iNews Briefs & Community Events
Community Events
MAY 8
CINICO Cayman Brac Closure
Due to illness, the CINICO Cayman Brac office will be closed Tuesday, Thursday & Friday of this week. During this period, all Cayman Brac Civil Servants needing assistance should contact the Grand Cayman Office at 949-8101.
Victory in Europe Beacon Lighting Ceremony
The 70th Anniversary of the Victory in Europe Beacon Lighting Ceremony is Friday (8 May) from 8 — 10pm on the seaside across from Cayman Turtle Farm.
Special Olympics Cayman Islands Track & Field
Special Olympics Cayman Islands invites you to the 2015 Annual National Games and Week of Awareness. The next event is Friday (8 May) at 530pm at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex when athletes will compete in Track & Field.
MAY 9
Battle of the Books
The Public Library’s “Battle of the Books 2015” will take place at Sir John A. Cumber Primary multipurpose hall Sat 9 May 2015, 9.30 a.m.—12.00 p.m. PARTICIPANTS: Students from Government and private Schools, Cayman Islands Information Professionals (CIIP) and LIFE literacy support programme. BACKGROUND: Twenty-two teams from eight different schools are entering this year. They are all competing for the Lera parchment Trophy. The children where tasked with reading 20 books over the last five months, and tomorrow they will be quizzed on their knowledge of what they have read. This is the second year of the competition.
George Town Public library closure
Due to refurbishment work, the George Town Public library will be closed on Saturday 9th May.
You’ve Got Purse-onality!
You’ve Got Personality – a Spring Event for those pursuing the Purse Driven Life is Saturday (9 May) at the East End United Church Hall at 6.30 p.m.
Lime 800 M Sea Swim
The Lime 800 M Sea Swim is Saturday (9 May) 4pm at Governor’s Beach.
Cayman Islands Cadet Corp 5K
The Cayman Islands Cadet Corp will be staging a 5K run/walk fundraiser on Saturday (9 May) at 730am at Aspiration Drive in George Town. For more information, log on to www.cicadetcorps.ky
Cayman’s Our Little Miss official pageant
Cayman’s Our Little Miss official pageant will take place on Saturday (9 May) at the George Town Town Hall. Please email [email protected] for ticket purchases.
Isabel Auditions
CNCF is looking for talented 12-17 year olds to take part in the award-winning musical production, ISABEL. To register, visit www.artscayman.org/young-at-arts
and complete the form, which will then need to be returned to [email protected]. The next audition is Saturday (9 May) from 10am until noon at the Harquail Theater.
Art of Photography Family Fun Day
The National Gallery’s Art of Photography Family Fun Day is Saturday (9 May) from 10am until 3pm.
Butterfield Summer Intensive theatre arts course auditions
Young actors between the ages of 12 and 17 are invited to audition on Saturday (9 May) at 10am at the Harquail theatre for the six week Butterfield Summer Intensive theatre arts course.
MAY 10
Wesleyan Holiness Church Mother’s Day Service
SUNDAY SCHOOL WILL NOT BE HELD AT THE WESLEYAN HOLINESS CHURCH ON NORTHWEST POINT ROAD IN WEST BAY, AT 9:45 A.M. ON MOTHER’S DAY. INSTEAD, ALL ARE INVITED TO THE MOTHER’S DAY SERVICE STARTING AT 11:00 A.M.
Red Bay Church of God Holiness Mother’s Day Services
There will be no Sunday School on Mother’s Day at the Red Bay Church of God Holiness. Mother’s Day service begins at 10:30 AM. There is no evening service.
Central Scranton Community Mother’s Day lunch
The Central Scranton Community will be holding their annual Mother’s Day lunch on Sunday (10 May) at 1pm in the Central Scranton Community Park.
Support in Cayman Islands for Eartquake hit Nepal
A Nepal Earthquake Relief Drive is underway at GAB to collect funds from civil service employees to help Nepal that was devastated by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake on 25 April 2015.
A collection box to receive cash donations is placed at the Staff Entrance and will remain there until 5 pm, Friday, 8 May 2015.
