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, 19-year-old Shiloh Coleman is dead. That is after he was last heard from through a text message to his mother on Saturday evening. Jaleeza Roberts has the story:
Today, in this remote area near the Mile 8 community, police discovered the body of 19-year-old bank teller Shiloh Coleman. Reports say his hands had been bound with duct tape and he had a gunshot to the head.
He was last seen on Saturday and his body was found hours after his family posted news that he was missing:
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer "Police are investigating the murder of 19-year-old Shiloh Coleman of Belize City, whose body was discovered just before midday today, someone and a half miles into the Westlake community, which is located near 8 Miles on the George Price Highway. The body of the young Mr. Coleman was found in an initial state of decomposition and exhibited apparent gunshot wounds. Coleman was reported missing at around 5:30 p.m. on November 8th by his mother, who stated that the last time she heard from him was just before 9:00 p.m. on November 7th, when she had noted that his vehicle was not parked at home and she sent a message to him inquiring of his whereabout. A message was returned indicating that he would be back, however up to the time of the mother making the report, she had not heard from him."
And that was the last time she would be contacted by her son, but what is still a mystery is how police knew where to find his body:
Courtney Menzies: "Can you say how he was found and what led police to that area?"
ASP Stacy Smith: "I will not disclose that information."
Courtney Menzies: "Do police know if he was being threatened?"
ASP Stacy Smith: "I... it's a... as you can appreciate, the investigation is unfolding. I do not have any in-depth information as to the information that has been received, but I will say that speaking to OC CIB, there are two motives that are being explored, however none of which I wish to disclose at this moment."
But while looking at the two motives the Staff Officer mentioned, the vehicle he recently purchased is still missing:
ASP Stacy Smith: "No. However, we have received some information as to where it might be, and they are following up with those leads-the Crime Fusion Center, the camera room."
On February 7th, 2020, at the age of 12, Coleman was inside his home in Belama Phase 1 with his mother and grandmother when two armed men kicked open their back door. The men then fired several shots in their direction, hitting him in his right leg. Coleman survived, and now police are wondering if that event six years ago had any connection to this tragic murder.
Jaleeza Roberts, 7News.
Up to news time tonight, police have not yet located Coleman's vehicle.
Tonight, Belmopan is preparing to send off another diplomatic protest note to Guatemala City-and raise the alarm amongst its allies that the Guatemalans are once again bullying Belize's military on the Sarstoon.
But, this time, it's an escalation.
Jules Vasquez tells us what happened on the Sarstoon on Saturday morning and what's the reaction on both sides of the river:
On Saturday morning, this BDF patrol vessel named the Moho was conducting a routine patrol around Sarstoon Island within Belizean territorial waters when two Guatemalan Navy vessels confronted it.
They closed in slowly and repeatedly bumped the BDF vessel. It was a deliberate and hostile act with a sinister tone of menace:
Outnumbered and outgunned, the BDF could do nothing but hold their guns and their cell phone cameras.
Foreign Minister Francis Fonseca says it made him angry:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Really, my first response was anger. I was really angry, you know. We have continued to maintain good-faith dialogue with Guatemala, you know. We are committed, as you know, as a country-through respective administrations, we have been committed to peace. As a country, we have determined that we are going to pursue the resolution of Guatemala's claim through the judicial process at the International Court of Justice, and we are doing that. As you know, a date has finally been set for our hearings that will take place next year, so Belize is committed to peace. But we will not compromise our sovereignty, our territorial integrity. And these acts of aggression-repeated acts of aggression and provocation by the Guatemalan armed forces-really, there is absolutely no excuse for it. It is absolutely unacceptable. We will continue to carry out our process. We bring it to the attention of the OAS, we bring it to the attention of our partners, CARICOM, Commonwealth. We bring it to the attention to the group of friends of Belize and Guatemala. Of course, we engaged directly with the Guatemalan authorities, but I will say that it is no longer acceptable to me that the Guatemalan government, the Foreign Ministry, the Office of the President continue to say that they are unaware of these incidents. That to me is not credible, and that is certainly unacceptable."
And that dissonance continues. Shortly after the menacing encounter, the Guatemalan military posted on their official page that their, quote, "naval units detected the movement of a vessel from the Belize Defense Force into Guatemalan inland waters. The naval personnel acted in accordance with established procedures and informed them about the territorial limits, after which the vessel returned to its point of origin without major incidents."
Subsequent posts-coming in rapid succession-said much the same, and a video spoke about working within their constitutional mandate to protect the Sarstoon.
