Guyana Times - Saturday, October 29, 2022

Salvation Army’s Christmas Kettle kick-started with $1.5M from President

The Salvation Army on Friday launched its annual Christmas Appeal at the Georgetown Club, with a first contri bution of $1.5 million from Government to support this worthy cause.

The Christmas Kettle is a traditional initiative to raise funds to keep the Salvation Army’s human itarian work going. It is done annually throughout the world at Christmas, having first started in 1891 to assist those in need.

Divisional Commander of the Salvation Army, Major Matignol SaintLot expressed that the Christmas Appeal is even more needed at this time, having seen an increas ing demand to help peo ple. This has been a result of the COVID-19 pandem ic which resulted in grave economic hardship across the world.

“After the severe hit of COVID-19 in the past two years, the demand to help others has been rising dai ly. The Salvation Army is

seeing an increased demand from people in need due to the scars of COVID-19 and the rise of the cost of living in the whole world.

The Christmas Kettle

Appeal 2022 is now more important,” the Divisional Commander relayed.

President Dr Irfaan Ali in his feature address, ex pressed that giving should

not be a seasonal activity. The art of giving, he added, must be a way of life and makes up an individual's value system.

“Giving cannot be a sea

sonal activity…In this art of giving, it must be a way of life. It must be some thing that you believe in. It must be something that makes up your value sys tem. It must be something that gives you pride and joy and honour when you give.”

“There is a big differ ence between giving and distributing. Giving is fun damentally different from distributing. Giving is an attachment to your inner soul and being. It is not separating material things from you. It is allowing your value system to share something material, phys ical, emotional, mental,” President Ali voiced.

Lifting humanity

The Head of State re minded that lifting human ity through giving should happen every day, high lighting that organisations like the Salvation Army are bringing a societal ap proach to helping those in need.

He noted that the mis sion is to build a better

Guyana by creating valu able citizens. In this re gard, systemic issues are being weeded out to bridge generational gaps.

“We try to give people an opportunity to have change in their life, to be reinte grated into society, and cre ating valuable citizens. We cannot create an awesome country if we don’t create value in every single citizen of our country. That is why although we have to do the technical and hard work in transforming the country, I’m spending a lot of time on the systemic issues,” he told the gathering.

Support for this initia tive also came from sever al private sector donors, and other stakeholders. Some of the major donors to the Salvation Army in clude National Hardware (Guyana) Limited, Bounty Supermarket, Massy Stores, Survival Supermarket, MovieTowne, Republic Bank Guyana Limited, Mattai’s Supermarket, KFC, Muneshwers among others. (G12)

President Ali making the contribution to the Christmas Kettle initiative

Licences for Guyanese fisherfolk “It affects the way in which the Private Sector view things” – Head of State

…says Govt taking steps to remedy issue through diplomatic channels

The Guyana Government is ac tively working to re solve the ongoing fisher men licence issue, in order for Guyanese to operate and fish in Surinamese waters.

This was communicated by President Dr Irfaan Ali on Friday, expressing that Government is not happy with the way fisherfolk are currently treated. However, action is being taken and he further assured that this matter will not affect pend ing areas of interest be tween the two countries.

“When you’re in Government, you have to run Government in a very re sponsible way. It’s a mature thing to be in Government. The President is not an im mature position to be in. We have one issue with fishing. That has not affected the other issues… Are we happy with the way the fishermen are treated? No, we’re not happy. Are we taking steps? Yes, we’re taking steps,” Ali

commented.

Addressing the effects of this situation, the Head of State shared that his Administration is concerned about the private sector’s view and the effects cre ated from this situation. However, he reiterated that it is being handled from a diplomatic standpoint.

“It affects the way in which the private sector view things, of course, be cause the private sector is complaining and we’re very concerned. We are ap proaching this fishing issue from a diplomatic level, ap plying all the measures that the Government can apply and finding a solution. That is what we’re working to wards.”

Licences

The matter of Suriname’s harassment of Guyanese fishermen and the Dutchspeaking republic’s con tinued refusal to grant li cences to them, has been

a topical issue in recent times that even escalated to the point where Guyana’s Ambassador in Suriname, Keith George, was sum moned last month to a meet

Int’l Energy Conference & Expo announces appointment of new CEO

The International Energy Conference and Expo (IECEG) on Friday announced the ap pointment of Kurt Baboolall as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), with effect from October 1, 2022.

Baboolall holds a Master’s of Business Administration from the Australian Institute of Business, a Degree in Business Management, and a Diploma in Banking and Finance from the University of Guyana.

Prior to his appointment, he served as the Director of Operations for IECEG 2022. Speaking on his appoint ment, Baboolall said, “I am looking forward to the amaz ing opportunity of serving as CEO of an organisation that was responsible for bringing together Heads of State and Heads of Government, pol icymakers, academics and energy, and industry execu tives to discuss ideas around the further development of Guyana’s burgeoning ener gy sector. The International Energy Conference and Expo: Guyana has estab lished itself as one of the leading energy conferences regionally and has attracted tremendous local, regional

and international support. I look forward to contribut ing to the continued growth of this event.”

Before his tenure at IECEG, Baboolall was the Business Development Manager – of Ibis Construction Equipment Sales & Rentals (ICON) – a Joint Venture with Farfan & Mendes & FT Farfan from Trinidad between 20162020; Business Manager at Scotiabank between 20062016; and Seasonal Auditor for the Edward Beharry Group of Companies be tween 2000-2004.

Chairman of the International Energy Conference and Expo Guyana, Anthony Whyte related, “We are delight ed to have Mr Baboolall take the helm as CEO as we head into the 2023 edi tion of the IECEG under the theme ‘Harnessing Energy for Development’. The con ference and expo has been able to garner overwhelm ing return support from this year’s exhibitors and spon sors. In addition, we have also seen substantial inter est from new players across the energy sector and also from other sectors such as agriculture, mining, and for estry to name a few.”

Further, he stated, “We continue to focus on building new business relationships and strategic alliances local ly, regionally, and interna tionally, I am confident that Kurt has the experience and skill set to effectively drive this strategy forward for the benefit of the conference, Guyana, and the region.

The 2023 edition of the International Energy Conference and Expo Guyana will take place from February 14-17, 2023, at the Guyana Marriott Hotel, Georgetown, Guyana.

ing with the Surinamese Foreign Minister, Krishna Mathoera, on this very is sue.

Following the high-level meeting in Guyana during August 2021 between President Dr Irfaan Ali and Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi, the two leaders had issued a joint press statement in dicating that the age-old is sue of licences for Guyanese fisherfolk to operate in Suriname’s territorial wa ters would be addressed.

These fishermen op erate from the Corentyne coast and have to use the Corentyne to get access to

the Atlantic where they get most of their catch. The Corentyne River is consid ered Surinamese territory. Currently, the licences are issued to Surinamese busi nessmen at US$100 per year and rented to the Guyanese fisherfolk at US$3000 annu ally.

About 150 boats oper ate from the Number 66 Fishermen's Co-op Society, thus providing direct em ployment for about 800 fish ermen. Additionally, some 200 persons are employed in providing services which include transportation, fish vending and repairs to ma chinery and equipment.

Guyana has already said that it will be bringing this matter before the Caribbean Community (Caricom), since Suriname is also a member state.

Email correspon dence sent from high of ficials in the Surinamese Government, to their Guyanese counterparts, re vealed that Suriname had promised Guyana, that the fishing licence for Guyanese to fish in Surinamese waters would have been issued on January 1, 2021.

In the email dat ed December 13, 2020, which was seen by this publication, Surinamese Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Prahlad Sewdien had writ ten to Guyana’s Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, informing him that the fishing licenc es would be issued from January 1 of the next year and that they would try to have preparations com pleted within two weeks. The email also acknowl edged the list of fishermen that Mustapha had sent to Sewdien, while also sug gesting various actions that should be taken to complete the process of issuing the li cence, under Surinamese law.

Despite previous prom ises, Suriname has failed to issue to Guyanese fisher men licences to operate in Surinamese waters.

Fishing vessels at No 66 Fishermen’s Co-op

Newly appointed CEO of Int’l Energy Conference & Expo, Kurt Baboolall

Men on Mission

“Weare the root cause of much problems in society. It is now our time to be the root of solution, to be the root of positivity, to be the root that makes a difference, to be a root that builds a support system. Men on Mission will be the foundation to remove violence against women and children. This is not the responsibility for women, this is the responsibility for us to work with each other. We must make the change. We must drive the change. We must lead the movement of respect, we must lead the movement of dignity, we must lead the movement of pride”

Those were the words of President Dr Irfaan Ali as he formally launched the Men on Mission’ (MOM).

It is imperative that from the inception we applaud President Dr Irfaan Ali on the launching of the initiative to tackle issues affecting men countrywide at a time when domestic violence, abuse, and drug use, among other social issues, are consuming our men – young and old.

The initiative, the president said “…is about shouldering that responsibility. It is about demonstrating a collective will to act. It is about demonstrating a collective understanding of the problem and it’s about demonstrating a collective idea or creating a new system – an institution that supports a modern society...”

As we have since time and time again, the issue of fathers and men and their roles and responsibilities in the family and society has diminished over the years. It is only when Father’s Day is approaching, the discussion about men and fathers are re-emphasised and the need for fathers to take up their responsibilities more seriously, are predominantly discussed.

One of the objectives to the new initiative is to work to curb the issue of violence against women and children by men.

This issue of domestic violence, its trickle effects and impact on society, has on numerous occasions been reported in Guyanese media, but, unfortunately, this continues despite awareness efforts. In this many cases, women often times reach out to the mechanisms available to help domestic violence victims, but all systems sometimes fail them.

In one instance, 57-year-old Savitrie Raj, attempted to escaped her situation after 32 years of marriage, but her efforts were futile in the end.

There is more than a subtle irony in the continuance of this societal scourge in spite of the relentless efforts and the plethora of available mechanisms to inform and educate. The problem appears much larger than reflected in the news, as many cases go unreported. This speaks to the reality being underestimated.

Many reasons have been set forth for what can deter an abused victim from seeking the intervention of the law. Among them are aspects of culture, shame, dependency and its redounding lack of empowerment for some, and the absence of confidence in law enforcement precipitated from the reported trivialising of the issue in some instances.

The magnitude of the impact cannot be underestimated. Many persons have cruelly been made witnesses to the horrific assaults. Those ghastly images, especially when life was snuffed out, are not only lasting, but profoundly traumatising.

While it is always heartening to hear that surviving victims and witnesses to such horrific incidents would be counselled, it would be very informative for all to know the extent of what is available and offered. While expectations would be for what obtains in the developed nations, realistically, there must be something tangible in keeping with available resources, with upgrades foremost in planning.

This is not, in any way, suggesting that there is not an effective mechanism. However, counselling – for both men and women - can be an extensive process for some, depending upon the circumstances. Given the plethora of incidents that unfortunately continue, and which would make added demands on the system, the question of adequacy of trained staff, needed facilities, and support systems becomes more pertinent.

Our men have become violent and this Men on Mission’ (MOM) program cannot come at a better time.

We endorse the initiative and wish President Ali success as he seeks to address the issues affecting men in our society.

You have power, Rishi Sunak; use it: rejoin the single market and customs union

By Jürgen Maier

I’msure that, just like me, you learned the hard way when telling your first elaborate lie at school. It didn’t end well, as it led to more lies. Most re sponsible people learn these lessons young, and do not carry them into their profes sional life. Sadly, the same doesn’t seem true for today’s Government.

I have always been proud of our UK’s strong de mocracy and fact-based de bate. Brexit changed this, and our Government en tered a game of lies and coverups on steroids. As the debate of whether we should or should not “do Brexit” started, I remember being very confident about enter ing the debate, as I was sure that the facts would matter most. I was wrong. As we now know, the facts – cer tainly as far as the economy is concerned – were largely ignored.

“There will be no border in the Irish Sea,” we were told. “There will be no fric tion in trade with the EU”. “There will be no shortage of labour.” I was sure that the facts would soon emerge, and the lies would crash down. But the lies kept com ing. We heard the argument that we could deregulate our markets, reduce taxes, and still meet all our obliga tions to climate change and the environment. We heard the argument that we could

deregulate yet maintain the highest standards of work er protection. And we heard about the increasing cover ups, about illegality, and how badly our underlying economy was performing – not to mention the very elaborate action to cover up the party culture at the heart of government.

The reality is that, years of lies, policy blunders and incompetence have severe ly damaged the UK’s rep utation. Credibility is the cornerstone of the UK’s li cence to operate in inter national markets. And the next Government – what ever shade that will be –must focus on rebuilding the UK’s global reputation. There are a number of steps we can take to do this, in cluding having a transpar ent and long-term econom

ic vision that marries fiscal discipline with a long-term green industrial policy that the UK can lead globally.

There is another poli cy option that no one yet has the confidence to re verse, and that is to rejoin the single market and cus toms union. It was the big gest lie of them all: that we could replace the economic upside of being part of the most advanced free-trade zone in the world. No inde pendent trade deal can re place its economic upside. It is time to face up to this as a country.

This does not mean opening a debate about re joining the EU; that ship sailed some time ago. But there is a new possibility. The EU has held out an ol ive branch: to join a group ing of European countries

that don’t want to be part of the EU, but do want to benefit from its single mar ket and many collaborative bodies.

This, in my view, is a perfect moment for our new Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, to pivot and send a clear signal globally that we have listened and learned, and that we are going to take sensible steps to re store our reputation for pragmatism and econom ic sensibility. This would mean not pandering to the European Research Group and rightwing thinktanks which have been instrumen tal in much of the chaos of recent months and weeks.