“I am requesting all civil service employees to show their support and donate. And my thanks to those who already have,” GAB Security Officer, Mr. Durga Limbu said.
Monetary collections were received in person by a group of friends of Nepal and local Nepalese community members, led by Mr. Limbu, on Monday, 4 May 2015 from 12-3 pm. The funds collected will be passed on to relief efforts underway, he added.
The death toll has crossed 8,400, according to Nepal Red Cross. The temblor flattened historic buildings in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu and reduced entire villages to rubble as well as triggered avalanches and mudslides. The UN estimates that eight million people have been affected by the earthquake while 2.8 million people have been displaced by it.
LIME going with Flow brand
From CARIBBEAN360
The Flow brand will be seen more across the Caribbean as the re-branding takes place.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Thursday May 7, 2015 – LIME is ditching its name in its Caribbean operations and going with the Flow brand following the merger of the two telecommunications companies.
In a statement issued yesterday, LIME’s parent company C&W Communications (CWC) announced new corporate and consumer-facing brands for the combined group, which will be rolled out in the coming months in the markets where the necessary regulatory approvals have been obtained.
“A refreshed Flow will be the unified consumer-facing brand throughout the Caribbean, replacing the former LIME and Flow businesses,” it said, adding that Mas Movil and BTC would be retained as the consumer-facing brands in Panama and The Bahamas, respectively.
For more: http://www.caribbean360.com/business/lime-going-with-flow-brand#ixzz3ZTpiqeHR
U.K. ‘flash crash’ trader: I’m only guilty of being good at my job
By Chiara Albanese From MarketWatch
Can’t pay $7.6 million bail because assets are frozen
The address where Nav Sarao Futures Limited is registered, in Hounslow, London
LONDON — The U.K. trader who allegedly contributed to the 2010 “flash crash” can’t pay his bail because of a U.S. order to freeze his assets, his lawyer said Wednesday.
In a packed courtroom at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London, Judge Elizabeth Roscoe denied the lawyer’s request to waive the £5 million ($7.6 million) bail required for Navinder Singh Sarao’s temporary freedom.
“There are some concerns that there are hidden assets in Cayman Islands,” prosecutor Carl Kelvin said during the bail hearing. U.S. authorities have alleged Sarao has set up an intricate web of offshore accounts.
Sarao was more animated Wednesday than he had been in earlier court appearances. He responded swiftly to the judge’s questions and stood up and shouted when the judge ruled against his bail request.
“I have not done anything wrong apart from being good at my job,” Sarao said from behind a glass wall in the courtroom before being taken back to prison.
U.S. authorities allege Sarao made about $40 million by manipulating markets with illegal trading strategies from his parents’ home in West London.
[US] Plains hit with destructive tornadoes, unprecedented flooding
By Margaret Hartmann From New York Mag
IMAGE: A large tornado passes just to the west of the city of Halstead, Kansas, on Wednesday, May 6, 2015. Photo: Travis Heying/Wichita Eagle/TNS via Getty Images
About two dozen tornadoes touched down in Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and parts of Texas on Wednesday night, injuring at least 16 people, destroying many homes, and causing severe flooding. Two people sustained critical injuries, according to The Oklahoman, but so far no deaths have been reported. “I think we got lucky,” said Oklahoma City Police Department captain Dee Patty. “We’ve seen a lot worse come through these same areas.”
Still, the damage was bad enough that Oklahoma governor Mary Fallin is preparing an emergency declaration. The bulk of the injuries occurred when a tornado hit two south Oklahoma City trailer parks. “Crews are searching the areas now, going door-to-door looking for victims in need of assistance,” said Patty, according to Reuters. Two other people were injured in a weather-related road accident, one person was hurt entering a storm shelter, and another was hit by flying debris.
Tornadoes were first spotted in the late afternoon in Oklahoma, and by the evening rush hour several major roads, including I-44 and I-35, had to be closed because of debris and downed power lines in the road. More than 17,000 homes and businesses lost power statewide. Local officials said about 10 homes were destroyed in Amber, and about 25 were leveled or seriously damaged in Bridge Creek, the AP reports.