But, it's a river and boundary both countries share-or should share-except that now we see increasingly aggressive behavior from the Guatemalans and increasingly distorted official narratives-no less than Guatemalan gaslighting.
In fact, this Belizean vessel from the Territorial Volunteers was warned not to go down the river:
So if the BDF can't go down the river, and Belizeans can't either-have we effectively lost the Sarstoon?
Jomarie Lanza: "Some critics say that it is now a matter of fact that we've virtually lost the Sarstoon to Guatemala. If civilians cannot go on it, which we saw from the Territorial Volunteers in September, and now the military cannot go on it, then have we not factually lost control of the Sarstoon?"
Francis Fonseca: "No, absolutely not. I reject that entirely. Civilians are going on the Sarstoon. We have had these incidents of the Guatemalan armed forces interfering with them, but civilians have been trafficking the Sarstoon, the military does so almost on a daily basis, so those are the facts. Yes, we have had this weekend confrontation with them, even this weekend the military was able to complete its journey around the Sarstoon. They were picking up supplies, delivering supplies, so yes, it is a much more tense situation, but absolutely there is no question that Belize continues to maintain sovereignty over the Sarstoon-the part of the Sarstoon which includes the Sarstoon Island."
"That is in Belize, there is no question about that. That is in Belize, there is no question about that, and we will continue to do so."
On Sunday, responding to the constant stream of Guatemalan military propaganda, the BDF made a post showing a strong front at the Forward Operating Base at the mouth of the Sarstoon where commanders from both BDF and Coast Guard went to visit, check on the tools, and boost morale.
And they will have to hold strong, because Guatemala is in the run-up to presidential elections early next year and their silly season can quickly turn sinister.
There have been two high-profile assassinations in the past three weeks:
Jomarie Lanza: "Are you concerned that this will ramp up coming onto elections in Guatemala?"
Francis Fonseca: "I am afraid so, yeah. I am very much afraid of that. That has been the history in Guatemala that whenever elections are coming around, various parties for their own interest in pursuit of their own agendas raise the ante on this issue for political reasons or other reasons, and so it becomes a part of the national conversation as the political campaign continues."
For clarity, under the 1859 Treaty, the boundary is the mid-channel of the Sarstoon River, and Sarstoon Island lies within Belize's sovereign territory.
In response to this latest act of aggression, many Belizeans in public posts are suggesting a boycott of Guatemalan products such as Sarita ice cream.
Fonseca disagrees, however. He says we should not be guided by our darker instincts:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Yeah, my own view is that that is not the solution, you know. We should not, as I said, we should not play into the hands of those who want to undermine the judicial process we are pursuing. We should not play into the hands of those who want to undermine I think the good-faith relationship that does exist between Belize and Guatemala at the diplomatic level, at the political level, at the economic level. We need to strengthen those ties. We will have a resolution to this dispute and this claim, hopefully by the end of next year. Belize and Guatemala are not going anywhere, we are neighbors. We will have to continue to live together, so it is important for us to yes, be very strong and vigilant in the defense of our sovereignty and territorial integrity-there should be no question about that-but at the same time, we should be prepared to work in good faith. Educational opportunities-we have many Belizeans studying in Guatemala, we have for a long time allowed Guatemalan students to benefit from our education system. So, you know, if private citizens want to take actions on their own, we are not opposed to that. That is their prerogative, that is their right. But as a government, we have to act responsibly, and we have to be smart about how we approach this matter so we don't allow the minority, the small group of those who want to undermine this process and undermine the relationship between Belize and Guatemala."
And while Fonseca talks diplomacy, his colleague, Tourism Minister Anthony Mahler, was less than diplomatic last week while attending the World Travel Market show in London. He noticed that across from Belize's booth, Guatemala had proudly displayed a map of their country, including Belize as part of their map, but had marked the country's outline as "Territorial insular and maritime dispute pending resolution."
Mahler immediately asked for the booth to remove Belize from their map, and he was then captured on camera covering it himself in an act of direct action protest.
It certainly ruffled some feathers and is making news in Guatemala, but it has not quite become an international incident.
When we asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs about it today, he said he supported Mahler's actions:
JO- "What do you think of Anthony Mahler's active protest at the trade event in London?"
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Yeah no I support that, Minister Mahler he called me from the event to tell me what was happening and I supported. He asked my advice and I supported his position that he should talk about it publicly and also go over to the booth and let them know that this was offensive to us as Belizeans and that is what he did."
