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Volume: 119 No.164, July 20, 2022
THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: PRICE–$1
Delayed
Majority of striking airport staff fail to report for work despite ‘illegal’ court ruling By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
AN estimated 80 percent of airport workers in New Providence who engaged in a lightning strike on Monday did not return to work yesterday, despite a recent court ruling ordering them to report for duty. “We have about 60 percent on the Family Islands and in Nassau, it’s still about 80 percent that did not show up, so it’s still severe in Nassau. The Family Islands is better,” managing director of the Bahamas Airport Authority (BAA) Peter Rutherford said yesterday. He was contacted for
an update on the situation after Labour Minister Keith Bell told reporters a number of workers had returned to work for the Tuesday morning shift. He said their return to work allowed for operations at the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) to return to “some degree of normalcy.” “I am pleased to report that while we do not have 100 per cent of the persons back to work, a number of the persons have reported to work this morning at the 4.30am shift,” Mr Bell said before yesterday’s Cabinet meeting.
ALICIA WALLACE: EVERYONE MUST HAVE A SAY
- SEE PAGE EIGHT
REALTY BOOM - IS IT ABOUT TO BURST? By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
SEE PAGE THREE
COOPER CONCEDES ACTION TO HAVE NEGATIVE IMPACT By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net DEPUTY Prime Minister Chester Cooper says it is likely Monday’s industrial action by airport employees will have a “significant” impact on the country’s economy due to the number of tourists who missed their flights. According to Mr Cooper some passengers at the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) had to endure long lines for hours Monday afternoon as a result of the airport staff
sick out. The Bahamas Airport Authority workers were protesting a number of outstanding workplace grievances, including a stalled industrial agreement. Yesterday, Mr Cooper said while a contingency plan was put in place to minimise the impact on airport operations, the sheer volume of passengers who came through LPIA as the day progressed just made the incident “unacceptable”. SEE PAGE THREE
REALTORS are closely scrutinising whether “the hottest market The Bahamas has seen in 40-plus years” can survive rising global headwinds as they seek to maintain revenue increases of up to 79 percent. FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
SADDLE UP FOR SUMMER A YOUNGSTER taking part in the Camperdown Equestrian Summer Camp yesterday - one of many young people across The Bahamas taking part in summer camps. See PAGE SEVEN for more photographs from Camperdown. Photo: Austin Fernander
US REPORT EXPOSES TRAFFICKING ISSUES By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net THE latest US Trafficking in Persons Report has noted experts’ concerns about excessive pre-trial detention due to criminal justice system delays, preventing even the most serious criminal cases from advancing in a timely manner due to the COVID19 pandemic. The lack of judges and prosecutors in the country
HAITIAN migrants pictured being detained previously. contributed to significant backlogs in all cases, the 2022 report noted, in addition to courts easily granting bail - due in part to prison overcrowding
- even to persons accused of violent crimes, and law enforcement not having the resources to fully uphold the law were among the issues with the judicial system. Immigration officials may have also solicited Haitian migrants for bribes to prevent detention, the report went on to say. It is also possible that some of a group of 50 Cuban medical professionals who
Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper
SEE PAGE FOUR
CHUB CAY CLUB FIGHT DRAGS ON By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN resort developer yesterday moved to overturn a Supreme Court ruling that threatens to undermine the $100,000 “entry fee” business model for its private club in Chub Cay by giving homeowners free access to amenities. FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
TECHNOLOGY SUV MARKET IS ELECTRIC TARGET
SEE PAGE NINE
PAGE 2, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
MISSING MAN FROM GRAND BAHAMA FOUND By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A GRAND Bahama man who was reported missing to police has been located in Crown Haven, Abaco, a senior police official has reported. Samuel Hield Jr, 26, of Freeport, was reported missing to police and a missing poster was circulated publicly. Assistant Superintendent of Police Stephen Rolle, reported the young man was found in Abaco in good health and was expected to be taken back to Grand Bahama yesterday morning. Mr Rolle thanked the public for their assistance in the matter.
WORK CONTINUES ON VILLAGE ROAD PROJECT
WOMAN ‘DROWNED’ IN SUBMERGED GOLF CART By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
WORK on the Village Road Improvement Project is making progress. The project is designed to bring upgrades to buried utilities on slightly less than a mile of roadway on Village Road between St Andrew’s Drive and Montagu Beach. New traffic signals, the removal of existing pavement, installation of new pavement, electrical ducts, water mains and services and construction of junction improvements are included. Proposed changes include
POLICE are investigating an apparent drowning of a 38-year-old woman in western New Providence on Monday. Preliminary reports state that the Bacardi Road woman was operating a golf cart when the incident occurred. In a video circulating on social media the golf cart is seen submerged in water and EMS personnel were attempting to assist the victim in the background. The victim was taken to the hospital by EMS personnel, where she later died of her injuries, police said. Investigations are continuing.
Death Notice FRANCIS ARTHUR COADY September 25, 1933 July 6, 2022
A
rt was born in Sydney, Nova Scotia, the third of nine children of Joseph and Frances Coady and passed away peacefully in Victoria, B.C. with his family by his side. He grew up in Bras d’Or and attended Dalhousie University where he obtained his Bachelor of Commerce and law degree. In 1961 he was admitted to the Alberta Bar Association and practiced law in Calgary for 30 years. In 1989 he moved to The Bahamas and over the years until his death occupied numerous positions including becoming the Managing Director and then Vice President of TK Shipping Corporation, the President and Director of The TK Foundation, Managing Director of The TK Trust Company Limited, Director and Consultant of Concord Equity Inc., Managing Director of The Kattegat Trust Company Limited, Chairman and Managing Director of Oceanic Bank and Trust Limited, Director of The Bahamas Maritime Authority and Chairman and Director of The Bahamas Maritime Training Institute. In addition to his years in business, Art lived a full, happy and active life particularly enjoying his extended family, travelling and golf. He was predeceased by his daughter, Sherri Lee, his sister, Doreen Rybachuk and three brothers, James, Vincent and David. He is survived by his wife, Gloria, his stepsons, James and John Johnson, his brothers Joseph and John and sisters Eulalia Whitehead and Patricia Aker. Art was a kind, gentle and loving soul who possessed a keen sense of humour. He will be lovingly remembered and greatly missed by his extended family and many friends. We are so fortunate to have had him in our lives. He loved his Irish heritage: Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of his hand. A private family Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The Lyford Cay Foundation or the Cancer Society of The Bahamas.
widening to three lanes from the New Providence Road Improvement Project - at the approach of the Village Road Plaza, a median lane near Queen’s College, which will make turning easier, the addition of a turning lane at St Andrew’s Drive and the removal of a silk cotton tree at Parkgate and Village roads for the provision of a turning lane. According to the Ministry of Works and Utilities, the completion date of the project is September 2022. Photos: Patrick Hanna/BIS
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 3
Majority of striking airport staff fail to report for work despite ‘illegal’ court ruling from page one “As it all stands, all operations at the international airport have returned to some degree of normalcy. Let me say that again, this is a government of transparency and accountability and, of course, we want to embrace all of the labour relations and all of the labour unions to ensure that we continue to work with them.” “We know that there have been long-standing pressing issues and as we as a cabinet seek to get through those, we ask all of the unions and the workers to continue having confidence in the system and allow us to get through it.” In a separate interview, Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper told reporters that while more
employees had returned to their stations, officials still had a lot of “sick slips” for employees who have not yet returned to work This comes after operations at LPIA were severely impacted on Monday after more than 200 workers from the BAA called in sick in protest of outstanding payments and a stalled industrial agreement among other things. In a ruling handed down hours after Monday’s industrial action, Justice Denise Lewis-Johnson declared the sickout as illegal, ordering workers to go back to work. She said the Bahamas Public Service Union was in breach of the Industrial Relations Act “by calling, organising, inducing, inciting or procuring its officers and/or members to continue to participate in industrial action amounting
to a strike”. She also granted the airport authority an interlocutory injunction against BPSU. BPSU president Kimsley Ferguson did not respond to this newspaper’s calls yesterday. However, Mr Bell said he expects union members will fully comply with the order, warning there could be consequences should workers refuse to abide by the ruling. According to the Labour Minister, anyone who is found in contravention of the Industrial Relations Act can be liable to a fine of up to $200 or a prison sentence not exceeding three months or both. Asked yesterday what will happen should workers refuse to return to work, he replied: “We’ll let justice take its course and that’s all
I will say at this time. “This is a labour friendly government. At the end of the day, we all want what’s fair and just. We want to be fair in our deliberations and we want to ensure that there is due process and so again, I think it would be very premature for me to say what will happen to those persons until we really discover what is the reason why they may not have come to work (Tuesday) morning.” The union believes there has not been enough movement by the government to resolve their long-standing concerns, saying workers have had enough. To this, Mr Bell said union leaders must appreciate that the process of finalising labour agreements can sometimes be time consuming and does not happen right away. However, he suggested
the government needs to find a way to address the matter faster. “I think that we’re going to have to find some mechanism where we’re going to have to address these agreements in a more rapid way... As you would appreciate by the time the persons sit around the table and we go through these agreements and we come to an understanding (after) going back and forth, the time has elapsed,” he said. “So, on the one hand, while government has to bear in mind the limitations on its purse, the union on the other hand is trying to get as much as they possibly can for its membership and so, therefore, it means that sometimes relations are strained and sometimes, negotiations are halted for many number of reasons. “And so what you find
happening is sometimes there may be agreements on some matters, but not on the others and that is part of the reason why these negotiations take so long, but I hope that we’re able to continue to work through all of these agreements, but I can say that I’m very happy and pleased with where we are in respect to the agreement with the nurses, with the doctors, with the public unions despite the action yesterday.” Yesterday, press secretary Clint Watson told reporters that the Prime Minister met with Mr Ferguson earlier that morning to speak about the industrial action. He said the two agreed to meet at a later date to come up with an amicable solution and added Mr Ferguson “committed that his members will be back to work”.
COOPER CONCEDES ACTION TO AVE NEGATIVE IMPACT from page one This led to some local and international passengers missing their flights, he added. “The Ministry of Tourism did all we could to help to communicate and to help to facilitate a few passengers who remained at the end of the night and we did so because it was the right thing to do,” Mr Cooper said ahead of yesterday’s Cabinet meeting. “There are many of the passengers from Delta airlines who missed their flight during peak periods. They have been able to be rebooked so that process is being managed and Bahamasair yesterday ran mostly on time, only with a small number of persons missing flights and therefore, the matter was delayed but genuinely systematic. “The wait time perhaps increased by an hour during the peak period as you saw the long lines. But we were able to work through those lines systematically. During the morning period, it flowed but during the peak time between 10 (am) and about 2(pm), it did become unacceptable.” He said his ministry had identified travellers who had missed their flights and worked with airlines yesterday to ensure that they would be “properly facilitated.” “We have been working along with the major hotels to ensure that we smoothen the process for all of the people impacted,” Mr Cooper added. “We’ve been talking with the airlines to ensure that the persons who missed their flights yesterday are properly facilitated today. “The airport authority has identified the people who miss their flights and promised them expedited processing through security today. In terms of customs
MINISTER of Tourism, investments and Aviation Chester Cooper during a visit to Lynden Pindling International Airport on Monday. service, we are doing everything we can.” As far as the economic impact of Monday’s industrial action is concerned, the deputy prime minister said it is likely to be significant. “I think the economic impact as a result of yesterday was significant to some of our stakeholders who may have had to stand in the gap to facilitate some of the passengers who may have been stranded as a result of missing their flights etc,” he said.
“The overall economic impact of yesterday’s action is perhaps a significant number given the fact that many people missed flights and given the impact on the jurisdiction, our reputation whether it discouraged passengers from coming. That’s something we will have to see over time.” Mr Cooper also said while the sick out was unfortunate, the government just wants to move “forward in harmony with
workers.” “Let me just say that as a result of this action, there are all losers,” he said. “This is an issue of significance to the economy and to the tourism industry. Our reputation as a country and our reputation as a tourist destination and the actions were not only illegal but most unfortunate. “It was disappointing that we were not able to achieve the type of compromise and patience from the union.
Suffice to say, we’re moving forward.” The minister also addressed concerns that Monday’s sickout could result in negative findings by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), who is conducting an audit of the country’s airports. “They are aware of the industrial action,” he said. “They have been providing some assistance and guidance as the case may be especially during peak time.
They understand that these things happen.” “We have to see at the end of the day what the impact of that assessment would be and what impact the actions had on that assessment. We anticipate that that’s not going to be a significant issue. They understand what has been happening and they sympathise and they understand the reality that we had to work with yesterday in particular.”
‘UNIONS NEED TO FIND A SOLUTION APART FROM INDUSTRIAL ACTION’ By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net FORMER Labour Director John Pinder says he believes union leaders should apply more skills to getting matters resolved outside of industrial action that features, among other tactics, large numbers of workers calling in sick. He said industrial action should be a very last resort, adding the government needed to look at the issue of strike certificate expirations. His remarks came after more than 200 airport employees refused to report to work on Monday. Despite a court ruling ordering them to return to work, an estimated
80 percent of them did not show up for work on Tuesday. “Union leaders have to find better ways of getting results than to some degree holding the general public hostage and in the case of the airport holding the businesses hostage,” the former unionist told The Tribune yesterday. “You leave a bad taste on the tourism product, but union leaders always strike when they think they could get the result they are looking for and so they gonna do it in the busy season and all that sort of thing. “I believe union leaders should apply more skills to getting matters resolved rather than striking. Striking should be a very last resolve. It’s the very last
thing you should do and when you strike you gotta make up your mind I ain’t going back to work until the cheque is written, which means your members ain’t calling in sick for one day or two and you telling them get one sick certificate. “You (are) putting your members at risk - you can’t do it that way. So, they gotta be a little more tactful in their approach to getting matters resolved.” He also said: “I said earlier to some other persons that I think the days of striking are really gone because no union is going to get its membership to strike for a long enough time to really get the results they’re looking for.
“They can’t afford to get cut for more than two to three days, but if you go back in history to get results unions have had to strike for like 20 days. So, the employer knows full well that after one, two, three days you are coming back to work.” In some circles, there is the view that the state of industrial relations in the country was left in a poor state by the former Minnis administration. While he did not shy away from giving them some blame, he said they were challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’m saying the previous government because of COVID they had to postpone a lot of things and so people may want to blame
them and say well these were outstanding prior to the government, which is true. These matters were outstanding under the previous. As a matter of fact, some of these went back as far as the Christie administration because that airport I was president of the union and we couldn’t get that resolved. That went all the way back to the Christie administration.” He told The Tribune there were some aspects of this epidsode that he would have handled differently. “If I was dealing with it at this time, I think I would’ve handled it differently, but I think it’s important for the labour consultant that the government has. I think they need to apply a little more tactics if they’re able
to get respect for the trade union leaders at this time.” Mr Pinder also believes this government needs to hire more experienced persons to deal with the issues. He believes the persons government have in place do not have sufficient experience to get respect from the trade unions. Meanwhile, the former 2021 election candidate highlighted the issue of strike certificates’ timeframes. “The government needs to put, to cause there to be an amendment to the Industrial Agreement Act to put a timeframe on a strike certificate. Strike certificates in this country have no end. When I say that, they don’t expire until you utilise it,” Mr Pinder said.
