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THE BEACON OF TRUTH

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Jagdeo slams Govt for peddling misinformation ISSUE NO. 337

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017

See story on page 7

- says APNU/AFC deliberately inflating value of Pradoville 2 houselots Toronto-based

Guyanese doctor awarded Canada’s Meritorious Service Medal

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Exxon Mobil applies for NY Governor announces cashless Production License of Oil tolling to begin on Rockaway Bridges from April 30 in Guyana Thousands brave cold for Phagwah Parade in NY See story and photos inside

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2 news

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Driver who fatally struck 4-yr-old in Tuschen to face Court soon

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he driver who struck down the Tuschen New Scheme, East Bank Essequibo (EBE), fouryear-old boy in front his home, on Tuesday, could face charges soon, a source close to the investigation has confirmed.

The dead child has been identified as Ramkaran Mohan,

called “Ram”, of Lot 1088 Tuschen New Housing Scheme, EBE. He took his last breath while receiving medical attention at the West Demerara Regional Hospital on Tuesday afternoon.

Guyana Times International understands that the child was reportedly struck down while returning home

with his five-year-old brother and teenage uncle, after they went to a shop obliquely opposite their home to purchase a ball.

Speaking with this newspaper on Wednesday, the lad’s paternal grandmother, Bibi Nazmoon Khan, related that on Tuesday around 11:30h, Ram asked for

permission to go buy a ball and his mother then asked the teenager to accompany him and his brother to the shop across the road.

At the time, Ram’s mother was watching them from the veranda and they crossed the road and went into the stop. She then went back into the house and seconds later, the teenager rushed upstairs informing them that Ram was struck down and was taken to the Leonora Cottage Hospital.

According to the grandmother, her adopted son along with the teenager who accompanied the brothers to the shop, related to them that he was standing at the corner of the road with each of the boys holding his hands, waiting to cross when the silver Toyota Primo, bearing registration number PVV 5084, struck the child.

“The boy was waiting to cross with the two lil boys because he see the car coming so he was waiting for it to pass before they cross but then she (the car driver) swerve into the grass corner and hook the child. She run over the child and she drag

him, she didn’t stop. The boy (teenager) had to run behind the car and stop the car, and then she knows that she had the child under the car,” the grandmother explained in tears.

Khan added that the woman removed the child from under the vehicle and had someone nearby drive them to the hospital. At that point the family was still unaware of the accident. However, by the time they arrived at the medical institution, the child was being seen by the doctor and they were not allowed to see him.

According to the distraught woman, due to the severe condition of her grandson, he had to be transferred to the West Demerara Regional Hospital (WDRH), where he subsequently succumbed.

“When we reach at Best (West Demerara Regional Hospital), the doctor called us in and told us that the baby skull is damaged and his brains scattered. He said there is nothing they could do, that the baby is not breathing off his own,” the woman related.

Khan said that the doctors had Ram on a life support machine, feeding

Dead: Little Ramkaran Mohan

him oxygen to aid with his breathing; however, he was not responding to treatment. The distressed woman added that the doctors did not give up and were trying to put in a tube to see if the child would breathe on his own but unfortunately, they lost him.

The accident occurred at about 11:30h but fouryear-old Ram died sometime around 15:15h.

The boy’s mother was too distraught to talk and was seen holding her youngest of two sons’ photo, crying uncontrollably.

Meanwhile, the father expressed his anger at the way the Police Officers at the Leonora Police Station treated him on Tuesday night when he went to enquire about the case.

NEWS 3

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

PM Nagamootoo assures Toronto-based Guyanese Guyanese sugar industry doctor awarded Canada’s would not be closed Meritorious Service Medal

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rime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, speaking on Wednesday at the Commemorative Ceremony of the 104th Anniversary of the Rose Hall Sugar Estate Martyrs declared that Guyana’s sugar industry would not be closed.

Prime Minister Nagamootoo during his remarks noted that on the 6th January, 2017 President David Granger designated 13th March as Rose Hall Martyrs’ Day. The Prime Minister explained the series of events leading up to the killing of the 15 Rose Hall Martyrs. Those martyrs, he noted, were Badri, Bholay, Durga, Gafur, Jugai, Juggo, Hulas, Lalji, Motey Khan, Nibur, Roopan, Sadulla, Sarjoo, Sohan and Gobindei, the only woman.

The massacre, Prime Minster Nagamootoo explained, of the sugar workers brought greater attention to the cruelty of the system of indentureship, under which some 240,000 East

Indians were brought to the then British Guiana.

Prime Minister Nagamootoo said that “today we pay tribute to the Rose Hall martyrs and all other martyrs and proclaim that their sacrifices were not in vain. The history of bitter sugar goes back some 300 years and is linked to colonial imperialist greed and conquest.”

Today (March 16, 2017) marks 253 years since 1764 when over 80 African revolutionaries were condemned to death and were executed in horrible ways. In the world today, Prime Minister explained, sugar estates are closing down very rapidly and “we have to ensure that GUYSUCO does not come out of sugar, we cannot give up the effort to transform the industry, to modernised sugar industry.” Prime Minister affirmed that “the sugar industry would not be closed, I do not see this ever happening in my lifetime.”

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oronto-based Guyanese Dr Narendra Singh, Humber River Hospital’s Chief of Staff, was on March 9, awarded Canada’s Meritorious Service Medal (Civil Division) by Governor General of Canada, David Johnston.

According to a press release from Canada NewsWire, Hospital President & CEO Barb Collins congratulated Singh, noting “we are all proud of the amazing work Dr Singh, and many of his colleagues at Humber, do, not just in our hospital every day but beyond into the local and global communities.

In Dr Singh’s case, his leadership has seen the neonatal and infant mortality in his birth country of Guyana drop dramatically, saving the lives of hundreds of babies every year.”

“I’m honoured to share this with them: this is a true team effort from people de-

Dr. Narendra Singh (left) receiving congratulations from Governor General David Johnston following the Meritorious Service Decoration presentation (CNW Group/Humber River Hospital)

termined to make a difference for these kids. I also want to thank my colleagues at Humber River Hospital for their support and encouragement at every step,” the release quoted Singh as saying as he thanked his partners in Guyana Help the Kids.

The Toronto-based paediatrician founded Guyana

Help the Kids [www. guyanahelpthekids.com] in 2009 to address neonatal and infant mortality rates in his country of birth. He raised funds to procure essential equipment, then went on to establish a residency programme in collaboration with Canadian universities to train Guyanese paediatricians and nurses.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

INTERNATIONAL To contact: Guyana Times International

New York Office 106-15 Sutphin Blvd, Jamaica NY 11435 Email: guyanatimesnyint@gmail.com Tel no: 718-658-6804 Fax no: 718-849-2286 Preferred method of contact via EMAIL Guyana Office Ruimveldt, Georgetown, Guyana.

Tel no: (592) 227-0704, 227-0709.

Fax (592) 225-8696, 227-0685 Email: guyanatimesint@gmail.com

EDITORIAL

External interference

I

n January of this year, the British Government claimed to have financed the return services of Dr Sam Sittlington to advise the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) in a five-week stint.

The Unit had already been enmeshed in a swirling controversy brought about when an operative, engaged in a cloak and dagger surveillance operation, segued into a hot pursuit that ended tragically when the operative and his wife – who was not supposed to be there – perished.

More generally, a raft of organisations and individuals expressed grave concerns about “mission creep” of the organisation that had been established in 2014 on the recommendation of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF). It was specifically designated as a Police unit operating under the authority of the Police Commissioner but with a close relationship with the Financial Intelligence Unity (FIU), established under the AntiMoney Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act. In the surveillance and chase operation, the subjects were not even later accused of violating those laws.

More recently, SOCU was involved in a very highly publicised operation in which former President BharratJagdeo, six of his former Ministers and several other individuals who had purchased house lots at a new development at Sparendaam – dubbed “Pradoville 2” – were brought in to SOCU’s headquarters and arrested. The State-owned Chronicle blared in banner headlines, “Jagdeo hauled in” and several commentators saw the action as being politically motivated to embarrass and humiliate the Opposition Leader. Even President Granger was forced to concede the matter could have been handled more appropriately.

But his comment precipitated concerns as to who exactly was behind the political move. When questioned, the two Police top-brass admitted they had no prior knowledge of the operation. However, the week before, Public Security Minister KhemrajRamjattan had boasted that arrests of People’s Progressive Party (PPP) officials in the “Pradoville” matter were imminent.

Concerns were raised then about the Minister becoming involved in operational matters of the Police Force, something he is statutorily forbidden to do.

But Sittlington, putatively an “advisor” to SOCU, was also getting involved in operational matters. After his five-week stint was completed, on February 22, at a press conference at the British High Commission he commented about the domestic reaction to SOCU’s operational role: “Recently in the press we have all seen SOCU being kicked about like a political football.”

However, and possibly because no one objected to his intervention into local politics, during the last SOCU operation of interrogating and arresting Jagdeo and other Pradoville house lots purchasers two weeks later on March 7, Sillington was still very visible with the SOCU team. No one up to today has explained whether his contract was extended and who was paying for his very high priced charges.

In fact, Sittlington was more than just “visible”; he now took an overtly operational role to “explain” to reporters the reason for the Police specific action that Granger later decried: “This is a Police investigation, this is not a PPP investigation. The Police dictate where they interview the suspects, not the individuals.” He also gave numbers of who were arrested and assured reporters there were more arrests pending. The British High Commissioner later denied Sillington was exceeding his remit but later was caught in an unsavoury exchange when he also claimed Sittlington had not been “celebrating” with Ramjattan on the night of the publicised arrests that Ramjattan had predicted. But Ramjattan has now confessed that indeed he was and contradicted the British High Commissioner.

This newspaper believes Sam Sittlington and his British paymaster’s role in the operations of the already controversial SOCU is unacceptable; especially in light of our troubled history with external interferences into our domestic affairs, we call upon the Government to investigate this role and its coverup. We also call upon the entire international community – the UN, the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Caribbean Community, the diplomatic community to condemn this interference in our national sovereignty.

St. George's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Georgetown, Guyana and is one of the tallest wooden churches in the world, at a height of 43.5 metres (143 ft). It is the seat of the Bishop of Guyana. St. George's was designed by Sir Arthur Blomfield and opened on 24 August 1892. The building was completed in 1899. It is located on Church Street in Georgetown, and has been designated a National Monument. (Girendra Persaud photo)

President Granger praises cultural inclusion …during Holi celebrations in Guyana

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hile the celebration of Holi has strengthened the bond among Hindus in Guyana, it has also extended that bond to other religious and ethnic groups.

President David Grangermade these comments to hundreds of Guyanese of all races, who gathered at the Indian Cultural Centre in Bel Air, to celebrate Holi (Phagwah), the festival of colours.

The President, who participated in the traditional Phagwah play, said that that the celebration is even more joyful, this year as the nation commemorates the centenary of the abolition of Indian indentured immigration. “Holi has been a source of solidarity and sustenance, during and beyond the period of indentured immigration… Holi has reinforced the link with the motherland and re-established cultural connections,” he said.

Following the arrival of about 240,000 Indian indentured immigrants in British Guyana between 1838 and 1917, President Granger said that the Hindu faith served as a source of strength throughout their period of hardship.

“Indentured immigrants were thrust into a strange land. The plantation system was unkind and inhospitable. Indians suffered greatly as a result of the poor living and working conditions on the plantations…

Festivals such as Holi brought happiness into an otherwise dreary life. It assured Hindus that good would defeat evil,” he said.

The President said that from an agricultural point of view, and for an agricultural

people, Holi is also the colourful festival of Spring, which depicts the strong connection to the land, celebrates fertility and reinforces the bond between life itself and the land.

“Holi is an opportunity for the renewal of human relations-an occasion for persons to set aside differences. It is time to forget and to forgive wrongs; to frolic, so let’s have fun!” the Head of State said.

The High Commissioner of India to Guyana Mr. VenkatachalamMahalingam, during brief remarks, said that the Festival of Holi represents love and explained several legends on which the celebration is based on in India. Moreover, he said that Holi indeed represents a merging of cultures.

“We all know that Guyana’s motto is One People, One Nation, One Destiny and the emphasis on social cohesion we are glad to see the real meaning of it in the congregation of proud citizens of Guyana here today. It is a true depiction of unity and diversity. May God bless Guyana,” he said.

Several persons in attendance, of various ethnicities and even visitors to Guyana, remarked that such festivities showcase the inclusivity of Guyana’s culture.

Dr. Priyanka Jain, a native of India, who is a doctor attached to the Balwant Singh Hospital and who has lived in Guyana for ten years, said that every year it is a pleasure to see people of all races celebrate Holi. “I think Guyana is a confluence of many cultures.

Everyone embraces the cultures very well here so we all get together and participate

in all the festivals… It shows Guyana’s culture is very tolerant and respectful and filled with fun,” she said.

Ms. Amanda Caldwell and Ms. Elisabeth Smith, both representatives from the United States Embassy in Guyana, said that they were happy to be part of this celebration. “I appreciate this very inclusive activity. We are very happy to have been invited and are able to celebrate in Guyana,” Ms. Smith said.

Mr. Koby Wills, a student, said that it is such celebrations that show just how diverse Guyana’s culture is. “It is good that we are all celebrating as one and be one big happy family even with a celebration that has its religious roots,” he said.

International choreographer, Mr. JayantiBhagawati, a native of India, said that it is heartening when people come together as one to celebrate such holidays, as he has seen happening in Guyana. “I have seen people of all races celebrating this holiday and it is good that people can come together as human beings to celebrate as one,” he said.

The programme included a rich mixture of cultural presentations, including a tabla percussion, Indian songs and dances, steel pan renditions and performances by the National Dance Company, among others.

It was also attended by Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo and Mrs. SitaNagamootoo, former Presidents Mr. Donald Ramotar and Mr. Sam Hinds, other Ministers of Government, Members of Parliament and Members of the Diplomatic Corps. (MOTP)

NEWS 5

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

NY Governor announces cashless tolling to begin on Rockaway Bridges from April 30 G

overnor Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday announced cashless tolling will begin on the Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial and Cross Bay Veterans Bridges in Queens on April 30, a statement from the Governor’s office said.

The Governor’s Office explained that the transition to cashless tolling is a major component of the Governor’s plan to reimagine New York's crossings for the 21st century and will reduce congestion and improve travel time at Rockaway’s major crossings ahead of the region’s summer travel season. The Rockaway resident rebate program is unaffected by the switch to cashless tolling.

“Beginning April 30, cash and metal tokens will no longer be accepted at either bridge and commuters with leftover bridge tokens are encouraged to transition to E-Z Pass and will be eligible to redeem their tokens for a refund. E-ZPass will provide the best rate for all drivers, including Rockaway residents.

Electronic tokens or E-Token E-ZPass plans will also be available starting April 30, 2017”, the statement noted.

"The Rockaway Bridges are vital arteries for the Queens community and we are taking action to reduce congestion, increase safety and streamline

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

the commute at these crossings," Governor Cuomo said.

Open road tolling will be completed at all MTA bridges and tunnels by the end of this year. The schedule is as follows: RFK Bridge – Summer 2017 Verrazano-Narrows Bridge – Summer 2017 Throgs Neck Bridge – Fall 2017 Bronx-Whitestone Bridge – Fall 2017 The Rockaway Bridges join the Henry Hudson Bridge,

Hugh L. Carey and Queens Midtown tunnels, where sensors and cameras suspended over the highway on structures known as "gantries" read E-ZPass tags and take license plate images, so vehicles no longer have to stop and pay the toll. Vehicles with E-ZPass tags are automatically charged, and vehicles without E-ZPass have their license plate recorded and a bill is mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle. E-ZPass tags should be mounted inside the vehicle’s front windshield.

Current token users may use tokens for Rockaway Bridge tolls through April 29, 2017. Leftover tokens may then be easily redeemed by visiting one of the E-ZPass New York Customer Service Center walk-in centers and completing a token redemption request, or by calling 212-3603000, selecting option 6 and requesting a token refund kit.

Resident token users will be mailed information from MTA Bridges and Tunnels with instructions on how to transition from tokens to E-ZPass.

Non-resident token users can go to mta.info/e-zpass to get more information on opening an E-ZPass account.

Cashless tolling is projected to save commuters up to 21 hours of drive time every year. Additionally, it reduces emissions and significantly decreases the amount of fuel burned by drivers, who will no longer have to stop and start waiting to pay tolls. This will conserve approximately one million gallons of fuel and save $2.3 million each year.

To make it easy for drivers to pay their tolls, MTA Bridges and Tunnels has introduced a number of programs. Customers can sign up for E-ZPass and save 30-50 percent on MTA B&T tolls at MTA.info/E-ZPass even if they do not own a car. Drivers who receive a Tolls by Mail bill can

pay it online at the Tolls by Mail website; by mail; over the phone; or in-person, and payment options include check, credit card, checking account, or cash. Customers who call **826 from a mobile phone will receive a text with a link to the Tolls by Mail website and information on how to set up a Pay Toll Now account that can be used by rental car customers.

To ensure that all users of MTA Bridges and Tunnels toll facilities pay their fair share, a series of enforcement measures are in place to tackle toll payment evasion and chronic toll scofflaws. Customers who do not pay their tolls are subject to violation fees, registration suspensions, and other enforcement actions. Late fees accrue if an initial toll bill is unpaid, and if a second notice is also ignored, violation fees of up to $100 per toll violation may be imposed.

The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles has enacted regulation that allows suspension of the vehicle registration of motorists who fail to pay three tolls, violation fees, and other charges resulting from violations on different days, within a period of five years, and ignore toll authorities' repeated notices, the Governor’s office said.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Organisers of Phagwah celebrations in New York should be commended

Dear Editor, The presence of large numbers of IndoGuyanese and other Indo-Caribbean Hindus in selected locations in America and the organising skills of community leaders have made it possible for Phagwah to be celebrated with the same traditions as brought to the West by their ancestors from Mother India to the Caribbean (Guyana, etc) and from there to America. The spirit of Holi has truly traversed a great distance. Phagwah or Holi is the most popular Hindu festival observed in New York City attracting the largest crowd of revellers with Guyanese in the thick of things – as organisers and celebrants. This weekend, NY Hindus celebrated Holi with a mela on Saturday evening at various mandirs,

including AryaSamaj, Tulsi, Trimurthi, Lakshmi, etc. Parades in Queens, the Bronx and Jersey City were scheduled for Sunday.

Hindus in Florida will also celebrate the festival in the Orlando area.

It is because large numbers of Hindus are settled in these areas that Phagwah and other popular Indo-Caribbean festivals are celebrated there.

The organisers of Holi celebrations across the USA need to be applauded for their hard work in making the Phagwah festivities possible. They put a lot of time and effort and their personal money to ensure the success of the planned events. They have helped to institutionalise traditional Indo-Caribbean customs and traditions in this new land. It is

through their vision that Indo-Caribbeans are able to celebrate this and other festivals just like they did or do back in Guyana.

For Phagwah, unlike in the Caribbean, it is not possible to go house to house to celebrate Phagwah. It is not a public holiday. Instead, people come together in one central location (as in Florida or Richmond Hill or Bronx, or Jersey City) to observe the festival.

Hence the focus on a parade and a mela in a public park. The parade has always been observed on the Sunday (Phagwah falls on Sunday this year) after its official observance and is usually a time of extreme excitement and revelry (singing, dancing, etc.).

These central celebrations bring together tens of thousands to ob-

SARU has succeeded in politically polarising the Guyanese society

Dear Editor, The recent outburst of Major (Rtd) Aubrey Heath-Retemeyer, CEO of the State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU), is the latest example of the constant denouncing of groups and individuals who have expressed reservations about aspects of the SARU Bill. This behaviour reinforces an impression that the agency is not overly concerned about putting in place the impartial, broad-based national anti-corruption programme that Guyana so urgently requires.

Indeed, SARU’s constant and excessive allegations are fragmenting the broad national consensus on anti-corruption which contributed significantly to the A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance For Change (APNU/ AFC) coalition electoral victory.

From what ought to be the easiest issue on which to generate formidable national support, SARU has succeeded in politically polarising the society, as reflected in the heavy list of speakers that forced consideration of the SARU Bill to be postponed in the last session of Parliament.

SARU by these and related actions is succeeding in creating the impression that it seriously lacks the political judgment and skills needed to assure the success of the technical and legal aspects of its mandate. The price of the evangelical animosity towards the major Opposition party employed by the head of SARU since its inception and taken up recently by its CEO will be counted in terms of constitutional reform, electoral issues and all matters that require cooperation of the major Opposition.

Major Heath-Retemeyer’s criticism of the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) in questioning “where the GHRA was when hundreds of young men

lost their lives with no steadfast commitment to pursue justice…” is a trite and quite misplaced response to the GHRA’s comments and criticisms of sections of the SARU Bill.

For his information, while acknowledging the need for the nation to confront those deaths, the GHRA is at least on record at the time as having denounced them.

Which prompts the question as to where the zealous Major and his military organisation were at that time. This new-found sensitivity to “the tears of parents and wives and children” stands in marked contrast to its silence when the deaths were generating the tears.

The GHRA collaborated closely in the early stages of setting up the SARU. This civil society organisation continues to fully support a vigorous anti-corruption programme, incorporating preventative measures as well as asset recovery and criminal action.

However, the anti-corruption drive is contaminated when corruption is effectively interpreted as beginning and ending with the last Administration.

Rehabilitating the impartiality of SARU will be an up-hill task, notwithstanding Major HeathRetemeyer’s belated assurance that members of the current Administration suspected of corrupt acts would also be pursued.

There are many imaginative and indeed successful anti-corruption programmes in existence around the world. Guyana does not have to re-invent the wheel.

The common feature running through them is that while anti-corruption is a crowd-pleaser, it requires shrewd political skills to achieve.

Sincerely, Executive Committee Guyana HumanRights Association

serve the colourful festival with people splashing colours on each other. It fosters unity among various groups of people promoting a common feeling of togetherness. As in Guyana or Trinidad, Hindus, Muslims and Christians all partake in the celebrations in a true show of strength of the Indo-Caribbean community in the city. There are also many non-Indians at the celebrations which help to promote harmonious ethnic relations. It also gives non-Indians an opportunity to understand one aspect of Indian culture.

For the last 19 years, Holi has been celebrated in grand style with the annual parade which takes on a carnival-like atmosphere. The parade was launched in 1990, thanks to the work of Kali, PanditRamlall,

PanditSatish, etc) and it has now become institutionalised as part of the celebration of the Phagwah festival attracting politicians and community leaders.

Thus, the initiators of the Liberty Avenue parade deserve the highest praises for conceiving the parade, which showcases the community’s numbers and gives political recognition to the community. An aura of Holi is in the air.

In addition to the parade, there are also Phagwah festivities at various clubs, temples, mandirs, and catering halls. There are glittering cultural variety shows, pageants with modelling of latest Indian designs and other festivities during the weekends preceding and following the official observance of the festival.

