Update: On Wednesday June 18, Barrow posted, “Thanks to the good people at facebook Meta mark zuckerberg and everyone involved in recovering my page.”
The former Leader of the Opposition Shyne Barrow is calling on Meta Platforms Inc. and CEO Mark Zuckerberg to reinstate his Facebook accounts, which have been permanently disabled despite his appeals.
Barrow shared screenshots of communications from Facebook informing him that his accounts had violated the platform’s Community Standards and were first suspended and later permanently disabled.
Barrow expressed frustration, stating in his caption: “Who can help me? @facebook @meta @zuck does not believe I’m Shyne and since Sunday they have permanently disabled my Facebook accounts.”
One of the notifications from Facebook reads: “Your Facebook account has been permanently disabled… we still found that your account, or activity on it, didn’t follow our Community Standards. You can’t request another review.” Another message grants him 180 days to appeal the suspension of a different account under the name “Moses Shyne Barrow.”
Shyne, who rose to international fame as a rapper before entering politics, has maintained an online presence.
A Chinese researcher at the University of Michigan and her boyfriend have been charged with smuggling a highly dangerous agricultural pathogen into the United States, according to federal court documents unsealed on Tuesday.
Yunqing Jian, 33, a postdoctoral fellow at the university, and her boyfriend Zunyong Liu, 34, are accused of conspiring to import Fusarium graminearum, a fungus that causes severe crop diseases and is considered a potential agroterrorism threat.
The fungus is known to damage wheat, barley, maize, and rice. It was discovered hidden in Liu’s backpack during an inspection at Detroit Metropolitan Airport. Officers found four plastic baggies of the reddish plant material concealed in tissues.
According to NBC News, officials further allege that Jian received funding from the Chinese government for her research on the pathogen in China. They also claim she is a member of the Chinese Communist Party.
“Liu stated that he intentionally hid the samples in his backpack because he knew there were restrictions on the importation of the materials,” the complaint says. “Liu confirmed that he had intentionally put the samples in a wad of tissues so CBP Officers would be less likely to find and confiscate them, and he could continue his research in the United States.”
Text messages from 2022 suggest the couple discussed smuggling seeds previously. Jian has been denied bail and labelled a flight risk. Liu remains outside the country, NBC News reported.
U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon called the charges “of the gravest national security concerns.” The FBI’s Counterintelligence Division is leading the investigation.
Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL) has issued a public statement addressing recent media speculation surrounding potential consolidation within the country’s broadband and cable telecommunications sector. The company emphasized that such discussions are not new and have been ongoing both locally and globally for several years.
“Over the years since 2018, BTL and operators have exchanged and discussed proposals for amalgamation,” the company said.
BTL further stated that any future consolidation efforts would be carefully considered. “Any potential future consolidation would be guided by the goal of strengthening Our National Telecom to the benefit of the people of Belize.”
“These efficiencies could translate into better services, expanded access for underserved communities, improved value for consumers and employees, and stronger returns for our more than 1,500 shareholders,” BTL added.
San Ignacio Police are investigating an apparent murder. This follows the discovery of a decomposed body in the Unitedville Village cemetery, Cayo District.
The body was found around 3:44 p.m. on Wednesday, June 4th, 2025.
Officers observed the body of a male in an advanced state of decomposition. He was wearing a green T-shirt over a black undershirt, black three-quarter pants, a black baseball cap, and black-and-white Nike slippers.
The body showed three apparent gunshot wounds, one to the left side of the neck, one to the left shoulder, and one to the abdomen. A single expended S&B brand shell casing was found approximately three feet from the body.
The body was later transported to the National Forensic Science Service Lab in Belize City, where it awaits a post-mortem examination.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the victim’s identity. Attempts to identify the individual by the village chairman and other community members were unsuccessful. Police investigations continue.
Charges have been drafted against teachers in Dangriga who participated in a road blockade protest yesterday.
The protest, part of an ongoing salary dispute between the Belize National Teachers Union and the government, involved teachers using vehicles to block key road junctions in Dangriga and Bella Vista. This action disrupted traffic flow and restricted the freedom of movement for residents and emergency services.
Assistant Superintendent Stacy Smith explained that while the teachers have the right to express their grievances, the police cannot allow protests that infringe on others’ rights. After giving the protesters up to two hours to disperse and remove their vehicles, law enforcement took measured action when the blockade continued.
The police have reviewed relevant legislation, including the Criminal Code, Motor Vehicle and Road Traffic Act, and Control of Public Meetings and Public Processions Act, to draft charges. Possible offenses include obstruction of traffic, unlawful assembly, obstruction of officers, and aggravated assault.