Cayman Islands health centre to temporarily close
The Cayman Islands Health Services Authority (HSA) has announced that the West Bay District Health Centre will be closed at 2:30 pm on Tuesday, May 12, to facilitate necessary works by the Cayman Water Company.
Residents are reminded to seek any services they need and collect all prescriptions as necessary by 2:30 pm on that day to avoid disruption in treatment plan.
The HSA apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. The clinic will re-open on Wednesday 13th May as usual.
Guyanese wanted for US murders held in T&T
From CARIBBEAN360
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Tuesday May 5, 2015 – A 37-year-old Guyanese who entered Trinidad under a false name is now in custody after being identified as a man wanted for several criminal offences in the United States, including two counts of murder.
A statement issued today by the twin-island republic’s National Security Ministry said Balkumar Singh, who has US citizenship and immigration status in Canada, was first detained on March 27, for violating the country’s immigration laws, under the name Shauwn Maharaj.
The fugitive, who has 14 convictions in Canada, including for assault and weapons charges, is also known by the aliases Tevin Persaud, Terry Persaud, Kumar Doodnath, Terry Singh and Sean Maharaj.
Based on information received by local INTERPOL, he was positively identified as Balkumar Singh who was being sought by US authorities on charges of murder, assault in the first degree, reckless endangerment, two counts of criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence.
As a result, a request was made by the US for Singh’s provisional arrest, which was agreed to by the Attorney General, and Singh subsequently appeared before a Port of Spain Magistrates’ Court.
He was remanded into custody until May 28.
For more: Read more: http://www.caribbean360.com/news/guyanese-wanted-for-us-murders-held-in-tt#ixzz3ZTsfC6Nu
Lawyer says Robert Durst peed on Candy in CVS due to a ‘medical mishap’
By Margaret Hartmann From New York Mag
Toward the very bottom of the list of bizarre crimes Robert Durst has committed — after dismembering a neighbor and allegedly killing at least two women — is the time he peed on a candy display after checking out in CVS. KPRC 2 News just obtained surveillance footage of the July 2014 incident, and now Durst’s lawyer is arguing that it was the kind of thing that could happen to any of us, not yet another sign that Durst is deeply troubled. “This was a medical mishap, plain and simple. He had to go and he couldn’t hold it,” said attorney Chip Lewis.
Durst left the store without saying anything, but later turned himself into police. He pleaded no contest to a criminal mischief charge and paid a $500 fine, plus more than $7,000 in damages.
“He patronized that store quite often and was very friendly and very well liked by all the staff,” Lewis added. “He was embarrassed in that aspect. The people that were so good to him were put, themselves, in an embarrassing situation.” The incident took place in Houston, but from the video you’d think the witnesses were all jaded New Yorkers. The other guy in line starts to back away as he notices what Durst is doing, but ultimately he decides to calmly check out at the next register, like a guy isn’t peeing on the Tic Tac display five feet away from him.
Cayman Islands opposition leader files motion to remove members of anti-corruption commission
Cayman Islands Opposition Leader, McKeeva Bush, has filed a motion in the Legislative Assembly to have the Auditor General (Alastair Swarbrick), the Police Commissioner (David Baines) and the Complaints Commissioner (??) removed from the Anti-Corruption Commission.
The Private Members’ motion says:
“There is evidence that, by the fact of their membership on the Anti-Corruption Commission, there [are] serious conflicts of interest which do not [conform] to the good practice of the rule of law and rule of natural justice.
“Be it now therefore resolved that the Anti-Corruption Law is changed to reflect the removal from the commission of the commissioner of police as chairman and member, the complaints commissioner and the auditor general as a member.”
Netanyahu forms a new coalition government at the last possible moment
By Jaime Fuller From New York Mag
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on March 18, 2015, at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem following his party Likud’s victory in Israel’s general election.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to a last-minute deal with the Knesset’s right-wing and religious parties, and finally has the slim majority of seats necessary to form a coalition government.
