Guyana Times Sunday Magazine July 8, 2018

JULY 8, 2018

A survivor's story:

“I feel free...

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2 Sunday Times Magazine

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JULY 8 , 2018

Domestic Violence

A survivor's story

cause “I had six children and how you can take six children and go live by yourself”.

The couple’s life progressed and they constructed a small house on a plot of land that belonged to Lionel’s mother where they

was yesterday explaining that after a time, Lionel started to “trip out” and would always find her and threaten to kill her. However, she never reported the beatings and threats to the Police, because she always thought he would mend his ways and they would go back to being the family they once were.

“One time he chopped me pon me hand. But everyone been saying that he was a good man because they would get him to do anything for a little money. So people are saying that he was good, but towards me he was abusive.

He was a good person, but the drugs in him made him a different person.”

For Ann, the 28 years she spent with Lionel felt as though they were seven lifetimes that ended when she left him. But he still fol-

increasing as the days progressed and on June 21, 2018, Ann saw the light at the end of the tunnel, but refused to follow it.

“I went out and the afternoon when I came home and he start abusing me and he start the fight-

lived together until 2016 when the abuse intensified and Ann decided to leave. She got a place to rent within the same Babu Jaan Village in Port Mourant and continued life.

Jogging her memory, Ann says she remembers everything like it

lowed her and the threats were intensifying, so she decided to get the Police involved and he was charged several times. He was even placed on a bond to keep the peace which he violated by continuing to threaten Ann or beating her. The threats of murder were

ing and my daughter came in and tried to part. He try to buss meh neck, meh throat and me get away and then he run behind me and after that he came back and burn the house down. After he see people start to come, he run through the bush…because people were not

By Lakhram Bhagirat

F

or almost a decade, Omawattie Alvin or Ann as she loves to be called was the subject of constant physical and verbal violence at the hands of her then husband. But one day she said enough was just enough and left the relationship with her two children in tow. A few years later, she would meet the sweetest man possible. He fathered her four other children and treated her the way she wanted to be treated, but little did she know the future would be worse than what she had to endure with her then ex-husband.

Ann met Lionel Thomas in the early 90s and she said for the first few years they led a peaceful and happy life, but everything took a turn downhill around 1997 when he got involved in drugs. She explained that he first started smoking marijuana and then graduated to crack cocaine. At the time, the couple had been rearing cattle and gradually the animals began disappearing and the abuse started.

At first, it was the constant pestering and demand for money to purchase drugs, but late 1997 the physical violence started. Many times while Ann toiled in the market as a fish vendor, Lionel would just show up and begin assaulting her while taking away whatever money she had earned.

“He get this demanding way that you got to give him what he wants and he does beat me like bad in front them children and thing. You know many nights me does have to go away by my friend or his sister to hide from the licks,” she recounted.

Ann, 47, spoke to the Sunday Magazine on Wednesday, the day after Lionel’s funeral, and she said despite his constant abuse and addiction, he was a wonderful man.

She remembers hiding from the beatings, but refusing to leave, be-

Ann

Lionel Thomas

paying attention to he. They were paying attention to me, because I was bleeding and my daughter was crying out because she is pregnant and so, and they take we to the hospital,” she detailed.

Ann would receive four stitches to her neck while her pregnant daughter would receive two.

Fearful for her life, after the incident Ann went into hiding while Police looked for Lionel. They later found him hanging from a tree.

Now Ann spends her days trying to rebuild her life. She is looking for a plot of land to relocate the house she built with Lionel since some of his family members are now blaming her for his death.

With the exception of Lionel’s eldest sister, all other members of Lionel’s family were silent during the years of abuse and now that he is dead, they are out to get Ann. “I feel bad because I know that I am free and he can’t do me anything, but my children them are without a father because of his stupidness. His behaviour now leave his children them without a father.

I feel a way about that, because at least he could have moved on with his life. He didn’t want to move on with his life and now his family is blaming me. I knew him very well and if he had catch me after this, he would kill me and kill heself; that was his intention and he always tell me that.”

She attended his funeral on Tuesday despite some objections from his family because they would have spent almost three decades together.

At the end of our chat, I asked Ann whether she still loved Lionel or had any feelings for him. Her gasp was audible as she thought about the answer to give me and after some time, she said she had no feelings for him. The love was lost when the abuse started and any residual feelings died when he did.

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JULY 8 , 2018

Sunday Times Magazine

3

Losing a mother

By Lakhram Bhagirat

E

“

very night them children does wake up and call fuh mommy and start cry.

Them accustomed to me so I does get up and give them the tea and put them back to sleep, because that is what she use to do when she was alive and them custom to that,” says Jacklyn Henry when I asked how her grandchildren are coping after their mother’s death.

Jacklyn’s daughter, Tovanie Simmons, was fatally stabbed by her ex-husband at approximately 23:20h on June 21, 2018. She is survived by four children: eightyear-old Marcia Lyte, six-yearold Marica Lyte and four-year-old twins Malique and Miles Lyte.

Jacklyn explains that her daughter and son-in-law, Imran Lyte, had a very good relationship and she never knew Imran to be an abusive person. She related that he was always nice to her and would go out of his way to provide for his family. Jacklyn said over the years she would occasionally stay with the couple whenever she visited from neighbouring Suriname where she lived and her daughter never complained of being abused nor did she witness any such act.

Prior to June 21, Imran confronted Tovanie about having her

friends laugh at his new girlfriend and then they became involved in a physical altercation after which her sister intervened. Subsequently, her was passing and became involved resulting in Imran stabbing him and escaping. Imran’s relatives pleaded with Tovanie not to involve the Police in the incident citing his financial position at that time.

On the fateful day, Imran visited Tovanie’s Limlair Village, Corentyne home to discuss a misunderstanding between him and her brother, but then became involved in an intense argument with the 28-year-old. This resulted in him whipping out a knife from his pants waist and stabbing her several times. Jacklyn was there when the incident occurred and she screamed for help and her daughter barely managed to run out of the house, jumped from the veranda, and ran about 200 metres east before she fell to the ground.

Imran then ran behind Tovanie and slit her throat before fleeing the scene to hide out in the backdam area of the village. She was rushed to the New Amsterdam Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival. She sustained 12 stab wounds to her neck, left breast, back, left hip, left forearm, right chest and chin, collectively.

According to Jacklyn, what

Imran did next was an act of cowardice: he consumed Gramoxone and died a few days later while receiving medical treatment.

After her daughter’s life was taken, Jacklyn was forced to move into the home to take care of the four children. The young children have not been able to process properly what transpired and would ever so often look for their mother.

Her grandmother has tried her best to explain to them that their mother is gone and could never come back to them, but there is only so much that they understand at that tender age.

“Me daughter is now gone and them mother gone. I is the only body them got right now and I got to stand up for them. I does try tell them what happen so they can understand. The two big one them understand what happen, but the two boys does ask and then in the night is when I does got to worry when them does get up and cry. It does hurt me to know that they have to grow up without she and I am old too, so I don’t know what will happen when I gone from here. I does worry real bad,” Jacklyn tells me.

The children asking questions constantly interrupted our chat but that did not bother either of us.

Jacklyn is patient with her grandchildren and she treats them like

fragile possessions. The love they have for her is evident, but you can feel the sense of loss whenever Jacklyn speaks.

