Important Note: This Internet version of 7 News is a verbatum
transcript of our evening television news script. Many interviews on our newscast
are conducted in Creole. In the interest of clarity for our foreign readers,
we attempt to paraphrase the Creole quotes in English
Tonight, the focus of the news should have been on the big press conference held by the UDP this morning. But, instead it's on the opposition's senior Senator Patrick Faber - who went from the press conference to the police station after the cops showed up with a warrant for his arrest.
He was taken there to face criminal charges after he got caught up in a testy exchange with two police officers early this morning.
They say it started when he sped through a traffic checkpoint on the Belcan bridge after 2:00 this morning- which Faber denies. Two constables set chase and caught up with him on Buttonwood Bay Boulevard and captured it all on their body cameras. Jules Vasquez has the tale of the tape:
And after he left Biltmore, Patrick Faber went to the Queen Street Police Station, where he remained for about 3 and a half hours before he was taken to the Magistrate's Court to be arraigned.
He pleaded not guilty to both charges of aggravated assault and obstructing a police officer. There was no objection to bail, which was in the sum of $1,000, and so tonight, Faber is a free man - until his next court date.
Following the proceedings, his attorney, Orson "OJ" Elrington explained that they believe these charges are politically motivated.
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "The officer who laid these charges is the same officer that charged the young man for carrying a five-gallon water bottle. Let's begin there. Secondly, this same officer is the son of a PUP executive member in the Collet Division. Let's make that clear."
Reporter "Is this is a suggestion then that there's some political motivation here?"
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "It's not a suggestion. It is a clear, unequivocal fact, all right, which we will, which that in the civil jurisdiction will be dealt with in that court, which we will be filing or claims there, right?"
"But insofar as to what happened last night, the Honorable Patrick Faber was leaving his - from Raccoon Street, his political area. He was going to his home in the Buttonwood Bay area. He was stopping to get some food when the police ran up up stop and accused them of running a light whatsoever."
"Now, the Honorable Faber absolutely saw nothing. As he said in his statement, he gave a clear, full statement to the police today, all right, in which he made it clear that there was no, he did not see anybody, he did not stop anywhere and he was not speeding, he was not driving fast whatsoever, which we must articulate another point which right now, which is the fact that we have seen accusations that somehow he was under the influence."
"If ever there was a situation where that is not true, when you already bring false charges, if that was the charge, that would have been a charge, wouldn't they have been? so let's take that out of the conversation all together."
Reporter "What do you make of your client's seeming provocation where he stood..."
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "Have you heard the word... so you are telling me now it is provagatory for you to what record a police officer doing their job? that is exactly the premise upon which..."
Reporter "I was looking at how close the proximity with which he was."
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "So you guys are assaulting me right now, sorry you're assaulting me, you're assaulting me, you're assaulting me... these cameras are too close to me. Come on Paul absolutely not."
Elrington emphasized that Faber did not actually touch the police officer, and that recording him isn't a crime. But he added that it was the officer who tried to push the phone out of his face, which they have tried to file a counter complaint against.
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "It is a beautiful thing now, even in this circumstance, that we get to be an example of what is proper and improper police work. It is not the first nor the last time that police officers will assault citizens who are doing nothing more than recording them which they have a right to do."
"In fact, the case of Shamar Foster proves, do you remember that case? Proves that police officers can assault you if they slap your hands out, your phone out of your hand which is exactly the set of circumstances which we are looking at right now."
"This is the exact pattern, except Shamar Foster is a young man and Mr. Farber is not so young. Aye, man. Is that obstruction for you to record?"
Reporter "Based on the police officer's interpretation of Mr. Farber's action, he's accusing Mr. Farber of obstruction."
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "Yes, he's accusing...that's what I'm saying. I don't know what is the basis upon which they are going to find that obstruction charge because you have to be doing something that the person obstructs and recording under no law, recording and this is critically important for us to put on record because this is something which the police consistently over and over do. They violate the rights of citizens by being abusive. That is an assault, you have no authority to slap the phone out of anybody's hand."
Reporter "Have you guys felt that counter complaint as yet?"
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "We tried to, we tried to do so of which the police completely ignored and denied and we have it on record again, recording saying we want to make a complaint. That is why we were so late here because you see, let me tell you, the police did not even do an investigation. Mr. Faber arrived at the police station to a charge sheet without even getting his side of the story."
