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VOLUME:117 No.51, FEBRUARY 5TH, 2020

THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: $1

SPORT: RATTLERS MAKE IT A BASKETBALL DOUBLE

‘ALL HOMES MUST HAVE INSURANCE’ Leading insurer warns mandatory cover has to be on agenda after Dorian

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net BAHAMAS First’s chief executive Patrick Ward yesterday said laws making it mandatory for all business and residential property owners to have full catastrophic insurance cover “must be on the table for discussion”.

He was speaking after the International Monetary Fund called for The Bahamas to develop “new approaches” to increasing insurance penetration and prevent the “dire straits” suffered by homeowners post-Hurricane Dorian.

After its visit to The Bahamas last week, the IMF said: “The financial sector appears to have weathered the hurricane well.

Adequate reinsurance of domestic insurance companies abroad cushioned the impact of the hurricane on the domestic insurance sector.

“However, insurance penetration, in particular in the residential segment, remains low, leaving many homeowners in dire straits.

New approaches to extend insurance coverage as part of a broader disaster risk management strategy would increase resilience.”

THE number of Bahamians in quarantine for signs related to the deadly coronavirus has increased to 10, according to local health officials. However, there are still no suspected or confirmed cases of the illness locally.

“Well, there are no reported, suspected or actual cases of coronavirus in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. We continue to have a number of persons

RESIDENTS in eastern gated communities have had their sense of safety disrupted by a string of home burglaries.

Chief Superintendent of Police Perry Clarke, officerin-charge of the Elizabeth Estates Police Station, said police are investigating after several complaints were reported by residents in Palm Cay and Treasure Cove.

“The amazing part is these are gated communities with 24-hour security services engaged and yet these things still go on. That’s the puzzling thing about it to tell you the truth,” he said yesterday.

MARITAL RAPE NOT PRIORITY FOR PLP

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

quarantined in Grand Bahama and New Providence,” Health Minister Dr Duane Sands told reporters outside Cabinet yesterday.

“But, at this point, we are completing the national preparedness plan for coronavirus which we ought to release sometime today.”

The World Health Organisation declared the new strain of the coronavirus a public health emergency of international concern last week following its outbreak in Wuhan, China.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

SEE PAGE TWO

VIRUS QUARANTINE NUMBER NOW AT 10

By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net

BURGLARS TARGET ESTATES OUT EAST

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

ALICIA WALLACE ON THAT SHOW THE HALF-time performances by Shakira and Jennifer Lopez at the Super Bowl set social media alight. Turn to Page 8 to find out how our columnist saw it.

Photo: Patrick Semansky/AP

TWO BREANNA ACCUSED STAY SILENT

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net TWO women opted to remain silent yesterday to allegations that two years ago they murdered teenage mother Breanna Mackey in an argument over an $80 smartphone.

Zaria Burrows and Dervinique Edwards opted not to give any evidence or call any witnesses on their behalf to counter claims

TEENAGE mum Breanna Mackey they murdered the 19-yearold in January 2018. Their decisions came moments

before their respective attorneys made closing addresses to the jury, urging them to acquit their clients of Mackey’s murder.

Additionally, the attorneys urged the jury to reject the prosecution’s assertion that Burrows and Edwards acted in concert with Mackey’s actual killer, Thea Williams.

Burrows’ attorney Devard Francis, asserted

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

SEE PAGE THREE

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party leader Philip “Brave” Davis yesterday said he could not commit his party to prioritising the issue of marital rape if it takes office in 2022.

Mr Davis said while any administration led by him would “address” the issue, there would be “a number of policy initiatives” that would need to be prioritised should the PLP win the next general election.

SEE PAGE SIX

TECHNOLOGY

MARKING THE OPENING OF ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING SITES

SEE PAGE NINE

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, February 5, 2020, PAGE 3

from page one

Two accused of Breanna murder opt to stay silent

that contrary to the crown’s case against his client and Edwards, Williams acted “unilaterally and on her own” in killing Mackey.

The defence attorney conceded that Mackey’s murder was a “senseless crime”, and that it was “silly” to have fought over something as “frivolous” as a cellphone.

However, Mr Francis said the blame for Mackey’s death lies squarely at Williams’ feet, something, he said, was truly unfortunate because the phone didn’t even belong to her. “(Burrows and Edwards) cannot be penalised for someone who made a unilateral decision on her own,” Mr Francis said, adding that Williams acted on her own because in her mind, “she had a point to prove”.

Burrows and Edwards are on trial over allegations they murdered Mackey on January 25, 2018. According to the evidence, Mackey was killed because five girls who were supposed to be her friends wanted her to pay for a broken $80 Huawei cellphone that belonged to one of them.

According to reports from police, shortly before 6pm that day, police control room was contacted about reports that a woman was stabbed in the Key West Street area off Cordeaux Avenue. Police officers were dispatched to investigate.

Upon their arrival, a woman, identified as the victim’s sister, Latisha Woodside, directed officers to a brown and white apartment complex on the eastern side of Key West Street. On the porch, just in front of door number nine, officers discovered Mackey, semi-conscious, lying face down and suffering from four stab wounds to her upper back and two stab wounds to her right arm.

Mackey, who had turned 19 the day before, was taken to the Princess Margaret Hospital where she died around 8.28pm.

According to the record of interviews of both women, conducted two days after the incident, Burrows was driving her car in the area of Key West Street with Williams, Edwards, Davanya Lawes, Yolika Domesle, aka “Gabby”, and Matia Sylverain as passengers.

Edwards said when Williams spotted Mackey, she started saying: “See Breanna, see Breanna on the corner,” before asking Edwards to open the car door and let her out.

Edwards said her door wouldn’t open, so Williams got out by the door on the opposite side.

Domesle, who was seated in the front passenger seat, then got out of the vehicle and threw a bottle at Mackey, which hit her in her face. Burrows said after that, Mackey’s older sister, who according to the evidence, was Nafetera Brown, consequently told her sister to run, which she did. Williams and the others gave chase.

Burrows said Mackey ended up running in a yard and called out the name “Justin”. While fleeing, however, Mackey slipped and fell in some mud, according to Burrows. Williams then grabbed her by the head.

Edwards, in her interview, said she saw when Williams “snatched” Mackey, and said she thought she was punching the victim. However, she said when Williams drew back her hand, she realised she was brandishing a knife.

When asked how many times she saw Williams stab Mackey, Edwards replied: “All I know is a lot, I couldn’t keep up.”

“That’s when I told Zaria ‘she jooking (sic) her, let’s go around here,’” Edwards said in her interview.

While that was happening, Sylverain was kicking Mackey, while Lawes was running in the road as if she

ZARIA BURROWS, left, and Dervinique Edwards was making a beeline for Mackey. However, Williams had since stabbed Mackey, and so Lawes ran back to Burrows’ car.

The other girls eventually made their way to the car, which was when Burrows realised Williams had a knife on her the entire time. After Williams drew all of their attention to the bloody weapon, Burrows ordered her to throw the knife out of her car. Burrows then dropped the girls off at their respective homes.

When asked if the group was driving around with the sole purpose of finding Mackey, Burrows said no. Burrows, as well as Edwards, also denied any prior knowledge that the other girls wanted to fight the deceased.

The pair also said they never heard Williams

say she wanted to harm Mackey.

However, both women acknowledged that one of the other girls, Domesle, had a beef with Mackey that stemmed from an $80 Huawei cellphone.

Yesterday, Mr Francis focused on that bit of the evidence, asserting that nothing in the Crown’s case suggests his client or Edwards knew of a “master plan” to kill Mackey.

This, he said, was evidenced by the fact that moments before her death, Mackey and Ms Brown, according to the latter’s evidence, went for a walk in order to deliver a piece of cake to Mackey’s friend not too far from where she lived in their mother’s house on Palm Beach Street.

Mr Francis said that neither his client nor Edwards, and by extension none of

the other women, could have “hatched” a plan to kill her, as Mackey’s decision to deliver the piece of cake to her friend was contextually “spur of the moment”.

However, Mr Francis referred to another bit of the evidence he claimed proves his client and Edwards’s innocence—the evidence of a 14-year-old junior high school student who witnessed the stabbing.

The teenager testified that from about 12 feet away, he saw how Williams stabbed Mackey in her shoulder, back and rear end, while three other unidentified girls picked up rocks and bottles from off the ground and used those objects to pummel the deceased.

The little boy was not able to say if Edwards and Burrows were involved in the actual attack. The only thing he could say was that the driver, who never left the vehicle, looked “tomboyish”.