The children cannot articulate what and how they feel about losing their mother and subsequently their father, but it is fair to say growing up will be a battle for them. I cannot even begin to imagine how they feel and I think no one ever will be able to.

A few days before their father died, he requested that they all visited him in the hospital, but Jacklyn told me that she initially refused to allow them to meet him because of the anger she felt towards him, but she was eventually persuaded to send them. Her sister facilitated the visit and Imran held his children and begged their forgiveness for making them orphans. He cried bitterly, Jacklyn says, but the children did not understand what he meant when he told them “daddy is going to join mommy now, me going away for good.”

Imran would die the following day.

When I asked Jacklyn if she forgave Imran, she paused, inhaled, exhaled deeply, sighed and then said yes.

“I done forgive he long time. He was a good bai and I don’t know what make he do this, but I forgive

he. Let he soul rest and only God can judge he. I am sad he do what he do but I forgive he, I forgive he.”

For now, the primary focus is getting the children settled. In addition, Jacklyn is preparing the twins for nursery school which they will be starting in September.

4

Sunday Times Magazine

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JULY 8 , 2018

Intimate partner violence

“I

t is the end of it (the relationship) because numerous times he hit me. I got black and blue in my hands. I got slap to my mouth, burst up and I keep forgiving him. How long am I going to keep forgiving him? At this moment, I could see that he wanted to kill me. If it was not for my father and brother, I would be dead by now.”

By Lakhram Bhagirat

“I

stayed because everyone deserves a second chance and try. I know there is something bothering him, making he do this, so I tried talking to him and eventually I does get what’s bothering him and I told him that he can’t be hitting me.” That is what 22-year-old Zennell Persaud-Joseph told me one day after her boyfriend had severely beaten her.

Zennell is mother to a six-year-old and like many

women, she knew her relationship with Mark Anthony was toxic, but she loved him and enjoyed the time they spent together. Zennell began a relationship with Mark about nine months ago after she and her husband mutually separated.

At first, like any other relationship, Mark was a caring and understanding partner but after a few months, things began getting worse.

He became extremely possessive and jealous. Zennell explained that after her marriage ended, she moved

Zennell Persaud-Joseph and her boyfriend Mark Anthony

back to her parents’ Foulis, East Coast Demerara home, which is a stone’s throw away from where Mark lives. She currently works as a sales girl in Georgetown.

The couple would normally have heated arguments over petty things such as text messages or her having conversations with other people. The first instance of physical violence was a few months into their relationship while having drinks at a bar. Zennell was sitting on a stool when Mark started an argument which resulted in him kicking her to the side of her stomach in the crowded bar. The other instance was when they were hanging out with friends at a bar-be-que when he dealt her several slaps for no apparent reason.

“People knew that I was actually in this abusive relationship and people keep telling me Zennell you should get out because this is not healthy for you. I told him that he can’t be hitting me because since I am small I am travelling with a headache and he knew of my head injury,” she said.

As time progressed, so did the level of violence in their relationship, but Zennell stayed because she felt that she could change Mark. She wanted to show him that she was faithful and loved only him but the jealousy clouded that judgement and on Caricom Day this year, she saw him at his worst.

Recounting the day’s events, Zennell said earlier in the day she was out at the Enmore seawalls on a fishing trip with her friend’s family and would have in-

formed Mark of her whereabouts while he was on a drinking spree. At some point, one of her co-workers and her husband from La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara visited her and after that, she left with them to celebrate the couple’s anniversary.

When she returned home later in the evening, Mark began accusing her of being unfaithful while verbally abusing her and they got into an intense argument.

Later in the night, he called her and continued his abuse rant but she disconnected the phone after which he sent her a message asking her to visit his home. She left the house without informing anyone and after arriving at Mark’s, she was told to leave.

“So I turned my back and took three steps and from behind he came and start hitting me and start accusing me of being unfaithful. While he keep talking he keep hitting me constantly. One cuff after the next till I fell on the ground and he stomp me in my head. He kicked me and he keep hitting me. He start thumping me down the road right through, start pushing me, eventually he hit me behind my head again and I fell and when I fell it is like if I lose consciousness and when I do catch back myself, he was still hitting me and I start bleeding from my mouth and nose. He was hoisting me and lashing me down, that was when I was unconscious.”

Zennell says Mark was taking her to the friend she had gone fishing with to verify her story and while walk-

ing over there, he was repeatedly hitting her while she screamed in pain and begged for mercy. Eventually someone saw what was happening and informed her parents after which her father and brother rushed to the scene. However, Mark saw them approaching and quickly made good his escape.

“Eventually I went to my friend and cried and told her what happened and we took a taxi and went to Enmore Police Station and they gave me a medical. I was at the Georgetown Public Hospital doing my medical whole night and I came home like 6:30 this morning because I had to go through X-rays and blood tests,” Zennell recounts.

On Tuesday morning, she revisited the Police station where she gave a detailed statement and was sent away by officers. She had been receiving threats from Mark throughout the day but the Police did nothing and it was only after she got into contact with a senior official did the ranks at the Enmore Police Station act on the report.

“It is the end of it (the relationship) because numerous times he hit me. I go black and blue in my hands. I got slap my mouth, burst up and I keep forgiving him. How long am I going to keep forgiving him? At this moment, I could see that he wanted to kill me. If it was not for my father and brother, I would be dead by now.”

Zennell is advising all women who are in abusive relationships to ensure that they remove themselves before it is too late.

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JULY 8 , 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 5

A grandmother's story

A

Mala Mahabir

“

fter they saw everything on the news and then the newspaper too, he know that his mother died. But I still sit him down and I talked to him and explain things to him. Now I have him with me and I have to be strong for him. I can’t breakdown every time I miss her because he will be affected too,” says Mala Mahabir.

Mala’s 25-year-old step-

daughter, Simone Hackett, was brutally murdered by her reputed husband Clevaughn Hamilton on April 16, 2016 leaving behind their then three-yearold son Clevaughn Jr. According to information, sometime around 20:30hrs he called Hackett out of her 2968 ‘C’ Field Sophia home to collect a package for their son’s birthday and then he showed up. He told investigators that an argument ensued and while they were at a dark spot, he choked her from behind and began stabbing her. He then dumped her body in a trench between Third and Fourth streets, Cummings Lodge where Simone’s body was later discovered in a decomposed state.

He then fled to Mahdia where he was apprehended and charged for the crime.

The duo were separated for over a year prior to the murder after he would have repeatedly abused her.

Mala told the Sunday Magazine that losing Simone was hard on the family but her son took it

A grown Clevaughn Jr

the worse. Despite him not fully understanding the circumstances surrounding his mother’s death he does miss her dearly.

Clevaughn Jr. is now in the care of his grandmother and grandfather. Mala says that right now they have to be strong since he is growing up and would usually ask questions they are unable to provide answers to.

Since his mother’s death, Clevaughn would have developed some medical complications that are being dealt with.

“So far one time we went home with the papers and we didn’t notice the article in the papers and when he saw the article and pictures he took in and started to panic. He get an asthma attack and since then he travelling with that. We are trying our best to give him the best life he can get. We want him to remember her but not be sad about it. Should be so happy to see how big he grow,” Mala said.

