Daily Archive: Sunday, March 27, 2011

NEW DELHI, (Reuters) – A tiny north Indian city has  overnight become a hottest tourist destination, drawing Prime  Ministers, corporate czars, showbiz celebrities and passionate  fans for what is touted as the “mother of all cricket contests”.

JOHANNESBURG, (Reuters) – The pressure of the  “chokers” tag caught up with South Africa and caused them to  lose composure in their shock World Cup quarter-final defeat by  New Zealand, coach Corrie van Zyl said on Sunday.

MUMBAI, (Reuters) – World Cup fever struck India  seriously the moment it became apparent that the co-hosts would  meet Pakistan in the second semi-final in Mohali this Wednesday.

MUMBAI, (Reuters) – Captain Shahid Afridi has  brought aggression and leadership to the Pakistan team at just  the right time, senior batsman Misbah-ul-Haq said on Sunday.

DAMASCUS, (Reuters) – President Bashar al-Assad,  facing the gravest crisis in his 11-year rule, deployed the army  in Syria’s main port of Latakia for the first time after nearly  two weeks of protests spread across the country.

(Trinidad Express) Assistant Commissioner of Police Fitzroy Fredericks last night called for the immediate removal of chairman of the Police Service Commission Nizam Mohammed over racial statements Mohammed made on Friday.

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State  Hillary Clinton today ruled out the United States getting  involved in Syria in the same way as it has in Libya for now,  saying in a TV interview that each Arab uprising was unique.

The firestorm of criticisms in both Jamaica and Barbados over allegations of finger-raping of a Jamaican woman at the Grantley Adams Airport in Bridgetown is clear indication that all is not well with Caricom.

(Jamaica Observer) Shanique Myrie, the Jamaican woman who complained of being finger-raped and humiliated by Barbadian immigration authorities earlier this month, has hit back at claims by the Barbadian Government that she was not subjected to a body cavity search.

(Jamaica Gleaner) Thousands of Caribbean teachers who were lured to the United States with promises of better-paying jobs, improved educational opportunities, housing assistance, and the path to permanent residency are crying foul, claiming that they are victims of victimisation.

TOKYO, (Reuters) – Workers were withdrawn from a  reactor building at Japan’s earthquake-wrecked nuclear plant today after potentially lethal levels of radiation were  detected in water there, a major setback for the effort to avert  a catastrophic meltdown.

VATICAN CITY, (Reuters) – Pope Benedict called today for the “suspension of the use of arms” in the Libya  crisis and expressed concern for civilian populations, an appeal  that appeared to include the use of outside force.

Is it legitimate for governments to receive gifts from companies that have been awarded contracts?

The main plot remains unresolved as it relates to who will lead the PPP into this year’s general election, but an intriguing sub-plot has developed regarding who will be joining the electoral slate as the prime ministerial candidate.

(Barbados Nation) There is no truth to a report by a Jamaican woman who claimed she was finger-searched before being denied entry into Barbados last week.

The misuse of the state media and obstacles to voter registration are “major concerns” in the run up to this year’s general elections, the main opposition PNCR has told a visiting UNDP mission.

A Guyanese man, who admitted that he is a drug user, was earlier this month acquitted of a number of criminal charges after Canadian Judge Valerie Culp found that there were many holes in the complainant’s story and that his testimony was more believable.

For most of his young life Renaldo Parris has worked, fought hunger and slept on the streets with nowhere to turn.

Relatives of a New Amsterdam taxi driver who was beaten to death almost one year ago and dumped in a Corentyne canal, believe that several clues were overlooked leading to the police making “a mess of the case,” which is now at a standstill.

A burglar who was allegedly found standing near the open back door of a Mandela Avenue residence was killed early yesterday morning by an occupant of the house who repeatedly struck him on the head with a piece of wood.

No decision has been made on vendors facing removal from the La Penitence Market and some of them are still awaiting a meeting with President Bharrat Jagdeo that was supposed to be held a month ago.

Although an isolated village, Mocha-Arcadia has many modern amenities that residents in the city are accustomed to.

Introduction Last year when the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry published its annual report for 2009 Business Page interrupted its series on the state-owned Guyana Sugar Corporation.

Police have released an ex-employee of the Correia Mining Company’s security service on station bail, after questioning him about the fatal armed robbery at Ogle Airport last Monday, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud has said.

Given the fractured and dislocated conditions of our history in this region, Caribbean people have had a hard climb up the ladder of self-worth.

Rain forests are rich in biodiversity and are home to many different plants and animals.

The PNCR has not officially launched its election campaign but presidential candidate, David Granger is already on the campaign trail and has been meeting with citizens across the country, particularly party members to strengthen the base.

I am not a horse-racing fan nor a lover of horses however thoroughly bred into strength and beauty they may be but once a friend of mine and connoisseur of many of life’s artistic achievements, including that of great horse-racing, sent me a piece of marvellous writing which has ever since figured right at the top of my list of the best sports articles I have ever read.

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador — For a man who prides himself on having taken “unprecedented steps” to try to ease five-decade-old US tensions with Cuba, President Barack Obama did not look eager to make new gestures toward the Cuban military regime when I interviewed him Tuesday.

The Joint Opposition Politi-cal Parties (JOPP) recently adopted the terms of reference of the working group to advance the work of the coalition ahead of general and regional elections.

