belize times july 13, 2014

24
The Belize Times The Truth Shall Make You Free Established 1957 13 JULY 2014 | ISSUE NO: 4903 www.belizetimes.bz | $1.00 SCAN HERE UDP IMPOTENT ON CRIME NO IDEAS, NO SOLUTIONS AS VIOLENCE INCREASES Pg. 6 Three men charged for Murder of Ramon Cervantes Sr. Dean Barrow John Saldivar Pg. 23 Fourth suspect, the mastermind, on the run Pg. 3 Mateo Pott, Angel Cardenas & Noe Gonzalez Avila, all of Trial Farm village ANOTHER BODY FOUND! Pg. 3 Sonia Abaca went miss- ing on April 23. 2014 PUP mourns passing of Ambassador H.E. Alfredo Martinez

Upload: belize-times-press

Post on 01-Apr-2016

231 views

Category:

Documents


3 download

DESCRIPTION

Belize Times July 13, 2014

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Belize Times July 13, 2014

The Belize TimesThe Truth Shall Make You Free

Established 1957

13 JULY 2014 | ISSUE NO: 4903 www.belizetimes.bz | $1.00

SCAN HERE

Pg. 4

UDP ImPotent on CrIme

No ideas, No solutioNs as violeNce iNcreases

Pg. 6

three men charged for Murder of

ramon cervantes sr.

Dean Barrow

John Saldivar

Pg. 23

Fourth suspect, the mastermind, on the run

Pg. 3

Mateo Pott, Angel Cardenas & Noe Gonzalez Avila, all of Trial Farm village

aNother body fouNd!

Pg. 3 Sonia Abaca went miss-ing on April 23. 2014

PuP mourns passing of

ambassador h.e. alfredo

Martinez

Page 2: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 202

Continued on page 23

serving Belize since 1957 as the longest continuous newspaper.

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

EDITOR

Alberto Vellos

LAYOUT/GRAPHIC ARTIST

Chris Williams

OFFICE ASSISTANT

Roberto Peyrefitte

Printed and Published ByThE BElIzE TImEs PREss lTD.

Tel: 671-8385#3 Queen StreetP.O. BOX 506

Belize City, BelizeEmail: [email protected]

[email protected]

The Belize TimesThe Truth Shall Make You Free

Established 1957

14 APR 2013 | ISSUE NO: 4840 www.belizetimes.bz | $1.00

SCAN HERE

CANADIAN DOLLAR (CAD): $ 0.56

Guatemala Quetzal (GTQ): $ 3.94

Sterling Pound (GBP): $ 0.30

Euro (EUR) : $ 0.37

Eastern Caribbean (XCD):$ 1.36

Barbados (BBD): $ 1.01

United States (USD): $ 0.50

CHINESE YUAN (CNY): $ 3.04

Trinidadian (TTD) : $ 3.22

INDIAN RUPEE (INR): $ 31.14Exchange rate

of One Belize Dollar

6 Feb

LOCAL wEAthER26 Mar 27 Mar15 Jul 16 Jul14 Jul13 Jul12 Jul11 Jul

Gino Peck

retrACtIon & APoLoGY BY tHe BeLIZe tImeS AnD ALBerto VeLLoS (eDItor) In reSPeCt oF

HonoUrABLe GoDWIn HULSe

Pg. 10

tour Guide vexed!

Faber puppet in charge of Gwen Liz Board

Cecil Gill accuses BTB of favouritism at Fort Street tourist village

On the 3rd of July 2013 the Belize Times published an article titled “Godwin Hustler??”. In essence the Article made certain charges and negative comments in respect of Honourable Godwin Hulse, Min-ister of Local Government, Rural Development and National Emer-gency Management based on an allegation that he had acquired a 100 acre parcel of land in the Darling Area of the Belize River Valley on the 19th of June 2012 (since becoming a Minister of Government). The Belize Times and Mr. Vellos accept that this allegation is sim-ply untrue and unfounded and entirely retract the allegation and the charges and negative comments which were based on that allegation. The Belize Times and Mr. Vellos further apologize to the Honourable Godwin Hulse for the adverse Article and any damage to his reputa-tion that it has caused.

Belize City, July 8, 2014Complaints from several

members of the staff and admin-

istration of Gwen Lizarraga High School have reached our desk re-garding the recent appointment of a highly-political person as Chairman of the school Board.

Roosevelt Blades is a well-known UDP operative from the Corozal District. He was Pablo Marin’s campaign manager in previous elections. Blades was also Faber’s Chairman candidate in the boy Minister’s failed bid to unseat Gaspar Vega as UDP Dep-uty Leader last year.

Members of the staff and administration of Gwen Lizarra-ga have expressed concern that their school will become even more politically polarised with such a person at the helm of the critical decision-making body. Faber, it is said, already wields political influence with the school being situated in his constituency.

There are already signs of things getting worst. School of-ficials, speaking in anonymity to avoid victimization, told us that a few weeks ago the school near-ly lost a considerable donation of badly needed computers when the administration was told to avoid the donors simply because they were distantly connected with members of the Opposition.

Belize City, July 3, 2014In the 11 years of tour guiding, Cecil Gill

has never experienced frustration as he is today, and he says it’s all because of bad ad-ministration and decision making by officials at the Belize Tourist Board (BTB).

Gill said that favouritism by BTB officials at the Fort Street Tourism Village is hamper-ing his business which offers scooter tour and taxi services.

Gill indicated that BTB has implemented a new system which prohibits tour guides from soliciting customers at certain terminals from where tourists exit the main FSTV com-pound. Tour guides, according to BTB’s new rules, must remain under their tents and wait for tourists to come to them instead of ag-gressively seeking customers.

Gill said the new system is senseless as it is counterproductive to them. He said, how-ever, that the biggest problem is that while

the Police are there to enforce to new rule, they also fail to regulate it fairly with the consent of BTB of-ficials. Gill reported that some fa-voured tour guides are allowed to

solicit customers at the terminals.“When one a di tour guide try

protest by going to one a di termi-nals, the Police stop him and tell

Page 3: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 3

Police find remains of OW woman missing

since April 23rd

03

Francis Fonseca

aNother body fouNd!

Orange walk District, July 9, 2014

The Police Department has contracted a backhoe to assist them in excavating the site near to where the body of Ramon Cer-vantes Sr. was found on Saturday July 5th, following information that there could be more bodies of persons.

So far, one body has been discovered, belonging to Sonia Abaca, who went missing on April 23rd. There have been few details regarding her disappear-ance. Her husband, Alejandro Pe-rez, reported her disappearance this week, upon learning that the Police were searching for pos-sible bodies in the Honey Camp area.

Global Enterprises Inc. # 114,083(“the Company”)

Pursuant to Section 102(4) of the International Busi-ness Companies Act, Chapter 270 of the Laws of Be-lize, Revised Edition 2000, notice is hereby given that Global Enterprises Limited:

a) is in dissolution b) commenced dissolution on the 3rd day of July,

2014; andc) Glenn D. Godfrey & Company LLP whose

address is 35 Barrack Road, Third Floor, Belize City, Belize is the Liquidator of the Company

Glenn D. Godfrey & Company LLP Registered Agent

PuP mourns passing of ambassador h.e.

alfredo Martinez9th July, 2014

It is with deep sadness that the Honourable Francis Fonseca, Leader of the Oppo-sition and the People’s Unit-ed Party mourn the death of His Excellency Alfredo Martin Martinez, Senior Ambassador of Belize to Guatemala.

Fred Martinez was a Beliz-ean who served his nation de-votedly through his long years in public office in Belize. He was, during a distinguished career which spanned three decades, Mayor of Orange Walk Town, Senator and Lead-er of Government Business in the Senate, Minister of Trade and Industry, and our distin-guished diplomatic represen-tative to Mexico, Guatemala, Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras and Jamaica. He was a master of the art of difficult circumstances and his skill and experience were a hallmark of his work as Be-lize’s Chief Negotiator on the Guatemalan claim.

Ambassador Martinez

was an ardent and committed defender of Belize’s sovereign-ty and was dedicated to ensur-ing that at all times. Belize was represented at the highest pos-sible level with passion, grace, wisdom and great wit. He will be missed by all who had the honor to know him and work with him.

Our sincere condolences to his wife, Annalisa Agnelli Mar-tinez, his three sons, Carlo, Gi-anni and Etienne Martinez, and to his extended family and all his many friends and relatives.

Page 4: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 4

Officer Down!

04

PUP at 60% of threshold

SENSELESS VIOLENCE

on the

By Francis w. FonsecaThe senseless and

tragic murder of Mr. Ra-mon Cervantes Sr. in Or-ange Walk sent shock-waves across the nation.

While those waves were felt strongest in the Orange Walk District where Mr. Cervantes worked and lived his en-tire life, Belizeans in every other part of the country shared in the anger and

disgust at this horrific act of truly senseless vi-olence.

The brutal slaying of a good, decent 71 year old man whose life has been distinguished through service to his family, community, and Coun-try shook even those among us who have be-come hardened by the crime and violence of modern day Belize.

Maestro Ramon was a well known and respected teacher, a Canero and active member of the Cane Farmers Association, a successful business-man, a former Mayor of Orange Walk Town, a former PUP Senator, and above all else, a good friend and neigh-bor to all.

We mourn the loss

of this good man and demand justice on behalf of his family and community.

In July 2014 there is too much senseless violence in our beautiful little Belize.

In July 2014 Belize is a na-tion without purpose or direc-tion. A nation whose Leader is petty, vindictive, and divi-sive.

In July 2014, all Beliz-eans share in the collective responsibility of addressing this scourge of crime and vi-olence.

It will require a UNITY OF PURPOSE.

Mr. Barrow and the UDP have no interest in unity of purpose.

It is time for us to rid our-selves of this UDP Govern-ment.

It is time for a PUP Gov-ernment of REFORM AND CHANGE!!

Believe

PUP notICeMunicipal Elections – San Ignacio/Santa

Elena Towns

The People’s United Party is inviting interested applicants for the upcoming San Igna-cio/Santa Elena Town Coun-cil Elections to submit their applications. A Convention is slated for Sunday, August 24th, 2014.

Applications are available from the PUP Secretari-at, Independence Hall, #3 Queen Street, Belize City.