PAGE 4, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
US report exposes trafficking issues from page one professionals who were sourced to assist in the public healthcare system during the pandemic may have been forced to work by the Cuban government, the report said. The workers entered the system back in January at a time when 116 Bahamian nurses were inactive due to COVID-19 exposure. According to the 2022 State Department Report on Trafficking In Persons (TIP), The Bahamas maintained Tier 1 Status. This despite the government failing to initiate any new prosecutions, identifying fewer victims and not having a comprehensive implementation of the country’s victim identification protocol, especially among at risk groups, including Haitian migrants. “The government of The Bahamas fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking,” according to yesterday’s report. “The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its anti-trafficking capacity; therefore The Bahamas remained on Tier 1. “These efforts included convicting a trafficker, providing support for victims repatriated abroad, making efforts to provide compensation to a victim, increasing funding for victim services, and coordinating with governments in the region on a virtual forum to share challenges and best practices
HEALTH and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville officially welcoming 50 Cuban nurses into the public healthcare system, including specialised nurses. on prosecuting trafficking and improving inter-agency collaboration.” The report also said there was a slight decrease in law enforcement efforts. “The government initiated investigation of one sex trafficking case involving two suspects, compared with 13 cases (11 for sex trafficking and two for labour trafficking) in 2020 and 16 investigations in 2019. The government did not initiate any new prosecutions, compared with two prosecutions initiated in both 2020 and 2019. “The government continued prosecution of one alleged sex trafficker from a previous reporting period and reported another seven suspected traffickers awaited the start of their trials. The government convicted one Bahamian female trafficker in December 2021 for the sex trafficking of two girl victims under the TIP Act and other laws, the same number as in 2020 and
compared with no convictions in 2019. “The Chief Magistrate sentenced the trafficker to penalties consistent with a plea agreement, including nine months and three days in prison for each of 12 counts, with concurrent sentences; three years of probation and a $5,000 fine; and 12 months of counseling; and it required the trafficker to give evidence in a related trafficker prosecution. The government did not report any investigations, prosecutions or convictions of government officials complicit in trafficking crimes.” Meanwhile the lengthy report zeroed in on how the COVID-19 pandemic affected trials. “Pandemic-related lockdowns in 2020 exacerbated criminal trial delays, but the judiciary continued modernisation efforts to address the backlog, including the digitisation of records. While the government did not assign any courts
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Terrance John Heaney, Divorced, of 1371 Amberwood Loop, Kyle TX 78640, United States of America and Luz Herlinda Phillips, Widowed, of 1371 Amberwood Loop, Kyle, TX 78640, United States of America
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 18th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
specifically to handle trafficking cases, prosecutors brought all trafficking cases before the Magistrate’s and Supreme Courts. “Experts reported concerns about excessive pretrial detention due to criminal justice system delays, preventing even the most serious criminal cases from advancing in a timely manner. Observers noted the lack of judges and prosecutors in the country contributed to significant backlogs in all cases; courts easily granted bail (due in part to prison overcrowding), even to defendants accused of violent crimes, and law enforcement did not have the resources to fully uphold the law. “Immigration officials may have solicited Haitian migrants for bribes to prevent detention. The government provided training to defence officials and law enforcement on case reporting, victim and perpetrator profiles, methods, victim identification and elements of trafficking. Due to the pandemic, the government conducted most anti-trafficking training virtually. The antitrafficking committee participated in numerous
international meetings on trafficking, both in person and virtually, which resulted in new networks for collaboration and potential future MOUs.” While there was a slight increase in efforts to protect victims of trafficking, it was asserted that “observers reported authorities did not use formal protocols to screen all migrants and continued to abuse migrants — particularly those of Haitian descent. Authorities reported screening individuals for trafficking indicators during routine checks of nightclubs. The government did not report screening Cuban medical workers for trafficking indicators.” It again echoed a concern that unaccompanied migrant children, individuals lured for employment, those involved in commercial sex and exotic dancing, irregular migrants, stateless persons, LGBTQI+ individuals (particularly from poor communities), and migrants displaced by Hurricane Dorian have been trafficking victims or are particularly vulnerable to trafficking. “In particular, irregular migrants living in informal settlements on the Hurricane Dorian-ravaged islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama, as well as those who fled to New Providence after the storm, exist in what observers call ‘dark spaces,’ which deter reporting abuse. “In January 2022, the government signed an official agreement with the Cuban government to temporarily host 50 nurses to provide medical care during the pandemic. Cuban medical professionals may have been forced to work by the Cuban government. The high unemployment rate — reported to have exceeded 40 percent — resulting from the pandemic may have
increased vulnerabilities for potential victims.” The report recommended increase efforts to investigate, prosecute and convict traffickers, including officials complicit in sex or labour trafficking, and to impose sufficient sentences. Other suggestions included: “Improve efforts to identify victims and refer them to services, particularly among vulnerable groups, including underserved stateless persons, migrants and asylum-seekers from Haiti and Venezuela, LGBTQI+ individuals, and Cuban nationals working on government-sponsored programmes. “Reduce delays in court proceedings. “Train labour inspectors on trafficking, victim identification and referral to services. Raise awareness of trafficking risks among vulnerable groups in partnership with NGOs and provide migrants with information on trafficking and workers’ rights. “Remove a requirement for migrants switching jobs to obtain a letter of release from their employer; take steps to eliminate recruitment fees charged to workers by labour recruiters and ban employee-paid recruitment fees; provide a dedicated shelter for trafficking victims; improve regular data collection and record keeping, including prosecution statistics, provide victims an alternative to speaking with law enforcement; provide vulnerable individuals with trauma-informed assistance and interpretation in their language prior to, during, and after screening for trafficking, including through the hotline and develop, execute, and publish a robust monitoring and evaluation framework for anti-trafficking policies and efforts.”
‘BE ON LOOKOUT FOR CAR ROBBERS’ By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net POLICE are advising the public to be vigilant and aware of their surroundings on arrival at their homes due to a trend of stealing vehicles in residential areas. During the evening hours over the past few weeks, police said they have noticed a trend where residents on arrival at their homes have been approached and subsequently robbed of their vehicles at gunpoint. As a result, members of the public were encouraged to get to know their
neighbours and pay close attention to vehicles parked in the immediate area of their residence. “If you’re not familiar with a vehicle, police are encouraging you not to approach your residence and to contact 911 or 919 or visit the nearest police station before driving into your yard,” police said. Meanwhile, police on Monday successfully removed three firearms from the streets of New Providence. According to reports, officers attached to Operation Ceasefire arrested a 32-year-old in the area of Wilson Tract after he was found with a handgun
and ammunition. In the second incident, officers acted on information and discovered a weapon in a backpack on Bible Way Corner, off Gladstone Road; however, no arrests were made in connection with the discovery. Finally, a woman handed over to police a handgun with a large quantity of ammunition after finding it inside her home in western New Providence. Police are actively investigating these matters and appealing to members of the public to become active participants in the fight against crime, by providing information that will assist in firearms recoveries.
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Tomas Aday Quintero III, Single, of 2309 Highlander Way, Valrico Fl., 33596, United States of America
Vincent Russell Unsworth, Single, of 18 Beverley Grove, South Shore Blackpool, Lancashire, FY4 2BE, United Kingdom
and
and
Rebecca Lynne Romzek, Single, of 2309 Highlander Way, Valrico Fl., 33596, United States of America
Karen Ann Greenough, Single, of 18 Beverley Grove, South Shore Blackpool, Lancashire, FY4 2BE, United Kingdom
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages.
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 18th day of July, 2022.
Dated this 18th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 5
Ministry launches push for inclusion of disabled people in recruitment By JADE RUSSELL jrussell@tribunemedia.net PRESHELL RamseyMiller, a completely blind woman, says despite her disability she is eager to show the country her skills through the Ministry of Public Service’s disability inclusion efforts. State Public Service Minister Pia Glover-Rolle announced the ministry’s plan to make an active push for the inclusion of more persons with disabilities when it comes to recruitment and staffing the public service. The minister noted the disability community is often “ignored”. She said: “For a long time, persons with disabilities have lamented the fact that their community is often ignored
MINISTER of State for the Public Service Pia Glover-Rolle and Shyan Chipman, president of the Core Project. Photo: Austin Fernander in the entire discourse diverse mindsets and expenationally. From a human riences in our hiring and resources perspective this recruitment efforts across Davis administration is the public service.” very sensitive to the proShe described the initiacess of ensuring that we are tive as an opportunity for inclusive and that we incor- persons of disabilities to porate a wide variety of be empowered rather than
overlooked in the public sector. “I’ve had the opportunity in the past few months to sit with the President of Core Project, which is a community based inner-city community organisation that’s inclusive of persons with disabilities. Having the opportunity to engage these persons, seeing that they are bright minds, capable and competent Bahamians who too require an opportunity to be empowered and to be able to sustain themselves.” This initiative will be spearheaded through the Public Service-Professional Engagement Programme (PS-PEP) that will be launched in August. The programme will provide on the job training and opportunities that will eventually lead to entry level placement and designated career
paths to those who successfully move through the programme. Mrs Glover-Rolle said moving forward the Ministry of Public Service’s recruitment process will be attracting and ensuring persons with disabilities will be able to receive gainful employment. Additionally, this initiative will facilitate in creating user friendliness of government workspaces for persons with disabilities. She noted the ministry is seeking to improve infrastructure and equipment. “We are focused on the human side of human resources. That means we must have everyone at the table,” Mrs Glover- Rolle said. President of the Core Project Shyan Chipman added the efforts of the
ministry is the change the disabled community needed. Mr Chipman said he wanted to make sure the wide spectrum of disability was covered in this venture. There were persons inclusive of Down Syndrom, those who use wheelchairs, the blind, deaf, and others. Ms Ramsey-Miller, 36, said this was the second time she has gone blind. “I think it’s so important that people realise that we are so much more than our disabilities,” she said yesterday. “Sometimes when you talk to people about disabilities, they tend to shun you because they don’t want to give you a chance.” However, Ms Ramsey said despite having to push more to prove she is capable she is more than eager to seek the opportunities of the ministry’s public service reform.
ACTIVISTS CALL FOR ANSWERS OVER MINISTER INCIDENT By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net FOLLOWING their 48-hour ultimatum last week, local activists of the Concerned Citizens Committee of The Bahamas (CCCB) have launched a three-phased campaign called, “Truth and Justice”. Last week CCCB urged the government to make a public statement about what allegedly took place between Transport and Housing Minister Jobeth Coleby-Davis and a police officer in May. While the Elizabeth MP has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, CCCB said that so far it is dissatisfied with the results. In a press release, the CCCB said: “Since the government has failed to communicate to the citizenry the status of such an investigation, we the CCCB have decided to begin a three-phase campaign
called, ‘Truth & Justice’ to ensure that there is fairness, and that justice is not only done, but that it is seen to be done.” The first phase of the campaign will consist of statements and issuing press releases to the public. CCB also appealed to the Christian community and civil society to help them resolve the matter. “We are sending letters to all church leaders to get them involved,” CCCB said. “We are asking them to call on the government to do the right and proper thing to allow the investigation to be free and fair and without prejudice. “We are also calling on civil society to take a stand on this matter. We are asking all community leaders to please make your voices be heard. The law is for all, not just some. Today it is the matter involving this policeman. The powerful have taken a stand in support of the minister. We
now call on civil society to stand on the side of justice. We are sending leaders to all our community leaders to lend their voices to this matter.” CCCB is also urging the media to lend their journalistic powers to the cause of Justice. “We are also asking the Fourth Estate, the media to demand more from the government on this matter. When we look at it, this matter happened in May. We are now in July and still no resolve with ministers making statements from the security of Parliament in support of the minister. We see this as wrong and one that prejudices the investigation. We appeal to the media to lend your journalistic power to the cause of Justice.” The group said it is determined to have the government launch a full investigation as “this matter will not be swept under the rug”.
