Guyana Times Daily

Guyana honours OIC secretary general P7 Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

Issue No. 1784

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Thursday, May 30, 2013

PRICE

President, Granger hold governance talks

$60 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Marriott P7 Hotel on cover of business magazine

See story on page 3

Argentina seeks deeper ties with Guyana See story on page 14

Prison P13 service gets new fleet of vehicles

Fourth body recovered P17 after Cuyuni boat mishap

Argentine Ambassador to Guyana Luis Martino (left) in discussion with President Donald Ramotar and Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett during a reception held at the Pegasus Hotel to mark the 203rd anniversary of Argentina's 1810 May Revolution (Carl Croker photo)

Gun used in Rohee notes Cleto’s murder upsurge in linked to Wills’ noise nuisance execution – complaints crime chief See story on page 10

See story on page 8

Man killed in dogfight row was stabbed 19 times – P17 autopsy Universities bring eye care to hundreds P17 in West Demerara

MARAD holds seminar on waterways P19 safety

2NEWS

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

GRA moving to reduce export waiting time – revises SOPs, hires additional staff

T

he Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has taken steps to reduce the processing time of containers before they are cleared for import and export amid complaints of prolonged delays and racketeering.

In a statement on Wednesday, the GRA said it has further revised its Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) as it relates to the processing of imports and exports. As part of its core principles, GRA said it is expected to provide accessible, dependable and timely service, and be responsive and committed to improvement.

In light of the concerns of the private sector organisations and those of President Donald Ramotar for an even greater reduction in the time it takes to process exports in particular, the GRA said further changes were made to the SOPs and the structure of the Goods Examination Unit (GEU), so as to deliver a more efficient service.

Efficient service

These changes include an increase in the staff complement of the unit and the separation of the functions relating to imports and exports. In addition, steps have been taken to ensure that the risk profile only reflects the

involvement of the Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) in selected cases, minimising and reserving the need to have collaboration only when the situation so warrants.

According to the revenue body, in the past, declarations lodged with Customs took at least two weeks to be processed. In 2012, 96 per cent of more than 70,000 declarations were processed within three working days. This was as a result of alignment and simplification of processes, more effective use of technology, and regular training of officers to build competence and improve efficiency, GRA said.

It added that to save time and provide importers and exporters with real-time information relative to the status of their declarations and to inform them of any actions taken, screens were installed at the Customs Department and wharves. This is in addition to a computer that is available for importers and exporters to obtain information relative to their declaration status by simply utilising their Tax Identification Number (TIN) or declaration reference number. In December 2012, the system was further modernised to ensure importers/exporters can, from the comfort of

GRA Commissioner General Khurshid Sattaur

their homes, via computers or smartphones, check the status of their declarations.

Risk management

Further, to facilitate trade in an expeditious manner, while protecting revenue, the GRA has made significant changes to its business and processing model. To this end, the GRA established a Risk Management Unit that applies risk profiles to determine the level of examination needed, based on the risk posed to revenue collection. In so doing, legitimate cargo is processed expeditiously while cargo that pose some level of risk undergo further scrutiny to detect fraud and other transactional crimes.

Moreover, the GRA has recognised that streamlining and simplifying clearance procedures is of benefit to ancillary operators, other stakeholders and the national economy. To achieve the goal of offering efficient and effective clearance procedures, while executing its mandatory duties of revenue collection and enforcement activities, the GRA is increasingly introducing simplified procedures.

With a view of modernisation of the process of simplified procedures, the GEU was implemented. This unit is tasked with the responsibility of examining all goods imported or prepared for export with some level of risk.

Notwithstanding, it must be noted that not all goods are subject to 100 per cent examination. The process includes mandatory scanning of containerised cargo for export in keeping with U.S. maritime laws, which may lead to a secondary/ physical examination.

The DEU has officers who are trained to check for illicit drugs in cargo being imported or exported, while the GEU examines commercial cargo profiled by the Risk Management Unit. It should also be noted that importers and exporters are

required to schedule examinations for specific dates and times, after which, officers are assigned to carry out their duties.

The systems implemented for checks and balances are there to safeguard against the ingenious and sophisticated methods utilised by criminals to perpetuate transnational crimes, inclusive of concealment in empty containers. Noted also are the various discoveries of illicit drugs in containers for export.

Legitimate exports

Recognising the need to protect legitimate exports, trading partners and Guyana’s image, the government of Guyana signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) to establish the Container Control Programme (CCP), which brings together trained officers from Customs, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) and Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) to improve port security and prevent lawful maritime cargo containers from being used for unlawful activities.

It would, therefore, set Guyana back and pose other challenges and risks to relinquish the high-level

of attention being given in sanitising the poor image of the country as a transshipment point for drugs/ psychotropic substances at the expense of expediency to satisfy the “greed of a few of our businessmen”, the GRA said. Be assured that the GRA and its stakeholders, through the Trade Transaction Private Partnership Dialogue Body (PPDB) – which includes the Private Sector Commission and the Shipping Association –continue to meet regularly to address matters of interest. Additionally, the PPDB’s mission is to improve the competitiveness of Guyana’s economy and its businesses by reducing the time and cost involved in the processing of import and export of goods.

Moreover, the GRA is very enthusiastic that the merger of its operations at one location in Camp Street, Georgetown will result in greater efficiency and enhanced customer service resulting in further reduction of the time it takes to do business. The GRA remains committed to finding solutions to enable Customs to balance its controls and collections functions with trade facilitation, the statement concludes.

Rohee holds talks with Chinese immigrants

H

ome Affairs Minister Clement Rohee met with representatives of the Chinese Association and several Chinese immigrants to further discuss issues that are affecting them.

Minutes before the meeting commenced in the boardroom of the ministry, Rohee met with reporters and related that the meeting is a follow-up to the immigration conference that was held earlier in the year by President Donald Ramotar.

The minister explained

that the president had made certain commitments to the immigrants and upon a request from the Chinese Association, the meeting was held so that the foreign nationals who intend to be resident here in Guyana can raise their concerns and have them addressed.

He noted that the government will do all it can to ensure that there are no difficulties in the process. The minister pointed out that there are no adequate translation services provided and that will be one of the issues to be raised.

Chinese Association representative Margerie Kirkpatrick said they have been lobbying for a translation system for the longest while. She said that it should be ensured that the Chinese nationals who come to Guyana are provided with language translation services to assist them.

In April last, the government held a communication meeting with immigrants and non-immigrants, during which it was highlighted that they face problems mostly relating to work permits and extension of stay.

News

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thursday, may 30, 2013 | guyanatimesGY.com

bridge openings

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on Thursday, May 30, from 09:00h to 10:30h.

The Berbice River Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on Thursday, May 30, from 08:25h to 09:50h.

Weather

Countrywide: Thundery showers are expected during the day with clear skies in the evening over coastal regions and near inland locations. Temperatures are expected to range between 24 and 27 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly at 4.47 metres per second.

High Tide: 08:26h and 21:05h reaching maximum heights of 2.49 metres and 2.37 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 01:57h and 14:31h reaching minimum heights of 0.81 metre and 0.73 metre respectively.

The above-normal high tide warning is in effect. It will continue until Thursday, May 30. Over this period, waves and sea conditions are expected to be extremely rough reaching heights of 2.7 to 3.3 metres in open waters. Hence, the public is urged to exercise the necessary caution.

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President, Granger hold governance talks A

mid parliamentary gridlock, President Donald Ramotar and Opposition Leader David Granger on Wednesday held closed- door talks to discuss how they can better govern the country.

The meeting was held at the behest of President Ramotar, Granger pointed out in a release.

The A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) chairman said, as is publicly known and recognised, there are many pressing national issues of governance, that require a timely resolution by the president, and which the opposition leader wants to discuss with him.

Guyana Times was told that a similar meeting will be held today with the leaders of the Alliance For Change (AFC).

Ever since the convening of the 10th Parliament, there has been a fierce battle for control of the National Assembly, with the opposition routinely using its one-seat majority to pursue its agenda, which in the view of government has been anti-nationalistic at times.

The most recent of cases was the budget presentation, which saw the opposition slicing several billion dollars, including major projects, notably, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport expansion and the Specialty Hospital projects.

The opposition also recently used its majority to stymie the passage of the anti-money laundering amendment bill, which puts Guyana in jeopardy of

President Donald Ramotar

Opposition Leader David Granger

being sanctioned by the international community.

The president has also vetoed two opposition sanctioned bills.

Only last week, the Private Sector Commission (PSC) called on the government and the parliamentary parties to convene an extra-parliamentary meeting to address the establishment and operationalisation of the public procurement and integrity commissions.

“These are matters of grave public and national interest, but, unfortunately, we are not as yet being heard. The commission believes that the time has come for an end to the procrastination on these matters. The time has long passed for the government and the political opposition to respect and put the

national interest before their political agenda and give effect to the constitutional commitment they have made to the electorate and the nation on the

setting up of these commissions,” the statement said.

AFC has made the setting up of the Public Procurement Commission a precondition to the party supporting the passage of the anti-money laundering bill.

In light of this move, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has contended that the AFC is trying to hold the government at ransom. APNU said it has submitted its nominees for the commission.

The PPP/C said government remains open to discussions with the opposition on setting up of the commission.

According to media reports, the issue regarding the setting up of the bodies did not come up for discussion at the meeting with Granger and Ramotar.

Lindener wanted for rape P olice on Wednesday issued a wanted bulletin for Christopher Spencer, also known as Trevor Spencer or Cerwin Ross, for questioning in connection with a rape.

Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of Spencer is asked to contact the police on phone numbers 225-6411, 226-6978, 225-8196, 444-

Wanted: Christopher Spencer

3297, 911 or at the nearest police station. Spencer’s last known address has been given as Back Street, South Amelia’s Ward, Linden.

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guyanatimesgy.com

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

Views Modern transportation

Editor: Nigel Williams Tel: 225-5128, 231-0397, 226-9921, 226-2102, 223-7230 or 223-7231. Fax: 225-5134 Mailing address: 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

“Brutal” talks?

B

etween stops in Colombia and Brazil, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden dropped into Trinidad and Tobago to sign a “Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA)” with the Caribbean Community (Caricom). While President Michel Martelli of Haiti, as the current Chairman of Caricom, signed on behalf the community, Prime Minister of TT Kamla Bissessar-Persad described the three hours of discussions that preceded the signing as “brutal”.

It is to be hoped that the TIFA, being a revision of the one originally signed in 1991, would lead to more substantive achievements than its predecessor. This should not be difficult since nothing was achieved under that initiative.

The annexed “action agenda” looks impressive: “World Trade Organisation (WTO)-related matters; bilateral trade and investment arrangements; cooperation in regional and multilateral areas; support for regional integration; cooperation to promote and respect fundamental labour rights, social protection, and workforce development; and the facilitation of trade and investment opportunities.”

But buried among the usual fluff – the “framework for the discussion of issues to address the digital divide through the promotion of innovation and the dissemination of technology for increasing competitiveness, job creation, economic development and trade”, there was the trade and investment-related legislation enacted by the U.S. which foreign governments and banks have to comply with. These include the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), and the U.S. Food Safety Modernisation Act (FSMA) that have already engaged the attention of most Caricom countries.

The last point highlights the consequences of relations between entities where the asymmetry of power is so vast.

Basically it comes down to Caricom being pressured to comply with the wishes of the U.S. while the latter cherrypicks what, if any, of Caricom’s issues they may consider. It is against this background that the “brutal” exchange that was conducted between the U.S. vice-president and the Caribbean leaders can be evaluated.

Biden was very clear about what the U.S. was looking for from Caricom: “Our search for growth, jobs and affordable supplies of energy, our fight against transnational crime, and the protection of our climate and our environment...”

The U.S. vice-president, on the other hand had nothing to say about our long-running trade dispute over his country’s subsides for U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico rum producers, for instance. Just as its subsidies to its sugar, cotton and rice farmers have helped to cripple poor farmers in the Caribbean as well as elsewhere, the rum subsidies have the potential of destroying this vital source of foreign revenues for our beleaguered economies.

The turmoil and devastation wrought by criminal that the U.S. unilaterally deports back to the Caribbean was raised but it is certain that nothing will be done since this issue has been raised for over a decade and most recently to Biden’s boss, President Barrack Obama in the same location during the 2009 “Summit of the Americas”. The region is still waiting for the agreements from that meeting to be put into effect. A good signifier as to what will be the fate of this meeting can be gauged by the fact that the “implementing mechanism” will consist of a single Caricom nominee sitting with a counterpart from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).

The sad truth is that while there are vital strategic interests of the U.S. involved with Brazil (trade, currency manipulation) and Colombia (drugs), Caricom was only squeezed into Biden’s itinerary because the President of China Xi Jinping will be visiting TT later this month.

Unlike the U.S., the Chinese have been making substantial investments in the region – from The Bahamas in the north and Guyana in the south and The U.S. have to be concerned at the goodwill that China has been earning.

Caricom’s single greatest asset in its foreign relations is that it commands 15 votes in the UN General Assembly.

This is the only “brutal” fact that commanded the U.S.’ attention.

Members of the TUM CREATE group ride a prototype of their VOI scooter at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, May 28. The electric-powered VOI multipurpose scooter was designed to provide the ease of mobility and affordability of a scooter while offering car-like comfort and protection to the passenger. TUM CREATE is a joint research programme between Germany’s Technische Universitat Munchen (TUM) and the NTU (BBC News)

Minibus colour codes and other things Dear Editor, The Ministry of Home Affairs was right to assign different colour codes to the various minibus routes. If this is a start to really enhancing public transportation in Guyana, then it is a good start.

It will also help a lot if drivers and conductors have little tags to dis-

play on their windscreens their destinations when they are not going the full route. Many times these busses just slow down, almost pull over, and then speed off when stopping for passengers if they are not going as far as indicated on the front of the vehicle.

So, we can have, for ex-

ample, the number 44 and Mahaica clearly displayed on the front. However, Mahaica may not be the final stop, but some other village along the same route, which is perfectly alright. But unless that is displayed somewhere, passengers will only be guessing as to how far that particular minibus is

going.

However, the onus for this undertaking must be on the owners, drivers and conductors themselves so as not to increase the administrative burden on the Police Traffic Department.

Yours sincerely, Cecil Bisnauth

Malnutrition and school performance in children Dear Editor, Malnutrition affects the brain and the strength in our body. So it simply means that, if we are malnourished, our brain will work slower and we will feel quite tired, not being able to work properly. Statistics show that approximately a quarter of the world’s children are at risk of underperforming at school because of chronic malnutrition.

Studies have found that malnourished children suffer irreversible damage – they grew up smaller and weaker, and their brains might never develop fully. Missing out on a nutritious diet could then severely damage a child’s ability to read and write. Thus, according to one charity organisation, tackling malnu-

trition should be a priority for G8 leaders. These leaders are scheduled to meet in Northern Ireland next month to discuss the matter.

Children, aged eight, who are stunted due to malnutrition, are 19 per cent more likely to make mistakes reading a simple sentence than those with a balanced diet. Maybe teachers here in Guyana should be enlightened along these lines. These students could earn as much as 20 per cent less in adulthood, and the global economic impact of malnutrition could be up to US$125 billion if nothing is done.

Generally, poor nutrition early in life can impair neural development, leading to lower IQ. Recent evidence indicates that many organisms can offset some of the

changes associated with early poor nutrition by modifying their physical development. For example, poorly nourished children can undergo a period of accelerated growth once their diet improves, ultimately appearing normal as an adult.

So when remedial programmes are being conducted for school dropouts, it may be that many of these participants are wrongfully assessed in the first place.

They were never and certainly are not dunces. Now hopefully, even though compensatory measures may come at a price, with cognitive or other developmental disabilities emerging later in life, they can still be directed towards reclaiming school certification, even as they are taking classes in

non-academic areas.

Many keep iterating the point that a lot of money is being pumped into our education system. It means that we cannot allow for children to be missing out of this kind of investment. Something like truancy must be addressed, and if it is attached to families of a particular level of income, then the ministry must intervene.

I call on everyone to ensure the best for the nation in terms of education for Guyana’s children. This does not just mean getting qualified teachers and having good buildings. It also has a great deal to do with the dietary well-being of children.

Yours sincerely, Elvis Kissoon

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You can send your letters with pictures to: Guyana Times, 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown, Guyana or letters@guyanatimesgy.com

The work of the GR A to curb illegal practices should continue Dear Editor, The merciless injustice of exacting money from hard-working Guyanese is now finally being addressed in a meaningful manner. Reports indicate the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has terminated, with immediate effect, the services of a female employee of its Licence Revenue Department.

The whole process of obtaining a driver’s licence comes with uncomfortable duress. One has to sign up, get a date period for the classes, attend these fixed sessions, write a competence theory examination,

wait for the results, get a provisional licence, book a driving date, and then go through the horrors of a most unnecessary and impracticable driving test.

I cannot understand all of this. Maybe it is time to rethink the entire process.

I get the impression that the practical is designed for people to fail as such. A driving test should incorporate more aspects of reality – driving and overtaking, parking, taking turns, and going into and out of a parking area. This makes so much more sense. This is what a driver has to put up with when he/she goes on the road. So let the test

reflect these things.

Please do not get the idea that I support bribery of any kind. However, it is when hard situations confront people that they resort to the back route methods. I commend the GRA’s commissioner general for taking a strong stand. He said that he is not prepared for GRA to be tainted.

I therefore trust that the GRA will continue to put systems in place to ensure that integrity and transparency are the hallmark of this agency.

Respectfully, Cecil Craig

Poetry workshop at UG a worthwhile investment Dear Editor, Some of Guyana’s most celebrated poets, who now reside in the United Kingdom, are joining in a collaborative effort to help teachers sharpen the methods and skills used to teach poetry. Any quick survey of literature will show an abundance of reasons for teaching poetry.

Poetry helps us know each other and build community. Poetry allows children to put language to use – to make it serve a deep internal purpose. Poetry opens venues for speaking and listening, much neglected domains of a robust language arts curriculum. Poetry has space for English Language learners. Poetry builds resil-

ience in children and adults.