Politically, it would be a brave shift, and economical ly a very pragmatic one. In doing so, we would be able to re-engage in markets across Europe and start a new, re sponsible growth coalition that we can all be proud of.

It’s an idea whose time has come. The Liberal Democrats believe in it. Labour needs to pivot to it. But the Conservatives have power, and Sunak, new in office, has power, authori ty and goodwill. This would be putting those three at tributes to good use. (The Guardian)

(Jürgen Maier is vicechair of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, co-founder of the social en terprise vocL, and a former Chief Executive Officer of Siemens UK)

First Lady Arya Ali on Friday graduated with an International Master of Business Administration (Strategy & Competitiveness Specialization) from the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business, University of the West Indies (UWI) (Office of the President photo)

Rishi Sunak

We need to stop defending and protecting the perpetrators of domestic violence

Dear Editor, I wish to bring the above subject to your attention and that of the readers by addressing it in detail be low.

Protecting victims of abuse is the pinnacle for their survival and for their stories. For too long, many victims struggle to get their stories to be shared, or their voices heard. This is a result of close relatives and friends around them pushing their issues aside, or trying to cov er it up, either to protect a relationship with the victim or abuser, or to keep family matters at bay. These chal lenges have persisted for a prolonged period of time.

Abuse is abuse regard less of its shape or form, and every victim has the right to tell his/her story. Persons who try to prevent a victim’s story from leaving the walls of its occurrence and trauma should be held accountable, because they are contribut ing to the extensive years of abuse and pain that many victims of domestic abuse encounter. They are as re sponsible as the perpetra tors themselves for trying to suppress the victims’ hurt and harm.

Here, in Guyana, there are countless women who ex perience abuse, but cannot speak out due to the advice or counsel provided by rela tives and close counterparts not allowing the situation to get too far. Regardless of one’s relationship with the abuser, victims have a fair right to express to relevant authorities the conflicts and domestic disputes that they have been having, especial ly if they fear that their lives are under threat or are in danger.

No one should have to be in a home, relationship or environment where they suffer day in and day out from extensive assault or harsh treatment. Most of the time, these things are ignored and pushed aside by relatives when a complaint is made, as they are not tak en seriously until the situa tion later escalates to a cli max.

It is my opinion that those silencing victims are self ish and self-centred, causing many victims to be the ones that struggle for years with their mental health, depres sion, etc., and from not re ceiving the help and guid ance they need. This further

allows the abusers to es cape with their behaviour, and they continuously re peat their actions because they feel that nothing can be done. Thus, persons convinc ing victims to conceal their matters are key players and instrumental influenc ers that prevent like issues from being resolved in the way that they should; more so, those that are trying to prevent the abuser from fac ing legal penalties.

When these situations are brought before the courts, the legal system should consider these people as malefactors who have led to the contribution of abuse for the period of time being adjudicated. These people, while they have not commit ted the act of abuse them selves, certainly lend a hand and engaged in it indirectly by not revealing, exposing, and calling out the wrong doings of the perpetrators as they are. There are so many untold stories, in particular of women and children who are struggling at home in the area of domestic violence or some sort of abuse and have not been able to shed a light on their battle. A number of victims can admit that it is

a ‘fight’ to get up every day and press through the agony and torment that they face.

It is only right that we stand up for those who are struggling, and be a voice for them when they cannot speak for themselves. One can only sit and think how egocentric another human being can be by watching someone else live through the trauma and not do any thing about it.

Whether you are a moth er, father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandparent, close relative, or friend, it is only proper and respectable that you call out the wrong when you see it happening in your circle of relationships, and not be about quieting it. We just cannot let these circumstances slip through our fingers anymore. We are losing too many of our wom en to abuse/abusive part ners, and causing our chil dren to live with a lifetime of wounds and sometimes ne glect without the guidance and love of their mothers. If you are supportive of an abuser and his/her lifestyle, then, in my contention, you are as much a ‘sub-abuser’, because you are part of the problem.

Contrary to GHRA, democracy in Guyana is strong and growing

Dear Editor

I refer to “GHRA calls for fundamental electoral reforms and a move away from Stone Age politics”

(Stabroek News, October 25, 2022) in which sever al over-generalizations are made about the state of pol itics in Guyana. As the title above indicates, GHRA is of the view that is in the Stone Age. While there are nota ble points of interest in the piece, GHRA seems to be too wedded to the past in its understanding of party pol itics in Guyana. I ask the reader to consider the ob servations below.

Firstly, despite the tur bulence that surrounds elections in Guyana, we have still managed to con duct free and fair elections and execute the peace ful transfer of power since 1992. That is no small ac complishment for a country that had struggled for four decades of foreign interven tion and authoritarian rule.

Secondly, notwithstand ing the machinations of the 2020 elections, we should take comfort that, in the end, the matter was recti fied through judicial review,

including the external CCJ. How I wish the same were true in any number of oth er Global South countries where election-driven vio lence, coups, and general ized mayhem continue as the norm.

Thirdly, the reforms that GHRA is calling for are currently being addressed through a national consul tation process. While there are indeed other proposals already on the table, GHRA should take comfort that the proposed refinement of the Representation of the People’s Act is substantive and meaningful. It is not window dressing.

Fourthly, Guyana has extremely competitive elec tions and the results defin itively prove this. In 2011, the PPP/C took the Office of the President, but the Opposition controlled the purse strings in parlia ment. Note that in 2015, the PPP/C facilitated the trans fer of power within days.

The next election saw the APNU-AFC in office, but only one seat, again underling a close elec tion. Dissatisfaction with the mediocre performance

of the AFC, one of its MP’s ‘crossed the floor’ in December 2018 and voted for a No-Confidence Motion. Though the APNU-AFC dragged their feet well be yond the three months to call elections, those elec tions did materialize in March 2020.

The 2020 elections again underlined the extreme competitiveness of party politics in the country, with the PPP/C managing only a one-seat advantage.

It is good that GHRA is participating in the process. But GHRA itself ought to reflect on its own conduct. As columnist Frederick Kissoon has observed, GHRA never meaningful ly spoke out against the at tempts to distort the elec tion results of 2020 by Mr. Lowenfiled, Mr. Mingo, and others. GHRA tends to de historicize everything by equating the PPP/C and the PNCR ignores what really happens on the ground.

For instance, while GHRA equates the two major parties regard ing attempts to dominate GECOM, it fails to mention that President Granger for

the first time since 1992, disallowed the nomination of the Chair by the Leader of the Opposition. The ar gument that no one met the criteria specified in Article 161 (2) of the constitution was forcefully dealt with by then opposition MP Anil Nandlall who pointed out (Kaieteur News, January 9, 2017) that past GECOM chairs Rudy Collins, Edward Hopkinson, Joseph Singh, and Dr. Steve Surujbally did not have any legal training. GHRA’s own biases have hurt its stand ing in the eyes of the public, but it can redeem its credi bility by being truly ‘civic.’

GHRA and other private groups ought to take pride and, yes, credit for the dy namic political develop ments in Guyana. Elections have become so competitive that no party is sure what will happen in the next na tional elections, or at least what the margin of victo ry/defeat would look like. The key here is that politics based on ethnic identity is rapidly evaporating.

Sincerely, Dr Randolph Persaud

So, together let’s hold the line for truth and for those who are fighting to survive, irrespective of our relation ships with the abuser. The only way that we can rem edy these critical social is sues is by exposing them in the appropriate manner, so that the necessary solutions can be taken and provided. We fail victims when we dis guise their stories and force them to bottle up their tears and fears. We simply cannot do this anymore. It is time that we act and support the victims. We all have a part

to play in society. Let’s make it our duty to lend a hand where we can, before it is too late.

Finally, when people go through, or have been through, years of abuse and struggle, they are not look ing to be sympathised with, but for a safe space that they can rely on for peace and strength, away from the pain and hurt they have ex perienced or have been bat tling with.

Sincerely, Imran Bacchus

Justice should be swift

Dear Editor, Not a day goes by with out some despicable, hate ful, and reprehensible event or act being committed.

Of recent, there have been many, none worse than the report of an el derly woman allegedly be ing raped and sodomised at a state institution, (GDN October 27). Worse are the allegations that the perpe trator of this heinous act was aided and abetted by staff to leave the facility. Of course, the authorities re sponsible for the institution have launched an investiga tion.

Several things come to mind in this episode, in cluding the kind of supervi sion and security in place. Are the staff properly and adequately trained and equipped to deal with the inmates?

But, more importantly, how could a suspect be es corted from a crime scene? Is this how the staff were trained to deal with a crim inal situation? The victim of this horrible atrocity cries out for justice; it should be swiftly delivered.

Respectfully, Shamshun Mohamed

Movie - The Addams Family 2 (2021)

Movie - Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007)

Movie - Twitches (2005)

Movie - Alice In Wonderland (2010)

Islam for

Movie - Marry Me in Yosemite (2022)

Movie - Scream (2022)

Module test

Complete the following test items

There are five hundred thousand, three hundred and fifty four people li ving in the city of Longe. How would you write that number in standard form?

Sara is collecting newspapers for a recycling contest at her school. She needs 384 newspapers to win the contest. So far she has collected 289. Rounding to the nearest ten, how many newspapers Sara still needs to collect?

Calculate

a) 25 x 15 = b) 9 x 56 = c) 83 x 92 =

Nafeeza bought five pizzas for her class, but her classmates only ate three-quarters of each pizza. How would Nafeeza express the amount of re maining pizza as an improper fraction?

Calculate

$13.50 + $10.00 + $23.25 = $1090.00 – $735.25 = $7.07 + $2.93 =

Sebastian has been measuring the rainfall for the past seven days. He measured the following amounts: 9mm, 7mm, 2mm, 6mm, 10mm, 2.5mm, and 1.57mm. Rounding to the nearest tenth of a millimetre, what was the total amount of rainfall during the seven-day period?

Calculate

a) 79 ÷ 55 = b) 35 ÷ 70 = c) 630 ÷ 8 =

Johnny is mixing the paint he will use to paint his wooden scooter. He needs one part blue to two parts red. If he is using 1 pint of red paint, how many pints of blue will he need? What will be the resultant colour?

Calculate

20% of (150 ÷ 5) = What is 50% of 4/5? Express the number in both decimal and fraction form.

Mana has a rope that is 17.25 metres long. If 30% of the rope has been painted black, what portion of the rope has not been painted? How many me tres is that equivalent to?

Explore a Shore

There’s

more to do at a shore than swim or build a sand castle. Dive into these seaside activities!

Top of Form

At a rocky coast

o When the tide is out, look for pools of water left behind in rocks. Then find out what’s go ing on in these tidepools. What’s crawling or swimming around and what’s attached? For a bet ter look, use a swim mask or gog gles.

o Check the rocks at low tide. Can you find the mark where the water reached at high tide? Start there and work your way to the low-tide line. What lives at each spot along the way? Don’t forget to peek in and under clumps of seaweed. Once on shore, mark

down in a journal what you dis cover.

o Watch stuck-on creatures as the tide comes in and covers them with water. Do mussels open their shells? Do barnacles kick out their feathery feet to eat?

At a sandy beach

o Watch birds, crabs, and other creatures move across the sand. What tracks do they leave?

o Fill a bucket with wa ter and then scoop in some wet sand. Does anything swim out of the sand?

o When the tide is out, check the line of stuff left behind by the last high tide. How many different kinds of seaweed can you find? Look for crab and snail shells, egg cases, and other ani mal remains. Are there any liv ing creatures in there?

o Forget sand castles. Build a creature out of sand instead!

TIP #1: Leave all sea crea tures where you found them.

TIP #2: Wet rocks and sea weed are slippery, so watch your step. Keep track of the tide and watch out for waves. (rangerrick. org)

CONTINUED FROM FRIDAY

By The BroThers Grimm

Attorney-at-law arrested by SOCU after advising client to remain silent

…released after Attorney General intervenes …OPR launches investigation

Attorney-at-Law

Tamieka Clarke, who was arrested by the Police on Friday for her ad vising her client, who is un der probe by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), to exercise his con stitutional right to remain silent, has mulled suing the State for false imprisonment.

Clarke was released after the intervention of Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, who has already offered her a profound apology for what he described as an “unfortu nate incident”.

After inquiring about the circumstances surround ing the arrest of counsel, Nandlall said that in his ca pacity as the constitutional legal advisor to the Guyana Police Force (GPF), he im mediately advised that she be released.

At a press conference shortly after her release, Clarke disclosed that she was retained by a client [name withheld], who was detained last week Friday by SOCU – an arm of the Police Force – for computer-related fraud.

The lawyer said that her client was released that same day on his own recog nisance (self-bail) and in structed to return to SOCU’s Camp Street, Georgetown Headquarters on Tuesday. As such, she related that she accompanied him to SOCU’s Headquarters, where Superintendent Krishnadat Ramana began inquiring from the other ranks about if they were ready to take a statement from her client.

Since no one was ready to take the statement, Clarke said that her client was instructed to return on Thursday. She added that she informed the ranks that she had advised her client to exercise his constitutional right to remain silent, and as such, he would not be mak ing any statement.

Threats

At this point, she relat ed that one Superintendent Ramana told her: “Do you know what is obstruction? Your client is compellable to give a statement.”

“So, I told Ramana that my client was arrested, he is a suspect, he was released

and he is told to report…that he has been advised to re main silent.”

Superintendent Ramana, she said, then told her that she and her client had to re turn on Thursday at 13:00h and that if her client did not give a statement, he would arrest her.

Clarke added that when she inquired of the Police rank if he was “arresting her for advising her client”, he replied: “Counsel, all I can advise you is that counsel will need counsel.”

According to her, when she and her client went to SOCU’s Headquarters on Thursday, they were in structed to return on Friday because Superintendent Ramana was busy.

