Colombia wants to help CARICOM

Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos says he wants to give special importance and priority to the needs of the Caribbean.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, - Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos has announced that his country wants to give special attention to the needs of the Caribbean at next April's Sixth Summit of the Americas (SOA).

Making reference to the theme of the Summit which his country will host, 'Connecting the Americas: Partners for Prosperity’, President Santos said the SOA is a partnership at the highest political level to find solutions to the problems the continent and islands of the Americas are facing. 

New beginnings

The Barbados Entrepreneurial Foundation has set off on its Mission: “Barbados – the #1 Entrepreneurial Hub in the World by 2020”.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, - “He that sat upon the throne said, behold, I make all things new; write, for these words are true and faithful; it is done; I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end; I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely” – Revelation 21:5-6.

Well a month has quietly slipped by but, for all intents and purposes, we are at the beginning of a New Year, new projects, renewed friendships, new jobs, new weather patterns, anniversaries – all of these trigger thoughts of a fresh start.  There is the opportunity to begin again, to do something that was not done before or try a different approach.  Also, road blocks and diversions present the chance to think outside of the box, to penetrate the space between our thoughts, through meditation, and explore the universe of infinite possibilities.

The Barbados Entrepreneurial Foundation has set off on its Mission: “Barbados – the #1 Entrepreneurial Hub in the World by 2020”.  What does this mean?  In a nutshell it means that Barbados will be the Global Centre of Excellence for Entrepreneurship by 2020. Why is this important?  It is important because it will lead to happiness for us and those who share our vision. The Wikipedia definition of Happiness is “a state of mind or feeling characterized by contentment, love, satisfaction, pleasure, or joy.” 

Money launderers put on warning

The cooperation between the two agencies would focus on general matters to counter drug trafficking, anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, - In an effort to sharpen the regional response to transnational organized crime, the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS) and the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFTAF) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) setting forth their plans to work together on the issue of financial crimes, including money laundering and the use of the proceeds from the trade in narcotics and arms that  fund gang and terrorism related activity.

“This MoU signifies a clear recognition by the Caribbean Community….of the danger that unchecked financial crime poses to our economic and political systems” said Lynne Anne Williams, the Executive Director of CARICOM IMPACS. 

"It is, indeed, a concrete step towards the urgent implementation of measures which are critical not only to CARICOM States, but to those of the wider Caribbean region.” 

The Executive Director of the CFATF, Calvin Wilson, said that “both IMPACS and CFATF play critical roles in promoting and maintaining peace and security in the Caribbean region.” 

The cooperation between the two agencies was approved by the Tenth Meeting of the Council for National Security and Law Enforcement in June last year and would focus on general matters to counter drug trafficking, anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism.  

IMPACS and CFATF would also be collaborating on a three-year accreditation programme for financial investigators and analysts in the CARICOM/CFATF Region which will enhance the regional capacity to take the profit out of crime through asset forfeiture. This programme was designed with the assistance of the United Kingdom Security Advisory Team at the British High Commission in Barbados.  

Jamaica passes third IMF review

The IMF said that Jamaica’s performance under the programme has been positive overall. All end-September quantitative performance criteria were met.

WASHINGTON, United States,  - Jamaica has passed the third review of it's economic performance under an International Monetary Fund (IMF) Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), enabling the immediate disbursement of about US$49.3 million.

The IMF said that Jamaica’s performance under the programme has been positive overall. All end-September quantitative performance criteria were met. The Executive Board approved modifications of certain performance criteria, including a small relaxation of some fiscal targets to accommodate spending related to Tropical Storm Nicole and an increase in the floor on net international reserves.

Following the approval, Murilo Portugal, Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair said: “Overall performance under the Stand-By Arrangement has been satisfactory. Signs of recovery have emerged, with net job creation for the first time in four quarters, and inflationary pressures remain subdued, allowing an accommodative monetary policy."

He said the authorities’ macroeconomic program continues to focus on restoring fiscal sustainability and increasing the economy’s resilience to external shocks. 

Guyanese man gets maximum penalty for JFK airport bomb plot

Nur was one of four Caribbean men charged in connection with the plot that was hatched by Guyana-born US citizen Russell Defreitas in January 2006.

NEW YORK, United States, – Despite his lawyer pleading with a judge not to impose a maximum sentence as it would amount to a death sentence for Abdel Nur who was suffering from cancer, the Guyanese man yesterday received the harshest penalty possible for his part in a failed plot to blow up the John F Kennedy (JFK) International Airport in New York.

US District Judge Dora Irizarry described the 61-year-old as "a dangerous person", as she imposed the 15-year sentence on him, seven months after he admitted that he provided support to terrorists. 

“This plot was intended to cause great economic harm to the United States and to cause death and serious physical injury to countless people,” the judge told him as she delivered her judgment.