Poetry fosters social and emotional learning. And the list goes on.

However, very few discover these factors to be true and very few are interested in poetry. Yet the call is for the teaching and study of poetry. Poetry calls for a deeper consciousness of written language, and this has nothing to do with rules of grammar per se. Poetry for many is about profundity of thought and economy of language. That is why one of the traits of a good poem is that it has a manifestation of compactness and condensation of language.

Poetry should be made compulsory all through high school, as it will create bet-

ter thinkers and that is what we all need. These days people do not stop to wrestle with a problem. They are too spontaneous and take things for granted.

So this workshop should start a new love affair between poetry and teachers. There is so much wisdom in proverbs, fairy tales and nursery rhymes – they are pregnant with history and messages. Statistics show that only 47 per cent of the students who sit the English B exams have passing grades.

It is time to get our children thinking deeper and longer.

Respectfully, Janelle Yearwood

Hold animal owners responsible Dear Editor, Why would a young boy feel he has the right to move a horse that he knows nothing about? Why don’t we have an animal hotline with access to a qualified vet for emergency situations? Why doesn’t the zoo have a hotline so that animals killed on the roads can be quickly evaluated by the zoo for animal feed? Why aren’t we more outraged by the lack of health and sanitation in our city streets? Why aren’t we more compassionate with public employees that end up doing all the dirty work without adequate tools and protective gear?

The matter on hand has to do with a pregnant horse, left untended and tied to a

fence. She was let loose by a playful lad, who just wanted to fool around. End of story – the horse, with her unborn young, died a slow and painful death.

I am hoping that the owner of this horse will be found quickly and charged for all of the misdemeanours regarding this incident.

There must be an investigation into animal owners. If they do not qualify for this kind of thing, then let it stop right there. Animals need space, accommodation and health checks. If an owner of animals cannot be deemed fit for the safe upkeep of his flock, he should be debarred from having even a single one of them. Some kind of legislative work must be

done here.

I feel that if we move in this direction, it will take care of the road situation, where animals are concerned. Every time it rains, these improperly kept animals come out for the heat from the road. Also, these creatures need attending to and our police compounds are not suited for this kind of operation.

I call on law enforcement personnel to do some rethinking. I think that animal owners must be brought in line. They must be called upon to prove their capability for possessing large animals.

Yours truly, Andrew James

What’s next after the bribe website?

Dear Editor, The response on anonymous reporting of corruption in the public sector is overwhelming. The project, aimed at exposing and combating corruption was officially launched on May 16, and so far, three agencies and seven departments have been bribed, as reported online.

It is one thing to know of a wrongdoing but quite another to prove it and do something about it. The next challenge is to nab both bribers and receivers.

For example, across the borders around Guyana, many items are coming in via the smuggling route. We all know this. There is a clandestine operation from both sides – the receiving officers and the issuing ones.

This explains why incoming chicken still threatens the local market. This is not rocket science. It is simply stating the obvious.

How about what obtains in the interior? Many people have procured overseas market for Guyana’s raw gold. They visit the interior, collect the gold and then take it across, mostly to Suriname. This explains how many small and street corner businessmen can put up mansions and buy fancy vehicles. Universally, there is a growing problem of corruption. So Guyana is not

peculiar in this sense.

The recent report, from a survey commissioned by the Trinidad Express Newspaper, shows that approximately nine of every 10 people interviewed in the latest Market Facts and Opinions (MFO) survey say they believe corruption is widespread in the government and the local business community in the twin island republic. In fact, 70 per cent of the sample of respondents opined that there was more corruption in the government than in the previous 12 months.

In Guyana, it is a case, where the Home Affairs Ministry launched the website so that citizens can report and document cases of bribery and corruption. But how will this kind of information be used to actually catch the ones involved, or even implicate those who are taking the unlawful money? In fact, those who make the offer should be held accountable too.

The website is supposed to encourage the accountability of government officials, political leaders and every Guyanese citizen serving in private or public organisations. But will it work? Yes and no are two simple and obvious answers.

The campaign will work if the act of bribery can ac-

tually be proved. It is good to report but what do we do about verification. If we can have a few sting operations, it would really help. Then the flip side is that the efforts to curb corruption and bribery may never work, if both parties are comfortable with the transaction.

So as much as I commend the efforts of the Home Affairs Ministry for making the big effort, it is up to the people, maybe the ones not involved, who can really help to put this malaise to an end.

Yours truly, Dillon Spencer

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Foundation

Secrets to raising a happy child

(CONTINUED FROM WEDNESDAY)

By Marguerite Lamb Don’t try to make your child happy

It sounds counterintuitive, but the best thing you can do for your child’s long-term happiness may be to stop trying to keep her happy in the shortterm. “If we put our children in a bubble and grant them their every wish and desire, that is what they grow to expect, but the real world doesn’t work that way,” says Bonnie Harris, founder of Core Parenting, in Peterborough, New Hampshire, and author of When Your Children Push Your Buttons: And What You Can Do About It (Grand Central Publishing).

To keep from over coddling, recognise that you are not responsible for your child’s happiness, Harris urges. Parents who feel responsible for their children’ emotions have great difficulty allowing them to experience anger, sadness, or frustration.

We swoop in immediately to give them whatever we think will bring a smile or to solve whatever is causing them distress. Unfortunately, Harris warns, children who never learn to deal with negative emotions are in danger of being crushed by them as adolescents and adults.

Once you accept that you can’t make your child feel happiness (or any other emotion for that matter), you’ll be less inclined to try to “fix” her feelings – and more likely to step back and allow her to de-

velop the coping skills and resilience she’ll need to bounce back from life’s inevitable setbacks.

Nurture your happiness

While we can’t control our children’s happiness, we are responsible for our own.

And because children absorb everything from us, our moods matter. Happy parents are likely to have happy children, while children of depressed parents suffer twice the average rate of depression, Murray observes.

Consequently, one of the best things you can do for your child’s emotional wellbeing is to attend to yours: carve out time for rest, relaxation, and, perhaps most important, romance. Nurture your relationship with your spouse. “If parents have a really good, committed relationship,” Murray says, “the child’s happiness often naturally follows.”

Praise the right stuff

Not surprisingly, studies consistently link self-esteem and happiness. Our children can’t have one without the other. It’s something we know intuitively, and it turns many of us into overzealous cheerleaders. Our child scribbles and we declare him a Picasso, scores a goal and he’s the next

Beckham, adds one and two and he’s ready for Mensa.

But this sort of “achievement praise” can backfire.

“The danger, if this is the only kind of praise a child hears, is that he’ll think he needs to achieve to win your approval,” Murray explains.

“He’ll become afraid that if he doesn’t succeed, he’ll fall off the pedestal and his parents won’t love him anymore.”

Praising specific traits – intelligence, prettiness, athleticism – can also undermine children’s confidence later, if they grow up believing they’re valued for something that’s out of their control and potentially fleeting.

“If you praise your child primarily for being pretty, for example, what happens when she grows old and loses that beauty?” Murray asks.

“How many facials will it take

for her to feel worthwhile?”

Interestingly, Murray adds, research shows that children who are praised mainly for being bright become intellectually timid, fearing that they will be

seen as less smart – and less valuable – if they fail.

The antidote, however, is not to withhold praise but rather to redirect it, Murray says. “Praise the effort rather than the result,” he advises. “Praise the creativity, the hard work, the persistence, that goes into achieving, more than the achievement itself.”

The goal, Carter agrees, is to foster in your child a “growth mind-set,” or the belief that people achieve through hard work and practice, more than through innate talent. “Children who are labelled as having innate talent feel they need to prove themselves again and again,”

Carter observes. “Whereas studies show children with a growth mind-set do better and enjoy their activities more because they aren’t worried what people will think of them if they fail.”

Fortunately, Carter says, research has shown it’s possible to instil a growth mind-set in children with one simple line of praise: you did really well on X; you must have worked really hard. “So we’re not saying don’t praise,” Carter stresses.

“Just focus on something within your child’s control.”

Allow for success and failure

Of course, if you really want to bolster your child’s self-esteem, focus less on compliments and more on providing her with ample opportunities to learn new skills.

Mastery, not praise, is the real self-esteem builder, Dr Hallowell says. Fortunately, when it comes to the underfour crowd, nearly everything they do is a chance to attain mastery – because it’s all new to them: learning to crawl, walk, feed and dress themselves, use the potty, and ride a tricycle. Our challenge is to stand back and let our children do for themselves what they’re capable of. “The great mistake good parents make is

doing too much for their children,” Dr Hallowell says.

While it can be difficult to watch our children struggle, they’ll never know the thrill of mastery unless we allow them to risk failure. Few skills are perfected on a first try. It’s through practice that children achieve mastery. And through repeated experiences of mastery, they develop the can-do attitude that lets them approach future challenges with the zest and optimism that are central to a happy life.

Give real responsibilities

“Happiness depends largely on the feeling that what we do matters and is valued by others,” Murray observes. “Without that feeling, we fear we might be excluded from the group. And research shows that what human beings fear more than anything is exclusion.”

In other words, people have an innate need to be needed. So the more you can convey to your child that he is making a unique contribution to the family, from an early age, the greater his sense of self-worth and his ultimate happiness. Children as young as three can play meaningful family roles, Murray says, whether it’s refilling the cat’s dry-food bowl or setting out the napkins at dinnertime.

If possible, assign a role that plays to your child’s strengths.

For example, if your little one loves to organise things, give him the job of sorting the forks and spoons. If he’s particularly nurturing, perhaps his role could be entertaining his baby sister while you get dinner on the table. So long as you acknowledge that he’s making a contribution to the family, it will heighten your child’s sense of connection and confidence, two prerequisites for lasting happiness.

Practise habitual gratitude

Finally, happiness studies consistently link feelings of gratitude to emotional well-being. Research at the University of California, Davis, and elsewhere has shown that people who keep daily or weekly gratitude journals feel more optimistic, make more progress toward goals, and feel better about their lives overall. For a child, keeping a journal may be unrealistic. But one way to foster gratitude in children is to ask that each member of the family take time daily – before or during a meal, for example – to name aloud something he or she is thankful for, Carter suggests. The important thing is to make it a regular ritual.

“This is one habit that will foster all kinds of positive emotions,” she assures, “and it really can lead to lasting happiness.” (www.parents.com)

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thursday, may 30, 2013 | guyanatimesGY.com

Guyana honours OIC secretary general

T

he two-day visit of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary General, Dr Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu concluded with President Donald Ramotar presenting him with a plaque in recognition of his outstanding and dedicated work.

According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) release, Professor Ihsanoglu has been the OIC secretary general since 2005, and has gained recognition for his contributions to scholarly debates on intercultural dialogue and the transformation of the 57-member state organisation into a more effective body.

“I have noted that you have taken a positive stand on various international issues such as helping the needy people, poverty eradication, good governance, promoting interfaith dialogue and the search for peace,” President Ramotar told the secretary general. The two-day visit that included engagements with Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and

President Donald Ramotar, Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett and Housing Minister Irfaan Ali pose with Dr Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and his aides following a meeting

Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett and the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) was fruitful .At various international forums, Professor Ihsanoglu has been a leading contributor to rapprochement between cultures, particularly between the Muslim and Western worlds.

President Ramotar who presented the plaque to the

esteemed professor at the Office of the President made reference to the 10-year programme of action that was spearheaded by Professor Ihsanoglu relating to the adoption of the criteria for membership and observer members, and the establishment of new institutions within the OIC system.

Guyana was first granted observer status within the organisation on September

27, 1995 and became a member on October 1, 1998.

Guyana and Suriname are the only two Caricom countries which are members of the OIC. In a brief interview, Professor Ihsanoglu said Guyana’s participation in the membership of the OIC as a young aspiring nation is beneficial for both sides.

“We do appreciate very much the multiculturalism

and the peaceful coexistence and beliefs in the country,” Professor Ihsanoglu said President Ramotar said Professor Ihsanoglu’s advocacy is intended to strengthen the solidarity and cooperation among member states, and consolidate the strategic importance of the organisation within the international community. Guyana in 2011 signed on to a charter adopted in 2008 to accom-

modate global developments and to boost inter-OIC economic and commercial cooperation. President Ramotar announced that the Guyana government is currently ratifying the charter.

With freedom of religion enshrined in Guyana’s multiethnic, multicultural society, President Ramotar said tolerance, understanding, peace and harmony are nurtured, and he is hopeful for an end to the ongoing Middle East conflict. He made reference to the people of Palestine and Syria, who he said deserve the rights as people elsewhere to live in dignity, and enjoy security, freedom, and independence.

“Respect for the rule of law and freedom of religion must continue to be the guiding principles through which we build harmonious societies,” President Ramotar said.

Upon receiving the plaque, the professor reciprocated with a token of appreciation to the Guyanese head of state. Among those witnessing the event was Guyana’s Middle East honorary envoy, Ambassador George Hallaq.

Marriott Hotel on cover of business magazine

T

he fourth edition of the Business Guyana Magazine was launched on Tuesday under the theme “Transform Guyana” at the Pegasus Hotel, with the cover photo being that of the Marriott Hotel.

According to Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) President Clinton Urling, the magazine examines the transformative projects being pursued by the government and private sector. “These projects will significantly alter the physical landscape of the country as they contribute considerably to economic and social opportunities for the benefit of all our country’s stakeholders,” the chairman said.

The Business Guyana Magazine aims to attract investors by showcasing economic developments in Guyana. Urling made this comment during his address at the launching of the fourth edition of the maga-

zine. For this edition, Urling said the chamber has re-engineered the core concept and embarked on a process of creative destruction.

“Readers will take note of the different layout and design, new cover, paper quality, fonts, layout graphics, less photo clutter and higher quality photos, the end results is a more streamlined, premium and classy publication that stands out from the almost monotone and identical style used for other magazine on the market,” Urling added.

He said the GCCI felt that it should not be complacent; as such, a decision was taken to move in a new direction. “We went to a new publisher, reduced the number of photos and other features of the magazine,” he said.

The end result, he said, is a more premium magazine which stands out compared to other magazines on the market. The product, he said, has moved from a “CRV to a Ferrari”. The shiny

glossy cover is gone. Some of the features remain the same and it contains highquality writing from local writers.

The content of the magazine reflects the dynamics of the current economy and business environment in Guyana, while sustaining the objectives of the previous editions. The magazine aims to send a very strong message to businesses and countries around the globe that Guyana is not just open for business, but is full of investment opportunities.

“Guyana... is one of the best places to invest in and operate with dynamic, thriving results,” he stated. Urling recalled that in 2009, under the Trade and Investment Committee of which he was part, there was no magazine which promoted Guyana on the regional and international markets.

He said in 2010, following deliberations, it was decided that Guyana is an ideal destination for trade and investment, and the first edition of the Business Guyana Magazine was launched.

“This year, the magazine was the highest income earner,” he stated, noting that there was a 200 per cent increase in revenue. This, he said, was not possible without advertisers.

Urling underscored the importance of investment, but pointed out that a country can have all the investment opportunities, but if it is not marketed and promoted, then it will be of no real value.

While recognising the important roles of local business here, he said, “large companies can do a lot more in terms of investment”.

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, who unveiled the

new magazine, said the edition is insightful as it promotes and markets Guyana excellently.

He said Guyana is a vi-

able market for investment and without doubt, the country can soar higher and be successful with cooperation.

Some 5000 copies of this

magazine have been printed and distributed globally through Guyana’s international trade shows and foreign missions.

8 news

thursday, may 30, 2013| guyanatimesGY.com

Gun used in Cleto’s murder linked to Wills’ execution – crime chief

I

n a new twist in the ongoing investigation of the execution of police corporal Romain Cleto, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud on Wednesday confirmed that one of the guns used to kill the policeman was also used in the execution of Jason Wills in Meadow Brook Gardens back in January.

The assistant police commissioner disclosed that ballistic tests conducted on the spent shells found at the Avenue of the Republic, Georgetown after the shooting of Cleto in April last proved that 7.62 MM bullets were used.

This type of ammunition was used in the execution of Wills. A few 9 MM spent shells were also discovered at the crime scene. Persaud also revealed that from all indications, the two suspects who left in a white motorcar after Cleto was shot and killed were about to carry out another execution killing on someone else when they were intercepted by the police patrol.

He said he is not sure why members of the patrol did not follow standard

Dead: Police rank, Romain Cleto

procedures by approaching and stopping suspicious vehicles. There was no report which indicated that the men called for “back up” while giving chase to the suspicious white car.

According to reports, the white car was seen leaving Meadow Brook Gardens after the execution of Wills and a white car was also seen leaving the premises of the Turkeyen cambio dealer who was killed earlier this month. Persaud said police were unable to link the car with the killing of the Cambio dealer,

Dead miner, Jason Wills

Totoram Mootoo and his wife Basmattie Mootoo.

Wills was gunned down at his house at 1002 Pine Grove Street, Meadow Brook, D’Urban Backlands, by three suspects who left the scene in a white car.

The 33-year-old miner was a known associate of Ricardo Rodrigues who was riddled with bullets at Guyana Motor Racing and Sports Club, Thomas Street, Georgetown. Wills was reportedly shot at least seven times at close range while he was watching at television in the bottom flat of his

two-storey house.

Cleto, on the other hand was killed while executing his duties on Avenue of the Republic and Regent Street.

It was reported that the police patrol was proceeding along Regent Street in the vicinity of Avenue of the Republic when it noticed a white car with a tampered licence plate. After becoming suspicious about the vehicle, the police patrol began to pursue it.

The car was finally intercepted and the three police officers exited their vehicle, and upon approaching it, the men opened fire.

After committing the act, the perpetrators made good their escape. Shaka Chase of East Ruimveldt and Regan Anthony Rodrigues, also known as “Grey Boy” of Riverview Ruimveldt were arrested for the murder of the policeman. Chase was arraigned but after instruction from the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) days after, he was released.

In a similar way, Rodrigues was also released after the DPP concluded that there was not enough evidence to implement charges.

