2024-04-05 - Channel 5 Belize

Man Murdered By Men Who Drove Him Home

A man was shot dead after being given a ride on the Phillip Goldson Highway. Investigators suspect that twenty-seven-year-old Malcolm Reynolds was murdered by individuals who were giving him a ride home. Reynolds’ body was on Thursday night near the Boom/Hattieville junction. Reynolds had been dropped off by an SUV, which was traveling in the direction of Burrell Boom Village, after which a male person exited the said vehicle and fired several shots toward him, resulting in his death. News Five’s Britney Gordon went looking for answers.

Britney Gordon, Reporting

In Lemonal Village, the family of Malcolm Reynolds was expecting his arrival home after a day’s work in Belize City on Thursday. However, the twenty-seven-year-old construction worker failed to walk through the doors. Instead, his mother, Cherry Reynolds received a call. Her son had been found shot dead at a bus stop in Burrel Boom Village.

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds, Mother Of Deceased

“It was last night about, about seven thirty, I da say. Somebody called me, not the police. They noh call and they tell me say, they shoot up Julian, which is the next brother. But I know he ni deh home yah soh, so I tell ney, da noh he. So the person say he will check and call back. So, he go work da Belize do construction. And I tell ih pa fi call the bus weh usually come back this side. And when he call the driver, he say he noh de pan di bus. So, instant I start to bawl. So, when the boy call me back, I couldn’t even answer him.”

Reynolds explained that they were unsure if the killer was someone her son was familiar with. She says that there is some tension between a few residents of Double Head Cabbage and Lemonal Village. She had been told that a recent dispute after a horse race at Castleton Park on Easter Monday had led to her other son receiving a chop wound.

Britney Gordon

“Do you think that he was familiar with this person?”

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds

“Me noh think. I noh sure. I cyah she. I don’t think so. I noh sure.”

Britney Gordon

“Do you know anyone that could have possibly wanted to cause any harm to your son?”

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds

“Well, I know you got two village, Bermuda Landing and Double Head. When they like sih my lee boy there, they like fool with Lemonal on a whole. So, I don’t know, babe. So every paat ney sih ney, ney faas with deh. Ney mi ga wa fight Easter Monday weh wa bwai from Double Head Cabbage get cut weh ney she da my son but not Malcolm.”

Reynolds had been told that the two incidents may be related but was unsure of the details. Police have yet to establish a motive and are looking for suspects.

Britney Gordon

“So that incident was unrelated? Or one of your sons did get involved in the incident”

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds

“Yes dat dah weh ney seh. Cuz I neva de deh.”

Britney Gordon

“Have you spoken with anyone that they said was involved with that other incident?”

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds

“No, no.”

Britney Gordon

“So you’re not familiar with the details of that?’

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds

“No.”

Reynolds feels that her son’s murder was unfair as he did not have anyone around to assist him. She said he came from a large, loving family, and his loss would be felt greatly.

Voice of: Cherry Reynolds

“I noh know weh fi say, but all weh I have to say is closing, all weh I have fih seh, they chancey, whosoever do that, dah wa coward, because I think they could a mi come when all ah ney deh together, noh only when he one, they coward, whosoever did that.”

Britney Gordon for News Five.

Fonseca Says AG’s Ministry Looked into Complaint Against Perez

One day after the Office of the Prime Minister announced the reinstatement of Belize Rural South Area Representative, Andre Perez as the Minister of the Blue Economy, the woman who had made a sexual misconduct allegation against him has come out swinging against him again. Wendy Auxillou took to Facebook to make an even more serious allegation than her previous one against Perez, which had resulted in his suspension for several months from the Cabinet. Auxillou has not made a police report against Perez to launch a criminal investigation, but today, Perez’ Cabinet colleague, Minister Francis Fonseca, told News Five that he supports the Prime Minister’s decision to reinstate Perez as a Cabinet minister and that the Attorney General’s Ministry had looked into the matter when Perez was on suspension.