“My client arrived a few minutes before me on Friday. My client told me while he was there, they [the Police] had a statement there al ready and were asking him to read it and sign it. My cli ent indicated to the officer that he is following his attor ney’s advice and he will not be signing any statement,” said Clarke as she recounted what transpired.

The lawyer further said that other ranks informed her that her client could not leave without signing the statement. “My client indi cated to me that he has been coming so often and nothing is being done and he wants to leave because nothing is being done,” she said while adding that she went into an office to ask, again, whether her client was under arrest.

“They told me no.”

Arrested Superintendent Ramana, she pointed out, accused her of preventing her cli ent from giving a statement, and thereby ordered anoth er rank to arrest her for ob structing an officer in the conduct of his duties.

“A male officer arrested me, he took my phone from me, and then another officer [told him] to get the female rank from the gate because she has to be the one to ar rest her. I tried to leave… I was walking out… Sergeant Singh ran and block the door…the officer who arrest ed me, stood by the door, so I couldn’t leave…I didn’t say

anything, I remained silent until my attorneys came…” recalled Clarke, who said she was detained for almost an hour.

Rule of law under threat

Nigel Hughes, one of Clarke’s attorneys, said that when he arrived at SOCU’s Headquarters, he contact ed the President of the Bar Association, Pauline Chase, to inform her that a practic ing lawyer was arrested in the execution of her duties by providing a client with advice.

He explained that the Constitution of Guyana en titles every citizen to remain silent if they are a suspect or if they are the target of an in vestigation. “If you’re arrest ed, you don’t have to provide any information to the Police other than your name and address.”

He pointed out that Clarke’s arrest is “partic ularly disturbing” because the rule of law and the en forcement of the law which the Judiciary is tasked with “to protect citizens from the might and power of the State

is under threat” as a result of the Police ignoring and dis regarding people’s protected constitutional rights.

Meanwhile, Clarke has signalled her intention to file civil proceedings against the State for false imprisonment to ensure that there is no re currence of this incident.

Clarke, who previously served as a State Counsel in the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), has been in private practice for the past three years.

SOCU is headed by Senior Superintendent Fazil Karimbaksh.

OPR investigation

The Guyana Police Force in a statement on the is sue, said that it is aware of a statement issued by the Guyana Bar Association in relation to allegations of the arrest of Clarke on Friday by SOCU.

“As such, the Police Office of Professional Responsibility has since been instructed to launch an investigation into the allega tions,” the Police statement read. (G1)

Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC

Attorney-at-Law Tamieka Clarke speaking at Friday’s press conference

Arrest of lawyer by SOCU

Action “disturbing, perverse, unlawful, oppressive” – Bar Association in condemnation

The Guyana Bar Association (GBA) and Guyana Association of Women Lawyers (GAWL) have condemned the Guyana Police Force (GPF) for detain ing Attorney-at-Law Tamieka Clarke for advising her client to remain silent.

In a missive, the GBA reg istered its displeasure at the GPF’s disregard for the rule of law and the fundamental right to counsel which are the “hallmarks of a democratic so ciety”.

“Today [Friday] the ac tions of the members of the Guyana Police Force’s Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) towards our col league, Ms Tamieka Clarke, Attorney-at-Law sought to destroy these foundations of our democracy,” the Bar Association noted.

From all indications, the Bar said that the lawyer’s ar rest was prompted by her ad vice to a client to exercise his constitutional right to remain silent and follows a threat made to her earlier this week that she would be arrested if her client did not give a state ment to the Police on a matter they are investigating.

The representative body for lawyers made it clear that it “unreservedly and unequiv

ocally” denounces the action of GPF while stressing that such an action is “disturbing, per verse, unlawful, oppressive, and wholly unacceptable”.

The GBA, therefore, called on the acting Police Commissioner, Clifton Hicken, to: forthwith issue an apology to Clarke; com pensate her for unlawful im prisonment; launch a full in vestigation into the matter at hand with such necessary disciplinary action enforced swiftly including charges be

ing laid against the offending officer(s), there being no law ful grounds for the arrest; and to exercise disciplinary action including termination of any officer(s) who were aware of and allowed this type conduct.

“The Bar Association in clusive of its Criminal Bar Committee does not take this matter lightly and will take all necessary steps to ensure that our members can exer cise their professional duties without intimidation and that the rule of law is upheld.”

Executing duties

In a separate statement, the GAWL, on the other hand, made it clear that at no time should a lawyer be fearful of executing his/her duties. According to the Association, an attorney has the legal right and responsibility to offer le gal counsel to their client.

Its statement added, “One such responsibility is to re mind the client that he/she cannot be compelled to give evidence in a criminal matter, which is enshrined in Article 144 (7) of the Constitution of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana.”

Emphasising that a law yer advising her client that he has a right to remain si lent during an interview is

not outside of the scope of the law, the GAWL thus called on the Top Cop to issue an apology and cause a probe to be promptly conducted into SOCU’s actions.

Police have since an nounced that the incident is being investigated by its Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). (G1)

‘Men on Mission’ initiative to...

Forefront of changes

According to the Head of State, men need to be on the forefront of mak ing these changes in soci ety and through the MOM movement, he is hoping that Guyana becomes a global ex ample in coming together to end injustices to women and be more responsible mem bers of the community.

“We can postpone this problem to next generation or we can take the responsi bility now. We can deny our sisters and mothers and wife and women in society, young girls, the opportunity of see ing a change now by our in action or we can let them live and see these changes by our positive action. It is all up to us… We can only pave the way with good ex amples, good systems and if we do what is right. Today is our chance to do what is right, our chance to assume our role individually and col lectively… Let us make our mark in creating a different Guyana…,” President Ali posited.

This Men on Mission ini tiative will involve one thou sand men from various seg ment of society including the Joint Services, the sport fra ternity, the entertainment industry, community work ers, the religious fraternity, the business sector, etc.

Decoupling...

…has consequences

Believe it or not, what’s unfolding in Europe with the Ukraine War is merely a sideshow to an infinitely larger seismic change in the entire world order!! Yes, dear reader, to call Ukraine a “sideshow” isn’t being callous to the human suffering up there; it’s to suggest the enormity of what’s unfolding right under our noses - with most of us oblivious to it. But we better wake up and smell the coffee (tea?) that’s been brewing for decades - else we end up being swept up in the coming tsunami.

Your Eyewitness will throw out one simple factoid on which his entire argument is based. As of 2021, China’s manufacturing output was EQUAL to that of the US and all of Europe combined!! We’d all been forewarned about China inching up to overtake the US as the largest economy and all that, but did you realise that, based on the production of REAL goods, they’ve already beaten them and some?!!

The US’ present edge is based on intangibles through the legerdemain of financialisation of its economy. This measures “profits” from making money on money through “financial instruments” like derivatives and such like - that Warren Buffet calls “weapons of mass destruction!!

The irony, of course, is that China became the “factory of the world” primarily through the actions of the US from the 1980s!! US businesses followed the logic of capitalism, and pumped hundreds of billions of dollars in technology and markets into China, to take advantage of cheap labour!! Never mind China was “communist” – they brought China into the WTO and other world institutions to smooth its path. The US business magnates – and the Government they controlledwere willing to see their factories that had led the world into unheralded post-WWII prosperity form the “rustbelt”!!

They were even willing to have China reverse engineer its products, steal patented techniques, and form stateowned corporations that could compete with the western corporations! The Americans evidently felt that, in accordance with their then-dominant ideological premise, there would be a Fukuyama-like “convergence” of democratic systems. And there would be a “democratic peace” as with, say, Europe and Japan that had been rebuilt after WWII.

Ha!! This was capitalism with a Chinese face – and it worked because of its commandantist style that boosted productivity. Chinese leaders had their own millennia-old vision of their place in the world as the “Middle Kingdom”around which all others literally revolved!! So, finally, the US has awoken to the Chinese challenge, and is furiously trying to “decouple” its economy – starting with the pullout of chipmaking capabilities!!

There’s gonna be a lotta bloodletting; let’s see who can better stand the pain!! For the Chinese under Xi, it’s not about profits, but China’s honour!!

…gender bias??

In a list of 146 countries, Guyana’s now ranked 35th in the “Global Gender Gap” – jumping 18 places since last year!! We’re now #6 in Latin America and the Caribbean. So exactly what does this mean?? Generally, the survey measures gender gaps on economic, political, education and health matters. Specifically, on health we’re among 27 countries to cog the number one spot. So, your Eyewitness wonders whether maternity deaths are as high in the region as ours?? Something’s radically wrong if that’s so.

But it was “political empowerment” - where we scored #42 - that intrigued your Eyewitness. Here, we’ve already mandated that ONE THIRD of all MPs from the several parties must be female. This is in line with the goal of “representation by presence”; that is, women are best capable of representing “women’s issues”. Only those who FEEL can KNOW what it is to be oppressed on sexual grounds!!

So why their studied silence on the latest male outrage against women??

…passing ships

Your Eyewitness just learnt that when a ship hits a fixed object - like a bridge – it’s an “allission”, not a “collision”!! Well, it now appears the ship’s records before the allision were tampered with.

So, why no Police investigation??

The views expressed in this column are the author’s

not necessarily reflect Guyana Times’ editorial policy

Bar Association President Pauline Chase, Attorney-at-Law

GAWL President Kean Trotman, Attorney-at-Law

$900M revolving fund set up to boost forestry sector

With assistance from Demerara Bank Limited, the Guyana Government has set up a $900 million revolv ing fund that is aimed at boosting the forestry sector to meet market demands.

This announcement was made by President Dr Irfaan Ali during a stakeholder en gagement on Friday.

He disclosed that some $300 million from the State’s coffers has been set aside for this revolving fund. This sum will be fur ther supplemented by $600 million more provided by Demerara Bank Limited.

“We are now going to un leash $900 million into the market to step up produc tion so that we meet the de mand especially for the val ue-added product and to push this sector – to give this sector a real boost be cause we are very concerned about the production level and where it should be to meet our national demands and the markets that we’re building,” President Ali stated.

This $900 million revolv ing fund will carry a low in terest rate of four per cent.

According to the Head of State, through a part nership with the Guyana Forestry Commission un der the Ministry of Natural Resources, a committee will be established to ensure that persons are adhering

to and abiding by what is expected of them, that is, the sector itself and its var ious associations.

On Friday, Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat along with the Board of Directors and Senior Management of the Guyana Forestry Commission met with small and large forest concession holders, sawmillers, small loggers and value-added forest producers to discuss opportunities within the forest sector and ways to in crease production.

Stakeholders with in the forest sector are be ing urged by the Minister of Natural Resources to in crease production, while the Government will contin ue to enhance access to for est concessions through im proved infrastructure and investment incentives.

The Government, through the GFC, has com mitted to continue working with all forest stakehold ers to increase productivity in keeping with sustainable forest management practic es.

When the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration took office in August 2020, it inherited a “grossly mis managed” forestry sector that was on the “verge of collapse. However, through various interventions and initiatives implemented by the Government, this indus try has made a turnaround.

In 2020 alone, the Aliled Administration inject ed $350 million into the then cash-strapped Guyana Forestry Commission to cover operational costs and wages for staff for the re mainder of the year.

Strategies aimed at boosting the financial per formance and management capabilities of the GFC were undertaken and in in 2021, the forestry sector was able to make a positive turnover and manage on its own.

One achievement of the sector in 2021 included getting stakeholders, par ticularly small-scale log gers back into the business which resulted in the con struction boom, and an in crease in log production, with over 400,000 cubic feet declared.

Minister Bharrat had said back in January that his Ministry intends to hold

more consultations with the larger companies in order for them to reach their tar gets.

“Their production was very low when compared to the small loggers. This is an area we will address in 2022. We can’t have peo ple holding up State land. There is so much room for increased production. That is not a question that stake holders should be worried about,” the Minister stated.

Meanwhile, the GFC’s monthly revenue collection was increased from $70 mil lion in 2019 to over $90 mil lion in 2021 while over 100 new concessions were is

sued to small loggers. Additionally, monitoring capabilities were advanced with the procurement of more off-terrain vehicles to venture into the hinterland for exercises.

Further, roads crucial to the development of the for estry sector were rehabili tated and new hinterland roads were constructed in Regions One (BarimaWaini), Two (PomeroonSupenaam), Eight (PotaroSiparuni), Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) and 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) to the tune of over $3 billion. (G8)

Operators in the forestry sector at Friday’s stakeholder engagement

NEW GPC awards successful NGSA children of employees with bursaries

The NEW Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation (NEW GPC) on Friday awarded several children of its em ployees, who were success ful at this year’s National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA), with bursaries for their performance at the ex amination.

The awardees were Phyllisia Scott; Amiya Bhagelu; Lakshana Rambarran; Talia Lovell; Naomi Hunte and Kelsi Mc Kenzie.

For five years, each child will receive $50,000, giv en that they perform with a minimum pass rate of 60 per cent each term. This is also extended for those who choose to further their edu cation at the sixth form lev el.

Hampers are usual ly handed over with school items but since the COVID pandemic, devices are also gifted.

Human Resources

Assistant Kittesha Griffith shared, “It is the company’s endeavour that these stu dents would use all of what is being awarded to strive your best to achieve what you are meant to achieve.”

Company Secretary Sean Noel indicated that this bur sary is also a motivational tool for students to excel and extend their best effort.

“One of the critical

things about these awards is not just that it gives you a cash donation, but it is the incremental motivational tool that helps you to decide that if you continue to better yourself, good things will fol low,” Noel stated.

As they step into the new secondary education lev el, the Company Secretary charged the awardees to make good decisions that

will positively impact their lives.

