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You can also read Guyana Times daily edition online at www.guyanatimesgy.com ISSUE NO. 303

Gov’t ‘in no rush’ to hold death penalty consultations – Trotman

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016

See story on page 2

‘Extremely honoured to lead Guyana Amazon Warriors’ - Rayad Emrit Page 55

Driver charged for killing Guyanese woman in Queens hit-andrun Page 3

Rayad Emrit

Guyana Times International caught up with Guyanese artist, Winslow Craig, who was seen hard at work on one of his hardwood carvings, which will be erected in the compound of the newly rebuilt Umana Yana, in Georgetown.

The piece will take the form of a symbol representing the different Amerindian tribes in Guyana. The artist began working on the project over three weeks ago and is expected to complete it in time for Heritage month.

2 NEWS

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Gov’t ‘in no rush’ to hold death penalty consultations – Trotman

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ot very long after top international human rights activists called on Guyana to repeal the death penalty for terrorism and other offences, the government has hinted that it is “in no rush” to hold public consultations on the issue anytime soon.

At his most recent Cabinet press briefing on Thursday, Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman, said that from all indications government was in no hurry to abolish the death penalty and any such decision would be taken after consultations are held.

Pressed as to when such consultations would be held, Trotman said “we are not in a position to say that we will be entering into consultations to add to the penalties or to remove them. We don’t feel the impetus right now.”

The minister further explained that Guyana’s anti-terrorism legislation provides for the death penalty in keeping with requirements by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and to ensure that the country is not blacklisted.

Though Guyana had committed to join worldwide efforts to abolish this act, the death penalty was included in the AML/CFT (Amendment) Bill 2016 despite objections

From left to right: UN Assistant Secretary General of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic; Judge Navi Pillay, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights; Member of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Marc Bossuyt and EU Chargé D’Affaires Derek Lambe

from the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) parliamentary Opposition.

Ahead of a judicial colloquium on the death penalty on Wednesday at the Marriott Hotel, the international representatives called for this clause to be removed from the legislation.

Judge Navi Pillay, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, expressed hope that the death penalty will be removed from the books completely.

She explained that governments should not just pass a law because something terrible occurred.

“Law is not done emotionally. The rule of law follows intentional standard and Guyana is very much a part of the international community… so you have to pass laws that are sound and definite and not responding each time there is a terrorist act committed here or in France or wherever. Of course, these are terrible crimes and the UN has very specific requirements for

counter terrorism measures,” she stated, emphasising that these measures do not comply with the capital punishment.

On this note, she urged that Guyana advance forward and not backward in its efforts to abolish the death penalty.

“This country should be proud that in 20 years there has been no execution,” she highlighted. Guyana last executed a death row inmate in 1997.

But Pillay stressed that it ought not to be just a moratorium but it must be abolished.

Moreover, Assistant Secretary General from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ivan Simonovic, also pointed out that there is no evidence that proves that the death penalty deters any crime, including terrorism.

The European Union (EU) in collaboration with United Nations (UN) representatives organised a conference with members of the local judiciary to engage in a detail discussions on the movement towards abolishing the death penalty.

Just before the event got underway, the delegation hosted a news conference to brief the media about the expectations of the activity.

The forum will see presentations being done by members of the international rights groups, where they will share experiences and progress of other countries towards the abolition of the death penalty.

The aim is to broaden the discussion on the matter in Guyana.

The visiting delegation also visited several Government officials including Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams.

They intend on meeting Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan today. continued on page 5

NEWS 3

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Driver charged for killing Guyanese woman in Queens hit-and-run

CXC to launch new CAPE subject; Green Engineering

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man was arrested and charged for the hit-and-run accident that killed a Queens mother of three.

According to the New York Post, Jairam Budhu, 58, was charged with manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident in connection with the car wreck that killed Zaalika Rasool in South Ozone Park last Sunday.

Reports say that Rasool, 41, her husband, Azaam, and their 9-yearold daughter, Sara, were heading home from a mosque Sunday night when the accused blew through a stop sign and slammed into them resulting in the deadly crash.

Police say the force of the impact ejected Rasool and her 9-yearold daughter, Sarah,

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Zaalika Rasool is pictured with her husband, two sons, and daughter (Photo taken from NY Daily News)

from the car and into the street. Rasool was

pronounced dead at the scene.

he Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) is expected to launch its latest New Generation Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) subject, Green Engineering, on Thursday 28 July in Guyana.

According to CXC, the Green Engineering syllabus is divided into two Units with each containing three modules. Unit

1 is titled Introduction to Green Engineering and the three modules are Concepts and Issues, Theoretical Framework of Green Engineering and Green Engineering in Practice. Unit 2 is titled Application of Green Engineering Principles and the three modules are Ultilisation of Sustainable Materials and Energy, Sustainable Designs and Green Engineering Solutions.

"This course of study will enable students to apply Scientific, Technological, Engineering and Mathematical (STEM) principles to improve their environment at the local, regional and global levels. The study of Green Engineering will enhance quality of life for present and future generations, while providing wealth creation through new and innovative job opportunities and other economic possibilities including entrepreneurship. By pursuing this course, students will develop twenty-first century engineering skills and ethics required for sustainable development", CXC noted.

Green Engineering will be available for teaching in schools in September 2016 and the first examination will be offered in May/June 2017.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

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EDITORIAL

Sunrise at Lake Mainstay, Essequibo, Guyana (Photo by Girendra Persaud)

National happiness A challenge for Guyana is to

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ne of the ironies of the last century and a half is that while the great ideological battle between capitalism and communism ended two decades ago with the victory of the capitalists, the latter by then had completely accepted their opponents’ premise that fundamentally, man was an economic animal.

As a result, we all measure progress and development using various economic metrics especially Gross Domestic Product (GDP). But in the last decade, there has been a dramatic shift away from this orientation and towards a recognition that when all is said and done, man’s activity is basically intended to deliver greater happiness. And a grudging acceptance that material goods alone do not automatically guarantee happiness.

While the latter viewpoint had long been articulated by religiously-minded individuals and institutions, it had been denigrated by “hard-nosed realists” and economists as being too “otherworldly”. Its introduction into the realm of national policy came from an unlikely source: the king of the remote Himalayan Buddhist kingdom of Bhutan, back in 1972.

Given epistemological rigour by the Centre for Bhutan Studies, a Gross National Happiness (GNH) index was devised which rested on the promotion of sustainable development, preservation and promotion of cultural values, conservation of the natural environment, and the establishment of good governance.

These four pillars supported eight more detailed contributors to happiness: physical, mental and spiritual health; time-balance; social and community vitality; cultural vitality; education; living standards; good governance; and ecological vitality.

Initially, the economic powerhouses in the West that set the pace for what was considered “development” pooh-poohed the notion that “happiness” of nations could be the goal of governments.

However, economists from the Indian subcontinent, ensconced in Western institutions but imbued with the notions from their own culture that “well-being” went beyond the traditional economic metrics, began to introduce Bhutan’s orientation into mainstream economic thinking.

Bhutan’s idea was taken up by the UNDP’s programme and refined by economists like Mahbubul Haq of Pakistan, Britain’s Lord Meghnad Desai and the Indian Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen as the “Human Development Index”, which seeks to incorporate life expectancy, education and standards of living as indicators of a country’s development. From this platform, the idea of a GNH has now taken centre stage in some of the countries that were most sceptical in the beginning.

In 2009, a panel of economists commissioned by Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, proposed the replacement of “Gross Domestic Product” with a “Net National Product” which would take into account the contentment of the people, the quality of public services and free services available within communities.

In November 2010, Britain’s PM, David Cameron also announced plans for a ‘happiness index’ and said the Office for National Statistics would invite people to grade their own contentment from April 2022. He explained, “We’ll continue to measure GDP as we’ve always done, but it is high time we admitted that, taken on its own, GDP is an incomplete way of measuring a country’s progress.”

In January of that year, German politicians also began investigating ways to gauge the country’s quality of life and prosperity as a way to complement GDP figures in Europe’s top economy. A committee headed by Speaker of Parliament Norbert Lammert issued its recommendations in 2015. The so-called “Progress Index” measures Germany’s economic wealth, as well as advancements in education, environment and quality of life.

Another country to jump on the “happiness” bandwagon was China – the fastest growing economy in the world that is projected to overtake the US as the largest economy in a few decades. As part of its drive to find greater happiness, local Chinese officials are typically being set ten targets to meet – five being economic or GDP-related, and five being assessed on more nebulous, happinessrelated criteria linked to social well-being. Our Government’s “green economy” incorporates some premises of the GNH position.

Maybe it’s time we investigate the concept further?

develop national consensus through social partnership agreements

Dear Editor, There are many voices calling for national dialogue with the major political parties and interest groups to forge a consensus for national, social, and economic development. Here are a few thoughts on the social partnership option for national development; hoping for other views and advocacy.

National dialogue on social and economic matters should be encouraged and promoted as a matter of high priority. This approach promotes active consultation and cooperation at the industrial and national levels among governing authority, the political parties in the National Assembly as well as workers’ and employers’ organisations in order to foster mutual understanding and good relations, to find agreed solutions to socio-economic problems and to forge a consensus for national development.

The promotion of social justice in the state community could be achieved only if the social partners and stakeholders themselves are involved in the search for appropriate solutions through negotiations and genuine dialogue. The government and the National Assembly however, have a major responsibility in the success of a multi-tripartite social dialogue process.

Genuine national dialogue guarantees participation in a democratic process. The developing of our economy offers opportunities from which all can gain, but these have to be grounded in participatory processes and institutions if they are to confer legitimacy and sustainability on economic and social policies.

The pillars constituted by the National Assembly, Government, private sector and workers’ organisations must commit themselves to engage in determined dialogue, based on the principles of mutual trust and good faith.

Success in the mutual outcome of national dialogue also requires national commitment and national political will, and the full commitment of private sector and workers and their organisations, and civil society. National dialogue processes need to be strengthened, en-

couraged and supported. The building of that trust, its maintenance, and its sustainability, requires a high degree of commitment and political leadership.

There were successful broader social partnership agreements in other jurisdictions such as the outstanding models of national social partnership agreements in Ireland and Barbados.

From the late 80s and early 90s, the social partnership and consensus-based approaches in Barbados and Ireland resulted in national agreements, which have had a continuing positive impact on the achievements of economic growth and social progress. These agreements were the outcomes of serious negotiations undertaken in good faith between the governments and the other social partners.

This recourse to the social partnership option had widespread support among the major social and economic interests in these countries, and fundamentally changed the traditional confrontational approach in managing national socio-economic affairs.

The social partnership agreements provide a solid foundation for the economic growth and development of these countries.

These have resulted in a very good social and matured political relations and an environment conducive to building consensus for national development to the extent that Ireland is attracting many substantial investors, and is one of the fastest growing economies in Europe. In recent years, both Ireland and Barbados have recorded the lowest incidence of disruptive political and industrial action within the European Union and Caricom, respectively.

The social partnership at the national level in Ireland is an attractive model for Caribbean countries. Barbados, drawing from the Irish model, developed its own national agreements.

In the Guyana context, the real challenge is to develop national consensus in the form of social partnership agreements in the interest of the wider national community. National partnership agreements provide the framework for national strat-

egies to achieve international competitiveness, higher standards of living, and improved social protection, a stable currency, investment-friendly policies and a more development-conducive social and political climate.

Effective management of the economy in a climate of good governance with proactive involvement and participation of civil society is crucial for agreeing on measures for balanced economic, social and political development.

The governing authority of the National Assembly and the government bears responsibility for ensuring that governance as: “The manner in which power is exercised in the management of a country’s economic and social resources for development” reflects fairness and effective social justice.

A state that is committed to such good governance will ensure that there is genuine participation by the social and political partners with credibility, transparency, and accountability in the administration and management of national affairs.

The challenges, in terms of national strategies to promote economic growth, social, political and human development, call for actions at the national level.

It is for the government, the political parties, private sector, the labour movement and civil society in Guyana: a) to respect, promote and realise in good faith the fundamental principles of human rights enshrined in our Constitution and laws, and the United Nations and International Labour Conventions; b) to adopt the social partnership option in the management of change in national socio-economic and political affairs through sustained national dialogue which must be promoted in a paradigm shift – from the prolonged confrontational political posture to one which cultivates consensus and cooperation in the national interest; and c) the Government of Guyana at the highest level, has a crucial facilitating role in moving this process forward through appropriate actions.

Samuel J Goolsarran Citizen of Guyana

NEWS 5

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Queenstown residents panic as ex-soldier fires shots indiscriminately

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hirty-four-yearold Joel Benjamin, an ex-soldier from Queenstown Village in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) is presently hospitalised and under Police guard at the Suddie Public Hospital after he indiscriminately fired several rounds in the air with his father’s licensed firearm.

According to information reaching Guyana Times International, the incident reportedly occurred around 14:00h on Wednesday and lasted for approximately three hours. Benjamin allegedly broke into his father’s house and unknowing to him, stole his 12 gauge shotgun. He began to indiscriminately fire several rounds in the air.

Interviews conducted with residents in the Sand Reef area revealed that they panicked, since numerous shots were fired.

According to information received, the Police arrived promptly on the scene and the suspect began firing in their direction. For hours he resisted Police arrest. The Police were then required to use necessary force and opened fire on the

suspect.

However, the shots from the Police did not injure him. After three hours of chaos, the Police finally managed to arrest Benjamin.

During his arrest, the suspect received a laceration to his lip. It was reported that the suspect appeared to be under the influence of drugs, hence the reason for his unusual behaviour.

The shotgun is presently lodged at the Police station and Benjamin will soon face the necessary charges.

Information received also revealed that on many occasions, Benjamin would ask to borrow his father’s gun to shoot birds at the backdam and upon his father’s refusal, an argument would often ensue with Benjamin reportedly threatening him.

According to villagers, the sudden onslaught of gunshots had many of them scared and lying for hours on the ground, fearful for their lives.

One villager related that she was so afraid, she thought that she would have died, having heard the countless gun shots that were fired.

Police ranks, members of the business community and faith-based organisations were honoured for their contribution to community relation and crime prevention programmes in D Division. Also in photo are Police Commissioner Seelall Persaud and D Division Commander Stephen Mansell (Dexter Ceres photo) from page 2

Gov’t ‘in no rush’ to hold death penalty...

The Attorney General had argued that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) regime mandates the capital punishment be enshrined in the AML/CFT legislation.

However, former Attorney General Anil Nandlall asserted that in other countries deemed FATF compliant, the death penalty is abolished. He pointed out that in France, where FATF is headquartered, the death penalty was abolished decades ago; and the country is still FATF compliant.

According to statistics by Amnesty International, 140 countries abolished the death penalty in 2014, by law or practice. This is significant given that when the organisation started its campaign

Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman

against the death penalty in 1997, only 16 countries had abolished this punishment for all crimes.

Seven countries that carried out executions in 2013 did not do so in 2014; those being Bangladesh,

Botswana, Indonesia, India, Kuwait, Nigeria and South Sudan.

Despite this remarkable progress, there was a recorded 28 per cent increase in the number of executions in 2014 when compared to the figures in 2013. There were 2466 death sentences in 55 countries in 2014, with a total of 607 executions. This figure excludes China, which executed more persons than the rest of the world combined. The top five countries which still execute prisoners on death row are China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the USA. Additionally, seven other countries resumed executions – Belarus, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Jordan, Pakistan, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. (Devina Samaroo)

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

A heavy tax burden on citizens

Dear Editor, It was Winston Churchill who said: “I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.”

Recently, Finance Minister Winston Jordan reported that Central Government’s revenues totalled G$53.4 billion at the end of April 2016.

According to him, this represents an increase of G$3 billion compared to revenue collections during the same period last year. The minister attributes this increase in revenue collection on “tightening up at ports, new focus on the regions and a clampdown on illegal activities.”

The minister reports that tax revenues increased by G$2.1 billion when compared to the same period in 2015.

According to the minister, VAT revenues, however, continued to decline.

For the period under review, that is, January to April 2016, these revenues showed a decline of 6.3% compared to the levels achieved during the same period in 2015.

Apart from increased revenue in the collection of rent and royalties in the gold mining sector, there is no other report from the minister regarding the productive sector.

It is painfully obvious that this government places an over-reliance on taxation. In its first full budget, the 2016 Budget, it increased 140-odd public taxes, in certain instances as high as 1200%. They have removed VAT exemptions from all capital equipment in the major productive sectors which hitherto enjoyed VAT exemptions, namely, agriculture, mining, and forestry. They have imposed duties on imported raw materials for the manufacturing sector that were free from duties under the PPP/C Government.

The President and several of his ministers have publicly expressed the view that the regime of tax concessions put in place by the PPP/Civic Administration to attract investments is too generous and will be reviewed with a view to downsizing them.

In fact, Go-Invest and the Guyana Revenue Authority have been instructed to put these concessions “on hold.”

In Regions Five and Six, employees of the GRA are doing house-to-house inspection and if it is found that there are more than two “banks” of vegetables under cultivation in any yard, the head of the household is documented as engaging in a “commercial activity”, presumably for the purpose of taxation.

This same mentality has polluted their representatives at the level of the Georgetown City Council, hence the parking meter fiasco and the public announcement that there will soon be an increase in rates and taxes.

Against the backdrop of this emphatic pursuit to tax the populace, one quickly re-

alises that this government’s obsession with the GRA is not an aberration but the interference is deliberate and institutional.

Lest I convey the wrong impression, I wish to make it clear that I appreciate the importance of taxation in the economic equation of a nation.

However, the cold hard truth is that real economic growth comes not from taxation but from production, productivity and job creation.

The economy of every great nation was built not on taxation but by production, commerce, trade and industrialisation. The taxation policy and system must be such that it encourages, facilitates and engenders the growth and expansion of these sectors. As these sectors grow and expand they will yield increased taxes but in the process they create jobs and generate all the benefits which come with job creation.

In order to fully encourage these sectors to achieve their optimum potential, there are economies in the world which offer tax free regimes to the extent that even personal income tax is not payable. This government’s policy is situated at the other end of the spectrum.

So while the treasury boasts of increased collection of taxes, there is a decline in production, trade, commerce, manufacturing and service-oriented industries – all of which are integral to real economic growth and job creation.

This economic paralysis is exacerbated by frightening statements emanating from the head of SARU, Dr Clive Thomas, weekly about who will be charged and who will be jailed and the actions of SOCU, which conduct unconstitutional and arbitrary searches of business premises and seize therefrom large amounts of cash, jewellery, and confidential financial information.

These are two rogue organisations operating from within the Ministry of Presidency, without any legal bases whatsoever, carrying out the political directions of those in government.

The once powerful Private Sector Commission which was so ready to publicly pounce on the PPP/C administration at the drop of a hat, has now become mute in fear. A businessman wants to legally challenge the new imposition of a parking fee of G$20,000 by the City Council of Georgetown in respect of containers, which is charged even where the container is there only for a few hours to discharge cargo.

However, he is afraid to use his name in the legal proceedings because of reprisals.

Fear has returned to Guyana. This time it’s not generated by the bandits but by the Government.

Sincerely, Mohabir Anil Nandlall, MP Attorney

Why so many military persons in top positions?

Dear Editor, On July 12, 2016 your newspaper published an article entitled “Department of National Events Established.” The article said that on orders from President Granger, Colonel Nazrul Hussain of the Guyana Defence Force will be the head of that agency with the responsibility for planning state events.

I was alarmed that our nation continues to be militarised when you juxtapose these events against our recent history. The recent history of Guyana, pre-1991, has been the use of the military, para-military, and to an extent the police force as a tool to control Guyanese and the government through intimidation and rigged elections.

Today, we see that almost every key office in the country has been taken over by former or current military personnel.

My question is why? What is the Granger

Government planning? Surely, there are ample civilians who can fill these positions.

Unless, they have another plan which requires military control of the state apparatus.

Consider the following quote. “Dictators, unlike Democrats, depend on a small coterie to sustain their power. These backers, generally drawn from the military, the senior civil service, and family or clan members, have a synergistic relationship with their dictator. The dictator delivers opportunities for them to become rich, and they protect him from being overthrown.” Bruce Bueno de Mesquita.

Beware Guyana. They are lining up their stooges for the big plan.

Sincerely, Lenny Jagdhar

AFC’s credibility continues to take a hit

Dear Editor, Yes! Guyana needs a third political party. As I speak about the need for a third party in Guyana let me first say that the AFC is responsible for the seeming quagmire that Guyana has found itself in.

Like the WPA back in the 70s and 80s, the AFC was making significant traction and headway on the political landscape of Guyana. The healthy mix of its founder members was a breath of fresh air for Guyana. Their fearless stance on national issues was supported by many patriotic Guyanese who were rooting for them. They also presented a healthy mix of the predominant ethnic races of Guyana and that too spoke volumes.

I was told that the WPA had that same effect when they were in their heyday.

Young intellectuals and folks from the diaspora were moving to align themselves with the AFC and a certain excitement was brewing in Guyana.

Then something happened. Next we heard was that the AFC was joining forces with the APNU. The APNU is dominated by the PNC stalwarts. Many folks who were encouraged by the formation and potential of the AFC, were not lovers of the PNC; some even hated the PNC. They disliked what Burnham had done to the country, so they shunned his PNC party. Therefore, the February 14 Cummingsburg marriage of APNU/AFC saw a decisive dent in the support of the AFC. However, all was not lost; some held their noses and voted for the AFC in the coalition. As a result, the coalition was able to pull off a nail-biting, very marginal, win.