In other news, Senior Minister Fonseca provided information on the budget cuts we reported Friday.
We received multiple reports that department budgets were being cut 25% across the board, starting November 1st.
Fonseca says the monies that are cut will now be re-apportioned:
Jomarie Lanza: "Can you talk about budget cuts? We have heard reports of 25% across the board. How will it change stuff, particularly in the Ministry of Education, which has a lot of outreaches, a lot of moving parts, a lot of operational overhead?"
Francis Fonseca: "Yeah, well, I think that is wrong information that has been put out there."
"There are some reallocations taking place because of the cost-of-living proposal that Cabinet approved. We have allocated... so we have reallocated some funds to be used specifically for these cost-of-living measures that we have adopted as a Cabinet, and so you are talking about between 30 to 50 million dollars that will have to be reallocated from other government spending. So that is the whole objective of it. So it is not a cut in budget, it is reallocation of funds. But to achieve that reallocation, what the Ministry of Finance has asked is that ministries look at the budgets in terms of projects, capital projects, some recurrent expenditure-what can be cut. But there is no 25%. I don't know where that came from at all. There is more in the region of 12%-that was the discussion we had in Cabinet. The budget is allocated over 12 months, 1/12th, and so there was talking about reducing that to 1/11th, that sort of thing. So there is no 25%-that, I think, is a misunderstanding of what is trying to be achieved."
We note that a number of supplementary appropriation bills are going to the House of Representatives on Friday.
On Friday, we showed you the cop who was caught on video putting his weapon into a civilian's mouth. Well tonight, he's in jail. The police department's response to 7News posting the video was swift, and the officer was suspended and placed under investigation. Today, ASP Stacy Smith told us he has since been charged:
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "As a consequence of a report made by a resident of San Pedro Town, police have formally arrested and charged 30-year-old Michael Wagner, a Belizean police constable, for the crime of aggravated assault."
Courtney Menzies: "And in terms of internal disciplinary charges?"
ASP Stacy Smith: "Disciplinary proceedings are underway as well."
Courtney Menzies: "Do you know what operation he was conducting at that home?"
ASP Stacy Smith: "As I indicated to Mr. Vasquez the last time we spoke, I know a number of operational units are operating in San Pedro, including that which Mr. Wagner is posted to, which is GI3. The exact purpose for his presence on that street on that day has not been made known to me, however as I indicated, the investigation will disclose that."
Wagner was arraigned this morning in Belize City's Magistrates Court in the presence of his attorney, Arthur Saldivar. Due to the nature of the charges, bail was denied. Wagner has been remanded to prison until December 29th, when he will appear in San Pedro's Magistrates Court.
Police are investigating the attempted murder of two men in San Felipe Village on Friday night. Both men were allegedly chopped by 26-year-old Dwight Hernandez, who was marauding with a machete. According to ASP Smith, he appeared to be under the influence of illegal substances:
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "Police have formally arrested and charged 26-year-old Dwight Hernandez of San Felipe Village for two counts of attempted murder. The charges follow police's investigation into reports of two chopping incidents that occurred just before 6:00 p.m. on November 6th, 2026. What we have established so far in the course of the ongoing investigation is that 51-year-old Cesar Bolanos was on an unnamed road in San Felipe Village when he was accosted by Mr. Hernandez, who inflicted chop wounds to the body of Mr. Bolanos before fleeing. We have also learnt that subsequent to this, Mr. Hernandez went some three blocks away and also attacked another male person, namely 50-year-old Jorge Murillo, who was lying down in a hammock, inflicting chop wounds on him before fleeing. Having learnt of this, an operation to locate Mr. Hernandez was launched by police officers and they were assisted by members of the community, and Mr. Hernandez was apprehended. Both Mr. Murillo and Mr. Bolanos are listed in stable conditions."
Courtney Menzies: "Did he have any previous altercations with these men?"
ASP Stacy Smith: "We have learnt that there was a prior altercation with Mr. Bolanos, but what we have gathered so far is an indication that Mr. Hernandez is believed to be someone who consumes illicit items consistently, and whenever it is that he is under the influence, he's known to get into such situations, but on that day it resulted into what it did."
A cop is under investigation after he crashed into a fence and barreled into a home in San Ignacio, injuring one woman.
