Belize Times January 27, 2013

27 JAN SCAN HERE

2013

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The Belize Times THE BELIZE TIMES

Established 1957

27 JAN 2013

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The Truth Shall Make You Free

ISSUE NO: 4029

www.belizetimes.bz

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History!

National A Team wins first ever UNCAF match and makes historic entry to 2013 Gold Cup

BNTU rejects meetings with Police Minister & Prime Minister

Page 6

Pg. 31

The BNTU has accused the Police Minister of intimidiating teachers

BARROW REJECTS FABER

Another Lebanese Businessman Murdered Majdi Agha

Pg. 4

ICJ Public Education Launched

GOB Attempts Union Busting Belize City, January 23, 2013 The Barrow Administration’s naked and shameful attempts to disrupt the teacher’s movement with divide and conquer tactics have been exposed, further aggravating Union

Deon McCaulay (R) of Belize celebrates with teammate Ian Gaynar after scoring against Nicaragua during their UNCAF Central American Cup match, in San Jose, Costa Rica, on January 22, 2013. AFP PHOTO/ Rodrigo ARANGUA

Page 31

PUP Leader Hon. Francis Fonseca makes powerful presentation on the Opposition’s role in the Public Education Campaign (see speech on page 10)

Pg. 8 FOLLOW US! on the social media

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UB Student Leaders tell GOB: Reinstate UB subsidy!

January 21, 2013 The Association of Student Governments The University of Belize City of Belmopan Honourable Patrick Faber Minister of Education, Youth and Sports City of Belmopan Dear Honourable Faber: The Association of Student Governments of the University of Belize, representing the greater student body of the university, upon meeting on Friday and

Saturday January 11th and 12th, 2013 has come to these conclusions and following demands.

After considering your stand and resulting decision on the cut of the subsidy in school fees, we believe that this decision was made without due consideration of or consultation with UB students, and the following critical socio-economic conditions: high poverty rate, high rate of unemployment and high cost of living.

We remind you Honourable Minister that in 2007 you promised that under your watch the University of Belize fees would not be increased. You committed to us students that the University of Belize is a national University and should be treated as such. This includes the Govern-

Illegal CitCo tax squeeze!

Dear Editor, I remember writing to your newspaper back in November, to express my serious concerns about a new tax policy implemented by the very chancey Belize City Council. As my published letter had explained, I had gone to the Traffic Department to license my vehicle but was told that I could not proceed unless I first check with the Belize City Council office. At traffic, they claimed that I owed taxes.

My first concern was whether what they were doing was legal? I have never heard of a Council that denies citizens of services, when they are there to provide services.

To my disappointment, I have yet to hear legal experts such as the special lawyers club called the Bar Association, or legal aid or any good attorContinued on page 30

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THE BELIZE TIMES ment’s continued financial support to the University to ensure that education is affordable.

Subsequently, we would like to clarify our views on the proposed subsidy cuts. The majority of students at the University have expressed their displeasure based on several reasons, which we must communicate to you in order for you to understand our viewpoint.

This is definitely relevant to your decisions in government. Our expectations of you as our Minister of Education are to make decisions in the best interest of our country’s advancement, for both the present population, and our future progeny, regarding education and also to introduce innovative ways, given our means and resources, to effectively improve our entire educational system.

We want to clarify that we do not propose in any way to undermine other levels of education; neither does it focus attention solely on tertiary education. We must also emphasize that the University of Belize is the nation’s national University, and as such should not be compared to, in terms of its purpose, source of funding nor cost of programmes to other Universities in Belize.

Belize is a developing country, and the affordability of tertiary education should be a prioritized goal. We cannot simply settle for mediocrity, and focus only on primary and secondary educaContinued on page 30

No more taxes!

Message to REAL Union Leaders

Dear Editor, Every time the Prime Minister gets on one of his choice friendly television or radio stations, he proclaims that his Government will not raise any taxes on Belizeans. This is the reason, as I understand it, for his refusal to get into any kind of arrangement with the tax-sucking International Monetary Fund (IMF).

But despite the Prime Minister’s repeated words, our pockets have been feeling it hard as the prices of goods and services, even some offered by the government, have been creeping up.

Things such as basic hospital fees at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, reconnection fees at BEL, fuel prices, and now the Belize City Council’s newly-imposed

Dear Editor, As plantain no longer eat like rice, with the cost of living spiralling out of control and crime rampant, there seems to be no end to this madness. Our Unions have now awakened out of their slumber and are calling for a demonstration against all of the above issues.

As a Belizean worker who shares all the pains and suffering, my question is are the Union Leaders willing to lead as they did against the former administration? Their fight then wasn’t about salaries and the many painful ills confronting them currently. The Unions must acknowledge that it was under the PUP that they received their last salary increases which were not Continued on page 30

Continued on page 30

26 23 Jan Dec

Police Officers STILL seeking retro salary payment!

Dear Editor, Over some hundred Police Officers whom had been re-enlisted into the Police Department for quite some years now have been seeking their Salary Review Retro-Payments, which was promised to them within a period of thirty (30) days by the Minister of National Security Hon. John Saldivar and for the past five (5) months resulted fruitless.

Instead the Officers are being told, promised and pushed around on several occasions by the various Accounts Sections responsible that on every end of the month their money will be in their accounts which results in only PROMISES. Out of those hundreds of officers, a few were chosen and successful in pulling strings and got their payments deserved others who have been struggling pay their bills and maintain their families and children have had to wait since the Government does not have money to pay off the rest of officers. It is quite obvious that the welfare of the Police Officers is of no interest to our Government and Minister.

Signed.

Concerned Police Officer

THE BELIZE TIMES serving Belize since 1957 as the longest continous newspaper.

Founder: Rt. Hon. George Cadle Price, People’s United Party Leader Emeritus EDITOR

Alberto Vellos LAYOUT/GRAPHIC ARTIST

Chris Williams OFFICE ASSISTANT

Mark Peyrefitte Printed and Published By The Belize Times Press Ltd.

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Tel: 671-8385 #3 Queen Street P.O. BOX 506 Belize City, Belize Email: belizetimesadvertisement@yahoo.com

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Exchange rate of One Belize Dollar

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27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

PM’s desperate bait to bondholders

AJ Mediratta

Belize City, January 21, 2013 Prime Minister Dean Barrow toned down his euphoria over the Superbond re-negotiation at a press conference held on Monday, January 21, 2013.

Just days before Christmas, in December 2012, Barrow had called the media to announce that a deal had been struck in time for Christmas. In his usual grand flair, he was all smiles for the cameras, as he flaunted big words that seemed to impress no one but the members of his head table. Barrow reported that an agreement had been reached “with bondholders” and that it would result “in excess of 150 million dollars in relief”.

But on Monday of this week, react-

Michael Peyrefitte has stolen Mark Espat’s limelight, but Hall Mark still gets paid ing to pressure that the December stunt was just a show, a much less enthusiastic Barrow called the media again. Remarkably, the facts had changed.

Barrow now said that the deal struck was actually with half of the bondholders, specifically a Committee of Creditors led by AJ Mediratta of Greylock Capital. This is an important difference, because Belize has no deal unless it can get 75% of the bondholders on board.

The Committee represents about 50%, which means there is no deal yet.

Just how Mediratta and the Committee fell in line with the Government’s wishes, or perhaps its vice-versa, is not known. Barrow was explicit that it wasn’t the doing of Superbond Team

PM Barrow increases security detail Belize City, January 21, 2013 The country has been in a heightened state of fear since the multiple murders involving several known gang members in an apartment in Belize City on the morning of January 8th and the shooting of former Prime Minister’s Rt. Hon. Said Musa home last week Wednesday, January 16.

The incidents follow what has been the bloodiest year yet, with 150 murders on record. Despite a shakeup in the Police Department and the promise that more boots will be added to the ground, the apprehension has not abated.

In fact, even the Prime Minister has bolstered security mea-

sures for his safety.

The BELIZE TIMES has been informed that the Ministry of National Security has added new security personnel to guard the Prime Minister around the clock. A heavily tinted SUV can now be seen trailing the Prime Minister when he moves around.

The Prime Minister and the Ministry of National Security are, by this action, acknowledging that crime has reached dangerous levels in Belize. Fortunate for them, access to the country’s security personnel is at their disposal while citizens must rely on sheer luck and hope that violence doesn’t knock on their doors.

led by UDP Ambassador Mark Espat, whose private company is collecting a large sum for his role in the negotiations. The glory went to House Speaker Michael Peyrefitte who reportedly simply connected Barrow with Mediratta by phone.

03 3 Mediratta was also brought to Belize – all expenses including his stay in San Pedro paid by taxpayers – to prove that the all-important Committee was on-board.

Mediratta, who had been involved in the initial Superbond deal in 2006, seemed to have played his role well. He was soft-spoken, conciliatory and even hopeful. But among the global-stakes businessman’s choice words were two eye opening statements. The first was that he told Belize’s officials “I am not a banker anymore, I now own your bonds”, which made it clear who is in charge in the negotiations, and who may be conceding to whom. The second was his clarification that there is “no guarantee” that the remaining bondholders will accept the deal.

There was also a major difference in the initial relief sum than was announced

by Barrow in December. This time it fell to $100 million. Barrow clarified that it doesn’t mean that the Government will have any extra cash, or that it eliminate Belize’s near $70 million deficit.

Barrow refused to reveal any specific information regarding the negotiations with the Creditor’s Committee, despite questions from the media.

Ultimately, the update is minimal.

The Superbond renegotiations remains mostly stalled, and Barrow has been caught in another of his deceptions.

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THE BELIZE TIMES

27 JAN

2013

Belize Makes History!

National Team defeats Nicaragua in dramatic finish Striker Deon McCauley scored Belize’s winning goal against Nicaragua

Belize’s National A Team prepares for the Semi Final game against Honduras on Friday

Woodrow West blocked all of Guatemala’s attempts at our goal

San Jose, Costa Rica, January 22, 2013 The entire nation of Belize is ecstatic over the highly dramatic victory which Belize’s National A Team had over Nicaragua on Tuesday night in the Copa Centro America held in San Jose, Costa Rica. Not only was Belize seeking to advance in the tournament with a win (the first ever for Belize), but it was also looking to qualify to the Gold Cup scheduled for July 2013 which would be a first for the country.

The National A Team did it. First with a goal in the 29th minute by midfielder Trevor Lennen who blasted a right foot shot which was unstoppable for the Nicaraguan goalkeeper Denis Espinoza.

Belize’s highly defensive playing style continued in this game, as Nicaragua attempted to spoil the lead.

Belize’s goal keeper Woodrow West was at his best, guarding the goal and coaching the team from where he stood. West has been nothing less than spectacular in the tournament, showing his talent and ability as an alert, attentive and acrobatic athlete. Only 1 goal had been scored on him in Game 1 against Costa Rica, until the 85th minute when the defense allowed Nicaragua’s Elvis Figueroa to receive a pass and aim a shot at West that was too close and too quick to stop.

Regulation time ended with the Continued on page 15

27 JAN

2013

THE BELIZE TIMES

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BIG TEST; BAD STUDENT

T

he Government is insistent on making a mockery of the teachers of this country. In very lucid intervals the attitude of the Government towards the teachers is borderline contemptuous and poorly clad annoyance.

But the teaching fraternity is a formidable one. These teachers that are being scoffed at, undermined and ill-treated like indentured slave hands are in contact with over a hundred thousand (100,000) students who are attending a total of 541 schools throughout the three levels of the education factory. The sheer number of teachers is staggering with almost 5,000 dedicated men and women nationwide.

Clearly, good politics will dictate that the Government should show tremendous restraint from extending the full extent of their usual penchant to be crassly condescending and insultingly dismissive.

The issue for the Government is not the economic hardship and sacrifice which has been weighing heavily on teachers. The human side of the reasonable request by the teachers in the collective bargaining agreement does not register with the petty and selfish government. What they see is a block of voters and political turmoil which is very bad news because it confirms the quiet discontent and disappointment which is a prelude to final confirmation that the people will take no more excuses.

The greatest boon for the Government is a statistical song, which is extremely impersonal, unpersuasive and unreflective of the prevailing economic ditch which causes teachers’ salaries to devaluate in their credit union accounts. The Governments’ retort is to tell the teachers “you should be thankful”. Statistically, GOB waves in teachers’ faces that they spend 25% of the national budget or $190 million in the education sector.

Those mathematical answers do very little to recognize both the high rate of inflation and cost of living which is being shouldered by the teachers nor the intangible fact that as caretakers of the single most important social institution, teachers have had to act as a safety net against the daunting social cliff. Teachers are often not rewarded with the appropriate measure of gratitude for their actions above and beyond the call of duty. Save for a heart-warming hug or an exchange with a successful past student, the work of many teachers goes unnoticed.

Socio-politically, teachers for the most part represent the independent minded, middle class and lower middle class families in Belize. This is a very vulnerable group and the spine of our economy.

Surely, the boiling confrontation between GOB and the BNTU is of marked significance because the teaching population of Belize is the best litmus test for the average sentiments of the wider population. Teachers are seen as the more

reserved, rational and stable members of society with a bit more freedom, “backative” and history to speak out about their conditions. We say this because other public servants such as Government department workers, Policemen, nurses and members of the Belize Defence force are often gagged and tied under the chains of being “essential services” or the very direct reality of political victimization.

Teachers are unhappy The demands of the teachers must be heard and satisfied. Teachers are the last to become confrontational and the most amenable to reason but they are the most severely affected by failed government policies whether economic or political. For unlike the business community who may re-invent themselves, pass it through to customers or adjust profit margins and lifestyle comforts, teachers are, for lack of a better description, stuck in the classrooms and barricaded by their government-dictated salary pay scales.

Barrow’s strategy against the teachers is strikingly similar to the treatment given to the Mayans, Caneros, Police Association, Chamber of Commerce, Oceana and the Bar Association of Belize. He has scolded them, condemned their needs and high stepped over their problems.

His current strategy to try to duck the January 29th, National Day of Protest, is to say indirectly that Teachers are selfish and stupid in that they are asking “to put everything at risk, jeopardizing the future.” Then he uses the worst option as an answer to their request. Barrow made it appear that the Union was suggesting that he increase GST to 25%.They asked for no such thing. What they asked for is fair wages and the ability to have a happy life.

They saw the gangs being paid millions and the family and friends of UDP politicians living it up. They know the double tongue of the Prime Minister. They know that it is too far from elections for him to care.

The Government has decided to provoke the teachers further by openly using union busting tactics. This is ill advised and will only serve to prolong the aggravation of the choking wage freeze. To throw the token annual increments in their face is unbecoming and ultimately will dry up the evaporating patience and good will of the country.

