iNews Briefs
In memory of our dear sister Eulene Watler
Blanche Eulene Watler (1919-2000)
Happy birthday.
Eulene was born on April 18th, 1919 and died August 4th, 2000.
We remember and miss our beautiful Christian sister, Eulene, on this day – librarian, bank manager, seamstress, gardner, Women’s Fellowship member, and Elmslie church and choir member.
From her sisters, Helen and Joan
Crocodile kills man in Mexican Caribbean resort city
From Fox News Latino
A 31-year-old man from Tlaxcala, a state in central Mexico, died over the weekend when a crocodile pulled him under in the Bojorquez Lagoon near the hotel in the Caribbean resort of Cancun, police said.
Marco Antonio Sanchez Fernandez was drunk when he went for a swim on Saturday, encountering the crocodile.
Sanchez Fernandez and another person went for a swim in the lagoon around 6:00 p.m. Saturday in the Punta Cancun district, ignoring signs posted to warn the public of the presence of crocodiles.
The two-meter (6.5-foot) crocodile heard the swimmers and slithered into the water.
Passersby and police patrolmen shouted at the swimmers to get out of the lagoon, but only one of them did so, officials said, adding that when the other swimmer tried to get out, the croc grabbed him.
Sanchez Fernandez’s body was found around 6:00 a.m. on Sunday near where the crocodile grabbed him its jaws.
No relatives have stepped forward to identify the victim, but police determined the man’s name from identification found on the body.
Sanchez Fernandez drowned and his body has bite wounds typical of an attack by a large crocodile, the coroner’s office said.
“It did not eat him, it dragged him until he drowned, there is no detachment of any extremity, the body is intact,” the Quintana Roo state police said. EFE
Tagging Cayman’s sharks
Conservationist Dr. Guy Harvey is teaming up with participants of the Cayman Islands International Fishing Tournament to tag sharks.
By tagging sharks Dr Harvey says his team of researchers will learn more about the oceanic white tip shark.
This will be one of the largest shark tagging and research projects ever undertaken in the Caribbean.
Funding for the shark tagging programme has come mainly from a partnership with the local Cayman Islands Brewery (CIB). For every can of White Tip Lager CIB sell they give five cents back to the tagging programme. To date Caybrew has raised approx. CI$35,000 for conservation efforts.
Is it time to invest in Cuba?
By Laura Brodbeck From Benzinga
On Tuesday, President Barack Obama told Congress that he was planning to take Cuba off the list of state sponsors of terrorism in an effort to restore diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba after decades of tension.
Congress will have 45 days to review the decision and decide whether or not to block it, but most are expecting that the removal will happen.
The improving relations between Obama and his Cuban counterpart, Raul Castro, mark an important turning point for the Caribbean nation’s economy and gives investors a reason to look to the island for new opportunities.
Investment In Cuba
Taking Cuba off the terrorism sponsor list is only the first step in a long process of diplomacy, but some are already gearing up for new investment opportunities.
Thomas Herzfeld, who manages the Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund (NASDAQ: CUBA), is now setting up a private equity fund that will invest directly in Cuba. Herzfeld told CNBC that the fund will invest in sectors expected to grow with improving U.S. relations like tourism, construction and telecom.
Risks
Although the lack of foreign investment in Cuba makes it an interesting opportunity for aggressive investors, the nation still carries a high degree of risk.
For one, the effects of an improving relationship with the U.S. are unlikely to make any real impact on the Cuban economy for quite some time. Additionally, the country’s small population and low wages make it a difficult place to start a business.
For more: http://m.benzinga.com/article/5409170
Cuban migrants in Cayman Islands sent back home
28 migrants who were currently being held at a detention centre in George Town, Grand Cayman, have been sent back home to Cuba. The 22 men and six women were part of a group of 37 migrants that arrived in the Cayman Islands earlier this year.
The six Cubans who escaped from the detention centre on April 5th are still at large.