Yesterday, Mr Francis accepted that the boy was referring to his client when he described a “tomboyish” driver. Nonetheless, the attorney said that meant his client played no part in the crime.

Mr Francis also observed that the teen witness said he didn’t see anyone with a knife until Williams pulled one out when she was within striking distance. That, Mr Francis asserted, proved that no one else in the car knew Williams had the knife, nor did they know what she was thinking.

Mr Francis further pointed to Burrows’ ROI, and the evidence of the investigating officer, Sergeant Makelle Pinder, in which Burrows only realised Mackey was stabbed after Williams got back in her car and told her and the others: “Look at all this blood on my knife.”

Up to that point, the evidence was that Burrows and Edwards told Sgt Pinder that they thought Williams was “punching” Mackey when in fact she was repeatedly stabbing her with a kitchen knife.

Mr Francis asserted that the only thing his client and Edwards by extension were guilty of was actually being present when the incident occurred. “...We know who had the knife. We know who did the stabbing. We know who did the killing. We know who took the life of (Breanna).”

Meanwhile, Edwards’ attorney Eleanor Albury, in her closing address, echoed many of Mr Francis’s submissions.

She charged that based on the evidence led, her client is effectively absolved of any responsibility for the attack as there was no common design to attack Mackey.

Ms Albury said there was nothing in her client’s ROI that remotely suggested that Edwards committed the offence of which she is charged. Ms Albury added that there was no evidence that Edwards encouraged the mobbing, or even got out of the car to participate in the attack.

The case continues today.

Lawyer urges jurors to clear man of Valentine’s Day killing

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net DWAYNE Belizaire, on trial for the murder of his godmother on Valentine’s Day three years ago at Eight Mile Rock, could learn his fate today.

The defence and prosecution gave closing arguments in the Supreme Court on Tuesday afternoon, and Acting Chief Justice Estelle Gray-Evans is set to deliver her summation this morning to the jury.

Belizaire, 33, is represented by Jethlyn Burrows.

He took the stand on Monday and denied killing his “Goddie,” and claimed that scratches found on his body were from lovemaking with his girlfriend and playing basketball.

Margaret Smith was found dead at her residence in Seagrape, Eight Mile Rock, on February 14, 2017.

She had been strangled and immersed in water. She was found naked in her bathtub.

During her closing argument, Burrows told jurors that based on the circumstantial evidence provided by the Prosecution in the case, her client Dwayne Belizaire could not be convicted.

The lawyer claimed the police investigations were “not thorough” enough, and that the handling and storage by police officers of forensic evidence concerning the defendant’s blood samples were “a major weakness.”

She noted that blood samples collected by Dr Fermal and turned over

to a police officer were stored in a refrigerator in an open area at the Criminal Records Office, where several officers had access to the area. “There was no evidence to suggest it was locked, counsel said. The chain of custody is highly suspect, and the exhibits could have been easily moved.”

In terms of DNA evidence, Mrs Burrows further argued that Belizaire’s DNA which was found under the fingernail clippings of the deceased Margaret Smith is “insufficient to tie the defendant to the crime.”

Counsel further indicated that a condom with her client’s DNA that was found in bushes behind the deceased woman’s house did not have any of Margaret Smith’s DNA on it.

“The prosecution would have you believe Margaret Smith was raped because of how the body was found. No condom was ever used on Margaret Smith,” she said, referring to evidence given by the pathologist who performed an autopsy.

Mrs Burrows also noted the prosecution provided no evidence in relation to the bite mark found on the deceased’s arm. She explained that impressions of the defendant’s teeth could have been taken to see if it matched those of Belizaire.

“Had that been done Dwayne Belizaire could have been ruled in or out,” as the killer, she said.

Counsel also argued that Smith could have been

killed by her lover Sergeant Gibson with whom she had a longstanding affair. His wife did not know he was still seeing Smith, and Sgt Gibson’s semen was in Margaret Smith’s vagina.

Burrows also indicated that except for the keys found in bushes, it is not known whether several other items. including, clothing and panties, belonged to Margaret Smith as her DNA was not found on any of the items.

“I thought that police would have crossed their T’s and dot their I’s to solve this case,” she said, indicating that the police did not conduct a thorough investigation, and simply relied on the DNA evidence from the deceased’s fingernail clippings to tie her client to murder.

Mrs Burrows pointed out that defence witness Juliet Williams had corroborated Belizaire’s evidence that he had got scratches on his body from a previous altercation with Williams, his baby’s mother, during their lovemaking.

Counsel also noted that there are no eyewitnesses who saw Belizaire at

Margaret Smith’s house on the day in question.

Prosecutor Erica Kemp, however, argued that while there are no eyewitnesses who saw Belizaire at Smith’s house, DNA evidence links him to the murder. “The only explanation why his DNA was found under fingernail clippings of Margaret Smith is because he is the murderer,” she told jurors.

Mrs Kemp said that Smith fought with her attacker and scratched the defendant. “That’s how his DNA got under the fingernails,” she said.

The Crown prosecutor addressed assertions about the handling of forensic evidence, noting that the samples collected during the autopsy by the pathologist were sealed, labeled and packaged, and handed over to the police officers who put them in a refrigerator. She said the sealed packages were turned over to Police Forensic Lab, and then sent off to a lab in Deerfield Beach for DNA analysis profiling.

Mrs Kemp indicated that the DNA analyst who testified gave evidence that the DNA found under

fingernail clippings were that of the defendant.

“We say the only explanation is that Dwayne Belizaire, who strangled her and killed her, she scratched him while fighting for her life,” she said.

Mrs Kemp reminded jurors that Dr Fermal

testified that the scratches could have been made within three to 12 hours of when the injuries were inflicted.

Mrs Kemp told jurors that while the case is based on circumstantial evidence, they would have no trouble finding the defendant guilty of Smith’s murder.

PAGE 4, Wednesday, February 5, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

The Tribune Limited NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI “Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”

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Marital rape law? Don’t expect anyone to rush WHATEVER your viewpoint on the issue of marital rape – freshly in the headlines after Speaker Halson Moultrie opened his mouth on the subject and put his foot squarely in it – let’s be clear about one thing: Nothing’s going to change in a hurry.

After Mr Moultrie had his say that, spiritually, a husband cannot rape his wife, PLP leader Philip ‘Brave’ Davis found his own voice to say that the party did not support men raping their wives – we would hope not – but couldn’t commit to doing anything about it. Little bravery on show there in dealing with the topic – but then given there was no change in the law when he was Deputy Prime Minister, that’s no surprise.

Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has previously said he holds no personal view on marital rape, while in 2018 Attorney General Carl Bethel said laws on marital rape were off the table until 2019. 2019 came and went with no change. Social Services Minister Frankie Campbell has boldly declared that more discussion is needed – how much longer we need to talk about the subject wasn’t made clear. He declared a year ago that it “is a matter that we cannot ignore” only for his party to continue to ignore it.

So there you have it – a succession of older men making it clear they have no desire to rush to deal with the issue of marital rape.

Mr Campbell’s predecessor as Social

Services Minister, Lanisha Rolle, didn’t advance the cause either – declaring that marital rape was a private issue.

This despite the UN’s special rapporteur on violence against women saying that marital rape is the most pressing gender-based issue facing The Bahamas.

The rapporteur, Dubravka Šimonović, said the legality of marital rape was “a sign that something is deeply wrong”.

That was in 2017 – the issue isn’t any less pressing now.

One of the few voices to speak out in government was Elsworth Johnson – then State Minister for Legal Affairs now Minister of Foreign Affairs – who said rightly that “sexual intercourse without consent in any form is rape”. He would not, however, comment on the government’s official position.

The safe answer for many of these politicians is that we need more discussion, that there needs to be a public debate on the subject. None of them then goes on to drive such a debate. And so the days, and months, and years go by – and nothing is done to help spouses who are raped by their partner.

But here’s the thing – if these leaders don’t follow through on their pledges to tackle the issue of marital rape, then what are their other pledges worth?

Who will live up to their promises?

And if no one does, why should we believe they will do any of what they say they will do?

Doing great without the boss THE Royal Bahamas Defence Force has been doing “tremendous work” in the absence of its commander, Tellis Bethel. So says the acting commander, Raymond King – and doesn’t that sound a little off?

Oh yes, we’ve been doing brilliantly without you isn’t a ringing endorsement of Commander Bethel’s abilities, is it?

While the pretend mystery of when Mr Bethel will return to office goes on – Minister Marvin Dames suggests April now but we wouldn’t suggest you place a bet on him returning to the same job – his acting replacement rattled off a list of all the things on his to-do list.

Which should be Mr Bethel’s to-do list, of course, if he’s back anytime soon.

