iNews Briefs
Cayman Ministry of Home Affairs announces it is aware of arrest of immigration officer
GRAND CAYMAN, Cayman Islands – The Ministry of Home Affairs is aware of the arrest of an Immigration officer, having been notified on Monday that an incident had occurred.
The Ministry is awaiting a report and recommendation from the Department of Immigration.
No decisions or determinations have been made at this time.
Cayman Judicial Financial Centre, Kirk House, Early Closure Notice
The Cash Office and Accounts Section will be closing Friday, 27 June 2014 at 12:00pm sharp for Financial Year End meeting.
We will reopen as usual on Monday, 30 June 2014 and apologize for any inconvenience the early closure may cause.
Kentucky confirms first case of Caribbean virus
From News Daily
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — State health officials have confirmed Kentucky’s first case of a nonfatal mosquito-borne virus prevalent in the Caribbean, Africa and Asia.
The Kentucky Department for Public Health says it has confirmed the chikungunya (chik-en-gun-ye) virus, or CHIKV, in an Anderson County man who recently traveled to Haiti. Officials expect at least nine other Kentuckians who recently traveled in the same region may also have the virus.
The virus can only spread to humans if an infected mosquito bites someone. It cannot spread human to human. Symptoms include high fever, chills, joint pain and a rash that can last up four days.
State health officials say the virus could become more prevalent in Kentucky because the state is home to both species of mosquitoes that can carry the virus.
Cayman Premier sponsors school trip
GRAND CAYMAN, Cayman Islands – Year 6 students at John A. Cumber Primary School will take an educational tour of Washington, D.C., next month thanks to help from the Office of the Premier.
Premier Hon. Alden McLaughlin gave the students $1,000 to help cover their expenses for the 1-7 July, 2014, trip.
“I am happy to be able to help these young people expand their minds with knowledge. They are going to an area that is steeped in history and I hope they have a good experience and learn much,” Mr. McLaughlin said.
The visit was arranged by the school’s Principal and the PTA Executive Committee for 21 students who registered to attend.
In addition to the sponsorship from the Premier, the school has hosted several fundraisers to help with expenses.
While in Washington, the students will stand where Martin Luther King made his pivotal speech, go to the Holocaust Museum and tour the Vietnam Memorial as well as participate in other activities.
Pope Francis speaks out against legalizing drugs
By Marcina Zaccaria From The Celebrity Cafe
Pope Francis spoke at a conference in Rome recently to share his thoughts on legalizing drugs. The Pope believes that legalizing drugs is a flawed and failed experiment.
Francis devoted some of his pastoral work in Buenos Aires to caring for addicts. Francis told delegates attending the drug enforcement conference in Rome that limited steps to legalize drugs are problematic.
According to the Associated Press, Francis said that that the addicts with drugs offered only “a veiled means of surrendering to the phenomenon. Let me state this in the clearest terms possible,” he said. “The problem of drug use is not solved with drugs!”
The conference looked at legislation in the United States and South America. Last month, Argentina’s neighbor Uruguay cleared the way for the legal sale of marijuana cigarettes in pharmacies. Meanwhile, Uruguay is the first country to look at marijuana legalization and regulation altogether. In the United States, recreational use of marijuana has been legalized in Colorado and Washington.
Francis characterized drug addiction as evil, according to The Guardian. Pope Francis’ point of view is that the reason for using drugs must be considered.
Crackdown on unlicensed mobile Cayman vendors
Roydell Carter, director of the Cayman Islands Department of Environmental Health (DEH), said the they were going to crackdown on unlicensed food vendors that operate out of private vehicles.
Carter said it is hard to catch illegal mobile food vendors because they are constantly on the move.
“However, when we do come across one of those vendors, we gather the information and we seize their operations if they don’t adhere to standards,” he said.
Carter also advised anyone who contracts food poisoning to report it immediately to the DEH.
British national charged with wife’s murder may be linked to love triangle
From Caribbean360
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, Sunday June 22, 2014, CMC – Police have charged a 32-year-old British national with murdering his wife, after her decomposing body was recovered from a shallow grave on Friday.
Police said that Alexander Clarke has been charged with non-capital murder in connection with the death of his 27-year-old wife Nexann Downes-Clarke. Legal observers say the charge means that he cannot be given the death sentence if found guilty.
Her body was recovered from a shallow grave in Mt. Moritz, St. George, days after she was reported missing.
Earlier, the police said they had also detained “a teenaged female” and Clarke in connection with the disappearance of the woman, raising speculation about a love triangle gone sour.
Clarke is expected to appear in court on Monday, the police said.
