Delta is Officially Back in Montserrat
By Helena Durand
Fuel
bulk station at Carrs Bay
The theme at the official opening this week of
the Delta Petroleum Office in Brades was the resilience of Montserratians.
Manager of Delta Petroleum Montserrat Ltd, Mr.
Jeffery ‘Jeff’ Novoa, said with its history rooted in that of Montserrat,
Delta was glad once again to be operating on the island.
Having been operating here prior to the volcanic
eruptions, he said, Delta stayed during the crisis while some other fuel
operators left the scene. It remained until forced to move when the South of the
island had to be evacuated.
During and after the crisis, Montserratians
experienced great difficulties attempting to acquire fuel. Some years later, in
an effort to curb that problem, the John Osborne led coalition government, has
awarded the Bulk Plant at Carr’s Bay fuel terminal to Delta in a move to
privatize the facility.
Rising to the occasion, Mr. Novoa said, his
company is currently constructing the base and foundation for a 150,000-gallon
storage tank at Carr’s Bay, "to take care of our increased fuel needs.”
Delta is also working to set up a gas station in
Salem, which will eliminate the need for motorists in the area to drive north to
the only gas station on the island.
Manager of Delta Mr. Jeffery Novoa and Hon CM John Osborne at opening ceremony
Chief Minister John Osborne welcomed Delta and
told listeners that the company had promised always to give Montserrat “the
best prices.”
Former Chief Minister David Brandt also took the
opportunity to welcome the company, noting that the move to award privatization
to Delta had been a while in the making.
On behalf of the people of Montserrat, Editor of
the Montserrat Reporter Mr. Bennette Roach, asked what concessions the
government had offered the company, since in the initial stages, Delta had
announced that it would be operating at a loss on Montserrat.
Chief Minister Osborne replied that no financial support had been offered or given to Delta, but rather financial contributions were expected from it; and that the only concession in terms of government’s support received by Delta was that, “they bring in their tanks duty free.”
By
Helena Durand
Officials at new Police station ground-breaking ceremony in Brades
In its continued efforts toward further development, the
Government of Montserrat had two ground-breaking ceremonies last Friday, one for
the construction of the Sheltered Housing Project at Lookout, the other for the
New Brades Police Station.
Minister for Communication and Works Hon. Lowell Lewis said
he was disappointed that not enough contractors in Montserrat are working on the
Sheltered Housing Project. He saw light at the end of the tunnel, however,
because “next month, about another seven projects are coming on stream,” he
said.
The new Police Station, which is to be located north of the
Montserrat Stationery Centre in Brades, has been six years in the making.
Commissioner of Police Alexander Elder remarked that although
the ground-breaking is symbolic, “the new building which will emerge will be
the administrative and focal centre of all elements of community policing
throughout Montserrat.”
Mr. Elder said that along with the new policing culture
“comes increased responsibility to respect human rights and treat people
appropriately in all circumstances. The new building will allow us to adopt
standards and processes aimed specifically towards these ends.”
He said attention will be given to domestic violence,
particularly abuse of children, and those who are mentally, physically or
intellectually challenged. Protection and safety of the community as a whole, he
said, will also be a primary focal point.
Chief Minister Hon. John Osborne said at the ceremony that he
had been advised not to build a new police station because the funds for that
could be used on other more important matters. But he said he believes that law
and order are also important factors which make a country what it is, and that
he was happy to be finally breaking ground for the project.
He explained that the cost for the new station was cut
dramatically, as he had refused to allow bullet-proof windows to be included.
That stand, he said, was taken based on the fact that Montserrat did not have
crime.
Commissioner Elder also noted that a project involving the
Cudjoe Head Police Station will be undertaken, creating “an Inter Agency Unit,
providing a discrete, professional service to family and domestic issues.”
“Once
Again, 'Go Ahead' Leaves Island Years Short of the Improvement It Needs”
There is a kind of strangeness
surrounding the airport/airstrip, temporary and permanent facility that
Montserrat so badly needs to remedy its predicament.
If no tangible action is taken soon, all the resilience and fortitude so
readiily attributed to its residents will very quickly disappear.
There is no disputing that many
blunders have been made over this tiny island and its very small population,
around 11,000 at the time, since nature decided once again to leave its mark on
us, inflicting the most serious crisis we would face for the 20th and
hopefully the 21st century.
One of the blunders, and perhaps
the biggest of all, is born of the very smallness which has hampered all of us,
but especially those with overall responsibility for the welfare of Montserrat
and its citizens. When it was recognized that little or nothing had been going
right since the crisis began in 1997, a British Parliament Select Committee
blamed both ours and the British government for poor management of the crisis up
to that point.
Perhaps we never changed our course
as new governments brought new complications, but from the other end came new
strategies which never took into consideration our so called
"resilience." Although they said that Montserrat had ‘first call’
on British funds and that there is no fixed sum for looking after the welfare of
Montserrat in the crisis, there was never any intention to deliver what it would
take to equip Montserrat to take off into the 21st century.
It was a mistake not to realize
earlier than 1997 that an airport, not just a seaport, would be most essential.
It was in this area mostly that the scientists were not taken seriously,
complicated by a strategy that we never understood ourselves. If we had
understood, and the British hadn’t had their own mindset for Montserrat, W.H.
Bramble airport would have been closed earlier and we would have had an
airport/airstrip somewhere in the north of Montserrat.
Unfortunately after six years, even
the housing problem, one that took our every attention, is still very much
unsolved. But it is the airport we are talking about. This week our Minister of
Communications and Works, under whose ministry the airport falls, announced very
sheepishly on ZJB that the government has given the go-ahead for construction of
a temporary airstrip at Geralds to proceed. What is not readily understood, as
the minister attempted to explain when he said we have been ‘misled’ over
the airport issue, is that there may never be an airstrip at Geralds. This
go-ahead merely allows a start on the various studies and designs. Even they may
cost so much money that there may not be enough left to construct the
"limited" airstrip. And even the studies may find it far from
responsible to construct what could be a "white elephant" -- or will
its toal costs make it a "golden" one?
That isn't to say that nothing has
been done in Montserrat to ward off the effects of the crisis, but in too many
ways it is "business as usual." When Governor Abbott arrived in
Montserrat, he said nothing could be business as usual. Now Governor Longrigg
has come, and he says strange circumstances require strange measures. Yet
we seem only to go backward to our old ways, sayings and practices, and so we
will continue to blunder. We cannot continue to operate government, civil
service and business as usual or as before. If government and the civil servants
cannot see this, then the rest of us should, and those of us who do should move
into action.
Whatever happens we will not see a
permanent airport for another eight to 10 years. The new word is that it takes
five years of studies and planning before anyone can know and receive the
permission to have an internationally accepted airport. The fact is that no one
yet knows the most ideal location for an airport in the north of Montserrat.
And just to mention it for now, how
the government/s, Montserratians and foreign-Montserratians have dealt with the
issue of lands and land-ownership in the north might well be the biggest blunder
of all; and for this one let's see who will blame the British. All the guilty
ones should be lined-up and charged.
----------------------------------------------
Apologies are in order to Dr.
Lowell Lewis. We acknowledge with regret reporting in a previous issue that he
said there were "at least 73 government-private sector projects which are
underway." While he spoke to these projects, Dr. Lewis did not make that
presentation.
We are grateful for the
clarification of his position regarding "Montserrat is heading for
bankruptcy," a position which we support, and agree that he was presenting
an optimistic view to counter the thought.
We ask the minister, however, to
confirm for us whether the rest of his colleagues support his optimism and
whether they are in accord with his views. This in fact was the view we
attempted to express in the editorial which said that many around him do not
take him seriously, and that he struggles daily to maintain that genuineness
that brought him the most votes in our recent historical general elections.
Accuracy is the constant focus of The Montserrat Reporter as we try, within our constraints, to present information for the well-being of Montserrat.
Except
for the editorial, opinion articles expressed in these pages are not necessarily
those of the Montserrat Reporter editors, employees or advisers.
Readers are encouraged to submit commentary articles.
All viewpoints, unless libelous, in poor taste, or anonymous, are
welcome. Send your contributions to
The Editor, P.O. Box 306, Olveston, Montserrat, W. I., e-mail: editor@montserratreporter.org.
Manuscripts will not be returned unless accompanied by a return stamped
envelope. The Montserrat Reporter
is a privately owned independent newspaper.
Jus
Wonderin items may be called in at telephone 491-4715 or Fax 491-2430
Scripture
I Am The Only ‘Jesus’ Some Will See
So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were
appealing through us.
2 Corinthians 5:20
When I was young I thought it quite romantic to
be an ambassador. What a privilege to represent a country, to speak in a
country’s name, to work defending and protecting my country’s honour and
furthering its pursuits -- even offering refuge to those in special need.
As I’ve grown older I realize that I am
an ambassador -- I am Jesus’ ambassador. I am the representative between Jesus
and the people with whom I minister and with whom I come into contact. I am an
ambassador for the people I’ve never met. I am the only ”Jesus” some
people will ever see. In Jesus’ name, I am privileged to offer not only
hospitality and refuge but compassion, care, kindness, and love. In Jesus’
name, I defend and protect the sacred honor of another, a person’s reputation.