DINNER CELEBRATES FORMER HOTELIERS
THE Former Hospitality Professionals Association held its Pineapple Ball yesterday where around 200 former hoteliers gathered for an awards ceremony and dinner. This year’s theme, “The True Heroes of Tourism”, was chosen to recognise some of the best known names among retirees and their valuable contributions to the hospitality industry. Paulette Dean, president of the FHPA expressed gratitude to the honourees for the footprints they each left in hospitality. Photos: Moise Amisial
SURVEY OF LABOUR FORCE DUE TO BEGIN NEXT MONTH By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribu ne Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net THE country’s labour force survey is set to begin next month, according to labour director Robert Farquharson. “It’s going to be the standard report that’s done twice a year,” he told The Tribune yesterday. “It hasn’t been done because of COVID. It’s done in April and September of each year, but because of COVID it has not been since 2019.” He added: “As a result of
the survey, the unemployment rate will be issued.” It will take place in the first three weeks of September. Prime Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis says the country’s unemployment rate is now below 20 percent, a major decrease from that of the pandemic, which he estimated at around 45 percent. Last month, the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) warned that Bahamian workers are unlikely to enjoy an “equitable rebound” in
employment conditions post-COVID, with the pandemic likely to have worsened existing skills gaps. The multilateral lender, in unveiling a $150,000 initiative “to design a talent pipeline that closes skill gaps” in key economic sectors, said COVID-19 had only served to exacerbate long-standing weak labour market conditions that resulted in one out of every five job seekers aged under 25 being unable to find work pre-pandemic. Justifying the project,
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Ashley Craig Holt, Single, of 4 Skimmers End, Holmer Green, HP15 6RD, England, United Kingdom
which it said will “support workers who are vulnerable to structural and technological changes,” by equipping them with the skills demanded by employers, the IDB added: “Labour market conditions in The Bahamas have been weak for many years. “Throughout the previous decade, unemployment rates in The Bahamas remained in the double digits, largely due to a continued overhang after the global financial crisis (of 2008-2009). Youth unemployment rates have been
persistently higher. For instance, in May 2019, the unemployment rate of individuals aged 15-25 reached 20 percent, exactly twice the national unemployment rate. This already difficult situation dramatically worsened with the pandemic.” The Bahamas’ “extreme reliance on the tourism sector” for employment, with around two-thirds of jobs dependent on the sector - a ratio the IDB said “is high even for Caribbean standards” made COVID-19’s impact
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Matthew Robert Brustad, Divorced, of 8 Coed Y Wenaltt, Cardiff, Wales CF14 6TN, United Kingdom
and Charlotte Rose Lucas, Single, of 4 Skimmers End, Holmer Green, HP15 6RD, England, United Kingdom
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 19th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
“especially dramatic”. While no official unemployment survey has been conducted since the pandemic began, at the peak of lockdowns, border closures and other COVID restrictions it was thought that more than half the Bahamian workforce had been laid-off or furloughed. The economy’s subsequent re-opening has slashed the jobless figures, but unemployment is still thought to remain stubbornly high in the double digits - and above pre-pandemic levels.
and Rebecca Jayne Letman, Widowed, of 8 Coed Y Wenaltt, Cardiff, Wales CF14 6TN, United Kingdom
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 6th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
PAGE 6, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
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Major nations lag in climate action FOR most of the major carbon-polluting nations, promising to fight climate change is a lot easier than actually doing it. In the United States, President Joe Biden has learned that the hard way. Among the ten biggest carbon emitters, only the European Union has enacted polices close to or consistent with international goals of limiting warming to just a few more tenths of a degrees, according to scientists and experts who track climate action in countries. But Europe, which is broiling through a record-smashing heat wave and hosting climate talks this week, also faces a short-term winter energy crunch, which could cause the continent to backtrack a tad and push other nations into longer, dirtier energy deals, experts said. “Even if Europe meets all of its climate goals and the rest of us don’t, we all lose,” said Kate Larsen, head of international energy and climate for the research firm Rhodium Group. Emissions of heat-trapping gases don’t stop at national borders, nor does the extreme weather that’s being felt throughout the Northern Hemisphere. “It’s a grim outlook. There’s no getting away from it, I’m afraid,” said climate scientist Bill Hare, CEO of Climate Analytics. His group joined with the New Climate Institute to create the Climate Action Tracker, which analyzes nations’ climate targets and policies compared to the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The tracker describes as “insufficient” the policies and actions of the world’s top two carbon polluters, China and the US, as well as Japan, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. It calls Russia and South Korea’s polices “highly insufficient,” and Iran comes in as “critically insufficient”. Hare says No 3 emitter India “remains an enigma”. “We are losing ground against ambitious goals” such as keeping global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) or 1.5 Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times, said veteran international climate negotiator Nigel Purvis of Climate Advisers. The world has already warmed 1.1 degrees (2 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times. Seven years ago, when almost all the nations of the world were preparing for what would become the Paris climate agreement, “it was all about ambition and setting ambitious targets,” Larsen said. “Now we are transitioning into a new phase that’s really about implementation ... I don’t think the international community knows how to do implementation.” Other nations and the United Nations can pressure countries to set goals, but enacting laws and rules is a tougher sell. While Europe has been successful with “a long history of implementing and ratcheting up existing policies,” Larsen said, that’s not the case in the United States. The US is on path to cut emissions by 24% to 35% below 2005 levels by 2030, far shy of the nation’s pledge to reduce emissions by 50% to 52% in that time, according to a new analysis by Rhodium Group. Biden is running low on options, said Larsen, a report co-author. Congress — specifically key Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia — is balking on the
president’s climate-fighting legislation, and the Supreme Court curbed power plant regulations. Congressional action “was a big window of opportunity that would have allowed us to be on track to our goal,” Larsen said. A second window is available in “the suite of federal regulations that the Biden administration plans to release”. “These are the two big deciders of whether the US will meet its target, and one we have largely failed on. So in that sense, it is a big miss because these opportunities don’t come along very often,” she said. “The US can get close” to reaching its goal, but it’s not close yet, Larsen said. Whether that happens “depends on the next three to 18 months of what the administration does.” Other nations, particularly China, look at what the US is doing to fight climate change and are reluctant to ratchet up their efforts if America isn’t doing much, Purvis and Hare said. At the urging of activists and some Democrats, the Biden administration is considering declaring a national emergency because of climate change and using special powers to cut carbon pollution from power plants and vehicles. Calling it an emergency is not enough; what matters is the actions that follow, Purvis said. Biden could put a moratorium on federal lands and water. He could reinstate a ban on US oil exports. He could move up spending on wind and solar. But all are subject to a conservative Supreme Court. “The big question is where can Biden go with executive orders and how convincing is that going to be to other leaders?” Hare said. Elsewhere in the world, “the Russian energy crisis has definitely been a major setback,” Hare said. It’s a shortterm problem for Europe, and it’s even loosened some of their rules, but “their long-term policy framework is very robust, and this might help them double down on alternative energy,” Larsen said. But the panic over natural gas has other countries, specifically in Africa, jumping onto the bandwagon of liquified natural gas, which still emits carbon. The pivot to LNG has added 15% to 20% to the amount that the world uses, Hare said. While there is a risk Europe might add infrastructure for natural gas that will be hard to abandon, it looks like the Russian invasion of Ukraine strengthened Europe’s resolve to reduce Russia’s energy influence and get off fossil fuels, Purvis said. There are other places where weaning the world off carbon looks more possible. A new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency found the cost of electricity last year from onshore wind fell by 15%, offshore wind by 13% and solar panels by 13% compared to 2020. Meanwhile, electric vehicle sales in America are rising, and the time when they could hit “escape velocity” and really make a difference is on the horizon, Larsen said. By SETH BORENSTEIN AP Science Writer
Police moves EDITOR, The Tribune.
AS THE new Commissioner of Police Clayton Fernander of the Bahamas stated in The Nassau Guardian that he will be implementing both of my recommendations to reduce crime in the Bahamas - Police Gang Task Force and Gun Task Force. These were my visions, ideas and plans to reduce crime in the Bahamas that was published to the Editor titled Crime Prevention and
Prisoner Rehabilitation recommending the need for a Police Gang Task Force to dismantle and combat gangs. Also, my next vision, idea and plan to reduce crime in the Bahamas was recommending the need for a Police Gun Task Force to investigate the entry of illegal guns into the Bahamas and to search and remove guns off the streets of the Bahamas. I am very happy, thankful and grateful that the new
Commissioner of Police Clayton Fernander will be implementing both of these recommendations - Police Gang Task Force and Police Gun Task Force to reduce crimes in the Bahamas. It further demonstrates and shows my love care and concern for the Bahamian people and the Bahamas. One Bahamas, One people and One God. PEDRO SMITH Nassau, July 19, 2022.
MEN on motorcycles look at the fire in Penteli, northeast of Athens, yesterday. In Greece, hundreds of people were ordered to leave their homes after a large forest fire broke out northeast of Athens, fanned by high winds. Fire Service officials said 11 firefighting aircraft and five helicopters were deployed to try and stop the flames reaching deeper into inhabited areas on the slopes of Mount Penteli, northeast of the capital. Photo: Thanassis Stavrakis/AP
Banking fees modern day piracy EDITOR, The Tribune. I AM writing today as a concerned citizen and a resident of the Spring City domes. I was reading an online an article published on July 8th, which was speaking of the Minister trying to have the domes demolished by August! It brings great concern to me and our residents here at the domes to understand this bold statement by the Minister of Housing of basically kicking us and our families on to the streets! I, myself, have spoken with the Minister, as I happen to pull up on them doing assessment on a vacant land that is now being used as the site to build the supposed 11 homes. At that time, I would have spoken briefly with the Minister and her team because I was concerned about a piece of Crown land that I would have applied for more than two years ago in that same area! At that time, I exchanged numbers with one of the ladies from Housing who was supposed to establish communication and spread the word on a meeting that they wanted to have, and to date, she still has not! About three weeks ago, the community of Spring City hosted a town hall meeting and, sad to say, we did not see our representative for South Abaco, we did not see a soul from housing, and we most definitely didn’t see the Minister because she doesn’t live on the island. And to top it all off, our Local Government department could not shed light on what was going with us, because they themselves said they had no idea of the houses being built at the entrance of Spring City.
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net To me and the families here in dome city, we feel neglected and as though no one cares. It seems as if they just want to kick us with no care as to where we will be going. We Abaconians knew of the housing crisis before the storm and since it is worse for the Government knows firsthand of this problem because they can’t find housing for Teachers to move to Abaco! So, our concern and our blood pressure are going up! To let it be known, the majority of the dome’s residents were home owners before the storm and are still property owners now. However, the banks and the Mortgage Corporation have failed some of our people, leaving them to pick up the pieces - unable to rebuild their homes - with no help from the government besides these domes that they are now preparing to kick us out of. So, we would like to know whether we who lost everything could get the same $10,000 for completely destroyed homes, the $7500 for partially destroyed homes, and/or the $5000 assistance that the DRA made sure all of their Government workers got and were first in the lineup for pay outs? We would also like to know what happened to the 49 homes that were supposed to be built just off Spring City that Baker’s Bay donated in return for having to put 300 Bahamian citizens out of work. And we would like to know what
happened to all the other monies that were given and are still being given? What happened to the promise to build senior citizens and single mothers’homes? I read where the minister said she has gotten two projects from former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham. I would hope that she went and got advice from him as well and then asked him what he did for his people of Abaco after Floyd! It has not been easy for us here in Abaco for the last three years. And as hard as it has been for us, there has been no counselling for the people who have lost everything in the storm, followed by all the trauma of going through this pandemic as well. I wonder if y’all have taken any of that into consideration before y’all come and destroy our so-called homes now! We deserve more respect than is being given to us and all heads of power should at least come and address us in a respectable manner and hear from the people and know the state of our living before you come to destroy us, our homes, and our lives even more! All of these domes are occupied by seniors and tax paying Bahamian citizens. So, we respectfully demand to get that respect be given to us on the way forward. We don’t have to buy one of the government houses if we have land where our houses once were. That is not making Bahamian’s independent! For what it is worth, Happy Independence Day Bahamas! DENYS ROLLE Nassau, July 19, 2022.
Cruise ships EDITOR, The Tribune. THERE is clear evidence that we are receiving more and more cruise ships which means the total onboard is growing and growing. Heard, or read, that on any certain high visit day there could be as many as 30,000 passengers - evidence yesterday Monday, July 18th, lunch time Bay Street was full of obvious visitors - note the majority unmasked which is not according to health protocols might be a good idea the cruise ships and Nassau Ports insist on compliance. Numbers of cruise ships - number of passengers fantastic, but how many actually leave the ships and walk on Bahamian soil and spend their dollars? Why is
this a secret? That tabloid-style Talk Show on Channel 224 - he has mentioned in context that the party who won the RFP - Global Ports – is being sold to MSC the shipping magnet - was or is this the correct context? MSSC has confirmed they have withdrawn their buyout of Global. Please Host state the accurate news – isn’t your programme backed by a whole news room? Goodman’s Bay - there was a branch of one casuarina tree broken off for about four-weeks now there is another this one almost crossing the exercise walkway – possibly the Supervisor of Parks can have them removed. Goodmans
needs at least three times the number of garbage bins – just the 50 gallons one. Road between Goodman’s and OPM/Wynn Hotel – BPL dug it up prior to Duke’s visit, the trench has sunk and in two areas now a serious dangerous dip in the resurfaced surface - heading east to OPM and went right off the roundabout turning to Skyline. Public Works, please have it repaired before someone is in an accident. West Bay - has the speed limit been increased to 40-60 mph? Race track, Mr Commissioner, Race track. STEPHEN MOSS Nassau, July 19, 2022.
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 7
$30K OF MARIJUANA FOUND IN FREEPORT By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net GRAND Bahama Police found $30,000 worth of illegal drugs in the Freeport area on Monday. According to police reports, Drug Enforcement Unit officers discovered 30 pounds of suspected marijuana in a bag inside a dilapidated vehicle in the Caravel Beach area. Assistant Superintendent of Police Stephen Rolle reported that DEU officers, acting on intelligence, went to an abandoned building on Butterfish Court, Caravel Beach, shortly before 7pm.
While there, officers observed a group of men gathered around a dilapidated Gray 2000 Daihatsu jeep. As officers approached, the men fled the area on foot, it was reported. ASP Rolle said that the officers gave chase, but the men escaped. However, during a search of the vehicle, a black duffle bag was found, containing 26 vacuum-sealed packages and four round packages of suspected marijuana. ASP Rolle said the suspected drugs were taken to the Drug Enforcement office for further investigation.
PAIR ACCUSED OF ROBBERY By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net TWO teenage males were arraigned in a Magistrate’s Court yesterday for stealing $700 during an armed robbery. Tario McPhee appeared before Magistrate Shaka Serville on his 18th birthday alongside a 17-year-old male defendant for a shared charge of armed robbery. On July 13 in New Providence, the defendants, while reportedly armed with a handgun, robbed Weizhen Jiang of $700 belonging to Harding’s Food Store. Due to the nature of the offence, neither defendant was required to enter a plea in court. They were further informed that their case would proceed by way of Voluntary Bill of Indictment (VBI). While the teenage defendants were denied bail in court, they were told they could apply for it through the Supreme Court, where their trial will ultimately be held.
Until it is granted to them McPhee will be remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDCS), while his co-accused will be remanded to the Simpson Penn Centre for Boys. The accused are expected to be served their VBIs on October 24. McPhee further faced an additional charge of attempted armed robbery before Magistrate Algernon Allen Jr. On July 11 in New Providence McPhee is further accused of attempting to rob Steven Strachan armed with a silver and black .22 Ruger pistol. During this incident McPhee allegedly tried to steal an undetermined amount of cash, which was the property of Rubis Gas Station. Like his previous charge the defendant was informed that this matter would proceed by way of VBI and that his trial will take place before the Supreme Court. McPhee is expected to be served his VBI for this charge on October 18.
$5,000 BAIL OVER ASSAULT By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted $5,000 bail yesterday in relation to an alleged assault of a man and woman with a car and then threatening to harm that same woman at a later date. Doug Gardiner, 32, represented by Attorney Ian Cargill stood before Assistant Chief Magistrate Subusola Swain on two counts of assault with a dangerous instrument. Gardiner also faced an additional
charge of threats of harm. On July 3 in New Providence, the defendant reportedly assaulted Michael Strachan and Latesha Neymour with a vehicle. Then later on July 16, Gardiner is alleged to have threatened Ms Neymour. In court, the accused pleaded not guilty to all three charges. With there being no objection, bail was granted to Gardiner in the sum of $5,000 with one surety. The defendant’s trial is set to begin on September 22.
