Compiled, edited and constructed by Russell Dames Updated every Sunday at 2 p.m.
Volume 2 © BahamasUncensored.Com
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
WE TOLD YOU SO
The
site had barely gone up a few minutes when the e mail traffic came flooding
in to take issue with the comment last week that George W. Bush (pictured)
would win a second term in office hands down. We ended our comment
last week with “Believe it! Brace for it!” Now we are in a position to
say, we told you so.
The fact that we can say we told you so does not give us any comfort. The Bahamas is a depressed place because of the loss of John Kerry, and this is expected since most Bahamians wanted Mr. Kerry to win. The feeling is that the Republican Party closets racism in buzz words and phrases; that they will cause instability in the region by seeking to invade and remove Fidel Castro; and by their continued interference in the affairs of Haiti on the wrong side. So last week’s comment reflected accurately what was happening in The Bahamas, where it had to be acknowledged that the status quo in America would continue for four more years and that those years are likely to bitter and tortuous and difficult.
The same can be said for the leaders of the region. Many of them no doubt felt what we expressed here: that the quality of the conversation would have improved under John Kerry, even though the underlying polices would not have changed. Now that conversation is likely to get worse. And every American that shows up in the region will be suspected of voting to keep racism, intolerance and hegemony at the forefront of their national policies. That of course would be wrong, there are many persons of individual goodwill in the United States but they will have a hard job to make themselves known in the hemisphere.
What makes the situation even worse is the fact that the Democratic Party has been considerably weakened by what happened in the last election in the U.S. The control of the Senate has moved more firmly into the hands of the Republican Party and so has the House of Representatives. The Black Caucus for which most people in the Caribbean have an affinity is now more neutered than ever before as a countervailing force. The leadership of the Democratic Party is in disarray, and given the kind of personalities you have running the United States now, there will be no consideration of dissenting views, and precious little concern for the rights of the world outside the U.S.
The polls showed quite clearly that most people in the world wanted George Bush to lose. The world blames Mr. Bush for the insecurity in the world, having lied to his own people about why he went into Iraq and having made the situation there considerably worse and more unstable. The President of the United States in the view of most people in the world put the world at greater risk of a conflagration. Following fast on that, is the inexplicable attitude of who was supposed to be a sensible man Tony Blair who simply followed along it appears in a vain attempt to regain Britain's past glory.
The John Kerry loss in the United States was of tragic proportions for the world. There are some who tried to argue that John Kerry had this or that fault; that it was something that he did or failed to do in the campaign. None of the above. The United States has simply become a right wing, self righteous country that supports the closet racism and disregard for national sovereignty.
The world must not lose hope, however. The last time there was this depressed feeling in The Bahamas was when the PLP lost the election 1997. People could not believe that the once mighty party of Lynden Pindling could be vanquished by a man who was so clearly bogus and crude. Yet that was what happened. But then in five years, that defeat which was so demoralizing was turned around in a victory that stunned the country and diminished the Free National Movement. That was the price they paid for arrogance.
Michael Manley once said after being routed by Edward Seaga's JLP in Jamaica, when he was asked if he thought that he could come back and win again: “We routed them before and we can rout them again”. Within five years, he was Prime Minister of Jamaica again, an office that he occupied until he had to resign shortly before he died of prostate cancer. That was the attitude the PLP had to take in order to win again. That is the attitude that the Democrats have to take.
It is hard to say whether one can turn back the clock on the advance of racism in the United States and the disregard for international political opinion. So much of how the country was built in its past had to do with the wiping out of the indigenous populations and the whole feeling of manifest destiny. But what we do know is that the country is diverse enough and large enough for there to be the ability of qualified leaders in that country to come forward and put their country back on track, to be a responsible world leader instead of a giant that simply steps on everyone.
This column is expressed in especially bitter terms because it reflects so much of what has come into our letters to the editor that cannot be repeated because of the vehemence of the response. But Bahamians must be responsible. These are people that we have to get along with. There is no way that we have the power to face a head-on collision. We are in the business of welcoming guests to our shores, and so we stay out of all of the confrontation. But never let it be said that the opinions of what is right and wrong are not known by Bahamians, and that there is not a sense of overwhelming depression as one faces the next four years and beyond in the relations with the great neighbour to the north.
The people of goodwill in the United States have a responsibility to get their act together, in order literally to save the world that may be, just may be irreparably damaged by this bad decision made on 2nd November.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 6th November at midnight: 60,211.
Number of hits for the month of October up to Sunday 31st October 2004 at midnight: 273,535.
Number of hits for the month of November up to Saturday 6th November at midnight: 48,252.
Number of hits for the year 2004 up to Saturday 6th November at midnight: 2,292,746.
FRED
SMITH LOOKING FOR A SEAT
Those of us who have been reading the newspapers recently in The Bahamas
will notice that Fred Smith (pictured in this Peter Ramsay photo) is back
in the news. Who is Fred Smith? Well, he is a sometime activist
who lives in Grand Bahama, who is also the perennial human rights chief
in that city. He has become somewhat mercurial in that when it suits
him, the human rights association and its agenda tend to disappear, then
when it suits him again the human rights agenda and the organization reappear.
Of late though there has been a long surcease.
The last time most people heard from Fred Smith
was when he led a vitriolic attack against Fred Mitchell, the now Minister
of Foreign Affairs because of some comment misinterpreted about Haitians
and crime in The Bahamas. Latterly though, he is now back with a
bitter comment about the Government and its supposed lack of action in
Freeport on the hurricane issue.
The thing about Mr. Smith is that while the words
and sentiments that he says often accurately reflect that of the community,
Mr. Smith’s motives are often questioned and his comments therefore get
ignored. Well, he is back in the papers again.
The talk around Freeport is that there is no doubt
about the fact that Mr. Smith is now shopping for a seat. That is
the reason for the new high profile. Sources close to him have been
saying that he really does not care what party offers him a seat.
He simply wants to be in the House of Assembly and if the PLP offers him
a good platform, he will take that and if the FNM offers him a better one,
he
will take that. What was that we said about motives?
There is little chance that Mr. Smith will get any
kind of offer from the PLP but the FNM, well that depends. Hubert
Ingraham, the former Prime Minister and now poised to come back as Leader
of the FNM within one year, has a visceral hatred for Mr. Smith, so it
is difficult to see how he will get past that. But as they say, politics
makes strange bedfellows and the truth is often stranger than fiction.
BLANKENSHIP
INTERVENES
Last week, one of our comments spoke about the strange habit of the former
US Ambassador to The Bahamas J. Richard Blankenship (pictured in this file
photo) to continue to try to intervene in the affairs of The Bahamas.
A diplomat’s life must be a special life and one that is sorely missed
because in the case of Mr. Blankenship, the interventions just keep happening.
On the day that the new U.S. Ambassador presented
his credentials in The Bahamas, Mr. Blankenship ensured that the headlines
were about him and an apparent rescue effort for the Red Cross. Then
there was the recent editorial by his friend Eileen Carron, the Publisher
of The Tribune that means to suggest that he is still keeping his hand
in. It has now gone further, just in case there were doubting readers
to this column. He has now written a column in The Tribune.