C omplete d appl icat ions must be filled and returned to the Chair person and the Secretary General. The non-refundable fee must be submitted to the Secretariat along with the necessary documentation to complete the application.

Deadline for submission is July 18th, 2014.

Page 5: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 5

Populorum Progressio…The Development of People

05

EDITORIAL

Guest Editorial by Hilairé BennettThe Latin America and the Caribbean re-

gions have been characterised as having the highest level of inequality worldwide. This in-formation was submitted in the 2010 Regional Human Development Report. This of course does not exclude Belize. The empirical social realities make conspicuous this festering phe-nomenon in this country.

Cutting Poverty by half is the first Millen-nium Goal set for 2015. Statistics in regard to poverty reflect that the Jewel under the United Democratic Party Government is moving op-posite to the Millennium Development Goal targeted in the area of poverty alleviation. During the UDP’s first term in office the poverty remained stagnant even though this was when the UDP’s “Pro-Poor Policy” was launched. Re-cently, the poverty indicators show about some forty odd percent and rising relegating the first millennium goal to but a dying dream.

The United Democratic Party under its leader, Honorable Dean Barrow, has proven to Belize and the citizenry that his is truly not “a government for all” when little or no attention to the first millennium goal has been given. The economic gap between the “haves and have nots”, the rich and poor continue to expand.

The benchmark set for this goal would il-lustrate the government’s political effort in help-ing the needy, the poor and the downtrodden of Belize. The words of the Opposition People’s United Party can be adjusted to – this govern-ment is disconnected from the Belizean reality being lived on a daily basis by Belizean families across our country.

The UDP government’s effort has been con-centrated heavily on the holding on to national power and the schemes to consolidate its posi-tion. The mindset within the UDP is to extract the resources of the citizenry/taxpayers through corrupt acts to remain in power and grow their own fortunes. For their overall political gain the poor must feel the pain. Within the context of what is taking place, in the present administra-tion poverty and inequality continue to rise.

During the depths of the financial down-turn in 2008-2009, the more developed nations view it as vital to bear the financial cost in or-der to assist the poorer countries (e.g. Belize) to create various “social plans”. The demands by the emerging-market citizens especially the new middle class, for better care for the “poor” and “with evidence that growth is not evenly distributed around the economy there is strong pressure to include those left out”. Seemingly, the sentiment above submitted by Mac Margol-is, Welcome to Welfare 2.0 for the World’s Poor, Newsweek, December 2010-February 2011 has gone on deaf ears and has not impacted this

atmosphere humming, another statement taken from Mac Margolis’ Newsweek article must be considered. He said “Governments operating cash transfers can too easily turn on the money spigot (faucet) to pump up the recipient rolls at election time. In Brazil, new-ly-elected President Dilma Rousseff got her highest margin of votes in the poor northeast region where the Bolsa Familia is widespread.”

Evidence has shown that the lack of political con-science and sound governance has contributed to the failures of various countries’ social welfare programs. Belize’s Pro-Poor policies must focus on making sure that the poorest of the poor and the neediest of the needy are identified and given preference to the ser-vices and subsidies these social welfare programs pro-vide. The long-range solution to the problem where the social assistance does not serve the needs of the disadvantaged majority, rather than a relatively politi-cally connected few is having a political voice – a voice for the poor, encouraging them to take their rightful place in the local power structure, and ensuring their involvement in the decision which affect their wel-fare. The church can be that voice even in an apolitical sense. It was through the church that Labour Unions and Trade Unions were formed in Belize in the interest of uplifting the common man and the impoverished.

The Encyclical Letter March 26, 1967 written to Bishops, Priest and the religious order by His Holiness Pope Paul VI stated: “The development of peoples who are making very great efforts to free themselves from the hardships of hunger, poverty, endemic diseases and ignorance, who are seeking a more bountiful share in the benefits flowing from civilization and demanding that greater value be in fact set upon their qualities as human beings, and, who are constantly giving their at-tention to greater growth is gladly and encouragingly viewed by the Catholic church”. It is well known to all how seriously the Fathers of the Church described the obligation of the affluent to those in need: “You are not making a gift from your possession”, says St. Am-brose, “but you are returning what is his. For what is common has been given for use of all, you make exclusive use of it, the earth belongs to all, not to the rich.”

Alleviating poverty can be considered an ethi-cal endeavour. However it is also vital to economic growth. Helping the poor can translate in the long term into the necessary human capital needed to grow the Belizean economy. Additionally, in the long term this often disregarded sector of the societal lad-der could be well help in paying off the national debt which is $2.161 Billion and growing.

Funding for poverty alleviation continues to be-come available to Belize through international part-ners. However the political pandering must stop and the allocation of monies assistance must be distribut-ed fairly. This requires firm management of financ-es secured for the welfare of the Poor. Poverty must be tackled as a priority otherwise the Jewel could be headed to a social and generational catastrophe.

government’s political or social conscience. Poverty and inequality continue to rise.

Along with the developing nations, organizations such as the World Bank, the International Labour Or-ganization (ILO), World Health Organization (WHO), Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) have brought into these programs in their attempt to al-leviate world poverty. ILO information suggests seven-ty-two of the social programs exist. Since its inception one program tagged a success is Brazil’s Bolsa Familia (Family Stipend). Subsidies in the form of monies are handed to the needy as supplemental income to the household. The financial assistance has resulted in the growth in income for Brazil’s poorest since 2001 to 6.8 percent, per year.

Nonetheless, caution was given that these forms of social assistance could easily transform into financial quicksand pulling on the public purse. This was echoed by PUP member for Toledo the Honorable Oscar Re-queña in the halls of the National Assembly that Belize’s social programs are not sustainable and furthermore do not promote growth. What would seem to be a charitable program could be forged into a yoke of iron, destroying the very persons they were supposed to help. The poor man, then, has not even a distant hope of ever attaining a suitable level of life for himself and his family.

The UDP Government’s Pro Poor Policy and South-side Alleviation Project continue to be touted as success in propaganda ads, with the World Bank personnel and inner city youth advancing their political agenda. In my opinion, the success of the UDP’s Boost, Food Pantry, and Conditional Cash Transfers (CCT), are but a farce or an imaginary one. Poverty and inequality continue to rise. Recently, an advisor on social policy stationed in Panama indirectly gave the real reason why the imple-mentation of UDP welfare programs have failed to put a dent in the 1st MDG. He stated that in instituting the programs in Belize, there were “Errors of Inclusion” and “Errors of Exclusion”. He then specified that some peo-ple who were not qualified for the program got on whilst others who should have been enrolled in the program were left out. This statement by the advisor was tanta-mount to saying that regulators of the pro-poor social as-sistance failed to pin-point the right persons – the poor-est, the neediest, the elderly, the ill and school children. The conditions required and the purpose such as having the children vaccinated and keeping them in the class-room is to make them healthy and giving the children a better opportunity to escape poverty through education. Instead the political broad brush is being wielded and its UDP First and Belizeans After as Minister King callously admitted and Minister Godwin Hulse cemented when he spoke regarding the Norwegian Cruise Line project in the South. An indication of the political vindictiveness was submitted by Honorable Oscar Requeña who said that PUP single mothers in his constituency were being turned away because of their political persuasion. The monies for social assistance are being delivered by politi-cal godfathers (caretakers) along with UDP government functionaries skimming off the top. With the election

Page 6: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 606

VACANCYAAA Security Services Corp. Ltd. is seeking qualified indi-viduals for the position of Se-curity Guard. Persons must be over the age of 25 years of age, must be able to speak English and/or Spanish and must possess a clean police record. Must bring along two (2) let-ters of recommendation.

UDP Impotent on CrimeNo ideas, No solutions as violence increases

Belize City, thursday, 10 July 2014The UDP Government, which

pretends to always have the answers to everything, has shown that it is morbidly impotent when it comes to fighting crime.

As gun violence, gang warfare and brutal murders escalate through-out our country, and our people live in fear, the Barrow Administration has been cold and cruel with no reaction nor response, as if none of the lives lost or put in danger and the families left in pain and mourning are import-ant to their wanna-be big-time Minis-ters.

Meanwhile, Belizean life has be-come virtually consumed with crime and fear. This week, everyone was glued to the television evening news as the horrific murder of humble and hardworking Orange Walk patriot Ramon Cervantes Sr. unravelled in suspense. Add to this the separate shooting murders of 25 year old Leon Burgess and 35 year old Dwayne Hil-ton, the cruel execution-style killing of 29 year old Davee Dwayne Copius and the murder attempt on 31 year old Edwin “Drive” Flowers that oc-curred in Belize City between Mon-day and Wednesday night, which are threatening to leave the old capital under siege as more gang warfare is expected.

Any other respon-sible and competent Government would have shown concern. The Min-ister responsible for the public’s safety, in this case National Security John Saldivar, would have entered the picture to in-form the public of effec-tive steps taken to curb crime and tackle the root causes. Any Leader of Government would hold his Ministers to task.

But not in Belize un-der the United Democrat-ic Party. Some Ministers, we are told, have packed their bags in preparation to travel to Brazil for the

World Cup finals. That another young, black male Belizeans was gunned down means nothing to them. That more bodies of missing persons could be lying in shallow graves as part of a possible ruthless crime ring is mean-ingless to their lives, it seems.

Belize, once a peaceful haven, is now known as the 2nd most deadly country in Central America. The local and international press has reported widely of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)’s Global Study on Homicide which placed Belize among the top countries where violent crimes are out of control. The study pointed out that Belize had 44.7 homi-

cides per 100,000 citizens in 2012.Crime is most prevalent in Be-

lize City, in particular the Southside. The UDP has political control of all Southside constituencies, and each

of their representatives is a Cabinet Minister with powerful portfolios such as Finance, Housing, Education, Youth, Sports and Social Transformation. That the Barrow Administration should have no excuse for failing to bring violent crime under control, except of course, impotence and incompetence.

Leon Burgess

Page 7: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 7 07

Dan Silva

WoMaN iN the house

Consulting Business

By Dolores Balderamos Garcia

Last Friday afternoon Party Leader Hon. Francis Fonseca, along with Hon. Julius Espat and I, met with a representative group from the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the premier membership organiza-tion of business and commerce persons/entities. On hand were new President of BCCI, Arturo ‘Tux’ Vasquez, as well as imme-diate past President Kay Men-zies and others from the execu-tive committee and staff of the Chamber.

