According to ehistorylib, in 2005, Belize had a population of approximately 276,000 people. The majority of the population was ethnic Mestizo with smaller minorities from other ethnic backgrounds. The economy was largely driven by industries such as agriculture, tourism, and fisheries. In terms of foreign relations, Belize maintained diplomatic ties with most countries in the region as well as major powers such as the United States and European Union.
The politics of Belize in 2005 were relatively stable due to a successful transition to a democratic government after decades of British rule. Nevertheless, corruption remained a significant problem which hampered economic growth and development efforts. In addition, organized crime was still prevalent throughout the country and posed a threat to public safety and security. In response to these issues, the government sought assistance from international organizations such as the United Nations and World Bank in order to help strengthen its institutions and reduce levels of crime and corruption.
Yearbook 2005
Belize. Powerful protests erupted in April after the government declared that the state monopoly on telecommunications services would end. Employees at state telecommunications company Belize Telecommunications Limited (BTL) went on strike demanding a 37.5% stake in the company. By sabotaging a fiber optic cable, the country was cut off from the outside world during the weekend April 23-24. Military was deployed against protesters in Belize City, which only led to further unrest when teachers and students demonstrated a week later.
According to countryaah, Belmopan is the capital and one of the major cities within the country of Belize. Foreign Minister Assad Shoman met in July with his Guatemalan colleague Jorge Briz for talks on the border conflict between the countries. Regular meetings were agreed every month under the supervision of the American cooperative organization OAS, and if the issue cannot be resolved, international mediation must be resorted to. The talks took place in good diplomatic tone, but Guatemala does not seem to have backed down from its basic territorial requirements, which now encompasses 12,000 square miles of Belize’s territory compared to the previous 23,000.
- Also see abbreviationfinder.org for how the acronym BZ stands for the country of Belize and other meanings of this two-letter abbreviation.
Belize (until 1973 British Honduras) State of Central America. Formerly the site of important Mayan settlements, it was subject from the 16th century. to the Spanish Crown, which allowed English sailors and buccaneers to colonize it and exploit its resources starting from 1638. After the independence of the Central American Spanish colonies (third decade of the 19th century), a dispute arose over the sovereignty of the region between Guatemala and Great Britain which, in 1862, however, constituted the colony, with the name of British Honduras. The independence aspirations, supported by the People’s united party (PUP) of G. Price, prime minister after the granting of internal self-government (1964), eventually led to independence within the Commonwealth (1981). However, Guatemala’s claims continued, actually interested above all in access to the Atlantic coast and eventually discovered oil, the exploitation of which Belize began in 2006. The first elections after independence (1984) were won by the center-right United Democratic Party (UDP); the subsequent elections of 1989 put Price back in charge of the country. In the following years, the austerity economic policy of the governments that took turns leading the country (1993-98, Esquivel, UDP; from 1998 S. Musa, PUP, reconfirmed in 2003) gave rise.