It was the very study in erudition from his position as the head of an
investment firm. Some speculated whether the piece was actually written
by him.
The whole column seemed to be to promote business
opportunities for himself and his new firm. What the article essentially
says is that The Bahamas government does not engender a policy and atmosphere
of selling off public companies to the private sector and we need to do
so, otherwise we are being left behind the great global trend. He
also believes that the Government should allow infrastructure in the country
to be built by the private sector.
Apart from the article being self-serving, it just
seems so inappropriate for a former Ambassador, not even out of the country
for two years yet to intervene in a situation where some might mistake
what he is saying as the policy of the United States government.
That is an issue that has already had to be clarified by the U.S. Embassy
here. The Bahamas government has not commented on it. The Foreign
Minister has not said a word. Perhaps that is best, just ignore it
and move on. But what it may be doing is to force the present Ambassador
to take a higher profile in his press relations than is necessary so that
the issue is clear who is the boss as far as the U.S. interests in this
country are concerned. But there is a pitfall there and that is too
high a profile might end up with the same criticism of his predecessor.
There is a fine line between public commentary in
the interest of your country and a comment that is perceived to be interference
by Bahamians in their internal affairs. Most Ambassadors do their
work quietly and behind the scenes by cultivating the Bahamians who shape
policy. That is what Mr. Blankenship did not recognize. In
a society as small as this one, and as nationalistically sensitive that
is just about the best way to go.
LESLIE
MILLER TACKLES THE RENT PROBLEM
There is a rent control act on the books in The Bahamas. But there
may as well not be rent control. The act and its strictures apply
only to properties in The Bahamas that have a value of $25,000 or less.
What precisely does that cover in today’s Bahamas where even in Bain Town
a 50 by 100 lot without a house on it costs 30 to 40 thousand dollars?
That means that there is effectively no rent control in The Bahamas.
Rent control is a controversial topic because it
forces the landlord to keep the property up to a certain standard and you
can charge no more than fifteen per cent of the value of the property as
rent per annum. What the economists argue against rent control is
that, over time, this will drive people out of the rental housing market
and housing for the poor will disappear. The act was brought into
force, however, in 1975 to bring some relief to the slum housing that existed
over the hill. There were people with no toilet facilities, no running
water and yet they were paying exorbitant rents. If you dared to
complain, the landlord would have you out the next day. On the other
hand, however, are the landlords who complain that in too many instances,
their rental properties are destroyed by tenants who don’t pay the rent
and don’t keep up the properties. They also argue that the enforcement
procedures in The Bahamas are simply too difficult.
The $25,000 value was set in the year 1975.
Enter into the breach Leslie Miller the Minister for Trade and Industry
who also has the responsibility for consumer affairs. He wants to
bring the act up to date so that the $25,000 in 1975 would be reflected
in today’s law at $100,000. He has started town meetings and as is
his style, a high profile campaign in the press to expose the slum housing
that many landlords fail to address. The pictures of dilapidated
housing from the Kemp Road area were particularly shocking. The town
meetings are designed to build a public consensus around this issue so
that the law can be amended and sent on to Parliament for passage.
Landlords have not yet had their say publicly but
you can bet that their boys will soon weigh in on the question especially
those right wingers who sit at breakfast in Lyford Cay remembering the
glory days, who call themselves the Nassau Institute. We hope that
this legislation comes soon. A resident off Kemp Road prepares
Sunday dinner just outside an overflowing outside toilet in this Nassau
Guardian photo by Donald Knowles.
SHUFFLING
THE CABINET
The rumours are once again surfacing that the Prime
Minister may be making changes in his Cabinet. The last time these
stories surfaced they came to naught. The pundits are not taking
any bets this time.
THE
REBIRTH OF CABLE BEACH – WILL IT HAPPEN?
For Prime Minister Perry Christie, Cable Beach is
a project that should happen on his watch. Paradise Island’s Atlantis
Hotel is a project that can rightly if not rightfully be put down to the
Ingraham Administration. But Cable Beach, the other tourist centre
on New Providence, is dying on the vine, with an unimaginative and visionless
operator in charge of the largest hotel complex there. The once shining
Crystal Palace has lost it sheen.
The Izmeralian group, headed by a young rich man
who is a permanent resident in Lyford Cay with that last name, has been
trying to put public pressure on Mr. Christie’s government to approve the
purchase and the accompanying deal that would revolutionize Cable Beach
to the tune of one billion dollars. It includes a convention centre,
a new road and a brand new hotel. The catch is the group appears
not to be interested in dealing on conventional terms. The Government
is interested in a comprehensive plan and the Izmeralian group is counting
on that hunger and their calculation of the Prime Minster’s personal political
need to have a project come off on his watch to turn the screws.
So far they have been successful at exciting the Bahamian public and in
scaring the bejesus out of the Kerzners of the Atlantis Hotel at Paradise
Island.
The report came out that Butch and his father Sol
were none to happy about a plan to compete with the same up market segment
that Paradise Island attracts. A plan by George Myers, operator of
the Radisson Cable Beach, surfaced that would go after the middle group
and leave the high end to the Kerzners. The government balked at
the Myers plan, reaching for the bigger and more comprehensive plan.
Phil Ruffin who has done nothing with Crystal Pace
but is a good friend of the Government poured some cold water on the whole
matter by telling the Nassau Guardian that the Izmeralian group simply
had not put down any money, and the talk is that the agreement for sale
is so unconventional that the group can literally walk away if they can’t
find the money. No one knows what the true story is. You can
bet, however, that the public pressure will be active on all sides.
It is jobs stupid! We simply hope that the project comes off.
MURDERS
MOST FOUL
While the total number of murders is down in the
country over last year, the murders in the last week have shocked the country.
There were the murders of the American woman and a young man at Cat Island.
They have the fellow who did it. There was the murder of two young
men who were stabbed at parties where people had come uninvited.
There was the vehicular homicide. There was the woman shot down as
she stepped out of a bus with her daughters. The daughters, one of
whom was shot, survived but the mother died. The shocker though,
was the murder of the teacher at S.C. McPherson High School on Tuesday
2nd November. It turns out that a man who was her neighbour turned
himself in and confessed.
What is clear is that all of these are spontaneous
murders and are in that sense domestic. They are probably not in
law murders at all but homicides that are probably manslaughter cases.
The question we keep asking is why in a country that is supposed to be
a tourism Mecca, and a land of peace and tranquility would this continue
to happen? It is clear that these people who are engaged in this
stuff pay no attention to the greater good.
The Bahamas Government clearly must seek to address
this issue lest our brand name gets further sullied by the lack of attention
to this critical issue. All of the governments of the Caribbean have
been seeking to grapple with the issue from Suriname to Bermuda.