He probably doesn’t need to ring the office and ask if they miss him, though.

He might not like the answer by the sound of it.

By the way, one of those things on the to-do list is to talk to the Air Accident Investigation Unit about how to respond to an aircraft crash. The Byron Ferguson crash report pointed out the country should have a designated search and rescue entity, not something like the RBDF covering for a job that isn’t their sole focus. Is that another lesson we’re not learning from?

Too quick to get rid of Shenique EDITOR, The Tribune THE abrupt termination of veteran journalist and host of The Conversation at ZNS, Shenique Miller, is being labelled political victimisation by Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) supporters. Rumour has it that Free National Movement (FNM) operatives at the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas decided to pull the plug on The Conversation after Vice Chair of the PLP, Obie Roberts, appeared as a guest on the programme with Ms Miller, who is reportedly an FNM. Apparently, Miller committed the unpardonable sin by allowing Roberts to appear on her popular radio show.

Allowing dissenting voices is good for democracy. But obviously someone wanted Miller and her panel of guests to all sing from the FNM hymn sheet.

The allegations of victimisation at the hands of FNM

officials is hard for me to digest, as one who has voted for the party in each election cycle dating back to 1997. I was always taught that political victimisation was the inclusive trademark of the PLP. The FNM was founded by Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield and the other members of the Dissident Eight in 1970, due in large part to the rapid deterioration of democracy within the PLP government under the late Sir Lynden O Pindling. While the PLP was manifesting signs of being more an autocracy than a democratic political organisation, where dissenting voices and opinions are welcome, the FNM was founded on the ideals of democracy and free speech.

Hence, the initial name of the nascent political rival to the PLP was the FreePLP. Terminating Miller is not only a move which will undermine the FNM’s moral authority in regards

to how it treats dissenters, but it is also unFNM. Moving forward, the FNM can no longer point the finger at the PLP amid allegations of victimisation.

ZNS is a public funded corporation that heavily relies on subsidies provided

by FNM and PLP taxpayers. As such, PLPs should not be deprived of access to ZNS, or any other public entity for that matter.

In June 2017 the newly installed Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis told ZNS and Bahamas Information Services employees that he didn’t care whether they were PLP or FNM, or even whether they had voted for him or not. Apparently, a rabid FNM operative in management forgot about Minnis’ no victimisation policy.

KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama, February 2, 2020.

Poems which sum up my life on this lovely island EDITOR, The Tribune PLEASE a little space in your paper to allow me to commend the people of your little nation of nations via your newspaper regarding my experience in The Bahamas. I became acquainted with a number of people I found to be pleasant and heartwarming folk. Even the youth respectful to senior citizens of which I am a member of that group. I met for brief moments in a business centre downtown standing around for copies a wonderful Bahamian gent that was very humble and kind in full uniform. He expressed his life spent as Captain of the Bahamas Brigade. He shared its motto he coined into a phrase that inspired me. “I’d rather build a boy than mend a man.” I shared my experience as a juvenile delinquent how God saved me and made me a man…

As a preacher and poet, I would like to share two poems of my experience on New Providence Island.

Also, meeting and greeting other island folks whose demeanour says much about them as a people whose nation God is the Lord.

Raj, preacher and poet I’d Rather Build A Boy Than Mend a man I’d rather build a boy

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net than mend a man I’d much rather shake than cuff his hand I’d rather help boys to understand Have courtesy toward their fellow man Obedience is better than sacrifice Strength comes from being nice Discipline and self-respect Virtues boys should not neglect Articulating at their very best True Christian manliness Boys of the Bahama Brigade Onward soldiers on a crusade Band of brothers together Vow to pleasantly endeavour To lift up the name and behaviour Of their blessed saviour Always striving to be in his favour While they enjoy In extending their hand To build boys rather than Mend a man ******** Keep Left In The Bahamas A visiting minister of the written word

Bahamas home of the Flamingo bird I felt my visit was God’s goodwill So I rented an economy automobile When I learned I was to keep left I took a very deep breath Unlike Apostle Paul, I drove by faith Whispering prayers “O’Lord keep me safe,” Days of sunshine winds pleasantly warm I endured the music of many car horns Heading toward Nassau I was blessed Dependent on my navigator GPS He spoke into my ear 800 meters turn left here 200 meters a shout-out Second, left at the roundabout Then without any hesitation You have come to your destination For me a sudden moment of fright Halt, Do not turn right at the stoplight I must thank the good Lord In the Bahamas, I could not afford To drive and keep left cautiously By golly without technology RICHARD JONES Nassau January 29, 2020

Don’t hide the crime EDITOR, The Tribune

are serious consequences attached which they probTHE policy of the Minnis ably have not thought government to expunge through. criminal records for what So J Rolle is sentenced could be described as by a Magistrate…serves his ‘minor – not serious crimes’ sentence, six-months or say – raises a serious issue max two-years, the crime of rights of an Employer for which he was found and right of foreign gov- guilty of is one where the ernments to know if record will be expunged - he that person applying for or she is released and bingo employment or a VISA or goes to try to get a job. The Residence has been sen- employer has all the right to tenced by a Court of the ask do you have a criminal Bahamas? record? What if the person Yes, government might is a prolific thief? think this is easy but there He/she wants to get a US

VISA - the US Embassy Consular people will ask do you or have you been found guilty in a court? Expunged or not sorry Prime Minister those people have a criminal record and the employer and Foreign Embassy have all the rights to ask and get the right answer.

Politics must never try to muddle in the fight against crime and the Courts – never they don’t mix.

ABRAHAM MOSS Nassau, February 3, 2020.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, February 5, 2020, PAGE 5

DORIAN VICTIMS RECEIVE NEARLY $2M IN BENEFITS

By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net

STATE Minister for Grand Bahama Senator Kwasi Thompson said yesterday the government has paid out nearly $2m in unemployment benefits to hurricane victims in Grand Bahama since Hurricane Dorian.

The revelation came as the state minister was giving an update to reporters on the efforts being made to further the recovery process on the storm-impacted island.

“We know that unemployment was also a huge, huge challenge and it continues to remain a challenge for us in Grand Bahama,” he told reporters outside of Cabinet yesterday.

“For a number of businesses who right after the

storm were impacted and temporarily had to close, National Insurance unemployment benefit kicked in.

“And so, from the storm to the latest number, I think is in December, unemployment benefits that have been paid out has been in excess of $1.7m, which has been paid out to Grand Bahamians since the storm.”

In December, while refuting an international report that suggested unemployment on Grand Bahama was nearly 50 percent in the aftermath of the deadly storm, the Ministry of Finance said it was advised by the National Insurance Board (NIB) that between September and November of 2019, it received 888 applications for unemployment benefits from Grand

Bahama. “The labour force on the island was last surveyed by the Department of Statistics in May 2019 – with the number of employed persons equaling 29,235 out of a working population of 32,825,” the ministry noted in a statement.

The statement noted while the 888 applications for unemployment benefits did indicate an upward move in unemployment given the devastation of Dorian, it did not signal a spike in unemployment equal to 16,000 persons – which would represent an unemployment rate of 50 percent in Grand Bahama.

“We recognise that the need in Grand Bahama is great, particularly after Hurricane Dorian,” Mr Thompson told reporters

yesterday. “But, although the need is great, the government continues to work to meet that need through the agencies that are in Grand Bahama.”

One way the government is meeting those needs, according to the senator, is by providing housing assistance to those victims impacted by the monster storm.

“So, social services provides rental assistance to all of those persons who have been displaced. Since the storm, they’ve actually provided assistance to Grand Bahamians for rental assistance to the tone of over $700,000,” he said.

“With respect to appliances, persons in Grand Bahama can go to social services and can receive

assistance for appliance assistance each for up to $2,000 and since the storm, social services have provided in excess of $400,000 to persons for assistance for appliances.”

As it relates to those small businesses that were impacted by Dorian, Mr Thompson said the government has allocated $10 million for a loan guarantee and equity financing programme to companies in both Abaco and Grand Bahama following Dorian.

“Our small businesses (are) a very very important part of the rebuilding process,” he said.

“The government has provided $10 million for small businesses (and) that’s for Abaco and Grand Bahama

ACCUSED CHARGED WITH MURDER AFTER MAN SHOT

ROYAL Bahamas Defence Force Acting Commander Raymond King.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

Acting commander says RBDF is doing ‘tremendous work’

By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

WHILE remaining quiet yesterday on Tellis Bethel’s extended leave from the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, Acting RBDF Commander Raymond King insisted the force has been doing “tremendous work” in his absence.

