tenure as VP? The basic problem proffered by Dr. Rosado is that the experts in the field of education have become perfunctionaries to the whim and fancy of the political directorate. Sadly, this has become a norm under the United Democratic Party with the recent collapse of the papaya industry although the experts were saying that investing in non-traditional export crops is the way to brace the Jewel for the storms of trade liberalisation and globalisation. Also, not listening to financial pundits that

being a spendthrift government could spiral the country into financial collapse. Today we see the roles of the experts constantly being reversed with the politicians giving the instruction to achieve “the vision BNTU President, Luke Palacio of seers”. However, setting the delinquencies of the education ucation to empower the nation lic purpose, i.e., educating of system in Belize aside, none of the its growth and development is persons committed to a society contributions have addressed the dependent on the value that is that nurtures its members. We immediate fact that 1,300 teachers given to it by the nation” . come to a circuitous path. Virtuare on the chopping block. “Saving ous societies sustain education He went on further, drawing our Teachers from the firing squad” on John I Goodland’s book, “In that educates individuals to be written by J. Alexander Bennett, Praise of Education” written in virtuous citizens who sustain and the author of “Education in 1997, stating “a society should virtuous societies…the grateful Belize, A Historical Perspective” be investing in schools protectcitizen gives back to nurturing implicitly suggests retaining the ed from the erosion of their pubsociety”. 1,300 teachers, or, some of them from the pool, to undergo a period of training, as was done, and retaining those who are successful. At the same time, a program for the preparation of primary school teachers to serve in our schools could be introduced to prepare primary school teachers to qualify for the University of Belize. However, Pursuant to Section 10 (3) of the Belize Mines and Minerthe U.B. teacher training program als Act, Chapter 226, Substantive Laws of Belize, Revised must be strengthened utilizing Edition 2000-2003, Allan Michael Duncker Sr. for and on teacher training methods and practices done in the past. behalf of Aquamar Belize Ltd., Independence Village, Curiously some of the very Stann Creek District, has applied to the Honourable Minteachers caught in the line of fire ister of Natural Resources & Immigration, through the Inhad Dean Barrow and the United spector of Mines, Mining Unit; for a mining licence to mine Democratic Party “back” in office. clay and sand from an area located south of Big Creek, In the 2007 protest on the footToledo District. The areas to be mined are bounded by steps of the National Assembly the UTM co-ordinates: teachers and its Union was a major factor in the UDP’s 2008 election victory. So the question is posed once again: who got the teacher’s Eastings Northings “back” in their plight to stave off the firing squad? 347052 1825580 Hopefully, some middle ground could be achieved instead of the 347052 1825355 total firing of the teachers. The BNTU of the past would have ral1825355 346239 lied around the interests of its members. The weak links have 1825656 346239 fragmented the union and the education system has failed the teachers. In the preface of the book “Education in Belize” by J. Alexander Bennett, he points out succinctly, The areas to be mined comprise approximately forty-five “What history has shown is that (45) acres. while education may empower a nation it is also true that for ed-

FIRST NOTICE

13 MAR

2016

THE BELIZE TIMES

Belizean Beauty

Elisa

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TOPMODEL 09

TOP MODEL Career Plan: Modeling Clothing and Accessories Sign: Virgo provided by Favourite Food: Burger CATWALK FASHIONS Likes: Basketball, listening to music Lives in: Belmopan, Cayo District Fav. Quote: “Dream big, work hard, stay focused, surround yourself with good people.”

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Cor. North Front Steet & Queen Street Belize City

10 SPORTS

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

Team Koop Sheet Metal wins 2016 Ruta Maya canoe race

1st Females Belize Bank Bulldogs

Koop Sheet Metal vs Oceana PFB

Belize City, March 7, 2016 Team Koop Sheet Metal: Jerry Rhaburn, Jerry Cante and Hener Cruz won the 2016 Ruta Maya River Challenge clocking 17:08:46 over four days of paddling their canoe down 140 miles of the Macal and Belize Rivers from San Ignacio to finish by the Bottom Dollar parking lot in Belize City on Monday, March 7. It’s Rhaburn’s 3rd Ruta Maya win. He also won in 2010 and 2011, when he led the Ziprider team sponsored by Discovery Expeditions to victory. The Koop Sheet Metal team won the prized Kinich Ahau trophy, a $500 prize from SMART, a US$150 cash prize from Joseph Tillett and the 1st prize of $360 cash apiece from the race sponsors Belikin, BTB and N.I.C.H. Male 2nd BTL Cobb’s Arm - Roy and Eric Cano, Clayton Cabb - 17:10:24 3rd Belize Bank Bulldogs - Armin & Amado Lopez, Byron Cruz -

17:13:13 4th Team N.I.C.H. - Efrain, Felix & Alex Cruz - 17:14:56 5th Team Westrac Nitro - Oscar Cordon, Erwin & Daniel Cruz 6th Oceana/Programme for Belize - Wilberto & Kenrick Daniels, Chris Guydis Intramural 1st Belmopan Active Youths: Elvis Sutherland, Delroy Haylock, Glenford Sutherland 2nd Wat Eva Boyz: Carlos Linarez, Adrian Williams, Sergio Lopez 3rd University of Belize Black Jaguars Females 1st Belize Bank Bulldogs - Ana Cruz-Camp, Lily Cruz, Delilah Cabb 19:33:32 2nd Team Rod – 30:00:00+ Pleasure Division 1st Weh Dem Deh - 19:20:35 2nd Team Print Belize - Rudolph Gentle, Leroy Romero, Jose Crawford - 19:21:13 - Special award, - Perseverance award & $500 cash prize

3rd Team ‘Se We Ya’ - 20:29:51 Mixed Division 1st U.E.S. Impacts - Roberto & Milenie Cabb, Eric Cano 18:37:04 2nd Belize Coast Guardians: Jeraldo Teck, Leany Ruiz, James Alford - 18:58:52 3rd Black Orchid Resort: Martin Gideon, Avis Guydis, Michael Daniels - 19:11:09 Masters 1st Team Watt A Ting: Jose Segura, Andres Cabb, Johnny Searle - 18:45:35 2nd Grumpy Ol’ Men: Jerry Wilkens, Stanley Bailey, Peter Maullin - 21:00:51 3rd Team Reef Runner 26:28:36 Family Division (paddling 3 days only) 1st Team Triple H - 12:40:24 2nd Team ‘Wave Runnah’ 12:47:15 3rd Team Gentle’s Bump & Grind - 15:27:01

1st intramural BPN Active Youths

1st Masters Watt A Ting

1st Mixed UES Impacts

Robert Mariano wins Weekend Warriors’ circuit race

Orange Walk Town, March 6, 2015 Team DigiCell 4G’s Robert Mariano won the Weekend Warriors Cycling Club’s circuit race from Orange Walk Town to Yo Creek Village and back on Sunday.