Belize and Belizeans will stand with our teachers. They deserve it.

Working out the solution to the request for a salary adjustment is not the job of the BNTU, PSU or NTUCB. Funny enough were it closer to an election; the UDP Government would have adapted a more accommodating approach. The Teachers have seen that fact. They have seen through the stalling cycle of delay tactics and its connection to election dates and election antics. They are saying pay us some attention. Give us our due. We at the BELIZE TIMES have to agree with that.

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27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

UB Students/Education Minister Patrick Faber standoff continues

Belize City, January 22, 2013 Despite pronouncements made by Minister of Education Patrick Faber that the Government’s decision to end its subsidy to the University of Belize is final, the

GOB Attempts Union Busting Continued from page 1 Leaders who are planning a massive demonstration on Tuesday, January 29th, 2013.

On Tuesday, the Belize National Teachers Union Belmopan Branch President received a copy of a letter sent from the Belmopan Education Office to all Managers, Principals and Teachers in the Belmopan Area, calling them to an urgent meeting with the UDP Constituency Area Representative Minister of National Security John Saldivar at 1:30pm on Wednesday, January 23rd.

The purpose of the meeting, stated the memo, was for Saldivar to “discuss the Bargaining Agreement”. The memo also informed the managers, principals and teachers that the Ministry of Education was giving them a halfday free of classes so they can But the baiting of teachers was not received warmly by Union Leaders.

Saldivar has never been involved in the discussions of the Bargaining Agreement between the Unions and the Government. His sudden involvement, especially at the level of his political constituency, was deemed as political interference at best, and an attempt to distract, divide and possibly intimidate Belmopan teachers.

It triggered a meeting with the Presidents of the BNTU Luke Palacio, Public Service Union Marvin Blades and Association of Public Service Senior Managers Jose Castellanos which resulted in the release of a fiery statement accusing the Government of union busting.

The Union Leaders called on their teachers to boycott the meeting and condemned the actions of the Government as one of “bad faith”.

The BELIZE TIMES understands that Prime Minister Dean Barrow also attempted to call a meeting with the Union Leaders, but it was also rejected.

The Prime Minister has suddenly shown interest in the matter, when for the past five years the Union leaders have been calling on him to discuss the issue of salary increases which he promised to them when he was Opposition Leader in 2008, but their requests were flatly rejected several times.

The BNTU has remained resolute about its industrial action in the City of Belmopan next week Tuesday. The National Trade Union Congress of Belize, the umbrella organisation for all unions in Belize, signalled its support for the BNTU following a General Council meeting held on Saturday January 19th.

University of Belize Student Government continues to agitate for the financial support to continue.

In a letter sent to Minister Faber on Monday, January 21, 2013, the Association of Student Governments which includes the Student Government Presidents from UB’s three campuses have demanded that the Ministry of Education re-instate the subsidy by Thursday, January 24th.

The Association stated in the letter that the decision was taken without their consideration or consultation, and neither did it take into account the country’s socio-economic conditions such as high poverty rate, high rate of unemployment and high cost of living.

The Association argued that the subsidy assisted the students to meet the fees at the National University. Students were re-

Hon. Patrick Faber has said his top priority is not tertiary level education sponsible for about 45% of the cost, and Government paid the remaining amount. With the subsidy cut, students will bear the entire amount, totalling almost $500. This does not include the cost of tuition and other education related expense.

The Association reminded Faber

that when he was in Opposition and was seeking their support five years ago, he pledged not to increase the cost at the University, “We remind you Honourable Minister that in 2007 you promised that under your watch the University of Belize fees would not be increased.

You committed to us students that the University of Belize is a national University and should be treated as such. This includes the Government’s continued financial support to the University to ensure that education is affordable”.

The Association has requested a meeting with Faber before their January 24th deadline. Sources within the University indicate that students have agreed en-masse that if the Minister remains intransigent, the only other option would be to send him a message through action.

The BELIZE TIMES will continue to monitor this issue.

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27 JAN

2013

THE BELIZE TIMES

UDP land grab in OW South Farmers’ lease lands stripped away by greedy cronies Belize City, January 21, 2013 Reports to the BELIZE TIMES are that a land grab continues to take place in the Orange Walk area at the hands of greedy UDP cronies.

Several farmers living in the Orange Walk constituency have been affected, as their lands, held with lease documents, is taken away overnight by UDP cronies. The BELIZE TIMES understands that the person responsible for this coward action is a well-connected employee of the Ministry of Natural Resource and her family. They reportedly take away the land and change its lease information before re-selling for a higher price.

Among the affected are the Gonzales family, the Ramos

family whose lease for 50 acre farm land has been cancelled.

One of the persons who benefitted in this deal is a wellknown UDP lackey in Orange Walk, known as “Scampos”, who drives around a Government vehicle with free fuel and calls himself an employee of the Ministry of Agriculture.

The Vasquez family is also targeted. This family plants cane fields on their land and said that they were shocked to visit their land one day, but to find bulldozers clearing the land. When they ask who send them, they learn that it is the Government.

Other families affected are the Medina family, Cassanova family and Cawich family.

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The LAW on Gangs!

CRIME CONTROL AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT Suppression of Criminal Gangs 1. In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires, “criminal gang” means an organization or association or combination of persons which is formed for, or which acquires, the purpose of committing or facilitating the commission of any of the offenses set out in section 5(2) of this Act; and any such organization or association or combination of persons shall be treated as a gang whether or not it has other objects or purposes.

2.-(1) Subject to subsection (3) below, a person is guilty of an offense is he knowingly:(a) belongs or professes to belong to a criminal gang; (b) solicits or invites support for a criminal gang; or (c) arranges or assists in the arrangement of, or addresses, any meeting of three or more persons (whether or not it is a meeting to which the public are admitted) knowing that the meeting is: Membership, etc. of criminal gangs. (i) to support a criminal gang; or (ii) to further the activities of a criminal gang.

(2) A person guilty of an offense under subsection (1) above shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both such fine and imprisonment.

Is PM Barrow guilty of violating the Laws of Belize when he negotiates and agrees to pay gang members?

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THE BELIZE TIMES

27 JAN

2013

ICJ Public Education Launched

Belize City, January 23rd, 2013 We meet this morning to launch the Public Education Campaign leading up to a Referendum at which the Belizean people will be asked to vote Yes or No on the following question: “Do you agree that any legal claim of Guatemala against Belize relating to land and insular territories and to any maritime areas pertaining to these territories should be submitted to the International Court of Justice for final settlement and that it determines finally the boundaries of the respective territories and areas of the Parties?”

This, ladies and gentlemen, is the question that will undoubtedly dominate our national conversation and consciousness for many months to come.

Our People’s United Party is obligated and committed to being a part of that National Conversation.

Our Party’s National Executive meeting at Independence Hall on October 20th, 2012, made the following decisions: 1. The People’s United Party will participate in the Public Education Campaign.

That participation has already began 2. Our Party will engage in an internal education campaign for its members and supporters at the end of which the Party will convene at Party Council to adopt its official position on this question.

3. The Public Education Campaign must be free from bias and must present to the

Belizean people a comprehensive, objective analysis Not only of the proposed question, but also of the benefits and risks inherent in submitting ourselves to the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.

The proposed question itself leads to important further questions.

1. What is in fact Guatemala’s “legal claim” against Belize?

2. What specific land, insular territories and maritime areas form a part of the claim?

3. What exactly is the role and function of the International Court of Justice; and how is “final settlement” defined by the Court.

These are questions to which the Belizean people must be given clear, comprehensive answers.

Similarly the arguments for a Yes or No vote must be exhaustively advanced and discussed. Those who support going to the I.C.J. argue that it represents a final and definitive settlement of the longstanding Anglo – Guatemalan dispute and Guatemala’s claim to Belize, and can lead to new opportunities for funding National Development Programs and Border Security.

They find comfort in the legal opinions of leading international lawyers who view Belize’s Case as Iron – Clad.

Those in support of a “NO” vote anchor their arguments in Belize’s Independence and Sovereignty, our history of development and international recognition, and our right to self- determination. Why risk all this, they ask, before a supranational institution which may not have our interests at heart, and whose history is skewed toward compromise.

And they ask, “Is Guatemala serious this time?”

Indeed Belizeans have every justification for being filled with skepticism and cynicism as it relates to Guatemala’s good faith commitment to the process we are currently en-

gaged in.

Our very own Ambassador Jim Murphy writing in the Belizean Studies Volume 26 No. 2 of December 2004 asked: “Does anyone in Guatemala really want to bring this thing to an end?”

His conclusion: “Guatemala declares valid and binding treaties VOID; in effect denies the course of 350 years of historical development in Belize; disputes the validity of United Nations resolutions; calls the right of all peoples to self-determination, a principle of international law, irrelevant; fails to implement agreements reached; stages military threats even in the midst of negotiating, sanctions illegal squatter settlement’s near the border in Belize; and undermines Charter Commitments to the peaceful settlement of disputes.

Not exactly a reassuring track record for resolving outstanding differences via the I.C.J. or otherwise.” (End of quote) The Guatemala claim is an issue of deepest concern to Belizeans who are justly proud of our nation and guard our national territory jealously.

The right of Belize to its territory is confirmed by the principle of self-determination, a well-established norm of modern international law. This means that Belizeans were entitled to determine our future and did so upon attaining Independence in 1981. Our right to self-determination was recognized virtually unanimously by the members of the United Nations and Belize was admitted as a member in the full knowledge, by the members, of Guatemala’s claim.

This did not mean that Guatemala’s claim, although unfounded, went away. Belizeans have grappled with this unjust claim, for decade upon decade, and have, as a people resisted, with every national fibre, any formulation of “Belice es nuestro”, in every political and international forum possible, loudly, vigorously

and consistently.

There must be no doubt that it is the PEOPLE of Belize who will decide how this most serious matter will be decided. That is what our Constitution mandates – that is your guarantee under our Constitution – that the people of Belize must approve any solution to the Guatemala Claim. You are being asked to decide. You are the ones who MUST be consulted, and whose OPINIONS, VIEWS, and VOTES ultimately decide if we go – or not – to the I.C.J. Citizens are therefore challenged – to learn as much as you can about the claim, and the history of the claim, and familiarize yourself with Belize’s position, learn the pros, the cons, the risks and the advantages of taking this matter to the I.C.J. – not only do you owe this to yourself, you owe this to your children and their children in turn I ask you today – study, reflect, discuss, debate, argue, challenge, absorb – but take this issue seriously so that in the years to come, you know that you made a difference in your nation, in your home – that in her hour of need, you responded to the call and defended the Jewel. History expects no less of any of us.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Education Campaign we embark upon today will further test our already fragile sense and spirit of national unity. There are good people who wish to vote NO and there are good people who intend to vote YES. We must all understand and respect that.

- This issue must not and will not further divide us.

- After all, above all else, we are proud Belizeans.

27 JAN

09 9

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

A GANGSTER NATION Belize City, January 21, 2013 Prime Minister Dean Barrow, who is also the unholy pope of the ruling vindictive, destructive and hateful, United Democratic Party, is the chief architect in the creation of Belize as a gangster nation over the past six years.

Barrow’s rise to power and his ultimate life ambition to be enthroned came as he bulldozed and forced himself and his party to a political victory in 2008 through his call for civil disobedience and unlawfulness. He has been unable to quell the momentum. This has been exacerbated when his government gave recognition to the criminal gangs in Belize. They have now been legitimatized and remains on the government’s payroll, despite public pronouncements to the contrary.

Barrow is now unable to stop this state of anarchy and he continues to treat his gang bosses with kid gloves.

It is difficult for him when he refuses to be contrite and as his, and his party’s, radio station continues to spew violence against any citizen who dares to objectively oppose his policies and with a daily character assassination of citizens and organizations who dare to oppose or offer alternative solutions to this government’s failed policies. It is gutter radio that is untouchable by the Belize Broadcasting Authority. But the BBA is of like minds and also toothless.

But Barrow continues to hide his dirty hands through clever rhetorical somersaults. It would be wise for us, at least for a while, to stop listening to the noise at these press conferences and to watch closely the theater, the body politics and the performance of the Prime Minister, his puppets and clowns who take the microphone to pay him homage. In other words, begin to take note of the optics.

Following the recent Sunday-night bloody massacre at the corner of Plues and Dean Streets in Belize City, which resulted in the vicious murder of four men, some who were believed to have been associated with the local gangs, the Prime Minister hastily called a meeting of his Cabinet to discuss this gangland-style slaying. At that Cabinet meeting he invited gang leaders from his political constituency of Queens Square and the neighbouring constituency of Mesopotamia, where one of his colleagues in the Cabinet is a mob boss. These criminals had much to contribute to the discussion with the peers in the Cabinet, which is in itself a den of thieves, crooks and thugs.

Following that Cabinet meeting, the gangsters were spirited away with police escort to Gales Point Manatee with thousands of dollars in pocket money provided from the public purse so that they could chill and recover from the blood bath even before the police investigation began.

It was after that meeting with his street lords that Barrow called his press conference in Belize City. There he put on quite a show, where despite

the gravity of the massacre, his cheerleaders were well in place to applaud and to create a totally unconscionable carnival atmosphere and to give sup-

posse happy, if for no other reason now, but to keep them quiet about any dirty deals. On the other hand, one of his senior ministers is known to have

It had all the trappings of a State-sponsored funeral including a twenty-one gun salute, no doubt with illegal firearms, which possibly have been used and will quite likely be used again and again in subsequent crimes and killings in Belize’s killing fields. port, at least optically, to the PM’s and his Cabinet’s wimpy declaration. Earlier he was propping up his boys from the hood - a hood which the Commissioner Police, while talking about the criminal elements in George Street, treated the PM’s constituency of Queen’s Square as taboo, fearfully no doubt, by making the only reference to this as “other areas”.

The coverage of the funeral of one of the gang leaders, by a local television station, was surreal. It displayed a lot of pomp and ceremony, including a funeral procession of outlaws. It had all the trappings of a State-sponsored funeral including a twenty-one gun salute, no doubt with illegal firearms, which possibly have been used and will quite likely be used again and again in subsequent crimes and killings in Belize’s killing fields.

Firing a gun (or guns) in public is in itself illegal.

But this funeral obviously had state support.

The police was ordered to stay away.

Looking beyond the rhetoric and deep behind the optics, the Prime Minister is finding himself in a Shakespearian quagmire with the “Evil that men do”. The Plues Street massacre has the trappings of a professional job aimed at one of the slain men who reportedly just returned from Mexico. It also suggests a retaliatory assault in response to the earlier killing in the week, by an individual, who was gunned down, gangland style, by local gang soldiers who are in Barrow’s pocket. The Prime Minister is walking a tight rope to keep his local

links to a Mexican cartel.