Technology train
By Paul McGowan From PS Audio
MQA is coming, so too is Tidal, and then there’s the latest DAC, the brightest new invention. What wonders will we have tomorrow? Better wait, it’ll soon be a whole new world.
The pace of technology speeds by us like a freight train; we wonder when the best time to jump on board might be. Oh look! Coming ’round the bend, the exact car you were hoping to catch a ride on. Get ready to grab it! But no, in the distance appears yet another, even shinier object. You had better wait. Surely the approaching car is perfect for you.
There is no perfect, and technology will always change, the next object shinier than the last. The trick is to figure out what you want and go for the best available at the time. Waiting for something you don’t need to get better just because seems an endless, maddening loop, but one we all fall victim to. Just the other day I got wind of a new portable hard drive from Lacie called Fuel. It has WIFI built in, 1tB of storage, runs 9 hours on batteries, can stream 5 HD videos, or music streams, simultaneously, and it’s cheap: $179. I haven’t seen an object this shiny in, what… weeks? I bought it. It does what it’s advertised to do. I don’t need another hard drive, but I could not resist the idea of its cool factor. I am returning it tomorrow.
The technology train seduces you to watch it pass, filled with so many new colors and shiny objects, like a circus train. When the car carrying that which you want and need rounds the bend, extend your hand and grab hold of it without waiting for the next.
For more: http://www.psaudio.com/pauls-posts/technology-train/
Jamaican drama teacher jailed for indecently assaulting school boys in Cayman Islands
Delroy James (33) who pleaded guilty to one count of gross indecency, 3 counts of indecent assault of a male and one of possession of an indecent photograph of a child, including convincing two of the students to let him measure their private parts was sentenced to 3 years in jail at HM Northward.
The Judge, Justice Charles Quin, in sentencing James said James had, ”breached the trust between a teacher and student that was supposed to have existed is an over riding concern for the court. All this took place in the school environment, which should be a safe haven for students.”
After James completes his sentence he will be deported back to Jamaica.
Mentoring to tackle the problem of gangs, says Caribbean Institute
From Curacao Chronicle
The Caribbean Mentorship Institute (CMI) says it is alarmed by the number of young people who have been associated with gang-related activities within the Caribbean region. The Institute, which focuses on the mentoring of young people, believes that mentoring provides a good environment for the youth to develop their personal and professional skills. Mentoring has been known to increase the levels of high school graduation and youth involvement within their communities.
“Many young persons are not receiving the type of guidance that is needed for them to flourish within their communities. We have seen too many examples of young men and women who have dropped out of school to engage in criminal activities. This growing trend should be of grave concern to everyone. Our youth are not finding their way, and are often losing their lives due to errors of judgement. They need guidance and mentors to re-shape their thinking and understanding,” said Felicia Browne, president of CMI.
CMI, which has been in operating for nearly three years, has made several types of intervention in countries across the Caribbean region. However, Browne is adamant that if community members and policymakers turn a blind eye to the plight of young persons, then gang activities and criminality amongst disadvantaged youths will only escalate to create further harm within communities and countries.
“We have continued to observe the escalation of violence in schools, and in public spaces. We have seen videos of violent fights, brawls and sexual misconduct of young persons on social media, yet we are ignoring them because they are not happening in our communities or to our children. We are hearing that young men and women are joining or creating gangs because they are left with little choice but to look after their own wellbeing and safety. This is the reality of today’s youth. This is the reason why we cannot assume that they lack understanding or intellect to channel their lives in more positive and holistic ways. Their young lives are at risk, while we refuse to engage with them,” Browne added.
The CMI president urged community members and civil organisations to contact the Institute if they require any form of intervention or assistance to address problems among the youth. The Institute, which is based in Barbados, has partnering organisations throughout the Caribbean and the world.
Man kills judge, two others on rampage through Milan courthouse
By Manuela D’alessandro
(Reuters) – A trial defendant shot dead a judge and two others on Thursday on a rampage through a Milan courthouse, casting a harsh spotlight on public security measures that Italy tightened earlier this year.