As ambassador to Jesus I am privileged to spread the Good News, to draw others
to Jesus, to live his tender, provident care for each, for all.
As Jesus’ ambassador, I am privileged not only
to receive in Jesus’ name, to give in Jesus’ name, but to receive Jesus
Himself, to give Jesus Himself!
Sr. Charleen Hug, S.N.D.
2Corinthians 5:14-21; Psalm 103:1-4,8-9,11-12;
Matthew 5:33-37
Do
Something, Mr. Chief Minister
Mr. Editor,
Can you or the Government of Chief Minister John
Osborne explain these strange facts?
A young man at the Department of Agriculture was
charged and arrested for forging the signature of Ms. Veronica Lee, who used to
work there. He was suspended, as expected, put on half pay, passport taken and
made to report to the police at intervals. That is fair so far.
The young man says he is innocent, as you would
expect. But he is very firm on it. The police moved on him because of the
opinion of a Barbados- based handwriting expert. He came to the conclusion with
99.9 percent certainty that it was the young man who committed the crime after
everybody at the department submitted samples of their signatures. The man now
has to organize a defense, at his expense, of course. He faces big time jail.
Meantime another worker there confessed his guilt
of the crime to authorities. He says he is now a Christian and his conscience
now bothers him. He is arrested. He disappears for a two-week period and
suddenly appears at work again as normal. No suspension, no legal processing, no
reprimand, nothing to match the seriousness of his confessed crime. This
fellow’s mother works in the Department of Administration and is a friend of
big people there. Is someone doing someone a favour? Where is the AG’s chamber
on this?
Meantime, the innocent young man has to continue
reporting to police. He, like others, realizes that somebody is ‘cooking up’
something somewhere. What is going on in this Montserrat? When are we going to
see the backs of certain individuals who use their powers to suit some and
crucify others? What will the Chief Minister and his ministers do in this case?
Advantage never, never done.
Concerned Citizen
Press Officer Appointment Puts
Loyalty over Ability
Dear Editor,
During the 2001 elections campaign one of my NPP
colleagues cited the NPLM Party as being a party of geriatrics. Today, that
terminology has in reality manifested itself. However, I would now take it a bit
further and state that within the four post-election months that senility seems
to have set in on the NPLM team, rulers though they may be.
The government recently announced the appointment
of Mr. Lionel Nanton as the government’s new Press Officer. This in my opinion
is an insult and a slap in the face of an intelligent people. This country has
young, energetic and intelligent persons who are much better suited for such a
position. But the NPLM ruling team has no vision and did not fill that job
vacancy with one of them, but with a person who is way over the age of
retirement.
In many countries, in order to ensure that jobs
are available for the young and intelligent, persons who have reached the age of
retirement are retired and some who are close to that age grouping are offered
an early retirement package. What have an NPLM administration done? They have
appointed one of their elder, strong party supporters to that position.
Would the salary for paying this elder statesman
come from the coffers of the government treasury? The Administration Department
has been (and more so of late) retiring persons as soon as they hit 55 or 60, as
the case may be. Many of these are persons from the non-established sector, who
have given more than half of their lives in the service of this country and are
not even being paid a decent gratuitous payment. Yet an NPLM government has not
seen it fit to look into this issue, but rather, hire an inexperienced,
over-aged person.
A better decision could have been made. The
government could have made a wiser, more rational selection. It is my opinion
that this would have been the ideal opportunity to “PROMOTE” one of the
young and upcoming journalists at Radio Montserrat. These are persons, some of
whom can boast of having the qualifications and experience for such a job, while
others the experience. These are young people with many years of service left
and who can contribute by way of their speciality to the development of this
country.
Yes, I am convinced that senility has definitely
set in within the ruling party.
If we were to look in retrospect at past press
officers, we would find that these were young persons with a knowledge of and
the zest for journalism. Why are we therefore going back in time instead of
forward? Why must young and intelligent people in need of employment be
marginalised and overlooked for jobs while elder statesmen are hired? It just
does not make sense.
I wonder if we will soon be hearing statements
such as the Chief Minister will also be accompanied to England by the Press
Officer in the Chief Minister’s office.
At this stage of our development there is no room
for political favours, nepotism and favouritism. These are adverse factors of
the past and not conducive to development today.
Therefore we must put persons in job positions
who are capable of helping to move this country forward and not backwards.
We must create job opportunities that will ensure that our young are
employed.
The NPLM government must revisit their policy of
rule. If not, they must realise that they would not only be aiding the further
marginalisation of this country’s young and educated but contributing to
unemployment and adding more insult to injury. Is this the way they fulfil their
campaign promise of plenty love and money? If this is their way, then we will
find that the country’s youths, qualifications and all, will disappear and we
would be left with an aging and unqualified society.
Hylroy
L. Bramble
Trade Unionist and Politician
Lowell Lewis Clarifies 'A
Misrepresentation'
Dear Editor,
In the Montserrat Reporter of 17th August 2001, the article "GOM, Private
Sector Seen Working Hand in Hand" reported that I "took exception to
those who say Montserrat is heading for bankruptcy," and that I reported
"at least 73 government-private sector projects which are underway."
This was a misinterpretation of my presentation, and I therefore ask that you
publish this letter to clarify my position.
Firstly, my comment regarding bankruptcy was not a criticism of anyone,
since I too share the view that our present economic situation and the available
Aid Package make bankruptcy unavoidable. My comments were, rather, an
optimistic view of what must happen if we are to avert such a destiny.
I discussed items from a list of GOM-Private Sector collaborative activities,
some of which are in progress and some presently at the discussion phase, which
in my opinion have the potential to promote economic recovery . I assure
you that my presentation was based on documented facts and not, as suggested in
your editorial, "provocative, seemingly impossible and impulsive positions
and statements which are not well researched."
I was glad for the opportunity to once again attempt to convince DFID officials
that the Aid Package available is not sufficient to allow us to become
independent of Budgetary Aid by 2005, and to encourage them to bring back into
our programme the items that fell below the red line of our priority list. It
is my opinion that at least £40 million are needed for an Airport, Seaport,
Permanent Government Buildings and new road and infrastructure installations.
This is additional to housing and Budgetary Aid requirements.
Mr Editor, I call on your newspaper to maintain high standards of accuracy in
your articles and remind you that I am always available to share with the people
of Montserrat information about their business. The New PLM remains
united in our determination to exercise the mandate given to us, to improve the
quality of life for all residents.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Lowell Lewis
Minister of Communication and Works
(Editor's
Note: We acknowledge with regret reporting of the "at least 73
government-private sector projects which are underway." Dr. Lewis did not
make that presentation. We are
grateful for the clarification of his position regarding "Montserrat is
heading for bankruptcy," a position which we support, and agree that he was
presenting an optimistic view.
We ask the
minister, however, to confirm for us whether the rest of his colleagues support
his optimism and whether they are in accord with his views.
Accuracy is
the constant focus of the Montserrat Reporter as we try, within our constraints,
to present information for the well-being of Montserrat.)
'Very Quiet' Volcano Allows DTEZ Access
Although Dr. Peter Dunkley, Director of the
Montserrat Observatory (MVO), said soon after the July 29 ash fall that “since
the recent collapse of part of the volcano’s dome, activity is lower. Things
are very quiet at the moment,” it was not until Wednesday this week that
access to the Daytime Entry Zone was reopened.
The reason, according to a Government House Press
Release, was that roads in the DTEZ were impassable, and the Emergency
Department and the Public Works Department were inspecting them to determine how
to make them passable.
Richard Aspin, Press Officer at the Government
House, said the crews doing the cleanup in Old Town, Salem, Olveston were the
ones who would have to go into the DTEZ to clear the results of ash and erosion
by recent heavy rains.
The decision to reopen the DTEZ on Wednesday
followed a meeting of The Volcano Executive Group (VEG) on Monday. The VEG said
it would be open from Monday to Saturday (both days inclusive), from 6:00 a.m.
to 6:00 p.m. for as long as the level of volcanic activity remains at the
present level.
However, a release from the Government House
warns that if there is an increase in volcanic activity, “or a threat of heavy
rainstorms, the DTEZ which comprises Basham Ghaut, Cork Hill, Delvins, Weekes
Road, Elberton, Foxes Bay and Richmond Hill areas will be closed
immediately."
Only persons over the age of 16 are allowed entry
to the DTEZ, everyone should enter the zone by motor vehicle only, and ash masks
and a radio tuned to ZJB should be included.
Entrance to Plymouth and its environs is forbidden, and anyone found in these
areas could face possible arrest. In addition, the marine exclusion zone remains
in place.
Dr. Dunkley said a detailed analysis by MVO
scientists suggests that one third of the 150 million cubic meters of the dome was lost
in the recent collapse. If this can be substantiated, he said, it would have
been one of the largest collapses of the Soufriere Hills volcano to date.
Blakes Farmers Praise Improved
Access Roads
By
Helena Durand
The Department of Agriculture has won the
approval of farmers in upper Blakes for upgrading some 2,500 feet of road in
that area.
The roads, which were in a state of disrepair for
some time, were upgraded and compacted with a hard-core surface, offering
improved access to several farmers. Drains were also cleared.
The Ministry said upgrading of the road to Duck
Pond will soon be underway, as Blakes and Duck Pond “are two of the major
cropping areas” used by the farmers. Approximately EC$8,000 have been allocated to the projects.