“You must develop an in quiring mind…At the end of the day, your aim is to be come an improved person, a better person at the end of your schooling. We hear that the experiences are in valuable as you go through life and the friendships that you form are invaluable so those things must be at the top of your focus – develop ing good friendships.”

Former bursary award ee, Marvin Scott also ad vised the awardees to be their greatest asset and choose how they want to learn throughout the next five years.

“I attended St Stanislaus College through sixth form. Most time, you will hear the sky is the limit and that is fine. That is hard to believe but you really are going to be your greatest asset. The only thing that is going to keep you back will be your self,” Scott shared.

1st Guyanese appointed Deputy Warden at NYC correctional facility

For 25 years, Steven Ramkissoon has walked a fine line working to maintain order in the city’s jails.

Along the way he has managed to earn respect among the staff and the de tainees. His secret, he said, is simple.

“You just have to keep your word,” he said. “Your word is everything. You have to be fair. You have to be fair with the staff and the inmate population.”

Ramkissoon’s straight shooting has allowed him to work his way up the Correction Department lad der.

After stints as a Correction Officer, Captain and Assistant Deputy Warden, Ramkissoon was recently ap pointed Deputy Warden by Correction Commissioner Louis Molina.

Ramkissoon, 44, takes particular pride in the posi tion because with the promo tion he became the first per son of Guyanese descent to attain the rank of Deputy Warden, according to the DESI Society, a fraternal or ganisation representing law enforcement officers in the South Asian community.

To mark the occasion, Ramkisson was recognised by Dr Irfaan Ali, the President of Guyana, when he was in town last month for the UN General Assembly.

“My father grew up with his family in same town,” Ramkissoon said. It was a full circle moment for Ramkissoon, whose father

left Guyana for the US at age 18 and joined the US military.

His family moved to Florida before moving to Queens, where he was born in La Guardia Hospital.

Ramkissoon was raised in Staten Island, where he ad mitted he had no great love for law enforcement.

“A lot of us didn’t really care for the NYPD,” he said. “They were very hard on the residents of that area.”

Still, he wanted to wear a badge, and after taking a civ il service test, he decided he would join up with whichever agency called him first.

“Correction went through faster and that was it,” he said “There was a time I wanted to switch over to NYPD. The people in my department looked at me like I was crazy. They said, just stay where you are.” Seems like it all worked out. (NYC Daily News)

Recipients of the NEW GPC bursary award with their parents along with Company Secretary Sean Noel, NEW GPC Human Resources Manager Faye Scott, and Human Resources Assistant Kittesha Griffith on Friday

Steven Ramkissoon

GPHC now offering free CT scanning

Berbice-Corentyne) offering CT scans free of cost after installing a brand-new equipment in October 2020.

Prior to this installation, residents in nearby areas were previously forced to travel elsewhere to seek this type of ra dio technology service.

Since the installation two years ago, more than 1600 CT images were done free of charge, including CT with con trast. The CT is linked to the GPHC through a PAC system, permitting tel eradiology service with specialists from GPHC. With this technology, referrals to GPHC have been severely reduced.

The installation of the equipment at the NAPH followed a visit to the hospi tal in 2020 by Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony, who committed to taking im mediate steps to improve health services in the Region as a whole, and at the NAPH as well as at other healthcare in stitutions in the area in particular.

At the time, Region Health Officer (RHO) of Region Six, Dr Vishalya Sharma, had emphasised the impor tance of having such a critical piece of equipment functioning at the hospital.

Sentencing for wife killer adjourned to next Tuesday

Persons needing to undergo com puterised tomography (CT) scans at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) will no longer be re quired to pay for this service.

This was announced on Friday by GPHC’s Chief Executive Officer (ag), Robbie Rambarran, after meeting with the Board of Directors the previous day. This change in policy will take effect from November 1, 2022.

In a statement issued on Friday, the GPHC explained that the cost of a scan varies, and the hospital’s management realises that this places a heavy finan cial strain on patients.

With the introduction of the free CT

scans, patients will now be saving as much as between $15,000 and $52,000 for this service. Moreover, the public hos pital noted that removal of this fee will also assist in expediting the treatment and care of the patients at the GPHC.

“Patients will no longer have to wor ry about arranging financial transaction in order to foot the bill. So, this move will eliminate any financial difficulty. Management is cognisant of the costof-living and do empathise with anyone suffering from any illness,” the GPHC said.

This move by the GPHC comes on the heels of the New Amsterdam Public Hospital (NAPH) in Region Six (East

“CT scan machines are used in the diagnosis of illnesses like muscle and bone disorders, such as bone tumours and fractures. It pinpoints the location of a tumour, infection, or blood clot, to guide doctors for the next procedures,” she explained.

Dr Sharma had noted that the avail ability of the machine would save many patients from spending a lot of money on travelling to Georgetown to seek medi cal care at either public or private health institutions.

According to the RHO, RAD-AID International had, in 2016, handed over the new CT scanner, valued at approxi mately US$200,000, to the then Ministry of Public Health, but the equipment was never installed and made operational.

Asentencing

hearing for a 38-year-old for mer Policeman, who admitted to killing his reput ed wife, which was initial ly scheduled for Thursday, has been deferred to next Tuesday. Earlier this month, Jermaine Bristol of Freeman Street, East La Penitence, Georgetown, ap peared before Judge Sandil Kissoon on a murder charge.

He admitted that he mur dered 24-year-old Shanece Lawrence on August 22, 2018.

Defence counsel Everton Lammy-Singh is represent ing the convict, while State Counsel Muntaz Ali is pre

senting the prosecution’s case.

The case is being heard at the High Court in Demerara.

It was reported that af ter killing Lawrence, Bristol walked into the East La Penitence Police Station and confessed to the crime. He then led the Police to his East La Penitence dwell ing where the woman’s body was discovered with a knife stuck in the neck.

An autopsy revealed that Lawrence sustained 10 stab wounds about her body. It was reported that the couple shared a rocky relationship spanning over half a decade. (G1)

Wife killer Jermaine Bristol Shanece Lawrence

GPF assists mother of accident victim

help her.

Khan said that since that incident she never went back to the Ministry, and she has been battling on her own with the help of a few persons.

After the accident, the driver who struck down the child was charged with dan gerous driving. He was sen tenced to 12 months in pris on, but appealed the case and was freed.

However, last month, the driver that struck Zaman down, Andrew Albert of Lamaha Park, Georgetown, was involved in a horrif ic smash-up at Good Hope, ECD, and died. (G9)

Lethem store maliciously set on fire – investigators

Two months after the mother of a paralysed teen took to social media seeking public assis tance so that she can take care of her son, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) has as sisted her.

On Thursday Inspector Roop and the traffic ranks of Sparendaam Traffic Department on the East Coast of Demerara (ECD) handed over a hamper to the stay-at-home moth er of the accident victim, Matthew Zaman, that will help the woman provide for the teen.

Zaman, now 13 years old, was left paralysed following a motor vehicle accident out side their home at Felicity Railway Embankment, ECD, in 2018. At the time, he was eight years old.

Following the accident, he was admitted as a patient in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Georgetown Public Hospital for over a month.

However, Matthew sur prised everyone and contin ued to fight for his life, and was later discharged from the medical institution. He sustained a fractured skull, which resulted in swell ing in the brain; damage to his lungs, and injury to his spine, which hinders his mobility.

Since the accident, his mother, Bibi Shanaz Khan, left her job as a domestic worker to care for her son and has since been a stayat-home mother, while fend ing for herself and her son.

Zaman is still unable to speak or move his hands

and legs, and he cannot breathe without the help of a nasal cannula (a device used to deliver supplemen tal oxygen or increased air flow to a patient in need of respiratory help).

The woman had told Guyana Times two years ago that after providing for her son became hard for her to keep with financial ly, she went to the Human Services and Social Security Ministry and was denied public assistance.

Khan said that in April 2018, while she was bat tling to find resources to keep her son alive, she went to the Ministry with all of the required documents to seek help. She said while she was there, she encoun tered a rude employee who belittled her and refused to

Officials of the Guyana Fire Service have confirmed that the fire that gutted the famous China Star Supermarket in Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) on September 3 was mali ciously set.

Following the incident, the Fire Service launched an investigation into the cause of the fire and has come to the conclusion of arson.

The supermarket, which was located in Lethem’s commercial zone, was a wooden and concrete build ing of two floors that was operated as a general store and served as the living quarters of Wuumo Cheng and Wuujian Giun.

The Fire Service had re

ported that one water ten der and crew from the Lethem Fire Station, along with auxiliary firefighters, responded to the scene and with the use of a pressurised fire hydrant, they were able to extinguish the blaze and save several buildings in close proximity to the super market.

However, the China Star Supermarket was destroyed, leaving two persons home less and more than ten per sons unemployed.

Despite the efforts of the hundreds of residents who went to assist the owners, the building was completely destroyed, resulting in mil lions of dollars in losses.

The famous China Star Supermarket was a land

mark in the commercial zone as the first mega Chinese store built in Lethem.

Only a few days ago, Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn said crime in Guyana is politicised.

He said that over the past two years, a number of buildings were destroyed by fire, with some being ruled as arson, which he believes was politically motivated.

As such, he condemned buildings being malicious ly set on fire, while stating that it is a waste of taxpay ers’ monies.

“…most of it has to do with awareness by the pop ulation that if we lose par ticular assets to fire or vio lence, everybody loses,” he said. (G9)

Officers visiting Mathew Zaman and his mother Bibi Khan

The fire that destroyed the China Star supermarket in Lethem

“Many” candidates proposed for new High Commissioner to India – Ali

that Persaud would be re called for his conduct.

With the position now vacant, President Ali said many requests have been submitted for the post.

“I could tell you I’m hav ing a lot of interest being sent to me,” Ali told report ers.

Reports are that the inci dent occurred a year ago. In the video making its rounds on social media, Persaud, while standing at the gate of his residence in India, is heard speaking in a profane manner to a woman.

Days after Guyana’s High Commissioner to India, Charrandas Persaud was recalled follow ing video evidence of him in an obscene outburst against a woman at his official res idence, President Dr Irfaan Ali has positioned that the integrity of Guyana is para mount. At the same time, he informed that many propos als have been sent for the replacement.

Speaking with the me dia on Friday, the Guyanese Head of State was ques tioned on the current issue regarding now former High Commissioner to India, Charrandas Persaud – who also served as Guyana’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka.

The President had pre viously addressed the issue in a video statement earlier this week, and announced

It was reported Persaud himself had informed the Ministry of External Affairs in India of the incident, and was fully investigated by the relevant authorities. Additionally, it was noted that a formal response to the High Commission, dat ed September 3, 2022, in dicates that “allegations of sexual abusive words to complainant has [sic] not been substantiated”.

To this end, the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Georgetown said in a mis sive on Tuesday that consid ered this matter “closed”.

When asked whether he was misled by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Ali re

Nude body at Uitvlugt seawall Woman identified as missing EBE mother of 3

The body of the wom an that was found on the Uitvlugt seawall, West Coast of Demerara (WCD), on Monday, has been identified as a moth er of three who was report ed missing by her husband.

Dead is 28-year-old Esther Sudan, of Zeelugt, East Bank Essequibo (EBE), who went missing on Sunday after she was al legedly involved in an argu ment with her husband.

Police reported that the woman’s body was found without clothes at the Uitvlugt seawall, on Monday at around 15:30h by an operator who stum bled upon the remains while working.

He told Police that he had seen something amongst the boulders, and went to make checks where he discovered the body. He claimed that he waited for the water to bring in the body, and he tied a rope to the left foot to secure it. He then alerted the Police.

The body was examined and superficial bruises were seen on the left foot and the back. It was then taken to the hospital where it was

pronounced dead and then was taken to the Ezekiel Funeral Home for storage.

However, two days lat er, Sudan’s husband re ported to the Police that his wife had gone missing since Sunday night.

He said on the night the woman went missing, she was imbibing alcohol at their home and had become drunk. During that time, he said they got into an argu ment and she became an gry and walked out of their home around midnight and never returned.

The woman’s husband claimed that when she left, she was wearing a yellow top and long black tights, with no shoes.

While making the re port, based on the descrip tion the man had given to the Police, he was taken to see if the body that they had found at the Uitvlugt sea wall was his wife.

When they arrived, the man was unable to posi tively identify the remains as his wife, however, on Thursday he returned and told Police that the body was his wife.

As such, a post-mortem

examination (PME) is ex pected to be conducted on the woman’s remains to de termine the cause of her death.

Investigations are ongo ing. (G9)

sponded in the negative.

“Absolutely no one mis led me. I made the state ment. I have done what was the right thing to do. At the end of the day, the integri ty of Guyana and the best representation of Guyana is what matters to me, in a respectful manner to all –women, children, all. That is what matters so no one misled me in any way,” the Head of State positioned.

He added that there has been full disclosure from Government’s end regard ing the matter. Ali also re iterated that he took action immediately after the video was shown to him.

“As soon as this video came, which was visual ev idence, you saw the action we took. In my conversa tion with Mr Charrandas, he said that is not the full extent of the video. I also made that full disclosure. I don’t have anything to hide… The first time I saw

the video was when I said I saw the video. That’s the first time a video surfaced of anything.”

Meanwhile, Persaud has since agreed to accept “full responsibility” for his ac tions, and will return home. President Ali had indicat ed earlier this week that during their conservation, Persaud explained that the incident took place since August 2021, and that the video being circulated is not a full reflection of what took place.

“He informed me that the video was not complete in demonstrating exactly what took place. Notwithstanding this, I explained to Mr Charrandas that represen tatives of our country must, in all occasion and on ev ery occasion, conduct them selves in the highest order and regard,” the Head of State had related.

It was also communicat ed to him by the now former

diplomat that this matter was already dealt with by the relevant authorities in India, and he was vindicat ed of any wrongdoing.