ATTACKER HIT MAN AT MALL WITH A PIECE OF WOOD By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was remanded in custody for psychological evaluation after assaulting a man at the mall with a piece of wood. Kenneth Ingraham, 34, appeared before Assistant Chief Magistrate Subusola Swain on charges of causing harm and assault with a dangerous instrument. At around 6pm on July
12 at the Mall at Marathon, Ingraham caused harm to Marvin Deveaux after assaulting him with a piece of 2x4 wood. In court, the defendant pleaded guilty. Magistrate Swain then remanded Ingraham to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDCS) for psychological evaluation. As such, the defendant is expected to return to court for report on August 12.
MAN ACCUSED OVER DRUGS By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted bail in a Magistrate’s Court yesterday on charges related to possession of cocaine and marijuana. Kevin Glinton, 31, faced the charges before Magistrate Shaka Serville. He is accused of possession of dangerous drugs and possession of dangerous drugs
with intent to supply. On July 16, authorities reportedly found the defendant in possession of 11oz of Indian Hemp and six grams of cocaine. Glinton pleaded not guilty to the charges. With there being no objection from prosecution, bail was granted to the accused at $3,500 with one surety. Glinton is expected to return to court for trial on September 13.
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Warning issued as lobster season begins By JADE RUSSELL jrussell@tribunemedia.net MARINE Resources acting director Gregory Bethel says officials continue to be faced with some “unscrupulous” people who do not follow protocols when it comes to lobster season. In an interview with The Tribune, Mr Bethel said the fisheries rules and regulations state that during the closed season, which is April 1 to July 31, people should “cease and desist” from harvesting crawfish. Harvesting crawfish during closed season is a violation of the law, he stressed. “Now we know for a fact that unscrupulous persons continue to land, especially in some of the Family Islands,” he told The Tribune yesterday. “One of the reasons for that is because they have (an) unscrupulous bias.” This is in the form of restaurants that continue to purchase from them,
he said. In terms of public education and awareness, the director said they continue to remind, not only fishermen, but also the general public of what the laws are that govern the commercial fishing industry and more specifically lobster season. When asked about the challenges of foreign vessels and poachers, Mr Bethel responded that under the Fisheries Act other authorities have the power to enforce fisheries laws. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be enforced by a member of my department, but it can be enforced by members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force, and custom officers because they have the authority under the fisheries act to enforce them,” he said. Mr Bethel said he wants to wish all Bahamian lobster fishermen a successful and productive season. “I want to wish them the best even in the midst of higher fuel prices, I
want to wish them the best. Let me say that last year’s 2021-2022 season was a bumper year in terms of exports and the price that fishers were receiving for the harvesting of crawfish.” He added that there is potential for the further development of the sector. However, it is important to adhere to the management plan and the rules and regulations that govern the sector. “We also work with the various fishing associations with the country and the two major ones being The Bahamas Commercial Fisher’s Alliance and the National Fisher’s Association. Both of those bodies are comprised of actual stakeholders. When I say stakeholders I’m talking about fishers, processors, and buyers in the country. We seek their assistance and work closely with them in terms of management and safeguarding the fishery sector.” He added he wants to continue to work with the other agencies in efforts of protecting and safeguarding marine resources.
SADDLE UP FOR SUMMER YOUNGSTERS taking part in the Camperdown Equestrian Summer Camp yesterday.
Photos: Austin Fernander
PAGE 8, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
THE TRIBUNE PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis speaking at the University of The Bahamas last week.
Mr Davis - let’s make sure everyone who needs to has their say in your Big Plan LAST week, at an event in the “Meet the Policymakers Lecture Series” hosted by University of The Bahamas’ Government and Public Policy Institute, the Prime Minister presented on the National Development Plan. Following his presentation, there was a short question and answer segment and one question sparked about two days of commentary — not necessarily conversation — about LGBTQI+ people and human rights. When I watched the recording, available on the University of The Bahamas Facebook page, I took quite a few notes because I found a number of statements quite interesting, many of them in contradiction to what is in practice, and some of them related to the question that had everyone talking. I am sharing five interesting points that were made, not to agree with or validate them, but to be considered in the context of the question asked. 1. National Development Plan - Consensus? Davis said, “The National Development Plan for The Bahamas benefitted by having input from Bahamians from each part of the country and every walk of life. The results, therefore, form a consensus of what Bahamians think needs to be done in order to move the country forward.” While there was consultation to help drive the drafting of the National Development Plan, the result of the process was definitely not consensus. As is obvious from the questions posed, everyone is not on the same page. All views are not incorporated into that plan. There are some missing elements because of the gaps in the consultation exercise. Of course every single citizen was not included in the process, but what is cause for concern is the exclusion of particular groups. This exclusion may not have been intentional. Comprehensiveness requires significant resources and a strong awareness of and connection to specific groups of people whose realities are different from those considered to be “the average Bahamian.” 2. National Development Plan - a dynamic document The Prime Minister mentioned the National Development Plan is a dynamic document. It is not clear what he meant by that, but it should be
By Alicia Wallace expected that such a document would grow and change as we learn more, as we change, and as our environment changes. It is important we do not become so enamoured by working documents we produce that we revere them and treat them as though revision would be an insult rather than a recognition of changing conditions, growth and responsiveness. A dynamic situation is constantly changing, and a dynamic document is not written in stone. “My earlier point about the dynamic nature of development planning was to hint at more than the evolving needs of our country over the short, medium, and long terms.” Davis said. “The context becomes king in so far as the realities of the day will have great influence on the priorities and perceptions of the time. Whatever those are, it is also to emphasise that the context didn’t come out of nothing.” What is our reality today? How does or must it influence our priorities? 3. Older ways of thinking persist Davis noted there are different points of view held by different administrations and generations. He acknowledged that the past continues to shape our lives now, and there are still older ways of thinking that persist today. “Are they wrong to do so?” he asked. “Of course not. They are Bahamians, and even if they are not of the view of the majority, they still have influence.” Does this mean we are to accept regressive views? Do we treat people with new or unfamiliar (to us) ideas, especially about rights and State responsibilities, as Bahamians with valuable contributions? 4. Help them help themselves “We are all too familiar with some working practices in The Bahamas where workers are subjected to all manner of humiliating indignities[…] As an unashamed holder of progressive values, I do not believe the State should stand idly by and leave
people to just fend for themselves. At the other extreme, I do not believe that the State is there to do everything. People must and should be able to help themselves.” Who do we leave to fend for themselves, and why? What does it mean to be able to help oneself? What is required of the State to enable individuals and communities to fend for themselves? 5. Need to prioritise The Prime Minister briefly noted the plan is ambitious, both in scope and in depth. He acknowledged this means it is necessary to prioritise. How have we, historically, prioritised issues and actions? How does that need to change? Which issues and which communities need to be named and involved in decision-making? Immediately following the Prime Minister’s presentation, Laing opened the floor to questions. One of the questions was about the failure, thus far, to include LGBTQI+ people. Natino Thompson noted the failure, thus far, to include LGBTQI+ people, although referred to the Blueprint for Change, the PLP’s campaign document, rather than the National Development Plan. “Like former administrations, you often leave out this group of marginalised people. We cannot talk about a National Development Plan without the inclusion of [LGBTQI+] people[…] How are you going to take care of queer Bahamians?” Before we get to the response, let’s think about the statement made and the question asked. The statement is true — LGBTQI+ people are not mentioned. The question about care for LGBTQI+ people is one we need answered. In fact, we can ask the same question about about people in the Family Islands. We can ask about people who receive low wages. We can ask about institutionalised people. Some of the issues these people face are addressed in other ways, largely in thematic areas, but their
NATINO Thompson posing a question to Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis. circumstances and the way have dignity “the joys of they dictate the opportuni- humanity and life”. ties available to them and There is an obvious dischallenges they face are not connect here. There are fully considered. Solutions wealthy people, and there to their specific challenges are far more people who are not laid out in the Blue- are economically struggling. print for Change. The fact Their economic struggles, of the matter is that we however, are not confined are living different kinds to one part of their lives. of lives, largely determined It affects every aspect by our identities which of life. The amount of impacts our ability to access money a person has deterresources and services. It mines where they can live, does not help anyone to whether or not they can pretend as though a gen- have electricity, the amount eralised approach will of credit on their phones, reach and impact the lives where their children go to of people in situations of school, the kind of food vulnerability. they buy, whether or not Davis responded, “When they have childcare, how I spoke, I did not speak they get to and from work, about female or male, I and whether or not they can spoke about Bahamians.” participate in consultation At this point, there was on a National Development applause. The people at Plan. the event were, apparently, By extension, these facpleased to hear the Prime tors determine whether Minister suggest it is suffi- or not children can attend cient to view Bahamians as virtual classes, who is at one group of people with risk of sexual violence, and the same needs. whose communities are He continued, “I spoke named and issues addressed about Bahamians. And in plans meant to guide that is the way I view all, policymaking and programand if you notice, if you’re ming for decades. looking for a specific—“ We can talk generally He was then interrupted about Bahamians, espewith the followup comment cially when we are planning that homelessness and dis- for the next 20 years, when abilities are addressed, and there are Bahamians living LGBTQI+ people should in incredibly large houses also be named. and paid domestic staff, and Davis responded, “Point there are Bahamians who is taken and heard.” This cannot afford to maintain seemed like a dismissive their own small homes and response, meant to move families because they are on from an uncomfort- not paid enough for their able topic. A bit later, in work to care of someone response to another ques- else’s. Issues do not affect tion, this time about his us all in the same way, and suggestion that economic to suggest that or create equality is not realistic, policies on that basis is negDavis said, “In the con- ligent at best. struct of our reality, [you Fuelled by the queswill have] a janitor, street tion and LGBTQI+ cleaners[…]” All should people at that event,
people have been asking what LGBTQI+ people want. Many are convinced there is a push for “special rights,” and they are wrong. LGBTQI+ people want their human rights to be recognised, realised, and expanded. Protection from discrimination on the basis of gender and sexuality is critical. This would help move us toward better hiring practices and reduction in wrongful dismissal, obligate health professionals to provide healthcare services without prejudice (and without unnecessary commentary or “advice”). LGBTQI+ people are entitled to the same human rights as everyone else, but access to those rights is impeded by discrimination and violence. That discrimination has to be addressed and that violence has to be prevented, and we need the government to take action. We can think about LGBTQI+ people, as well as other people in situations of vulnerability, alongside the five points made by the Prime Minister and listed here. First, there is no consensus, but including LGBTQI+ people in consultation processes will ensure that specific needs are addressed and solutions are put forward. Second, given the nature of the document, it is not too late to include specific communities and/or information they share. Third, the same way that people with older ways of thinking are Bahamians, LGBTQI+ people are Bahamians, and ought to influence where we go as a country and how we get there. Fourth, if LGBTQI+ people are to be able to improve their circumstances, there must be State support, and protection from violence along with recognition and expansion of rights are a start. Fifth, in prioritising issues, we must not forget the people who are meant to benefit from the plan and its implementation, must not leave anyone out, and must not cause harm, and this requires us to center those at the highest risk and with the greatest need. If there is a vulnerable, marginalised, or at-risk community you care about, it likely has similar needs, and should not be left to meet them on their own or suffer. We all deserve to enjoy our human rights. We should all experience the “joy of humanity and life”.
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Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 9
OPENING UP ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE By MATT O’BRIE AP Technology Writer THE tech industry’s latest artificial intelligence constructs can be pretty convincing if you ask them what it feels like to be a sentient computer, or maybe just a dinosaur or squirrel. But they’re not so good — and sometimes dangerously bad — at handling other seemingly straightforward tasks. Take, for instance, GPT-3, a Microsoft-controlled system that can generate paragraphs of human-like text based on what it’s learned from a vast database of digital books and online writings. It’s considered one of the most advanced of a new generation of AI algorithms that can converse, generate readable text on demand and even produce novel images and video. Among other things, GPT-3 can write up most any text you ask for — a cover letter for a zookeeping job, say, or a Shakespeareanstyle sonnet set on Mars. But when Pomona College professor Gary Smith asked it a simple but nonsensical question about walking upstairs, GPT-3 muffed it. “Yes, it is safe to walk upstairs on your hands if you wash them first,” the AI replied. These powerful and power-chugging AI systems, technically known as “large language models” because they’ve been trained on a huge body of text and other media, are already getting baked into customer service chatbots, Google searches and “auto-complete” email features that finish your sentences for you. But most of the tech companies that built them have been secretive about their inner workings, making it hard for outsiders to understand the flaws that can make them a source of misinformation, racism and other harms. “They’re very good at writing text with the proficiency of human beings,” said Teven
RESEARCH engineer Teven Le Scao, who helped create the new artificial intelligence language model called BLOOM, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) Le Scao, a research engineer at the AI startup Hugging Face. “Something they’re not very good at is being factual. It looks very coherent. It’s almost true. But it’s often wrong.” That’s one reason a coalition of AI researchers co-led by Le Scao —- with help from the French government — launched a new large language model Tuesday that’s supposed to serve as an antidote to closed systems such as GPT-3. The group is called BigScience and their model is BLOOM, for the BigScience Large Open-science Open-access Multilingual Language Model. Its main breakthrough is that it works across 46 languages, including Arabic, Spanish and French — unlike most systems that are focused on English or Chinese. It’s not just Le Scao’s group aiming to open up the black box of AI language models. Big Tech company Meta, the parent of Facebook and Instagram, is also calling for a more open approach as it tries to catch up to the
systems built by Google and OpenAI, the company that runs GPT-3. “We’ve seen announcement after announcement after announcement of people doing this kind of work, but with very little transparency, very little ability for people to really look under the hood and peek into how these models work,” said Joelle Pineau, managing director of Meta AI. Competitive pressure to build the most eloquent or informative system — and profit from its applications — is one of the reasons that most tech companies keep a tight lid on them and don’t collaborate on community norms, said Percy Liang, an associate computer science professor at Stanford who directs its Center for Research on Foundation Models. “For some companies this is their secret sauce,” Liang said. But they are often also worried that losing control could lead to irresponsible uses. As AI systems are increasingly able to write health advice websites, high school term papers or political screeds, misinformation can proliferate and it will get harder to know what’s coming from a human or a computer. Meta recently launched a new language model called OPT-175B that uses publicly available data — from heated commentary on Reddit forums to the archive of U.S. patent records and a trove of emails from the Enron corporate scandal. Meta says its openness about the data, code and research logbooks makes it easier for outside researchers to help identify and mitigate the bias and toxicity that it picks up by ingesting how real people write and communicate. “It is hard to do this. We are opening ourselves for huge criticism. We know the model will say things we won’t be proud of,” Pineau said. While most companies
have set their own internal AI safeguards, Liang said what’s needed are broader community standards to guide research and decisions such as when to release a new model into the wild. It doesn’t help that these models require so much computing power that only giant corporations and governments can afford them. BigScience, for instance, was able to train its models because it was offered access to France’s powerful Jean Zay supercomputer near Paris. The trend for ever-bigger, ever-smarter AI language models that could be “pretrained” on a wide body of writings took a big leap in 2018 when Google introduced a system known as BERT that uses a so-called “transformer” technique that compares words across a sentence to predict meaning and context. But what really impressed the AI world was GPT-3, released by San Francisco-based startup OpenAI in 2020 and soon after exclusively licensed by Microsoft. GPT-3 led to a boom in creative experimentation as AI researchers with paid access used it as a sandbox to gauge its performance — though without important information about the data it was trained on. OpenAI has broadly described its training sources in a research paper, and has also publicly reported its efforts to grapple with potential abuses of the technology. But BigScience co-leader Thomas Wolf said it doesn’t provide details about how it filters that data, or give access to the processed version to outside researchers. “So we can’t actually examine the data that went into the GPT-3 training,” said Wolf, who is also a chief science officer at Hugging Face. “The core of this recent wave of AI tech is much more in the dataset than the models. The most important ingredient is data and OpenAI is very, very secretive about the
data they use.” Wolf said that opening up the datasets used for language models helps humans better understand their biases. A multilingual model trained in Arabic is far less likely to spit out offensive remarks or misunderstandings about Islam than one that’s only trained on English-language text in the U.S., he said. One of the newest AI experimental models on the scene is Google’s LaMDA, which also incorporates speech and is so impressive at responding to conversational questions that one Google engineer argued it was approaching consciousness — a claim that got him suspended from his job last month. Colorado-based researcher Janelle Shane, author of the AI Weirdness blog, has spent the past few years creatively testing these models, especially GPT-3 — often to humorous effect. But to point out the absurdity of thinking these systems are self-aware, she recently instructed it to be an advanced AI but one which is secretly a Tyrannosaurus rex or a squirrel. “It is very exciting being a squirrel. I get to run and jump and play all day. I also get to eat a lot of food, which is great,” GPT-3 said, after Shane asked it for a transcript of an interview and posed some questions. Shane has learned more about its strengths, such as its ease at summarising what’s been said around the internet about a topic, and its weaknesses, including its lack of reasoning skills, the difficulty of sticking with an idea across multiple sentences and a propensity for being offensive. “I wouldn’t want a text model dispensing medical advice or acting as a companion,” she said. “It’s good at that surface appearance of meaning if you are not reading closely. It’s like listening to a lecture as you’re falling asleep.”