Police said Claudio Giardiello shot the judge, Fernando Ciampi, in his office, having earlier opened fire in a courtroom killing a lawyer and his co-defendant in a bankruptcy trial. A fourth person was wounded.
In all, Giardiello fired 13 shots inside the Palace of Justice in central Milan before fleeing, police said. They arrested him in Vimercate, a town north of Italy’s financial center, Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said on his twitter feed.
Public security was tightened across Italy following January’s Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris, and it was not immediately clear how the assailant was able to carry a gun into the court buildings.
Milan chief prosecutor Edmondo Bruti Liberati told reporters the attacker likely carried a false identification badge and entered through a side entrance reserved for lawyers and court employees, where there is no metal detector.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said the priority was to ensure nothing similar ever happened again.
“We need to find out exactly what happened and above all how it was possible to take a firearm into a courthouse,” he told a news conference in Rome.
“This is not the first time this has happened but obviously it must be the last. The government has given a powerful mandate to expose the systemic failings which evidently happened.”
For more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/09/us-italy-tribunal-shooting-idUSKBN0N00TZ20150409
SpaceX rocket crashes into barge after failed landing
From BBC
A SpaceX rocket has crashed into a floating ocean platform, after hitting it too hard following an attempted landing.
The first-stage booster rocket was returning to earth after helping fire a shipment of groceries to the International Space Station.
It apparently landed too hard on the barge and tipped over.
SpaceX has been hired by space agency Nasa to supply the ISS after the retirement of the space shuttle.
The company will try again in June on the next supply run.
For more and video: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-32330383
Lottery security director accused of winning the lottery fraudulently
By Laura Northrup From Consumerist
Remember last fall, when lottery officials were trying to locate the mysterious man who bought the winning ticket in the multi-state Hot Lotto game? That situation was strange enough, with the winner or winners trying to remain anonymous and waiting a very long time to come forward. Now the situation has become even weirder, with the lottery’s former security director accused of winning the game fraudulently.
As the security director for the Multi-State Lottery Association, which runs the Hot Lotto, Eddie Raymond Tipton wasn’t supposed to be playing the lottery at all. That’s why the man in the video was wearing a hat and hood to conceal his identity but still not look out of place during a Midwestern winter. Prosecutors believe that Tipton was the person who bought the ticket, but a man from Texas has also been arrested and charged with fraud.
That would also explain why the man tried to win without revealing his identity, but how do you rig the lottery? Hot Lotto results come from a computer that randomly generates numbers. Prosecutors currently believe that he may have used a self-deleting malware program to alter the outcome in his favor.
Since Tipton was fired and arrested back in January, the Multi-State Lottery Association has replaced all of the computers and software used to generate the winning numbers.
We missed this news at the time the conspirators were arrested, but the former director’s trial begins on Monday. Tipster TD let us know about the upcoming trial, musing, “Perhaps it’s time to go back to little numbered balls for all lottery drawings?”
Caribbean Broilers cut prices on chicken, pork, egg
From Jamaica Observer
KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Caribbean Broilers Group today announced that it will reduce the price of its goods for the second time this year.
The company said in a release a short while ago that effective April 20, it will lower its prices, across the board, for all their business lines, which includes their flagship brand in the CB Foods division – CB Chicken, their fresh pork line – Copperwood Pork, their convenient ready to eat line – Caribbean Passion, their Grade A egg brand – Chippenham Eggs, their Omega-enriched Smart Egg line, and their Bad Dawg Sausages programme.
Farmers will also see a price reduction on purchases of all Nutramix animal feeds.
CB says that a further reduction in some key input costs, such as grains, has given the company the ability to reduce their selling prices and pass on savings to the trade.
Dr Keith Amiel, corporate affairs manager explained that, “If you’ve been following the commodity markets, you’d realise that grains have been trending downwards which have allowed us to purchase our raw materials at better prices and this has in turn allowed us to pass savings on to the consumers”.