Temple members have been engaging in chowtal singing over the last several Sundays. Some temples held celebrations to coincide with the holiday on Wednesday evening. The melas and the parades help to advance a sense of togetherness that enhances pride and admiration for the rich cultural heritage that was handed down by the indentured servants from India.

On Sunday, the celebration culminated with the parade. Delicacies (bara, gulgula, phulourie, bigany, mango or tamarind chutney, potato ball, prasad, channa, ghoja, mahambhoog, kheer or sweet rice, among others) and beverages were served.

Yours truly, Vishnu Bisram

Public Health Ministry has failed to build on improvements made by previous government Dear Editor, It is clear to everyone that this Government has officially conducted more questionable purchases of Drugs than they had accused the PPP of. For nearly two years now the MOPH has failed to build on the improvements made by the previous Government in strengthening the Supply Chain System of medicines and supplies nationwide.

What makes it more glaring, is the fact that they have established a Procurement Commission while the actions with regards to drug purchases has gotten worst. The recent so-called emergency purchase of drugs for GPHC at a whopping G$605 Million, plus an additional G$900 Million for other hospitals are only recent events of gross misconduct in the Procurement System.

We had the infamous bottom house bond being paid over G$12 Million per month to store condoms and a few other items. It is still unsure whether the items stored in that bond are even valued more than the rent itself.

Some say that Minister Lawrence is new to the

role and she should be given some slack on this matter, but I say that’s a very expensive price for the tax payers. I would like to remind you that Minister Lawrence was the Chairwoman of the Public Accounts Committee for several years while the PPP was in power and she led an overly aggressive fight against the PPP led Ministry of Health for what they called gross violations in the health procurement system. Now the violations she chastised the PPP for is nothing compare to what’s happening now.

But more interestingly, is the fact that this Minister has chosen to take lower level procurement staff and throw them to the fire that APNU started.

We must also take note of the large sums of tax payer’s money that is now being paid to foreign companies like AnsaMcal, while Guyana is drained of foreign currencies. The people must realize sooner than later, that APNU is not a Government for the people but more a Government for foreign companies.

Sincerely, Malcolm Watkins

Where is the change that I voted for?

Dear Editor, I am writing in protest of action to be taken by the APNU/AFC Coalition Government that would, I believe, threaten my rights and freedoms as a Guyanese citizen, especially since this action is to be taken without any form of consultation.

When I voted in May 2015, it was clear in my mind that I wanted change: I wanted to see different people in charge of the Government, different people leading policies, and different people engaged in solving our problems. Now, nearly two years later, I must say that I am somewhat disappointed, because the coalition Government has taken a piece of legislation that was essentially drafted by the previous PPP government and has decided to bring it into law without public debate or sensitization. What arrogance!! The piece of legislation has far-reaching implications for everyone, smokers and non-smokers alike.

The Coalition Government is considering the passage of the Anti-Tobacco Legislation which, as it stands now, proposes a ban on smoking in public places, including one’s home. Nothing is wrong with a ban on smoking in public spaces, but as I understand it, the legislation defines my private home as public space if persons are employed by me as general help, gardener, babysitter, or household help. If any one of these persons is employed in your private home, it is subject to the full force of the new legis-

lation.

Therefore, if you are a smoker like me, and you happen to employ one of those persons listed above, under the new legislation you are not allowed to smoke in the your own home because of the presence of your employee(s). This renders/renders your home a “public space” subject to the vagaries of the legislation.

The ban on smoking in public places also prevents you from smoking in your private vehicle, if the said vehicle is being used to transport others.

Declaring what is public places and private spaces is already a controversial topic. However, when one’s home and private vehicle are added into the mix, it becomes an issue about which every Guyanese should be concerned.

This legislation proposes to trespass upon our constitutional rights and freedoms, and the Government doesn’t see it appropriate to have an open debate on its implication for the entire society.

One of the many disappointments taken from this situation thus far, as it unfolds in the days or weeks ahead, is that I really don’t see the change I voted for in the way the Coalition Government has so far approached the pending Anti-tobacco legislation.

Sincerely, Concerned citizen

news 7

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Pradoville 2 probe:

Jagdeo slams Govt for peddling misinformation - says APNU/AFC deliberately inflating value of Pradoville 2 houselots

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ormer President Bharrat Jagdeo has proven that the disputed removal of the National Communications Network (NCN) transmitting tower did not form part of the cost of the development of the Pradoville 2 Housing Project, as he defended the prices at which the lands in the housing scheme were sold.

Jagdeo, owner of a property in the controversial housing scheme, railed against assertions that the lands were undervalued because the cost of removing the transmission mast was included in the net price.

The Opposition Leader during a recent press conference presented correspondences which predate the development of Pradoville 2, to prove that the tower was removed for the sole purpose to facilitate

the Ogle International Airport (renamed the Eugene F Correia International Airport) Expansion Project, and not for the development of the housing scheme as perpetuated by others.

He slammed the coalition Administration for deliberately inflating the value of the house lots; an assertion which has been presented in the audit reports and being used by investigators even though public records verify that the tower was removed for the airport expansion initiative.

“Every time, including from the audits, the Government speaks, they convey the impression that the sole purpose of removing this mast was for the establishment of the housing scheme and they put the expenditure of removing the mast and shifting it elsewhere to the

development cost of the housing scheme. This is how it’s spun all the time… this is public record. They would have this information but why do they persist,” he explained.

The issue of the tower, which was since relocated to La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara (WBD), came up for scrutiny during the ongoing probe of the housing scheme.

The Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) has since arrested and detained several former prominent Government officials under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) regime, in connection to their role in the development of and/ or purchase of lots in the Pradoville 2 scheme.

In fact, after meeting with SOCU officials at the Camp Road Headquarters

on Wednesday, former Prime Minister Samuel Hinds told reporters that he was questioned about the transmission tower that was previously located in Sparendaam, on the East Coast of Demerara. At the time, he was Prime Minister with responsibility for the aviation sector.

Hinds had explained that talks for the removal of the transmission tower begun in 2004, some seven years before it was actually relocated to allow for the airport’s expansion. He noted that there are documents to support this.

P u b l i c Communications Consultant of the Eugene F Correia International Airport, Kit Nascimento had also confirmed on March 10 that the tower was indeed removed to facilitate the expansion project.

In a letter dat-

Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo

ed April 19, 2004, between Anthony Mekdeci, then Manager of the Ogle Airport and Rawle Edinboro, then Town & Country Planning Officer at the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), the removal of the transmitting mast was discussed.

“It is in the interest

of the Airport that plans commenced to have this mast removed or reduced in height since in its present location, it penetrates the obstacle clearance limit of the new runway development and it is a hazard to aviation,” Mekdeci stated in the letter.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Police ranks among Several locations under beneficiaries of Govt’s consideration for new first housing project Demerara River crossing

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even hundred and sixty eight families are expected to be housed in the first phase of the implementation of Government’s’ new housing programme. Members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) are among those targeted to benefit.

Minister within the Communities Ministry with responsibility for housing, Valerie Adams-Patterson and a team from the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) on Wednesday engaged Police ranks stationed in Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) on Government’s Housing Solutions for State employees. The sides met at the GPF’s Training Centre at Camp and Young Streets, Eve Leary, the Government Information Agency (GINA) said in a release.

The Minister’s team comprised CH&PA’s Operations Director, Denise Tudor-King and acting Project Director Omar Narine.

“We have come to you today [Wednesday], to share the new vision of this Government, and to let you know that we are working on your behalf and we are working to ensure that each of you own your home,” Minister Adams-Patterson told the ranks.

The Minister said Government will be maximising the use of its available service lands to offer a range of hous-

ing solutions that will cater to their needs, and those of other low, moderateand middle-income persons, the release stated.

AdamsPatterson s t a t e d that the CH&PA’s focus right now is to build duplexes and townhouses. She explained that these types of houses will accommodate a larger number of families as compared to giving house lots.

Meanwhile, the ranks heard from Narine that initially 265 buildings will be constructed and that these will be divided into 768 units, each housing a family. Narine explained that each duplex will house two families and each townhouse, six families.

He explained that the townhouses’ dimension will be 22 x 26 square feet and the duplexes, 20x 40 square feet. He said that both housing options provide for units comprising two bedrooms, a living room, a dining room, a kitchen and indoor toilet and bath.

The engagement with Police ranks is part of an ongoing exercise organised by the CH&PA, in collaboration with the Guyana Police Association.

The exercise is in fulfillment of a commitment made to the Association to address with urgency the housing needs of Policemen and women.

As per this commitment, CH&PA in 2016, met with ranks in Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Five (Mahaica-Berbice) and Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) and allocated house lots at prices ranging from G$92,000 to G$1.5 million.

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In photo, Arie Mol (second right) highlights location information to Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson (second left), Ministerial Advisor Kenneth Jordan (right), and DHBC General Manager Rawlston Adams

he first phase of the feasibility study for a new Demerara River bridge crossing has been completed with several locations identified.

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson, along with a team from the Ministry, and General Manager of the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation, Rawlston Adams, met with LievenseCSO on Monday, where they discussed the study.

Arie Mol of the Dutch company, led the presentation of the study which began in January this year. In his presentation, Mol touched on a number of points, including river/marine traffic, river modelling, and economic and environmental considerations. He also highlighted a number of possible locations for the new river crossing, including New Hope, Peter’s Hall, Eccles, and Houston, with lengths ranging from approximately 580 metres to

just under 2000 metres.

A more detailed presentation of the feasibility study is expected to be made at a later date. Additionally, draft reports will be made to Cabinet and then open to consultation by the second week of April.

The feasibility study, which costs $146.3 million (US$706,091) and approved by Cabinet last year, following a proposal submitted from Dutch company, for it to conduct the feasibility study and design of a new bridge across the Demerara River, linking Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and Four (Demerara-Mahaica).

The study is expected to be completed in July.

The contract between the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation (DHBC) and the Dutch company was signed on December 9, 2016, during which Arie Mol, Advisor to the CEO of LievenseCSO, committed to ensuring that all

schedules are met and completed on time.

Floating at 1.25 miles, the Demerara Harbour Bridge is a strategic link between the eastern and western banks of the Demerara River. It facilitates the daily movement of a large numbers of vehicles, people and cargo.

The structure was built in the 1970s, but was opened in July 1978 with the expectation of lasting only 10 years. However, some 37 years later, it is still floating.

In 2013, the Bridge Corporation, in collaboration with the then Public Works Ministry, had carried out a pre-feasibility study. That study concluded that a ‘fixed high level’ bridge was the best option to pursue.

The study considered the model, the tender documents and the sites proposed, and it will also make the final pronouncement on whether or not the construction is something that the country can go forward with.

NEWS 9

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Carvil Duncan case 4 remanded for against Tribunal continues at High Court armed robbery

Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo

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he Carvil Duncan legal challenge against the tribunal that was set up to determine if he could remain in several constitutional posts while charges were being prosecuted against him continued at the High Court.

The matter is being heard by Justice Franklin Holder.

Duncan, who was suspended as Chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC), took the stand on Wednesday, when Attorney General Basil Williams, SC, grilled him for several hours about how mail was received at the PSC. A “did he or didn’t he” aspect of the matter relating to Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo was the high point of the nearly three-hour court session.

The Prime Minister had contended that he dispatched a letter to Duncan’s office informing him of the Executive’s decision to establish a tribunal to determine if he was fit to continue serving in his constitutional offices in light of several charges he was facing at the time.

Nagamootoo, who is expected to take the stand soon, had also disclosed that the letter, as required by the Constitution of Guyana, invited Duncan to show cause why the tribunal should not be set up.

But when Duncan testified on Wednesday, he held out that he never received the correspondence.

In light of this, AG Williams spent hours attempting to ascertain information regarding the procedures of how mail was received, handled, categorised and distributed at the PSC and to its Chairman.

“Are you aware that mail that comes to the Chairman is categorised as urgent or confidential?” the AG asked

Duncan in court.

“All mails addressed to the Chairman of the Public Services Commission are handed to the Secretary of the Chairman…by one of the office assistants,” Duncan responded, in one of multiple exchanges between the two men.

Duncan revealed that mail “received downstairs” was not computerised.

At several intervals, Justice Holder had to intervene and clarify many of the statements that the witness disclosed in court. At one point, the AG angrily expressed that Anil Nandlall, who is representing Duncan, was “trying to prompt the witness”, and Nandlall repeatedly objected to the AG’s line of questioning, suggesting that the AG was asking the same questions in repetition.

After the matter was adjourned, Nandlall, the former Attorney General, remarked that much of Wednesday’s session was “wasted in trying to understand the mailing system at the Public Service Commission”. Speaking with members of the media, Nandlall pointed out that AG Williams should have asked questions relating to the letter that Duncan was said to have received.

Nandlall also disputed the materialness of the questions regarding the mailing procedures at the PSC. “In my view, it’s totally irrelevant, because at the end of the day, even if the mail was received into the system at the PSC, the issue is that Carvil Duncan [didn’t] received the mail and the AG can’t seem to get that under cross-examination and [he] stayed away from that deliberately while confusing the whole issue with asking a whole set of irrelevant questions about where documents are stored,” the former Legal Affairs Minister told the media.

Justice Holder, in October 2016, suspended the work of the presidential tribunal following an injunction, which was filed by Nandlall.

Nandlall had argued that the tribunal was an unlawful and unconstitutional course of action since Duncan at the time was not found guilty of the charges. However, President David Granger had suspended Duncan from several constitutional posts, which included being a

Suspended PSC Chairman, Carvil Duncan

member of the Judicial Service Commission and the Police Service Commission.

Subsequently, city Magistrate Leron Daly dismissed one of the charges against Duncan.

Duncan was facing a charge which stated that on March 31, 2015 at Georgetown, he stole G$984,900, property of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL).

Duncan still faces a conspiracy charge which stated that between May 7 and May 8, 2015, he conspired with then Deputy Chief Executive Officer (DCEO) of GPL, Aeshwar Deonarine to steal G$27,757,547, property of the power company. Duncan had also alleged that he was offered money by both the President and Minister of State, Joseph Harmon to vacate his offices, a claim which the Government had denied.

The High Court matter will continue next Thursday before Justice Holder at 09:30h.

(Shemuel Fanfair)

D

Accused: Roberto Sankar and Junior Stuart

ellon Morgan, Mark Bond, Kasey Helligar and Roberto Sankar were on Tuesday remanded to prison for armed robbery

by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

The first charge read that the four men, on January 30, 2017 at Pigeon Island, East Coast Demerara, while armed with a dangerous weapon, robbed Virtual Complainant (VC) Dexter Lowe of a 1.3 Taurus pistol valued at G$179,000, along with G$7000 cash.

In addition, the men, armed with a firearm, robbed Junior Cheong of G$1, 000,200, property of the said VC. The defendants were not required to plead to the indictable charges.

Morgan, Bond and Helligar were represented by Attorney Adrian Thompson. The court heard that Morgan was a 21-year-old construction worker residing in Kitty, Georgetown and the father of a one-year-old.

Bond, on the other hand, is a 46-year-old fa-

ther of three and also a resident of Kitty, while Helligar is a carpenter by trade with two small children.

Thompson related that his clients were picked up 10 days ago in Kitty and were kept at Police Headquarters, Eve Leary; and the Sparendaam and Diamond stations during the said time, postulating that Bond and Helligar were never picked out during an ID parade, although Morgan was. He continued that it was not understandable why 10 days later, the investigation was still incomplete.

Meanwhile, Sankar’s defence counsel explained that her client was the Manager of a restaurant at Pigeon Island and did not at any point in time provide an oral or written confession to Police ranks, as stated in various news articles.

Prosecutor Deniro Jones objected to bail based on the gravity of the offence, the fact that a weapon was used in the commission of the crime,

and the penalty attached to the felony.

In addition, he posited that Sankar was the mastermind of the crime and had admitted to his involvement.

Magistrate McLennan denied bail in the absence of special circumstances and remanded the men to prison. The matter was adjourned to March 21, 2017.

Bond and Sankar were escorted out of the courtroom, while Helligar and Morgan remained to answer to additional charges.

It was alleged that Junior Stuart, 31, of Kitty; Morgan; Helligar and Richard Seenarine, 29, also of Kitty, on March 4, 2017 robbed Aron Akbar of G$80,000 cash. The men on the same day allegedly robbed Esau Akbar of G$7000 and one cellular phone valued at G$15,000.

Bail was objected to by the prosecution based on the gravity and seriousness of the offence, and the fact that Stuart has pending matters of similar nature before the courts.

The Chief Magistrate denied bail and the men were placed on remand.

The matter continues on March 21 at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Exxon Mobil applies Brazilian pastor for Production License denied bail again over of Oil in Guyana causing death charge

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merican oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. has asked Guyana’s government for a production license to let it start pumping oil from the seabed by late 2019, though company officials have said operations are likely to start in 2020, according to an AP report.

Guyana Geology and Mines Commissioner, Newell Dennison on Wednesday confirmed the application, saying it would be the first time the small South American country has issued an oil and gas license.

Exxon Mobil said last year that exploratory wells off Guyana discovered a “world-class” reservoir that could hold up to 1.4 billion barrels of oil.

The discoveries add to a maritime rights dispute with Venezuela, which also claims the area where they are located. The UN has given both nations until year’s end to solve the dispute.

According to AP, Dennison said the company has also submitted its general production plan alongside its application for a production permit. The firm has so

far drilled five wells and is currently completing work on a sixth. Only one has come up dry so far.

“I can confirm that they have applied for the permit,” said Dennison, who indicated it would allow operations by late 2019.

Exxon Mobil announced on March 1 that “Guyana startup is expected by 2020, less than five years after the initial discovery well – a rare occurrence in the industry in terms of development time.”

Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman has said that government is planning to contract international firms to help it in negotiations with Exxon Mobil because the country has no expertise in this area.

He did not identify any of the firms.

Guyana’s parliament is planning to update legislation to cover issues including oil production and potential spills.

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Pastor Haleno Luiz

Dead: Maurice Moseley

second bail application made for Brazilian senior pastor of the Universal Church, Haleno Luiz, was again denied by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, when he faced the courts on Wednesday.

Luiz was previously remanded to prison for causing the death of pensioner Maurice Moseley, by dangerous driving, after an unsuccessful bail application by his then defence attorney, Eusi Anderson, just over a week ago.

The Chief Magistrate on Wednesday declared that she was not satisfied with the address provided to the immigration office, which was the Church’s Wellington Street location, instead of the accused’s Robb and Cummings Street home address, thereby denying bail.

Newly retained defence council, Mark Waldron, explained that his client’s address is listed as Wellington

Street because the church had applied for the work permit on the pastor’s behalf.

The Magistrate however contended that the accused is a flight risk as the Guyana-Brazil border remains easily accessible. The court previously heard that on the day of the incident, Luiz was proceeding at a fast rate along Hadfield Street and had failed to slow down upon approaching the intersection at Smyth Street, subsequently colliding with Maurice Moseley’s motorcycle, killing him.

Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones told the court that the prosecution’s file is still incomplete, owing to outstanding post-mortem results.

Members of the Brazilian church swarmed the courtroom in support of the pastor while others surrounded the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts in large numbers.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2016| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Corporal remanded for smuggling AK-47 out of TSU compound

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rank of the Guyana Police Force who had attempted to smuggle a firearm out of the Tactical Services Unit compound on February 28, 2017 was charged with the possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition when he faced the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday.

The charge stated that on the day in question at Kingston, Georgetown, 36-year-old Shavon Marks was in possession of one AK-47 firearm and 40 live rounds of ammunition, without being the holder of a firearm licence.

Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones related that Police had received reports to the effect that the accused was planning to sell a firearm, upon which a sting operation was set up by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Marks was reportedly observed placing the weapon in the back of a motor vehicle, after which it drove away.

The vehicle was followed and subsequently intercepted by Police Officers who cautioned and arrested the driver.

He was later charged with the offence.

Defence Attorney Bernard De Santos, SC, argued that the weapon was not found in his client’s posses-

- says senior cop Accused: Corporal Shavon Marks

sion. He slammed the investigation as being the worst of its kind, making reference to recent newspaper publications which announced that his client had fled the country. He added that his client was instead given two weeks’ leave and had voluntarily turned himself in to the authorities contrary to Police facts.

Bail was denied by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan. The prosecution’s file was disclosed as being incomplete owing to an outstanding ballistics report and the matter was adjourned to March 22, 2017.

Marks will remain incarcerated at the Camp Street prison until the next court hearing.

Diamond man to spend six years behind bars after pleading guilty to manslaughter

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h r i s t o p h e r DaSilva, formerly of Diamond, East Bank Demerara (EBD), will spend the next six years behind bars after he changed his plea to guilty at his High Court trial for murder on Tuesday.

DaSilva pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter just days after he initially denied that he was responsible for the June 28, 2012 murder of Rayaad Khan, who was fatally stabbed to his chest with a broken glass bottle, after an altercation.

DaSilva’s Defence Attorney, Maxwell McKay appealed for a reasonable sentence, noting that his client took up boxing in jail as a form of anger management. State Prosecutor Siand Dhurjon, however, posited that the court should issue a prison term commensurate with DaSilva’s actions, further noting that Khan was only 17 at the time, handsome, a top student and was “full of potential”.

After DaSilva had disclosed his intentions through his Attorney, Justice Navindra Singh re-arraigned the accused. The Judge later told him that it was unfortunate that the incident occurred, but noted that the court could not allow the crime to go unpunished.

As such, he directed the jury foreman to return a guilty verdict.

In handing down the sentence, the presiding Judge took into consideration that the trial had

No racial profiling in beating incident at Canal Number One

Christopher DaSilva was sentenced to six years for killing Rayaad Khan

already started, and the accused spent time on remand awaiting trial and showed genuine remorse.

Justice Singh started the sentence at 11 years, but took off five years for time spent incarcerated, so DaSilva would serve a six-year prison term, with the possibility of parole.

Moments before the six-year sentence was handed down, DaSilva broke down in tears when he addressed the court.

He first apologised to the deceased’s father, Azeem Khan, saying that he was very sorry for what happened. He further noted that his mother was a single parent who had been finding it hard to support him while he was behind bars.

After breaking down in the courtroom, DaSilva emerged somewhat calmer into the corridors, explaining that the sentence was indeed fair.

“It would be a fair sentence, because sometimes you go trial, get [found] guilty and it would just be worse than this,” DaSilva told this

newspaper, pointing out that he would continue boxing.

A post-mortem had revealed that Khan died from shock and haemorrhage owing to a single stab wound to the chest. After the sentencing, Khan’s father stated that while “the sentence was small”, he did feel sorry for DaSilva. He, however, explained that the ruling did not bring closure for him.