A Division - 40 miles 1st Robert Mariano – Team DigiCell 4G - 1:59:55 2nd Daniel Cano – Team Santino’s 3rd Kent “Bob” Gabourel – Team Kulture Megabytes 4th Mark Gentle – Team F.T.Williams 5th Jack Sutherland Team DigiCell 4G Robert Mariano 6th Warren Coye – Team Santino’s 7th Fitzgerald “Palas” Joseph – Team Lampaz wins A Div. race 8th Preston Martinez – Team Kulture Megabytes 9th Isaiah Willacey – Team F.T. Williams 10th Gilroy Robinson – Team Santino’s C Division B division 1st Enrique Morales – Team Caribbean Tires 1st Santino Castillo – Team Santino’s - 2:17.46 2nd Alejandro Moralez - Team Caribbean Tires 2nd Sean Duncan – Team SMART 3rd Hewald Humes – Team DigiCell 4G 3rd Ryan Willoughby - Team SMART 4th Savinus Flores - Team Sugar City United 4th Steve Robinson – Team Caribbean Tires 5th David Madrid - Truckers Posse 5th Albert Conorquie -Team Sugar City United 6th Steve Gill – Team SMART 6th Clarence Tesecum - Team F.T. Williams 7th Wayne Arnold – Team Sugar City United 7th Manuel Esquiliano - Truckers Posse 8th Ingmar Perera - Team Stationery House 8th Joe Mckoy - Team Caribbean Tires 9th Alfonso Morales - Team Caribbean Tires 9th Santiago Cus - Team Bel-Cal 10th Frank Moody - Team DigiCell 4G

Top 4 A Division

Top 5 B Division

Top 5 C Division

13 MAR

2016

THE BELIZE TIMES

SPORTS 11

Guinea Grass boys & Yo Creek Gladiators win female football championships Chan Pine Ridge Village, March 6, 2016 The Guinea Grass boys and the Yo Creek girls won the under-15 male and female football championships hosted by Chan Pine Ridge Village during the annual Chan Pine Ridge agricultural show on Sunday. Guinea Grass boys defeated Chan Pine Ridge 2-0. Angel Ico scored a penalty in the 1st half after the Chan Pine Ridge goalie Alfred Torres handled the ball outside the goal area. Torres made the same mistake in the 2nd half, and again Angel Ico made him pay the maximum penalty: 2-0 final. In the female championship, the Yo Creek girls won 1-0 against Guinea Grass in double overtime. Individual medals Joan Bull - U-15 Most Valuable Player Award Shany Betancourt - Female MVP

Angel Ico scores Guinea Grass’ U15 2 goals

Yo Creek Gladiators

Elizar Itza scored 4 goals

Guinea Grass girls

Dairani Can vs Miriam Villamil

White Eagles & ITVET win in Orange Walk youth football Orange Walk Town, March 5, 2016 The Orange Walk Town Council sports committee’s junior football competition continued at the Orange Walk Technical High School field on Saturday, with the Corozal Rising Stars and Young School II wining in the under-13; the White Eagles, Orange Walk Central “A” Stars and “B’ Stars won in the Under-15, and the Carmelita Juniors and the Orange Walk ITVET won in the U-18 division. The competition continues at the OWTHS field on Saturday, March 12. Corozal Rising Stars U-13 vs. Orange Walk’s Crystal - 3-1 res

Goals by Alton Thompson, Nigel Williams (2), Allison Tor-

Young School vs. Centaur Minions - 5-0 Goals by Carlos “Cartuch” Canelo, Elvin Garcia, Marvin Card, Luis Sosa Jr. Black Water U-13 vs. Young School I - 0-0 OW Central Stars “A” U-15 vs. Corozal U-15 Stars 1-0 Goals by Jesse “Beast” August OW Central Stars “B” U-15 vs.Trial Farm Jaguars - 5-0 Goals by Edgvin Pena, Nijel Novelo, Freddy Lopez, Julian Galvez Blackwater White Eagles U-15 vs. Vibes Alive - 2-1 Goals by Ronny Urbina, Joel Novelo, Michael Cruz Carmelita Juniors vs. Blackwater U-19 - 3-1 Goals by Kevin Rhaburn, Leonardo Choc, Ian Aldana, C.J. Ack O.W. ITVET vs. Tower Hill U-19 Rising Stars - 2-0 Goals by Odais Chirinios

Blackwater White Eagles

White Eagles’ Bradnon Amaya attacks

Edvin Pena scored 2 goals

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

BSI/ASR Crop Review - Week 13

2016

(February 29, 2016 to March 6, 2016) Cane milled – 51,633 tons Total cane milled since start of 2015/2016 crop: 590,427 tons Total cane milled in the same period in 2014/2015 crop: 663,760 tons Difference in this year’s crop: -73,106 tons Sugar produced – 5,335 tons Total sugar produced since start of 2015/2016 crop: 54,538 tons Total sugar produced in the same period in 2014/2015 crop: 81,937 tons Grinding rate – 7,376 tons of cane per day Average grinding rate since start of 2015/2016 crop – 6,488 tons of cane per day Grinding rate in the same period of 2014/2015 crop – 7,294 tons of cane per day Juice purity – 86.09% Average juice purity since start of 2015/2016 crop – 84.63% Juice purity in same period of 2014/2015 crop – 88.27% Mud levels in cane – 4.72% Average mud level in this year’s crop – 4.94% Mud level in same period in 2014/2015 crop – 4.04% Tons Cane per Ton Sugar (TC/TS) – 9.68:1 Average TC/TS since start of 2015/2016 crop – 10.83:1 TC/TS for same period in 2014/2015 crop – 8.10:1 Sugar level in cane – 96.28% Average sugar level since start of 2015/2016 crop – 95.63 % Sugar level in the same period in 2014/2015 crop – 95.35% Factory Time efficiency – 99.32% Factory efficiency since the start of 2015/2016 crop – 95.40% Factory efficiency in the same period in 2014/2015 crop – 97.78% BSI Comments - Factory performance was very good with 51,633 metric tons milled for the week. - The targeted milling figures were surpassed by over 1,433 metric tons cane. - Overall recovery for week was very good resulting in a gradual improvement in the TC/TS ratio - Farmers, as a safety precaution, only the driver of the truck on any of the two dumper tables is authorized to be on the safety zone shed as this gives a clear indication to the operator that the truck driver has alighted before he attempts to lift the dumper table. Data compiled from Daily and Weekly Factory Reports prepared by BSI.

All offers to purchase the said property must be made in writing and full particulars and conditions of sale may be obtained from the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. SCHEDULE All that piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 128 containing 465.064 square meters situate in Lord’s Bank Village, Belize District and bounded and described in Minister’s Fiat (Grant) attached to and shown on Plan No. 1234 of 2006 TOGETHER with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon. DATED this 18th day of February, 2016. MUSA & BALDERAMOS LLP 91 North Front Street Belize City Attorney-at-Law for Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

For Sale By Order of the Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., a company duly registered under the Companies Act, Chapter 250 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition, 2000, and having its registered office at Cor. Albert and Bishop Streets, Belize City, Belize, hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Mortgagee under a Deed of Mortgage made the 27th day of April, 2011, between Gregoria Martinez of Big Falls Village, Toledo District, Belize of the one part, and SCOTIABANK (BELIZE) LTD., of the other part, and recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 10 of 2011 at Folios 813 – 880, the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. will at the expiration of two months from the date of the first publication of this notice sell the property described in the schedule hereto. All offers to purchase the said property must be made in writing and full particulars and conditions of sale may be obtained from the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. SCHEDULE All that piece or parcel of land comprising 0.10.895 acres situate along the Southern Highway, Big Falls Area, Toledo District, Belize TOGETHER with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon. DATED this 18th day of February, 2016. MUSA & BALDERAMOS LLP 91 North Front Street Belize City Attorney-at-Law for Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

Caribbean countries urged to fully develop energy sector Wednesday, March 09, 2016 WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — Caribbean countries have been told that reducing energy costs will help the region improve growth and strengthen competitiveness. But at the same time, regional policymakers face conflicting objectives. On the one hand, investment in an effective energy reform strategy would have long-term benefits, while on the other, few countries have fiscal space to embark on ambitious investments to reform the energy sector. The situation confronting the region in its energy sector is discussed in a paper titled “Caribbean Energy: Marco Related Challenges’ written by a number of financial experts including the prominent Grenadian-born economist, Arnold McIntyre, and released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). They argue that the substantial decline in oil prices since mid-2014 does not obviate the need for energy sector reform. “The impact of the oil price decline is global, so it has not improved relative prices for the Caribbean compared with its trade partners. Moreover, competitiveness challenges are escalating, with the appreciation of the US dollar (expected to continue over the next few years with the normalization of US monetary policy) and the potential opening of Cuba to US tourism and trade. “Hence, any gains from recent oil price declines should be seen as a temporary breathing space that gives the English speaking Caribbean some time to catch up with the cost reductions needed to compete successfully in a more open region,” they wrote in the paper. They said that the case for Caribbean energy sector reform rests on two pillars. These are the current poor state of the energy sector, with infrastructure and institutional frameworks needing upgrades to eliminate high-cost inefficiencies and enable diversification; and the fact that the macroimpact of current large energy bills remains significant, even since the recent oil price decline. The study notes that the cost of electricity in the Caribbean has been persistently high over the past two decades, and has eroded competitiveness.