The Duck Pond project, however, is on hold
because the ministry is awaiting the necessary equipment.
Meanwhile, Mr. James ‘Mountain Man’ Lee
expressed gratitude on behalf of Blakes area farmers to the Ministry of
Agriculture for the much-needed work done on the road.
“I’m praising them for the good work that
they have done. Tourists could come up here, people could come for a walk, and
you could just stroll along in the mountain, the beautiful part of the north,
which a lot of people do not know exists. So Agriculture, my hats are off to
you! Thank you because you have done a great job.”
Mr. Lee added that the improved road will be a
big help to farmers because they “could not get up here because the roads were so bad. It
(road) would mash-up all the springs on their vehicles, they were in a terrible
state. Your tyres were mashing-up. Now you have clear access. You can come to
the mountain and work when rain comes. That is what agriculture is all about.”
Bunkum Bay Claims 16-year-old Swimmer
By
Helena Durand
Sixteen-year-old Adrian Abrams died while
swimming at Bunkum Bay beach last Sunday. He was originally from Guyana.
His mother, Registered Nurse Mrs. Jean Gordon,
said, her son went to the beach every Sunday afternoon. This one was no
different, she said, except he chose to go to Bunkum Bay beach rather than the
usual Little Bay beach with some friends. Little did she realize that her
“don’t stay too long,” would be the last words she would say to him.
In about an hour and a half, policemen were
waiting to speak with her, “Once they told me that, I knew something bad had
happened to Adrian,” Mrs. Gordon said. The policemen informed her that there
had been an accident, and requested that she accompany them to the beach. On the
way she asked the female officer if the elder of her two sons was dead. When the
officer did not respond, she said, she knew he had died, “but when her eyes
filled with tears, I knew for sure.”
"He was a very good boy," she said.
He had just graduated, she said, and wanted to
become a doctor. He attained seven passes at the recently concluded Overseas
Examination Results and had been preparing to travel to Guyana to further his
education.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Simon Morson said
investigations reveal that when Adrian went to the beach he had put on snorkels
and gone swimming.
“He experienced some difficulties and a
fisherman nearby helped to remove him from the water," Mr. Morson said.
He said a fisherman from the area applied
resuscitation with no success. A doctor was called to the scene, where he was
pronounced dead. The body was taken to Antigua for a post mortem and is expected
to be returned for burial on Sunday.
Governor Longrigg Meets with
NGO’s
His Excellency Governor Anthony Longrigg met with representatives of Non-Government Organisations (NGO’s) at the Brades Pentecostal Church on Tuesday afternoon.
Governer Longrigg explains funding opportunities
At the meeting he informed the people of
available funding from his office for community-oriented projects.
He said his office is willing to look at
applications for funding, and can assist with filling out applications.
Projects which are encouraged are those requiring
less than EC$30,000; geared at raising the standard of living; promoting public
awareness on issues such as drug abuse, AIDS etc; training;
agriculture/environmental projects; media, and health and safety promotions.
The period for funding, the Governor said, runs
the same as the British Budget, from April to April.
UWI
Centre Contributes To Tertiary Education
By
Prof. Howard A. Fergus
The
local UWI Centre has been making a valuable contribution to tertiary education
in this island and doing so without fanfare.
A current example can be seen in the students who have completed the
first year of their university degree on island.
Following a work-and-study regime, three students, Arketa Duberry,
Darrell Herbert and Carla Fergus begin their on-campus university career this
month in the second year of their degree programme.
In other words, they are due to graduate in two years' time.
As a result they cost the island less and engage in productive work.
While
this is not entirely new, there is a significant difference this year.
Two of these students joined the programme directly following the
completion of Fifth Form. There was
no Sixth Form for obvious reasons and the UWI responded positively to our
request to grant these young students direct entry into the Distance Education
programme. The students performed well, chalking up passes at
respectable grades.
This
programme cannot replace the Sixth Form, especially because it does not cater to
the natural sciences. And in any
case we have no intention to compete with the Sixth Form.
Instead there should be room for co-operation in a Community College.
However, until the Sixth Form is reinstated, Fifth Formers with
appropriate passes who aspire to careers in the social sciences can make use of
the programme. The UWI authorities
have agreed to its extension, in consideration of our special circumstances.
Yet
another student, Miss Sarah SilcottK, has been offered entry into the final year
of her degree in Management Studies. This
is the first time this has occurred but it is not likely to be the last, for a
number of other students are pursuing second-year degree studies on island.
Indeed, at least one other student, Mrs. Elveta Chalmers of the Tourism
Department, is beginning the final year of her degree on island.
This is quite challenging because of inadequate library sources as well
as human resources in the form of local tutors.
Those
persons and institutions who have supported the programme and work of the
University Centre, including the Ministry of Education and DFID, which
contributed to the construction of the new teleconference facility, ought to be
pleased at the quality of the local output.
Last academic year, over 40 persons pursued Certificate, Diploma and
Degree-level courses locally with a success rate of over 60 percent passes.
Vacation Bible School Ends at Beulah Wesleyan
The Beulah Wesleyan Holiness Church Vacation
Bible School came to an end last Friday after one week.
Pastor Ruth Allen said it was the first of its
kind since the 1950’s but hoped it will become an annual feature.
Some 90 children ages 4 to 12 years attended. The
children were taught Bible lessons, arts and crafts, music and making items from
plaster of Paris.
Pastor Allen said the Vacation Bible School was
to promote spiritual health to the children, keep them busy, and assist busy
parents.
Caption for pics- arts & craft made by the
children; children singing theme song.
New Petrol Station Likely by
Next Year
A new petrol station could be operational on
Montserrat within the next year.
Manager of Delta Petroleum Mr. Jeff Novoa said
establishment of the station is being negotiated. It is to be set up just
outside the Salem area to serve nearby motorists who now have to travel to the
north for petrol from the island’s only filling station in Sweeney’s.
In an earlier interview with The Montserrat
Reporter, when talk of a new station was being bandied about, Mr. Alton Lindsey,
Manager of A and F Services, (the petrol station) in Sweeney’s, said, he did
not foresee another petrol station threatening his business. “Actually I
welcome it,” he said. “It means the people now have a choice.”
GoM-DFID Working Out Project
Bids for Approval
The Government of Montserrat and officials from
the Department for International Development (DFID, Montserrat and London) have
been working together over the past two weeks on a new round of housing
interventions on the island, a government press release said.
While government is reportedly disappointed with
the slow pace of project approval by DFID, the release states, “it welcomed
the opportunity to have open and friendly discussions on the way forward, and
the joint GoM-DFID teams are finalizing the submissions to assist the
presentation of the land and housing project to the Secretary of State for
approval."
According to the release, under the recently
approved Government of Montserrat Housing Strategy, Government has proposed a
number of projects over a five- to ten-year period, which is geared at
alleviating the housing shortage on the island due to the forced relocation of
residents and the destruction and or abandonment of houses because of volcanic
activities.
Three project documents addressed by the
Government and DFID were the Lookout II Servicing Projects, the Self-Build
Project addendum, and the Project Concept Note for the Housing Programme.
The Lookout II Servicing Project seeks to provide
infrastructure and services to a considerable number of lots in the Lookout
Area, which will be offered for sale to residents, to enable building of homes
and establishment of a limited number of businesses.
The Self-Build Project sets out the
specifications for the use of residual funds from the Soft Mortgage Scheme
(which is terminated), to provide a number of Materials Grants for persons on
the waiting list for such grants. This scheme is said to be popular among
residents seeking to rebuild. The
release states that the Government of Montserrat “is doing all in its power to
bring a new tranche of funds into this programme.”
The Housing Programme Concept Note sets out the
Government’s priorities for re-establishing comfortable, affordable, and
suitable housing for all its citizens; and provides the framework for the
development of further housing and land projects to meet the Government of
Montserrat’s housing goals over the next five years.
Robert Andrew, writer for GARGAMEL,
a United Kingdom magazine which features
reggae and urban music, has profiled Alphonsus "Arrow" Cassell,
extolling him as renowned ‘Soca’s Calypso King of the World.’
In a letter to the Montserrat Reporter, Mr.
Andrew said GARGAMEL “is one of the top-rated reggae and urban music magazines
in the United Kingdom and is currently distributed in Europe, US, Africa and the
Caribbean.”
He said the upcoming issue may include his review
of the album of Kelvin ‘Tabu’ Duberry and also the compilation put together
by Cepeke and friends from Festival 2000.
“So, as long as I’m involved, this magazine
could be a potential platform for the badly needed promotion of Montserratian
artists,” he said.
He encourages Montserratians with CDs to get a
copy to him along with some details about themselves and any significance of the
particular CD which they are sending.
His letter concluded, “I take this opportunity
to thank you and the Montserrat Reporter staff for a brilliant effort with
keeping Montserratians informed at home and abroad, both by print and through
the website.”
By Helena Durand
Nineteen year old Kenneth Robertson, originally
from St. Vincent was electrocuted on Friday 17 August, 2001 at about 7:00pm in
Salem.
His brother Mr. Eldon O’garro said they had
just come from work, and Kenneth was just coming from the shower when the
neighbor came to their house asking “me to send the tall boy (my brother) to
run two frogs for her because they were in front the door and she couldn’t get
in.”