NEW ELECTRONIC VEHICLES AIM TO RIVAL GAS POWERED COMPETITORS By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer WARREN, Mich. (AP) — In their first rollouts of electric vehicles, America’s automakers targeted people who value short-range economy cars. Then came EVs for luxury buyers and drivers of pickups and delivery vans. Now, the companies are zeroing in at the heart of the U.S. auto market: The compact SUV. In their drive to have EVs dominate vehicle sales in coming years, the automakers are promoting their new models as having the range, price and features to rival their gas-powered competitors. Some are so far proving quite popular. Ford’s $45,000-plus Mustang Mach E is sold out for the model year. On Monday night, General Motors’ Chevrolet brand introduced an electric version of its Blazer, also starting around $45,000, when it goes on sale next summer. Also coming next year: An electric Chevy Equinox, with a base price of about $30,000, whose price could give it particular appeal with modestincome households. There’s also the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Volkswagen’s
THE 2024 Chevrolet SS EV is shown in Warren, Mich., Tuesday. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
ID.4 in the $40,000s and Nissan’s upcoming Ariya around $47,000 with a lower-priced version coming. All start off considerably less expensive than Tesla’s Model Y small SUV, the current top EV seller, with a starting price well into the $60,000s. The new models, which can get about 300 miles per electric charge, are aimed at the largest segment of the U.S. market: Modest-size SUVs, representing about 20% of new-vehicle
sales. Industry experts say entering the smaller SUV segment, with its reach into a broader demographic of buyers, is sure to boost electric vehicle sales nationally. “Going to the smaller utility segment gives you the opportunity to access the most customers in one (market) segment,” said Stephanie Brinley, principal analyst for S&P Global Mobility. “To make a transition from (internal combustion engines) to
electric, you have to be in more space. You have to be in more price points. You have to be in more sizes.” Brinley noted that the small and midsize SUV segments meet many people’s needs, something that previous electric vehicles did not. “If it’s a price you can reach but it’s a product that you can’t put your kids and your dog in, you’re not going to buy it,” she said. Chevrolet says the Blazer will get a minimum of 247 miles (398 kilometres) per charge. Pricier high-end versions could go up to 320 miles (515 kilometres). The Blazer will be available with Chevrolet’s SS performance package with a zero-to-60 mph (97 kilometres per hour) time of under four seconds. There will be a police version, too. “Early on, the demographic composition of an EV buyer was certainly someone that perhaps had higher education, higher household income,” said Steve Majoros, Chevrolet’s marketing director. “That’s very indicative of early adopters. But as we move up that curve, the intention and where we’re pricing this product is to certainly make it more available for more mainstream buyers.”
TECHTALK
US ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY LAUNCHED FOR THIRTY METRE TELESCOPE By AUDREY McAVOY Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — The National Science Foundation said Tuesday it plans to conduct a study to evaluate the environmental effects of building one of the world’s largest optical telescopes on sites selected in Hawaii and Spain’s Canary Islands. The agency published a notice in the Federal Register of its intentions to prepare an environmental impact statement for the $2.65 billion Thirty Meter Telescope. The telescope’s supporters have pursued plans to build it on their preferred site on the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii’s tallest mountain and one of the world’s best locations for viewing the night sky, for over a decade. But there is strong opposition from Native Hawaiians who consider the mountain’s summit sacred. The National Science Foundation plans to host four meetings on the Big Island of Hawaii in August. It said it won’t decide on whether to fund the telescope until after it considers public input, the environmental review, the project’s technical readiness and other factors. Protesters blocked construction crews in 2015 and 2019, saying building a new telescope there would further defile a site that they say has already been harmed by a dozen other observatories.
VIRGIN GALACTIC PICKS MESA AS SITE FOR SPACEPLANES ASSEMBLY MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Virgin Galactic announced last week that it has selected the Phoenix suburb of Mesa as the site where it will assemble its next class of rocket ships. Officials with the aerospace and space travel company said they have signed a long-term lease for a new final assembly manufacturing facility adjacent to the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. They said the facility will be capable of producing up to six spaceships per year and bring hundreds of aerospace engineering and manufacturing jobs to Mesa. Virgin Galactic officials said the Delta class suborbital spaceplanes will be designed to fly weekly, supporting the company’s target of 400 flights annually from Spaceport America in New Mexico. The first of the spaceships is expected to start payload flights in late 2025 with private astronaut flights in 2026.
PAGE 10, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
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THE SCENE of a blaze in the village of Wennington, east London, yesterday. The typically temperate nation of England is the latest to be walloped by unusually hot, dry weather that has triggered wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans and led to hundreds of heat-related deaths. Photo: Yui Mok/PA via AP
UK breaks record for highest temperature LONDON Associated Press BRITAIN shattered its record for highest temperature ever registered yesterday amid a heat wave that has seared swaths of Europe, as the UK’s national weather forecaster said such highs are now a fact of life in a country illprepared for such extremes. The typically temperate nation was just the latest to be walloped by unusually hot, dry weather that has triggered wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans and led to hundreds of heatrelated deaths. Images of flames racing toward a French beach and Britons sweltering — even at the seaside — have driven home concerns about climate change. The UK Met Office weather agency registered a provisional reading of 40.3 degrees Celsius (104.5 degrees Fahrenheit) at Coningsby in eastern England — breaking the record set just hours earlier. Before yesterday, the highest temperature recorded in Britain was 38.7 C (101.7 F), set in 2019. By later afternoon, 29 places in the UK had broken the record.
As the nation watched with a combination of horror and fascination, Met Office chief scientist Stephen Belcher said such temperatures in Britain were “virtually impossible” without human-driven climate change. He warned that “we could see temperatures like this every three years” without serious action on carbon emissions. The sweltering weather has disrupted travel, health care and schools. Many homes, small businesses and even public buildings, including hospitals, in Britain don’t have air conditioning, a reflection of how unusual such heat is in the country better known for rain and mild temperatures. The intense heat since Monday has damaged the runway at London’s Luton airport, forcing it to shut for several hours, and warped a main road in eastern England, leaving it looking like a “skatepark,” police said. Major train stations were shut or near-empty Tuesday, as trains were canceled or ran at low speeds out of concern rails could buckle. London faced what Mayor Sadiq Khan called a “huge surge” in fires
BIDEN OLDS OFF ON CLIMATE EMERGENC DECLARATION WASHINGTON Associated Press PRESIDENT Joe Biden will travel to Massachusetts today to promote his efforts to combat climate change but will stop short of issuing an emergency declaration that would unlock federal resources to deal with the issue, according to a person familiar with the president’s plans. Biden has been under pressure to issue an emergency declaration after Sen Joe Manchin, D-W Va, pulled out of negotiations over climate legislation. During his visit to Somerset, Mass., Biden could announce other steps on climate change but the White House has not released details. The president has been trying to signal to Democratic voters that he’s aggressively tackling global warming at a time when some of his supporters have despaired about the lack of progress. He has pledged to push forward on his own in the absence of congressional action. It was not clear whether a declaration remains under consideration. Declaration of a climate emergency would be similar to one issued by former President Donald Trump boosting construction of a southern border wall. It would allow
Biden to redirect spending to accelerate renewable energy such as wind and solar power and speed the nation’s transition away from fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. The declaration also could be used as a legal basis to block oil and gas drilling or other projects, although such actions would likely be challenged in court by energy companies or Republican-led states. The focus on climate action comes amid a heat wave that has seared swaths of Europe, with Britain reaching the highest temperature ever registered in a country ill-prepared for such weather extremes. The typically temperate nation was just the latest to be walloped by unusually hot, dry weather that has triggered wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans and led to hundreds of heatrelated deaths. The president vowed late last week to take robust executive action on climate after Manchin — who has wielded outsized influence on Biden’s legislative agenda because of Democrats’ razor-thin majority in the Senate — hit the brakes on negotiations over proposals for new environmental programmes and higher taxes on the wealthy and corporations.
because of the heat. The London Fire Brigade listed 10 major blazes it was fighting across the city Tuesday, half of them grass fires. Images showed several houses engulfed in flames as smoke billowed from burning fields in Wennington, a village on the eastern outskirts of London. Sales of fans at one retailer, Asda, increased by 1,300%. Electric fans cooled the traditional mounted troops of the Household Cavalry as they stood guard in central London in heavy ceremonial uniforms. The length of the changing of the guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace was shortened. The capital’s Hyde Park, normally busy with walkers, was eerily quiet — except for the long lines to take a dip in the Serpentine lake. “I’m going to my office because it is nice and cool,’’ said geologist Tom Elliott, 31, after taking a swim. “I’m cycling around instead of taking the Tube.’’ Ever the stalwart, Queen Elizabeth II carried on working. The 96-year-old monarch held a virtual audience with new US ambassador Jane Hartley from the safety of Windsor Castle.
A huge chunk of England, from London in the south to Manchester and Leeds in the north, remained under the country’s first “red” warning for extreme heat Tuesday, meaning there is danger of death even for healthy people. Such dangers could be seen in Britain and across Europe. At least six people were reported to have drowned while trying to cool off in rivers, lakes and reservoirs across the UK. In Spain and neighboring Portugal, hundreds of heatrelated deaths have been reported in the heat wave. Climate experts warn that global warming has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, with studies showing that the likelihood of temperatures in the UK reaching 40 C (104 F) is now ten times higher than in the preindustrial era. The head of the UN weather agency expressed hope that the heat gripping Europe would serve as a “wake-up call” for governments to do more on climate change. Other scientists used the milestone moment to underscore that it was time to act.
“While still rare, 40C is now a reality of British summers,” said Friederike Otto, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science at Imperial College London’s Grantham Institute for Climate Change. “Whether it will become a very common occurrence or remains relatively infrequent is in our hands and is determined by when and at what global mean temperature we reach net zero.” Extreme heat broiled other parts of Europe, too. In Paris, the thermometer in the French capital’s oldest weather station – opened in 1873 – topped 40 C (104 F) for just the third time. The 40.5 C (104.9 F) measured there by weather service Meteo-France on Tuesday was the station’s second-highest reading ever, topped only by a blistering 42.6 C (108.7 F) in July 2019. Drought and heat waves tied to climate change have also made wildfires more common and harder to fight. In the Gironde region of southwestern France, ferocious wildfires continued to spread through tinder-dry pines forests, frustrating firefighting efforts by more than 2,000 firefighters and
water-bombing planes. Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from homes and summer vacation spots since the fires broke out July 12, Gironde authorities said. A smaller third fire broke out late Monday in the Medoc wine region north of Bordeaux, further taxing resources. Five camping sites went up in flames in the Atlantic coast beach zone where blazes raged around the Arcachon maritime basin famous for its oysters and resorts. In Greece, a large forest fire broke out northeast of Athens, fanned by high winds. Fire Service officials said nine firefighting aircraft and four helicopters were deployed to try to stop the flames from reaching inhabited areas on the slopes of Mount Penteli, some 25 kilometers (16 miles) northeast of the capital. Smoke from the fire blanketed part of the city’s skyline. But weather forecasts offered some consolation, with temperatures expected to ease along the Atlantic seaboard Tuesday and the possibility of rains rolling in late in the day.
AFRICA’S WILDLIFE PARKS MANAGERS MEET MOMBASA, Kenya Associated Press
OFFICIALS are meeting in Kigali in Rwanda this week as part of the continent’s first-ever Africa Protected Areas Congress in a bid to expand the preservation of land and marine wildlife, despite little funding and the low quality of many existing conservation areas in the region. Just 14% of Africa’s land and inland water ecosystems and 17% of coastal and marine areas are protected, according to United Nations estimates. The continent currently has 9,118 protected areas. Over 100 countries worldwide have ambitions to expand conservation efforts and protect wildlife from human-caused damages. “Africa’s protected and conserved areas face serious issues that need to be addressed urgently,” said Ken Mwathe, policy coordinator for Birdlife International in Africa. He said climate change, the decline in quality for protected areas due to underfunding and the growth of infrastructure development in protected areas area severely hampering biodiversity on the continent. “The push for development in protected and other key biodiversity areas is one that governments and stakeholders should critically interrogate during the congress,” Mwathe said. Those working on the frontlines of conservation are already facing increasing challenges. On Kenya’s Wasini Island, where coral reefs and fish are protected by a communitymanaged marine park, conservation managers say it’s difficult for these projects to succeed.