Jamaica has had the hardest time on crime. Their tourist industry
has a superior product but can’t really get off the ground until they are
able to cut down on the 1,000 or more murders per year in Jamaica.
There is simply too much crime and too much gun
violence. Individuals bear some responsibility but also a part of
it is the climate of violence that is fostered by the United States and
all its emphasis resolving conflict through the barrel of a gun.
Caricom countries have called for the U.S. to do more to stop the export
of illegal weapons to the region. The matter has fallen on deaf ears.
There have been 31 murders so far for this year, that is 31 too many, and
we do not need to see one other picture of a murder victim or the perpetrator
in a homicide. What we want to see in The Bahamas is happy pictures.
CHINESE
AMBASSADOR LEAVES
It has only been 16 months, since the personable,
affable Ambassador for China to The Bahamas came to be with us. He
has left a great impression on the small diplomatic corps in The Bahamas
and on the Bahamian people generally. Not since Sidney Williams was
the U.S. Ambassador has an Ambassador made such a great impression on the
Bahamian people. We have never quite seen a Chinese man of this nature.
This is not your dour senior man in a grey coat but a man of mature years
who knew people and wanted to get to know the culture of The Bahamas and
to have China engage properly in a way to foster good relations between
the countries. When he said his farewell at the reception hosted
by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he ended his address with the words:
“God Bless You!” Interesting!
The reason for Ambassador Jiao's early departure
is a sad but human one, his wife is dying of cancer and he needs to be
with her in her final hours. Two nights later as he bid a formal
farewell to the Bahamian community, Prime Minister Perry Christie appeared
and told him that he had made a great impression on the Bahamian people.
As his parting gift, the Ambassador left $50,000 to help with the hurricane
relief effort. This brings a total of $150,000 for the relief effort
given by the Chinese Government to The Bahamas. We wish the Ambassador
well in his new life.
You may click here
for the farewell address of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The photo by the Bahamas Information Services' Derek Smith shows the presentation
of the cheque to The Bahamas by the Ambassador on Monday 1st November.
DR. GAIL
SAUNDERS
The University of the West Indies has conferred on Dr. Gail Saunders, former
Director of the Archives, now Director of Heritage for The Bahamas, the
degree Doctor of Laws Honoris Causa. That means it is an honorary
degree. This adds to the earned Doctorate that she obtained from
the University of Waterloo in Canada. The honorary doctorate is a
great honour bestowed on Dr. Saunders, and signals the recognition of her
work throughout the region on both the history of The Bahamas and of the
region. The degree is the second conferred upon a Bahamian; the first
was to Dr. Keva Bethel, former President of the College of The Bahamas,
six years ago.
Lady Marguerite Pindling held a dinner in honour
of Dr. Saunders in Jamaica on Thursday 4th November. The degree was
conferred the next day. Also in Jamaica for the occasion were the
Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell, Dr. Saunders’ husband Winston,
who is also Chair of The Bahamas Cultural Commission; Dr. Keva Bethel,
Rubie Nottage, Chancellor of the Anglican Diocese, Dr. Saunders’ brother
Terry North and her father Basil North. Bahamas Information Services
photo - Peter Ramsay.
HURRICANE
PREPAREDNESS
We
don’t quite know where the idea came from about the Government of The Bahamas
not insuring buildings, but it seems silly indeed. The issue arises
because there is so much analysis now about what to do post hurricane in
The Bahamas. The question is whether the Government would be better
off if it would simply insure its public buildings. The traditional
argument is that the bill for the insurance of Government buildings would
be too significant and so the better thing to do would be to simply pay
as you go from the consolidated fund. With the number of hurricanes
this year and the expected frequency of hurricanes that will inflict major
damage, the question arises, should the Government be rethinking the position?
Some have argued that if the Government does not want to pay a private
insurance company perhaps what it ought to do is to self insure by forming
its own corporation and paying money into a sinking fund each year out
of the budget. We say that the Government should simply insure its
buildings. Franklyn Wilson (pictured), the Chair of the College of
The Bahamas and who is also in the insurance business gave some thoughtful
consideration to this matter in an address recently at a seminar sponsored
by the Association of Tertiary Level Educators and we thought you should
read it. You may click here for the
full address.
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT
The Minister of Youth Neville Wisdom has reacted
to a speculative story in The Tribune that charged that a young man in
the programme had been sexually abused by one of the directors in the programme
and that money had been misappropriated. The story appeared in The
Tribune on Monday 1st November. The Ministry said that the matters
had been turned over to the police but the evidence that they had found
that the matters were without foundation.
The Tribune is yet again engaging in the nastiness
of the gutter press like The Punch and The Source. It has definitely
gone down market. The Junior Achievement programme is one of the
most successful youth programmes in the country. The country is concerned
about youth engagement in society why would a responsible newspaper without
a shred of evidence want to ruin that programme by spreading a malicious
rumour as it has. Eileen Carron should be ashamed of herself.
LANDFALL
TRUMPETS IRS DEFEAT
Dr. Gilbert Morris, principal of the Landfall Centre (pictured) has claimed
vindication over the Centre’s argument that forced changes in the country’s
financial services legislation would not pass legal muster. In 1999,
The Landfall Centre argued that the tranche of new financial services legislation
would not survive legal challenge. This was part of an argument by
the Landfall Centre that because The Bahamas is a small nation-state is
no reason to capitulate without a thoughtful strategy based on law.
Last week, the American Internal Revenue Service (IRS) suffered defeat
in the US courts – its third court defeat in the space of two weeks – in
a case involving alleged use of abusive tax shelters.
A report on the website Tax-News.com said that in
the case in question, the IRS was ordered earlier this week by Judge Stefan
R. Underhill of the United States District Court of Connecticut to refund
TIFD III-E Inc, a subsidiary of General Electric Corp., more than $62 million.
In 2000, the Landfall Centre published an article
in Tax Notes International in Washington DC, which called into question
the legality of the financial services legislation, wondering “...at implementing
that which others design for their own purposes, whilst ignoring our better
instincts and home-grown ideas.” Please click
here for the full report.
BAHAMAS
OFF TO CARICOM HEADS
A Bahamian delegation has arrived in Port-of-Spain,
Trinidad to attend a special meeting of Heads of Government of the Caribbean
Community of Nations (CARICOM). Prime Minister the Right Honourable
Perry G. Christie is being represented as head of the delegation by Minister
of Foreign Affairs & The Public Service, the Honourable Fred Mitchell.
Minister Mitchell is accompanied by His Excellency
A. Leonard Archer, The Bahamas Ambassador to Caricom and by the Under Secretary
for Trade in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Philip Miller.
The special Caricom Heads of Government meeting
is expected to discuss matters aimed at moving forward the Community’s
plan for a Caribbean Single Market & Economy CSME and other matters
concerning governance issues in Caricom.
The meetings are to take place on Monday 8th November
and Tuesday 9th November, with the delegation to return to Nassau on Wednesday
and Thursday.
KELLY
BURROWS' NEW JOB
One time Grand Bahama hotelier Kelly Burrows is
back in the marketplace after retiring from the hospitality industry.