Clevaughn Jr. just finished the Budding Roses Nursery School and is preparing to start Primary in September. His grandmother describes him as a fun and smart child. However, she could not contain her sadness when remembering Simone whom she raised from the age of 10.

“At times your emotion take hold of you but as I said you have to let the emotion go because you cannot keep breaking down in

Simone and Clevaughn Jr

front of him. We was close.

I take care of her since she was about 10. She lived with me and I don’t tell people I have step children she is my daughter because she grow with me and she lived with me till prior to her death.”

Mala is leaving no stones unturned to ensure her grandson has the best life and explains that he is at-

tending Private Schools since it was his mother’s desire for him to have the best education. In addition, to help deal with the psychological trauma Clevaughn Jr. is receiving counselling and therapy.

“The hurt never goes away but you got to deal with it one day at a time,” she said.

6 Sunday Times Magazine

JULY 8 , 2018

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Domestic Violence – A child's perspective

By Lakhram Bhagirat

I

have known Ricky (not real name) for over two decades and we are great friends.

When I first approached him with the idea of sharing how violence in the home affects the children, he was more than willing to assist, but his mother was not that enthusiastic.

So in order to preserve her identity, we have changed Ricky’s name and this is his story.

“She would scream while we watched helplessly as he would cuff and kick her about her body. It became a norm because we expected it every Saturday night when he came home drunk. But it got worse as the years went on and the number of us increased. It was bad and I try to bury those memories,” Ricky tells me during our chat.

Ricky is now almost 30 and he says the scars caused by witnessing his mother being abused runs deep. Now he battles his inner demons, finding it hard to love anyone; much less have a relationship, get married or even have children of his own.

Taking me back to his younger days, Ricky said he would pray that his mother does everything right and that his father would not notice if she slips up, especially on a Saturday. Being the middle child, Ricky was often neglected by his father and there was only so much his mother could have offered.

His mother met his father when she was only 19 years old and he was 22. They quickly fell in love and could not wait to be married so they eloped and within the first year, they had their first child and shortly after came the second one. His father was not an educated man and his mother was forced to drop out of school because of poverty but she had the potential to do exceptional things if the opportunity was there.

His father worked as a gardener for a number of years and shortly after Ricky was conceived, his father’s life started to go downhill.

He became hooked on drugs and the abuse intensified. The number of children also increased by two.

Ricky says he would still ask his mother why she stayed and the answer remains the same to this day. “I had to stay. I never wuk a day in my life and I had five children, so where I coulda tek them and go? I stayed with he because I had to depend on he,” she would say and that was exactly what she told me when I asked her.

However, everything came to an abrupt end

alternative family in his head where the parents about one year after Ricky’s youngest sibling was are loving and life is good. born. Their father emptied the house, took everyHe is now grown and afraid to start a family of thing and moved back home with his mother. When his own because he cannot get over the psychologihe left, Ricky’s mother was forced to immediately cal trauma.

He is in therapy. He wants to be a fabegin job hunting to take care of the children and ther and a good husband. she did exactly that. To this day she is there for “I am broken in ways that are hard to mend but them financially and emotionally whenever they I am trying real hard to fix myself. I will be fixed need her. and life will be better,” he assured me.

I asked Ricky to give me one good memory he had with his father and after a long pause he began to say “I remember one time, it was my birthday and it was a Sunday so he drink up good the night before and come home and cuss up and fight up but the next day he called all my cousins to celebrate my birthday. My mother wanted to be happy for me but she was sad because she knew we had no money to cook anything nice or even bake a cake. She told him that and by that time, he was already drunk again so he took the kero stove and throw it out the window and she had cooked pumpkin and rice, he took that and throw it away. The You've got that look again cussing started. She cried silently. I It is a sure thing ... there will be pain was shattered and I cried not beI try to make things calm, quiet and fast cause I wanted a cake but because You try to justify, lie and buck pass I knew what was coming next.”

Please don't put me in a box Ricky said after that incident his father left home and came It doesn't hurt anymore, that's just how it goes back later even more drunk.

I can cope; survive as long as the world never knows This heightened drunk state Keep my cards to my chest and my true feelings very near forced the mother and her chilBut you are getting more powerful, your greatest weapon; my fear dren to flee the house through Please don't put me in a box a window, so as to protect the children and herself from the A moment of clarity, I'm not protecting them, like I think impending beating.

My greatest failing, my babies, I begin to sink When I asked Ricky how this Do to me what you can; they are my reason to fight affected him, he smiled. He told Tear up all the carpets, there's no where left to put this out of sight me that to this day his single But, please don't put me in a box status tells so much about him.

He related that he knows nothing There are agencies a plenty desperate to stand by our side about a relationship and certainly They promise to make a difference; there will be a change of tide lost faith in the institution of marStop, shock horror there is a pigeon hole on reserve riage.

Wasn't expecting that, a real ball with a curve “Quite often the children of doWhy are you putting me in a box? mestic violence is not so much talked about. Because I am a male, society I have rights, and a voice, how loud must I be before I am heard does not expect me to be affected but I This is all mixed up, not me, the system; crazy and disturbed slipped into depression. I lost faith in love Now it's you with that look again and I am lonely but society doesn’t care And I've got shame, isolation and even more pain about that,” he said.

Why are you putting me in a box?

Ricky says he was able to battle with the violence but engrossing himself in his books which saw him excelling academically. He also created an

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JULY 8 , 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 7

Literary Corner

Preserving our literary heritage by

Petamber Persaud

(Extract of interview with Oliver Hinckson, December 24, 2007, Georgetown, Guyana.

Hinckson won the Casa de las Americas Literary Prize in 1978 for his first novel Enemy Within. It was reported in the local press that Hinckson passed away recently.)

P

P: You are now part of a group of significant Guyanese writers who have won the Casa de las America Literary Prize; writers like John Agard, N. D. Williams, Fred D’Aguiar and recently Mark McWatt. How does it feel to be part of that distinguished body of writers?

OH: You mentioned some dignified names. I was always impressed with Mc Watt and his writing. But when I got a letter three months after winning the prize from Jan Carew and he was fulsome in praise; to my mind I couldn’t ask for greater glorification.

Jan Carew is the doyen of literature after C. L. R. James whom I consider the greatest Caribbean writer ever, but it is an honour to be amongst these guys – it has taken a long time. In fact, Carew’s letter has encouraged me to keep on writing but I got caught up in business. However, I still managed to finish three books.

PP: By what means were you informed of winning the prize?

OH: In actuality I was on the run from the … government [of the day]; I’m not casting any aspersions on the [……Government] or whatever but that’s how it was – I was on the run. Having come out of the army from the Intelligence Corps, some people might have been paranoid; they felt that a few other ex-officers and I might be a threat. So I had some serious problems with them and I had to evade/take evasive action so to speak. During my sojourn, if you could call it that, the runners from the Cuban Embassy came with a telegram written in Spanish and gave it to my mother who got it to me very quickly.

Through my basic knowledge of Portuguese, I was able then to interpret…. especially the word, ‘premio’ which means prize.

PP: What was the feeling then - you said you were on the run, your thriller/espionage book a prize winner… on the run and you got this wonderful news, what did you make of the moment?