He further shared, “When the markets are going North we are forced to pass on the price increase to the market and so naturally, when things go the other way, its only right that we pass on the savings as well.”
On an average, reduction in the food division will be as follows:
Chicken: $2.50 per kg
Pork: $2.00 per kg
Eggs: $1.00
Similarly, in terms of the agriculture division, on average:
Animal Feeds: $50.00 per bag or $ 2000.00 per tonne
“We encourage our customers to also be sensitive to the economic situation and to pass on these savings to the consumers” Amiel said in closing.
For more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Caribbean-Broilers-cut-prices-on-chicken–pork–egg
Phillips wants G20 to help Caribbean countries overcome 2008 recession
By Orville Burke From Nationwide Radio
Finance Minister Dr. Peter Phillips, has once again urged the powerful G20 group of countries to make good on its promise to assist the Caribbean region to mitigate the effects of the financial recession of 2008.
He was Speaking during a Caribbean breakfast and caucus meeting in Washington DC on Monday, as part of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, IMF Spring Meetings now underway.
Last October, Dr. Phillips urged the G20 to deliver on its promise.
Minister Phillips expressed concern that the group of major economies has not kept its promise to provide financial support to assist the region.
He says the Caribbean continues to suffer because the expectations that were generated in 2008, coming out of the first meeting of the G20 nations, for resources to alleviate the plight of the region, have not been fulfilled.
Dr. Phillips says there’s an urgent need for the G20 to fulfil its promise, citing the region’s high debt burden, climatic vulnerabilities, along with energy insecurities.
For more: http://nationwideradiojm.com/phillips-wants-g20-to-help-caribbean-countries-overcome-2008-recession/
Royal Caribbean ship will be named Thomson Discovery
By Emrys Thakkar From Cruise Hive
Splendour of the Seas which will begin sailing for TUI owned Thomson Cruises in the UK in 2016 has been named Thomson Discovery.
The Thomson Discovery will be the largest vessel ever to sail for Thomson Cruises. As Cruise Hive previously reported in early March the ship will transfer to the TUI owned cruise line in the second quarter of 2016.
Helen Caron, Managing Director of Thomson Cruises, said in march 2015: “We’re very excited to be welcoming the ship to our fleet next summer. This is the first step in our fleet modernisation and transformation strategy and will bring an enhanced offering to our customers with more balcony cabins than ever before, a wider choice of suites, an increased number of dining options and extra entertainment and activity facilities. We are confident that our customers will enjoy sailing on the new addition to our fleet.”
The Thomson Discover will sail four different itineraries all starting and finishing in Palma, Majorca, with 5 ports of call along the way. All the itineraries will be based in the Mediterranean and guests can take advantage of modern lounges and features that haven’t been experienced in the fleet before.
Bookings for the added vessel will be open from April 23rd, 2015.
For more: http://www.cruisehive.com/royal-caribbean-ship-will-be-named-thomson-discovery/6668
MCO Caribbean salutes FES Jamaica and the Eastern Caribbean
From UN Women MCO Caribbean
IMAGE: From left: Kathy Mangones (former UN Women Representative), and long-standing Caribbean feminists and activists Judith Wedderburn, Director Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), Jamaica and Hazel Brown, Head of the Network of NGOs of Trinidad and Tobago. Photo: UN Women/Sharon Carter-Burke.
Over the years, UNIFEM/UN Women has had the benefit of partnership with Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) in the Caribbean on such a range of issues – trade, green economy, political participation, governance.
In the moments of thinking through the global gender architecture, we turned to the Caribbean feminist community to meet with the High Level Coherence Panel. Led by Judith Wedderburn, Caribbean women made very strong recommendations for the strengthening of UNIFEM and for the establishment of a well-resourced agency to accelerate gender equality globally.
Yours is a vision of inclusion, of social justice, non-hierarchical social relations and accountability. And so importantly under Judith’s leadership, FES was committed to advancing Caribbean integration and regionalism.
