June, 2024 - Channel 5 Belize

Jose Mai to B.S.I.: “C.O.I.’s Focus Never Changed”

Earlier this week, we told you that the Belize Sugar Industries is accusing the Commission of Inquiry of changing its focus. B.S.I. noted in a press release that it will not cooperate in an inquiry that will be used as an avenue to create a new commercial agreement. B.S.I. also stated that it cannot share proprietary and confidential information. Well, Minister of Agriculture Jose Abelardo Mai is firing back. He says B.S.I. ‘s release comes as a surprise because they contributed to the commission’s terms of reference and recommended two commissioners. He contended that they should be more concerned about their credibility.

Jose Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture
“I was concerned that the crop is coming to an end shortly and there is np Inquiry. So, I said let us move forward with the commission. I was surprised to see the release they issue they issued last week saying that we changed focus. No sir, the focus never changed. The Commission of Inquiry will make recommendations and then they decide if they want to follow the recommendations. But it is important for the commission of Inquiry to begin during the crop so that imperial measurements be taken and the recommendations be based on that.”

Paul Lopez
“Is the Inquiry a process to aid negotiations towards an agreement as they suggest?”

Jose Abelardo Mai
“In my view after imperial evidence are taken and interviews and observations at the mill are done and the experts, cause these are experts, come with recommendations and say listen, I believe that this is what should be done, we can either do this, this or this, it is a recommendation. And if that will help in the process of understanding a good commercial agreement then why not. As a matter of fact, it can lay the foundation for a good, modern, updated and fair sugar industry act which is fifty years old.”

Reporter
“What they are saying is that you all are presuming to inquire into their private business affairs and every private business has a right to keep their corporate affairs private.”

Jose Abelardo Mai
“The Commission of Inquiry should be focused on the shared cost of the farmers and the Miller and I made the example in cabinet. I cannot go to SanCas and say I want a commission of inquiry on the milk we import because I am not forced to buy your milk. And two, I don’t share cost with you. It is a buy and sell. The sugar industry is a very peculiar arrangement with farmers. It is the only one in the country that shares costs with the farmers. So it is not a private business, an ordinary private business. This is a very peculiar type where the farmers share the cost, and the farmers are saying listen I just want to ensure you are charging me what is right.”

The Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association issued a late afternoon release noting its delight after learning that the Commission of Inquiry has commenced its work. The release further states the BSCFA is disappointed with the commission’s decision to not conduct its inquiry in public. The association urged the commission to reconsider this decision. As it relates to B.S.I./A.S.R., the association says the company is seeking to, “deliberately frustrate or prolong the work of the Commission or to refuse to be transparent by hiding information or to assert that it is untouchable.” BSCFA also says that it disagrees with the notion that the Commission’s report should not be used to facilitate the negotiations towards a commercial agreement.

B.P.M. to Shyne Barrow, “Why Demand Redistricting Now?”

Recently the Leader of the Opposition, Moses “Shyne” Barrow said that the Opposition demanded that a redistricting exercise be held before the next general elections. Well, a member of the Belize Peace Movement, which took the matter to court prior to the last general election, is asking Barrow, why make the demand now? Paco Smith is also a claimant in the case against the government and the Election and Boundaries Department. He told News Five that B.P.M. would like to know why a concerted effort has not been taken on what needs to be done.

Paco Smith, Member, Belize Peace Movement

“First and foremost, whenever a politician talks, you have to understand that there’s more than likely an underlying interest, right. So we can’t take it exactly at face value. I will say that it’s good that he mentioned it and what his position is, but our question to him is what took you so long? This case has been, I will say bubbling up in the courts for approximately the past four years. Now, I know that the Leader of the Opposition made a comment about 12 months ago, and at that time he made some salient points. Of course, we understand that there were some political “isms” involved as well. But the operative question is, why has the Opposition been so silent on this matter for the past 12 months, since his last statement? Depending on what his response is to that, we’d like to know what has changed, why have there not been a concerted effort to do precisely what he said needs to be done. And the third thing that we would like to point out is that in life, and in particular when you’re dealing with matters that involve political elements, number one, it’s one thing to say something. Number two, it’s a different thing to say something in a timely manner and fashion. And number three, it’s a completely different thing to actually do something about it.”