ANALYSIS TO DETERMINE IMMEDIATE AND UNDERLYING STRUCTURAL CAUSES OF DROP-OUT RATE IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS AND LOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLS THE UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND (UNICEF) AND THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, YOUTH AND SPORTS TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR CONSULTANCY PURPOSE To conduct quantitative and qualitative analysis on the profiles and barriers for Out-Of-School Children (OOSC) and those at risk of dropping out, and produce a national report which details recommendations for addressing the problem and the use of data to inform policies/interventions, that are in alignment with the newly implemented Early Warning System. The consultant will work in consultation with the relevant government institutions, and in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, UNICEF and its Regional Advisors. BACKGROUND In 2010, UNICEF and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) launched a global Out-of-school Children Initiative (OOSCI). The aim of this initiative is to improve the analysis around the factors affecting the exclusion of children from education, leading to more targeted and effective policies and programmatic approaches. Those children who are still out of school often face deep rooted structural inequalities linked to income poverty, exposure to child labour, conflict and natural disasters, location, gender, HIV and AIDS, disability, ethnicity, language and religion. These are major barriers to education which place many countries at risk of not achieving universal primary or basic education. Scope of work The consultancy will span 7 months from 1April 2016 -30 November 2016. The consultant will provide: • • • • •

Draft action plan for the analysis which includes process, strategy, inception report including methodology and conceptual framework; Conduct a data review for getting statistical data for OOSC study, and a desk review of data sources; Conduct bottleneck analysis to identify the determinants for a high level of drop-out rate in the upper primary and lower secondary levels; Conduct case study: analysis of specific reasons for specific cases of students’ drop-out. Present report and executive summary with clear plan of action on using the analysis and study to guide sector plans, interventions or policies.

Responsibilities: • • • • • • • • • • •

Undertake data inventory and quality assessment, using tools provided by the regional advisors, to identify main data sources for the analysis Develop study design, conduct data review or desk reviews as needed, and develop a detailed plan for analysis consistent with the methodology from other OOSCI studies Conduct the analysis of statistical data, (gender sensitive and equity focused) on out-of-school children, and on those at risk of dropping out of school, and on the relevant barriers and bottlenecks. Conduct a desk review of policy documents, studies, reports etc. to feed into the analysis on barriers, in collaboration with the regional advisors. Conduct a qualitative analysis, (gender sensitive and equity focused) and integrate the findings in the national report Perform all tasks related to the process of consolidating, checking, processing and analysing the data, including identifying gaps Based on the theoretical framework on OOSCI regional studies, identify those variables and/or indicators to be included in the report. That implies the search of cross cutting variables to show the situation of OOSC, as well as looking at different characterizations on children who are in school but at risk of dropping out. Produce the national report on the underlying structural causes of drop-out rates in Belize Conduct presentations to the national steering committee to update on progress and preliminary findings of the national report Conduct consultations/seminars with other relevant stakeholders (government and development partners) to share the methodology and the findings from the analysis throughout the research period – as well as the draft report Coordinate the endorsement of the final draft of the national report through formal and informal advocacy activities, including but not limited to the national steering committee.

Deliverables 1. Identification of main data sources for the analysis by doing data inventory and quality assessment. (April 30, 2016) 2. Detailed plan for analysis consistent with the methodology from other OOSCI studies. (April 30, 2016) 3. Preparation of a workshop on OOSC in Belize. (April, 2016) 4. A desk review of policy documents, studies, reports etc. to feed into the analysis on barriers. (31 May2016) 5. Analysis of statistical data, on out-of-school children, and on the relevant barriers and bottlenecks. (July, 2016) 6. A qualitative analysis integrated to the findings in the national report. (September, 2016) 7. Presentations to update on progress and preliminary findings of the national report. (September, 2016) 8. Coordination of the final draft of the national report. (October, 2016) 9. A national report on the underlying structural causes of drop-out rates in Belize. (November, 2016) 10. A set of recommendations to strengthen/ implement a tracking system to monitor students attendance or lack of in primary and secondary schools (November, 2016) Qualifications a. Education: Advanced degree/post-graduate qualifications in education, social science, psychology, sociology, research or related fields; b. Experience: Minimum of five years applied professional experience in quantitative and qualitative research and quality report writing; familiarity with statistical methods in data analysis, policy analysis, gender mainstreaming, programme development and design, monitoring and evaluation. Expertise in understanding and applying the Conceptual and Methodological Framework of the Out of School Children Initiative. Expertise in OOSC and knowledge about Belize will be great assets. Experience in working with country and international agencies teams in the use of information oriented to education policy design/improvement. c. Incumbent should have a demonstrated knowledge and experience in Human Rights Based management and programming d. Languages: Fluency in English is required; Fluency in Spanish will be an asset. Applicants must kindly email applications to belize@unicef.org marked “Consultancy: Analysis Drop-out Rate” in the Subject Header and must submit a: • • •

Cover letter with an updated CV for lead consultant Completed United Nations Personal History Form (P11) for lead consultant. Link for P11 form: http://www.unicef.org/videoaudio/PDFs/ P11.doc Proposal including financial cost for the consultancy.

Closing Date: Deadline for submission of applications is 17 March 2016; please consider that ONLY completed application packages will be given consideration. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. For complete TORs kindly send request to belize@unicef.org

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

PUBLIC AUCTION

BY ORDER OF THE MORTGAGEE, DEVELOPMENT FINANCE COOPERATION, CERTIFIED AND LICENSED AUCTIONEER MIGUEL A. ELLIS WILL SELL THE FOLLOWING PROPERTIES: On Tuesday , 15th March, 2016 at DFC Office, Orange Walk At 10:30am No.

Name

Description

Development

ISMAEL YAH

Parcel No. 16/1, containing 2889.8 S.M, Block 1, Lousiville Registration Section, Louisville Village, Corozal District held under Certificate of Lease, being the leasehold property of ISMAEL YAH.

One - Two (2) bedroom concrete building containing 1-living, kitchen and dining room combined with one bathroom and an incomplete structure. Size: 62675 sq. ft.

NATIVIDAD MIGUELA COPO

Parcel 592/1, containing 2074.4 s.m. Block 1, San Jose/San Pablo Registration Section, located in San Jose Village, Orange Walk District, being the Leasehold property of CARMEN GARCIA surety for NATIVIDAD MIGUELA COPO.

Two (2) bedroom bungalow house containing a combine living and kitchen area and 1 bathroom

JORGE ALBERTO ROSADO

Parcel No. 1847, Block 4, Ann Gabourel Registration Section, containing 555.56 s.y., Orange Walk District held under Land Certificate, being the Freehold property of JORGE ALBERTO ROSADO. (Located in the San Lorenzo housing Site)

One- Three (3) bedroom concrete bungalow house containing 1-kitchen, 1 -dinning, 1 -living room and 1-bathroom with veranda. Size: 796.25 Sq. Ft.

ROGER PABLO TUN & PABLO TUN

Parcel # 333/1, San Lazaro Registration Section, Block No. 4, (1367.188 s.m. Or 1635.157 s.y) situated in San Lazaro Village, Orange Walk District, held under a Certificate of Lease, being the Leasehold Property of PABLO TUN (Surety) for ROGER PABLO TUN AND PABLO TUN.

First Floor: One Two (2) bedroom, 1 kitchen, 1 dining, 1 living & 1 bath & office & laundry; 2nd floor - 4 bedrooms, 1 bath, 1 kitchen & 1 dining, 1 living 2 verandahs (lot size = 85 x 175)

VALERIO RENE LOPEZ

Parcel No. 86/1, Block 1, Buena Vista Village Registration Section, containing 2901.15 s.m., situate in Corozal District and held under Certificate of Lease being leasehold property of CRISANTO CRISTINO EWAN surety for VALERIO RENE LOPEZ.