"You understand that? So again, it is a most unfortunate set of circumstances but the Honorable Faber has wide shoulders on which to, to which to carry these burdens."
But Elrington says they're still going to move forward with their counter complaint:
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "I will write a formal letter, who is the commissioner right now because you know these things fluid fluid you know."
Reporter "After tomorrow it's Rosado."
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "Okay well I have to write it to Dr. Rosado, that means we no have to deal with Chester no more? No that's my good friend right, but so we just need to know who we're going to have to write it to and then we're going to then we're going to write it to the commissioner to let it be known that we tried to later complain and that or our opportunity to lay or come or criminal complaint against this officer has been denied right."
Reporter "So PSB complaint?"
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber "Well it is a criminal complaint. That is PSB is what they are trying to say. PSB is a professional standard. That is not a criminal complaint. We want a criminal... we will pursue both of them, we don't believe that this person should be within a uniform."
Faber said it's all a plot, and he believes the goal is to further divide the UDP - since this happened on the morning of the party's first press conference after the elections. He also emphasized that he hadn't been driving under the influence - in fact he said he's sticking to his new year's resolution to stop drinking.
Patrick Faber "I think that it is politically motivated, much of it, and I did not do anything that would constitute any kind of aggravated assault, nor did I try to stop the police, obstruct the police from doing its job."
"The police who gave me, they gave me two tickets, by the way, and that was that last night, one for my tail lights. That's what, that's the real reason why they claim they stopped me, and they don't show you all of the video."
"I haven't seen what they've shown you, but from what people are telling me, they diced and spiced what they want, which is a matter in itself, if the police recorded me, how can the video, because I didn't share my version of the video, I have not done so yet, but how can the police, how can the police video be floating all around, are they really interested in... what is their motive?"
"Clearly it is to try to bring embarrassment and bring shame, and so I am saying for the record that I am not guilty of those charges, and of course we'll wait for the court for us to have our day, and for it to be determined."
Reporter "Do you believe that this is casting a black eye on a party that's in the process of rebuilding, especially since today was your first official press conference following the election?"
Patrick Faber "I think that's the intent, but you know, we have long resisted this kind of thing. In fact, I'll tell you that this week makes 20 years since I was last charged with aggravated assault against a police officer, you remember? So this is not the first time that I've endured such a charge, this is not the first time that I've been targeted because of politics in this manner."
"I'm not saying that the police didn't have a right to stop me and all that, but I complied with all that they asked me to do, and all I was trying to do was to make sure, in fact, that I had a version of what happened for the very same reason that I knew, I know very well how they are able to use these things in a politically slanted way."
Reporter "Have you been driving under the influence?"
Patrick Faber "Had I been then? No, obviously not. If the police felt that, they stopped me in front of Blue Marlin, is it? Blue Marlin. Where there is a video on Channel 5, where I came out and they asked me for my license."
"I told them I did not have my license on me. They insisted that the regulation that says, or what I thought to be the case that you have 24 hours to produce your license, they said the police told me absolutely not."
"And so I told him that I was not too far away from where I needed to be to get the license. And he allowed me to get in the vehicle and followed me there. If I was drunk, he would not have done that."
"And as you've heard my attorneys say, in fact, those who know me will know that from January 1st, I've stopped drinking. And I only took some drinks on my birthday weekend and that was it. So that is a complete and utter fabrication."
It's not the first instance we've heard about, where students are being sent home due to their hairstyle, and it happened again at ACC today. When we spoke to the principal this afternoon she told us that 5 of the students had failed to follow their grooming policy, but one particular student who spoke with us off camera claims that he feels they are being discriminated against for a minor infraction that has nothing to do with their ability to learn.
Voice of: ACC Student "Well I was in the middle of a test and they sent me to the office for the tape I have on my hair. It's a style you get when you go to the barber and they say it's not allowed. They just made that rule yesterday."
"The only one in the rule book is the fade and none of us get fades, only the tape. Only one warning yesterday during assembly when they mentioned the new rule,"
Reporter "Do you think that sending you guys home for a hairstyle that is neatly groomed and levelled is unfair because of your colour or because of the way you look in society?"
Voice of: ACC Student "It is unfair because hair doesn't have anything to do with our learning or anything like that so it's very unfair."
"They should probably change that rule because almost every male at ACC has that haircut."