In the final analysis, there is a clear indication that the government is not serious about battling crime, or that they can’t, given the fact that they are rolling in the hay with local gang bosses. The recent musical chairs that play out with the police command of the Ministry of National Security make this very clear. It is bad enough that the government has not made any

serious investments in forensics, and had to rely on the gift by the United States government, who recently got a tongue lashing from the Prime Minister. Worse, does the appointment of the just retired and monumentally incompetent, former Commissioner of Police to head the Police Forensics Laboratory make the point?

The recent Sunday night massacre of the four men will not be solved.

It was, we speculate, a professional cartel’s hit job. Barrow’s police department has not been adequately equipped with the proper crime fighting tools. Money for this continues to be diverted in millions of dollars paid in legal fees to family and friends in a continuing slew of litigation designed for this purpose. It is corruption in plain sight (optics), while they build mansion--like law offices in stark contrast to the rising crime and poverty rates.

The recent attack on former Prime Minister, Said Musa’s residence, was not random. It was very optical. Go figure! Start from the top- the top of this article if you wish.

10 Belize City, January 22, 2013 The BELIZE TIMES is in solidarity with the poor, working class of Belize. With the cost of living increasing steadily – about 30-35% increase since 2008 – teachers, doctors, nurses and public officers deserve better salaries. To assist the Barrow Administration in finding the resources needed to provide the salary increase here is an area that can be looked at.

With 16 Ministers and 5 Junior Ministers in Cabinet, Belize has to find over $2 Million in Ministerial Salaries every year. This is a waste!

The Government does not need 21 Cabinet Ministers! Especially when they lack even the most basic of skills and competence. There is absolutely no need for a Minister of Gangs. The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development could take over the Ministry of Trade, Investment and Private Sector Development which is led by a ghost called Erwin Contreras.

We also need to stop practising the wastefulness of appointing “Ministers of State”. That’s why the Government already hires trained CEOs. No need for Ministers of State in the Ministries of Finance and Economic Development, Immigration, Agriculture, Transport, and Youth and Sports.

Cutting down those three Ministries would save Belize over $700,000 alone in Ministers’ Salaries.

The Ministry of Housing is defunct, even though it has a budget of $2,514,219. That Ministry can be merged with the Ministry of Human Development which needs competent leadership. Those two Ministries are led by two deadheads, with nothing viable to offer.

The work could be done by a single competent CEO. Boots and Finnegan have lived off tax payers for too long! Belizeans can’t afford to bleed for their sake.

These measures would save Belize the salary of two more Ministers. Another $200,000 saved.

Instead of instigating fights between Ministers Gaspar Vega and Lisel Alamilla, the Prime Minister should decide who is best to run a NEW and better-defined Ministry of Natural Resources, Forestry, Fisheries, and Sustainable Development.

It might end up being neither since one gives away our resources while the other burns it recklessly. But having both Ministers cost Belize too much! Deciding on keeping one Minister would save Belize another $100,000 annually.

These cost cutting measures would result in a more financially-disciplined Cabinet, with 10-12 Ministers. It would save Belize over $1 Million in salaries alone.

Savings would increase when one factors in less fancy vehicles, fuel expenses and the perks given to the Ministers.

Finally, if there are performance-based requirements for public officers, there should be the same for Ministers. Do you think the Minister of Health Pablo Marin or Minister of Works Rene Montero would pass? No way. This performance based would be a pre-requisite to hiring a Minister and also factor in when deciding their pay scale. We are sure they wouldn’t be getting $80,000 salaries if that’s the case.

The Prime Minister needs to show the people of Belize that he is serious about leading the country through these tumultuous times. There is no room for the waste and corruption which has been cultured under his administration. He also must be honest to the Belizean working class that there is a way to ease the burden on their backs. The truth is, Prime Minister Dean Barrow can find a way to give teachers and public officers a salary increase, but it is not of his character to stand for the poor.

27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

Government Waste

Over-Crowded, Expensive Cabinet

Gang Minister Mark King

Boots Martinez

Herman Longsworth

27 JAN

2013

Ministry of Housing is a HUGE Waste Belize City, January 22, 2013 The UDP can afford to pay teachers and public officers if it cuts the huge waste that exists in Government. One wasteful Ministry which has received an inflated budget every year is the Ministry of Housing. Since the UDP took office, there has been no housing project for Belizeans and no housing policy. In fact, when you browse the weekend newspapers, you’ll see that more people are losing their homes.

Yet, the non-functional Ministry of Housing is allocated millions of dollars every year.

In 2008-2009, it had a Budget allocation of $2,913,619.

In 2009-2010, its total Budget allocation ballooned to $16,007,640.

In 2010-2011 allocation remained at a high with $10,603,973.

In 2011-2012, the budget was $7,281,775.

Now the estimated total revenue for this year’s Housing budget is $2,514,219.

In the 5 years of the UDP, the Housing Ministry has spent a total of a whopping $39,321,226!

At a modest $10,000 per home, that should be almost 40,000 homes, but WHERE ARE THE HOUSES? Today, the Ministry of Housing under the UDP is but a shell of the robust Ministry it once was under the PUP. It only hires about 11 Public Officers at the Ministry office and 15 persons at the Housing Department. Yet it budgeted $700,000 in salaries.

The bulk of the spending for salaries goes under an allocation for “Unestablished Staff” which is another

Michael Finnegan presides over a Ministry that is nonfunctional term for “political cronies”.The Ministry of Housing will spend nearly $500,000 here. Can you imagine this waste?

Additionally, the Minister is paid “on contract” with a salary of $81,000 plus $28,000 in allowances. That’s $109,000 for a do-nothing, lazy UDP Minister.

The Ministry also hires an “Urban Development Planner” who will be paid $25,652 but who is not needed because no urban planning is taking place anywhere in Belize.

To top it all off, the Ministry has allocated almost $60,000 for telephone calls, but to call where and what for?

Another area of waste!

All that taxpayers’ money goes to a defunct Ministry of Housing that only exists to give a no-good Minister a plush salary and a means to keep paying his cronies and lackeys happy could go towards paying teachers, police officers, doctors, fire fighters and nurses their much deserved salary increases.

PM Abuses Media

Belize City, January 24, 2013 Dean Barow has cracked.

We can see that the pressure has consumed him. He cannot handle it. In an interview following the ICJ Educational Campaign Launch, Prime Minister Barrow was asked a straight forward question by Channel 5 reporter Jose San-

11

THE BELIZE TIMES

chez. “Was it appropriate for the Minister of National Security to have the Ministry of Education to instruct teachers to close their doors and send students home today for a meeting in Belmopan, the Capital?”

At first the Prime Minister acted as if he knew nothContinued on page 16

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 Mortgage under a Deed of Mortgage made the 27th day of March, 2006, registered in Deeds Book Vol. 10 of 2006 at Folios 729746, between Atlantic Bank Limited (the Assignor) Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., and Edison Menzies and Ella Menzies, and under a Deed of Assignment of Mortgage made the 20th day of February, 2003, recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 7 of 2003 at Folios 1061-1100, between The Belize Bank Limited (the Assignor) and Atlantic Bank Limited, which said property was mortgaged by the said Edison Menzies and Ella Menzies to the said Belize Bank Limited on the 4th day of June, 2002, recorded in Deeds Book Vol 21.

Of 2002 at Folios 347-386; and 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 lot LEASEHOLD INTEREST IN ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Block No. 2 situate in the Agricultural Area, Sittee River, Stann Creek District, and bounded as follows:- On the North for 77.556 metres by a portion of Block No. 10; On the South for 59.512 metres by a road; On the East for 390.034 metres by Block No. 3; and on the West for 371.334 metres by Block No. 1; containing 6.882 acres of land as shown on Plan No. 1938 at the Office of the Commissioner of Lands and Surveys TOGETHER with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon.

DATED this 22nd of January, 2013.

MUSA & BALDERAMOS 91 North Front Street Belize City Attorney-at-Law for Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

12

THE BELIZE TIMES

27 JAN

2013

Guatemala takes issue with

Belize’s Referendum Law Belize City, January 24, 2013 While the Government of Belize has kick-started it’s Public Awareness Campaign on this year’s ICJ referendum, Guatemala appears to be having second thoughts or at least major concerns on whether the playing field is level.

According to a front page article on the Wednesday’s edition of Guatemala’s La Prensa Libre newspaper, officials in the neighbouring country are taking issue with Belize’s Referendum Law, specifically the section that requires a minimum of 60% voter turnout to validate the referendum.

Guatemala accuses Belize’s officials of amending the Referendum Act to include the threshold “just four months before signing the special agreement” with Guatemala

to take the ICJ matter to a referendum.

According to the article, Guatemala sees it as a “strategy”

by Belize to make the referendum difficult and complicated, and reports the President of Guatemala’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal, María Eugenia Villagran, stating that it may give reason to “postpone” the referendum in Guatemala.

Both countries have agreed on October 6 2013 as the date of the referendum to be held simultaneously.

Villagran suggested that if the date is postponed it would give Belize the time to “adjust its referendum law so both countries go into the referendum on equal grounds”. She added that the concern has been shared

by Guatemala’s President Otto Peréz Molina.

27 JAN JAN 27

THE BELIZE TIMESTIMES THE BELIZE

2013

TOPMODEL 13

ENTERTAINMENT

NEWS

BLAK

BERRY Visit www.Facebook/ blackberry

Sizzla

Sizzla Kalonji has rejected an olive branch from the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG) offered to support Jamaican entertainers.

J-FLAG recently came out in support of entertainers, who in their judgement, were “reformed” dancehall artistes who have demonstrated greater levels of tolerance to the homosexual community.

However, Sizzla has no intention of accepting any support from the local gay lobbyists.

“I, personally, as Sizzla and president of the Nyabinghi theocracy, I don’t want no sponsor from no homosexual,” he declared.

Design: Chris Williams

rejects olive branch

• • • •

Aimee Height: 5’ 6” Career Plan: Neurologist Sign: Gemini Favourite Food: Fettucini Alfredo

• Likes: Play violin, Exercise, Sleeping • Lives in Belize City • Fav. Quote: “Shoot for the moon and if you miss, you land among the stars”

visit us at www.belizetimes.bz or Facebook/ Belize Times

Photo by Richard Holder

14 SPORTS

27 JAN

THE BELIZE THE BELIZE TIMES TIMES

2013

Buttonwood Bay defeats softball opponents

Buttonwood Nazarne girls are champs

Brandon Rojas

Buttonwood Nazarene boys are champs

Reid, Martinez & Abraham win Weekend Warriors Boom race

Mark Reid wins race

Belize City, January 20, 2013 Team Zitro’s Mark Reid won the “B” division of the Weekend Warriors’ Belize City to Burrell Boom cycling race on Sunday morning, while team M&M Engineering’s Preston Martinez won the “A’ division and Ian Abraham won the “C” division.

Mark Reid clocked 2:03:20 as he won the 42 mile race from Leslie’s Imports via Hattieville to Burrell Boom village on the bypass road and back to Leslie’s imports.

Team Digicel 4G’s Isaiah Willacy was 2nd while M&M Engineering’s Daniel Cano finished 3rd. Team Zitro’s Carlo Marin was 4th, Team Santino’s Jerome Moir was 5th and team Digicel 4G’s Kevin Hope was 6th.

Preston Martinez clocked 1:50:57 as he won the “A” class race. Team BCB/F.T.Williams’ George Abraham was right behind to take 2nd, while Team Scotiabank’s Barney Brown was 3rd in 1:51:49, and BCB/F.T.Williams’ Dean Belisle was 4th. BWS’ Derek Smith was 5th, and Team Digicel 4G’s Jack Sutherland was 6th.

Team CGI/eZone’s Ian Abraham won the “C” class, Team Digicel 4G’s Ryan Ribero was 2nd and Team Medina’s Ronald Meighan was 3rd. Tam Truckers’ Manuel Esquiliano was 4th, Team Medina’s Nelson Zayden was 5th and Team Zitro’s Ingmar Perera was 6th.

Belize City, January 21, 2013 The Buttonwood Bay Nazarene Primary School girls and boys enjoyed big wins when the Belize City primary schools softball competition continued at the home of softball, the Rogers’ Stadium on Monday afternoon, January 21.

Buttonwood’s pitcher Shenelle Magandi led Buttonwood Nazarene girls to a 14-10 win over the Unity Presbyterian School girls as Unity’s pitcher Allison Ariolla gave up 14 runs.

In the male competition, Buttonwood’s pitcher Brian Molina struck out 3 batters to get out of the 1st inning without giving up any points while his teammates scored 23 runs. The entire diamond was covered twice in the first inning for a 23-0 win over the Queen Square Anglican School boys.

When the tournament began last Monday, January 14, the St. Martin De Porres School boys had hammered Brain Molina’s pitching for a 24-5 win over Buttonwood Bay boys, while Martin’s pitcher Derrick Menzies allowed only 5 runs.

Other games: Central Christian Academy vs. St. John’s Anglican Primary – 17-0 Winning pitcher: Hanna Usher Central Christian Academy vs. St. John Vianney RC – 4-16 Winning pitcher: Princella Samuels Salvation Army vs. Holy Redeemer School – 8-3 Winning pitcher: Britney Meighan St. John’s Anglican vs. Central Christian School – 17-10 Winning pitcher: Warren Smith Holy Redeemer School boys vs. Salvation Army School – 23-5 Winning pitcher: D’Andre Arana gave up only 5 runs.

St. Mary’s Anglican School vs. Central Christian School – 23-5 Winning pitcher: Gilbert Cal

Guinea Grass & Progreso FC advance to OW football playoffs

Jose Westby scored the 2nd goal

27 JAN JAN 27

2013

SPORTS 15 Ladyville Tech

THE BELIZE TIMESTIMES THE BELIZE

Vanessa Galindo takes on Excelsior’s Paris

defeats ACC 2-1

Belize City, January 21, 2013 The Ladyville Technical High School girls enjoyed their 2nd win 2-1 against the Anglican Cathedral College girls on Monday. Shanese Rhaburn gave the Ladyville girls a 1-0 lead while ACC’s Ajahney Carr equalized for ACC just before the break. In the 2nd half, ACC gave up a free kick which Shanese Rhaburn converted into a goal.

The Ladyville Tech girls also posted a 3-1 win over the Excelsior High School last Wednesday. Tishawn Garcia scored Ladyville’s 1st goal, but Excelsior’s Shakeema Lorenzo delivered the equalizer for a 1-1 draw at the half time break. In the 2nd half, Ladyville’s Remelinda Perez scored a 2nd goal and Shameika Franklin iced the win with a 3rd goal.