0.72 Acres of Land (2,901.15 s.m.) with fruit trees and a Pimento House. (Located just off the Philip Goldson Highway)

FARM FRESH LIMITED

Parcel No. 596, Block 4, Millers Bight Registration Section, containing 13 Acres situate in Carmelita Village, Orange Walk District being 13 Acres of land held under a Land Certificate dated 12th December 2011, being the freehold property of FARM FRESH LIMITED. (Located on the Old Northern Highway).

Empty Parcel of Land (No developments or improvement on land)

Picture

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

PUBLIC AUCTION

Name

Description

Development Agricultural Parcel of Land (Containing 1 Shed, 2 water towers with storage rooms and one bathroom. All developments are in good conditions. The packaging building is of concrete flooring & the walls are built of zinc along with roof. (Has access to electricity and portal water).

FARM FRESH LIMITED

Parcel No. 595, Block 4, Millers Bight Registration Section, containing 87 +/- Acres, situate in the Carmelita Village, Orange Walk District, held under a Land Certificate dated 30th June 2011, being the freehold property of FARM FRESH LIMITED. (Located on the Old Northern Highway).

ARTURO OMAR RODRIGUEZ

Parcel No. 1824, Block 4, Ann Gabourel Registration Section, containing 555.56 S.Y., situate in Orange Walk District, ., held under Land Certificate being the freehold property of ARTURO OMAR RODRIGUEZ.

Three (3) bedrooms bungalow house, one (1) kitchen, one (1) living & dining area, two (2) bathroom and an open porch. Measuring 555.540 S.Y.

RENEI EDEL TUN

Parcel No. 181/1, & 182/1, Block 4, situate in Trinidad Village Registration Section, containing (2871.8 S.M.) & (293.5 S.M.) respectively, situate Orange Walk District, held under a Certificate of Lease, being the Leasehold property of RENEI EDEL TUN.

1-3 Bedroom concrete bungalow containing 1- living, 1- dining, 1-kitchen and 1 bathroom.

LUIS TUN

Parcel No. 229/1, Block 4, Trinidad Registration section, containing 1,250 sq yds, situate in Trinidad Village, Orange Walk District, held under a Certificate of Lease, being the leasehold property of LUIS TUN (also known as CASIMIRO TUN)

1 - 2 bedroom concrete bungalow house.

ESDRA NERMIAS REYNOSO

Parcel # 96/1, Block 4 Chan Pine Ridge registration section, containing 907.48 s.m., situated in Chan Pine Ridge Village, Orange 1 - 3-bedroom concrete bungalow Walk District, held under a Certificate of Lease, house containing 1-living, dining & being the Leasehold property of DIANELA kitchen with 1 bathroom. TZUL REYNOSO aka AURORA DIANELA TZUL surety for ESDRA NERMIAS REYNOSO.

MARGARET & JAIME NOGUERA

Parcel 83/1 containing 395.81 Acres, Block 1, Pembroke Hall Registration Section, situate in the Calcutta Village, Corozal District held by Certificate of Lease being the leasehold property of MARGARET NOGUERA surety for JAIME & MARGARET NOGUERA.

Approximately 145 acres containing sugarcane. (Located within the Calcutta Village, approximately 2 miles from the main highway)

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13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

PUBLIC AUCTION

Name

MARTA LETICA CACERES

Description

Development

Parcel 4085/1, Block 4, Orange Walk Town Registration Section (previously Lot No. 1139 situate in Louisiana Farm Extension held under Minister’s Fiat Lease No. 986/99), being the Leasehold property of CARLOS E. REYES surety for MARTHA LETICIA CACERES

Parcel 4086/1, Block 4, Orange Walk Town Reg. Section (previously Lot No. 1142 (423.31 s.m.), situate in Louisiana Farm Extension, Orange Walk Town, held under Minister’s Fiat Lease No. 986/99), being the Leasehold property of CARLOS E. REYES surety for MARTHA LETICIA CACERES

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Empty Lot

MARTA LETICA CACERES

Parcel 4089/1, Block 4, Orange Walk Town Reg. Section (previously Lot No. 1143 (containing 395.336 s.m.), situate in Louisiana Farm Extension, Orange Walk Town, held under Empty Lot Minister’s Fiat Lease No. 695/99), being the Leasehold property of RAUL I. RODRIGUEZ) surety for MARTHA LETICIA CACERES

MARTA LETICA CACERES

Parcel 4090/1, Block 4, Orange Walk Town Reg. Section (previously Lot No. 1146 (containing 426.967 s.m.), situate in Louisiana Farm, Orange Walk Town, held under Minister’s Fiat Lease No. 700/99), being the Leasehold property of MERNA PLACIDA CAWICH (also known as MIRNA CAWICH) surety for MARTHA LETICIA CACERES

Empty Lot

Miguel A. Ellis P.O. Box 118, Belmopan, Ph: 634-9058 E-Mail: Miguel_ellis@hotmail.com Please contact DFC for financing

BY ORDER OF THE MORTGAGEE, Social Security Board, CERTIFIED AND LICENSED AUCTIONEER MIGUEL A. ELLIS WILL SELL THE FOLLOWING PROPERTIES:

On site, Saturday 12th of March 2016 At 10:30am No.

Name

G. MENDEZ

Description ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Parcel No. 189, Block 45, situated in the Vista Del Mar Registration Section, Belize District. Being a concrete bungalow (having 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, 1 kitchen, 1 dining room and a living room) situate at Yellow Tail Street, Ladyville, the leasehold property of G. Mendez.

Development

Picture

13 MAR

2016

On Demagogues & Sophists By G. Michael Reid Demagoguery is an appeal to people that plays on their emotions and prejudices rather than on their rational side. Demagoguery is a manipulative approach — often associated with dictators and sleazy politicians. - Anon The term sophistry is defined as “a subtle, tricky, superficially plausible, but generally fallacious method of reasoning”. It is used particularly in arguments that are meant to be deceiving.” It was a skill taught to wealthy people in ancient Greece where they were trained in the fine art of rhetoric; the practice of persuasive speaking. Today, these sophists are known as lawyers but not all lawyers are good sophists. Sophists believe that they are so good; they can leave a person questioning even an obvious truth. They particularly pride themselves in being able to make a weak argument strong. The old teachers would boast to his students that he could give them the “power to convince by your words the judges in court, the senators in council, the people in the assembly or in any other gathering of the citizen body”.The competent rhetorician can speak against anybody on any subject and prove himself more convincing. Our Prime Minister is an able rhetorician or you might say, a demagogue in every sense of the word! Sophistry is described by some scholars as being “toxin” and is said to paralyze thought. Lawyers use sophistry to tell deliberate lies but do so in a way where it is difficult to expose them. That is because they are so versed in the art of argument that they can run you around in circles and by the end of the day, leave you looking foolish and make you out to be a laughing stock. The reason they can do that is because they employ tactics that the ordinary untrained individual does not recognize. The audience is led along and are dazzled by fancy talk, funny quips, sarcastic remarks and fallacies geared at steering a conversation in the direction that a sophist wants it to go. It is said that if you “can’t beat them with wits then you must baffle them with bullshit”. A sophist will both beat you with wits and will baffle you with bullshit. A good sophist is a rare, but a dangerous breed. The Prime Minister of Belize, Right Honourable Dean Barrow is eminently