Once we had wondered aloud why we were meeting at the same time that the Colum-bia and Brazil World Cup game was on, we got down to a very

cordial and respectful sharing of ideas and views at the Chamber’s request and as an introduction to the leadership of ‘Tux,’ who is a frank-speaking and focussed businessman. We were told by the Chamber members that they had met in the morning with the Prime Minister, and while they did not divulge to us the contents of the earlier meeting, I couldn’t help wondering what PM Barrow would have said to the Chamber members and also what he lis-tened to from them.

It seems clear to me that some seven years into his stew-ardship of our country it is a little late for the PM to be attempting to condescend, come down to

earth and really heed the calls and cries of business people, who are the backbone of commerce, enter-prise, and industrial activity in Belize. I have gathered the distinct impres-sion that there has been disrespect and disregard for the views of busi-ness entities and people, as well as the failure to consult, as the PM and his government go along their mer-ry way with their business-as-usual, couldn’t-care-less, in-your-face im-perviousness to the input of others on how we can improve the climate for entrepreneurship and local and foreign investment so desperate-ly needed for jobs, the increase of the tax base, and the growth of the economy.

It would be great if the UDP gov-ernment would start to listen now because we all depend on the private sector for the initiatives for goods and services that are essential. But I will not hold my breath and hope that there will be serious and sincere changes by this administration.

Instead, in our discussions with Tux and the Chamber representatives, our Party Leader has placed on the agenda our oft-stated commitments to reform of the Public Accounts Committee, our pledge to put in place the thirteenth Senator, and our prom-ise to make significant changes in the Immigration sector and department, among others. We also discussed var-ious other national issues including

the Integrity Commission, the inde-pendence of the Judiciary, Belize’s investment climate, the impunity with which the government and its Ministers continue to operate, the disrespect to opposition elected representatives, and the politiciz-ing by the Barrow administration of virtually all public processes, com-pletely ignoring the law and proper ethical procedures.

Our Chamber colleagues also put squarely on the table the need for political parties with the real WILL to make positive changes, for politicians who will be in pub-lic service in a selfless manner and working for the public good, for lon-ger-term planning, for healthy local business initiatives and investment with government support and facil-itation, and for continuing educa-tion of the public on the definitions and forms of corruption that must be stamped out.

On a very positive note and in concluding the cordial powwow was our PUP Party Leader’s reit-erated deep dedication to working with the private sector and to al-ways consult and seek their input as we roll out the PUP’s reform agenda in the Economic sphere, in Governance, and in the Education sector. Only with continued and continual respectful dialogue in consulting the business communi-ty can there be real progress.

Maya Centre, Stann Creek West, Sunday June 22, 2014

Page 8: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 808

PUP

– Freetown’s Mr. Quitar?

Page 9: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 9

Brand New Mahoga-ny Heights Basketball

Court Christened!!

Continued from page 7

09

Edmund Castro

0909TOPMODELTHE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014

THE RE-InTRodUCTIon:

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

Loca

tion:

Adm

irals

Bay R

esta

uran

t and

Bar

, Bel

ize C

ity, B

elize

Dist

rict

• Height: 5’ 7”• Career Plan: Cosmetologist • Sign: Virgo• Favourite Food: Lasagna

• Likes: Practice makeup techniques, singing and dancing

• Lives in: Belize City • Fav. Quote: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”

TOP MODEL Clothing and Accessories provided by

CATWALK FASHIONSCor. North Front Steet & Queen Street

Belize City

Follow us on facebook

Niesha

Belizean artist Mark “Dan Marcus” Johnson, who had become a household name in Belize’s music industry in the late 90s, has promised to make a comeback.

“I am getting ready to come back to Belize for a few performances”, Dan Marcus shared with the Be-lize Times’ Entertainment News.

Dan Marcus now resides in the United States but has not let go of his Belizean roots or his passion for mu-sic.

For several years, Dan Marcus worked on a project titled “The Re-introduction”, a series of 13 mixtape releas-es now compiled into an al-bum. The music was mixed and mastered by Belizean producer/engineer Darrel “DFlow” Flowers of Brook-lyn, New York. The final work was released on June 18th on iTunes and other digital outlets such as Amazon.

He also recently released his self-titled international debut EP album titled “Dan Marcus” under Rebellious Entertainment production.

Dan Marcus is most known in Belize for his work with the Heights A Vibez re-cording group which start-ed producing music and featuring artists in the 90s. In fact, Dan Marcus is one of the group’s godfathers, along with Lee Reynolds aka “Fada Lee”.

NEWSEnTERTAInMEnT

Dan Marcus

Page 10: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 10

by kELSEy Hemsley

VEGAS COME UP AGAIN!

Belize Bank Blazers

Lord’s Bank Sunrise

10 SPORTS THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014

teleMedia scorches belize baNk blazers 7-5 Easy Does It outdoes

win VI Charles Solis Memorial softball tournament

Lords Bank Sunrise in semifinals

Belize City, July 6, 2014The Belize Bank Blazers won

the Charles Solis Memorial softball tournament hosted by the Belize Softball Federation at the Rogers Stadium on Sunday.

In the championship finals, Be-lize Bank Blazers and MVP pitcher Ashley Lucas shut out the Esper-anza Wolverines girls 5-zip to win the championship.

The Blazers had already shut out the Esperanza girls in game 3, 3-zip, as Sharette Vernon, Jolene Davis and Marsha Wills scored a run apiece off Aludy Hyde’s pitch-ing.

The Belize Bank Blazers had dazzled Lord’s Bank Sunrise 12-1 by mercy rule in the top of the 4th inning. Lucas struck out 5 batters

to give only 1 run as only Stacy Smith came home for Sunrise. Sharette Ver-non led the Blazers’ attacks as she and Jolene Davis, Latoya Belisle and Tyra Moriera scored 2 runs each while Mar-sha Wills, Lisa Jones, Fiona Rivero and Agnes Lucas came home once.

Mr. Rory Solis, son of the late Charles Solis, presented the champion-ship trophy donated by the Solis family to the Belize Bank Blazers, and the Most Valuable Player award to Blazers’ pitch-er Ashley Lucas with 3 wins and 2 shut outs.

Other matchesEsperanza Wolverines vs. Camalote

Blazers - 6-1Camalote Blazers vs. Lords Bank

Sunrise - 11-1Esperanza girls Wolverines vs.

Camalote Blazers - 7-4

Belize City, July 4, 2014The Belize Telemedia softball girls upset the Belize

Bank Blazers 7-5 when the Belize City women’s softball competition continued at the Rogers Stadium on Friday night.

Lydia Cacho led Telemedia’s attacks with 2 runs off Hortencia Richards’ pitching, as Richards gave up 5 hits and walked 3 batters while the rest of the diamond made 12 errors. BTL’s Beverly Hyde, Norecia Frazer, Barbara Cadle, Martha Rhys and Christine Jacobs scored a run apiece.

BTL pitcher Kenisha Sutherland struck out 5 batters and gave up 7 hits, but the Blazers left 3 runners on base. Sharette Vernon still scored 2 runs, while Jolene Davis, Kiri Lizama and Marsha Wills scored a run apiece.

The tournament continues on Friday, July 11.

Belize Bank Blazers

Esperanza Wolverines

kenisha Sutherland pitches for a 7-5 win

Lord Bank, July 5, 2014Lemonal’s Easy Does It cricket club

made it difficult for Lord’s Bank Sunrise when they met for the 2014 SMART Harrison Parks cricket semifinals at Lord’s Bank on Saturday.

Easy Does It batted first and Chris Banner led the visitors, scoring 24 runs for the 145-119 win. Herbert Banner hit 2 sixes and a four to score 19 runs, while Mykelt Anthony hit a six and 2 fours to also score 19 runs. Kenroy Reynolds hit 2 fours to score 17 runs before he was LBW, while Aaron Muslar hit a four on the way to scoring 16 runs. Warren An-thony batted 3 fours for 15 runs before he was caught out. Julian Garbutt hit a four for 6 runs to remain Not Out.

Sunrise’s captain Edison Parks had taken 3 wickets while Gareth Joseph, Michael Joseph and Joni Chilu took 2 wickets each.

In Lords Bank’s turn at bat, Satish Raamchandan batted 24 runs while Michael Sobers hit 3 fours to score 23 runs. Kevin “Uzi” Flowers batted 10 runs, Conway Jones scored 9 runs, Vinu - 8 runs while Joni Chilu and Per-cival Joseph batted 7 runs apiece. The Lord’s Bank batsmen were all out for 119 runs.

Game 2 of the series comes up in Lemonal Village on Saturday, July 12.

In the other semifinal series, Crook-ed Tree Brilliant Cricket Club won both games, taking Game 1 in Double Head Cabbage on June 28 against Excellence Cricket Club. Brilliant was up 102 to 40 in Game 2 when the game ended in controversy. Excellence has lodged a protest, which won’t hold water with the protest committee.

Lemonal’s Mykelt Anthony takes Sunrise wickets

Sunrise’s Michael So-bers scored 23 runs

Sunrise’s Satish Ram-chandan batted 24 runs

Page 11: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 11

Godwin Hulse

Belize City firms basketball

update

back to back in interoffice volleyball

11SPORTSTHE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014

scotiabaNk WiNs

Belize City, July 5, 2014The Scotiabank volleyball squad

won back to back when they faced Simon Quan Dragons and Central Bank in the Belize District Volleyball Association’s City interoffice com-petition which began at the Belize Elementary auditorium over the weekend.

On Friday night, July 4, Scotia-bank went to 3 sets to prevail over the Simon Quan Dragons. Oscar Arnold, Arthur Neal and Michael Her-nandez led the banker’s attacks, spik-ing offensives at the net on plays set by Sharmaine Augustus and Libero Robbie Gongora to win the first set 25-15. SQ Dragons’ Nerissa Ramirez, Sherlene Johnson and Alex Quan counterattacked and with team cap-tain Lupita Quan receiving and set-

ting the ball, they took the 2nd set 26-24. Scotia won 3rd set: 15-12.

The Central Bank staff also forced Scotiabank to 3 sets. Sco-tiabank won the 1st set: 25-17, but Central Bank’s Kareem Michael, Bernard Terry and Ed Baptist were not about to go belly up just like that! They seized the win in the 2nd set: 25-23, but they had shot their bolt. Scotiabank won the 3rd set: 15-8.