The Wesley college girls also posted their 2nd win 1-0 over the St. Catherine’s Academy girls last Friday, when Kimberly Garcia escaped the SCA defense to drive in the winning goal past SCA’s goalie Erika Ayala. Wesley had enjoyed their 1st win when Shanice Neal scored in their 1-0 win over the A.C.C. girls on Monday.

The A.C.C. girls did better in a 2-0 win against the Excelsior High School girls on Saturday morning.

Belize Makes History!

Excelsior High enjoys 4-game winning streak

Undefated Excelsior wins 4

Ian Gaynair and Tyrone Pandy on the defense against Guatemala (Match end 0-0) Continued from page 14 game tied 1-1. Three minutes extra time was given, but Belize didn’t wait that long to find its mark. In minute 1 extra time, Nicaragua’s defense erred upon receiving a lob, which bounced off the defence’s foot right in front of Belize’s striker Deon McCaulay. McCaulay’s sharp reflex pushed him ahead with the ball and when the Espinoza came out to block the strike, McCaulay simply tapped the ball to the right and into the goal.

Nicaragua tried to get the ball into Belize’s territory, but had no success. With the

loss, they were eliminated from the tournament.

Belize had tied with Guatemala 0-0 on January 18th, and lost to Costa Rica 1-0 on January 20th.

Belize is in Group A in 2nd place, with 4 points.

Belize and Costa Rica are the only ones with wins in the competition, but Costa Rica has 2 wins and a draw for 7 points. Guatemala follows in 3rd place with 3 points.

Tuesday’s players were: Woodrow West, Elroy Smith, Ian Gaynair, Dalton Eiley, Trevor Lennen, Evral Trapp, Tyrone

Belize City, January 21, 2013 The undefeated Excelsior High School boys posted their 4th win in the Central Division high school football competition, with their last victory against the Nazarene High School boys on Monday

Pandy, Deon McCauley, Evan Mariano, Harrison Roches (replaced by Cristobal Gilharry in 67th minute), Ashley Torres (replaced by Devon Makin in 49 minute) and Delone Torres who entered in the 78th minute.

Their coach is Leroy Sherrier, a Costa Rican national.

Copa Centro America Schedule: January 25th – 5th place match Panama vs. Guatemala January 25th – Semi-finals Honduras vs. Belize Costa Rica vs. El Salvador January 27th – 3rd place match January 27th – 1st place match

night, 4-0.

The Nazarene defense erred in not clearing the ball out of the goal area. Kareem “Ton-ton” Flowers pounced on the ball and rocketed in a shot from the edge of the 18 yard box and goalie Alejandro Zuniga never had a prayer. Tyrone Zuniga would also catch up to

a loose ball to head in a 2nd goal before the half.

In the 2nd half, Kareem Flowers set table for Tyrone Gabriel to score a 3rd goal, and defender Shane Arnold recovered a rebound and sent back a rocket of a shot that embarrassed Zuniga with a 4th goal before the long whistle.

Other games: Excelsior High vs. Anglican Cathedral College – 4-1 Goals by James “Soonky” Fitzgibbons, Mynor Varela, Tyrone Gabriel, Richard “RJ” Waight, Kareem Flowers Excelsior vs. St John’s College – 2-1 Goals by Kareem “Ton-ton” Flowers, Jamal “Kaka” Ford, Sydney “Bucket” Bradley ACC vs. Sadie Vernon – ACC win by default ACC vs. Ladyville Technical High – 1-5 Goals by Jervis Myvett, Leon Sedacey, Devaun Rhaburn, Dario Torres, Richard “RJ” Waight Wesley College vs. Ladyville Tech – 3-1 Goals by Khambrel Blease, Godwin Neal, Keeron Young, Devaun Rhaburn SJC vs. Wesley College – 2-2

16

Of this and that…

WATER SHORTAGE It is 2013. There are people in Belize with no water. Imagine that.

Of all the things. Water is the most basic. You can do without everything else. Water is the first utility service of cave men.

Santa Marta is about 29 miles away. Mahogany Heights is 32 miles away. No reason why Belizeans in these places should not have water.

This is incredible. Water? Come one. Water?

This Government cannot be serious.

JOY RIDING Belize has a riding culture. That is what we do. We ride.

A bike is cheap. All you need is a frame, a fork and a friend. The ride is free. It is takes nothing but calories.

Oil prices do not affect it.

But riders are getting facey. The attitude of riders is bad. Cyclists will ride four abreast. Middle road. Handless. Cut across the dollar van.

You knock them down if yuh bad.

CHEAP OR HEALTHY Being poor does bad things to you. Belizeans are not rich. Poverty does not affect dignity. It does not affect instincts. It does not affect love.

It does affect other choices.

Belizeans will choose cheap over healthy. Expired goods over regular priced ones. Inferior goods over quality clothes and shoes.

We like the quality. We do not want to pay for it. We cannot afford it unless it comes from foreign in a box or barrel.

This choice between cheap or healthy is important. The Ministry of Health should be closed down.

They do nothing to educate us about healthy eating or living. They have no policy to help get us healthy.

This way must be cheap, of course.

At the chiney if you buy a single bar of soap, you get a bag. If you buy a single tin of potted meat or an ideal, you get a bag.

If you get a $3 chicken, you get a bag to put in the chicken, which is in a bag.

This is the worst environmental hazard. Since when did we become addicted to plastic?

BELIZEANS SHOULD DIE The road between Haulover and Vista del Mar is dark. It is dangerous.

We have been begging for lights.

None noh come.

The UDP renamed the highway.

They call it the Phillip Goldson Highway. Everyone knows Phillip was blind. But it is a sick joke to have the road so dark.

Ladyville is huge. Lots of lives travel that road. This road will kill more people. Belizeans will die. Just because of a piece of plastic and a bulb.

The UDP know the road is dangerous. They do not fix it.

They want Belizeans to die.

PO PATRICK Patrick Faber is arrogant. He is vindictive. He is incompetent. He is the very poster boy for everything UDP. He has been tricked. Po lee ting.

The UDP worked him like the horse in Animal Farm. They use the lee bwai. Now the UDP are rejecting him. Use the bwai like floor klaat.

Dean Barrow says Patrick have two strikes against him. Barrow says that Faber is wrong to be black. He is not good because he lives dah City. Patrick must feel like sh*@#.

But this is what he gets for smelling himself. Barrow was to stay neutral. But politics over there is about money. Gapi has lots. Faber bruk.

This is about money, pupa.

Look how the UDP rewards its black workers and black supporters.

Terrible.

SLAVE GRAVES Where, in Belize, are the graves of slaves who lived here years ago?

I want to know.

There were thousands of slaves living in Belize City in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

In 1838 slavery in Belize ended.

Where are all the graves of all those thousands of slaves who died and were buried?

Was there a cemetery for the slaves?

Were they buried in the yards of their families?

We need to know.

PLASTIC FOOLISHNIS What is the thing with Cruffy and plastic bag?

27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

WARRIOR DOWN Hugo Chavez, President of Venezuela is battling cancer. He is in Cuba where he is receiving worldclass treatment against the deadly disease.

Chavez rose from the status of a poor youth in his country and through the ranks of the army became President. He has won the elections by huge margins.

He was overthrown in a military coup backed by the USA but with the help of Brazil and most Latin American leaders the army was forced to reinstate him. Belize’s then Prime Minister was a vocal supporter for the return of the democratically elected Chavez.

If Chavez succumbs to cancer as

seems increasingly likely, his revolution will be undone and his help to Belize and the Caribbean through oil will cease.

DJANGO UNCHAINED Django is a tuff movie. A must see. It is written and directed by Quentin Terentino. He is a white cat.

The main character is Jaime Foxx.

He definitely enjoyed that role.

Surprisingly, the story line is engaging. A white man telling a compelling black story, who would have thought?

Spike Lee mi chap up.

Things that make you think.

FOOTBALL Thanks FFB. Belizeans have something to feel good about.

We beat Nicaragua. We would have liked to beat dem Guatemalans too. But we will take our first win ever in this tournament.

Looks like the coach is solid. Let us all be honest. Some people were wondering if he was playing for draw against his home country, Costa Rica.

2013

Just wondering.

We would understand why.

RETTO On a point of curiosity.

What the hell is “retto”? The “e” even deh backwuds. This word is on all the jerseys over the players’ hearts.

What is it? Are they paying royalties?

Why is it not a coat of arms instead?

Or a Belizean company, BTL, BEL, any one?

Someone explain.

BANKS Lending rates at local banks in Belize is a crime and a sin.

These usurious rates are specifically condemned in the Bible.

15% compounded.

No wonder Belize cannot develop.

PICKNEY But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

(KJV) Matthew 19:14

PM Abuses Media Continued on page 11 ing about the request. “Again Jose, you are asking me a question based on a premise that I have no knowledge of.”

But as the interview went on Dean Barrow spoke about the situation in great detail, clearly knowing the facts of it. Barrow then attacked the journalist’s credibility by essentially accusing him of being a liar. “Well then sir again, how are you going to ask me to comment on a version of events that I have no knowledge of and furthermore I will tell you, I don’t believe you. I don’t believe you sir.”

The big letter, in black and white, was plastered all over the previous night’s news. Plus TV’s Louis Wade says that he does not believe the PM when he uses the words “I am not aware of [whatever issue]”. This is a polite way of saying that the PM lies.

The bigger issue is the intimidation, which was even physical.

Dean Barrow became physically threatening. He flared his hands and verbally abused the media personality. This is unbecoming of the PM. The media is a check and balance of the Government. We cannot tolerate this kind of behavior from the UDP. The nonsense that the UDP are doing is just now starting to reveal itself. The questions from the journalists will get harder. The issues will become more important. Democracy de-

mands that a politician cannot “bully-reg” and try to intimidate the media.

Apart from Barrow’s actions being un-prime ministerial and un-statesmanlike, the bigger issue is the very tone and intimidation on a very small issue. The media needs to stand up and condemn the personal attack on a member of our fraternity.

The media must be free no matter what political creed they follow. The UDP have a history of assaulting the media. They banned Channel 5 once before. They also shut out the media and only let the Government Press Office cover the certain stories. Then they even brought in a team to tell us how to they want us to report the news.

Of note as well is the snide threat to reporter Isani Cayetano

by Michael Finnegan did not pass us. Finnegan said in relation to his very checkered past, “Isani, no know me.” He said this while answering questions about his controversial actions and influence with Belize City’s violent George Street gang. The BELIZE TIMES does not appreciate this culture of violence against the media from the UDP. Belize beware. Barrow is flipping out and he is trying to control the media. This is bad. We at BELIZE TIMES condemn the personal attacks on Jose Sanchez. Let the media do its job and even if that means exposing tyrants and lies that are UDP, report loudly.

27 JAN

17

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

SECOND NOTICE Pursuant to Section 10 (3) of the Belize Mines and Minerals Act, Chapter 226, Substantive Laws of Belize, Revised Edition 2000 2003, Denny Grijalva for DeMar’s Stone Company, has applied to the Honourable Minister of Natural Resources & Agriculture, through the Inspector of Mines, Mining Unit; for renewal of Mining Licence No. 3 of 2007 to mine limestone and marl from an area known as Albion Island near San Antonio Village, Orange Walk District. The areas to be mined are described as follows:

Belizean Publisher Featured On US Daytime Show Tampa, Florida, USA (January 16, Steamy Kitchen Cookbook. Jaden is a television chef, food columnist 2013) Belizean publisher of Flavors of and blogger. Jaden partnered with Belize - The Cookbook, Tanya McNab Flavors of Belize in order to depict was featured on US Show Daytime. the cooking segments of the show.

Jaden and Tanya demonstrated Tanya was invited to showcase Belize and her book on Daytime TV. the Coconut Curry Shrimp that can Daytime TV, produced by River Bank be found within Flavors of Belize Studios covers 85% percent of US along with 120 other delicious Behousehold viewers, with a reach of lizean recipes. This recipe was from 97.1 million homes across the Unit- Elvi’s Kitchen based in San Pedro, ed States and is syndicated in over Ambergris Caye.

Flavors of Belize - The Cook100 markets.

This act of exposure gives Be- book is a pioneer in its kind as the lize an image of great diversity in country’s first hardcover culinary not just its people, but its cultures book. Just 6 months after its launch, and foods. The presentation of the the publicity that this cookbook has cookbook along with its stunning gained both locally and internationimagery projects the professional- ally is shedding a different light on ism of Belize and states that Belize professionalism, and presentation has arrived. This is a great market- of the country that is opening doors ing tool for Belize, as it gives local with many new opportunities that information as well as history on the will help the country grow. different ethnic groups that can be found throughout the country.

Filmed at the NBC News Center and WFLA News Channel 8, Tampa, Florida, Tanya was interviewed by the show host Cyndi Edwards and was accompanied by Jaden Hair, blogger and author of The

GENERAL

BATSUB WARNING

1. Prior warning is to be given to the general public for training exercises taking place, by the British Army, in the following areas of Belize: a. b. c.

Manatee North Spanish Creek Siburn Gorge.

2. The training will take place during the period of 01 February – 10 Mar 13 with both live and blank ammunition being used, along with military vehicles.

3. 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 of training being conducted.

4. Should any member of the 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 daylight hours. British troops will also man checkpoints along the roads entering danger areas and can give advice to areas of live firing.

A. Minister’s Fiat (Grant) No. 400/82 dated December 8, 1982, and more particularly described as 24 acres, 3 roods and 37 poles of land situated at the Quarry Site, San Antonio Village, Albion Island, Orange Walk District, Belize, being bounded and described as shown

by Plan No. 400 of 1982. Area is bounded within UTM-coordinates: Northings 2005288 2005112 2004831 2005008

Eastings 0321600 0321452 0321787 0321935

B. An additional 10 acres within a 30-acres layout situated adjacent to the above-mentioned layout bounded within UTM-coordinates: Northings 2004845 2005066 2005140 2004912 2004889

Eastings 0321606 0321355 0321416 0321686 0321649

The areas to be mined comprise approximately thirty-four (34) acres.

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3

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CALL: 671-8385

Email: belizetimesadvertisement@yahoo.com

DEADLINE for SUBMISSIONS:

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27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

Anti-ICJ Pressure steps up Belize City, January 23, 2013 The anti-ICJ campaign increased in pressure today, when the flag poles at the Flag Monument located at the entrance of Belize City on the Phillip S.W. Goldson Highway all waved “No ICJ” flags. Who and how such a stunt was pulled is a mystery.