“Awaken New Depths,” Oceana Celebrates World Oceans Day

This weekend, Oceana in Belize will commemorate World Oceans Day with various activities in various municipalities across the country. World Oceans Day was originally proposed in 1992 at an Earth Summit and U.N. Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Since then, a number of countries around the world, including Belize, have celebrated June eighth as World Oceans Day.

Miriam Longsworth, Communications Specialist, Oceana

“World Oceans Day is on Saturday, June eighth and the theme this year is “Awaken new depths.” It’s urging everyone to do their part in caring for the ocean and protecting the oceans. It’s about deepening our passion and tapping into our creativity in how we view ocean conservation. This Saturday, we have a couple events happening that we’re inviting the public to join us on. We have two cleanup campaigns, one here in Belize City. We’re partnering with Sea of Life, Belize Game Fish Association and the Scout Association of Belize and that’s going to start at 7:30 at the scouts headquarters on Regent Street. The other cleanup activity is in San Ignacio near the Macal River. We are teaming up with the Interact Club of San Ignacio and Santa Elena, that cleanup activity starts at 8:30. On Sunday, in Corozal, we are partnering with the town council and House of Culture and we’re doing a sip and paint activity. It’s a family event. We’re going to be painting reusable tote bags, so that’s gonna be a fun and creative way for us to have a conversation and spread awareness on ocean conservation. We are encouraging the public to participate in these activities because it’s a great way of sparking that conversation on why it’s important for us to protect our oceans. Our oceans sustain us and here in Belize we depend greatly on our ocean. Without a healthy ocean, it’s going to impact our livelihoods, our sustenance, our economy.”

FAO and Canada launch $14.6M climate-smart agriculture project in the Caribbean

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in collaboration with the Canadian government, has launched a $14.6 million project titled Gender Responsive Climate-Smart Agriculture and Food Systems in the Caribbean. Running until December 2028, this four-year initiative will focus on climate change, youth and gender constraints in value chains and build capacity so that all value chain actors benefit from increased market access and increased incomes.

The project will be implemented by FAO in collaboration with the Ministries of Agriculture in eight (8) Caribbean countries. The project aims to promote and encourage the use of climate-smart technologies in viable agricultural value chains in Belize, Grenada, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Suriname and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

“We recognise the disproportionate impact of food and input price inflation, supply chain disruptions, and climate change in the Caribbean, which has exacerbated pre-existing food insecurity,” said High Commissioner Chatterjee at the regional launch event on Monday.

The project was originally announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Canada-CARICOM summit last October. She underscored the importance of empowering women, describing them as “powerful agents of change” in achieving sustainable and resilient agri-food systems.

According to the High Commissioner, the project represents a major commitment under Canada’s feminist international assistance policy. It will develop inclusive, gender-responsive, climate-resilient value chains in the named Caribbean countries. It addresses challenges faced by producers and farmer organizations, such as weak business planning and limited access to finance.

Renata Clarke, FAO’s subregional coordinator for the Caribbean, stressed the project’s alignment with broader efforts to transform value chains in the sub-region.

Project coordinator Vermaran Extavour outlined goals including the adoption of climate-smart technologies and improving community facilities with renewable energies to enhance food quality and reduce waste. The initiative aims to build the capacity of women and youth producer organizations to run viable businesses within these value chains.

Since 2017, Global Affairs Canada has invested over $2.5 billion in global agriculture and food programming. High Commissioner Chatterjee expressed confidence that this project will complement other efforts to strengthen agricultural entrepreneurship and food systems in the region.

The FAO-Canada initiative will initially operate in eight Eastern Caribbean countries, with detailed implementation plans forthcoming.