Other games:BTL vs. Belize Bank Bulldogs -

25-19, 25-21Central Bank vs. Police - 25-0,

25-0Belize Defense Force vs. SQ

Dragons - 12-25, 25-20, 15-11Belize Bank Bulldogs vs. Police

- 25-0, 25-0

Scotia’s Arthur Neal blocks

Scotia Bank team

City Boys & Rising Stars lead SMART Mundialito playoffs

Belize City, July 5, 2014The City Boys and Ladyville

Rising Stars lead the 2014 SMART Mundialito into the play-offs which start on Saturday, July 12 at the Yabra green in Belize City.

The City Boys will challenge the defending champs Brown Bombers, while Rising Stars will take on the Collet Strikers.

Rising Stars’ Camryn Loza-no now leads the league with 11 goals!

Regular season games:Third World vs. Carslton FC

- 1-0City Boys Jrs. vs. Collet

Strikers -0-0Rising Stars vs. Heights FC

- 6-0Brown Bombers vs. La-

dyville Jaguars 1-1Hattieville United vs. London

Strikers 1-1

Frannon Braoster scored 1 goal

Kian ancona wins open sea swimBelize City, July 6, 2014

Kian Ancona of San Pedro won the first open water free style swim organized by 10-year triathlon vet-eran Denise Diaz over a modest distance of 350m on Sunday, July 6.

Diaz organized the event to help Belize become competitive in swimming at an in-ternational level; this was just the start as it was only the first of 3 planned exercises in-tended as precursor to the Lionman competi-tion’s 0.9 mile swim.

Ancona clocked

6 minutes 25 seconds, while Kent Gabourel who will repre-sent Belize in the triathlon at next month’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, was 2nd and karate sensei

Leon Guild was 3rd.Diaz plans a 2nd com-

petitive swim over a 750m course, half the Lionman swim, for July 27. She in-vites the participation of not

only those that consider themselves adept swim-mers, but all those who may wish to test the wa-ters and their body to the distance.

Belize City, July 5, 2014The Belize Bank Bulldogs, Cen-

tral Health Region, Ready Call, Be-lize City Council and Atlantic Bank all posted big wins in the Belize City firms basketball competition at Bird’s Isle over the weekend.

Central health Region vs. Belize water Services - 83-82

Top scorers: Harris Patten, 21pts; Akeem “Timmy” Trapp, 16pts

Ready Call vs. BtL Digicell

4G - 75-53Top scorers: Lewis

Lennon, 28pts; Jason Lamb, 11pts

Belize City Council vs. Courts - 50-49

Top scorers: Kenroy Usher, 14pts; Keith Pol-lard, 16pts

Atlantic Bank vs. heritage heats - 62-59

Top scorers: Ty Brad-ley, 26pts; Devon Defour, 15pts

Belize Bank Bulldogs vs. Complex Admirals - 53-49

Top scorers: Chris McGann, 17 pts; Wilfred Richard, 12pts

Bulldogs’s Terrique Gabb for the rim

Swimming competitors

Page 12: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 1212 SPORTS THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014

The South Americans reach Sunday’s final after beating the Netherlands on penalty

kicks in the second semi-final

Joachim Low’s men already lead tournament hosts 5-0 at halftime in their semi-final and agreed not to humiliate them further in the last 45 minutes

Germany went easy on Brazil in second half of 7-1 World Cup win

tOP GOAL SCORERS:James Rodriguez (Colombia) – 6 goals

Thomas Mueller (Thomas Mueller) – 5 goalsNeymar (Brazil) – 4 goals

Lionel Messi (Argentina) – 4 goalsArjen Robben (Netherlands) – 3 goals

Karim Benzema (France) – 3 goalsAndre Schuerrle (Germany) – 3 goals

Enner Valencia (Ecuador) – 3 goalsXherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland) – 3 goalsRobin van Persie (Netherlands) - 3 goals

ARGEnTInA To PLAy GERMAny In WoRLd CUP FInAL

Robben’s admits to cheating in holland’s win over Mexico

Last updated: 09 Jul 2014Argentina beat the Netherlands

4-2 on penalties to reach the World Cup final after a dire two hours of de-fence-dominated football failed to pro-vide a semi-final goal for the first time in the tournament’s history.

Argentina goal-keeper Sergio Romero saved Ron Vlaar’s first penal-ty then made a superb diving save to deny Wesley Sneijder, allowing Maxi Rodriguez to crash home the decisive kick as his side converted all four of their penalties.

The game was a forgettable one as the Dutch struggled to build any mean-ingful attacks and completed 90 min-utes without a shot on target as Arjen

Robben’s last-minute effort was brilliant-ly blocked by Javier Mascherano.

Argentina were not much more adventurous and had only a handful of half-chances to their name as, in to-tal contrast to Tuesday’s match when Germany waltzed through a wide open Brazil to win 7-1, both defences were absolutely on top.

In Sunday’s final at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro Argentina will play Ger-many in a repeat of the 1986 and 1990 finals - the first time the same two teams will have faced each other three times in the decider.

The Netherlands will play Brazil in the third-place playoff in Brasilia on Sat-urday.

Jul 09, 2014 22:30Germany’s players made a half-time

dressing room pact not to “humiliate” Brazil ‎during their World Cup mauling on Tuesday, July 8th.

Defender Mats Hummels ‎revealed he and his teammates spoke in the dress-ing room in Belo Horizonte after storming into a 5-0 interval lead.

They agreed not to ‘show-boat’, and, after their historic 7-1 semi-final win, Man-chester United target Hummels explained: “We just made it clear that we had to stay focused and not try to humiliate them.

“We said we had to stay serious and

concentrate at half-time. That’s something you don’t have to show on the pitch if you are playing.

“You have to show the opponent respect and it was very important that we did this and didn’t try to show some magic or something like this. It was important we played our game for 90 minutes.”

Brazil were left completely stunned ‎by Germany’s rampant victory but Hummels insists they must repeat their World Cup mas-terclass if they are to win the final on Sunday.

Hummels and his teammates were praised by their former manager Jurgen Klinsmann.

The current USA coach, who scored 38 goals in 80 appearances for Germany as a player and managed them at the 2006 World Cup, urged Joachim Low and his play-ers to go on and win the tournament.

Klinsmann tweeted: “The best German per-formance ever in a World Cup! Simply fantastic! Now get the Cup JOGI and TEAM!”

Germany’s Thomas Mueller, left, and Argenti-na’s Lionel Messi, right, will square off in the

2014 World Cup final

Mercy me! Hummels (second right) says Brazil’s six-goal defeat could

have been even worse

Jul 01, 2014 16:04 Jose Mourinho claims Ar-

jen Robben’s World Cup diving displays prove referees should be able to use technology to make the right decisions.

Robben has escaped FIFA sanction despite admit-ting he dived in the first half of Holland’s win over Mexico, although the Bayern Munich winger insisted he was fouled by Rafael Marquez for the clinching injury-time penalty and that he should have had a clear penalty in the first half.

Mourinho sold Robben to Bayern Munich when he was first Chelsea boss in 2007, af-

ter falling out with the winger over his spells on the treat-ment table.

And the Stamford Bridge chief, who always public-ly defended Robben during his three year spell with the Blues, suggested the Dutch flier does go out of his way to con referees - who now need extra help to spot the cheats.

Mexico boss Miguel Her-rara claimed Robben should have been dismissed for per-sistent diving and accused the Munich man and Portu-guese referee Pedro Proenca of conspiring to ‘’invent’’ the decisive penalty.

Robben appeals for a penalty during the win over Mexico

Page 13: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 13

bes & holy redeemer boys lead basketball competition

Why the criminals fly!

ScalesJUSTICEof

by anthony sylvestre

The criminals in our midst, it is clear, are confident that they can apply their trade with impu-nity. The rapes, kidnapping and gruesome, callous murders re-ported over the past few weeks tell this powerfully. How they barge into homes and people’s lives and rape, steal and kill bra-zenly.

But as I watched the CEO in the Ministry of National Security giving an interview on Channel 7 on Wednesday night, I began to understand why these criminals fly; why these the murderers and kidnappers and so on and so on criminals believe that they could commit the most heinous of crimes and get away with it. It is because the people in charge cannot be serious.

And this became crystal clear with the CEO of the Min-istry of National Security (Col. Lovell’s) response to a reporter regarding the absence of a drug plane which the authorities had seized back in 2010. Somehow, the exchange did not make it to Channel 7’s internet newscast, but it did make Channel 5’s in-ternet newscast. The plane, it was recalled, was seized by the authorities back in 2010 as part of an unprecedented drug bust. But the plane, it has now been revealed, was sold. Yes, can you dig that? The drug plane was sold.

And Col. Lovell seemed to exude a certain pride in this fact, that the drug plane was sold, presumably, because it was openly sold.

The exchange, as transcribed on Channel 5’s internet went like this:

Ret. Col. George Lovell, C.E.O., Ministry of National Security

“In terms of as far as my memory serves right, I think it was published and there were open tender that was advertized and it was sold.”

Duane Moody“When did this happen sir?”

Ret. Col. George Lovell“…Quite some time ago. I can’t

remember when it was removed but quite some months ago.”

The good Colonel appeared shock that the reporter, Duane Moody, would find this just as-toundingly bizarre and crazy. But, I understand Duane’s consternation and why he was constrained to press Col Lovell.

Duane Moody“Sir I’m sorry, I have to go back

to this plane…how much was it sold for? Do you know? And who was it sold to?”

The good Colonel’s response was flippant:

Ret. Col. George Lovell“I don’t know right now Duane.

I don’t know the details right now, but I am quite certain that my staff can provide you with those details because it was by tender.”

Now, as I said, I under-stand fully the reporter’s consternation. And perhaps like the reporter, I found my-self musing: “So who buys a drug plane, anyway? And for what? Ah mean, wouldn’t the person who bought the plane be endangering their life? What if the original owners wanted their plane back?”

But more importantly, I was thinking out loud, “why would they sell a drug plane that (according to them) is said to have evaded their na-tional security apparatus in the first place and landed in Belize undetected?” To use one of the young people’s lin-go these days, “That is just sooooooooo ….. wrong!” And that is putting it nicely.

And which is why I say Colonel Lovell’s response re-veals that those in authority may not be up to speed right now and which is why the criminals (the bad people in our midst) are preying on this and doing what they are do-ing right now- have us under siege.