Former Minister of Education Francis Fonseca said more than once in the last 5 year, quote, "Schools do have the right to have certain rules and guidelines if you want to attend. But the length of your hair or your hairstyle is not one of them." End quote.
He said that as recently as 2024, but, yesterday, in a Zoom interview with X-TV News, Fonseca became the first senior government official - other than the commissioner of police - to comment on the hijacking. That's pretty remarkable - but what we found even more remarkable is that he basically said, "why y'all over-reacting - it only happened once!" Here are his remarks:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "I think you know the first thing for us is getting a comprehensive report on this matter. So that's what we're doing: we're putting together, a comprehensive report from all the different stakeholders, who are involved. You know, immigration was one, obviously, civil aviation, the Airports Authority, police, everybody that was involved in this effort. So we're putting together that report, we're having a meeting this afternoon of the National Security Council will be discussing it. You know, we want to make sure that we have a balanced approach, right? Obviously, you know, when you're faced with this type of incident, which is very serious, very, very dramatic, very serious incident, it's always a call to action. It says we have to review things. We have to look at what's in place. How can we make things more effective? How can we make it more efficient? How can we make it more secure? So that's what we're doing. We're taking a very comprehensive look, but at the same time, we don't want to lose, you know, what makes Belize so special. So, you know, we can't overreact to one incident as serious as that incident was, we should not overreact to that one incident. And we have to find the right balance. How can we provide adequate security? So that, you know, both our local people and tourists coming to feel secure and safe when boarding our planes or local domestic airlines or when using our you know, the marine, the boats that travel to the caves and so we want to make sure they are safe and at the same time we want to keep in place that feeling of community and you're in Belize and, you're safe but you're also relaxed and can then have a good time and enjoy yourselves. So you know we've had, you know, this is the first incident of this nature. So we shouldn't overreact to it. But, as I said, the main thing is we're getting a comprehensive report. And coming out of that report, we'll be able to to address key concerns that that people have in the, in the industry."
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has announced a press conference for tomorrow afternoon.
But the Opposition says the government is actually under-reacting. Queen Square area rep, Godwin Haylock explained that there should have been a national response immediately after, even if the prime minister was out of the country. He said that he puts the blame on the government.
Godwin Haylock, Area Rep. Queen Square "The entire nation is still waiting for an official government press conference on the hijacking of the Tropic Air plane on April 17th. This press conference was to be held in real time immediately after the incident, yet the government to date has refused to hold a real press conference."
"I beg the question why? And the only answer I can come up with is, since winning March 12th, the government is overconfident. They feel that it will pass over like a breeze. Now we all know that the PM is the minister responsible for civil aviation."
"However, we have been reliably informed that he was out of the country on medical, seeking medical attention. So you would have expected that the Department of Civil Aviation or Belize Airport Authority would have taken the lead on this matter because there are talented people in Belize."
"It's sad to report today that still no one has come forward with a press conference. We are waiting for a press conference to talk about what happened. It should be the government who leads the narrative when a national crisis like this happens."
"The silver lining in this is that we really have to thank the media, people like Jules, Indira, who actually took the lead and gave us step-by-step process on what was going on. But there is a great national security risk here. Tourism is our jewel. We have to protect it so everyone is confident to fly that domestic aircraft to San Pedro and enjoy our sandy beaches in San Pedro. The way we go about doing that is having a task force immediately held to deal with it."
"No knee jerking reaction will suffice for something like this. Putting a police officer here or putting a police officer there cannot tell the true story of national security. So I'm holding the government accountable to answer for this."
Again, we'll have the official response from the Civil Aviation Department in tomorrow night's news.
And in related news, the family of the hijacker Akinyele Thompson has. Opened a GoFundMe drive to try and get his body back to the US for a burial. It remains stored in a Belize morgue and now the family is trying to raise 7,500 dollars to get the father of four home.
In the write up, his wife states, quote, "Unfortunately, when a series of events occurred (which is still being investigated) when he tried taking a trip out of the country, his responses (out of desperation) eventually led to him being shot and killed...
We are very grateful others' lives were not lost." End quote.
And, going back now to today's UDP press conference, Leader of the Opposition Tracy Panton tore into the government for not having one parliamentary session since they took office 7 weeks ago:
Tracy Panton, Leader of the Opposition "It is nothing short of shocking, and quite frankly, both dismissive and disrespectful that a full seven weeks after the March 12 general elections have passed that the newly elected members of the House of Representatives and the Senate have still not been sworn in."