Cayman teachers not doing their job properly says a report that later appears watered down
During Cayman’s Finance Committee last Monday (22) the existence of a first report based on an independent review of local schools published in November 2012 was disclosed. It appeared that a second report, also based on the independent review of local schools was published and written by a member of the ministry staff who appeared to have altered the findings of the author of the first report. This second report is not the one the chief officer in the education and employment ministry, Mary Rodrigues has and the one submitted to Cabinet. She has what she called a Final Report.
The first report not only highlighted pupils bad behaviour but was just as damning on teachers.
It said teachers were negative, indifferent, dismissive and sarcastic towards students, including primary school children, even humiliating them. They were also described as being overly aggressive in their manner and failing to understand the learning needs of their students.
The second report appeared to be a “watered down” copy of the first one (one minister described it as ‘sanitised’) and the eight pages of recommendations in the first report was only a page and a half in the second one.
Rodrigues admitted she was not sure why there were three reports and what had happened but said she would determine the series of events that had led to the different reports.
Jamaica court sets date for five men charged with beheading mother and daughter
From Caribbean360
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Tuesday June 24, 2014, CMC – Five men charged with beheading a woman and her daughter in July 2011, will go on trial November 17.
The men, Adrian Campbell, Fabian Smith, Kemar Riley, Rushane Goldson and Sanjay Ducally, are accused of entering the home of Charmaine Cover-Rattray, 49 and her 19-year-old daughter, Joeith Lynch on July 20, 2011 and committing the act.
Their bodies were later found some distance away from the murder scene.
The Home Circuit Court set the new date after the men were originally scheduled to have gone on trial Monday.
Noor makes waves in T&T
From Guardian Media:
News wave designer Noorulain Agha-Ganga might be from Pakistan, but her flair for designing for Caribbean women is natural. Rather than doing couture lines, Agha-Ganga has been aiming for the easy, breezy details that constitute island life. Judging from last Sunday’s unveiling of The Noor Collection held at the T&T Country Club, Champs Elysees, Maraval, the young designer has been achieving her objective. Tasteful designs in desirable cuts that are sure to appeal to varying ages filled the runway at the signature event.
Sponsored by Revlon, Angostura Rum cocktails, Caribbean Belle, Toyota and CreativeTT, the open air event had a troubled start. Advertised to start at 3.30 pm, guests jostled for seats with the best shade from the early afternoon sun. But moments later, they abandoned their seats due to the drizzle which intensified. But as fate would have it, the weather subsided and in the blink of an eye, models took the spotlight showcasing everything from the flirty to the conservative, form fitting and breezy to the satisfaction of the audience. The “A-listers” in attendance included Miss Universe 1997 Janelle Commissiong-Chow, Miss World 1986 Giselle Laronde-West, former captain of the T&T and West Indies teams Daren Ganga, right-handed T&T batsman Adrian Bharath, Marie Abdullah, the wife of retired diplomat Frank Abdullah, Dr Charlottle Bigland, wife of the British High Commissioner also came out for an afternoon of delightful fashion.
See attachment.
For more: http://www.guardian.co.tt/entertainment/2014-06-22/noor-makes-waves-tt
British national accused of murdering his wife to undergo medical examination
From Caribbean360
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, Tuesday June 24, 2014, CMC – A 32-year-old British national charged with murdering his 27-year-old wife, whose body was found in a shallow grave last weekend, is to undergo a medical examination on Tuesday after his attorney told the court that he had been beaten while in police custody.
“He is injured and he alleges that his injuries were sustained while in police custody and just about the time when a statement was forced out of him so we need to see the results of that assessment,” attorney Anslem Clouden told reporters after his client, Alexander Clack made his first appearance in court on Monday.
A large crowd gathered outside the St. George’s Magistrate Court when Clack, a businessman, made his appearance charged with murdering his wife, Nexann Downes-Clarke, whose decomposing body was recovered in a suitcase from a shallow grave in Mt. Moritz, St. George, west of here, on Friday.
An autopsy revealed that she died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head and asphyxiation by strangulation.
Some members of the crowd hurled abusive remarks at Clack, who has been charged with non-capital murder. Legal observers say the charge means that he cannot be given the death sentence if found guilty.
Antigua and Barbuda hope to become ‘economic powerhouse’ with help from China
By Tracy From Atlanta Black Star
The new government of Antigua and Barbuda has signed an agreement with Chinese investors to build a major resort and residential development project in the twin-island Caribbean nation.
Gaston Browne became prime minister on Friday after leading his Antigua and Barbuda Labor Party to a dominating win in the general election. Over the weekend, he signed a memorandum of agreement with a Chinese company for a proposed US$740-million project on outlying Guiana Island and nearby parcels.
Plans call for the construction of five luxury hotels, 1,300 residential units, a casino, golf course, and marina, among other facilities.