For it is true, where there is an absence of leadership, bad people thrive on this, take advantage of this. And

just as how it is clear the crim-inals have us under siege, it is even clearer that there is an absence of leadership in this government and that they don’t know what they are do-ing.

Sure, we have a strong man boss as our Prime Minis-ter who will beat whoever into submission to have his way. But a leader? Of course not. Just look at how he is running our country.

I recall when I was a youth between 1993 to 1998, the Prime Minister was then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Everything (in-cluding being Minister of Na-tional Security). There was, as there is now, a similar nation-al crime wave and in particu-lar, a serious gang problem in the streets of Belize City. And as now, there was no seri-ous or sensible crime fighting response. For this, the Prime Minister was dubbed as being “impotent on crime”. This was around the same time Mr. Hu-bert Elrington, Senior Counsel, who was his Cabinet colleague, referred to him as being “all glit-ter and no substance.”

We had hoped then and more so now, that Mr. Hubert Elrington was wrong- for that could only be bad for us all as Belizeans. But twenty years lat-er on, we are in the same po-sition and it seems Mr. Hubert Elrington is after all right. And that is why the criminals fly.

Page 14: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 14

Open your Eyes Port Loyola Residents

WEStErN BALLAz

By Gilroy Usher, Sr. On June 18th Gregory Den-

nis Harris posted the following on his Facebook page.

“People of Port Loyola, let us vote out Antony Boots Marti-nez. What hurt me a lot is I am the Sports Coordinator for that area, and I went to see him to assist me with a summer camp for the youth of Port Loyola. He told me plain ‘no money’, but while I was in Cayo this week-end I stopped in Teakettle vil-lage where they were having a Fathers’ Day Tournament, and I saw twelve trophies and medals and three of his workers there. While at the event I found out that “Boots” sponsored all of those items. People of Port Loyola we need to open up our eyes. I want all who read this please comment on it. Thanks. So sad.”

That is no ordinary posting on the social media. Mr. Harris deserves praise for being bold enough to provide the residents of Port Loyola with first-hand information about one of the root causes of continuing pov-erty and hardship in their com-munity - an uncaring Area Rep. Away with those persons, who in their attempt to cover-up the uncaring actions of the Area Representative, told Mr. Harris that he should have kept the information to himself instead of sharing it with the public on Facebook. For exposing this ne-glect and helping anyone with any sporting event whenever it’s possible, Mr. Harris paid a heavy price. He was fired from his job–heartless victimization for speaking the truth and not strictly adhering to govern-ment’s policy of serving the people as empathically stated by Minister of State Mark King.

Up to June 18 Gregory Dennis Harris was one of the sports coordinators under Re-store Belize. In that capacity he organized or assisted with var-ious sporting events in Belize

City and in a number of towns and villages to enable the youth to use their time in constructive activities. Mr. Harris knows that through sports life skills can be taught to youths from challeng-ing neighborhoods. As a public officer, he saw how the govern-ment has limitless money for whatever it decides to do.

Knowing the benefit of sports to the community and the huge bucks at the disposal of the Min-isters, Mr. Harris had a right to feel hurt when the Area Repre-sentative for Port Loyola told him that he has no money to assis-tant with a summer camp in the division. You can imagine how even more devastated he felt when he learned that the man, who refused to help with even a dollar for a summer camp in his own division, readily spends hundreds and hundreds of dol-lars to provide trophies and med-als for sporting events over forty miles away from the area he rep-resents.

“Boots” Martinez’s disregard for the residents of his division is not news Belizeans. During the 12 years he has been Area Representative, Boots has re-peatedly shown that as far as he is concerned he does not believe that the people of Port Loyola deserve much. This is why Greg-ory Harris spoke out and shared facts on Facebook that the Area Representative for Port Loyola promotes sporting events “big time” in other divisions but not in Port Loyola which elected him office.

Similarly, while Boots was the Minister of Works for four years (2008- 2012) he gave atten-tion to streets all over the coun-try except those in the area he represents. This disregard for the people who elected him to the House is also the reason why “Boots” Martinez built a few tiny, weak, leaking, and incom-plete plycem houses, in which he would not live in even for a single day, for people in the area in-stead of proper 2 or 3 bedroom concrete houses. Unconcern for the welfare of the residents of his division is the reason why “Boots” Martinez has done noth-ing to address the terrible unem-ployment situation in the division especially among single mothers and high school graduates.

Given those facts, Grego-ry Harris is right when he says, “People of Port Loyola we need to open our eyes.”

Comment on Facebook/gil-royushersr

NOTICE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC

THIS IS TO ADVISE YOU THAT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE BELIZE TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 2002, SI 110 OF 2002 THAT SPEEDNET COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED OF 2 ½ MILES NORTHERN HIGHWAY, BELIZE CITY HAS APPLIED TO THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION FOR THE FREQUENCY SPECTRUM AUTHORIZATION TO PROVIDE DE-LIVERY OF MOBILE VOICE, SMS, AND INTERNET SERVICES TO EXIST-ING AND NEW CUSTOMERS IN THE COUNTRY OF BELIZE.

LOCATION FREQUENCY Uplink Downlink

Countrywide 824 – 829 MHz 869 – 874 MHz

DO YOU KNOW YOUR SCORE?HAS ANY BUSINESS COMPLAINED ON YOU?

VISIT OUR OFFICE AND BRING ALONG YOUR SO-CIAL SECURITY CARD.

WE WILL CHECK OUR SYSTEM FREE.CREDIT MASTER SYSTEMS

PUTTING VALUE BACK INTO

“Your Word”#11 DOUGLAS JONES

BELIZE CITY

TEL: 223-5845/2283

LIVESTER MANAGEMENT LIMITED # 74,960(“the Company”)

Pursuant to Section 102(8) of the International Business Companies Act, Chapter 270 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition 2000, notice is hereby given that LI-VESTER MANAGEMENT LIMITED has been dissolved as at 9th July, 2014 and has been struck off the Register of International Business Companies.

Cititrust International LimitedRegistered Agent

Page 15: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 15

PUP Builds New Bridgefor St. Michaels Primary

School, Las Flores

Las Flores residents, children and staff of St. Mi-chaels School in Las Flores, City of Belmopan, now enjoy a new ferro-concrete bridge, thanks to the efforts of the PUP Standard Bearer for the City of Belmopan, Senator Patrick Jason Andrews, and the dynamic support from Team Chacon.

The new bridge replaces the dilapidated and there-fore dangerous one where children have been known to be seriously hurt. In spite of repeated requests to the Area Representa-

Better will come to Belmo-pan under the leadership

of Patrick Andrews

View of old broken bridge (right)New bridge under construction

8-a-side U-13 Football cup underway in corozal north!

San Andres Village, July 8, 2014The Under-13 8-a-side Football

Cup coordinated by the Chairman of San Andres Village Council, Glenford “Choco” Melvin, and sponsored by Tortilleria Chico’s and Corozal North PUP Standard David Castillo got un-derway on Sunday July 6th 2014 at the San Andres Village Football Field in Corozal.

Three games were featured in the grand opener. First it was San Andres/España who took on Ranchi-to/Argentina at 2:00PM. Ranchito/Argentina won 6-4 over San An-dres España. Next was San Andres/France vs. Brazil/San Antonio, which ended 10-1 in favour of Brazil/San Antonio. The final game for the eve-

ning was Ranchito/Costa Rica vs. San Andres/Mexico which ended 10-1 in fa-vour of San Andres/Mexico.

The 8-a-side Football Under-13 Cup is organized for the young people of Corozal for them to be involved in a pro-gram that is healthy and positive during the summer season 2014.

this coming weekend will fea-ture 5 matches:

1PM: Paraiso/Alemania vs. San Antonio/Brazil

2PM: Ranchito/Costa Rica vs. San Andres/Espana

3PM: San Andres/France vs. San Pedro/Belize

4PM: San Andres/Mexico VS Bel-gium/Chan Chen

5PM: PM/Argentina vs. Cristo Rey

NOTICENotice is hereby given that the following companies have been dissolved and struck off the International Business Companies Registry with effect from the dates indicated: 10th day of July, 2014 -- SUNNY DAY TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.

10th day of July, 2014 -- WIDE HORIZON INTERNATION-AL CO., LTD. Power Point Trust (Belize) LimitedRegistered Agent

tive the Hon. John Saldivar, and the UDP City Council, the old bridge remained for many years, representing a danger to the children and community, es-pecially during the rainy season.

The bridge, which cost approximately $7,000.00, was financed primarily from dona-tions in material from the pri-vate sector, and labour from the PUP Executive and PUP May-oral Candidate Jose Chacon, as well as from members of the community of Las Flores. This project proves that with com-mitment, determination, and the desire to serve the people, many positive things can hap-pen.

This is the first of many projects to come. We ask you to join Senator Patrick Andrews and the PUP 7 led by Jose Chacon in making a positive change for Belmopan. TOGETH-ER WE CAN…….

Chairman Choco & PUP Corozal North Standard Bearer David Castillo make a winning team

Page 16: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 16

The Economic Value of Marine Algae (Seaweed)

Home Economics

By Richard harrisonBelize is blessed with a large

area of pristine sub-tropical wa-ters inside the Great Belize Barrier Reef which is fertile for the grow-ing of marine algae.

This food is very low in Sat-urated Fat and Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Dietary Fi-ber, Vitamin K, Calcium and Cop-per, and a very good source of Ri-boflavin, Folate, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Zinc, Selenium and Manganese. Seaweed is also one of the few foods that contain all of the essential amino acids. In other words, seaweed is of very high nutritional, energy and health value. Throughout the Caribbean, it is thought to have aphrodisiac effects and promoted in this light.

Seaweed is truly one of the sea’s best gifts. It has been used as food, medicine, fertilizer and as raw material in production of industrial phycocolloids such as Carrageenan, Agar, and Alginate.

The Philippines is one of the largest producers and exporters of seaweed products….mostly for industrial applications. One com-pany, Marcel Carrageenan, boasts capacity to export 160 full-con-tainer-loads per month of various seaweed products suitable for ap-plication in producing kappa car-rageenan, iota carrageenan, agar and fertilizer/animal feed.