Duo charged with simple larceny

T

wo persons appeared before Magistrate Fabian Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday charged with simple larceny.

Cecil Williams, 53, and

Shonette James, 42, of Lot 933 Sophia, Georgetown pleaded not guilty to the charge which states that between May 24 and 25 at Georgetown, they stole one water pump valued $87,000,

property of the Guyana Post Office.

The prosecutor objected to bail, citing the nature of the offence and the punishment it attracts, adding that the defendants may not

return to court if bail was granted.

The magistrate granted the defendants bail in the sum of $75,000 each and they are scheduled to return to court on June 14.

Ruimveldt man fined for threatening behaviour

A

man was fined for threatening behaviour when he appeared before Magistrate Fabian Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday.

Vicky Bacchus, 30, of Lot 7 Ruimveldt, Greater Georgetown pleaded guilty to the charge when it was read. The charge alleged that on May 27 at Riverview, Ruimveldt, the

accused behaved threateningly. Bacchus explained that on the day in question, he had a few drinks, which led to an argument with the Virtual Complainant (VC).

The prosecutor stat-

ed that the defendant was armed with a knife when the argument ensued.

The magistrate fined Bacchus in the sum of $10,000 with the alternative of one month in prison.

Cannabis accused denied bail

A

man was remanded on a charge of possession of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking when he appeared before Magistrate Fabian Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday.

Keith Bailey, 50, of Lot 492 North East La Penitence pleaded not guilty to the charge which states that on May 28, he had in his possession 40 grams of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking.

Prosecutor Ramsahoye Rambajue objected to bail, and the magistrate refused the defendant his pre-trial liberty.

Bailey is to return to court on June 10.

Eyew tness

Unhappy...

T

...politicians

he Stabber News seems to have established a retirement home for faded politicians. Professor Clive Thomas (he used to be co-leader of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA), remember?) has been there for the longest while. Regurgitating articles from research he’s already been paid for. As soon as Ralph Ramkarran departed the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) (because he couldn’t stand rough language? And he wanted to be president? Poor dear!) he was given a column. But the one who takes the cake is Dr Henry Jeffrey.

The fellow has the lives of a (political) cat and its agility as well. He always seems to land on his (well-stockinged) feet. Remember his first act as minister of education was to refurbish his office? The only qualification the Stabber demands of these political chameleons is they bash the PPP/C government. Dr Jeffrey has been particularly bitter – but then he’s angling for some “wuk” in case his old friends in the People’s National Congress (PNC) get back their claws on government.

So yesterday Dr Jeffrey picks up the subject of “unhappiness”, which we thought he was singularly qualified to pronounce on, in light of his deep angst at losing the perks of ministership. No-duty free SUV to start with.

But it wasn’t surprising Dr Jeffrey refused to bare his soul and weaselled out by claiming: “Particularly since 1992, for many, Guyana is a very unhappy place.” His confession wouldn’t have painted a pretty picture: opportunism and betrayal, tied together by ambition is a nasty mixture.

Dr Jeffrey goes around the block and then some to talk about why people might be unhappy. (People without children are “happier”. A bit self-serving, eh Jeffrey?) But the man refused to mention the results of the recent Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) – run by the very prestigious U.S. Vanderbilt University. Even supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Prominently reported in the press, the research surveyed 38,631 persons in 24 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean asking how they felt about their lives. Happy or unhappy?

Turns out that 70.7 per cent of Guyanese are happy with their lives as it is right now – compared with only 68.2 per cent Trinis, 63.4 per cent Jamaicans, and 63.2 per cent Surinamese. Not surprisingly, Haiti came in way down at the bottom of the heap at 54.8 per cent. But facts have never troubled people like Dr Jeffrey and the rest of the opposition and their allies in the media. They create their own reality and fob it off on the unsuspecting public.

But the U.S. expert didn’t mention this when he recently encouraged the “responsible” media to “challenge authorities”.

...union

Seems that the head of the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) Kenneth Joseph has been going after the head of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Bharat Dindyal and demanding that he should have the latter’s head on a platter. The head of the head. You know...like the story of Salome and the head of John the Baptist. We wonder who’s doing the seductive dance. Because, as we see it, while Dindyal has a lot of accounting to do – so that we citizens of Guyana could be spared from blackouts at last, this is not NAACIE’s gripe.

All Joseph wants is his union’s pound of flesh. And it appears, according to Dindyal, that that pound will be tremendously diminished if GPL continues with its modernisation programme. How can this be so, you ask?

Simple. Installation of new equipment in GPL modernisation translates into redundant workers. Every Guyanese knows how overstaffed GPL is. But to the union, the departure of every worker means their union dues are reduced. Hence the demands for Dindyal’s head.

Joseph will have to dance much more seductively, than he’s done up to now.

...travellers

For the umpteenth time, we hear that “Barbados and Guyana have to work out their immigration issues”. The only issue is that Barbados has to begin treating Guyanese like human beings. Not even like fellow Caribbean Community (Caricom) citizens – just human beings. OK?

NEWS

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THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Guyana urged to sign DPP orders institution of murder charge for cricketer Ramsar Convention

T

he Director of Public Prosecutions, Shalimar Ali-Hack has recommended that the cricketer who fatally shot his friend on Orange Walk on Sunday be charged with murder.

It has been four days since 39-year-old Shawn Nelson was killed at Orange Walk and Robb Street.

Crime Chief Seelall Persaud early on Wednesday had told this newspaper that investigations are continuing and confirmed that the suspect is in custody. He also disclosed that the post-mortem examination performed on the body of Nelson on Wednesday revealed his cause of death to be shock and haemorrhaging resulting from a gunshot wound to the head.

Guyana Times was told that after the surveillance

footage of the shooting incident was sent to the DPP to be reviewed, she requested additional evidence before a charge was instituted. This newspaper was told that the suspect has been denying that he pulled the trigger, since the footage the police presented him with only showed him holding a gun and not actually pulling the trigger.

Nelson’s reputed wife, Karen (only name given) explained that the family members are contemplating their next move. She explained that from all indications, the family is not too keen on pursuing the matter, since the suspect and the deceased were friends.

She said, however, she is of the opinion that the suspect must be charged for the murder of her reputed husband, noting that she does not care

about family/friend relationships.

The gun, Guyana Times understands, was a 9mm pistol. On the day of the shooting incident, Nelson had moments before left his D’Urban Street home and was walking to his Robb Street job when the suspect saw him, whipped out the gun and fired.

A passerby who works at the Georgetown Public Hospital summoned an ambulance which rushed the man to the emergency room.

After driving away from the scene, the panicking young man crashed his car a number of times on his way home.

The car was abandoned in the East Ruimveldt area. The shooter later surrendered to the police in the company of his lawyer. Nelson leaves to mourn his parents, siblings, and reputed wife.

No arrest for sawmill supervisor’s murder – teen girl in love triangle questioned

U

p to late Wednesday afternoon investigators were grilling the teenager suspected to be involved in the triangular love affair which led to the death of 22-year-old Thandu Singh on Tuesday at Land of Canaan, East Bank Demerara, while the main suspect remains at large.

Singh, who is also known as Khemraj Singh and “Tony”, was found on Tuesday afternoon with his throat slit and head bashed in his cottage behind a lumber yard. The man, formerly of Airy Hall, Essequibo Coast, worked as a supervisor/caretaker for the lumber exporting company.

A close relative of the teen told this newspaper that she was brought from Airy Hall, upon the request of the police. She was questioned about the triangular love affair and confessed that she loved the deceased.

The relative explained that she returned for work on Wednesday last and did not see the girl, but upon enquiring from one of her daughters, she was told that she went to the Essequibo Coast. Later that evening, she reportedly received a phone call from the teen, telling her not to worry and that she was happy.

After realising what was happening, the relative said she “gave up” her opposition to the match and accepted that if the teen loved “Tony” (now deceased) she had to respect that and support her. She added that too many persons have lost their lives after they did not get familial support in such situations and she did not want the same thing for her

Murdered: Thandu Singh

relative.

She admitted that she did not believe “Tony” was not the right person for the young woman, so relatives decided that the teen should marry the suspect, “Bangogee” whom she met about a year ago. The woman in the middle of the controversy had only known “Tony” for a few weeks.

The aggrieved relative disclosed that “Tony” was undisciplined and showed no respect to the family but the couple were madly in love. “He take she to Essequibo so that they could get marry on Monday, but I thought he stay up there with she… I nah know he come back to Land of Canaan,” the woman added.

She further stated that after being informed that the girl had gone to Essequibo, “Bangogee” turned up at her house, and told her “if the two ah dem like one another, they should get married”.

“Tony”, she added, had given her a phone, but she destroyed it and he thought that it was the murder suspect who had done

so. The last time she saw “Bangogee”, the relative claimed, was when he left for the interior to drop off a load of fuel, but she was later told that he was at a wedding in Leguan, Essequibo River. She said that she did not know that he had returned to the village until Singh’s body was discovered and he was listed as the prime suspect.

A shopkeeper told this publication that she was fond of Singh since he was always jovial and caring.

She explained that the two men had confrontations, but not to an extent that they would attempt to kill each other. She also disclosed that he would always tell her that he was in love with the girl and did not mind her marrying “Bangogee”, as he wanted her to be happy.

After the discovery, a blood stained hammer suspected to be the murder weapon was found in the house and was taken by the police as evidence. Singh’s body is at the Lyken Funeral Home awaiting a post-mortem scheduled for Friday.

R

amsar Secretariat Representative Maria Rivera is urging Guyana to accede to the Ramsar Convention that would allow the country to access crucial financial and technical support.

During an interview with Guyana Times on Tuesday, Rivera, who serves as the senior legal advisor in the Americas, noted that there are great opportunities to be had from Guyana becoming a signatory to the convention.

Rivera pointed out that the secretariat stands willing to assist and support Guyana and the work of agencies tasks with the responsibility of managing the country’s vast biodiversity.

“I saw a lot of biodiversity in terms of forest and wetlands. There is a lot of potential and we realise that in terms of water resources, there are benefits for both economic and ecological pursuits,” Rivera said. She stated that meetings have since been held with environmental agencies dealing with the convention.

Rivera applauded the great achievement of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on the publication, “Wetlands of Guyana”, which is a main partner with Guyana for the purpose of the acceding to the convention. WWF Country Director Dr Patrick Williams told this newspaper that the fund looks forward to Guyana’s signature on the convention.

“This is one area in which we need to step forward. It will provide support from the Ramsar Secretariat and assists us in being better able to manage our wetland areas. I think it’s a process that Guyana has to go through and it will take some time,” Dr Williams disclosed.

He revealed that one of the constraints is that there is still a lack of understanding of wetlands and its benefits to socioeconomic development and environmental conservation.

Dr Williams is of the hope that the WWF would be in a position of providing critical information necessary for the increasing of awareness of Guyana’s biodiversity.

“The signing of the convention means that we can easily access support from the secretariat, both technical and financial towards the management of biodiversity.”

Ramsar Secretariat representative Maria Rivera Dr Williams said Guyana has been doing well in terms of management of its forest ecosystem and natural capital which is also extended outside of forest ecosystem to include wetlands. He pointed out that the current system includes legal and administrative structures to support the effective management of the protected area systems.

Advocacy

Development partners have been advocating for French Guiana, Suriname and Guyana to pursue a joint initiative with regards to the ecosystem management.

Asked to comment, Dr Williams stated that since the eco-systems across the Guianas are similar, conducting joint management can allow for shared experiences, knowledge and information through consultation on management aspects of wetlands areas. He revealed that Suriname and French Guiana are expected to follow up on the heels of Guyana with a similar project on wetlands research.

“Since we have taken a head start, we expect to provide some support to them in the Guianas,” Dr Williams explained. According to Dr Williams, the wetlands are

also viewed as one ecosystem across the Guianas and managing them as one ecological unit is also important for Guyana.

The Guiana shields contain 10 to 15 per cent of the world’s fresh water system and 30 per cent of the fish are endemic, with 70 per cent of the country’s population living on the coastland.

This holds significance for Guyana’s food security and sovereignty and risk prevention of natural disasters.

The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, called the Ramsar Convention, is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

The Ramsar Convention is the only global environmental treaty that deals with a particular ecosystem. The treaty was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971 and the convention’s member countries cover all geographic regions of the planet.

The convention’s mission is the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local and national actions and international cooperation, as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world.

The convention uses a broad definition of the types of wetlands covered in its mission, including lakes and rivers, swamps and marshes, wet grasslands and peatlands, oases, estuaries, deltas and tidal flats, nearshore marine areas, mangroves and coral reefs, and human-made sites such as fish ponds, rice paddies, reservoirs, and salt pans.

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THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

News

Rohee notes upsurge in noise nuisance complaints H

ome Affairs Minister Clement Rohee said he has noted the upsurge in complaints of noise nuisance by residents of various parts of the country and has assured that the law will be applied where necessary.

The Home Affairs Ministry in a statement assured residents who take the initiative to report the loud, continuous and repetitive playing of music to the ministry, that all reports are forwarded to the police commissioner and copied to the respective divisional commanders with a directive that corrective action be taken in keeping with the laws of Guyana.

Citizens who make such reports are assured that their reports are treated with the utmost impor-

Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee tance and urgency. The ministry abhors the discomfort experienced by citizens due to the loud, continuous and repetitive playing of music by offenders. It is to be noted that

it is the responsibility of the Guyana Police Force to enforce the law against noise nuisance, particularly when reports are made at police stations.

Citizens will recall a few years ago, the ministry launched a “name and shame” campaign against perpetrators of noise nuisance across the country, and commenced publishing the locations from where the loud, continuous and repetitive music and other noises emanate.

Citizens are further assured that every effort is made by the ministry to impress upon the police the need to take firm action on this public nuisance. Citizens are urged to continue to lodge reports of noise nuisance at the nearest police station or divisional headquarters,

which are expected to deal with their reports.

The ministry said it remains ready to lend support to citizens being affected by noise nuisance.

Reports may be submitted in writing to Lot 6 Brickdam, Stabroek, Georgetown via hotline numbers 227-5214 or 2275219; text messages to 6236068 or 623-6072; emails to crimestoppersgy@yahoo. com, crimestoppersgy@hotmail.com or crimestoppersgy@gmail.com; visits to the ministry or on the minister’s live call-in radio programme every Wednesday at 21:00h.

It is important that reports include specific details, such as names and addresses, which will be helpful to the police in carrying out their investigations.

World Bank opens major regional investment conference today P anama's President Ricardo Martinelli, together with his colleague from Costa Rica, Laura Chinchilla and World Bank for Latin America and The Caribbean Vice President Hasan Tuluy, will today launch a regional effort aimed at improving the region’s investment climate to boost competitiveness and shared prosperity.

The conference is being held in Panama. The investment climate conference will bring together high level officials from governments throughout the region to share reform experiences, discuss investment climate challenges and ways to address them, learning also from successful models of regional cooperation from other parts of

the world.

After decades of job creation, with unemployment rates hovering at 6.2 per cent, and significant improvements to the business environment, many countries in the region still face challenges which constrain local companies and hamper their productivity, the World Bank said in a release.

With tailwinds receding, after a decade of solid growth and social inclusion anchored in a favourable global commodity market, the region will need to find its own engines of growth by increasing productivity in sectors of the economy beyond commodities to continue the progress made in the social areas. A conducive investment climate is

critical to sustain this effort, said Tuluy.

The World Bank group (WBG) is supporting initiatives in the region to boost private sector growth and productivity through reforms to improve their investment climates while encouraging competition, and job creation. This includes improvements in regulatory frameworks to start and operate businesses, facilitating cross-border trade through simpler, more efficient logistics procedures, and the creation of effective and transparent tax regimes.

“Many countries have made solid progress in improving their investment climate, like Colombia, which has made it easier for entrepreneurs to start their

businesses, and Panama, with efficient procedures for trading across borders.

This conference is an opportunity for countries to share experiences in improving their regulatory environments, which ultimately help businesses grow, create jobs, and contribute to the region’s economic development, said International Finance Corporation (IFC) Latin America and the Caribbean and Sub-Saharan Africa Vice President Jean Philippe Prosper. The conference in Panama City is part of an ongoing series of regional knowledge exchange events organised by the World Bank Group’s Investment Climate Department, a joint department of the IFC, the World Bank and MIGA.

People behavin just like de MPs T he Bible seh as a child yuh does behave as a child. But when yuh grow up yuh suppose to behave like big people and put away childish ways. Well, when yuh look at de members of parliament, right away any body would conclude that each of de MPs should walk wid a Bible any where dem go all de time. And read it from cover to cover.

Ever since de opposition get a one-seat advantage, dem tek it to mean a literal advantage.

So de KFC and FLAPNU want to tek advantage pun de guvament. Is like dem fuhget is who really win de elections and who is de president. From de budget to de anti-money launderin bill, is every ting dem cuttin down or votin down.

Now, it look like de people of Guyana startin to follow de example that de members of parliament settin whenever dem have a sittin. Wid all de quarrelin and fightin that does go on in de House, is no wonder de people dem on de streets and in de bars fightin more and more.

One man get kill at a dog fight, which is exactly what de House is like these days. Another man get shoot near to de market, which is also what de House is like nowadays.

Long ago in school a student coulda never tink of arguin wid a teacher, much less hit a teacher.

In fact, a student couldn’t even go home and complain to he parents, because that woulda mean more lashes pun top of what de teacher give in school.

Wid de way Rum Jhaat does behave, any lil child lookin at he pun television gon run away wid de wrong example of good behaviour.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie! And lil children like fuh imitate big people, so no wonder a lotta dem students in school fightin one another and even beatin up teachers now. All de bad behaviour comin from parliament.

Barbados, Guyana to work on immigration issues B

arbados' Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister Maxine McClean, has acknowledged the need to work on immigration issues between Barbados and Guyana as an impetus to further deepen the existing bilateral relationship.

She made this observation last Friday during a reception to mark Guyana’s 47th independence anniversary at its consulate in Sefton Lodge, Brittons Hill, St Michael.