"I have been reliably informed that at the announcement of today's press conference, dates have been scheduled for both the ceremonial convening of Parliament and for the presentation of the budget sometime next week."
"Over the past four election cycles, the ceremonial sitting of Parliament took place within one or two weeks of the election while the budget remains missing, they somehow found it quite urgent to quietly push through massive salary increases for the Cabinet Secretary and for CEOs, this at a time when food prices are rising, when fuel prices are climbing, when we are on the brink of an energy crisis, and when our Belizean families are struggling to survive."
And Senator Patrick Faber also criticized the Briceno Administration for not saying anything after the cancellation of the 125 million Us dollar MCC grant.
Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency has told staffers at MCC that they will be placed on Administrative Leave next week Monday.
It is seen as the Trump administration's latest attack on US foreign aid - and this one directly affects Belize - so why no official word on it? That's what Faber asked:
Patrick Faber "So we need to be told as a nation, what is it that the government intends to do? You've heard about the trade wars, but you've heard about, now, you're hearing now about the withdrawal of these funds."
"This is serious money. This is a quarter of a billion dollars with a B that the MCC project would have brought for education, for energy, for agriculture. These things are important pillars of our economy."
"Yet we have not heard anything official from the government as to, in fact, we haven't heard from them that it's happening officially at all. While they put out some kind of notice to tell us that the Prime Minister and Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a conversation and they discussed the matters, they failed to tell us what the Prime Minister said on our behalf and on behalf of all those people in the region who will suffer from that kind of withdrawal of funds from their projects. I would have loved to hear the Prime Minister say, you know what, what we did was, my..."
"I made him aware that when you withdraw funds like that from very needed developmental projects, that it hurts us. We heard a whole lot of babble about good relationship and good friendship, well we need to know Mr Prime Minister, what you said."
Speaking with Foreign Minister Francis Fonseca yesterday - he told XTV that they have received no formal notice of the cancellation:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Well, again, let me first make it very clear that we have received no official formal notice of the cancellation of the, MCC program. But obviously we have seen reports of that It appears likely again, this is a matter Prime Minister Briceno raised with Secretary Rubio and he again pledged and he is in fact the, the chair of the MCC. I think the new administration reconfigured the board and I think as I understand it, the Secretary of State is the chairman of the MCC on this new structure. So he said that, you know, he would look into the matter and find out exactly what the situation was with in terms of Belize. So we will have to wait and see there. But yes, we obviously were disappointed. I am disappointed. Belize has done a lot of work, we've spent, I think, more than two years preparing, working very closely with our MCC colleagues. You know, it's not something that Belize went looking for the MCC funds came from the US government. They're the ones who identified Belize, selected Belize They're the ones who said Belize you're on the right track in terms of governance reform. In terms of economic reform, you're on the right track. We want to help you, we want to support you. We want to work with you to identify key areas of constraints to national development. So we work together. We identify those two critical areas education and energy as two constraints to Belize's development. And then we together work on developing the compacts, the actual compact agreements and documents. One for education, one for energy. So a lot of time, a lot of energy, a lot of effort, went into this work more than, as I said, more than two and a half years or so. Obviously, when, you know, when something like that, is, is brought to an end, abruptly, without a proper explanation. Then you're very disappointed. You're very disappointed."
And one other issue that the Leader of the Opposition spoke about was the allegations of widespread election fraud on March 12th. Now, this is a science that the PUDP has slowly worked to perfect in the past 20 or so years -but Panton says, this time, the PUP took it to another level:
Tracy Panton, Leader of the Opposition "We cannot and we will not move forward as a nation without addressing the blatant election fraud that marred the March 12th elections. What we witnessed from the ruling People's United Party in this last elections, my friend, crossed every line."
"Every line of decency, integrity, and respect for our electorate. So I will tell you, my experience in Albert where almost all voters who showed up to the polls in blue shirts were disabled and needed assistance to mark their X on the ballot."
"Able-bodied men and women who I have interacted with on the campaign trail, all of a sudden was not able to read, was not able to see, was not able to write for the promise of somewhere between $250 to $500."
And, while the media sat through about an hour of presentations from the various UDP members - when it was time for the question and answer section, Panton's Chairlady, Sheena Pitts…well we can only say Sheena got sassy with our Jomarie Lanza when she didn't like the line of questioning:
And while the unelected Pitts dominated the microphone - notably absent were UDP's Cayo west Representative Mike Guerra and Corozal North's Hugo Patt.