Big H, the leading innovator in the beverage industry in Be-lize, launched STAMINA seaweed drink for its second annual La Ruta Maya Belize River Challenge in 1999. It was the first attempt at commercializing seaweed drink, a product which was well known in Belize, but rarely available. The previous year, it had successful-ly launched the first commercial-ly available Big H coconut water, which is still the market leader, even though many others have started bottling coconut water since then. At the same time it was developing lemon grass tea, long known in our culture as a gen-eral health and mood enhancer. These products were priced at levels that took into account the profitability of the entire produc-tion chain, aiming for the higher end of the beverage market, and with an export vision. The value of Big H innovation and creativity to Belize is immeasurable.

It was difficult to find the sea-

weed material itself. I found Mr Godfrey from Placencia village through references, and he was able to supply us with good qual-ity seaweed material, although on an inconsistent basis at the time.

Since then, several others have followed the Big H lead and started producing and selling/distributing branded seaweed drinks on a commercial basis.

A cooperative in Placencia has also been formed recently, which is focusing on planting and commercialization of sea-weed products. Now seaweed raw material is readily available for commercial applications.

Some research and devel-opment of the seaweed drinks needs to be done, so that the products are more consistent in characteristics attractive to con-sumers - color, taste, flavors, palatability, texture, consistency and shelf-life. More marketing is needed to appropriately position the products for the long-term in the high end of the beverage market, so that the nutritional and intrinsic value is reflected in the price consumers are will-ing and able to pay for the prod-uct….and so that a wider range of consumers choose the prod-uct as a refreshment on a more consistent basis.

There is no beverage com-pany that is currently offering this product on the world mar-ket on a commercial basis and with the entire world moving towards healthier consumption patterns this presents a mar-ket environment ripe for ex-ploiting first-mover advantages. Seaweed drink can be the en-ergy-packed “Ensure” among widely available and consumed beverages. Belize needs to de-velop its domestic market for this product much more rapidly and find ways, through strategic partnerships, to present various flavors and presentations of this product to the world market. From the start Belize needs to promote the raw seaweed prod-uct of Belize as the choice raw material, given the pristine and relatively uncontaminated state of our marine environment.

The farming of edible sea-weeds in Belize also has the potential to boost the fish pro-

ductivity of our seas, given that these algae are a food source for small fishes to grow and re-produce much more rapidly. The flavoring of the seaweed drinks also demands peanuts and oth-er produce of Belize. Hence, the horizontal effects on demand for compatible ingredients and production is real.

My own very conservative estimate of a developed sea-weed drinks market for Belize is around $9 million per year…if 75,000 consumers purchase one drink per week at $2.50…with the potential to contribute $2 million in taxes (GST and Business Tax) to government. Of course, the products need to be made readily available at the various point-of-sale in attractive presentations. The first-mover in the world market for this unique beverage product will surely harvest abundantly.

It can be presented in ready-to-drink forms, or in raw material powder form for homes to use in preparing their own drinks.

There are other uses for sea-weed as well including, but not limited to, as a substitute for corn starch as a thickener for gravy and as a texture enhancer and to improve the melting point of ice creams.

The government can assist with this development by in-vesting some resources ($0.5 million each year for five years) in the product development and marketing aspects of this industry perhaps through the Fisheries Department and/or the Agriculture Department. If focus is placed only on farm-ing and harvesting and not on raw materials and finished product processing for optimal shelf-life, storage and ready consumer acceptance the en-tire efforts could be derailed, as farmers become frustrated with holding inventory that does not move to market. Value-adding opportunities need to be exploited now….so that the crop goes from the seabed to consumers in the shortest amount of time possible.

Efficiency and effective-ness of the product-market chain are key.

Richard Harrison is a local businessman and investor in the manufacturing and ser-vice industries. Mr. Harrison holds a Masters in Business Administration degree from Lancaster University, United Kingdom. Send comments to [email protected]

For SaleBy Order of the

Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., a company duly registered under the Companies Act, Chapter 250 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition, 2000, and having its registered office at Cor. Albert and Bishop Streets, Belize City, Belize, hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Mortgagee under a Charge made the 28th day of December, 2011 between JULIA MARGARITA GODOy of Trial Farm Village, Orange Walk District, Belize of the one part, and Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., of the other part, registered as LRS-201115310, and the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. will at the expiration of three months from the date hereof 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

REGISTRATION SECTION BLOCK PARCELANN GABOUREL 4 2755

Area: - 696.697 S.M.

DATED this 3rd day of July, 2014.

MUSA & BALDERAMOS91 North Front Street

Belize CityAttorney-at-Law for

Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

Page 17: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 17

Illegal Guatemalans caught panning for gold inside the Chiquibul forest

Reid

Change is coming

Costa Rica is unique in that it has no standing army but leads the world in many significant areas. In 2007 it was declared the only county to meet all five criteria estab-

lished to measure environmental sustainability. In 2009, it was declared the happiest place on the planet and was first in the terms of the 2012 Environmental Performance Index. Belize can learn a lot from Costa Rica.

By G. Michael ReidThe 20th FIFA World Cup

is coming to a conclusion and what a ride it has been. For a full month, the attention of the entire planet seemed captive to these 64 matches played among 32 countries from around the world. The World Cup, which drew re-cord viewers across the globe, was unique in many aspects. For the first time, goal-line technolo-gy was introduced which allowed meticulous and immediate review of whether or not the ball indeed crossed the goal line. Each referee had a can of vanishing foam that was sprayed to identify where players could stand and to mark the spot of a free kick. One writ-er jokingly commented that while “It’s Colombia to the north that’s more readily associated with van-ishing white lines, the white spray on the Brazilian pitches has al-ready left an indelible mark on the game, though not on the grass.” Once sprayed, the foam disap-pears in under a minute.

Unfortunately our little Belize did not qualify for this big dance but we remain hopeful that sooner than later, our Jaguars will pounce and bounce balls on one these fantastically manicured football arenas. Who knows, one day we ourselves might even have a sta-dium worth boasting about.

The 2014 World Cup was played in twelve different cit-ies across Brazil in either new or redeveloped stadiums. Brazil reportedly spent some $3.6 bil-lion US dollars on stadium works alone. Five Brazilian cities re-ceived brand new football stadi-ums while stadiums in six other cities were extensively renovat-ed. The Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha, which sits in the capital city of Brasilia and was originally built as recent as 1974, was total-ly demolished and rebuilt. Original capacity was for 45,200 but after renovations, capacity almost dou-

bled to 73,000 seats. It was filled to capacity for nearly every game and notwithstanding protests from those who felt that the govern-ment was overspending, but it is certain that the money was mostly recovered. It did not prevent a 7-1 shellacking in the semi-finals but Brazil has consistently been at the top of the football world. Here we are, twenty years in the making and cannot complete our one main sta-dium; the joke that we named after Marion Jones. Is there any wonder that we are nowhere near World Cup quality?

The games of the World Cup

have been held since 1930 and while interest in the rest of the world has always been high, the United States seem to finally have come full-fledged aboard. CNN, ESPN and even ABC televised the games and rating agencies con-firmed that more people in the Unit-ed States tuned in to the U.S.-Bel-gium match than did for the World Series of baseball or the NBA finals.

Again, while our poor Jaguars fell short of qualifications, just about ev-ery Belizean had a favorite team that they were rooting for. As a member of Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association (CONCACAF), many Belizeans were cheering on Mexico, Honduras, the US or Costa Rica. Mexico and Hon-duras fell early but the US and Cos-ta Rica survived to the round of 16. The USA’s surge and their eventual narrow defeat to Belgium energized the entire region and contributed to a huge surge of goodwill towards CONCACAF nations. Despite a gal-lant effort however, they could not survive the “group of death” and then, there was Costa Rica!

Dubbed the “surprise package” of the 2014 World Cup, Los Ticos, the little team that could, outdid power houses Uruguay, Italy and England; then sent Greece packing with a 5-3 victory that went to penalty kicks. While they could not survive to the semi-final rounds, Costa Rica’s success highlighted a rise of CON-

CACAF countries and did much to downplay the blanket of corruption and controversy that existed under its former president Jack Warner. Costa Rica is a good example for Be-lize and its excellent World Cup run proves that even small countries can compete with the big boys in sports. Costa Rica is unique in that it has no standing army but leads the world in many significant areas. In 2007 it was

declared the only county to meet all five criteria established to mea-sure environmental sustainability. In 2009, it was declared the hap-piest place on the planet and was first in the terms of the 2012 Envi-ronmental Performance Index. Be-lize can learn a lot from Costa Rica.

The biggest lesson that Belize can learn from Costa Rica though, is what happened after a recent election in that country. 55-year-old historian and former diplomat Luis Guillermo Solís was elect-ed president and was ushered in with an agenda of refreshing new ideas. One of President Solis’ first decrees was that he did not want his portrait hung in public offices. According to the new president, “The worship of the image of the president is over, at least under my government”. Mr. So-lis also declared that in the future, commemorative plaques would only bear the date that the project was inaugurated and not the name of the administration under which

it was built. The president told reporters he thought having his name on plaques marking the inauguration of construction projects such as bridges and roads gave people the wrong idea. According to Solis, “The works are from the country and not from a government or a particu-lar official.” Costa Ricans hopes are high that Mr. So-lis will bring transparency

to the presidency and eliminate unnecessary spending. Solis told the people after the elections that “there is an unquestionable de-mand for change, for things not to carry on as they have, and I aim, with the help of God and the support of all of you, to bring you those changes that you’re clamoring for”. My GOD, are we ever ready for such a leader.

Page 18: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 18

barroW’s dracoNiaN GuN laW strikes aGaiN

Belize City, July 9th, 2014The Barrow Administration’s op-

pressive bail and firearm law has struck again, this time against an entire family which is still mourning the senseless assassination of their 17 year old loved one.

On Monday July 7th evening, while the family was holding a repast in memory of slain teenager Myron Smith, the Police rushed into their Giles Street home and conducted a search which reportedly led them to an unli-censed 9mm gun and thirteen bullets.

According to the Police, their of-ficers were on normal routine patrol in the Lake Independence area when they saw a male person run from Giles street into an open yard and into an upstairs wooden house. The Police ini-tiated a pursuit immediately and found the male person hiding in the bathroom inside the house. The gun was found, the Police said, following a search of the house.