He said his brother quickly threw some clothes
on, and ran without shoes to the neighbor’s aid.
He said it took less than two minutes before he
heard the lady screaming. He said his wife joked that the lady could not be
afraid of the frogs. But when he went out to her, and saw her distress, he went
to her house and found his brother lying on the ground.
“I call 911 and they came. The only mark on him
was a red line in his hand” Mr. O’garro said.
He said he was told that the lady, now free to
enter the house had done so, and then switched on the lights. He said she
explained that his brother who was outside, had picked up a line that was
running on the ground and asked her why was only one socket working, and he
fell.
Mr. O’garro said he and Kenneth, his youngest
brother, were very close. “That was the brother I love best. Anytime I go
away, I see something I know he would like, I bought it for him.”
The body of Kenneth Robertson was sent to Antigua
last Friday for the post mortem and returned on Saturday for burial.
Deputy Police Commissioner Mr. Simon Morson say
investigations are ongoing.
Fire Station at Brades Going Up on Schedule
Work is progressing smoothly on the construction
of a new fire station in Brades.
The station being built by T.K. Construction,
costs approximately $1 million. It is one of several projects announced recently by the
government, and is expected to boost the construction sector and the local
economy.
Manager of T.K. Construction Mr David Tuitt said
in a ZJB newscast, his company is pleased with the progress so far, and should
meet the deadline for completion.
“Right now we are two weeks ahead of
schedule," he said. "We’re expected to bring this building in by 20th
December, and hand over the keys. And I think right now we are pretty much on
schedule, trying to go as far as possible that just in case there is a slight
delay, it would not put me out too much."
He commended merchants for the availability of
materials, most of which, he said, were procured locally
He said the station will be a steel frame
building, with a concrete roof, for three fire tenders, offices and a cafeteria.
2 Montserratians Get Graduate
Scholarships
Government House in Montserrat has announced that
two new Montserratians will be attending university when the new British
academic year begins in late September, courtesy of British Council Chevening
Scholarships.
The students are Mrs. Lindorna Brade, Manager of
the Royal Montserrat Police Force, and Mr. Colin Meade, Crown Counsel in the
Attorney General’s Chambers.
Mrs. Brade will study for an M.Sc. in Financial
Management at the Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland, and Mr. Meade for a
Postgraduate course LL.M. in Commercial Law at Bristol University in the
southwest of England.
They will join earlier Chevening Scholars, Mr.
Levar Cabey and Miss Angela Estwick, both already studying in Britain.
The British Chevening Scholarships, funded by the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), enable overseas graduate students to
study in the United Kingdom. Shared funding scholarship arrangements with
commercial companies such as Cable & Wireless, universities, trusts, and
other appropriate organizations are an important part of the programme.
2 Permanent Secretaries
Exchange Ministry Posts
By
Helena Durand
Two Permanent Secretaries traded ministerial
posts on Monday last week.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of
Communications and Works Mr. Eugene Skerritt replaced Mr. Alric Taylor as the
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Health and Community Services,
and Mr. Taylor assumed Mr. Skerritt's previous position at the Ministry of
Communications and Works.
The reason behind the move has not been
established.
Mr. Taylor said he believes that a public servant
must serve to the best of one’s ability wherever one is transferred.
Mr. Skerritt said it is not unusual at their
levels in the Civil Service for permanent secretaries to transferred.
A source close to both ministries, however, said
the transfer could be for a number of reasons.
“It could be that the Minister in a ministry
prefers to work with someone else, or believes that it is time to have someone
with a different way of doing things in the post. The move itself is ok. It is
the timing that is wrong,” the source said.
Others believe that it is particularly hard for
permanent secretaries to adapt when they are removed from their ministries in
the middle of their programmes.
A source within the Civil Service explained that
with “Communications and Works heavy workload, particularly now as new
projects come on stream, and Education’s move with the college and everything,
they should have been allowed to complete their tasks before being transferred.
The timing is really questionable.
"Mr. Taylor has to now adapt himself with
matters of construction and other duties, while Mr. Skerritt has to start
ensuring which nurse or doctor assumes what post, when and where; and ensure
that PAHO programmes are attended. I also understand that neither PS has had
vacation leave for a while. So while it is not fair to think that something must
have gone wrong to transfer them, you must now start worrying about what will go
wrong, having added that kind of pressure on them.”
ECIB
Announces New Financial Services Course
Mr. Analdo Bailey, CEO of the Eastern Caribbean
Institute of Banking and Financial Services, has announced the start of the
ECIB/UWI Certificate in Basic Financial Services Practice in September 2001.
The programme forms part of the Caribbean
Association of Banking and Finance Institutes Associateship qualification, and
is open to Members of the Eastern Caribbean Institute of Banking and Finance
Services, or any affiliate Institute of the Caribbean institute of Banking and
Finance Institutes.
It will include the principles of Management
Information Organization; Elements of Accounting; Fundamentals of Management
Information Systems; Business Communication and the legal Environment of
Financial Service Practice. It is designed to equip participants with the
foundation knowledge and essential skills to fast-track their careers and
provide a comprehensive base of the financial service environment.
Antigua Soon to Reopen To
Guyana Farm Produce
Antigua and Barbuda is in the process of lifting
a ban on agricultural produce from Guyana.
C'ANA reports that Plant Protection Officer
Janille Gore-Francis said the two countries were currently fine-tuning a
protocol for produce to come from Guyanese farms that have been certified as
being free of the destructive Pink Mealy Bug.
Approved by the Caribbean Agricultural Research
and Development Institute (CARDI), in the region-wide fight against the pest,
the protocol includes the exportation-importation of produce from farms
certified as pest-free by both countries, washing of the produce, and the manner
in which the produce is transported to the points of export.
Antigua and Barbuda imposed a ban on agricultural
produce from Guyana around 1998 when the Pink Mealy Bug was spotted there,
costing Guyana its market for fresh fruits and vegetables.
Meanwhile on Montserrat, Director of Agriculture
Mr. Gerard Gray said the bug has been under control for the past two years.
“We are almost 99.5 percent free,” Mr. Gray
said, adding that Montserrat is in the early stages of exporting agricultural
produce to and through Antigua.
According to CANA, the Pink Mealy Bug has been
spotted in Antigua and Barbuda despite heavy vigilance and the banning of
agricultural imports from a number of other Caribbean Community (CARICOM)
countries where the pest was discovered.
Earlier this year, Antigua and Barbuda acquired
wasps from Trinidad and deployed them to the infested areas to fight the bug.
2 Nevis Parties Gird For Early Elections
Nevis,
CANA - The two political parties in Nevis are presenting opposing views on jobs
and the quality of life here as they prepare for next month's Nevis Island
Assembly elections.
Nevisians will go to the polls on September 7 to elect five members to the
Island Assembly for another five years.
Premier
Vance Amory told the islanders in a radio and television address that he had
decided to recommend the dissolution of Nevis Island Assembly (NIA) and to call
the elections ahead of the constitutional deadline of February next year.
Mr.
Amory informed the Prime Minister of the Federation of St Kitts and Nevis, Dr
Denzil Douglas, and Governor General Sir Cuthbert Sebastian.
Under
the existing constitution of the twin-island Federation, Nevis enjoys a great
deal of autonomy except in areas of internal and external security, elections,
and foreign affairs, which all fall under the federal government of St Kitts.
The Concerned Citizen Movement of Premier Amory
and the Nevis Reformation Party led by Joseph Parry have highlighted the same
issues on the campaign trail, but the two see them from different angles.
The issues include employment, infrastructural and economic development, and the
quality of life of the people of Nevis.
Mr. Amory says the CCM's campaign has been trying to dwell heavily on the
performance of the government and a party "which, through its policies and
programmes, has brought an improvement in the quality of life".
Mr. Parry, however, says the CCM had not created any jobs or done anything to
improve the quality of life of Nevisians.
Trio Charged with Murder Of Antiguan Police Officer
ST. JOHN'S, Antigua, CANA - Three young men were
charged last week with the shooting death of a senior police officer during an
attempted robbery of a shop almost a week earlier.
Police have also recovered two firearms that they suspect might have been used
in the killing of Inspector Almour Robins, 49, and the shooting injury of a taxi
driver.
Inspector Robins was off-duty and not uniformed when he was shot by a masked
gunman who attempted to rob the small retail shop at Martin's village on the
outskirts of the capital, St John's.
Police say that incident was the first time that a policeman was fatally gunned
down in the history of the Antigua and Barbuda police force.
Meanwhile, two 16-year-olds have been charged with aggravated robbery committed
on a taxi-driver last week.
Taxi-driver David Titus is still in hospital nursing gunshot wounds to his legs,
after he was ambushed by gunmen when he heeded a request to pick up the pregnant
mother of a young man.
St. Lucia Opposition Sent a Legal Threat
St. Lucia, CANA - St. Lucia's opposition party is
being threatened with legal action if it continues plans to contest the upcoming
general election under the banner of the National Alliance (NA) and transfer its
symbol, the torch, to the new grouping.
Attorney Martinus Francois, said in an Aug. 23 letter to leader of the United
Workers Party (UWP), Dr. Morella Joseph, that he was representing unidentified
"concerned members" from three of the party's 17 constituency
branches.