Noting that the country had been able to solve a range of issues as they arose, McClean said a special area

of work needed to be undertaken at the BarbadosGuyana Joint Commission.

“That pertains to the management of cooperation issues in the sphere of immigration on which a workable solution must be found.

My ministry and the consulate general, since its establishment here in July last year, have been in constant contact on immigration issues as they arise,” McClean pointed out.

The foreign minister further stated: “Like with all families and friends, relationships often suffer some strains. But, despite these, I believe that over the years,

our countries have set an example to other countries on how bilateral relations between neighbours, should be conducted.”

Highlighting the positives in the bilateral relationship, McClean alluded to the critical role played by Guyanese innovators and enterprises in the post-independence development of the Barbadian private sector landscape.

She contended that these investments had created an indelible mark on the country’s development and singled out the achievements of Banks Breweries and Laparkan for special

mention. She also mentioned the achievements of Barbadian businessman Sir Kyffin Simpson.

“These are two companies with global reach of which both our countries can be proud. This is one of the several features of the ties between our two countries.

Today, we note Barbadian businessman Sir Kyffin Simpson, has made a major investment in Guyana.

His 30,000 acre agricultural venture is about to harvest its first rice crop,” McClean said.

The foreign minister expressed the hope that the existing relationship would

“continue to grow and strengthen and that together, we will continue to seize opportunities on issues of mutual concern to the benefit of our people”.

In attendance at the independence event were members of the Barbadian cabinet, members of the diplomatic and consular corps, Guyanese expatriates and other specially invited guests, who were welcomed by their host, Consul General Michael Brotherson.

In his remarks, Brotherson also made mention of immigration issues as he spoke of Guyana’s prog-

ress in the 47 years since its independence. “Guyana is a passionate advocate for the merits of Caribbean integration, as well as the consolidation of the single market, especially those provisions and procedures that relate to the free movement of people,” he noted.

Other areas of priority for Guyana were highlighted as food and energy security and sustainable development, including climate change, with Brotherson noting that Guyana has been recognised internationally as an advocate against the global effects of climate change. (Barbados Advocate)

guyanatimesgy.com

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nvironmental observances are dates designated for creating awareness of environmental issues, and encouraging action from all levels of stakeholders. The most popular and most celebrated among them is World Environment Day (WED).

World Environment Day was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment.

Another resolution adopted by the general assembly the same day, led to the creation of the United Nations Environmental Programme. Every year, WED is hosted by a different city and is commemorated with an internation-

11 Environment THURSday, may 30, 2013

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY 2013

al exposition through the week of June 5.

In many countries, this annual event is used to attract political attention and action towards improving the environment. This observance as well as others provides an opportunity to sign or ratify international environmental conventions, or multilateral environmental agreements.

“We live in a world of plenty, where food production outstrips demand, yet 870 million people are undernourished and childhood stunting is a silent pandemic. To create the future we want, we must correct this injustice.” – UN Secretary General Ban Kimoon This year’s theme: Think.Eat.Save, focus-

vate and public sectors. It draws attention both to the issue and the absurdity that high volumes of perfectly edible produce are never making it from the farm to the fork. If food is wasted, it means that all the resources and inputs used in the production of all the food are also lost.

Celebrations in Guyana

es on food wastage and food loss. Reducing your foodprint is the new campaign that UNEP and the

Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, as well as organisations from the pri-

The celebrations for WED 2013 may indeed be the biggest as the theme provides room for actions by every stakeholder from governments, to farmers, and all the way down to the individual consumer. In Guyana, the Environmental Protection Agency under the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry will

be conducting a number of activities to raise awareness on this year’s theme and foster positive attitudinal change.

These include; the annual Green Walk, a WED ceremony and exhibition, two Rides for the Environment in Linden and Essequibo respectively, a panel discussion, a WED forum at UG – Berbice Campus, news features and an environmental camp. In addition, many groups and organisation around Guyana will be conducting various activities in observance of World Environment Day. Find out what is happening in your area and how you can participate in one of these activities or coordinate your own activity.

References http://www.unep.org/wed/theme/ http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/un/world-environment-day http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/12759/whiproundthefridge-rice You can share your ideas and questions by sending your letters to: “The Earth Our Environment”, C/O EIT Division. Environmental Protection Agency, Ganges Street, Sophia, GEORGETOWN or email us at eit. epaguyana@gmail.com

12 NEWS

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Region One residents charged to respect the rule of law L

ocal Government and Regional Development Minister Ganga Persaud concluded a fourday outreach to Region One on Monday, visiting communities including Baramita, Port Kaituma, Falls Top, Sebai, Four Miles, Oronoque, Arakaka and Matthews Ridge.

The minister emphasised the need for residents to respect the rule of law – whether it is regulations at the village council, the Amerindian Act, or any other piece of legislation that governs the country.

“We need to pass on to the next generation the principles and practices that society needs laws to regulate itself. Our communities are what we make it, government cannot do it all. We have to do it collectively,” the minister said.

Education

He informed parents of Four Miles of the decision which was recently taken by Cabinet, whereby children can enter the formal education system at three years, three months, six months earlier than what previously obtained. This new system will come into effect from September 2014 and will see up to 3000 extra students enrolling each year. This announcement was met with applause by the residents, the Government Information Agency (GINA) said.

With regard to concerns raised by residents about the state of the roads, Minister Persaud explained that because of the terrain, hinterland roads are much more challenging to construct and maintain compared to the coastal areas.

He lamented the irresponsible use of some of the vital road links, particularly by operators of heavyduty machinery. This year, government signed a con-

Residents of Oronoque, Region One, during the community meeting

tract to the tune of $104 million for the construction of the internal roads in Port Kaituma, $360 million for the road from the toll gate to Matthews Ridge, and an additional $80 million from Matthews Ridge to Baramita. The minister reminded the residents that taxpayers’ money is being used to finance these investments, and as such, residents must be more vigilant to ensure that these infrastructures are not used indiscriminately.

Meanwhile, during a community meeting at the Sebai Primary School, residents called for the process of ensuring Internet connectivity in their community to be expedited. Minister Persaud assured that government will continue to pursue aggressively an initiative that would see laptops, Internet connectivity and electricity brought to the community.

Residents raised concerns as regards the manner in which the hot meal programme is being implemented. The minister explained that while the loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to fund the wider school feeding programme ended last year, government has made available $832 million to maintain this initiative.

He said the Region One

Department of Education will have to provide information on the status of the programme in writing to the ministry.

Unemployment

With regard to the issue of unemployment, Minister Persaud reminded residents that government has several initiatives through the various ministries that offer opportunities to hinterland youths to be trained to seek employment. He spoke of the $95 million Amerindian hostel at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara, which caters to the needs of scholarship students.

“No longer are Amerindian people restricted to the hinterland, we now have trained teachers, health workers, and other public officials in these communities, but we have to be willing and disciplined to optimise on these opportunities,” the minister said.

Persaud said many times, hinterland students who were given scholarships to pursue studies in Georgetown or abroad fail to return to serve in Amerindian communities, and instead choose to either stay in the city or migrate.

The minister also spoke of the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry’s Kuru Kururu Training Centre, where stu-

dents are provided with free accommodation, meals and training in a number of technical disciplines. He encouraged the youths to apply for these opportunities.

Irresponsible usage of the walkway in Oronoque was one of the sore issues that the minister had to address. He is hopeful that the rehabilitation of the internal roads in Port Kaituma will ease the pressure on the structure. Additionally, the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) has agreed to recapping it to improve the surface.

Concerns were also raised about the garbage situation, and Minister Persaud said that, on June 15, a solid waste programme will be launched in the Mabaruma sub-district. A contract has been awarded to a company to manage the landfill sites in the region. However, the ministry is in discussion with the company for the services to be extended to Port Kaituma.

Farmers at Falls Top complained of not being equipped to deal with pests and diseases that plague their crops.

Minister Persaud assured that he will be consulting with the Agriculture Ministry to investigate why extension officers stationed at Port Kaituma and Mabaruma are not meeting with residents in other communities. Concerns were also raised about the manner in which medicines for illnesses such as malaria, dengue and typhoid were dispensed. Persaud assured that this matter will be brought to the attention of Health Minister Dr Bheri Ramsaran.

The minister said within the next few months, there will be a general overhaul of the education system in Region One to address administrative weaknesses.

GRA sacks female staffer over driver’s licence fraud T he Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has terminated with immediate effect the services of a female employee of its Licence Revenue Department after it was discovered that she fraudulently facilitated the issuance of an undisclosed number of drivers’ licences.

The employee responsible for the nefarious acts and the person (s) who solicited the commission of the various offences are now likely to face criminal charges, since the GRA has handed the matter over to the Guyana Police Force for further investigation.

According to a release by the GRA, following a thorough investigation, it was revealed that between

August 2012 and February 2013, the staffer facilitated the issuance of a number of bogus new and duplicate drivers’ licences to drivers and received monies in return. The employee, a clerk one, admitted to receiving sums for monies for processing a number of drivers’ licences.

The fraudulent acts are a breach of GRA’s code of conduct, specifically “failure to obey known rules (Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) of the GRA”, and “intention to defraud or with malice altering or forging the authority’s documents”. During the internal investigation, it was also revealed that bogus Certificates of Competence Numbers were

entered into GRA’s internal system by the employee in committing the fraud. A certificate of competence issued by the Guyana Police Force is one of the major documents required by GRA from a potential driver when applying for a new driver’s licence.

The agency is reiterating its call to the general public to refrain from illegal business activities through the offering of inducement to its officers, since such activities will, at some time or the other, be detected and have serious consequences for the parties involved. It must be noted that while efforts continue to be made to ‘root out’ any corruption that may be taking place in any

GRA department, taxpayers need to report any form of solicitation of monies by employees in exchange for legitimate duties the employees are paid to carry out. This type of behaviour results in fraud, forgery, and other illegalities.

According to Sattaur, “Our integrity must never come under scrutiny.

Rogue officers will be dealt with in a condign manner”.

The GRA will continue to put systems in place to ensure that integrity and transparency is the hallmark of the agency.

Persons with information regarding acts of wrong-doing can contact the agency’s Intelligence division on telephone numbers 2276060 or 227-8222.

Region must strengthen institutions to maximise rewards from natural resources – ECLAC

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new document by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) launched on Wednesday says countries in the bloc must review and strengthen the institutions and instruments in order to maximise the contribution of natural resources to regional development, particularly in the current cycle of high prices.

The report, Natural Resources within the Union of South American Nations: Status and Trends for a Regional Development Agenda was presented by Antonio Prado, deputy executive secretary of this United Nations regional commission, at the conference of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) on Natural Resources and Integral Development in the region, which is being held until May 30 in Caracas, Venezuela.

Natural resource governance In the document, ECLAC analyses the issue of natural resource governance in the region, which refers to the set of sovereign policies over ownership and allotment of natural resources and the distribution of productivity gains arising from their exploitation. Latin America and the Caribbean has 65 per cent of the world’s reserves in lithium, 42 per cent of silver, 38 per cent of copper, 33 per cent of tin, 21 per cent of iron, 18 per cent of bauxite and 14 per cent of nickel. It also has large oil reserves: a third of world bioethanol production, almost 25 per cent of biofuels and 13 per cent of oil.

The region has around 30 per cent of the world’s total renewable water resources, which represents over 70 per cent of the water throughout the Americas, as well as having 21 per cent of the planet’s forests and plentiful biodiversity.

However, the region has major weaknesses, such as production and export structures based on static comparative advantages (based on natural resources alone) rather than dynamic competitive advantages; low investment in infrastructure, exploration and value added; and poor performance in innovation, science and technology.

According to Antonio Prado, “Historically, the region has been unable to translate the boom periods of exporting its resources into long-term economic development processes. The challenge for the countries of the region is to generate and efficiently invest extraordinary revenue from the current price cycle with social and environmental

sustainability.”

In the report, ECLAC describes the various legal and economic instruments that Latin American and Caribbean states have at their disposal to appropriate and distribute the revenues from the exploitation of natural resources relating to mining, water and hydrocarbons.

In terms of mining, ECLAC states that four UNASUR countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Peru) receive 62 per cent of regional investment in exploration (and according to 2010 data, the percentage climbs to 84 per cent if Mexico is added).

In 2011, Brazil, Chile and Peru were among the top 10 recipients of mining investment, accounting for 36 per cent of the world total (compared to 26 per cent in 2000). Between 2000 and 2010, the region’s oil exports did not follow the upward trend of prices, unlike the pattern in the rest of the world. Despite this, estimated income of the hydrocarbons sector during the boom of 2004-2009 (7.1 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP)) was double the average recorded between 1990 and 2003 (3.6 per cent of GDP).

Energy supply structure ECLAC also states that UNASUR has a primary energy supply structure that is cleaner than the world average (31 per cent compared with 12 per cent), as it combines energy sources such as hydroelectricity, biomass and other renewables. In 2011, for instance, hydroelectricity represented 11 per cent of these countries total primary energy supply (which is much higher than the world figure of two per cent).

The commission describes the region as facing the challenge of achieving homogenisation and integration in energy consumption, with a view to narrowing the sub-regional divides that still persist, namely: the heterogeneity of natural resources, supply structures and energy consumption, and the need to achieve institutional consolidation and establish the basic conditions for renewable energy promotion and penetration policies.

According to ECLAC, the sub-region’s public policies should take a longterm view on the need to ensure efficient investment of the windfall earnings from natural resources now that prices are buoyant, as well as on the need to improve public management of socioenvironmental conflicts that arise in the development of natural resource sectors.

NEWS

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THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

TIP CoI would be a Media tours GRA waste of taxpayers’ Camp Street location money – Home Affairs Ministry

T The GRA Camp Street building

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uyana Revenue Authority (GRA) Commissioner General Khurshid Sattaur along with several executives from the organisation on Monday provided media operatives a tour of the entity’s Camp Street edifice.

This branch accommodates the GRA Customs and Trade Administration, the Licence Revenue Division, the value added tax, income tax, human resources and finance divisions and the GRA Secretariat.

Sattaur said the tour aims to give an insight on how the public is served by the organisation and the type of systems in place. He noted the GRA has put numerous initiatives in place to fast track its work and make services more accessible to customers

Customers at GRA conducting transactions

who visit the organisation to conduct various business.

Some of the initiatives the GRA has implemented to enhance efficiency include a check in point, an area to fill out their relevant documents, a lodgment area and several electronic devices to know the status of certain transactions.

The commissioner general disclosed that daily the GRA sees in excess of 2000 people.

He said the GRA is proud of all it has achieved, adding that “we want the Guyanese public to know that we have done this mainly because we have you at heart.”

He underscored that the GRA is saddened by some of the criticisms it faces in the media and by the public regarding its operations, despite the efforts the organisa-

tion has been making.

“If they understand what it took for us to come here since October, we’ve been trying very hard…. everybody has been working around the clock to get here, no efforts spared… then they would appreciate what it took for us to get here and what it means to be here.”

Sattaur stressed from the beginning, some persons doubted that it was possible for the GRA to house all of its locations under one roof, but in the end, his dedicated staff made it happened.

He recognised that though the issue of parking is still a challenge, the GRA is feverishly working to address this issue. “We have done quite a lot on that regard, we have designated parking for our staff and we have created

areas for the public as well… at this stage, we are asking that those who have empty lots in the area to make those lots available at a cost to the public.”

The tour was provided

by Compliance and Liability Department Manger Mellissa Romeo, Tax Exemption Department Manager Gavin Low, Licence and Motor Vehicle Registration Department Senior Manager Wayne Austin, Customs and Trade Administration Department deputy head Karen Chapman and Public Relation Department Manager Marica Harris, all whom offered details of the services offered in their respective departments. The GRA has been occupying the Camp Street building since last October.

Prison service gets new fleet of vehicles operate in an efficient manner. He also assured the minister that the usage of the vehicles would be for professional purposes only.

Last week, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) received 19 vehicles from the Home Affairs Ministry. The vehicles acquired were two

Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee handing over the keys of the vehicles to Prison Director Dale Erskine

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he Home Affairs Ministry on Wednesday presented a number of vehicles and motorcycles to the Guyana Prison Service.

The vehicles were handed over to Prison Director Dale Erskine by the Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee outside the ministry’s compound on Brickdam, Georgetown. Among the vehicles acquired are a Canter truck, a "Pitbull bus", a Toyota Hilux pick-up and three Honda motorcycles, all to the cost of $11.8 million.

In a brief comment, Minister Rohee said with the acquisition of these vehicles, the prison service will be in a position to carry out their duties more efficiently. “Keeping the prison service up to speed with mobility and transportation is a matter for the government… the prison service is being provided with these means of transportation so they can be able to execute their vari-

ous responsibilities,” he added.

The minister also said that this contribution will go a far way in assisting the prison service to proceed in an “effective and efficient” direction and that they should make extra efforts in ensuring that the vehicles are properly maintained. Rohee also spoke about the renaming of the Guyana Prison Service to the Guyana Prison and Recreational Service, stating that the ministry is aware of the challenges that will surface and will be prepared facilitate the transformation.

Meanwhile, the prison director expressed his gratitude to the government through the ministry for providing the vehicles in a timely manner, which will aid the prison service administratively, operationally and agriculturally. Erskine said the vehicles will enhance the prison service’s resources which will enable them to

Canter trucks, two "Pitbull" buses, three Toyota Hilux motor vehicles, six Allion motor cars and six ATVs, all costing $61 million from the 2012 budget. With the addition of this fleet of 19 vehicles, the number of vehicles owned by the GPF has been tallied up to 396.

he ministerial taskforce on trafficking in persons (TIP) reiterates government’s position that the motion moved by Opposition Leader David Granger titled; “Appointment of a commission of inquiry to investigate the incidence of trafficking in persons in Guyana” will only result in duplication of efforts and a waste of resources.

The taskforce was responding to an A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) press release issued on May 24. The government of Guyana has moved beyond mere talk about “supporting children and the future of the country” and in effect has allocated resources to fund programmes designed to do precisely what the motion calls for, the Home Affairs Ministry said in a release.