Indeed there was not a time when we approached FES with an issue and were not able to rely on your guidance and partnership.
In this photo taken at the first meeting of partners post establishment of UN Women, we were discussing expectations. So much commitment!
FES is a German non-profit foundation. UN Women MCO Caribbean salutes FES which celebrated its 90th anniversary in March 2015, and has had a presence in Jamaica since July 1974, when a formal agreement was signed with the University of the West Indies, formalising the role of FES in the establishment of what has grown into CARIMAC on the Mona Campus.
Irish man (67) missing after ‘going overboard’ cruise ship in Caribbean Sea
From Independent.ie Newsdesk
A 67-year-old Irish man has been reported missing while travelling on a cruise ship earlier this week.
Dominic William O’Carroll was realised missing when a crew member aboard the ‘Croisières de France’ Horizon reported seeing a large object or person go overboard the vessel on Monday morning.
A passenger count was taken and the Irish citizen, who was reportedly travelling alone, is now believed to have gone overboard in the Caribbean Sea.
US Coast Guard and assisting rescue crews have since called off the sea search, approximately 16 nautical miles of Vieques, Peurto Rico.
The Horizon cruise ship was travelling from La Romana, Dominican Republic to the island of St. Maarten at the time of the incident.
“The circumstances surrounding the disappearance of this passenger remain unclear,” said Capt. Robert Warren, Sector San Juan commander.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones during this most difficult time.”
William O’Carroll reportedly was last sighted by security cameras in several locations aboard the cruise ship prior to the incident.
Since the search began early Monday morning, Coast Guard rescue crews conducted 12 air and surface searches covering an area of approximate 1,265 square nautical miles, an area approximately one third the size of Puerto Rico.
MH-65 Dolphin helicopters, a 110-foot patrol boat, a 33-foot Special Purpose Craft Law-Enforcement vessel, Civil Air Patrol and a Coast Guard Auxiliary aircraft were all involved in the extensive search.
Wells Street Journal: Pension experts escape to the Caribbean
From Money Marketing
It seems the heat produced by the roll out of the new freedoms is not enough for some pension experts who have swapped mild Blighty for the tropical heat of the Caribbean.
Fidelity Worldwide Investment retirement director Alan Higham and LEBC group savings and investment divisional director Glynn Jones are due to fly to Grenada to watch the England cricket team take on the West Indies in the second Test match of the series.
The WSJ is assured the departure of both Higham and Jones during the first nervy weeks of the pension freedoms is purely coincidental and that the pair are definitely not attending a secretive meeting of international pensions experts bent on extending auto-enrolment to include household pets.
Fidelity will be hoping Higham – who was involved with England’s team of travelling supporters The Barmy Army at its formation in the 1990s – does not pick up too many bad habits from the men in white. The team was humiliatingly dumped out of the recent world cup in the group stages and have suffered since dropping star batsman Kevin Pietersen after dressing room in-fighting.
Canadian diplomat’s teenage son charged with murder as adult
By Curt Anderson AP Legal Affairs Writer From Miami Herald
The teenage son of a Canadian diplomat was charged Wednesday with murder and attempted murder as an adult for his role in what investigators called a bloody drug-related shooting that killed his older brother and another teenager.
A Miami-Dade County grand jury indicted 15-year-old Marc Wabafiyebazu on first-degree felony murder charges. Wabafiyebazu is the son of Roxanne Dube, a veteran diplomat who is Canada’s consul general in Miami.
The boy’s brother, 17-year-old Jean Wabafiyebazu, was killed in the March 30 shootout over a marijuana deal, investigators said. Another teenager, 17-year-old Joshua Wright, was also slain. The indictment returned Wednesday charges that Wright and Jean Wabafiyebazu shot each other.
Marc Wabafiyebazu’s attorney has previously said he will plead not guilty. He did not immediately respond to an email message.