However, all three groups have distanced themselves from the action, saying they
fully approved the marriage of the UWP and the NA, as well as the use of its
symbol.
Dr. Joseph also announced Saturday that she had received the endorsement of all
17 branches to join the NA and transfer its symbol.
The new political grouping is headed by former foreign minister George Odlum,
who broke ranks with the ruling St. Lucia Labour Party (SLP) earlier this year.
Former UWP leader and Prime Minister Sir John Compton is the president and Dr.
Joseph, the vice president.
In his letter, Mr. Francois alleged that Dr. Joseph had "wrongfully,
unconstitutionally and unlawfully" entered into an agreement to promote
only the election of NA candidates when the party's constitution empowered it to
promote the election of candidates of the UWP.
"If you persist with this
illegality into the next general elections, my clients intend to apply to the
High Court for an injunction to restrain you," he added.
Bermuda Seizes Yacht When Drugs are Found
Bermuda, CANA - Bermuda police have been helping
with an international drugs investigation after a stricken yacht laden with half
a ton of cocaine was seized in the island.
It emerged last week that the yacht came into the
island over the two-day Cup Match holiday earlier this month from the Caribbean
to Spain, after its crew found the drugs aboard the yacht.
It was then impounded while police traced the ownership of the vessel. Sources
have said that Bermudan officers then took the drugs with them to Europe to
continue the investigation.
A police statement aid: "Following the arrival of a ship experiencing some
mechanical difficulty in Bermudan waters, it became apparent that some of the
crew may have been attempting to import large quantities of illegal drugs into
Europe.
"The Bermuda Police Service has been assisting British authorities in this
ongoing inquiry."
Barbados' New AG is Youngest,
First Woman
Compiled
from dispatches
Barbados, CANA - History was created in Barbados
Tuesday as Mia Amor Mottley began her first day in office as the first female
and youngest person to be Attorney General and Minister of Home Affairs at age
35.
Ms. Mottley, the scion of a Barbados political family, was tapped for the job by
Prime Minister Owen Arthur after it was announced that David Simmons, who held
the cabinet post previously, was quitting active politics and would possibly
take up the offer to be Chief Justice.
In that regard, Prime Minister Arthur said Monday
in a national broadcast that his invitation to Attorney General David Simmons to
become the next Chief Justice should not be cast in a cloak of impropriety.
"Let us handle this appointment ... when it becomes available, with
propriety, because we do in this country, I think, recognise that we have to
protect the propriety of the way in which our institutions function,
particularly in circumstances where there is a constitutional requirement for
propriety to be observed."
Ms. Mottley, the outgoing Education Minister,
will also take over as leader of Government Business in the House of Assembly.
Prime Minister Arthur said that in
due course there will be some changes to the Cabinet.
Suspected Counterfeiters Face New Antigua Charges
Antigua, CANA - Investigations were continuing
this week into a bogus money scam allegedly involving two nationals of St. Kitts
and Nevis, police said.
Ashworth Phillip and James Browne did not appear in court Monday, as had been
scheduled, and the police prosecution informed the court that more charges were
likely to be laid against them. The men were charged on Saturday with being in
possession of EC$5,000 (US$1,850) in $50 notes, forgery of the notes and
tendering them.
Assistant Police Commissioner Rolston Pompey said they also found in the men's
possession forged St. Kitts and Nevis driver's licenses.
Trinidad Mother Charged In
Infant's Vaginal Injury
Trinidad, CANA - A 20-year-old Trinidadian woman
awaits prosecution on a charge of doing grievous bodily harm to her 10-month-old
baby daughter.
The baby was rushed to a hospital on Sunday where it was discovered that a
plastic syringe had been inserted in her vagina, rupturing her hymen.
The tube was removed by doctors during emergency surgery. Authorities at the
Mount Hope Medical Sciences Complex said the baby was resting comfortably at the
children's ward.
It is alleged that the mother committed the act on the child because her husband
was paying more attention to the baby. One senior police officer said the woman
who was arrested at the hospital had shown no remorse.
Callers to radio programmes on Tuesday morning said the police should have
charged the mother with attempted murder.
Drug trafficking a big problem for Caribbean
By Pamela Gill
Barbados, CANA - Drug
trafficking in the Caribbean region rose sharply in 1999 and this is likely to
accelerate in the near future, the Caribbean Drug Control Coordination Mechanism
(CCM) said in a report released Wednesday.
In the 34-page report entitled "Drugs in the Caribbean Region 1999-2000
Trends", the Barbados-based CCM said the major impetus for the increase was
the dramatic rise in cocaine transhipments through the region.
"Cocaine trade represents 85
per cent of all income generated by drug trade in the Caribbean. Meanwhile,
marijuana, the drug of choice in the region - and the only illegal narcotic
substance
produced within the Caribbean - remained stable during the last year, accounting
for the remaining 15 per cent of Caribbean drug-related income," the report
said.
"The trafficking and
consumption of heroin, which have increased slightly during the last year,
combined with the emerging trade in amphetamine-type drugs, together account for
the less than one per cent of the total drug business in the region," it
added.
The CCM, the brainchild of the 1996
Regional Plan of Action for Drug Control Coordination and Cooperation, cited
glaring statistics to show the extent to which the Caribbean is being targeted
by drug smugglers.
It estimates that in 1999 alone,
about two-thirds of the total cocaine production which left South America for
world markets -- around 460 tonne was moved through the Caribbean.
In addition, about 45 per cent (170
tonnes) of the illegal drug entering the continental United States is believed
to have arrived through the Caribbean corridor, representing a 20 per cent
increase
on the 1998 figure.
"According to CCM estimates,
in 1999 more cocaine entered the U.S. through the Caribbean corridor than
through the Mexican border.
An additional 110 tonnes of cocaine crossed the Caribbean sea enroute to the
U.S. via Mexico and Central America," the report said.
"Meanwhile, about 75 per cent of the cocaine leaving South America for
European and other markets (175 tonnes) transited the Caribbean last year, hence
during 1999, the Caribbean strengthened
its position as the globe's biggest cocaine transit hub," it added.
The CCM, which began operations in 1997 and operates from the United Nations
Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) Regional Office, suggested there were three major
factors which have contributed to the rise in drug trafficking through the
Caribbean region.
In the first instance, potential cocaine manufacture in Colombia, one of the
biggest drug producing countries in the world, is estimated to have increased
tenfold in the past 10 years, making
it possible for local traffickers to have a ready supply of cocoa leaves.
Secondly, the CCM cited the steady growth of cocaine markets in Europe and
rising consumption among the 'noveaux riches' (new rich).
The third reason given for the increasing use of the Caribbean as a
transshipment point has to do with the realization that cocaine trafficking in
the U.S has been reorganized, making the Caribbean a
more attractive destination for the smuggling of illegal drugs. The CCM made it
clear, however, that while factors external to the Caribbean have largely
contributed to the drug problem, there
are certain features peculiar to the region which make it vulnerable to drug
traffickers and incidents of international crime.
These include weak economic and government structures, geographic location, poor
living conditions and the increasing dependence on tourism and financial
services which are vulnerable to
money laundering. "Shifts in preferred transportation methods have also
impacted Caribbean transshipment routes. By acting as flexible coalitions,
modern trafficking organizations have become more adaptive to changes in law
enforcement operations or other shifts in trafficking conditions," the
report said.
"They can maintain many possible routes, with readily available personnel
and equipment to mobilize when needed. Consequently, routes in the Caribbean sea
are no longer as clearly defined as they
have been in the past...."
Trinidad Marijuana Estimated in Billions
Trinidad,
CANA - The marijuana industry in Trinidad and Tobago last year generated
estimated revenues of TT$3.2 billion (US$516 million), according to a new study
by economists at the Policy Research and Development Institute (PRDI) of the
Tobago House of Assembly.
The
economists said the figure represents a 106-percent increase over figures
contained in a 1998 study.
The
study also revealed that only TT$1.69 billion were seized by law enforcement in
2000. According to the study, this implies that some TT$1.51 billion were
laundered into the formal economic system, thus providing financial resources
for a number of households,
business
houses and socio-political organisations.
The
first scientific study done in 1998 on the marijuana industry by Anselm
Richards, former Narcotics Officer and current Socio-Economic Analyst with the
PRDI, found that marijuana production, distribution and consumption generated an
estimated revenue of TT$ 1.5 billion.
According
to official police statistics, 2,820 persons were arrested for marijuana-related
offences last year, compared to 2,196 in 1998.
The
study found that of the 2,820 persons arrested, 74.1 percent were unemployed,
18.6 percent were unskilled, 1.5 percent were students and the remaining 5.8
percent comprised skilled and other professional workers; 94.5 percent were
males and 5.5 percent females, while 40.1 percent were under the age of 25 years
compared to 40 percent in 1998.
Mr.
Richards said the scourge of drugs trafficking and consumption of marijuana
continued to surface as critical problems affecting the school system in 2000.
Securities Exchange Certification Goes On
Twenty-six participants from a total of 10
organisations in Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia,
St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Barbados have completed the first stage of
the licensing process for the Eastern Caribbean Securities Market (ECSM).