According to the ministry, recognising the security development nexus, government has prioritised social sector spending targeted at removing factors that can contribute to trafficking in persons. It noted that annually, since 2008, government has published reports based on robust assessments of the prevalence of TIP in Guyana as well as its responses in combating the scourge.

“Those who call for a commission of inquiry will find that if they immerse themselves in the contents of these reports, they will arrive at the inescapable conclusion that their request is superfluous and self-serving, particularly for those

who claim they want to help,” the ministry said.

According to the ministry, while the opposition calls for an inquiry into what is already known, government continues to strive to implement programmes to strengthen capacity to detect and investigate TIP matters and offer assistance to victims. Further, government with support from nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) is in the process of implementing programmes to combat TIP through prosecution, prevention, protection, reintegration and public awareness.

The ministry said government has an unblemished track record in focusing on the social sector where a number of programmes are being implemented to complement initiatives aimed at tackling TIP. These programmes include the citizen security and the justice reform programmes, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Ruling Justly programme, programmes such as skills training for the poor and disadvantaged, the Single Parent Assistance Programme and Women of Worth micro-credit programme for women.

The ministerial taskforce on TIP said it remains open to constructive suggestions and supporting joint efforts to continue the fight against any expression of TIP, but will not pander to unsubstantiated views nor erroneous conclusions locally or externally about the extent to which TIP exists in Guyana.

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THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

guyanatimesgy.com

News

Argentina seeks deeper ties with Guyana

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he Argentine embassy here celebrated the 203rd anniversary of Argentina’s 1810 May Revolution with a reception at the Pegasus Hotel Wednesday evening.

The revolution was the last in a series of political events that installed the first government in Argentina. There was no hostility involved, but it is called a revolution because it resulted in a dramatic change in Argentina’s political, social, and economical landscapes.

According to Argentina’s Ambassador to Guyana Luis A Martino, his country is on a path to expand bi-lateral relationships with Guyana and most importantly Caricom through trade and still maintains a relationship with the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR).

“Regional integration stands in the forefront of my country’s foreign policy and to reach this goal we strive for full respect of the democratic institutions as well as ensuring the rule of law as special

Dignitaries, including President Donald Ramotar and U.S. Ambassador D Brent Hardt, and other attendees at the Argentine embassy’s reception in celebration of the 203rd anniversary of Argentina’s 1810 May Revolution

conditions of integration,” said the ambassador. He contended that the process of integration must include social prosperity for all the people and nations of South America. The ambassador said Argentina intents

to expand its relationship with the Caribbean region and Guyana plays a fundamental role as a bridge between South America and the Caribbean.

“I am happy to announce that we have already made

the first step to open other embassies in the region – Suriname, Barbados and St Lucia,” he said, adding that “this position is the process to strengthen our political relations with Caricom and the Community of

Latin American States (CELAC). During my tenure in Guyana, I will seek to strengthen our bi-lateral relationship as a whole.”

Meanwhile, President Ramotar said Guyana is elated to have an Argentinean diplomatic posting on local shores, pointing to the ties of the two countries’ governments.

“Argentina, as a country with rich history and highly advanced industrial sectors with a wealth of natural resources, has made great strides in nation building being a member of the G20 and significant trading partner, and Guyana congratulates the Argentina’s people and wish them happiness and prosperity,” said President Ramotar. He noted that although Guyana celebrated 47 years as an independent nation, it is still a young age in the life of developing countries.

“We are seeking to modernise our sectors to make them competitive in the global market and infrastructure is critical in

this regard, and we look forward to enhancing our bilateral programme by focusing on areas of common interest,” said President Ramotar.

Revolution Day is observed throughout the Argentine Republic on May 25. The day is also known as Dia de la Revolucion de Mayo and it commemorates the famous May Revolution of 1810. It is also called National Day since it marks the bicentenary of the first national government in Argentina after achieving independence from the Spanish rulers. Argentina is the second largest country in South America, constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Bueno Aires. It is the eighth largest country in the world in land area and the largest among Spanishspeaking nations.

Argentina’s population is around 41 million, with 86 per cent of European origin, mostly Spanish and Italian. More than 90 per cent of its people are Roman Catholics.

Dominica will soon join Caribbean Court of Justice – prime minister

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ominica will send a letter to the British government next week seeking permission to recognise the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as its final court, replacing the London-based Privy Council, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has said.

“Once we satisfy the constitutional requirements, we will go forward.

We had delayed it to allow for consultations as people had requested though we have had serious con-

sultations over a period of time, the CCJ came into existence since 2001 and we are in 2013, but we delayed it for consultation,” Prime Minister Skerrit said on the state-owned DBS radio.

“We wrote to the various organisations seeking to receive their views on the matter, so I think sufficient time has elapsed and it is now time for us to move full speed with the recognition of the CCJ as our final court,” he said.

Skerrit said that the

letter to London has already been drafted.

“It’s been ready for several weeks now. The government’s resolve is to move in recognising the Caribbean Court of Justice as our final court,” he said.

Prime Minister Skerrit reminded radio listeners that “Britain has said to us on several occasions we have overstayed our welcome, it is not a situation where we are in any tug-of-war with the United Kingdom. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

A student of the Al Ghazali Islamic Academy, Anessa Khan presents a bouquet to Fusun Ihsanoglu, the wife of the visiting general secretary of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Dr Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu after a meeting at the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) headquarters, Woolford Avenue on Wednesday. She had met with officials, including representatives of the Sisters’ Arm of the CIOG (NACOSA), after which a visit was made to the Al Ghazali Islamic Academy

U.S. embassy staff hurt in Cuba to expand public Internet access Venezuela strip club shooting C

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wo U.S. embassy officials have been injured in a shooting after a brawl at a nightclub in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, police said.

The incident reportedly took place at the Antonella 2012 Club, a pole dancing bar in the Chacao neighbourhood.

The U.S. confirmed two of its embassy staff in Caracas were being treated for nonthreatening injuries after an

“incident at some sort of social spot”.

Local media named the pair as Roberto Ezequiel Rosas and Paul Marwin.

The shooting happened on Tuesday morning, Venezuelan officials said.

It is not clear whether it occurred inside or outside the club, which is located in an upmarket part of town.

Police said one man was hit in the abdomen, while the other was shot in the leg

and abdomen.

“Apparently, it was a fight originating in a nightspot where these people were attacked,” Venezuelan police spokesman Duncan Rico told local media.

“Shots were fired at them and they suffered gunshot wounds.”

The U.S. State Department said embassy officials in Caracas were liaising with the two men and their families. (Excerpt from BBC News)

uba will expand public Internet services next June 4 in some 118 cyber centres operating throughout the country, according to a statement issued by the island’s Communications Ministry.

Internet services will be offered in all commercial offices of the Cuban Telecommunications Company (ETECSA). With this aim, a total of 118 facilities have been set up on the island, particularly in main cities, while other similar facilities will progressively be

opened.

The new facility includes Internet access and other services, such as international email services under the domain nauta.cu, at rates already set under a resolution issued by the Finance and Price Ministry, which was published May 27 in the official Gazette.

The prices of the service depend on the level chosen by users, such as national or international Internet access, including email service. In all cases, users may access the services only at

ETECSA cyber centres.

The expansion of these services joins others that have been operating in over 200 cyber-centres in Cuban hotels, as well as in post offices. The initiative came in after the fiber-optic cable connecting Cuba and Venezuela became operational, thus guaranteeing higher quality and stability for local communications, despite the limitations imposed by the U.S. economic, commercial and technological blockade of Cuba. (Excerpt from Caribbean News Now)

15 Around the World

guyanatimesgy.com

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

Pakistan Taliban: Senior leader India’s ancient university killed in U.S. drone strike returns to life

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he second-in-command of the Pakistani Taliban has been killed in a suspected U.S. drone strike, a senior Taliban source told the BBC. The Pakistani Taliban leadership has not officially confirmed the death of Waliur Rehman so far.

Earlier, Pakistani security officials said a local Taliban commander was among casualties in the raid.

Missiles hit a house close to the town of Miranshah, in north-west Pakistan, early on Wednesday.

The strike is the first for almost six weeks. It comes a week after President Barack Obama issued new guidelines for tighter scrutiny of the U.S. drone programme and stricter targeting rules.

A senior Taliban source in Miranshah told the BBC that one of those killed in the drone strike was Waliur

I

Waliur Rehman

Rehman, the number two commander of the Pakistani Taliban.

The U.S. government had placed a US$5 million (£3.3 million) bounty on his head, accusing him of involvement in attacks on coalition forces in

Afghanistan. These included the 2009 bombing of a U.S. base in which seven CIA agents were killed.

The BBC’s Orla Guerin in Islamabad said that if the death is confirmed, Washington will see this as a considerable victory. (Excerpt from BBC News)

t was an eminent centre of learning long before Oxford, Cambridge and Europe’s oldest university Bologna were founded.

Nalanda University in northern India drew scholars from all over Asia, surviving for hundreds of years before being destroyed by invaders in 1193.

The idea of Nalanda as an international centre of learning is being revived by a group of statesmen and scholars led by the Nobel Prize winning economist Amartya Sen. The group wants to establish a new world-class residential university with top students and researchers from around the world, on a site close to ruins of the ancient Buddhist institution in the Indian state of Bihar.

The new Nalanda International University

Nalanda is emerging from the ruins as an image of India’s rising power

will focus on the humanities, economics and management, Asian integration, sustainable development and oriental languages.

But building a top university from scratch, let

alone one in a poor underdeveloped part of India, is a tall order.

Some doubt that an international university can flourish in such an underdeveloped area. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Newly discovered virus Plight of Syrian refugees Uproar in China over handcuffing takes more lives, spreads stranded near Jordan border worsens of teenage girl A new SARS-like virus recently found in humans continues to spread – with the worldwide total now at 49, the World Health Organisation said Wednesday.

Of the 49 known infections with the MERS-CoV virus, 27 have resulted in death, the organisation said.

The latest deaths were reported in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi Health Ministry said Wednesday that three people died from their infections in the country’s eastern region.

The virus is “a threat to the entire world,” the WHO’s general director said Monday.

It “is not a problem that any single affected country can keep to itself or manage all by itself,” Margaret Chan said Monday in her

closing remarks at the 66th World Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.

Although many of the cases have occurred on the Arabian Peninsula, people have died of the infection elsewhere.

However, “all of the European cases have had a direct or indirect connection to the Middle East,” the WHO said earlier this month. But “in France and the United Kingdom, there has been limited local transmission among close contacts who had not been to the Middle East, but had been in contact with a traveler recently returned from the Middle East.”

On Tuesday, a patient died in France after having contracted the virus during a trip to the Middle East, the WHO reported. (Excerpt from CNN)

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housands of Syrian refugees stranded near the closed border with Jordan, including mothers and babies, are running out of food and many need medical treatment, aid workers and refugees said on Wednesday.

Jordan closed its northern border about 10 days ago after offering refuge to hundreds of thousands of Syrians who have fled violence since the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad’s rule began in March 2011.

Syrians trying to enter through unofficial border crossings have also been turned back. Jordanian officials have given no explanation for the closure,

according to refugees and aid workers who have had first-hand contact with border authorities.

The kingdom has since allowed only a handful of refugees across. Even civilians seeking medical treatment have been turned back and only critically wounded people have entered, according to aid workers.

Hundreds of refugees from areas as far north as Homs and from violencetorn suburbs of Damascus still arrive daily at the border villages of Nasib and Tel Shehab in southern Syria, a few kilometres from the main routes for entry into Jordan. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Foreign activists arrested for topless protest in Tunisia

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hree foreign activists disrobed in front of the Justice Ministry on Wednesday to protest against the jailing of a Tunisian member of Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN, quickly attracting a crowd of offended Tunisians before the three women were hustled away by police.

The trio, one German and two French, approached the entrance to the ministry wearing coats which they took off, revealing naked torsos scrawled with “Breasts Feed Revolution”. Wearing just jean shorts, the women chanted in English “Free Amina” and “Women’s spring is coming” as people in the crowd attempted to cover them.

Tunisian woman Amina Tyler scandalised society by posting topless pictures online in March in a FEMEN-inspired protest in which she scrawled “my body is my own and not your honour”, on herself. She was later taken into hiding by her family after con-

servative preachers issued death threats against her. The 19-yearold said last month she wanted to do one last topless protest before she left the country to study journalism in France and was arrested May 19 in the religious centre of Kairouan where an ultraconser-

vative Muslim group had hoped to hold a conference before it was banned by police.

Tyler was charged with carrying a dangerous object, apparently a canister of pepper spray, and will appear before a judge Thursday.

(Excerpt from France24)

form Weibo alleging that on April 6, Yuan and other officials handcuffed a 13-year-old girl, Rao Yao, and marched her up and down a street for about 20 minutes after she accidentally spilled water on a government car carrying the deputy mayor.

According to the allegations, the deputy mayor had physically fought with the girl, who was detained for 12 hours by authorities.

That version of events seems to have first been published by the Weibo user @yww272651564. But that account no longer appears to exist. In its report, Xinhua referenced an unidentified social media account as the source of the accusations. (Excerpt from CNN)

Canada expels Eritrea's envoy over expat fees claims

C Two French and one German FEMEN activists were taken into custody in Tunisia on Wednesday after baring their breasts to demonstrate against the jailing of a Tunisian woman who posted topless pictures of herself online as a form of protest

T

wo local officials in southwestern China have been suspended from their jobs following allegations on social media that a teenage girl was handcuffed and paraded around town after an altercation with a deputy mayor.

Authorities have placed Yuan Zehong, the top Communist Party official in Kele Township, Guizhou Province, and Chen Song, a local police officer, under investigation following the allegations, the county government said in a statement Tuesday, according to the state-run news agency Xinhua.

Accusations surfaced this week on the popular social media plat-

anada has ordered an Eritrean envoy to leave the country following claims he demanded contributions from expatriates to fund Eritrea’s military.

Semere Ghebremariam Micael, head of the Eritrean Consulate General in Toronto, has been under investigation for the practice.

It is in breach of both UN sanctions against Eritrea and Canadian law, the Canadian government said.

Micael has been given until on June 5 to leave.

“Canada has taken steps to expel (declare persona non grata) Mr Semere Ghebremariam O Micael, consul and head of the Eritrean Consulate General in Toronto, effective immediately,” Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Today’s actions speak for them-

selves,” he added.

The dispute centres on the African nation’s efforts to impose a two per cent “diaspora tax” and “national defence” fee on Eritreans living abroad.

The UN Security Council toughened sanctions against Eritrea in December 2011 over its alleged support for Islamist militant groups such as Somalia’s al-Shabab. The sanctions include a block on remittance tax imposed on nationals overseas.

Michael has previously been warned against collecting funds from Eritrean expatriates living in Canada. The consul said it would comply with the Canadian government’s ruling in September.

But recent reports said Michael had again started demanding the payments. (Excerpt from BBC News)

16

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

guyanatimesgy.com

Caribbean

Africa

South Africa economic growth After strong first quarter ANSA McAL aims for billion-dollar profit slows to 0.9 per cent

T

he ANSA McAL Group of Companies is aiming to exceed its 2012 profit before tax of TT$952 million, Group Chief Operating Officer Gerry Brooks said on Tuesday at the group’s annual general meeting at Tatil Building in Port of Spain. Brooks said the group has already posted a “10 per cent uplift in revenue” in the first quarter of 2013, and a “six per cent up-

lift in profitability.”

Asked if his forecast is that the group will exceed its record high profit before tax of TT$952 million at the end of 2012, he said: “We are going to work very hard to ensure that we exceed the 2012 numbers, and I think at the end of the year, we will all be pleasantly surprised.” Asked the same question, Andrew Sabga, a group director and son of ANSA McAL Chairman

Emeritus Anthony N Sabga, said: “You do the math. We are trending in that direction. We expect to have a very good year.”

Brooks said he saw growth in all sectors of the group. Emphasising that he was singling out two solely as examples, he said: “In our beverage sector, we’re seeing good growth. Our brands are well positioned. Stag is doing well. Carib Pilsner is doing well. (Trinidad Guardian)

S

outh Africa’s economic growth slowed sharply in the first three months of the year.

According to official figures, between January and March, the country’s economy grew by just 0.9 per cent, compared with the previous quarter.

The figure has raised concerns that Africa’s largest economy is struggling to regain momentum. It

grew by 2.5 per cent last year. Compared with the same three months in 2012, South Africa’s economy grew by 1.9 per cent.

Much of the slowdown in growth is being attributed to closures for maintenance in several crucial industries, notably the petroleum sector. Nicky Weimar, senior economist at Nedbank, said: “To put it mildly, it’s a very disappointing num-

ber.”

“It’s a very tricky situation for the monetary policy committee [of the central bank] – growth is obviously a lot weaker than they thought,” he added.

Last week, South Africa’s Reserve Bank kept interest rates at five per cent, saying it was “increasingly concerned” about the economy’s “deteriorating outlook”.(BBC News)

Asia

North America China’s Shuanghui to buy Smithfield Nasdaq to pay US$10M to settle SEC Foods for US$4.7B charges from Facebook snafu hina’s Shuanghui the company.

Chinese cross-border deal

N

asdaq on Wednesday agreed to pay US$10 million, the largest penalty ever levied against a stock exchange, to settle civil charges stemming from mistakes made during Facebook’s initial public offering last year, U.S. securities regulators said on Wednesday.

In its administrative proceeding against the

stock exchange operator, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Nasdaq’s “ill-fated decisions” on the day of the IPO led to a series of regulatory violations.

The SEC said Nasdaq’s senior executives were aware of technical problems but decided to open up Facebook stock for secondary trading without first get-

ting to the root cause of the troubles.

After trading had opened to the wider marketplace, the problems persisted. The exchange’s chief economist spotted discrepancies in trading volume, and complaints from market makers started to mount. Still, exchange management decided not to halt trading, the SEC said. (Reuters)

Europe

European countries to be allowed to ease austerity

T

he European Commission has said it will allow some EU member states to slow their pace of austerity cuts, amid concerns over growth.