(Press release)

Nominees for 35th NGC CBU Caribbean Media Awards Announced, Channel 5 Receives 25 Nominations

Nominations for the 35th Caribbean Media Awards were announced on Wednesday. Great Belize Productions, Channel 5, received twenty-five nominations—the most for a single outlet in the Caribbean Region.

The Caribbean Broadcasting Union said, “2024 continues to break records with the CBU Secretariat receiving four hundred and eighty-four (484) submissions for sixty-three (63) categories from a total of thirty-four (34) organisations representing thirteen (13) countries and territories in the Dutch, English, and Spanish Caribbean.”

The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (NGC) is the Title Sponsor.

Great Belize Productions was nominated in the following categories:

Best News Story: Digital

Best Investigative Report: Digital

Best Climate Change Investigative Report: Digital

Best Commercial Spot: TV

Best Public Service Spot: TV

Excellence in Environmental Reporting on Mangrove and Seagrass Beds: TV

Coverage of Healthy Nutrition Food Policy: TV

People’s Choice Award

Best Documentary: TV

Best Magazine Programme: TV

Best News Story: TV

Best Sports Story: TV

Best Investigative Report: TV

Best Entertainment Programme: TV

Best News Story on Poverty Reduction and Empowerment of Vulnerable Groups: TV

Best Climate Change News Items: TV

Belize Climate Change Investigative Report: TV

Best Production on Land Degradation Neutrality: TV

Financial Literacy Journalism: TV

Health Education Journalism: TV

Best Social Media Content Creator

Best Videographer

Best Director TV

Best Producer TV

Best Sound Engineer TV

Channel 7 Belize was nominated in four categories: Best Documentary, Best News Item, Excellence in Environmental Reporting on Mangrove/Seagrass Beds and Belize Climate Change Investigative Report. Also from Belize, NVision LLP was nominated in the best documentary category.

This is the full list of nominations:

The CBU also shared that “there has also been an unprecedented response from the public to the People’s Choice Award nominees. The twelve (12) entries in this category published on the CBU website www.caribroadcastunion.org attracted more than three thousand online votes altogether by the close of voting on June 1, 2024.”

According to the CBU, the top performing nominees are from Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, and Belize. Leading the nominations is Jamaica’s RJRGLEANER Communications Group, with 29 nominations across its television, radio, and print services. Close behind is Trinidad & Tobago’s One Caribbean Media Group (OCM), securing 28 nominations across its print, television, and radio services.

The single outlet with the most nominations is Great Belize Productions Limited, with its television service, Channel 5, earning 25 nominations. Following is TTT Ltd, with 13 nominations.

Trinidad and Tobago had the highest number of nominated organisations, with eight outlets spanning television, print, radio, and digital media. Barbados followed with six locally based media organisations operating in radio, television, digital, and print services.

The 35th NGC CBU Caribbean Media Awards ceremony will take place at the Umaya Hotel in Placencia, Belize, on August 13, 2024. It will be broadcast on Channel 5.

They Stole Stake Bank’s Vessel

Police are searching for four individuals involved in the theft of a Colombian vessel belonging to Stake Bank Limited.

The investigation began after a report on Thursday, June 6, 2024, indicated that four men, one armed with a firearm, entered the Stake Bank compound on mile 5 on the George Price Highway. According to police, the men assaulted two security guards and stole the company’s Colombian vessel that was docked in the canal.

No injuries were reported.

Murder in Santa Elena Town

Police in San Ignacio are investigating a robbery turned murder which occurred earlier this morning in Santa Elena Town. According to the investigation, the victim has been identified as Sheng Wen Wu. He is a businessman.

Reports are that Wu had arrived at his residence on the George Price Highway when he was held at gunpoint by two men on a motorcycle.

The men demanded money from Wu. Wu managed to escape but was followed and shot several times. He died on the scene. Police are investigating.