Persaud is a former Alliance For Change mem ber and a former parliamen tarian under the previous coalition Administration. He rose to prominence follow ing his “yes vote” on a PPP/ C-sponsored No-Confidence Motion against the APNU/ AFC Government on the night of December 21, 2018.

He had departed Guyana immediately for Canada on the night the coalition Government was toppled, out of fear for his life, af ter he had received death threats. Persaud returned to Guyana following the swear ing-in of President Ali, and was subsequently accredit ed as High Commissioner to India in March 2021. He was accredited as Guyana’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka last December. (G12)

President Dr Irfaan Ali

Former High Commissioner to India, Charrandas Persaud

Region 2 business chambers host successful Agro and Trade Expo

TheEssequibo Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ECCI), headquartered on the Essequibo Coast in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), on Friday evening success fully hosted a massive Agro and Trade Expo event, also known as “Essequibo Night”.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, this event had not been held since 2019, but it has now been restarted, and was this year hosted under the theme “Moving Business Forward”.

Some 90 booths display ing a variety of fresh local produce, arts and craft, live stock, small beauty business es, as well as agricultural products and services, were hosted at the Anna Regina

Community Centre Ground; and the event, which attract ed a massive crowd, was at tended by Prime Minister Mark Phillips, who declared the region’s sixth annual Agro and Trade Expo open, while at the same time he re

minded the gathering of the integral role both the Private Sector and the Government play in the country’s devel opment.

He noted that the event provides an opportune plat form aimed at showcasing

the viability of the Essequibo county and Region Two as a good source of investment in agriculture, tourism, for estry, mining, manufactur ing, and many other areas of commerce.

“This is an excellent op portunity to form potential partnerships and foster new business ventures in these areas, to build and develop Essequibo,” Phillips said.

Additionally, he noted that Government has com mitted to the continued strengthening of Guyana’s

traditional sectors, recognis ing that they continue to play significant roles in the econo my through exports, foreign currency earnings, and also the GDP. Sectors such as ag riculture contribute to food security, which contributes to healthy lifestyles, econom ic growth, poverty reduction, and job creation.

He lauded the fact that, in two years since return ing to office, the PPP/C Government has made in the agriculture sector mean ingful investments that have

derived significant positive changes, which include a

policy within Caricom that is aimed at reducing the re gion’s food import bill by 25 percent by 2025.

“Strong focus has also been placed on agro-process ing and value-added, given the earning and development potential these activities have on the sector, while in vestments in livestock and fisheries have seen a con tinued increase as well,” he said.

Phillips took the oppor tunity to encourage exhibi tors to continue investing in themselves, and to contin ue in their determination to build businesses and the ag

riculture sector. He also en couraged the young people to take note of the many oppor tunities that are available in agriculture, and view this sector as a worthwhile option in the range of earning and career possibilities.

Also in attendance were Regional Chairperson Vilma De Silva; Regional Executive Officer Susan Saywack; President of the ECCI, Susan Seewnarayan; and members of the ECCI, among other re gional officials.

Prime Minister Mark Phillips visiting some of the booths at the Essequibo Coast Agro and Trade Expo

Savings law clause

“How far does one go towards modification?” – AG Nandlall

By Feona Morrison

Modifying the sav ings law clause is not a “clear-cut is sue”, says Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, SC, who has asserted that there is a colli sion between the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) and the Privy Council on “how far does one go towards modifica tion”, given the different ap proaches adopted by the two apex courts in constitutional/ criminal matters.

Nandlall and other re gional legal minds ad dressed a seminar entitled: Privy Council (Chandler) v CCJ (Nervais): The “Savings Law Clause” and Caribbean Constitutional Interpretation. The meeting, which was arranged by the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill Campus, Faculty of Law, was held on via Zoom on Thursday.

Besides Nandlall, the other members of the panel were Senior Counsel Douglas Mendes, a former Judge in Trinidad and Tobago; King’s Counsel Dr Francis Alexis, a former Attorney General of Grenada; Dr Lloyd Barnett, Chairman of the General Legal Council and the Independent Jamaica Council for Human Rights; and Professor Eddy Ventose, Dean of Law at UWI Cave Hill, who served as modera tor. The panel shared their thoughts on fundamentally different approaches to the interpretation of the savings clause in the Commonwealth Caribbean Constitutions by the Region’s apex courts,

namely the Privy Council, and the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). They also fielded questions from partic ipants.

Savings clauses are common features of the Constitutions of former British colonies, including Guyana which was includ ed at Independence to pro vide continuity of the law during a transitionary peri od. The savings law clause of the Constitution of Guyana is found in Article 152 and states that nothing contained in or done under the author ity of any pre-Independence written law shall be inconsis tent with or in contravention of human rights protected by the Constitution.

Thursday’s discussion ex amined decisions delivered by these courts of last resort.

Decisions

In May 2022, the Privy Council in Chandler v The State (No 2) (Trinidad and Tobago) [2022] UKPC 19 held that the mandato ry death penalty for mur der found in Section 4 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1925 was constitution al because it was an exist ing law that was saved by the savings clause found in Section 6 of the Constitution.

The Privy Council, Trinidad and Tobago’s apex court, in Chandler unanimously up held its previous decision in Matthew v The State [2005] 1 AC 433. In its reasoning, the Privy Council did not agree with the reasoning of the CCJ in a trilogy of decisions, namely, Nervais v R [2018] CCJ 19 (Barbados); McEwan

v Attorney General of Guyana [2018] CCJ 30 (Guyana) and Marcus Bisram v Director of Public Prosecutions [2022] CCJ 7 (Guyana).

The CCJ is the final court of appeal for Guyana, Barbados, Dominica, and Belize in civil and crimi nal matters. All the oth er Caricom member states have retained the United Kingdom’s Privy Council.

In 2018, the CCJ, in Nervais rejected the reason ing of the Privy Council in Boyce v The Queen [2004] UKPC 32 (Barbados), which held that the general savings law clause found in Section 26 of the Constitution of Barbados prevented the mandatory death penalty from being unconstitution al on the basis, among other things, that Section 2 of the Offences Against the Person Act can be modified pur suant to Section 4 (1) 1966 Independence Order to con form with the Constitution.

The CCJ applied this reasoning in McEwan and

Bisram in Guyana.

Same clause, different destinations

Commenting on the de cisions, Nandlall expressed that the two courts in in terpreting the same clause, travelled two different roads and arrived at two different destinations.

Acknowledging that the Privy Council and CCJ are both final courts, he said that they are “entitled to travel their own road”, adding that the issues which arose in the cases were a question of in terpretation, jurisprudential rationale, and philosophy. He noted that the CCJ and Privy Council, in arriving at their decision, have professed to embrace the Constitution, the doctrine of the separation of powers, and the need for a generous interpretation of the Constitution with a view of enlarging fundamental rights and freedom. Although the courts’ rulings were in formed by these, they have arrived at different destina tions, the Attorney General pointed out. He explained that the savings clause was simply a mechanism at the time of Independence which became part of the instru ments that were intend ed to ensure a smooth tran sition from what existed before the Constitution, into the constitutional realm and for there to be some recog nition of what transpired anti the Constitution as the Constitution would become the new norm going forward.

“That fluidity, that nexus necessary, that jurispruden tial and legal connection was obviously necessary for the rule of law to cement itself in the new constitutional struc ture,” he noted.

Analysis

According to him, the Privy Council in Chandler held, “If there must be a change, then the change must come from the legisla ture. Judges are not permit ted under the doctrine of sep aration of powers to express their view on what the law is or should not be…”

If it is believed that the savings law clause, which in Guyana’s case, would be some 70 years old, is seek ing to control the rights and freedom of the individual 70 years hence, then it is a mat ter for the people of Guyana and their elected represen tatives in the Parliament of Guyana to change; it’s not open for Judges to change that, he said in analysing the Privy Council’s ruling.

He said the saving of ex isting law clause and consti tutional instruments when they were introduced, em powered the Judiciary to, however, interpret those ex isting laws with such mod ification and adaptation that are necessary to bring them in conformity with the

Constitution.

The Privy Council, in its ruling, also recognised that if there is any inconsistency be tween the pre-existing laws and the constitutional provi sion, then notwithstanding that inconsistency, and even if it relates to fundamental rights, the pre-existing laws shall be preserved and not struck down as unconstitu tional, the senior Council added. Based on the Privy Council’s ruling, he pointed out that the court, going for ward, had the power to where possible, interpret the exist ing laws with such modifi cation as to bring them into conformity with the constitu tional provisions. “The Privy Council, I suppose, used the literal interpretation and did that over the years…” he not ed

The CCJ, he said, howev er, took a different approach, adding that McEwan pres ents the best example of the court’s thinking. “Because the court, I suppose… describing itself as an indigenous court of the Region and recognis ing the dynamic, organic na ture, and living instrument nature of the Constitutions of the Caribbean, took a dif ferent philosophical posi tion as the apex court of the Region. And took upon it, what it conceived to be its role in terms of shaping and interpreting the Constitution to meet the aspirations of the people governed by those Constitutions.”

“Looking at the Constitution from the lens of a living instrument and must be interpreted as an evolv ing instrument to meet the vicissitude and dynamism of an evolving Caribbean soci ety. The CCJ found offensive that we can live in this era and have constitutional pro visions that can confer upon the people of the Caribbean, recognised civil liberty and fundamental freedom but they are somehow con strained by a series of laws birthed out of colonial era but still remain as a shackle to a free society. I believe that is the philosophy that informs the CCJ and that is how it views the savings of law clause in terms of interpret ing the Constitution gener ously…. proactively and from the perspective that one must enlarge rather than circum scribe constitutional rights and fundamental freedom of the people of the Caribbean,” Nandlall explained.

Collision

On the issue of modify ing the savings clause, in Guyana’s case, Nandlall said when the law is read with the schedule, together the two instruments present a clear power in the Judiciary to modify.

While the Judiciary, un der the separation of pow ers doctrine is ascribed to the role of interpreting the law

or Constitution, the Attorney General emphasised, “It does not make law; it cannot legis late. Of course, it makes laws by judicial decisions, but that is not the issue…”

“My understanding of in terpretation is you interpret as liberally as you may wish but you are constrained by the language used. Any in terpretation that violates the linguistic cannons is some thing else…it is not interpre tation. If you are interpret ing with a view to modify, or if you are modifying, you can only do so, by interpreting. The Judiciary has no other function.”

Considering this, he sub mitted that there is a colli sion between the CCJ and Privy Council on “how far does one go towards modifi cation”.

The Attorney General reasoned: “An apex court, I have no doubt is responsible and mature. But once this power is accepted as a judi cial power, there have other judicial officers in the hierar chical structure who can now begin to exercise this power and look at clear language in legislation and apply the modification doctrine…inter pret them differently from what the language suggests and say they are modifying in the manner contemplated by the apex court.”

Doubled down CCJ President Justice Adrian Saunders while de livering remarks at an event earlier this year, said that in constitutional/criminal cases, Nervais, McEwan, and Bisram, the regional court adopted an approach to pre-Independence laws that has now placed us on a very different jurisprudential path from that taken by the Privy Council so far as that question is concerned.

“The cases raised issues of constitutional interpre tation. Should Caribbean Constitutions be interpreted in such a manner that pre-In dependence laws should take precedence over constitution alised fundamental rights even when it is accepted that those colonial laws infringe the fundamental rights?” Justice Saunders said. “Or should the Constitution be interpreted in a manner that requires the colonial laws first to be modified to bring them into consistency with the fundamental rights?

The Privy Council has dou bled down on the former path which they first took by a narrow majority in the Trinidadian case of Matthew v The State. In Nervais, McEwan and Bisram, the CCJ explained its reasons for not adopting that path. In our view, constitutionalised fundamental rights were too sacrosanct to be trumped by pre-Independence laws,” he added.

Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC

Licences for Guyanese fisherfolk “It affects the way in which the Private Sector view things” – Head of State

…says Govt taking steps to remedy issue through diplomatic channels

The Guyana Government is ac tively working to re solve the ongoing fisher men licence issue, in order for Guyanese to operate and fish in Surinamese waters.

This was communicated by President Dr Irfaan Ali on Friday, expressing that Government is not happy with the way fisherfolk are currently treated. However, action is being taken and he further assured that this matter will not affect pend ing areas of interest be tween the two countries.

“When you’re in Government, you have to run Government in a very re sponsible way. It’s a mature thing to be in Government. The President is not an im mature position to be in. We have one issue with fishing. That has not affected the other issues… Are we happy with the way the fishermen are treated? No, we’re not happy. Are we taking steps? Yes, we’re taking steps,” Ali

commented.

Addressing the effects of this situation, the Head of State shared that his Administration is concerned about the private sector’s view and the effects cre ated from this situation. However, he reiterated that it is being handled from a diplomatic standpoint.

“It affects the way in which the private sector view things, of course, be cause the private sector is complaining and we’re very concerned. We are ap proaching this fishing issue from a diplomatic level, ap plying all the measures that the Government can apply and finding a solution. That is what we’re working to wards.”

Licences

The matter of Suriname’s harassment of Guyanese fishermen and the Dutchspeaking republic’s con tinued refusal to grant li cences to them, has been

a topical issue in recent times that even escalated to the point where Guyana’s Ambassador in Suriname, Keith George, was sum moned last month to a meet

Int’l Energy Conference & Expo announces appointment of new CEO

The International Energy Conference and Expo (IECEG) on Friday announced the ap pointment of Kurt Baboolall as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), with effect from October 1, 2022.

Baboolall holds a Master’s of Business Administration from the Australian Institute of Business, a Degree in Business Management, and a Diploma in Banking and Finance from the University of Guyana.