Netanyahu managed to do better than the polls predicted in the March parliamentary elections, but had an immensely difficult time attracting at least 61 of the 120 members of the Knesset to join his government. The government he managed to cobble together includes many small factions that don’t get along, which is sure to make governing all but impossible — and this incarnation of the government a short-lived one.
Netanyahu dissolved the last government partly because he wanted a more controllable Knesset. That does not appear to be the outcome of the election.
Why was it so hard for Netanyahu to form a government, despite the fact that his party, Likud, had won 30 seats? Earlier this week, foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman resigned from his position and refused to let his party, Yisrael Beiteinu, join Netanyahu’s coalition. “This is certainly a coalition that,” Lieberman told reporters, “to my regret, does not reflect the positions of the nationalist camp and is not to our liking, to put it mildly.”
If Netanyahu had not been able to make a deal before midnight on Wednesday, another party — likely the centrist Zionist Union — would have been given the opportunity to form a coalition government. No party has ever won enough seats in an Israeli election to be able to do something other than form a coalition government.
Student from Cayman Islands High School comes third in oratorical competition
16-year-old Caymanian student, Chauntol Hylton, from John Gray High School came third in the girl’s category of the Caribbean District Optimist International Oratorical Contest.
Only a few points separated the three top places.
The Oratorical Contest is an annual event geared at “bringing out the best in kids.” Organizers say it is designed to help young people gain experience in public speaking and provides them with an opportunity to compete for a scholarship towards their education.
The Optimist Club of George Town meets the first and third Thursday of every month at 6.30 p.m. at the Family Life Centre off Walkers Road.
Hilton Worldwide signs deal to develop Embassy Suites by Hilton Hotel in St. Kitts
Agreement Marks Hilton’s First Hotel on the Island
MCLEAN, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–During the Caribbean Hotel & Resort Investment Summit (CHRIS) in Miami last week, Hilton Worldwide announced the signing of a franchise agreement with Caribbean-based Sterling Developments to build an Embassy Suites by Hilton hotel on the island of St. Kitts & Nevis, making it the first Hilton property in the territory. The 226-suite hotel is currently under construction and plans to open its doors in Q1 2017.
“We look forward to a long and successful partnership.”
“The signing of Embassy Suites by Hilton St. Kitts furthers Hilton Worldwide’s goal to serve any guest for any trip occasion anywhere in the world, and underscores the confidence we place in the Caribbean as a top tourism destination,” said Ted Middleton, senior vice president, development, Latin America, Hilton Worldwide.
Embassy Suites by Hilton St. Kitts will be located in Pelican Bay, which is an exclusive private cove nestled on seven acres of gently sloping land, cascading down to a private beach on the Caribbean side of the island. Once complete, the hotel will offer easy access to the area’s main roads and downtown attractions, and is only 10 minutes away from Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport.
“St. Kitts is one of the hidden gems of the Caribbean and the Embassy Suites by Hilton brand is a perfect fit for our beachfront development at Pelican Bay in St. Kitts,” said Charles Ross, Chairman, Sterling Developments (SKN) Ltd. “Adding a Hilton branded hotel to the island will bring a big boost to local tourism, and we look forward to Embassy Suites by Hilton St. Kitts becoming a destination of choice in the Caribbean.”
Miami based Trust Hospitality has been appointed as the property’s management company. “We are excited to partner with Hilton and Sterling Developments in the launching of this world-class hotel, and become part of the game-changing landscape in this incredible part of the world,” said Richard Millard, CEO & Chairman, Trust Hospitality. “We look forward to a long and successful partnership.”
This condo-hotel complex will be financed via the St. Kitts & Nevis Citizen by Investment program. It will include six towers, 3,847 square feet of meeting space, an infinity pool, a fitness center, spa, and kids’ club. The new hotel will offer the brand’s signature features such as an inviting atrium environment, where guests will have access to complimentary cooked-to-order breakfast and evening Manager’s Reception* with complimentary appetizers and beverage. Restaurant facilities on the resort will include a three-meal restaurant, a specialty restaurant, and a pool and beach bar. It will also provide guests Embassy Suites by Hilton’s signature spacious suites equipped with a separate living area, private bedroom and wet bar fitted with a microwave, mini-fridge and coffee maker. All rooms will have direct views of the Caribbean.