France, Spain, Poland, Portugal, the Netherlands and Slovenia are all being given more time to complete their austerity plans.

France will get two more years to bring its budget deficit below three per cent of GDP. Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso

said the extra time must be “used wisely” to lift competitiveness.

The measures came as part of the European Commission’s country-specific recommendations.

Spain, Poland and Slovenia will also get two more years to bring down their budget deficits though spending cuts and tax increases.

The Netherlands and Portugal are having their timetables extended by one year. Even Europe’s strong-

Market statistics

er economies, including Germany, are being urged to allow wage increases and increase flexibility in the jobs market to improve competitiveness.

With regard to the UK, the commission’s report includes recommendations for action on the housing supply and rental market, more affordable and better quality child care, and improving youth training. It also says that there is not enough transport spending. (BBC News)

Cambio Rates

Gold Prices – Guyana Gold Board

Bank of Guyana

Fixed as at January 7, 2013 Calculated at 94% purity

Cur GBP

Buying

Selling

U.S.

$1645.25

$310.58

$344.58

Cambio

$312,663

$202.17

CAN

$161.50

$181.42

Gross

USD

$198.42

$205.58

Net

$290,776

Selling

$322,632

Indicators as on May 30, 2013 Live Spot Gold

Indicators

USD Per Once

Bid/Ask

$1392.70

$1393.70

Low/High

$1382.40

$1396.40

Change

+11.30

+0.82

May 28 USD GBP EUR May 27 USD GBP EUR

London Gold Fix AM 1385.25 917.75 1071.43 AM 1376.75 903.62 1069.15

Crude Oil Price Silver Platinum

US$ per barrel

Change %

$104.23

+0.11

USD per Ounce

Change %

$22.46

+0.19 -8.00

$1452.00

PM 1408.50 930.44 1084.88 PM 1368.75 901.50 1068.00

C

International said it would buy Smithfield Foods Inc for US$4.7 billion in cash to help satisfy growing demand for U.S. made pork in its home market, but the deal may raise concerns in the United States.

The agreement, announced on Wednesday, comes after Smithfield’s largest shareholder agitated for change at the Virginia-based pork producer – the world’s largest – including a call to break up

The deal is subject to review by the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, a government panel that reviews transactions that would bring U.S. businesses under foreign control, Smithfield said in a statement. The transaction would be the largest Chinese takeover of a U.S. company, with an enterprise value of US$7.1 billion, which includes the assumption of debt. The biggest

was CNOOC Ltd’s 2012 acquisition of Canada’s Nexen Ltd, with an enterprise value of about US$17.7 billion, according to Thomson Reuters data. Relations between the United States and China over cross-border deals have become testy as of late.

The issue may arise next week when U.S. President Barack Obama meets with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in California to talk about cyber-security. (Reuters)

Middle East

Dubai could be world’s number one for tourists by 2020

D

ubai could become the world’s number one destination for international visitors if it wins the right to host Expo 2020, it has been claimed.

According to MasterCard’s latest Global Destination Cities Index, Dubai is set to be the seventh most popular destination city with 9.89 million international overnight visitors in 2013, up 8.2 per cent from last year.

If the glitzy emirate, which specialises in luxury

hotels and shopping, continues its current rate of annual growth, by 2016 it will have moved into third place, above Paris and Singapore, which measured 13.92 million and 11.75 million guests, respectively.

Bangkok ranked first in the index with 15.98 million visitors.

As part of Dubai’s tourism strategy it is seeking to attract 20 million international visitors annually by 2020, and the author of the Mastercard study be-

lieves that the Gulf destination could easily find itself in first place.

“It will definitely give Bangkok a run for its money with Expo 2020. That would be very, very useful. I think it will stand a good chance with the Expo,” Yuwa HedrickWong, HSBC distinguished professor of International Business at the University of British Columbia in Canada, said at the official unveiling of the report.

(Arabianbusiness)

Investors' guide

Be your own boss with no money down (conclusion) Office equipment

Desks, computers, phones and fax machines are usually provided by the company.

Disadvantages

Long hours Most car rental locations are open seven days a week.

Early hours for corporate customers are common.

Inventory

A corporate dispatcher is in charge of any special rentals you may need.

Sometimes this is a problem during holidays when the demand for rental vehicles is high.

Cleaning supplies

Rental cars must be clean and ready to rent. Some companies may provide a vacuum cleaner, but other cleaning solutions are the agency operator’s expense.

Employees

Hiring qualified assistants is your expense.

You are responsible for their actions in the eye of the company. Workman’s Compensation Insurance, Unemployment Insurance and all necessary federal and state taxes must be filed and paid on time.

Car rental companies compensate their independent contractors on a commission basis. A respectable income can be earned by a hard working agency operator without a large initial investment. (Business Dictionary)

Business concept – Multi-brand strategy

Last: 15302.80

Changes: -106.59

% Change: -0.69

Open: 15399.94

High: 15399.94

Low: 15229.53

% YTD: +16.78

52Wk Hi: 14887.51

52 Wk Lo: 12035.09

Marketing of two or more similar and competing products by the same firm under different and unrelated brands. While these brands eat into each others’ sales (see cannibalism), multi-brand strategy does have some advantages as a means of obtaining greater shelf space and leaving little for competitors’ products, saturating a market by filling all price and quality gaps, catering to brand-switchers users who like to experiment with different brands, and keeping the firm’s managers on their toes by generating internal competition.

news

17

thursday, may 30, 2013 | guyanatimesGY.com

Universities bring eye care to Fourth body recovered after Cuyuni boat mishap hundreds in West Demerara

H

undreds of West Bank Demerara residents flocked the Wales Community Centre on Wednesday, as they sought to capitalise on an eye care mission led by the University of Guyana; the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus; the University of California; and the Guyana Association of Optometrists (GAO).

The day’s mission ended on a high note, with more than 200 persons benefiting, in particular children and the elderly, said Dr John Randall, lecturer of the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus.

He told Guyana Times that persons were screened and treated, with a percentage receiving free spectacles based on the results.

“People need glasses especially, great, great numbers need glasses, we also do full eye health checks.

There are so many people with glaucoma….; people need treatment that don’t know they have the disease; people with keratoconus and cataract. Some need surgeries; some need contact lenses; and some have very low visions or blind.”

According to the doctor, many of the persons seen have cataracts, while others were low vision patients.

Much-needed treatment

Most of the beneficiaries who spoke to Guyana Times applauded the universities for taking on the challenge, noting that they

– captain likely to face criminal charges

Dead: Clive “Bazzo” Welcome

One of the ophthalmology students conducting the Binocular Indirect Ophthalmoscopy (BIO) test on a patient

have received much-needed treatment and medical attention.

Guyana’s Chief Medex Baldeo James said based on the responses, persons who are in need of surgeries will be monitored by the Health Ministry before being sent to the National Ophthalmology Centre at Port Mourant.

“It’s a very good move, you see there are a lot of poor people with eye care needs, but they don’t have money to get their eyes checked and pay for spectacles; so I will say I am very grateful,” said a teacher of the Wales Primary School, Vonette Samuels. She took approximately 50 students to the outreach.

The three-day eye care mission will not only benefit Guyanese who are receiving free services but

students of the participating universities. University of Guyana lecturer, Dr Genalin Ang said the ophthalmology students were drawn from the universities to build their experience.

At the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, the School of Optometry began four years ago with the first batch graduating this year. At the University of Guyana, the programme commenced three years ago. As the students participate in this venture, it is anticipated that they will put their theoretical lessons into practice as they launch out into the world of work. “For the Guyanese students, they are really eager to learn, because they are exchanging their experiences and expertise... and they are

sharing with others the different cases they are seeing in patients and exchanging their skills... and in the future they can collaborate.”

Eleven students travelled from Trinidad and Tobago, six from California and scores are participating from Guyana. They are all led by their lecturers.

The mission will continue on Thursday at the Cane Grove Health Centre where another batch of 200 persons will receive eye care services. The curtains will come down on Friday at the One Mile Health Centre in Wismar, Linden where is it estimated that more than 200 persons will be tested and treated, taking the total to approximately 600. This is the second such mission for Guyana, with the first occurring in January 2012.

Man killed in dogfight row was stabbed 19 times – autopsy

A

post-mortem examination on the body of Adrian Richmond, who was killed during a brawl at a dogfight on Sunday, revealed that he was stabbed 19 times.

The autopsy was performed on Wednesday morning at the Georgetown Public Hospital mortuary by pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh, and was witnessed

by Richmond’s mother and brother.

The 31-year-old Richmond, an ex-police officer of Lot 104 Atlantic Ville, East Coast Demerara, was stabbed to his chest and abdomen during a squabble with several other persons in Industry, ECD, minutes after viewing a dogfight.

Following the stabbing, two women were taken into custody – one was the person who initiated the fight among the men and the other was the owner of the property where the dogfight was held. The property owner was released, while the other woman remained in custody.

Guyana Times was told that the police have taken

Dead: Adrian Richmond

three persons into custody, including the person who allegedly stabbed Richmond.

The brother of Richmond, Devon, had related that he and Adrian, along with their sister, were at the dogfight when the female (in custody) became annoyed. The brother said that he and the woman had a “talk” after which she began provoking him by following him around with an iron object, threatening to hit him.

“So me brother (Adrian)

turn and ask she if she is me mother because she say she want hit me and then some boys that went with she turn and tell me brother don’t get stupid and the two of them went at it,” he recalled.

Devon said one of the men walked up to his brother and punched him to his mouth, resulting in a scuffle between them. “At one point, me brother was beating this other guy up and when his friends see this they jump in and they start kicking and cuffing me brother on the ground.”

He said that there were about eight to 10 men beating his brother and one of them jumped on his brother and appeared to be “firing punches”. Devon said he saw that particular man with an ice-pick, but did not know that those punches were in fact stabs.

Collapse

He said the group of attackers then moved away from his brother, got into a vehicle and left. “When the action done, me brother get

up and we ask he if he ok and he say yes, so I end up run on the road to see them guys face, but they drive off same time, so I left looking at the vehicle and then a woman come up to me and tell me that me brother fall down and when I go, I see they hustling to put he in a car to go to the hospital,” he recounted.

Devon explained that he went into the car and tried to get his brother to talk on their way to the hospital, but he could not. “He was breathing, but not much, he take couple breath and when we reach at the hospital, he gave one last breath and water come out he eye and then he head fall back, so we rush he in the hospital and the doctors work on he for like an hour and then they tell me that he gone.”

The grieving brother said that they did not frequent the dogfights but decided to go on Sunday, because it was a holiday. He added that they were not involved in any “gambling or betting” and were mere spectators.

D

ays after the Black Angel capsized in the Cuyuni River leaving four persons dead; the fourth body was on Wednesday afternoon recovered in the vicinity of Matouk Falls, Cuyuni, where the accident occurred.

The body of Shawn Robinson of New Amsterdam, Berbice was fished out of the rapids about 17:30h by a search team consisting of relatives and co-workers. Up to late Wednesday afternoon, police were making arrangements for the badly damaged body to be transported to the Lyken’s Funeral Home, Georgetown.

The bodies of William Patoir of New Amsterdam, Berbice and Junior Bandoo of Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo were discovered on Sunday about 16:00h, while body of Clive Welcome also called “Basil” or “Bazzo” of First Avenue Bartica was found on Monday morning.

Severn Williams, the owner of the boat that capsized told Guyana Times that the body of Robinson was fished out of the Cuyuni River and was in a bad state. He added that the police were contacted upon the discovery, but up to 18:00h, they were still to visit the area to bring out the body.

Crime Chief Seelall Persaud disclosed on Wednesday that police are continuing their investigation while the captain remains in police custody.

It is believed that the captain of the vessel, Junior Lyte was not qualified to drive the boat, especially in that area. His competence was also questioned by the Maritime Department Administration (MARAD) and an investigation has been launched. He is likely

Dead: Junior Bandoo

to face criminal charges.

Maritime Administration officials are also investigating the accusation that not all of the passengers were wearing life jackets at the time of the accident. Those who were equipped with life jackets were the ones who were saved.

In January, 10 persons perished when the boat they were travelling in collided with another at Crab Falls, Mazaruni River, Region Seven. According to reports, two boats were travelling in the opposite direction just below Crab Falls, 25 miles upstream from Bartica when tragedy struck. All of the passengers onboard the two vessels were tossed into the deep waters. The boat was travelling out of Puruni and had 12 passengers, 10 of whom were discovered dead. The boat was propelled by a 200 horsepower outboard engine and was reportedly split in two.

Those who perished in the boat collision were Deon Moses, Kevon Ambrose, Olivera Alves, Christopher Ramnarain, Zahir Baksh, Jewan Seeram, Ulrick Grimes, Jermaine Calistro, Ricky Bobb and Kenau Amsterdam. Those who survived the accident were Aubrey Bowen, Donita Daniels, Devon Thomas, Juliet Webber and Francisca Helena.

The two boat captains were later charged with manslaughter and each released on $1 million bail. In December 2012, six persons met their demise after two passenger boats collided in the middle of the Pomeroon River. The boats collided in the vicinity of Siriki, Upper Pomeroon River.

Man held with ganja in Vaseline jar

P

olice on Wednesday arrested a man at the Ogle Airport, East Coast Demerara who was found with a quantity of marijuana stashed in a Vaseline jar.

In a release, police said that about 08:30h on Wednesday, ranks of the Police Narcotics Branch at

the Ogle Airport, stopped and searched a man who was on a flight due to depart for Baramita. A total of 64 grams of cannabis sativa (marijuana) was found concealed in a Vaseline container among his baggage. He is in police custody and will be charged shortly.

18

guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, may 30, 2013

thursDAY, march 11, 2010 | guyanatimesGY.com

archie

By Bernice Bede Osol

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19) Business and pleasure may not mix well, so think twice before pitching a deal at a social gathering.

Your chances for making a sale won’t be good.

dilbert

CANCER (June 21July 22) It’s never a good thing to poke your nose into someone else’s private business. If you needed to know, you would have been briefed.

AQUARIUS

LEO

(Jan. 20Feb. 19)

(July 23Aug. 22)

In a last-minute effort to catch up on things left undone, you might start cracking the whip on others. You’re the one who should be facing the lash.

A close friend is beginning to lose patience with you, because she or he has started to feel taken for granted. Show this person you care.

Calvin and Hobbes PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Don’t misread feelings of apprehension. These particular worries come from negative thinking and are not related to reality.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22) Although you might lack the ability to see the error of your ways, you could easily find fault with others. This is not a good formula for popularity.

Peanuts

SUDOKU

ARIES

LIBRA

(March 21-April 19)

(Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Be as prudent as possible when enjoying leisure activities with friends.

You’ll have a lot more fun if you don’t have to open your wallet for every little thing.

When delegating important personal responsibilities, be careful of whom you choose.

Someone could make a commitment on your behalf that you won’t like.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) If you allow yourself to get involved with people whose objectives are not in harmony with yours, it’s only apt to impede your progress.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22) You and some family members might be on the edgy side. Be careful not to thoughtlessly do anything that could cause tempers to boil over.

Wednesday's solution GEMINI (May 21June 20) If you find yourself in a situation similar to on that didn’t handle well in the past, proceed with caution so that you don’t repeat the same mistakes.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23Dec. 21) If at all possible, try to temporarily shelve distasteful tasks. If you’re doing work you dislike, your performance will suffer.

YELLOW PAGES

thursday, may 30, 2013

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MARAD holds seminar on waterways safety

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Fishermen gathered at the Carifesta Sports complex for a safety awareness seminar

ithin the past few months, several lives have been lost in accidents at sea and in the rivers. In light of this, the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) held a seminar on Wednesday which focused on safety measures for vessels.

The seminar, which targeted fishermen, was held at the Culture, Youth, and Sport Ministry complex on Carifesta Avenue, Georgetown under the theme “Focusing on Safety is a Worthwhile Investment”. Presentations were made by members of the Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard, Guyana Police Force, Guyana Fire Service and MARAD. In bringing the theme of the seminar into focus, Public Works Minister Robeson Benn noted that people must not continue to have a ‘happy-go-lucky’ attitude when it comes to safety on the waters, especially with regards to saving and preserving lives.

He noted that there is concern about safety measures being adhered to, as a re-

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and awareness activities.

Nonetheless, there is that individual responsibility of the operators and vessel owners.

Maritime Safety Director, Stephen Thomas reiterated that there are too many accidents occurring on the waterways, and the target of zero lives lost is achievable once systems are in place, and the regulations are adhered to by the operators.

He stressed that the culture the department is trying to break is the belief that a life jacket cannot save a person’s life. Thomas noted that more operators are being charged for negligence and loss of lives.

“The message that we are trying to send here is that safety should not be viewed as a burden. We want you to live safely… we are trying to work with the industry – be it the fishing industry, be it the speedboat industry, even the sea going ships,” he said.

Wednesday’s session is expected to be replicated to reach all the stakeholders in the maritime sector. (GINA)

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sult of the loss of some four lives per month on average in recent times in mishaps and accidents that can be prevented. “This has a tremendous impact, more significantly on the families, the partners, the children, the mothers, but also on the wider economy and that is unsustainable,” Minister Benn said.

In this regard, MARAD has to work much harder to raise the level of awareness and enforcement, along with the Coast Guard and marine police. Minister Benn called for a change in the attitude to safety. “They have to develop a culture of self-awareness and self-regulation, they should have safety representatives in the various groupings so that we could have a significant improvement in the sector of our activities,” he said.

Minister Benn explained that while he was not satisfied with the pace at which MARAD operates, the agency faces some limitations with regards to its coverage and trained personnel in carrying out surveillance

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he government of Guyana through the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide of South Australia to develop a programme to foster cooperation for biodiversity, conservation, and sustainable environmental management practices.

The MoU was signed

by Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud and Sustainable Environment and Conservation Minister Ian Hunter, of Adelaide, South Australia, a release from the ministry stated.