The former Senior Assistant Food & Beverage Director of Princess, then
Oasis Hotels has been appointed as General Manager for Tropical Shipping
in Freeport. Mr. Burrows started in the hospitality business as a
restaurant manager in Nassau in 1964, moving to Grand Bahama in 1973.
He is a long time vestryman at the Pro-Cathedral of Christ The King and
is married to Senior Education Officer Angela Burrows. Congrats!
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Bush’s Election
I couldn't agree more with your analysis of George
W. Bush. He will undoubtedly be more right wing leaning with all
of its hawkish tendencies. I personally feel that spells disaster
for all small nations and the world. The man and men of his ilk simply
don't get that anti-American sentiment was inflamed by the American capture
and subsequent occupation of an Arab nation. God help us all if he
wins on Tuesday. ‘The limits of tyrants are prescribed by those whom they
oppress.’
Kele’ Isaacs
This letter was typical of the many (see Comment of the week) received
just before and after the American elections. – Ed.
Yasser Arafat -
www.bahamasuncensored.com 31/10/04
‘…The Bahamian community sees Mr. Arafat's struggle in the same
terms as that of the Black South African against apartheid, and the brutal
suppression of the Palestinian struggle by the Israeli government. Many
Bahamians find it very strange in the face of the known persecution of
the Jewish people through the ages that this nation would engage in such
a brutal occupation without any idea where this is all going to end up,
and certainly it won't be with peace if it keeps up this way…’
“The Bahamian community...”? Speak for yourself Mr. Dames.
Arafat is a terrorist. The dictator Arafat does not speak for Palestinians
– and you do not speak for Bahamians.
Mark Da Cunha
To each, his own. One man’s terrorist is often another man’s freedom
fighter. – Ed.
THIS
WEEK WITH THE PM
<
FAREWELL
AMBASSADOR JIAO - Prime Minister Perry Christie proposes a toast as
the diplomatic corps gathered Wednesday evening 3rd November to bid farewell
to departing Chinese Ambassador Jiao Dongcun. Mr. Christie thanked
the Ambassador for his work in The Bahamas, noting the “useful and engaging”
recent state visit to China by the Prime Minister and Bahamian officials.
In addressing the farewell reception, hosted by the Chinese embassy at
the ‘East Villa’ restaurant, Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable
Vincent Peet said that Ambassador Jiao was instrumental in furthering the
good relations, which exist between China and The Bahamas. He again
thanked the Ambassador for China’s most recent gift of an additional $50,000
to the Hurricane Relief Fund. 
In
addition to members of the diplomatic corps in The Bahamas, the reception
was attended by many members of Cabinet, senior civil servants, former
Governors General Sir Clifford Darling and Sir Orville Turnquest, former
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sir Clement Maynard
and former Minister of Tourism and Ambassador to China, Sir Arthur Foulkes.
Pictured from left are Acting Foreign Minister Peet, Ambassador Jiao, Prime
Minister Christie and Haitian Ambassador Lewis Harold Joseph.
> The Prime Minister addressed millions of religious believers across the world this week, through live television on the Christian 'Word Network' telecast this week from Bishop Neil Ellis Mount Tabor Full Gospel Baptist Church in Nassau. Mr. Christie used the opportunity to promote religious tourism to the country, telling his viewers of The Bahamas' "unashamed commitment to spiritual values and christian principles".
< Monies continue to come in to assist the
country with hurricane relief following the devastation in several islands
in the wake of hurricanes Frances and Jeanne. Bahamas Consul General
in Miami Mrs. Alma Adams travelled to Nassau this week to give a further
$20,000 from Bahamians resident in Florida and American friends of The
Bahamas. Mrs. Adams said that it is felt that the Florida community
will give still more. Prime Minister Christie, in concert with the
Chairman of the Fund, Minister of State for Finance James Smith, accepted
in gratitude.
Bahamas Information Services photographs by Peter
Ramsay.
 PHOTO
OF THE WEEK - The death of a young person, any young person,
generally sends shock waves through small communities like The Bahamas.
You see the picture of the deceased in the paper, and you see the innocence
and the glow of potential coming from their eyes. And yet all too
soon, young life has been snuffed out. It is happening with all too
much frequency in The Bahamas as HIV/AIDS takes its toll; as there are
more and more road traffic accidents, and as crime continues to be a problem
for the country. Yet the sudden death in senseless circumstances
always strikes the country as especially foul. Such was the atmosphere
throughout The Bahamas during the week as Bahamians sought to absorb the
news from Mandeville, Jamaica and from the most unlikely of places the
Seventh Day Adventists' University of the Northern Caribbean. On
Saturday 6th November, Joseph Darius Burrows left his home to get Kentucky
Fried Chicken for his wife and family. He never returned. Someone
got him, cleaned out his bank account, and killed him. His body was
found on the side of the road, one mile out of Mandeville with a blunt
force trauma injury to his head and a broken left hand most probably from
trying to ward off the blow. He was gone, leaving behind a
distraught University community, frightened Bahamians there, and a father
asking God, why his only son had been taken. Our photo of the week,
is that of Joseph Burrows, now dead at 22. Appearing with Mr. Burrows
in the photo are his wife and child. It is a very sad time.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell is in Jamaica today for the
memorial service. The Ministry’s statement is shown below (click
here). We also offer our condolences. That is our photo
of the week, and it was published in The Tribune on Thursday 11th November. |
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
FROM THE SUBLIME TO THE RIDICULOUS
What
you expect from younger politicians is not right wing, errant nonsense
that is designed to get headlines without any idea about the consequences
intended or unintended. The country is clearly looking to the future
and from where its leadership is going to come. There is for example
constant speculation in the PLP about who is going to succeed the present
Prime Minister who says that he expects to be in the job until 2010.
But that presumes that (as we think likely) the PLP will continue to be
the Government and relevant to the times. The speculation also often
presumes that it will fall either to one of those in the present Cabinet
or in the present Parliamentary party. The speculation is good, even
though all the present aspirants for the office have to be careful about
this and the stability of their organization. What is interesting
is that you don’t often hear the speculation about the FNM and its leadership.
That says something about what the people feel about the future.
What we add is that the leadership of political parties does not have to come from the existing leaders. It could come from people completely out of the present limelight and system. And so that is why, despite the criticism by many of the attention paid in this column to extra parliamentary parties, we continue to think that it is important to watch the extra parliamentary parties, the leadership and understand what they are up to and try to shape their opinions. The fact is that many of today’s parliamentarians had to go a route other than their present political party to end up where they now are. Shane Gibson, the former trade union leader and now Minister of Housing, came to support the PLP after his terrible experiences with the previous Government and he has been a wonderful addition to the PLP. Fred Mitchell spent the years 1984 to 1997 as the leader of his own political party the People’s Democratic Force. He too is a wonderful addition to the present PLP. Perry Christie, himself, was an independent from 1984 to 1991 when he returned to the PLP. So that is why we think that you cannot dismiss Cassius Stuart (pictured), leader of a group calling itself the Bahamas Democratic Movement. His name should be familiar to most readers of this column.