Officials were unaware of the stunt until around 9:00am. Traffic Officers regulating heavy traffic in the area were forced to leave their stations to remove the flags. But by then hundreds of commuters had already taken note of the strange goings-on.

The Coalition for Liberty through Action (COLA), which has made known their opposition to the ICJ, also decided to make their presence known at the launching of the Government’s ICJ-Referendum Public Education Campaign held this morning at the Radisson Fort George Hotel. Whilst the COLA mem-

bers sat among the audience, organisers of the event asked the Police to remove them from the Conference Hall, which then led to a small protest staged outside the Hotel.

The stage has now been set for an aggressive campaign between those who support the ICJ process and does who don’t. At the end of the day, Belizeans will decide and their best chance depends on the access to proper information. The Referendum will ask Belizeans whether “any legal claim of Guatemala against Belize relating to land and insular territories and to any maritime areas pertaining to these territories should be submitted to the International Court of Justice for final settlement and that it determines finally the boundaries of the respective territories and areas of the Parties” and it will be held in October 2013.

“No ICJ” flags were hoisted on the Flag Monument. Photo above shows traffic officer removing flag

The Challenge of ‘Equal Representation of the People’

By Omar Silva The legislature should be the body that represents the interests of different sectors within the Belizean society and when doing so they must ensure the legality and legitimacy in their decision making for the common-good, benefit and welfare of the greater masses.

Since it is naturally impossible for individual Belizeans to make decisions, it is also fundamental to our democratic system that those who we chose to represent and make decisions for us, do so through effective discussion and consultations in order to solve issues of national importance.

Lamentably however, despite the fact that there are only two mass political parties with representation split almost equally in the composition of our House of Representatives, pluralism is not necessarily identified and there is no real consensus where the 31 constituencies are concerned. As if that is not bad enough, what obviously prevails are personal interests among the representatives of the ruling UDP party doing their private decisions for personal gain.

This scenario which has played out uninterrupted since 2008 has caused chaos at all levels of government and has also reflected that we have a weak political party with no vision or ability to move the country forward economically, especially because there is no active consultation between civil society and Belmopan.

The UDP government has failed to provide opportunities that lead to a better quality of life

for the greater population especially because they choose to ignore the needs of the 14 constituencies (almost half of the population) that are represented by the opposition. Their political powers as a government has been reduced to interference power which influences negatively in defining the institution they represent.

I believe it was Ralph Miliband who stated that it does not matter if the middle class, upper or lower holds political power, in the end the system absorbs them all.

Belizeans require that the government begin to show true leadership, to produce an effective economic work plan and to convince the masses that they have capacity for debate and the ability to make the best decisions.

With a referendum on our heels and the ICJ on the horizon, the government is yet to show that they have the ability to build a consensus on national issues, to conscientiously consult with the Opposition Party as a vital step to speaking with one

voice on national issues.

The Belizean society is disgusted by the continuous show of arrogance and incompetence demonstrated in the House of Representatives coupled with personal attacks on the Opposition Representatives of almost half of the population. Belizeans demand more efficiency and effectiveness by government officials who seem to have reduced their images, their offices and that of the representation of the people to nothing less than a political show.

27 JAN

2013

THINK ABOUT IT THIS CAN’T BE Belize is among the top six countries in the world in relation to its murder rate. Belize at 44 murders for every 100,000 citizens has surpassed even the notorious Jamaican murder rate.

The same is likely, though if not worse for persons put in jail, before a trial. In the Belize prison under the UDP government there are 1,540 prisoners.

Of this amount a whopping 548 persons are on remand. This means 548 persons are being kept in jail before getting a trial. The government has found a way to get foreign magistrates to deny bail to a large number of citizens. Add to this is the weird and unjust law that deprives the court of granting bail for three months for a list of allegations.

In some instances entire families are automatically denied bail under the UDP laws.

There are some 197 persons who have completed the Preliminary Inquiry requirements and are in prison awaiting their trial at the Supreme Court.

The prison population of 1,540 prisoners cost the taxpayers over seven million dollars annually. More than half of the 548 persons remanded are sitting in jail for allegations relating to non-violent offences. It is a huge waste of money - millions while teachers, nurses and police officers are told there is no money for a small raise of pay.

SPEAKING OF WASTE The rape of the exotic rosewood in Toledo continues unabated. Large quantities of trees are cut, stripped into format for export and sold right under the government’s nose.

Not a single arrest, not a single person remanded for this grave economic crime.

The diligence of the Maya Leaders Alliance caught well connected persons with a huge shipment of rosewood. The rosewood was valued at over four hundred thousand dollars.

The government confiscated the rosewood.

A UDP supporter who was appointed as a Minister of Government for no rhyme or reason displayed her total lack of understanding for the government’s financial regulations.

In violation of the financial orders the Minister personally went to Toledo and was filmed burning the rosewood.

In violation of the law that requires certain procedures ne followed before anyone can dispose of public assets.

The foolish Minister could have followed the procedure of auction to sell the rosewood to various sawmills and use the proceeds to pay for EVERY Maya child to attend college.

Idiot government.

MAGISTRATE BREAKS THE LAW? A Magistrate from Cayo walks into

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THE BELIZE TIMES

the court in Corozal.

She is ready.

Ready for what?

She has been hand-picked to hear one case.

Hand-picked by whom?

The case concerns a 19 year old student from Mexico charged for two guns and some weed found in a hotel room rented by others whose names the police possess.

The Magistrate, a foreigner, is employed by the government and is on a contract which has only four months to expire.

The contract is in clear violation of the constitution and some serious principles involving justice.

The first clause in the contract states that the Magistrate agrees to OBEY the INSTRUCTIONS and DIRECTIVES of the government.

Excuse me!

A contract stating a Magistrate is under the instructions and directives of government?

It is the God’s truth people. Wouldn’t lie to you.

It gets worse.

The whole contract and the employment of the Cayo Magistrate are in violation of the constitution of Belize.

Section 73 of the Constitution specifically requires that a Magistrate who is a qualified attorney must have “security of tenure” (no contract).

Not only is the Cayo Magistrate employed in open violation of the Constitution, her hand picked assignment to Corozal to hear one single case is in violation of the legal principle that she creates the appearance of no bias.

The attorney for the student, quite properly and in accordance with his duties as an officer of the Court, respectfully requested that the Magistrate recuse herself. Recuse means to excuse herself from hearing the case.

The Magistrate replies that she was “instructed” to come to Corozal and single out that one case. And she will carry out her instructions.

Regarding her unconstitutional appointment, the Magistrate hears submissions on this legal issue and decides the matter for herself.

Her decision is that she merely signed the contract; she is not the one who drafted it. She claims that the Chief Magistrate has signed a similar contract, so nothing could be wrong with such a contract.

She decides she will stay in Corozal to hear the case.

This is an even worse violation.

The law is clear. Whenever a constitutional issue is raised in a Magistrate’s court, the Magistrate must send up the matter to be heard in the Supreme Court.

And finally, because God is never asleep, and does not like ugly, this strange coincidence occurs.

Television footage of the four murdered men on George Street was shown with the bodies being transport-

ed in a vehicle with government license plates.

Well, so?

The vehicle belongs to the 19 year old Mexican student. The parents, in Mexico, watching this sensational murder news story, in which Belizean police officers are accused by George Street residents of being involved, see the vehicle.

The parents see the vehicle they purchased for theirs on being used to transport murder victims.

The parents contacted their Embassy which made inquiries and found out the rogue government in Belmopan stole the young student’s vehicle and out government license plates on it.

DOG BEFORE MAN Although there are 548 Belizeans in jail awaiting trial, a dog has been given preference over them, and their victims.

The DPP’s Office has dispatched a Crown Counsel, a government lawyer, to travel from Belize City to the Orange Walk Supreme Court for several days to present evidence in a dog sex case.

A man from an Orange Walk village is accused under section 53 of the Criminal Code of committing an unnatural crime, having sex with a dog.

This is the same section of the law that could be used against Caleb Orosco and his gay colleagues if any of their “partners” were to report them.

So far, the owner of the dog has testified and the arresting officer. The doctor who examined the dog also told the jury that the dog was carnally known, meaning someone had sex with the dog. It is not clear if the doctor explained why it could be a human and not another dog who had sex at that time.

However, the dog apparently was not mindful to cooperate with the Prosecution and did not give a statement (smile). The dog did not wish to go to court, so photos were shown to the dog doctor, who said those were not photos of the dog the Police brought to be examined.

It is not clear whether the dog will make a no case submission or request a nolle prosequi.

What is certain is that for a Judge, Crown Counsel, court officials and nine members of the working population to sit in a court for a week on a dog case is a monumental waste of time and money.

It is an insult and injury to all victims of crime and to all those in prison who can’t get their day in court.

Any human being who has sex with any animal is a sick person who is in need of psychiatric help. Putting such persons in prison serves no purpose.

LOOK AT THIS Jamaica has almost 3 million persons.

Belize has only a little more than 300,000.

Jamaica has 63 Area Representatives in their National Assembly.

Belize has 31 Area Representatives.

Jamaica has a cabinet of 20 Ministers.

Belize has a cabinet of 21 Ministers.

THOUSANDS FOR GANGS ZERO FOR TEACHERS The government has been spending hundreds of thousands of tax payers’ dollars on all sorts of dubious programmes - gang truce, keep the peace (or is that “piece”), gang members work project, CYDP and there is even a Minister for Gangs.

Now that the teachers are asking for a salary increase which they quite rightly deserve, the government spits in their faces.

They are told: WE HAVE NO MONEY! HOW DARE YOU ASK FOR A RAISE! IF YOU INSIST, WE WILL RAISE YOUR TAXES! The teachers saw $400,000 worth of rosewood being BURNT. 50 million taken out of SOCIAL SECURITY (their money) to put in BTL. 15 million from SSB to BEL. 30 million on an unfinished SPORTS STADIUM. 3 million at MEMORIAL PARK. 3 million for POLITICIANS to give out HAM. 2 million for Shyne the MUSICAL AMBASSADOR to LIVE in Israel.

4 million for Lois Young Barrow while government paid MILLIONS more to a team of lawyers to sit in when we have a Solicitor General who could do the cases.

2 million to Denys Barrow and COUNTING. Teachers are NOT foolish people.

Find the money for their raise.

AL JAZEERA ON 7 Local t.v. station Channel 7 has been showing Al Jazeera off and on.

Al Jazeera is the best news channel in the world. In depth and comprehensive.

OBAMA IS ON FIRE Super talented and sexy Alicia Keys took her latest top song “This Girl is On Fire” and remodeled it as a tribute to the re-election of Barack Obama, President of the USA. Obama is on Fire she sang Monday night at the Inaugural Ball.

Also performing at the inaugural events was the great singer/songwriter Stevie Wonder.

A TALE BY AN IDIOT “Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow Lights the way of fools to dusty death Out, out brief candle Life is but a walking shadow A poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage And then is heard no more It is a tale told by an idiot Full of sound and fury Signifying nothing” - Shakespeare

20

27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

BIRTHS Born to Angel Anibal Ramirez, Sr., and Maria Rosalidia Ramirez nee Vail, a boy,

Angel Anibal, Jr. Born to Jason G. Requena and Racquel Requena nee Rhaburn, a boy,

Jonathan Owen Born to Harold Adrian Goff and Mara Kafara Goff nee Cadle, a girl,

Kimara Kafara Born to Stanley Roque Burgess and Cecily Nerissa Burgess nee Cambranes, a girl,

Mia Jennifer Born to Jorge Alberto Smith and Daisy Karren Smith nee Gonzalez, a girl,

Lupita Yomairy Born to Justo Santos Mendez and Maria Mendez nee Blanco, a girl,

Erika de la Luz BBorn to Romeo Ernest Magana and Christina Magana nee Galvez, a girl,

Camilla Rebekkah Born to Lincoln Nelson Godoy, Sr., and Elida Godoy nee Hernandez, a boy,

Lincoln Nelson, Jr. Born to Darrell Craig and Marisela Zoila Craig nee Heredia, a boy,

Zayne William Born to Elmer Ernesto Figueroa and Brianna Ginelli Figueroa nee Toloza, a girl,

Zara Jianna Born to William Javier Rivera and Joanna Jasmine Rivera nee Patt, a girl,

MARRIAGES Charles Cameron Roddenby, 37, to Linda Jane Oats, 37, both of Noosaville, Queensland, Australia Ethan Daniel Davis, 22, to Alyssa Deidre Heathfield, 22, both of Guelph, Ontario, Canada Ashley Edgar Martinez, 23, to Belinda May Belisle, 35, both of Belize City Christopher Michael Gerboh, 28, of Cloverdale, California, U.S.A., to Rose-Marie Bouchard Landreville, 26, of Montreal, Quebec, Canada Luis Enrique Luna, 19, to Jessie Christine Leslie, 21, both of San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye Wendell Jovan Montes, 22, of Independence, Stann Creek District, to Teri Lynn Dodge, 49, of Marysville, Washington, U.S.A. Kurt Francis Bautista, 37, to Ruth Milagro Castillo Quinteros, 37, both of Belmopan Ermes Geovani Ramirez, 35, of St. Margaret’s, Cayo District, to Elsie Jeseni Franco, 18, of Armenia, Cayo District Mark Leroy Nicholas, 50, of San Ignacio Town, Cayo District, to Caralee Cook, 51, of Shoreline, Washington, U.S.A. Mark Daniel Guy, 26, to Shajida Ornelli Muschamp, 22, both of Belmopan

Allan Barry Lee Genus, 44, to Piedad Celina Stokes Montes, 43, both of Punta Gorda Town, Toledo District George Ku, 50, to Llena Ines Williams, 27, both of Esperanza, Cayo District Pedro Gonzalo Gudiel, 27, to Solangel Desire Ayuso, 16, both of Belize City Loni Edwin Stephens Bent, 29, to Ligia Georgina Gamez Borge, 33, both of Isla San Andres, Colombia Rodney Alvin Pat, 28, of San Jose Succotz, Cayo District, to Camille Cecile Gotoy, 29, both of Belize City Orin Clayton Michael, 26, to Crystal Shevone Gillett, 23, both of Belize City Jamie Humphreys, 23, to Janette Haylock, 23, both of Belize City Jason Matthew Jenkins, 35, to Doreen Ruth Linfield, 39, both of Aurora, Ontario, Canada Wenyi Huang, 32, to Liuhua Zhong, 27, both of Dangriga Town, Stann Creek District Philip Eric Regier, 53, to Sandra Lea Stevens, 48, both of Paris, Ontario, Canada Brandon Charles Moore, 28, to Clarissa Manfrim Bellard, 33, both of Centreville, Virginia, U.S.A. Christopher Pollock, 38, of Dallas, Texas, U.S.A., to Brit-