“There’s no way that I could get back him and I still miss him a lot, but I hope that the young man redeems himself,” the senior Khan expressed.

The man also highlighted that his only son was an ambitious and hard-working individual.

“He owned his own business even while he was going to school and many times he financed himself when he was going to travel when he was going to the States, Canada or around the Caribbean; even though I have, he told me, “Pops, I have my own money”,” the still grieving father recalled.

DaSilva was 18 years old at the time he stabbed Khan, who resided at Section C, Golden Grove, EBD at the time of his demise. The prosecution’s team, which was assisted

by Tuanna Hardy, contended that the stabbing occurred about 20:00h on June 28, 2012 at 17th Avenue, Diamond New Housing Scheme. At the time of the incident, reports were the two young men argued over the attention which DaSilva’s girlfriend had paid to Khan.

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Dameion Gordon and Vernon Beckles

ollowing reports that two men – Dameon Gordon and Vernon Beckles – were beaten as a result of racial profiling, the Police think otherwise as they continue their investigations.

The two men were given a sound thrashing on Sunday evening, along the Canal Number One Polder, West Bank Demerara, access road after they were allegedly caught stealing the mirrors from a car belonging to a resident during a Phagwah Mela in the community.

A senior Police rank told Guyana Times International that while several persons were questioned in connection with the incident, no one was arrested. He explained that on the night in question, Gordon and Beckles travelled to

the area with a member of the Guyana Defence Force and his brotherin-law. The GDF rank is reportedly friends with a woman living in the area.

However, due to the fact that no alcohol was sold at the function, a large group of residents had congregated at a popular show in the area.

The Police source went on to say that the two victims along with the soldier and his brother-inlaw went to take a few drinks.

Whilst there, the GDF rank met a friend who enquired about Beckles and Gordon. A short while after, one of the victims was seen “fighting up” with a mirror and the owner of the car went to check.

As he approached the car, he realised that both of his mirrors were missing. The Police stated that as the owner of

the car looked around he saw Beckles and Gordon stooping down close to another vehicle and thought that something was amiss.

The owner of the car raised an alarm. By this time, he was joined by several “drunken” men and as such, approached the vehicle that the victims were loitering around.

As they got closer to the vehicle, Beckles and Gordon started to inch away making them more suspicious as thieves. The mirrors were subsequently found hidden under another vehicle. As the mirrors were retrieved, the two men started to run and it was at this time they were attacked and beaten by the mob, the Police source confirmed.

Upon realising that the two men were being assaulted, the GDF rank pleaded with the mob to stop and the two men jumped into the nearby canal. The Police source stated that the two mirrors that were removed from the car are impounded as evidence. The GDF rank, he noted, gave a statement to corroborate that given by the owner of the car.

Region 10 examining investment opportunities

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s officials of Region 10 (Upper D e m e r a r a Berbice) continue their agenda to push development through local and foreign investment, the administration of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) is now seeking to cash in on opportunities through the European Union (EU).

Regional Chairman Renis Morian recently explained that while the EU did not work directly through RDCs, the Union is expected to roll out a programme through NonGovernmental Organisations (NGOs) soon, an initiative which the Region aspired to benefit from. There is particular interest in the area of agriculture, Morian said. The Region 10 Administration has not received an agriculture budget for several years.

“What they’re saying, in the area of agriculture, they’re (EU) waiting on Government to share with them their priori-

Region 10 Chairman, Renis Morian

ties. So we would have to talk to our Ministers, when they’re talking to the EU, that they include that Region 10 got an agriculture project that they want to do,” the Regional Chairman said.

He added that letters have already been submitted to approximately five embassies, in an effort to discuss the development needs of the Region. The Regional Chairman also outlined several areas of social

development which the Administration wished to pursue.

“We’ve shared with the European Union, the business of a halfway house for women and a holding place for juveniles. If a juvenile commits a crime and has to be held by the Police, he is held at the (Police) Station. While they don’t fund that, they gave us some steps that we could follow to make that a reality; but they also advised us to do a brochure as it relates to investment opportunities for Region 10,” Morian said.

The Regional Chairman added that the next step would be for the RDC and other local agencies such as the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC); the Linden Enterprise Network (LEN) and the Linden Chamber of Commerce Industry and Development to initiate a meeting with the EU to share the Region’s cause, following which a document will be drafted.

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Jagdeo urges probe into ‘wine sipping’ celebration after SOCU’s arrests

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ne week after Public Security M i n i s t e r Khemraj Ramjattan and top officials of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) congregated at a popular city café after hauling in several prominent former Government officials for questioning, including former President Bharrat Jagdeo, the now Opposition Leader is calling for an investigation to be launched into the “celebration”.

Speaking at the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) weekly press conference on Tuesday, Jagdeo questioned the motive behind the gathering, noting that “to drink wine immediately after arrests were made warrants a full-fledged investigation”.

According to the Opposition Leader, given that the coalition Government has launched several Commissions of Inquiry, President David Granger should do the same with regard to this matter since it threatened the country’s independence and dignity.

“I would like to urge… that an investigation takes place at a high level. If we had an independent office that deals with integrity of Ministers, then that would have been investigated already,” he asserted.

Last Wednesday, SOCU Head Sydney James; British Adviser to SOCU, Dr Sam Sittlington and Minister Ramjattan were seen

British expert, Dr Sam Sittlington

clinking glasses in an extremely celebratory atmosphere in the dimly lit café.

In fact, former Attorney General Anil Nandlall, in a statement on Thursday, questioned recent comments made by Dr Sittlington, including whether or not he was operating under the auspices of the British High Commission in Guyana and his role in SOCU. Nandlall said, “I note that Mr Sam Sittlington has taken the liberty of making statements which have political underpinnings, and seems to be functioning as part of the operations of SOCU.” But British High Commissioner Greg Quinn, in a statement on Friday, claimed that Dr Sittlington was “at SOCU in an advisory and training capacity and not in an operational role”.

According to Quinn, Dr Sittlington was merely trying to explain to reporters the legal basis

and rights under which SOCU took the actions they did. Furthermore, the British High Commissioner claimed that none of the High Commission’s staff were at the café on Wednesday evening, as believed.

However, in a rebuttual statement on Friday, the former Attorney General disclosed that his information revealed otherwise.

Exceeding official remit Moreover, he posited that based on what he was told by his clients, who were subjects of SOCU’s investigations, and what he personally observed on the first day of the arrests last week, it was easy to conclude that Dr Sittlington may have “exceeded his official remit and trespassed into operational matters at SOCU”.

At the PPP press conference on Tuesday, Jagdeo said he trusted the information related by Nandlall, while adding that he himself would have been told about the British expert’s involvement in the operations of SOCU. “I have information that Mr Sittlington have been on raids with SOCU; he has gone into the premises of nationals of Guyana as part of these raids – being part of operations themselves. So if the British High Commissioner is saying that he has no operational mandate as part of his job, then he will be open (to an investigation)…

We have a foreigner here

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan

who is trespassing on the rights of Guyanese citizens, tolerated by our Government,” the Opposition Leader noted.

This ‘wine sipping’ celebration came on the heels of resounding cries that the Executive has been giving orders to SOCU to attack former Government officials as part of its witch-hunting exercise, which the Government has denied.

The Public Security Minister had explained that the ‘wine sipping’ event was a farewell for Dr Sittlington, and he would be advocating for his return.

“The fact that I had some wine with Sam on Wednesday evening at Oasis was because I wanted to thank him for the great work he did at SOCU at his farewell function. He left the next day. I certainly will plead his return to High Commissioner Mr Greg Quinn,” Ramjattan posited.

Holiday mix-up: Minister Henry should apologise, says Dr Norton

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egardless of the perceived magnitude of the blunder, Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton believes the Culture Minister, Nicolette Henry owes the Hindu community a public apology for mixing up their religious holidays.

Henry, the Junior Minister within the Education Ministry with responsibility for culture, youth and sports, confused Phagwah with Diwali and was seemingly oblivious to her mistake.

“I would begin by saying Happy Phagwah, Happy Holi. On Sunday, MARCH 19th, here in Guyana and around the world, Hindus will be celebrating Diwali, the Festival of Lights,” she stated, not realising her blunder as she continued her prepared speech.

A minute later, she made the mistake again.

When compared with her Diwali speech last year, her Phagwah speech this year bore much resemblance – causing many to conclude that it was recycled.

Public outcry surround the Minister not realising her mistake, not apologising for it and not finding it important enough to take the time to write a fresh speech about Phagwah.

Interestingly also, the Culture Minister was absent from major cultural events hosted on MARCH 19 in observance of Phagwah, including those at the Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) and the Providence National Stadium where other Government Ministers had gathered.

The Social Cohesion Minister, during an interview with Guyana Times International at the Phagwah Mela at the ICC, suggested that Minister Henry was probably busy.

Commenting on the Culture Minister’s holiday mix-up, Dr Norton conceded that the situation warranted an apology.

“There is nothing wrong in an apology…I went public, and I apologised to the whole of Guyana because the occasion called for it,” he stated.

23-yr-old woman jailed for narco trafficking Somalian fined,

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he trial of Tiffany Sultan came to a halt on Wednesday morning at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts when the Chief Magistrate found her guilty of narcotics possession for the purpose of trafficking, and sentenced her to two years and 11 months imprisonment.

The 23-year-old of Charlestown, Georgetown, was earlier this year charged with illegal possession of 106 grams of cannabis for trafficking purposes.

Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, in summing up, declared that the court having considered all the evidence, was satisfied that the accused was indeed found in possession of the said substance as she was the sole occupant of the premises in which the marijuana was discovered and that she had intended to traffic same, as this was evidenced by wads of cash found stashed under her bed.

The Magistrate added that the caution statements made by the defendant were found to be made freely and voluntarily; during which she had reportedly confessed to ownership of the drugs, admitting that she sells it. She held that the prosecu-

Convicted drug trafficker, Tiffany Sultan

tion had proved each element of the offence and had presented credible witnesses, whose evidence was well corroborated.

Attorney Stanley Moore said he does not understand why the prosecution did not go after the alleged

big operator behind the crime, instead targeting a “small fry, while the big sharks swim free”.

The accused in her previous testimony had contended that she was assaulted by a Police Officer while she was being detained at the station for questioning; however, the Magistrate in her ruling stated that she found this to be a mere allegation in the absence of evidence.

The court heard that on the day in question, Sultan was in her kitchen when Police Officers entered the premises, questioned her and began searching the house for “anything illegal”. After responding in the negative to the probing questions of the ranks, Sultan finally surrendered, leading them to a clothing basket from which she unearthed a black plastic bag saying, “This is all I have”.

A quantity of cash to the sum of G$200,000 was also found in the house which the accused claimed belonged to her father. The woman’s relatives sat silently in disbelief as the Magistrate handed down the sentence. Sultan was then escorted out of the courtroom into the Police outpost.

deported for presenting false passport

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Somalian national was arraigned before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday morning and slapped with a G$100,000 fine by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan for allegedly presenting false documents to a Police Constable.

Abraham Sheik Mohammed admitted to the charge which stated that he, on March 9, 2017 at Lethem, with intent to defraud, uttered to an Immigration Officer a forged United Kingdom of Great Britain passport in the name of Steven Rhimestone, bearing a photograph

of Rhimestone.

The Magistrate fined him the sum of G$100,000 and ordered that he be escorted to the nearest port of exit upon the payment of the fine, or serve an alternative of four months in jail.

The court heard that Mohammed entered the country by crossing the GuyanaBrazil border upon which he presented the said document to the Police rank. The passport was suspected to be stolen and the man was detained at Lethem; checks made with INTERPOL confirmed the suspicions and the foreigner was charged with the offence.

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Guyana’s Opposition rejects proposed changes to Integrity Commission Act F

unctions that reside with an independent body to remove public officials who act unprofessionally and/ or unlawfully may soon lie in the hands of the Executive if Government has its way and passes its proposed amendment to the Integrity Commission Act. The proposed amendment, which was circulated by Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, puts the enforcement powers in the hands of the President, David Granger where Government Ministers are in breach and in the hands of the Minister of State, Joseph Harmon in cases of other persons

in public life, including elected Members of Parliament (MPs).

These observations were made by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo, who noted that such a move would not only be dangerous but outright unconstitutional.

“So, just imagine, Harmon will now decide the fate of Members of Parliament, because persons in public life may be removed from office when s/he contravenes any of the provisions in this code,” he surmised, noting that it would be unconstitutional for a sitting minister to be empowered to remove an elected official in the National Assembly.

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon

He argued, too, that both the President and Harmon were subject to the Integrity Commission Act and if

they were responsible for enforcing provisions under it, then there would be a major conflict of interest.

“So, what they are doing now, moving it (power) from an independent body that the Executive should have no control over, because members of the Executive, including the President, have to submit their statements to this body and be overseen by this body and [it can] initiate prosecutorial actions against the President for breach. They are seeking now to amend that Act under the Code of Conduct, which is for not just Ministers but MPs and put the enforcement power, the ability to remove people from public life in the hands of the President and Minister of State,” he explained.

In this regard, Jagdeo said the parliamentary Opposition would reject the proposed amendment to the Integrity Commission Act. “We will oppose this amendment, because this amendment is another tool to seem as though they are doing something about a Code of Conduct for Ministers, to seem as though they are pursuing transparent, accountable lives, but, on the other hand, they are setting the basis for further witch-hunt and to come after PPP members,” he stated.

Jagdeo surmised that the Government Ministers only portrayed themselves as guardians of probity and paradigms of transparency and ac-

countability while they quietly and insidiously dismantle institutions that prevent corruption.

He alluded to the subversion of tender boards across the country and attempts to influence the courts by launching onslaughts on the Judiciary, among other moves.

Jagdeo also reminded that these same Ministers refused to support a motion to have all parliamentarians make certain submissions to the Integrity Commission.

He reminded too that Government has already disbanded the Commission by sending home staff and taking possession of documents that belong with the constitutional body.

Furthermore, he contended that all Government Ministers should be in jail right now for numerous breaches of the Code of Conduct.

The Code stipulates that Ministers must declare all private interests relating to duties of public officials, demonstrate objectivity in executing business and make decisions based on merit and solely in the national interest without benefit or personal gain.

Jagdeo contended that the Code of Conduct was nothing but a farce as all of the Ministers were in breach of it.

Essequibo Coast man charged for molesting stepdaughter

A

n Essequibo Coast man who allegedly sexually molested his stepdaughter was remanded to prison by Magistrate Sunil Scarce. The man, age 32, appeared at the Anna Regina Magistrate’s Court.

The prosecution is contending that the man was arrested on March 4 for having sex with a

family member and, as such, was charged for the offence of sexual activity with a child family member under Section 16 (3a) of the Sexual Offences Act, Chapter 8:03.

It is alleged that he committed the act between 2010 and 2017.

The case will continue at the Suddie Magistrate’s Court on March 24.

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

More changes coming for tax regime in 2018 – President Granger

P

President David Granger

resident David Granger disclosed that his Administration is currently reviewing the current tax regime for more possible changes in time for the 2018 National Budget.

He made this disclosure in passing during an interview on his televised programme “The Public Interest”.

The Head of State was at the time responding to the vociferous outcries over the wide range of new taxes included in the 2017 National Budget.

The taxes include 14 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) on water and electricitycharges above certain thresholds as well as a whole range of items, which never previously attracted the tax.

This is also compounded by a number of increases in other fees which many have contended will only reduce the spending power of the population, thus negatively impacting the economy.

But President Granger has an alternative view regarding his Government’s new tax system, contending that he needed to impose taxes to generate money to manage the country.

Taxpayers have also questioned the rationale behind charging VAT on services which are poor and inefficient such as utility services provided by the Guyana Power and Light, Guyana Water Incorporated and GTT to some extent.

Pay for services

However, Granger argued that if people wanted better services, they had to pay for them.

“Nobody likes paying taxes, but no country can survive without taxes. So it is a question of making a choice, some services are poor because it is not supported by a sufficiently broad financial base… If you are to get better services, peo-

ple have to pay for those services,” he stated.

The President opined that it was not necessarily a “chicken and egg” situation, but the bottom line was if persons have a better country, the tax base needed to be broadened.

“You drive on roads; somebody has to maintain those roads; your children go to school, somebody has to pay to train those teachers…and these services are paid for by the Government…We need to broaden the taxes so it doesn’t fall too heavily on one group of taxpayers,” he explained.

He noted too that Government depended largely on these taxes, indicating that the more received, better the quality of services provided.

“Government, by and large, gets its money though taxations; it works out by paying that tax you get better schools; you get better protection, eg the Police Force or Defence Force; you get better utilities; people are able to use ferries and all of these services have to be paid for.

That’s how Governments work: we impose taxes to provide services,” he emphasised.

The A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/ AFC) had campaigned rigorously on the 2015 campaign trail about significantly reducing VAT. However, Finance Minister Winston Jordan admitted that the promise was unrealistic, with two per cent decrease only coming in 2017.

During a recent press conference, the Finance Minister explained that in hindsight, it was found that it could not have been done within the first 100 days. He said immediately after the APNU/AFC assumed office, it was suggested that this could not have happened.

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Manickchand questions real motive behind tax on education

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ormer Education Minister Priya Manickchand is questioning whether the real reason the Government has taxed private education is because President David Granger believes there is education apartheid in Guyana.

Granger, as Opposition Leader in 2013, said education delivery in Guyana was akin to ‘apart-

ness’, another form of ‘apartheid’, and “we must avoid and avert the danger of children being separated along lines of gender, social class or geographical location”.

Manickchand, speaking to reporters, pondered if Government imposed the burdensome tax on private education so as to limit the number of children who access

quality services from private institutions.

“I have a question for Mr Granger; his view was that a certain set of children were accessing, a certain ethnicity was accessing certain education. By now, he should have been disabused of that view, because everybody wants good for their children whether you’re black, you’re Indian, you’re Chinese,

you’re Portuguese, you’re yellow, you’re pink or you’re blue; most people want their children to do better…

So is that the reason they have now taxed private education, because he believed that a certain set of people only were accessing that?” she enquired.

Nonetheless, the former Education Minister posited that there was no education apartheid in Guyana and said the President should have used his time in office to inform himself that children from all backgrounds benefit from private education – in some cases at the cost of personal sacrifices.

Protests in various forms have erupted against the 14 per

cent tax on private education and educational materials, since Government imposed the measure in its new tax regime in the 2017 National Budget.

Protests have taken the form of petitions and picketing actions outside the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) as well as the Finance Ministry.

In response to the outcry, President Granger maintained that the tax must remain on education because some private schools were not tax compliant.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan had also defended the decision to add the 14 per cent tax to the private school fees by contending that the public school system was always free.

He ignored the fact that the public school system, as admitted by Government Ministers, was not at the level which it should be in order to guarantee quality education delivery.

Additionally, he failed to assess the capacity of the public system to receive an influx of students who can no longer afford private education and would have to resort to

the public sector.

Many stakeholders, including educators and students, have argued that taxing education was definitely not the way to go in modern society as education is the backbone of any developing country.

They questioned the Government’s logic to tax education, especially since President Granger peddled the rhetoric of wanting an educated nation to build and develop Guyana.

Joining the campaign, the former Education Minister called on the Government to remove the 14 per cent tax on education, noting that it would only result in Guyana regressing.

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Defying the odds: Guyana’s top law student talks about her journey to success

By Kizzy Coleman

H

er goal in life is simply this “no matter what career path I take, I must be able to make a differ-

ence”.

And a difference she is making, but, most of all, inspirational is what she has become to all young women in Guyana.

Twenty-nine-year-old Attorney-atLaw Latoya Roberts is an exceptional young woman with a determination that could move mountains. However, the person that she is today is one who struggled, one who came from very humble beginnings.

Roberts spent her childhood days on the West Bank of Demerara (WBD) in a village called Vreed-en-Rust.

She grew up with her mother, Myrtle Peters, who was a farmer and basket weaver. Her days then would be spent journeying to school via boat and in the afternoons assisting in the garden or farm; some days, she also wove baskets.

However, with the fire burning inside to pursue a better quality of education even at that tender age, Roberts was sent to live with relatives in Georgetown where she attended the Tucville Primary School.

“However, for the holiday season, I would usually go back home with my mother,” the young woman explained.

Following her performance at the Secondary School Entrance Examination (SSEE), she gained a place at the North Georgetown Secondary School which was a disappointment to her, as it was her dream to attend President’s College.

As they say, a dream can always be realised as long as you put in the hard work and this became true in Roberts’ case.

Her determination became even stronger to attend President’s College and this motivated her to work hard,

and this she did, graduating at the top of her class after writing the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

She was able to gain a place at President’s College as a Sixth Form student and she then set her sights on studying law.

“After finishing CXC, I was not sure as to what area I wanted to pursue; however, based on the grades that I achieved, it was suggested to me that I should pursue law. I was always very vocal; public speaking also always came naturally to me so in Sixth Form at the President’s College, I started out in that field.”

According to Roberts, law was her choice not just because it is lucrative but because it was seen as an opportunity to give a voice to the voiceless and those who cannot otherwise represent themselves.

“I was motivated to continue to pursue law, because I saw it as my opportunity to effect positive changes in society especially coming from where I came from. I wanted to become a role model.”

I got a lot of support from my church family as well.”

Roberts graduated as the best Guyanese law student for 2016 and was treated to a grand welcome at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).

“At law school, going through the different courses, excelling in some, learning in other areas and then the icing on the cake, graduating as Guyana’s best law student for 2016, that was affirmation that this is what is for me and that the journey is now complete.

So for me, the whole journey, it was an arduous one as I said, but it is one that has taught me discipline, how to be tenacious and how to focus on your goals and continuing working towards it, defying the odds and difficulty that may come along the way.”

Her encouragement

Journeying to achieve that dream

The young Attorney described her journey as one that was arduous and financially challenging.

“My journey was life changing, arduous because law is a journey that requires much financially and as my background was so simple, this was something that my parents could not afford. So it called for much patience, much planning and as a Christian, much prayers and dependence on God.” When she graduated Sixth Form, she continued to pursue her studies in law at the University of Guyana and successfully graduated. However, not being financially able to move onto the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) like her colleagues, Roberts had to seek employment leaving her studies

Latoya Roberts

behind.

However, the fire within her continued to burn. “I always kept my eyes on the prize,” she revealed.

A few years later, she was able to write the entrance examination and was accepted into the HWLS. “I went to law school and that in itself was a miracle because I did not have all of the finances, but God provided. My dad worked very hard and

“Each young woman in Guyana needs to take a moment to think about the direction in which they want their life to go in. So, the first thing I would say to them is to set a goal; there should always be something that you are working towards. And once you have set that goal and made that plan, come hill or high water, do not allow anything to deter you from achieving that goal. Life can be extremely difficult, I can attest to this as I have experienced it first hand, but you can battle through if you continue to put in the work and explore all the options.”