The incident occurred Saturday afternoon. ASP Smith explained that urine samples were taken from the driver, Marvin Card, who is currently on interdiction:
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "On November 7th, around 2:00, police in San Ignacio responded to the scene of an accident at a residence on Macal Street, where they observed a vehicle that had collided into a fence and into a home. What we have learned so far is that a female was at home lying down in a hammock when she heard a collision and realized that she had been struck by a vehicle. The female in this particular instance has not requested court action, solely to be compensated, however the matter is still being investigated from the perspective of driving without due care and attention. We have obtained a urine specimen from the person of interest who was initially detained but has been served with a notice of intended prosecution and has been released, and as further updates are made, that will be made to the media."
Courtney Menzies: "Is he on interdiction for a domestic incident?"
And there was also a fatal accident this weekend. It happened on Saturday evening around 6:00 on the George Price Highway.
The victim, 49-year-old Anthony Thompson, was killed in a hit-and-run collision. ASP Smith gave us more details:
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "Police are investigating a road traffic accident which led to the death of 49-year-old Anthony Thompson. The investigation commenced at around 6:00 p.m. on November 6th when Roaring Creek police were called to an area near Miles 48 and 49 on the George Price Highway, where they observed the unresponsive body of a male person who was subsequently identified to be Mr. Thompson. What the investigation has so far revealed is that Mr. Thompson was walking in an east to west direction along the left-hand side of the road when he was struck by a red-in-color SUV which fled the scene. We have obtained a number of video footage which has aided us in identifying a vehicle of interest, and that vehicle is now being sought."
And in the conclusion to a fatal accident that happened in July of 2025, businessman Khris Rosado was sentenced today.
After months of procedural delays, Rosado was sentenced to pay a $5,000 fine for causing the death of Police Constable Arsenio Cus by careless conduct.
The charge stems from a fatal traffic collision between Miles 5 and 6 on the Philip Goldson Highway that killed Police Officer Arsenio Cus. Officer Cus was on active duty in full uniform driving his motorcycle heading towards Belize City from Ladyville at 11:30 p.m. on July 28, 2025.
Rosado has to make payment within six months-or serve a six-month prison sentence in default-following his June 16, 2026 guilty plea.
Today, the news broke like a lightning bolt: prominent Senior Counsel Godfrey Smith's US visa had been cancelled. The news came to Smith in an email from the Consular Section of the US Embassy in Belmopan. He called the embassy to verify its authenticity, and they confirmed it.
And he then shared it with 7News and other media houses. But not with his neighbor, the Foreign Minister, who was caught off guard when we asked him about it today:
Jomarie Lanza: "Your neighbor Godfrey Smith's visa has been canceled by the US Embassy in Belmopan. He has confirmed it to us and shared the cancellation email. What is your reaction to this, since you appointed him as a Chairman of the University of Belize Board of Directors?"
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "That is news to me, I never heard that. You say he has confirmed it, so I take your word for that. It is very shocking, very shocking news. I don't know what reason was given, what justification has been given for that, so I am certainly very surprised to hear that."
Today, speaking from Guyana where he is chairing an International Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the passenger vessel MV Barina-he first told us what he is certain did not cause the visa to be revoked:
Godfrey Smith, Senior Counsel "The usual reasons that, in this part of the world, people's visas get revoked or canceled has to do with drug dealings or immigration matters. Let me just say this because I know that social media is probably... I haven't followed it, but I imagine it's crazy with speculation, as is expected. So let me say this: I do not take drugs. I do not traffic drugs. I do not represent drug traffickers, though nothing prevents me from doing it. If that was my area of law, I do not engage in immigration hustling or immigration trafficking. Not ever. Not now. I do not engage in representing Americans who are trying to evade taxes in the United States. I have no such clients. I do not engage in terrorism or terrorism financing, or any such thing, or money laundering for the purposes of terrorism financing. So I say all of that to say there can be absolutely no doubt that it is not related to any nefarious activity."
"So what does that leave us with? And why do I say that I wasn't completely surprised when I got it? Because the US government has stated very plainly that its desire is to reduce China's footprint in Latin America. This administration has made no bones about that. And this year, and especially over the past few months, I have been engaged in enlarging China's footprint in Belize."
Jules Vasquez: "Would you detail what you have done to enlarge China's footprint in Belize?"
Godfrey Smith: "So, as you know, the starting point is that Belize has diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Belize does not have diplomatic relations with China. In January of this year, I made a visit to China. During that visit, I engaged with very high-level officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to explore the opportunity for more Belizeans to get to understand what China is, to see the behemoth that China is, to see the possibilities that China represents."
"And the discussion was fruitful. The officials of the government of China said that notwithstanding the lack of diplomatic relations, they were prepared through me to engage in that collaboration. As a result of that, I traveled to Jamaica, where I met with officials of the Chinese Embassy in Jamaica, since they do not have an embassy in Belize."