2013

ney Shea Smith, 32, of Richmond, Virginia, U.S.A. Phillipe Leveille, 30, of Brooklyn, New York City, New York, U.S.A., to Camille Marie Gentle, 32, of North Plainfield, New Jersey, U.S.A. Jose Javier James Avila, 21, to Wendy Faviola Roca, 23, both of Ranchito, Corozal District Eswin Orlando Juarez Galicia, 21, of Melchor de Mencos, Peten, Guatemala, to Narda Sinai Garcia, 21, of San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye Mauricio Ernesto Mancia, 32, to Evita Carmelita Caceres, 29, both of San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye Lorenzo Ku, 22, to Nereida Daniely Cawich, 21, both of Trinidad, Orange Walk District Ronulfo Baltazar Palomo, 24, of San Estevan, Orange Walk District, to Rosita Abigail Rodriguez, 19, of Progresso, Corozal District Ever Daniel Ramos, 24, to Evelin Elisa Tillett, 22, both of August Pine Ridge, Orange Walk District

DEATHS Ibes Noel Miranda, 30 Edward T. Bennett Jones, 75 Francisco Shol, 53 Marlon Danny Harris, 28 Rosaline Mejia, 47 Hoo Wong, 82 Dafny Isoline Ferrell, 87 Elda Bowen, 88 Anthony Joseph Perez, 28

Natalie Allyana Born to Orrin Omali Castillo and Tara T. Castillo nee Terry, a girl,

Zakiyah Kiojah Born to Jaime Joel Puc and Ermita Beatris Puc nee Cob, a boy,

Alan Aivan Born to Domingo Shack and Juanita Raquel Shack nee Camara, a girl,

Yisela Leocadia Born to Victor Tzub and Francisca Tzub nee Sho, a girl,

Israelie Valerie Born to Julio Cesar Chia and Ramy Ibhet Chia nee Molina, a boy,

Tristan Alexander Born to Norman Dyck and Viola Rae Dyck nee Thiessen, a boy,

Kayron James Born to Roberto Carlos Melendez and Christy Ann Melendez nee Wolfe, a boy,

Javian Robert Born to Carlos Armando Avila and Maura Avila nee Gonzalez, a boy,

Emil Enoc Born to Lester Adair Pech and Jenny Margarita Pech nee Marroquin, a boy,

Liam Connor

Maaga season is almost over but for many of us we will be tightening up until Valentine’s Day. Tightening up shouldn’t mean giving up experimenting with new dishes. For the rest of January we will be featuring recipes to suit any budget.

Recipe of the week

Lentil, Bacon and Tomato Soup

Ingredients: - ½ pound (225g) bacon - ½ pound (225g) lentils - 1 can V-8 juice, or other vegetable juice cocktail (64 ounces) or a tin of condensed tomato soup Instructions: • Cut the bacon into small cubes and cook over medium heat in a 4-quart (4L) pot until rendered/reduced and crisp. Sauté along with the bacon minced onion and garlic to your taste.

• Drain off most of the fat, add the lentils, and briefly sauté with the bacon, allowing fat to coat the lentils.

• Add the V-8 juice and simmer until the lentils are soft, about 45 minutes.

• Puree about a quarter of the soup in a blender, mix back in with the rest, adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, and serve.

Yield: 4 -6 servings.

Taken from: Kitchen Miracles, 500 3 – Ingredient Recipes, Simple and Sensational Recipes for Everyday Cooking, Robert Hildebrand & Carol Hildebrand © 2004

”

27 JAN

2013

Reid Digging Up Bones!

By G. Michael Reid The Belize City Council’s decision to take away the building of graves at the Lord Ridge Cemetery from local undertakers and contractors smacks of little more than just unadulterated greed. While the cementing of our city streets is certainly welcome, the mayor seems intent on carrying out this job by gouging every possible penny from not only the living but even the dead. While they continue to insist that prices will not change, all those who have had to do business since the change over, have a different story to tell.

The Council’s recent conflict with undertakers and grave builders had me reminiscing about a time long gone. One of the first jobs I held as a young boy growing up on Cemetery Road in Belize City was apprentice to Mr. Locke, at the time, Belize’s premier grave builder. It was no easy job, and it entailed breaking big stones into little ones. We had no cement blocks and don’t remember us using any steel or ‘sand and gravel’ even. We would cast the sides, fill up the middle with dirt and cast the top.

Many of the stones that I would break were recycled from old tombs that were left abandoned and derelict. In retrospect, I guess you could say that we were, well, sort of grave robbers. We would identify the old broken-up tombs during the daytime and return at night to gather up the pieces. For a kid who grew up deathly afraid of ghosts, you could imagine that that had to have been the most difficult aspect of that job.

Louis Locke was a modern day cowboy; six guns, belt buckle, boots and all; he was a classic to say the least. He was quite enigmatic and somewhat of a recluse. Rumors abounded about the relationships he had with his daughters and even granddaughter. I can say that during the time that I spent around Mr. Locke, and it was quite a few years, I saw no evidence to support this.

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THE BELIZE TIMES

While me and Lockey would build the tombs, Feina his wife, would build the headstones and ornaments. She would cast them, polish them and chisel in the epitaph. For my part, I believe I made, for the week, two dollars and fifty cents when I worked parttime during school days and five bucks when I could put in a full week’s work during the times when school gave vacation.

Looking back, I swear that man owes me money.

I remember at that time that apart from Mr. Locke, there were two other men that worked full-time around the cemetery. One was Mr. Coote, the official caretaker and the other was his assistant, Mr. Richards. Coote was another strange and mysterious fellow. He lived just inside of the graveyard along with his wife and I believe one step-daughter.

There were rumors, but I think I will leave those out of this story. I do remember that at some point, Mr. Coote started to walk around with a twist-face. I’m not sure when it happened or how it happened but the rumor was that he went to exhume a body and was slapped by a ghost. I’m not making this up folks, ask around.

The other man in the graveyard at the time was Mr. Richards. I believe that Mr. Richards was Coote’s attendant at the time and eventually took over from Mr. Coote. No, I don’t have any rumors about Mr. Richards but I know that his son, Bernard Richards, was the man who was fired by City Council just last May. Remember the story of the famous log book which had all the names and numbers of grave spaces. Whatever happened to that story and did City Council ever acquire that book? If they didn’t, I wonder how they have been getting along without it. Might explain the recent fiasco where they buried a body in the wrong grave.

Maybe the City Council should stick to cementing streets. They have been getting major kudos for that but it is sad to see them taking bread out of people’s mouths. One would think that they have enough on their hands keeping the city safe, clean and running without taking on added responsibility.

Newly, and once again appointed spokesperson for the Council, Kenny Morgan, was on the media this week trying to justify the Council’s actions.

According to Morgan, the undertakers

have no right to complain because they don’t do the work themselves, anyway.

This makes absolutely no sense! Mr. Morgan, Mr. Mayor, these people are contractors and they sub-contract the work to the masons who in turn do the actual building of the tomb.

The fact is that it is so much easier and more convenient for folks to make one payment to the undertaker and rest assured that everything will be done in order. Families are already grieving and it makes it so much more difficult for them to be running here, there and everywhere in order to get their loved ones buried.

According to Morgan, Coye and other undertakers actually hire City Council workers to do their work. Really!

How many City Council workers are there at the cemetery anyway? If there are that many that they can be hired to do the undertaker’s work, how come they can’t keep the cemetery clean or keep robbers and vandals out?

That is what the City Council

The mayor will have to check himself before he wrecks himself.

should be doing; keeping the cemetery safe and clean. Just last year, there was the robbery of a prominent citizen in the cemetery as he was visiting the tomb of a loved one. There have been rapes, robberies and even murders in the Lord Ridge Cemetery.

How about building a decent fence and keeping the grass cut and the premises clean? It is not a problem to have building codes and criteria for the work, but to strong-arm it from the current workers is nothing less than greed.

The mayor will have to check himself before he wrecks himself. In December, he announced that city residents will be required to pay an additional garbage tax. Ten dollars per month seems little enough but for a city already under siege with poverty, unemployment and high cost of living, any additional weight might be the straw that breaks this camel’s back.

In a city that already has very little parking spaces; the mayor has given his traffic officers quotas and has them roaming the streets like vultures. Pretty soon, we will be living in a city with beautiful cemented streets but no one able to afford cars or even bikes to ride on them. Lighten up Mr. Mayor, you are coming on just a little too strong!

Announcement

BELIZE OLYMPIC & COMMONWEALTH GAMES ASSOCIATION The Belize Olympic & Commonwealth Games Association is hereby informing all affiliated National Sporting Organizations of its Special General Meeting to be held on Saturday, February 16th, at 10:00 a.m. in the Santa Rita Room at the Radisson Fort George Hotel.

All affiliated Associations are invited and are ask to bring a copy of their Affiliation to their International Federation.

22

THE BELIZE TIMES

27 JAN

2013

Mayor Bradley loses his cool on KREM WUB “I don’t have to be here”, Belize City Mayor snipes back at co-hosts Belize City, January 22, 2013 Belize City Mayor Darrel Bradley was visibly frustrated and uncomfortable as he appeared on the KREM WUB Morning Show on Tuesday morning.

Bradley even sniped once, twice, even maybe thrice, at the co-hosts of the show, Sharon Marin and “Mose” Hyde, saying “I am not here because I want to. I don‘t have to be here”.

Bradley, who is used to appearing on the morning show co-hosted by his employee and father, was seemingly upset that he was being asked “hard questions”. The co-hosts were discussing relevant matters regarding the slow pace of street construction, traffic congestion, the unpopular garbage tax, and the Council’s controversial decision to deny essential services to persons with outstanding tax payments.

When the co-hosts recognised the

MARRIAGES Marco Antonio Bermont, 38, to Yari Gabrieli Bautista, 29, both of San Antonio (Rio Hondo), Orange Walk District Jose Saul Miranda, 45, to Maria Caridad Menjivar, 43, both of Santa Elena Town, Cayo District George Alexander Dawson, 47, to Amanda Florian, 39, both of Santa Elena Town, Cayo District Edwin Mauricio Alfaro Soriano, 22, to Milagro Arely Noyola Martinez, 19, both of San Ignacio Town, Cayo District Anicasio Choc, 29, to Margarita Ishim, 23, both of Belmopan Oferio Ico, 28, to Pricilla Choc, 20, both of Silver Creek, Toledo District Delvin Darrel Tulcey, 23, to Flora Tush, 21, both of San Pedro Columbia, Toledo District Julio Sanchez, Jr., 26, to Margarita Caal, 20, both of San Pedro Columbia, Toledo District Philip Cus, 22, of San Miguel, Toledo District, to Elizabeth Editha Cal, 24, of San Antonio, Toledo District Felipe Benito Chaneb, 21, of San Antonio, Toledo District, to Dyra Pau, 19, of Sunday Wood, Toledo District Felix Caal, 25, of Sunday Wood, Toledo District, to Carmen Ical, 27, of Machakilha, Toledo District Ethan Shol, 28, to Reina Isabel Sotz, 27, both of Punta Gorda Town, Toledo District Eujerio Bolon, 32, to Slyvania Cus, 26, both of Cotton Tree, Cayo District Carlos Andy Choco, 24, of San Felipe, Toledo District, to Esther Rash, 22, of Santa Ana, Toledo District Jamel Wilbert Lopez, 21, of Libertad, Corozal District, to Mariani Anaie Aban, 20, of Concepcion, Corozal District Hilberto Teck, 28, to Delia Choc, 24, both of San Marcos, Toledo District

Mayor’s frustration, they eased him somewhat, but the callers didn’t; they showered the Mayor with a firestorm.

One caller dealing with the Council’s increase in property taxes said the Mayor should not be increasing taxes when the majority of people are living through hard times.

“If people couldn’t pay when the price was low, why you heightened the tax,” asked the city resident.

Another caller asked why was it that her street, Electric Avenue, wasn’t paved when an adjoining street was.

The Mayor claimed that a contract had already been signed with Maheia’s United and that work was underway.

But the caller left the Mayor flustered when she said he was lying because she had spoken to someone from the construction company who told her that the Council has not moved to get

the work started.

The Mayor quickly diverted from the topic, saying construction work can only start once the Council carried out underground work. The Mayor was so flustered that he even seemed to claim that his Council had done work on Coney Drive, which has been a street paved from before the UDP’s time in office.

Even UDP crony Easy Glen, who was recently accused by UDP Minister Michael Finnegan of fraud and theft, was not happy with Mayor Bradley. He called in to lash out at the Mayor for loading more burdens on the backs of the poor. Easy Glen asked the Mayor how he expected the residents of Jane Usher Boulevard to pay a garbage fee when those residents don’t even get garbage collection services.

“I find it ridiculous to pay gar-

bage fee on my water bill. Back a Jane Usher Boulevard, the garbage truck not even come, so why will I pay garbage fee?”, Easy Glen remarked.

The Mayor claimed that only those who get the service will pay.

Another caller blasted the Mayor for shoving down plans on city residents without adequate consultation.

The Mayor responded that consultations for his Council’s plans were held two years ago, and if the resident didn’t attend any, well, he “missed it”.

To that, the caller responded, “It is disrespectful for something to be rammed down my throat. A Master Plan is not something small it is something that will affect all of us.

We deserve an opportunity to have an input and if we didn’t have it, we should have it now”.

27 JAN

Home Economics

Belize Teachers – Agents of Change

by Richard Harrison “For the past few weeks the leadership of the Belize National Teachers Union has been calling on its members to attend an important meeting to discuss critical issues. Those issues include the collective bargaining agreement, crime, the economy and the ICJ.” ~ Channel 5 News, January 17, 2013 “By Monday all the branches should have voted and the final tally will be known. But, with Belize District, the largest, voting so overwhelmingly in favour of a demonstration and strike - it’s a virtual certainty that the other districts will vote along that line - leading certainly to a mass demonstration, and likely to a strike.

“We say likely, because Government has been apprised of their position - and has also taken a hardline, that there’s simply no money to pay for an increment at this time.” ~ Channel 7 News, January 17, 2013 The teachers are taking their rightful place in Belize…as agents for positive change.

They….like most of the people in Belize…are seeing small sectors of the population flush with cash, luxury and excesses….while they toil in vain from paycheck to paycheck.