So many people within the PLP have such high hopes and regard for him that one was pained to read during the week the foolishness and utter stupidity uttering forth from his mouth. His recent call in the press for the resignation of the Deputy Prime Minister and then for the castration of those who are rapists and child molesters is not worthy of him or any sensible person. This is the kind of stupidity and irresponsibility that defies logic but it is something that politicians on the make often feel they have to do.
The point we continue to make to Cassius Stuart is that if he is a man of the future, he cannot be arguing for retrogression and barbarism when it has been shown from time that these methods he now advocates do not work, are unworkable and will if utilized put The Bahamas in a category of barbaric countries to which we do not and should not belong.
He himself gets upset when he is called to account for statements that are clearly stupid and irresponsible. There is a history of this. Here is young politician who goes to a church convention and cynically using biblical language about sowing a seed, simply does what other political hacks before him did, seeking to buy favour with the church by giving them $1,000 or at least pledging it. We hope the church collected. That was foolish and ill advised. People were concerned about the highjinks in the House of Assembly where he and his partner chained themselves to the House property. They ended up being prosecuted by the FNM but the PLP withdrew the prosecution. Some saw that as a bad example to younger children in support of lawlessness. Okay, we forgave that on the grounds that it was a legitimate political action.
A distinction must be made here between our reaction to the criticism of the Deputy Prime Minister and the call for castration. The criticism of the Deputy Prime Minister is something with which we do not agree, but that is legitimate political comment that one expects from a politician. The call for castration though, is way out of line and not becoming of one for whom people have such high hopes.
The call from this column for the BDM's leader to find work is said as a kind of half joke. But it should be taken seriously in this sense, the Bahamian people ought to have a sense that this is someone who is preparing himself for something bigger, who is responsible and who does not shoot from the hip. It is about shaping the profile of someone who should have a future. That future should actually be part of the PLP. The PLP needs to have a future for those who are tolerant, pluralistic thinkers, not right wing ideologues and those who adhere to barbaric policies that have failed from the past. The choice for Mr. Stuart will soon be either the graveyard of political comic relief inhabited by the likes of Rodney Moncur or the constellation of practical leadership, joined by, say a Shane Gibson who is now in the mainstream. There is too much idiocy in this country that tries to pass for sensible comment on public policy.
No doubt these words will be viewed askance. The response will probably be, as most young men will say: “I will get there anyway.” That may well be true but the question always is how will you get there, and what will the be the quality of the leadership which you present? And if you get there having heard these words of truth. That is our responsibility. If you say you want to fight crime, as we all do, it is clear that we have to have a more muscular response to what is going on today. There is plenty of criticism to go around in terms how the police do and conduct their work, the role of the Criminal Detective Unit, how they relate with the community policing unit. Bahamans are plenty dissatisfied with what they have on the crime fighting front. That is all the basis of legitimate complaint.
The Bahama Journal in its editorial of Thursday 11th November wrote the following with which we agree: “The point we make is that opinions like the ones put forward by Stuart and others such, should – in this day and age – be treated with the contempt they so richly deserve... Surely nothing is ever to be gained every time some drivel flows; somebody rushes in to wipe it up. There are always better uses for the time one has on his hands. It should not be wasted in futile debate and discussion with those whose only occupation seems to be that of “grabbing headlines”.
Paul Moss, an attorney at law and a frequent critic of the Government on prison reform, also condemned the remarks. He dismissed it as a politician seeking headlines.
We happen to think that the Ministry of National Security has a number of initiatives by which they are seeking to solve these problems. That does not absolve them from criticism but one expects from the next generation of politicians some answers to the future. Those answers do not lie in the past.
Quite frankly it is simply embarrassing to hear such utter rubbish being played up as responsible public policy. The newspapers are only interested in sexy headlines. The politician in the making is just interested in getting his name in the newspaper at any costs - and yes, we do use Mr. Stuart's picture here. It is a shame but one guesses that's life.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 13th November 2004 at midnight: 63,308.
Number of hits for the month of November 2004 up to Saturday 13th November 2004 at midnight: 111,560.
Number of hits for the year 2004 up to Saturday 14th November 2004 at midnight: 2,356,054.
DEATH
OF BAHAMIAN STUDENT IN JAMAICA
The photo of the week this week shows the picture of Joseph Burrows, a
victim of criminal violence in Jamaica. You may click
here for that caption. This is a tragic and sad event.
This piece, however, is meant to address those remaining
students in Jamaica who may have thoughts of leaving or other Bahamians
who may want to blame Jamaica and Jamaicans for what has happened.
First, Jamaica faces grave problems on the crime front but so does The
Bahamas. But this is the first time that we know in living memory
that a Bahamian student has been killed in Jamaica. To be sure, we
remember the case of George Moxey known as ‘God Bless’ the musician who
was murdered in a robbery at a home in Jamaica in the 1970s. But
we must remember that The Bahamas is also the scene of horrific crimes,
as are many countries around the world.
Students who come to The Bahamas from other countries
have been complaining about attacks on the women who live on the campus
of the University of the West Indies and that of the College of The Bahamas.
Bahamian students have been killed in the United States by murder and other
equally tragic circumstances. No one would blame the U.S. and no
one would turn on the American people.
Jamaica and Jamaicans want the same things that we want for our people:
peace, a crime free life, economic progress. Indeed, Jamaica has
helped The Bahamas grow and prosper by educating generations of our young
people, many of whom have gone on to be successful leaders of this community.
So this is not to turn into an anti Jamaica or Jamaican thing. This
is a sad, individual event, which is so tragic it is almost unspeakable.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell reported
to the press on Friday 12th November, how he did not know what to say to
the father of young Mr. Burrows. The Minister had just been with
the group of young people in Mandeville three weeks ago at lunch and felt
this one particularly badly. This is Stephen Burrows’ only son.
He was named by his father out of an act of covenant with God. He
was given to his father for 22 years, and now his life has been snuffed
out.
We must weep for Jamaica, as we weep for the family
and must weep for ourselves and at all the wicked things that are in this
world. WE WILL STAND FIRM: Northern Caribbean University
President Dr. Herbert Thompson is shown comforting students
at the University, at an impromptu service held just hours
after the body of 22 year old Bahamian student Joseph Burrows was
found miles away from the University.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued the following statement upon the death of Mr. Burrows and Minister Mitchell is today, Sunday 14th November, in Mandeville, Jamaica to attend a memorial service at the University.
The Bahamas
Government through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expresses its profound
regret over the death of Joseph Burrows, a Bahamian student reported missing
in Jamaica and now discovered dead. The Ministry also expresses condolences
to the family of Mr. Burrows.
Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable
Vincent Peet has confirmed that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable
Fred Mitchell, now travelling in the Caribbean, has directly conveyed the
condolences of the Government to Mr. Stephen Burrows, father of the deceased
student, Mr. Joseph Burrows.