The grand jury also indicted two other young men involved in the drug deal on felony murder charges: Anthony Rodriguez, 19, and 21-year-old Johann Ruiz. Under Florida law, all suspects involved in committing a crime can be charged with murder if it leads to a killing.
Marc Wabafiyebazu is also charged with attempted murder for allegedly shooting at Rodriguez as well as with attempted armed robbery and illegal possession of a firearm by a minor. Rodriguez was wounded in the arm, but the indictment says he was actually shot by Jean Wabafiyebazu.
Ruiz was also wounded, but it’s not clear who shot him.
The drug deal gone bad happened only a few weeks after the brothers had relocated from their father’s home in Ottawa, Canada, to South Florida to live with their mother. They went to the drug meeting at a Miami apartment in their mother’s personal car, which carries diplomatic license plates — but authorities say Marc Wabafiyebazu is not protected by diplomatic immunity.
Police say Rodriguez brought about two pounds of marijuana to the meeting, which erupted in gunfire shortly after negotiations began. Investigators say the Wabafiyebazu brothers intended all long to rob the drug dealers of cash and drugs.
The indictment does not say where the brothers obtained weapons.
For more: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/article18604731.html#storylink=cpy
Visiting lecture speaks on race and identity in the Caribbean
By Johanna Lundahl from the Daily University of Washington
Visiting professor Shona Jackson of Texas A&M University spoke on indigeneity and Creole identity in the Caribbean on Wednesday night in the Walker-Ames Room in Kane Hall. Her lecture was part of the ongoing Stice lecture series, organized through the gender, women and sexuality studies department.
Jackson spoke to a group of about 50 students and faculty.
The Stice lecture series hosts three to four events a year through various departments associated with the social sciences. It covers a broad variety of subjects and, according to Professor Edgar Kiser, the series has run for approximately 30 years.
Jackson spoke of the disappearance of indigenous cultures in the Caribbean and how indigenous peoples’ identities differed in relation to people of African descent originally brought to the Caribbean as slaves. She said as native people gained recognition of their claim to their homeland, black people were unable to develop the same sense of belonging.
“Blacks essentially belonged to their skin and not to the land,” Jackson said.
Jackson outlined some of the history which brought about the Creolization of the Caribbean, including the idea that those who worked the land brought about the rise of a new sort of indigenous person.
“There was a disappearance of the ‘native’ and a reappearance of the new ‘native,’” she said.
Jackson explained how at the time the institution of slavery ended, the reparations received by black people as compensation for years of slavery also played a part in the disappearance of the original indigenous culture.
“Reparations show both the linking and the dealing out of freedom,” she said. “Because when blacks were asking for reparations for slavery … where does that come from, whose land is that?”
Chandan Reddy, associate professor of English and gender, women and sexuality studies, helped organize the lecture. He said the work Jackson does is vital to addressing oppressions from the past.
“She’s working to reveal the epistemic origins of why we feel there is such an impact in finding social justice for different groups that have been racialized by Western capitalism,” Reddy said.
Jackson also tied her research into current events such as the Black Lives Matter movement.
UW senior Megan Johnson heard about Jackson’s talk through an anthropology class on South Asian diaspora.
“I didn’t know anything about Creole identity or black identity so it was really interesting,” Johnson said.
Other students attended the lecture for class credit, or because they had heard about the lecture through one of the coordinating departments.
“This is the moment in which we are organizing for black lives against state violence, as well as undocumented people having rights in civil society, as well as ongoing native movements against native murder, and so we don’t know how to talk about these things together,” Reddy said. “And I really think she’s the voice of the moment, you know, she really helps us figure these things out.”
For more: http://www.dailyuw.com/news/article_0f6e8550-e400-11e4-b1a3-e3582f332407.html
Court rules GM shielded from death claims before bankruptcy
By Tom Krisher AP Auto Writer from Daily Democratic
DETROIT (AP) — A federal judge ruled Wednesday that a 2009 bankruptcy order shields General Motors from billions of dollars in death and injury claims tied to defective ignition switches in older small cars.