At home at the time were seven persons – 52 year old Alrick Smith,

47 year old Sandra Casey, 22 year old Leon Smith, 19 year old Tamika Smith, 20 year old Rashida Brooks and two minor male persons – all family members of the murdered teenager.

Barrow’s heavy-handed firearm law gives the Police the authority to arrest anyone and everyone found within any premise where an illegal firearm is discovered. The Police ex-ercised this power and reportedly detained everyone, carting them off to jail downtown and then to the Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday morn-ing. The bail law, which instructs Magistrates to deny bail for persons charged with possession of illegal firearms for two weeks, added to the injustice against the grieving family.

In Court, the family pleaded not guilty to the charge and claimed that not only was there no gun in the house but that the Police detained Tamika Smith who was not even inside the house at the time. They

said that it was the young man who the Police had chased who possessed the weapon. Despite the family’s de-fense the Magis-trate, whose dis-cretionary power is removed by the bail law, had to remand the family until Au-gust 21st.

May of this year. As expected, the UDP Government played political games and rejected the much-needed proposals, saying they will take as much time as it takes to adequately address the public’s concerns. But the question is when? It has been almost 150 days since the lame National Security Minister John Saldivar got up in the halls of the Nation-al Assembly to proclaim that the Gov-ernment has heard the concerns and will do something about it.

Because of the harshness of the law which has affected many persons includ-ing senior citizens and innocent young people, the public’s outcry for an imme-diate revision of the law has been loud and fierce.

The Government has ignored those calls. The Opposition, on the other hand, has listened and demonstrated lead-ership by consulting with partners and formulating revised amendments which they proposed to the Government in

Alrick Smith Leon Smith Sandra Casey Tamika Smith

The Smith residence

Page 19: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 19

rAMON CErVANtES Sr.In Remembrance of

Ramon Cervantes Sr.Sunrise July 18, 1942Sunset July 2, 2014

PUP Orange Walk East Committee

Orange Walk residents at candle light vigil on Wednesday July 9th

Ramon Cervantes Jr. during special memorial service

L to R: PUP Chairman Henry C. Usher, Orange Walk East Area Rep.

Marco Tulio Mendez and PUP Leader Hon. Francis Fonseca

Orange Walk Mayor kevin Bernard and PUP Leader Francis Fonseca

Page 20: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 20

Happy Holidays!

We Have A Choice: Ignoring Divine

Intervention

The number one argument for atheists when defending their view on the exis-tence or, should I say, the non-existence of God is the evil that exists in the world. There is an increase in wars, in vicious and inhumane crimes, in drug use and addiction, and the list can go on in cre-atively darkening terms. If a good and

perfect God exists, the atheists and even some believers rage, why do we live in such a fallen world? Unfortunately, I cannot begin to understand the mind of God, and when some trage-dies happen, such as an innocent child dying at birth, I experi-ence the same yawning void of ignorance at God’s plans. But what all humans must face is our own hand in the corrupt turn of our world.

So, why doesn’t God just come down and strike all the bad guys down? Or better yet, why doesn’t He turn everybody into a ‘good guy’, then we could all live happily ever after. Well, I must say it is a good thing that God doesn’t strike all the ‘bad guys’ because I am sure the earth would be uninhabited by the time He was finished. We’ve all sinned at one point or other in our lifetimes. As for turning everyone into a ‘good guy’, I’m not too certain how well that experiment would turn out. In the Garden of Eden, I’m pretty sure Adam and his wife were decent, God-fearing people, ‘good guys’. And look how well that turned out for them and the entire human race. See, when God created man, he put a little bug into our DNA that complicates matters just a bit.

This DNA is called ‘free will’. God gave us the choice to love Him, because when love is given freely and from the heart, it is more fulfilling than love that is earned or forced. With this free will, we can choose to obey God’s laws or obey our own. And God chooses not to interfere. But even if He does, we still have the choice to do whatever we desire. Want proof? In the first few chapters of Genesis, it describes Adam and Eve’s two sons: Cain and Abel. Cain was jealous because his brother had the favor of God, so Cain’s logical conclusion was to kill his brother. God saw Cain’s countenance and He person-ally came down to warn Cain, “sin is crouching at your door”. Even though God paid Cain a little visit, Cain still chose to kill his brother. It was his choice, despite it being the wrong one.

See, we all have a choice. And following God is not as ap-petizing as doing what we want. Our inherent need for do-minion and independence often tugs us towards following our own selfish ambitions rather than paying God any mind. The chaos in the world is the results of our actions. Human beings. God gave us dominion over the earth and we screwed it up. Thank God for a new Kingdom that Jesus brought to earth almost 2000 years ago. If you are interested in becoming a citizen, I encourage you to read up the Kingdom’s Constitution (the Bible) and drop in at an official Kingdom Embassy.

Until next weekGod bless

BY ORDER OF CHARGEENOTICE OF INTENTION TO SELL

HOLY REDEEMER CREDIT UNION LIMITED a statutory body formed and registered under the Credit Union Act, Chapter 314 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition 2000, and whose registered office is situated at No. 1 Hyde’s Lane, Belize City, Belize District hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Chargee under and by virtue of a Charge registered at the Land Registry between Marion Webster Jones and the said Holy Redeemer Credit Union Limited.

HRCU will at the expiration of three months from the date of the first publication of this notice sell the property described in the Schedule below.

ALL offers to purchase the said property must be made in writing to HOLY REDEEMER CREDIT UNION LIMITED from whom full particulars and conditions of sale may be obtained.

SCHEDULEALL THAT piece or parcel of land comprising 411.11 square yards being Parcel 770, Block 45 in the King’s Park Registration Section situate at No. 2 St. Joseph Street, Belize City, Belize District, TOGETHER with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon, the freehold property of MARION WEBSTER JONES.

DATED the 23rd day of June 2014

HOLY REDEEMER CREDIT UNION LIMITED1 HYDE’S LANE, BELIZE CITY, BELIZE

Phone: (501) 224-5644Fax: (501) 223-0738

Trica Enterprises Limited # 68,550(“the Company”)

Pursuant to Section 102(4) of the International Business Com-panies Act, Chapter 270 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition 2000, notice is hereby given that Trica Enterprises Limited:

a) is in dissolution b) commenced dissolution on the 3rd day of July, 2014; andc) Cititrust International Inc. whose address is 35 Barrack

Road, Third Floor, Belize City is the Liquidator of the Com-pany

Cititrust International LimitedRegistered Agent

NOTICE

Notice is hereby given that the companies have been dissolved and struck off the

International Business Companies Registry with effect from the dates indicated:#

28th day of June, 2014 -- BESTEK ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.

28th day of June, 2014 -- Bright Trend International Co., Ltd.

28th day of June, 2014 -- Good Peace Co., Ltd.

Power Point Trust (Belize) Limited

Registered Agent

Page 21: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 2121REGIONAL &

INTERNATIONAL NEWSTHE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014

New Orleans ex-mayor jailed for a decade

Brazil World Cup fans burn buses in Sao Paulo

Crimes included accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, money

laundering and other corruption offences

Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has been sentenced to 10 years in pris-on for his conviction on bribery, money laundering and other

corruption offences.Prosecutors said the actions for which he

was convicted spanned his two terms as may-or, including before and after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city in 2005.

Citing Nagin’s devotion to his family and commitment to helping New Orleans,US Dis-trict Judge Helen Berrigan said on Wednesday that a shorter sentence than recommended under federal guidelines was warranted.

Nagin was convicted on February 12 of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from businessmen who wanted work from the city or Nagin’s support for various projects.

The bribes came in the form of money, free holidays and truckloads of free granite for his family business.

Prosecutors said the combined value of the bribes accepted by Nagin, which included personal parties, private jet rides and first-class airfares for a family shopping trip to New York, totalled more than $500,000.

The charges he was convicted of include wire fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion.

The 58-year-old Democrat had defiantly denied any wrongdoing after his 2013 charges and during his February trial.

B r a z i l i a n fans and pro-testers, unhappy over Brazil’s 7-1 World Cup defeat

against Germany, have taken to the streets of Sao Paulo and burned at least 20 buses, as police ramp up security for Wednesday’s semi-final.

Throughout the night on Tuesday, police and fire ser-vices reported several attacks on buses in the South Ameri-

can country’s largest city.Most were destroyed

when a garage full of bus-es was set on fire in the southern area of Sao Pau-lo, the Reuters news agen-cy reported.

According to local au-thorities, at least 20 buses were destroyed and others were damaged.

Meanwhile, Sao Paulo police increased security for the semi-final between

Argentina and the Nether-lands.

When Argentina played Switzerland on July 1 in Sao Paulo there were isolated incidents of violence and rioting and police were called in to re-spond.

“Today our squad has been increased 20 per-cent because of today’s event and because of the high concentration of peo-ple during Argentina’s last game. We boosted our detail and we will conduct ourselves in the best man-ner possible as we have

in the last days,” Her-nane Pereria Melete, the police inspector, said.

Brazil were thrashed 7-1 by Ger-many in a record World Cup defeat, their first loss at home in 64 compet-itive matches since 1975.

It was also the first time they had lost by six goals in any match since neigh-bouring Uruguay beat them 6-0 in the Copa America in 1920.

Somali troops have retaken the presidential palace in the capital Moga-dishu after al-Shabab

fighters forced their way in and exchanged heavy gunfire with sol-diers and guards.

After more than two hours of fighting, Somalia’s presidency said on Twitter that “the shameful at-tack” had been foiled by Somalia’s armed forces fighting alongside Af-rican Union peacekeepers.

Al-Shabab claimed responsi-bility for the attack.

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was not inside

the palace at the time of the at-tack, but the prime minister and the speaker of parliament were, said Captain Mohamed Hussein, a senior police official.

The presidency said Presi-dent Mohamud and Prime Minis-ter Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed were safe.

Tuesday’s attack started when a car bomb exploded out-side the presidential compound. Gunmen then entered the pal-ace, police officer Mohamed Abdi told the AP news agency.

Police said the fighters, who were armed with grenades, split up into groups once inside and

tried to take control of dif-ferent buildings in the com-pound.

In a statement Jen Psa-ki, spokesperson for the US State Department, said: “In-cidents such as this further demonstrate that insecurity in Mogadishu persists, includ-ing very real threats from al-Shabab.

“This is why we continue to support the efforts of the Somali Forces and the Afri-can Union to expand security and stability ... These forces stopped today’s attackers and prevented further harm.”