THE BELIZE TIMES

qualified and an impeccably talented sophist. He is educated, highly intellectual and extraordinarily eloquent. He is a fantastic wordsmith, has an extensive and picturesque vocabulary and can articulately carve an argument where one might think there is none. While most people do not understand half of what he says, most are left in awe at his unconstrained constructions and effortlessly timed employment of maxims, put downs and wisecracks. If you would suspect that I somehow admire this man’s ability, skill and style, you would not be far wrong. In the words of Fletcher, “When needs he must, yet faintly then he praises, somewhat the deed, much more the means he raises: So marreth what he make, and praising most, dispraises”. Any person given to poetic ramblings or glib and flowery speech cannot help but admire the style and form of this modern

adjournment to present a matter of public interest. Honourable Rodwell Ferguson raised the issue about the looming crisis in the citrus industry. Citrus farmers have not been paid for several weeks and word is from CPBL, that they were awaiting a loan from Heritage Bank. It seems that in order for the bank to give the loan, there has to be approval from Central Bank. According to what Citrus Products of Belize Ltd (CPBL) has informed the farmers, (and this substantiated by the managers at Heritage Bank), Central Bank has not been able to meet to approve the loan. I happen to know for a fact that what the member from Stann Creek West was saying was the truth and nothing but the truth. The Prime Minister then rose to rebut the member, accusing him of not doing his research. The Prime Minister then went on a half hour harangue, which began with him attempting to ridicule the member for his post as “deputy party leader”. He then proceeded in needless superfluous language to say exactly what Mr. Ferguson had said; the Central Bank had not approved the loan! Yet by the end of his tirade, supporters and sycophants were applauding and loudly banging on the tables. Is there none among us who can see that this emperor is wearing no clothes? I was particularly troubled by a state-

it’s not in the budget, therefore no need to account for such. Does anyone else see something wrong with this? Another troubling situation was a bill presented to afford substantive ministers the power to give their Ministers of State the authority to sign official documents. Are we crazy, plain stupid or do we just never learn! Have we already forgotten what happened when Elvin Penner was given such authority? I am listening to this and something just does not seem right. According to the Prime Minister, they have done this before; yes, we remember. He has checked with his legal advisors and was told that it is perfectly okay; they did nothing wrong. Why then the haste to put this into law? Is it that those advisors have warned him of the illegality of his actions and he is now, like he did with the Petro Caribe Act, simply covering his tracks and making legal what was in fact, illegal? Something is just not right here and hopefully the Opposition will expose this for what it is; unadulterated chicanery! The Leader of the Opposition then rose in the House to object to a practice that this government has made almost standard; going through all three readings of Bills before the House in one sitting. While in Opposition, this government, and in particular this very Prime Minister had railed incessantly against this very practice. In response, the Prime Minister explained that they had never objected to such Bills. Well, the records are there and it was not that long ago. The now Prime Minister had objected to every Bill that was attempted to be passed through the House in one sitting; every Bill! According to Mr. Barrow, why waste time in going through the usual process. Simple; it is the lawfully prescribed procedure. There is a reason why this is done. It is called Transparency and Accountability. Remember those two words Mr. Prime Minister? It was the very platform on which you were elected. You can spin and weave your yarn, oh celebrated sophist, but while you might fool some of the people all of the time and even all of the people some of the time, you will never fool all of the people all of the time. The writing’s on the wall!

A bill presented to afford substantive ministers the power to give their Ministers of State the authority to sign official documents. Are we crazy, plain stupid or do we just never learn! Have we already forgotten what happened when Elvin Penner was given such authority? day Shakespearean Portia. Envy him however, I do not! Was the Prime Minister to put his remarkable gift of gab and talent for persuasion to good use, Belize would be a good place and in a much better position to survive these globally challenging times. Instead, Mr. Barrow uses his skills and talents to confuse and confound and with his rapier wit, pulls wool over the eyes of the people. Of course, the people are not blameless in all of this and are too easily fooled. Like the rats of Hamelin, they follow too blindly behind this magical music of this duplicitous pied piper. Mr. Barrow’s skill was on full displayed at this week’s budget reading in Belmopan where he took a very weak and troubling budget and held it up to people as if it were something to look forward to. Despite a ballooning deficit and a wage bill that has grown to unsustainable levels, particularly in these troubling petrocaribeless times, Mr. Barrow was yet, full of promises and false hope. He was his usual boastful, verbose and bombastic self but the echoes of his hollow words reverberated in the hallowed halls of parliament. The jig is just about up! The Opposition has two weeks to examine and dissect the Prime Minister’s flimsily assembled trompe l’oeil s but make no mistake; this master sophist also has two weeks to construct his arguments. Mr. Briceño and his team have a formidable job ahead. We were already given one example of what to expect when on Tuesday, the member from Stan Creek West rose on

ment that the Prime Minister made repeatedly. “We have nothing in the budget for this, but I will find the money to do it.” Mr. Barrow was talking in one instance about a half a million dollars and in another instance of a couple of million dollars. Are we okay with this? Where does the Prime Minister “find” this money; and if he can pull money from thin air to complete projects, then who is to say that he can’t just pull such money to reward family and friends or to pad his own offshore accounts? After all,

13 MAR

THE BELIZE TIMES

MY PERSPECTIVE By Dolores Balderamos Garcia

Don’t Rush to Judgement A week or so ago the news revealed that the body of an unborn child was found in the bushes in Dangriga by a dog and was apparently dragged out in the open and thus uncovered. It is news that no right thinking person ever wants to hear, and I feel sure that Belizeans were very sad on watching this story on the evening news on television. The fetus was believed to be at six or seven months of development, and it reportedly was discarded in a piece of cloth that had been set on fire. The headline of the story was “Benguche Residents Make

Grisly Discovery.” I reviewed the news item, and it was replete with strong and emotive language: “horrible to cover,” “gruesome,” “unsightly occurrence,” “callous,” “utterly inconceivable,” “jarring.” The item went on to say “Just how an unborn would end up being aborted and carelessly discarded is anyone’s guess.” And next: “What prompted the expecting mother to terminate her pregnancy around the third trimester?” It doesn’t stop there: “Why would such an inhumane act of cruelty be allowed to take place?” (!!) It goes even further. The person reporting the story openly invited residents to make conjecture. One of them said: “It may

have been someone from the neighborhood presumably with assistance from another unknown person, who carried out the abortion.” The owner of the dog also said: “Ih haffi be somebody close by.” And in conclusion, the news story again quoted the owner of the dog who said: “So deh know who they are; the Almighty mek di dog bring out di corpse and show weh di go ahn – corruption.” This is, of course, speculation. And wait a minute - do we know what happened? The Criminal Code of the Laws of Belize outlaws abortion in section 111. “ Every person who intentionally and unlawfully causes abortion or miscarriage shall be liable to imprisonment...” and “Every person who, with intent to destroy the life of a child capable of being born alive, by any wilful act causes a child to die before it has an existence independent of its mother, shall be guilty of felony... provided that no person shall be guilty of a crime under this subsection unless it is proved that the act which caused the death of the child was not done in good faith for the purposes only of preserving the life of the mother.” This is very specific and detailed language, and great care needs to be taken in determining all the facts. The police officer who

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was interviewed did get it right in saying that “after determining who the mother was, then we will see if anybody is liable for criminal charges.” There are so many possible scenarios in this case. The law requires that actions have to be intentional, deliberate and unlawful. I think that we should initially look at this matter less as a heinous crime and more as a very tragic occurrence until the evidence is gathered. It is so easy to rush to judgement, and it appears that all the emotional language that was used in the news item only serves to stir up sentiment. It is necessary to pause and to take a careful look at the law, and the facts as they emerge. The news item itself spoke about a discarded stillborn, which demonstrates that so much is not yet known. If investigation proves illegality this is a serious offence, but until more can emerge I feel it is not correct to condemn. My caution would be that we really should not rush to judgement. Investigators have much on their hands. I truly hope that there will be professionalism and sensitivity on the part of the Police and the Director of Public Prosecutions’ office.