Across Belize today, the message from teachers and public officers was loud, clear, and impossible to ignore. In a bold show of defiance, union members took to the streets, not with signs or chants alone, but with their vehicles, shutting down major roads and bringing traffic to a standstill. From Freetown Road in Belize City to Dangriga and Bella Vista, the strategy was the same: block the flow, amplify the message. And while the government offered a modest raise, union leaders say it’s not enough, and they’re prepared to go even further. Tonight, we take you to the heart of the action, where frustration is mounting, tensions are rising, and the call for fair treatment is growing louder by the day. Here’s News Director Isani Cayetano.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
Across the country, union members are turning to a bold strategy to make their voices heard: blocking roads. And while it may frustrate commuters, the message behind the move is loud and clear.
Coral Lord
Coral Lord, BNTU President, Belize District
“All our branches nationally decided that we need to show the government that we’re serious about getting our adjustment and our frozen increments, since they have already offered that to us. However, I believe that the Prime Minister said “ni modo” or something to that effect, that we are holding the children hostage. We are not.”
By halting traffic, unions are doing more than just causing delays, they’re forcing both the public and the government to pay attention. Roads are the arteries of our daily lives, essential for getting to work, transporting goods, and even responding to emergencies. So, when they’re blocked, the disruption is immediate and impossible to ignore.
Stacy Smith
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
“What the department appreciates and the country must appreciate is that whilst teachers have their right to freedom of expression, which I understand to mean in this instance them registering their discontent, them expressing their right cannot be done in such a way that infringes on the rights of others. A relevant right, in this instance, is the right to freedom of movement which is impacted by the blockage of roads.”
At midday, teachers from several primary schools, including St. Joseph, took to the streets in a bold act of civil disobedience. Their method? Shutting off their vehicles in the middle of traffic. On Freetown Road, one of the city’s busiest intersections, teachers left their cars idling at the stoplight, effectively cutting off traffic and causing major disruptions during the lunch hour rush. The move is part of a growing wave of protest actions aimed at pressuring the government to respond to union demands for better pay and working conditions.
Coral Lord
“As our president rightly said, both governments, when they are not in power they can put on a green shirt, they can stand beside us and they make a lot of promises. But now, they are in the driver’s seat. That narrative has changed. The narrative has changed and we want them to know [that] we’ve already earned what they have taken away from us. They have already afforded those who are at the top tier of government to get a raise, without even asking. We are asking for what we know we’ve worked hard for and for what we know we deserve.”
This afternoon’s roadblock followed similar traffic jams in Dangriga and Bella Vista earlier in the day, where vehicles came to a sudden standstill.
Stacy Smith
“This course of action which commenced around five o’clock this morning is part of the industrial action that the union is taking in regards to the labor dispute that they have with the Government of Belize. Both of these incidents entail the teachers utilizing vehicles to block the road at junctions in Dangriga and Bella Vista, respectively.”
And while the demonstration was peaceful, the message was loud and clear: the teachers are not backing down.
Coral Lord
“In the coming days or weeks ahead, it will be even more serious than this because we are prepared to go the full measure and the full extent we need to go to get what we Know we have worked for and what we deserve.”
Roadblocks do more than just stop traffic; they amplify the unions’ message and turn up the pressure on leaders to act. Each stalled car is a reminder of workers’ growing frustration. And while it may inconvenience some, these actions also raise public awareness and often spark sympathy and support for the cause. The Belize Police Department is of a different view.
Stacy Smith
“We are in the process of reviewing provisions of the criminal code, the motor vehicle and road traffic act, and the control of public meetings and public processions act with a view to identifying the relevant offenses which, at this point, appears to be obstructing the free flow of traffic, unlawful assembly, obstruction of the officers in the execution of their duties and aggravated assault. So these provisions are being reviewed with a view to bring persons before the court where there is the belief that the they have engaged in such conduct.”
When everyday routines are disrupted, it grabs attention—and that’s exactly the point. Roadblocks create urgency, pushing the government to the table faster and making it harder to ignore the demands on the ground. Isani Cayetano for News Five.
Tensions between the government and public sector unions continue to simmer, as salary negotiations hit another roadblock. With all unions now rejecting the latest proposal, the Minister of Public Service Henry Charles Usher is calling for calm and conversation. While teachers took to the streets in Dangriga to voice their frustration, Usher says the best way forward is through respectful dialogue, not confrontation.
Henry Charles Usher, Minister of Public Service
“Each increment represents, more or less, two and a half to three percent of asalary adjustment when it comes to any particular public officer or teacher. So ifyou want to look at the numbers, those are the numbers.”