Somali troops retake presidential palace Soldiers take back presidential compound in the capital

Mogadishu after it was stormed by al-Shabab fighters Bolivian politicians have approved child workers as young as 10 years old, under a new law that lays out specific conditions for their employment.

Congress passed the measure by consensus on Wednesday, requiring employers to ensure the physical and mental health of employees, and prevent exploitation.

“The age limit, as defined formally by the Code for Children and Adolescents, is 14 years old,” senator Adolfo Mendoza said after the enactment of the bill, which he co-sponsored.

But the new code allows exceptions, when specific legal criteria have been met, so that children may begin “working for others from age 12, which is allowed by inter-national conventions, and self-employment from age 10.”

The senator stressed that required factors included a voluntary decision from the child to work, consent from the parent or guardian and permission from the public ombuds-man.

BOLIVIA tO ALLOW 10-yEAr-OLDS INtO

WOrkFOrCE Politicians back new law on child labour, which co-sponsor says will help address

nation’s extreme poverty

Police ramp up security after violence breaks out following Brazil’s record World Cup defeat against Germany

Page 22: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 22

Pregnant? Do you feel your brain is fuzzy?

Changes measured by the Swarm satellite over the past 6 months shows that Earth’s magnetic field

is changing. Shades of red show areas where it is strengthening, and shades of blue show areas that

are weakening.

SCIENCE & TECHBELIZE TIMES WEEKLY

R E V I E W

earth’s Magnetic field is Weakening 10 times faster Now

By Kelly DickersonEarth’s magnetic field, which

protects the planet from huge blasts of deadly solar radiation, has been weakening over the past six months, according to data collect-ed by a European Space Agency (ESA) satellite array called Swarm.

The biggest weak spots in the magnetic field — which extends 370,000 miles (600,000 kilome-ters) above the planet’s surface — have sprung up over the Western Hemisphere, while the field has strengthened over areas like the southern Indian Ocean, according to the magnetometers onboard the Swarm satellites — three separate satellites floating in tandem.

The scientists who conducted the study are still unsure why the magnetic field is weakening, but one likely reason is that Earth’s magnetic poles are getting ready to flip, said Rune Floberghagen, the ESA’s Swarm mission manager. In fact, the data suggest magnetic north is moving toward Siberia.

“Such a flip is not instanta-neous, but would take many hun-dred if not a few thousand years,” Floberghagen told Live Science. “They have happened many times in the past.”

Scientists already know that magnetic north shifts. Once every few hundred thousand years the magnetic poles flip so that a com-pass would point south instead of north. While changes in magnetic field strength are part of this normal flipping cycle, data from Swarm have shown the field is starting to weaken faster than in the past. Pre-viously, researchers estimated the field was weakening about 5 per-cent per century, but the new data revealed the field is actually weak-ening at 5 percent per decade, or 10 times faster than thought. As such, rather than the full flip occur-ring in about 2,000 years, as was predicted, the new data suggest it could happen sooner.

Floberghagen hopes that more data from Swarm will shed light on why the field is weakening faster now.

Still, there is no evidence that a weakened magnetic field would

result in a doomsday for Earth. During past polarity flips there were no mass extinctions or evidence of radia-tion damage. Researchers think power grids and com-munication systems would be most at risk.

Earth’s magnetic field acts like a giant invisible bub-ble that shields the planet from the dangerous cosmic radiation spewing from the sun in the form of solar winds. The field exists because Earth has a giant ball of iron at its core surrounded by an outer layer of molten metal. Changes in the core’s temperature and Earth’s rotation boil and swirl the liquid metal around in the outer core, creating magnetic field lines.

The movement of the molten metal is why some areas of the magnetic field strengthen while others weaken, Florberghagen said. When the boiling in one area of the outer core slows down, fewer currents of charged particles are released, and the magnetic field over the surface weakens.

“The flow of the liquid outer core almost pulls the magnetic field around with it,” Floberghagen said. “So, a field weakening over the American continent would mean that the flow in the outer core below America is slowing down.”

The Swarm satellites not only pick up signals coming from the Earth’s magnetic field, but also from its core, mantle, crust and oceans. Scientists at the ESA hope to use the data to make navigation sys-tems that rely on the magnetic field, such as aircraft instruments, more accurate, improve earthquake predictions and pinpoint areas below the planet’s surface that are rich in natural resources. Scientists think fluctuations in the magnetic field could help identify where continental plates are shifting and help predict earthquakes.

These first results from Swarm were presented at the Third Swarm Science Meeting in Denmark on June 19.

braiN shriNkaGe duriNG PreGNaNcy

- it’s a thiNG

When you become pregnant there is a glow to your skin, beautiful rosy cheeks, and a look of contentment in your eyes. The world is wonderful while a beautiful baby is growing inside of you. As you walk down the street you seem to glide like a queen, happiness is abundant, and only words of wisdom flow from your mouth. That is how we all imagine our pregnancies will be, and indeed there are some women who will have this experience, but for the rest of us pregnancy comes with big challenges.

Most women will attest to the fact that brain fog, forget-fulness and exhaustion can be overwhelming and even debili-tating. Often, trying to cope with these unexpected conditions leads to misunderstanding and added stress. For women who had prided themselves on their ability to be organized, hard-working and calm, pregnancy becomes less than glamorous.

What your midwife or doctor may have forgotten to tell you is that your brain is actually shrinking during your pregnancy and that may account for your foggy brain and forgetfulness. New research conducted by Dr. Louanne Brizendine describes this phenomenon in her book The Female Brain: “Between six months and the end of pregnancy, MRI brain scans have shown that a pregnant woman’s brain is actually shrinking. This may be because some parts of her brain get larger as others get smaller, a state that gradually returns to normal by six months after giving birth.”

Not since puberty have there been so many changes going on in a woman’s brain or body. The ducts in her breasts are growing and forming, her uterus is stretching, and her brain is actually shrinking. Women who were CEOs, attorneys, doctors, or designers are surprised to find that as their pregnancy pro-gresses they feel distracted, forgetful and generally spacey. Not to worry, because within six months after the pregnancy the brain returns to its normal shape and size and scientists “believe the mother’s brain shrinks because of changes in cellular metab-olism required for restructuring brain circuits, getting ready to turn some one-lane highways into superhighways.” So all you smart women may even become brighter after your brain has re-structured itself. How will the world handle all these women who become “super-smart” with newly constructed brains? I’m excited to see.

Page 23: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES13 JUL 2014 23

Continued from page 2

CARTOON

three men charged for Murder of

ramon cervantes sr.Fourth suspect, the

mastermind, on the run

Orange walk town, July 9th, 2010Three men, Guatemalan National

22 year old Mateo Daniel Gonzalez, 28 year old Belizean Mateo Pott Jr., and 19 year old Belizean Angel Cardenas, all residents of Trial Farm Village, were arraigned at 5:38 this evening at the Magistrate Court’s and charged for the shocking murder of well-known Orange Walk Town senior citizen, 71 year old Ramon Cervantes Sr.

A fourth accused, identified by our sources as Manuel Castillo, is wanted by Police but is believed to have fled the country in an attempt evade justice.

Gonzalez, Pott Jr. and Cardenas were escorted to the Magistrate’s Court under loud howls for justice from a large crowd that had gathered in front of the compound that houses the Police Station and Court. Inside the courtroom, the men were also charged with one count for keeping an unlicensed fire arm and unlicensed ammunition. They were remanded un-til August 13th.

The crowd outside of the Court was larger today than the previous two days. Residents endured the blazing heat and rain since Monday to witness who were the suspects detained for Cervantes Sr.’s murder.

The Police say one of the suspects led them to the site where Cervantes Sr.’s body was found on Saturday July 5th. The body had been buried in a small grave in an abandoned farm that is accessed through a feeder road along the Honey Camp area of the Orange Walk. The area is notorious for executions.

Reports are that inside the small grave, measuring five feet long by two feet deep, Police unearthed the de-composing body. Cervantes Sr. was found with his hands handcuffed and his eyes covered with duct tape. Po-lice say there were signs of violence on his body, including four broken ribs. The cause of death according to an au-topsy was a blunt force instrument.

Police have remained tight-lipped

about the murder case. Re-ports that two Police Officers are also under investigation for their roles in this gruesome crime were not confirmed by investigation officials. But at least two have been named and accused of having some involvement, including selling the handcuff which was used on Cervantes Sr.

Cervantes Sr., a former People’s United Party Senator and Orange Walk Town Mayor as well as businessman, cane farmer and community activ-ist, went missing last week Tuesday during a routine vis-it to his cane field located a short distance from Orange Walk Town along the San Ro-man road.

Ramon Cervantes Jr. said he had received a phone call from his father around 3:30pm on Tuesday July 1st, in which he indicated that he was lost and was trying to find his way out of San Jose Village. He also indicated that he had company, before the phone call was suddenly cut off. Cervantes Jr. said that he

called his father back and asked if he was ok, and his father responded that he ok and was alone. The call cut off again and that was the last time he was heard of. When the family arrived at the cane field, all they found was Cervantes Sr.’s land rover jeep carrying contain-ers with chemicals and his boots nearby. A used duct tape coil was also found nearby.

Despite the gravity of the report given by the fam-ily, the Orange Walk Police refused to classify the case as a kidnapping. They treat-ed the matter as a case of missing person and simply set up check points along certain points of the high-way.

According to Dr. Mario Estradabran, the police pa-thologist who did an onsite evaluation of Cervantes Sr.’s body, the time of death was sometime in the afternoon of Tuesday, July 1st, the same day Cervantes Sr. went missing.

Ramon Cervantes Sr.

Manuel Castillo, wanted

tour Guide vexed!ah fi go weh. When he refuse, dem beat ah up and arrest ah,” shared Gill.

“I want to know what are my rights? Don’t I have the right to employment and to make a decent living,” he added.

Gill said he is very frustrated because he has nowhere to turn to vent his concerns. He opined that there seems to be “a plot to get we out a deh…to try to frustrate we so we leave”.

Homeless Belizean bathing in the stagnant drain water next to Queen Street Police Station. Under Darrel Bradley & the UDP City Council AND Under DEAN & the UDP Government!

As Mark King said, UDP first, Beliz-eans come AFTER!

Page 24: Belize Times July 13, 2014

THE BELIZE TIMES 13 JUL2014 24