Belmopan Mayor threatens to leave 30 families homeless

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THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

Home Economics How the system of budgeting is hurting tax payers By Richard Harrison Tax payers get hurt when they pay the government more for less or inferior services. The Government of Belizeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s system of budgeting is mostly INCREMENTAL BUDGETING....where a budget for past years is increased each year by a percentage that compensates for the rate of inflation....not much to do with what are the current determined needs of the society. Hon. Ralph Fonseca, as Minister of Finance, had tried to move the government budgeting system towards a ZEROBASE BUDGETING....where the amount budgeted for a future year is based on the plans of the government for that year, not necessarily adding an increment to what was spent last year on any particular budget line item. His efforts got derailed when his Party lost elections and the UDP took office. The incremental budgeting system assumes that everything that was done last year should be continued in the coming year, and indeed, a little more of it should be done....hence an increase is projected for almost every budget line item. The zero-base budgeting system considers that all activities/budget line items of government must be analyzed annually, with a view to increasing the budget for those services we need more of, decreasing the budget for those services we need less of, eliminating the line item all together if it is a service we no longer need, or opening a new line item to budget for new services that are needed. As Belize has been growing mostly based on public sector borrowing and spending, politically-motivated, shortterm strategies....a mountain of debt is now piled up at our doors...to the tune of over 90% of GDP, and climbing every day. The time has come for a reality check....and the people must demand.... through the aggressive agitation and mobilization of unions, business organizations, civil societies, youth...and yes, Her Majestyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Loyal Opposition....that government become a lot more efficient and effective. All budget line items must come under analytic scrutiny....with a view to increasing budgets where there is most need, decreasing where there is less need, elimination where a need exist no longer, and opening new budget line items to allocate for new needs. This incremental budget system that is currently being used is an unaffordable, exorbitant cost to Belizean tax payers. It results in many budget items having a lot more money than is needed...especially in those areas conducive to corruption.... office equipment, computers, vehicles, food/travel/subsistence, consultancies and contracting, fuel and maintenance. Since the budget year runs from April 1 to March 30.....Belize is currently in the process of finalizing the budget for the next fiscal year. At the end of December, the government departments know how much they have spent and how much remains in their budgets....and it is usually the case that there is a large portion of budgeted

amounts that have not been spent.....so they go on a spending spree between January and March....to make sure they spend all the allocated budget....and so they can justify asking for an increase for every line item for the coming year. This is the period where corruption is most rampant. Belize needs to spend more on agricultural, natural resources (especially forestry) and industrial development for increased import-substitution and export....it needs to spend more on improved access to better health services, especially on better medicines and diagnostic services purchased through a more transparent, professionally-driven system (cheap is not always better).... it needs more and better road maintenance with appropriate drainage...it needs to get better quality of education for the large budgets being allocated....it needs substantial investments in ports, airports and terminals that will lower costs, increase demand and improve quality of service....it needs to invest substantially in reducing human negative impact on the environment especially with regards to agricultural pollution and solid and liquid wastes being generated by our rapidly expanding communities and currently being dumped directly into the ground and surface waters...it needs to make major investments in youth economic development (not only sports) and to get Belizean students to take advantage of more of the scholarships currently available, and aggressively seek out more from our friends across the world (Belizeansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; language barrier, especially towards the Spanish language, is totally ridiculous and immature). The municipalities have grown much beyond their capacities in terms of legal responsibilities to deliver services....at a much faster pace than their capacity to capture the revenues to finance those services. A major rethinking of how municipalities are financed must be openly and widely debated...with a view to making substantial alterations through a defined, phased change process...and this should include increasing the amounts of central government allocations to municipal governments by significant sums in the short term (i.e. in the upcoming budget) through Capital II budgets, similar to what was done to finance the salary increases. More individuals, groups, institutions and communities should become interested in the budgeting process.... and seek to influence it....after all....it is how our tax dollars are spent. The current outdated incremental system of budgeting is costing Belizean tax payers their arms and legs...it is one of the principal legs on which public sector corruption run. Nothing flies faster than money out of the hands of fools.... Richard Harrison is a local businessman and investor in the manufacturing and service industries. Mr. Harrison holds a Masters in Business Administration degree from Lancaster University, United Kingdom. Send comments to harrisonbz@yahoo.com

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THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

BELIZE TIMES WEEKLY

SCIENCE & TECH R

Toyota develops wearable device for blind people Toyota is developing a wearable device to help give blind and visually impaired people greater mobility, the manufacturer has said. 8 March 2016 The gadget is worn on the shoulders and uses cameras to recognise surroundings, such as signs, then directs the wearer with speakers and vibration motors. Details were released this week, though no release date has been set. The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) called it an exciting development. The device has been produced by developers working on Project Blaid. They said they were working on plans to introduce mapping, object identification and facial recognition technologies as well. It comes after Microsoft said it had designed a headset that uses location and navigation data with a network of information beacons in urban locations to talk visually impaired people around cities. Robin Spinks, senior strategy manager at the RNIB, told the

BBC: “This is a very exciting development within the rapidly growing field of wearable assistive technology. Mobility is at the heart of so much in our society and a device like Blaid could open up limitless possibilities for millions of blind and partially sighted people.”

‘Mobility’ In an announcement made this week, Toyota said the device was not meant to replace those aids currently available to blind and visually impaired people, but to “help fill the gaps left by canes, dogs and basic GPS devices by providing users with

Highest ever annual rise in carbon dioxide levels recorded It is not just temperature records that are falling. The average carbon dioxide level recorded at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, during February 2016 was 404.02 parts per million – 3.76 ppm higher than the average for February 2015, according to preliminary figures. That is the biggest ever increase over a 12-month period. The previous 12-month record at Mauna Loa was 3.70 ppm, from September 1997 to September 1998. A new record has also been set for the biggest rise over a calendar year. Global average CO2 levels (which differ slightly from the figures for Mauna Loa only) rose by 3.09 ppm in 2015. The previous record was a rise of 2.82 ppm, in 1998. The record figures are due to the continued growth in emissions from

warm in the future. Some studies suggest that greenhouse gas emissions have fallen recently, but these studies typically only include emissions from energy generation and industry, and are based on countries’ own estimates. They do not include changes in land use, such as deforestation and the loss of peat. While the El Niño boost will be temporary, says Ralph Keeling of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the long-term trend is that more and more CO2 is entering the atmosphere every year. What’s more, the rate of growth continues to increase.

Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii

human activity along with the ongoing El Niño phenomenon, which causes CO2 levels to shoot up because it causes in an increase in wildfires in places such as Indonesia. They are, of course, bad news because the higher the levels of CO2 are in the atmosphere, the more the planet will

more information about their surroundings”. In a video posted online, it showed how the device could be used to distinguish between one door marked gentlemen’s toilet and another marked exit. Toyota said it was primarily intended to help users navigate indoors. ”Project Blaid is one example of how Toyota is leading the way to the future of mobility, when getting around will be about more than just cars,” said Toyota executive Simon Nagata. “We want to extend the freedom of mobility for all, no matter their circumstance, location or ability.” The firm said that, as part of the project - which is not linked to the manufacture of cars for which it is better known - it was asking employees to submit videos of common indoor landmarks that developers could use to teach the device to recognise them.

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2016 2016

REGIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

THE BELIZE THE BELIZE TIMESTIMES

Venezuela opposition calls for push to oust Maduro Venezuela’s opposition has called for the “largest movement that has ever existed” to oust President Nicolas Maduro, vowing to pursue all means to force him from power, including a referendum and protests. The opposition Democratic Unity Roundtable coalition (MUD), which gained control of the legislature in December, spent weeks deciding on its strategy to remove the president, whose popularity has plunged in the face of a crippling economic crisis. After heated debate over the merits of a referendum, a constitutional amendment or the drafting of a new constitution, the MUD announced its plan was all of the above, and more. It placed special emphasis on its call for protests, starting from Saturday. “The Democratic Unity Roundtable has taken the unanimous decision to call on the Venezuelan people to launch the largest popular pressure movement that has ever existed, to activate all - I repeat, all - mechanisms for change,” said the opposition coalition’s executive secretary, Jesus Torrealba.

Police impersonators kill 10 at Honduras billiards hall Men dressed in police uniforms launch deadly attack in violent neighbourhood of the capital Tegucigalpa At least 10 people have been shot dead by men dressed in police uniforms in an attack in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, security and hospital forces said. Five men arrived in a vehicle at a billiards hall in the violent northeastern December 1 neighbourhood and opened fire with AK-47 assault rifles. The men wore police clothing when they attacked, killing eight people and injuring others, said a security ministry source who asked not to be named. Two other people later died at the Hospital Escuela Universitario, hospital spokesman Miguel Osorio said. Police said the pool hall was controlled by the Barrio 18 gang and there were about 30 people in it at the time. No arrests have been made. The massacre took place a year after a similar shooting in a nearby pool hall left five people dead. There are 16 homicides on average in Honduras every day, mostly due to drug cartels and territorial disputes by violent gangs dedicated to extortion.