Roberts further encouraged: “Young women, please surround yourselves with people who are positive and who would inspire and motivate you. Most importantly, pursue a relationship with God; it gives you a basis and a foundation because when those around you may fail, God will always be there.

Hard work always pays off; it may take one year or even 20 years, but continue to be consistent and it will pay off, I can attest to this.”

Sugar union heads to Court over non-payment of severance

F

ollowing months of demonstrations, the matter regarding the non-payment of severance packages to hundreds of sugar workers attached to the Wales Sugar Estate may finally be soon resolved.

On Sunday, Guyana Times International was informed that the workers, through their representative union, the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), would soon seek redress through the courts.

This newspaper was told that in the last few days, preparatory steps were undertaken for litigation to be filed in the High Court. It is believed that action will be filed some time this week.

Workers who were interviewed over the weekend informed this newspaper that while they remain without their payments, they would continue to protest outside the Estate. Reports suggest that there will be follow-up protest actions in the coming week.

It was revealed in

Sugar workers protesting outside the Ministry of the Presidency recently

February that the Union was considering taking legal action against the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

It is believed that some 375 workers remain without their severance packages, but the Agriculture Ministry contended that all workers who requested severance were already paid. This disclosure was deemed “misleading” by GAWU. Moreover, workers have repeatedly noted that the Ministry’s contention was indeed “misleading”.

The workers’ contention is that they cannot be compelled to travel to the Uitvlugt Estate on the West Coast of Demerara, which is some 22 miles from Wales.

Last Thursday, sugar workers and their families continued their protest outside the Ministry of the Presidency and Parliament Building, calling for the President and Agriculture Minister to immediately address their concerns. Workers from the soon-to-beclosed-as-well Enmore

Estate joined the protest against Government’s reported intention to close multiple estates.

Consequences

Relatives of the sugar workers were also present at last week’s protests and they told this publication of the challenges they have been facing since the estate ceased operations last year.

“My husband working at Wales Sugar Estate and since last year, he is not working and I have five children to go to school, where I gon

get this money from? We asking the President to intervene in our matter,” Salima Bacchus had noted.

“We need we children to get education; the people must get work; right now, my husband is out of job, I out of job, I have a baby to look to milk, to get porridge stuff, everything,” another mother of four noted.

GAWU President Komal Chand, who was also on the picket line, described Agriculture Minister Noel Holder’s handling of the sector as “heartless”, and noted that the workers were becoming desperate. At a previous protest, the workers had told this newspaper that they were finding it difficult to get consistent employment and as such, were struggling to make ends meet. It was explained that their finances were declining, since they were unable to garner five-day-a-week jobs.

“The family making out real rough; right now, money going down real low,” Festus Roberts had

stated.

Michael Chotoo, another protester, had told this publication that he was finding great difficulty sending his children, aged 15, 13 and nine, to school.

At one of their many demonstrations, the workers had reminded that President David Granger and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo had committed their support to the sugar industry in the run-up to the 2015 General and Regional Elections.

However, when Government had confirmed the end of sugar operations at Wales Estate last year, it was explained that cost was the main factor for the entity’s closure.

Government has also since expressed that only three sugar estates will remain operational in Guyana. One year ago, GAWU had filed action in the High Court regarding the non-consultations of unions over the severance and redeployment of workers attached to the Wales Sugar Estate.

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Police complaint filed against SARU executive for allegedly threatening Jagdeo, party officials

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ven as criticisms continue to mount against State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) Executive Member Eric Phillips over threats made against former President Bharrat Jagdeo and other top People’s Progressive Party (PPP) officials and their families, the Opposition party has filed a Police complaint.

The report was made via a letter submitted by former Attorney General Anil Nandlall on behalf of the aggrieved parties which include: Jagdeo, several members of his former Cabinets and their respective families, 35 members of the Central Committee of the PPP and their respective families and 32 Members of Parliament of the PPP and their respective families.

The alleged threats referred to were made by Phillips in a March 10,, 2017 post on his Facebook page, in which he said: “…Jagdeo need to be careful because if anyone in my family or SOCU or SARA’s families are killed or attacked or placed at risk because of his purposeful racist…he needs to understand that he, his Cabinet and their families (bar none) will be at the same risk…the only difference is that the response will be significantly disproportionate and very cruel.”

In the letter, which was seen by Guyana Times International and dispatched to the Commissioner of the

Former President, Bharrat Jagdeo

Guyana Police Force, Nandlall enclosed a copy of the declaration made by Phillips, extracted from the social media site. “… Please consider this correspondence as a formal report for and on behalf of my clients who are requesting that you launch an immediate and thorough investigation into this publication and for criminal charges to be instituted as soon as possible, if necessary,” he outlined in the letter.

According to the former Attorney General, SARU has no law enforcement powers but purports to act as a law enforcement agency, with many of its members being leading

politicians in the coalition Government. He pointed out that there were weekly outpourings to the media about investigations and outlandish findings of guilt of Ministers and top public servants of the former Government without any due process whatsoever or a scintilla of evidence in support of these baseless and reckless conclusions.

Nandlall further outlined in the correspondence to the Top Cop that SARU, which is funded by the Office of the President, do not take legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions’ office, an independent, constitutional office, whose mandate is to advise the State on criminal matters and prosecute criminal charges on behalf of the State.

The former Attorney General sought to highlight that recently officers of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) have been inviting businessmen into its office at the Office of the President, to interrogate them on tax evasion allegations— a matter on which they have no mandate whatsoever.

In short, the entire operations of SARU are unlawful and illegal, Nandlall said, adding that even SOCU has long departed from its initial remit and is now being used

by SARU and the political directorate to investigate concocted allegations of crimi-

SARU Executive Member, Eric Phillips

nality allegedly committed by the former President and now Opposition Leader, his former Cabinet and the Opposition Members of Parliament.

To this end, Nandlall noted that these two units have been the subject of constant criticisms by the Leader of the Opposition and other members of the Opposition as well as civil society. Moreover, he continued that it was against that backdrop that the Leader of the Opposition made critical remarks about these two units.

In fact, while on a recent public outreach programme in Berbice, Jagdeo was responding especially to Phillips’ in-

credulous allegation that 15,000 ounces of gold were stolen from Guyana monthly, under the last Government.

The former Attorney General posited that as a result of the declaration by Phillips, his clients and their respective families are now exposed to the risk of being killed or suffering grievous bodily harm.

While recognising that Article 146 guarantees freedom of expression to every individual, Nandlall posited that the said Article is predicated upon the caveat: that is, Article 146 (3) “Freedom of expression in this article does not relate to hate speeches or other expressions in whatever form, capable of exciting hostility or ill-will against any person or class of persons.”

Phillips’ utterances come just days after former President Jagdeo and former Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon, among other top PPP officials were arrested and taken to SOCU’s headquarters for questioning as part of an ongoing probe into the acquisition of lands at Pradoville 2, East Coast Demerara.

Calling the move an attempt to instil fear in the Opposition, Jagdeo had vowed afterwards that the Party would not be intimidated into silence, in the face of poor governance.

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Teen drowns during outing No decision yet on how oil revenues will be utilised, with friends

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dental technician died after plunging into the Atlantic Ocean during an outing with friends at Alness Village, Corentyne, Berbice.

Dead is Gopaul Govindan, 19, also called “Raj”. His body was found along the Manchester Beach about 20:30h on Sunday.

Reports are the teenager and four friends left to go to the Alness Beach about 14:00h. His grieving father, Arjune Govindan, told this publication that none of the young men, including his son, were “capable” swimmers. The father, who is a taxi driver, explained that it was a weekly routine for his son and friends to go to the beach.

“He can’t swim properly; in fact, none of them are good swimmers.”

According to Govindan, his son promised to be home by

16:30h, but about 16:00h a friend went to his home to inform him that the teen went into the water and they were trying to locate him.

The taxi driver said when he and his wife rushed to the beach, several persons had commenced a search for the teen. He explained, however, that the tide was high and as such, they had to wait it out before the search begun.

Villagers went into the water in search of the dental technician, who was attached to Cosdensply Dental Lab. However, they did not find him. As the water dropped even further and more of the beach became visible, the search was then turned to the beach and about one and a half miles away at Manchester the body was

says Harmon

W

Dead: Gopaul Govindan

found.

Meanwhile, as Police launch an investigation, the four persons who were with Govindan at the time were detained pending the outcome of a post-mortem.

The four in custody are close friends of the dead teen who attended school with him and hailed from the same village.

The dental technician, who took up the trade after he left the Bush Lot Secondary School, leaves to mourn his parents and three siblings. (Andrew Carmichael)

Jordan admits to shortfall in economy

W

hile the ordinary man may feel that the country’s economic standard is deteriorating, Finance Minister Winston Jordan has assured that the existing state of affairs is an indication that the economy is in fact “righting” itself.

The Minister made the disclosure during an interview on a local radio program “Jumpstart” on Monday where he discussed exclusively the fiscal matters of the country.

According to Jordan, it would seem that some five years ago, the economy was moving ahead, however, there has not been much sustainability, and that the sectors that once propelled the economy, have now lost their way.

“The same things that was generating the growth, after 50 years they still remained.

(Rice, sugar, gold, forestry, bauxite). A number of these sectors have collapsed…banks that loaned to these sectors will also have a difficult time doing business in the future because the resources are not there and their bad loans have gone up,” Jordan said.

According to him, the economy has to right itself, but yet, cannot do so on its own.

“For persons who went through the 80’s and 90’s of the restructuring of the economy by the IMF (International Monetary Fund) , if we don’t adjust the economy, we will have

to hand it over to somebody to do it,” the Finance Minister said.

Jordan related that during this period, the economy has to be prepared for what is called the “take off” because on the horizon, there is high inflow of foreigners to the country and “we have to prepare the economy for that”.

The Minister said Government has to move ahead and get its G$250 billion 2017 National Budget going. This, he said, is currently stymied by numerous factors including transparency and scrutiny.

Meanwhile, Jordan said Guyana’s economy is not where it needs to be, it does not stand alone, especially when compared with neighbouring countries.

“We know of Suriname, Trinidad, and Barbados which recently had to fire its governor.

They had to hire their former Prime Minister Owen Arthur as their chief economic adviser to help them come out of their troubles…Venezuela we know what is going on there and Brazil has its issues,” Jordan said.

He continued that in all of these “oceans of problems”, Guyana remains a light of progress.

He reminded that last November Government had projected a 2.6 per cent growth but with the actual numbers coming in now, the economy saw a 3.2 per cent growth last year, which he said was

Finance Minister, Winston Jordan

better than 2015.

“While this growth was led by gold, there was some good showing in the Agriculture Sector, other crops sector and a last push to the last half of the year through the implementation of the public sector program, gave a little bump over the edge,” he said.

Foreign exchange

The Finance Minister meanwhile admitted that there have been some issues with foreign exchange, however he maintained that there remains a reserve of over G $ 6 0 0 million in the country’s central bank. He said the rates have been stabilised, although with a depreciation between G$210 and G$215.

As it relates to the reports of shortages in foreign exchange, Jordan reminded that it is gold that is generating the foreign exchange.

“There is a couple of big gold dealers, and some of them do not declare the rightful amount they get from overseas and the BoG Governor is trying to work with them”. He said the law provides that all foreign exchange must be declared to a bank for exporters.

hile it will take about three to four years before Guyana sees any monies flowing from its promising oil reserves, Government is still to decide how it will split the revenues.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan said on Monday that while Government planned to establish a Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), it is yet to determine just how the money will be used up.

“We have to really know what we want to do with the money, how much we really want to use now, how much we want to put in the fund and if we want to create situations where, given the vagaries of prices of our commodities, if we want to put in an extra fund for whenever there are slippages in foreign exchange.”

Jordan said there was still some time remaining before Government could put this all together and present it to the public to get their views before taking it to Parliament.

President David Granger, upon assuming office in May last year – the very month ExxonMobil announced the discovery of oil in the Stabroek Block – told this newspaper that his Government would be putting the revenues garnered from the oil and gas sector, and other nat-

ural resources sectors, in a Sovereign Wealth Fund.

Such a fund consists of pools of money derived from a country’s reserves, set aside for investment purposes to benefit the country’s economy and citizens. The funding for a Sovereign Wealth Fund comes from central bank reserves that accumulate as a result of budget and trade surpluses, and from revenue generated from the exports of natural resources.

Jordan said a Sovereign Wealth Fund was dependent on the flow of money, and with oil expected to flow by late 2020 or early 2021, Guyana still have “another three or four years before the Fund gets going”.

Government is also working towards a Petroleum Commission Bill for the National Assembly which will outline the regulations to govern the newly-established Petroleum Commission.

Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman will table that Bill shortly in the National Assembly.

The establishment of a new regulatory agency would relieve the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) of responsibility in this regard. “We need

Joseph Harmon

to reorient our minds towards petroleum, which is a completely different form of mining; and so the idea is that we would move in tandem with the rest of the world and have a separate regulatory agency,” Minister Trotman had said last week.

He added that the Bill has already been extensively shared with stakeholders, including the Opposition and the Natural Resources Ministry has been “working overtime” to create and upgrade legislation to govern the emerging oil and gas sector.

The Commonwealth Secretariat had, in December, drafted a Sovereign Wealth Fund Bill for the country, and Minister Trotman has said that that Bill was now with the Finance Minister, since “it is a financial matter”. The Ministry has also drafted a local content policy.

Corentyne labourer dies after car crashes into utility pole

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hazamI smile, a 23-year-old labourer of Lot 17 Portuguese Quarters, Port Mourant, Corentyne,Berbice, died almost instantly when the car in which he was travelling slammed into a utility pole along the Number 19 Village Highway on the East Coast of Berbice on Sunday at about 21:15hrs.

One of three persons travelling in the vehicle at the time, Ismile was sitting beside its driver and owner, 22-year-old Shazam Seepersaud, also called Randy, of Seawell Village, East Coast Berbice, when the accident occurred.

Seepersaud is in stable condition at the New Amsterdam Hospital under police guard.

The other occupant of the vehicle, 23-year-old Anthony Ramlocahn of

Dead: Shazam Ismile

East Canje Berbice, reportedly sustained broken limbs among other injuries, and was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital for further medical attention.

Both Seepersaud and the now dead Ismile worked with poultry farmers as labourers, and would have known each other for approximately three years.

Apart from being a labourer, Ishmile also reared his own stock.

The three men were allegedly on what family members described as “a drinking spree”, and according to Ismile’s mother, Brahas Baijnauth, it appeared as if all of the men were drunk. She said that Seepersaud and her son would often go out together, and prior to the accident, her son had called to say that he would be home late, as he was with friends.

Reports are that Ishmile, Seepersaud and Ramlocahn had gone for an “after-payday drink” which went on longer than expected and took them to several different places, until the deadly accident occurred at about 21:15 hours.

Police are investigation the accident.

(Andrew Carmichael)

24 news

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19, 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Harmon’s comment on Jagdeo’s right of immunity sends “wrong and dangerous signals” - says Nandlall

F

ormer Attorney General Anil Nandlall has observed that the latest utterance from Minister of State, Joseph Harmon lends support to the contentions that the series of arrests and detentions by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) is politically driven.

Harmon, during a post-Cabinet press briefing, proclaimed that former Presidents should relinquish their constitutional right of immunity upon returning to active politics.

His comments come on the heels of past President and present Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo being

cleared from answering to any SOCU officials after he invoked his immunity under Article 182 of the Constitution of Guyana.

Harmon indicated that it was unreasonable to claim that immunity while being actively involved in day-to-day politics.

In summary, Article 182 states that a President shall not be personally answerable to any court for any act done in the performance of the functions of his office; no criminal nor civil proceedings can be instituted against him, in his personal capacity in respect of any acts done in the performance of his office, either during

Former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall

the term of office or thereafter; and while he holds office or performs the functions of Office of the President, no criminal nor civil proceedings shall be instituted or continued

against him in respect of anything done or omitted to be done by him in his private capacity.

Jagdeo held the office of President and performed the functions

of that office during the period August 11, 1999 –December 3, 2011.

Pradoville 2, a housing project currently under SOCU’s investigation, was developed and lots allocated thereof to the several allottees during the period that Jagdeo was President.

Government has repeated that the project was tainted with illegalities, because the land was sold for below market value.

A Police investigation was subsequently launched on the basis of the report of a forensic audit, which was conducted into the matter, but the Opposition members strongly believe it was not a case about criminality but a political witch-hunting exercise.

Consequently, the fact that SOCU officials arrested Jagdeo to answer questions about decisions he made during his tenure as President is glaringly unconstitutional.

Unlawful arrest

Nandlall has since contended that this arrest was unlawful since Jagdeo’s decisions as a President are protected by the Constitution and he is, therefore, not answerable to a court.

Nandlall, in a statement over the weekend, said the State Minister’s assertions validate the opinion that SOCU’s probe into Pradoville 2 is purely political.

“By advancing that argument, Harmon has unwittingly corroborated the Opposition’s contentions that the recent arrests and detention were politically driven, were an expression of political witch-hunting and were intended to intimidate the political Opposition. We now have, from the mouth of one of the highest ranking officials of this Government, who happens to be an Attorneyat-Law, confirming that if a former President continues to participate in active politics, the Government will deny him his constitutional immunities,” he stated.

Nandlall also opined that such comments send wrong and dangerous signals.

“They can result in high constitutional protections, rights and freedoms to be whittled down by the opinion and interpretation of a legally untrained Policeman. I am sure

that Harmon, would not allow the constitutional legal immunities which he enjoys for things said and done in the Parliament, to be determined by a Police Constable.

Imagine what will happen if Harmon is arrested in the Parliament compound for something he said in an address to the National Assembly,” Nandlall rationalised.

Moreover, he asserted that Article 182 does not lend itself to the interpretation that a former president can or would lose the immunities which he enjoyed as President if he returned to active politics as was being misconstrued by Harmon.

“Being in active politics, holding political views and engaging in political agitations are all guaranteed to every citizen as a fundamental right and freedom by the very Constitution.

It lacks rationality that a person will or can lose a protection which the Constitution affords by the exercise of a right which the very Constitution confers. Is it not absurd to contend that Jagdeo’s presidential immunities would have remained intact if he had pursued a career in cricket after he demitted office, but that he stands to lose it, if he returns to active politics?” Nandlall argued.

Apology

Additionally, he noted that the matter was further compounded by President David Granger’s apology for the way Jagdeo was treated by the SOCU ranks.

President Granger, during a recording of “The Public Interest”, declared that the former Guyanese Leader should not have been treated the way he was.

“We are speaking about an ex-President.

We’re speaking about somebody who (had) enjoyed the confidence of the (Guyanese) people for 12 years, and I believe that his involvement in the matter under investigation did not warrant his going to the office. A decision could have been taken at the level of the Guyana Police Force…

So, in my view, some other way could have been used to determine whether his presence at the headquarters was necessary,” Granger stated.

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feature 29

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

of knowledge, Sarasvati is always shown as wearing a white dress, sitting on a white lotus. The Brahmin - the highest social caste is associated with white.

Hindu religious leaders cover themselves with white ashes to represent their spiritual rebirth.

White is also the colour

I

Saffron is the battle colour of the Rajputs, the warrior caste

n Hinduism, colours play a very essential role in the religion as well as culture, and also have a deep and extensive significance, surpassing purely decorative values.

The majority of Hindu artists use different colours on the deities, as well as their dresses, to signify their qualities. The main colours used in Hindu religious ceremonies are red, yellow or turmeric, leaf green and wheat flour white, among others.

Red indicates both sensuality and purity. In Hindu religion, red is of utmost significance and is mostly used for auspicious occasions like marriages, the birth of a child, and festivals. A red mark is put on the forehead during ceremonies and important occasions. As a sign of marriage, women put red powder on the hair parting. They also wear a red sari during marriage. Red powder is usually thrown on statues of deities and phallic symbols during prayers. It is also the colour of Shakti (prowess).

A red coloured dress is put on deities who are charitable, brave, protective, and

who have the capacity to destroy evil.

Saffron is the most sacred colour in Hinduism.

It represents fire and as impurities are burnt by fire, this colour symbolises purity. It also represents religious abstinence.

This colour’s connotation has a sacred meaning for the Hindu. It is the colour of holy men and ascetics who have renounced the world. Wearing the colour symbolises the quest for light. It is the battle colour of the Rajputs, the warrior caste.

Green is a festive colour. In Maharashtra, it represents life and happiness. For that reason, a widow does not wear green. Symbolising peace and happiness, green stabilizes the mind. The co-

A Hindu bride wears red at her wedding

Lord Vishnu wears yellow symbolising his representation of knowledge

lour is cool to the eyes and represents nature.

Yellow is the colour of knowledge and learning.

It symbolizes happiness, peace, meditation, competence and mental development. It is the colour of spring and activates the mind. Lord Vishnu’s dress is yellow symbolising his representation of knowledge. Lord Krishna and Ganesha also wear yellow dresses. Yellow clothes are worn and yellow food is eaten at spring festivals. Single girls wear yellow to attract a mate and keep evil spirits away.

White is a mixture of seven different colours hence it symbolises a little bit of the quality of each. It represents purity, cleanliness, peace and knowledge. The goddess

of mourning. The other prominent deities would also have a touch of white on their dress. A Hindu widow would wear a white dress in mourning.

Blue signifies nature: the sky, the oceans, the rivers and the lakes. The deity who has the qualities of bravery, manliness,

determination, the ability to deal with difficult situations, of stable mind and depth of character is represented as blue coloured.

Lord Rama and Krishna spent their life protecting humanity and destroying evil, hence they are coloured blue. (www.janih.com; www.thoughtco.com)

feature 29

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

of knowledge, Sarasvati is always shown as wearing a white dress, sitting on a white lotus. The Brahmin - the highest social caste is associated with white.

Hindu religious leaders cover themselves with white ashes to represent their spiritual rebirth.

White is also the colour

I

Saffron is the battle colour of the Rajputs, the warrior caste

n Hinduism, colours play a very essential role in the religion as well as culture, and also have a deep and extensive significance, surpassing purely decorative values.

The majority of Hindu artists use different colours on the deities, as well as their dresses, to signify their qualities. The main colours used in Hindu religious ceremonies are red, yellow or turmeric, leaf green and wheat flour white, among others.

Red indicates both sensuality and purity. In Hindu religion, red is of utmost significance and is mostly used for auspicious occasions like marriages, the birth of a child, and festivals. A red mark is put on the forehead during ceremonies and important occasions. As a sign of marriage, women put red powder on the hair parting. They also wear a red sari during marriage. Red powder is usually thrown on statues of deities and phallic symbols during prayers. It is also the colour of Shakti (prowess).

A red coloured dress is put on deities who are charitable, brave, protective, and

who have the capacity to destroy evil.

Saffron is the most sacred colour in Hinduism.

It represents fire and as impurities are burnt by fire, this colour symbolises purity. It also represents religious abstinence.