Nur’s lawyer, Daniel Nobel, had asked Irizarry for a shorter sentence, noting that his client had lung cancer and the maximum sentence would therefore be a death sentence. However, she instead advised the defence attorney that an application for Nur’s release from prison could be made if it was determined that his death from illness was imminent.

Former Haiti dictator makes surprise return

After 25 years in exile, "Baby Doc" who is alleged to have stolen millions of dollars from the people of Haiti during his rule, surprised residents and government officials with his return. (File photo)

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, - Former president Jean-Claude Duvalier yesterday threw Haiti in a tailspin with his return from France after 25 years in exile. The unexpected arrival of "Baby Doc", as he's known, comes at a time when a cloud of political uncertainty remains over the country.

He arrived on an Air France flight last night with a female companion identified as Veronique Roy.

As news spread of his return, hundreds of his supporters converged at the airport. The cheering crowd eventually swelled to about 2,000.

Duvalier, 59, who is alleged to have stolen millions from government coffers during his rule, told reporters he came back to help the people of Haiti and participate in the country's rebirth, although he did not say what he specifically intended to do.

"I was waiting for this moment for a long time. When I first set foot on the ground, I felt great joy," he told the Reuters news agency. "I wanted to show them my solidarity, to tell them that I am here."

Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive said he did not know Duvalier was coming back but noted, "He is a Haitian and, as such, is free to return home."

Jamaica gets seat on world tourism body

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett will take up the position in January 2011, serving as representative of the Americas which comprises North Central and South America, and the Caribbean.

KINGSTON, Jamaica, – Jamaica has been invited by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) to sit on its executive for the first time in its history.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett will take up the position in January 2011, serving as representative of the Americas which comprises North Central and South America, and the Caribbean.

The WTTC, headquartered in London, is a private sector group comprising a cross-section of tourism and travel industry interest. These include airlines, hoteliers, distributors, and tour operators.

The group meets to deliberate on wide ranging issues impacting travel and tourism globally, and to strategize and offer guidance on these matters, by examining trends and conducting research through their involvement with the Oxford Economics Group, which is a major independent provider of global economic, industry and business analysis.

Minister Bartlett said that Jamaica's involvement in the WTTC at the executive level will give the country "access to relationships that we don't have now”.

“We will also be able to put our position, our destination, in line with all the great destinations of the world. It gives us a voice so that we can also influence policy and influence the thinking of tourism globally. We get a chance to meet people, who have relationships that we want, and because we connect with them we are able to benefit from that,” he said.

Citing an example of how networking with other global tourism stakeholders has benefitted the country, Bartlett disclosed that last year, he was able to meet and discuss joint airlift arrangements involving Jamaica, Italy, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic, with representatives of the Italian airline, Blue Panorama, while they were attending the Cuban Tourism Fair.

"That's how we were able to reverse the negative trends (in visitor arrivals) that we had in Italy for the last 10 years, to a positive where, last year, we ended up growing by 21 per cent out of Italy. So, these are the key affinities that we have to pursue, by having relationships of this nature. It gives Jamaica a place, a presence and a voice, and it also enables us to engage advocacy on behalf of other Caribbean countries and the Americas. So we think that the impact of the WTTC is very powerful, globally," the Tourism Minister said.

Caribbean countries join anti-corruption mechanism

Haiti, St Kitts and Nevis and Antigua and Barbuda join 28 other states in becoming part of the initiative.

WASHINGTON, United States, – Three Caribbean member countries of the Organization of American States (OAS) confirmed their incorporation to the Mechanism for Follow-up on the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC), joining 28 other states already part of this important regional tool.

In the framework of the Third Meeting of the Conference of the States Parties to the MESICIC, which started yesterday, Haiti and St Kitts and Nevis signed their integration to the mechanism, while Antigua and Barbuda will do so today.

In representation of their respective countries, the Director General of the Anti-Corruption Unit of Haiti, Amos Durosier, and the Attorney General of St Kitts and Nevis, Patrice Dwight Nisbett, signed the document that formalizes the integration of their governments to the inter-American mechanism.

“As new States Parties to this mechanism, the three Caribbean countries will benefit from the activities of cooperation conducted by the MESICIC to fight corruption,” the OAS said.

The mechanism is guided by the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, which was a world pioneer in this area and constitutes a holistic legal tool to confront the serious problem of corruption through preventive and repressive measures, not only at the national but also international level.

The MESICIC, which began to operate in 2002, is an intergovernmental body with broad opportunities of participation for civil society, established in the framework of the OAS to provide support in the implementation of the measures of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption.

It is organized by the Department for Legal Cooperation of the OAS Secretariat for Legal Affairs, and also serves as a forum for the exchange of information and reciprocal cooperation among the countries that are part of it, including best practices in the prevention of and fight against corruption.