CORAL reef restoration ranger Dosa Mshenga Mchambi works at an artificial reef structure in the Indian ocean at Shimoni, Kenya, on June 13, 2022. Photo: Brian Inganga/AP “Managing this local marine park is quite expensive for the community and requires a lot of external support,” said Dosa Mshenga, a member of the community that looks after the coral reefs. “However it has a major positive side. Since we started coral restoration and watching the designated area around eight years ago, we have seen fish, octopus and even lobsters which had disappeared returning.” But these gains are now threatened by the construction of a major fishing port in Shimoni, just 1.9 miles from the island, Mshenga said. The Great Blue Wall Initiative — a project to protect marine life across Africa’s east coast — will play a prominent part in marine conservation discussions, alongside community-led projects like those in Wasini, Luther Anukur, regional director of the International Union for the Conservation
of Nature, which is hosting the conference, said. He added that local communities and Indigenous people will be at the forefront of conservation efforts. “It is important to note that African people have not only lived alongside wildlife but have been its protectors too,” Anukur said. African governments have found themselves under increasing public pressure and international condemnation in recent weeks following evictions of Indigenous communities from conservation areas, with the Maasai in Tanzania appealing to the UN for better protections following violent confrontations that forced them to leave their ancestral homes in Ngorongoro Conservation Area. The congress brings together wildlife parks and reserves managers, scientists, and Indigenous and community leaders.
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Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 11
URBAN RENEWAL HOLDS EIGHT SUMMER CAMPS URBAN Renewal Revolutionised launched eight summer camps in New Providence this summer, with hundreds of children participating. Minister of State for Social Services and Urban Development Lisa Rahming said: “I am so excited. This is a special venture for Urban Renewal. Kids are learning swimming, baseball, basketball, drumming,
Junkanoo music and craft, dancing, and arts and crafts, among other activities. When I was a part of Urban Renewal back in 2003, I saw the positive effect that these summer camps had on the kids. So we want to make sure that these kids are learning, but also having fun - we want to make it exciting for them!” Summer camp dancers
had the opportunity to show off their skills at the Fox Hill Festival Flag Raising Ceremony at Fox Hill Park. Fire and limbo dancer Leroy Butler has been passing on his skills, while Apostle Henry Higgins, Stacy Lee and Tanya Sastry are among the Junkanoo music, dance and craft instructors. Volunteer Lillian Flowers
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Anthony John Lauer, Single, of 2402 Deborah Drive SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404, United States of America
is among the instructors who are teaching kids how to protect themselves from abuse. Kristen Farrington, a swimmer who has represented The Bahamas on an international level in the sport, is leading swimming lessons, assisted by Alexa Dean. “It’s very important for our kids to learn to swim,” Ms Rahming said.
SOME of the participants in one of the Urban Renewal summer camps in New Providence.
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Ben Thomas Lambert, Single, of 4 Deighton Close, St. Ives, PE27 3JJ, United Kingdom
and Ashlie Ryane Aschinger, Single, of 2402 Deborah Drive SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404, United States of America
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 19th day of July, 2022.
and Rebecca Catherine Morris, Single, of 4 Deighton Close, St. Ives, PE27 3JJ, United Kingdom
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 18th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Charles Jamison Rogers-Shaw, Single, of 28 Merriman Circle, Southington, CT 06489, United States of America
Daniel James Orme, Single, of 15 Longmead Road, Paignton, Devon TQ3 1AW, United Kingdom
and
and
Emily Joy Lafferty, Single, of 28 Merriman Circle, Southington, CT 06489, United States of America
Holly Louise Clamp, Single, of 15 Longmead Road, Paignton, Devon TQ3 1AW, United Kingdom
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages.
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages.
Dated this 8th day of July, 2022.
Dated this 1st day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
David A Crowley, Divorced, of 100 Carolyn Drive West, Warwick, RI 02893, United States of America
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
FORM B Notice of Intended Marriage (Section 7(3))
The persons named and described hereunder have given notice to me of their intended marriage, namely --
Ernesto German Diez Canseco Price, Divorced, of 561 Sandy Banks Rd., Raleigh, NC 27616, United States of America
and and
Jennifer Jean Savasta, Single, of 100 Carolyn Drive West, Warwick, RI 02893, United States of America
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 19th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
Kathia Maria Silva Perez Melo Vega, Divorced, of 561 Sandy Banks Rd., Raleigh, NC 27616, United States of America
Any person knowing any just cause or impediment why this marriage should not be allowed should enter caveat forthwith in the office of the Registrar of Marriages. Dated this 19th day of July, 2022.
Camille Gomez-Jones ______________________________________ Registrar of Marriages
PAGE 12, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
RESULTS - BAHAMAS AQUATICS’ 50TH NATIONAL SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS THE Bahamas Aquatics Federation completed its 50th National Swimming Championships at the Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex on July 10. time executive John Bradley: Girls 13-14 50 LC Meter Breaststroke
Boys 13-14 50 LC Meter Breaststroke
Girls 13-14 200 LC Meter IM Girls 13-14 100 LC Meter Freestyle
Girls 9-10 200 LC Meter IM -
Boys 13-14 100 LC Meter Freestyle -
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Girls 9-10 200 LC Meter Medley Relay
Boys 13-14 200 LC Meter IM -
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Girls 15-17 50 LC Meter Breaststroke
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Girls 18 & Over 50 LC Meter Breaststroke
Boys 15-17 50 LC Meter Breaststroke
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Boys 9-10 200 LC Meter Medley Relay Boys 18 & Over 50 LC Meter Breaststroke -
SWIMMERS compete in the Bahamas Aquatics Federation’s 50th National Swimming Championships at the Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex. (File photo) Girls 15-17 100 LC Meter Freestyle
Boys 9-10 200 LC Meter IM Girls 15-17 200 LC Meter IM
Girls 8 & Under 100 LC Meter Freestyle -
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CAN. Girls 18 & Over 200 LC Meter IM -
Boys 8 & Under 100 LC Meter Freestyle -
Boys 15-17 100 LC Meter Freestyle
Boys 15-17 200 LC Meter IM Girls 11-12 200 LC Meter IM
Girls 9-10 100 LC Meter Freestyle
Girls 11-12 200 LC Meter Medley Relay
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Boys 18 & Over 100 LC Meter Freestyle Boys 18 & Over 200 LC Meter IM Boys 9-10 100 LC Meter Freestyle
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Girls 8 & Under 200 LC Meter IM
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Girls 11-12 100 LC Meter Freestyle
Boys 11-12 200 LC Meter IM
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Boys 11-12 100 LC Meter Freestyle
Boys 8 & Under 200 LC Meter IM
CONTINUED IN Boys 8 & Under 200 LC Meter Medley Relay
THURSDAY SPORTS
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 13
No new record but third gold for Rojas in triple jump By LUIS RUIZ AP Sports Writer EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — The best triple jumper on the planet is now a threetime world champion. And even though there was no new record to go with her victory, Yulimar Rojas was grateful that at least she had fans on hand to watch her perform. The Venezuelan star captured her third straight title Monday, winning the final with a jump of 15.47 metres (50 feet, 9 inches). That was 27 centimetres (10 1/2 inches) away from her world record but still good enough to romp to a 58-centimetre (1 foot, 10 3/4 inch) victory over
Shanieka Ricketts of Jamaica. “I wanted a longer jump,” Rojas said. “But I am happy to return to this beautiful stadium, to see the crowd. I have had great feelings.” The 26-year-old faced uncertainty in the run-up to worlds. After missing a meet last month in Madrid due to an injury to her left leg, she hadn’t been seen or heard from. She let her jumping do the talking at Hayward Stadium, a track and field hotbed where fans clapped in rhythm before all six of her jumps. “I come from a short preparation,” she said. “I overcame time, injury,
whatever stood in the way of achieving this, and I think this is a reward for perseverance, will and belief that this was possible.” The jumper born in a humble home in the small town of Pozuelos facing the Caribbean added this world title to those from worlds in 2017 and 2019. She surpassed the two golds won by Colombian Caterine Ibargüen, her predecessor on the world throne of the triple jump. Rojas took command of the contest on her second jump, the winning 15.47, and didn’t fall behind again. After that, the goal was trying to better her record of 15.74 (51 feet,
NEW OBSTACLE IN STEEPLECHASE: A CAMERAMAN
GOLD medallist Yulimar Rojas, of Venezuela, celebrates during a medal ceremony for triple jump women at the World Athletics Championships on Monday in Eugene, Oregon. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) 7¾ inches) set in Belgrade in March at indoor world championships. That jump beat her previous record of 15.67 (51 feet, 5 inches), set in a nearly empty stadium in Tokyo at the Olympics last summer. As the crowd revved up for her last jump, Rojas took off. When she landed, it was clear the record was
out of the picture, but she let out a yelp heard across the stadium. Despite not breaking the mark, the night was over. The win was hers. “It’s been a nice day,” she said. “I am not going to tell you that it has been one of my best days because it has not been that way. But I have left good numbers.”
Caster Semenya is back, so is her sport’s thorniest problem By GERALD IMRAY AP Sports Writer CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Champion runner Caster Semenya heads into this year’s world championships with virtually no chance to win. On Wednesday in Eugene, Oregon, the 31-year-old, three-time world champion at 800 metres will run instead in the 5,000-metre race. She is not considered a serious medal contender. It’s the first time since she started dominating her favourite distance well over a decade ago that anybody has said that. The South African chose to run in a race she doesn’t really want to be in, and one she’s not so good at, because she has declined to submit to rules in track and field that demand she take hormone-reducing treatments if she wants to enter the 800. They are rules that Semenya, in a statement through her lawyer, calls “an affront to the spirit of the sport.” Semenya was assigned female at birth, was raised as a girl and identifies as a woman. She has an intersex condition called 46,XY differences in sex development that causes male and female traits and a testosterone level higher than the typical female range. She was banned from her best event after losing her appeal of a World Athletics regulation that made women with her condition ineligible for some races. She is not transgender. Still, her case, and those involving others who have
similar intersex conditions, carries strong implications for how transgender athletes are treated and classified. Semenya’s situation, and the similar plight of 200-metre Olympic silver medallist Christine Mboma, are the most relevant illustrations of how complex track’s rules are regarding the participation of women who have high natural testosterone and what some say is an unfair athletic advantage over other women. For instance, the rules, which will be revisited soon, bar Semenya and others from running distances between 400 metres and 1 mile unless they suppress their testosterone. They are free to run in other events. So, while Mboma has been eligible to run in the 200, Semenya must sit out of the 800. Mboma is injured this summer and did not travel to Eugene. Semenya wasn’t expected to come either, but out of nowhere, her name showed up on the start list for the longer race. The related but separate issue of transgender women in sports again burst into the spotlight last month when international leaders in swimming made their own rules change. They banned transgender women from elite competitions if they hadn’t begun medical treatment to suppress testosterone production before either the onset of puberty or by age 12, whichever comes later. World Athletics President Sebastian Coe quickly showed his support for swimming’s move and said
CASTER Semenya (AP) track’s governing body would review its rules by the end of the year, likely with a view to making them stricter. “The balance between inclusivity and fairness will always, in my view, fall now on the side of fairness,” Coe said on the eve of these worlds, indicating where track might be going when its rulemakers meet in November. Such a recalibration of the rules would likely only hurt, not help, Semenya’s cause. In a rare interview she gave on HBO’s “Real Sports” earlier this year, she said she once told track officials: “It’s fine. I’m a female, I don’t care. If you want to see I’m a woman, I will show you my vagina. All right?’” Critics of World Athletics say its recent trend of essentially lumping together the transgender and intersex issues is problematic. Coe has often used the phrase “biology trumps identity” as a catch-all defence for restrictions in both, breezing over the nuance. Track’s two rule sets do have crossover in that both, broadly, require athletes to reduce their natural testosterone to compete. While the DSD regulations, in place since 2019,
have real-life impact on athletes and careers, transgender regulations don’t at this point because there are no transgender women in top-level track and field. Neither are there in swimming. That’s left Roger Pielke Jr, a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder and a sports governance expert, concluding the leaders of those two key Olympic sports are in “a moral panic” over transgender athletes that just aren’t there. “We’re just shadow boxing now,” Pielke said. “As if there’s not bigger issues sport could deal with.” Swimming’s sweeping ban was a bad precedent, said Joanna Harper, a transgender woman and adviser to World Athletics on its transgender and DSD policies. She supports some regulations but FINA, the sport’s international governing federation, left no room for compromise. “Did they set the world stirring? You bet they did,” Harper said. “But I don’t think it was necessary and I don’t think it was justified.” Harper said FINA’s move was obviously influenced by American transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, who has broken barriers at the college level amid controversy and spoken of her desire to swim at the Olympics one day, putting FINA on alert. But if USA Swimming adopts FINA’s ban, thereby actually impacting an athlete, Harper said it was “very likely” Thomas would go to court.
That legal risk is relevant when trying to evaluate if a wave of sports will follow swimming’s transgender lead, and if across-the-board bans can last. As much as the decision in swimming, a major catalyst for World Athletics’ move to revisit its rules might have been the arrival of the young Namibian sprinter, Mboma. She won a silver medal in the 200 — a distance at which she remains eligible — at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, her first major meet. The win came just months after Mboma was forced to switch from the 400 because of high natural testosterone. The then-unknown teenager broke the world under-20 record three times in a week on the way to her silver and blew past some of the world’s best runners with the rawest of running styles. She did what Semenya has so far been unable to do by exploiting the distance loopholes in the DSD rules to win a medal. It went counter to what World Athletics was seeking when it adopted the rules. Supporters of testosterone regulations have used Mboma’s sudden success as some level of evidence for the advantages of testosterone in races outside the 400-metre through 1-mile distances that are currently regulated. Harper thinks there needs to be compromise by both sides over the transgender and DSD rules that leads to “a reasonable outcome that maybe makes no one entirely happy.”