"And we formalized a program for Belizean young leaders in the media and academia, etc., to visit China on study tours. And so far, a number of Belizeans have gone."
Jules Vasquez: "So in a sense, what I'm hearing is that you were China's man in Belize, so to speak. And as a consequence of that, you believe the Americans canceled your visa."
Godfrey Smith: "That's the only rational thing I can come to. When you say China's man in Belize, without giving myself any airs, there is some truth to it in that there is no official of the government of Belize, or any other person who is engaged in discussions of that nature with officials of the Chinese government."
And while Smith is pro-China, his name is recognized in the Caribbean where he is the CARICOM High-Level Representative for law and criminal justice, the Chairman of the Guyanese Commission of Inquiry we told you about, and the Chairman of the UB Board of Directors.
He told us he immediately offered to resign from all three posts-the Guyanese President said no, the Belize Minister of Education said not at this time, and CARICOM is also yet to answer.
And while that is the professional side, we asked him about the personal effect of this:
Jules Vasquez: "So do you feel any personal injury from it and any professional effect that it will have on you functioning as an attorney?"
Godfrey Smith: "No. No personal effect. And the proof of that is the fact that I have no intention... a few people have said, 'What are you going to do? Are you going to appeal? You have to appeal!' There's a path to appeal and to give me the names of certain people who have appealed. I have no intention or interest in appealing. I have no intention or interest in reapplying for a U.S. visa. The people say they don't want you in their country-I am okay with that. Would I beg them to let me into their country? Will it create some inconvenience? I'm sure down the road it will. But I have no interest in appealing or in applying to renew."
And while Smith's visa has been cancelled, he also actively recruited others to visit China to get their own experience. We asked if he thinks their visas will also be cancelled:
Jules Vasquez: "I know that you reached out to people in the media. I know that one member of our parliament went to China-Senator Glenfield Dennison. He's happy to have people know that he went. Yeah. So Senator Glenfield went. Were there any other officials from the ruling party, from the opposition, who you reached out to who were thinking of going to China? And will they still go?"
Godfrey Smith: "Going to decline answering that question because I don't want to... because of this situation, I don't want anybody to be unfairly targeted."
And while Smith hopes to protect them, what about his wife who is the Speaker of the House? We asked:
Jules Vasquez: "Your wife is the Speaker of the House."
Godfrey Smith: "Yes."
Jules Vasquez: "Might this also affect her?"
Godfrey Smith: "I would hope not. But I have no way of knowing-you're dealing with the United States of America. I would hope... she's not involved in any of this collaboration that I spoke about in any way whatsoever. This is a totally personal and individual effort on my part because I hold the view that Belize should have diplomatic relations with China instead of being one for the... for future purposes."
In other foreign affairs news, at the end of October, GOB announced that it would not renew the Cuban Medical Brigade agreement.
The Cuban medical professionals-nearly 100 of them-will be given an option to sign individual contracts of employment that would allow them to remain and work in Belize.
We asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Francis Fonseca, how they came to this decision-and if it will appease the US:
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Yeah, it was, as you know, a long, extensive process-not an easy process, you know, a team effort. Our team here at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we worked closely with the Ministry of Health and Wellness, our embassy in Washington, D.C.-we all worked together on this for many months. And I am very pleased that at the end of the day, we were able to come up with a sensible, practical resolution to the matter.The agreement between Belize and Cuba for the medical brigade had ended last year, so we are not renewing that agreement for the medical brigade, but we have an agreement with the medical professionals, the doctors.I think we have now 22 medical Cuban professionals in Belize-doctors, nurses-and we have signed or are in the process of signing individual contracts, private contracts with each of those medical professionals. So that is a win-win for Belize: we get to keep the medical professionals, we get to maintain their presence in our rural communities where many of them serve, so we continue to be able to provide good-quality healthcare to the Belizean people."
And while the US is alleged to have applied pressure in the decision-making for the Cubans, we have also learned that they are applying pressure for US military personnel to conduct joint security operations in Belize. Fonseca explained that it's not about being pressured, but that more dialogue needs to happen before they come to a decision.
Jomarie Lanza: "Can you discuss what kind of pressure your ministry is under right now to accept US military into Belize?"