They….as written in the Preamble of the Belize Constitution “RECOGNIZE that men and institutions remain free only when freedom is founded upon respect for moral and spiritual values and upon the rule of law; require policies of state which protect and safeguard the unity, freedom, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Belize; which eliminate economic and social privilege and disparity among the citizens of Belize whether by race, ethnicity, colour, creed, disability or sex; which ensures gender equality; which protect the rights and opinions of the individual to life, liberty, basic education, basic health, the right to vote in elections, the right to work and the pursuit of happiness; which protect the identity of one individual, dignity and social and cultural values of Belizeans, including Belize’s indigenous peoples; which preserve the right of the individual to the ownership of private property and the right to operate private businesses; which prohibit the exploitation of man by man or by the state; which ensure a just system of social security and welfare; which protect the environment; which promote international peace, security and co-operation among nations, the establishment of a just and equitable international economic and social order in the world with respect for international law and treaty obligations in the dealings among nations”.

The reason why Belize has gotten out of shape…is because of gross injustices in the structure of the economy

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THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

that results in unbalanced rights and responsibilities….in distorted distribution of the wealth. These distortions cause some to bear an unfair burden, while a minority ride free in luxury.

The reason why teachers cannot get their increments is because of the refusal of the Government of Belize to make the necessary changes to the status quo that protects the privileged minority, at the cost of the middle and lower income groups.

Our teachers have to hitchhike long distances to the schools where they work. They have to leave home very early and return very late. They have

to pinch their own measly salaries to provide basic materials for their class rooms, and many times to provide food for hungry children. They are daily witnesses to the growing stress among families of the middle and lower income groups, and the rapidly growing withdrawal from school of so many students whose families can no longer afford to give them money for transportation and food. Their eyes on a daily basis see the open wounds of a society bludgeoned by grave economic and social injustice.

To right these wrongs, Belize has to take steps to ELIMINATE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL PRIVILEGE AND DISPARITY AMONG THE CITIZENS OF BELIZE, WHETHER BY RACE, ETHNICITY, COLOUR, CREED, DISABILITY OR SEX. Belizeans need to force its governments to adhere to THE CONSTITUTION OF BELIZE…and to punish those in the political class who ride rough shod over the constitution to protect and preserve the unjust construct of this status quo.

They have shown that they are not willing to do so voluntarily....their elections

are paid by a few pipers that call their tune...when they get to Belmopan, they use our taxes to wrongfully enrich themselves and their pipers, so that nothing is left for us...including our teachers.

To right these wrongs, only massive grassroots actions…preferably peaceful…can force shifts in the status quo that have created and entrenched these economic and social privileges enjoyed by a few, and paid for on the backs of the middle and lower income groups…. the Quasimodos of Belize.

All the citizens of Belize should join with the teachers….they are not only addressing their own paychecks….they have raised four issues that are of importance to all Belizeans at this time…. they offer us hope, as agents of positive change.

January 29, 2013 is the date they have set for massive demonstration in Belmopan. Let’s all join them!

Richard Harrison is a local businessman and investor in the manufacturing and service industries. Send comments to harrisonbz@yahoo.com

A PAID AD

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27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

In my perspective It’s time for a change in 2013

by Rayford Young All over the world mass killings are becoming too frequent.

However, the December 14, 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting in the Sandy Hook Village of Newton, Connecticut, USA seems to be more outrageous since it was an elementary school, with 6-8 year old children as victims. The Nation viewed this mass killing as over the top and many citizens, some lawmakers in the congress and the President of the USA are calling for tougher gun laws, especially hand guns. Something has to be done.

The Nation is sick of these killings.

I suggested in this column many times that Belize should implement a program like this to curb the shootings on the streets of Belize City. Turn in your weapons - no questions asked - but if you own a weapon it has to be registered with law enforcement. If you use an unlicensed weapon to commit a crime or killed someone the penalty would be severe, long jail time and possibly execution.

Just like the United States, the people of Belize are just fed up and scared to walk the streets anymore. You never know when a maniac will ride up on a bicycle and shoot you in the head for no reason. This year alone there have been 144 murders in the Belizean Nation, a record setting number, and no one seems to have any solution to this problem.

One responsibility of an elected government is to keep the people and the country safe. But when you have people in office just because they are a friend or a crony, then this is the result.

They have no solutions or a vision for the country because this crowd currently in power has no experience, education or training in many of the office they occupy.

How would you like a garbage collector extracting your tooth? Just the thought is painful. Well this is the situation in our country today.

Inept people are running the country and they are too arrogant and ignorant to even realize they are above their heads.

Today’s problems are complex. We need men and women with unique talents and education. Giving the gang members a tax payer check every week is not

a solution. It’s lazy thinking and a bankrupting idea. So in a situation like this where nothing is working - high unemployment, mass murders, high gas prices, crumbling infrastructure - what do you do? You blame everyone but yourself. You argue every point to death to be seen as smart. You are loud, disrespectful and demeaning to others.

You rant on the House floor and make a mockery of the institution because you have nothing else to offer the people or the country.

What’s the answer? I think we all know what has to be done.

We’ve seen it all year on our television sets. The Arab spring. Young people took to the streets in many of these totalitarian countries for peaceful demonstrations and as a result the governments had no choice but to listen to the people and make changes. Some crumbled.

The young people today that are murdering and maiming are the ones that will have to lead this change. Our young people deserve to get an education. They deserve to be able to walk the streets safely. They deserve a stable family unit. They deserve three meals per day. That’s what a civilized country does for its people. Instead we see just a few who live well, drive well, grab land for themselves and their families and the rest of us are on our own to make ends meet.

We have let down our young people in so many ways and they are lashing out in the only way they know how.

There’s no reason things have to be so awful in our country. One thing I do know the more you have the more you want. These politicians have done our country and especially the young people such a disservice and it seems they don’t care. They just want more and more. It’s never enough. “It’s our time”, one politician said. When will it ever be the Country’s time, the people’s time, the time our young people can live life to the fullest in a safe environment? Country First should be the motto of all politicians, not me first. It’s time for a change in 2013.

Rayford Young is a Belizean-American, who currently lives in Michigan, U.S.A. Send comments to rayfordyoung@comcast.net

2013

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 Mortgage under a Deed of Mortgage made the 5th of December 2008, between MARTIN STUART GOLDBERG and BARRY MAIKEL GOLDBERG both of #12 Paz Villas, San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, Belize District, Belize of one part, and Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., of the other part, and recorded at the Land Titles Unit in the Deeds Book Vol. 41 of 2008 at Folios 575– 642, 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 lot, piece or parcel of land, containing 10.722 acres situate in the Little Vaqueros Enclave, Mountain Pine Ridge Area, Cayo District, as shown on Plan Entry No. 6399 Register No. 17 lodged at the office of the Commissioner of Lands and Surveys, Belmopan.

DATED this 22nd of January, 2013.

MUSA & BALDERAMOS 91 North Front Street Belize City Attorney-at-Law for Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day The Rt. Hon. George C. Price and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. are great men who fought for social justice in their countries.

Can you guess what else they share in common?

Well, they were both born on January 15th.

In the USA Martin Luther King Jr. day is celebrated on the third Monday of January in remembrance of Dr. King and his brave fight for equality.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was a minister who peacefully fought for equal civil rights for African Americans. He is famous for his meaningful speech “I Have a Dream.” He won the Nobel Peace prize in 1964.

Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee.

If you want to learn more about Dr. King check out your nearest library or ask your parents to “google” him for you on the internet.

Alphabet Jumble Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Can you place the word bank words below in alphabetical order?

Nobel

Speech

Equality Protest Peace

Dream

Boycott

Leader

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

Freedom

March

American Alabama African Liberty

Segregate Minister

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27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

BRAIN

2013

TEASER

SUDOKU PUZZLE #1/2013

Energy

Saving Tips Belize City, January 21, 2013 With the ever-increasing cost of living in Belize, and most recently, the crippling, Government-approved raise in BEL fees and rates, more and more Belizeans are looking at ways to save money. One way Belizeans can offset the increased electricity rates is by practising Energy Saving Tips. Over the next few weeks, the BELIZE TIMES will be providing friendly advice on ways Belizeans can save money by practising the efficient use of electricity.

This week’s short tips: - Turn switches and plugs off when you are not in the room such as lights, TVs, entertainment systems, and your computer and monitor.

- Plug home electronics, such as TVs and DVD players, into power strips; turn the power strips off when the equipment is not in use. When TVs and DVD players are in standby mode still use several watts of power.

- Wash only full loads of dishes and clothes.

- Air dry clothes. Belize is a tropical paradise with warm weather. Make use of it and save.

- Air dry dishes instead of using your dishwasher’s drying cycle.

- For those with air conditioned homes, install a programmable thermostat to lower utility bills and manage your cooling systems efficiently.

- Also, check to see that windows and doors are closed when cooling your home.

- Take short showers instead of baths and use low-flow showerheads for additional energy savings.

- Look for the ENERGY STAR® label on light bulbs, home appliances, electronics, and other products. ENERGY STAR products meet strict efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.

BELIZE TIMES

The fastest selling newspaper in Belize

See answers on page 30

See answers on page 30

27 JAN

27

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

BELIZE TIMES WEEKLY

SCIENCE & TECH R

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V

I

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Selected By Chris Williams

Can we really ‘cure’ autism?

Some claim that new research shows people can grow out of autism, but it is more likely that they simply cope better with the condition over time 23 January 2013 - by Hanna Rosin The New York Times has pointed to an intriguing study ostensibly showing that some small percentage of people with autism can “outgrow” their symptoms. The story was oddly unsatisfying, claiming in one paragraph that the study, published in The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, will alter the way parents “think and talk about autism” but also cautioning against false hope.

The writer seems only dimly aware how this half-hearted message will set off a bomb in the world where Jenny McCarthy lives – that she will turn on that wicked grin and brandish this study to launch another 40 years of vicious debate over whether autism is caused by environmental factors, namely vaccines, and thus can be cured by brave and dedicated parents like her, or whether it’s just a condition people are born with.

Thankfully, science writer Emily

Willingham has parsed through the study in Forbes to show us what it really finds, which is not much that’s new and certainly nothing that will change our thinking about the progress of autism or make us believe in the McCarthy miracle cure. As Willingham points out, the people who seem to have “grown out” of their autism had higher cognitive functioning and milder symptoms in the first place, and “many of them had behavioral interventions in childhood”.

One measure the researchers used to evaluate progress was “typically developing friends”, which people with autism sometimes have anyway. Seven of the 34 had some impairment in “non verbal social interactions” which the researchers decided, somewhat arbitrarily, was due to other factors such as anxiety or depression.

Anyone who has read a single memoir by someone with Asperg-

er’s or known someone well with the condition can intuit what’s going on. At the moment, I happen to be reading Look Me in the Eye: My life with Asperger’s by John Elder Robison. Over the course of his life, Robison learns to compensate for his social limitations.

As a child he teaches himself to say appropriate things to children and not just foist on them his own obsessive interests. As an adult he learns that blurting out the truth – “you look fatter” – is not always the right thing to do.

Working around autism He doesn’t “outgrow” his autism, he just learns to work around it. Even later in his life he writes that he wishes his disability were more obvious; when we see someone in a wheelchair we know they can’t walk, so we help them across the street. There is no way to “see” Asperger’s so

Thinner Syringes May Reduce Risk of H.I.V.

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr. A study suggests encouraging drug abusers to use thin syringes, which retain less fluid and the virus it may contain.

Distributing “low-deadspace syringes” to addicts could substantially lessen H.I.V. transmission among them, a new study has estimated.

Syringes have widely varying amounts of “dead space” — the amount of fluid retained even when the plunger is fully depressed, said William A. Zule, a researcher at RTI Inter-

national and the lead author of the paper in The International Journal of Drug Policy.

F a t o n e s w i t h i n t e rchangeable needles may have 40 times as much dead space as thin ones like those used by diabetics. And simulations of the way addicts draw in blood and rinse with water showed that the biggest syringes can retain 1,000 times as much virus as thinner ones.

Many foreign governments that distribute syringes ignore dead space and buy

people just assume he’s a jerk.

Willingham makes the comparison to diabetes, which I have. I have learned how to control my blood sugar pretty well, but I still have diabetes. Autism for high-functioning kids works something like that, even more so these days.

When Robison was a kid, no one understood him at all. They just thought he was odd and would grow up to be a failure.

But now there is a well-developed understanding of Asperger’s and its symptoms, and many behavioural therapies that can help people, especially if they are smart enough to absorb them. So it stands to reason that as time goes on, more people with Asperger’s or autism will look, to all the world, as if they are “cured” without actually being so.

whatever is cheapest, Dr. Zule said.

Recipients of clean syringes are not supposed to share them, but some do. Users of heroin, cocaine or methamphetamine usually accept thin syringes, the study said. Users of poppy straw extract, homemade stimulants or crushed tablets may not.

The best way to get addicts to demand low-dead-space syringes, Dr. Zule suggested, may be to point out that they get more drug.

“That may not be politically correct, but you need messages that speak to the group you have to work with,” he said.

No human clinical trials have proved that such syringes save lives, but the idea is plausible and switching now would be affordable and safe, Dr. Zule argued.

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THE BELIZE TIMES

What Are You Doing With Your Talent?

In the manual, we hear a story of a business man going far away and leaving his goods in the hands of his servants. He gave to each of them according to their own ability. In the story found in Matthew 25:14, he gave to a particular servant only one talent.

At the end of the parable, the master ended up giving his servant a good scolding because he took the talent and buried it in the ground as if it was a seed. Well, yes, it was a seed but not the type you bury in the ground, rather the type you would bury in a bank or business. After burying the talent, this servant probably sat around, twiddling his thumbs, waiting for his boss to return to give him the good news that the money was buried safely in the ground.

On the other hand, the master gave to the other servants five and even ten talents which they both invested smartly, earning back more than they were given. They got into business and trading; they understood their potential and the quality of what they held in their hands. Allow me to ask you a question. If Belize was one of these servants, how many talents do you think the boss would have given to us? How much do we import in a year? How much do we export? How are we improving our foreign exchange?

I was saddened to hear that a huge amount of precious wood was destroyed the other day in our country. There is so much that could have been done with that resource to help our economy. I personally believe the issue with Belize is not only one of corruption, but rather a more crippling side effect of ‘middle class mentality’. Our economy cannot be built on a poor or a poverty mentality!

It is said that there are three kinds of people in the world today: the poor, the rich and the middle class. Here is an idea of how their thinking process varies as each condition is based on the thought process of the individuals inhabiting them! The poor spend spontaneously without any pre-planning. The middle class live by generating expenses that are well above their income. The rich, on the other hand, make investments in reproductive resources rather than cancerous luxuries! If they purchase a boat, it would be for the purpose of earning an income, and whatever they invest in would be to generate some sort of return! Your economy should be built on the middle class or better yet, the rich mentality. It should be built on entrepreneurship and the sales surmounting from the products of these endeavors. Year in and year out you hear fancy speeches that the answer to the problems we are having is education, but the last time I checked we are spending millions in the education system. I believe the answer is not education by itself, but rather keen interest needs to be paid in the area of developing business minded people. It doesn’t matter how poor you are. If you begin to create, mass produce and sell a product, you will have much finance to spare.