Panton said they were both unavailable to due to crisis and illness:
Tracy Panton, Leader of the Opposition "The Honorable Hugo Patt and the Honorable Miguel Guerra had intended to join us. The Honorable Hugo Patt is addressing the crisis that the sugarcane farmers continue to have on the ground in the north, and the Honorable Miguel Guerra is suffering from a severe flu epidemic."
We will say that we know of no current crisis in the sugar industry, nor do we know of a flu epidemic, and reliable reports tell us that Guerra was seen driving a truck and picking up garbage in Succoth today.
Police are investigating the discovery of a decomposed body in the Belize River in the western part of the country.
The grim discovery was made early this morning around 5:45 a.m., when police recovered the body of a male from the River. The body was found in an advanced state of decomposition, making positive identification difficult.
Investigators say the search began the evening before-on Monday, April 28th-after police received reports around 5:30 p.m. of a body floating in the river. Officers conducted a search that night but came up empty-handed.
When they returned to the area the next morning, they located the body. A wallet containing a social security card was found on the deceased, but police say the remains are too badly decomposed to make a positive ID at this time.
The body now awaits a post-mortem examination to determine the cause of death and possibly confirm the identity.
When it comes to discussing mental illness and suicide in the media, it can be a difficult subject - and the policy has often been not to report on it. at all.
But, ignoring it doesn't make a pressing social problem go away.
And this is why the Ministry Of Health And Wellness has arranged a mental health training session with the media to educate journalists on how they can responsibly report on mental illness and suicide, without sending the wrong message across.
The training began today and will cover a web of issues tied to mental health. The technical advisor for the Mental Health Unit in the Ministry Of Health And Wellness told us more.
Iveth Quintanilla, TA Mental Health, MOHW "When we're trying to educate the journalists when it comes to responsible and ethical reporting on mental health and suicide, because the five-year trend has been reflecting that there has been an increase in suicide and beliefs, except for preliminary data which is showing 2024 with a slight decrease."
"But each life matters and we are trying to ensure that we educate journalists as well as the public in terms of being able to identify the signs and the symptoms when it comes to suicide and the support services that are available in order for us to work more and try to prevent suicide."
"So with us today, we have two consultants from India, from the Indian Law Society, and they're experts in the field who will be sharing their knowledge in educating the journalists on this topic. And as well, myself, I will be doing part of that training as well when it comes to speaking on stress, on burnout, trauma, and self-care of the journalists themselves."
"There's a lot of myths surrounding speaking about mental health and suicide, and that is something that we wish to correct because many people believe that when we speak about suicide, we're putting the idea in people's minds, and that is definitely not right."
"So we are actually encouraging people to speak about suicide, about mental health, in order for them to receive the support that they need. There's still a lot of stigma surrounding the whole mental health topic, and that is what we are trying to decrease."
Former Family Court Director turned private attorney Dale Cayetano has been reprimanded by the General Legal Council. The Council found that Cayetano's actions in a recent case crossed the line into professional misconduct.
The decision comes after a complaint brought by Lorena Chilin.
The Council ruled that Cayetano breached the Code of Conduct for attorneys when he represented a man in a case he was previously involved in as a judicial officer - while he was still Director of the Family Court.
Evidence presented showed that Cayetano had sat through a contempt hearing as Director - and later, after entering private practice, appeared in the same case as legal counsel for the opposing party, Mr. Bouloy.
The Council found this to be a clear breach of Rule 73, which prohibits attorneys from taking private cases they previously handled in a public or judicial role.
He was also found to have breached Rule 4, which requires attorneys to uphold the integrity and dignity of the legal profession.
Chilin and another witness, Ms. Quiroz, testified that Cayetano had discussed case-related matters with Chilin - without immediately disclosing that he would be representing her legal opponent.
The Council rejected Cayetano's version of events and said that while the misconduct did not cause irreparable harm, it warranted a formal reprimand.
Cayetano has now been barred from appearing in any further proceedings between Chilin and Bouloy in the Family Court. The Council noted that this is his first recorded infraction - but reminded him to be more careful in choosing cases.
As we've been reporting, things are coming to a head tomorrow between the BNTU and the Ministry of Education.
The union says it is having a general membership meeting, and the Ministry says permission is not granted for time off from school.