This colour’s connotation has a sacred meaning for the Hindu. It is the colour of holy men and ascetics who have renounced the world. Wearing the colour symbolises the quest for light. It is the battle colour of the Rajputs, the warrior caste.

Green is a festive colour. In Maharashtra, it represents life and happiness. For that reason, a widow does not wear green. Symbolising peace and happiness, green stabilizes the mind. The co-

A Hindu bride wears red at her wedding

Lord Vishnu wears yellow symbolising his representation of knowledge

lour is cool to the eyes and represents nature.

Yellow is the colour of knowledge and learning.

It symbolizes happiness, peace, meditation, competence and mental development. It is the colour of spring and activates the mind. Lord Vishnu’s dress is yellow symbolising his representation of knowledge. Lord Krishna and Ganesha also wear yellow dresses. Yellow clothes are worn and yellow food is eaten at spring festivals. Single girls wear yellow to attract a mate and keep evil spirits away.

White is a mixture of seven different colours hence it symbolises a little bit of the quality of each. It represents purity, cleanliness, peace and knowledge. The goddess

of mourning. The other prominent deities would also have a touch of white on their dress. A Hindu widow would wear a white dress in mourning.

Blue signifies nature: the sky, the oceans, the rivers and the lakes. The deity who has the qualities of bravery, manliness,

determination, the ability to deal with difficult situations, of stable mind and depth of character is represented as blue coloured.

Lord Rama and Krishna spent their life protecting humanity and destroying evil, hence they are coloured blue. (www.janih.com; www.thoughtco.com)

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Scenes from Phagwah celebrations in Guyana M any turned out for the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha's event at the Everest Ground in Georgetown to celebrate Holi on Monday evening.

Former president and opposition leader Dr Bharat Jagdeo in his brief statement assured the lively crowd that the Peoples Progressive Party will triumph in Guyana just as the eternal lesson of Holi - the triumph of good over evil.

"We will emerge to a day when people are being respected irrespective of their religion, race or gender and they can all be equal and prosper together and that's what the Peoples Progressive Party Stands for".

He told the people.

The evening was filled with a number of cultural items from the Dharmic Nritya Sangh dancers and songs from Sookrane. Rekha, Ishwar, Rites, and Vani. They were accompanied by the Daks New Generation Band. The Feel DA Beat Tassa Group and the Trinidad The Krishna Leela Group also entertained and had the crowd wild with excitement.

PRESIDENT OF THE GUYANA HINDU DHARMIC SABHA- Dr. VINDHYA VASINI PERSAUD extended Holi greetings to all and wish them the infinite blessings of Bhagwan Krishna.

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

31

Thousands brave cold for Phagwah Parade in NY

T

housands of celebrants braved the extremely cold weather in Richmond Hill, Queens, last weekend, to participate in the annual Phagwah Parade, which has now become known to be one of the massive events of Hindu community in the city over the years.

Queens Borough Director at the Office of the Mayor, Nick Gulotta, who marched along the Parade route in a brief comment to this newspaper applauded the community for coming out in large numbers to support the event.

The Parade culminated at Smokey Oval Park after which there was a grand cultural presentation where participants witnessed many performances; including from the graceful and young Shiv Kala Dance Academy.

Attendees engaged in a raucous battle of colours, joyfully smearing

NYPD Marching Band

Cultural Show 2017

one another to reflect the explosion of spring hues.

Herman Singh, Co-Chairman of the Phagwah Parade said: “What we do today is we celebrate everything that is Phagwah or Holi; our festival which marks the arrival of spring. Known widely as the Festival of Colours, it takes place over two days, and is a celebration of fertility, colour, and love, as well as the triumph of good over evil”.

Singh added: “On behalf of the Phagwah Parade of New York Inc. we are proud to be able to contribute to the cultural diversity of the great City of New York, by organising and implementing an event like this parade yearly. We recognise that the Phagwah Parade is the community’s main cultural event and are committed to ensuring that we produce a spectacular parade.”

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Scenes from the Phagwah Parade in NY

Float on route Herman Starting Point

feature 33

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A

fter the abolition of slavery throughout the Empire in 1834, a number of Portuguese Catholics arrived from Madeira to work as labourers in the South American colony of Guyana. This was one of several publicly funded experiments to bring labour to the sugar plantations after the liberated black slaves proved reluctant to turn themselves into wage slaves.

While the labourers also included Indians and Chinese, a substantial number of the Portuguese soon established themselves in the urban retail trade, where they became the focus of resentment.

One evening in February 1856 a riot exploded in the centre of Georgetown, as many enraged and impoverished citizens broke into the small shops of the traders, to ransack and to plunder. Rioting spread to settlements along the coast and up the Demerara river, with clashes occurring as far away as Essequibo and Berbice.

‘The town may be said to have been in open insurrection’, wrote the Governor, Sir Philip Wodehouse, ‘and the true character of the disturbances was at once revealed.’

Wodehouse was an energetic and vindictive colonial official, ordered home from Colombo by the House of Commons after the rebellion in Ceylon in 1848, but given a new posting to Guyana.

The riots were sparked off by the detention of James Sayers Orr (one source calls him John Sayers Orr),

variously described as a ‘black’, ‘coloured’, ‘mulatto’ or ‘creole’ evangelical preacher who had recently returned to his native Georgetown after a long sojourn abroad.

He had been touring Britain, ‘the Protestant parts of Ireland’, Scotland Canada, and the United States where he was described as a fanatical anti-Catholic preacher who also incited riots in these territories.

Nicknamed ‘the Angel Gabriel’ because of his habit of summoning his flock with the blast of a trumpet, ‘he purveyed an inflammable mixture of Protestant zeal, populist radicalism, racism, and appeals to patriotism’.

Orr’s powerful oratory, aimed against Catholics and the Portuguese, served to translate the black population’s sense of oppression into religious and racial terms.

Orr’s preaching, wrote the governor, had attracted huge crowds of town and country blacks, ‘blending together skilfully and amazingly. . . political and religious subjects in a manner calculated to arouse the passions of the black and coloured population against the Portuguese immigrants’.

Wodehouse had greeted Orr as a distinguished preacher, but he had second thoughts (as he wrote to London) when Orr began ‘walking about the Town and its vicinity, carrying a flag, wearing a badge, and blowing a horn occasionally at the corners of the Streets, followed by small groups of the rabble of the place’.

Sir Philip Edmond Wodehouse. Governor of British Guiana 1854 -1861

James Sayers Orr was born in British Guiana in the early 1800s, his father, from Greenock in Scotland, was the wealthy co-owner of Plantation La Penitence, and his mother was of African descent

Wodehouse believed that a black mutual aid society was behind the rioting, and indeed a group existed that had tried, unsuccessfully, to establish creole shops that might have competed with the Portuguese.

No proven link was ever found, although the subject was one of general discussion.

With tension rising in the town, the governor banned all public gatherings. Orr sought to avert the ban by holding a meeting outside his mother’s house, but he was arrested and charged with unlawful assembly.

News of the arrest sparked off the riots, and the black population began attacking the Portuguese traders - the immediate cause of their resentment against the colonial system. Wodehouse’s report noted that ‘men, women and children all joined in, and in some parts of the country every creole of the lower orders seems to have been one of the mob’.

A Wesleyan missionary introduced an unusual element, describing how a ‘large number of Vile and Abandoned Women’ had taken part in the riots, as well as ‘wild, rude and half-savage children’.

Wodehouse also noted the participation of women: Nothing remained in the minds of the actors but the long subsisting hatred and jealousy of the Portuguese Immigrants from Madeira and the love of plunder, aggravated by the gross and brutal character of the female

population, who have throughout the Colony taken a most active part in the Riots, and who are of course the most difficult to punish.

He did not understand that many women were simply searching for food.

Wodehouse crushed

the rebellion with black troops from the Second West India Regiment.

Reinforcements were summoned from Barbados, and offers of assistance from warships stationed in the Dutch and French colonies were gratefully accepted. Hundreds of whites and ‘respectable’ coloureds were sworn in as special constables.

So many people were arrested that a special penal camp had to be set up. More than a hundred ‘ringleaders’ were fined and flogged, and then given three years’ hard labour in the cane fields.

This was the fate of Orr, who according to Guyana.org, was sentenced to a term of imprisonment with hard labour at the penal settlement in Mazaruni where he died in November 1856 (other sources say 1857) after suffering from dysentery.

A further 600 prisoners were discharged on condition that they worked on specific estates, signing a contract to provide six months’

work for each month of their notional sentence.

A more lasting punishment for the community was the imposition of a registration tax designed to reimburse the Portuguese traders for their losses. Claims for damages of nearly $60,000, more than the colony’s annual budget, were accepted by the governor, and compensation was secured through a poll tax that bore heaviest on the poorer sections of society.

The population was resentful and expressed its anger towards Governor Wodehouse at every opportunity. When he left Georgetown on holiday in August 1857, he was pelted at the dockside with stones, cane stalks and offal.

Sailing away for the last time, in May 1861, for a fresh imperial posting in Cape Colony, he left at night without ceremony, ‘to avoid a salute of dead cats and dogs’.

(Source: WorldHistory. biz)

34 featuire

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

HERITAGE LOST

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Georgetown

(1868 - 1913)

St Mary’s Cathedral from south-west

By Lennox Julian Hernandez

F

riday, March 7, 1913, was a sad day for the Roman Catholic community in Georgetown, and indeed all of the then British Guiana. James Rodway, in a 1920 publication wrote, “This handsome Cathedral, the Glory of Georgetown, was burnt down on the 7th of March, 1913, through a workman taking a coal-pot into the tower for soldering.” Rodway was writing of the earlier Cathedral of the Immaculate Cathedral which stood at the corner of Brickdam and Camp Street since 1868, known also as St Mary’s Cathedral.

Almost 43 years before the fire, their existing church building having become small for the

increasing of worshippers, as well as the structure itself becoming in a state of disrepair, Roman Catholics held a meeting on March 11, 1866 to consider the construction of a new cathedral on the same site as the existing church.

Through public contributions and a loan from the government, work started soon after.

The foundation stone of the cathedral was laid on April 21, 1868, and it was opened on April 13, 1871 (not yet completed) to a design by Brother Cesar Castellani, Architect.

The full opening of the Cathedral was on August 30, 1874. Constructed entirely of greenheart and crabwood, the cathedral was an interpretation, in wood, of the Gothic Revival architectural style then popular in Great Britain and

Europe.

Typical of ecclesiastical architecture of the time, the entrance was at the west end and the sanctuary with altar at the east end; the body of the cathedral having a central congregational section (the nave) flanked on the north and south by aisles, similar to the current Brickdam Cathedral.

However, the ground floor plan of the building did not follow the usual design prescription of being in the form of a Latin cross; instead it followed that of an ancient Roman basilica, which had no transepts (the arms of the Latin cross).

Indications of its Gothic heritage are the pointed arch (or lancet) windows, the pointed arches to the columns separating the nave and aisle, and the buttresses at the corners

of the building. The buttresses continued upwards, over the roof, into decorative pinnacles terminated by small spires.

A fairly large building, the central nave was 160 ft long (including a 40 ft sanctuary at the east end) 40 ft wide and 60 ft high, whilst each aisle was 18 ft wide and had a lower height of 30 ft. (Rev John Bridges noted that the building could seat 2,000 persons.) The wall space between the roof over the aisle and the higher main roof (the clerestory) had a horizontal series of rose windows to bring light into the nave.

The altar end, formed by a three-angled curve (the apse) boasted three large stained glass windows.

Another notable feature of the building was the hammerbeam roof structure (pre-dating that of the City Hall, Georgetown) over the main part of the building. In 1885, Rev Ignatius Scoles, Architect of the City Hall, wrote of the Gothic architecture of the ham-

mer-beam roof and windows: “the hammer beam roof, with its accompanying clere-story, is as fine

paintings and statues, including a large painting of the crucifixion by Rev Scoles, hung at the

a piece of gothic design as one could possibly expect to meet in the western tropics; the gothic windows of varied design are in their way perfect iron castings.”

The tower, on the north-east corner, was completed in 1882 under Bishop Antony Butler who replaced Bishop James Etheridge, the latter having died at sea on December 31, 1877.

The tower variously described as being “very handsome” and “the most telling feature of the town” reached 160 ft in height, held the bells and was of the steeple type, composed of three diminishing stories above the main tower and terminated by an open pinnacle in which a shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary was placed.

The steeple was also decorated with pinnacles around its girth at each level. The shrine was designed by Rev Scoles and it was his idea to place it atop the tower.

Though the bells were destroyed in the fire, the shrine survived intact and now adorns the western entrance of the new Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (completed 1926). The interior was richly decorated throughout with

east end just above the arch of the sanctuary.

Rev Scoles also designed the richly carved and ornamented pulpit, the marble high altar, the sanctuary and many other internal features, all of which were described as being very beautiful. In particular, another of Rev Scoles creations (in 1880) was a statue of the Madonna and Child displayed in a very decorative frame.

Rev John Bridges, in his book “Men of Faith” (1988) describes the event that led to the devastating fire of March 7, 1913: “A tinsmith unassisted, high up in the tower repairing a leak, upset his coal-pot, scattering the burning charcoal over the lofty platform.

Having, as he imagined, extinguished all, he came down for the mid-day meal. It needed only a few sparks exposed to the wind at such a height to start a fire burning.”

In a few short hours, the Gothic style Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, the presbytery to the west, and the once procathedral building (1867) to the south-east were lost.

Altar and stained glass windows of St Mary’s Cathedral

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Endings are also beginnings

A

long-standing debate about freedom and equality shaped the official decisions that ended indentured labour.

Judgments about the conditions of indentured labour could not help but be affected by the changing consensus about what legitimately constituted free labour in other contexts.

Conditions conceived as "free labour" in one time and place were denounced as "slavery" at a later time or another place.

To be sure, changing perceptions were strongly influenced by the grim realities of some systems of indentured labour.However, the final end of the indentured labour migrations was not simply the result of its perception as an unacceptable limitation of human freedom.

The rise of strong expressions of nationalism in China and India also served to hasten the end of indentured labour.

Like the abolition of slavery in British col-

onies eight decades earlier, the cessation of indentured labour from British India was achieved through a combination high idealism and practical politics.

This does not diminish the lustre of either accomplishment.

But it would be equally wrong to ignore many other instances where high-minded rhetoric about the end of indentured labour masked a racist agenda.

By the beginning of the twentieth century the growing numbers of non-Europeans out of indenture and their competition for jobs brought the governments of these now hybrid societies to adopt overtly racialist labour and immigration policies.

One trend was to restrict the ability of endof-term non-European migrants to compete politically and economically with European settlers by limiting their legal status and numbers.

In late nineteenthcentury Queensland

debate about the morality of indentured labour went hand in hand with the promotion of European labour at the expense of Pacific islanders.

Consideration of the changing economic conditions also serves to diminish the lustre of an explanation of the end of indentured labour that relies too much on reform as a motive.

In the midst of the sugar crisis of the 1890s a major British commission, voicing concern that the continued importation of indentured Indian labour to British Guiana and Trinidad could impose a heavy burden on colonial treasuries for their repatriation if the economy eroded any further, recommended the phasing out of new imports, especially in light of the substantial populations the trade had built up there.

The fact that Indian labour imports were already declining in several overseas locations (and had even ceased

BG Ball Field, British Guiana. Atkinson Field Service Club in background (Family - Wallace in the Army 1945 to 1946)

Roadside market at a Demerara sugar estate n.d.

Principal overseas indentured migrations, 1834-1919 (routes approximate)

in Mauritius) made it much easier for the forces favouring the trade's abolition to succeed.

The long-term cultural and demographic effects of indentured migration varied greatly. In some places the migrants' influence declined quickly after the trade ended.In some places, indentured migrants and their descendants blended into other population groups.

If the vitality of migrant groups diminished in some lands, in many others their presence remained evident to even the most casual observer. East Indians replaced Africans as the largest part of the population in British Guiana, Mauritius, Reunion, and Dutch Guiana, in time becoming the majority in the first three.

In 1871 there were nearly 17,000 unindentured Indians resident in Trinidad (61 per cent of the Indian community), 10,000 in British Guiana (23 per cent), and 134,000 in Mauritius (61 per cent).

By 1910-11 the number of Indians not under indenture had grown to 96,000 in Trinidad (89 per cent), almost 118,000 in British Guiana (93 per cent), and 258,000 in Mauritius (100 per cent).

In all three colonies, most Indians remained rural residents, working on their own or other persons' land. Even in the early 1960s, 87 per cent of Indians in British Guiana were rural as were 80 per cent of the Hindus and 57 per cent of the Indo-Muslims of Mauritius, far higher than other segments of these populations.

This situation reflected the Indians' strong

preference for becoming rural landowners as well as their more limited opportunities for advancement in these colonies.

Moreover, Indian communities did not consider schools as means of social mobility until well into the twentieth century.The explanation partly reflects the absence of a literate tradition among most Indian migrants,who, as rural residents, also had limited access to schools.

Cultural differences seem to have played an important role as well: long after the end of indenture most Indians remained aloof from both European and African cultures and tended to define career aspirations within the limits of caste status.

Compared with East Asian migrants, both Hindu and Muslim Indians seem to have been more fearful of the cultural destructiveness of the Christiandominated educational systems in their new homes.

While the new Asian communities differed substantially in the direction and speed of their cultural evolution, they nevertheless shared some common features. All formed part of distinctly "plural societies," societies with sharply denned communities distinguished by "racial" and ethnic identities and, less rigidly, by cultural norms.

Naturally, degrees of cleavage varied.

Contrasts within Indian communities were notable.Even closely situated Indian communities in the Caribbean developed in quite different ways, often in complete ignorance of each other's ex-

istence.

V. S. Naipaul, himself descended from indentured Indian migrants to Trinidad, expressed great surprise at learning during a 1961 visit to Martinique that there had been a large indentured Indian migration there in the nineteenth century (of whose descendants only four or five thousand remained).

Another way to assess the legacy of indentured migration is to consider what replaced it as a labour system.

As with the legacy of the migrants themselves, this is a vast subject.

Like the end of slavery, the end of indentured labour was less a sharp break with the past than a redirecting of the forces that produced it under a new legal mandate in a partially altered economy.

The demand for migrant labour was certainly not over, though in many of the largest importing colonies the indentured migration had created a sufficient demographic base.

[In the 20th century] The demand for guest workers has been a feature of maturing industrial economies and of modern agrobusiness, sometimes with patterns of ill-treatment reminiscent of indentured labour.

Indentured migrants' motives in emigrating, the voyages that carried them, and their struggles to establish a new life once their contract was over, do resemble those of “free” migrants and deserve to be included in that larger story.

(From: “Indentured labour in the age of imperialism, 18341922” by David Northrup.

1995)

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This week's Crossword

This week's Puzzle

see solution on page 47

What’s different…

Y

…in sugar today?

our Eyewitness understands tomorrow the Government will be officially joining in on the commemoration of the 15 – yes…15! – indentured and non-indentured sugar workers who’d been massacred by the planters/govt/policemen at Plantation Rose Hall (Canje) on March 13, 1913. Your Eyewitness can only wonder in anticipation of what Moses Nagamootoo, representing the Government, will be telling the descendants of those massacred workers.

After all, the Government’s pretty much confirmed as imminent Rose Hall’s closure – just as Wales was last December. And throwing out another 1700 workers or so from the estate. What’s the difference with a few hundred sugar workers here and there: they don’t really matter, do they? Then and now.

Back in 1913, the workers had toiled on their Sundays and longer hours during the weekdays to bring the crop to a successful close. They’d been promised a four-day holiday in the ‘out of crop” to recompense them. But at the last moment, the manager reneged – and demanded they show up to plant cane!! The workers balked and seven of them were threatened with eviction from the logees they occupied and transferred to other plantations.

When they complained to the Immigration Agent in NA, who was supposed to protect their interest, they were then charged by the manager. At the court, the men were advised by their lawyer to plead guilty – which they did, even though they disagreed. But now, the manager decided to demand the workers pay his legal fees! This was too much for the workers and they protested.

The Police who were brought from Georgetown under the command of its “Bad man” chief – who’d “quelled” indentured protests by killings before – were now sent to the logees to seize these “agitators”. But at the logees, the folks thought it was the old manager’s eviction order being enforced, and resisted. The Police opened fire with their new machine gun and 15 persons – including one woman – were killed and 42 wounded!

But that was back then…what about now? When the Government closes Rose Hall, how many persons will be killed when they can’t find work? How many will commit suicide? How many will be evicted from their homes? What is the difference then and now, when the “Big Manja” could just snap his fingers and lives would be snuffed out?

Your Eyewitness has no problem with the Government “rationalising” sugar production in Guyana. But unlike the planters who then owned the plantations, now it’s the Government of GUYANA, and they have an obligation to provide alternative employment before throwing workers to the dogs.

Your Eyewitness looks forward to the address by PM Nagamootoo.

Your Eyewitness is challenged by these new outfits deployed by the Government against the Opposition – oops! – crime. SOCU – Special Organised Crime Unit – is the one formed by the PPP to nab “organised crime” laundering their illgotten gains by throwing up high rises like jumbie umbrellas and such other schemes? But here it is SOCU’s now going after fellas who – at the very worst – arranged to buy land at lower than market rates. So the question troubling your Eyewitness is this: were they laundering money or financing terrorists?

Your Eyewitness, who freely admits he’s not as au fait with the English language as SOCU’s Englishsponsored advisor, would’ve thought such get-rich schemes might be more in the bailiwick of SARA – the State Assets Recovery Agency. Land is a “state asset”, no?

Ah well…it’s all about nailing the Opposition and it doesn’t matter whether the cat is white or black, does it? …on parking meters?

So, what’s the latest on the Parking Meters, apart from inspiring “town people” to street theatre?

Well, the Minister of State says there needs to be more consultation. Yep!!

Your Eyewitness thinks the Government’s just waiting out the chatterati in the streets!! And with good reason. Remember the Occupy Movement?

sport feature 37

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Hero CPL 2017 launches with eye-catching Draft

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he fifth instalment of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) launched in spectacular fashion in Barbados on Friday morning as the Player Draft concluded with some eyecatching movement across all six franchises.

The great Sir Garfield Sobers joined the assembled guests, dignitaries, sponsors and international media to help launch the biggest party in sport.

This year each squad’s Player budget is $750,000 (USD). In addition to an unlimited group of retained players, once more there is a guaranteed roster spot for a Young West Indies emerging player as well as a representative from the ICC Americas, which ties in with one of the Hero CPL’s mandates of providing opportunities for young players across the Caribbean and north America.

Though each team was permitted to retain the core of their squad

batsman Lendl Simmons.

Chadwick Walton has made the move, meanwhile, to Guyana Amazon Warriors and looks set to be a strong addition to their batting line-up.

