Belize Mennonites: News

     A law which previously existed but was consistently ignored as it gathered dust on some forgotten shelf was suddenly pulled out of storage and declared effective immediately. No more OTC birth control packages. No more popping in and out of the pharmacy on your way home from work. Prescription is now mandatory.   We spoke to a nurse in Spanish Lookout who explained that a doctor would prescribe what method was best for the patient, e.g. IUD, arm implants or pills. If pills then the doctor would state what type and for how long, at the end of which time the patient needed another consultation and a new prescription.   

     The US-Iran conflict has certainly had worldwide effects, Belize included. Obviously the price of fuel would go up, people expected it; but what we did not expect was for it to go up so far and so fast. Diesel is currently at US$8 a gallon with regular only slightly behind it. Bus owners demanded the government let them raise their fares which was refused. They threatened countrywide strikes. Still no action. This led to a temporary early morning road block on a major highway in northern Belize. By mid-morning bus owners and the government reached a compromise. Fuel for the public transport sector would be temporarily subsidized.   In Spanish Lookout, Blue Creek and Shipyard, crop farmers and cattle ranchers are bearing the brunt of it. Those cattle-trucks and massive John Deere 8-wheel tractors certainly don't run on water. How much is too much?   The government official was smooth and oily. We already removed certain taxes...we have enough fuel supplies.....

      Several police vehicles along with the Spanish Lookout patrol truck announced the fact that an extremely important event was occurring today.  Sections of Route 20 East were closed to traffic for part of the day. Two helicopters with the President and his entourage arrived to visit grain processing facilities in the Mennonite community of Spanish Lookout.

     The year 2025 saw an alarming rise in armed robberies country wide, with delivery trucks pertaining to Mennonite-owned businesses increasingly targeted. Quality Poultry, Western Dairies, Country Foods, Caribbean Chicken, etc. having been prime targets of these criminals, with the most recent being the murder of a Caribbean Chicken truck driver. This led several Mennonite business owners to issue a public statement on the matter, calling on the government to do more to protect citizens.

   A few months ago the government of Belize passed a law prohibiting prefab houses from beibg transported during daytime hours. However after 2 fatalities on the road involving flatbed trucks carrying houses the government completely halted the business altogether, citing safety concerns. Mennonites house builders were understandably up in arms over the nonsensical laws which appeared to be made on the fly. Stopping the industry would certainly have far-reaching effects on the economy. Government agents announced they would be meeting with business owners to see what they could work out.

     A tragic event ocurred today in Blue Creek, Orange Walk District. Peter Dyck and his son were mowing with a tractor when they decided to switch places. In the process Peter fell and the mower ran over him, fatally injuring him.

      A teenager was killed in Shipyard yesterday when several wood doors fell on him in the shop where he was working. According to sources he was 14 years and working as an assistant.