OH: That is the best and most profound I had heard in the longest while. As a matter of fact, that was what convinced me to give myself up in 1978. I was on the run for two years, and I decided based on what Jan Carew had told me – that is…. he sees some future in this whole thing; it means I have potential as a writer, it was convincing enough. So I said let me get

this matter off my back.

The moment was euphoric of course. But it is nice to win anything; I am telling you even if you go to the fair and win a bottle of rum, it feels good.

PP: Since the book, Enemy Within, won the prize, almost thirty years [ago]….

What are the factors responsible for bringing this book to publication a whole generation later, and I am stressing this particular length of time?

OH: Well, let me do this in reverse. The fact that it has come out after thirty years does have some nuances in a scenario that kept this book suppressed so long. The Cubans did write and say they would publish this book but then they were some political implications and they said I have written a book and submitted under my son’s name which is Kacey and they used that as a reason or pretext to say they can’t publish the book.

I then submitted to Longmans Publishers of England and they did write me a letter saying that they were impressed with it – they particularly mentioned that the characters breathed a sense of life and so on, and that the book was full of description. They did write and say they would publish it.

Two weeks after that, again, I got a letter saying they couldn’t do it. They did not specify any reason. I clearly remember Longmans saying that; it was a personal interview, I went up to England in 1981 and the editor told me personally she was going to publish it in the African and Pacific and Caribbean Series first and then go worldwide.

I was crushed when I came back down to Guyana and got this notification saying everything is off.

PP: You said you were crushed. Do you think there was something in the book… let me extend this question and rephrase it? This is a first book and many first novels tend to be autobiographical; could it be that that is what caused the publishing houses to shy away from publishing it?

OH: No doubt you have read the book and many others have read the book which was issued in America over the Labour Day weekend but there is nothing political in the book. As a matter of fact that formula is factual, it was discovered by laboratory analysts at the Linden mine and I read that article in the newspaper and I said, wow, at a time like this when Guyana needed a boost with its economy, this is 1978, the IDB was turning the screws on …. Government [of the day] and we were suffering the impact of the hike in oil prices, nothing there political. A lot of the intrigue in the book is based on the fact that

I worked in the intelligence service. And you know every writer is influenced by some previous writer.

PP: And whom were you influenced by?

OH: Alistair McLean was my favourite writer; in fact he had a strong influence on me particularly because I wanted to move away from the Caribbean style of writing where you harp on the nigger yard and the stand pipe and so on. You hardly have Caribbean writers doing spy thrillers.

PP: Not many names to mention here but Guyanese Christopher Nicole is one

and the two of us have put together a marketing strategy on how to get it on the shelves of the big houses abroad especially Random House.

PP: Which is an excellent move on your part - marketing. Which is what is needed by local writers apart from a few other things like good editorial advice and writers workshops. This cannot be overemphasised, marketing, marketing, marketing – we need to market ourselves as writers and our product also.

So I am delighted with this move by you and your daughter to market the book and hope emerging writers take

such writer with an amazing output – over eighty novels! Michelle Fitzpatrick – two slim volumes, Godfrey Wray – one down and one on its way. So Enemy Within would be a pioneering effort in a genre of writing still to be fully explored by our writers.

Where do see yourself, where do you see this book, this type of writing going in the near future?

OH: Well, you know, we tend to judge whenever it’s a sportsman, an athlete, or whatever by past performance. Everyone who has read the book so far including the esteemed Jan Carew and the prolix praises heaped on the book gave me a lot of hope that I can pull it off. I also have evidence from Penguin Books where they said there were many good points in the book especially the live characterisations and the pacing of the work.

I did marketing at UG, my daughter has an MBA

note.

Let’s look at the novel of mystery and intrigue. For me it was smooth, too smooth, very slick….

OH: Too slick? First of all, as I said before, this book was written while I was on the run and it was written in six weeks. Now it was almost twice this size and Longman Publishers of England said it was too long to be a thriller. So immediately I learnt something that thrillers should not be too long. And when you look at the size of Earl Stanley Gardner, James Hadley Chase and Alistair McLean – they are basically 140 pages or so; quick, fast, nasty and over with.

In terms of the book being too slick it is because you were convinced by the characters.

PP: And numerous descriptions of local scenery which slowed down the action but also added to the intrigue.

Now which is the real ti-

Notice to Readers

tle: Enemy Within on the cover or The Enemy Within on the title page?

OH: Enemy Within…the first time I heard this phrase was in a speech by John F. Kennedy....

PP: I asked this because ‘the’ is a definite article, pointing your finger to a particular object/subject.

Now with Enemy Within as Godfrey Wray mentioned, points to many things. Were you writing as the conscience of the nation?

OH: That question speaks a lot…can be quite revealing.

If you are on the run during the [.... government] of the day, everybody, everybody fancies himself to be a KGB agent and everybody is out to get you. There were massive posters of me all over the country, police stations, ferry stellings etc. It was a new phenomenon in this country, and in my sight, to be singled out in this era when the maximum leader had everybody under his control; you know he was a populist leader, very charismatic and everybody seemed to want to please him. He was also paranoid about army men and at the time there were many coups in Africa, leaders who had visited this country were overthrown. Then there was the Rodney phenomenon and the WPA giving the government blows left, right and centre; massive rallies, great support from every quarter… take all of that into account, there was an enemy in every hole.

PP: This book, Enemy Within surfacing some thirty years ago shows what could happen in a Guyana that is somewhat laidback, complacent, where everything in the society seem nice and rosy, at least on the surface, where things are brewing below the surface that the masses may not be privy to….

OH: Professor Lear Matthews who is at New York University wrote a little critique on the book and those were his exact sentiments. He saw it from that perspective that here it was in a society… as you said, laidback, the enemy was outside there willing to do whatever it took to usurp the sovereignty of this state and the economic potential of this state – those were his exact sentiments.

PP: I noticed with many first books, like many first achievements, you have dedicated this book to your mother - ‘All that I am I owe to her. Everything I have I owe to her’. Of course, I’d like you to expand on the impact your mother has on your life and writing.

OH: Any man, any child, any boy will tell you his mom is the greatest person on the face of the earth. And I honestly feel this having passed through so many unsavoury

Oliver Hinckson

experiences with people. We grew up in a one-parent family, I was the last child. One incident my mother use to recall was her hurrying with me down to St. Mary’s School to write the government county scholarship, in those days there were only 15 scholarships offered to the whole country. So there were thousands of 10-year olds and 11year olds hoping to make the mark to QC, Saints, Rose’s or Bishops. At that time you had Sacred Heart in Main Street and St Mary’s with Mr. Arokium and Mr. Walcott respectively, those two gentlemen were the greatest teachers arguably in the history of this country…. nobody can refute that. And every year they produced the county scholarship winners and I was fortunate to be one of the fifteen.

And having been a Catholic all the days of my life, having attended Sacred Heart and having been an altar boy and choir boy, Saints follows and I have no regrets, it taught me how to mix and mingle PP: The Jesuits [are] celebrating 150 of service in Guyana OH: Fantastic Jesuits, all of them with a Masters degree …so it was like going to a mini-university and unto this day I honour and adore Fr. Scanell because with my second term I was granted another scholarship, a Wm. Fogarty’s Scholarship, so I went through there [Saints] on two scholarships having been a very poor boy, you know and the Jesuits made life easy for me; I love them, that’s all I can say. And I love my mother and cherish those memories.