“We look forward to introducing the Embassy brand to beautiful St. Kitts and Nevis,” said John Rogers, global head, Embassy Suites Hotels. “The prime location of this resort, coupled with Embassy’s full service offerings, ample space and guest-desired inclusive amenities will drive this hotel’s leisure travel appeal and strengthen the area’s accommodation options.”
Hilton Worldwide currently has 20 hotels open or in the pipeline throughout the Caribbean. For more information about Embassy Suites, please visit www.embassysuites.com and www.news.embassysuites.com.
Canadian University recognizes Sir Ronald Sanders
From KNews
Antigua and Barbuda diplomatist, writer and academic, Sir Ronald Sanders, has been elected as a Senior Fellow at Massey College in the University of Toronto. The announcement of his election was made by the Master of Massey College, the Honourable Hugh Segal.
He joins leading Canadian academics and captains of Industry in the inter-disciplinary activities of Massey College, including governance, diplomacy, business and international affairs.
Sir Ronald now has the distinction of concurrently being a Senior Fellow at two Universities in different Commonwealth countries. Guyana-born Sanders is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London, England. Last October, his work as an advocate for Caribbean and Commonwealth causes was recognised by the University of the West Indies when he was accorded the Doctor of Letters (D. Litt) by the University’s Senate and Council.
Sir Ronald has had a career as a senior diplomat and business executive. He has held many elected international and Caribbean positions, including as a member of the Executive Board of UNESCO and Chairman of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force.
Having also served the 53-nation Commonwealth in many capacities, he is now a nominee for the post of Commonwealth Secretary-General.
For more: http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2015/05/07/canadian-university-recognizes-sir-ronald-sanders/
ECLAC Deputy Executive Secretary opens Caribbean Future Forum
ECLAC’s Deputy Executive Secretary Antonio Prado signaled that if the Caribbean is to achieve equitable growth in an environmentally sustainable manner, critical challenges will have to be addressed, the most urgent of these being the high and unsustainable levels of public debt.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Forum on the Future of the Caribbean at the University of the West Indies St Augustine campus in Trinidad and Tobago on 5 May 2015, Mr. Prado identified the subregion as one of the most debt-constrained in the world.
Noting that the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean are at a crossroads in terms of their future growth and distribution capacity, he suggested that productivity gains, including product diversification will be needed. These developments, he cautioned, would not occur without careful planning. Investment in basic and higher education, science and technology and technical capacity were essential for ushering in a new era of growth with greater equality in Latin America and the Caribbean.
In the context of “disruptive thinking” which was the theme of the forum, he identified a number of areas where the Caribbean academic community can make a difference. He called for ‘open day’ when faculty and staff share ideas with the public on various development challenges confronting the society. He suggested that a strengthened culture of openness can provide the seeds for new ideas for basic and applied research that can lead to new products, services, methods and techniques to boost growth and development.
He also called for increased attention to be given to micro-level research that seeks to understand how individual agents and organisations function and succeed. The study of different categories of firms, for example, could provide rich insight into their motivations and what makes them profitable and competitive.
Addressing the role of education in the development effort, he said it was critical that Caribbean universities strengthen their links with private businesses, business development agencies and bureaus of standards. He noted that the sharing of experiences with these institutions, both those that have failed and those that are successful, provide an ideal avenue for creating dynamic networks that can serve as the scaffolding for the development of commercial products and services able to compete in international markets.
He suggested that think tanks like ECLAC should complement the work of the academy, noting that in this regard, ECLAC has consistently contributed to development thinking in the region.
He emphasised that the task of regional transformation was herculean, and urged the forum participants to dig deep to come up with workable solutions to advance the region’s development.