Minister Mitchell, on behalf of the Government,
has also spoken with the Foreign Minister of Jamaica and received assurances
from the Jamaican Government that a complete investigation will be carried
out and that no effort will be spared to bring those guilty of causing
the death of Mr. Burrows to justice.
The Bahamas’ Honorary Consul Designate to
Jamaica, Ms. Keva Hilton has been instructed to continue to monitor the
situation closely.
Mr. Burrows was in Jamaica studying at the
University of the Northern Caribbean at Mandeville and was reported missing
by his wife on Saturday 6th November, 2004.
Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs the Honourable
Vincent Peet noted, “We have been in touch with the President of the University,
Dr. Herbert Thompson who indicated that there is to be on a memorial service
at the University in Mandeville on Sunday 14th November. It is expected
that a representative of the government will attend that service.”
Minister Peet advised all Bahamian students
studying abroad to “exercise vigilance in their movements given the unfortunate
likelihood of crime across the cities of the world”.
JUSTICE
THOMPSON RECUSES HERSELF
The Bahama Journal reported on Wednesday 10th November
that Justice Jeanne Thompson has recused herself from hearing the Sidney
Stubbs bankruptcy matter. The Justice gave as the reason the fact
that the Government had just extended her tenure as a judge past the retirement
age of 65 pursuant to the powers of the Prime Minister under the constitution.
She did not want it to be seen that she was either acting for or against
the Government because of the benefit of an extension conferred upon her.
Each new twist of this strange and difficult case
must give the Free National Movement some comfort that maybe, just maybe,
they will have an opportunity to get another beating put on them by the
PLP in Holy Cross. They have gone to the trouble of trying to rouse
the population on the question of why Mr. Stubbs is still in the seat.
They have gone further and nominated the hapless Carl Bethel, their now
Chairman and the former Attorney General and defeated candidate for the
2002 election, to contest the seat. Their Leader out of the House
of Assembly Tommy Turnquest does not have the courage to run, even though
he finds himself in the anomalous position of being the Leader but not
the Leader of the Opposition.
The case of Sidney Stubbs is following two tracks.
One track is that of going before a Judge of the Supreme Court and asking
for the matter to be revisited and that he should be discharged because
of certain technical faults. This arises because the Court of Appeal
has ruled that they have no jurisdiction to hear an appeal. The other
is to go before the Privy Council to seek to overturn the ruling of the
Court of Appeal that they have no jurisdiction to hear an appeal and either
force that Court to hear the appeal or set aside the finding of the Court
below.
Things get curiouser and curiouser with this matter,
and the PLP simply hopes that there is no need to spend money on a bye-election
any time soon. The case is now to be heard in the Supreme Court by
the Chief Justice on Thursday 19th November.
REMEMBRANCE
DAY
The relevance of the annual ceremony fades in the minds of the Bahamian
population like those old soldiers. The politicians seem not have
any use for the ceremony. Hardly any of them come to it. The
fact that four marines died tragically in 1980 in the defence of their
country's interest does not seem to move and excite anyone.
The memorial was set up as a service first in the
Christ Church Cathedral by the ex soldiers of the British Legion to remember
their fallen comrades of the First and Second World Wars. The First
World War ended on 11th November 1917 and the day since then was known
as Armistice Day. It is a public holiday in the U.S. The British
and British colonies began to sell poppies to commemorate the red flowers
on the battlefield at Flanders in France where many of the fallen lie buried.
The present generation does not remember any of that and does not care.
But it is an occasion for the scouts to come out on parade, the young bands
to play and for the diplomats and Honorary Consuls to lay their wreaths
to the fallen dead.
What the generation before us did, men like Basil
Johnson, were brave acts indeed. They led lives of sacrifice and
discipline and we should never forget them. It is also a time to
remember the four Bahamian marines who died 10th May 1980 when Cuban MIG
fighters sank the HMBS Flamingo. And so we say, their limbs shall
not grow weary nor sight grow dim…in our going out and in our coming in,
we will remember them. Minister of Labour and Immigration Vincent
Peet stands behind Governor General Dame Ivy Dumont at the Cenotaph after
the official Remembrance Day Service at Christ Church Cathedral.
Minister Peet represented the Prime Minister. RIGHT - Minister of
Works Bradley Roberts represents the Prime Minister at St. Francis Xavier's
Cathedral's Remembrance Day Service. He is pictured at left with
Mr. Brent Symonette, representing the Leader of the Opposition and representatives
of the United States Embassy. BIS photos - Peter Ramsay. AT
LEFT - Minister of Financial Services & Investment Allyson Maynard
Gibson receives a poppy from members of the British Legion in this Nassau
Guardian photo. L-R: Charles Fisher, Legion member; Minister Maynard Gibson;
Matthias Munroe, Secretary of the Legion in The Bahamas and Percy Strachan,
Legion member.
MINISTER
IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
The Minister of Foreign Affairs visited the Dominican Republic in October.
He was accompanied by Ambassador Leonard Archer, the Ambassador to Caricom.
The reason for the visit was to discuss fish poaching, expanded trade and
tourism between the two countries and to seek the accreditation of Ambassador
Eugene Newry as Ambassador to that country. The photo shows the Minister
being greeted at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic
with their Foreign Minister Carlos Morales. Señor Morales
is a frequent visitor to The Bahamas, and a friend of the Bacardi family
at Lyford Cay.
LADY
PINDLING IN JAMAICA
Last week Dr. Gail Saunders received an honorary
doctorate from the University of the West Indies for her work as an archivist
in the region. (You may click here
for last week's story) Lady Marguerite Pindling hosted the guests
to a sumptuous dinner at the renowned Pegasus Hotel in honour of Dr. Saunders’
achievement. The degree was conferred on Friday 5th November.
The representatives of The Bahamas Students Association
came to greet the party following the graduation ceremony and address by
Dr. Saunders. Pictured from left are Sergio Kerr, Cindy Simon, Elaine
Robinson, Minister Mitchell, Dr. Saunders, Lady Pindling, Dr. Keva Bethel,
Rubie Nottage and Akin Minnis.
U.S.
HURRICANE AID PACKAGE
The United States has announced a package of assistance
for Caricom countries following the hurricanes. The package is said
to be valued at some 2 million dollars to The Bahamas. There are
no details yet of exactly how this is going to be accessed and what precisely
it will be used for. One suspects that Ambassador John Rood in Nassau
will be instrumental in determining how this assistance is to be applied.
WHAT
IS ATLANTIS UP TO WITH PHASE III?
The Bahama Journal reported at the start of the
week that the Atlantis project Phase III has been put on hold. There
were then mixed signals from the company about it. The company said
that they had until 31st December to decide whether and how to proceed
with the final phase of the development of phase III. This has caused
the Government some anxiety. The Government is counting on the jobs
to be created by the enterprise at Paradise Island in order to get the
economy going and some pressure off its back from the young males and females
who are unemployed.