But Judge Robert Gerber in New York, who handled GM’s government-funded bankruptcy case six years ago, also ruled that plaintiffs who claim a loss in the value of their cars can still sue General Motors Co., but only for company actions that happened after it left bankruptcy in July of 2009.
The ruling is at least a partial victory for GM, with one plaintiffs’ attorney saying it shields the company from $7 billion to $10 billion in potential legal liabilities. But it also leaves open the possibility of costly claims for decreased values of cars.
In 2009, Gerber allowed “new GM” to emerge from bankruptcy protection free from liabilities of the company before bankruptcy. But the plaintiffs recently argued that GM misled the court six years ago because it knew about but failed to disclose the ignition switch problem. The switches, which can slip out of the run position and cause cars to stall unexpectedly, are now linked to at least 84 deaths.
Lawyers for plaintiffs in more than 140 lawsuits had argued that their clients never got a chance to dispute the bankruptcy order and were never notified of the bankruptcy because GM concealed the defective switches.
But the new GM contended that when it bought assets from old GM, the new company got them “free and clear” of liabilities before the bankruptcy.
Texas attorney Robert Hilliard, who represents multiple wrongful death and injury plaintiffs in lawsuits against GM, said the ruling cuts off court options for victims in crashes that happened before GM left bankruptcy protection in July of 2009.
“Hundreds of victims and their families will go to bed tonight forever deprived of justice,” he said. “GM, bathing in billions, may now turn its back on the dead and injured, worry free.”
HBO renews ‘VEEP’ for a fifth season and ‘Silicon Valley’ for a third season
Both original comedies premiered new seasons last Sunday in the Caribbean
Miami, FL – April 15, 2015 – After premiering new seasons this past Sunday, April 12, in the Caribbean, HBO has confirmed the renewal of two original comedies: the Emmy®-winning and Golden Globe®-nominated series Veep for a fifth season and the Emmy®- and Golden Globe®-nominated series Silicon Valley for a third season. Together with the previously-confirmed renewals of other original series – including Game of Thrones, Girls, Togetherness, Real Time with Bill Maher and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver – 2016 promises to continue filling Sunday nights with the best that HBO has to offer.
Created by Armando Iannucci, Veep stars Emmy® and SAG Award winner Julia Louis-Dreyfus as new President Selina Meyer, for whom even the most banal action can have unexpected and far-reaching consequences.
The ensemble cast for the fourth season also includes Emmy® winner Tony Hale, Emmy® nominee Anna Chlumsky, Reid Scott, Matt Walsh, Timothy Simons, Sufe Bradshaw, Kevin Dunn, Gary Cole and Sam Richardson. Executive produced by Armando Iannucci, Christopher Godsick, Frank Rich, Chris Addison, Simon Blackwell, Tony Roche, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Stephanie Laing.
A collaboration between Mike Judge (Beavis & Butt-head) and Alec Berg, Silicon Valley takes a comic look at the modern-day epicenter of the high-tech gold rush, where the people most qualified to succeed are the least capable of handling success.
Cast regulars for the second season include Thomas Middleditch, T.J. Miller, Josh Brener, Martin Starr, Kumail Nanjiani, Zach Woods, Amanda Crew, Matt Ross, Suzanne Cryer and Jimmy O. Yang. Created by Mike Judge & John Altschuler & Dave Krinsky; executive producers, Mike Judge, Alec Berg, John Altschuler & Dave Krinsky, Michael Rotenberg and Tom Lassally; co-executive producers, Dan O’Keefe and Clay Tarver; supervising producers, Sonny Lee and Ron Weiner; producers, Carrie Kemper and Jim Kleverweis.
For local transmission times, consult www.hbomax.tv, and enjoy new episodes of both Veep and Silicon Valley on HBO On Demand the day after their on-screen premiere.