Prior to his appointment, he served as the Director of Operations for IECEG 2022. Speaking on his appoint ment, Baboolall said, “I am looking forward to the amaz ing opportunity of serving as CEO of an organisation that was responsible for bringing together Heads of State and Heads of Government, pol icymakers, academics and energy, and industry execu tives to discuss ideas around the further development of Guyana’s burgeoning ener gy sector. The International Energy Conference and Expo: Guyana has estab lished itself as one of the leading energy conferences regionally and has attracted tremendous local, regional

and international support. I look forward to contribut ing to the continued growth of this event.”

Before his tenure at IECEG, Baboolall was the Business Development Manager – of Ibis Construction Equipment Sales & Rentals (ICON) – a Joint Venture with Farfan & Mendes & FT Farfan from Trinidad between 20162020; Business Manager at Scotiabank between 20062016; and Seasonal Auditor for the Edward Beharry Group of Companies be tween 2000-2004.

Chairman of the International Energy Conference and Expo Guyana, Anthony Whyte related, “We are delight ed to have Mr Baboolall take the helm as CEO as we head into the 2023 edi tion of the IECEG under the theme ‘Harnessing Energy for Development’. The con ference and expo has been able to garner overwhelm ing return support from this year’s exhibitors and spon sors. In addition, we have also seen substantial inter est from new players across the energy sector and also from other sectors such as agriculture, mining, and for estry to name a few.”

Further, he stated, “We continue to focus on building new business relationships and strategic alliances local ly, regionally, and interna tionally, I am confident that Kurt has the experience and skill set to effectively drive this strategy forward for the benefit of the conference, Guyana, and the region.

The 2023 edition of the International Energy Conference and Expo Guyana will take place from February 14-17, 2023, at the Guyana Marriott Hotel, Georgetown, Guyana.

ing with the Surinamese Foreign Minister, Krishna Mathoera, on this very is sue.

Following the high-level meeting in Guyana during August 2021 between President Dr Irfaan Ali and Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi, the two leaders had issued a joint press statement in dicating that the age-old is sue of licences for Guyanese fisherfolk to operate in Suriname’s territorial wa ters would be addressed.

These fishermen op erate from the Corentyne coast and have to use the Corentyne to get access to

the Atlantic where they get most of their catch. The Corentyne River is consid ered Surinamese territory. Currently, the licences are issued to Surinamese busi nessmen at US$100 per year and rented to the Guyanese fisherfolk at US$3000 annu ally.

About 150 boats oper ate from the Number 66 Fishermen's Co-op Society, thus providing direct em ployment for about 800 fish ermen. Additionally, some 200 persons are employed in providing services which include transportation, fish vending and repairs to ma chinery and equipment.

Guyana has already said that it will be bringing this matter before the Caribbean Community (Caricom), since Suriname is also a member state.

Email correspon dence sent from high of ficials in the Surinamese Government, to their Guyanese counterparts, re vealed that Suriname had promised Guyana, that the fishing licence for Guyanese to fish in Surinamese waters would have been issued on January 1, 2021.

In the email dat ed December 13, 2020, which was seen by this publication, Surinamese Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Prahlad Sewdien had writ ten to Guyana’s Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, informing him that the fishing licenc es would be issued from January 1 of the next year and that they would try to have preparations com pleted within two weeks. The email also acknowl edged the list of fishermen that Mustapha had sent to Sewdien, while also sug gesting various actions that should be taken to complete the process of issuing the li cence, under Surinamese law.

Despite previous prom ises, Suriname has failed to issue to Guyanese fisher men licences to operate in Surinamese waters.

Fishing vessels at No 66 Fishermen’s Co-op

Newly appointed CEO of Int’l Energy Conference & Expo, Kurt Baboolall

Regional

Brazil election officials brace for tense Sunday vote as Bolsonaro cries foul

Brazil's electoral au thorities are prepar ing for a competitive election on Sunday with a result that may be contested by far-right President Jair Bolsonaro if he loses to his leftist adversary, who has a narrow lead in recent opin ion polls.

Brazil's Superior Electoral Court (TSE), led by justices from the Supreme Court, is ready for Bolsonaro to dispute any victory by for mer President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, potential ly mobilising angry demon strations, according to peo ple familiar with the court's preparations who requested

anonymity to share the in formation.

"What we see is a series of things intended to desta bilise and disrupt the elec toral process," a senior ju dicial source told Reuters, while playing down the risk of widespread unrest.

"We have to follow what will happen closely and keep in touch with the security forces to avoid riots in the streets," said the source.

Four sources told Reuters the TSE and Supreme Court have plans to reinforce secu rity for judges and institu tions on Sunday, and they expect tensions could last until the result of the pres

Same-sex marriage becomes legal nationwide in Mexico

The congress of Mexico’s north-eastern border state Tamaulipas has voted to recognise same-sex marriage, making it legal across the country.

Becoming the last of the country’s states to do so, Tamaulipas amend ed the state’s Civil Code on Wednesday, setting off cheers of “Yes, we can!” from supporters of the change.

Recently, the states of Mexico, Sonora and Sinaloa voted to legally recognise same-sex marriage, as it has been a long-awaited mark of progress for a country known for gender-related vi olence.

“Today is a historic day for the LGBTQ community and for Mexico. Today, we and our families are more visible, more equal, and we are a country with more jus tice,” said activist Enrique Torre Molina.

Mexico City became the country’s first area to legal ise same-sex marriage in 2009.

The president of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, Arturo Zaldívar, welcomed the vote.

“The whole country shines with a huge rainbow. Live the dignity and rights of all people. Love is love,” he said on Twitter.

In 2015, the Supreme Court declared state laws preventing same-sex mar riage unconstitutional, but some states took several years to adopt laws conform ing with the ruling.

Same-sex marriage re mains illegal or not rec ognised in Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, most of Central America and swaths of the Caribbean, ac cording to global LGBTQ rights tracker Equaldex. (Al Jazeera)

Probe launched after LATAM plane's nose destroyed in storm

An investigation has been launched after a LATAM Airlines plane's nose was destroyed and the plane was forced to make an emergency land ing at its destination in Paraguay.

Flight LA1325 was fly ing between Santiago de Chile and Asunción on Wednesday when it got caught in a storm.

Photos posted online showed the tip of the plane's nose destroyed and cracks on the front windshield af ter landing.

Passengers and crew were unharmed.

The plane's journey got off to a bumpy start, af ter having to make an un scheduled stop at Brazil's Foz do Iguaçu airport due to poor weather condi tions over its destination in the Paraguayan capi tal Asunción, according to a LATAM Paraguay state ment.

The plane then resumed its flight to Asunción after weather conditions had im proved at the destination, it said.

But the bad weather re turned and led to the plane - an Airbus-320 - having to make an emergency land ing in Asunción late on Wednesday night.

Videos posted on social media showed severe turbu lence on the flight, with pas sengers screaming as the plane travelled through the storm.

The airline said passen gers and crew arrived in Paraguay "in good physi cal condition" and were im mediately attended to by ground staff.

Paraguay's National Directorate of Civil Aeronautics and LATAM Airlines Paraguay are in vestigating the issue, along with the General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics of Chile.

News)

Argentina strikes $2 bln Paris Club debt deal

Argentina reached a deal to restructure some US$1.97 bil lion it owes the Paris Club, Argentina's Government and the creditor group said on Friday, which will push repayments back as far as 2028 and bring relief of some US$248 million to the country.

"Today, Argentina suc cessfully completed an agreement with the Paris Club to normalise relations between our country, our companies, and our work ers with the countries of the European bloc," Argentine Economy Minister Sergio Massa said.

and did not compromise the process of strengthen ing international reserves."

Argentina, which has restructured over US$100 billion in debts with pri vate creditors and the International Monetary Fund in the last two years, remains in a precarious po sition with scarce foreign currency reserves it is try ing to rebuild.

idential election is certified on Dec 19.

Two polls on Thursday showed Lula maintaining a lead of 5 or 6 percentage points, in line with his ad vantage in the first round of voting on Oct 2.

Financial markets have largely priced in a Lula vic tory, but the uncertainty about a contested result has some on edge.

Bolsonaro, a far-right populist who has ar gued without evidence that Brazil's electronic vot

ing system is vulnerable to fraud, stepped up his at tacks on the TSE this week. He accused the court of mis handling a complaint that radio stations had given Lula more air time for cam paign ads.

The TSE rejected the complaint in a Wednesday ruling due to lack of evi dence and asked Brazil's top prosecutor to investigate the Bolsonaro campaign for possible intent to disrupt the election. (Excerpt from Reuters)

The deal would see the current 9 per cent interest rate on the debt cut to a weighted average of 4.5 per cent, according to a docu ment shared with Reuters by officials. Payments would start from December with interest gradually stepping up from 3.9 per cent.

Argentina would pay around 40 per cent over the next two years, the Government said in the document, a payment pro file it said was "sustainable

Argentina's restruc tured dollar bonds, which are trading in deeply dis tressed territory, rose af ter the deal with the 2029 up 2.4 cents to 22 cents on the dollar and the 2046 up 2.1 cents to 21 cents. The euro-denominated bonds were little changed on the day.

Ratings agency Fitch downgraded the country's debt this week, citing ris ing default risks.

The Paris Club, whose members include the United States, Japan and Germany, last year gave Argentina more time to repay the debt while it carried out an ulti mately successful negotia tion with the IMF over a new US$44 billion programme.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

96K Haitians flee homes amid spike in gang violence

Some96,000 peo ple have fled their homes in Haiti’s cap ital, the UN’s International Organisation for Migration said Friday, as the coun try faces a crisis that has prompted the Government to request the immediate de ployment of foreign troops.

The IOM said gang-re lated violence has led to “racketeering, kidnappings and wider criminal acts in a context characterised by deep inequalities, high lev els of deprivation of basic human needs and a frag

mented security environ ment.”

Gangs are believed to control some 60 per cent of Port-au-Prince, raping wom en, children and men and setting homes on fire as they fight to control more territory in the wake of the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, according to the United Nations.

Haitians also are strug gling with dwindling sup plies of fuel, water and oth er basic goods at the same time as a cholera outbreak,

with concerns growing over the unhealthy state of Government shelters where thousands of people have been living for months after fleeing gang violence.

At least 40 deaths from more than 1700 suspected cholera cases have been re ported, although health of ficials believe the number is much higher.

Another 17,000 people remain without a perma nent home after a 7.2 mag nitude earthquake struck southwest Haiti in August 2021, the IOM said.

The Government this month requested help from foreign troops after one of Haiti’s most powerful gangs surrounded a key fuel ter minal in Port-au-Prince in mid-September, forcing gas stations and key businesses to close.

The international com munity has sent Haiti ar moured vehicles and other equipment in recent weeks to help boost the nation al Police Force, but the UN Security Council has yet to vote on Henry’s request for troops. (Trinidad Guardian)

T&T man gets 20 years in US prison for soliciting nude pics from teen girl

The following is an offi cial statement issued by The United States Attorney's Office - Southern District of Florida concern ing the conviction and sen tencing of a Trinidad and Tobago national for produc tion of child sexual exploita tion material.

A Lake Worth, Fla., man who pretended to be a teen age boy to get a 13-yearold girl in South Carolina to send him nude videos of herself was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and a lifetime of supervised re

lease on charges of produc tion of child sexual exploita tion material.

Beginning in 2020, Olinto Lynch, aka “Olintonaruto,” communicated with at least two 13-year-old girls on a so cial media application. Lynch told the girls he was a teenag er and used sexually charged conversations to request things from them. He prom ised gifts and preyed upon their troubled lives. His rela tionship with one of the girls lasted more than a year and he even drove to South Carolina to meet her. The second rela

tionship lasted several weeks and he convinced the girl to produce images and inappro priate videos. This stopped when the second child’s moth er uncovered the conversa tions and reported Lynch’s so cial media profile to the FBI.

Law enforcement offi cers executed a search war rant on Lynch’s social media account as well as his Lake Worth residence. There it was discovered that he was from Trinidad & Tobago and had been residing illegally in the United States since March 2020. Agents found

sexual exploitation videos of the second girl on his phone, to which he confessed.

Juan Antonio Gonzalez, US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and acting Special Agent in Charge Robert M DeWitt, FBI Miami, announced the guilty plea.

FBI West Palm Beach investigated the case and Assistant US Attorney Gregory Schiller prosecut ed it. Assistant US Attorney Emily Stone is handling as set forfeiture. (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

Combination picture of Brazil's President and candidate for re-election, Jair Bolsonaro, during a news conference at the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, October 4, 2022, and Brazil's former President and presidential frontrunner Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, during a meeting of the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB) that officially nominated him as the candidate of the party in Brasilia, Brazil, July 29, 2022

Oil futures ease 1% as China widens COVID curbs

Oil prices eased about 1 per cent on Friday after top crude importer China widened its COVID-19 curbs, though the crude benchmarks were poised for a weekly gain on supply concerns and surprisingly strong economic data.

Brent futures fell US$1.19, or 1.2 per cent, to settle at US$95.77 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell US$1.18, or 1.3 per cent, to US$87.90.

US gasoline futures dropped about 3 per cent, while US diesel futures rose about 5 per cent to their highest since mid-June.

"Diesel (was) still (the) strongest component of complex (with) shorts being squeezed out of the November contract ahead of Monday expiry," analysts at energy consulting firm Ritterbusch and Associates said.

For the week, Brent rose about 2 per cent and WTI was up about 3 per cent.

Chinese cities ramped up COVID-19 curbs on Thursday, sealing up buildings and locking down districts after China registered 1506 new COVID infections on Oct 27, the National Health Commission said, up from 1264 new cases a day earlier.