Mexico man dies from first human case of bird flu strain H5N2

A 59-year-old man in Mexico has died from a strain of bird flu known as H5N2, marking the first human case of this virus. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported the man, who was hospitalized in Mexico City, succumbed to the virus on April 24 after experiencing symptoms including fever, shortness of breath, diarrhea, nausea, and general discomfort.

The WHO stated that the source of the man’s infection remains unclear, although H5N2 has been detected in poultry in Mexico. Despite this, the current risk to the general population is considered low. The UN agency emphasized that there is no evidence of person-to-person transmission in this case, and all individuals who had contact with the deceased have tested negative.

In March, an outbreak of H5N2 was reported in a family unit in Michoacan, but it was deemed no threat to distant commercial farms or human health. Following the man’s death, Mexican authorities confirmed the presence of the virus and reported the case to the WHO.

Shooting Victim Speaks Out After Witnessing Roy Burgess Murder

It is not often that we hear a shooting victim, who also witnessed the murder of her friend, speak out about their encounter, especially when that victim was also supposed to be dead. But tonight, Maia James, a Belizean American, is sharing her story, two months after her friend, thirty-two-year-old Roy Burgess, was shot dead inside his vehicle on the Placencia Road. She was also inside the vehicle and was shot in the face. But she survived and remembers the entire ordeal vividly. James sat down with Breakbeat Media in the U.S. for an extensive interview. She recounted the night the incident occurred, the gunshots at close range and how she hid in some bushes with a gunshot injury to the head, while waiting for help to arrive. James saw her shooter and her friend’s murderer. He was also in the vehicle with them. She alleges that the suspect is Ellis Meighan, an individual wanted for questioning by police. Meighan fled to the U.S. where James says she tracked him down and informed U.S. authorities that he is a wanted in connection with a murder in Belize. It is an unbelievable tale of survival and bravery. News Five’s Paul Lopez report.

Paul Lopez, Reporting

Thirty-two-year-old Roy Burgess was murdered on April fourteenth inside his vehicle on the Placencia Road. His friend, Maia James, was shot in the face during the incident. Investigators have since been seeking Belize City resident Ellis Meighan for questioning in connection with the murder. But Meighan fled to the U.S. where he is currently claiming asylum. That is the information the Commissioner of Police provided to the press five days ago.

May 31st, 2024

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“I think the issue with Ellis Meighan currently is that he is claiming asylum so I think the U.S. will go through that asylum process to see if he would meet the asylum to be granted asylum and if he does not meet the requirement then he will be sent back home. Bear in mind that we have already issued an arrest warrant for him, likewise, his wanted poster is out there. So the U.S. authorities should know that he is wanted in Belize and Interpol Belize is in communication with Interpol in the U.S. to make sure that there is proper coordination.”

Maia James, the young lady that was shot at the time when Burgess was killed, has since recovered from her injuries. She sat down with Breakbeat Media, a Youtube channel in the U.S. and provided a detailed one-hour interview recollecting the horrifying incident. James shared that she and Burgess were on a night out in Placencia when Meighan allegedly met Burgess and they all got into Burgess’ vehicle together. According to James, they drove out of Placencia for about twenty minutes, and though she was not familiar with the suspect, Burgess told her that they were taking him to an area where a vehicle would pick him up. They later stopped near mile twenty-two on the road.

Maia James, Placencia Shooting Victim

“I saw a car coming down the street and he was like this dah the bway deh right yah and he opened the car door and stepped out and when he did that I turned around and looked at this face and that is the only reason I am able to know what he looks like right now because I turned around and looked at his face. And by the time I turned around and looked at him all I heard was pop, pop, pop and I felt like fire on my air, like fire, it burnt so bad. When it happened I was like this cannot be gunshots right now. But I immediately fell between my legs, and I played dead for like a couple of minutes.”

Deciding to pretend dead could have been what saved James’ life. She says that after a couple minutes she grabbed her phone and placed it under the seat while trying to call her mom. She then got out of the vehicle and dragged herself into some nearby bushes.