What has happened since the coalition formed the Government is that the AFC and its bold, objective and “fresh-faced” policies have all but disappeared.

Many of the behaviours for which the government – AFC is a part of the government – is being accused of as wrong doings, would not have stood the mustard test were the leaders of the AFC not married to the APNU. The bushy-tailed and bright-eyed founders of the AFC would not have been caught dead anywhere near some of the scandals and missteps of the current administration.

Indeed, I could hear the ‘old’ Khemraj, the ‘old’ Nigel and the ‘old’ Moses, challenging any administration to explain and/or reject some of the very issues that are now receiving the AFC’s tacit support.

Editor, I have been a journalist and a political consultant for many years. I worked

in Barbados, Trinidad, the USA and here in Guyana. I even served a stint working for President Desmond Hoyte, during the 1992 election campaign. I am also marriage counsellor.

So if you were to ask me, I would say, that I think the AFC jumped the gun. They married the APNU too soon. Marrying the APNU has so far not served the AFC’s best purposes, except for those in the government and a few other favoured ones. But the general supporters of the AFC feel betrayed. If the leaders of the AFC doubt me, they could do an audit of their supporters’ morale.

I think the AFC has been weakened.

Their credibility continues to take a hit.

Instead of gaining ground, they have lost ground.

If the AFC had waited another election cycle, and if they had continued with their focus on the working-class, on patriotism, and on transparency, they would have gained significant political collateral to better negotiate the conditions of any accord: either with the PPP or the APNU. But now their hands are tied.

Their supporters across the country are in disarray. Additionally, there seems to be some internal disunity. And the AFC is stock because they are now legally married and any divorce will mostly hurt them.

I understand that the coalition-government is receiving high marks on their functionality. The international community seems to admire how things are going. The consensus is that the marriage is holding strong.

They say time will tell.

We are hearing that while the better life is not yet being realised by the average Guyanese, it is in the making; better days are coming.

Well, we are all watching and waiting and hoping and praying. Until then, I am registering my opinion that based on how things are shaping up, Guyana needs a third party and here is why I am saying this. If things continue the way they are going, the Coalition will be a one-term government.

If this coalition loses, the AFC will be further decimated. And depending on who wins the next election, Guyana could be catapulted back to an age of nepotism.

And if that happens, I will hold the AFC singularly responsible.

Sincerely, Pastor Wendell Jeffrey

news 7

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Minibus driver to spend four years behind bars for causing death of pensioner

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herwin Hopkinson, the minibus driver charged with causing the death of William Trim on March 5, was on Monday jailed for four years.

He was convicted of driving minibus BBB 1302 in a manner dangerous to the public thus causing the death of Trim on March 5, 2016 at Aubrey Barker Public Road, Greater Georgetown.

The Court heard that on the day in question, the defendant had passengers in his bus and was driving in a reckless manner, overtaking several motor vehicles, when he collided with the car driven by the now dead man.

The impact of the collision caused the motor car to move some distance away from the point of impact and Trim to be thrown from the vehicle. He was picked up in an unconscious state and rushed to a city hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

In handing down the sentence, Magistrate McLennan stated that the prosecution’s witnesses were found to be credible. She added that

JAILED: Therwin Hopkinson

the Court was also satisfied with the evidence that was presented by the prosecution.

McLennan noted that the injuries sustained by the deceased as a result of the accident were the cause of his death. Thus, she said, the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt.

McLennan found the defendant guilty as charged of the offence.

Upon hearing the court’s decision, Hopkinson begged for leniency on the grounds that he has two young children – 18 months old and 4 years old respectively.

However, McLennan did not waver in her decision, stating that a life was lost.

Telephone giants welcome liberalisation of telecoms market

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fter years of anticipation, Digicel Guyana is now breathing a sigh of relief, saying that it welcomes the passage of the Telecommunications Bill, which legislated the liberalisation of the sector.

“The passage of this Bill is the first step in the long overdue ending of the telephone monopoly, which is a laudable achievement and a position that Digicel supports,” Digicel Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kevin Kelly said.

He added that the communications giant would now await engagement with the Government to discuss its licence and regulations for an open competitive sector.

“We believe this will create a competitive sector and will result in many benefits in terms of new and improved services for the people of Guyana.”

Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes was the key speaker in Parliament on Monday when the Bill was read for the second and third time. It was first introduced in 2011 and revised in 2013, and had been at the level of a Special Select Committee in the 10th Parliament. The Bill addresses concerns, including those of the industry’s stakeholders and will break the more-than-20-year monopoly.

In her presentation, Hughes pleaded with the House for it to recognise the importance of information and communication technology as the transformational agent for the overall improvement of citizens’ lives and the building of a 21st Century economy.

According to Hughes, the ea-

Contractor charged for making false declaration … allegedly had more than US$10,000 at CJIA

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contractor was on Tuesday charged for knowingly making a declaration on an immigration form to be untrue when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Clairmont Reid of Lot 197 South Vryheid’s Lust, East Coast Demerara, pleaded not guilty to the charge when

he appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

It was alleged that on June 6, at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Reid made an untrue declaration on an immigration form which stated that he was not carrying more than US$10,000, when in fact he had TT$139,135 in his pos-

session – the equivalent of US$20,782.22.

The defence Attorney Paul FungA-Fat made a successful bail application, despite objections by the Prosecutor Deniro Jones. Reid was granted bail in the sum of G$100, 000. The case will continue on September 8.

Digicel CEO Kevin Kelly

GTT CEO Justin Nedd

gerly-anticipated landmark legislation will provide for an open, competitive telecommunications sector where new market entrants and investors will be attracted to invest in the country.

However, the rushing through of the Bill did not go down well with the Opposition which pointed out that certain sections of the Bill needed to be reviewed.

“We are taking all the powers and putting it monopolistically in the hands of the Minister… their powers are too much and too great for the Ministers,” Opposition Member of Parliament Irfaan Ali argued, stating that the Bill was moving the monopoly from a company straight into the hands of the Minister. He further stated that the passage of the Bill in its present state would move the country backwards from a “monopolistic position to dictatorship”.

However, Hughes argued that

with the passage of the Bill consumers would be given more options and access to reliable and advanced telecommunications services.

After six hours of debate with eight speakers and back and forth heckling, the Bill was passed.

Meanwhile, GTT, formerly the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company, which had a legal monopoly on international voice and data transmissions and the domestic wireline service, has always declared that the sector was free because of the existence of other service providers.

The company, in a full-page ad, welcomed the passage of the Bill, saying it would lead to lower international rates, faster Internet, better customer service and a wider range of products. GTT also said it would discuss the issue at a press conference today.

8 NEWS

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Gov’t already taking steps to establish Land Reclamation Unit, says Harmon

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Land Reclamation Unit, aimed at the restoration of the land distributed by mining operations, will soon be established by Government.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon, appearing before the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Natural Resources in the Parliamentary Chambers on Wednesday, disclosed that Government has already taken steps to set up this department.

Answering questions posed

by Head of the Committee, Member of Parliament (MP), Odinga Lumumba, about the need for a better system for land reclamation with regards to the mining sector, Minister Harmon affirmed Government’s commitment to this process.

According to Opposition MP Lumumba, there is legislation, “but it is not firm.” Lumumba pointed out, “You have to have a policy which clearly states that this is the way that you are going to reclaim the land after you complete your job. This must be put in the agreement before you start operations.”

There is a need for a better system for land reclamation with regard to the mining sector. Minister Harmon has affirmed Government’s commitment to this process

The former Presidential Adviser added that land reclamation can see lands being used in innovative ways such as creating man-made lakes for sport fishing and recreation.

Responding to the query by his parliamentary colleague, Minister Harmon acknowledged that it was easier for large companies to fulfill this obligation and enforce these regulations.

“The question is about our

will to enforce those regulations and the fact that we need a stronger enforcement mechanism, within the Ministry of Natural Resources, in terms of forest rangers and other people who can insist and ensure that the companies do what they are required to do under our law.”

The Ministry of the Presidency had announced earlier that the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC)

will be partnering with the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (UNFAO) to implement a Sustainable Land Development and Management Project, expected to take effect in January 2017.

The proposed project, among other things, is intended to; promote good environmental stewardship in a green economy to achieve a better quality of life, improve planning, monitoring and evaluation capacities to address land management needs, improve standard of living through sustainable land use and management practices, strengthen monitoring and enforcement capacity and ensure compliance with sustainable land management practices, mainstream policy and implementation by natural resource agencies and implement sustainable land development and management and monitoring using indicators for the reduction of land use conflicts and innovative problem solving initiatives.

It is also expected to increase land reclamation of degraded public lands and reduce degrad-

ed areas in relation to total land area, improve organisational image through better client-employees relations and ensure greater coordination and improved service delivery in technical areas.

Land reclamation remains a sore issue in the mining sector as many hinterland communities have been left with scarred landscapes after mining concessions were exhausted and operations moved to other locations.

Communities such as Mahdia, in Region Eight (PotaroSiparuni) have been left with many pits and these were not refilled. These formed breeding grounds for mosquitoes and the increase in the spread of malaria.

The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) recently embarked upon reinforcing the amendment regulations 2005, for environmental management.

This instantly created an impact in the community, by curbing the pollution of waterways and encouraged soil reclamation and replanting of trees in deforested areas.

Sharma says Cabinet’s ‘no-objection’ role will be phased out

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he establishment of the five-member Public P r o c u r e m e n t Commission (PPC), which is currently marred by delays before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), will see the phasing out of Cabinet’s role in giving its ‘no-objection’ to the procurement process.

This is according to Junior Finance Minister Jaipaul Sharma, who noted that before this could come into effect the Public Procurement Commission would have to be in place.

However, he pointed out that in the absence of such a Commission, then

in accordance with the laws, Government would now have to increase the ceiling on contracts’ value that Cabinet is required to give its no-objection on.

As it is presently, the Procurement Act provides for Cabinet to review contacts exceeding the value of G$15 million. However, the Junior Finance Minister hinted that this amount could increase to G$40 million to G$50 million.

According to the law, Cabinet and the Public Procurement Commission, upon its establishment, shall review annually, the Cabinet’s threshold for review of

procurement, with the objective of increasing that threshold over time so as to promote the goal of progressively phasing out Cabinet’s involvement and decentralising the procurement process.

“In the interim, if the Public Procurement Commission is not established, Cabinet should have been increasing (the ceiling) every year…

The law stipulates that Cabinet’s role should be phased out and by Government increasing the limit, is an indication that we are going to phase out,” he stated.

Sharma noted that when contracts were before Cabinet for its

‘no-objection’, Ministers were very vocal and objective about their positions and this often resulted in the process being stymied.

“If a Minister objects to (a contract), the project will have to go back to the tender board and be re-evaluated and then returned (to Cabinet) and that in itself is holding it up. So the Public Procurement Commission is needed,” he stated.

Minister Sharma was at the time speaking with reporters after the opening ceremony of a one-day sensitisation workshop on public procurement host-

ed by CARIFORUM and the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) on Tuesday.

During his remarks to the gathering, the Junior Finance Minister outlined that the delayed establishment of the Public Procurement Commission was not preventing Government from taking appropriate steps to ensure that there was a transparent and accountable procurement process.

He noted that among the measures put in place by Government, in the interim, was increasing the limit on contracts processed at various levels, starting from the ministerial boards to the regional tender boards and then the National Tender Board.

“Increasing limits assist the various boards to process larger amounts in terms of contracts so that they don’t have to send it to the National Board for considerations.

So, at their level, they can facilitate that process,” he stated.

Additionally, Sharma noted that Cabinet also looked at the proposal of increasing the number of evaluators available to Government. Currently, evaluators are made up of public servants such as Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Department.

The Minister explained that “by increasing the number of evaluators, you make it possible for persons to meet on a regular basis

so that they can evaluate and report to the various boards on that evaluation and the award will be made. So it’s an ef-

Junior Finance Minister Jaipaul Sharma

fort to speed up the process so contracts will be awarded …more speedily…”

The Junior Finance Minister went on to say another step taken by Government to ensure transparency and accountability was the implementation of the ‘Bid Protest Committee’, which allows contractors who were not satisfied with the evaluation to make an objection to the process.

He pointed out that already one company has made an objection to the Committee.

That company is Cevon’s Waste Management Inc which filed objections to the award of the G$221 million contract to Puran Brothers Inc for the management of the Haags-Bosch Landfill site at Eccles, East Bank Demerara.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

No consensus on appointment of FIU’s Deputy Director – Teixeira

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Opposition Chief Whip Gail Teixeira

pposition Chief Whip Gail Teixeira on Monday contended that there was no consensus on the appointment of Abiose Thomas as the Deputy Director for the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).

In her presentation on the contents of the report from the Parliamentary Committee of Appointments, Teixeira stated that “we made a decision on the Director… on the Deputy Director we feel strongly that a grave injustice has been done. We haven’t reached a consensus.”

Chairperson, Dr George Norton requested that the report be adopted by the Parliament before moving a motion for the report’s recommendations to be approved.

The Parliamentary Committee of Appointments came to a unani-

mous decision to appoint Matthew Edward Hugh Langevine as the Director of the FIU within the Finance Ministry, and Legal Advisor Abiose Thomas as the Deputy Director.

Both appointments follow a recommendation of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) Act 2015, Act No 1 of 2015 to select and endorse persons for the appointment as the Director, Deputy Director, Attorney and Accountant to the FIU. The FIU functions in collaboration with the Special Organised Crime Unit, the Guyana Revenue Authority and the Finance Ministry, in identifying and trailing persons fingered in committing financial illegalities.

The Parliamentary Committee consists of Government Ministers; Chairperson, Dr George Norton, David Patterson, Amna Ally, Annette Ferguson, Cathy Hughes and PPP Members of Parliament Gail Teixeira, Dr Clive Jagan, Ganga Persaud and Juan Edghill.

According to the Committee report submitted to Parliament on Monday by Public Health Minister, Dr Norton, Thomas was shortlisted from a list of 17 candidates that applied for the position.

It was decided that she was the most suitable person for the position of the FIU Deputy Director.

Her selection is subsequent to several rounds of due diligence exercises and interviews.

No need for new ministry to deal with economic planning – Harmon

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inister of State, Joseph Harmon on Wednesday said the establishment of an Economics Ministry would create “additional bureaucracy”.

Harmon’s comment comes on the heels of calls by political activist, Dr David Hinds and former Auditor General Anand Goolsarran for a Ministry of Economic Planning to be established, giving the current state of Guyana’s economy.

In an interview with Guyana Times International on Wednesday, Harmon indicated that while the economy did need extra coverage, that fact did not justify the country needing a whole new ministry.

He stated that he was aware that the Finance Ministry would deal with matters relating to the economy.

Meanwhile, Dr Hinds stated that while more emphasis should be placed on economic development, he was not of the opinion that the Ministry of Business was the “place for that kind of thing or the Ministry of Finance”.

He explained that those Ministries would have their

Dr David Hinds

own agendas and given the magnitude of economic development, its own ministry was much needed. “We need a Ministry of Economic Planning and even if not a ministry, there should be a prominent section that deals with economic planning,” Hinds reiterated.

Citing Guyana’s relationship to the Caribbean and the rapidly changing world, Hinds stated that the country would constantly need to implement novel economic strategies.

Goolsarran also had stated that economic planning was a prerequisite for any country’s development and given Guyana’s economic status, it made sense for the country to have a Ministry of Economics.

The Government has been consistently criticised for stating that Guyana’s

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon

economy has been growing.

Goolsarran rebuked the coalition Government for its denial of the current ailing state of the country’s economy, stating that a three per cent growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) did not mean all was well with the economy.

“The Government is in denial that the economy is slowing down, but it is evident,” he stated. Goolsarran indicated that 40 per cent of the youths were unemployed; there was evidence of under-employment; businesses were struggling; and there was also the existence of parallel economies.

Hinds had suggested that both the Government and the Opposition sit down and come up with a National Development Plan for Guyana.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24 , 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

IMF team to assess VAT to determine Guyanese man jailed for Florida mortgage scam feasibility of reduction

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team comprising experts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is due in Guyana next month to assess the Value Added Tax (VAT) and recommendations made by the Tax Reform Committee set up by the APNU + AFC government.

In an interview with the Government Information Agency (GINA), at the his Main Street, Georgetown, Office, Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan said, “notwithstanding what the Tax Reform Committee said, and notwithstanding the clamour for the reduction in VAT, I have asked the IMF and they have agreed and the team is to come in August to do an assessment of the Value Added Tax.” Minister Jordan said, after they would have completed their assessment “we will take a look, and we will make a determination what reduction is feasible and when this reduction can take place.”

The Government in late 2015 had established the Tax Reform Committee headed

Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan

by Dr. Maurice Odle.

The committee’s mandate was to examine the country’s taxation system and make recommendations for fixing it.

The committee had reported its findings to the Minister of Finance in January 2016, a time described by the minister as too late to have the recommendations included in the 2016 budget.

H o w e v e r , “Notwithstanding that, we had anticipated some of the measures in the Tax Committee’s report and they were actually implemented in the 2016 budget,” the Minister said.

Among the recommendations of the Tax Reform Committee

were an income tax threshold of $750,000 with progressive rates of taxation from 20% to 35%, reintroduction of estate duties and levies on tobacco and alcohol. In the last budget the income tax threshold was increased to $660,000 from $600,000. Meanwhile steps are underway to formulate a Bill for the control of tobacco.

Further, the Minister said the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has been approached for its input on the recommended tax reforms.

“What I have caused GRA to do is to go through the report with a fine tooth comb, split it up into the various sections and come

up with recommendations of the feasibility of some of what have been recommended so that we could have a discussion in Cabinet and make a determination, whether or not they get into the 2017 budget. The tax reform committee did recommendations that span two years …not just 2017.”

Among the recommendations of the Tax Reform Committee were a reduction of VAT from 16 percent to 14 percent, the introduction of an intermediate rate of seven percent, a reduction of the number of items on the VAT exempt list and a widening of the tax net by reducing the minimum taxable amount from $10M to $5M, Minister Jordan said.

M e a n w h i l e President David Granger on an edition of the programme “the Public’s Interest” had said it was perhaps hasty on the part of the then opposition (APNU+AFC) to promise a reduction on the VAT rate during their first year in office when they had inadequate information on what they would find when they assumed office.

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Guyana-born man has been jailed for more than 20 years by a Florida court, for a series of multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud schemes in the United States.

According to reports from NBC 6 news and Miami AP, 56-year-old Ravindranauth “Ravi” Roopnarine was sentenced to 262 months in jail on three counts of fraud charges – wire fraud, mail fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud.

In addition to the sentences which will run concurrently, the federal judge also ordered Roopnarine to pay more than $9 million in restitution to the defrauded banks and lenders.

Three other people have also been sent to prison in relation to the scheme.

According to publicly filed documents and statements made in court, on December 9, 2010, a Fort Pierce federal grand jury indicted Roopnarine, Gergawattie “Kamla” Seecharan, Bhaardwaj “Deo” Seecharan and Linda Rovetto for their participation in the multimillion-dollar Florida mortgage fraud scheme.

Gergawattie Seecharan, Bhaardwaj Seecharan and Rovetto had previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced. Roopnarine recently waived extradition and returned from Trinidad and Tobago to the Southern

District of Florida.

Federal Prosecutors said in a news release on Monday that the scam involved approximately 150 residential properties in Indian River, Orange and Miami-Dade counties in Florida.

The group recruited mainly Guyanese residents of Florida and other states to act as straw buyers on fraudulent mortgage loan applications, leading to the issuance of more than $50 million in fraudulent loans.

According to the court documents, “Roopnarine, along with Kamla Seecharan and her husband Deo Seecharan, conspired to solicit mainly Guyanese residents of Florida and other states to act as straw buyers on fraudulent mortgage loan applications.

Approximately 80 individuals served as straw buyers of properties in Vero Lake Estates (VLE), in Indian River County, and other developments. This scheme resulted in the issuance of more than $50 million in fraudulent mortgage loans.

The co-conspirators then used the proceeds to purchase additional properties, fund pre-existing fraudulent mortgage loans, and pay kickbacks to the straw buyers.”

Roopnarine was convicted by a jury of three fraud charges back in March.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24 , 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Gov’t uses majority to pass Telecoms Bill despite concerns of Opposition

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fter six hours of heated debate, the Government on Monday evening passed the Telecommunications (Amendment) Bill 2016, despite pleas from the Opposition that certain sections of the Bill needed to be reviewed.

“We are taking all the powers and putting it monopolistically in the hands of the Minister…their powers are too much and too great for the Ministers,” Opposition Member of Parliament Irfaan Ali argued, stating that the Bill was moving the monopoly from a company straight into the hands of the Minister.

He further stated that the passage of the Bill in its present state would move the country backwards from a “monopolistic position to dictatorship”.

He pointed out that there were errors in the Bill, but they were overlooked. He contended that the “mischief” in the Bill was in plain sight as it related to the Minister’s control in the sector. Therefore, he suggested that the Bill be sent to a special select committee to correct its “deficiencies”.

The much-anticipated Bill was on Monday read for a second time in the House by Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes, who touted the impor-

tance of its passage in developing the country’s economy and standard of living.

After eight speakers and back and forth heckling, the Bill was passed.

Hughes, in her presentation, pleaded with the House to recognise the importance of information and communication technology as the transformational agent for the overall improvement of citizens’ lives and the building of a 21st Century economy.