Speaking at the RBDF’s media meet and greet yesterday, Mr King said the commodore is still on leave, but could not reveal when Mr Bethel would return to office.

Shying away from giving details, he deferred the issue. “The minister on behalf of the National Security Council, he’s charged with the command and the administration… of the Defence Force and he speaks to those

matters,” Acting Commodore King said.

Commodore Bethel was expected to return to work last month, but National Security Minister Marvin Dames told a local daily recently that the commodore would be out of office “maybe until April”.

As for what he wanted to accomplish while the commodore is on leave, the acting commodore listed a number of milestones for the force to achieve including deepening relationships with regional partners and closing multilateral agreements with partners such as Cuban border guards and the Dominican Republic.

Another goal the RBDF wants to accomplish is creating a search and rescue unit, he said.

“We’re in talks with the Air Accident Investigation

TWO MEN SHOT WHILE SITTING IN A YARD TWO Eleuthera men are in hospital in New Providence after they were shot on Monday night, police said.

The men were shot shortly after 9pm in the settlement of Green Castle, Eleuthera.

Police said the two men were sitting in a yard when they were approached by an armed man who shot them before running away.

Both men were airlifted to New Providence for further medical attention. They are listed in stable condition.

Meanwhile, police recovered an illegal firearm and a quantity of drugs from the streets of New Providence on Monday.

Shortly after 6pm, Mobile Division officers acting on intelligence conducted a

and to date, we have about 60 plus businesses who have been provided assistance through the Small Business Development Centre and for micro-loans, they’ve approved about $300,000 for micro-loans.

“And for small business grants, they’ve actually approved in excess to over $250,000 for Grand Bahamians’ small businesses.”

To further aid the recovery efforts on the island, Mr Thompson mentioned that officials are also preparing to launch the government’s Small Home Repair programme, which will provide vouchers to people whose homes were damaged in Hurricane Dorian.

The programme is expected to to be up and running by February 10.

search of bushy area on Ameryllius Drive, Garden Hills and recovered a 9 millimetre pistol and 15 rounds of ammunition.

In a separate incident, shortly after 6pm, Mobile Division officers acting on intelligence conducted a search of a derelict vehicle on Montgomery Avenue, Flamingo Gardens and recovered 23 pounds of suspected marijuana.

No arrests were made in these two incidents.

Anyone with information that can help any of these investigations is asked to contact the Central Detective Unit at 502-9991/2, Crime Stoppers at 328TIPS (8477) or the nearest police station.

Unit. We’re working on an agreement in terms of how both of us will respond particularly if it’s an aircraft crash…. We’re also reaching out to the United States government in terms of building our capacity and capability in that way,” the acting commodore said.

“There (are) a number of things, but there’s much to get done.”

The RBDF has also had a presence on Abaco since Hurricane Dorian. There have been complaints from residents about crime and looting in the aftermath of the storm, prompting the government to increase the number of law enforcement officers there.

When asked about

looting concerns on Abaco, Mr King said “the statistics do support that there has been an increased incident of looting or recent reports of looting” but he is “quite satisfied” that they “have firm control”.

He said the RBDF works in conjunction with the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) and the Department of Immigration in patrolling the country.

“We undertake static moving patrols, check points through the community…we also support the patrols whenever our vessels go into Abaco and Grand Bahama and we patrol the cays.”

Editorial View - Page 4

A MAN was charged on Monday with murder in the Freeport Magistrates’ Court.

Alex Daricaud, 22, of Lewis Yard, appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Debbie Ferguson on the charge of murder.

The charge stems from an incident that occurred at Weddell Avenue on January 28, when a man was shot dead.

The accused was not required to enter a plea to the murder charge, and the matter was adjourned to May 11.

In other court matters, Clint Laing, 29, of Barketing Drive, Freeport, was

arraigned before Magistrate Charlton Smith on drug possession charges.

He pleaded not guilty to charges of unlawful possession dangerous drugs and was granted $1,000 bail.

The matter was adjourned to March 17.

Valerian Burrows, 45, and Theodore Martin, 43, were charged with unlawful possession of drugs and vagrancy.

Both men pleaded not guilty and were each granted $1,800 bail with one surety. The matter was adjourned to March 9.

Martin was also charged separately for possession of dangerous drugs. He pleaded not guilty and was granted $900 bail with one surety. The matter was adjourned to March 9.

PRISON OFFICER ON FRAUD CHARGES IS GRANTED BAIL

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

A PRISON officer accused of defrauding the government of over $2,000 via a fake sick slip scheme three years ago has been granted bail ahead of his trial.

Justice Deborah Fraser granted Alexander Cortez Burrows $3,500 bail as he awaits being tried on claims he swindled the government of $2,168.25 in 2017.

As part of his bail conditions, Burrows must report to the Carmichael Road Police Station once a week.

Attorney David Cash represented Burrows in the bail application.

Last week, Burrows was arraigned before Deputy Chief Magistrate Andrew Forbes on three counts of fraud. Police claim that sometime between January 1 and January 30, 2017, he fraudulently obtained $607.11 from the government.

It is further alleged that between February 25 and June of that year, he swindled the government of another $520.38. He allegedly followed that up by swindling the government out of $1,040.76 between September 1 and November 19, 2017, police claim.

Burrows stands trial on May 6 over the allegations.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

PAGE 6, Wednesday, February 5, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

MARCH 1 DEADLINE FOR ASSET DISCLOSURES

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

THE Public Disclosure Commission has sent notices to all Members of Parliament and senators as the deadline for declarations approaches.

MPs and those in the Senate are expected to submit documents disclosing their assets by March 1.

According to PDC chairman Myles Laroda yesterday, officials have

shown interest in fully complying with the requirement.

“A few weeks ago, I signed off on letters and enclosed declarations to Members of Parliament and senators to disclose their assets of December 31, 2018 and so we await to see what transpires in that period,” he told The Tribune. “I have gotten calls from a few parliamentarians just requesting certain information of what they should do in

providing documentary evidence with regards to certain assets.

“All of the parliamentarians submitted their declarations for the year that was outstanding,” he also said when asked about MPs and senators’ compliance with declaring assets.

Last year, three Members of Parliament requested extra time to disclose assets and liabilities and made their disclosures before the end of an extension period.

“Three MPs would have written the commission in advance and asked for an extension,” Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said last March. “That was granted.

One in particular was travelling at a particular time.

In spite of (requesting extra time), my understanding is two have already submitted even before the expiration of the granted time. They complied and the other has been given an extension and the commission has the right to do that.”

Free Town MP Dionisio D’Aguilar, Southern Shores MP Frankie Campbell and West Grand Bahama and Bimini MP Pakesia ParkerEdgecombe had missed the March 1 deadline and sought an extension, which the law allows.

The Public Disclosure Act empowers only two people to act on delinquent filings: the prime minister and the leader of the opposition. Either of them can publish the information through a

communication in the House of Assembly or cause for it to be laid in the Senate. Either can authorise that the information be presented to the attorney general or commissioner of police so those who failed to disclose could face a penalty.

The penalty for not disclosing is a $10,000 fine and/or up to two years in prison.

Last year, the deadline for filings was delayed until the end of March.

Marital rape is not a priority for PLP from page one He was asked by The Tribune whether the party could commit to prioritising the criminalisation of marital rape once in government.

“Let me just say this: there are a number of policy initiatives that we as a government when we are elected which we will, will have to prioritise,” Mr Davis said during his monthly press conference at PLP headquarters yesterday.

“So for example, our primary focus would have to be on the economy because that’s priority number one because the only demographic of our society that seems to be doing well in this economy is that two percent at the top. The middle class is suffering.

Those ordinary Bahamians are suffering and continue

to be weighted upon by what this government is doing to them.

“So for me to say prioritise marital rape, to commit right now….we commit that we will address it.

“In the scheme of things the economy is our number one focus as your prime minister.”

Earlier, he said the party did not support men raping their wives.

“Marital rape is something that we appreciate could happen and we do not support marital rape. When I say we do not support, we don’t support men raping their wives and so we will support any measure that will penalise husbands who would rape their wives.”

Asked if Bahamians could look forward to legal changes that penalise marital rape under a Davis-led PLP government, Mr Davis said: “Yes.” The issue was revived

HOUSE Speaker Halson Moultrie said he was conflicted on the issue of marital rape yesterday after House Speaker Halson Moultrie told a local daily that he was conflicted on the issue of marital rape, but leans toward the spiritual view that a husband cannot rape his wife.

He was asked his views after last week tabling a report called “The Criminalisation of Marital Rape and Intimate Partner Sexual Violence Across the Commonwealth”.