Thirteen of the 15 persons who sat the licensing examinations as broker-dealer
representatives for the securities market were successful, the Eastern Caribbean
Central Bank (ECCB) release stated.
Another 13 persons who sat similar examinations
for certification as principals of broker-dealer firms were all successful, the
bank added.
The licensing examinations were held in July following certification workshops.
The second in the series of certification workshops will take place at the ECCB
headquarters in September, with the workshop for prospective principals being
held from September 10 to 12, and that for representatives from September 10 to
14.
The Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange (ECSE)
is expected to begin trading in October 2001, by which time at least five of the
eight member states should have enacted the Securities Legislation.
Fishermen filing injunction
Antigua, , CANA -
Antigua and Barbuda fishermen are preparing to
file an injunction against the government, a spokesman said Wednesday, last
w.eek
The injunction is to restrain government from dredging a cruise-ship harbour and
dumping the material into the Caribbean sea until an environmental impact
assessment (EIA) is done.
They say the operation is likely to destroy lobster and fish grounds. Dumped
material could also eventually reach the beaches, cauising damage, the fishermen
said.
Spokesman for the Antigua and
Barbuda Fishermen's Alliance (ABFA), Brian Nunes, said preliminary legal advice
indicates that if the dumping and dredging goes ahead as planned, government
will
violate the 1972 London Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by
Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter.
The St Lucia-based Caribbean Environmental Health Institute (CEHI) said that an
EIA of the proposed dumping site will be very expensive but desirous. The site
is 1,500 to 1,800 feet deep, off
the continental shelf about 13 miles west of the Antigua capital, St John's.
Out of a US$22 million loan from the Republic Bank of Trinidad, government will
be spending US$8 million to dig the 30 foot harbour by another five feet to
accommodate larger cruise ships by October of this year. Failure to meet that
deadline would lead to a 40 per cent reduction in the number of port calls by
cruise ships.
The ABFA, an umbrella organisation for at least six associations, argues that
the proposed dumping site of the 1.6 million cubic metres of material is one of
their prime fishing
grounds and very close to lobster banks.
The ABFA wants an EIA to consider, among other things, current and tidal
movements such as the possibility of groundswell tides between October and April
washing up the material from the dump site on to beaches.
"There is a possibility that this material can end up on our beaches and so
damage our tourism industry, which is the said industry that we are trying to
promote," Nunes said.
"Once it is dumped there, there is no control over it and so that is why we
prefer the material to be dumped on land. Previous dumping on land was done
wrong and so that is why the west coast of
Antigua is damaged," he added.
A Comparative Risk Assessment done by the Ministry of the Environment states
that the dumping of the material is impossible because of conflicts with
alternative land use for disposal of solid
and liquid waste, limited land space, risk of coastal eco-systems being further
degraded, health risk in densely populated areas as well as flooding.
CEHI, which is an affiliate of the 15-nation Caribbean Community (CARICOM),
agrees with the Antigua and Barbuda government that conducting an EIA will be
expensive but said it is the better option before dumping the material into the
Caribbean sea.
"It is generally desirable to conduct of an EIA.... Apparently, the
procedure is very, very expensive but not at all impossible," CEHI told
CANA.
Antigua Offers OECS New
Intelligence Base
Compiled
from dispatches
Antigua, CANA -- Antigua and Barbuda is offering
the rest of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) its high-tech
drugs and financial intelligence units.
The offer was made at the official opening of the Office of National Drugs and
Money Laundering Control Policy (ONDMLCP) at Camp Blizzard, the base of the
Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force (ABDF).
"Its use for that purpose would not only benefit the OECS countries, but
the international community as a whole whose law enforcement agencies could
share information on the basis of negotiated information-exchange
agreements," Prime Minister Lester Bird said in his feature address last
week.
"I offer to make this a facility available to the OECS should its
governments be interested in a central location for gathering and sharing
information."
Built at a cost of EC$2.8 million (US$1.036
million), the ONDMLCP is fitted with computers and other equipment provided by
the United States that gives it the capacity to operate as a central financial
intelligence unit for the OECS countries.
The U.S. government allocated US$250,000 to help lay the administrative
foundation and study of the idea when it was first mooted by Prime Minister
Bird.
"I would like to note that at the Prime Minister's urging, and that of his
ACCP (Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police) and RSS (Regional
Security System) colleagues, we have identified start-up funding to put such a
project underway."
"Moreover, we are seeking a long-term funding commitment on this worthwhile
concept from the US Congress," acting U.S. Ambassador to the OECS Roland
Bullen said in remarks at the opening
The OECS is made up of the British dependencies of Anguilla, British Virgin
Islands, and Montserrat, along with the independent nations of Antigua and
Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Vincent and
the Grenadines.
Under one centralised location, the state-of-the-art ONDMLCP will be manned
24-hours by defence force, coast guard, police, immigration and customs
officials as part of a sophisticated regional and international spy-network on
money-launderers and drug traffickers.
The facility, construction of which
was also supported by Britain and Canada, will help work with local agencies in
reducing demand for drugs.
The Antigua and Barbuda leader also announced that his country would work more
closely with the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) in helping other
countries in the region to be removed from the money-laundering black-lists of
the France-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and countries in North
America and Europe.
Drug Trafficking Grows As
Caribbean Problem
Compiled
from dispatches
Drug
trafficking in the Caribbean region rose sharply in 1999 and is likely to
accelerate in the near future, the Caribbean Drug Control Coordination Mechanism
(CCM) said in a report released in Barbados last week.
The 34-page report, entitled "Drugs in the Caribbean Region 1999-2000
Trends," said the major impetus for the increase was the dramatic rise in
cocaine trans-shipments through the region.
"Cocaine trade represents 85 percent of all income generated by drug trade
in the Caribbean. Meanwhile, marijuana, the drug of choice in the region - and
the only illegal narcotic substance produced within the Caribbean - remained
stable during the last year, accounting for the remaining 15 percent of
Caribbean drug-related income," the report said.
In Trinidad, meanwhile, the CCM's report of stable marijuana use was
contradicted by a current local report. Accordiing to a new study by economists
at the Policy Research and Development Institute (PRDI) of the Tobago House of
Assembly, the marijuana industry in Trinidad and Tobago last year generated
estimated revenues of TT$3.2 billion (US$516 million), a 106-percent increase
over figures contained in a 1998 study.
The
study also revealed that only TT$1.69 billion were seized by law enforcement in
2000. According to the study, this implies that some TT$1.51 billion were
laundered into the formal economic system, thus providing financial resources
for a number of households,
business
houses and socio-political organisations.
According
to official police statistics, 2,820 persons were arrested in Trinidad and
Tobago for marijuana-related offences last year, compared to 2,196 in 1998.
Nevertheless,
cocaine is a growing problem. The CCM, the brainchild of the 1996 Regional Plan
of Action for Drug Control Coordination and Cooperation, estimates that in 1999
alone, about two-thirds of the total cocaine production which left South America
for world markets -- around 460 tons -- was moved through the Caribbean.
In addition, about 45 per cent (170 tonnes) of the illegal drug entering the
continental United States is believed to have arrived through the Caribbean
corridor, representing a 20-percent increase on the 1998 figure.
"Meanwhile, about 75 percent of the cocaine leaving South America for
European and other markets (175 tons) transited the Caribbean last year, hence
during 1999, the Caribbean strengthened its position as the globe's biggest
cocaine transit hub," it added.
Banana Industry Told Subsidies
on Way Out
Compiled
from dispatches
Dominica, CANA - Dominica's Finance Minister,
Ambrose George, has urged banana growers to face up to the realities of the
adjustments which have to be made in the banana sector for it to survive.
Addressing a group of farmer representatives this week, Mr. George said the main
supporters of the banana industry, the European Union, no longer wants the
banana industry to be treated like a "social club," depending on
government subsidies.
Mr. George said given the importance of irrigation to improving banana yields,
some EC$16 million (US$5.92 million) has been allocated by the EU for irrigation
projects, since the level of productivity needed to make the banana industry
viable cannot be achieved without irrigation.
Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister Vince Henderson
has assured banana farmers that further financial assistance is on the way, and
asked the growers to give government time to work out mechanisms to draw down EU
funds.
Mr. Henderson told a meeting of farmers' representatives on Monday that
government was working on an EC$500,000 (US$185,000) and another EC$700,000
(US$259,000) tranch to provide farmers with the necessary production inputs to
get them back to the fields.
Trinidad/Tobago Plans Regional Drug Initiative
Trinidad, CANA - Approximately 32 persons from
various Caribbean countries will attend a one-week training programme in
Trinidad on drug reduction from Monday, September 3.
The training programme is part of the Caribbean Conference of Churches' (CCC)
regional Drug Demand Reduction Programme which has been organised in conjunction
with the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP).
As the implementing agency for the programme, the CCC said it hopes to achieve
two main objectives -- to heighten the awareness of the extent and effects of
illegal drug use amongst youths aged 13 to 19, with a specific focus on
marijuana and cocaine; and to create a cadre of skilled anti drug campaigners in
the targetted islands, and by extension, develop a database and active network
of anti drug campaigners across the region.
Sessions will also impart skills in the
"training of trainers." Participants in this training programme will
be from Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St.
Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.
UN Session on Children To Include, Hear Children
Trinidad,
CANA - More than 100 children will serve as delegates at next month's landmark
United Nations General Assembly Special Session on Children, UN officials
announced Monday.