“Critical to this improvement is the creation of a telecommunication sector that is competitive and flexible enough to need a modern rapidly evolving technological environment. This transition is long overdue,” she insisted, adding that the sector should be an open one in order for Guyana to progress in the area of service provision and delivery and not lag behind other Caricom countries and most of the rest of the world.

She said the landmark legislation would provide for an open, competitive telecommunications sector where new market entrants and investors would be attracted to invest in the country.

The Minister stated that consumers would be given more choice and access to reliable and advanced telecommunica-

Public Telecommunications Minister, Cathy Hughes

tions services. “The intention is clearly to be an Act to provide for the establishment of the telecommunication agency and for a regular, coordinated, open and competitive telecommunication sector.”

“Any suggestion that there has been no consultation on this Bill is clearly inaccurate. This Bill is the work of both sides of the House and we should be proud that we were able to work together to come up with such an excellent piece of legislation.

“This Bill is a very important one. Guyana cannot waste any more time lagging when it comes to information communication technology. It is one that is awaited with much anticipation by all Guyanese. It will guarantee that we get better service…”

In crushing the monopoly and levelling the playing field, Hughes stated that much effort was placed into the design of the legislation to ensure that it was effective and could be implemented as early as possible. She insisted that it was enshrined with transparency and non-discrimination in the issuance of licences and frequency authorisation, adding that the Bill provides for regulation to ensure that consumers receive good quality service. The Bill comprises 14 parts with 95 clauses.

GTT, which has claimed a legal monopoly on international voice and data transmissions and the domestic wireline service, has always declared that the sector was free because of the existence of other ser-

vice providers. However, Digicel, its giant competitor, has lambasted the company for its statement.

Member of Parliament Odinga Lumumba who described the monopoly as a noose around the necks of Guyanese, stated that when GT&T took over the sector, it became a “cash cow” and instead of building a national cable network and advancing the sector, the company’s only interest was maximising profits.

He stated that from his research, the passage of the legislation would enable better landline services, lower-cost landline and mobile service, more dynamic Internet service and new job opportunities. Stating that the population was dealt a bad hand by the monopoly, Lumumba declared that now was the time to break it and create an open market.

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, during his presentation, gave his full support to the passage of the Bill, citing that the issues that have risen in the debate were void.

He urged Ali to reconsider his statement that the piece of legislation should be sent to a select committee and instead “let us do what we have to do and pass the Bill”.

Citing the experience and knowledge the

committee leaned on, Harmon announced that he felt proud of the work of the committee and to stand and represent the Bill in the House.

He stated that there have been extensive consultations on the legislation and the time has come for its passage.

He went as far back as to mention that former Prime Minister Samuel Hinds had called for the passage of the Bill.

Harmon stated that the Bill would have been passed if not for the prorogation of the Parliament.

In November 2013, the National Assembly sent the legislation to a special select committee with the then Opposition indicating that while it supported the Bill, it was uneasy over the then Minister’s control.

The Bill was pushed back several times and the two communications giants in Guyana were in discussions to break the monopoly held by GTT. PPP/C Chief Whip Gail Teixeira, who moved a motion for the Bill to be sent to a special select committee, stated that it was the Government’s responsibility to fix the sector. “We failed, you fix it. We are not in government, hon, you have to get the fibre-optical cable,” she said, minutes before her motion was shot down and the Bill passed.

Police Officer Rohee calls for end to ‘militarisation of State’ slapped with T robbery charge

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Police officer burst into tears on Monday after he was taken before the Georgetown Magistrates Courts slapped with one count of robbery.

Carthe Edeu, 33, called “Sticky”, of Lot 53 Lambert Street, Sophia, and Mazaruni, Bartica made his appearance before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

Edeu pleaded not guilty to the offence which alleged that on January 1, 2016 at Baramita, Essequibo, he robbed Michael Elliot of G$16,000 and two silver bangles valued G$60,000.

The defendant told the court that on the day in question he was called and told of the offence of which he had no knowledge.

However, Elliot told the court that the defendant tied him up and knocked him unconscious after which he made off with the articles.

Prosecutor Jones objected to bail due to the gravity of the offence and to the fact that violence was used.

The defendant was placed in the custody of the Guyana Police Force and the matter was adjourned to August 15 at the Bartica Magistrate’s Court.

he People’s Progressive Party (PPP) is lamenting what it said was government’s move to have members of the party be investigated, and lashed out at the State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) and the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU).

The party’s General Secretary (GS) Clement Rohee has deemed this move as “political witch-hunting.”

“The use of the Guyana Police Force to harass and arrest activists of the PPP, and the use of the criminal justice system to delay and thus deny justice to the electors’ of the PPP vis-à-vis the 2015 Elections Petition,” the General Secretary said, noting that “the PPP understands that recently, based on political directives, warrants have been solicited from the Court to gain access to bank accounts of former PPP Ministers and to carry out searches at their respective places of residence. All of the above are politically inspired and motivated.”

Rohee said the party has noted the persistent threats by Professor Clive Thomas, head of SARU, to PPP leaders and former government and state functionaries: “The Party wishes to re-

Dr Clive Thomas

mind once again that SARU has no locus standing within the meaning of neither the Constitution of the Republic nor the laws of Guyana. Any attempt to use SARU to illegally harm the legitimate economic and financial interests of any PPP/C leader and/or former government functionary on the basis of wild, unsubstantiated and politically motivated allegations of corruption will be stoutly and resolutely rebuffed by the Party,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rohee added that the party continues to have growing concerns over what it said is the militarization of the state and government apparatus in Guyana, by the current administration.

“This tendency is increasingly manifesting itself under

the Granger administration, coupled with this development, is the steady but rapid progression of our country in the direction of a ‘police state’. This dangerous and unwelcomed development has its historical antecedents in the Burnham era of which Mr Granger is a product.”

According to him, the new administration has a “penchant for placing retired and serving military officers in Government agencies and departments and to head Commissions of Inquiry into one incident after another”.

“This practice has become so blatant that one letter writer recently posed the question whether being an officer or having once been an officer in the Guyana Defence Force offers a distinct advantage over the ordinary mortal of this country or is being an officer or having been an officer now is a prerequisite for certain State appointments?”

He pointed out that what the “pro-militaristic administration” has done by virtue of this practice, is to demonstrate its distrust for civilians who are qualified to perform such functions in contradistinction to military personnel.

Also by moving in this direc-

tion, it seems Government has “outfoxed” the AFC by placing its military confederates in key and critical positions knowing that the AFC would be more inclined to nominate civilians to the said positions which the APNU has absolutely no interest in doing.

“The PPP is of the view that the rise of the APNU+AFC sponsored police state will inexorably result in the decline of freedom in Guyanese. Under the PPP/C, Guyanese abided by the rule of law and successive PPP/C administrations were held accountable for their actions.

He said since coming into office, APNU+AFC has caused the country to gradually evolve into a police state where justice has become one-sided, an urban middle-class bureaucratic elite runs the show, accountability and transparency is a mockery, the Guyana Police Force is gradually being transformed into an appendage of the military, surveillance of persons of interest (POI’s) is rampant, privacy is constantly being invaded and eroded, and the law is little more than a tool for the Granger administration to browbeat Guyanese into compliance.

12 NEWS

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Gov’t in support of 6 months maternity leave policy S

ocial Protection Minister Volda Lawrence on Wednesday stated that her Ministry is in support of a social policy for six months maternity leave to be granted to mothers, and so it has been placed on the 2017 Ministry’s agenda.

Currently, the mandate for three months of maternity leave flies in the face of the World Health Organisation’s calls for mothers to breastfeed their babies for six months. The Public Health Ministry and its Minister, Dr George Norton, has bemoaned mothers only being able to breastfeed for three months.

Norton stated that if the health sector would recommend six months exclusive breastfeeding then there should be discussions about mothers being granted six months leave.

He acknowledged that this might burden employers but in the longrun, it will be worth it.

Lawrence indicated that in the Ministry’s 2017 programme, they will push to ensure that wherever there are Ministries and Government agencies, there should be a place for mothers to go and breastfeed their babies. “… we will push to ensure that where there are entities, Ministries, agencies and any place where mothers go to for services, that they have a place set aside so that mothers can breastfeed their babies. And we are going to start with the Ministry of Social Protection as soon as we have our new building,” she announced.

Minister Lawrence stated that day care services in corporate companies is another programme that

Social Protection Minister, Volda Lawrence

they are looking to incorporate into the system. “It is something that we have to sell especially to the corporate society in Guyana and it is something other persons will get into,” she noted.

Citing that maternal and child health care is an aspect of the health sector, Minister Norton said he will be moving sometime soon to take this issue to Cabinet. “I hope that six months of maternity leave will become a law before my tenure as Minister is up,” he said.

Chile is the only country in the Americas that has established the gold standard for breastfeeding by legally requiring six months of paid maternity leave for working mothers, the period of time recommended by the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) for babies to be exclusively breastfed.

In 2015, PAHO had called for more employers to support breastfeeding mothers in the Caribbean

and the Americas. The Organisation stated that the employers were more than likely to reap the benefits for their businesses and their countries’ economies.

PAHO had stressed the need to support women in balancing work and family, especially where breastfeeding their babies were concerned.

Empirically researched public health recommendations have articulated the health benefits from breastfeeding, which ranged from reduced infections and improved IQ (intelligence quotient), in babies, to lowering the risk of breast and ovarian cancer in mothers.

The Health Organisation stated that promoting breastfeeding in the workplace increases benefits for employers, including employee loyalty to companies as a result of gratitude and satisfaction, and reduced absenteeism because breastfeeding employees’ babies get sick less often and less severely.

Therefore, it recommended that employers employ policies, specifically paid maternity leave, paid breaks for breastfeeding, a dedicated room for breastfeeding in the workplace that is private and hygienic, and flexible or reduced working hours for breastfeeding mothers.

PAHO/WHO’s Senior Advisor in Food and Nutrition, Dr Chessa Lutter stated that while many countries have made progress in setting up legislations and policies that support working mothers to breastfeed, there is a lot more to be done to ensure implementation and enforcement.

Labourer to spend three years behind bars for narco trafficking

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labourer from St Ignatius v i l l a g e , Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper TakatuUpper Essequibo) was jailed for three years and fined G$142,000 after he plead guilty to a trafficking in narcotics charge.

Vibert Peters, 28, on Tuesday appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

It was alleged that Peters on July 17, at St Ignatius Village, had in his possession 110 grams of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking.

The prosecution contended that on the day in question, Peters was seen by Police ranks in the vicinity of Mocha Mocha at 01:00h acting in a suspicious manner while pushing a peddle cycle.

Police Prosecutor Neville Jeffers told the court that Peters had a black haversack and a search revealed that it contained stems, seeds

Vibert Peters

and leaves suspected to be cannabis. The defendant was cautioned about the drugs found in his bag and he told the ranks he was taking it to a friend.

He was arrested and taken to the Police station where the cannabis was weighed in his presence and which amounted to 110 grams.

The unrepresented man told the court that on the day in question, he was on his way to his employer to collect his salary but instead he got caught with the black bag.

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Six Dominican Republic nationals fined for overstaying in Guyana

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The women as they made their way out of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts

ix women from the Dominican Republic, all strippers at the popular Rio Hotel, Queenstown, were on Monday charged with overstaying in Guyana and fraud when they appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

All six women, accompanied by a translator, appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Adriana Rodriquez, Yosenia Holigan, Hope Perez, Estafania Yoroko, Elizabeth Rosario and Shakira Alsantana all pleaded guilty to the charges, which stated that between May 8, 2016 and July 14, 2016 at Georgetown, they all failed to comply with the condition of their permit to stay in Guyana.

The second charge stated that the six women with intent to defraud forged an extension of stay in their Dominican passports, reporting that same was issued by the Central Immigration and Passport Office.

Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones told the Court that on April 8,

2016 via the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), the defendants were all granted one month’s stay in Guyana.

During their stay, they were all lodged at the Rio Hotel located in Queenstown, Georgetown.

On July 14, 2016, the Prosecutor said, a raid was carried out by the Social Protection Ministry and the women were all arrested.

Upon investigation, it was discovered that the women were all in receipt of forged extensions on their passports; as such, they were all taken to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Headquarters.

The women pleaded guilty to the offences; however, their Attorney, Mark Waldron told the Magistrate that the women had already bought their airline tickets and would be ready to depart Guyana as soon as today.

They were all fined G$20,000 each for overstaying and G$30,000 each for fraud.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

New civil society representative to Guyana’s Global Fund CCM elected

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Dr Dawn Stewart

ust recently the Guyanese civil society representatives elected Dr Dawn Stewart, the unopposed nominee of the Guyana Equality Forum (GEF), as the civil society representative to Guyana’s Global Fund Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM), replacing Renuka Anandjit, Programmes Director of the Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association (GRPA) who resigned after serving for five months.

The Country C o o r d i n a t i n g Mechanism was established as an oversight apparatus for the effective implementation of grants provided to Guyana by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

This newspaper understands that the mandate of the CCM is to coordinate the preparation and approve proposals for submission to the Global Fund and to monitor the implementation of all approved grants.

The CCM focuses on performance by linking Global Fund resources to the achievement of clear, measurable and sustainable results based on agreed monitoring indicators.

Membership in the CCM is said to be broadly representative of a variety of stakeholders, each representing an active constituency with an interest in one or more of the funded disease areas – HIV, TB and Malaria.

The participation of communities, particularly those infected and directly affected by the three diseases, is critical for both the development of proposals and the implementation of the awarded grant funds.

The Guyanese civil society representatives in a release noted that the newly-elected representative Dr Stewart “is the founder and cur-

rent CEO of CPIC’s Monique’s Caring Hands which provides support to over 200 families from various regions in Guyana affected by HIV, provides women with empowerment sessions in various communities in Guyana, and overall works as a non-governmental organisation for sustainable development for women, single parent-homes and families.”

According to the representatives, Dr Stewart has years of experience in “Public policy, health, education, nursing counselling, psychology, risk management and business management; both in the national and international arena focusing on mostly health and education, US foreign policy in the Caribbean and the role of the US in international organisations, NGOs and financial institutions.”

“Dr Stewart herself has conducted workshops on behavioural change for various entities and groups, including the Guyana Fire Department, prison officers and nursing students, established the Guyanese Women Roundtable in 2014, and facilitated and coordinated human rights training programmes for women across Guyana, alongside her other responsibilities as CEO of CPIC’s Monique Caring Hands” the representatives noted.

Now serving as the Representative on the CCM for the civil society constituency, Dr Stewart has pledged to work with other representatives for the betterment of all Guyanese: “I also pledge to use my creative, energetic and visionary leadership with demonstrated experience in communication, management, advocacy, and community involvement to advocate on behalf of the affected communities and Guyana as a whole.”

Drug-link allegations against CANU officers: Granger says no Cabinet decision as yet on probe report

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he report into the damning allegations made against several officers of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) by self-proclaimed drug lord Barry Dataram was tabled before Cabinet on Tuesday, however, no in-depth discussions were held.

This is according to President David Granger, who told reporters on Wednesday that the report of the inquest has been handed in.

“I cannot say specifically what was discussed. The matter was laid before Cabinet and we have not come to any conclusions about the matter… but it was not a significant matter (that) was discussed (Tuesday)

Barry Dataram

with any depth,” he noted.

Nevertheless, the

Head of State noted that he personally had a look at the report but will not

comment on it without Cabinet first discussing the findings.

However, Minister of State Joseph Harmon had stated last week that after Cabinet is done reviewing the report, it will be made public.

In February, Dataram, during an interview with HGPTV Nightly News, alleged that senior CANU officials are involved in illegal drug trafficking activities and had even alleged that one of the agents bagged some G$10 million in exchange for allowing cocaine to leave the country.

He also made allegations against the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU). A week after continued on page 23

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Bishop George hailed as ‘true champion of democracy’

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ormer Anglican Bishop Randolph George is hailed as a true champion of democracy and a fighter for social justice as local politicians, social activists, his family and the Anglican community continue to mourn his passing.

Bishop George passed away peacefully about 01:45h on Monday, at his Republic Park, East Bank Demerara home.

President David Granger in a statement described Bishop George as a distinguished son of our soil, who he remembered as a towering figure in the life of the Anglican Church, having served the episcopate for 28 years.

Bishop George, who was bestowed with the Cacique Crown of Honour in 1994, was described by the President as a “sagacious, soft-spoken and amicable leader of the Diocese.”

“Randolph George will

Former Anglican Bishop Randolph George

be recorded as a person of quiet and unassuming dignity, whose respect and stature amongst the faithful never diminished, even after his retirement. He will be remembered, also, for his steadfast commitment to social justice, his advocacy of democratic reforms and for his service to the Integrity Commission of Guyana, the President’s office said.

Meanwhile, the Opposition, People’s

Progressive Party (PPP) in a statement said Guyana has lost a true son, a spiritual leader and a patriot.

“Bishop George’s contribution to Guyana goes beyond that of just a spiritual leader. As a spiritual leader, he was dedicated to his flock and sought to promote both their spiritual and physical well-being.

His work among the indigenous peoples and persons living in the hinterlands of Guyana are well known.

As a patriot, he was a fearless supporter of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. He assumed leadership of the church during a difficult period in Guyana’s history but his outspoken honesty and integrity assisted in ensuring that Guyana returned to the path of democracy,” the PPP said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) also extended condolences

on the passing of Bishop George.

The GHRA said that although he spent almost the last two decades of his long life in relative privacy, his leadership of civic resistance to oppression in Guyana from the late 1970s to the early 1990s was pivotal and historic.

“As one of the first trio of Co-Presidents of the GHRA, Bishop George’s astuteness and wisdom lent dignity and a sense of purpose in challenging the widespread repression of the late ‘70s and ‘80s. His courageous and unflappable spirit was re-assuring to human rights and political activists in times of tension. Bishop George’s willingness to be the voice of the voiceless was unwavering in an era of rationed newsprint, seized publications, disabled gestofax machines, raided printing enterprises and non-existent private radio or televi-

sion,” the GHRA stated.

It said that three notable contributions made by Bishop George to defend human rights violations were rooted in freedom of expression, the independence of the courts and countering abuses generated by the paramountcy of the ruling party defend trade union demonstra-

tions and denounce Police actions against them during the severe economic austerity of the late 1980s and the pursuit of a more civilised and dignified, public life was the leadership he provided in the struggle for free and fair elections.

Bishop George also served as the first Chair of the Integrity Commission.

Hague Conference…All family matters must be addressed in Family Court – Commonwealth Rep

Justice Abdullahi Zuru of the Commonwealth Secretariat

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he family law court jurisdiction should address all family matters and reduce the backlog of cases at the Magistrates’ Courts and reduce the number of young people being sent to jail.

Justice Abdullahi Zuru of the Commonwealth Secretariat implored the Hague Conference on Private and International Law (HCCH) to consider “reworking” Article 2 of the Choice of Courts Convention to “see how we can assist and protect children.”

A major focus of the regional conference was on international family law particularly the promotion of human rights.

The first day sessions reviewed the convention on the protection of the child.

The two-day meeting was held at the Pegasus Hotel, Georgetown.

Justice Zuru said that all the discussion on the protection of the child focused on civil and private international law, but, the state has an equally important role to play in children’s protection.

Justice Zuru lamented the trying of juvenile cases in the Magistrate’s Court and opined that the recently opened Family Court should have jurisdiction to hear all family matters.

“Day in, day out, you see that juvenile young boys, young girls…involved in crime and they are taken to magistrate’s court and sometimes the magistrate’s court…at the end of the proceeding…those innocent per-

sons are sent to prison,” Justice Zuru explained.

He added that the young people are often times “hardened” by their next court hearing.

Justice Zuru who is based in Guyana, noted that the trying of juvenile criminal matters at the Family Court would also see a reduction in the backlog of cases at the Magistrate’s Court.

“Is it not our responsibility to think of protecting a child from this angle?” Justice Zuru questioned.

H o w e v e r , Latin American Representative of the HCCH, Ignacio Goicoechea pointed out that the scope of the Hague Conventions deals primarily with private international law that is a civil or commercial matter and does not try to “harmonise substantive laws”. “So juvenile justice is outside our scope and we cannot help you. We have to admit that the Hague Conference is not the panacea that will solve all the matters,” Goicoechea said.

It was also pointed out by Guyanese Justice Roxanne George that the Family Court is a high court jurisdiction. “In the context of Guyana, whilst we will be very happy to have the Magistrate’s court being included along with it as is the case of Trinidad, we’ve discussed and we know because of the size of Guyana…it’s just about impossible to have the family matters all come into a high court jurisdiction,” Justice George explained. (GINA)

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T&T PM assures visitors will be treated with respect

at the borders)”.

He argued that if there are arrivals which, for one reason or another, do not qualify for entry, “this is part of the process, and what we politicians need to do, is to ensure that our people understand the basis on which we can visit each other”.