Rating Action: Moody’s downgrades First Citizens Bank Limited to Baa2, outlook changed to negative
Global Credit Research – 06 May 2015
Baa2(cr) Counterparty Risk Assessment assigned
New York, May 06, 2015 — Moody’s Investors Service has today downgraded First Citizens Bank Limited (FCBL)’s long term local and foreign currency deposit ratings to Baa2 from Baa1 and assigned FCBL a counterparty risk assessment of Baa2(cr) / Prime-2(cr). FCBL’s foreign currency short-term deposit rating was also downgraded to Prime-3 from Prime-2, while the Prime-2 local currency short-term deposit rating was affirmed. In addition, the bank’s outlook has been revised to negative from stable. FCBL’s baa3 baseline credit assessment was unaffected.
Moody’s also downgraded First Citizens (St. Lucia) Limited’s foreign currency senior debt rating to Baa2 from Baa1, and changed the outlook to negative from stable.
The following ratings were downgraded:
First Citizens Bank Limited:
Long term, local and foreign currency deposit ratings: to Baa2 from Baa1, outlook changed to negative from stable
Short term, foreign currency deposit rating: to Prime-3 from Prime-2.
First Citizens (St. Lucia) Limited:
Long term, foreign currency senior debt rating: to Baa2 from Baa1, outlook changed to negative from stable
The following rating was affirmed:
First Citizens Bank Limited:
Short term local currency deposit rating of Prime-2.
Caribbean Airline to operate two direct flights Curacao-Cuba
Willemstad, May 6 (Prensa Latina) The Caribbean airline Insel Air is to operate two direct flights between the capitals of Cuba and Curacao starting next July 3, the newspaper Curacao Chronicle reports today.
Willemstad-Havana flights will operate on Mondays and Fridays lasting about two and a half hours.
The company will use its Fokker aircrafts with capacity for 70 passengers and has already put the tickets on sale.
Havana thus will become the twenty-third destination covered by Insel Air, an airline operating since 2006 and based in the capital of Curacao.
This airline has routes to and from countries like Aruba, Venezuela, Colombia, Bonaire, Guyana, Jamaica, United States, Suriname, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, St. Maarten and Spain.
For more: http://www.plenglish.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3779351&Itemid=1
Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill issues allergy alert on undeclared egg in Jamaican style shrimp and soya patties
Recall — Firm Press Release
Contact: Consumer: 855-565-0561
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — May 6, 2015 — Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill of Bronx, NY is recalling 6,188 cases of Shrimp and Soya Patties, Net Wt. 17.2 lbs, due to an undeclared egg allergen. People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to eggs run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.
The Shrimp and Soya Patties were distributed directly to Golden Krust stores in the Northeast, through a distributor for Golden Krust stores in FL and GA and three other distributors.
Product cases are marked on the side with the following expiration dates: 1/24/2015 through 2/26/2016. Each bulk case contains 50 individual frozen pieces lined with parchment paper.
Golden Krust has not received any reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider.
The recall was initiated after it was discovered that product containing egg was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of the egg.
Consumers with known egg allergies who have any remaining aforementioned product with the expiry dates listed should not consume it, but rather discard it. Consumers with questions may call the Golden Krust Consumer Response Hotline at 855-565-0561, which is available 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. (EST) Monday – Friday or via email at [email protected].
Caribbean’s first open-water sports park to open in August
From CARICOM Today
IMAGE: Reduit Beach Rodney Bay (Photo via Caribbean360)
GROS ISLET, St Lucia – Starting this summer, making a splash in St Lucia will be more fun than ever when Reduit Beach in Rodney Bay Village becomes the home of the Eastern Caribbean’s first open-water sports park.
Billed “one of the Caribbean’s wettest and wildest family attractions,” Splash Island Water Park is set to open in August in front of the award-winning Bay Gardens Beach Resort & Spa, rated among the top 100 hotels in the World by Expedia and Fodors and recognized as one of the Caribbean’s top 25 Budget Family Friendly Resorts by The Family Travel Network.