The report was written by

Celebration of Life Service for SIDNEY ANTHONY ALEXANDER BURROWS, 79 of Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera, will be held on Sunday, February 9th, 2020 at 10:30 a.m. at Receivers Beach, Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera.

Cremation was held.

Left to cherish his memories are his Wife: Kathleen Burrows; Daughters: Susan (Carl “Teddy”) Charlow, Sarah (Israel) Gonzalez and Stephanie (Jonathan) Mariscal; Grand Children: Kennedy and Chloe Rolle, Caiden Spence, Carson Charlow, Isla and Ava Gonzalez and Hugo Mariscal; Sisters: Angela Rankine, Inez Cooper, Eve (Maxwell) Poitier, Dawn Arnold, Eula (Godfrey) Bourne, Dr. Coralee (Jeremy) Kelly, Faith (Dr. Steve) Lochan, Hope (Cardinal) McCardy; Brothers: Stephen (Shirley) Burrows (pre-deceased), Leige (Thelma) Wilmore “Bill” (Janet), Andrew (Theresa) Gregory (Barbara) and Richard Burrows; Uncle: Arthur (Shirley) Rolle; Nieces & Nephews: Wendy Dumont, Steve, Kelsey and Denward Rankine, Freda Ferguson, Nora Knowles, Pecola Forbes, La Vern (Endric) Deleveaux, Linda (Steve) Mackey, Stephen (Randa) Burrows, Lisa (Antoine) Bastian, Laurell, Faye and Felice Burrows, Michael and Elaine Cooper, Nancy Brown, Leigh Watkins, Carla Rolle, Johnathan Burrows, Nadia Carey, Cindy Burrows, Tammy Rolle, Tripoli and Holly Burrows, David Arnold, Adjuah Cleare, Anissa and Maxwell Poitier, David, Dwayne and Dale Bourne, Elizabeth Bryan, Cala Oliver, Candace Taylor, Gem Austin, Ternielle Burrows, Danielle Sands, Lydia Adderley, Ivan and Nathan Lochan, Kristi Collie, Rashad, Nicole and Adria McCardy; Cousins: Vernal, John, Jimmy, (Pastor) Shirley, Audrey, Lee and Lilly Burrows, Joyce Colebrooke, Rosy Newry, Doyle Burrows, Swithen, Cleveland and Christine Burrows, Cleome Parker, Philip, (Pastor) Dave, Shervin and Terrance Burrows, Ona Mitchell, Nell Thompson, Shelley Burrows, Marilyn Gool, Doris Russell, Vinola Mullings, Edith, Eloise, Roxanne, Richard, Kennedy, Xavier, Roscoe, Julian, Byron and Ron Rolle, Michelle Lockhart, Mark, Janet and Lorraine Rolle, Carolyn Dorsett, Olga Brown; Other Family and Friends: Gloria Fernandez, Jonathan and Mayra Mariscal, Sonia and Sean Charlow, Chevette and Revello Williamson, Carlette Flowers, Velma Burrows, Larry and Maureen Fernander, Juliet Lindo, Charmaine Curry, Wanda (Wonderful One) Bissainthe, Linda Petit-Fere and Family, Annie Culmer, Rhonda Rolle, Agnes Bethel and Family, Dwight Pinder, Joseph and Freda Deal, Paul and Judy Simmons, Tommy and Joyce Pinder, David Hepburn, Nurse Debbie Deal, Myrlene Theme, Joseph, Eric and Naomi Johnson, Edgar and Adena Pinder, Mark and Winifred Thompson, Mae Culmer, Shauna Knowles, Brian Clarke and family, Brianna Pyfrom, Rosie Cadet, Johnny and Nancy Gaitor, Jerry and Margaret Seymour, Zina Knowles, Shantell and Sherice Sands, Claudia Davis, Sheila Sands and family, Andrew Sands, Michael Bethel, Anthony and Ella Thompson, Birdie Cartwright, Jamasies Isaacs, Solivia Fox, Gloria Cooper, The Gaitor Family, The Giersewski Family, Chico and Adlene Johnson, Brenda Johnson and Family, Christine Ficien and Celamise Jean, Dewitt Fernander and Family, The Sands Families, The Gardiner Family, The Bacchus Family, Lawrence Griffin and family, Cyril and Carol Griffin, Brent Spence, Clarence and Elizabeth Stubbs, Marvin Thomas, Brent Petty and Family, Bishop and Velma Petty, The Petty and Davis Families, Stephanie Bethel, Paula Bethel and Sandra Young, The Burrows One Stop Family, all the children of Governor’s Harbour and the entire Governor’s Harbour community.

attorney Marion Bethel who represents the country on the United Nations’ Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.

The report notes that despite the Bahamas being party to several international and regional human rights treaties that require the principle of equality between men and women the country has resisted the internalisation of human rights legal norms and does not have adequate legislative protections for victims of marital rape and intimate partner sexual violence.

“I wouldn’t want a person to be able to abuse the privilege of being in a marital union to infringe on someone’s right to say no,” Mr Moultrie told the local daily.

“But at the same time, when you compare that with the spiritual aspect of two becoming one and whenever a partner wishes to be accommodated sexually and so on, that the other partner really should comply.”

He said on one end, as an ordained pastor, he looked at marriage as being a sacred union where two become one and in that union, on occasions when one party may not even be in the mood, that union calls for the accommodation of the other’s desires, whether it be male or female.

“But when we compare that with the purely legal aspect of a person’s right to the privacy of their own body, then yes, legally, if someone resists or says ‘no’ and you still violate that decision, then yes, it can be considered to be rape, legally that is,” he also said.

“I always prefer to lean with the spiritual aspect. I think that’s the safest way, because laws continuously change,” Speaker Moultrie

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party leader Philip “Brave” Davis also noted. “Spiritual principles are forever; they don’t change.

“Laws change to accommodate society and to accommodate traditions and mischief in society.”

Responding, Alicia Wallace of Equality Bahamas said the spiritual interpretation is the most dangerous option. Ms Wallace said it was this interpretation that led to the right to bodily autonomy being violated and the sanctioning of sexual violence.

“It is the interpretation that assumes a woman loses her personhood and ability to give or withhold consent when she marries, thereby becoming a sex object,” she said in a press statement yesterday. “Equality Bahamas rebukes this notion and implores everyone to free themselves of this fallacy.”

She continued: “We call on Moultrie to respect his own position and conduct himself a representative of the people, responsible for the protection of vulnerable people and a participant in the legislative process in a democracy that regards that responsibility with seriousness and dedication.

“The country does not need to hear about religious texts or interpretations when we are faced

with laws that are discriminatory, fail to protect vulnerable people, and are inarguably unequal, particularly when their drafting was already influenced by a religion to which the law does not require the people to subscribe.”

Ms Wallace said it was time that The Bahamas met its obligations, insisting it was unacceptable for the marital rape issue to be constantly put on the back burner.

“Nothing is more important that the safety and well-being of residents of The Bahamas. The Bahamas has chosen to sign conventions, takes advantage of opportunities to perform before treaty bodies, but often fails to do the work. It is time to meet these obligations, not only to satisfy the requirements of external bodies we have chosen to engage, but to expand the human rights of the Bahamian people and, in particular, women,” she said.

In 2018 Attorney General Carl Bethel told the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland that the Bahamas would criminalise marital rape.

Editorial View - Page 4

‘LEADERSHIP OF DORIAN RECONSTRUCTION A MESS’

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party leader Philip “Brave” Davis was critical yesterday of two government bodies set up to handle relief and reconstruction in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.

A “mess” was how Mr Davis described the leadership of Iram Lewis, state minister for disaster preparedness, management and reconstruction and Managing Director of the Bahamas Disaster Reconstruction Authority Kay Forbes-Smith.

He said yesterday that he had no confidence in the Minnis administration’s ability to conduct this effort, adding it created too much bureaucracy.

He also defended the Small Homes Repair

Programme under the former Christie administration. Mrs Forbes-Smith announced the government will roll out its own version of the programme on February 10. “…We were not giving half the funds down to contractors and giving the rest without the works being done,” he said yesterday during a press conference at PLP headquarters, speaking about the PLP’s version of the programme.

“Contractors were mobilised anywhere from 10 to 20 percent depending on what works needed to be done and inspections were done in phases and contractual amounts released upon the contractor completing that phase. On completion there was always a small retention to ensure that there was no remedial work to be done and once we were satisfied that no

remedial work was necessary going forward (and) no check lists then the funds were released so I don’t know where she got that from.”

He also said: “She (Mrs Forbes-Smith) is a disaster and she presides over the disaster committee.