This
is the first time such large numbers of young people will actively participate
in deliberations at a major United Nations conference, they said.
"It
may seem like common sense to invite young people to a conference completely
dedicated to their well-being. But this is a radical change for such
high-level meetings," said Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United
Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Secretariat for the Special Session.
"Children
will literally be rubbing shoulders with presidents and prime ministers. They
will have a chance to voice their concerns and influence the debate."
To
date, 113 individuals under the age of 18 have registered to take part in the
Special Session, 34 of them as members of government delegations and 79 as
members of NGO delegations.
Taiwanese Premier To Visit Dominica
Dominica,
CANA - The Premier of the Republic of China on Taiwan, Chang Chun-Hsiung, will
lead a 54-member delegation to Dominica week, the Taiwanese Embassy here
announced.
The
visit, scheduled for September 4 to 5, is the first for the Taiwanese Premier,
and is part of Taiwan's four-island tour to Eastern Caribbean allies, including
St. Kitts-Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada.
Dominica
has had diplomatic relations with Taiwan since 1983, and has enjoyed economic
and cultural benefits from the Taiwanese Government, while successive Dominican
governments have given strong support to Taipei in the international arena,
including that
country's
bid for membership in the United Nations.
On
his one-day trip to Dominica, Premier Chang will be accompanied by the Taiwan
Minister of Transportation and Communications, Yeh Chu-Lan; Minister of Overseas
Chinese Affairs Commission, Dr Chang Fu-Mei; Chairman of the Council of
Agriculture, Dr Chen Hsi-Huang; Director General of Government Information
Office, Su Tzen-Ping, other government officials, business leaders and
journalists.
U.S. Lifts Restrictions On
Antigua Finances
LONDON- The United States Government has lifted
its financial advisory imposed on Antigua and Barbuda in April 1999.
The US Treasury Department informed Antigua and Barbuda's Senior Ambassador, Sir
Ronald Sanders, by letter that the Advisory was lifted as of 21st August.
Ambassador Sanders praised the "vision and courage" of Antigua
and Barbuda's Prime Minister Lester Bird for "spearheading the
Government's resolve to ensure that Antigua and Barbuda's anti-money laundering
regime meets the highest international standards."
He pointed out that this is "a triple achievement for Mr. Bird's efforts.
Antigua and Barbuda was recognised by the Financial Action Task Force as a
fully cooperative jurisdiction against money laundering, the United
Kingdom Government lifted its financial advisory on 16th July and now the
United States has recognised the considerable reforms that the Antigua and
Barbuda government has made."
The U.S. notice to banks and other financial institutions in the United States
that the advisory is lifted said:
"Because of the enactment of new laws and the beginning of effective implementation,
enhanced scrutiny with respect to transactions involving Antigua and
Barbuda is no longer necessary.. The advisory regarding Antigua and
Barbuda is hereby withdrawn".
OECS Regional Judges Now Bound
by Ethics Code
St. Lucia, CANA - Judges of the Eastern Caribbean
Supreme Court are now bound by a Code of Judicial Ethics, according to a
statement Saturday from the Secretariat of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean
States (OECS).
The code was formally declared to be in force and published during the first of
two judicial workshops held in St. Lucia, which were attended by the region's
judges, masters,
magistrates and registrars.
Chief Justice Sir Denis Byron said the code was essentially a written and
published document containing the principles that have governed judicial conduct
in the past.
He said that a written code removed any possible ambiguity about those
principles in the mind of judges and informed the public about the standard of
conduct they were entitled to receive from the judiciary.
The first workshop also elected a Judicial Council to continue the justice
reform currently taking place in the Eastern Caribbean. It comprises the Chief
Justice, two Judges, two Magistrates, two Registrars and one Master.
BOOK
ON CARIBBEAN ADULT LEARNING LAUNCHED
Kingston,
Jamaica
The
Caribbean Council on Adult Education (CARCAE) and the Institute of Education of
the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
have launched a book on adult education, titled, "Adult Education in the
Caribbean at the Turn of the 21st Century."
The
book was launched during a special Plenary session of the 6th World Congress of
the International Council on Adult Education (ICAE), which closed at the
Renaissance Jamaica Grande Hotel in Ocho Rios, St. Ann on August 11.
Pat
Ellis and Angela Ramsay, two of the leading consultants in the field of
Caribbean adult education, are authors of the book, which is the first in a
series of scholarly publications on adult learning.
Among
the highlights of the book are an historical overview of Caribbean adult
education and the work of CARCAE; and the ongoing work in respect of that
organization and other interests as well as the relationship between the work
being done in the Caribbean and with external organizations, as it relates to
the objective of lifelong learning for all.
Ms.
Ellis, who is based in Barbados, told the session that the Caribbean "had a
lot to offer the world" in terms of expertise and experience in the field
of adult education but emphasized the need for greater effort in documenting
this resource.
The
Special Plenary session, which focused on the Caribbean was also attended by
delegates from non-Caribbean member states of the ICAE. The Ocho Rios conference
drew more than 70 participants from some 53 countries and territories.
The
session was also used to announce the impending publication of the second book
in the series, titled "Adult Education in Caribbean Universities." The
publication is due in October of this year and will feature submissions by
leading Caribbean intellectuals and experts in the field of adult education,
including Prof. Rex Nettleford, Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West
Indies.
The
four-day conference discussed a wide range of issues, including, increased
access to adult learning as well as the relationship between globalization and
gender and adult learning.
Europeans want no "social club" image
Dominica, CANA - Dominica's Finance Minister,
Ambrose George, has urged banana growers to face up to the realities of the
adjustments which have to be made in the banana sector for it to survive.
Addressing a group of farmer
representatives this week, George said the main supporters of the banana
industry, the European Union, no longer wants the banana industry to be treated
like a "social club", depending on government subsidies.
"They are now saying to us that for the new regime, as far as the
privatisation and commercialisation of the industry is concerned, we have to now
divorce the banana industry as an entity from the social aspects; in other words, it's no longer a social club," he
said.
George was referring to meetings held with EU officials in St. Vincent and the
Grenadines and in Barbados last month where there was a successful bid for the
release of an interim EC$1.5 million earmarked for the industry, the overall credit programme is seeking to address
the general situation of rural development.
He said given the importance of the irrigation to
improving banana yields, some EC$16 million (US$5.92 million) has been allocated
for irrigation projects, since the level of productivity needed to make the
banana industry viable cannot be achieved without irrigation.
Jamaica Police Confident Despite 15 New Killings
Jamaica,
CANA - Jamaica's police force maintains that criminals are not in control of the
country, despite a wave of crime at the weekend in which 15 people were killed.
Two
of the killings were done by police, who said they shot David Campbell, 21, and
Rick Newman, 20, of Kingston.
Police
have killed 92 people since the start of the year.
Despite
the murder toll's rising to 656 up to Sunday night, the Constabulary
Communication Network (CCN) says that the police are still in charge.
CCN
spokesman, Inspector Victor George Henry, said "there are too many illegal
guns on the street. We must get in the guns if we are going to seriously address
the problems of crime and violence. The police are working, but they cannot be
everywhere."
The
latest death toll in the areas put the official fatalities at 35 since political
factions of the ruling People's National Party and the opposition Jamaica Labour
Party came head to head in confrontation almost two months ago.
Since
then, there has been regular confrontation between rival political sides, which
has left several persons homeless due to fire and forced others to move to other
areas.
Opposition
Leader Edward Seaga, who is Member of Parliament for West Kingston, said Monday
that it would take at least J$1 million (US$22,000) to provide for those who
have suffered at the hands of arsonists. He said there is a need to get the
fleeing residents back into their homes.
Mr.
Seaga participated in a historic peace meeting with Prime Minister P.J.
Patterson and members of the private sector last Friday seeking ways of
preventing more mayhem in the area.
Antigua PM to Press OECS on Informatics
Antigua, CANA - Antigua and Barbuda's Prime
Minister Lester Bird is seeking to ensure that members of the Organisation of
Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) become better acquainted with the modern trends
in information dissemination and data transfer.
Mr. Bird has been given responsibility for developing the informatics industry
in the sub-regional grouping.
Antigua's Government Information Service (GIS)
reports that a new Information and Technology (IT) Center, soon to be
commissioned in Antigua, is a "first-of-its-kind" computer training
center, and the brainchild of the Antiguan prime minister.
Mr. Bird's initiative reportedly received strong support from the governments of
the countries he has visited so far.
Antigua will host a major computer conference in November following the opening
of the IT center in October. Delegates from around the world are expected to
attend.
"Informatics is the way the world is going now," Mr. Bird said. "We are now in the era of high speed data transfers and other technological advances in the computer age, and Antigua and Barbuda and the rest of the OECS must of necessity become a part of this army of information movers, if we are to stay on par with the rest of the world.".
ZURICH, Aug 22, CANA - August rankings of
Caribbean Football Union (CFU) teams as they appear on the FIFA Coca Cola world
rankings released Wednesday.