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Not pressure, but we are having dialogue about our shared interest. As you know, one of the key challenges Belize faces is the narco-trafficking, human trafficking-these are matters that are of very great importance to the Government of Belize. And so it is not about pressure; it is about: how can we work together with the United States government, with our regional partners, to fight these challenges? So we are engaging with the US government on these issues. As you know, the US government has some Western Hemisphere initiatives on crime and narco-trafficking and human trafficking, so we are engaged with them to see how we can work together and what support they can provide to Belize to help us to combat these very, very serious challenges facing our country."
The entire region is feeling the pressure right now from the United States, especially due to ongoing relations with Cuba. We asked Fonseca whether Belize will see any changes following the blue tsunami of the US midterms. Fonseca told us that they are always willing to work with whichever party is in office.
Francis Fonseca, Minister of Foreign Affairs "Well, as you know, foreign policy is generally the province of the executive, so the State Department, the President-they are the ones who drive foreign policy. So we don't expect that there will be any fundamental changes in terms of that, but, you know... You know there are going to be changes in the committees. So frequently when we go to Washington, we meet with the head of the Foreign Affairs House Committee, the Foreign Affairs Senate Committee-we would meet with these people. They have, for the past few years, of course, been Republicans; now, come January, they will be Democrats. So we will have different conversations, and we hope they will continue to be sensitive to the challenges that small countries like Belize has, but in terms of the overall foreign policy, I don't see much change in that regard."
It's a new week and a new set of woes, meaning that Union Senator Glenfield Dennison is continuing his pop-up protest series. Today, it was the KHMH where his protest targeted the deteriorating conditions of the hospital and the budget cuts ministries will be seeing.
We spoke with the Senator as well as former president of the KHMHA Union Andrew Baird, who gave us their thoughts:
Glenfield Dennison, Union Senator "There's so much that can go into that message. But one of the main messages that I want to shed light on is the fact that Belizean households are being now asked to make a decision between prostituting their children to put food on the table, or putting food on the table-and that is not a choice that I think we should take lightly as a country. So, my appeal was to say to the families, 'Don't sell your children to buy food.' Now, if you look up the short story, A Modest Proposal, you will see it's satirical in its nature, but unfortunately our minds and beliefs of our leaders don't really understand satire. But the truth is, that story is still relevant today because it feels as if what we need to do is to sell the children of the poor so that the other people who are in the household can live. And a message to the pedophiles who would want to buy the children: stop your foolishness. Leave them alone. And Jaleeza, I come from the criminal justice system, and I can tell you, it's not just our girls-it's our boys."
Jaleeza Roberts: "Why is this your sign of choice today?"
Glenfield Dennison: "Today, more important than the sign is where I'm at. I'm intentionally in front of the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital because people are literally dying in our country. The government has a scheme called the NHI that deals with primary healthcare, and they have invested quite a bit of money in that scheme. And I say it's because of the structure of that scheme that is meant to enrich friends and cronies who have clinics and would be providing primary healthcare to Belizeans, and that is paid for very handsomely. But our only tertiary care hospital is not funded properly. That is literally causing Belizeans to die. And so I'm here because just last week the government was announcing that ministries need to cut their budgets by 25%. In the case of KHMH, that would be going in the wrong direction. KHMH needs an influx of capital. KHMH needs an influx of human resources so that people stop dying."
Andrew Baird, Former KHMHA Union President "The message has to be sent and asked: who pays when the government cuts the budget for the Ministry? And the simple answer is that it's the people-the ordinary Belizean pay when government reduces the government ministry. We cannot just stand idly and let this pass. What happened to... how does it affect the regular Belizean in reference in the case to the Ministry of Health 25% budget cut? Then we have to start to think about medication, we have to start to think about supplies. Not only at KHMH, but in all the hospitals throughout the country, how it will affect the ordinary Belizean."
Tomorrow it continues at Battlefield Park, and the protests lead up to Friday at the National Assembly stairs in Belmopan.
A circular from the Accountant General caused concern for the National Garifuna Council and the wider public. The memo instructed that the only approved decorations with the Treasury Department are those associated with September Celebrations and Christmas. Many interpreted it as deliberately leaving out Garifuna Settlement Day, which brought on accusations of racism and erasure of Garifuna culture.
The president of the NGC said that the Accountant General had clarified to him that that wasn't the case; however, he was concerned when he first saw the memo. The council issued a press release, and today Alex Nolberto told us some of those concerns:
Alex Nolberto, President, NGC "It is concerning, as it implies clearly that the 19th of November has been overlooked, and we take offense to it because at the end of the day, it is a nationally recognized holiday. And it's not only the Treasury, so let's be clear-we do see this rapid transition from September into December, so if we're going to call it out, we need to call out everybody who is doing it. The 19th of November is a national holiday, and it is earmarked for everything Garifuna. I think it's important that we give it the respect that it requires."