He added: “We are sovereign states (that have) agreed to work within a Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Dr Keith Rowley grouping called Caricom. (third left), with (from left) Minister without Portfolio We do have some signifiin the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation cant element of freedom of Daryl Vaz; President of the Jamaica Chamber of movement, but there are Commerce Warren McDonald; and President of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica William Mahfood, restrictions in there, and during a meeting at the Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel in that qualification takes Kingston on Tuesday. (Jamaica Observer photo) place at the border. So, it is likely from time to time ingston, Jamaica: PRIME that at our borders some of our citizens Minister of Trinidad and Tobago may not meet the requirements for entry Dr Keith Rowley has assured and those requirements are very clear and that all Caribbean nationals who visit the it is for us to let our population know that.” twin-island republic will be treated with Prime Minister Rowley further pointed respect. out that his country has taken steps to enHe said that despite the negative persure that “the necessary training and senception, 97 per cent of every 100 persons sitisation is taking place at immigration”. that visit Trinidad and Tobago “come with Turning to relations between Trinidad no problem”. and Tobago and Jamaica, Dr Rowley said “If there is three per cent that have there is nothing but brotherly love for some issues, those issues must and will be the people of Jamaica, pointing out that dealt with in a dignified manner [as] the there are “many tens and thousands of Caribbean Community (Caricom) has reJamaicans who are living comfortably, goquired us to take steps to ensure that all ing in and out of Trinidad and Tobago”. our people crossing all our borders are The prime minister further committed treated with dignity,” he said. to working with Prime Minister Andrew Dr Rowley was speaking at the start Holness to strengthen relations between of a bilateral meeting at the Office of the both countries.

Prime Minister on Monday.

“Our people ought to be able to look The prime minister said that his counto us for clearing the pathway for easier try was also taking steps “to ensure that movement, and for clearing the pathway there is no situation where we can be justifor better investment opportunities,” he fiably accused of not being able to respond said. (Reprinted from Jamaica Observer) appropriately (to issues persons may have

K

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‘Use technology wisely’ – Dr Gov’t looking to increase Persaud tells Hindu youths support to overseas Missions

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undreds of youths hailing from various communities across the country attended a National Hindu Youth conference at the Sanskritik Kendra, Prashad Nagar, hosted by the Dharmic Naujawaan.

The activity was held under the theme, “Moulding tomorrow’s Hindu leaders” and coincides with National Youth Week, Naujawaan ka hapta.

During the opening of the one-day conference, president of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha, Dr Vindhya Persaud, urged youths to use technology wisely – especially mobile devices – to become wiser and better individuals.

Dr Persaud said the conference was held with the aim of moulding Hindu youths to be better leaders and more responsible in society.

Speaking on technology the Sabha’s president urged those in attendance to use technology constructively since the entire world is said to be at the fingertips: “Use your technology to better yourself, do things that you strongly believe in, use it to solve problems that have plagued society.”

Youths were urged to form themselves into groups and be better empowered in the fight against abuse, suicide and violence, rights for girls, and literacy.

Additionally, Persaud advised that young people gathered at the event: “drive the extra mile in making things happen and never stop dreaming, and to believe in life.”

Youths were also encouraged and empowered to “brush off failures” and to make something out of their life by

Dr Vindhya Persaud

being practical.

The organisation’s head emphasised that the gift of life is precious and one should never live in regrets.

Chairman of the central Naujawan, Kumar Kissoon, addressed the youths, explaining that the conference seeks to empower youths to face day-to-day challenges.

Guest speaker for the conference was senior economist of Bank of Guyana Reshma Ramratan. She discussed the importance of young people being educated and appreciating the value of life.

During the sessions youths were educated on the existence and effects of emotional abuse, leadership, becoming an effective and efficient leader of tomorrow, career guidance, photography, finance, law, engineer and medicine.

The dharmic Naujawaan is the youth-arm of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha.

Packed programme set for GAWU congress pride in having represented and protected it’s entity from attempts which served to create division, since their last congress, highlighting that with an optimistic approach, they have intentions for their unity and militancy will ensure an industrious congress.

U

nder the theme, “United S t r u g g l e s for Workers’ Rights, Democracy and a Secure Future,” the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) will organise its 21st Delegates Congress to be held from August 20- 23, at Bath, West Coast Berbice.

It is expected that hundreds of delegates coming from GAWU’s wide range of memberships; with majority being the field and factory workers of the largest Unit – the Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc (GuySuCo), will be present at the Union’s highest decision-making forum along with a number of fraternal organisations.

With its packed programme expecting to last

three days, the Congress will ensure that workers are given recognition for their devoted service to the Union.

The assembly for these delegates will also allow the presentation of the General Council’s report with discussions which would cover a variety of issues and include a broad assessment of specific global events, as well as the domestic developments since the previous congress among other important topics.

After being elected by the Congress delegates, the new General Council of the Union will be tasked with fulfilling the decisions and finding solutions, which will then be disputed and permitted by the Congress.

The Union expressed

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Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge (centre) flanked by some of the new Heads of Missions (from left to right): Dr Kenrick Hunte, High Commissioner to South Africa; Michael Ten-Pow, Permanent Representative to the UN; Dr Shamir Ally, Head of Mission to Kuwait, and Dr David Pollard, High Commissioner to India

he Foreign Affairs Ministry is currently examining plans for its restructuring to improve its functioning. This is according to Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge, who noted that the reorganisation of the Ministry was part of efforts to address “in-house deficiencies” and improve support to Embassies and Missions abroad.

Greenidge said that a parallel focus of the restructuring would be enhanced recruitment of skilled staff and more reliance on technology to improve response time for requests from overseas Heads of Missions.

“You can’t manage trade relations with three or four officers who have really come to run a system where in the past you had an entire Ministry concerned with Foreign Trade, and trade relations,” Greenidge said.

The Minister was speaking at the opening of a one-week orientation of newly-appointed Heads of Missions at the Foreign

Service Institute, Shiv Chanderpaul drive.

“The reality is that the training that is required to make embassies abroad efficient is not only required to be directed at the new Heads of Missions, but we also have to do something about deficiencies in house, right here in Georgetown,” Minister Greenidge explained.

The Minister noted the importance of additional skills outside the area of international relations. The Foreign Affairs Minister challenged the Heads of Missions to be strategic thinkers, who analysed their issues and used technology to efficiently address concerns or issues during their tenure.

The Ministry is working with past ambassadors, some as advisers to the Minister in the areas of ‘policy formulation and the like’. “And therefore, that institutional mechanism I hope is going to help, to see us smoothly through the re-establishment of what clearly is widely acknowledged as one of the most effective if not outstand-

ing Foreign Services certainly in the Western Hemisphere,” Greenidge said.

Six Heads of Missions are undergoing the oneweek orientation at the Foreign Service Institute following which they will be deployed to their various posts overseas.

Among the Heads of Missions taking part are Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Michael Ten-Pow; Ambassador to Kuwait, Dr Shamir Ally; High Commissioner to South Africa, Dr Kenrick Hunte and High Commissioner to India, Dr David Pollard.

The Foreign Affairs Minister noted the timeliness of the orientation since this would be the first time many of the appointees would be serving in the diplomatic corps. “We’ve, therefore, taken the opportunity at this point in time to put on a mini programme… so as to expose them to a variety of requirements and identify for them a range of hazards that they may encounter in these new positions,” Greenidge said.

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No more hassle …Region 10 residents to access decentralised passport services

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he crowds of citizens that gather on a daily basis at the Georgetown passport office may be reduced, as residents of Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) will soon be able to renew their passports without travelling to the capital city.

These measures were announced by Citizenship Minister Winston Felix during a “Meet the Public Day” event at the McKenzie Sports Club ground in Linden on Saturday.

According to the Government Information Agency (GINA), residents will be able to access the services from sometime in August. This announcement comes on the backdrop of part of a plan to “decentralise passport related services” in the country.

“The Department of Citizenship has over the past few months been endeavouring to decentralise the receipt of passport applications and the delivery of passports within the regions. Linden will be the third town to have this service available, as this service is being made available in Berbice and Essequibo as well,” Felix is quoted as saying.

Minister Felix further stated that when applying for passports for the first time, applicants

will still be required to travel to Georgetown to “complete the process” but stressed that persons who are applying for a renewal “will be able to access the service

in Linden”.

“We realise the need to bring Government services in the region and we need to reduce the unnecessary crowds that we have at the passport office at Georgetown,” the Citizenship Minister expressed.

It was also explained that the

National Insurance Scheme (NIS) Building in McKenzie, has been identified as the location from where the passport service will be provided.

“Immigration Officers will visit the location twice weekly and receive applications for renewal from residents. The applications will be processed in Georgetown and the residents will receive their renewed passports upon the officers’ return the following week,” the release noted.

Assistant National Director, Community Development Councils, Sandra Adams, who will be responsible for “coordinating the setup of the service,” pointed out that “seniors in Linden” will benefit from the new measure.

“There are a lot of seniors in Linden who cannot make it to Georgetown and I have received a lot of complaints recently, that by time they get to Georgetown, the numbers are finished and they have to return without getting their passport. So we are happy for this service to begin,” posited Adams.

There have been complaints of people at the Georgetown Office having to stand g lines for hours or switching seats in a slow moving chair system.

Delayed Public Procurement Commission another example of Govt’s incompetence – Nandlall PPP/C MP and former Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall

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here have been criticisms over the way in which many Government contracts have been awarded, prompting calls for the establishment of the Public Procurement Commission (PPC).

The PPC will have oversight on the process of how contracts are publicly tendered.

However, as the Commission’s establishment remains in limbo, Opposition Member of Parliament (MP), Anil Nandlall, the former Attorney General (AG), has observed this was “inefficiency and incompetence” on the part of the Government.

“I am not sure whether the [non-establishment] is intentional, but it is just another

example of inefficiency and incompetence in Government. You have the Government not going to public procurement on many contracts that the law compels must be done…you have billions of dollars being awarded in contracts without complying with the Public Procurement Act,” the former AG noted.

Nandlall’s case in point was the Specialty Hospital contract where he noted Fedders Lloyd was “hand-picked” despite all the criticisms, with the company ending up being blacklisted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank because of corruption.

The People’s continued on page 23

NEWS 23

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Suspect arrested for murder President hopes Inquiry into Drop-in Centre fire will provide of La Grange labourer answers to lingering questions

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olice have arrested a man for the murder of James Stuart, who was killed at La Grange, West Bank Demerara (WBD) on Sunday.

The 51-year-old labourer’s body was discovered along the roadside near his Lot 101 Unity Street, La Grange, WBD home.

Guyana Times International was told that one male suspect is being held and questioned over the July 17 killing.

This publication understands that the suspect was also wanted for other crimes in the area and was also involved in several altercations.

Stuart, also known as

The murdered James Stuart

“Goobie”, was reportedly drinking at ‘Ann Jones’ shop on Saturday night before he vanished just after midnight.

Brother of the deceased, Lloyd Richards,

related that he was surprised by his friends, while on his way to the market, when he was asked if had seen Stuart.

The man’s body was later found after sunrise.

Reports indicated that robbery might have been the motive behind the murder. Relatives had also observed that Stuart was beaten severely, which was confirmed by an autopsy report performed on Wednesday.

The autopsy revealed that the man died from haemorrhaging and other injuries to the head.

Reports also indicated that his eye was reportedly protruding from his head.

Mother charged with neglect of girls found on Berbice seawall

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he mother of the three young girls, who were allegedly sexually molested by their step-father last Thursday, was indicted for neglect when she

allegedly sexually molested and thrown out of the family home last week. They were picked up by a social worker who found them wandering by the seawalls.

appeared at the Sisters Magistrate’s Court in Berbice.

She was granted $50,000 bail, but informed the court that she will remain in prison since she cannot afford the bail.

The children; ages four, seven, and 10, were

Reports are the children were taken to the Police Station and later admitted to the New Amsterdam Hospital after it was discovered that they were sexually molested.

An official of the Child Care and Protection Agency (CC&PA) had

said that the children underwent a forensic interview on Monday by social protection authorities. The interview was recorded and a report was compiled and sent to the Police.

The official stated that the girls have since been released from the hospital and taken into protective care, along with their infant sibling. The official indicated that they were unable to find a suitable relative to care for the children.

Meanwhile, B Division (Berbice) Commander Ian Amsterdam on Tuesday said that the children’s stepfather, an ex-Guyana Defence Force soldier, will be charged today (Wednesday).

from page 15

Drug-link allegations against CANU officers: Granger says ...

the interview was broadcast; President Granger ordered that an inquest be established into the allegations.

The probe went on for some two months and following its completion, the report was handed over to Minister Harmon on behalf of the Head of State last Friday.

Brigadier Bruce Lovell was appointed by the Head of State to probe the allegations made against ranks of the country’s premier drug enforcement unit.

During the handing over of the report, Brigadier Lovell noted that the allegations made

by Dataram are serious, especially since State officials were named. As such, it was necessary that Government carry out an investigation.

He expressed his confidence that Government will consider his conclusion and recommendations, and take appropriate actions. Upon receiving the report, Minister Harmon highlighted the importance of

having the inquiry done.

He noted that this way, they will determine what the facts of any situation are.

Moreover, the Minister of State added that Government will take the appropriate actions after reviewing the report.

A copy of the document was handed over to the President and Ministry of Public Security for further review.

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resident David Granger is hoping that the recently-established Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the deadly Hadfield Street Drop-in Centre fire on Friday, July 8, would provide answers to some lingering questions and give recommendations that would improve operations at the facility.

The Head of State was at the time speaking to Journalists on his recent weekly televised programme “The Public Interest”, where he also said he hoped that another incident of this nature never happened again.

“I would like to be satisfied that the children were properly looked after, that there was no misadventure. The important thing now is to prevent a recurrence, to find out what happened and we need to ensure that an answer is provided to the question in order to prevent a recurrence. That is what we are trying to do. Find out what the facts are and hope that something like this does not happen again,” the President told Journalists.

Granger described the incident as “quite a tragedy”. He said he expected to at least receive the preliminary report of the CoI, at earliest, next Friday, July 22, and the final report hopefully by the end of the month.

“There are several aspects. Because we know that there was a previous fire there and some corrective work was done, but the building seemed not to be ready for occupancy and in the areas of 103 to 106,

What remains of the Drop-in Centre

they might not have been trained in responding to emergencies such as a fire. So, on the one hand, you have the physical aspects such as the wiring and training, and, on the other hand, you have the psychological effects…. and the conditions under which those young persons were separated from their families and under which they were living as wards of the State.”

President Granger said questions have to be answered, including if the building and electrical wiring were safe, and whether the “people were trained to respond to that emergency”.

The question of whether the procedures were complied with for the safety of those children will also have to be answered.

Meanwhile, addressing the issue of the children being at the institution, President Granger made it clear that the State was not in the business of separating children from the comfort of their families, in fact he said that the safest place for a child to be was with his or her parents. However, investigations have proven that the case of the two chil-

dren was different, as they were living under difficult conditions.

“My understanding is that the parents did consent because they have been living under difficult circumstances. So there seems to be no irregularities with the children ending up in that institution. My belief is that the best place for a child is with their parents, but there are indications that they were living under difficult circumstances.”

Last Friday, just after midnight, two young brothers perished in the fire which occurred at the Drop-in Centre on Hadfield Street, Georgetown.

It was reported that the elder brother, sixold-year Antonio, was asleep in the dormitory when the fire started.

When the younger brother, two-year-old Joshua, who was being taken out of the building by caregivers, realised his brother was not with him, he managed to escape the grip of the caregiver and run back into the burning building.

The two brothers were then trapped in the building and their charred remains were subsequently recovered.

Delayed Public Procurement...

from page 22

Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) MP pointed out that the Commission was meant to be a watchdog over the procurement process and he surmised that the entire tendering process was “falling apart.”

“The Public P r o c u r e m e n t Commission is a body to which those who are aggrieved by public procurement, by a decision or the process of public procurement. It’s supposed to be a watchdog of the procurement process, but it is important to note that while they are not establishing [it], the procurement process itself is falling apart because they are not going to tender on many contracts which require public tendering,” the former

Legal Affairs Minister noted.

“The A Partnership for National Unity Coalition in their 100day plan had said that the Public Procurement Commission would be established.

We are over a year and that Commission has not been established. While we were in Government, they refused the AntiMoney Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Bill because they wanted this commission to be established,” Nandlall further explained.

He also pointed out that there was “sloth in parliamentary democracy” as there have been fewer sittings of the National Assembly and

parliamentary sub-committees.

“You have non-transparency and a lack of accountability across the divide at level of procurement, as well as Parliament; Government is reluctant to provide information…it’s corruption – institutional corruption,” Nandlall stressed.

The PPC is a constitutional body which has not been established since 2001. Corruption watchdog Transparency International (TI) earlier this year ranked Guyana as “highly corrupt”, based on its calculated methodology. Before the 2015 elections, the coalition had stated its intention to ensure the early establishment of the PPC.

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Continued decline in main ethnic groups in Guyana - census report

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he Bureau of Statistics just recently announced its publications of compendiums one and two of a four-part compendium series detailing the findings of the 2012 Census.

According to the Bureau the findings of the 2012 Census highlighted a continued proportionate decline in the populations of the main ethnic groups and a compensatory increase among the Mixedraces and Amerindians\ Indigenous populations. The final population count stands at “746,955”.

Nevertheless, the Bureau noted: “The distribution pattern of the ethnic groups has still remained unaffected since the 2002 Census with Indo-Guyanese re-

maining as the largest group followed by those of African Heritage, the Mixed Race, the Amerindians\ Indigenous peoples and the Portuguese, respectively.”

According to the 2012 Population and Housing Census: “The final census count has been adjusted downwards by 929 persons from the preliminary count, a difference of 0.12 per cent. This difference is insignificant and within acceptable limits according to demographic standards.”

The Bureau of Statistics in a media release posited that the Final Report for the 2012 Census will be disseminated in fourth compendium.

The Body explained that in accordance with

its commitment to disseminate the Report from June, the methodological note on the final Census count and compendium one were disseminated on the Bureau’s Website in May and June of 2016, respectively.

The recent publication, compendium two however, was disseminated earlier in the current month of July and provides further information about the country’s “population composition in terms of Ethnicity, Age structure, Dependency Ratios, & Religion.”

Additionally, new information about the population trends such as national population size

by Region and population growth patterns are also detailed in this latest publication.

The upcoming third compendium will analyse “the important Economic Activity profile of the population and will be disseminated by the end of August. The final Compendium which will address the remaining key Topics such as Education, Fertility, Mortality, Housing will be disseminated by end November” said the Bureau.

Additionally, there

is expected to be a table module with data from other interesting topic areas which will also be disseminated with the fourth compendium.

According to the Bureau of Statistics: “Guyana has completed its 2012 National Population and Housing Census. Like the 2002 Census, Census 2012 was conducted as part of the United Nations 2010 Global Round of Population and Housing Censuses. The 2010 round spans the period 2005-2014 and as customary saw the Caricom group executing their censuses in the year that is halfway within the period defined as the 2010 round.”

The Population and Housing Census is one of Guyana’s largest national exercises. In the Census, which is conducted every ten years:

“Enumerators (census-takers) visit every household in every part of the country to administer questionnaires that collect social and economic information and data on the population. The Population and Housing Census is an extremely important national exercise and it is every citizen’s duty to cooperate according to the laws of Guyana, as the Census produces a huge body of information that is used in planning and development.”

The Bureau of Statistics in its release noted that a plethora of information with accompanying tables are now available for all types of users.

The Compendiums are available for free download on the Bureau’s website http:// www.statisticsguyana. gov.gy/.

Attorney-at-Law Godfrey Statia is new GRA boss

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he Board of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) on Monday confirmed that Public Accountant and Attorney-at-Law Godfrey Statia was the new Commissioner General of the tax body.

Chairman of the Board, Rawle Lucas, has confirmed that the Board had decided on the appointment.

Statia replaces longstanding Commissioner Khurshid Sattaur, who was sacked from the position in January this year. Following Sattaur’s dismissal, the post was held by Ingrid Griffith, who acted in that capacity up until June, when she went on leave.

Statia was said to have been the most suitable candidate from a line-up of shortlisted applicants.

Statia is a Certified Public Accountant and Personal Financial Specialist specialising in individual and small business accounting, taxation and financial planning. He also provided

valuation and forensic accounting services for select clients.

He is a member of both the Florida and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He is also a graduate of the Hugh Wooding Law School, University of the West Indies, and practises law in Guyana and the Caribbean. He is a one-time Deputy Head of the Inland Revenue Department, which was combined with the Customs and Excise Department to form the GRA. Statia also served as the General Manager of GT&T.

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Mocha access road gets long-awaited street lights provide lighting for the access road, raising the point that more lives will be lost if this darkness continues to be neglected.

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson in an invited comment said: “A lot of accidents have occurred late at nights on the Mocha Access Road, one of which resulted in a young man losing his life, and the

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Eighty-seven street lights installed on the Mocha Access Road, EBD

he Mocha/Arcadia community and frequent commuters are happy that the Ministry of Public Infrastructure has fulfilled its promise to install street lights along the Mocha Access Road, East Bank Demerara.

Over the years, a high number of serious vehicular accidents have been reported along this road, the most recent being a collision involving a horse and a car, where Franky Morphine was travelling in his car PNN 4631, in company of two female cousins and their children, ages five and seven, when things took a deathly turn.

As he was nearing his destination, a horse strutted out from the bushes and into the path of the vehicle.

Believing the long stretch of road to be completely desolate at 21:00h,

Morphine was caught completely off guard, unable to swerve out of the way in time after he noticed the stray animal running onto the roadway.

The horse crashed through the windshield of the car, decapitating the animal instantly. Luckily, no one was seriously injured.

However, only a few months ago Shemroy Cave, 21, a bartender lost his life following a head-on collision with a horse.

Young cave was heading to see his girlfriend after visiting his father when he crashed into the stray animal. He was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

As a result, residents of the community, as well as the father of the young man appealed to government to

Ministry installed lights in Diamond and felt the need to install in Mocha, subsequently we have installed 87 street lights to date.�

In mid-April, the Ministry of Public Infrastructure had announced that 100 streetlights would be installed along the access roads of Mocha and Diamond on the EBD. While the initial

plan had been to install 50 streetlights per each community, this figure was increased. The Ministry made good on its promise, having completed the project in four months.