The International Monetary Fund expects China's growth to slow to 3.2 per cent this year, a downgrade of 1.2 points from its April projection, after an 8.1 per cent rise in 2021.

"It's hard to make a case for a rebound in China’s crude purchases given the backdrop of uncertainty over its zeroCOVID policy," said PVM Oil analyst Stephen Brennock.

PetroChina said China's demand for refined fuel and natural gas was set to grow year-on-year in the fourth quarter in tandem with an expected economic recovery as Beijing rolls out more stimulus policy.

Economic strength in two major economies limited oil's losses.

Data on Thursday showed a strong rebound in US gross domestic product (GDP) in the third quarter, demonstrating resilience in the world's largest economy and oil consumer.

The German economy also grew unexpectedly in the third quarter, data showed on Friday, as Europe's largest economy kept recession at bay despite high inflation and energy supply worries ahead of a looming European ban on Russian crude imports.

"The market remains wary of the impending deadlines for European purchases of Russian crude before the sanctions kick in on 5 December," ANZ Research analysts said in a note.

Global oil-and-gas giants including Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Equinor posted huge third-quarter profits, feeding criticism from consumer groups in the United States and Europe. US President Joe Biden has told oil companies they are not doing enough to bring down energy costs.

US oil and natural gas rigs fell this week, but in October noted their first monthly increase since July, according to energy service firm Baker Hughes Co.

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is likely to maintain its view world oil demand will rise for another decade. (Reuters)

Around the World

US House Speaker Pelosi's husband assaulted with hammer at home

Ahammer-wield

ing man attacked US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband during a break-in at the cou ple's San Francisco home early on Friday, authori ties said, in an assault that raised fears about political violence ahead of the Nov 8 midterm elections.

Paul Pelosi, 82, was tak en to a hospital for treatment and was expected to make a full recovery, Pelosi's office said. Several media outlets reported he underwent sur gery.

The man arrested at the scene, David Depape, 42, will be charged with at tempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, burglary, and sev eral other felony charges, San Francisco Police Chief

William Scott said.

The Democratic speak er of the US House of Representatives, who is sec ond in the constitutional line of succession to the US pres

idency, was in Washington with her protective detail at the time of the assault, ac cording to the US Capitol Police.

Authorities were still in

vestigating a motive for the predawn attack, which was witnessed and interrupted by Police officers dispatched to the Pelosi home for an "A-priority wellbeing check," Scott told reporters.

The intruder shouted, "Where is Nancy?" before at tacking her husband, CNN and The Washington Post both reported, citing un named sources. CNN said the assailant also told Police at the scene that he had been "waiting for Nancy."

Recent posts on sever al internet sites by a user named "daviddepape" in clude references to anti-Se mitic conspiracy theories, criticism of women, "satan ic paedophilia," censorship by tech companies, and oth er far-right political themes. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Ethiopia’s Tigray runs out of medical supplies as malaria spreads

Ethiopia’s

Tigray re gion has run out of medical supplies such as vaccines, antibiotics and insulin, World Health Organisation officials say, warning that many deaths are probably going unre corded from preventable and treatable diseases.

Only about 9 per cent of health facilities in Tigray are fully functional as Ethiopia’s army battles forc es from the northern re gion, WHO officials said in Geneva on Friday. Those that can still operate are re sorting to using saline solu tion to treat wounds and rags to dress them, they said.

“In this situation of hardship and limited ac cess, often death happens at a community level that goes underreported and unregis tered,” said Altaf Musani, WHO Director of Health Emergencies Interventions.

He described the situation as “deeply worrying”.

The Tigray conflict has killed thousands of people, displaced millions and left thousands on the brink of famine. Peace talks are go ing on in South Africa.

The conflict has essen tially led to a blockade that has lasted about two years although some aid supplies reached communities be tween March and August during a temporary cease fire that has since been bro ken.

Ilham Abdelhai Nour, the WHO’s Head of Emergency Operations in Ethiopia, described the mal nutrition levels in Tigray as “staggering” with nearly one in three children under five acutely malnourished.

“When they [malnour ished children] get sick, they tend to get a severe disease and tend to die,” she said.

Cases of malaria have in

Floods, landslides leave 42 dead, dozens missing in Philippines

Philippine search and rescue teams pulled bodies from water and thick mud on Friday, bring ing to 42 the death toll from flooding and landslides trig gered by a storm, with doz ens more feared buried.

Eleven bodies were re trieved in the southern prov ince of Maguindanao, which was hit hard by approaching tropical storm Nalgae, said Naguib Sinarimbo, Interior Minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Mindanao (BARMM).

Rescue and retrieval op erations are temporarily suspended overnight and will resume this morning, Sinarimbo said, as more peo ple were feared still trapped under mud and flood waters,

particularly in the town of Datu Odin.

"Based on the assess ment on the ground, at that specific site, there were many (who got buried). The number might hit 80, but we are hoping it won't reach that number," Sinarimbo said via phone.

Authorities have evacu ated thousands of people out of the path of Nalgae, which could possibly make landfall Friday night in Samar prov ince in central Philippines, disaster officials said.

Sinarimbo said the rain fall in Maguindanao prov ince had exceeded expecta tions.

"There were prepara tions made but unfortunate ly, the rainfall was more

than what people had ex pected," Sinarimbo said.

In another southern province, Sultan Kudarat, rescue workers used rub ber boats to get to residents trapped in chest-deep wa ters, images shared by the coast guard showed.

Landslides and floods are frequent in the Philippines, due in part to the grow ing intensity of tropical cy clones that regularly batter the country. The Philippines sees an average 20 ty phoons a year. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Tigrayans receiving donated food at a centre for the internally displaced in Mekelle city in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia creased by 80 per cent com pared with one year ago, Nour said, adding no cholera

or measles cases have been observed so far in Tigray.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Russia's anti-satellite threat tests laws of war in space

ARussian official's threat this week to "strike" Western sat ellites aiding Ukraine high lights an untested area of international law, raising concerns among space law yers and industry execu tives about the safety of ob jects in orbit.

"Quasi-civilian infra structure may be a le gitimate target for a re taliatory strike," senior Foreign Ministry official Konstantin Vorontsov told the United Nations, reit erating Moscow's position that Western civilian and commercial satellites help ing Ukrainian's war effort was "an extremely danger ous trend."

No country has carried out a missile strike against an enemy's satellite. Such an act during the war in Ukraine could sharply es calate tensions between Russia and the United States.

"This threat has brought us to a brink that we've never been to before," said Michelle Hanlon, co-di

rector of the University of Mississippi School of Law's Air and Space Law pro gramme. "There’s always been a sense that this could happen, but never has some body actually said that they might do that out loud.”

Ukraine's military re lies heavily on Elon Musk's SpaceX for broadband in ternet beamed from its lowEarth orbiting Starlink sat ellite network. US firms like Maxar are capturing imag es of the war from satellites in orbit. And tens of thou sands of communications devices in Ukraine rely on US satellite communica tions giant Iridium's satel lite network.

Under the laws of armed conflict, a Russian strike on a private US company's sat ellite could be seen as an act of war to which the US could respond, Hanlon said.

White House spokes man John Kirby said on Thursday that any attack on US infrastructure would be met with a response but he did not go into detail.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Paul Pelosi, husband of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, posed for photographers as they arrived for the 2019 Kennedy Center Honors gala dinner at the US State Department, in Washington, US, December 7, 2019

Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) rescuers evacuating residents from their flooded homes due to a tropical storm, locally named Paeng, in Maguindanao province, Philippines, October 28, 2022

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decide to make a

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Take your time and reap the re wards. Refuse to let anyone hold you back or lead you astray. Put your ener gy into looking and feeling your best and living up to your promises.

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West Indies lacked inspiration at T20 World Cup

-says former captain Daren Sammy

Two-time

ICC Men’s T20 World Cupwinning captain Daren Sammy has revealed where he thinks it all went wrong for the West Indies at this year’s event, and what the Caribbean side needs to do to become a powerhouse again.

Sammy knows better than most what it takes to perform on the big stage, the 38-year-old having cap tained the West Indies to many of their greatest suc cesses in the shortest for mat of the ing the World tles in and

And like many other for mer greats, Sammy has been shocked to see his old team bundled of the tournament during the first round in Australia, as they fell to disappoint ing losses to Scotland and Ireland.

Sammy believes West Indies got many things wrong during their time in Australia, and they were tac tically inept during much of their three first-round match es. “I thought, as a team, we were quite poor tactically, and the problem wasn’t the

ent we have in the team. The team lacked inspira tion, they lacked motiva tion; and tactically, we were not on song. When you look at a wicket and you have Jason Holder who is six-footeight (inches) and you have Alzarri Joseph who is bowl ing well and you keep open ing the bowling with Kyle Mayers - no disrespect to him (Mayers), as conditions in St Lucia in the Caribbean are quite different (from those in) Australia, where the ball bounces - you have got to win the Powerplays both with the bat and the ball! And we found ourselves los ing the Powerplays and hav ing to bring the bowlers back on to try and bring us back into the game; and it was the same with the bat.”

The fallout from the West Indies’ performance was swift, with Australia great Ricky Ponting labelling their efforts a disgrace and Cricket West Indies President Ricky Skerritt promising a full review into what

went wrong Down Under.

Experienced coach Phil Simmons also announced he would stand down from his position at the end of the year, and Sammy knows the West Indies must get their next coaching appointment right.

“The sad thing is that not many people are putting their hands up to come and coach the West Indies,” Sammy has noted. “Even though we were not performing at Tests and ODIs, we dominated T20I cricket (during his playing career), and that was some thing that would bring smiles to the fans. And now we have lost it.

“Whoever comes in (as coach) needs to be tactically sound, have good man-man agement skills, and the peo ple around him need to be technically correct,” Sammy has advised.

Daren Sammy takes a selfie with Pakistan fans in PerthDaren Sammy takes a selfie with Pakistan fans in Perth

Sammy is adamant that the culture must change quickly, otherwise the West Indies will find themselves in a mire for some time.

“There needs to be some learnings and some teach ings about what we repre sent; as, whether you like it or not, West Indies is still every fan’s second favourite team,” Sammy has said. “The world needs West Indies Cricket to be strong, and we were not there tactically, and I have spoken about

Rain plays spoilsport in day’s matches

Australia and England took a point each from their Group 1 match at the T20 World Cup after a wet, unsafe outfield led to their match being abandoned at the MCG. Both teams now have three points, after a win and a loss apiece in their opening two games.

As a consequence, Friday’s fixture between these two old rivals had been billed as a “loser goes out” en counter. Alas, following rain throughout the day and in termittent showers in the evening, the umpires even tually decided to call it quits at 8.49pm local time. Though well before the cut-off time, with the possibility of a fiveover match provided play got underway at 10.04pm, there was no chance the ground would have dried in time giv en the cold evening conditions, particularly the bowlers’ runups which were a particular cause for concern.

Torrential rain over the last couple of days in Melbourne meant both sides came into Friday knowing rain would play a part. The first match of the day, between Afghanistan and Ireland, was also abandoned without the toss of the coin, so it was no surprise this fixture went the same way.

“The outfield has taken a drenching over the last cou ple of weeks, as wet as I’ve ever seen it,” Aaron Finch, Australia’s captain, said. “The run-ups and around the circle

were very, very wet. It’s about player safety. We saw one of the Zimbabweans go down the other day (Richard Ngarava). If you’re trying to run out there, it’s going to be a real is

disappointing not to get on, but just the amount of rain Melbourne and the East Coast of Australia has had over the last couple of weeks has been amazing.”

New Zealand coming up in Brisbane on Tuesday (where further rain is forecast), fol lowed by Sri Lanka the follow ing Saturday.

Although two wins would probably be sufficient to push England through to the semi-finals, Australia have contests against Ireland and Afghanistan to come, in which they could yet improve their -1.555 net run rate.

New Zealand, meanwhile, can afford to lose to England and still qualify, if they can beat Sri Lanka and Ireland in their other two games.

Ireland themselves and Afghanistan are still firmly in

shared the points on offer af ter persistent rain prevented any action - or even the toss - from taking place in their men’s T20 World Cup match at the MCG on Friday.

For Afghanistan, the re sult came just two days af ter their game against New Zealand, at the same venue, had also been abandoned.

With the point they earned today, Ireland, who had beat en England earlier, climbed up two steps to #2 in the group, behind New Zealand, who are on three points from two games.

Afghanistan have two points, the same as Sri Lanka,

that. There needs to be a new inspiration, as the team out grew the staff in the dressing room.

“But we have the guys. You look at Jason Holder, Nicholas Pooran, Rovman Powell, Shai Hope…there is no lack of talent. It is about picking the right personnel for the situation and the dif ferent stages that the game needs, with proper planning and the right players for the right time,” Sammy has said. (ICC)

An inspection at 7.30pm local time - 30 minutes af ter the scheduled start - came and went, with all but the cov er across the square in place as the clouds held momen tarily. However, surface wa ter remained a concern, with the drainage system and su per-soppers working overtime.

An inspection at 8.15pm then gave way for one at 8.50pm. But before the lat ter took place, another show er prompted the umpires to call the match off, sending the 30,000 supporters who braved the elements on their way.

“Everyone was here to play, everyone was ready to go,” Finch added. “And there was a great turnout. It was

firmed that Matthew Wade, who tested positive for COVID-19 and had to pre pare in a separate chang ing room, had been due to make the XI had play got underway. “He had a few symptoms yesterday, but today he just had a head ache. But he was good to go,” he said.

As it stands, England move to second in the Group 1 standings by virtue of their +0.239 net run rate, ahead of Ireland (who beat them on Wednesday) and Australia, both of whom also have three points. However, they also have the toughest run-in of the teams who could now fin ish on seven points, with

the running for the knock-outs too, with a single point sepa rating all six teams.