Houle takes Tour stage win, Vingegaard keeps lead FOIX, France (AP) — Canadian cyclist Hugo Houle claimed an emotional first-ever grand tour stage victory on Tuesday, while Jonas Vingegaard stayed in the overall lead of the Tour de France after a tough 16th stage as the race hit the Pyrenees. Houle attacked on the approach to the final climb, the top category Mur de Péguère, and held off the group of chasers from the remnants of the breakaway to finish one minute, 10 seconds ahead of Valentin Madouas and Israel-Premier Tech teammate Michael Woods. Houle had plenty of time to reach his arms out in celebration on the approach to the line and point to the sky in memory of his brother, Pierrick, who was killed 10 years ago in a hitand-run car accident while out jogging. “This one is for my brother,” he could be heard saying as he was
embraced by his team after the 178.5-kilometer (111-mile) leg from Carcassone to Foix that featured four classified climbs — including two top-category ascents. “This means a lot to me,” Houle told reporters shortly afterward, with his voice breaking as he struggled to hold back the tears. “I had one dream: win the stage for my brother who died when I turned professional. Today that one is for him. I worked for 10, 12 years and today I got my win for him, so it’s incredible. I don’t know what to say, just so happy.” The 31-year-old Houle had crested the final climb with a 25-second advantage and his task was made easier when American cyclist Matteo Jorgenson — who was second at the time and in hot pursuit — slipped out on a corner, leaving only Woods with a realistic chance of
STAGE winner Canada’s Hugo Houle points skywards and dedicates his victory to his brother Pierrick who was killed by a drunk driver almost 10 years ago, as he crosses the finish line of the 16th stage of the Tour de France cycling race over 178.5 kilometres (111 miles) with start in Carcassonne and finish in Foix, France, yesterday. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) catching his compatriot and teammate. It was only the second time a Canadian has won a stage in the Tour, and the first in 34 years.
Two-time defending champion Tadej Pogacar tried to attack several times on the penultimate climb of the Port de Lers — twice on the ascent and
again on the descent — but Vingegaard stayed on his wheel. They crossed the line together and Vingegaard maintained his lead of 2:22 over Pogacar and 2:43 over Geraint Thomas, the 2018 champion. Wednesday’s 17th stage is an even tougher day in the Pyrenees with three top classified climbs, as well as a second-category ascent, on the 129.7-kilometre (81-mile) route from SaintGaudens with a summit finish at the ski resort of Peyragudes. “Tomorrow and the day after, I’m looking forward, it’s going to be more chances than today I hope, and we will see how the legs are,” Pogacar said. “I will continue to fight and I hope that I gain some time. I will always try … it’s going to be interesting tomorrow and the day after.” The Tour ends on Sunday in Paris.
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — A new obstacle appeared out of nowhere on the steeplechase course at world championships. A cameraman. Trying to get a great shot of the triple jump competition going on in the infield Monday night, a World Athletics cameraman stepped onto the track, unaware that there was a live race going on behind him. As a phalanx of runners was approaching the cameramen, the runners spread out to pass him and nobody was hurt. “I was a little worried that he was going to dart one way or another, right at the last second,” said Evan Jager of the US, who finished sixth. “Thankfully he didn’t realise we were there until we all passed him.” Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali won the race in a time of 8 minutes, 25.13 seconds. He was involved in the strange scene, though maybe not as harrowing as seven years ago at worlds in Beijing. Usain Bolt had just won the 200 metres and a cameraman riding a portable scooter lost control of the scooter and it tumbled onto the track and upended Bolt. He jumped up and dusted himself off, no worse for wear. World Athletics President Seb Coe said the federation is looking into what happened. “I don’t want to be cavalier about these things,” he said. “But these things happen. He did actually have the presence to recognise what was going on, and he stood still, which is the most important thing. He didn’t move.”
DOS SANTOS FROM PAGE 16
world champion, 18-yearold Erriyon Knighton, and top-ranked Kenny Bednarek, all of whom advanced. The trio had the top three times, led by Lyles at 19.62 seconds. The Jamaican women are poised for another sprint sweep after qualifying three for the final in the 200. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Shericka Jackson and Elaine Thompson-Herah — the finishing order of the 100 — all advanced. Jackson had the fastest time at 21.67. It was an easy night at the track for the medal favourites in the women’s 400 hurdles. Olympic champion and world-record holder Sydney McLaughlin, defending world champion Dalilah Muhammad and Olympic bronze medallist Femke Bol of the Netherlands easily won their first-round heats. “This event has become one of the main focuses for the last couple of years,” Muhammad said. “It could be any one of our days. So we’ll just see how it goes.”
MLB ALL-STAR FROM PAGE 16
Ramírez, tying the game 2-all. Four pitches later, Buxton went deep to give the AL a 3-2 lead against a clearly frustrated Gonsolin, who took the loss. Ohtani led off for the AL as the designated hitter. Interviewed moments before the start, the Japanese superstar admitted he was going to swing. He cracked a 91-mph fastball into centre field on the first pitch. His hit snapped an 0 for 8 streak as a hitter against Kershaw. UP NEXT The regular season resumes with six games on Thursday, including Aaron Judge, Stanton and the Yankees playing a doubleheader at Houston. The Yankees own the best record in the majors at 64-28. Jose Altuve, Yordan Álvarez and the Astros have the second-best mark in the AL at 59-32. Also, it will be Freeman, Betts, Trea Turner and the Dodgers, topping the NL at 60-30, hosting the Giants.
PAGE 14, Wednesday, July 20, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
Top swimmers hope to make a splash at the Commonwealth Games By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net WITH the Commonwealth Games on the horizon, coach Travano McPhee said the eightmember swim team is doing their fine tuning in preparation for the trip to Birmingham, England. McPhee, who will assist head coach Andy Loveitt out of Grand Bahama, will take the team of Izaak Bastian, Devante Carey, Lamar Taylor, Luke Kennedy Thompson, Lilly Higgs, Katelyn Cabral, Zaylie-Elizabeth Thompson and Rhanishka Gibbs to England on July 25 in time for the swim competition that will run from July 29 to August 3. They will be a part of the contingent of 28 athletes that was recently named by the Bahamas Olympic Committee to represent the Bahamas at the games in Burmingham from July 29 to August 7. “It’s going to be a very fast, very respected meet with a lot of top-notch competitors competing,” McPhee said. “All countries in the Commonwealth should be there, as we should see some world records. “Our Bahamian swimmers should be right there making semifinals and hopefully sneak into one or two finals. “But our goal is to go down there and swim some personal best times and represent the country very well.” Over the weekend, McPhee got a chance to take Taylor through a workout session at the Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex. After watching him break the national record at the Bahamas Swim Federation’s National Swim Championships, McPhee said the goal is for Taylor to swim even faster.
“We’re less than 10 days out of competing so his yardage is still up,” McPhee said. “He’s looking strong and he’s coming off competing at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, so I just want to keep him focused. “This has been a long season for him and so hopefully I can get him to swim some best times to end the season on a very high note.” Taylor, who travelled to the World Championships with Lilly Higgs, ZaylieElizabeth Thompson, Izaak Bastian in June, said he’s looking forward to competing in his first Commonwealth Games. He has also competed in five CARIFTA Games before the start of Covid-19 in 2020. Going into his junior year as a member of the Henderson State University swim team, the 19-year-old Taylor said he’s hoping that the experience gained at the World Championships will propel him to some better performances at the Commonwealth Games. “It was a good experience, and I got some great exposure at the World Championships,” Taylor said. “It showed me what it takes to be one of the best swimmers in the world, competing against the best of the best.” In Birmingham, England, Taylor said the aim is to achieve his PR in all of the events he competes in and hopefully get a spot in the semifinals and possibly the finals when he competes in the men’s 50/100m free, 50/100/200m back and 50/100m fly. “Whatever God has planned for me I want to be ready for it,” Taylor said. “I’m training about 2-3 hours a day, I’m in the gym and I’m getting stretched out to make sure that I am in tip-top shape.” As for Team Bahamas, Taylor said he’s confident
THOMAS HELPS SUN TOP LIBERTY UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Brionna Jones tied a season-high with 21 points, Alyssa Thomas added 18 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and a season-high six steals and the short-handed Connecticut Sun beat the New York Liberty 82-63 on Tuesday. Connecticut (17-9) was without Jonquel Jones, averaging a team-high 15.1 points and nine rebounds, due to health and safety protocols. The Sun’s defense rallied without her by holding the Liberty to 36.4% shooting with 18 turnovers. Dijonai Carrington scored a career-high 18 points, in just 18 minutes, and Natisha Hiedeman added 10 points for Connecticut. Brionna Jones scored 14 of her points in the first half and Thomas secured her eighth doubledouble this season.
SELLARS AND SONS TO HOST BASKETBALL CAMP IN HARBOUR ISLAND JULY 21-22
COACH TRAVANO MCPHEE, left, and Lamar Taylor poolside. that his teammates will live up to the expectations placed on them to perform at their best. “It’s a very good team and everybody is very strong in their events, and we are all very supportive of each other,” Taylor pointed out. “So, I feel this is a very good team we have going to the Commonwealth Games, and we should do very well.” While it would have been nice to be in Arkansas where he would be under the tutelage of Henderson State’s head coach Scotty Serio, there’s no better
place for him right now than here in the Bahamas working out with McPhee. “I would prefer to be training here at home,” he said. “I feel very comfortable when I’m training here. Coach McPhee really pushes you and that is something that makes the training sessions so much easier.” For McPhee, he remembers how in 2002 in Manchester, England, he represented the Bahamas as a swimmer and now he’s heading back to England, but this time in Birmingham as a coach.
“It feels very special 20 years later to go back to England as a coach,” said McPhee, who is now considered one of the top coaches in the country. “I’m really pleased that after swimming 20 years ago, I can go back and coach a very talented team.” The team, made up of four girls and four boys, will afford the Bahamas the luxury to be able to compete in all of the relays during the championships, including the mixed relays with two boys and two girls, as they do in track and field.
AMERICAN Rainey Sellars and his two teen sons, who have made the Bahamas their second home for the past 30 years, will be hosting a basketball camp in Harbour Island from July 21-22. The camp will bring in some special players and coaches, including Immanuel Quickley of the NY Knicks, Melvin Scott of the 2006 UNC Tarheel national championship team (and current head coach at Voyager Academy), as well as a representative from RocNation (JayZ’s management company) and several ex-college players now coaching in the Greater Baltimore area. They will also have a video documentary created by a representative of RocNation which will focus on the campers and the inherent passion for basketball in the Bahamas and Harbour Island. Originally, this camp was scheduled for the summer of 2021 but the COVID lockdown occurred the day before camp was set to start and it was cancelled.
INTERNATIONAL BASKETBALL ACADEMY HOSTS MEDIA DAY THE 9th Denykco Bowles Elite Skills Basketball Camp, presented by International Basketball Academy Bahamas, featured a special segment for its participants where they learned valuable lessons in media training. IBA and camp director Denykco Bowles invited several local media personalities to address the campers and advise on the benefits of proper media etiquette at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs National Gymnasium. The media panel included Marcellus Hall, Renaldo Dorsett, Felicity Darville, Simba French, and Tim Munnings, director of sports in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture. “Media day is needed for our kids, especially when it comes to public speaking and interviews. We want to teach them the importance on things they need to do and things that they should not do when it comes to interviewing whether it be on the job or not,” Bowles said. “We just want to allow them to be comfortable and make a good impression of themselves. It is about marketing yourself. Once these kids exude that confidence in public, I think it is something that they will use to build themselves, not only as student-athletes, but in character-building as well.” After brief introductions where they detailed their history in the industry, they were divided into groups for more detailed instructions. At the end of the
session, campers were randomly selected for a mock interview. “A lot of the kids are excited,” Bowles said of the camp’s ninth year. “This is our first year being back after COVID-19. Everyone was excited to come out and they wanted to learn a sport. Some of the kids came out for the first time and never touched a basketball in their life. We are definitely thankful that we are here. This year has been extremely good for us.” The aspiring players like 11-year-old Carsyn Smith said the lessons from the camp will stay with them as their careers move forward. “I learned how to be confident in interviews, not to have bad energy while talking. I learned to look up and into the interviewer’s eyes. I am very happy I learned that so when I grow up and I get actual interviews, I can know what to say,” Smith said. The camp, which ends today, had a series of speakers over the course of the last few weeks, aimed at developing positive personality traits on and off the court. On the court, the camp’s concentration included the campers’ basketball IQ, footwork, advanced ball handling, offence/defence critiquing and training and strength resistance training. The camp was also highlighted by an appearance from Charlotte Hornets forward Kai Jones prior to his departure for the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, Nevada.
IBA and camp director Denykco Bowles invited several local media personalities to address the campers and advise on the benefits of proper media etiquette at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs National Gymnasium. The media panel included Marcellus Hall, top, Renaldo Dorsett, Felicity Darville, Simba French, and Tim Munnings, above, director of sports in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture.
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, July 20, 2022, PAGE 15
Strachan: ‘I felt like I got hit in my quad and that was it’ By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net SPRINTER Anthonique Strachan said she was quite devastated when she suffered the grade one strain to her left quad during Monday night’s heats of the women’s 200 metres at the World Championships. Coming around the bend in second place, Strachan attempted to surge down the home stretch when the injury occurred, and she had to hobble through the rest of the race in lane eight at the Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. “I felt like I got hit in my quad and that was it,” Strachan recalled in an interview with The Tribune on what she remembered that took place with the injury. “At that time I wasn’t worrying about the pain, it was more like not again. I’ve never had a quad problem before, but I felt I did everything needed to get myself ready for the championships and I still had a problem.”