Coalition in control of legislature plans for constitutional changes and protests against President Nicolas Maduro.

Bangladesh to sue US bank over $100m lost to hackers Dhaka says Federal Reserve Bank of New York failed to prevent money from being stolen by alleged Chinese hackers. Bangladesh’s government has said that it will sue the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for failing to prevent $100m from being stolen by hackers from a reserve account for Bangladesh’s central bank. Dhaka, which accuses Chinese hackers of stealing the money from its foreign exchange account on February 5 and transferring it to accounts in the Philippines, also said it was working to recover the funds. Bangladesh’s Finance Minister AMA Muhith said on Tuesday that that his government would launch a lawsuit against the US bank, which denied responsibility over the lost funds. “We’ve heard that Federal Reserve Bank of New York has completely denied their responsibility. They don’t have any right,” Muhith told reporters in Dhaka.

NEWS

US ‘will act’ if Iran missile tests violated deal Washington warns of action if long-range ballistic missile tests defied nuclear deal. US Vice President Joe Biden has said that the United States would take action against Iran if its recent longrange ballistic missile tests were carried out in defiance of an international deal reached last year over Iran’s nuclear programme. “I want to reiterate, as I know people still doubt, if in fact they break the (nuclear) deal, we will act,” Biden said on Wednesday during a visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories. Biden spoke after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who forcefully opposed the nuclear accord with Iran, his country’s arch-foe. Iranian leaders on Tuesday threatened to abandon the international agreement if it conflicts with Tehran’s “national interests” - just hours after the missiles were launched, which violate UN Security Council resolutions. “If our interests are not met under the nuclear deal, there will be no reason for us to continue,” Abbas Araqchi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, warned during remarks delivered to a group of Iranian officials in Tehran.” Iran also said it fired two more long-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday as it continued military tests in defiance of US sanctions and fresh warnings from Washington.

Women fight back against sexual harassment in Mexico Group takes novel approach in country where distrust of police makes it hard to get victims to report their experience. Mexico City - A group of Mexican women have taken a novel approach to deal with sexual harassment here in the country’s capital. For the last three years, the women have been fighting back with a song called Sexista Punk and a confetti gun, confronting their harassers through performance. “We live in a world, where

everything revolves around men. We’re not interested in educating men. Our idea is the opposite, to educate women,” Ana Beatriz, of the Daughters of Violence group, said A few of the men the group confronted have apologised to the women, and the women say they are seeing some results. “Now, I feel more empowered and more confident about

reacting. And I stopped being afraid of walking in the street,” Ana Karen, another member of the Daughters of Violence, said. There is no law in Mexico that punishes street sexual harassment. Even if there was any, in a country with a great distrust of the police, getting women to report their experience would have been especially difficult.

THINK ABOUT IT

WHO DEFENDS THE DEFENCELESS Another one bite the dust. A battered woman had her life cut short, literally and figuratively when her “man” cut open her throat a few days ago in Salvapan, Belmopan. He goes to jail. She goes to Boot Hill, seven feet under the rocky ground. Maria Candaleria Chacon 38 years of age. Mother of eight children is one of the latest victims of domestic violence, a scourge that is plaguing our country which is worse than the Zika virus and other pestilences that crawlet by night and day. What a miserable life this young mother lived. What a horrible way to die. What a tragedy for her children, especially in this uncaring society with no social programs to come to the rescue of children in such circumstances. We are like a cursed people living under a worthless, heartless government. What is so painful is all the posturers and profilers who are supposed to be of help to women like Maria. In another context, Jesus described such people as white washed sepulchres. In every neighbourhood there must be at least two out of every twenty families where a woman beater lurks. Like the creature from the black lagoon they surface on a regular basis beating women with wanton discard. To hell with what the posturers say from their air conditioned offices and Radisson Fort George meetings and overseas conferences; there is little protection available for women suffering in silence at the ugly hands of batterers. If you watch how Belize treats the growing human tragedies of mentally-ill persons, you get a slight insight into how they do nothing for battered women. Battered women, especially the poorer classes get no sympathy from the middle class and bourgeois class posturing as champions of women causes. Take Lavern Longsworth, unfortunately referred to in television news reports as “Anti Christ”. She lived the classic life of a beaten, abused and constantly battered woman and mother. No social services, no human development, no women’s department, no families and children bureaucrats ever, ever appeared to help her or her children-ever. In one of those rare instances she managed to kill her tormentor rather than eventually being killed. Yet she was charged for murder. Persecuted and prosecuted she sure enough got convicted. Job well done. Only in the streets and the ghettos and the homes of many victims of beaters was there sadness at the eagerness to treat victims as murderers. In the face of the law which says battered women cannot be treated as murderers. Lo! And behold! The blood had scarcely dried in the throat of Maria Chacon when Alida Catzim from San Pedro was paraded by the Police as a murderer after stabbing him fatally. There are reports of abuse in their relationship. There must be at least 20,000 creatures from the black lagoon lurking in homes, terrorizing women and children and beating these defenceless women. They emerge regularly from their dark psychotic innerselves. They are everywhere- high and low and in between. They are like child molesters, split personalities; smiling and sober one day. The next, aggressive, abusive and drunk. Which brings us to this related demon. Alcohol. There is just too much drinking go-

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THE BELIZE TIMES

ing on. Much too much. Alcohol triggers the inner demons. It releases the worst aspects of some humans who cannot control their drinking or their abusive impulses. Why is our society awash in alcohol? Who is promoting this evil spirit and who are benefiting from wholesale drinking every weekend? There is even a multi-million dollar park refurbished in Belize City for the main purpose of attracting people to buy alcohol at a crony place called Pier One. Profiting at the expense of other people’s misery. We pity the women who suffer in silence at the hands of abusers. How many of them know it is only a matter of time before they too end up like Lavern Longsworth or Maria Chacon. You may ask, why don’t they leave? How can they? Where can they go? Who will provide meals and shelters to them and their children? Who? The bureaucrats and posturers; the bourgeois and the white-washed sepulchres? Vulnerable women and their children in Belize have no one to turn to for help. Nowhere to go to escape. They live in an underworld of fear, suffering, pain and sorrow. Such is their lot in life. “O death where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory” - 1 Corinthians 15-55. King James Bible NEW PRIME MINISTER “We have to be more active in promoting civic responsibility, voluntarism, and giving back, particularly among our youth”. “There is no majority for arrogance. There is no space for selfishness. There is no place for pettiness.” “We must teach our children that there is no wealth without work, no success without sacrifice. We must remove the belief from the psyche of our children that the only way they can step up in life is not by how hard they work but by who they know”. “Couples must be responsible in having the children they can afford”. The above quotations are from the inaugural speech of the new Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holmes. His JLP party got 32 constituencies and the PNP got 31 constituencies. They are a one seat government and therefore chances are they will be governing on a hot tin roof. WOE AND SORROW The Leader of the Opposition has quite accurately described the proposed budget as empty. Hon. Johnny Briceno said the presentation was even worse than he had feared. The Prime Minister is seeking to squeeze FIFTY MILLION DOLLARS out of a broke and busted nation. Or more precisely one that he broke and busted with his illegal spending of taxpayer’s monies and the Petro Caribe funds. Johnny quite rightly ascribed the situation to the reckless and criminal spending that occurred as part of the government efforts to buy out certain sections of the electorate. The Prime Minister’s lame response was that Johnny was insulting the voters. Excuse me. Who insulted the voters? Johnny, who exposed the criminal behavior or the UDP ministers who abused public funds in the most squanderous, corrupt and arrogant manner? Remember the tacos and pibil fiasco of Patrick Faber! Whose money was that? And that is chump change to the millions of bloated projects for which there is no audited