Paul Lopez
“What are your thoughts on how things have progressed since then? I know around that time you, have all received word that the unions, now all of them, rejected the proposal that you supported?”
Henry Charles Usher
“The truth is that I am somebody who will always prefer being around the table discussing these issues in a respectful and productive manner. I always say that it’s important to speak to each other rather than at each other and right now, we received a response to the proposal that the government has made. The Cabinet met yesterday to discuss that response and a reply will be sent to them.”
Paul Lopez
“This morning, you had the teachers speaking at the government with a road blockage in Dangriga. They feel justified by their actions.”
Henry Charles Usher
“You’re saying that as a matter of fact or have you discussed that with the teachers?”
Paul Lopez
“Clearly, they wouldn’t do something that they don’t feel justifiable doing.”
Henry Charles Usher
“I believe that they are taking every opportunity they can to express themselves which is fine. I don’t have a problem with that. But as I say, it’s always better to discuss it in a productive and respectful way.”
After several rounds of negotiations, the BNTU has taken to the streets in protest, this time, organizing traffic blockades across the country. The demonstrations, aimed at pressuring the government for an eight-and-a-half percent salary increase, were quickly met with police intervention, for obstruction of traffic. Former Minister of Education and government negotiator Francis Fonseca expressed disappointment in the union’s actions. He says the government has already agreed to six out of seven proposals and is willing to meet the salary increase, but not all at once. Fonseca warns that continued protests after what he calls “good faith negotiations” could damage the union’s credibility with future administrations.
Francis Fonseca, Former Minister of Education
“I’m really disappointed that in my view the BNTU has really, I think, broken faith with those good faith discussions that we’ve been having broken, I think the trust of those discussions and negotiations. And I think, when they do that, they risk losing the support of reasonable people, the public. As well as I think losing credibility with this government and with future governments. We have always treated them with dignity, with respect. We have always, I can tell you, as the Minister of Education for the last four and a half years, we have always worked with the BNTU to resolve any concerns they have, any issues that they raise. We have worked with them to try to address those concerns and issues in our respectful, meaningful way. So I think the risk there is that they will lose credibility. The governments will ask this government and future governments. What is the purpose of working in good faith? What is the purpose of treating you with respect and working with you and trying to resolve issues? If at the end of the day you still, your position is, we will strike, we will protest, we will disrupt. So I really hope that good faith will prevail and that we can resolve these issues where they should be resolved, around the negotiating table. We have an agreed upon established structure and mechanism in place to resolve these issues, and we can do so if we are acting in good faith together.”
As teachers wait for the government’s next move, another union is stepping up its demands. The executive of the KHMHA Workers Union is heading to the mediation table this Thursday, pushing hard for a long-overdue pension plan. Their focus? Securing benefits for employees who served between 2000 and 2017. Union President Andrew Baird says they’re done waiting and this time, they want more than promises. They’re calling on the Briceño administration to officially recognize them as public officers and make them pensionable. News Five will be following the talks closely.
Andrew Baird, President, KHMA Workers Union
“WE have seen recently where the government has added the coast guard to the government pension. They are deserving. I am not going to take that away from the coast guard. Even the teachers, all teachers are now pensionable by the government. There was the grant aided schools where those teachers are now pensionable, because the school was to pay a certain percentage, now the government has took that on as a full package. But now, they are telling us that because they are near starting a contributory pension for public officers they cannot add anybody to the cookie jar, but they are doing that. That is an insult to us. We are suppose to be equal, as the teachers or the other public officers. As the national referral center we even do more.”
As the KHMHA Workers Union prepares to sit down with the government over its pension proposal, we caught up with the Minister of Public Service to get his take. While the union is demanding a clear plan and full pension coverage for long-serving employees, Minister Henry Charles Usher says the path forward isn’t as simple as it seems. Still, he believes there’s a way to resolve the issue. News Five has more from Belmopan.
Henry Charles-Usher
Henry Charles-Usher, Minister of Public Service
“Whenever an entity becomes a statutory body there is always a process for the employees to determine whether they remain in the government service or become employees of that statutory institution. When the KHMH became a statutory authority, the employees were given the opportunity to remain a government employee or to be employed by KHMH. There are some employed by KHMH and some still employed by the government even though they work as at a statutory authority. So it is not straightforward to make everybody public officers or make everybody employees of KHMH. We have to look at each case on a case-by-case basis and move forward. But there is a way to resolve this matter. Certainly, we have to be able to sit in a responsive and respectful way to come up with a solution.”