PP: Now to the future; I like the name of one of the two titles you’d be publishing in 2008: Cry Havoc OH: And Let slip the dogs of War PP: What is Cry Havoc made of?

OH: Cry Havoc encapsulates all that has happened from 2002 to 2007 in Guyana especially after the jail break and the massacre that followed… the political overtone… it’s action packed, it’s over 400 pages. I have the emery cloth and the sandpaper out polishing it up.

PP: In this season of good will and with Janus coming, I am looking forward to see how you deal with that period of our history, still awfully fresh in our minds.

Responses to this author telephone (592) 226-0065 or email: oraltradition2002@yahoo.com

If you have a poem and/or short story you would like to publish on our Literary Corner page, please email to timessundaymag@gmail.com. Kindly include your correct name and a contact number in your email. If you have any questions, please call 223-7230 or 223-7231.

8 Sunday Times Magazine Travel and Tourism

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lot of us must have heard about the village of Kwakwani but because of its remoteness and the hassle of getting there, we would have never visited. So come and let us explore Kwakwani together and discover all it has to offer.

Kwakwani is home to more than 4000 people and located along the bank of the Berbice River. The main economic activities within the village are mining and logging, since it is one of the many gateways to the interior of Guyana. Kwakwani can be accessed by both water and land through Linden in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice). The village is located some 100 kilometres south of Linden. The other way to get to Kwakwani would be from New Amsterdam via the Berbice River, but mainly bauxite transporters use this route, according to residents.

The approximately three hours bus ride to the village is one that awakens the sense of adventure in you as you pass through the old bauxite mines and come into contact with the lush green forests. The sounds of birds chirping or water flowing from natural wells make it all the more enjoyable.

When you enter the village, the warmth and hospitality afforded to you is a testament to the type of people that coexist in Kwakwani. Since mining and logging are the main economic activities, there are certain ills associated with the community. Kwakwani has its fair share of problems in the form of bad roads, drug and substance abuse as well as teenage pregnancies. But according to the residents they are banding together as a community to address the social ills and calling on those in authority to address infrastructural and other issues.

Kwakwani has a lot of creeks and pools ideal for liming and enjoying family time. In addition, the village has its own schools and hospital to tend to its residents. However, like the patients of every other remote hospital, residents would have to travel to Linden or Georgetown for specialised care.

So if you are up for an adventure, get a crew, hop on a bus, and enjoy the bumpy ride to Kwakwani. (photos by Rayston Downer)

JULY 8 , 2018

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Sunday Times Magazine

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10 Sunday Times Magazine

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Local talent

W

hile it was not always a bed of roses for us while growing up and we would have had our fair share of challenges, for Kelvin Fortune he prayed for the good days since the bad ones were far outnumbering the good ones. Kelvin is almost 30 and is now about to share part of his story with the world, through his movie “Choices.”

As the name suggest, the movie is all about living with the consequences of our choices and how they affect the lives of, not only us, but also those around us. The movie is about a young man (Timothy) who is living a hard life with his single mother. He dreams of becoming an optician and while working with an optical company, he meets and falls in love with a young woman.

Like many youths, Timothy is head over heels but his mother disapproves because she knows of the girl’s character. The girl usually sleeps with men for money and material things but Timothy feels it is different with him and pursues her. After some time, the girl gets pregnant for Timothy and later discovers

s h e is HIV positive but was living with Timothy at the time.

What happens next will be revealed when “Choices” is released.

L i k e T i m o t h y , Kelvin says some of the events in the m o v ie are depictions of what occurred in his earlier life and the lessons he learned.

At the tender age of six, Kelvin saw his family ripped to shreds when his father walked out and according to him, things only went downhill from there.

His siblings would move on to live with his grandmother and aunts but he remained with his mother Patricia.

He felt as though she needed someone to be there with her so he remained and it was the beginning of an unstable childhood for him. He attended the Smyth Street Nursery and later Ketley Primary School but because of the effects of his family life, his education suffered. He, despite having the potential, did not push himself.

“Everyone knows Kelvin was a bright child growing

up but was faced with many difficult and painful challenges in life. Kelvin grew up in a family full of drama, disagreements and separation. His life was never stable around his family due to many personal problems around each other,” Kelvin says.

While preparing to sit the National Grade Six Assessment (the Common Entrance Examination), Kelvin got the shock of his

life when he found out his mother was diagnosed with both cancer and HIV. Being young, he could not comprehend with the severity of his mother’s illness but knew her days were numbered.

“While I was going to school I would have to help bathe my mother, cook for her and wash her clothes while my siblings and other family lived a happy and normal life.”

In 2001, his mother collapsed in the apartment where they lived. Blood was gushing from her mouth and it was at that point Kelvin said he knew his mother were dying. On March 15, 2001, his mother passed on and though expected, the loss hit Kelvin harder than expected.

“While trying to cope with my mother's death and still pursue my education, I still was trying to understand the continuous dispute and confusion among my family. My family was lack of love, kindness and understanding towards me,” Kelvin recounts.

Kelvin has a passion for entertaining people and making them laugh. He loves writing poems, short films, songs, drama and is into overall youth development.

His love for drama is what got him into the business, which led to him writing his first movie script.

For those who are thinking whether they should follow their passion or not, Kelvin advises them to forge full force ahead and realise their full potential.

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Sunday Times Magazine 11

Home & Cooking

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igger is not always better, especially when we’re talking kitchens. Small kitchens are usually more efficient workspaces than large ones. Space and good design aren’t exclusive to a large kitchen — all you need are some good small kitchen decorating ideas that keep your small space organized, functional and beautiful.

We’ve put together some small-kitchen decorating ideas that tackle the following issues with good design solutions. The three most common small-kitchen complaints are clutter, lack of counter space and a dark kitchen.

Ingredients

1-12 oz package Breakfast Sausage Links 4 semi ripe plantains, 1 red onion, sliced 1 red pepper, cut into squares 2 garlic cloves, crushed 2 tsp olive oil About 10 sprigs thyme ½ tsp black pepper ½-3/4 tsp salt 1 tsp chipotle seasoning (salt free) 2 scallion, finely chopped

Method

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Peel plantains, then cut into half-length wise then cut in piece into half lengthwise. Cut into small cubes.

Place cube plantains, red onion, red bell pepper, garlic, thyme, black pepper, salt, chipotle seasoning into a bowl and coat with olive oil and toss. Place into a 13×9 baking pan and place sausages on top.

Place into preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes or until the sausages are cooked.

Remove from oven and garnish with chopped scallion. (Jehann Can Cook Blog)

Ingredients

1-15 oz can chickpeas (about 1 ½ cup cooked chickpeas) 2-5 oz can tuna in water 1 tsp crushed garlic ¼ cup diced red bell pepper 1/3 cup diced onions Zest of 1 lemon 1 wiri wiri pepper finely chopped (any hot pepper will do) 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley 1 tsp black pepper 1 tsp salt 1 tsp lemon juice ½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs 1 egg Oil to fry

Clutter

Clutter is usually a side effect of not having enough storage. Often, more storage isn’t the solution — simplifying and decluttering your kitchen is. Go through your cabinets and drawers (especially the back) and donate or toss anything that you haven’t used for a while. Ask yourself if you really need a cherry-pitting tool or an egg slicer. Once you’ve cleared the cabinets, clear the counters by storing the items that cause visual clutter.

and egg and mix well.