Francis Fonseca, Cabinet Minister

“We have to operate on the basis of facts and we have to operate on the basis of a record. We can’t operate on the basis of social media reacting to social media. I think these matters have been, I think, fully ventilated. I have not heard anything new, any new material on this matter.”

Marion Ali

“Can you say, Minister Fonseca, if in the process of the ventilation – the full ventilation you spoke of on this matter, whether the Attorney General’s ministry was consulted and what input they had in the investigation?”

Francis Fonseca

“Yeah, I think, yes, we discussed this in Cabinet, so I don’t want to get into what we discussed, but yes, the answer is yes, the Attorney General’s ministry was involved and engaged and provided advice. This is confidential advice to the Prime Minister and to the Cabinet. So they were involved in that process and I think that’s advice that fed into the Prime Minister’s decision to have Minister Perez return. All decisions about Cabinet posts are solely matters for the Prime Minister but I certainly fully support the decision of the Prime Minister. I think Minister Perez was suspended from the significant period of time. And I think we all feel that, it’s appropriate at this time for him to return to cabinet. He was, in my view, a very effective minister before all of this, these issues, the issue arose. And I think he will once again be an effective minister of the blue economy.”

Belize’s Suspension of Diplomatic Ties with Israel Remains in Effect

The Israeli Defense Forces have completed an investigation into the killing of seven aid workers in Gaza – all innocent lives that were ended by Israeli drone strikes on Monday. The seven aid workers were on an aid convoy operated by World Central Kitchen. The Israeli military has called the incident a grave mistake and said it had dismissed two officers and reprimanded three others for their roles in the incident. The disciplinary actions were on the basis that the officers had mishandled critical information and had violated the Israeli army’s rules of engagement. The U.N. Security Council, late last month called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and the Caribbean Community expressed its deep distress at the situation in Gaza in February. Today, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Francis Fonseca, told us that the Belize Government’s lifting of diplomatic ties with Israel will remain in effect for now.

Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs

“It’s an absolute aggression that we see taking place in Gaza. It’s an absolute horror. What is taking place? It’s a humanitarian crisis. There’s a shortage of food shortage of water. People are being indiscriminately killed. So it’s a very, tragic situation, and we certainly welcome, as you pointed out, the latest, vote resolution passed by the U.N Security Council, calling for an immediate ceasefire, calling for unimpeded access to humanitarian aid, calling for the release of all hostages. These are things that Belize has been calling for, months, for many months. We have been ahead of the U.N Security Council, if you like. So it’s an absolute travesty what is taking place there and we certainly hope that this issue can be resolved with a sense of urgency. For us in Belize, we have always maintained that a two-state solution is the only path to a sustainable, long, permanent, peaceful resolution to this matter.”

Marion Ali

“So the ban or the suspension of diplomatic ties that we placed last year, that will remain in effect indefinitely?

Francis Fonseca

“It was a suspension that was mandated by the Cabinet. If it is to be lifted, it will have to be the Cabinet that lifts it. So we’re not at that point yet and certainly, based on what is taking place now, as you pointed out, this absolute tragedy with the aid workers who were killed, the food aid workers who were killed, certainly there are no signs that, at this point, that suspension should be lifted but certainly that will be a decision for the Cabinet.”

Belize As Part of CARICOM Taking Steps to Return Peace to Haiti

A team of Belize Defence Force soldiers and coast guard officers left Belize for Jamaica over the weekend for advanced military training. The training is part of CARICOM force preparation for the possibility of supporting the U.N. Security Mission in Haiti, which has been taken over by heavily armed gangs that rape, kidnap, and kill people with impunity. But as Minister of Foreign Affairs Francis Fonseca told us today, there are set measures that CARICOM countries, including Belize, are taking to restore peace and normalcy to that troubled Caribbean neighbour.

Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs

“It’s very sad to see what is happening with our curriculum, brothers and sisters in Haiti. Gangs have really taken over the country, but we are hopeful because deliberate actions have been taken by CARICOM Heads of Government, including our Prime Minister Briceño [he] has been a part of those discussions, so that they have now put in place an interim sort of presidential council, as they call it. That council is responsible for appointing a sort of election council that will oversee future elections in Haiti. They will also appoint [an] interim Prime Minister of Haiti. So there are positive steps that are taking place. But nevertheless, we are absolutely concerned about the ongoing crisis on the ground that is affecting the daily lives of Haitian people. Schools are closed, people are having a difficult time finding food stores, there’s a lot of looting taking place – a lot of indiscriminate killings by these gangs, but Belize and Caricom are fully engaged on this issue and doing everything we can to support a return to some peace in Haiti. So that team from the BDF and Coast Guard that are getting trained will come back to Belize. And then when we are – we make a final decision about participating in the M.S.S. Mission, then they would then go to Haiti. But that is not yet programmed.”

B.N.T.U. Elects New National President, Nadia Caliz

Close to six hundred members of the Belize National Teachers’ Union turned out on Thursday in Belmopan to elect a new national president. This is only a small percentage of the entire membership. Notwithstanding the turnout, a new president was elected. She is career teacher, Nadia Caliz. This was Caliz’s first time running for president of the union. She bested Ifasina Efunyemi. So, what is the first order of business for the newly elected president? News Five’s Paul Lopez reports.

Paul Lopez, Reporting

The Belize National Teacher Union has a new president.

Nadia Caliz, Newly Elected President, B.N.T.U.

“I have been paying attention to the direction our union has been taking and that is not the direction of the union I joined and I believe that those of us who are stalwarts who understand what BNTU represents for this country, we need it to come back and put us back on the platform where we were.”

Nadia Caliz has spent the last thirty years of her life in service to the nation’s children as a teacher. Caliz ran her campaign on job security, improved benefits, institutional strengthening and rebuilding the BNTU brand. Caliz went up against Ifasina Efunyemi, also a career teacher, but no stranger to the BNTU election process. Efunyemi was a candidate in 2023. We heard from her a day ahead of the elections.

Ifasina Efunyemi, Member, B.N.T.U.

“I know and have a lot of faith in the members of the BNTU. At the end of the day, the members they get the leaders they deserve. It is just like democracy overall. People get the leaders they deserve because they get the leaders they choose, and even if they don’t make themselves available and are not present for choosing, they are still left with the person chosen by whoever goes and make that decision on their behalf.”

According to the official count, after the votes were counted on Thursday evening, a total of five hundred and sixty members showed up to vote at the union’s fifty-fourth convention in Belmopan. According to Efunyemi, this is only eighteen percent of the union’s membership. Notwithstanding the low turnout, Caliz defeated Efunyemi. She secured four hundred and forty-five votes, a commanding victory.

Nadia Caliz

“I am looking at job security, better benefits. I am also looking at institutional strengthening and an improved BNTU brand. I am quite certain if you hear certain things about our union they are not things you like to hear. And I don’t like to hear it. So we have to come back to where we were and better and that is the key. Under institutional strengthening it is not just about teachers themselves, but the institution called BNTU. We have look at it. Our union is a continuation, new members come, old ones leave. What do we need to do, we have hear their concerns, address their concerns. It cant just be about the old methodologies and ideas and concepts. We have to merge them. That is the only way we can survive overtime.”

The Belize National Teachers’ Union or the “green machine”, one of the nation’s most formidable trade unions went through a tumultuous period, after former President Ruth Shoman was elected in April 2023. And things only continued downhill in the months that followed, leading to Shoman’s resignation. First Vice-President, Jorge Mejia was then appointed as the interim president. We spoke with him ahead of the election.

Paul Lopez

“Taking up this position as acting president, what has that role and honor has been like for you?”

Jorge Mejia, Former Interim-President, B.N.T.U.