The community expressed gratitude for the lights. It is expected that the newly installed streetlights will also heighten security in as well as reduce

the likelihood of road accidents, they related.

The Ministry of Public Infrastructure had also recently installed 100 lights along the Diamond/Grove Housing Scheme main road which was also prone to accidents.

It is expected that the next phase of light installation will be on the Corentyne Coast, Berbice.

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The Leo Club of South Georgetown was founded on its mission to develop communities and empower youths

he Leo Club of South Georgetown charitable organisation was chartered Sept. 18, 2002. It is a project of the Lions Club of South Georgetown and, by extension, Lions Club International to engage youth in activities that would help them to develop skills as a project organiser, time manager and team leader; learn how teamwork, cooperation and collaboration can bring exciting changes to their community and the world, while making friends and feeling the rewards of community service.

The acronym ‘LEO’,

when spelled out, means Leadership, Experience, Opportunity – which is also the motto of the Club.

Leo Club objectives are to provide the youth of the world an opportunity for development and contribution, individually and collectively as responsible members of the local, national and international community; to stimulate among its members acceptance of high ethical standard; to develop leadership; to provide experiences through service to the community; and to provide an opportunity to promote international understanding.

Its purpose is to pro-

mote service activities among the youth of the community which will develop the individual qualities of leadership, experience and opportunity; to unite its members in friendship, fellowship and mutual understanding.

One of its most notable outreach projects is the clothing drive. The club has been providing clothing to the destitute, especially the Hadfield Street Drop-in Centre. Not only are articles of clothing donated, but the club members seek to spread cheer by providing snacks and goodies.

“We’re currently accepting donations for our

Mother’s day breakfast at Chase’s Indigent Home

The annual school uniform project

clothing drive that will benefit the Hadfield Street Drop-in Centre. New or lightly worn clothing can be taken down to our dropoff centre, Lance Photo Studio on the Stabroek Market tarmac (formerly the 41 bus park). We are open to items such as soap powder, bleach, toilet bowl cleaner, toothpaste and toilet paper, since the children now have to share facilities with the others at the home,” Jonelle Cornette, a member of the organisation, said in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

Cornette mentioned that there are exciting upcoming activities in 20162107, such as celebrat-

ing the Centennial Year of Lionism in January 2017. Additionally, Leo Club of South Georgetown plans to continue work with the Hadfield Street Drop-in Centre and hopes to partner with the Fire Department and Red Cross to provide the children with basic skills for disaster preparedness and management and even inspire some to them in their choice of career paths.

“Our annual school uniform project, usually held in August, will be upon us soon. We are currently working on widening our target population, from the two families for which we provide complete school uniforms and sta-

tionery for the children, to include stationery for the children of the Hadfield centre. Our organisation is always looking for new members and we hope that this opportunity will allow us to attract quality individuals with a heart of service. We encourage persons between the ages of 18 to 30 to visit our Facebook or Instagram pages and leave us a message with any questions or queries which you may have and we will work with you if you are desirous of joining our Leo family,” Cornette encouraged.

Visit Leo Club of South Georgetown on Facebook to learn more about all its humanitarian work.

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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Pamela Fox wearing one of her kaftans embellished with colourful shells

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S - b a s e d Guyanese designer Pamela Fox is back on the fashion scene with a new collection the Easy Chic kaftan collection.

Pamela grew up in the North West District and is known for incorporating embellishments, such as rainforest seeds and beads, in her designs.

The veteran designer returned to Guyana in May 2016 to take part in the Golden Jubilee Runway Show, which was held at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre, at Liliendaal.

After several friends and clients complained they found it difficult finding stylish clothes for older women, Pamela thought, “Why not kaftans?”

“I came home for the Jubilee Fashion Show at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre, and mature women kept telling me how hard it is to find fashionable clothes for all occasions. So, while here, I decided to do a few new pieces – a kaftan collection called Easy Chic – using cotton, silk and linen. Short and long kaftans fit every body shape amazingly, and can be traced back to India and Africa – it is a style that is culturally fluid. I decided to add my signature, embellishing my pieces with laces, buttons, seeds, shells and paint, making each one unique,” the designer explained.

Fox pointed out that

she used cotton, silk and linen because these “fabrics drape beautifully, are natural and keep you cool”. She added that her collection is perfect for the local weather, as it offers “style and comfort”.

According to Fox, kaftans are for women of any age “who want to look like a million bucks without spending that much money”.

The designer-pieces transition easily from day to night wear. For instance, a short kaftan can be worn with leggings or jeans, paired with leather sandals or ballerina flats for a casual day look. That same piece can be worn with a pencil skirt or chic fitted tailored pants and heels to achieve a more formal look for an evening function.

“What made me smile is that some of my younger clients were shocked at the sexy fit of the kaftan.

You stand out in a crowd because kaftans bring that elegance and easy style to your wardrobe.

I am always stopped and asked about my kaftan,” Fox mentioned.

The fashiondoyenne is busy fulfilling orders for her local and international clients, and is working on a line of casual cotton knee-length batik drawstring pants and popover shirts for men.

Check out Pamela Fox’s latest collection at her studio/boutique (Orchids by Pamela Fox) on the lower flat of Lot 73 Brickdam, Georgetown.

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The Shaping of Guyanese Literature

Throwing shade…

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…at the political “other”

or years and years, when female Guyanese wanted to put down someone they had issues with, they engage in a “cuss out/down”, “expletives” vividly describing acts and parts of the anatomy connected with sexual activities. This evolved, like all good theatre into performances that may have several acts and utilise various props – like making noise with pots and pans. In proper company, one may substitute the term “suh and suh” for the actual cuss word: like saying “Shut yuh suh and suh mouth!”

Called a “cuss down”, this activity could – and did – sometimes break out into fights. But usually, would just allow the two combatants – and sometimes their partisans – to “air their disagreements”. These cuss downs – using the standard substitutes – are regularly displayed in Parliament when they “debate” contentious issues. They call it “heckling”, but obviously they have no notion of what they’re talking about since they display none of the wit that’s de rigueur for heckling.

A milder form of the “cuss down” in Guyana is to “throw talk”. Here oblique expressions about the person at the receiving end are expressed aloud in their presence. While both the “thrower” and the “throwee” of the “talk” know what’s going on, it allowed the thrower a way out of a possible confrontation by pretending he/she didn’t know what was REALLY being said. Members of Parliament are always throwing talk. The tip-off is when they begin a remark with “The Honourable member…” Like in “The Honourable Member would know the contract for the Speciality Hospital wasn’t put out for bidding because someone was getting a cut in the side.”

But, of recent, the expression “throwing talk” is being slowly replaced by “throwing shade”. Basically they mean the same thing, but, as usual, because “throwing shade” is of foreign origin, it’s now becoming the “in” expression to show you’re in the know. It seemed to have replaced the word “dissed” which in any case was being used by younger types for situations where they wanted to openly disrespect another either verbally or non-verbally.

Throwing shade in Parliament would be like when a member tells another, “Dominica is NOT the same as “Dominican Republic”. The latter is where those girls you were having a good time with comes from.” The words would be accompanied with a facial expression – a curl of the lip, a raised eyebrow, etc – that makes it obvious an insult is intended.

But with all the shade being thrown at our Honourable politicians – all’s not lost in Guyana’s politics.

At least up to now, they haven’t descended from “suh and suh” cuss down to hair pulling!! …examples by Trump While your Eyewitness wouldn’t be able to describe the facial expressions that accompany “throwing shade”, since the latter originated in the US, just think of Donald Trump during his debates.

Any one of them! Like when he insisted all Muslims should be banned from entering the US, but explained condescendingly, “I have Muslim friends, Greta, and they’re wonderful people”!!

Trump doesn’t confine throwing shade at his political rivals – he’s gone after women in general. He once tweeted that Arianna Huffington “is unattractive both inside and out. I fully understand why her former husband left her for a man—he made a good decision”. Then there’s that feud with TV interviewer Megan Fox, which started after she asked him whether his descriptions of various women (“pigs, dogs, slobs, and disgusting animals”) suggested he didn’t have the temperament to be president. Calling her a “Bimbo,” he continued with a sneer, “You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes–blood coming out of her wherever.”

But he insisted he wasn’t talking about her menstrual cycle! …retort But others have decided if they can’t beat Trump at throwing shade, they might as well join him.

Recently, Hillary Clinton described his hair as: “one strand that he swirls over his head like a soft serve at Dairy Queen!!”

Part V

By Petamber Persaud

(In keeping with our Golden Jubilee of Independence, we return to the feature “Welcome to Guyana”. So far, we have seen Guyana through the following books: “Made in Guyana”

by Petamber Persaud; “The Twelve Views in the Interior of Guiana” by Sir Robert Schomburgk, and “Albion Wilds”, by J. W. Chinapen.

We now take a peek at another substantial book, “Rupununi: Rediscovering a lost world” compiled and written by Graham Watkins, Pete Oxford and Rene Bish, published by Earth in Focus Editions, the non-profit publishing arm of the International League of Conservation Photographers)

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here would you find the following exotic and esoteric features? “…one of the last great wilderness areas in the world” “…one of the most important and intact savanna systems’ in the world” “…one of the oldest rock systems in the world”

The jaguar, one of the largest terrestrial felid carnivores in South America, inhabits the Rupununi region (rupununi.org photo)

ter fish in the world; the lau-lau – the largest catfish in South America; the king vulture – the largest New World vulture; the jabiru stork – the tallest flying bird in South America; the harpy eagle – the most powerful bird of prey in the world; the puma and jaguar - the two largest terrestrial/felid carnivores in South America; the capybara – world’s largest rodent; the bushmaster – the largest pit viper; the anaconda – world’s heaviest snake; the giant bird-eating spider – world’s largest spider, and the Amazon water lily – the world’s largest water lily?

The answer is Guyana, of course, and to be precise, in a south-

Book cover

“…the second highest per cent coverage of rain forest on earth” “…the highest bat species in the world?”

The answer is Guyana, of course, and to be precise, in a southern part of the country called the Rupununi.

Where would you find giants still roaming the land?Giants like the giant river otter – the largest otter in the world; the vampire bat – the largest carnivorous bat in the world; the arapaima – the largest freshwa-

ern part of the country called the Rupununi.

These giants, called keystone species, are critical to the survival of a balanced ecosystem. Ironically, they are easy targets due to their size.Other features of our ecological system are also critical to the survival of the earth, many listed and elaborated on in this book.

Over the years, running into centuries, many of the abovementioned features were uncovered by adventurers, bringing them to the attention of the world

with one important effect – maintaining focus on the environment and, by unwritten intension, preserving the world in which we live.

For instance,way back in 1596, there was the well-known account of Sir Walter Ralegh in ‘The Discoverieof the Large, Rich and Beauwtiful Empyreof Guiana”, opening the bounties of Guyana to world.

In the wake of the above, imaginative writers joined in the adventure. Some of those writers included Shakespeare (1564 – 1616), Milton (1608 - 1674), Voltaire (1694 – 1778) and Joseph Conrad (1857-1924).

Since then, others have come on their own journeys of discovery, leaving behind records of their exploration, includingDavid Attenborough,Gerald Durrell, and Michael Swan, among others.

Of course, by now many of you have guessed the location of these wonders. You will find all of the above and more in a little country named Guyana, especially the south of the country labelledthe Rupununi.

In the Rupununi area you will also find other amazing facts, but this fragile ecosystem is under severe threat from both local laxity and foreign influences.

Now, for the first time you could access all of the above information and experience all those wonders in one place – between two covers of the book, “Rupununi: Rediscovering a lost World”.

The text was created by Guyaneseborn British biologist, Graham Watkins, and provides “a range of useful information about the region, its history, geomorphology, hydrology, and demography”.

The text is buttressed with amazing photog-

raphy by Pete Oxford and Renee Bish. Both the text and photography are supported by a foreword by HRH The Prince of Wales, introductory texts by Russell A. Mittermeier and Yolanda Kakabadse; two pages of acknowledgements and a list of “recommended literature and bibliography”.

On World Environment Day, June 5, 2015, under the theme “Seven Billion Dreams.

One Planet. Consume with Care”, copies of ‘Rupununi’were presented to the education ministry in Guyana to be distributed to schools and educational institutions across the country.

At that ceremony, we were reminded that “[w]e have not inherited the earth from our parents…we have borrowed it from our children” and we ought to use it with care. That is the message throughout the book, which opens with a chilling reminder from HRH The Prince of Wales, writing in the foreword that “time is not on our side.”

But all is not lost, because various dispensations of our government have taken on “a major international leadership role on environmental issues”, establishing systems like the High Forest Cover Low Deforestation (HFLD), Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development, among other initiatives.

Responses to this author telephone (592) 2260065 or email: oraltradition2002@ yahoo.com What’s happening: “Made in Guyana” is now available at the National Library, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, bookstores and hotels.

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Are Indians really creolised? A question Lomarsh Roopnarine

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here is a cauldron of confusion as to who is an Indian in the Caribbean, specifically in Guyana, Trinidad and Suriname as well as in the Indian diaspora in Europe and North America.

In the former case, Indians are treated as outsiders in the wider Caribbean except where they are the majority population. In the latter case, Indians are labelled and treated as South Asians.

In both cases, they are unhomed, if not homeless, striving and struggling for a niche by themselves for themselves.

I argue elsewhere that Indians have been unhomed thrice: first in India, second in the Caribbean, and third in the Diaspora. Paradoxically, these thrice removed Indians carry a triple consciousness.

More on this at another time.

In the Caribbean, Indians are perceived or are expected to behave in creolised ways by the wider Caribbean population. There is this thought that since they left their ancestral home a long time ago they have more commonalties with the southern Caribbean than with

India.

Indeed, ever since Indians were brought to the Caribbean to supplant the loss of slave labour in the middle of the nineteenth century they have been subject to analects of analysis. Of all the analyses none has been so confusing and controversial than their identity, that is, who are these people?

Their identity has been analysed through binary opposite views. On the one hand, it is argued that some Indians have retained substantial aspects of their culture (religion, for example) amidst some changes in a predominantly Euro-African Caribbean.

On the other hand, it is argued that some Indians have assimilated (dismissal of caste, for example) to Caribbean norms and values alongside the retention of some aspects of their ancestral culture and custom.

These Indians practice selective assimilation as well as engage in accommodated shifts to meet their needs and expectations in their newfound homeland.

In recent times, the discussion of Indian identity in the Caribbean has shifted from the binary opposite argument of cultural retention and assimilation to creolisation.

The core of the creolisation argument is that since Indians

have lost their caste system and have now adjusted to the Caribbean class system, they have become creolised like Africans.

In the Caribbean context, creolisation is a process whereby post-emancipation Caribbean people have developed a way of life different and distinct from their original homeland— Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Accordingly, new forms of social organisation, language, religion, and values emerged to replace and reshape old ones.

European and African traditions were merged into a system that was neither totally like Europe nor Africa but uniquely Caribbean with more emphasis on African ways or Africanness.

For example, an average African person in the Caribbean may look like someone in Africa or Europe but does not speak like someone in Africa or in Europe unless he or she has lived in those regions for some time.

Creolisation emerged mainly from European and African traditions (colonialism, slavery, resistance, etc) in the Caribbean. For many Africans, creolisation is not only a form of identity but is a concept or a place to begin to recover the Africa that was lost during slavery.

Though Indians have also experienced aspects of European and African traditions, that is, creolisation, through for instance the educational system, its application to Indians as a form of identity is limited in Guyana, Trinidad, and Suriname— home to the majority of Indians in the Caribbean.

The first limitation is that to say Indians have embraced a creolised identity would imply not only that they have experienced a social process that is Euro-African but they have given up their Indianness, or any customs associated with India. Many Hindus and Muslims live in the Caribbean.

The second limitation is that the concept of a creole identity ignores the spirit of agency among Indians and suggests that they are incapable of retaining their Indian customs in the Caribbean. I wrote elsewhere that creolisation is predominately black, marginally white and faintly brown.

I will in the future provide some alternative views on Indian identity (for example, ethno-local and ethnonational), which I believe, have gone undetected by analysts.

For now, the purpose here is to provide some information for the growing disdain, disappointment and faddish embrace emanating from the Ministry of Social Cohesion on national unity. This Ministry has a talismanic presence in Guyana (President’s baby) but it is displaced and obfuscated by staid visions. Unfortunately, it would take a crane of thoughts and actions to lift the Ministry of Social Cohesion out of its current moribund motion.

I do hope this column helps. (lomarsh.roopnarine@ jsums.edu)

Raped British doctor sues tour Company and St Lucia villa owner

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British doctor has told how she was brutally raped during a sailing vacation in St Lucia and then asked to keep quiet about it and offered a manicure and massage to “cheer her up” by the company that arranged the women-only break.

Dr Georgina Mortimer, who booked the holiday with Girls for Sail, a company accredited by the Royal Yacht Association (RYA), says she was attacked in the bedroom of her shared villa soon after arriving.

Now, in a potential landmark case, the mother of two is taking action against the holiday company and villa owner for negligence, paving the way for other tourists to sue private property renters.

The Daily Mail reports that the 45-yearold doctor was staying in one of the four bedrooms at Summer Breeze Villa, a RYA accredited sailing training centre, in the hills above Rodney Bay Marina.

Dr Mortimer, who has daughters aged 13 and 15, said: “I was not giv-

en a key for my bedroom door but two instructors were also staying there and I understood the front door would be locked each night.”

But on the second night of her £2,000 holiday in February, she said that she woke to find herself being strangled and raped by a total stranger.

“I woke to find a monster pinning me down in my bed attacking me, I thought I was going to be murdered,” she was quoted as saying.

“The hand on my throat pressed down so hard I thought I was going to pass out. I could hardly breathe let alone scream.

“I thought of my children and was determined not to die. I lay as quiet as possible because I felt any struggling on my part could anger him enough to kill me.

“It was around fifteen minutes of hell before someone knocked at the door and my attacker fled.”

The police were called and Mortimer was subsequently taken to hospital.

One of her best friends continued on page 42

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he village of Santa Rosa, Moruca, is an Arawak community in the BarimaWaini region of northern Guyana. With a population of some 10,000 inhabitants, Santa Rosa is considered the largest indigenous village in Guyana.

In Sept 2011, at an area called the Santa Rosa Heroes Square, A section of the monument during Heroes Day

Stephen Campbell (Dec. 26, 1897 May 12, 1966)

on a day called Heroes Day, villagers paid tribute to then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, with a hero’s award, which placed her among several celebrated members of the Santa Rosa community who were hon-

oured for their contributions toward the village’s indigenous culture and standing.

They include Stephen Campbell, businessman John Ferreira, who was fluent in Carib, Warau and Arawak; Anne Prince; Vincent Ferreira, Nash Rodrigues, and Basil James, another Member of Parliament.

Stephen Campbell was an Arawak Guyanese politician and political activist for indigenous rights who in 1957 became the country’s first indigenous parliamentarian.

In 1964, Campbell became Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs with special responsibility for

Amerindian affairs. He died in 1966, just a few weeks before Guyana’s independence, while striving to ensure indigenous land rights after independence.

The refurbished monument derived from a 1995 self-help venture initiated by one of the village’s other honoured heroes, the late Basil Rodrigues, a highly esteemed educator and cultural figure in the community and nationally.

Rodrigues revealed that the original monument had come from the urgent realization that youths in the village should know and appreciate their heroes, culture and language, both past and present.

Born June, 1932, Basil Rodrigues, affectionately known as “Uncle Basil”, died in May 2014 at the age of 81. He was awarded Guyana’s Medal of Service (1991), the Golden Arrow of Achievement (1998) and the Wordsworth McAndrew Award (2008) for his sterling contributions to his community, his teaching and musical accomplishments; for his role in Guyana’s cultural heritage and his cultural activism. He was also a composer, musician, singer and story teller.

The Heroes monument is surrounded with names of other heroes of Moruca, including Vibert De Souza, first Amerindian Affairs minister in Guyana; Reuben Stoby, Agnes Bridget Daniels, a teach-

Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett

Bird's eye view of Georgetown, British Guiana

Reading Rooms and Post Office, British Guiana

The commemorative plaque in honour of Stephen Campbell.

er with dedicated service to church and school; Vincent Prince, a war veteran, and Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Guyana’s first female foreign minister and first female Amerindian

Basil Rodrigues (June 13, 1932 - May 9, 2014)

Affairs minister.

Joseph Atkinson, who played a significant role in establishing the first Moruca Co-op Society shop; Rosa Atkinson, an herbal practitioner and spiritualist of the village, and John Atkinson, the longest serving village captain, were also honoured with a place on the Heroes monument.

Several indigenous Guyanese have played significant roles in the development of local and national communities, often bringing to national, regional and international awareness the importance and challenges of indigenous groups, deemed a minority in Guyana.

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This week's Crossword

This week's Puzzle

see solution on page 47

Identity…

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…and Turkish failed coup

he “Turkish coup” of 2016 is the coup that never was. We woke up last Friday and heard about the attempt to take over the country.

Three days later, it was over with the Government still firmly in power and 6000 persons, mainly from the Army, rounded up. What gives? Was it a case of a few bungling Inspector Cousteau types who couldn’t get their act together? Or was there more than met the eye? Your Eyewitness is interested. Not least of all because Turkey represents one possible fate of those colonial countries that attempted to graft Liberal politics over an older culture built on contrary premises.