To form the patties, use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop out each patty and press to form a circle about ½ inch in thickness. In a frying pan over medium heat, add oil (about ½ in deep). When oil is hot fry patties on both sides until golden brown. When the edges become brown, flip to the other side and fry until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a sheet lined with paper towel. Serve warm.

(Jehann Can Cook Blog)

Lack of Counter Space

You’ve reclaimed some counter space, but do you still feel like it’s not enough?

That’s a common issue. We have ideas for maximizing (and even adding) more counter space to your small kitchen, including a trick for turning your sink into a cutting board.

Instructions

Strain water from tuna making sure to remove excess water by pressing it with the back of a spoon through a strainer. Strain water from chickpeas and mash with a potato masher. The chickpeas should still have some texture and not mashed into a paste. Add strained tuna, garlic, bell pepper, onion, wiri wiri pepper, chopped parsley, lemon zest, black pepper, salt, lemon juice, breadcrumbs

A Dark Kitchen

Dark rooms feel smaller, so brighten up your walls with a fresh coat of paint in a light shade. If you love your rich, dark cabinets, add different types of lighting. Use undercabinet lighting to brighten the work area and accent your cabinets. Good lighting makes a kitchen look bigger, regardless of color.

Hideaway Furniture

Additional Shelving

Find places to add shelving for additional storage. A row of narrow shelves, added to a kitchen island, can be perfect for cookbooks. Look for additional places including corners, or over a counter.

Try a creative approach to maximize the functionality of your small kitchen.

Find ways to create a multipurpose space with practical furniture items that are useful but can be easily stored out of the way.

12 Sunday Times Magazine

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Puzzles

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ACROSS Juice, so to speak Twenty percent Krishna's land Loose Quiver Yucca kin Let know about (2 wds.)

Kate's sitcom friend Refuge From Machu Picchu Fairylike Iffy attempts Still exist Fortune-teller's deck Pricey fur Stockholm carrier Last letter Yellow jacket Bolshoi rival Swerves Nook or cranny Concur Tony or Oscar "In" crowd Hi-fi rigs Fresh growth Skipped town Touche provoker Explorer Henry -Sandbar Mr. Dangerfield 45 or 78 Drew to a close Drink noisily Goose eggs 1998 BP acquisition Aloha token Hits "send" Internet hookup Aftershock Let loose Humerus neighbor Fixes Han or Ming Mr. Spock's father Comfy-cozy Popped Foul-smelling gases 2.2-pound units Thank you, in Kyoto Wrestling style Disclose Birds that mew Last number Harley, to some Estimate Ms. Simon Forks over Soft purple Terrier threat Not lukewarm

106 Ballerina painter

107 Command

108 Sherpa's sighting

110 Employee IDs

111 Mystiques

112 They're classified (2 wds.)

113 Starbucks order

115 More mellow

116 Mr. Magoo's nephew

117 Fill the lungs

120 Limerick starter

122 "Tosca," e.g.

124 Pro - 128 Elephant's quarters 129 Rate

131 Whisper on stage

133 Equip again

135 Home page addr.

136 More competent

138 Cowboy's stray

140 Imported cheese

142 Diameter halves

144 Coeur d'-145 Mortarboard wearers

146 Viper

147 Come together

148 Entered data

149 Everglades wader

150 Tractor pioneer

151 Wolfed down

DOWN 1 "Bah!"

2 "Pal Joey" penner

3 Makes bye-bye

4 Get by

5 Ripped apart

6 Pixies

7 Disregard

8 Ipso - 9 Dam-building grp.

10 Many layers

11 Growler

12 Canceled

13 Postpone

14 Grandson, perhaps

15 Jillian and Miller

16 Long low hound

17 Mi. above sea level

18 Potter's finish

19 Mocking comments

20 Toady's answers

31 Rubber city

33 Take advantage of

35 Hitch -- -

38 Do a grammar task

40 Noxious fumes

42 Once in a while

44 Middling grade

46 Rock shop curiosity

48 Decorate gifts

50 Hubble component

KATHLEEN SAXE

WORD GAME TODAY'S WORD -- INDELIBLY (INDELIBLY: in-DEL-ib-lee: With permanence or non-erasability.)

Average mark 26 words Time limit 40 minutes Can you find 37 or more words in INDELIBLY?

idle idly idyll illy inly deli dell deny diel dill dine dyne lend

libel lied lien lily lindy line liny bell belly bend bide bile bill

billy bind bine bled blend blind blindly blini byline yell yield

RULES OF THE GAME: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of "s," such as "bats" or "dies," are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a "d" or an "s" may not be used. For example, if "bake" is used, "baked" or "bakes" are not allowed, but "bake" and "baking" are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

51 52 53 54 55 57 58 59 61 62 63 66 67 69 72 73 74 76 78 79 81 82

Closet nicety

Radio dial

Rabbitt or Murphy Gridiron coach Don -- Links warnings

Teen events

Orlando attraction Atlanta campus

Go stealthily

"Angie Baby" singer Tales

Car deals

Districts

Lamb and ham

Fresco

Written reminders Innsbruck locale

Slalom runs

Pitcher of fame

"The Black Tulip" author

"Witness" extras

Mountainous

83 84 85 86 87 88 90 91 92 94 95 96 99 100 102 105 106 107 109 111 112 114

Fillets a fish Humid Toughen up Turn away Waldheim and Cobain Prima donnas Kirk's lieutenant Relocated Curved moldings Deep-red gem The barber of Seville Make changes to Do horoscopes "Pretty Woman" lead Understudy Helena rival Tricked The One-L Lama Stevedores' grp.

Most blithe Battle Lord Tennyson

115 Dwell

116 Gardener, at times

117 Angler -- Walton

118 Lofty

119 Like an old sock

121 Snert's master

123 Straitlaced person

125 Look at the books 126 Banal 127 Non-earthling

130 Slight advantage

132 "By Jove!"

134 For real

137 Vane dir.

139 Assoc.

141 Lyric poem

143 Wheel buy (2 wds.)

See Solution on Pg 13

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Sunday Times Magazine 13

Tech

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P

okemon games have been consistently popular. Still, the latest entrant to the franchise has had an impressive performance even by those high standards.

The mobile version of Pokemon Quest launched last week and it has already racked up roughly $3 million in revenue, according to Sensor Tower, an app intelligence company. The game has also been installed 3.5 million times on mobile de-

W

e are still a f e w weeks away from the August 9th unveiling for Samsung’s Galaxy Note 9, but details have begun to trickle out about one of the biggest changes reportedly coming to the iconic S-Pen stylus: Bluetooth, spotted by Droid Life in the Note 9’s FCC filing.

The filing just confirms that the new S-Pen will have Bluetooth functionality in some way, but people have speculated on Twitter that Samsung will be using it as a multi-purpose Bluetooth button. If that is the case, the button could let users do things like start and

vices, Sensor Tower reported.

About 56 percent of the revenue came from Apple's App Store, while Google Play generated the rest, Sensor Tower said. Roughly 31 percent of the users are in Japan, 25 percent in the US and 12 percent in South Korea.