Courtney Menzies: "What would you say to that-to the fact that the government may be trying to save some money?"
Alex Nolberto: "That would be a poor excuse. Nothing prevents you from starting to decorate immediately after the 21st of September leading up to Christmas, so the whole issue with Halloween, for example-because Halloween is featured prominently, that's a one-day event, and Belizeans don't necessarily celebrate Halloween to the magnitude of how we celebrate the 19th of November. So the month of November is really dedicated to everything Garifuna, and so you have enough time from the 1st of November or immediately after the 21st of September to put up your decorations."
"One of the other things that concerns me are these large institutions that leverage everything Garifuna, but they do not support Garifuna. You have the BTL, BEL, Social Security Board, all of these larger entities, Bowen & Bowen-and I will take the time to call them out, because I should not have to be running behind them to garner support. They will show up in masses at our event, they expect, and they will leverage the Garifuna publicity, and they're yet to come to the conversation, they're yet to contribute."
Courtney Menzies: "Do you believe that Garifuna Settlement Day should be celebrated at the same level as the 21st of September or the 25th of December?"
Alex Nolberto: "I will argue that the Garifuna Settlement Day is bigger than our September celebrations, and it's bigger than our Christmas holiday. The numbers have spoken for themselves-if you look at the tourism numbers, our November numbers eclipse our September numbers, just demonstrates how important our holiday, 19th of November, is."
In the release, the NGC asked the ministry to:
1. Provide immediate clarification on the scope, intention, and application of the reported directive;
2. Explain the basis upon which September Celebrations and Christmas have been identified as approved occasions for decorations while Garifuna Settlement Day has seemingly been excluded;
3. Review the directive to ensure that it accommodates all nationally recognized public holidays and significant cultural observances in Belize, including Garifuna Settlement Day; and
4. Establish an inclusive policy governing cultural expressions and decorations within government institutions that respects the heritage and identity of all Belizeans.
And this evening, the Government Press Office issued a release that said, quote, "The Government of Belize would like to clarify that the internal memo, which referred only to the Treasury Department and sub-treasuries, was written in reference to Halloween decorations, to which some persons took offence for religious or personal reasons. The Government also takes the opportunity to advise social media users that not everything on that forum is accurate." End quote.
In December of 2025, the Office of the Ombudsman announced that Belize had commenced the process of establishing a National Human Rights Institution that would expand access to justice and enhance compliance with global governance standards. The official launch and signing ceremony was held in Belmopan this morning. It was a swell event; there was just one thing missing: an Ombudsman.
House arrest? With curfew? It sounded strange to us when we saw it on an SOE document, but the statutory instrument for this current SOE contains a provision for persons to be subjected to those exact conditions.
Today, ASP Smith explained that 24 orders of this kind have been issued. But is it lawful? Here's what Smith said:
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "Statutory Instrument 31 of 2026 provides for confinement orders to be issued. I can confirm that 24 confinement orders have been issued which essentially requires persons who are the subject of those orders to remain at their place of residence for a particular period of time, with due allowance being made for them to handle matters of necessity and urgency."
Courtney Menzies: "Is it constitutional for the police to issue an order for an individual to remain in place at their home? Because we know an SI cannot trump the constitution and one's freedom of movement."
ASP Stacy Smith: "The statutory instrument is made pursuant to the constitution."
Belizean Journalist Jovany O'Brien Passes Away at Age 42
Belize has lost its fifth journalist for this year. Forty-two-year-old Jovany O'Brien, who had been working at XTV for four years, was found dead in his home last night. Courtney Menzies remembers him:
O'Brien joins journalists such as Aaron Humes, Ruben Morales, Roy Davis, and Fem Cruz who have all passed away this year for health reasons.
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Tonight, 19-year-old Shiloh Coleman is dead. That is after he was last heard from through a text message to his mother on Saturday evening. Jaleeza Roberts has the story:
"Police are investigating the murder of 19-year-old Shiloh Coleman of Belize City, whose body was discovered just before midday today, someone and a half miles into the Westlake community, which is located near 8 Miles on the George Price Highway. The body of the young Mr. Coleman was found in an initial state of decomposition and exhibited apparent gunshot wounds. Coleman was reported missing at around 5:30 p.m. on November 8th by his mother, who stated that the last time she heard from him was just before 9:00 p.m. on November 7th, when she had noted that his vehicle was not parked at home and she sent a message to him inquiring of his whereabout. A message was returned indicating that he would be back, however up to the time of the mother making the report, she had not heard from him."