“I am concerned because on all accounts she is a divisive figure and we are not confident that she will be discharging that function in a non-partisan way.”

Regarding Mr Lewis he had similar comments.

“Again, another disaster because it just appears to be one bureaucracy over another.”

Mr Davis also slammed the government over its resolution last week to borrow $587m to pay for Hurricane Dorian related costs, saying much of the money had nothing to do with the disaster.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, February 5, 2020, PAGE 7

RBDF SET TO DEAL WITH ANY HEALTH INCIDENTS

By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

A PUBLIC Health Ministry nurse measures the temperature of a passenger arriving in Port-au-Prince, Haiti from France yesterday.

Virus quarantine number now at 10 from page one

Since the announcement, many countries, including The Bahamas, have implemented travel restrictions on visitors from China to combat the spread of the new coronavirus, which has spread to at least 23 countries, has more than 20,000 confirmed cases on mainland China, with 490 deaths.

“Most countries have placed a ban of 14 days, but we overcompensated a little by going to 20 days so we wanted to be absolutely sure that no foreign visitors who could’ve been exposed to the virus in China would be attempting to enter the country,” Tourism Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar said yesterday when asked about concerns relating to the travel ban.

“We get very small amounts of foreign visitors directly from China and by and large, they have

to go through another country to get here and you will notice that those other countries now are beginning to throw up roadblocks for those visitors.

“For example, the United States I see is denying any nonAmericans from entering the United States if they’ve been in China for the last 14 days, so I think that that was the right step. Tourism, of course, is critical to our economy and we must be absolutely sure and resolute in attempting to protect our core industry.”

In response to the travel restrictions imposed, Chinese officials have since noted China does not support the travel ban.

Speaking to The Tribune on Monday, Haigang Yin, the Chinese charge d’affaires to the Bahamas, said “The methods taken by the government are not in line with the recommendations of the director general of the World Health Organisation.”

Last week, top health officials said that non-residents who have visited China in the last 20 days will be denied entry to this country regardless of their nationality. Meanwhile, returning residents will be quarantined for an incubation period of 14 days at undisclosed sites. At last report, two people were under quarantine in Grand Bahama.

When contacted yesterday, Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the Ministry of Health Dr Delon Brennen told The Tribune: “All of the persons who are in quarantine are currently asymptomatic… (and) they’re not having any symptoms that make us believe that they are currently a case of the novel coronavirus.”

Common signs of coronavirus infection are a fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.

In more severe cases, the infection causes pneumonia, severe respiratory distress, kidney failure

and death. There is no vaccine or cure for the virus, but international reports suggest some people respond well to medical treatment.

In a statement released last night, the Ministry of Health said due to the fact the country has multiple ports of entry, other quarantine sites will be established, if necessary.

To prevent the spread of the virus, people are advised to wash their hands frequently and use hand sanitizer; cover your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, preferably in the sleeve or elbow; to clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces and objects; and avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness, such as coughing and sneezing.

TEN people from a Japanese cruise ship test positive for coronavirus - Page 11

ROYAL Bahamas Defence Force officials will follow the Ministry of Health’s protocols and have an operational plan for effectively dealing with any potential incidents of the coronavirus.

Speaking at the RBDF’s media meet and greet event yesterday, Acting Commodore Raymond King told reporters the agency has been informed about the deadly virus and are taking precautionary measures.

“We’ve been a part of the briefings that were held recently and we’ve been a part of that dialogue,” he said. “We’ve asked some critical questions. We’ve gotten some good responses. We have their latest iteration of their plan.

“There’s one or two circumstances we will look at what if we encounter when it’s at sea, when we encounter (people) who are migrant status and we will have to screen those persons – how will we treat those persons? Whether it’s a matter of just shadowing the vessels and guiding them into port…”

RBDF Commander of Operations Chapell Whyms said tackling the issue of communicable disease is nothing new for the force. “…We’ve been doing this for quite a bit,” he explained. “However, what we have sought to do was update our present standard operation of procedures so that we can accommodate not only the coronavirus — I think in recent times there was the Ebola (virus) that we had also prepared (for).”

RBDF physician, Dr Derwin Johnson echoed Mr Whyms’ sentiments.

Dr Johnson said: “Our borders are very porous and there is always a threat whether it’s a bacterial or viral threat or whether it’s a physical threat. So we’ll have to always ensure that our craft or our commanding officers of those craft, are in the know, so to speak, up to date, with all that is going.”

PAGE 8, Wednesday, February 5, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

MAIN picture: Jennifer Lopez and daughter Emme Maribel Muniz perform during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl.Inset: Shakira and Jennifer Lopez in action SUPER Bowl LIV has come and gone, the Kansas Chiefs celebrating their win over the San Francisco 49ers. Conversation continues about the televised event with focus on at least four areas – the US president’s tweet placing the team in the state of Kansas when it is actually in Missouri, boring commercials, Jay Z and Beyonce sitting during the national anthem - and the half-time show. As always, people have a lot to say about the latter. Shakira and Jennifer Lopez, Latina performers known for both singing and dancing, shared a stage for the first time.

The selection of Shakira and Jennifer Lopez for the half-time show was announced late last September by Jay Z’s Roc Nation which entered a controversial deal with the NFL which involves producing the show. It said this selection was intended to highlight the Latin culture of host city Miami.

There are, of course, many reactions and interpretations of the half-time show, most of them closely tied to Latin culture, stereotypes of Latin women and the ideas people already have about the performers. The visuals, while not overtly political, were not without meaning. It was completely possible to watch and enjoy the show as mere entertainment, but there were symbols and signs at varying degrees of visibility. It seemed to draw

Forget the game - there’s so much to talk about in that half-time show The

Alicia Wallace column attention to the way women – Latin women in particular – are sexualised and their bodies seen as objects, separate from their humanity.

It also brought to mind the way cultures are often stolen and misused, yet degraded at the same time.

Cultural appropriation continues to be an issue people do not understand, many not caring to understand, and the visual of Shakira belly dancing with the rope around her wrists to the excitement of the crowd seemed to symbolize the way we eagerly consume content without thinking about the origin, ownership, omissions or consequences.

On a lighter note, it was great to see Shakira continue to honour her own heritage, bringing Lebanese dance to her Colombianinfluenced Latin music.

Shakira perfomed She Wolf, Empire, Whenever Wherever, I Like It (with Bad Bunny), Chantaje, and Hips Don’t Lie. In her performance, she played guitar, belly danced, crowd surfed, and included a zaghrouta (Arabic tongue-trilling).

She also joined Jennifer Lopez’ performance later on to play the drums. Jennifer Lopez’s performance included pole dance and popular songs Jenny From the Block, Ain’t It Funny,

Get Right, Waiting for Tonight, Que Calor and Mi Gente with J Balvin, and On the Floor before what was perhaps the most provocative part of the performance. Her daughter Emme Maribel Muniz joined her to sing a mashup of Let’s Get Loud and Born in the U.S.A. There were children in cages during the song, clearly speaking to the immigration crisis in the US which includes children being separated from their parents and kept in cages.

The song choice was a clear call to Latinos to refuse to be silent.

The venus symbol, shown from an aerial view, represented the role women have consistently played in calling out and responding to human rights violations.

Adding to the visual, Jennifer Lopez emerged in a feather coat (by Versace) depicting the US flag on the outside, but she revealed the inside was the Puerto

Rican flag. Born in the USA was a reminder that Puerto Rico is a part of the U.S.A. This expands the subject to the lack of support Puerto Rico is receiving from the US government following the devastation of hurricanes and earthquakes as the country continues to work toward recovery.

The NFL is rife with controversy, from violent players to its anti-blackness and treatment of Colin Kaepernick. It was confusing to many with Jay Z entered a deal with the organization, but it is increasingly understood that he is more committed to capitalism and building his own wealth than social justice. His and Beyonce’s decision to sit during the national anthem does not absolve him of complicity, especially amid reports that he tried to persuade Shakira and Jennifer Lopez to take it easy with the political statements in their performance.

It is commendable that they

chose to use the stage to both celebrate Latin culture and people and to call attention to the current state of affairs and encourage Latin people to take action.

The half-time show did not go without criticism.

People took to social media to highlight the absence of Afro-Latinos. Some pointed out that the dancers included darker-skinned people (though there is no way of knowing whether or not they were Latino). The question now is whether or not it is good enough to be in the background, or part of a larger group. Shakira and Jennifer Lopez could have invited Afro-Latinos to perform with them, and Roc Nation could have made an effort to bring more Latino diversity.

There is always more work to do, ways the work could be done better and people to involve in planning processes so there is less to lament when it is all said in done.