The signing of the MoU will provide support for the Protected Areas Commission and the Three Parks Initiative to enhance green public spaces in Georgetown, the release said. This will be strengthened through bilateral relations between the governments of Guyana and South Australia by providing advancement of biodiversity, conservation, sustainable management practices, and enrichment of the social and

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud (left) and Sustainable Environment and Conservation Minister Ian Hunter, of Adelaide, South Australia, exchange copies of the MoU after the signing

cultural capital of both regions.

Both countries have expressed a commitment to promote the value of biodiversity to people and to providing innovative edu-

cational and public awareness, to engage visitors and encourage them to develop increased knowledge and awareness of the value of plants, the plant world, and the environment.

20

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

Warner and Blazer must face the law, says FIFA official

Corruption in IPL…

Srinivasan told to “stay away” from inquiry P

Rajiv Shukla (centre)

N

Srinivasan’s position as BCCI president, so solid all through the spot-fixing crisis and the arrest of his son-in-law on betting charges, appeared to wobble on Wednesday as the senior politicians on the board began speaking out on the issue.

The most significant comment came from IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla after meeting with BCCI vice president and disciplinary committee member Arun Jaitley: Srinivasan, they had decided, must “stay away” from the inquiry commission set up by the BCCI to look into the fixing and betting issues.

Responding shortly after, Srinivasan said Shukla’s statement reiterated his own stand. “He has very clearly clarified that what he says is that the commission has been appointed and I should dissociate myself from the procedure as stated. He has reiterated what I stated in the press conference in Kolkata...that I have nothing to do with the committee.”

Shukla did not clarify what he meant by “stay away,” but he did say they did not specifically mean that Srinivasan must stand

down from his position. “He is an elected president and he says he has done nothing.

That is his view,” Shukla said. “We would want that he stay away during the investigation procedure and have suggested to him that he do so. The image of the BCCI and of Indian cricket has been very badly affected by these events.”

Shukla’s statement, which he repeated almost verbatim a couple of hours later, also said that the decisions of the three-man commission must be directly implemented, and not presented before the general body of the BCCI. It was important that the investigation was “independent and that the persons responsible, no matter how they big they may be, are severely punished.”

The inquiry commission had originally meant to comprise two BCCI officials and an independent member, but Shukla said it had been altered to assert its independence by including two judges and a single member from the board, in this case its secretary Sanjay Jagdale.

The commission’s remit was widened to look into India Cements, the owners of Chennai Super

Kings, apart from Gurunath Meiyappan, the Super Kings official arrested on charges of betting, and Jaipur IPL Pvt Ltd, the owners of Rajasthan Royals, three of whose players – Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan – were arrested on allegations of spot-fixing.

The growing political pressure was also signalled

by India’s sports ministry, which issued a statement calling for Srinivasan’s resignation. “The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has observed with considerable disquiet, the reports about match and spot fixing in cricket,” the statement read. “BCCI is inquiring into allegations of match and spot fixing. As there is a conflict of interest in this inquiry, therefore BCCI president should tender his resignation on moral grounds, pending the outcome of the inquiry.”

Adding to the voices was former BCCI and ICC president Sharad Pawar, also a minister in the federal government, who backed another past President Shashank Manohar’s call for all IPL 2013 matches to be investigated by an external agency.

“The entire issue should be referred to the home

ministry and it should investigate all IPL matches,” Pawar said. “Shashank Manohar’s suggestion is correct. There should be a detailed investigation, not just one game, [but] all games should be looked at.”

Pawar also said such a crisis “never happened” when he was in charge of the BCCI. He felt it was up to Srinivasan to decide whether he should resign, but when asked if he would have stepped down if he had been in Srinivasan’s position, he said, “If I had been there I would not have allowed these type of things.”

Pawar was the board president, and Srinivasan the treasurer, when the BCCI had allowed India Cements, controlled by Srinivasan and his family, to bid for an IPL franchise in 2008. In the board’s opinion at that time, it did not amount to a conflict of interest but Pawar advised caution in the future.

“In 2008, we had taken legal opinion and we got a considered view that there is no conflict,” Pawar said. “In that situation, when we discussed it in the office bearers’ meeting, it was cleared.

But henceforth, we have to be very careful.” (Cricinfo)

ORT LOUIS – Former CONCACAF leaders Jack Warner and Chuck Blazer should face the full force of the law for their alleged misdemeanours during the two decades that they ran the confederation, Domenico Scala, the head of FIFA’s Audit and Compliance Committee said on Wednesday.

“In the case of Jack Warner and Chuck Blazer this has far bigger implications than just (FIFA’s) Ethics Committee, or the rules of the game,” Scala said at a rare media briefing the day before FIFA’s annual congress starts.

“There is sufficient suspicion that they have gone against the law and this will become an issue for the FBI and the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) in the case of taxation. “So here the Ethics Committee and the world of FIFA stops – and people who have gone against the law will have to deal with the law.”

Former FIFA vice president Warner from Trinidad and Tobago, who was the president of CONCACAF for 21 years, and Blazer of the United States, his general secretary for most of that time, were both members of FIFA’s executive committee.

Warner turned his back on football after being implicated in a bribery scandal in 2011, while Blazer has also left the game although, on a technicality, he is suspended from FIFA’s executive committee until Friday.

The two men were vilified in a report commissioned by CONCACAF the confederation responsible for soccer in North and Central America and the Caribbean, and published at their Congress in Panama in April after the examination of 5000 docu-

ments and the testimony of 38 individuals.

“If you read the CONCACAF integrity report it does not say anything positive or polite (about them),” said Scala, a 48-year-old Swiss industrialist who is charged with enforcing new financial controls at FIFA as well as guiding the body’s reform process on to the statute books. “It’s a horrible document so therefore whatever they are saying today is frankly useless and worthless because, over an extended period of time, they abused the system.

“I cannot judge on the other cases (of FIFA corruption) as I have no insights but I think it is a stretch to say now that what happened in CONCACAF happened in all the confederations.

“But here we have two individuals who behaved the way they did. Do we have other cases like this at FIFA? Maybe, I don’t know, but we have to face facts; we have to be very careful of accusing everybody because we have had 10 years of accusations and allegations and suspicions.”

Scala said he had spoken to Warner’s successor as CONCACAF president, Jeffrey Webb, adding: “I said this to the new CONCACAF president – this issue is now one for the government entities and has passed (beyond) the FIFA world.”

Scala said that as a result of greater scrutiny of FIFA’s planned development grants, projects in seven countries had been halted because of concerns over accounting.

“From now on, no matter what went on in the past, we are going to make sure that FIFA’s development money is used for the purpose it is intended,” he said. (The Times of Indies)

Federer, Serena Williams and Monfils post wins

R

oger Federer equalled the record for the number of singles victories at the French Open by beating Indian qualifier Somdev Devvarman in the second round.

The 31-year-old swept Devvarman aside 6-2 6-1 6-1 to seal his 56th win at Roland Garros – matching the Open Era mark set by Argentine Guillermo Vilas.

Unseeded Gael Monfils followed Monday’s upset of Tomas Berdych by battling past Ernests Gulbis in four sets.

Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, and David Ferrer also progressed.

Court Philippe Chatrier

Victoria Azarenka (Blr) [3] beat Elena Vesnina (Rus) 6-1 6-4. Azarenka was in first-round action after Tuesday’s rain delays and now faces the prospect of

Serena Williams

Roger Federer

seven matches in 11 days if she is to win the title.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (Fra) [6] beat Jarkko Nieminen (Fin) 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 6-3 Gael Monfils (Fra) beat Ernests Gulbis (Lat) 6-7 (57) 6-4 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 Monfils missed much of 2012 with a knee injury that saw him slip out of the top 100, but he is the story of Roland Garros 2013 so far.

Following an epic five-set win against Berdych, this three-hour-and-15-minute victory also thrilled the packed house on Philippe Chatrier.

“I had lots of luck.

That’s part of sports,” said Monfils, 26. “I’m just trying to be tough mentally, and tougher and tougher in my mind when things get down.”

Serena Williams (USA) [1] beat Caroline Garcia (Fra) 6-1 6-2 The favourite extended her winning run to 26 matches and has now won 68 of 72 matches since her first-round exit at Roland Garros last year.

“It’s important for me to win easily,” said Williams.

“It’s also important for me to play well. If I play well,

it will bode well for me at Roland Garros.”

Court Suzanne Lenglen

Petra Kvitova (Cze) [7] beat Aravane Rezai (Fra) 6-3 4-6 6-2 The 2011 Wimbledon champion overcame a slight wobble in her first-round match to see off wildcard Rezai in one hour and 49 minutes.

Benoit Paire (Fra) [24] beat Marcos Baghdatis (Cyp) 3-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 6-4 Milos Raonic (Can) [14] beat Michael Llodra 7-5 3-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 .

Canadian Raonic hit 24 aces to take his tally for the tournament to 40 – nine more than his closest challenger, Llodra.

Roger Federer (Sui) [2] beat Somdev Devvarman (Ind) 6-2 6-1 6-1 Chasing a second French Open title, the Swiss did not lose a point against 188thranked Devvarman until game three and took the first set in just 23 minutes with two breaks of serve.

The 17-times Grand Slam champion broke a further three times in sets two and three to book a meeting with Julien Benneteau of France.

Ana Ivanovic (Srb) [14] beat Mathilde Johansson (Fra) 6-2 6-2 (BBC Sport)

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

21

eager to Pacers beat Heat to knot Bravo lead from front as Eastern final at two apiece Windies eye glory

I

NDIANAPOLIS – The open looks Udonis Haslem and Chris Bosh took advantage of to help the Heat win Game 3 disappeared in Game 4, and so has Miami’s lead over Indiana in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Miami’s Erik Spoelstra won the coaching battle with the Pacers’ Frank Vogel in Game 3, using mobile post players Haslem and Bosh primarily as jump shooters to keep them away from the bigger, brawnier Roy Hibbert and David West.

Vogel countered Tuesday night with a simple adjustment: putting Hibbert and West in better position to step out and contest shots without sacrificing rebounding. And it worked, eliminating Miami’s normally excellent floor spacing and making the Heat’s offence appear unsettled.

Hibbert finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds to lead Indiana to a 9992 victory that tied the series at two games apiece and helped the Pacers regain a little swagger heading into a pivotal Game 5 on Thursday night in Miami.

In Game 3, Haslem and Bosh combined to make 14 of 19 shots and score 32 points, mostly on jumpers. This time, they were 4 for 11 and combined for 13 points.

Indiana Pacers’ Roy Hibbert (55) grabs a rebound from Miami Heat’s Udonis Haslem and Pacers’ Lance Stephenson (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

‘’We were a lot more attentive to it,’’ West said. ‘’We had our antennas up. We didn’t allow them to space.

We were there on catch a lot of times. That’s more of us just being locked in. We were just ourselves tonight.’’

The Heat shot 39 per cent and never found a consistent rhythm.

Indiana also re-established its dominance inside.

The Pacers shot 50 per cent, outrebounded the Heat 4930 and outscored them 5032 in the paint. They relentlessly attacked the basket, continually won the battle for loose balls, dominated the glass and turned the tables on Miami yet again.

Lance Stephenson added 20 points for the Pacers, who closed with a 16-6 run to pull away from the defending NBA champions. ‘’We’re never going to give up. We’re relentless,’’ Hibbert said after another big game. ‘’All those guys in there, they believe we can win. No matter what all the analysts or whoever says anything, they count us out, those guys in the locker room were ready to play and we went out and played our hearts out.’’

Hibbert will get no argument from Vogel, who challenged his team to bring it or go down swinging – and Indiana scored with punch

after punch.

The Pacers revved up the crowd with an opening 11-0 run, got the Heat in foul trouble and answered every challenge Miami posed in a physical game that had bodies flying, tempers flaring and James stunned after fouling out of a playoff game for only the second time in his career.

Indiana believed this was the only way it could get back into the best-ofseven series after giving home-court advantage back to Miami two nights earlier.

The players promised to treat Game 4 as if they were playing a decisive seventh game, and it showed.

An angry Paul George uncharacteristically smacked the floor after being called for a foul in the third quarter, leading to a technical foul on Vogel that seemed to get Indiana refocused. The defence continually contested shots by James and his high-scoring teammates.

The four-time MVP finished with 24 points but was only 8 of 18 from the field.

The Heat now face a stunning must-win scenario Thursday night. If they lose Game 5, they’ll return to Indy for Game 6 fighting for their playoff lives.

Over the next 48 hours, the Heat will try to figure out what went wrong in a game full of oddities. (Yahoo! Sport)

England held to draw by Republic of Ireland

E

ngland’s first meeting with the Republic of Ireland since 1995 – when their clash at Lansdowne Road was abandoned amid crowd violence – ended in a disappointing Wembley draw on Wednesday.

The atmosphere inside the stadium was lively, but this was a game where moments of genuine quality were few and far between.

Republic striker Shane Long produced one with a superb header to give them an early lead, but Frank Lampard took advantage of good work by Daniel Sturridge to equalise with his 29th goal for England before half-time.

Liverpool forward Sturridge pulled up with what looked like a serious injury shortly afterwards and was taken away on a stretcher after lengthy treatment.

The Republic, with Everton’s Seamus Coleman the game’s outstanding performer, survived in relative comfort although it needed two fine late David Forde saves from Alex OxladeChamberlain and Theo Walcott to earn the visitors a draw that was celebrated

Frank Lampard

joyously by their supporters as they maintained an unbeaten 28-year record against England.

England now head to Rio to face Brazil on Sunday and there was little here to concern their illustrious next opponents. Manager Roy Hodgson will be concerned by his side’s lack of creativity and his attacking resources are now further reduced by Sturridge’s absence.

Captain for the night, Ashley Cole received a very positive ovation from the Wembley crowd as he

was presented with a commemorative golden cap by Hodgson for passing a century of appearances for his country.

The Republic were, as usual, being backed by thousands of noisy followers inside Wembley and the moment they so craved arrived after 13 minutes.

Coleman’s right-wing delivery was inviting enough but it still needed a magnificent header from Long, rising above Glen Johnson, to beat Joe Hart in the England goal.

Sturridge was keen to

make his mark on his first start for his country and he duly obliged when they drew level after 23 minutes.

He showed neat footwork in the box before Lampard arrived with his trademark perfect timing to steer a close-range finish past Forde.

This was Sturridge’s final contribution of any significance, though.

The former Chelsea forward pulled up while chasing Glenn Whelan back into a defensive position, instantly signalled that he was in trouble, and was taken away on a stretcher after being examined on the touchline.

England made two more substitutions at half-time, replacing Hart with Ben Foster – his first international appearance since November 2010 after making himself available once more – and Phil Jones coming on for Johnson.

Cole almost celebrated wearing the captain’s armband with his first England goal in 102 appearances when he arrived in the sixyard box on the end of the impressive Walcott cross but Sean St Ledger made a vital clearance. (BBC Sport)

C

ARDIFF, Wales – Dwayne Bravo says he is excited and eager to lead the West Indies into the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2013 and will give his all to see the Windies win the prestigious tournament for the second time.

The livewire allrounder will be at the helm for the first time in a major international tournament and spoke highly of the team’s chances as he addressed the media on Wednesday.

“The ICC Champions Trophy, we as players know it as the mini-World Cup. We see it as a very important tournament. For us as a team and all the cricketing nations also, we are really looking forward to it. I myself, it’s a new road for me taking over the ODI team, and I’m really excited to be a part of a side that has so many world-class players.

I just can’t wait to lead the team, and like I said before, this is a tournament that’s very important to us,” Bravo said.

“We’re in a very tough group...India, Pakistan, also South Africa...so it’s not going to be easy. Playing in England, also, is always challenging in itself, but we are up for it. We are looking also forward to the two warm-up games against Australia and Sri Lanka.”

Bravo was a member of the team back in 2004 when the West Indies won the ICC Champions Trophy – beating England in the final at the Oval. He is looking to emulate his mentor Brian Lara and lift the trophy.

“Like I said, this is a tournament that has a lot at stake and a lot of teams want to do well in this tournament, but to be honest I’m not going to let the weather get the better of us. That is one thing I’m going to instil in the team... okay, we are away from home, we are away from our comfort zone, but at the end of the day we are professionals and we have to try and adapt to any kind of conditions before us,” he said.

“That’s the biggest challenge, and it’s something that I’m prepared to let the guys know. I’m sure that everyone will be looking forward to it because it’s a prestigious tournament and it’s another tournament we would love to win. We won it here in 2004. Now we have like five players from 2004 who are here again today.

So it’s good to know we still have basically the core of the team around, and hopefully

that will help.”

The ICC Champions Trophy 2013 will feature eight teams: Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies. The tournament will be played across three venues – Cardiff Wales Stadium, Edgbaston and The Oval – from June 6 to 23.

The Windies open against Pakistan on Friday, June 7 at the Oval and return to the famous venue on Tuesday, June 11 to take on India. The final preliminary match will be against the Proteas on Friday, June 14 in Cardiff.

Bravo has been one of the key members of the Windies set-up since he made his international debut back in early 2004. He has so far appeared in 137 ODIs and has made 2311 runs and taken 160 wickets – making him one of the most successful allrounders in this format of the game for West Indies. He was a member of the team which won the ICC World T20 in Sri Lanka last year and said that the team will use that momentum and new found belief to push themselves in the coming weeks.

“We don’t think we are favourites. We just want to concentrate on what we have to do. We’re in a very tough group, and first of all, we want to take it step by step, try and survive that group.

The talk around is that this is the ‘group of death’, so hopefully we get out of the group of death and then take it from there,” the 29-year-old-said.

“A tournament like this, it’s short, and you never know what can happen. Being called favourites...it’s good that other teams and media people can actually look at us as favourites, but we just want to be humble and go about our business in our own way and let the man above take care of our destiny.”

Bravo added: “Lately in ODIs we never used to score enough runs as a batting team, especially against the better teams, but at this time we’ll try to approach it differently. We will try to structure our batting a lot differently... our approach through the middle... it’s going to be different.