Most of us have forgotten that Turkey was the centre of the Muslim world for centuries and seat of the Islamic “Ottoman Empire”. At its height, it stretched from Europe to India and was as powerful as the Austro-Hungarian Empire that ran things in Europe for the longest while. But by the turn of the 20th century, it had run out of steam and was dubbed “the sick man of Europe”. The end of WWI in 1918 saw it humiliated with even pipsqueak countries like Serbia nibbling off its territory.

One army officer, Kemal Attaturk decided to make a bold move in 1923: he seized control of the State and decided to transform the State into a “modern” one built on Western Liberal principles. Religion –- in this case Islam – would be banned from the public sphere, women would be educated, individual rights would be emphasised and elections would chose leaders – eventually. He even mandated the wearing of European clothing.

In the process, Kemal and his supporters gave a whole new meaning to the term “Young Turks” – go-getters who would storm the bastions of power to change the status quo.

Fast forward to the 1960s. Turkey was transformed all right – but not in the way Attaturk had envisaged. While the “Westernised” citizens had many of the forms of political life as in Europe, the promised prosperity hadn’t been delivered.

And it shouldn’t have surprised anyone when some started questioning whether, in fact, the removal of Islam in Turkey from the public sphere and identity was necessary.

The election of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 1999 to power brought the varying impulses to a head.

While he accepted the democratic forms he was a religiously inclined individual who accepted the return of Islam back as the core of Turkish identity.

And that’s what this coup is all about and why it is important to us in Guyana, where there are unresolved questions of the place of identity in politics and the public sphere.

What, in fact, are the limits to forcing an identity on a people? …and the AFC Over in Guyana, there was another (hopefully unconnected?) articulation on identity. Through Executive Member and Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin, we learnt that the AFC had held an all-day confab with its elected officials from both the local and national levels and decided they had to hold on to their identity. They had been in coalition for a year and a half with APNU and the question had long been noted – from inside and outside.

Most folks had concluded the pre-coalition prediction of party leader Khemraj Ramjattan – that the AFC would be “dead meat” if it coalesce with APNU – had come to pass.

But the question now on the table is: “What exactly IS the identity of the AFC?” When it first launched back in 2005 with one leader each from the PPP, PNC and WPA, it insisted it would be a “third force” between the two big guns.

So, will it now support the PPP if they come up with a good idea? …and parking contracts And here we thought that the LGE meant Central Government would keep its nose out of local government matters. Now by taking a cut of the revenues from the parking meter deal, is the Central Government saying parking’s not within the City’s sole competence?

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A life lived to its fullest Centenarian Marjorie ‘Skipper’ Barrow

Centenarian Marjorie ‘Skipper’ Barrow

By Gail Nunes

T

o illustrate a life lived to its fullest is to present the life of Marjorie Barrow – a once young tomboy-turneddancer-turned-Captain-ofthe-Sea-Rangers, and now a centenarian of 103.

Born to Mortimer and Gertrude Cossou in Berbice in 1914 and the only girl to her parents, Marjorie abandoned dolls and girlie toys for rough-and-tough tomboy games with her two brothers. Her father, a preacher, ensured nevertheless that Marjorie spend considerable time in church.

This indoctrination coupled with an intent to succeed as a leader, would form the groundwork that would motivate and propel Marjorie towards her vari-

ous pursuits.

At 20, a brief sojourn to Georgetown to pursue dance was cut short because of a serious illness, and a disappointed Marjorie was forced to return to her parents in Berbice. It was from here that a new life skill took shape. The Scout and Guide movements were gaining a foothold in then British Guiana, and in 1922, Marjorie’s mother initiated a division of the Girl Guides Association (familiarly known in the US as the Girl Scouts), in Berbice. Her dedication to this venture earned for Mrs. Cossou the Beaver Award for noteworthy service of exceptional character in the Scouts world.

It came as no surprise therefore that Marjorie would become a Girl

Guide. Commitment and dedication paid huge dividends, and she would eventually rise to the heights of Commissioner of the Girl Guides Association.

Following on this leadership, a career switch to the Sea Rangers after moving to Georgetown earned Marjorie the title of “Skipper” of the Georgetown Sea Rangers.

Appreciation for her commitment to the development of young ladies is evident from the positive comments made by Marjorie’s adoring Sea Rangers today. They recall the fundamentals of pride, appearance, punctuality, discipline and even money management which she instilled in their training as navigators.

As her quest for excellence gained public ac-

claim, Skipper Barrow was awarded the highest honour: an invitation to High Tea at Government House with Princess Margaret and Lady Baden Powell, an invitation she gratefully accepted.

In 1942, Marjorie married Charles Conrad Barrow and together they raised three of four children, having sadly lost the fourth a short year after her birth. Her responsibility of raising a family, nevertheless, did not impair her visionary ambition to become and remain a successful leader.

An eagerness to pursue new skills drove Marjorie to an interest in mechanics, a skill that she mastered sufficiently to enable her to repair sewing machines. Her love for sports was as assertive, especially in the areas of hockey and bridge. She played for the British Guiana Ladies Field Hockey Team and earned a Bridge trophy in 1959. By the time she was seventy and after a brief migration to Dominica where again she engaged the youth in indoor sports, Marjorie and Charlie relocated to the United States to live with her daughter Rae. Undaunted by big city life, she quickly acclimated to taking pub-

In her younger years

lic transportation and engaging seniors at various senior citizen centres, becoming an advocate for their rights and serving on a few Boards. Marjorie also discovered a new passion, a love for Atlantic City and the Poconos.

Now widowed after 59 years of marriage, and with adoring grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Skipper Barrow is a resident at the Chapin Home for the Aged in Jamaica, Queens. And with her never-ending

joie de vivre, she continues to entertain and be entertained, still looking to dance to music she enjoys.

Skipper Marjorie Barrow is the true embodiment of a life she faced purposefully and without fear of its challenges. Undoubtedly her ebullient spirit may well be the source of her longevity. (First published in the Guyana Cultural Association of New York Inc. on-line Magazine 2016)

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Practising social cohesion

By Ravi Dev

“S

ocial cohesion” is all the rage these days. In Europe, such plans are crafted for homogenous populations dealing with new immigrant minorities. This is hardly the situation in Guyana where the racial/political divide goes back to the arrival of Indian indentured labourers 178 years ago, to our divisive colonial politics, and to the ensuing race politics that started in the 1950s, and exploded into violence in the 1960s, a violence that still threatens because the

social, cultural and political causes are yet to be dealt with. Hence, the lack of social cohesion.

In a previous column, I explored the lack of political will on either side of the divide to change anything for the better, and stated that Guyana is saddled with lazy, short-sighted politicians who are deathly afraid of a nation of peoples who will actually be united enough to see past race and vote intelligently on issues.

Should this ever happen, they will all be summarily rejected. They need the divide.

A cohesive society is built on several basic elements, these being primarily trust, respect, transparency and accountability, justice, economic progress, and national security. To get there, Guyana simply has to enforce current laws, conventions and recommendations, and practise a healthy measure of fair-mindedness in our governance.

This is yet to happen and the David Granger Government in one year has managed to create deeper and wider racial divisions in Guyana than has happened in over 20 years. Everywhere, everybody is vexed: the business community, the labour sector, the young unemployed, fired public servants, Georgetown’s citizens, metal recyclers, street vendors, and the public at large.

If this Government is serious about building social cohesion, it must start with President David Granger himself who must forgo his hauteur and unilateral decision-making for democratic processes that are fair, transparent and consultative of the people.

A vibrant economy is fundamental for job creation, job security and national progress, and since Government is bereft of ideas of how to proceed with economic development – both public and private – there is urgent need to establish an Economic Advisory Committee that will comprise our successful business and manufacturing leaders.

All Guyanese businesses, no matter their political persuasions, must be represented. Government’s overt partisanship of “jobs for the boys” as is evident in its public service is non-cohesive, nonrepresentative, and contrary to national interests.

The recent Golden Jubilee celebration was another such overt racial/ partisan exercise where the favoured AfricanGuyanese population were the main participants. Such government actions make its talk about social cohesion purely hypocritical.

Social cohesion means putting into practice the tenets of the Guyana Constitution and the UN Human Rights Charter where all Guyanese share a common belonging to country, and have an inclusive sense of their Guyanese citizenship which acknowledges and guarantees their identities of religion, culture, ethnicity, gender, etc.

Given that these are guaranteed constitutional and human rights, it is abhorrent that IndianGuyanese in particular have to continue to explain and justify our presence as if we are indeed outsiders whose ethnicity and cultural values are somehow contrary to national interests.

Mutual respect for all of Guyana’s peoples must start in schools and communities with lessons in well-researched social and political history which highlight the contributions that each group has made to the country’s development.

The media has an important role to play in this regard especially in instances where “unity” and “racial harmony” are presented by certain sections as racial intermarriage and miscegenation, and as the solution to the country’s racial divide.

Granger himself never addresses this single most pressing issue in any of his statements on social cohesion and has been heard to infer publicly that the solution to the divide is the “mixing” of the races.

Marriage must remain a sacred personal choice and not ever become a Government policy that pushes a “race mingling” agenda as was attempted under the Burnham dictatorship.

On the vital issue of national security, there are two reports that are languishing and gathering dust: The International Council of Jurists and Disciplined Forces Commission both recommended that Guyana’s armed forces must reflect the country’s diversity if there is to be security from all threats, including internal political violence, but no government has yet moved to correct the blatant racial imbalance in our army and police.

The overarching document that will craft the way forward for a Guyana of inclusive and fully participatory government of, for and by its peoples is the much-needed reformed constitution.

This is where real social cohesion will begin. The APNU/AFC Coalition did promise such reform. We must hold them to their promise.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

T

he inaugural Gtmemoirs Plus Size Expo will be a one-day event “celebrating plus size Guyanese”, while focusing on being healthy inside and out.

Some of the main features of the event will be a healthy lifestyle seminar; body confidence and self-esteem workshop; a modelling workshop; a fitness fete; and a fashion show.

Plus Size Fashion Show will feature notable designers such as Rishma Persaud, Paul Burnette, Pamela Fox, Shan Anthony Seecharan and Jason Shurland. The Healthy Lifestyle Seminar (registration is required) will feature healthy-living guru, Rishon SeegopaulRambarran. There will also be over 20 beauty, fashion, shipping, health

Founder of the event, Damien Lewis

Rishma Persaud will be one of the designers at the event

care, fitness and lifestyle vendors.

In an interview with Sunday Times Magazine, event founder Damien Lewis revealed that that his inspiration for this expo was his wife Reshma.

“My wife is a plus size Guyanese who has spent years learning from others about the challenges they face finding clothing, being confident within their bodies, dealing with stigma, fitness and accessing business services. Plus size Guyanese are some of the most accomplished in business, but their presence is often times overshadowed.

Through Gtmemoirs

Plus Size Expo, we hope to encourage discussions with the hope of establishing relationships geared towards the capitalising on the emerging plus size market and placing a spotlight on plus size individuals,” Lewis declared.

Patron of Gtmemoirs Plus Size Expo, Dr. Michon Sukhoo-Pertab entered Miss Guyana Talented Teen in 2001 as a plus size model, which, according to her, presented her with many challenges.

“The concept of plus size fashion and modelling did not hit Guyana as yet, but the challenges were tackled and I am

Dr. Michon Sukhoo-Pertab has overcome much stigma and challenges as a plus size model

more self-confident and able to dress my body type. The self-confidence further drove me to be a plus size model to show other women that it is possible. Today, I still have challenges in finding clothing for my body type and so always look for things with stretch in it. Some sale clerks would say, ‘You have a small top and a heavy/ big bottom’, and it can get frustrating especially when you’re in a rush or see something you really like. I advocate for Gtmemoirs Plus Size Expo to give you the experience in being the best you! Not just looking pretty on the outside, but

making the inside feel the same way,” the doctor noted in an interview with this publication.

Interact, discuss lifestyle concepts, experience a broad range of activities, purchase products and establish relationships for lifestyle enhancement at the first ever Gtmemoirs Plus Size Expo. Tickets are available from Moi Toori Boutique, Loisanne's Plus Boutique, Le Cosmetiques, Zoon Online Shopping and Ramada Georgetown Princess International Hotel. For more information, call Damien Lewis on 667-3999.

40 news

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Gonsalves endorses Chastanet’s statement on ‘criminal deportation’

P

rime Minister Allen Chastanet has received support from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves, on his statement about criminal deportation.

Gonsalves told Barbados Today that he was pleased that Chastanet had joined other Caribbean leaders who, over the years, had complained that the practice was hurting the region.

“The problem is that when they deport them they don’t give us their full particulars, what are the antecedents, what are the details of the crime for which they were sentenced and then deported; what their record is so that we can do a better job of reincorporating them into society. And of course we get no resources in respect of having them to come back into our society in some structured, organized way,” Gonsalves stated.

The Vincentian leader also noted that while some of the deportees were law-abiding, there were those who engaged in criminal activity, either directly or indirectly.

“When you look at it, of course there are some deportees who are recidivists when they come back to their home countries they commit crimes. Some of them do

Prime Minister Allen Chastanet and Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves

not but you can’t only measure it by those who do not. You have to look at what is their influence in that subculture of crime even though they themselves are not committing [crimes] themselves, the advice is to pass on. And police forces will tell you that.

“Some of them of course, realize the error of their ways and in a new environment try to pick up the pieces of their lives, but a lot of them don’t do that,” Gonsalves told Barbados Today.

Chastanet has said that the United States government is contributing to regional crime by deporting criminals back

to their countries of origin.

He was also quoted as stating that 800 criminals were deported to Saint Lucia in one year.

But United States Embassy responded to Chastanet’s statement which was made on the sidelines of the recently held CARICOM heads of government meeting, stating that the US is in partnership with Eastern Caribbean governments, is committed to strengthening security in the region.

“As evidence of this commitment, the United States government steadily increased funding for regional security since

President Obama launched the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative in 2009,” a statement from the embassy read.

The US also corrected Chastanet’s statistics, noting that the total number of deportees returned to Saint Lucia in the last five years was less than 100. In 2015, there were only eight such cases, refuting the numbers quoted by Chastanet.

However, Gonsalves’ statement was prompted by an issue involving a convicted murderer, Arleigh Hector James, a Vincentian national being returned home from Barbados.

The Barbados Today said James was released early from prison last week after serving 22 years of a life sentence for beheading his 35-year-old wife Debra James and slashing his 14-year-old stepdaughter Sabrina to death in a savage cutlass attack on May 1, 1994.

His son Ashley King, who was 13-yearsold at the time, escaped death by hiding beneath a bed.

The Barbadian newspaper said Gonsalves did not link the calls for James’ deportation to the issue of criminal deportees from the United States and other developed countries. (St Lucia News Online)

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

launches body painting event An artist dressed as an Egyptian goddess

J

ULY 24 will give Guyanese the experience of a world of mythology and fantasy, as local art group Bravo Arts display their aptitude in creating exciting characters.

The exhibition, “Gods and Monsters”, will feature a line-up of male and female models in body paints and prosthetics at Pegasus Hotel from 5pm to 8pm. The event comes four years after Bravo Arts hosted their last body art exhibition, “Heroes and Villains”.

around the venue, interacting with attendees. Additionally, patrons can look forward to a special aerialist performance. Face painting and temporary tattoo services will also be available.

According to the group, patrons are invited to wear costumes.

Artists’ profiles Steve Douglas is the founder and manager of Bravo Arts, which was started in 2009.

Unlike many artists, he had no interest in painting and drawing in his

One of the artists working on a sculpture that will be featured at the event

By use of body painting, costuming, special effects makeup and prosthetics, the Bravo Arts team will transform models into gods and mythical creatures that are symbolic to different religions and cultures around the world with the aim of leaving all in awe.

Unlike previous exhibitions, patrons will experience a theatricallike performance by the painted models. During the second half of the event, 30 models will be mounted on platforms

childhood and teens. His passion for face painting and body art ignited in his early adult years.

He continues to head his company which is still growing. His new found passion is special effects makeup, which is incorporated in his body painting work.

Cassandra Chu is a 25-year-old professional body artist who has been part of the body arts team of Bravo Arts.

She acquired and developed her skills in body painting, face painting and temporary tattoos

at Bravo Arts. Her stint at Bravo Arts has helped to further develop her interest in the arts, which resulted in her applying to the E. R. Burrowes School of Arts where she currently attends. At the institution, she is a major in jewellery and minor in painting. Cassandra Chu ultimately aspires to become a professional jewellery manufacturer, and is looking forward to maturing her body arts skills with Bravo Arts as the company grows.

On his artistic career, Andre Jacobus said: “Art is one of the few things I enjoy doing, and I’m always in the habit of creating stuff, so that why I’ve decide to take it up. At the very young age of five, I was doing sketches and very much into art books. My father, who is also an artist, recognized my potential and encouraged me to attend the art school. I attended the E. R. Burrowes School of Arts and graduated in 2013, majoring in painting. I love every aspect of painting, but not I’m kind of moving away from the traditional style of painting on canvas and paper and now doing digital painting, which was all selftaught. I also do some work on animation. My advice to young artists is to continue to love what you do, which is the key ingredient. I believe art can change the world.”

Alicia Smith also expressed: “I'm really more of a business person, so when I enter the field of makeup it was mainly because my dream was to one day have a one-ofa-kind beauty store that sells different brands of beauty products. I do believe, however, as a business person one should know the products you stand behind to the best

of his/her knowledge, hence I took it upon myself to study the art of makeup. In 2011, I left Guyana to study makeup with Sacha Cosmetics in Trinidad and Tobago.

There I did a complete course in makeup/skin care, which lasted for four months. Upon arriving back home, I started doing some freelance makeup jobs, as well as selling products on a small scale, it's during that time that I met Steve and he encouraged me to join the Bravo Arts team. I believe makeup is to be worn to enhance one's beauty and every woman should learn the basics of makeup application.”

Sharwan Khan always had a passion for art. He joined Bravo Arts in 2012 and has grown in the field of body painting since he started working with the art group.

His love for art extends to permanent tat-

art school in 2010, and I joined Bravo Arts during that year. It has been six awesome years. I am currently working as a cartoon animator. I also have my personal business with my wife, Matt and Annie Arts, where we turn ideas into reality,” said Courtney.

Sanoeiza Reevers recalled: “I always loved art as a child growing up, but never took it seriously until I met Steve in 2008, who introduced me to face painting through a workshop. At the beginning of Bravo Arts, I started working part-time and eventually became a fulltime staff. I attended the E. R. Burrowes School of Art and was a major in painting.

“Art became a part of my day-to-day life. I started sewing, decorating and even craft just for the fun of it. I completed an E. R. Burrowes certificate course, but

3rd in the drawing category. In 2014 she placed 2nd in the ceramics category. Paloma now aims to pursue a degree in fine arts at Edna Manley's College of Visual and Performing Arts in Jamaica. Besides art, Paloma is into volleyball, landscaping, cooking and travelling. Her goal is becoming a curator.

Lazaire Brown hails from Upper Mazaruni, Region Seven. Art started off as a hobby, but later became a passion for Lazaire. She developed her artistic skills from a tender age and participated in art competitions within schools, regions and country, which prompted her to further her studies at Burrowes after high school.

“I graduated with a diploma in fine arts. I also studied building technology at GTI. I am presently at the Cyril Potter College of Education A highlight of the event - a model created to look like Medusa.

In Greek mythology, Medusa was a monster

toos, which is his career.

This year he launched a new business in partnership with some other young entrepreneurs.

Privileged Clothing Line offers custom design clothing, mainly t-shirts.

Courtney Mathium Douglas was named after West Indian legendary fast bowler Courtney Walsh. Courtney said if he had not chosen to pursue art when he was 11, he would have definitely chosen cricket.

The artist graduated from Bartica Secondary School in 2007 as the best visual arts student, the best technical drawing student, and the best building construction student. He graduated from E. R. Burrowes School of Art with a diploma, and was awarded the best drawing, painting and graphics design student. Courtney has won three national art awards, two drawing competitions, and one coin design competition.

“I met Steve at the

had to put the diploma course on hold. I am now a fulltime staff at the office of Amalgamated Security Services, and I work part-time with Bravo Arts. I am now contemplating the diploma course at the E. R. Burrowes School of Art,” Sanoeiza outlined.

Paloma Bristol is a determined young lady and an avid art lover from a very tender age.

She started the E. R. Burrowes School of Art to gain a better understanding and to develop herself in the art field.

While she was attending the art school, she was asked to join team Bravo Arts in 2011. After receiving formal training at the art school, where she studied fine arts for three years, majoring in painting and minor in sculpture, Bristol graduated with her diploma in 2012. Immediately following her graduation, she entered the Visual Arts Competition and Exhibition and placed

completing the associate degree in Secondary PreVocational programme in building technology.”

Carlus Savory hails from Region Ten. He is a graduate of the E. R. Burrowes School of Art. Carlus enjoys canvas and body painting. He is also passionate about tattooing, and has his own tattoo business. Carlus has been with Bravo Arts for five years.

“Gods and Monsters” will be the ideal event for all to witness the artistic talents of our young local artists. Tickets to the event cost $2000 for adults and $1000 for children (3 to 15 years old), and are available at Pegasus Hotel. Bravo Arts would like to thank BANKS DIH, Pegasus Hotel and Artistic Marketing for their support in making this event possible.

For more information on the show, contact with Bravo Arts on 6519120 or visit Bravo Arts on Facebook.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Raped British doctor sues tour ... had planned to join her that day for the remainder of the holiday but was “horrified” when she saw her.