Pokemon Company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Pokemon Company announced the game for

Nintendo Switch in May. The company said the game was a simplified, Minecraftlike experience. It added the game would be "free to start," meaning it's free to download and play with inapp purchases are available.

Pokemon Quest was developed by Game Freak, featuring simple touchscreen controls. In addition to the App Store and Google Play, it's available on the Nintendo eShop. (CNet)

stop timers, control music, take photos, or even possibly answer or hang up on calls. It is also easy to imagine Samsung giving the Bluetoothequipped stylus other features, like a Tileesque location option for tracking the pen in case you lose it (or using the pen to find your phone by triggering an alert or a noise.)

We will presumably find out the extent of the S-Pen’s new abilities come August, when Samsung formally announces the Note 9. In the meantime, it is exciting to see that Samsung is continuing to explore all the possibilities when it comes to making its accessories more useful. (The Verge)

ne of China's biggest technology companies has declared it has begun mass production of a selfdriving bus. Baidu made the announcement after building its 100th Apolong vehicle at its factory in the country's southeastern Fujian province.

It said the vehicles would initially be put to commercial use within Chinese cities but added it was also targeting foreign markets. The company is one of several competing to sell "level-4 autonomy" buses.

The classification - set by the transport engineering body SAE International - refers to highly automated driving systems that can cope with most driving conditions, even if a human fails to respond appropriately to a request to intervene.

It is one step below the maximum level-5 tier, which extends to all driving scenar-

Crossword Solution

acebook's algorithms have ruled that parts of the US Declaration of Independence are hate speech and removed excerpts of them posted to the platform.

In the run-up to Independence Day, a US community paper based in Texas had been posting small daily chunks of the historic document on its Facebook page.

At issue was a part of it that referred to "merciless Indian savages".

Facebook later apologised and allowed the posting.

The Liberty County Vindicator - which is currently unavailable in the EU - had been sharing excerpts from America's founding document to its Facebook page in an attempt to encourage historical

literacy among its readers.

Part 10 did not appear, with the paper receiving a notice from Facebook saying the post went against its standards on hate speech.

Editor Casey Stinnett wrote afterwards of the offending paragraph: "Perhaps had Thomas Jefferson written it as 'Native Americans at a challenging stage of cultural development' that would have been better.

"Unfortunately, Jefferson, like most British colonists of his day, did not hold an entirely friendly view of Native Americans."

The newspaper later confirmed that Facebook had had a change of heart and apologised.

"It looks like we made a

O

M

icrosoft may be working on a Movies & TV app for iOS and Android, anonymous sources told Windows Central.

Last October, Microsoft announced that Windows 10 mobile was effectively dead, and began making versions of its best Windows 10 apps for iOS and Android. Since then, Microsoft has promoted apps like its web brows-

ios, including dirt roads and unusual weather conditions.

Baidu's chief executive, Robin Li, detailed its plans at the company's annual artificial intelligence developer conference in Beijing.

The Apolong bus can seat up to 14 people, and has been developed with a local vehicle manufacturer. It has no driver's seat, steering wheel or pedals. It runs on electric power and can travel up to 100km

(62 miles) after a two-hour charge, at up to 70km/h.

Baidu envisages it being used for "last-mile" drop-offs within enclosed areas, such as airports and tourist sites. The company said partners would soon put it to use in Beijing, Shenzhen, Wuhan and other Chinese cities. It added that a deal with Japan's Softbank Group could also bring the vehicle to Tokyo's roads.

In a separate Japanese-

er Edge and the Microsoft Launcher, but left out apps like Movies & TV, which is only available on PC, Xbox, and Windows 10 Mobile browsers.

If the app were to arrive

on iOS and Android, it could compete against the likes of iTunes, Google Play Movies & TV, and other platforms. iTunes, in particular, has already demonstrated its popularity among Windows

mistake and removed something you posted on Facebook that didn't go against our community standards," the company told the Vindicator.

"We want to apologise and let you know that we've restored your content and removed any blocks on your account related to this incorrect action."

In a blogpost, assistant editor of political magazine Reason Christian Britschgi said the decision demonstrated the problem with automated searches for hate speech.

"A robot trained to spot politically incorrect language isn't smart enough to detect when that language is part of a historically significant document," he said. (BBC)

language press release, Softbank said it intended to start using 10 Apolongs for "demonstration tests" within Japan by early 2019.

Softbank's self-drive subsidiary, SB Drive, had previously bought several self-drive shuttle buses from a rival operation - the French start-up Navya. It demonstrated their use in level-3 mode - where a human is expected to take control if required - at Tokyo's Haneda Airport in February.

Navya's self-drive buses have also been put to use by others at Paris's Charles de Gaulle airport, London's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, and the streets of Las Vegas.

Other companies, including France's Easymile, Australia's Intellibus and South Korea's KT, have developed autonomous buses of their own. (BBC)

fans: before it arrived in Microsoft’s Windows Store in April, it was one of the most searched for apps that wasn’t available in the store.

Still, the sources told Window Central not to expect the iOS app and Android app version of Movies & TV anytime soon, as work is supposedly in progress. (The Verge)

14 Sunday Times Magazine

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Bollywood/Hollywood

O T

he news about Bollywood actor Sonali Bendre suffering from high-grade cancer left her friends and fans shocked on Wednesday.

Releasing a statement, the actor revealed, “Sometimes when you least expect it, life throws you a curveball.

I have recently been diagnosed with high-grade cancer that has metastasized, which we frankly did not see coming.” As soon as Sonali tweeted about her medical condition, love and best wishes started pouring in for the Sarfarosh actor. Seeing the love and considering the actor’s fighter attitude, Sonali’s sister-inlaw Shrishti Arya is positive that she will be cured soon.

“Sonali is a fighter. She

C

ardi B is going after the ex-manager who sued her for $10 million ... and claims he was way too controlling of her career and her personal life ... including her relationship with Offset.

Cardi filed her countersuit Thursday in federal court, and in the docs she says Shaft set up a management deal with her that she considers far too one-sided.

According to the suit, Shaft got a 20% commission, but tried to bag even more dough off her Sony music publishing deal. Cardi says he demanded 50% of that deal!

She claims Shaft also tried to control every aspect of her life -- putting "barriers between her and people

H

will definitely prevail. She has a lot of positive energy. She will be back. We are all very grateful for the outpouring of love,” Shrishti said during an interview with Spotboye.com. In the interaction, Shrishti also mentioned how it was as sudden and shocking for her family as it was for the fans of the actor. She said, “Yes, it happened suddenly. Aisi sab baatein suddenly hi hoti hain.”

Sonali in her statement also mentioned, “There is no better way to tackle this than to take swift and immediate action. And so, as advised by my doctors, I am currently undergoing a course of treatment in New York. We remain optimistic and I am determined to fight

every step of the way. What has helped has been the immense outpouring of love and support I’ve received over the past few days, for which I am very grateful.”

The actor is in New York with husband Goldie Behl and is undergoing treatment. She was visited by Akshay Kumar recently and was showered with a lot of blessings from her industry friends like Farah Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Vivek Oberoi and others.

Sonali was last seen judging TV reality show India’s Best Dramebaaz and her last appearance on the silver screen was in 2013 release Once Upon A Time in Mumbai Dobaara. (Indian Express)

n Thursday, Jennifer Lopez shared an image during the holiday to Instagram. And the shot, taken in New York's Hamptons area, was eye popping for two reasons.