Canadian man fights anti-gay laws in Caribbean court
By Rob Salerno From Daily Xtra
Maurice Tomlinson is at the end of a second long day of testimony in a trial that could dramatically reshape the legal climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in a region sometimes dubbed as the most homophobic place on Earth. It’s a high-stakes gambit, but it’s barely the beginning of a much longer struggle to achieve equal rights for queer Caribbean people. Despite the gulf of challenges before him, Tomlinson comes across as poised and fired up.
Consider the Kafkaesque situation he’s found himself in: he’s pressing a case at the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) against the nations of Belize, and Trinidad and Tobago. Both countries are members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), a sort of European-Union-style supranational organization that guarantees its nationals free movement among member states. As a citizen of Jamaica, Tomlinson ought to have an absolute right to enter those countries, but legally cannot because both have statutory bans on “homosexuals” entering their countries. And since the CCJ is in Trinidad, Tomlinson can’t even appear at his own trial. He’s been videoconferencing from a hotel in Jamaica.
Doubling down on the absurdity, both countries are pleading that Tomlinson doesn’t have cause because the bans are never actually enforced, yet they’re continuing to defend their bans in court because they have no intention of repealing them. Belize has requested legal costs from Tomlinson if he loses.
The situation doesn’t appear to faze him.
“Trinidad had seven lawyers on this case . . . Belize had three lawyers they had to fly over, an immigration officer they had to fly over,” he says. “They spend so much money on a law they say they have no intention of enforcing.”
CARICOM itself argued on Tomlinson’s side, saying that the impugned laws violated the CARICOM Treaty. Tomlinson believes a victory is in the cards, but a final ruling could still be months away.
“There’s an elephant in the room no one wants to address. Trinidad is facing an election and homosexuality is deeply unpopular,” he says.
While the core issue may appear trivial, it creates a real burden for Tomlinson — his 12-year-old son lives in Belize, and Tomlinson is legally barred from visiting him.
Tomlinson has joked that his motivation for fighting for gay rights in the Caribbean is selfish: the 43-year-old wants to retire in his home country of Jamaica when he’s older. But when pressed, he says the real reason he fights is because he has a power that many in the region don’t: freedom to leave it.
“I know my privilege. I can come to Jamaica, do my work, and leave. That’s not the reality for many of the people I try to advocate for. They’re the ones who are facing death threats or being evicted from their homes or job losses,” Tomlinson says.
“They need me to publicize the plight that they’re experiencing. Without a doubt that’s what motivates me. It may come across as paternalistic. I’m trying not to be, but the idea is I can do something.”
Tomlinson grew up in Jamaica and has been confronting homophobia for almost 20 years. He became a Canadian when he married his husband in 2012, but only fled to Toronto when he and his family began receiving death threats after a local newspaper published photos of their wedding. “I wasn’t planning to leave so abruptly . . . but after they outed me it really wasn’t an option anymore,” he says.
If his Canadian passport offers him some protection in the region, that in turn gives him the freedom to challenge what he sees as the biggest obstacle to the LGBT-rights movement: ignorance.
“I shared with a Jamaican political official that gays are being killed and we need to do something about it, and he looked at me blankly and said, ‘What’s your problem? We kill straight people too.’ There’s not an understanding or a willingness to appreciate the vulnerabilities of people based exclusively on sexual orientation,” he says. “The articulation is that level. It’s very unsophisticated, basically ignorant, by academics or people who are well educated.”
LGBTI Aware Caribbean — a group Tomlinson founded with his husband, former Toronto Police LGBT liaison Tom Decker — has been working to overcome prejudice by providing sensitivity training to police forces across the Caribbean. The training, which is modelled after training Decker helped develop for the Toronto Police, has already been delivered in Barbados, St Lucia and Suriname. Tomlinson says they aim to expand their training to media and health care workers, to help ensure that queer people are given fair representation and service.
IMAGE: Maurice Tomlinson
For more on this story go to: http://dailyxtra.com/world/news/canadian-man-fights-anti-gay-laws-in-caribbean-court-100944