AND WHEN IT COMES TO THE DATING GAME, WE NEED TO COMMUNICATE IT WOULD be nice to believe dating is not a game, but all signs point the other way. It is always fascinating to hear different points of view on what it actually means to date, acceptable forms of dating and the perceived roles of each party.

This week, a conversation about dating was sparked by a tweet about a first date. Someone complained about their date ordering food that totalled $40 in addition to alcoholic beverages. He does not share the entire sequence of events, but noted that she asked if he had an app so she could send him money. He decided to pay half of the bill, noting that he ordered much less. He goes on to say that on the second date, the bill was

almost $60. He told her he was not covering the bill and, by his account, she seemed upset. There is often the expectation that the person inviting another person out will take care of the bill unless otherwise discussed. Perhaps this needed to be explicitly stated, no matter what.

The real issue here is not who orders what, who pays for what, who asked whom on a date, or anything of that nature. The issue is the lack of communication. If you are not able to talk about where the date will be, what the average cost is and who will cover it, you may need to pause on the dates. You are not ready to be in the company of another person. It is, of course, best practice to be prepared to pay the bill,

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, D’ANGELO KENITH JOHNSON of #18 Sunshine Park, New Providence, Bahamas, intend to change my name to D’ANGELO DAMIAN FERNANDER. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

whether or not you expect it to be necessary.

The young man’s tweets started an interesting side conversation about appropriate dates. Someone suggested that coffee or ice cream as a first date is a clear indication of what the person is willing to spend.

This could be the case, but there could be other factors involved. If you don’t know a person particularly well – and the purpose of dating is to get to know someone – it is probably a good idea to keep the budget low, but also to keep the time commitment relatively low and steer away from intimate settings. Why sit through a three-course meal when one scoop was all the time you needed?

Either way, there are some people who are happy to have coffee or ice cream as a first date while others see it as setting the bar too low. To each their own.

We are all entitled to our preferences. It is up to us to clearly communicate them and come to agreements with the people we engage. It is much easier for everyone when we are upfront, saving ourselves disappointment embarrassment and resentment over a $60 bill.

PAGE 10, Wednesday, February 5, 2020

MARTIN LUTHER KING, centre, pictured in 1964

THE TRIBUNE

How a heritage of black preaching shaped MLK’s voice in calling for justice

by Kenyatta R. Gilbert Professor of Homiletics, Howard University THE name Martin Luther King Jr. is iconic in the United States. President Barack Obama mentioned King in both his Democratic National Convention nomination acceptance and victory speeches in 2008, when he said, “[King] brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln’s Memorial…to speak of his dream.”

Indeed, much of King’s legacy lives on in such arresting oral performances. They made him a global figure.

King’s preaching used the power of language to interpret the gospel in the context of black misery and Christian hope. He directed people to lifegiving resources and spoke provocatively of a present and active divine interventionist who summons preachers to name reality in places where pain, oppression and neglect abound.

In other words, King used a prophetic voice in his preaching – the hopeful voice that begins in prayer and attends to human tragedy.

So what led to the rise of the black preacher and shaped King’s prophetic voice?

In my book, “The Journey and Promise of African American Preaching,” I discuss the historical formation of the black preacher.

My work on African American prophetic preaching shows that King’s clarion calls for justice were offspring of earlier prophetic preaching that flowered as a consequence of the racism in the US. From slavery to the Great Migration First, let’s look at some of the social, cultural and political challenges that gave birth to the black religious leader, specifically those who assumed political roles with the community’s blessing and beyond the church proper.

In slave society, black preachers played an important role in the community: they acted as seers interpreting the significance of events; as pastors calling for unity and solidarity; and as messianic figures provoking the first stirrings of resentment against oppressors.

The religious revivalism or the Great Awakening of the 18th century brought to America a Bible-centered brand of Christianity – evangelicalism – that dominated the religious landscape by the early 19th century.

Evangelicals emphasized a “personal relationship” with God through Jesus Christ.

This new movement made Christianity more accessible, livelier, without overtaxing educational demands. Africans converted to Christianity in large numbers during the revivals and most became Baptists and Methodists.

With fewer educational restrictions placed on them, black preachers emerged in the period as preachers and teachers, despite their slave status.

Rise of the black cleric-politician Despite the development of black preachers and the significant social and religious advancements of blacks during this period of revival, Reconstruction – the process of rebuilding the South soon after the Civil War – posed numerous challenges for white slaveholders who resented the political advancement of newly freed Africans.

As independent black churches proliferated in Reconstruction America, black ministers preached to their own. Some became bivocational. It was not out of the norm to find pastors who led congregations on Sunday and held jobs as schoolteachers and administrators during the work week.

Others held important political positions.

Altogether, 16 African Americans served in the US Congress during Reconstruction. For example, South Carolina’s House of Representatives’ Richard Harvey Cain, who attended Wilberforce University, the first private black American university, served in the 43rd and 45th Congresses and as pastor of a series of African Methodist churches.

Others, such as former slave and Methodist minister and educator Hiram Rhoades Revels and Henry McNeal Turner, shared similar profiles. Revels was a preacher who became America’s first African American senator. Turner was appointed chaplain in the Union Army by President Abraham Lincoln.

The cradle of King’s spiritual heritage Many other events converged as well, impacting black life that would later influence King’s prophetic vision: President Woodrow Wilson declared entrance into World War I in 1917; as “boll weevils” ravaged crops in 1916 there was widespread agricultural depression; and then there was the rise of Jim Crow laws that were to legally enforce racial segregation until 1965.

Such tide-swelling events, in multiplier effect, ushered in the largest internal movement of people on American soil, the Great “Black” Migration.

Between 1916 and 1918, an average of 500 Southern migrants a day departed the South. More than 1.5

million relocated to Northern communities between 1916 and 1940.

A watershed, the Great Migration brought about contrasting expectations concerning the mission and identity of the African American church. The infrastructure of Northern black churches were unprepared to deal with the migration’s distressing effects. Its suddenness and size overwhelmed preexisting operations.

The immense suffering brought on by the Great Migration and the racial hatred they had escaped drove many clergy to reflect more deeply on the meaning of freedom and oppression. Black preachers refused to believe that the Christian gospel and discrimination were compatible.

Setting the prophetic tradition Three clergy outliers – one a woman – initiated change. These three pastors were particularly inventive in the way they approached their preaching task.

Baptist pastor Adam C. Powell Sr., the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (AMEZ) pastor Florence S. Randolph and the African Methodist Episcopal bishop Reverdy C. Ransom spoke to human tragedy, both in and out of the black church. They brought a distinctive form of prophetic preaching that united spiritual transformation with social reform and confronted black dehumanization.

Bishop Ransom’s discontentment arose while preaching to Chicago’s “silk-stocking church” Bethel A.M.E. – the elite church – which had no desire to welcome the poor and jobless masses that came to the North. He left and began the Institutional Church and Social Settlement, which combined worship and social services.

Randolph and Powell synthesized their roles as preachers and social reformers.

Randolph brought into her prophetic vision her tasks as preacher, missionary, organizer, suffragist and pastor. Powell became pastor at the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem. In that role, he led the congregation to establish a community house and nursing home to meet the political, religious and social needs of blacks.

Shaping of King’s vision The preaching tradition that these early clergy fashioned would have profound impact on King’s moral and ethical vision. They linked the vision of Jesus Christ as stated in the Bible of bringing good news to the poor, recovery of sight to the blind and proclaiming liberty to the captives, with the Hebrew prophet’s mandate of speaking truth to power.

Similar to how they responded to the complex challenges brought on by the Great Migration of the early 20th century, King brought prophetic interpretation to brutal racism, Jim Crow segregation and poverty in the 1950s and ‘60s.

Indeed, King’s prophetic vision ultimately invited his martyrdom. But through the prophetic preaching tradition already well established by his time, King brought people of every tribe, class and creed closer toward forming “God’s beloved community” – an anchor of love and hope for humankind.

theconversation.com

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, February 5, 2020, PAGE 11

TEN PEOPLE FROM JAPANESE CRUISE SHIP TEST POSITIVE BEIJING Associated Press

TEN people from a Japanese cruise ship in Hong Kong last night tested positive for coronavirus and were taken to hospitals, while all 3,700 crew and passengers on the ship will be quarantined on board for up to 14 days, Health Minister Nobukatsu Kato said.

In Hong Kong, hospitals workers are striking to demand the border with mainland China be shut completely to ward off the virus, but four new cases without known travel to the mainland

indicate the illness is spreading locally in the territory.