“The most important thing is to try and keep wickets in hand, and I think that is what our approach is going to be in this tournament. We bat very deep, and like I said, we can make up at the end of the innings.

We have players who can hit a six at any point in time.” (WICB Media)

22

thursday, MAY 30, 2013

guyanatimesGY.com

Hemraj, Beaton leave for Sagicor HPC on Friday

By Avenash Ramzan

F

irst-Class cricketers, Chanderpaul Hemraj and Ronsford Beaton, leave Guyana on Friday to commence their maiden stint at the Sagicor High Performance Centre (HPC) at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus.

Left-handed middle-order batsman Hemraj and exciting fast bowler Beaton are the only two Guyanese among the 14 players chosen from the various territories affiliated to the West Indies Cricket Board.

Both players said they are looking forward to the one-year encampment, where they are expected to be exposed to a range of topics revolving around cricket and life.

The players, drawn from the various territories of the region, will be enrolled for a one-year programme, which will start with the encampment on Saturday.

All the players selected are below the age of 25, and represent a wide cross section of the young crop of regional players.

The 19-year-old Hemraj,

a left-handed middle-order batsman, said it is indeed an honour to be part of the Sagicor HPC programme.

“I’m really happy to be part of this. This means everything to me,” Hemraj told Guyana Times Sport earlier this month.

He added, “This is certainly an opportunity for me to better my cricket skills.

I’m also looking forward to the other aspects of the programme, because this is not just about cricket, but shaping a well-rounded individual.”

The 20-year-old Beaton, a product of Reliance village on the Essequibo Coast, said he will seek to use the stint as an avenue to improve his overall cricket.

“It’s a big step in my cricketing career,” he declared. “As you know, Guyana does not have the kind of facilities and coaching that you would get at the HPC, so I’m really looking forward it. This means a lot to me because as you can see, the HPC was able to produce quality players over the years, who went on to play Test cricket, like [Veerasammy] Permaul for

example.”

Permaul, the West Indies left-arm spinner, is among four Guyanese who have passed through the HPC programme.

The others are fast bowler Brandon Bess, who was called up by the West Indies selectors to play a Test match against South Africa while being part of the programme in 2010, and openers Rajendra Chandrika and Trevon Griffith.

Beaton has appeared in 14 First-Class matches, five List A and five T20 games for Guyana, while Hemraj has three FirstClass matches under his belt. The pair would be looking to emulate Permaul and Bess and represent the West Indies at the highest level.

New batch

Apart from Hemraj and Beaton, the new batch of Sagicor HPC entrants includes Test discard Adrian Barath of Trinidad, fast bowler Quinton Boatswain of Montserrat, West Indies opening batsman Kraigg Brathwaite of Barbados, opener John Campbell of Jamaica, wicketkeeper Shai Hope of Barbados,

all-rounder Akeal Hosein of Trinidad, wicketkeeper Steven Katwaroo of Trinidad, all-rounder Kyle Mayers of Barbados, allrounder Dalton Polius of St Lucia, all-rounder Raymon Reifer of Barbados, batsman Tyrone Theophile of Dominica and batsman Hayden Walsh Jr of Antigua.

Commenting on the announcement, Sagicor HPC head coach Graeme West said he was very excited about the prospects of transforming a new group of players.

The HPC programme has been broadened to focus more intensely on developing the mental prowess of the players in addition to the standard rigorous training in skills development and fitness required for high performance athletes.

The players will also benefit from specialised training in a number of other areas including their roles as ambassadors, personal development, antidoping, anti-corruption and media skills. The 2013 programme will conclude in December this year.

National intermediate boxing shifted to next weekend

Terrence Poole

T

op amateur boxers from across the country will converge on the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue, this weekend for the National Intermediate championship.

According to officials of the organising body, the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA), all systems are in place for a competitive showdown, featuring young pugilists from the three counties.

The event was originally billed for last weekend, but the GBA opted against going ahead with plans that would have clashed with the independence flag-raising ceremony on May 25.

The GBA had stated that an event of such national importance should be given due recognition, hence the postponement of the championship to this Friday and Saturday.

Technical Director of the GBA, Terrence Poole, said all the necessary arrangements are in place for this weekend’s event, and the association is looking forward to a successful and competitive two days.

He also informed that the agenda for the national intermediate championship will remain the same, despite the shift in date.

Approximately 60 boxers from various gyms across the country will do battle at the two-day event, which will start at 18:00h each day at the National Gymnasium.

Participating boxers are expected from gyms such as Harpy Eagles, Forgotten Youth Foundation, Essequibo, Republican, Guyana Defence Force, Young Achievers, Pocket Rocket and Rose Hall Jammers among others.

Among the categories to be contested are junior flyweight, flyweight, bantamweight, lightweight, junior welterweight, welterweight, middleweight, light heavyweight, heavyweight and super heavyweight.

St Aloysius win U-13 schools’ football tournament

From left to right: William Sumersal, Daniel Joseph, Alex Overton and Sean Steele

S

t Aloysius Primary School won the InterSecondary School Under-13 football tournament after a superior goal average from contenders All Saints Primary and St Theresa Primary.

The three teams ended on nine points each; All Saints copped second place with St Theresa and Overwinning finishing third and fourth respectively.

The one week competi-

tion, which was played at the Scotts School ground, New Amsterdam, saw St Aloysius getting pass New Amsterdam Primary 4-0, St Theresa, 1-0, and Overwinning, 1-0. The eventual champions went down to All Saints 0-1 while All Saints beat NA Primary 2-0, Overwinning, 3-1, and went down to St Theresa 0-1. St Theresa recorded victories over Overwinning, 2-0, and NA

Primary, 1-0.

The competition was organised by football coach Neil Humphrey.

At the presentation ceremony Humphrey announced that the most promising player was Sean Steele of NA Primary. The best goalkeeper was William Samuel of St Theresa Primary and the MVP of the tournament was Alex Overton of St Aloysius, who also copped the award for scoring four

The victorious St Aloysius Primary School

goals. The best defender was Daniel Joseph and the best midfield player Gevon Shultz.

Youth coach of the Heart of Oak Masters Football Club also invited interested players to attend coach-

ing sessions being run by the club at the Scotts School ground, Princess Elizabeth Road, New Amsterdam.

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2013

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

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Guyanese batsmen Favourites Pepsi Hikers, dominate in GCC play to exciting draw opening round

Rajendra Chandrika

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From Ravendra Madholall in Toronto

team, which was organised by the West Indies Cricket Board, believes he can continue from where he left off in Guyana.

He related that his experience for the Sagicor side three years ago will be vital for his involvement with Vikings Cricket Club, saying his innings that led his side to victory has given him the impetus to do well.

“I am thankful for the guys to have me in Canada; it is a great place to play cricket and I am confident I will do well on this first trip for a club; I was here in 2010 and that really gave me greater motivation to make an impression now, so hopefully I can fulfil my promise,” the 23-year-old righthanded batsman related.

He featured in 23 firstclass matches for Guyana while he donned West Indies colours at the under-19 and A Team levels.

Meanwhile, Crandon is making his fourth trip to Canada and again is very optimistic to dominate the game as a versatile allrounder. He related that the atmosphere is fantastic and the games are very competitive.

Representing West Indies is always in his memory and he is eager to don the colours again in the near future. He reckoned that as a cricketer coming and playing in North America with a number of players from

around the world inspires him to do greater things on the field.

Both Rikhi and Kadir were anxious to begin the competition on a high note and eventually made an immediate impact with the bat. Kadir scored a fluent half-century (57) in his first game before he missed the second scheduled match on Sunday owing to an injury. Rikhi scored 32 and 29 and stated that he wants to score more heavily and consistently and put his team in a winning position to lift the cup.

“It is my second season over here but I am really looking forward to it; the competition seemed very stiff and that is one of the reasons I am in North America to improve the standard of my game in all areas,” Rikhi, who plays for Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club, divulged.

On the other hand, Jamaican and former West Indies Under-19 skipper Andre Creary and West Indies and St Lucian limited overs player Gary Mathurin are expected to begin their stint this week in Toronto.

Mathurin scored a century last year.

Guyanese and West Indies batsman Ryan Ramdass is already in Canada to continue his stint.

Action is set to resume on Saturday with a number of matches in Toronto.

G

uyanese batsmen dominated with the bat in the opening round of the 2013 Toronto and District Cricket Association Elite 50-over League over the weekend at various venues across the city.

Former Guyana FirstClass skipper Damodar Daesrath scored an attractive, unbeaten 70 to lead defending champion Brampton Masters Tranzac Cricket Club to a handsome victory over Gujarat at King City.

West Indies ODI player Royston Crandon chipped in with both bat and ball for Vikings Cricket Club who had mixed fortunes, winning only one of their two encounters while Guyana’s first-class opening batsman Rajendra Chandrika, also representing Vikings, stroked an impressive halfcentury (52).

Former Guyana Under-19 batsmen Dominique Rikhi and Riaz Kadir also chipped in with valuable scores for Victoria Park Cricket Club.

Chandrika and Kadir are in their debut overseas season and expressed great optimism that they will do well in the next three to four months. Chandrika, who played in Canada in 2010 representing Sagicor High Performance Centre

Linden school for Sir Garfield Sobers cricket tournament

L

Sir Garfield Sobers

inden’s Christianburg Wismar Secondary School cricket team has been selected as one of the teams from Guyana to represent the country at the 27th annual Sir Garfield Sobers Under-19 Cricket Tournament in Barbados from July 8-26.

This will be the first time that a team from Linden will be participating in the tournament and the players are currently in preparation mode.

The team, under the captaincy

of Demerara under-19 player Stephan Brown, is expected to travel with a 19-member contingent, including 16 cricketers and three school officials.

According to the team’s officials, the total cost of airfare, including accommodation and meals per person is approximately $110,000, which will only be made possible through sponsorship.

The team is currently in the process of securing sponsors in order to make the venture possible.

Alan Fernandes

Phillip Fernandes

Shaquille Assanah

re-tournament favourites and defending champions, the Pepsi Hikers, faced off in a gruelling men’s first division battle with last year’s finalists, GCC, in the feature encounter on the opening night of the Brydens Super Classic Indoor Hockey Championships at the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue.

The Kellogg’s Men’s first division competition saw a high-paced start as GCC secured dominance in the early minutes creating several goal-scoring chances.

Orland Semple eventually found the target for the Bourda giants six minutes into play and added a second through a penalty corner in the 13th minute to give GCC a 2-0 lead. National striker Shane Samuels closed the gap with a goal of his own two minutes before the half which would find GCC holding on to a 2-1 lead.

Upon resumption of the match, Leonard George produced two stunning field goals to see his side, GCC, surge further ahead with a 4-1 cushion. As GCC however, showed signs of tiring, the young legs of the Hikers kept the pace intense as they clawed back at the lead through two field goals by Robert France and Shane Samuels. The game reached an exciting climax when Randy Hope managed to draw the game even at 4-4 within three minutes of the final whistle to send the crowd to its feet. The final three minutes however remained goalless, leaving the final score at 4-4.

The other Kellogg’s match of the evening saw the youthful Cadets take apart a rebuilding Old Fort side by 4-0. Leon Bacchus opened the scoring in the 13th minute after an attractive series of play by the Cadets, while a Jamarj Assanah double strike, in the 20th and 36th minutes, were separated by a field goal by Aroydy Branford in the 29th minute of play.

The Tetley Tea ladies competition saw the Hikers Divas destroy Revelation by five goals to nil. Although there was some spirited play

from young Revelation players Rene James and Latacia Chung, the young side could not withstand the constant pressure of the powerful Divas.

National players Cora Towler and Marisha Rodrigues led the goal tally with doubles each while Avonda James chipped in one more to make it 5 for the Divas.

The other ladies clash of the evening between the GCC Tigers and Spice saw a more evenly contested encounter. A stellar performance by Trisha Woodroffe and goalkeeper Alysa Xavier ensured an airtight defence for Spice who managed to stave off a good start from the Tigers.

As the match wore on however the Tigers came into their own game and capped their efforts with a fine diving goal from Captain Sonia Jardine five minutes into the second half. The Tigers would manage a few penalty corners in the dying minutes but some seemed to trouble Xavier in the goal as she easily swatted away the final attempts to leave the score as 1-0 in favour of Spice.

The Mr Toppers men’s second division competition remains wide open so far with several teams performing well enough to be in contention for the top prize.

Old Fort began the evening with a big win over Saints by 6-3. Tony Cole was the top marksman for Old Fort with a helmet trick in the match while teammates Terrence Shaw and young Omar Hopkinson added one each.

Leroy Jack, who continues to impress with his solid all-round game scored the first for Saints with Hilton Chester and Joel Hunte adding one each in their losing effort. The Western Union Hikers then stormed to a 6-1 victory over GCC in the following match as Aroydy Brandford lit the gymnasium on fire with a hat-trick of goals. Colonel Heywood added a double for the Hikers and one more came through the effort of Shaquille Assanah. Shad Fernandes managed to pull one back for GCC who were

never in contention during the match.

A battle of yesteryear took place next as the All Greys faced Ol Skool with the two sides featuring a number of former internationals. With the pace dying much like the players in the closing minutes, the final whistle would find Ol Skool ahead by 6-1.

Brothers Philip and Alan Fernandes led the score sheet for Ol Skool with a hat-trick and a double respectively while Ivor Thompson scored the team’s sixth. Chris LowKoan managed the lone goal for All Greys. Hikers returned for their second big win of the night with a 10-1 drubbing of Saints.

This time it was Shaquille Assanah to lead the scorers with a hat-trick while teammates Michael Harding and Aroydy Branford each scored a brace (2 goals) and Robert Brummel, Rayon Branford and Joshua Carew scored one each for the Hikers. The Saints lone goal was scored

by Joel Hunte.

Ol Skool had a rather difficult time disposing of a reinforced Old Fort as Jason DeSantos put the latter up by one in the first 5 minutes with possibly the fastest penalty corner shot of the night. Ol Skool however would slowly reel them back in through a double by Alan Fernandes and a third goal

by Thompson. Old Fort’s Fitzroy Leith managed a second for his team but it was not enough to catch Ol Skool who would finish with the 3-2 victory.

GCC then managed to upstage All Greys in the final second division match of the evening by securing a 4-2 victory. Shad Fernandes was on target once again for GCC while teammates Mark Sergeant, with a double, and Trevon Smith, with one more, gave GCC their 4 goal total. A skilful reverse flick from Tricia Fiedtkou gave All Greys their first goal while Timothy Jonas, having provided the earlier assistance to Fiedtkou, scored a second.

The competition continued last evening with several games at the National Gymnasium.

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Thursday, MAY 30, 2013

TOP SCORES

Sports is no longer our game, it’s our business

England 354 (Root 104, Bairstow 64, Boult 5-57) and 287 for 5 dec (Cook 130, Trott 76) beat New Zealand 174 (Swann 4-42) and 220 (Swann 6-90) by 247 runs

Hafeez, Narine in Guyana CPL team F

– Harper is head coach

ormer West Indies off spinner Roger Harper has been named head coach of the Guyana franchise in this year’s Caribbean Premier League (CPL) which bowls off later this year.

Harper, a former head coach of the West Indies cricket team will be assisted by former fast bowler Curtly Ambrose.

Mystery off spinner Sunil Narine has been assigned as the franchise player for Guyana, while Pakistan’s Captain Mohamed Hafeez is the international star.

Other assignments include Antigua, which will be coached by Vivian Richards, who will be assisted by Phillip DeFreitas.

Marlon Samuels has been assigned franchise player, while former Australian Captain Ricky Ponting is the international star.

The Barbados team’s head coach is Desmond Haynes and he will be assisted by Robin

Singh. Kieron Pollard is the franchise player and Pakistani batsman Shoaib Malik is the international star.

Additionally, Paul Nixon will coach Jamaica, assisted by Junior Bennett. Chris Gayle is the franchise player and Sri Lankan legendary off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan is the international star.

Team St Lucia franchise player is West Indies Captain Darren Sammy and former South African opening batsman, Herschelle Gibbs, the international franchise.

The head coach is Andy Roberts and his assistant is Matthew Maynard.

Team Trinidad will be led by Dwayne Bravo, while New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor is the international franchise player. Former West Indies opening batsman Gordon Greenidge is the head coach and he will be assisted by David Williams.

INSIDE TODAY'S SPORTS

Pacers beat Heat to knot P21 Eastern final at two apiece

Guyana International Star Mohamed Hafeez

Guyana head coach Roger Harper

Guyana assistant coach Curtly Ambrose

Jamaica Franchise Player Chris Gayle Guyana Franchise Player Sunil Narine

Team St Lucia Franchise Player Darren Sammy

Trinidad Franchise Player Dwayne Bravo

Barbados Franchise Player Kieron Pollard

Antigua Franchise Player Marlon Samuels

Hemraj, Beaton Tage v Shiv in leave for Sagicor Stainsby Hall’s HPC on Friday 150th anniversary D

Chanderpaul Hemraj

Ronsford Beaton

By Avenash Ramzan

to commence their maiden stint at the Sagicor High Performance Centre (HPC) at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus.

F

irst-class cricketers Chanderpaul Hemraj and Ronsford Beaton, leave Guyana on Friday

See full story on page 22

ERBYSHIRE, England – It was a case of Chanderpaul v Chanderpaul when Stainsby Hall CC took on a Derbyshire CCC XI last week.

The 20-overs-a-side game formed part of the Smalley-based club’s 150th anniversary celebrations and saw Derbyshire and West Indies batting ace Shivnarine Chanderpaul line up on the opposing side to his teenage son Tagenarine, who is Stainsby Hall’s current overseas player.

The club’s David Brown said: “It was a bitterly cold night, but bright, and we think there were at least 400 people there.

“Derbyshire took it pretty seriously and we thank

Shivnarine and Tagenarine Chanderpaul

them for sending along a more or less full strength side. All in all, it was an ex-

cellent fundraiser for the club and went very well.”

(First published in Belper News)

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