Now, previously that would have been a headache for the former minister of education, but now that he has handed over to Oscar Requena, he was asked if he's glad to get that hot potato off his plate. Here's how he replied.
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "No no no no, I never saw my work at education or my engagement with the BNTU as a headache. I always enjoyed interacting with the BNTU. I think we have, you know, wonderful teachers in Belize. And I understand I always understood the mandate of the union. They have their role and responsibility. You know, so I hope, I hope that good sense prevails I hope that the BNTU leadership and, and their members will understand and appreciate that, you know, the government of Belize, especially over the last four and a half years, five years, has really tried to work very closely with them with in with respect in good faith. We've tried to address all of their concerns. And yes, there are a number of outstanding issues that have to be resolved, but I'm absolutely confident that, you know, the people at the Ministry of Education are committed to working closely with them. So you know demonstrations, protests we understand that that is a right for unions. But, you know, we're coming to you know the end of the school year in the next few months.This is a very critical time for students so I would hope that, you know The BNTu would appreciate that not now is not the time for us to disrupt classes. And have our students sort of school. So let's set the table and, and resolve whatever differences we can without you know without, prejudicing the education."
And, last Friday the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Ministers Francis Fonseca, Kareem Musa and Oscar Mira and their respective CEOs embarked on a reconnaissance of western and southern Belize along the border with Guatemala, yesterday.
A twitter post said, "The Ministers got a first-hand view of the devastation of Belize's forest caused by illegal activities of Guatemalan loggers, cattle ranchers, as well as illicit drug activity. The tour covered hotspots starting at Barrio El Juda all the way to the Cadenas Outpost, Sarstoon and Hunting cayes."
We asked Fonseca about the trip:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "So we wanted to have a coordinated approach to issues along the border. So it was important and useful for me as a foreign minister as well as the Minister of Home Affairs and the minister of Defense and Border Security to, you know, to take a tour of of the in particular the western and southern border, where we have, you know, most of our challenges."
"The other reason was that over the last, I think, six months, we've had an increased number of reports of incursions into Belizean territory. Whether it be, you know, illegal logging, cattle ranching, you know, that sort of thing, airfields that have been popping up, illegal airfields."
"At treetops, we were able to get a briefing from the Belize Defense Force contingent that's there on duty, you know, coming out of that, you know, tour, we will be able to provide a proper briefing to cabinet and also to the national security Council."
In related news, Minister of National Defence and Border Security, Oscar Mira visited the Belize Coast Guard's southernmost Forward Operating Base at Hunting Caye on Saturday.
The Hunting Caye FOB plays a critical role in enforcing national maritime laws.
Mira received a capability briefing from the Sector Commander and observed an interoperability demonstration between the Coast Guard Drone Squadron and the 1st Fleet, showcasing coordination in maritime security and search and rescue operations.
He was accompanied by the Commandant of the Belize Coast Guard, Rear Admiral Elton Bennett.
2 BDF Return From Haiti And No One Else Will Be Going
And, in other military news, In December of 2024, 2 BDF soldiers were deployed to Haiti to assist as part of the Multi National Security Support Mission, through CARICOM. Those two soldiers recently returned and according to the minister of foreign Affairs, Belize will not be sending any more. He explained why they had to hit pause on those other deployments.
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Yes those two soldiers responded, returned to Belize, they returned, I think last week or the week before. Yeah. That was always programmed. They were only going to be there for a specific, defined period. That period expired and so they returned to Belize. Yea in terms of any future deployments, that is on pause for now. And really, it's all across CARICOM because you know there are a number of concerns with the conditions in Haiti. Plus we are also, you know, engaging with the new US administration to see what level of support they will provide. Again, that is an issue that Secretary Rubio raised with the Prime Minister this morning, Haiti as well was discussed. So you know, we're hopeful that we can get a as a region because Belize's involvement in Haiti is through CARCIOM we're hopeful that as a region, we can get a greater sense of clarity in terms of what the US policy is in Haiti with this new US administration If they are committed to, providing the resources needed, and the support needed then I think CARICOM will be prepared to engage further. Once CARICOM is prepared to engage further, then Belize ofcourse, as a proud member of CARICOM will be very happy to participate along with CARICOMin that effort, to do whatever we can do to support our brothers and sisters in Haiti."
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And after he left Biltmore, Patrick Faber went to the Queen Street Police Station, where he remained for about 3 and a half hours before he was taken to the Magistrate's Court to be arraigned.
