Daily Archive: Thursday, May 19, 2011

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Dominique Strauss-Kahn was granted bail by a New York judge this afternoon, and the former IMF chief has vowed to fight charges that he tried to rape a hotel maid in Manhattan.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been formally charged over accusations he tried to rape a hotel maid, New York prosecutors said today.

KARACHI, (Reuters) – The Pakistan Cricket Board has  removed Shahid Afridi as one-day team captain for the  forthcoming series against Ireland.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Essex all-rounder Graham Napier  equalled the record for the number of sixes in a first-class  innings when he struck 16 in a county match against Surrey today.

CANNES, France, (Reuters) – The Cannes film festival  expelled Danish director Lars Von Trier today for jokingly  calling himself a Nazi and Hitler sympathiser, leaving the  world’s biggest cinema showcase in a state of shock.

(Trinidad Express) Cabinet is close to deciding on a way out of CL Financial’s debts by bringing back former chairman Lawrence Duprey to the collapsed insurance and energy conglomerate.

(Jamaica Observer) For the second time in three years, the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) has published a list of names of those wanted for alleged sex offences.

Crime Chief Seelall Persaud confirmed that a US resident was arrested at an East Bank Demerara hotel this morning on suspicion that he is involved in narcotics trafficking and terrorism-related activities.

Popular businessman Victor Winston Warner was found dead in the bottom flat of his Richmond Village, Essequibo Coast home early this morning, and police suspect he was the victim of a robbery.

The Government of Dominica has warned about an outbreak of Leptospirosis which has claimed the lives of the Director Agriculture on the island and another man, according to the Caribbean Media Corporation.

ATLANTA (Reuters) – The case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn is an extreme example of alleged sexual assault by an elite member of the international community.

DUBLIN (Reuters) – Garret FitzGerald, Ireland’s most popular elder statesman who twice served as prime minister and played a crucial role in paving the way for peace in Northern Ireland, has died at the age of 85, his family said Thursday.

CAIRO (Reuters) – Al Qaeda released a posthumous audio recording by Osama bin Laden in which he praised revolutions sweeping through several Arab countries, and called for more Muslim “tyrants” to be toppled.

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Dominique Strauss-Kahn has  resigned as head of the International Monetary Fund, saying he  needs to devote all his energy to fight charges that he sexually  assaulted a hotel maid.

The opposition parties have written the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) requesting a searchable electronic preliminary list of electors (PLE), which they say will aid the ongoing Claims and Objections process.

A post-mortem examination (PME) yesterday revealed that former boxer Linden Mortley died as a result of a gunshot injury to the head.

Acting Regional Executive Officer (REO) of Region 2 Sunil Singh and the region’s Superintendent of Works and Engineer are to reappear before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on May 30, after failing to adequately provide details on $15.976M overpaid to contractors during the period 2004 to 2008.

Another taxi driver has been charged over the February 14 $4.7M Middle Street hold-up.

A Plaisance, East Coast Demerara (ECD) family got the shock of their lives yesterday morning when a demolition crew attached to the Public Works Ministry dismantled their shop in the pouring rain.

The governments of Guyana and Norway recently took “significant action” to accelerate the disbursement of funds from the Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund (GRIF) after expressing their belief that the intermediation of GRIF funds is taking longer than it should, the Office of Climate Change announced Tuesday.

The suspected trunker who was shot several times by the owner of the vehicle he was found sitting in, yesterday said that he was in the area looking for a job and had stopped to admire himself in the vehicle’s mirror.

The Department of Software Services of the University of Guyana is working to have the library facilities at the university’s two campuses fully automated by the end of this year.

A late night visit to a friend ended on a sad note for a 38-year-old man after he was shot and badly beaten by four men who questioned his presence in the Nandy Park, East Bank Demerara area before accusing him of being a thief.

Cabinet has cleared a US$336,355 (equivalent to $68.5M) contract for the development of a File Document Management System for the Supreme Court Registry which will see the records and proceedings in the High Court being done electronically.

Students, history lovers and Guyanese on the whole will now be able to experience fragments of the Columbus era, as well as gain some insightful knowledge on Guyana’s heritage at the Map Room situated at the Guyana National Museum.

A brother who assaulted and used  threatening behaviour, abusive and threatening language to his sister was yesterday fined $15,000 and bonded to keep the peace for two years after his sister begged the magistrate for lenience on his behalf.

Twenty-one 500-gallon water tanks were on Monday delivered to River’s View in Region Seven, where the river water normally used by residents has been contaminated due to mining activities over several years.

Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon said yesterday that the health situation of Police Commissioner Henry Greene is a private matter and in that regard the administration cannot intrude on his privacy.

Alpha ‘The Hammer’ United are mere steps away from competing with some of the top clubs in the CONCACAF Champions League (CCL) but first they have to finish in the top three of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) when the final rounds are held here on May 25 and 27.

Up to 2007 Guyana’s roadways remained the deadliest in the Caribbean region averaging almost 20 casualties per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) list of countries with the most traffic casualties.

By Treiston Joseph The National Sports Commission (NSC) in collaboration with the Rising Star Athletic Club will host an Independence Day 5km road race on May 29, commencing at 16:00hrs from the Ministry of Culture Youth and Sports Head Office, Main Street.

Defending champions Floodlights together with Savage, Regal Seniors and Albion are through to the semifinals of the Stag Beer & El Dorado Rum nationwide softball Over-40 limited overs tournament.

BASSETERRE, St Kitts, CMC – Following a double failure in the Guyana Test, West Indies vice-captain Brendan Nash will be hoping to come good when he revisits his happy hunting ground Warner Park for the second Test starting tomorrow.  The usually dependable left-hander scored five and three in the opening Test which West Indies won by 40 runs inside two days last Sunday.  “Coming back here again this year I will be

Regional integration will be the central focus of a CARICOM Heads of Government retreat set for this weekend in Guyana, at a Teperu/Itabu Mazaruni River location.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Four changes to a winning Sri  Lanka team, only one of them injury-enforced, created a brief  flurry of concern among their supporters before the World Cup  final against India in Mumbai on April 2.     Most of the debate surrounded the omission of Ajantha  Mendis, who had taken three wickets in the semi-final against  New Zealand.

The PNCR says it will use all legitimate means to ensure the constitutional rights of Guyanese to Freedom of Expression, particularly in this election year.

When Guyana’s Golden Jaguars square off with Barbados National squad in two friendly international football matches this weekend in Linden and Georgetown the local squad will be looking to impress ahead of several forthcoming international engagements.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Only one final obstacle now  prevents the International Cricket Council (ICC) introducing  floodlit day-night test matches as it confronts dwindling  support for the five-day game.  

Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee on Tuesday launched the Guyana Prison Agricultural Development Board as part of continuing efforts to make the Guyana Prison Service (GPS) more self-sufficient.

The Ministry of Education has identified three areas it plans to focus on this year as it undertakes to train a number of persons in the skills that would meet needs in the tourism sector.

Regal Mahaica Queens and Mahaica Princesses stormed into the female semifinals while D’ Edward SC booked the remaining male semifinal berth in the Regal Stationery and Computer Centre over-35 males 20/20 and females open 10/10 softball cricket tournament last weekend at various venues organized by the Guyana Softball League.

Dear Editor, The Bartica Speed Boat Association recently had a fare hike of $500 bringing the fare to $2,500 one way.

Parents of students attending the Paradise Primary School paused their protest yesterday after the constant rainfall.

The Berbice Volleyball Association (BVA) league competition for the Reggie Goberdhan Memorial Trophy commenced last Sunday with two matches at various hardcourts in Berbice.

Twelve Guyanese students have been offered medical scholarships at the Latin American School of Medicine “Salvador de Allende” in Venezuela.

Dear Editor, Now that it is well known that David Granger is the presidential candidate of the People’s National Congress Reform and is the owner of the Guyana Review, I believe that in all fairness to everyone, the Stabroek News should stop publishing this magazine, at least during this upcoming elections period.

MUMBAI, (Reuters) – For a show it was hard to beat: A  DJ blasted Bollywood songs, fans decked out in the colours of  the home side danced in the aisles, and the wife of the  billionaire team owner perched on an electric-blue sofa near the  Mumbai Indians’ dugout.    But just as local hero Sachin Tendulkar struggled with his cricket on the field, India’s glamour-packed cricket league is having difficulty sustaining momentum four years after it burst forth with a TV-friendly format, cheerleaders and big salaries.  

WASHINGTON/AMMAN, (Reuters) – Syria was under growing  pressure yesterday to stop using military force against  anti-government protesters after the United States slapped  sanctions on President Bashar al-Assad over human rights  violations.

Dear Editor, The most crucial point in this debate on sugar workers severance pay is that no discussion was held in the National Assembly to find out  where this money is coming from to pay severance to the sugar workers, who were left in limbo for more than a year.

The Ministry of Education said it is set to surpass the 70% mark of trained teachers in the school system before the 2013 deadline set in the 2008-2013 Strategic Plan.