1 Trinidad & Tobago (32)
2 Jamaica (52)
3 Cuba (77)
4 Haiti (83)
5 Barbados (106)
6 St Vincent & the Grenadines (128)
7 St Kitts and Nevis (129)
8 St Lucia (130)
9 Grenada (132)
10 Suriname (142)
11 Antigua & Barbuda (152)
12 Dominica (158)
13 Cayman Islands (160)
14 Bermuda (161)
14 Dominican Republic (161)
16 British Virgin Islands (164)
17 Guyana (178)
18 Netherlands Antilles (179)
19 Bahamas (183)
20 Aruba (186)
21 Anguilla (194)
22 Puerto Rico (196)
23 US Virgin Islands (198)
24 Turk & Caicos Islands (200)
25 Montserrat (203)
By
Peter Adrien
Why
shouldn’t Antigua be allowed to play regional cricket as a separate entity?
For that matter, why shouldn’t any of the Windward or the Leeward Islands seek
separate status if it is capable of sustaining the responsibility that is
involved?
Well,
up to the time of writing, the Antigua Cricket Association Inc. (ACA) had not
altered its intention to participate in 2001 Red Stripe Bowl Competition as a
separate entity, despite a recent resolution of the Leeward Islands Cricket
Association (LICA) that would require them to participate as part of a combined
Leeward Islands team. A 24-man squad has already been called up for training.
At
the LICA regular General Meeting held in Anguilla on August 18, a motion was
passed "not to allow Antigua to accept the invitation from the West Indies
Cricket Board Inc. (WICB), to field a separate team in the Red Stripe
Bowl." LICA voted for two teams (i) Leeward Islands East (Antigua,
Montserrat, and Combined Virgin Islands) and (ii) Leeward Islands West (St.
Kitts, Nevis and Anguilla), both representing LICA in the competition.
The
ACA representatives, John Maginley and Zorol Barthley, voted in favour of the
ACA's accepting the said invitation from the WICB. Enoch Lewis, the ACA’s
President, was also in attendance as LICA’s representative to the WICB.
The
new WICB boss, Wes Hall, indicated that at the WICB's meeting of 21 July
the
LICA representatives (Enoch Lewis and Carlisle Powell), advised that the winner
of the Leeward Islands one-day tournament -- Antigua -- would be the
"individual" team and a "rest" team would compete in the Red
Stripe Bowl 2001. The Board accepted the proposal as put forward by the two LICA
representatives. Because the Windward Islands could not devise a mechanism by
which they could transparently select an individual island, arrangements have
been made to have a "Windward Islands North" and a "Windward
Islands South" team for the competition. Hall stressed that this is a
"one off' situation.
This
is not the first time that Antigua has sought to play as a separate entity. They
have entertained the idea since the 1980’s, when they had several players on
the West Indies Test team. They unsuccessfully applied to the WICBC for similar
status at first-class level in the 1980’s. They played as a separate entity at
the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia in 1998 after receiving clearance from the
WICB; they applied for separate inclusion in the 2000 Red Stripe Bowl. The move
has been supported by Sir Vivian Richards, Anderson Roberts and Richie
Richardson; all are great West Indian cricketers and intelligent cricketing
brains.
Some
of Antigua’s antagonists condemn the move claiming that they are not the true
Champions of the LIAT Leeward Islands Championship, having only won it in 2001,
after the tournament was dominated by Nevis from 1996 to 2000. They also claim
that Antigua’s opponents were decimated by the absence of key players. But
they were also without some of the key players.
Should
the WICB give the green light for Antigua to play all regional tournaments (not
just the 2001 Red Stripe Bowl) as a separate entity, the decision could have
very significant developmental implications.
First,
it could awaken interest in the game in the respective territories, influencing
the development of sporting infrastructure and that of ancillary activities,
particularly tourism and construction; attracting many more young people to a
popular and high-paying sporting activity, and creating opportunities for the
private sector to take advantage of franchising and merchandising.
Second,
the cancer of the small island cricket has been poor administration. The
political tribalism and power brokering that have characterised Non-Governmental
Organizations (NGO’s) and other voluntary groups have been perennial
impediments to organizational development. And cricket and soccer have been
victims of that backward business culture and practice.
Third,
the intense competition that is likely to result among the northern cricketing
countries may very well be the necessary condition for triggering the desired
functional development approach to cricket and sport tourism. We must be careful
that we don’t allow our hearts to choose our actions and lose the benefits
that could be derived if we allow our heads to decide our action.
Whether
the WICB gives the ACA the clearance to play as a separate entity or bows to
sectoral politics and refuses the right to participate, the developments in the
tourist island must not be perceived as a reflection of a parochial disposition
on the part of the Antiguans.
After
all, the intellectual position that the cricketing public in the other
cricketing countries assume on the issue will obviously be influenced by the
longstanding territorial rivalry amongst the Leeward Islands, particularly, St.
Kitts and Nevis. This rivalry has sometimes triggered emotional outburst between
sections of the populations in other spheres of activity.
Although
few will confess or even entertain that fact, the behaviour of the residents of
the other territories (Anguilla, Monsterrat, Nevis and St. Kitts) towards
residents of Antigua and Barbuda reflects a counter-response to the perceived
(real or imagined) “superior” or “cocky” posture of the Antiguan
population.
The
WICB, however, is committed to its development programme and to expanding
regional tournaments despite its financial difficulties.
And
this is good news for West Indies cricket!
Peter
Adrien is an author, a syndicated sports analyst and freelance photographer. He
can be contacted via E-mail: Adriens@caribsurf.com
PHOTO
CAPTION: Enoch Lewis, ACA President (Photo: Peter Adrien)
Some Anniversaries are Celebrated, While Others are Bitter Reminders
By J.
Donald Brandt
Everyone has anniversaries, and most are joyful.
Not all of them are. This past June, my wife and I happily celebrated the
seventh anniversary of our becoming full-time residents of this incomparable
island. Come October, we will defy current statistical odds by celebrating our
47th wedding anniversary.
So, two out of three isn't bad. But the third,
which we share with far too many hundreds of Montserratians and fellow expats,
is a common source of frustration and unhappiness. In July, it was four years
since all of us were forced to quit our homes in Cork Hill, Delvins, Richmond
Hill, Weekes and surrounding areas.
Too many of the Montserratians among us were
forced to move abroad, where most remain today. The rest of us found alternative
housing in the "safe north," where we remain today. And the houses we
had to leave remain standing, assets slowly deteriorating because of neglect
enforced by the idiotic insistence that on a British volcanic island, at least,
life simply must be risk free.
If this were Sicily, and the volcano in the
Soufriere Hills were the Etna that has been notoriously active for centuries,
most of us still here would have spent much of the past four years living in our
own houses.
If this island were Japanese, where a volcano
similar to this one has been active at the same time as ours, we would have
spent much of the past four years, if not all, living in our own houses.
But this volcanic island is neither Sicilian nor
Japanese. It is a British dependency, with no recent seismic history on which to
rely beyond what the Seismic Research Unit of the University of the West Indies
had learned in years of monitoring. Even that limited familiarity and the most
knowledgeable SRU scientist were soon cast aside. After a brief interval in
which the Montserrat Volcano Observatory was ostensibly operated
"jointly" by the SRU and the British Geological Society, the island
was turned into a British educational laboratory in which our personal lives and
fortunes were offered in jeopardy to teams of unblooded scientists and
learn-while-you-earn graduate students.
Their only mandate, apparently, was never to err
except on the side of caution. Most of them deserve gold stars, because they
never do.
Such official timidity seems totally inconsistent
in heirs of a people who once boasted an empire so vast the sun never set on it.
A venerable and still-active British journalist,
W.F. Deedes, recently wrote in The Daily Telegraph:
"There is no such thing as an accident or a
mishap these days. Someone must have blundered, and, and so heads must roll.
. . . Our own inner philosophy has undergone a change. We find it harder
to take in stride the blows that life suddenly delivers. Science replacing
religion has something to do with it. In our homes, in the air, on road and
rail, we expect modern devices to afford us protection against life's
hazards."
My wife and I are not the only dispossessed
people on Montserrat who have pleaded in vain our willingness to legally excuse
the British and Montserrat governments of any responsibility for our safety and
well-being, if only we could return to our still-livable houses.
Our "protectors," of course, respond
that although the past four years may not have produced any life-threatening
events in our neighborhoods, the volcano inflicted tremendous amounts of ash on
them.
That is quite true, as many of us found when we were allowed, after months of
exclusion, to re-enter those areas and see for ourselves. Indeed, we found
burdensome deposits of ash on roofs and the general landscape. That was a direct
result of our months of exclusion from our homes.
Before we were forced to leave Foxes Bay in the
first step of Britain's clear intent to evacuate the entire island, we had
regularly coped successfully with ash falls far greater than any that have since
frustrated and appalled residents of Salem, Olveston and Old Towne.
Many of us resident expats remember that there is
at least one functionary in the island's British bureaucracy who considers all
of us wealthy and undeserving of official concern. Laughably, that is not the
case for most of us, who do not have second vacation homes elsewhere or languish
part of the year in Tuscany or Majorca. A lot of us live on fixed budgets.
In some retirement communities in the United
States one can see a bumper sticker on the luxury automobiles or recreational
vehicles of elderly retirees. Intended as humor, it reads: "We are spending
our children's inheritance."
At our house, after four years of paying rent while being denied the right to live in a home we own outright, that intended jest doesn't e