The servant in the story mentioned above represents many of us. He did not have the heart of an entrepreneur. Yes, he got up, got dressed and went to work, but what did he do when he received the money from his boss? He had no idea what to do with it, and even worse than simply placing it in the bank to gain interest, he reverted to dig a hole and bury it.

What our country, blessed with wealth untold, desperately needs in this time and season it finds itself in is a relentless equipping of its citizens to develop a business mindset that takes advantage of this wealth and converts it into better living standards and more productive life experiences for its citizens! Let’s get it together Belize! Let’s be like the faithful servants in the story above who earned more and got rewarded by their employers because of their business mentality!

Until next week God bless

27 JAN

2013

What to Expect With Cataract Surgery Q: What exactly is a cataract?

A: A cataract is a clouding of the eye’s natural lens, which gradually loses its normal

By Dr. David Hoy transparency with age. At first the effect is to scatter light, causing glare from sunlight and headlights. As the lens becomes cloudier, the vision gets blurrier. The eye may eventually become legally blind unless cataract surgery is performed.

Q: How has cataract surgery changed over time?

A: Tremendously. In the early days of cataract surgery, the only thing that surgeons could do was remove the cloudy lens.

Without a lens inside their eye, patients had to wear very thick “Coke bottle” glasses to see.

The most important change has been the development and improvement of artificial replacement lenses. These plastic lens implants are only one-quarter of an inch wide and can be permanently inserted into the eye to replace the cloudy lens that has been removed.

So have the surgical techniques improved. We now use a small incision method called phacoemulsification, which uses a tiny vibrating blunt needle to ultrasonically break up the cloudy lens into fragments that are gently removed through the same needle. This is microsurgery — the surgeon uses a microscope to operate through a tiny incision measuring less than one-eighth of an inch wide. The incision is so small that it typically does not require sutures and there is no bleeding. There is also no pain involved since surgeries are done using anesthetic eyedrops to numb the eye.

Q: How long does cataract surgery usually take?

A: Less than 20 to 30 minutes, start to finish, for most patients.

Q: What’s the recovery like?

A: Most patients can see well enough to walk around and take care of themselves almost immediately after the operation.

Patients typically use eyedrops for several weeks after the procedure. These include an antibiotic eyedrop to prevent infection and anti-inflammatory eyedrops, to speed up the recovery.

Vision is initially blurred but generally improves a lot by the end of the first week. Because we don’t operate on both eyes simultaneously, nearly everyone can see well enough to take care of themselves and to resume most work. The restrictions of the past, such as no bending or heavy lifting, are not necessary with modern small-incision cataract surgery. People can even resume exercising right away.

Q: Can cataracts be prevented?

A: There are many places in the world where cataract surgery isn’t available. As a result, an estimated 20 million people worldwide are totally blind from cataracts. So if you could delay the onset of this aging change, you might prevent severe vision loss in a significant number of people.

There’s been some interest in whether antioxidants can slow the progression of eye diseases, including cataracts, but so far we don’t have a proven treatment. Ultraviolet light may also contribute to cataract formation, so we recommend that people wear sunglasses and hats that block prolonged sun exposure.

Aging is the main cause, which of course we cannot prevent, but one risk factor that people can eliminate is smoking.

27 27JAN JAN

THE BELIZE THE BELIZE TIMESTIMES

2013 2013

REGIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

DIM FORECAST…GLOBAL UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 2013 Global unemployment is predicted to hit a record high in 2013. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that globally 200 million people will be jobless this year.

‘The U.N. jobs watchdog estimates unemployment will rise by 5.1 million this year to more than 202 million, and by another 3 million in 2014, following a rise of 4.2 million in 2012.’ Reuters (Monday, January 21, 2013) Interestingly, the ILO has revised its jobless figures downward as it creates a dis-

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IMPENDING CHASTISEMENT OF

NORTH KOREA

People wait to enter a government-run employment office in Madrid January 3, 2013. tinction between those who have given up hunting for a job and those who are unemployed.

The figures for persons who have given up job-hunting, referred to as “discouraged” people by the ILO, rose sharply since the start of the global financial crisis.

It is estimated that since

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA IS SWORN INTO OFFICE In 2008, when he wooed the world with his campaign of hope and change, President Obama set the bar of expectations high. Unfortunately, he slipped several times on that high bar and his landing didn’t “stick” during his first term as the 44th President of the United States.

He was publicly in-

NEWS

augurated for a second time on Monday, January 21, 2013 and his second inauguration address has been called ‘idealistic, strident, combative and determined’ by the UK’s The Guardian Newspaper. According to a commentary in that paper he seems set to do battle in this second term ‘explicitly championing gay

rights, immigration and healthcare reform, and implicitly endorsing tighter gun laws and wealth redistribution, he sought not to articulate the consensus but to fashion a new one’. – The Guardian (Monday, January 21, 2013) The question has been asked how much of what the President

2007, 39 million “discouraged” people withdrew from the labour market.

Is there a difference between persons who are unemployed and those who have given up looking for jobs? We don’t think so but what do you think? espouses is rhetoric? His sincere belief in social justice is not doubted; neither is his community work, but his track record as president, diminishes his otherwise admirable record.

‘Obama’s record now includes everything from drone attacks to healthcare reform; the bombing of Libya to the withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Those who seek to assert parallels with Martin Luther King, whose birthday was celebrated on Monday, must remember that this is a president with a ‘kill list’. His position on gay rights evolved just in time for the election, and in his first term he deported far more people than George W Bush did in his.’ The Guardian (Monday, January 21, 2013) The President has slipped off of the pedestal he was put on back in 2008 when he stood out as a possible paradigm shift in the world of politics globally. There is, however, always hope that he will reaffirm the faith of many.

THE TIES THAT BIND…DURANGO POLICE OFFICERS AND DRUG CARTELS

Authorities say 158 local police officers have been detained in northern Mexico for alleged ties to organised crime - forcing the army and state police to fill the security void, prosecutors say.

Durango state prosecutors say the officers worked in the Durango cities of Gomez Palacio and Lerdo…

They said in a state-

Diplomats at the UN say China and the United States have agreed on a compromise draft Security Council resolution that would chastise North Korea for its December rocket launch and update bans on technology transfers…

“The resolution condemns the launch and reiterates the Security Council’s previous demands that North Korea abandon its nuclear weapons program and not proceed with further launches,” one diplomatic source said…

The source added that the draft would update lists of nuclear and ballistic missile technology banned for transfer to and from North Korea.

- Deutsche Welle (DW) (Tuesday, January 22, 2013)

ment on Friday that investigators found evidence the police officers were protecting and sharing information with drug traffickers for at least the past three years…

Prosecutors say detained suspects told investigators some of the officers worked for the Sinaloa drug cartel.

The purge highlights the often cozy relationship between local police and drug cartels in Mexico, a country plagued by drug-related violence that has left more than 70,000 dead since 2006…

Homicides there have more than doubled over the past two years amid a turf war between the Sinaloa and Zetas cartels. – Al Jazeera (Saturday, January 19, 2013)

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27 JAN

THE BELIZE TIMES

UB Student Leaders tell GOB: Reinstate UB subsidy!

Continued from page 2 tion, because it is difficult to live comfortably or sufficiently with a job based on a primary or secondary school diploma. Development decisions should be structured in such a way for the greater good of the population. As a nation, we are only as strong as our weakest link. Let this link not be education. We cannot leave more people behind, with a privileged few gaining prominence. The initial decision to subsidize, we hope, was instigated in order for education to become more affordable, and to stimulate the growth of the population of the university. Let us not stifle development by taking a backwards step.

With this said, we look forward to a favorable response, no later than Thursday, January 24, 2013, which we expect will be the re-instatement of the subsidy of UB student fees by the Government of Belize which started in 2006. We also request a meeting with you on or before the stated date to be able to discuss important matters.

Signed: Hope Amadi, President; Cordelia Belezaire, Acting Vice-President Cc: Honourable Dean Barrow Prime Minister of Belize, Minister of Finance Imani Fairweather, Chair, Board of Trustees Dr. Cary Fraser, President, University of Belize Mr. William Neal, Dean, Student Affairs

2013

Illegal CitCo tax squeeze!

Continued from page 2 ney? All of them have remained silent while the Council takes advantage of us residents.

But while watching Channel 5 news on Monday I heard a report about a Central Government declaration that Councils could not deny services to residents. The declaration, if I am not mistaken, said that once we meet the financial cost to

SUDOKU PUZZLE SOLUTION #1/2013

cover the issuance of licenses, whether a first time application or renewal, the Council did have any rights to withhold the application.

At last someone has put a stop to the chancey Mayor’s tracks. That man seems greedy and arrogant. And plain chancey too.

Yours sincerely, City resident

Message to REAL Union Leaders Continued from page 2 followed through by this incompetent UDP regime.

Union Leaders, if you call yourselves true leaders, you will not seek fame through posturing.

The time to lead is now. Use your talents to organise and mobilise every Belizean worker to join in the demonstration and send a true message to Mr. Barrow and his jokers called Ministers.

Union Leaders, please be aware that Union activism helped to shape our country and it is now time for you all to make history again. Your struggle, our struggles, our rights and virtues are

Liquor License Notice

being taken away. The demonstration should not be a one shot move, but the start to a process of getting rid of this Government by going on go-slow, sick-outs and a general shut down of the country.

The Government must be given a clear ultimatum. Give the teachers and public officers a due salary increase or step aside for a more competent administration of leaders.

Enough is enough. Belizeans Unite. Take a stand and save Belize from tyranny.

Signed.

Union supporter

Liquor License Notice

Notice is hereby given that Louis Escalante is applying for a Shop Liquor License to be operated at “Road Runner”, situate Corner Chan Pine Ridge entrance and Belize Road, Orange Walk District under the Intoxicating Liquor Licensing Ordinance Revised Edition 1980.

Notice is hereby given that Gregory Tillett is applying for a Publican Special Liquor License to be operated at “Wildlife Restaurant and Bar”, situate Crooked Tree Village, Belize District under the Intoxicating Liquor Licensing Ordinance Revised Edition 1980.

107 Cemetery Road. Belize City, Belize Phone: 227-7459

Opening Hours:

Monday – Friday 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Saturdays 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

27 JAN

31

THE BELIZE TIMES

2013

Barrow REJECTS Faber Belize City, January 23, 2013 UDP Leader Dean Barrow has placed on record that he does not support UDP Chairman Patrick Faber as the next Deputy Leader of the United Democratic Party.

“I do not support the Minister of Education in his challenge of the Deputy Party Leader,” Barrow told Channel 5, Channel 7, LOVE FM and every media yesterday afternoon. This was after he had announced that same position on his privately-owned UDP mouthpiece

Hon. Patrick Faber

radio station in the morning, for all UDPs to hear.

The announcement was a shocker. Faber believes he has been on a sort of meteoric rise lately. It is turning out to be a meteoric crash. Faber has been hogging up the media light more than any other Minister, defending a cut in education subsidies, supporting meagre salaries for teachers, and talking down Union leaders. During his tirades, he beats his chest, and says that because he knows how to quarrel for the UDP better, he deserves to be their next Deputy Leader.

The cherry on Faber’s pie has always been, according to repeated claims by him, that even Bar-

row wants him to be his second in command. BIG LIE! Faber was on the LOVE FM morning show yesterday also and was informed via text messaging that Barrow had made public his support for the not normal Minister. Faber made an immediate turnabout, saying that even if Barrow doesn’t support him, other leaders of the Party will. Faber knows that those “other leaders” have been playing a depreciating role in the UDP. The next few weeks will surely be interesting in UDP politics. Faber’s hopes of being mini King are becoming nothing but elusive dreams.

Another Lebanese Businessman Murdered Are Police clueless about strange wave of murders?

Belize City, January 22, 2013 Lebanese-Belizean businessman Majdi Agha was murdered in an execution-style shooting outside of his home on Tuesday, January 22nd morning.

Agha had parked his vehicle outside of his yard on Keating Crescent in the Buttonwood Bay Area and was about to enter through his gate when a lone,

No more taxes!

Continued from page 2 garbage fee and increased trade license fees are all considered an additional financial burden on us Belizeans. They may not be termed as “taxes”, but they add to the rise in the cost of living.

The Prime Minister may be in denial, but the reality for us Belizeans, is that we are feeling the PAIN. The reason for me writing is simply to issue an appeal to the Prime Minister to be truthful to us. If he is saying that there will be no more taxes, then it means we do not expect to continue facing dreadful increases in the cost of goods and services, especially from Government-owned and run agencies.

It is much worse when it is a hospital or utility company which is there to provide much-needed affordable public service to Belizeans.

The truth is while the Government needs money, they can’t expect the people to be able to provide it especially when there are neither jobs nor salary increases. That’s why they should be focused on economic growth, so the economy is sustainable.

Mr. Prime Minister, no more taxes please!

Signed.

Althea Bainton

masked gunman appeared and shot him. Agha fell into the nearby drain.

Neighbors say they saw a man running away from the area, towards an awaiting car.

Agha’s wife and newborn child were inside the car when the attack happened. She heard the gunshots and when she went outside to check, she saw her husband lying dead in the drain.

Agha received a shot to the head

and three to the body.

Agha has been in Belize for over 30 years. He owned and operated the business, King Kebab Restaurant, which was the scene of another murder in October last year when Agha’s colleague, 40 year-old Lebanese American Abdul Aziz Mohamed Dib was shot dead by a gunman who walked into the restaurant and fired at him.

A day after the Dib’s killing, well-

known Lebanese-Belizean businessman Alfred Shackron was gunned down as he left his gym workout on Coney Drive.

No one has been arrested for the two previous murders, and the Police’s comments following the incidents suggest that the Lebanese community have not been as helpful to their investigations as expected.

32

THE BELIZE TIMES

27 JAN

2013

Face of Deception Prime Minister Dean Barrow on 2011 Independence Day Speech

“Those sharp practices have also been stopped by the new, Belizean-owned B.E.L. And that is why there will be no hike in your electricity bills. Not now, not ever – under this administration. In fact, barring any emergencies, we actually expect to lower rates at the time of the next full tariff review. This is correct: light bills are going to go down!”

January 2013: Electricity Rates Increase by

17%