According to Dr Mortimer: “Girls for Sail even advised me not to tell other women arriving alone what had happened in case it upset them.

“I was in shock. Looking back I should have said something. There was no sign of a break in, it appears he walked straight into the villa but I was made to feel as though I’d done something wrong.

“I couldn’t stay in the villa but they said they’d pay for us to stay in a hotel for one night, but not two.

“I was traumatised, I couldn’t cope being there. Nobody had bothered to contact the British Consulate for me so I did that myself and they organised an emergency flight home for me.”

Back home in Hertfordshire, Mortimer was horrified to learn that there had been similar sexual assaults and rapes in St Lucia, including an attempted rape in a house a few miles away from her villa, but said there were no warnings issued to take additional care.

“I started to get angry. I had gone on a women-only holiday; you have an expectation of safety,” she said.

“Because of the other incidents they should surely have upped security, therefore the villa should have had CCTV and a security guard on duty.

They should have at least had self-locking doors and told us to be vigilant.”

Letters of complaint were sent to the company and Ms Mortimer expected a refund – instead three weeks later she received a marketing newsletter.

from page 35

“I complained again,” she said. “This time I got an email saying they were offering me a massage and manicure at my local beauty salon.

“They’d described it as a little ‘treat’ for me and hoped I found it ‘enjoyable’.

As if that would cheer me up. I had been raped under their guard. I was disgusted, insulted.”

“I am devastated by what happened and I am going to do what I can to stop any other woman going through this.

“I am shocked a company, which claims to empower women by helping them learn to sail without men has treated a rape victim so badly. My life has been turned upside down. I have horrendous flashbacks and feel traumatised.”

Now Mortimer has hired lawyers to sue both organisations for negligence,

claiming Girls for Sail also failed to report the attack to the RYA. Her solicitor Vidisha Joshi, Partner and Head of Personal Injury, Hodge, Jones and Allen Solicitors in London, said: “This is a professional woman who was attacked in her own bed whilst away on holiday. Tour operators, hotel owners and others in the holiday business have a duty of care to protect their customers.”

Annie O Sullivan, owner of Summer Breeze villa and Girls for Sail, was quoted as saying: “We have been a Trip Advisor recommended 4.5 star villa since 2012 and strenuously deny the claims.”

On their website Girls for Sail say they are the “only sailing school for ladies” and they “take care of each other and maintain a safe environment.”

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Jorge Bowenforbes uses watercolour to provide ‘an essence of easy communication’ ed a signature member of the American Watercolour Society, and the National (U.S.A.) Watercolour Society.

The artist’s awardwinning works travelled to various exhibitions to important museums in the US, and were published in many books including “Best of Watercolour”.

His biography is included in “Who's Who in the World” (the only listing-Guyanese in any field), “Who's Artist Jorge Bowenforbes Who in America”, “Great Minds of n 1960, two of the 21st Century”, his mentors, “International Who's Basil Hinds and Who Hall Of Fame”, E. R. Burrowes, per- “Who's Who in suaded artist Jorge American Art”, and the Bowenforbesto mount “International Who's a one-man exhibi- Who of 20th Century”. tion of his watercolour In 1998, from paintings. The artist the International took their advice, and Biographic Centre the show was mount- of Cambridge, ed at the Freemason's England,Bowenforbes Hall, Church Street. was selected and inC o n s e q u e n t l y , cluded in “the first Bowenforbes became

I

stated: “Bowenforbes is undoubtedly Guyana’s most prolific painter and finest technician.”Raschid Osman said in the same year: “Bowenforbes is Guyana’s master technician in the field of transparent watercolour”.

Internationally, the works of the artist are in collections of the El Paso Museum of Art, Kindercare in Alabama, at international events, Leon Loard Gallery of Art, Bomani Gallery of Art, and in many private collections.

Locally,Bowenforbes are found in the National Gallery of Art, the Marriot Hotel, and many private collections.

“For me, the process of painting has been an ever-abiding search for new images and new meanings; a concentration on capturing the essence of man's existence and his inter-re-

Bowenforbes’ watercolour painting of a seascape scene in Guyana

the first local artist to exhibit solo – and started his journey on becoming one of Guyana’s most notable artists.

All 40 of Bowenforbes’ exhibited works at the Freemason's Hall were sold out in five days. Ten months later, he mounted another one-man show at the Public Free Library, Georgetown, which was immensely successful. In 1962, Bowenforbes migrated to the USA, where his work received international acclaim. Apart from 250 national and international awards bestowed upon him, the artist was elect-

five hundred at the new millennium”;Men of Achievement 1996;World's Who's Who Hall Of Fame in 1998; was given the Gold Star Award — a symbol of outstanding achievement in 1998;and was named among 2,000 outstanding people of the 20th century in 1999.

In 1977, at the artist’s one-man exhibition at Colgrain House, Camp Street, Basil Hinds stated that “Bowenforbes is easily one of the most readily accessible artists of superior quality in Guyana”. In May 1978, Hinds also

lationship with his environment, and then translating that vision spontaneously into philosophical imaginative entities.

Transparent watercolour is a most demanding medium and requires a disciplined approach, coupled with constant application if development is to be realized. Other mediums I have found present a poor rival to the unique qualities which can be rendered through aquarelle.

Since the early 1980s,I have involved myself with experimenting in variations on a single theme, memory fragments, which in turn

"The Farmer and the Cow", circa 1962, a painting in the National Collection at the National Gallery of Art

becomes new experiences and from which newer fragments emerge.

Working in this manner has prevented my approach from being too hesitant and has provided a clearer determination which allows me a familiarity with my intentions and al-

lows the creative process to be elementary in providing an essence of easy communication,” the artist explained.

The artist noted that he looks upon “watercolour as a language, and in any language it is vital that the fundamentals are stressed, ap-

plied and practiced to ensure proficiency.” He added that developing the skills instils confidence, and with this a state of mind that he refers to as the “comfort zone”.

For more information, contact the artist on 592-677-1288.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Local soap company proves Guyanese unlimited talent

O

perated by young, talented Guyanese entrepreneurs, Naked Skin Soaps gives evidence that with determination and team work, anything can be achieved.

The company, which specializes in the manufacturing of handmade, artisan soap made out of local ingredients that are renowned for their

skin care benefits, was established as a private company in February 2015, and began operations in July 2015. It is a registered business in Guyana and has been licensed by the Food and Drug Department of the Ministry of Health.

It is currently owned and operated by three partners; Louisa Mancey, Jonathan

One of Naked Skin Soaps' founders, Louisa Mancey, at a past GuyExpo

Beepat and Rustom Seegopaul. These individuals are popularly known for their business acumen, and have shown evidence of this in their operation of Naked Skin Soaps.

Naked Skin Soaps brings the richness of Guyana’s abundant lands to the world in our unique, natural, handcrafted soap. Guyana, a land of bountiful soil, is a perfect setting to infuse the goodness of our local vegetation into oils, releasing their latent potential. Naked Skin Soaps presently features a line of handmade soaps that are made with the unique properties of raw coconut oil and different local plants.

“Initially, Louisa and I were dabbling with soap on our own. We are old family friends and met at a family get-together and were advised to speak to each other, since we were both thinking of getting into the soap business. We did and two weeks later we were making soap,” Rustom Seegopaul recalled in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

Naked Skin Soaps are a blend of personalized handicraft and the

A variety of soaps to choose from

goodness of organic natural goodness in skincare routine with simple, natural ingredients – all made in Guyana by Guyanese.

Product line-up

Coconut Plains: A body bar that offers gentle and effective moisturizing for soft, supple skin. Virgin coconut oil is renowned for its restorative and rejuvenating properties that will clean your skin and give it new life and lustre.

Lemon Grasslands: A body bar that delivers gentle cleansing with the fragrant attributes of lemongrass that has naturally cleansing, germ fighting properties combined with the goodness of coconut oil for clean, and healthy skin.

Black Sage Trails: This face soap infuses the unique, skin-friendly properties of coconut oil with the antimicrobial and astringent ingredients of black sage for

thorough facial cleansing and conditioning.

Turmeric and Neem Stream: This face bar fuses the acne fighting and anti-aging properties of the ancient neem plant with the anti-bacterial and restorative properties of the super skin care spice, turmeric, along with the goodness of coconut oil for clean, conditioned and radiant skin.

Coffee Grounds: An exfoliating bar that combines the properties of coconut oil with locally grown coffee, along with the added scent of decadent hazelnut-vanilla, to deliver an invigorating experience which cleanses you to the pores, removing old and dying skin cells to reveal a smoother, healthier you.

Ginger-Aloe Creek Sands: An exfoliating bar that provides a unique combination of the nourishing properties of coconut oil with skin-caring aloe, radiance-enhancing ginger, and naturally

polished sand from one of Guyana’s many creeks, to softly scrub away old cells, bringing forth new, healthy skin.

Recently, the local soap company entered the Scotiabank Vision Achiever LivePitch 2016 Competition to win funding that would help “move the business to the next level, and potentially start to export regionally as well as boost local sales.”

“We are hoping to expand to a regional and then to an international level of export, while bolstering our sales on the local market. We will move into other products, apart from the six types of soap we make now. We have plans for shaving soaps, lip balm, hair oils, shampoos and conditioners,” Rustom outlined.

For more information on Naked Skin Soaps, call 592-609-6061. 592653-9816, 592-674-9453 or go to Naked Skin Soaps on Facebook.

Sending Money to Guyana Just Got A Lot Easier!

Xoom Expands its Secure Digital Money Transfer Services to Guyana

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n this digital age, sending money to family and friends that live in different countries has never been easier. It wasn’t that long ago when the money transfer market was dominated by offline, fragmented, cash-to-cash operators, whose services were often expensive, inconvenient and risky for both senders and receivers.

Fortunately, the remittance in¬dustry has evolved to an online model, with mobile devices and comput¬ers leading the way. With companies like Xoom, a PayPal service and leading digital money transfer provider, the global marketplace has evolved and expanded to countries whose economies aresupported by remittances, like Guyana in Latin America.

Xoom’sdigital services are a solution to many of the old concerns of transferring money by offering faster, more secure and convenient ways for Guyanese people to send mon¬ey back home to loved ones in Guyana.

And it’s also much less expensive than the oldertraditional money transfer providers.

Fifteen years ago, Xoompioneered a switch to online, bank-to-bank transfers and the company has never looked back. In April 2016, Xoom expanded its service to 11 new countries, making it

available in a total of 53 countries as of June 2016. Together, Xoom and PayPal are helping to expand and improve financial participation and financial health for people worldwide.

If you are not yet familiar with the host of advantages that Xoom’s online money transfer process delivers, here are a few to consider: • Convenience – In the past, offline senders had to spend precious time and energy completing the money transfer process only to anxiously wait for news that the money had reached their loved ones back home. As a Xoom customer, you don’t have to leave work or the comfort of your home to send a transfer. You can send money to your family 24/7, 365 days of the year…at any time and from anywhere. Xoom is partnering with First Global to offer direct bank deposits and cash pick-up at locations, including Laparkan and the Guyanese Post Office. Senders and their beneficiaries also get SMS notifications on the status of their transfer so both parties know where their money is every step of the way.

It’s easy sending a transfer through Xoom. Simply visit Xoom.com on your desktop or mobile device. Themobilesavvy Guyanese will also love the Xoom app. You want fast? Xoom’s Quick Send

feature eliminates the need for any redundant data entry once you’ve completed your first transfer. Xoom securely stores your information and streamlines the process so that subsequent transfers only require a simple “tap and slide” to send your money back home.

• Security – When you send money back home using the offline cash-and-carry method, you typically withdraw cash from the bank and then carry it to another location before sending itto the final destination. This is a security risk for anyone. Carrying large amounts of money and/or transferring it “physically” is subject to theft or loss and simply doesn’t make sense today with the availability of technology that ensures secure and instant transfers to your family. The fact is, when you remove cash from the sending and receiving sides of the remittance process, you minimize these risks.

When you transfer funds with Xoom, the money is either debited from your bank account or charged to your card.

Like transactions at your bank or an online retailer, we implementmultiple layers of authenticationto protect your transfer, making your transactions safe and secure. Plus, Xoomoffers Apple's

Touch ID technology in its mobile application, which enables customers to use their fingerprint data to sign in to the Xoom application on the iPhone 5s, 6 and 6 Plus. With Touch ID,you no longer need to typein your password, and, because your fingerprint is unique to you, this adds yet anotherlevel of security.

• No Risk/100% Money-back Guarantee – You have absolutely no risk when sending money back home.

Xoom offers a 100% money-back guarantee on every transfer and, if the money you send is not received by your recipient,Xoom will refund your transaction in full. In fact, when you pay with your bank account, Xoom won't withdraw one cent until your recipient in the Guyana receives the money. Bottom line – when you send money to the Guyana, Xoom’s got you covered.

Visit Xoom.com and discover for yourself how Xoom’s quest to deliver fast, secure and easy-to-use services to Guyanais making it easier for family and friends both there and in the U.S. to stay connected.

Content Sponsored by Xoom

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

travel & tourism 47

NOT Garbage money

S

atiricus was astounded. He’d heard – mostly when listening to the priest in his Church – that “money was dirty”. He’s always had his doubts about that proposition – but now here was living proof.

“Cappo! Imagine this garbageman getting G$221 MILLION a year to haul garbage to this landfill!!” Satiricus exclaimed to his friend who hadn’t even taken his first swig of his beer at the Back Street Bar. “Why did my father insist I “bust” my head in school?”

“Sato, me fr’en’,” intoned Cappo, “me always know garbage gat big money!”

“How the arse YOU know that?” demanded Satiricus belligerently.

“Well, remember Potoo?” Cappo replied after a short pause during which he took a loooong pull at his beer.

“Of course I remember Potoo,” replied Satiricus. “The fella from front street who used to catch rats in the cane fields. He went to America when his mother sponsored him.

What does he have to do with what we talking about?”

“Budday!! Lis’en, na!” Cappo was smiling.

“Potoo bin wuss dan me in school. He cyaan even read an’ write.” He paused to take another gulp of his beer.

“And?” interjected Satiricus impatiently.

“And suh when ‘he reach New Yark, garbageman bin a de only jaab he cou’d get.”

Cappo paused for effect. “But in only five year time he wuk suh much money ‘e now gat five house in New Yaark! Garbage gat biiiiiig money, Sato!”

“But that was in New York…they have the big bucks there,” pointed out Satiricus indignantly. “They spend millions of dollars for paintings that look like garbage to me! But this is Guyana!”

“Progress, Sato…Progress!” Cappo smirked.

“If abee can spen’ $1 billian fuh salute wan big flag, jus’ like ‘Merica pan dem Independence Day, wha mek abee cyaan spen’ $221 millian pan garage?”

“Maybe you have a point there, Cappo,” conceded Satiricus. “And at our flag raising, I thought the show was garbage, anyway!” “Leh abee drink to garbage!” said Cappo, as the two old friends clinked their beer bottles.

K

nown for its scenic beauty and vast, spectacular forests filled with caves that make the area excellent for exploration, Kurupung is a natural gem.

Kurupung is located in the heart of the Mazaruni River area in the Pakaraima mountain range. It is mainly a mining town, with an exploding population of coastlanders, Venezuelans and Brazilians. While the main business activity is mining, many visit the area to enjoy its lush nature. (Photos by Nicholas Chuckasang)

A flower found on the mountain

A scenic view of the Kumerau Falls

Kurupung mountain

One of the streets in Kurupung village

River rapids near Kumerau Falls

CROSSWORD SOLUTION

Spectacular view in Kurupung

48 Bollywood

Important for parents to teach children compassion, says Raveena Tandon

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ctress Raveena Tandon has stressed on the importance of teaching children compassion.

A Twitter user posted a shot of a news piece and captioned it: “Heartbreaking stuff.

Eight-year-old kills a six-year-old and asks, ‘What is death?’.”

Raveena, a mother of two adopted daughters, one biological daughter and a biological son, tweeted: “Important for parents to teach children compassion and kindness.

Studies show hardened crime starts with cruelty towards animals and weak.” (Indian Express)

‘I would love to visit Pakistan one day’ - Varun Dhawan

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arun Dhawan is all for peace and normalcy returning between India and Pakistan. The actor in fact even had a brush with a Pakistan gentleman while shooting for Dishoom in the Middle East. A senior gentleman from Islamabad used to drive Varun around the Gulf city and the actor ended up forming a close bond with the Pakistani.

Said Varun, “For the 55 to 60 days that I was in Abu Dhabi, I was chilling with my driver there who was

from Islamabad. He was 65-year-old and I formed a special bond with him.

Whenever I used to ask him about both India and Pakistan, he used to say aisa koi masla nahi hai. He used to say, ‘Aap bata do kidhar jaana hai. Aapko chicken khaana hai then let’s go here and he would take me to the best eateries. He would also pick music of Nustrat Fateh Ali Khan and Chitti Aayi Hai of Pankaj Udhas for me. I got lot of inspiration from him. I had to speak Arabic in the film and I had a coach with whom I trained. But eventually I gave my lines to my driver and told him, ‘aap bolo kaise bolna hai’.”

Varun also spent a lot of time discussing films with the Pakistani man.

“Hindi films are loved in Pakistan and he told me that they watch all our movies and hoped that I would visit Pakistan someday. I told him that I would definitely like to come. Just recently our Prime Minister too visited Pakistan. So if things become better one day, I would love to go and visit Pakistan,” said Varun. (Indian Express)

‘I think I was Bengali in my last birth’ -Vidya Balan

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ctress Vidya Balan, who has portrayed a Bengali character in films like Parineeta, Kahaani and TE3N, feels she had her roots in Bengal in her previous life. Vidya is currently shooting for ‘Begum Jaan’ in Patjor on the West Bengal-Jharkhand border.

“I think I was a Bengali in my last birth,” Vidya said in a statement.

The Dirty Picture actress, who hails from Kerala and was also honoured with the Pride of Kerala Award, made her film debut in a Bengali film ‘Bhalo Theko’. Her big Bollywood debut was ‘Parineeta’, which was shot entirely in Kolkata.

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fter showing their sizzling chemistry in movies like ‘Student of the Year ‘and ‘Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania’, actor Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt might team up for Abhishek Varman’s next film.

Vidya says she feels a sense of familiarity with the state.

“It is strange considering my family has no roots there,” she added. (Indian Express)

According to a report in SpotBoye, the upcoming untitled film is being produced

by Karan Johar and might feature Varun and Alia as main leads.

Varun, 29, and Alia, 23, who made their Bollywood debut together with KJo’s film ‘Student of the year’, would also be seen together in Shashank Khaitan’s upcoming film ‘Badrinath Ki Dulhania’, a second installment of a franchise ‘Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania’.

Abhishek Varman, who made his directorial debut with the 2014 movie ‘2 States’ featuring Alia and Arjun Kapoor, wants to feature the ‘Udta Punjab’ actress in his next film as well. (Indian Express)

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

F

ilmmaker Nishikant Kamat, whose film ‘Madaari’ about a common man’s plight in the country, will release on Friday, says he will next work on a romantic movie.

“My next film is a romantic one. I want to reinvent myself, so I am taking a break for six months. I have not even taken a Sunday off in the last few years, so I need to slow down. So, right now it’s a sabbatical for me and then I will start with my romantic film,” Kamat told IANS. As a director, Kamat has worked on films like ‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’, ‘Drishyam’, ‘Dombivali Fast’ and ‘Force’. He says he has unfortunately not made a film from a woman’s point of view.

Asked why all his films have been from a male’s point of view, he said: “During my theatre days, I have done all women-centric themes. I will make

R

umours are doing the rounds that actor Shahid Kapoor has been reportedly roped in to play Deepika Padukone’s on screen husband Raja Rawal Ratan Singh in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s upcoming classic tale ‘Padmavati.’

SpotBoye quoted a source, as saying, “Bhansali wants Shahid to play the Chittor King who is married to Rani Padmini of Chittorgarh.”

Needless to say if

a women-centric film in future because I know this is one question even I have asked myself. “Probably I didn’t get the right script. It was such an honour to work with Tabu in ‘Drishyam’, but you need a substantial role for an actor of her calibre.”

‘Madaari’ features Irrfan Khan as the protagonist. (Indian Express)

Shahid, 35, accepts the role, ‘Padmavati’ would mark his first collaboration with Bhansali and also with Ranveer Singh and Deepika.

However, earlier it was reported that initially a television actor was signed to play Deepika’s husband in the film, but the actress didn’t approve of it.

Reportedly, the ‘Piku’ actress and Ranveer would not be seen sharing any scenes together in the film. Deepika

would be sharing some intimate scenes with her husband in the movie, and therefore, wants a bigger star to play her on-screen husband.

Prakash Kapadia, who earlier scripted ‘Bajirao Mastani’, has reportedly been roped in to write ‘Padmavati’, which would see Ranveer playing the obsessed Delhi Sultan Alauddin Khilji.

The shooting of the movie is likely to go on the floors in September.

(Indian Express)

Aditi Rao Hydari sizzles in The Legend of Michael Mishra’s ‘Luv Letter’

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ollywood actress Aditi Rao Hydari is all set to sizzle the screen in her next, ‘The Legend of Michael Mishra’. In a recent video released on YouTube, the actress was seen making her moves in an item dance number ‘Luv Letter’.

The track has been composed by the Meet Brothers and Kanika Kapoor has lent her voice. It’s the same team that cheered film goers with Sunny Leone’s Baby Doll in Ragini MMS 2.