The growing caseload “indicates significant risk of community transmission” and could portend a “large-scale” outbreak, said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the communicable disease branch at the Center for Health Protection.

Hospitals in Hong Kong said they had to cut some services due to striking workers’ absences. More than 7,000 joined the strike yesterday, according to the Hospital Authority Employees’ Alliance, the strike organiser.

The territory’s beleaguered leader, Carrie Lam, criticised the strike and said the government was doing all it could to limit the flow of people across the border.

Almost all land and sea links have been closed, but the striking workers want it shut completely.

“Important services, critical operations have been affected,” Lam told reporters. “So I’m appealing to those who are taking part in this action: Let’s put the interests of the patients and the entire public health system above all other things.”

With the epicenter of the outbreak, Wuhan, cut off by

MEDICAL workers help a passenger who has tested positive

Trump campaigns as Pelosi rips up speech

rail, air and road to try to contain the virus, the US and other countries were organising more evacuation flights for their citizens still in the central Chinese city.

Patients were being moved into a new, 1,000-bed hospital with prefabricated wards and isolation rooms. A 1,500-bed hospital also specially built opens in days. The hospitals made from converted public spaces to treat patients with mild symptoms have a total of 3,400 beds, the simple cots placed in tight rows in cavernous rooms without any barriers between them.

BUTTIGIEG AND SANDERS LEAD AMID POLLING CHAOS IN IOWA DES MOINES, Iowa Associated Press

THE Iowa Democratic Party released partial results of its kickoff presidential caucus after a daylong delay late yesterday showing former Midwestern Mayor Pete Buttigieg and progressive Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders leading the opening contest of the party’s 2020 primary season.

The results followed 24 hours of chaos as technical problems marred the complicated caucus process, forcing state officials to apologize and raising questions about Iowa’s traditional place atop the presidential primary calendar.

It was too early to call a winner based on the initial results, but

EARLY leader Pete Buttigieg

HOUSE Speaker Nancy Pelosi tears her copy of President Donald Trump’s s State of the Union address after he delivered it to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington last night. Vice President Mike Pence is on the left.

WASHINGTON Associated Press STANDING before a Congress and nation sharply divided by impeachment, President Donald Trump used his State of the Union address last night to extol a “Great American Comeback” on his watch, just three years after he took office decrying a land of “American carnage” under his predecessor.

The partisan discord was apparent for all to see as the first president to campaign for reelection while facing impeachment vigorously made his case for another term: Republican legislators chanted “Four More Years.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ripped up her copy of Trump’s speech as he ended his address.

“America’s enemies are on the run, America’s fortunes are on the

rise and America’s future is blazing bright,” Trump declared. “In just three short years, we have shattered the mentality of American decline and we have rejected the downsizing of America’s destiny. We are moving forward at a pace that was unimaginable just a short time ago, and we are never going back!”

Offering the nation’s economic success as the chief rationale for a second term, Trump’s speech resembled a lower-volume version of his campaign rallies, offering something for every section of his political base.

But while he tweets daily assailing his impeachment, Trump never mentioned the “i-word” in his 78-minute speech. He spoke from the House of Representatives, on the opposite side of the Capitol from where the Senate one day later was expected to acquit him largely along party lines.

Pelosi, a frequent thorn in Trump’s side, created a viral image with her seemingly sarcastic applause of the president a year ago. This time, she was even more explicit with her very public rebuke.

Trump appeared no more cordial. When he climbed to the House rostrum, he did not take her outstretched hand though it was not clear he had seen her gesture. Later, as Republicans often cheered, she remained in her seat, at times shaking her head at his remarks.

Trump, the former reality TV star added a showbiz flavor to the staid event: He had wife Melania present the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, to the divisive conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh, who recently announced he has advanced lung cancer.

He stunned a young student in the gallery with a scholarship.

And he orchestrated the surprise tearful reunion of a solider from overseas with his family in the balcony.

Even for a Trump-era news cycle that seems permanently set to hyper-speed, the breakneck pace of events dominating the first week of February offered a singular backdrop for the president’s address.

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who has presided in the Senate over only the third impeachment trial in the nation’s history, was on hand again — this time in his more customary seat in the audience. Trump stood before the very lawmakers who have voted to remove him from office — and those who are expected to acquit him when the Senate trial comes to a close.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, former Vice President Joe Biden and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar were trailing in the tally of State Delegate Equivalents, according to data released for the first time by the state Democratic Party nearly 24 hours after voting concluded. The results reflected 62% of precincts in the state.

The two early leaders, Buttigieg and Sanders, were separated by 40 years in age, conflicting ideology and more. Sanders, a 78-yearold self-described democratic socialist, has been a progressive powerhouse for decades, while the 38-year-old Buttigieg’s early standing cemented his transformation from a little-known Indiana mayor to a legitimate force in the 2020 contest. Buttigieg is also the first openly gay candidate to earn presidential primary delegates.

“We don’t know all of the numbers, but we know this much: A campaign that started a year ago with four staff members, no name recognition, no money, just a big idea — a campaign that some said should have no business even making this attempt — has taken its place at the front of this race,” Buttigieg said.

UNITED NATIONS CHIEF WARNS ‘A WIND BACK IN COURT, WEINSTEIN’S ACCUSER OF MADNESS IS SWEEPING THE GLOBE’ DECLARES THAT: ‘HE IS MY RAPIST’ Associated Press

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres yesterday warned that “a wind of madness is sweeping the globe,” pointing to escalating conflicts from Libya and Yemen to Syria and beyond.

At a wide-ranging conference, he said, “All situations are different but there is a feeling of growing instability and hair-trigger tensions, which makes everything far more unpredictable and uncontrollable, with a heightened risk of miscalculation.”

The UN chief also expressed great frustration that legally binding UN Security Council resolutions “are being disrespected before the ink is even dry.”

Guterres singled out Libya where he called the current offensives by the warring parties “a scandal” — coming soon after world powers and other key countries adopted a road map to peace in Berlin on Jan. 19 that called for respect for a UN arms embargo, an end

NEW YORK Associated Press

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to foreign interference in the fighting by rival governments and steps toward a cease-fire.

Libya has been in turmoil since 2011, when a civil war toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi who was later killed.

A weak UN-recognised administration that holds the capital Tripoli and parts of the country’s west is backed by Turkey and to a lesser degree Qatar and Italy. On the other side is Gen. Khalifa Hifter, whose forces launched a surprise offensive to capture

the capital last April from their base in the country’s east and are backed by the United Arab Emirates and Egypt as well as France and Russia.

Guterres said the 55-point Berlin agreement has been repeatedly violated by fighting and continuing arms deliveries. “We are seeing more and more civilians being targeted, ... migrants in a desperate situation and all the commitments that were made apparently were made without a true intention of respecting them,” he said.

A DAY after breaking down in tears under crossexamination, a key accuser at Harvey Weinstein’s trial returned to a New York City courtroom yesterday and told jurors: “I want the jury to know that he is my rapist.”

The woman was back on the witness stand for a third and final day as Weinstein’s lawyers finished an exhaustive review of friendly, sometimes flirtatious emails she sent the film producer after she says he raped her twice in 2013.

They also played a recording she made of herself telling a psychic in April 2014 that Weinstein “had tried to cross boundaries in my life but I don’t allow him to.”

Weinstein’s lawyers contend that evidence points to a consensual relationship and shows that the 34-year-old former actress was a manipulator who gritted her way through sexual encounters with Weinstein

ACCUSED: Harvey Weinstein because she enjoyed the perks of knowing him. “I know the history of my relationship with him,” she pushed back. “I know it was complicated and difficult.

But that doesn’t change the fact that he raped me.”

Asked by Weinstein lawyer Donna Rotunno how many times they had consensual sex, the woman responded: “I only remember intercourse the times that he raped me.”

The woman’s return to the witness stand followed an emotional episode on Monday, when she sobbed while reading an email passage about being abused

earlier in her life. It was part of an email she sent a boyfriend in May 2014 explaining her relationship with Weinstein. The judge halted proceedings when she was unable to continue.

Resuming questioning yesterday, Rotunno asked the woman about several times she saw Weinstein after the alleged rapes, including her acceptance of his invitation to a Oscars party in 2015 and her decision to meet him in 2016 in his room at the same Beverly Hills hotel where she alleges he previously raped her.

After the 2016 hotel encounter, the woman emailed Weinstein saying, “I feel so fabulous and beautiful. Thank you for everything.”

She told jurors that Weinstein “was being really nice to me” at that time, but said she couldn’t remember if they had sex on that occasion. Weinstein, now 67, was married at the time to fashion designer Georgina Chapman.