The 460-acre (184-hectare) Guiana Island and the additional patchwork of land were previously owned by convicted Ponzi schemer R. Allen Stanford, a Texas financier who based his fraudulent offshore banking empire in Antigua and funded the islands’ government before his 2009 arrest by U.S. authorities.
Developers will have to purchase the roughly 1,500 acres of land from Stanford liquidators.
Browne’s Labor Party announced late Sunday that the new prime minister signed the agreement with Yida Zhang, director of Yida International Investment Antigua Limited, after eight hours of negotiations.
“I promised the people that my administration would bring the type of investments to the country that will transform Antigua and Barbuda into an economic powerhouse and I am serious about that promise,” Browne said.
Read the full story at jamaica-gleaner at: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20140620/business/business6.html
For more: http://atlantablackstar.com/2014/06/21/antigua-barbuda-hope-become-economic-powerhouse-help-china/
Barbados should consider casino gambling says tourism head
From Caribbean360
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Tuesday June 24, 2014, CMC – Head of the private sector tourism organisation, Sunil Chatrani, is renewing a decades-old call for introduction of casino gambling on the island.
“I’ve said in the past that we don’t have enough attractions. We need dolphin parks… I’m even talking about casinos. There are different things we need to look at,” said Chatrani, the newly elected President of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA).
“We just can’t have the sea, the sand and the Sun. We need more things to keep the people entertained on island.”
Following public consultations in the 90s, Barbados governments have been steadfast in their resistance to casino gambling on the island, but in 2012 permitted such risk-taking on berthed cruise ships for onboard entertainment, from which the local population is barred.
For more: http://www.caribbean360.com/travel/barbados-should-consider-casino-gambling-says-tourism-head
‘Computerworld’ ends its print run, becomes a digital-only magazine
By Terrence O’Brien From engadget
After nearly half a century Computerworld is ending its existence as a print magazine. Next Monday the final issue of the stalwart publication will be circulated on processed wood pulp. Computerworld won’t be going away completely, however, an online version will continue to exist. It’s a story that is becoming increasingly familiar. Countless magazines and newspapers have closed up shop as print has suffered what can only be described as a long and slow death spiral. But plenty have carried on as digital versions, as publications try to breathe new life into their struggling properties. In addition to the website, Computerworld will launch a digital magazine on August 1st that will be optimized for tablets and desktop PCs. Oddly, it seems the initial version will neglect truly mobile formats. Now all that remains to be seen is if one of the oldest computer magazines in the world can survive the continued evolution of the publishing world.
For more: http://www.engadget.com/2014/06/20/computerworld-ends-its-print-run/?ncid=rss_truncated
Man flown to Caribbean instead of Spain In British Airways mix up
By UNILAD
Most of us wouldn’t be completely devastated to find we were being flown to Grenada, the luxury Caribbean holiday destination, rather than Granada in Spain.
American dentist Edward Gamson and wife settled back for a first-class British Airways transit, but soon realised they were heading to the Caribbean on a flight 9 hours longer.
The couple had saved up for 2 years for their ‘dream holiday’ to Granada to see sights such as the Alhambra palace, and were furious to learn that it wasn’t going to happen any time soon.
When Edward complained to BA staff on the ground, he was amazed to discover it wasn’t the first time it had happened. Apparently, one of the ground crew exclaimed: ‘Not another one of these! We had another one of these happen last week.’
Lamenda Kingdon from Devon was the other person this had happened to, after she booked a trip to Granada as part of her bucket-list after being diagnosed with cancer. She also ended up in the Caribbean thanks to a mix up.
On that occasion, she was quickly reimbursed and Lamenda was later able to jet off on a dream trip to Omarama in New Zealand.
However despite an initial apology from BA staff and promises to rectify the situation, Mr Gamson and his partner ended up having to fly straight home to Washington, missing out the Spanish leg of their trip, something they had waited for, for 2 years.
For more: http://uniladmag.com/articles/man-flown-caribbean-instead-spain-british-airways-mix/
Love or hate him, Shaheen the World Cup camel is here to stay
By Sanya Nayeem, Deputy Readers Editor From Gulf news
Gulf News readers’ opinions sway from one extreme to the other on our resident prediction genius, but he isn’t going anywhere
From the US to the Cayman Islands, from Australia to India, Shaheen the camel is fast becoming an icon of World Cup 2014.
But, while the comedy prediction machine from the Dubai desert is a hump-backed genius to some, others have taken issue with the four-hooved clairvoyant, and haven’t been afraid to tell us so.
When the going was good and winning streak was on, readers, Facebookers and Tweeps alike were lauding the unassuming ungulate for his ability to munch on the correct piece of cardboard.