OJ Elrington, Attorney for Patrick Faber
Faber said it's all a plot, and he believes the goal is to further divide the UDP - since this happened on the morning of the party's first press conference after the elections. He also emphasized that he hadn't been driving under the influence - in fact he said he's sticking to his new year's resolution to stop drinking.
Patrick Faber
It's not the first instance we've heard about, where students are being sent home due to their hairstyle, and it happened again at ACC today. When we spoke to the principal this afternoon she told us that 5 of the students had failed to follow their grooming policy, but one particular student who spoke with us off camera claims that he feels they are being discriminated against for a minor infraction that has nothing to do with their ability to learn.
He said that as recently as 2024, but, yesterday, in a Zoom interview with X-TV News, Fonseca became the first senior government official - other than the commissioner of police - to comment on the hijacking. That's pretty remarkable - but what we found even more remarkable is that he basically said, "why y'all over-reacting - it only happened once!" Here are his remarks:
"I think you know the first thing for us is getting a comprehensive report on this matter. So that's what we're doing: we're putting together, a comprehensive report from all the different stakeholders, who are involved. You know, immigration was one, obviously, civil aviation, the Airports Authority, police, everybody that was involved in this effort. So we're putting together that report, we're having a meeting this afternoon of the National Security Council will be discussing it. You know, we want to make sure that we have a balanced approach, right? Obviously, you know, when you're faced with this type of incident, which is very serious, very, very dramatic, very serious incident, it's always a call to action. It says we have to review things. We have to look at what's in place. How can we make things more effective? How can we make it more efficient? How can we make it more secure? So that's what we're doing. We're taking a very comprehensive look, but at the same time, we don't want to lose, you know, what makes Belize so special. So, you know, we can't overreact to one incident as serious as that incident was, we should not overreact to that one incident. And we have to find the right balance. How can we provide adequate security? So that, you know, both our local people and tourists coming to feel secure and safe when boarding our planes or local domestic airlines or when using our you know, the marine, the boats that travel to the caves and so we want to make sure they are safe and at the same time we want to keep in place that feeling of community and you're in Belize and, you're safe but you're also relaxed and can then have a good time and enjoy yourselves. So you know we've had, you know, this is the first incident of this nature. So we shouldn't overreact to it. But, as I said, the main thing is we're getting a comprehensive report. And coming out of that report, we'll be able to to address key concerns that that people have in the, in the industry."
"The entire nation is still waiting for an official government press conference on the hijacking of the Tropic Air plane on April 17th. This press conference was to be held in real time immediately after the incident, yet the government to date has refused to hold a real press conference."
And in related news, the family of the hijacker Akinyele Thompson has. Opened a GoFundMe drive to try and get his body back to the US for a burial. It remains stored in a Belize morgue and now the family is trying to raise 7,500 dollars to get the father of four home.
"It is nothing short of shocking, and quite frankly, both dismissive and disrespectful that a full seven weeks after the March 12 general elections have passed that the newly elected members of the House of Representatives and the Senate have still not been sworn in."
And Senator Patrick Faber also criticized the Briceno Administration for not saying anything after the cancellation of the 125 million Us dollar MCC grant.
"So we need to be told as a nation, what is it that the government intends to do? You've heard about the trade wars, but you've heard about, now, you're hearing now about the withdrawal of these funds."
And while the unelected Pitts dominated the microphone - notably absent were UDP's Cayo west Representative Mike Guerra and Corozal North's Hugo Patt.
Police are investigating the discovery of a decomposed body in the Belize River in the western part of the country.
When it comes to discussing mental illness and suicide in the media, it can be a difficult subject - and the policy has often been not to report on it. at all.
"But each life matters and we are trying to ensure that we educate journalists as well as the public in terms of being able to identify the signs and the symptoms when it comes to suicide and the support services that are available in order for us to work more and try to prevent suicide."
Former Family Court Director turned private attorney Dale Cayetano has been reprimanded by the General Legal Council. The Council found that Cayetano's actions in a recent case crossed the line into professional misconduct.
And, last Friday the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Ministers Francis Fonseca, Kareem Musa and Oscar Mira and their respective CEOs embarked on a reconnaissance of western and southern Belize along the border with Guatemala, yesterday.
In related news, Minister of National Defence and Border Security, Oscar Mira visited the Belize Coast Guard's southernmost Forward Operating Base at Hunting Caye on Saturday.