Ireland at #2 after another rained out match Afghanistan and Ireland

England and Australia. But all those teams have played one game fewer and also have a “W” against their names, unlike Afghanistan, who had lost to England in their first match of the tournament be

fore the successive washouts.

It was a frustrating af ternoon for all concerned. Although it wasn’t raining an hour before the scheduled start of the match, it started pouring just minutes before the scheduled toss, at 2.30pm local time. The toss was de layed as a result, and at 3pm - the scheduled start of playthe umpires announced an in spection for an hour later, by when losing overs was inevi table.

Rain remained on the ra dar, and while it abated for periods, raising hopes of something, another down pour around 3.30pm brought the covers back on. Then, at around 4.15pm, it was decid ed that an inspection would be conducted only after the rain stopped, but the abandon ment was announced just 18 minutes later.

A point against Afghanistan might have boosted Ireland’s hopes of qualifying for the semi-fi nals, but they do have games against Australia and New Zealand lined up. They will back themselves, though, af ter having pulled off a tight five-run win (DLS method) against England.

Australia play England in the evening match at the MCG, with rain set to play a part there too. (ESPN Cricinfo)

ICC 2022 T20I World Cup…

Daren Sammy

Ireland

Teams confident as action begins today

Super50

action returns to the Caribbean with 29 amazing match es in store. It features eight great teams and play at four fantastic venues. The stage is set for CG United Super50 2022 with the opening con test of this 50-over tour nament bowling off today, Saturday October 29, with West Indies Academy play ing against Leeward Islands Hurricanes at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium (SRVS) from 13:00h.

Defending champs Trinidad & Tobago Red Force will open their cam paign on Monday, October 31, against Combined Campuses & Colleges at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy (BLCA), while Guyana Harpy Eagles will play Windward Islands Volcanoes at Queen's Park Oval, Trinidad, on the same day.

The final will be played on Saturday November 19 at the SVRS. The other two venues for the tournament are the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) in Antigua and the Queen’s Park Oval (QPO) in Trinidad.

In a media release, CWI presented the thoughts from inside the various camps ahead of the tournament. They are featured below:

Leon Johnson (Guyana Harpy Eagles Captain): “Our prepara tion has been going well. We had the inter-county tournament recently and we saw some very good per formances from the guys in the squad. We had a couple days’ training and two prac tice matches as well. We’re in good shape. Looking at the make-up of the squad, I would say our bowling is our stronger suit. Our batting has a lot of depth, and we have some very experienced and knowledgeable players as well. To win the tourna ment, we need to play well consistently. We were runners-up in the last tournament (2021) in which we did exact

Force Head Coach): “We are confident! Our objective is to win the tournament, we believe that we have a good blend of experience and youth that can go all the way, and our focus will be on performing to achieve that objective. We played well to win last year, and we believe we can make it through the first round on home soil with home support, and head over to Antigua and do the job over there once again.”

Shirley Clarke (Windward Islands Volcanoes Head Coach):

“We have a very balanced team, and we have adequate resources in our batting and bowling departments. Our preparation has been a chal lenge, with the weather in tervening at times, but we

all been playing some form of cricket over the last few weeks and months, so every one has a strong base lead ing into the tournament. It’s important for us to con tinue adding that one per cent each day to be tourna ment-ready. If I had to pick a department where we are strongest, I would have to say our batting, simply be cause there’s more expe rience. Having said that, I’m very excited to see the younger bowlers showcase their skills at this level. To win the tournament, I would say consistency is key, play ing as a unit and feeding off each other will give us the best chance to be victorious at the end.”

Andre Coley (Head Coach, West Indies Academy): “The tourna

competitive cricket for the squad, since most have not been in competitive crick et consistently over the last 24 months. The players are buying into a winning mind set while working together as a team to achieve goals for each match; working to gether as a team. We want to see them demonstrate re silience by adapting to var ious pitch and game condi tions as they use their skill sets to achieve team goals. Also, we want to see effec tive decision-making and self-management in a tour nament environment.”

Andrew Richardson (Head Coach, Jamaica Scorpions):

“Our preparation has been coming along quite well. We had five games in the build-up, and we have

ters are coming into some form…getting better as the games went by. Our bowl ing has been consistent for the last few seasons now. We expect to get another practice season in before de

we reach Antigua. We have

ty all-rounders, so therefore our strength is our all-

ly that up until the final, so we just need to be better in the big games and win those critical moments.”

David Furlonge (Trinidad & Tobago Red

have been able to complete our Windward Islands 50over tournament and our Best vs Best series. We are presently in Trinidad, where

ment will give us the op portunity for some valuable

Lennox

seen a lot of positives com ing from them. Our bat

parting, and we expect to hit the ground running when

round match-winners in our squad. To win, we would have to limit the ‘unforced errors’ in the fielding and bowling departments. We would also have to bat con sistency well. Teams that bat 50 overs and post chal lenging totals normally do well in this format, so I ex pect that to be the same for winning this tournament.”

Stuart Williams (Leeward Islands Hurricanes Head Coach):

“We have a well-balanced team, with some very ex perienced players, such as Rahkeem Cornwall, Kieran Powell, Hayden Walsh Jr, Devon Thomas, and our captain Jahmar Hamilton. We know they will lead from the front and encour age the younger players, who all have a lot to offer. Consistency will be the key. In a tournament like this, you will come up against some very good opponents who will be gunning to win as well, so you have to plan well, play well, be consis tent, and create winning op portunities.”

consistently well. We have clear plans, and we will have to execute our plans confidently.”

Shai Hope: (Barbados Pride Captain): “We have

Brathwaite

of Guyana, multi ple times’ winner of the West Indies Full Bore Shooting Championships, has won the grand aggre gate in the individual event of these championships on Thursday.

The championships are being held at Twickenham Park in St. Catherine, Jamaica; and Brathwaite, who lament ed the pandemic-induced relative lack of prepara tion coming into the tourna ment, has won with a score of 467.39 out of a possible 480 points. He has defeat ed Emmanuel Gauvin and Avtar Nanrey of Canada, as well as compatriots Sherwin Felicien and Ransford Goodluck, who finished in the top five. Guyana had five shooters in the top 10.

Jamaica’s national champion Dwayne Forde scored 449.30 to finish sev enth, while Karen Anderson

was 17th. Jennifer JordanCousins of Barbados scored 436.20 while outduelling Anderson (435.25) to win the Amazon Trophy, which goes to the top female shoot er. Females shoot against the males on the same tar gets, and use same equip ment in the competition.

The competition contin ued on Friday October 28 with the team event, which

comprised short-range and long-range components. The long-range team match for the Milex Cup began on Friday, and will be fol lowed by the short-range (300m/500m/600m) team match for the Wogarth Cup. Brathwaite is the defend ing champion. The shortrange team match is set for today, Saturday October 29. (Sportsmax)

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Lennox Brathwaite

Nicholas Pooran captains T&T Red Force

Windward Islands Volcanoes are the first opponents of the Guyana Harpy Eagles

Shai Hope leads Barbados Pride

Anderson to play middle-order role, Nedd's role with ball varies

Academy Coach Andre Coley

at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in the twin-is land state of Antigua and Barbuda, and gets underway from 13:00h Eastern Caribbean Time. According to Head Coach of the West Indies Academy, Andre Coley, these two Guyanese cricketers would each play an im portant role for this side. "Kevlon, his role is to bat in the middle, and bowl offbreak. He has come through the Under-19 system, and he is familiar with that role.

"Nedd, his main role (is) as a left-arm orthodox spinner. He may poten tially bowl in the middle, or he could open the bowl ing. He has that versatility, he has benefitted from being around an IPL set-up, he has played Super50 before, and he offers some lower-or der batting as well," Coley explained.

"Outside of what players are used to, (it) is really to expose them to a number of different experiences; so, even though those roles may be more familiar to a player, as the tournament goes on, they will have opportunities to do different things, which is what this programme aims to do: expose them and build their game," Coley has said.

Asked if everyone is fit and ready to go, Coley de clared everybody is okay. “It is not uncommon to have niggles, and players play with niggles all the time. I am confident that with the medical and physical per sonnel staff we have, with whatever niggles around, that is being managed. But everybody is feeling pretty well."

By Brandon Corlette

Kevlon Anderson and Ashmead Nedd are two Guyanese crick eters who would be repre senting Team West Indies

Academy today, Saturday October 29, in a match against the Leeward Islands Volcanoes - the first match of the CG United Super50 tournament.

This match will be played

Limited overs cricket has pushed players to do more than one familiar role, and Coley has said the West Indies Academy programme would ensure players show versatility in their games.

Coach Coley is confi dent that his guys would do well, after showing where they stand at the training camp prior to the Super50. "Very confident that most things have come to plan. Players have gone through a screening process, and that would have given us an idea where everyone is at," he disclosed.

This tournament will see

Female players take centre stage tonight!

Panthers’ Ladies are taking a shot at the $200,000 grand prize. Sabrina Benjamin of the GT Panthers team shared, “I’m kind of excit ed and nervous at the same time. Because this is the first time we get the opportunity to, you know, show our tal ent on this court. I just want to thank the sponsors on be half of my team.”

Female futsal in Guyana might be as rare as a unicorn, but with the input of MVP Sports, ANSA McAL, Petra Organisation, and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, it is a dream of female players that is finally being realised.

Tonight, the National Gymnasium on Mandela Avenue in Georgetown will witness the kick-off of the MVP Sports’ futsal tour nament for the ladies, in which are involved 8 teams from around the coun try. In Group A, Guyana Defence Force (GDF), Fruta Conquerors, Tiger Bay and Herstelling will square off for a chance to top the group. Group B consists of Guyana Police Force (GPF), Santos Football Club, Avacado Ballers, and GT Panthers.

With the big names of the sport involved, the wom en’s tournament is poised to bring excitement and awe as the ladies take to the court. Equally as excited are the players themselves, who

took time out from the Petra Organisation’s team brief ing exercise on Wednesday night to speak with Guyana Times Sport

“What I expect from Fruta Conquerors? I expect for us to come and domi nate, not to just play. I do hope to have full support from family, friends,” Fruta Conquerors’ Hasha Holder shared with this publication.

The Lady Jaguars play er added, “I give thanks to ANSA McAL for sponsoring this event; and, going for ward, I just look to have lots of fun. Great energy from the ladies!”

Santos FC’s Tyneisha Thorne commented, “Myself and my team? We’re very ex cited, because we don’t have that much experience; we’re accustomed to field games. I mean, this game is more competitive, it needs more speed. I expect us to perform to our best,” the female play er added confidently.

Georgetown will not be the only area represented at the tournament, as GT

Shifting her attention to the competitive aspect, Benjamin explained, “Of course! We want to win, right, but it’s kind of diffi cult. We’re accustomed to playing on the fields, but this is different. With our coach, we’re getting there.”

ANSA McAL’s Triston Freeman was on hand to

speak about the corporate entity’s commitment to fe male sports. “Lucozade and ANSA McAL, we’re very proud to support sport in Guyana. However, we’re es pecially proud to sponsor the female version of this event. This shows that we don’t just support male sports, we sup port females and the devel opment of female sports in Guyana,” he expressed. The Lucozade Brand Manager added, “I’m excited, and ex tremely delight to be part of this tournament!”

The female tourna ment will get underway to day from 18.30hrs, while the male group action is scheduled to continue from 20:30hrs. (Jemima Holmes)

the return of West Indies stars; and for the young, emerging talents, play ing around and against some big names would be beneficial. "For this tournament, very im portant,” Coley has said. “We are play ing our regional tournament, and it is the first time in a long time (that) we will have most of our top re gion al players participating. So, it is a good opportuni ty for emerging players to get an opportunity to be in volved in competitive crick et. It also gives them an op portunity to plan and work on their individual games; so, it is an important oppor tunity."

Coley also noted that it has been recommend

ed that Nyeem Young lead the squad. He noted that the strength of the team is its youthfulness and ex uberance. He also noted that the batting group has a lot of scoring options, and the management has given them freedom in this regard in their approach.

John credits use of cycling knowledge after claiming five in

Knowledge is power. That has been the method of success for Guyana's number one cy clist Jamual John, who is in top form, having record ing five wins in a row. In a comment invited by Guyana Times Sport, John spoke about what has worked for him, and about his plans for the near future.

The consistent rid er, who was riding in the United States earlier this year, also participated in the Tour of Tobago. He noted that his high lev el of fitness played a piv otal role in his success. "I was not training over here (in Guyana). Coming into the Tobago Classic, it was about keeping the fitness that has played a big part in me winning those five races," John divulged.

Asked what he is do ing differently from his fel low cyclists, John said: "It has to be something dif ferent, because I am rac ing overseas for the past couple years. I think it is the experience and train

ing throughout the year (that) helped me to win five straight races."

Winning is certainly a habit for top cyclist Jamual John, and being equipped with that asset has pro cured favour for him. "In my entire career, this may not (have) been the best form, but I have a little more knowledge, using less energy in the race, and showing more experience," he said.

This champion ath lete is planning to trav el to Colombia next year, and is currently focused on seeking sponsorship. "No overseas trip for now, un til next year. I am trying to focus and get sponsorship for training in Colombia. I want to do something bet ter in the USA next year," he said.

In the last two rac es, John has been domi nant in winning the Duckie Memorial race and the Flying Stars Cycle Club’s 50th Anniversary race, which he clinched in back-to-back days. (Brandon Corlette)

Guyana's most consistent cyclist, Jamual John

The MVP Sports/ANSA McAL/ Petra/MoCYS female futsal tournament will kick off tonight at the National Gymnasium

Kevlon Anderson

Ashmead Nedd