“It is good experience. I am learning from it. And, that might help me afterwards in the leadership position that I am holding. For now, I am ok.”

But, the BNTU certainly has not been as active as it once was under the leadership of former President, Elena Smith. Except for one press conference the day before the March sixth municipal election, the union has, for the most part, steered clear of voicing its position on public issues. Newly elected President, Nadia Caliz hopes to restore the union to its glory days.

Nadia Caliz

“Being a member for thirty years and serving as rep, school rep, branch president, being in the forefront for many demonstrations, hey I have the experience and I said let me come forward, let me come forward and offer myself and see if they will accept me as their president.”

Caliz has been very outspoken about the plight of teachers over the years. In October 2016, the Union went on strike for fifteen days to improve working and living conditions for teachers. The union suspended its strike action after the central government agreed to its demand. There were then talks about withholding certain payments from educators who participated in the industrial action. Caliz, at the time a member of the council of management in Stann Creek, spoke out against the then government.

Nadia Caliz, Newly Elected President, B.N.T.U. (File: Oct 31st, 2016)

“The way we view this agreement over what the strike fund should be spent on and not spent on, we see it clearly as another form of trying to hold a rope over our membership’s neck, making it look as if though we are not concerned about them, making it look like oh I have the money, if unu ever think about going no strike again, mek ah show unu weh the happen, weh ah wah do to unu. Ah nuh wah pay unu. And, we want our membership to understand clearly, that is not the way for anybody to treat you.”

Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.

Education Minister Says He Will Work with New B.N.T.U. President

Nadia Martin-Caliz was chosen, by a convincing margin on Thursday, by members of the Belize National Teachers’ Union as their new National President. Martin-Caliz said after her re-election that she wants to shift the direction from where the B.N.T.U was going. She campaigned for the presidency on the platform of job security and better benefits for teachers, among other things. And today, Minister of Education, Francis Fonseca told us that he looks forward to working with President Caliz for the betterment of the education system in Belize.

Francis Fonseca, Minister of Education

“As Minister of Education, I have always tried to have a very good, respectful working relationship with the BNTU regardless of who was in office. I expect that to be the case here with the newly-elected president, Mrs Caliz. I know she has been a long-standing member of the B.N.T.U., has held many positions in the B.N.T.U, has been at the forefront of the advocacy on behalf of the B.N.T.U., so it’s someone who I have great respect for and I look forward to working with her and her team, who were elected last year to advance what I view as shared goals and objectives for education. Some people tend to believe that the B.N.T.U and the Ministry of Education are at odds, that we are in different places. Yes, we have different responsibilities and roles, but I have always said to my colleagues and friends in the B.N.T.U that I believe there is more that we share in terms of what we want to achieve for education in Belize, than what separates us. So I look forward to working with the new president in a spirit of respect, and dialogue and engagement. So my doors are open and I think as long as we have that mutual respect and, commitment to dialogue, I think we will have a good working relationship. It doesn’t mean we won’t have differences of opinion., but I think we both have a commitment to ensuring that we have a good education system that serves the needs of our teachers, serves the needs of our students, serves the needs of our families and ultimately serves the needs of our country Belize.”

No Belizean Injured or Displaced in Taiwan 7.4 Tremor

Taiwan suffered a seven-point-four earthquake on Wednesday morning. The tremor, which struck in Hualien County, was the most violent in the last twenty-five years to hit the island nation. Taiwan, which lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire, is prone to frequent earthquakes. This most recent one has claimed at least ten lives, left more than a thousand injured, toppled buildings, and triggered landslides in the mountainous regions. Luckily, none of our Belizeans who are studying or working in Taiwan were hurt or displaced. Today, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Francis Fonseca told News Five that immediately after the earthquake, his office contacted the Belize Embassy in Taiwan as well as Taiwan’s Embassy in Belize.

Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs

“When we heard about the earthquake, we engaged immediately with our ambassador in Taiwan, Dr Candice Pitts, as well as the Taiwanese Embassy here in Belize. I reached out personally to the ambassador here in Belize and they both provided us with updates on a regular basis. We certainly – of course, our prayers and thoughts are with the people of Taiwan. We are happy to report that none of our students were affected in any material way by the earthquake, thankfully. Of course, they were – some of them were shaken by the experience. A few of them slept through it. So we’re happy that all of our students are, doing well. Our embassy, our ambassador and her staff are doing well. They suffered in Taiwan, the country suffered some damage, structural damage, and of course any loss of life is, regrettable, but we’re happy to note that based on our reports, that their loss of life was limited to, I think, ten.”

Minister Fonseca Says Belize’s Missions Abroad Could All Do with More Staff

While we sat with him today, we asked Minister Fonseca about reports that the Belize Mission in Taiwan is acutely short-staffed. The mission is headed by Ambassador Doctor Candice Pitts, and she also travels to Japan to provide embassy services there. Today, Fonseca said that all of Belize’s missions could do with more staffing, and that will be one of the topics that will no doubt emerge when they all meet next week.

Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs

“The reality is that all of our missions, ideally, would require additional staff. That is just the reality of small developing countries like Belize. We have to operate small but effective and efficient missions across the world. We simply don’t have the budgets that bigger countries do. So that’s always an issue that we’re discussing: how can we provide more support to our mission. Of course, Taiwan is a very important mission, so that’s under discussion. Next week we will be having all of our ambassadors in Belize for our annual heads of mission meeting, so that’s going to be, obviously, a topic for discussion. All of them are interested in hearing what’s in the budget, how can we provide greater support for them to make sure that they are effectively carrying out their mandate on behalf of the Belizean people. So that’s definitely going to be something we discuss next week.”

7 Charged For Possession Of Illegal Firearm, 1 Pleads Guilty

This morning, a routine search was conducted at a house in Siene Bight Village, Stann Creek. This search resulted in the arrest of seven individuals after police discovered an unlicensed firearm and ammunition inside the building. Police arrested and charged fifty-one-year-old Rita Lopez; fifty-three-year-old Neville Henry Lopez Senior; twenty-four-year-old; Neville Henry Lopez Junior, eighteen-year-old Azzani Mossiah; twenty-three-year-old Kenrick Chi; twenty-three-year-old Nevon Lopez; and twenty-three-year-old Jahfari Gonguez. All seven persons were arraigned at the Dangriga Magistrates Court today, where Nevon Lopez pleaded guilty to keeping a firearm without a gun license and keeping ammunition without a gun license. He was remanded to the Hattieville Prison for sentencing until April seventeenth. The charges the others were withdrawn.

Opening The Doors For Belizeans To Be Leaders In Science

Today, the National Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Committee held its first meeting to develop the National Science, Technology, and Innovation Strategy. This inaugural session, the first of a series of consultations, represents a milestone for Belize. The primary focus of this meeting is to engage with key academic, private, public, and industry stakeholders towards the development of Belize’s first-ever Science, Technology, and Innovation Strategy, aiming to guide the growth and development of Belize and its people over the next decade. Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Doctor Louis Zabaneh, expanded on the significance of this endeavor.

Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of State, MOECST
“So, fortunately we have already done a lot of work with respect to innovation. We’ve gotten a lot of support from partners like IDB, UNDP in this regard. And so we’re not starting from scratch. But what innovation is really is the application of Technology and science that has already been produced somewhere. And putting it to work for us is going to be very important. And that’s what those initiatives have done. So that’s a good start, but we are taking an audacious view of what we can do as a country. We believe that we can also contribute to the production of technology. To the production of science, because we want to be in a position in the next ten, twenty, fifty years where we are active participants in the fourth industrial revolution and beyond that we are not just takers, but we’re also givers. And that means we have to have a plan that includes research and development, includes technology development, and goes upstream even farther into science, into contributing to science as well.”