Maia James

“The second call she answered I said “ma, Cat dead, Juice, Juice, Juice shoot me”. She thought I was playing. She said what? I said I just got shot. She said no, where are you, where are you. I was explaining to her the name of the resort, and she was not understanding me because my mouth is like swollen bad, everything is swollen. She sent her friend to the police station which was directly across the street from her house and that was the only reason why the police came, because nobody called. People heard gunshots, but nobody called the police, so. She called back and I answered and said ma, I cant hold back any more and I am going, I am going. She was like no, she started screaming. She was like listen to your baby cause my baby was crying tin the background. She was like listening to your baby, your kids need you.”

James says she knew that Burgess had succumbed to the injuries he sustained moments after he was shot. She recalls seeing someone with a flashlight, while she was lying in the bushes. She believed that the shooter had returned to the scene. Eventually the police arrived.

Maia James

“I remember being with my mom on the phone. I had her on speaker and I was like shut up, they are coming back to look for me. Like shortly after that the cop showed up. To that day I don’t know who the person was, but I thought they came back. I thought he saw me running in the bush or something, so I am immediately thinking it was him. So the cops came, I saw the lights. I seen the cop lights, and I heard them get out of their cars but nobody is looking for me. I said police, I am here in the bushes. It was some tall bushes so I am kicking to make movement so they could find me. They were like you all hear that; someone is in the bushes. They found me and looked at me and said who did this to you? I said, Juice, Juice did this to me. As soon as I said Juice, it is like everybody knows who that is. He went straight to the cop car pulled up his picture, showed it to me, and I was like, yes him.”

James was rushed to the hospital. She later underwent reconstructive surgery. Two months and three surgeries later, James is sharing her experience. She alleges that a police officer helped Meighan to get out of Palcencia that same night.

Maia James

“That same night a cop helped him out of the village. He was on the run until a couple days ago, thanks to me. If I didn’t live, they were friends, you know that right, if I didn’t live he would have shown up to his funeral and everything.”

Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.

Kenrick Longsworth Found Guilty of Manslaughter and Wounding

Kenrick Longsworth, the Belize City resident accused of murdering his three-year-old stepson, has been found guilty of manslaughter. As we have reported, on January tenth, 2020, Mark Teul’s mother found him dead inside their Lovely Lane home. He was allegedly beaten to death and sexually assaulted by Longsworth. Mark’s siblings were also found badly beaten but still alive inside the house. Longsworth was also slapped with two counts of attempted murder in connection with their injuries. Today, the High Court found him guilty of wounding, not attempted murder, but only in the case of one of the surviving siblings. He was found not guilty in relation to the charge that stemmed from the other’s injury. So, Longsworth was found guilty of manslaughter and guilty of wounding. In court, Justice Derick Sylvester concluded that while Longsworth admitted to hitting Mark, he claimed that he never caused the injuries that led to his death. But after careful consideration of the crown’s evidence, including that of the children’s mother, a neighbor who testified to Longsworth admitting to her that he beat the children that day, and two doctors’ testimony, Justice Sylvester ruled that Longsworth caused the injuries. Furthermore, Justice Sylvester noted in his ruling that while Longsworth did not intend to kill Mark Teul he lied, and because no evidence could prove his intent was to murder, he was found guilty of manslaughter. Justice Sylvester further concluded that the evidence provided was not convincing enough to link Longsworth to injuries that the other stepson sustained. During the trial, one doctor testified saying that the injuries observed on him were old injuries and not recent. Longsworth, who gave sworn testimony from the witness box, said he ended the relationship with the children’s mother and that is when she got mad and took out her anger on the kids and beat them up. He blamed the child’s mother for the injuries her two children sustained and the death of her son, though one witness had testified to seeing him beating the deceased child with a stick the day he died. Notably, Justice Sylvester did point out that based on the findings of two doctors, the children were being abused prior to January tenth, 2020 and that it was sad to see that they were kept in such an environment.