Not only did the World Of Dance star show off her figure in a hot pink bathing suit, but she also flashed a ring on her wedding finger that may or may not be from beau of over one year, Alex Rodriguez.

The star captioned the image, 'It’s the lil quiet moments that matter the most.'

She had on a hat and smiled at the former baseball pro as they took in a beach day.

The star often wears her own bling, but it was interesting that she had this ring on her wedding finger. The media savvy veteran must have known what a stir it would cause. Lopez has addressed the possibility of marry Alex over and over. Earlier this year, the Shades Of Blue actress released a song about putting a ring on it.

But she argued in an interview that was just a song and she is in no rush to wed

again. Her last husband is crooner Marc Anthony with whom she has twins Max and Emme, 10. She was also been married to Ojani Noa from 1997 until 1998 and then Cris Judd from 2001 until 2003.

In a recent interview with GMA, Lopez addressed engagement rumors to Alex.

“We have to take our time. I've made plenty of mistakes in my past,” she said.

“We're mature. We're grownups. We're going to take our time and take things at our own pace. Our life right now

is incredibly wonderfully.

Between our kids and our work, we're truly blessed.

We don't need anything more right now.”

The couple have been seemingly inseparable since going public with their relationship back in February 2017. Just days ago, Alex and Jennifer were spotted at the CC Sabathia's Celebrity Softball Game at Yankees Stadium, a fundraiser for A-Rod's PitCCh In Foundation.

Netflix series amid multiple allegations of sexual harassment and assault.

In the clip, Wright dons a blue dress and stares directly into the camera before saying, 'Happy Independence Day … to me,' hearkening her character as the commanderin-chief, with the hashtag #MyTurn.

In the show's storyline, Claire replaced Spacey’s character Frank Underwood as the president at the conclusion of the program's fifth season, as he had a scheme to hold on to his power. But production on the political drama was suspended, and Spacey was fired early last November amid more than a dozen men stepping forward to accuse the Oscar-winning actor of sexual misconduct.

Those allegations began with actor Anthony Rapp, who said he was 14 when Spacey, then 26, made aggressive advances on him in 1986.

The show's sixth season will feature eight episodes, with series regulars Jayne Atkinson, Derek Cecil,

Patricia Clarkson, Michael Kelly, Boris McGiver and Constance Zimmer all slated to return.

Veteran entertainers Greg Kinnear and Diane Lane are also slated to join the cast of the series.

Last December, Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos announced that the program was returning for a final frame in a move that saved 370 cast and crew jobs, along with 2,000 people in Baltimore who have been employed by the show during filming in the Charm City.

He said of the show at the New York-based Global Media and Communications Conference, 'It will not involve Kevin Spacey. It will star Robin Wright. And we’re really excited about bringing some closure to the show for fans.'

Spacey's ouster from the network was a costly one, as the company told Newsweek that getting rid of the embattled actor cost about $39 million in the form of abandoned projects, including a Gore Vidal biopic he starred in.

Sues Him for $15 Million

close to her in an effort to maintain complete control over her." In the suit, she says that bled over into her dating life, with Shaft telling her "who she should and should not see romantically."

ere’s a new feather on Priyanka Chopra’s decorated hat. The Quantico actor has crossed the 25 million followers mark on Instagram, leaving behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amitabh Bachchan on the photo-sharing platform.

Modi has 13.5 million followers, while Big B has a score of 9.5 million. Priyanka, 35, is also ahead of Virat Kohli (22.7 million), Shah Rukh Khan (13.3 million), Salman Khan (17.3 million), Aamir Khan (1.2 million) and Deepika Padukone (24.9 million).

Fondly called as the “Desi girl”, Priyanka thanked her fans for

As we reported, Shaft sued Cardi back in April claiming he made her a star and she cut him off financially.

Cardi's suing Shaft for more than $15 million.

(TMZ)

showering her with so much of love.

“25 million strong… Thank you for the love… Love you right back,” she wrote on her Instagram Stories on Thursday. A former Miss World, Priyanka carved her niche in Hindi cinema world before making inroads into Hollywood, beginning by launching a singing career and then landing the lead role in American television show Quantico.

The show gave her global popularity, which

R

obin Wright will reprise her role as Claire Underwood in House of Cards - this time as the president of the United States - in a teaser for the show's sixth season. This season will mark the first without Kevin Spacey after the actor's exodus from the

also led her to bag the villain’s role in Baywatch and also a part in A Kid Like Jake. Now she is keeping the paparazzi busy as she is rumoured to be in a relationship with pop singer Nick Jonas, who has a following of 15.5 million on Instagram.

Priyanka is an ardent user of digital platforms and uses social media to stay connected with her fans and followers. On the acting front, Priyanka will soon be seen sharing screen space with Salman in the upcoming film Bharat, directed by Ali Abbas Zafar.

Priyanka will be teaming up with Salman on the big screen after a gap of 11 years, after their last appearance in God Tussi Great Ho in 2008. Bharat is an official adaptation of a 2014 South Korean film Ode To My Father. (Indian Express)

guyanatimesgy.com

JULY 8 , 2018

Sunday Times Magazine 15

16 Sunday Times Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

JULY 8 , 2018

Fun Times

Archie

ARIES (March 21April 19)

Your involvement in a project that is geared to environmental or humanrights issues will bring you in contact with people who can help you find new ways to use your attributes.

Romance is highlighted.

You’ll face opposition if TAURUS you are too open regarding (April 20- your opinions. You are best May 20) off listening, assessing and choosing to bypass an argument that offers absolutely no beneficial results.

Getting involved in world GEMINI issues is admirable, but don’t (MAY 28- mess with authority figures, June 20) rules or regulations. Choose to stay close to home and to nurture important relationships.

Make your actions count.

Don’t talk when you can pitch (June 21- in and make things hapJuly 22) pen. You will be enlightened by the people you encounter along the way. Use your skills diversely.

CANCER

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

Peanuts

Avoid making an emotional decision that could be costly or lead to a dispute with a loved one. Channel your energy into love and peace.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Travel mentally or physically to learn something major. Let your imagination wander and do your best to make your dreams come true. Change looks promising.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Get up and get moving.

You can accomplish a lot if you set goals. Love and romance will enhance your life and fend off any negativity that may be festering.

Concentrate on doing your SCORPIO (Oct. 24- own thing and on not letting Nov. 22) anyone with bad habits lead you down the wrong path. Don’t waste your time arguing or giving in to erratic or pushy people.

SAGITTARIUS Your charm will help you (Nov. 23- sway any opponents over to Dec. 21) your way of thinking. A little adventure can be fun, but don’t go overboard. Live within your means.

Calvin and Hobbes

Stick close to home and do CAPRICORN a little fixing up or entertain(Dec. 22- ing. The changes you make Jan. 19) will help stabilize your current situation. The work you put in will be appreciated by loved ones.

Keep your emotions unAQUARIUS der control. Someone will (Jan. 20- push you if you question Feb. 19) the persuasive tactics being used. Time alone will help you put things in perspective.

Investing in yourself or PISCES (Feb. 20- something you want to purMar. 20) sue looks promising, as long as you don’t go into debt. A joint venture will go well if you lay down some ground rules first.