A Kerzner spokesman Howard Karawan, chief marketing
officer for the company, finally entered the fray to say to the Nassau
Guardian on Thursday 11th November that the project was very much on but
that there are likely to be some changes in the way they approach the project.
The project is expected to start its construction phase in June 2005.
The Kerzner group is said to be nervous about two
things. First the market appears to be changing and they do not want
to overreach themselves despite their original rosy forecast. Secondly,
The Bahamas Government is considering a project out at Cable Beach, which
intends to compete for the same high-end market.
The Kerzners are particularly unhappy and are rattling
their sabres to warn the Government off. Their proposition is a difficult
one: how do you ask a person who wants to invest one billion dollars in
a country that needs employment to get lost because the main competitor
says it doesn’t want any competition? Clearly, one has to look at
it seriously. Clearly, you can't dismiss it. The Bahamas Government
should watch very carefully what is going on at Atlantis in order to ensure
that the economic benefits are there for Bahamians.
JOURNAL
CLARIFIES ATLANTIS STORY
Just before upload of our second edition, we received
this clarification from The Bahama Journal:
I read your site religiously on Sundays and look
forward to it, so it should be no surprise for me as the editor of the
Bahama Journal to point out an error. Under the section titled ‘What
Is Atlantis Up To With Phase III?’, you state that “The Bahama Journal
reported at the start of the week that the Atlantis project Phase III has
been put on hold.” This is inaccurate. The story we ran on
Tuesday says only that Kerzner has expressed what have amounted to doubts
about whether to proceed with certain elements of the project.
The company said in a release last Monday that
it has until December 31 to decide whether to proceed with the remaining
elements of Phase III and has several key factors it will take into consideration
in making this decision, including financing, and whether the government
keeps certain commitments it made in the Heads of Agreement. I notice
that the Guardian made the same error in intimating that the Journal said
the project is on hold. We never did. Would appreciate the
correction...
Thanks,
Candia Dames
THE
GREAT SEX RAID
The week started out on Sunday 7th November with
the Royal Bahamas Police Force announcing that following a three month
investigation into Club Cabaret Seduction on West Bay Street, and following
numerous complaints from residents in the area, a raid was carried out
and several arrests made. Twelve people, all Jamaican women were
charged with indecent behaviour. Three pleaded guilty and are to
be sentenced next week after being remanded in custody. The others
are out on $500 dollars bail.
The Immigration Department said curiously enough
to the court that the Jamaican women all had status to be in The Bahamas.
That could not possibly be since they did not have work permits, and if
they were dancers in the club then they must have been working and therefore
acting in manner that was incompatible with their status.
The other curious thing is why would an investigation
into dirty dancing at a club take three months? What precisely were
the police investigating and collecting as evidence? Did they have
to go and see the naked girls every night for three months before they
had sufficient evidence to raid the club? Hmmm! Then Darrold
Miller made an interesting point; here you have adults in a place that
has a licence for music and dance, and to sell liquor, so what is the harm
precisely that is being done in this situation when there is murder and
mayhem and rape going on in the streets? Seems a little over zealous.
The police were pleased as punch that they got their
women, and now they can boast that they have three convictions to boot.
There was also a charge of someone with an unlawful firearm.
The final drama in the life of the Palestinian hero and patriot Yasser
Arafat played itself out in the bleak landscape of Ramallah on the West
Bank of Israel on Friday 12th November. After the dignified military
and state funeral in Egypt, the Palestinian people rushed over into the
burial site on the West Bank to say farewell to their fallen leader.
The Western press were busy trying to discount the
significance of the man. Some of them were busy talking about his
failings as a leader. Others in Western capitals tried to ignore
the event or to speak around the event. Nothing was more sad than
the display of those who went to war in Iraq, a war that they cannot win;
only they are the only ones who do not know it. The scenes of grief
and the outpouring of affection puts the lie to the claim by those who
lead the war that one dares not speak about that the man was irrelevant.
The controversy even found itself into this column,
where a letter writer described Mr. Arafat as a terrorist. Of course
as the editor pointed out last week, one man’s terrorist is another man’s
freedom fighter. President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa hailed Mr.
Arafat as a patriot and great leader of his people. That he was.
That he was.
Stan Burnside penned a cartoon in The Nassau Guardian
on Saturday 13th November, which reflected the ambivalence of the event
to many. There is no such ambivalence here. Top left - An
Egyptian honour guard carries the coffin of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat
upon its arrival in Cairo late Thursday. Aladin Abdel Naby / Reuters
Top right - mourners swarm Arafat's coffin in Ramallah.
THE
COMEDIANS - A STORY OF HAITI
The British writer Graham Greene wrote the book
titled ‘The Comedians’ a long time ago. In it he catalogued the folly
of the Duvalier dictatorship in Haiti. If he were around, he could
write another book and call it The Comedians part II. How else would
one characterize the utter foolishness of the policies of the present regime
in Haiti and their developed world patrons in the decade of the Jean Bertrand
Aristide’s ascendancy and his removal from office?
First both the developed world and the local Haitian
elites that now run the Government and who opposed and oppose Mr. Aristide
made a fundamental error in forcing Mr. Aristide from power in February
by military means. That means there will be no peace because Mr.
Aristide and his supporters will forever believe that they have been robbed.
Try as the little Caricom mouse did to encourage
the then Opposition now Government not to try to exact vengeance but to
break the cycle of vengeance that is the hallmark of Haitian politics and
allow Mr. Aristide to serve out his term even as their choice of Prime
Minister would effectively run the Government. They refused and instead
cavorted with the rebel murderers, and with the acquiescence of the developed
world forced Mr. Aristide out. They repeated the cycle.
At the last minute Caricom went to the United Nations
and begged for two things: either go in and stop the rebels from advancing
so as to allow the normal transition to take place or if the developed
world were unwilling to do so, authorize some nation that was willing to
do so.
Now comes the funny bit. You have now in power
a government that is supposed to be technocratic in nature, not political
and not partisan. Isn’t it funny though that all of the policies
end up restricting the right of Mr. Aristide and his supporters from participating
in Haitian politics? Mr. Aristide cannot come home. He has
been banished by his countrymen and by their developed world patrons from
this hemisphere. It is a policy used by slave masters to deal with
errant slaves. This from a Haitian interim administration that says
it wants reconciliation.
There is more. They arrested former Prime
Minister Yvon Neptune who helped them in their transition to power and
refused to abandon his country even when Mr. Aristide wrongly “agreed”
to leave Haiti. Despite the mouse Caricom asking and the United States
saying that it is demanding, Mr. Neptune remains in jail without charge.
Then the interim administration that says it wants friends in the international
arena, proceeded to attack one of the most respected Black leaders in the
world, immediately offending Caricom (which it says it wants to rejoin)
and the African Union. What a way to win friends! The U.S.
stays silent and so it is taken to mean that they accept these actions.
It gets funnier. Having agreed that there
is a need for reconciliation in Haiti, the interim administration has now
said they want to arrest former President Aristide on corruption charges.