Bollywood being Bollywood couldn’t help but keep inspiration at

bay, hence the song has a lot of similarities with Jacqueline Fernandez starrer ‘Chittiyan Kalaiyaan’ from Roy. Along with Aditi Rao Hydari, The Legend of Michael Mishra also stars Boman Irani and Arshad Warsi.

Aditi plays the role of an aspiring actress hailing from Bihar, while Arshad Warsi plays a love-struck gangster, ready to leave his old life for the sake of his girl.

The comedy film is set to release on August 5, 2016. (Indian Express)

Hollywood 49

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Johnny Depp makes first red Being villain is best part carpet appearance post split about being in ‘Baywatch’ - Priyanka Chopra

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ctor Johnny Depp made his first red carpet appearance since his split with estranged wife Amber Heard.

The 53-year-old Black Mass star accompanied his Hollywood Vampires bandmates for the annual Starkey Hearing Foundation Awards Gala in St Paul, reported E! Online.

The event was also attended by Jennifer Garner, Buzz Aldrin and Jay

Leno. Depp, who caught up in a controversy for allegedly abusing his wife, walked the carpet and posed alongside Alice Cooper and his wife, Sheryl Goddard for camera.

“I’ve been lucky enough to play characters like Edward Scissorhands, Captain Jack Sparrow and my only sort of goal is of making someday a positive change”, he said during the event.

(Indian Express)

Amazon to finance Woody Allen’s next film

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irector Woodey Allen has reportedly been set to partner with Amazon for his upcoming untitled film.

The 80-year-old Midnight in Paris filmmaker is in talks with the e-commerce giant, that would fully finance his yet-to-be titled, Kate Winslet-Jim Belushi starrer, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Allen, also an actor, has earlier collabo-

A

ctress Priyanka Chopra says being able to play a character with shades of grey is the best part about her Hollywood debut venture ‘Baywatch’.

The actress, who also features in American TV show ‘Quantico’, feels being bad is like an addiction as “we don’t get to do that in real life”.

“The best part of working on ‘Baywatch’ is to be the villain of the movie. I don’t think The Rock aka Dwayne Johnson has ever had anyone who’s been mean to him. He’s a great guy but Victoria is a bitch,” Priyanka said.

The actress spoke about her maiden Hollywood project in an interview to Flare Magazine, a Canadian fashion magazine.

The ‘Baywatch’ movie is based on the hugely popular 1990s TV series of the same name. And Priyanka essays Victoria Leeds in it.

Priyanka says Victoria “is mean and patronising and evil just because she can be and I don’t know if Dwayne’s ever had that”.

“So to me that was the best part of doing ‘Baywatch’ and getting on my high heels and on my tippy toes and doing mean things and getting away with it. I enjoyed it way more than I should.

Being bad is like an addiction, because we don’t get to do that in real life,” she added.

The actress is now busy shooting Season Two of “Quantico”, which will return in September.

The first season of the

show will be back in India from the midseason break on Star World and Star World HD next month.

In the show, Priyanka plays Alex Parrish, an FBI recruit who becomes a suspect of terrorist bombing of New York’s Grand Central Station. The show’s storytelling prism shifts between the present day with Parrish navigating her way through a class of FBI new agent trainees to the near future as the truth and repercussions of the attack emerge.

The actress says one can “definitely expect Alex to be completely out of her element” in season two.

“I mean we are so used to Alex being the tough girl who has the situation under control and she fixes things.

Here she is just completely out of her league, completely out of her element with what happens to her in season 2 and she just can’t get a grip on anything. It’ll be very exciting for me to play and you to watch,” said the former Miss World.

(Indian Express)

Deepika Padukone’s birthday message to xXx co-star Vin Diesel: I love you Teddy rated with Amazon for the distribution rights of his romantic-comedy

‘Cafe Society’” (Indian Express)

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to cameo in ‘Star Trek Beyond’

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mazon CEO Jeff Bezos is all set to make a cameo in the upcoming sci-fi action film ‘Star Trek Beyond’.

The news came out when the film’s director Justin Lin and producer JJ Abrams confirmed his small appear-

ance during an interview, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The business tycoon, who is a big fan of the franchise, will play the role of an alien in the movie.

“He was awesome. It was like a president was visiting, you know?

He had a big entourage! But it didn’t matter because he was so into it,” said Lin. Praising Bezos for his acting skills, Lin said, “He had to wait around all day because it was one day we were shooting, like, three different scenes and, it was also credit to Jeff because… he just nailed it every time.” (Indian Express)

D

eepika Padukone has posted a sweet birthday wish for her upcoming Hollywood debut xXx: Return of Xander Cage co-star Vin Diesel, calling him a man with the “kindest, generous” heart.

As Diesel turned 49 on July 18, the actress took to Instagram to wish him.

She shared a picture of herself with

Tilda Swinton’s first-look from ‘Okja’ unveils

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ctress Tilda Swinton’s first-look from her upcoming Netflix’s monster movie ‘Okja’ has been revealed.

The 55-year-old ‘A Bigger Splash star’ is seen with actor Giancarlo Esposito in the first official image of the film, reported Entertainment Weekly.

Directed by Bong Joon-Ho, the movie revolves around a young girl, Seohyun An, who fights to prevent a powerful multinational company from kidnapping her best friend — who is a massive animal named Okja.

The film also stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano, and

Steven Yeun. The director Joon-Ho said, “I want to show the beauty that can exist between man and animal, and also the horror between them.”

‘Okja’ will release globally on Netflix in 2017.

(Indian Express)

the Fast and Furious actor.

“Happy Happy Birthday to the man with the kindest most generous heart! I love you Teddy!” Deepika, 30, captioned the photo. xXx: Return of Xander Cage, the third instalment of the xXx franchise, is slated for January 2017 release. (Indian Express)

50 sport

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Hero CPL: A view from the grounds ahead of USA chapter

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ith the Lauderhill leg of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), which takes place between 28-31 July in Central Broward Stadium, fast approaching, international curator Mark Perham gives us a rundown on the preparations that are being made to ensure that the grounds will be ready for action in a less than 10 days’ time.

New Zealander Perham has worked at a number of grounds across the world, and enjoyed a hugely successful stint as head groundsman in Eden Park for more than 11 years.

Whilst there, the demands of maintaining a top-class facility for both rugby union and cricket meant that it was a yearlong challenge to keep the grounds at international standard and of the highest quality.

Perham worked at the Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand and the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 in Australia and New Zealand, meaning he is well-versed in the requirements for maintaining grounds at the highest standard. And in an exclusive interview withwww.cplt20.com, he talks about the challenges and opportunities for the Hero CPL as it embarks on a new and excit-

ing chapter in the USA later this month.

Ticket Information: Supporters can buy tickets online at www. cplt20.com and are urged to buy in advance to avoid disappointment. The Ticket Office at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center, located next to the Central Broward Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, is open for business from Monday to Friday (10am-5pm) and on Saturday (12 – 4pm) to enable fans to physically buy tickets in advance of the biggest party in sport this summer.

Tickets are on sale now for all games across the Caribbean and Florida from www. cplt20.com.

Florida Fixtures (all times local): 28 July – Guyana Amazon Warriors v Barbados Tridents (7pm), 29 July - St Kitts & Nevis Patriots v Trinbago Knight Riders (7pm), 30 July – St. Lucia Zouks v Jamaica Tallawahs (midday), Barbados Tridents v Guyana Amazon Warriors (4pm), 31 July - Trinbago Knight Riders v St Kitts & Nevis Patriots (midday), Jamaica Tallawahs v St. Lucia Zouks (4pm).

Tallawahs qualify for Hero CPL knockouts

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he Jamaica Tallawahs have secured a place in the knockout stages of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) with a win over the Barbados Tridents at Sabina Park. The Tallawahs have won all four of their home games as they became the first team to gain a place at finals week in St Kitts & Nevis.

A brilliant innings from Chadwick Walton and runs from Kumar Sangakkara and Rovman Powell allowed the Tallawahs to post their highest total of Hero CPL 2016 in a game that was shorted as a result of a rain storm.

The Tridents chase petered out quickly with the only bright spark being another half century for Nicholas Pooran who continues to impress.

The contest was reduced to 18 overs a side, but once the skies had cleared Chadwick Walton scored at a frightening lick. The Tallawahs lost Chris Gayle early but it didn't matter as Walton made 97, painfully close to his first ever T20 hundred.

Walton shared a partnership of 127 runs with Sangakkara, the best stand for the Tallawahs at this year’s Hero CPL. Walton had not had a great Hero CPL to this point but here he was in fine form. He hit nine fours and five sixes as he helped the Tallawahs to an impressive 195-5 off their 18 overs. He fell in the final over of the innings when he tried to smash Ravi Rampaul over midwicket for six to bring up his ton. He didn’t quite get all of it, a rarity in this knock, and

Ahmed Shahzad took the catch.

Sangakkara was the perfect foil for Walton, the Sri Lankan great was happy to turn the strike over to his partner while taking boundary hitting opportunities when they arose.

He made 50 from 31 balls at a very decent strike rate of 161 but he was made to look pedestrian by Walton – evidence of just how impressive the Jamaican opener’s knock was.

When Sangakkara departed Andre Russell replaced him with 23 balls left in the Tallawahs innings and he was dismissed for a golden duck. The loss of a player as important as Russell for no score could well have slowed down the Tallawahs but find of the tournament Rovman Powell had other ideas.

He blasted 34 runs from 14 balls, including four Hero Maximums.

Chasing 196 to win the Tridents lost Kyle Hope to a superb ball from Dale Steyn in his first over, a ball outside the line of off stump and moving away from Hope who edged it through to the keeper to leave his team 15-1.

The Tridents have lost the services of AB de Villiers and with him unavailable they made the brave call to promote Akeal Hosein to number three.

Hosein has a firstclass hundred to his name, but his high score in T20 cricket before this match was 12 not out. It was a huge ask

for the young man to score at the required

rate against the pace of Russell, Steyn and Kesrick Williams. The experiment wasn’t a success as Hosein managed just eight runs from 13 balls before being well caught at long on off the bowling of USA international Timroy Allen.

The score was at 44-3 with the required rate already up to nearly 13 an over with Nicholas Pooran and Shoaib Malik at the crease and they needed a significant partnership from those two batsmen to bring them back into the contest. When Malik departed 11 runs later the Tridents needed a miracle from captain Kieron Pollard to stave off defeat.

It was too much even for Pollard who was dismissed by Dale Steyn in his last match for the Tallawahs before he too leaves, and the paceman finished with figures of 4-27, picking up his 200th T20 wicket in the process.

Pooran continued to impress for the Tridents as he scored the fastest ever fifty for the Barbados Tridents, but there was too much for the 20-year-old to do on his own. He was eventually run out for 51 from 25 as the Tridents stumbled to a 36 run defeat.

Rising Star defeat Enterprise in WISA competition

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ising Star Cricket Club of Waterbury, CT, defeated Enterprise Cricket Club of New York on Sunday July 17th in the WISA competition.

Rising Star were clearly seen as the underdogs in front of a packed Charles Drew Park, but this did not prevent the boys from Waterbury to exhibit their true talent and sportsmanship.

It was an exciting game of cricket with both sides performing to the highest level.

The scores: 188/4 vs.189/5.

Outstanding performances from Enterprise players - M. Sukhra and B. Barron, good support from the remaining cast.

Rising Star - with outstanding performances from MVP A. Watson, Mahendra, Vedeash, Captain Avinesh, Gumtie, Archiebar and Raymond.

Rising Star would like to thank Mr. Harald and others for their generous support and hospitality.

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

51

52 sport

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Guyana strike gold at 21st Caribbean Darts Championships BY: DELVON MC EWAN

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udesh “Kerry” Fitzgerald and Luis RamirezMerlano struck gold for Guyana as they earned the top spots in the Men’s Doubles of the 21st Caribbean Cup which was held in Barbados from July 9 to 17.

On Sunday Fitzgerald won the individual single title and later teamed up with Ramirez- Merlano to take the men’s doubles crown. Wins in these two categories along with a few other top finishes help Guyana to sixth place out of a total of nine teams.

Apart from the men’s double title and the single title, female player Jaswantie Hiralall was outstanding for Guyana in the blind draw; where randomly selected competitors played for top honours. She finished as runner up.

At the conclusion of the tourna-

The National Darts Team upon arrival at the Eugene F Correia

Men’s Doubles Champions Luis RamirezMerlano and Sudesh Fitzgerald

ment Fitzgerald was named the event’s Most Valuable Player (MVP).

Fitzgerald spoke to Guyana Times International Sport upon the team’s arrival at the Eugene F. Correia Airport and said, “Fitzgerald said it feels good to be a winner and hard work has paid off.”

He informed that he

will now be preparing for international tournaments later in the year.

Hiralall acknowledge it was a very competitive tournament, but felt she could have done better and will be working on her game the next time around.

Florida was crowned champions of the event with 113 points, sec-

ond place went to Bahamas who finished with 99 points and host Barbados claimed third with 76 points. The other teams finished in the following order, Trinidad and Tobago 73 points, Jamaica 67 points, Guyana 66 points, Cayman Islands 60 points, Belize 56 pts and Turks and Caicos 24 points.

The points were gathered from performances in the following categories; Mixed Doubles,

Women’s Doubles, Men’s Doubles, Mixed Triples, Women’s Singles and Men’s Singles. Guyana finished sixth in the individual category with 18 points and fifth in the team division with 48 points for their eventual grand total of 66 points.

The team arrived on Monday at the Eugene Correia Airport at 14.00h just over a week after they departed Guyana for Barbados on July 8 to compete in the Americas/ Caribbean Cup.

A total of thirteen players, eight males and five females made up Guyana’s team; Jamwant Bhupan; (Manager/ Player); Sudesh Fitzgerald (Coach/Captain), Luis Merlano (Assistant coach/player), Marvin Yaw(coach/ player), Lallchand Rambharose, Nicholas Seetaram, Adrian Damon, Terence Joseph, Mary Correia, Jaswantie Hiralall, Victorine Chandro and Melissa Smartt.

Kevin Pietersen signs Russian doping: IOC delays up with Dolphins again decision on possible blanket ban for Rio Olympics

Kevin Pietersen

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evin Pietersen will return home, to KwaZuluNatal, to play for Dolphins in South Africa's T20 competition in the upcoming season.

Pietersen, who was born in the province's capital Pietermaritzburg, has signed a five-match deal with the franchise, which will see him compete in the second half of the tournament. He will also be available for the knockouts should the team qualify.

This will be Pietersen's second stint with the franchise, after he had contributed significantly to their run to the final last summer. Pietersen made seven appearances for Dolphins and finished as the second-highest rungetter, behind Quinton de Kock, with 401 runs,

including two hundreds and two fifties, at an average and strike rate of 80.20 and 172.84 respectively.

"I'm as excited as anything to have signed with Dolphins again," Pietersen said. "I had such a wonderful time with them last season and I really enjoyed the team, the camaraderie and the competition so it was a very easy decision to sign again for this season's T20 competition. It will be great to getting back onto the cricket field again and I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone in Durban again as well."

Apart from being the highest profile player so far to be part of South Africa's T20 tournament - which continues to struggle to attract international names

due to the declining Rand and the scheduling - Pietersen is one of only two internationals alongside Imran Tahir to be named in Dolphins' squad for the upcoming season.

Dolphins had lost their South African stars David Miller and Kyle Abbott to Knights and Warriors respectively, in an off season, which also included the departure of three other players - Jonathan Vandiar and Daniel Sincuba - the CEO Pete de Wet and coach Lance Klusener.

That has left newlyappointed coach Grant Morgan with the task of rebuilding the franchise.

Morgan has already worked with Pietersen, during a stint at Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL, and hoped Pietersen could make a big impact for Dolphins as well.

"I was privileged enough to spend some time with Kevin during my time at Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL back in 2009.

Kevin was captain of that side and made an indelible impact on all the players, especially the youngsters," Morgan said. "He is a worldclass player in all formats of the game and in T20 he is no doubt one of the best there has ever been." (ESPNCricinfo)

(BBC)

T

he International O l y m p i c Committee (IOC) said it will "explore the legal options" before deciding whether to implement "a collective ban" on all Russian competitors for the global showpiece, which starts on 5 August.

In the meantime, the IOC says it plans to retest all Russians who competed at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

This follows the findings of the McLaren report, which said urine samples of Russian competitors were manipulated across the "vast majority" of summer and winter Olympic sports from late 2011 to August 2015.

The IOC also said it will:  Not organise or

back any sports events or meetings in Russia, including the European Games, scheduled for June 2019;  Start disciplinary action against Russian officials named in the report compiled by Dr Richard McLaren;  Ban Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko from the Rio Games;  Urge McLaren to continue his work and name individual Russian cheats;  Encourage individual sports federations to look for any Russian infringements of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) code.

Mutko said on Tuesday there was "no state doping schemes in Russia".

Calls for a blanket ban on Russia from both the Olympics and Paralympics - fol-

lowed the publication of the McLaren report on Monday.

The IOC says it will first "take into consideration" a ruling, to be made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) on Thursday, on the legality of banning all of Russia's track and field athletes.

IOC president Thomas Bach said the findings of the report were a "shocking and unprecedented attack on the integrity of sport and on the Olympic Games".

Wada president Sir Craig Reedie described the "scope and scale" of the findings as a "real horror story".

He said his organisation wanted the IOC to "decline entries, for Rio 2016, of all athletes" submitted by the Russian Olympic and Paralympic committees.

WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Hero CPL teams confirm changes for closing stages of tournament

W

ith a number of South African internationals set to complete their Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) stints, the tournament organisers have confirmed a list of three replacement players for the remainder of the

tournament.

Barbados Tridents duo AB de Villiers and Wayne Parnell as well as Dale Steyn of the Jamaica Tallawahs have been recalled by Cricket South Africa to fulfil a contractual obligation to attend the annual Cricket South Africa /

South African Cricketers Association Awards ceremony which takes place in Johannesburg.

Both de Villiers and Parnell made a winning contribution to the Tridents in their last game on Sunday night when they helped the

home side defeat the St. Lucia Zouks by 25 runs.

The duo will be replaced

by Pakistan’s Ahmed Shehzad and Proteas fast bowler Marchant de Lange, respectively.

Shehzad is expected to link up with the Tridents squad ahead of their next

game against Jamaica Tallawahs in Sabina Park on Wednesday (8pm) and de Lange will be available from the St. Lucia leg.

Steyn, meanwhile, will feature in the Tallawahs final two home matches against Trinbago Knight Riders (Monday, 8pm) and the Tridents (Wednesday, 8pm) before being replaced by his compatriot Dane Paterson who will be making his Hero CPL bow.

Shehzad, 24, previously played for the Tallawahs and is an experienced top order batsman having represented his country in 11 Tests, 75 One-Day Internationals and 44 T20 Internationals.

In 140 T20 matches overall, the Lahore man has a strike rate of 126.05 and averages 29.13.

Capped four times

at Test level for South Africa to date, 25-year-old de Lange previously featured for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Hero CPL. He also has four ODI’s and six T20 international games under his belt, and has claimed 53 wickets in 44 T20 first-class games to date.

Fast bowler Paterson, meanwhile, will link up with the Tallawahs later this week ahead of the St. Lucia leg of matches and he could come into the frame for the opening game of the Central Broward Stadium, Florida leg of matches. Paterson, 27, has claimed 245 firstclass wickets and boasts strong figures in the shortest format of the game, having taken 33 wickets at an economy rate of 6.79 in 32 games to date.

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WEEK ENDING JULY 24, 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

‘Extremely honoured to lead Guyana Amazon Warriors’ - Rayad Emrit

G

uyana Amazon Warriors have named Rayad Emrit as Captain in place of New Zealander Martin Guptill for the remainder of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) campaign, with in-form Australian batsman Chris Lynn stepping up to the position of vice-captain.

The experienced Emrit, 35, has played in 36 Hero CPL games since 2013, having also previously featured for Barbados Tridents, and has been a key performer in Guyana Amazon Warrior’s ascent up the league table with nine wickets to date in seven

matches to date this season.

Capped twice for the West Indies at One-Day International level, the right-arm medium-fast bowler has displayed strong leadership skills this season.

Emrit said: “I am delighted and extremely honoured to be given this opportunity to lead the Guyana Amazon Warriors team for the rest of the tournament.

Martin did a fantastic job and I just want to continue in that vein by leading the team to more victories and consolidating our position on top of the table. I want to thank the franchise own-

Rayad Emrit

er and management for having the faith in me to lead such a great group of players and our aim is to go all the way.”

Chris Lynn, meanwhile, has been in devastating form with the bat for the Amazon Warriors and has so far scored 246 runs in seven innings at an average of 49.2, and an impressive strike rate of 130.2.

The 26-year-old Australian international captained the Brisbane Heat in last year’s Big Bash and was selected as the Player of the Tournament having finished the competition as the tournament’s leading run-scorer and six-

hitter.

The Amazon Warriors will next face St. Lucia Zouks in the Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium on Sunday, 24 July at 17:00h.

GUYANA AMAZON WARRIORS: Sohail Tanvir, Nic Maddinson, Dwayne Smith, Chris Lynn (vice-captain), Rayad Emrit (captain), Adam Zampa, Devendra Bishoo, Jason Mohammed, Christopher Barnwell, Veerasammy Permaul, Orlando Peters, Assad Fudadin, Anthony Bramble, Paul Wintz, Steven Jacobs, Steven Katwaroo, Ali Khan, Shimron Hetmyer