For the first time ever, there will be an Afghanistan presence in the Hero CPL, with Mohammad Nabi (St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots) and Rashid Khan (Guyana Amazon Warriors) being snapped up. Barbados Tridents have also supplemented their bowling attack with the signing of Pakistan’s WahabRiaz.

In addition to the highprofile acquisition of New Zealand batsman Kane Williamson, coupled with the return of Dwayne Smith following his transfer from Guyana Amazon Warriors, the Tridents have retained Pakistan’s Shaoib Malik and South African all-rounder Wayne Parnell as they bid to win the coveted title they last won in 2014.

Kieron Pollard will lead

of a number of stalwarts including Black Caps opener Martin Guptill, inform Australian batsman Chris Lynn and Pakistan’s towering left-armerSohailTanvir who was one of the most consistent performers in 2016 with bat and ball. In addition, the squad will include West Indies duo RayadEmrit and Jason Mohammed, as well as exciting batsman ShimronHetmyer who led the West Indies to the Under-19 ICC Cricket World Cup title last year.

It will be a case of opportunity knocking for reigning champions, the Jamaica Tallawahs, who will be aiming for their third Hero CPL title.

Rovman Powell was a standout player last year and the exuberance of youth will be balanced by a spine of a hat-trick of Asian talent in Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara, Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan and Pakistan’s ImadWasim who have all been re-

this year, it still allowed for some eye-catching transfers.

Amongst some of the notable acquisitions are that of Australian allrounder Ben Cutting who has been recruited by St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots, while West Indies ICC World T20 winner Marlon Samuels has joined the St. Lucia Stars. Samuels was not the only high profile Caribbean capture, with the Jamaica Tallawahs signing up

an exciting team which includes wicket-keeper/ batsman Nicholas Pooran, who impressed following his comeback from a long injury lay-off joined the likes of Ravi Rampaul and emerging West Indies player Shamar Springer for the forthcoming campaign.

Guyana Amazon Warriors have been one of the most consistent sides since the tournament’s inception in 2013 and that is reflected in the retention

tained. USA international bowler Timroy Allen has also been retained as the ICC Americas representative.

St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots completed one of the most eye-catching transfers in the close season by acquiring the services of two-time champion Chris Gayle, and the powerful left-hander will join ‘marquee’ overseas signing Proteas allrounder Chris Morris and his international col-

league TabraizShamsi in the Patriots squad. A string of local Caribbean talent will include influential leg-spinner Samuel Badree, Jonathan Carter, Kieran Powell and promising fast bowler Alzarri Joseph for what will be ICC World T20 winning coach Phil Simmons’ first season in charge of the ambitious Patriots. Carlos Brathwaite has been retained as a West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) ‘Free’ Player, who are players either contracted to the WICB, or, likely to be selected by the WICB for international duty.

St. Lucia Stars will once again be led by charismatic leader Daren Sammy and they will welcome back South African batsman David Miller and Australian all-rounder Shane Watson to the fold.

Recently re-named and under new ownership, the Stars will also welcome Sri Lanka’s LasithMalinga for a squad brimming with quality. Local favourite Johnson Charles was a strong performer at the top of the order last year and he will line up once more alongside the likes of Andre Fletcher, Shane Shillingford and Jerome Taylor.

2015 champions Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) have opted to retain all but three of last year’s squad and will once more by led by Dwayne ‘DJ’ Bravo. TKR will look to the guile of Sunil Narine while Darren Bravo will firm up a batting line-up which in-

cludes ‘marquee’ player Brendon McCullum, who will be joined again by fellow Black Cap Colin Munro. South Africa’s HashimAmla also returns to the panel who will be coached by Australian Simon Katich.

2017 HERO CPL SQUADS: B A R B A D O S TRIDENTS: Kieron Pollard, Kane Williamson*, Shoaib Malik, Dwayne Smith, Nicholas Pooran, Wayne Parnell, Ravi Rampaul, WahabRiaz, Raymond Reifer, Christopher Barnwell, Imran Khan, Damian Jacobs, AkealHosein,Ryan Wiggins, Tino Best, Shamar Springer (Young W.I.), Akeem Dolton (ICC Americas) G U Y A N A AMAZON WARRIORS: SohailTanvir, Martin Guptill*, Chadwick Walton, Chris Lynn, RayadEmrit, Rashid Khan, Jason Mohammed, Steven Taylor, VeerasammyPermaul, Roshan Primus, Gajanand Singh, Assad Fudadin, Keon Joseph, Steven Jacobs, Steven Ketwaroo, ShimronHetmeyer (Young W.I.), Muhammad Ali Khan (ICC Americas) J A M A I C A TALLAWAHS: Lendl Simmons, Kumar Sangakkara*, Shakib Al Hasan, ImadWasim, Muhammad Sami, Rovman Powell, Gidron Pope, Kesrick Williams, GareyMathurin, Jon-Russ Jaggesar, KrishmarSantokie,

Jonathan Foo, Kennar Lewis, Andre McCarthy, Odean Smith, O’Shane Thomas (Young W.I.), Timroy Allen (ICC Americas) ST. KITTS & NEVIS PATRIOTS: Chris Gayle, Chris Morris*, Ben Cutting, Mohammad Nabi, Evin Lewis, Samuel Badree, Jonathan Carter, TabraizShamsi, Brandon King, Devon Thomas, Sheldon Cotterell, Kieran Powell, Fabian Allen, Shamarh Brooks, Jeremiah Louis, Alzarri Joseph (Young W.I.), Nikhil Dutta (ICC Americas), Carlos Brathwaite (WICB ‘Free’) ST. LUCIA STARS: David Miller, LasithMalinga*, Shane Watson, Daren Sammy, Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher, Jerome Taylor, Marlon Samuels, Kamran Akmal, Rakheem Cornwall, Kyle Mayers, Shane Shillingford, Eddie Leie, KeddyLesporis, Sunil Ambris, Obed McCoy (Young W.I.), Timal Patel (ICC Americas) T R I N B A G O KNIGHT RIDERS: Dwayne Bravo, Brendon McCullum*, Sunil Narine, HashimAmla, Darren Bravo, DeneshRamdin, Colin Munro, Shadab Khan, Khary Pierre, Ronsford Beaton, JavonSearles, Nikita Miller, William Perkins, Kevon Cooper, Brad Hogg, Anderson Phillip (Young W.I.), Hamza Tariq (ICC Americas) *Denotes ‘marquee’ player (CPL)

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Let children learn to think for themselves

By Ashley Anthony

E

very human at some point in his or her lives has loved learning. From the tender age of three or four, we go through this phase of questioning how everything is, and why things work the way they do. For example, “Why is the sky blue”, “How do cars work?” . Why is it that as we grow older, we lose this inquisitive nature?

One of the issues I faced, as a child, was that people always tried to limit how much I was allowed to learn based solely on my age. It was assumed that because I fell into a certain age group I would be unable to comprehend anything higher than the knowledge typically associated with that age range. If I questioned something, I would be met with unsatisfying answers such as, “You don’t need to know that”, or “You wouldn’t understand this”, and while, perhaps both of these may have been true, they were quite annoying to receive. I would have been much more content if someone had tried to explain to me as simply as they could the answers to my questions, or even encouraged me to do more research myself, giving me hints as to

Ashley Anthony

what I should look up. Yet, very few people go through the trouble of doing this.

Time after time, people accuse the school system of teaching children what to think, of producing students who can only “regurgitate”, but maybe the reason for this is that within schools (and even at home), we don’t encourage students to think about their course material any further than what is provided. It is sort of like children are told something is a fact, and not taught to question why it is a fact, because they could not possibly understand the reason it is factual. Because of this, students lose their passion for learning. They are no longer learning because they wish to understand how

the world works, but because they have to write an exam and this is what is required to do so. As a result, we get children who can tell you exactly what the textbook says, but probably not much more.

This is not necessarily bad for exam pass rates, because if students adhere strictly to syllabi and can answer the questions perfectly, they are bound to pass. However, on the other hand, what effect does it have on the child? They no longer view learning as this amazing experience: a way to discover new things, but rather as a job, a chore, or something that they are forced to do. They don’t care about the things they are learning, and so find no enjoyment from them. One of the best things I think we can do is enable our children to think for themselves. We should encourage them to read books that might be a little difficult for a child at their age, encourage them to learn about sophisticated topics such as politics and social illnesses, so that they can begin to form their own opinions, and we should encourage them to keep asking questions by always providing them with fulfilling answers.

Why the celebration?

S

atiricus was all fired up with excitement over the just-completed Phagwah festivities. As was their custom and practice – as Bungi would say – they’d retired to the Back Street Bar to relive their experiences.

And look ahead to the next year. Phagwah was one of their favourite festivals since it gave them one more excuse to “live it up”!

“I gotta tell you fellas,” started off Satiricus enthusiastically, as he signalled for another round, “Guyana has to be the best country in the world.”

“I’m not going to fight you over that one, Sato,” said Hari. “But could you be a little more specific as to why you give us that honour?”

“Budday, we just finish Mash last month,” Satiricus smiled widely. “Which makes us the only country in the world to throw a big sport for Republic Day!” “Yuh right, yuh know, Sato,” said Bungi, nodding his head vigorously. “All demadda country a show affdem weapon and t’ing!”

“That’s right, Bungi!” said Satiricus, slapping the table.

“Make love not war is our motto!!”

“I’m not so sure about that,” said Hari doubtfully.

“But that’s the point I’m making, Hari,” said Satiricus.

“We love sport so much, we’re the only country to have two Phagwahs!”

“That’s not true, Sato,” replied Hari. “India has two Phagwahs, also.”

“Yes…but that is for different parts of the country!” said Satiricus knowledgeably. “In Guyana, the whole country gets to sport two Phagwahs!”

Bungi, who’d been listening closely to the exchange, decided to butt in. “Suhwha’ mekabee a celebrate Phagwah?”

His two friends looked at him in confusion. “You know we’re celebrating the destruction of evil,” explained Satiricus patiently.

“Just like at Diwali!”

“But befo’ abee celebrate, abeena gat fuhdestrai evil fuss?” Bungi asked innocently.

His friends looked at him with surprise as he continued. “An’ if abee wan’ fuh celebrate two time, da mean abee gat fuhdestrai all two evil – Pee-an-See and KFC, na?!”

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Aminta Kilawan Narine

A social voice with deep cultural roots

Being an advocate for her religion and the rights of people is what Aminta is passionate about

A

minta Kilawan Narine is an attorney, community activist, and writer.

Born in the Bronx, New York to Guyanese parents, Aminta’s passion for social justice manifests in various aspects of her life.

She writes a weekly column for The West Indian newspaper titled, “Civics, Culture, and Community Engagement”, in efforts to increase involvement and stewardship in areas such as politics and volunteerism.

Aminta uses her voice for multifold purposes: she is a spirited bhajan (Hindu songs) singer, but is also a vocal advocate for her community. In 2011,

According to Kirk Semple from the New York Times, “Sadhana is seeking to strengthen the liberal voice in the Hindu population and become a flag-bearer for social justice and social action.”

A staunch believer in volunteerism and social justice for all, Aminta co-led in 2013 six students on a service project to examine human rights issues experienced by Dominicans of Haitian descent.

In late 2015, she organized and led the ‘WeAreOne’ rally with elected officials and community leaders to protest a hate crime that was committed against members of a Guyanese family living in Queens,

Aminta with her husband, Rohan, who is also a community activist

she co-founded Sadhana to merge her passion for activism with her love of Hinduism’s progressive values. Since 2011, Sadhana has been working towards building a progressive Hindu movement in the New York City area, nationally, and beyond.

Sadhana is a coalition of Hindus worldwide wanting to assert a progressive Hindu voice into the public discourse of our times. Sadhana is a mechanism and a platform for progressive Hindus to speak up and act for progressive social values and social justice. Members practice ‘sadhana’, or faith in action, by advocating for those social justice principles they believe are at the heart of Hinduism.

New York. Aminta has also worked with on Habitat for Humanity projects and with programs for students in local schools.

Aminta’s advocacy goes beyond her immediate community. In response to the problem of littering at local beaches following the performance of Hindus rituals, Sadhana launched an environmental initiative known as Project Prithvi to clean up abandoned puja items, which are usually left on the shores. Their efforts did not go unnoticed, and in 2015 Sadhana was awarded by the White House for their commitment to environmental justice and making sure that the earth was protected.

Through her position as Legislative Counsel to the New York City Council’s Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries, and International Intergroup Relations and the Committee on Women’s Issues, Aminta drafts legislation, liaises with advocates and shapes New York City policy on an everyday basis.

Aminta graduated with a B.A. in Political Science from Fordham University and a Juris Doctor from Fordham Law School.

For more information on Aminta’s community efforts visit www. sadhana.org. (http://guyanesegirlsrock.org)

Aminta (left) leads volunteers in prayer during a cleanup initiative (Photo by New York Times)

40 feature

By Petamber Persaud

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

The Shaping of Guyanese Literature

The Guyana Annual 2017 T

he centennial issue of The Guyana Annual magazine was launched on Friday February 24, 2017, months after it was due to surface. Over the hundred-year period, the magazine suffered many other misses and overcame ‘near death experiences’, surviving to beat the odds like good traditions would wont to do, perhaps imbued with a fighting spirit – a boon given at its birth during the tumultuous days of WW1.

According to Nigel Westmaas, ‘[d]uring certain periods, like the war years and local crises, the Annual would suspend and then resume publication. Between 1962 and 1965 no Annual was published, presumably on account of the disturbances

in those years, but it returned in Independence Year, 1966.’ The next issue to appear was in 1992.

Then in 1998, the magazine was given a new lease on life when it was resuscitated by Berbiceborn Texas-based philanthropist, Dr. Tulsi Dyal Singh. This new lease on life was characterized by several modifications in order to remain relevant.

Some of those changes included a tweaking of the name, expanding the literary competitions in order to garner more reading material for children with the Rajkumari Singh Writing poetry for Children Competition, the Henry Josiah Writing Short Stories for Children, and the offering of trophies and prize monies to winners.

Some of those changes were effected by Vic Insanally – the magazine’s new publisher – and wide range of veteran and youthful editors including Allan Fenty, Charles De Florimonte, Ruel Johnson, Kojo McPherson and Petamber Persaud.

In many instances, the magazine was not published due to financial constraints and lack of corporate support. Never can it be said that the magazine did not surface due to shortage of contributions from writers, artists, photographers, specialist writers and academics.

Submissions were always in abundance, evidenced in the amount of material published, including more than 200 articles, in excess of 300 stories, over 500 poems, and

scores of photographs, drawings, and scores of limericks. (Important to note that the unpublished material might be ten times the amount mentioned above).

Guyana can be proud of such vast store of archival material covering world affairs affecting Guyana especially during colonial times and every facet of life in Guyana.

Importantly, the magazine held an international appeal, evidenced by reports that it was taken to other dominions of the Empire.

Other constraints included competition from rival magazines like ‘The Christmas Tide’ which was produced by the Argosy newspaper and ‘The Caribia’ produced by B. G. Lithographic, but

In February, local literary activist and writer Petamber Persaud handed over a copy of the centenary edition to a representative from the National Library

they were not a perpetual concern for The Annual has outlived them.

Brigadier (retd) David Granger, now President of Guyana, writing in the 2004-2005 issue of The Annual declared that “[a] lmost all of the 130 magazines ever published in Guyana died” because “they were beset by problems of insufficient funds; rejection by the market; untrained staff; and inadequate material resources to maintain continuity” and also “the magazine has often been regarded as a vehicle for vested interests and, as a result, has been treated with hostility by those opposed to its ideas.”

Why continue in such an unfriendly climate?

The following are some reasons for its continuance and longevity: Alan Fenty, declared that “writers, journalists, artists, cartoonists and photographers felt “arrived” when their work appeared in the year-end publication”.

P. H. Daly wrote that it was “the launching-pad for every Guyanese writer who eventually wrote his name into regional and international recognition”.

Ian McDonald said “every outlet for cultural creations like this one is a dream come true for some young person somewhere in this country yearning to express himself or herself and make a difference in our minds and imaginations.”

And Al Creighton remarked “the outlets and opportunities that it provides within the country remain immeasurable”.

The launch of the current centennial issue was delayed, perhaps a victim of many social factors including the recent general and regional elections and the perennial problem of financial constraints and shoe-string budgets. But it’s here. And Dr. Singh,philosophizing in the preface of the current issue writes, said “it is more liberating to celebrate what you have rather than rue what you missed”.

The cover of the 2017 issue sets the tone for what’s to follow: Guyana’s Golden Jubilee of Independence

Official Logo designed

by Compton Babb; the 50th Independence Flagraising Ceremony at midnight on May 26th 2016, with the hoisting of the colossal Golden Arrowhead measuring 50’ X 30’ on a 200-foot flagpole; Berbice High School centenary; our profile of the year Sister Mary Noel Menezes, the ‘Jubilation Concert’, hosted by the Tina Insanally Foundation and attended by the President and First Lady, and Mashramani in New York.

So in this issue you would be treated to some jubilee moments like ‘Jubilation Concert’, ‘Hawley Harris’, ‘The Remarkable Lord Canary’, ‘Memories of that Month’, ‘Concerning Hamilton Green and His Righteous, Circuitous Road to National Service’ and Profile of the Year – Sr Menezes.

Landmarks like the East Lothian building, Rose Hall Sugar Estate Library, the legendary Pomeroon River, and Mary’s Garden.

There is also a timeline of Guyanese history, ‘Greetings a la Guyana’, Golden Years of Guyanese Literature, the Amazonia Poetry Competition, ‘what I expect of Independence’, Shakira Baksh; Imam Baksh winning the 2015 Burt Award for Caribbean Literature, and many other features celebrating Guyana and the pride of the people.

The magazine has not lost sight of its vital role falling betwixt news periodicals and the book.

For almost two decades, it was gifted to the public at (GUY)$1,000 per copy – despite value added materials and services to production cost.

One hundred years after it was launched, The Guyana Annual remains the only forum to offer an outlet and platform for emerging writers and creators of ideas.

Responses to this author telephone (592) 2260065 or email: oraltradition2002@yahoo.com What’s Happening: Coming soon a new pocketbook, “Guyanese Writers of Indian Ancestry”

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Just the facts on Indentureship Event

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thought long and hard about replying to Mr Freddie Kissoon’s polemic “If Guyana cannot confront people like Ryhaan Shah and Ravi Dev, it will explode”, (KN 3-7-17) to correct some of his claims. The article repeats views the author has expressed so many times before, I doubt it will have any effect on his conclusions, but I hope he will at least check their premises.

He claimed the End of Indian Immigration event at the Cultural Centre was “funded by some businessmen who accumulated vast wealth from BharratJagdeo’s oligarchic rule”. This claim formed the basis of much of his polemic, such as me serving the said “oligarchs’ interest” by riling up Indians, etc. However, the event “GarvaurIzzat”/ Pride and Dignity”, hosted by an ad-hoc 18-member group GIIAA, was funded by the Social Cohesion Ministry and the Indian High Commission. Both these two institutions are to be commended.

PM Moses Nagamootoo, Minister George Norton, Min Cathy Hughes, and Min Jaipaul Sharma, from the Government benches, were also at the event, as was Adrian Anamayah representing the Opposition Leader.

The PM and Min Norton also spoke, to an audience that included the US Ambassador and the British HC, among others. Hardly the local Indian sans cullotte, to be exhorted to revolution.

Another claim was “ninety per cent of the Guyanese economy is in the hands of Guyanese Indian business people”, I would like to know the source of this titbit, since I am sure MrKissoon wouldn’t have made it up, even if it does seem outlandish.

He then claims there are “no exclusive Amerindian, African, Chinese or European school in Guyana, but there is a huge Hindu school at Cornelia Ida owned and operated by a Hindu priest, Aksharananda”. But in so doing, he is comparing apples and oranges – national origin with the Hindu religion. There are numerous Christian Schools, and even a Bahai

one, for instance.

MrKissoon claims when I asked “Indians to rise up”, I “didn’t distinguish the ordinary Indian folks like me and hundreds of thousands like us who have nothing and got nothing under Jagdeo and Ramotar”. Yet the Chroncriticised me for talking about Wales workers – which I did – who I think qualify as “ordinary Indian folks”.

The Chronicle, however, parsed my statement for not talking about “African Wales workers”. You just cannot please some people.

MrKissoon also ignored the wider context of my presentation where, according to one report, I “explained that during indentureship, Indian protests against the planters’ exploitation were actually protests against the British colonial state which underwrote sugar interests.

The killings of 1939 at Plantation Leonora led to a widening of the franchise in 1947 by the Moyne Commission and the Enmore killings in 1948 to the struggle for independence and democracy. Their descendants, therefore, had a responsibility to protect democracy.

“The essence of democracy must be nourished through protest and through the populace, who have earned and fought for their freedom, to guard their freedom jealously.

Today, we will do our foreparents the greatest honour to maintain our garv (our pride) and our izzat (our dignity) if we were to take our responsibility, take that inheritance and to rise up and do what is necessary to protect what we have built.”

Lastly, MrKissoon says, “Unfortunately, Black leaders did not urge Black Guyanese to do what Dev is instilling in Indians to do.” Meaning rise up and protect what they built? He really insults stalwarts, who I respect for their fidelity to the cause like David Hinds, TacumaOgunseye, Eric Philips, et al.

He would remember he wrote a series of articles about a friend of his he dubbed the “Wild Man”, who instigated the violence emanating from

By Ravi Dev Buxton for an African Resistance to overthrow the State between 2002 and 2008. On the “Black Youths” killed during that period, I would also remind him that I called at the Square of the Revolution at the Rule of Law march, for an inquiry into the then endemic violence. But, sadly, I also had to remind that audience Indians had also been killed.

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42 Travel & Tourism

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com Swimming under the Canje Bridge in Berbice

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ettled by the Dutch West India Company in 1627, its capital was Fort Nassau which was abandoned by 1785 and a new Fort Andries built downstream to become today’s capital of Berbice, New Amsterdam. Berbice is also known as “The Ancient County, now a region of mixed eras, as old colonial buildings stand side by side with modern constructions and the traditional rustic way of life continues alongside the modern-day hustle and bustle. (Photos:

LJH)

Fishing boats, Rosignol, Berbice

Tapir taxis waiting for passengers at Corriverton, Berbice

The historic ‘Fraser House’ with its 99 windows

A common sight in Berbice: Moving house along the Berbice Highway

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Shafrana's henna designs done on a Hindu bride's hands

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he art of henna was brought to these shores with the customs of early indentured labourers, and it remains an integral part of our heritage today.

From this age-old tradition, Muslim and Hindu East Indian indentured labourers brought the art of henna, also known as mehndi in Hindi or Urdu, to British Guiana where their descendants continue to uphold this ancient art form.

One such keeper of tradition is 25-year-old Shafrana Aliof Chateau Margot, East Coast Demerara.