Introduction Last Sunday’s column sought to make the argument that, despite the fact government activity in the economy is so huge and  it operates as a drag, impeding economic performance and growth, there are at least eight economic functions that the government is best situated to accomplish. 

A systematic attack to the body and head snapping uppercuts by the new light heavyweight champion Kwesi ‘Lightning Struck Assassin’ Jones resulted in a fifth round TKO over Leon ‘The Lion’ Gilkes on Friday Night at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.

The Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) has been given the green light to stage this year’s senior Caribbean Regional Table Tennis Federation (CRTTF) championships and president of the association Henry Greene wants it to be the biggest ever staged locally.

Written off by fickle fans following their 0-1 defeat at home to Linden’s Intermoengotapoe at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground in the first game of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) club championships, Milerock are today basking in their historic win in Suriname which advances them to the second round.

Guyana’s Jessica Stephenson yesterday qualified for the final of the 200m breast stroke event at the CONSANAT Youth championships in Lima, Peru.

Continued Fourth Schedule Code of ConductPreamble This Code of Conduct is intended to lay down minimum standards to which attorneys-at-law are required to adhere.

Captain Eon Murray and the rest of his executive are expected to be installed into office today when the Linden Amateur Basketball Association (LABA) Annual General Meeting (AGM) and election of office bearers for the 2011/12 term takes place.

COLOMBO, (Reuters) – A drained Tillakaratne Dilshan was helped out of the park but not before his all-round show had taken Sri Lanka closer to their second World Cup title while prolonging England’s agonising wait for their first yesterday.

You really have to enjoy gardening to embrace it as a hobby, and those of us that do become part of what you might call ‘the magic circle,’ a very superior kind of old boys/old girls’ association, in which honours are earned more by the number of blisters on your hands than anything else.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – West Indies A batsman Jonathan Carter agonisingly missed out on a maiden first class century yesterday as the clash between Barbados and Combined Campuses and Colleges remained tantalisingly poised heading into today’s third day.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Lendl Simmons gave West Indies selectors plenty food for thought ahead of the Pakistan series next month when he pummelled a remarkable, unbeaten double century against Guyana yesterday.

HAVANA (Reuters) – Former US President Jimmy Carter will meet with Cuban President Raul Castro, the leader of Cuba’s Catholic Church and the island’s Jewish community during a Havana visit starting  tmorrow amid speculation he will seek the release of a jailed American aid contractor.

Memory lane

The Pepsi Hornets Rugby Club ran through the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) rugby team to win the Guyana Rugby Football Union (GRFU) season opener 27-0 when the two teams bumped heads yesterday at the National Park.

Memory lane

Let us today begin with a new chapter – a discourse on wounds.

ALGIERS/BEIRUT (Reuters) – Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi eased their attacks on rebel-held Misrata yesterday after Western coalition planes appeared in the skies and hit some of their positions, rebels said.

Defending champion Randolph Morgan and Dawn Barker struck gold for Guyana on the opening day of the fifth IPF/NAPF Caribbean Powerlifting Championships in Cayman Islands on Friday.

Memory lane

DERAA, Syria (Reuters) – Syrian security forces killed two people yesterday and four on Friday in anti-government protests in the port city of Latakia, reformist activists living abroad told Reuters.

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Red Bull’s world champion Sebastian Vettel blew away his rivals in a dominant qualifying performance to claim pole position for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix yesterday.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese engineers struggled today to pump radioactive water from a crippled nuclear power station after radiation levels soared in seawater near the plant more than two weeks after it was battered by a huge earthquake and a tsunami.

The ground display

Dear Editor, The neighbourly practice of persons instructing their employees to burn large quantities of materials in their backyards while they and their children are off to work or school is the kind of thing that marks our Guyanese culture today. 

President of the Guyana Football Referees Council (GFRC) Alfred King has challenged the participants of the just-concluded Scotia Bank/Pepsi Schools Referees Course to seriously pursue refereeing as great opportunities await them.

The Government of Guyana, normally so garrulous on the subject of democracy and human rights, has been quite quiet on the matter of Libya and the violence visited by Muammar Gaddafi on his citizens.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Geraldine Ferraro, the Democratic congresswoman who became the first woman on a major party presidential ticket as Walter Mondale’s running mate in 1984, died yesterday at the age of 75, her family said.

BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazil’s support for a United Nations human rights investigation on Iran confirms an important shift in foreign policy emphasis under new President Dilma Rousseff and paves the way for closer US ties.

Slurp

Dear Editor, On reading your news article, ‘Local workers to make up less than half of Amaila plant labour force,’ (March 24), and harking back to a related article, ‘Chinese workers for Amaila road building (SN, July 24, 2010), I am compelled to suggest that work on the Amaila Fall Hydroelectric Project (AFHEP) be immediately postponed until after the 2011 elections to give a potentially new government an opportunity to do a thorough and transparent appraisal of this bungling and very costly project before continuing.

The judge

(Trinidad Guardian) Police Service Commission chairman Nizam Mohammed says there are too many Africans in the hierarchy of T&T Police Service  and he intends to address the issue with assistance from the Parliament. Mohammed

The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation is inviting donations of art work to beautify the new in-patient facility which will be opened within the next two months.

On March 24, Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne,  made a long awaited announcement about the future of Britain’s controversial Air Passenger Duty (APD), the discriminatory tax that charges those travelling out of the UK more to fly to the Caribbean than to the west coast of the United States.