Tonight, Belmopan is preparing to send off another diplomatic protest note to Guatemala City-and raise the alarm amongst its allies that the Guatemalans are once again bullying Belize's military on the Sarstoon.
"Really, my first response was anger. I was really angry, you know. We have continued to maintain good-faith dialogue with Guatemala, you know. We are committed, as you know, as a country-through respective administrations, we have been committed to peace. As a country, we have determined that we are going to pursue the resolution of Guatemala's claim through the judicial process at the International Court of Justice, and we are doing that. As you know, a date has finally been set for our hearings that will take place next year, so Belize is committed to peace. But we will not compromise our sovereignty, our territorial integrity. And these acts of aggression-repeated acts of aggression and provocation by the Guatemalan armed forces-really, there is absolutely no excuse for it. It is absolutely unacceptable. We will continue to carry out our process. We bring it to the attention of the OAS, we bring it to the attention of our partners, CARICOM, Commonwealth. We bring it to the attention to the group of friends of Belize and Guatemala. Of course, we engaged directly with the Guatemalan authorities, but I will say that it is no longer acceptable to me that the Guatemalan government, the Foreign Ministry, the Office of the President continue to say that they are unaware of these incidents. That to me is not credible, and that is certainly unacceptable."
And while Fonseca talks diplomacy, his colleague, Tourism Minister Anthony Mahler, was less than diplomatic last week while attending the World Travel Market show in London. He noticed that across from Belize's booth, Guatemala had proudly displayed a map of their country, including Belize as part of their map, but had marked the country's outline as "Territorial insular and maritime dispute pending resolution."
In other news, Senior Minister Fonseca provided information on the budget cuts we reported Friday.
On Friday, we showed you the cop who was caught on video putting his weapon into a civilian's mouth. Well tonight, he's in jail. The police department's response to 7News posting the video was swift, and the officer was suspended and placed under investigation. Today, ASP Stacy Smith told us he has since been charged:
Police are investigating the attempted murder of two men in San Felipe Village on Friday night. Both men were allegedly chopped by 26-year-old Dwight Hernandez, who was marauding with a machete. According to ASP Smith, he appeared to be under the influence of illegal substances:
A cop is under investigation after he crashed into a fence and barreled into a home in San Ignacio, injuring one woman.
And in the conclusion to a fatal accident that happened in July of 2025, businessman Khris Rosado was sentenced today.
Today, the news broke like a lightning bolt: prominent Senior Counsel Godfrey Smith's US visa had been cancelled. The news came to Smith in an email from the Consular Section of the US Embassy in Belmopan. He called the embassy to verify its authenticity, and they confirmed it.
Today, speaking from Guyana where he is chairing an International Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the passenger vessel MV Barina-he first told us what he is certain did not cause the visa to be revoked:
And while Smith's visa has been cancelled, he also actively recruited others to visit China to get their own experience. We asked if he thinks their visas will also be cancelled:
Godfrey Smith: 
In other foreign affairs news, at the end of October, GOB announced that it would not renew the Cuban Medical Brigade agreement.
It's a new week and a new set of woes, meaning that Union Senator Glenfield Dennison is continuing his pop-up protest series. Today, it was the KHMH where his protest targeted the deteriorating conditions of the hospital and the budget cuts ministries will be seeing.
Jaleeza Roberts: 
"The message has to be sent and asked: who pays when the government cuts the budget for the Ministry? And the simple answer is that it's the people-the ordinary Belizean pay when government reduces the government ministry. We cannot just stand idly and let this pass. What happened to... how does it affect the regular Belizean in reference in the case to the Ministry of Health 25% budget cut? Then we have to start to think about medication, we have to start to think about supplies. Not only at KHMH, but in all the hospitals throughout the country, how it will affect the ordinary Belizean."
A circular from the Accountant General caused concern for the National Garifuna Council and the wider public. The memo instructed that the only approved decorations with the Treasury Department are those associated with September Celebrations and Christmas. Many interpreted it as deliberately leaving out Garifuna Settlement Day, which brought on accusations of racism and erasure of Garifuna culture.
Courtney Menzies: 
House arrest? With curfew? It sounded strange to us when we saw it on an SOE document, but the statutory instrument for this current SOE contains a provision for persons to be subjected to those exact conditions.