Isn’t that a howl? You can just see reconciliation coming down the
pike, can’t you?
We are sure you are now rolling in the aisles with
laughter it is so funny. Meanwhile in Nassau a former Deputy Chief
of Mission in Haiti for the United States, solemnly gave his interview
to the Nassau Guardian as an exclusive in which he laid out how in his
view the departure of Mr. Aristide took place. He said he was there
and helped to preside over it. He said how the scene was set for
the departure. He insisted it was voluntary. He insisted that
it was a sad event and how the President was isolated behind his bodyguards
and how he gave over his resignation at the last moment in the original
copy just before he went on the plane. The U.S. official went about
facilitating the swearing in of the new President of Haiti.
We have never seen a departure so voluntary in all
our lives. We are all totally convinced. All our doubts are
gone. (Yeah right!) If this were not a true story, don’t you
think this would make a good sequel to Graham Greene’s original book ‘The
Comedians’?
SUPERVALUE
BOYCOTT
The Bahamas Commercial Stores Supermarkets and Warehouse
Workers Union has initiated a boycott of Supervalue for failing to come
to the bargaining table to conclude an industrial agreement between the
union and the company. We support the boycott and encourage shoppers
not to cross the picket lines. The Union is supported by the Bahamas
Hotel catering and Allied Workers Union which itself announced a picket
of the Comfort Suites Hotel for failing to come to agreement on a new contract
for the workers there.
GALANIS
IS EXASPERATED
The Progressive Liberal Party’s Senator Philip Galanis
has joined the critics who believe that the decisions of the Government
are being made too slowly. He was quoted in The Tribune Thursday
11th November as follows: “Our political leaders must also be more responsive,
transparent and accountable to the citizens whom they serve. While
political decisions should not be hastily taken, particularly if to do
so would be to the detriment of our country, many people feel that too
many government decisions are taking too long to be made and I agree with
them.”
CONGRATULATIONS
TO FRANKLYN WILSON
The complaint in The Bahamas is that you have tourism
as the major industry in the country but there are no Bahamians who are
involved in a meaningful way in the ownership and investment in the sector.
No major hotel is owned by a Bahamian. It is also said that investors
who are Bahamian don’t get the same treatment as foreign investors.
On all those counts, it seems things have changed. A Heads of Agreement
has been signed with a group headed by Franklyn Wilson, Chairman of Arawak
Homes and including Albert Sands of Rock Sound, Eleuthera for the redevelopment
of Rock Sound’s Cotton Bay Club. The deal was signed in the presence
of the Prime Minister on Monday 8th November. The deal is said to
be worth 300 million dollars. BIS photo of Eleuthera Properties
Heads of Agreement signing by Peter Ramsay.
WENDY’S
PASSES HANDS
The Solomon Group has announced that it has reached
a deal with the Tsavousiss brothers, the owners of Johnny Canoe cafe to
buy Wendy’s. Wendy’s founder in The Bahamas, Norman Solomon is getting
on in age and has Parkinson’s disease and is unable to provide the fresh
talent and money to keep the business going. The brothers are known
to be especially aggressive successful businessmen in the food area in
The Bahamas. Wendy’s is said to have peaked in The Bahamas in terms
of market penetration and Burger King is cutting significantly into its
business since Burger King was taken over by hotelier George Myers.
CARMICHAEL
COMMUNITY FESTIVAL
Member of Parliament John Carey celebrated with the constituents and residents
of Carmichael in the 1st annual Carmichael Community Festival. It
was indeed a festive occasion as scores of people from the community and
elsewhere came out to a treat of Bahamian food and culture. The Gerald
Cash Primary Steel Pan Band, Farm Road and Bain/Grants Town Marching Bands
performed to the delight of the crowd. On hand to share in the festivities
were the Prime Minister The Right Hon. Perry Christie, Hon. Bradley Roberts,
Hon. Neville Wisdom, Hon. Shane Gibson, Parliamentary Secretary Michael
Halkitis, MP Phillip Davis, Chairman Raynard Rigby and more. It was indeed
a day enjoyed by all. Students of Gerald Cash Primary School with steel
pans entertain festivalgoers at top and John Carey, Carmichael MP, with
Minister Bradley Roberts at right share a smile with a Carmichael constituent.
BAHAMIAN
BASKETBALLER IN OKLAHOMA
The last time we saw Rashad Moss was in Freeport,
Grand Bahama, but recently he turned up on the Internet at Northern Oklahoma
College Enid. Boy, Bahamians sure do travel. The 18 year old
6 foot 6 inch basketball player was featured on a recent edition of the
college's webpage 'Enid News Now' and we thought you'd like a look.
That's him on the drive. Please click
here. Enid News Now photo by ANDY CARPENEAN
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Two subjects in recent weeks seem to have aroused
strong feelings amongst our readership. The descent into death of
Yasser Arafat provoked strong comment both last
week and again this week. Also, the reelection of George W. Bush
to the presidency of the United States and our Comment
of The Week on that subject elicited several responses. Interesting
reading. You be the judge.
Arafat a terrorist?
To the gentleman who describes
Mr. Arafat as a terrorist:
What if your country were physically occupied
by people from a distant land, whose only claim was a 2,000 year old link.
What if your parental home were evacuated and settled by extremist redneck
Americans or Russians wielding guns. What if you could then not even
have the right of return, while members of the ‘master’ race from anywhere
on earth could come and settle into your land?
In my case (and that of most Bahamians),
the response would be one of continuance of violence against anyone who
supports the invaders, of any age or sex. In other words, I would
regard ‘civilians’ living on my parental land as legitimate targets.
Sir, your lack of balance is offensive
if you would then call me a “terrorist”.
Andrew Allen
We appreciate your comment. – Ed.
Thank you for your comment. – Ed.
That must account for the pall of sadness the next day in the Bahamian capital. – Ed.
Thank you for your comment. At least we are still free to say and write what we wish but we must guard against any further encroachments. – Ed.
Please re-examine the piece that was written. No such assertion was made about Mr. Bush. The column asserts that there is a belief about the Republican Party and Mr. Bush that the modern phrases are being used as a cover for the things that you object to the column asserting. That is quite different from asserting as you have suggested. – Ed.
Most persons who responded to the column did not read what it actually
said and so missed the point. It is also possible to be racist and
have Black people in your administration. Racism is a thought process.
Again no such assertion was made in the column. – Ed.
THIS
WEEK WITH THE PM
2004 GLOBAL LEADERSHIP SUMMIT - Prime Minister Perry Christie
addressed Pastor Miles Munroe's 2004 Leadership Summit at the Raddisson
Cable Beach Hotel this past week. The popular gathering annually
attracts leaders and aspiring leaders from sectors within The Bahamas and
elsewhere in the world.
UNITED
PENTECOSTALS PRESENT CHEQUE - The Prime Minister joined the Chairman
of the National Hurricane Relief Fund, Minister of State for Finance James
Smith this past week to accept a cheque from members of