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Former boxing champion Sugar  Ray Leonard says in a new book that he was sexually abused as a  teenager by a prominent Olympic coach, the New York Times  reported on Tuesday.  

ESTEPONA, Spain, (Reuters) – Masters champion Charl  Schwartzel believes he can emulate fellow-South African Ernie  Els and win the U.S.

Dear Editor, As our community and I battle to preserve a strip of land that was allocated to us for community purposes some years ago, we face an administration at City Hall that seems to little appreciate the importance of open space and land for our children, cultural activities and recreation. 

A 30-year-old man who accepted that he had two grams of cannabis in his possession was yesterday fined $5,000 and ordered to do six weeks of community service when he appeared before Magistrate Sueanna Lovell at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.

CARACAS, (Reuters) – Venezuelan police found the  murdered body of a newspaper columnist and opposition political  activist dumped on wasteland, prosecutors said yesterday.

DUBLIN, (Reuters) – Queen Elizabeth offered her  sympathy and regret yesterday to all those who had suffered  from centuries of conflict between Britain and Ireland in a  powerful and personal address to the Irish nation.

The MA Chidambaram Stadium continued to be a fortress that couldn’t be breached, as Chennai sealed a seventh straight win at home to end Kochi Tuskers Kerala’s maiden IPL campaign on a disappointing note.       The win for the hosts was the only constant on an otherwise unusual day in Chennai.

Dear Editor,The writer is indebted to Mr Milne Seymour whose letter to SN of May 16 (‘Comparing the GTU agreement of 2006 with that of 2011’) provided the information used again below, hopefully, in a more comparative format, inclusive of ready remarks.

Home economists from across the country were recently encouraged to promote healthy eating through entrepreneurship.

MUMBAI, May 18 (Reuters) – Australian cricketer Shane Warne  has been fined $50,000 for publicly criticising an official, the  Indian Premier League (IPL) said on Wednesday.  

Dear Editor, The UN General Assembly declared the year 2011 to be the International Year for People of African Descent on December 18, 2009.

LA JOLLA, Calif. , (Reuters) – The arrival of a  unique oil rig off communist Cuba is set to cause waves in  Washington, raising questions about U.S.

Director of Nursing Services at the Georgetown Public Hospital Audrey Corry led a group of senior nurses in donating blood at the National Blood Transfusion Services on Monday.

CAIRO,  (Reuters) – Al Qaeda released a posthumous  audio recording by Osama bin Laden posted on Jihadi websites, in  which the Islamist group’s ex-leader praised revolutions  sweeping the Arab world.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Britain’s 300-year-old copyright  laws look set for a shake-up after the government welcomed  proposals to put the country on a par with international  competitors.

Dear Editor, They say a picture speaks more than a thousand words, so I decided to send a picture of the water that comes through the taps of the residents of Cornelia Ida, West Coast, Demerara.

(Barbados Nation) Nearly 70 000 Barbadians have filed their income tax returns electronically and, according to Inland Revenue senior inspector Neville Clarke, the system has proved to be a success with seven in every ten working Barbadians completing their forms on the computer.

DALLAS, (Reuters) – American Zach Johnson defends  his title at this week’s Colonial Invitational in buoyant mood  after a timely chat with a sports psychologist last month.  

Local golfers will battle for top honours in the Torginol Paints Medal Play Golf tournament sponsored by the Continental Group of Companies on Saturday at Lusignan golf Course.

Dear Editor, I live in Duncan Street, Bel Air Park between Ituni and De Abreu Streets, Newtown.

Accountability is the new buzzword in international development circles, the World Bank says in a new book it launched earlier this week.

BRASILIA, (Reuters) – Revelations of a surge in the  personal wealth of the Brazilian government’s influential chief  of staff seem unlikely to cost him his job but could drag on  and become a major headache for President Dilma Rousseff.

Politikles

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Before she started working at  the Sofitel hotel in New York’s bustling Times Square area, the  maid who accused IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of trying to  rape her spent her daily life within the same few city blocks.

A young man accused of robbing a young woman of her cell phone and gold ring was yesterday placed on a bond to keep the peace and the matter against him was  dismissed after the virtual complainant told the court that she did not want to offer evidence against him.

Cartoon

Mentors make men and women strive for the extraordinary. Whether it is Tiger Woods in golf, Venus and Serena Williams in tennis or Shivnarine Chanderpaul at cricket, master mentors make the difference between being mere ordinary sports players or fascinatingly extraordinary performers.

Part II Part I examined the proposal of 1902 made by Mr.

Two cousins who assaulted each other were yesterday placed on a bond to keep the peace for one year each when they appeared before Magistrate Sueanna Lovell at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.