As she went down with the injury, Strachan missed out on the opportunity to join Tynia Gaither in advancing to the semifinals. The duo was coming off their semifinal appearances in the 100m the night before. Strachan had posted her second lifetime best this year as she dropped her season’s best from 10.99 to 10.98 in her semifinals of the 100m, finishing in 10th place overall, two spots shy of advancing to the final. “I felt stronger, and I was better prepared for these championships, and I worked on my physical and mental aspects this season,” Strachan pointed out. “I felt I was on a path to being healthy, but I clearly missed something.” The only thing she missed is not competing again in the championships, but Strachan said she’s hoping that it’s not the end of her 2022 campaign. “Mentally, I’m telling myself that my season isn’t done, so I want to work towards coming back so I don’t end my season like
ANTHONIQUE Strachan and Shericka Jackson. this,” she stressed. “I just have to get another medical test done tomorrow (today) and see where I am.” Having to walk around on crutches to maintain her weight for the second time in her career, Strachan said she’s coping with the fact that injuries strike at any time in sports. “I’m emotionally disappointed, but I was able to run a PR (personal best) in the 100m, which was my weakest event on paper,” Strachan said. “That would have set me up for what I
expect for the 200m. “Right now, I’m just using the ice packs and keeping my leg elevated,” she stated. “I will start some physical therapy on it today (yesterday).” Strachan said the Bahamas team members have been very supportive in her dilemma and while she was also hoping to come back and be a part of the pool for the women’s 4 x 400m relay on Saturday, she just wants to “wish them all the best.” At the same token, Strachan commended her Jamaican rivals for the first sweep by any country of the women’s 100m at the championships on Sunday night. “I’m happy for them because Shericka (Jackson) is my training partner,” said Strachan, who trains out of the MVP Track Club in Jamaica. “I am also happy for Elaine in winning the bronze, but it was good to see Shelly-Ann (FraserPryce) come through with the gold and the championship record. I am happy for all of them.” Bahamas head coach Rupert Gardiner said it
was an unfortunate blow to lose Strachan, considering the fact that the team had already lost defending men’s 400m champion Steven Gardiner, who had to withdraw before the start of the championships because of an injury. Despite those two setbacks, Gardiner said there’s a still a ray of hope that the Bahamas will continue its streak of winning a global medal at the championship since it first started in 2012. “We still have Devynne (Charlton in the women’s 100m hurdles), Shaunae (Miller-Uibo in the women’s 400m, Ken Mullings (in the men’s decathlon) and the women’s 4 x 400m relay to go,” Gardiner said. “So, our hopes are high, and our expectations are great. “Things happen and we just have to hold tight. Everybody has to be together and do what they have to do. Anthonique has already done a personal best and Shaunae is next, so we will see exactly what will happen.” After watching the team of Bradley Dormeus,
Megan Moss, Alonzo Russell and Doneisha Anderson bow out in the heats of the mixed relay on the first day of competition on Saturday, Gardiner said they are looking forward to the women’s 4 x 400m relay with the pool comprising of Moss, Anderson, Javonya Valcourt and Janae Ambrose. “We still have a couple days before the relays start, so everybody is out training and everybody is looking good,” Gardiner said. “We still have to decide who will run first, second, third and anchor legs. We haven’t decided that yet.” Should the team advance, Gardiner said Miller-Uibo has indicated that she will be available to compete after she is done with the final of the 400m on Friday night. The heats for the 4 x 400m is on Saturday and the final will take place on the final day of competition on Sunday. Gardiner said Gaither has also made herself available to compete in the relay, if needed.
BLTA names Billie Jean King Cup team THE Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) has fielded a four-member team to represent the Bahamas at the Americas Group II 2022 Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup by BNP Paribus, July 22-30.. The team consists of player/captain Simone Pratt, Sydney Clarke, Elana Mackey and Sierra Rodgers. Clarke and Mackey qualified at the 2021 Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals in December at the National Tennis Center, while Pratt and Rodgers earned their spots at the 2022 BJK Invitational held in May. Both BLTA events were pre-qualifiers for the 2022 Bahamas Billie Jean King Cup. There are 18 nations set to compete at the Centro Nacional De Tenis Parque Del Este in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. These nations include Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican, Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, US Virgin Islands and Venezuela. The countries will play in a round-robin format on the hard court surface in four pools. The winners of each pool will compete in two promotional playoffs and the two winners will advance to Americas Group I. All other teams will play for positional placement, no teams will be relegated. Clarke, Pratt and Mackey have competed on the Fed Cup team before, but this will be the first appearance for 16-year-old Rodgers.
TEAM BAHAMAS consists of player/captain Simone Pratt, above left, Sydney Clarke, top left, Elana Mackey, top right, and Sierra Rodgers, above.
BODYBUILDING AND FITNESS FEDERATION SELECTS 16-MEMBER TEAM FOR CAC CHAMPIONSHIPS By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net FOLLOWING the successful return of the National Bodybuilding Championships over the weekend at Atlantis, the Bahamas Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation has selected a 16-member team to represent the Bahamas at the Central American and Caribbean Bodybuilding Championships. The team is expected to travel on Wednesday, July 27 for the championships scheduled for Thursday, July 28 to Monday, August 1 at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Center in Bridgetown, Barbados. Named to the team are Fania Joseph - women’s Bikini Class B; Kastachia
Stuart - women’s Bikini Class G; Britnae Davis women’s Bikini Class H; Cara Saunders and Altonique Curtis - women’s Bikini Wellness; Dorcas Cox - women’s Figure/ Body Fitness; Gemo Smith - men’s muscular physique; Giovanne Farrington; Orick Nesbitt - men’s Bodybuilding Super Heavyweight; Terrion Kemp - men’s physique junior; Justin Lightbourn - men’s physique Class A; Anthon Moxey - men’s physique Class C; Wedlear Eugene - men’s physique Class D; Judah Forbes - men’s physique Class E and Kaif Young and Davin Johnson - men’s physique Class F. The team will be coached by Leonardo ‘Nardo’ Dean and Raymond Tucker.
Federation president Joel Stubbs, in making the announcement yesterday, said he’s confident that the team will represent the Bahamas very well. “I am in a comfortable place with regards to the team selection,” he said. “We have a small but elite team that is made up of a few new hungry athletes that are ready to take advantage of this opportunity. “The team is paired evenly with eight of them having participated before at the CAC level and eight competing for the very first time. “The eight veterans will provide a level of experience and knowledge that will assist in building athletes’ confidence,” he added.
Stubbs, however, admitted that the competition will be very intense with the Bahamas facing competitors from host country Barbados, Jamaica, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, who are known as powerhouses in the region. “Barbados is a country that has birth bodybuilding from the high school level and so, we expect stiff competition,” Stubbs said. “However, I expect Team Bahamas to be on the podium collecting hardware in each of the categories that we compete in.” With such a short turn around before they head out, Stubbs said he feels the competitors will be up to the challenge to carry the Bahamian flag in Barbados.
“Athletes have a very short time in their preparation for the games but if they can duplicate the same presentation or refine what was displayed on Saturday evening,” Stubbs said. “I think a large number of gold medals will be coming back home.” Bahamas head judge Charles Sealy and Grand Bahama’s Rob Harris will accompany the team as judges. Stubbs, however, admitted that they are still trying to secure the necessary funding in time for the team to make the trip. He noted that they are in dialogue with the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture for their assistance in covering some of their expenses.
MANFRED FROM PAGE 16
could share the money with an average payment of $5,000 to $5,500, with $55.5 million going to the players’ lawyers. Leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee have asked Manfred to explain by next Tuesday the impact of potential legislation stripping the sport’s antitrust exemption from covering the sport’s relationship with minor league players. While players with major league contracts are unionised, players with minor league contracts are not. The Major League Baseball Players Association gave Advocates for Minor Leaguers $50,000 last November, according to a federal disclosure statement. “It is exciting to see players recognising and appreciating the power of their collective voice in effecting positive change in things that they live day to day,” union head Tony Clark, a former first baseman, told the BBWAA in a question-and-answer session prior to Manfred’s. “Harry Marino and the Advocates for Minor Leaguers have done a tremendous job in engaging and educating the the minor leaguers and helping them to find their voice. ... We are watching. We are providing support when and where possible.”
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WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 2022
Tynia Gaither denied spot in 200m final at Worlds By BRENT STUBBS Senor Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
D
espite running a personal best, Tynia Gaither was denied her third consecutive spot in the final of the women’s 200 metres at the World Championships. Running out of lane eight in the first of three heats inside the Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on day five of the weeklong championships last night, Gaither clocked 22.41 seconds to place fifth as she improved on her previous lifetime best of 22.45 she ran earlier this year. An eighth place finalist in both the 2017 championships in London, England and 2019 in Doha, Qatar, Gaither needed to be one of the top two in each of the heats or finish with one of the two next fastest times to move on to Thursday’s final.
Gaither, third in her heat in 21.61 for the 13th fastest qualifying performance, ended up 11th, but was appreciative of her efforts, considering the disappointment she had to go through with her false start in the semifinal of the 100m on Sunday. She was the only competitor to represent the Bahamas in the semi-finals after Anthonique Strachan suffered an injury in the heat the day before. “I’m with the world’s best, times are getting faster and faster, which pushed me to a PB (personal best), so I couldn’t be more happier with that,” Gaither told the media in the mixed zone after the race. Shericka Jackson, who got a silver in Jamaica’s historic sweep of the 100m, won the heat in 21.67. Aminatou Seyni of Niger was the other automatic qualifier for the final on Thursday, placing second in 22.04.
TYNIA GAITHER Jackson emerged as the fastest qualifier with 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce taking the second spot in winning the last of three heats in 21.67. American Tamara Clark took the second heat in 21.95 for the third best time. With her individual appearances at the championships over and done with, Gaither will be added to the relay pool for the women’s 4 x 400m on
Saturday, but it’s uncertain whether or not she will run in the heats. The combination of Megan Moss, Doneisha Anderson, Javonya Valcourt and Janae Ambrose are expected to run in their bid to get into the final on Sunday, which would make way for Shaunae MillerUibo to compete. The 28-year-old MillerUibo, the runner-up in Doha, still has some unfinished business as the two-time Olympic champion will be back on the track today when she runs in the semi-finals of the women’s 400m. After cruising to victory in her heats on Sunday in 51.10 for the ninth fastest time, Miller-Uibo has drawn lane six with her 23-year-old American training partner Lynna Irby running on the side of her in lane seven. Still waiting to compete on the final weekend of competition will be
national record holder Devynne Charlton in the women’s 100m hurdles and Ken Mullings in his debut in the men’s decathlon. Meanwhile, the 29-yearold Gaither, however, said she will take a few days off to recuperate and get ready for the trek to Birmingham, England where she will be competing at the Commonwealth Games. After the Commonwealth Games, scheduled for July 27 to August 7, Gaither, who won the Bahamas Nationals’ 100m and got third in the 200m, said she will compete in a few meets in Europe before she shuts down her season. But as a result of her schedule, she noted that she won’t be able to return home in time to compete in the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC) Championships in Grand Bahama, scheduled for August 19-21.
Dos Santos powers to win 400m hurdles By PAT GRAHAM AP Sports Writer EUGENE, Oregon (AP) — Alison Dos Santos of Brazil powered down the homestretch to take the 400-metre hurdles title at the world championships last night. The underdog even if he had the fastest time and No. 1 ranking coming in, Dos Santos held off a decorated field that included the world-record holder. Dos Santos finished in a championship-record time of 46.29 seconds. Americans Rai Benjamin and Trevor Bassitt won the silver and bronze. Olympic champion and world-record holder Karsten Warholm of
Norway has been dealing with hamstring issues and didn’t have his trademark kick at the finish. He wound up seventh. Upon his finish, Dos Santos gave two bows to the cheering crowd. He broke Kevin Young’s world-championship record of 47.18 seconds set in 1993 in Germany. Dos Santos won bronze at the Tokyo Games last summer behind Warholm and Benjamin. It was a night full of surprises with Jake Wightman of Britain winning the 1,500 metres. He had a look of disbelief as he crossed the finish line ahead of Olympic champion and heavy favourite Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway.
ALISON DOS SANTOS, of Brazil, reacts after winning the men’s 400-metre hurdles final run at the World Athletics Championships last night in Eugene, Oregon. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis) “Crazy,” Wightman said. of Slovenia in the men’s moved down in distance Wightman finished in a discus. before last year’s Olymtime of 3 minutes, 29.23 Earlier in the night, pics, won the 100 in 9.86 seconds. His win broke a world 100-metre champion seconds and was expected string of five straight world Fred Kerley slowed down to lead the Americans in 1,500 titles by the Kenyans. midway through his 200- the 4x100 relay this weekSpain’s Mohamed Katir metre semifinal due to a end. He hasn’t been ruled flew down the homestretch cramp and finished sixth. out. to take home bronze. His thoughts of two indiKerley’s departure opens Other winners included vidual medals at the first a less-challenging path for Australia’s Eleanor Pat- worlds held on US soil Noah Lyles, the defending terson in the women’s high were dashed. Kerley, once jump and Kristjan Ceh a 400-metre specialist who SEE PAGE 13
AMERICAN League’s Shohei Ohtani. (AP)
AL TOPS NL FOR 9TH STRAIGHT ALL-STAR GAME WIN By BETH HARRIS AP Sports Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton homered in his Dodger Stadium homecoming, Byron Buxton followed with another drive and the American League won its ninth straight All-Star Game, beating the National League 3-2 last night. Fans rooting for a tie score after nine innings so they could see a first-time home run derby decide it instead of extra innings didn’t get their wish. Instead, the back-to-back homers in the fourth inning were the difference as the AL boosted its overall edge to 47-43-2. Nine-time All-Star Clayton Kershaw got the first start of his career for the NL in his home ballpark, with the Dodgers hosting for the first time since 1980. Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani pounded out the game’s first hit on Kershaw’s first pitch. Framber Valdez of Houston got the win, tossing a scoreless third inning. AL starter Shane McClanahan of Tampa Bay gave up two runs and four hits. The first-time All-Star, who owns a MLB-leading 1.71 ERA, had allowed four hits or fewer in his last seven starts. McClanahan combined with 10 other pitchers on the five-hitter. Emmanuel Clase struck out the side in the ninth to earn the save. Austin Riley’s single in the eighth was the NL’s only hit after the first inning. Facing 11-game winner Tony Gonsolin of the Dodgers, Stanton’s impressive 457-foot, two-run shot landed in the left-field pavilion, not far from where the L.A. native watched games as a youngster. It ended his career 0 for 7 skid in the game and at 111.2 mph, it was the hardest-hit homer in an All-Star Game tracked by Statcast. Also scoring was José
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MANFRED REJECTS THAT MINOR LEAGUERS NOT PAID LIVING WAGE By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred defended the sport’s treatment of minor leaguers, prompting immediate criticism from the players’ advocacy group. “I kind of reject the premise of the question that minor league players are not paid a living wage,” Manfred told the Baseball Writers’ Association of America before last night’s All-Star Game. “I think that we’ve made real strides in the last few years in terms of what minor league players are paid, even putting to one side the signing bonuses that many of them have already received. They receive housing, which obviously is another form of compensation.” MLB raised minimum salaries in 2021, increasing Class A pay from $290 to $500 per week, DoubleA from $350 to $600, and Triple-A from $502 to $700
TONY CLARK, the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) over the roughly five-month season. Players are only paid in-season. Amateur players residing in the United States and Canada who are selected in this week’s amateur draft have slot values for their signing bonuses, which clubs use as guidelines, ranging from $8.8 million for the first pick to just under $150,000 for the last selections of the 10th and final round.
Last November, MLB announced it was requiring teams to provide furnished accommodations, with a single bed per player and no more than two players per bedroom. Teams are responsible for basic utility bills. “Most minor league baseball players work second jobs because their annual salaries are insufficient to make ends meet,” Harry Marino, executive director of Advocates for Minor Leaguers, said in a statement responding to Manfred. “His suggestion that minor league pay is acceptable is both callous and false.” Papers filed Friday in federal court revealed MLB agreed to pay $185 million to settle a lawsuit by minor leaguers. MLB agreed in the deal to rescind any prohibitions against teams paying wages to minor league players outside of the season. An early estimate is that perhaps 23,000 players
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