The selftaught henna artist, who is also a makeup artist, has been practicing this ancient art form professionally for about three years now.

“I was a business student at ISA Islamic School. I have always loved doing designs ever since my school days. My classmates would ask me to do designs for them,

whether it’s on their hands, folders, banners and much more. For Eid celebration, I started doing henna for the girls and women at the LBI Masjid. After people saw my work, I was encouraged to take it up professionally. Initially, I was a bit sceptical because I was unsure if person would like my designs.

However, I didn’t allow this doubt to deter me.

I continued to do henna for family and friends at their weddings and from

there I started to develop my art,” Shafrana recalled in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

Shafrana artistic henna designs not only include drawing on people, but also on glassware, candles, cards and much more.

“Apart from henna being done on brides and others, I started to do henna designs on objects.

The idea came about when clients ask if I can do tokens for their henna night, a keepsake for their guests to remember the joyous occasion. I did henna on glasses, papers, plates, clothing and they loved it. This makes me happy,” Shafrana expressed.

According to the artist, the henna designs on objects last longer than those done on hands because she uses paint instead of the henna paste.

Shafrana mentioned that her work has provided opportunities to travel across Guyana to share her love for henna and makeup artistry. She hopes that “with the grace of God” she can expand her work throughout Guyana and, if possible,to other countries as well.

Currently, Shafrana is employed as a fulltime cashier and would do henna mostly on weekends, which has become a thriving part time business.

“It’s my dream to become a renowned henna artist in Guyana. Having a fulltime job doesn't affect my love and passion I have for henna because Henna painted on glasses

Henna and makeup artist, Shafrana Ali

clients mostly get married on weekends, which fits perfectly for me. I utterly love being able to beautify my clients for that special day. With the grace of God Almighty and the support of my wonderful family, I will continue to strive for greater success,” she declared.

For more information on the artist’s work, visit SA Henna & Makeup Artistry on Facebook.

Brief history on henna art

The art of henna has been practiced for more than 5,000 years in India, Pakistan, Africa and the Middle East. Some historians even say it is more than 9,000 years old. The English name “henna” comes from Arabic hinnā Henna art involves putting henna paste made from the henna plant on the body, and is said to have first been practiced because of its ability to cool the skin in the very hot, arid climate conditions people of the desert regions faced.

People would daub the paste on their palms and soles of feet, and experience the cooling effect as long as the henna remained on their skin.

Noticing that when the paste faded it left be-

hind the patterns of being rubbed on the skin, it wasn’t long after perhaps that some creative individual decided to begin making decorative patterns as well, on the hands and feet.

Among Muslims of the Middle East, in Islamic literature, the Prophet Muhammad used henna to dye his beard, and administered its use to the sick. In Hindu culture, mehndi is applied for important festivals and occasions, such as weddings.

A mehndi ceremony is an important pre-wedding ritual, observed in India and many Arabic nations.

At the ceremony, the bride-to-be adorns her hands and feet with henna designs. The groom may also apply a bit of mehendi (or mehndi) on his hands as well as feet.

This ceremony is not just about adornment however, it has a sacred relevance for both Hindus and Muslims.

According to some, among these religions, mehndi represents the bond of matrimony and is therefore considered a sign of good luck. It signifies the love and affection between the couple and their families. It is also considered a symbol of fertility.

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

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46 feature

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

I

t’s an interesting footnote that the end of Indian indentureship had its genesis in the politics of India rather than any struggle in the countries to which Indians had been shipped since 1834. The governments of those colonies were all heavily influenced by their sugar planters who desperately wanted an uninterrupted supply of the indentured to continue depressing wages.

In fact, after immigration ended in Guyana in 1917, the government and planters sent a delegation of GuyaneseIndian leaders to India to solicit support for a new scheme to supply cheap labour.

In India, the Indian National Congress (INC) had been formed in 1885 by British and Indian members of the Theosophical Society to encourage “dialogue” between “educated” Indians and the Indian Government.

According to an 1832 policy enunciated by Macaulay, the “education” promised to create “brown Englishmen”.

The graduates assumed they would be treated like white Englishmen individually; and collectively, as members of the British Empire. Consequently, they soon argued for Swaraj for India along the lines accorded to Australia and South Africa.

The gap between the promise and the reality, however, precipitated a split of the INC

O

ctober 2 is Gandhi’s birthday. When you can refer to someone by just his last name and yet most people in the world know who you are referring to, there has to be good reason. Most know Gandhi because of his introduction of “civil disobedience” – he called it satyagraha or “truth force” – as a form of struggle for justice. He is also associated with the struggle for India’s independence, which was a seminal event for all the other British colonies, including the then British Guiana.

But not so well known is that Gandhi was also associated with the events that led to the abolition of indentureship as is alluded to in the previous article. Gandhi had been hired as a lawyer by a wealthy businessman in South Africa (SA), part of a 5,000-strong mostly Muslim community that had migrated there from Bombay. This community stayed aloof from the

Labourers on a sugar estate (Circa 1905)

in 1905 between “Moderates”, led by Gokhale – who continued to “believe”, and “Extremists” led by Tilak who didn’t.

Indentured Indians entered the picture through the backdoor when Gandhi, who had gone as a lawyer to South Africa in 1893 in the employ of some Gujrati merchants, was unceremoniously kicked off a train for believing he could travel first class like whites.

It was only gradually after the indentured spontaneously joined Gandhi’s protest that the latter’s eyes opened up to the plight of the former: rather not being treated like whites, their very humanity was denied. As racism was exposed through its extreme “apartheid” form

“indentured Indians” who were recruited to work on plantations –- or in the case of South Africa – also in the mines – except to sell them “goods”.

These two sets of Indians occupied separate worlds – socially, culturally and politically – and it was only when the two intersected through personal experiences of Gandhi that their commonality of interests was briefly glimpsed.

We have recounted how Gandhi was thrown off a train at the insistence of a white Briton shortly after his arrival in South Africa. The newly minted Londontrained lawyer insisted as a “British subject”, he had the right to the first class seat he had bought.

These and other actions problematized Gandhi’s assumptions about what he had been taught about the “benefits” of India being in the British Empire.

Shortly after the train humiliation, Gandhi encountered the indentured world. As he re-

a hundred years later, South Africa helped to make more “educated” Indians in India aware of their naïveté in aspiring to be “British”, through information supplied by Gandhi, who was in touch with Gokhale.

Ironically, Gandhi accepted a system in which white British persons were seen as being “better” than Indians, who were to be loyal “helpers”.

Gokhale initially saw indentureship as hindering Indians being accepted as British because the “coolies” were not distinguished from “other” (read “educated”) Indians. He sought amelioration of the conditions under which the coolie laboured and only called for the abolition of indentureship to Natal as a

counted it: “A Tamil man in tattered clothes, headgear in hand, two front teeth missing and mouth bleeding, stood before me, trembling and weeping.” And elsewhere the “hat in hand” anecdote is repeated – clearly as a trope for his shaken premise on “Britishness”: “…Balasundaram entered my office, headgear in hand. There was a particular pathos about the circumstance which also showed our humiliation.

I have already narrated the incident when I was asked to take off my turban. A practice had been forced upon the very indentured labourer and every stranger to take off his headgear, when visiting European, whether the headgear was a cap, turban or scarf wrapped round the head. A salute even with both hands was not sufficient.”

Balasundaram’s case exposed the inequities indentured endured even though they were supposedly protected by a contract – the “agreement”

tactical measure, after the government of Natal imposed restrictions on the movement of “free” Indians. Abolition there was achieved in 1911.

In 1912 Gokhale extended his call to the entire system of Indentureship and other members of the Congress, such as Madan Mohan Malaviya took up the cause. By this time, the harsh conditions in other colonies, especially in Fiji, were made known in India, and the “ban on indentureship” became a nationwide cause célèbre.In fact, it was the one issue that brought together the two factions of Congress and also the Muslim League, under Mohamed Ali Jinnah, which had also withdrawn. For one

they tried to uphold from their side scrupulously. Eventually after a great effort Gandhi gets Balasundaram transferred to another employer but now understood how SA’s institutions such as the magistracy were stacked against the indentured.

In 1896 on a visit to Bombay, Gandhi produced a 15,000-word tract on the problems of Indians – merchants, free and indentured in South Africa. He complained bitterly that the Bombay merchants are called “Coolie Traders” and not treated much better than the indentured.

He earned some notoriety from the whites when he returned to SA but at the same time much goodwill from the indentured Indians.

Between 1907 when Gandhi launched his first satyagraha campaign to 1914 when he left South Africa, even though most of the issues were peripheral to their plight, indentured Indians formed the

brief historical moment, Indian indentured labour brought modern Indians in India together.

On March 20, 1916, after Gokhale had passed away and Gandhi returned to India (both in 1915), Malaviya introduced a motion in the Indian Legislature for the cessation of indentureship. Governor General Hardinge agreed in principle but the India Office back in Britain, under Chamberlain balked. He insisted that a new method of supplying labour to the colonies had to be found.

By this time, however, most ships ferrying the indentured had been commandeered to the (WWI) war effort and the recruitment was also competing with enlistment efforts of the Indian army. Already under fire for a bungled campaign by that Indian-dominated army in Mesopotamia, Chamberlain did not want to face further attacks from the Government of India.

On MARCH 19 , 1917, he authorised the Government of India to issue orders under the Defence of India Act to stop recruitment, and the same day an order was made in the Legislative Council.

Two weeks earlier, the last ship, the SS Ganges had sailed to British Guiana and Trinidad.

On Jan 1, 1920, the system was abolished completely.

Gandhi as a young lawyer in South-Africa, 1906

bulk of the protesters. As recounted before, he provided his mentor Gokhale in the Indian Legislative Council with information on the conditions in South Africa. In 1912, the latter called for the complete abolition of indentureship. When this was finally achieved in 1917, Gandhi suggested that satyagraha had “hastened the end”.

These has been a steady stream of revisionist accounts of Gandhi’s

life – including his 21year stay in South Africa – especially as they relate to Gandhi’s relations with both indentured Indians and Native Africans. But we have to remember that while Gandhi was ahead of his times on human rights in many regards – we cannot judge him totally by present standards.

He was a “Mahatma” – a great Soul – not a Paramatman – the Supreme Soul.

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

“GARV AUR IZZAT”

By Rhyaan Shah

Phagwah, Diwali…same difference

S

atiricus was in his element. And it was not just it was the season of Holi and the fellas in the bar were carrying even more uninhibited than usual. He was proud that one of his Ministers of the Coalition Government had finally seen the real meaning not only of Holi – but of all the Hindu Holidays. As the fellas downed their first bottle of the brew of the gods, he steered the conversation in the requisite direction to make his point.

“So which day, you guys celebrating Holi this year?” he asked as his opening gambit. “We’re doing Sunday.”

“Budday, yuh know a de wife does look aftahdemt’ings!” Bungi said effusively. “She pick Monday!”

“Well, my wife decided she’ll play it safe and will celebrate both days!!” confessed Hari glumly. “So I will have to eat veggie for two days!”

“Well fellas,” said Satiricus sanctimoniously.

“Holi isn’t all fun and games, you know.”

“It’s not?” asked Hari doubtfully.

“W’en me bin lil, dembai bin push me in wan trench,” confessed Bungi. “Da na bin fun.”

“I don’t mean like that, fellas,” said Satiricus somewhat impatiently. “Didn’t you hear what our Minister of Culture said about Holi?”

“That she didn’t know the difference between Phagwah and Diwali?” asked Hari with a smirk.

“That’s the problem with you Hari,” complained Satiricus. “Just because you didn’t vote for the government means you can’t see what she was doing.”

“Suh tell abeewha’ she she, na,” said Bungi.

“All me know abee a t’rowwata a Holi and abee a light up a Diwali.”

“She looked at the essence of the two festivals,” said satiricus with a flourish. “And decided that they were interchangeable because both tell the story of the triumph of good over evil!”

“SuhDivali and Phagwah a waan?” said Bungi, somewhat confused.

“Well, for this government, it is,” said Hari.

“Next year they’ll announce we only need one Holiday for both!”

Satiricus suddenly went quiet.

CROSSWORD SOLUTION

I

n my remarks at the event held at the National Cultural Centre (NCC) on March 3, to mark the centenary of the abolition of Indian indentureship, I said that we have the “politics of one ‘upmanship’ that serves egos rather than country and people.” This statement was met by applause.

It resonated with the audience as did other statements made by other speakers. When Mr Ravi Dev reminded the audience that the NCC was built by President Forbes Burnham with monies from the Indian Repatriation Fund and that it was “our” Cultural Centre, this also drew applause as did his remarks on the plight of the sugar workers with estates facing closure.

Acting President and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo also spoke as did Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton. Their addresses stayed close to the script of the occasion’s historical significance as did the Indian High Commissioner’s remarks on the night’s theme, “GarvAurIzzat” (Pride and Dignity).

But when People’s Progressive Party (PPP) MP Adrian Anamayah, representing Opposition Leader BharratJagdeo, took the stage and waded in to the politics of sugar estate closures a few Indian

Guyanese in the audience felt that his speech was too political and that it was neither the time nor the place.

When the Indian Guyanese community is facing down threats to their livelihood and wellbeing in every area, from the rice and sugar industries to the business sector to private school fees being taxed in what might be a move to end what has been referred to as “education apartheid” – it is always the time and place to speak; and if not at a ceremony to mark the hundredth year since indentureship was abolished, then when?

When we stand on platforms and speak of the Indian martyrs who gave their lives for the sake of our future, everyone applauds. To speak of our fore-parents’ resistance against colonialism is safe and commendable.

For us to embrace that legacy of resistance and act on it, however, is met with vexation. But if we do not yet feel that we are free to speak and act when our community is under threat, are we then still tied to a bound status?

Perhaps, the critics feel they have much to lose if they do not subsume their current fears and anxieties about our future. But it is such submissiveness which denies our community garvaurizzat, not resisting injustice.

It is always the right

time to resist prejudice and injustice and had the situation arisen then of Opposition Leader BharratJagdeo being arrested along with other PPP members by SOCU for misappropriating State assets, the remarks might have been even more political.

If crimes were committed, there should be consequences for sure but the hypocrisy of a wholly corrupt Government accusing the previous PPP/C Administration of wrongdoing is not lost on anyone and Indian Guyanese all along the coast are angry at what they view as political vindictiveness against their leaders.

That the arrests were timed to this particular moment when we are marking a historic centenary cannot be purely coincidental either.

The subject of my address at the NCC was: “Where we are; where we are heading” and I started with a quip that we came on ships and are leaving on jet planes then proceeded to give the reasons for our departure, the main one being that a safe and secure future is denied us in a country that we have worked for and died for.

I made an appeal to the Government and Opposition members present and said that they “can change the direction of our country

47

Ryhaan Shah if there is the political will” and spoke to the continued marginalisation of the Indian Guyanese community in the national narrative vis a vis cultural presentations, and in our history and literature texts.

We were also accused of wallowing in victimhood when neither I nor MrDev nor MrAnamayah wrung our hands and bemoaned our fate, and that comment actually contradicts another that we were calling for an “uprising”.

Indian Guyanese have long transcended the past of indentureship and colonial horrors and anyone who heard wallowing in our fighting words is likely projecting their own feelings of victimhood onto us.

I said in conclusion: “We are a people of strong faith and enduring values – we have overcome before.

Perhaps, we can hope to overcome again.”

Today, March 12, is the date that the Abolition Act was signed in India 100 hundred years ago. Now is the time to take a brave stand.

There is no garvaurizzat if we fail to do so.

Prerogative…

I

…is all Executive’s

f your Eyewitness is to take this APNU/AFC Government’s pronouncements seriously, then Guyanese don’t really need the three divisions of Government. The Legislature’s already controlled by them – with the Opposition there just like the apocryphal “Christmas blowblow”. Witness their inability to prevent the Government from railroading the Hamilton Green Payoff Bill!

And the way the Govt’s making pronouncements on what is and what is not “the law”, we might as well, roll up the Judiciary. Just because they’ve just retired the top judicial official – the Chancellor of the Judiciary and replaced the Chief Justice, they think they have the courts in the bag?? We hope not since they’re the last bastion against the encroaching autocracy.

We’ve seen Prezzie insisting that all the previous Presidents and Opposition Leaders were wrong in interpreting the clause of the Constitution as who’s qualified to be the GECOM Chairman. Including the fellas who actually negotiated, drafted and passed the specific act! Why take it to the courts, the Executive says, what do THEY know! Then, of course, there was the matter as to whether the people had ceded all their sovereignty to their representatives and it was now “do wha’ yuh want wid me!!” “Yuh” being the Executive, of course!

Now comes the latest Executive arrogation of judicial powers to show us “who’smaaan”!! The Minister of State in the Presidency says conclusively that the Police can decide whether immunities conferred on a President by the Constitution are applicable after he is out of office!!

That’s right…the Police can now interpret the Constitution!

Never mind Article 182 (1) unambiguously declares “the holder of the office of the President shall not be personally answerable to any court for the performance of the functions of his or her office or for any act done in the performance of those functions and no proceedings,

whether criminal or civil, shall be instituted against him or her in his or her personal capacity in respect thereof either during his or her term of office or thereafter.” Article 182 (2) goes even further – but what the heck? The Executive knows best!

According to the Minister, the constitutional framers expected ex-Presidents to retire gracefully to their rocking chairs on their front porch. He referred specifically to BharratJagdeo, who’s come back to haunt them after 12 years in the cat-bird seat. But the fella’s only 53. Did the Minister forget Desmond Hoyte who ran again in 2001 when he was over 70?? And energetically launched the “slow-fyaah, mofyaah” campaign?

But that’s just an inconvenient fact, isn’t it? They should now fly the PNC flag over the Appellate Court once again! ….is all the President’s There’s a particularly ironic tête-à-tête going on in the Opposition coalition camp. Those of us on this side of the fence always knew Nagamootoo and Ramjattan got Larwah after the elections. Even though it was their Berbice 11 per cent that got the coalition over the tape. Of course, this was denied stoutly by no other than the same two fellas – who we thought either like being screwed over or were bought out by the 50 per cent raise.

But from within, comes the news that three of the top Ministries that were counted as AFC’s to fill the conditions of the Cummingsburg Accord, were never nominated by the AFC to begin with – Raphael Trotman, Dominic Gaskin and Holder!! That’s right…even as Berbicians like Ramayya who brought out the votes, were relegated back to hauling water and hewing wood, the “town-men” got to live the high-end of the hog!!

So did Prezzie have a special prerogative out of the Accord? Or do Nagamootoo and Ramjattan just love more larwah? …of flight path Now that independent officials of NCN and operators of Ogle Airport admit the Tower at Sparendaam was moved to clear the flight path for the Airport’s expansion, will the Pradoville case be dropped?

Naaah. It was never about the legality was it?

48 Bollywood

Shreya Ghoshal’s wax statue to be unveiled at Madame Tussauds in India

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opular singer Shreya Ghoshal’s wax statue will be unveiled at India’s first Madame Tussauds Museum, which is to open here in June and the ‘Halka Halka’ singer is excited.

She said, “I am thrilled to be a part of history here at Madame Tussauds, and it is an honour to be featured among such talented stars, artists, historians and renowned celebrities,” Shreya said in a statement.

Her statue will be alongside those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bollywood’s Shahenshah, Amitabh Bachchan and American pop star Lady Gaga.

“To be immortalised forever is a

fabulous feeling. With its brilliant concept, Madame Tussauds has always been famous for bringing joy all across the world,” added Shreya, known for songs like ‘Teri Meri’, ‘Dola Re Dola’, ‘Deewani Mastani, ‘Agar Tum Mil Jao’, ‘Sunn Raha Hai’, ‘Saans’ and ‘Piya O Re Piya’. The singer celebrated her birthday recently on March 12.

The wax attraction, which will open its doors to the public in June, will exhibit over 50 figures from diverse leagues such as history, sport, music, films and TV. “We are pleased to unveil Shreya’s figure in the Delhi attraction. She is one of the most loved singers of today’s generation. We are excited to see our visitors sing along with her. She was one of the most requested figures for us to include in the attraction, and we are delighted to be able to honour those fans with this wax figure,” said Anshul Jain, General Manager and Director, Merlin Entertainments India Pvt Ltd. This is the 23rd branch of Madame Tussauds across the world. (Indian Express)

Lata Mangeshkar’s advice to young singers: Understand the character, situation and the story behind the songs

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hether it was ‘Lag jaa gale’ in 1964 or ‘Luka Chuppi’ in 2006 — legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar’s renditions have touched generations of music lovers who continue to enjoy her golden tracks. But she says she finds the “soul” missing from today’s music.

“I think playback singing has a lot to do with voice acting. I would suggest to all the youngsters to understand the character, situation and the story behind the songs. That is when you can add soul to the rendition which, I think, is missing in today’s music,” the 87-year-old told IANS in an interview at her Prabhu Kunj residence here. She observed that “perhaps that is why people still love to listen to retro songs, and new songs are going out of listeners’ memory faster”.

“As a singer, you have to bring the soul to the song,” said the industry veteran, hailed by many as the Nightingale of India. One of the most decorated singers in India, Mangeshkar has been awarded the Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, Dadasaheb Phalke Award and multiple National Film Awards, among others. Adding to her portfolio of awards was an honour by radio station Big 92.7 FM, which announced a listeners’ choice award — ‘Hit The Hit Rahenge’ — to commemorate the magic of Indian cinema by remembering and appreciating the evergreen movies and iconic stars in five categories.

Mangeshkar won the ‘Best Singer’ award and her song Lag Ja Gale won the ‘Best Song’ award. According to her, awards are a token of respect. “More than the trophy, it is the love and affection that people shower on me by listening to my songs year after year, that touches me. For me, awards are a token of respect that people are giving me. So

no matter how many awards I am receiving, I always feel emotional,” said the melody queen, dressed in a beautiful white sari and with her trademark bindi on her forehead.

During her musical journey of over seven decades in the Hindi film industry, the singer lent her voice for many heroines of different generations. She says Meena Kumari, Nargis, Madhubala and Sadhana were some of the yesteryear actresses whose voice was quite in sync with her playback. And among the younger ones, she feels Madhuri Dixit and Kajol did justice to her songs on screen with their lip-sync and expressive faces.

However, Mangeshkar believes Jaya Bachchan stood out when it comes to bringing all her songs alive on screen with her skilful acting. Sharing an anecdote from Abhimaan — in which she sang memorable and evergreen tracks like Piya bina piya bina, Tere mere milan ki yeh raina and Teri bindiya re for Jaya — Mangeshkar said: “Jaya-ji used to sit and observe me when I recorded all those songs. Since her presence made me conscious, I asked Hrishikesh-ji (Hrishikesh Mukherjee) the reason and he told me it was a part of her process to get a better insight of her character in the film.