report, no accounting and no transparency. The country is broke and everybody and their dogs know who did it. NEW SENATORS Congratulations to Eamon Courtenay, Paul Thompson and Valerie Woods on their appointment as the PUP new dynamic Senators. We pay tribute to Anthony Sylvestre, Patrick Andrews and Lisa Shoman for their sterling performances during those troubling times the past few years. Remember Penner scandal when the UDP Senators betrayed their Oath of Office, their principles and their country. And the exposure of the mishandling of the Guatemala/Sarstoon fiasco that has now confirmed Belize has lost its territory down South. And can you imagine as late in the game as Tuesday 8th March 2016, the Prime Minister is trying to shift the blame on Wil Maheia for going on the Sarstoon River, which the PM claims could lead to a shooting incident. But wait till the Gautemala seize our southern seas and cayes. Just wait. CHECK THIS A few days ago one of the local television stations got an opportunity to ask the US Ambassador questions. The question was about some Police training course. Can you believe it? Guatemala by use of military force has strong-armed our portion of the Sarstoon River and a Belizean TV reporter asked about a training course. We are left to wonder if some of our media houses and their journalists understand the huge nature and the dire implications of what has occurred in the Sarstoon. Shucks! Guatemala has taken a portion of our national territory and forbids us and our BDF from even being present therein without their leave and license. And on top of all that you guys keep silent when the Prime Minister is blaming Wil Maheia. Of all the Humpty Dumpty, Alice in Wonderland, Rabbit Hole, and Animal Farm nonsense, this takes the cake. 30 MILLION WASTED Marion Jones Sports Stadium is open. Just like that. Its open but it’s not complete. For eight years, Belize’s most incompetent government has been building and building and building and never finishing this 30 million dollars monument to waste and hustling. One whole section of the stadium has no fence. There was no ribbon cutting, no ceremony and speeches like the fraud that occurred in the construction of a wooden base in Toledo that should have been on Sarstoon Island. Wanna know why Marion Jones opened even though it is unfinished! The First Lady, who is not really the First Lady wants to use it for an event this Friday. The First Lady of the country is Mrs. Norma Trapp Young, the wife of the Governor General who is the nation’s Head of State. Prime Minister Barrow is the Head of Government, a politician, like all the others who come and go and then is heard of no more. In the words of Shakespeare “... like a tale, told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Nothing people. Nothing. Except debt and taxes and poverty and hard times. KENNETH GABOUREL Kenneth Gabourel was a tall, handsome son of John Vivian Gabourel who owned all those lands on both sides of the

2016

road leading to the Phillip Goldson Airport, better known as Gabourel’s bank. Kenneth married Consie Miller and the marriage produced two daughters Cecile and Samia who are residing in New York and Britain respectively. “Miss Consie” lives between Belize and New York because of a medical condition requiring regular check-ups. On Tuesday last week Kenneth passed away in Belize City. He was buried to a packed church at St. Joseph on 4th March. His favorite all time song was “I Did It My Way”. Kenneth and Consie resided at Wagner’s Lane for a time and were beloved by the new generation of Jump Street drifters and Survivors. They braved gang reprisals and GSU harassment and wore appropriate funeral clothes and attended church in respectful memory. Kenneth reached the blessed age of 85 and will always be on our memories. We extend our condolences to Mrs. Consie, his children, grandchildren and the other family members. GEORGE GABOUREL George Gabourel is the brother of Kenneth Gabourel. He lives at the entrance to the Goldson Airport. His son John and two daughters Patricia and Kitty represented him at Kenneth’s funeral as he was away in the USA. Mr. Georgie is an avid horse lover. Some of his horses have been winning races at Burrell Boom, where his friend Kevin Castillo enters his thorough-bred champions. Mr. Georgie’s horses and cattle and harvest a special crop of mangoes which originated in India. Mr. Georgie is a library and an encyclopedia of information and knowledge about the early history of his father’s land and surroundings, when there was no Ladyville Village. There was no Haulover Bridge and he says there were two ferries. One for crossing over the river to go North to Orange Walk and Corozal and the other to cross the river further up to go over the Pine Ridge and head west to Cayo. It is hoped that when Mr. George returns from the USA that the history people at the National Institute of Culture and History will sit and interview him so that an important part of our history is not lost. Speedy recovery and return to your beloved Belize. IN HIS WORDS The greatest song writer in the English speaking Caribbean is without any doubt Bob Marley. Several commemorative books have been published with extracts of his lyrics lifted from his famous songs. Bob Marley Quotes is a 28 page book which is probably not authorized as there is no publishing information. But here are a few quotes: “Me is a common sense man. That mean when me explain things, me explain it in a very simple way; that mean if I explain it to a baby, the baby will understand too, you know.” “Don’t trust people whose feelings change with time. Trust people whose feelings remain the same, even when the time change.” “I don’t stand for the black man’s side, I don’t stand for the white man’s side. I stand for God’s side”. “I have no education. I have inspiration. If I was educated, I would be a damn fool.” “Herb is the healing of a nation, alcohol is the destruction”.

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THE BELIZE TIMES

2016

Who robbed the Corozal Town Council?? $15,000 stolen!

Corozal Town, March 4, 2016 Authorities are extremely tightlipped about the criminal investigation surrounding monies going missing at the Corozal Town Council. Last week Wednesday, March 2, 2016 the Council’s messenger was on his way to deposit funds at a bank when he was reportedly assaulted and robbed. The messenger claims he was approached by an armed robber who demanded the money. He gave up the bag of cash as he feared for his life. Inside the bag was believed to be some $15,000, which was revenue collected by the Council from tax payers. The messenger was not injured and has returned to work.

Hilberto Campos

The Mayor, as has become normal, was out of the country during the incident and the reports are that he is not so worried since he returned. This is not the first time that the Council loses large amounts of money. Just over two years ago, in later 2013, over $10,000 went missing. No one was ever criminally investigated or prosecuted. Three persons were indeed fired, but they have been given plush jobs elsewhere. Wrongdoing is not punishable in the eyes of the UDP. Mayor Campos in news interviews claimed then that only “a couple thousand dollars” were stolen, and he confirmed that there was no investigation then by the Ministry of Local Government.

BDF Training Exercise Warning March 2016 Prior warning is to be given to the general public for training exercises taking place, by the British Army, in Manatee North. The training will take place during the period of 4 March to 26 March 2016 with both live and blank ammunition being used, along with military vehicles. The general public should avoid the areas listed above and be aware of the presence of high numbers of British soldiers on the ground carrying weapons. At times loud explosions may be heard along with gunfire this is normal in respect to the training being conducted. Should any member of the general public wish to enter the areas listed above they are to be advised all roads are safe unless marked with a red lamp at night or a red flag during the day light hours. British troops will also operate checkpoints along the roads entering danger areas and can give advice to areas of live firing. (End)

Woman charged for husband’s murder in San Pedro San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, March 8, 2016 San Pedro resident Alida Lily Borrayo Barrientos de Catzim has been arrested for the stabbing murder of her husband, Rommel Benedicto Catzim, which occurred on Sunday, March 6th. Deputy of the Coastal Executive Unit, Assistant Superintendent Henry Jemmott, reported that around 10:30PM Police responded to the reports of domestic dispute in the San Pedrito Area. Upon arriving at the scene, police found the body of a male individual lying face down in a pool of blood on a veranda on the second floor of an apartment building. The victim had two stab wounds to the chest and back. Inside the home was Barrientos de

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Catzim, who was in a frantic state. The couple had been out socializing earlier that night. They got into an altercation and the wife went home. When the husband arrived home, the argument continued and intensified. Sometime during the altercation, the wife stabbed her husband.

CARTOON

The Police have confirmed that the wife confessed to causing the fatal injuries. They have found a knife, which is believed to be the murder weapon. “…this is not the first time this couple had domestic disputes,” reported Jemmott. Catzim awaits formal charges.

Alida Borrayo Barrientos de Catzim & Rommel Catzim

THE BELIZE TIMES

13 MAR

2016