Splash Island St Lucia promises a wide variety of on-water activities for all ages, including a trampoline, climbing wall, monkey bars, a swing, a slide, hurdles, double rocker, flip, and water volleyball.
Read more at: Caribbean360: http://www.caribbean360.com/news/caribbeans-first-open-water-sports-park-to-open-in-august?utm_source=Caribbean360%20Newsletters&utm_campaign=a4c75166e8-Vol_10_Issue_070_News5_4_2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_350247989a-a4c75166e8-39327305
St Lucia ramps up cyber-security after St Vincent website hacked
From Caribbean News Now
CASTRIES, St Lucia — The government of Saint Lucia said in a statement on Tuesday that it noted with concern the recent attack on the official website of the government of St Vincent and the Grenadines.
“This appears to be part of a trend of increasing reports of cyber-attacks of various kinds regionally and internationally,” the statement read.
As the government of Saint Lucia (GOSL) seeks to continually enhance its online presence and make more of its services accessible online to citizens and other users, it said it is ever mindful of the increasing importance of cyber security. This is why it has embarked on numerous initiatives and taken several proactive measures to reduce the possibility of successful attacks on government information and technology assets, as well as to reduce the negative impact should such incidents occur.
These measures are multi-layered and involve active cooperation among various personnel and collaboration with agencies and authorities at the national, regional and international levels.
“The recent cyber-attack in our sister OECS country highlights the need for everyone, at the government, private sector, civil society and individual levels to be cognizant of the importance of cyber-security. From the simplest of measures like strengthening passwords, periodically changing them and not sharing them with others, to not responding to phishing attacks and other internet schemes that seek to cause you to post personal information online, to more detailed ones like regularly using up-to-date antivirus software and periodically conducting security scans of your computers and networks, we can all play our part in minimizing the risk posed by these cyber threats,” the government said.
The government of Saint Lucia said it will continue to employ all practicable means at its disposal to reduce its vulnerability to cyber-attacks and to mitigate the impacts of such attacks should one take place.
Two Students present senior project research at Latin American and Caribbean Studies Research Symposium
From Allegheny College
Two International Studies and Spanish double majors presented the results of their Senior Project research at the XI Latin American and Caribbean Studies Research Symposium at Slippery Rock University on April 3. Kalyssa King ’15 presented “Reassessing the Goals of the Past: A Reflection on the Development, Creation and Outcomes of Plan Colombia” and Mario Buffalini ’15, “Default and Resolution in Argentina: An Unresolved Issue.” Associate Professors of Modern Languages Barbara Riess and Wilfredo Hernandez were in attendance and will co-organize the regional conference at Allegheny in spring 2016.
IMF launches youth photo contest in Latin America and the Caribbean
From BusinessNewsAsia.com
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) launched a regional photo contest entitled “Latin America and the Caribbean: Through the Eyes of its Youth” for Latin American and Caribbean youth.
The contest, which is open to citizens of Latin American and Caribbean countries age 18-30, provides an opportunity for youth in the region to communicate visually the economic and social challenges facing their countries, as well as ideas about how best to build a better future for the region.
Carla Grasso, IMF Deputy Managing Director, announced the launch of the photo contest today during a roundtable event with university students in Lima.
“It’s always enlightening and refreshing to engage with young people to learn more about the challenges they see and aspirations they have for the future. The photo contest will be a fantastic opportunity to visualize their perspectives on the region’s economic and social situation and how to improve it,” Ms. Grasso stated.
The contest will accept photo submissions from May 6 to June 30, 2015. Each photograph must include a short description—no more than 150 words—to explain how the image captures a contest theme in one of the three regional languages: Spanish, English, or Portuguese. Online voting will run from July 1 to July 31.
The top 20 finalists will be evaluated by a panel of judges composed of IMF staff and regional partners.
The selection will be based on originality, technical excellence and artistic merit. In addition, the panel will consider the country of origin and gender of the photographer.
Six finalists will be selected and invited to the 2015 Annual Meetings in Lima, Peru, where the winners will be announced.