“Later, when I saw the film, I was quite blown away to see her wearing red bordered white sari, red bindi and certain mannerisms like I do, unconsciously. But I must say, she did such a wonderful work. She is a very good actress.”

As a singer, Mangeshkar has explored various genres in different languages, including the regional film industry.

However, she has a special connection with Bengali music.

“Though I have sung in 26 langauges, after Hindi, I sang the maximum number of songs in Bengali for music directors like Salil Chowdhury, Satinath Mukherjee and Bappi Lahiri. Since Bengali and Marathi language have many similarities, I always felt as if it is my own,” she said, sometimes breaking into chaste Bengali while talking to this scribe, who also has roots in Bengal.

(Indian Express)

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017 | guyanatimeSinternational.com

Alia Bhatt has proven that she’s mature way beyond her years

A

lia Bhatt might have become one of the actors you would want to spend your money on and the dream actor for every director but there was a time when she was typecasted and we mean right after her debut with Student of The Year.

Alia, who played a glam-girl in the film, was seen as someone who would not be more than eye candy on screen but soon she shed that image with Highway. She followed it up with Udta Punjab, Dear Zindagi and Kapoor & Sons ensuring a place in Bollywood’s top echeleon.

Imtiaz Ali, director of Highway, was not too sure of taking her in Highway as he felt she was too ‘young’ for the strong character in the film but he had to agree that age was just a number.

Imtiaz has been quoted in Forbes saying, “I was very excited about this animal that would fit into the character and give it various dimensions. And that is only possible when somebody has emotional depth — and emotion-

al depth can vary with time but it does not completely change in any person with experience.”

Even in an interview with Anupam Kher on his show, Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai, Alia sounded confident and selfaware of the choices she was making and was going to make. Here are some excerpts: How confident are you about Highway?

I am not confident at all…my confidence is zero; but I feel this way for every film. It is probably more for Highway because it is a grilling film.

I am scared.

During the course of the film did you feel like giving up because it was a ‘grilling’ film?

No, I did not feel like giving up. But I wondered how I was continuing. I was proud of myself; I really pushed myself a lot. There was both mental and physical exertion; I have pushed myself a lot physically and I am happy about it.

(Indian Express)

I feel complete as an actor: Rajkummar Rao

H

is line-up of movies is as eclectic as his reputation as one of the most talented young performers in Bollywood. It seems that 2017 is going to be Rajkummar Rao’s year as he has five films releasing this year, the latest being Vikramaditya Motwane’s Trapped. The 32-year-old actor will be seen playing a man struggling for survival as he gets stuck in a high-rise in the movie.

“I am very happy. As a creative person this is what I look for. I feel complete as an actor as I am exploring something new, something exciting everyday,” Rajkummar told PTI about this phase in his career. Besides “Trapped”, which released this Friday, the actor will be seen in Newton, Behen Hogi Teri, Bareilly Ki Barfi and Omerta, where he has teamed up with frequent collaborator, Hansal Mehta.

Rajkummar says Motwane, best known for “Udaan” and Lootera”, was always on his wish-list as he really appreciates the way the director captures human emotions. “I always wanted to work with Vikramaditya Motwane. He deals with human emotions so beauti-

fully. ‘Trapped’ is also an emotional story, though it is one of its kind and something that has not been tried before.”

It was physically gruelling to play the role of a man trapped in a high-rise building for days and Rajkummar stopped drinking water for days to get into the space of the character. “Luckily, we shot it in a linear pattern. So, I just had to live the character every day as it came.

Despite challenges, it was an organic process. That’s the fun of being an actor. I could challenge myself and explore so much despite being confined in that house.”

The actor says he really does not have a process when it comes to picking up projects, though his filmography — Shahid, CityLights, Aligarh, Dolly Ki Doli and Queen — suggests otherwise. “There was a struggle phase of about two years but ‘LSD’ changed things for me. I am open to everything that comes my way. I don’t connect too many dots. If my heart says I should do something, I just do it. The only condition is that it should be something that I have not done before.”

The only trouble that Rajkummar is facing nowadays is managing his time as he juggles multiple shoots and releases. “There are many releases and shootings and I don’t want to miss out on anything good that comes my way.

I just want to manage my time well.

That’s the only struggle right now.”

He has developed a special bond with Mehta, who returned from a self-imposed exile to make “Shahid”.

Rajkummar has been an integral part of all the films that Mehta has directed after “Shahid”. (Indian Express)

Hollywood 49

WEEK ENDING MARCH 19 , 2017| guyanatimeSinternational.com

Rupert Grint admits he almost Priyanka Chopra celebrates quit acting after Harry Potter Holi with Jimmy Fallon

I

R

upert Grint says he thought about quitting acting for good after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2 in 2001. The 28-year-old actor, who achieved massive success with his turn as the wizard, Ron Weasley, says he wanted to live his life “a little bit” after being constantly busy with his film commitments, reported Entertainment Weekly.

“We had such an in-

timate and intense few years in this bubble.

When I started, (acting) was never something that I aspired to do. I did acting with school plays and stuff like that. But it was never something that I actively dreamed of.

“I mean, I fell in love with it while I was doing it. But I definitely did think, ‘Is this really what I want to do?’ I wanted to live a little bit. I felt like I’d missed out on a lot,”

says Grint.

The actor, who is back on the scene after shooting two British TV shows Sick Note and Snatch, says he enjoyed his time away from the arc lights.

“Being in that adult environment from such an early age, it was nice to just be away from it and not have any kind of commitments at all, and just be a bit free,” says the actor. (Indian Express)

Chris Hemsworth, Barack Obama and Ryan Reynolds reveal what it is like being dad to adorable baby girls.

f last year, Priyanka Chopra celebrated Holi with her Quantico costars, this time she chose Jimmy Fallon to become her partner-in-crime on the festival of colours.

Priyanka, who graced The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon for a second time, played Holi with the host of the show and left him surprised. It looks like Priyanka and Jimmy had a great time throwing some colours at each other.

Taking to Twitter, PeeCee wrote, “This was so fun @ jimmyfallon my fav part besides ur shocked face after I got u wit a big blob of face paint was @theroots playing #rangBarse” Sharing another picture of the host, she wrote, “And a happy Holi to u too @jimmyfallon im a little less homesick now! I got u good… again!!!”

The last time Priyanka appeared on the show, she won against the host in an apple-bobbing contest.

The game involves sticking your face in a barrel and taking out apples only using your mouth. Whoever has the maximum apples, wins. And of course, our desi girl won, putting Jimmy in a state of shock.

The Quantico actor did not stop the celebrations there, she hosted a second Holi celebration with her family at her NYC home. She shared the picture and wrote, “Happy Holi with the family and team. The white in my house is all colourful now! #nycHoli #homesick,” she wrote on Instagram, adding, “Laughter is the best medicine!” Lacy Redway,

the celebrity hairstylist, expressed her happiness about celebrating the first Holi with Priyanka. She wrote, “Celebrating my first #Holi in NYC with @ priyankachopra @danasupnick .

Holi is a celebration In India known as a festival of colors . #HappyHoli to you #priyankachopra” Well, it seems the actor had a lot of fun celebrating Holi and spreading the Indian colours and love around. Priyanka is definitely placing India on the world map like never before. She is constantly working on how Indians or Bollywood films are perceived. She is taking over the West, becoming one of the most loved Asian actors. Well, her consecutive win at the People’s Choice Awards is a proof of that.

Even her Quantico stars are in awe of the actor. Blair Underwood went on to say that Priyanka never believes when he tags her as the star of the show (Quantico), “She downplays that she is the star of the show. We watch the show with her eyes.

She is about her business

and getting it done. I respect that. She, of course, has this huge Bollywood background. I always tell her she is so emotionally full because she trusts her emotions. She feels without an effort, and we feel her. She sets the tone every day.”

Even Dwayne Johnson had clearly expressed his fondness towards his Baywatch co-star. In an Instagram post he mentioned, “Every great story starts with a great villain…

My sistah @priyankachopra is one of the biggest and most beloved stars in the world. When I asked her how she felt about playing opposite me as our main #BAYWATCH villain she simply said with a sly and seductively evil smile, “Oh you’re going down…”

Cool is the rule, but sometimes bad is bad. Clearly we aren’t the only ones head-over-heels in love with this ‘Desi girl'” Beyond her American series, where she plays Alex Parish, PeeCee is also prepping up for Baywatch in which she plays the character of Victoria Leeds, the antagonist. (Indian Express)

‘Beauty and the Beast’ release on hold in Malaysia over gay moment

A

video of Hollywood dads like Ryan Reynolds, Ashton Kutcher, Channing Tatum, Chris Hemsworth, and Barack Obama, the former POTUS talking about their daughters is a heartwarming watch.

The video is a hodgepodge of celebrity appearances in shows like the Ellen Degeneres Show and The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon. It is about different celebrities like Ryan Reynolds, Ashton Kutcher, Channing Tatum, Chris Hemsworth, Dax Shepherd and others talking about their daughters.

It is hilarious, charming, adorable and heartwarming all at once.

It starts with Ashton Kutcher, who recounts this interesting incident that involves his dog Ricky peeing on the wall and how when Mila (Kunis) informed him of this, he reacted by saying “F****** Ricky.” A minute later, he heard his daughter repeat the same!

Then we have Ryan Reynolds, who explains how his daughter calls him mama, but his wife (Blake Lively) has no idea. We hope he keeps his potty mouth (wink,wink) away from his adorable daughter and son.

Barack Obama on the other hand explains how his daughter Sasha who

was explaining to him about the social media platform Snapchat recorded a video of him and Michelle talking about the effects of social media and posted it with a ‘bored’ face.

The best, however, was Chris Hemsworth’s experience with his daughter. So apparently his daughter said, “You know, I want one of those things that Sasha and Tristan have.”

A confused Chris asked his daughter, “What do you mean?” The answer we are sure shocked him. It sure did leave us dumbfounded, because she said, “You know the thing that is in between their legs that you have.” Oh boy! What can you say to a kid, right?

But a perplexed Chris went on to explain that girls have breasts. The daughter apparently said she doesn’t want the breasts. And she really wanted what Sasha and Tristan had. Just so you all know, this kid is just four years old. So Chris decided, and told her that she could be whatever she wanted to be. Awww! How adorable!

And thoughtful.

The video was compiled and shared

by Refinery 29 and has since become viral on social media. (Indian Express)

D

isney film “Beauty and the Beast” was due for a release in Malaysia on March 9 but has been put on hold as it features a gay moment. The Malaysian Censorship Board, Lijst Pim Fortuyn Government (LPF), said on Tuesday it had approved the screening but with “a minor edit concerning a gay moment in the film”, reports bbc. com. A new release date for the movie is yet to be announced.

“We have approved the film so there is no more issue. Once a film receives approval, it means it can be screened,” Chairman Datuk Abdul Hamid (LPF), said. “However, the date of screening and where the screening takes place is not under LPF’s jurisdiction. We only look at the content and give a decision on whether the movie gets approved or not,” Hamid added.

Local cinema chains

have been offering refunds for customers who have purchased tickets in advance. “Beauty and the Beast” director Bill Condon had spoken about the “exclusively gay moment” in the film.

It involves the character of LeFou trying to come to terms with feelings for the character of Gaston that swing between lust and admiration, as a side-plot to the main story.

“You don’t ban a film because of a gay character. There are also gays in the world. I don’t think it is going to influence anyone. We need to think, we must allow people to decide for themselves,” he told the Malay Mail. Earlier, there were reports that even the Russian government was coming under pressure to ban the movie for allegedly contravening a 2013 law that prohibits “gay propaganda” aimed at children.

(Indian Express)

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CONCACAF boss optimistic about infrastructural development in Guyana

By Akeem Greene

I

t has just been ninemonths in office for Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani and on his first visit to Guyana on Tuesday expressed optimism about the future of football in the South American nation.

Montagliani’s viewpoint stems from the fact that the government through the National Sports Commission (NSC) has expressed a willingness to support the game especially in helping to develop facilities.

“One of the biggest issues in CONCACAF is that you have struggle with facilities and those are challenges that cannot be fixed overnight

The members of the head table at the press conference at the Guyana Pegasus on Tuesday. From left; President of Aruba Football Federation Richard Dijkhoff, Guyana Football Federation PresidentWayne Forde, CONCACAF President Victor Montagiani, St Marteen Football Federation President Fabrice Baly and Member Associations and Legal Affairs of CONCACAF Director Marco Leal

but I was pleased to see a government really supporting our sport in looking at ways to help,” the Canadian stated while speaking at press conference at the Guyana Pegasus.

He added, “With that

kind of support tackling the issues of facilities will be good since at the end of the day no one entity can do it on its own; I’m very optimistic that those infrastructural challenges can be tackled.” However, though

the support is welcomed by Montagliani, he felt that it must not be short-term since “it has to be tackled in the right way and has to be a long term plan over the next 10 to 20 years.”

In the interim,

the development of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Academy Training Centers (ATC) should remain a focus since in the President’s mind, this will be the precursor for more to be accom-

plished.

Montagliani contended that the relations being built is due to the body being more inclusive to territories and it will only auger well for countries like Guyana.

Crawford relishing Sammy wants to play in recent success in upcoming series

Romello Crawford

By Romario Samaroo

W

inning the second race of his senior career, PSL rider, Romello Crawford is relishing in the success of his recent wins, notably in both forms of cycling.

On Monday, Crawford rode off with the title in the 4th annual Benjamin Sports Store cycling road race in a time of one hour 54 minutes and 29 seconds with the race being hosted in his hometown of Berbice. The 50-mile event pedaled off from in front of the Benjamin Sports Store at Fyrish Corentyne and proceeded to the No. 51 Police station before returning to its place of origin for the finish.

Crawford was followed by Paul Denobrega (Team Evolution) in second, Hamzah Eastman (Team Cocos) in third, Geron Williams (Continental CC) in fourth, Shaquel Agard (Linden

Bauxite Flyers) in 5th, Andrew Hicks (WS United) in 6th, Jamual John (Team Cocos) in 7th, Slivio Inniss (Linden Bauxite Flyers) in 8th, Stephano ‘Sunny’ Husbands (Team Cocos) in 9th and Mark Harris (Team Cocos) in 10th.

Also, Saturday saw Crawford outsprinting Williams in the 12th Demerara Distillers Limited 35-lap featured race in the National Park to complete the feat in a time of one hour 16 minutes and 24 seconds. After these achievements, Crawford acknowledged that it was a good feeling to beat some of the seasoned riders especially in the presence of his home crowd while crediting his stringent training and familiarity to the conditions for the win.

The 18 year old who only came over to the senior class this year has immediately caught the eyes of the other riders and is now considered one of the better riders with a bright future.

This is particularly interesting since the former Corentyne Comprehensive High School student only started riding competitively just under four years since he was one of the best jumpers in the ancient county, having made the inter district National Championship team in 2014 and would have made it again last year had he been available.

Crawford has also made tremendous strides on the regional scene, having been included in a team to the United Cycling International (UCI) tour of Tobago in 2015 where he was successful.

The Number One village native, like the long list of family members fell in love with cycling after following in the footsteps of his cousins but intends to surpass all of their efforts by being the number one ranked cyclist at the end of the year as well as his personal goal of making the National team.

Crawford would now be tested in unfamiliar conditions when he heads over for the final leg of the 20th Cheddi B. Jagan Memorial Cycling road race in Essequibo this Sunday.

D

aren Sammy is leaving the decision about whether he plays again for West Indies up to the selection panel.

The former West Indies captain said he is available for selection for the West Indies team in the limitedovers formats for the upcoming series against

the opportunity to put on the burgundy strip once again.

“I’m only retired from Test cricket,” he said.

“I’m not retired from limited-overs cricket…

I’m available for selection. The selectors have a job to select the team.

We have a series coming up against Pakistan, (I’m) available for that

and several senior players over a controversial selection policy, as well as terms and conditions of engagement.

“I had some conversations with Jimmy,” Sammy said. “He has some good ideas for cricket. It’s all about everyone heading in the right direction because if Jimmy and Stuart don’t

Darren Sammy (Photo: CMC)

Pakistan, which features four Twenty20 and three One-day Internationals – in addition to three Tests.

Sammy has not played for West Indies since their stunning victory over England in the final of the ICC Twenty20 World Cup last April, but has indicated he would relish

and wherever my services are needed.”

At the same time, Sammy hoped the recent appointments of new chief executive officer Johnny Grave, new director of cricket Jimmy Adams and new head coach Stuart Law would cool the strained relations between the West Indies Cricket Board

have the support to implement these ideas then it will still be a back and forth.

“Everyone has to buy in and West Indies cricket has to be the No 1 priority, not any personal agendas…I want what’s best for West Indies cricket.” (CMC)

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Guyana’s MMA fighter creates history I

Shenese Bobb (left) and Sensei Troy Bobb

n less than two months in an unfamiliar territory, Shenese Bobb became a champion in a sport that is not popular locally. Due to her achievement every Guyanese should be proud and her name should become a household one, especially if she wins her rematch later this month.

On January 10 2017, Bobb enrolled in the Guyana Police Force to train, by March 4 Bobb defeated her Trinidadian rival in the Ruff and Tuff battle in Trinidad to win her first competitive bout in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

In doing so she became the first Guyanese to win a title in this brutal combat sport. The lofty 20 year old Berbician, who fought in the 132 lbs weight category is very gentle in person but fierce in the octagon.

Bobb, who hails

petitor, the

from Rosignol West Coast Berbice, won her debut fight in less than three minutes of the first round and is expected to have a rematch with her opponent on March 25 in Guyana.

Her technique is not the best you will see because she is still at the developmental stage but her reach and counterattack is vicious and very effective.

However, this is not an issue for her trainer Sensei Troy Bobb because he understands that she is still fresh in the sport but her strides have been rapid.

Sensei Bobb was not in Trinidad to witness her success in the amateur bout and though neither of the Bobbs knew anything about the Trinidadian com-

Sensei was optimistic of a positive result due to his student’s potential.

According to the trainee police, she was watchful as she entered the octagon but when she analyzed her opponent she was confident of a victory and it took her a very short time to achieve success.

MMA 10-bout card is tipped to take place at the Ramada Princess Hotel in Guyana on March 25 and Bobb is expected to feature on the historic night.

Meanwhile, Bobb has begun preparation for fight night under the guidance of Sensei Bobb at the Guyana Police Force Gym with special emphasis on kicks and punches.

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Former Indian, SL, WI first-class players in USA selection camp

F

ormer Hyderabad wicketkeeper Ibrahim Khaleel is one of three former first-class players to be invited to a USA selection camp from March 16 to 19 in Houston, Texas.

The purpose of the camp is to pick a 14-man squad to tour Uganda in May for WCL Division Three matches.

Khaleel, 34, last represented Hyderabad in January 2015, having played 57 first-class matches in the Ranji Trophy since his debut in 2002. He has been playing league cricket in Chicago for the past several summers and was identified by selectors at an ICC Regional Combine held in Chicago last May. It was understood that Khaleel has not yet met the eligibility threshold - a non-citizen can represent his resi-

The USA team that won the Division Four title in November (Photo: Peter Della Penna)

dent country provided he has spent a minimum of 183 days per year over four consecutive years prior to a tournament - but would be immediately eligible if he were to secure a US passport.

According to a source, Khaleel currently has US permanent residen-

cy status and was in the latter stages of obtaining US citizenship.

Roy Silva, the Sri Lankan batsman who played 87 first-class matches, and Camilus Alexander, the former Windward Islands legspinner, were also called up to the selection camp.

Silva, 36, played his last first-class match for Colombo CC in March 2013 and has been a heavy scorer in the Georgia and Florida leagues since moving to the USA. Alexander, 35, was the leading wickettaker at the USACA T20 National Championship

in 2014 while playing for the South East Region.

Both would be eligible to play for USA under the ICC's four-year deemed national rule.

The 19 players from the camp are expected to link up with a training squad of 31, which had been assembled prior to USA's title-winning run at WCL Division Four.

The other talking point was the potential returns of off spinner Abhimanyu Rajp, batsman Charan Singh and left-arm spinning allrounder Mrunal Patel.

Rajp and Charan last played for USA during the Auty Cup tours to Canada in 2013 and 2011 respectively while Mrunal had been part of the team that went to Ireland in 2015 for the World T20 qualifier.

Four recent USA Under-19 representatives will be part of the camp as well. New York batsman Randall Wilson is a strong contender for a batting spot after solid performances at the ICC's Regional Combine in New York last June and a half-century against a touring MCC side in September.

Batsmen Gauranshu Sharma, Sagar Patel and Tohidul Islam were the other former U-19 players up for selection.

"When considering players to add to the trial, the [selection] panel wanted to predominantly focus on youth players, young guys who stood out at Combines last year or in previous USA U-19 teams," selection chairman Ricardo Powell said in a press release. "It will be good to give them some additional exposure in this environment. Those young players are accompanied by a couple more experienced players who have been consistent performers in the US and abroad."

The large number of invitees was partly because seven of the most recent USA squad members were unavailable, including four who were a part of either the Division Four squad

or the one for their previous assignment, the Auty Cup. Fast bowlers Hammad Shahid and David Pieters, and allrounder Srini Santhanam have been ruled out due to injury while seamer Aman Lobana and left-arm spinner Danial Ahmed were unavailable.

Shahid's absence was the biggest blow. He had taken three wickets in two matches, with an exemplary economy rate of 3.55 in the Auty Cup last October. He had a strong chance of being among the final 14 to play in Uganda but sustained a torn posterior cruciate knee ligament (PCL) during a recent training session and was expected to be out for up to three months.

Santhanam had surgery on his right shoulder in December and cannot play cricket at least until the second half of 2017. Pieters, who has yet to debut for USA, tore a meniscus at a trial match in Florida last August ahead of Division Four. Subsequent tests revealed cartilage damage in his right knee.

After going under the knife for a second time last week, he has been ruled out of action indefinitely.

There were doubts over batsman Alex Amsterdam and allrounder Timroy Allen attending the camp as well. Both spent a month in Barbados with the ICC Americas squad at the WICB Regional Super50 in January and February, making it difficult for them to take more time off work again, especially considering the team would be away from home for up to three weeks for the Division Three tour.

Allen, one of USA's most valuable assets, was recently retained by Jamaica Tallawahs in the CPL draft.

A six-day pre-tour to South Africa has been organised for USA before they land in Uganda for the start of the matches on May 23. In addition to the hosts, USA will be competing against Canada, Malaysia, Oman and Singapore in the next phase of the qualification process for the 2019 World Cup. The top two finishers at Division Three advance to Division Two, expected to be held in late 2017 or early 2018. It is the last step prior to the 2018 World Cup Qualifier, currently slated for Bangladesh in April 2018. (ESPNCricinfo) Peter Della Penna is ESPNcricinfo's USA correspondent. @ PeterDellaPenna

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