The Eleutheran Newspaper j f 2018

Eleuthera, Harbour Island & Spanish Wells

Harbour Island Spanish Wells Eleuthera

Volume 11, Issue 1, February 2018

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‘‘Eleuthera’s most reliable Source of News and Information. We Deliver!’’ Monthly In Print & Daily on the Web

REAL ESTATE DEALS

BACK COVER: Damianos Sotheby’s International PAGE 3: Coldwell Banker Lightbourn Realty PAGE 5: HG Christie

2017’s JuNKANOO LEGENDS circle includes Eleuthera stalwarts

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The Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and the National Junkanoo Committee held a ceremony at the British Colonial Hilton, on December 22, 2017 to induct 22 persons into the Junkanoo Legends Circle. The esteemed group included two Junkanoo stalwarts from South Eleuthera - Mr. Lincoln Young (Rock Sound), and Mr. Milton Alvin Johnson (Tarpum Bay).

The Junkanoo Legends Circle induction event was held under the patronage of Governor General Her Excellency Dame Marguerite Pindling (front row, sixth right, photo on continuation page) and Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture the Hon. Michael Pintard (standing front row, fifth left). Also pictured with those recognized for their contributions to Junkanoo were Director of Continued On Page 4

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Junkanoo Hall of Famers Continued from pg. 1

Culture Rowena Poitier Sutherland (left of Minister), and Co-Chairs of the National Junkanoo Committee Kishlane O’Brien (first row, first left) and Dr. Dwight Marshall (first row, first right).

The 2017 Induction Class included: Mr. Lincoln Young (Rock Sound), Mr. Alvin Johnson (Tarpum Bay), David Wilfred Thompson; Leonard “Laddy” Bain; Peter “Cheaper” Clarke, Jr.; Godfrey “Gully” Collie; Howard Bethel, Jr.; William Gregory “Big Mull” Bethel; Herbert “Herbie” Bain; Lynden “Mojo” Rahming; Kendal “K.C.” Campbell; Ronald “Lugga” Cartwright, Jr.; Mrs. Emmaline Richardson; Barry Howard Herbert Wilson; Anjoun Armaly; Neville “Radio” Mitchell; Wendell Duke “Dukie” Smith; Rudolph “Billy” Burrows; Linda Christina Stubbs nee Wood; Jeffrey Rahming; Robert Andrew “Andy” Ford; Valentino A. Hanna; and Shane “Gabriel” Moncur (for Junior Junkanoo).

Mr. Young, expressed that it was an absolute honour to have been inducted, and to be even mentioned in the same breath as those who had been inducted before him. “I feel there are so many individuals perhaps

more deserving than I am at this time, but it is always good to receive your flowers while you can smell, touch and feel them,” he said. Mr. Young Continued On Page 6

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FARM OUTPUT Prompts import restriction on

Tomatoes and Sweet Peppers

Above: Mr. Milton Alvin Johnson, recent Junkanoo Legends Circle honouree, shown here at the 2018 Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival in Governor’s Harbour, commanding the drumline.

has been involved in Junkanoo in Eleuthera since 1989. He embarked on forming his own group, comprised mainly of teens and pre-teens in 1993, and that group evolved into the New Vision organization, still comprised mostly of youngsters, which competes

in the senior Junkanoo parade. Mr. Young shared, “Above any awards or placements in the actual parade, my passion is teaching the art of Junkanoo. I’m passing the torch to the next generation to keep our culture alive.”

Mr. Milton Alvin Johnson, who could

Nassau, The Bahamas – The Minister of Agriculture & Marine Resources has announced a restriction on the importation of two locally produced vegetables into the country until further ideas. In a release from his Ministry, the Minister said that both the quality and quantity of the sweet peppers or bell peppers and table tomatoes being produced by Bahamian farmers has prompted this decision. The Quality, he said, is equal to and in some instances surpasses what is currently being imported and importantly the price point he said is less than what both products are being sold for on US store shelves.

The release further stated: ‘Until further notice, imports of these foods as well as material needed to grow them will be restricted from entering the country. According to Director of Agriculture Gregory Rahming, restrictions on imports are imposed to allow Bahamian produce greater access to the retail market without the added

competition of imported tomatoes and sweet peppers.

For Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources, Hon. Renward Wells, the fact that Bahamian farms have delivered to market the quantity and quality of sweet peppers and tomatoes is further proof of the idea that Bahamian farmers can meet the demands.

The next challenge, says Minister Wells, is for farmers to be able to produce these products in the quantities and at the same high quality year round.

This would allow the government to consider the possibility of eliminating foreign grown tomatoes and sweet peppers altogether as a part of the push toward greater food security.

Minister Wells called it a “ great victory for Bahamian farming.”

The restriction on sweet peppers and table tomatoes will remain until further notice.’

be seen during the 2018 Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival Parade among the pounding drum line of the Tarpum Bay group, has been an avid Junkanooer since his early youth. Part of the legendary Johnson Superstars Junkanoo group as both a lead drummer and designer, specializing in off the shoulder

pieces, Alvin was named Assistant Group Leader at the age of seventeen. During the course of his career, Alvin has been credited with contributing a great deal to the development of Junkanoo in Eleuthera - especially Junior Junkanoo, assisting Tarpum Bay Primary and Preston Albury High School

- both national Junior Junkanoo winners, as well as other primary schools on island. As part of the Jensen Beach Pineapple Festival Junkanoo Group, Mr. Johnson travelled annually to Florida to perform, coordinated Tarpum Bay’s participation in the Ministry of Tourism’s Eleuthera Summer Goombay Festival, and has taken part in numerous cultural events. Mr. Johnson currently serves as Leader of the Johnson Superstars Junkanoo group.

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RBPF Police Commissioner

Releases 2017 Crime Stats and Engages the Press Nationwide The Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) held its first ever teleconferenced Annual Crime Statistics Briefing on Tuesday, January 16th, 2018, where local members of the Press were welcomed to join RBPF executive teams at their headquarters locations across The Bahamas, including New Providence, Grand Bahama, Abaco, Eleuthera, Exuma, and Inagua to hear and see Police Commissioner Anthony Ferguson’s live streamed report on crime activity in 2017, and to participate by asking direct questions. Also presenting information to the Press on various issues, were Deputy Police Commissioner Emrick Seymour, and Assistant Commissioner of Police for Crime Investigations Clayton Fernander.

Commissioner Ferguson shared that preliminary figures for 2017 revealed crime across the entire Bahamas had decreased by 13% compared to 2016.

Violent crime, he said, had decreased by 20% and property crimes had also gone down by 11%. “Crimes in Nassau and Grand Bahama decreased by 14% and 26% respectively”, he said, adding, “Crime in the Family Islands, however, increased by 6%.”

This increase he attributed to an increase in aggregate burglary numbers.

Incidences of murder in the Family Islands also jumped from 3 in 2016 to 7 in 2017 (3 in Abaco, 1 in Acklins, 1 in Bimini, 1 in Cat Island, and 1 in Long Island). The nationwide murder count in 2017 was 122, compared to 111 in 2016 - a jump of 10% , however, Police Commissioner Ferguson highlighted that there had been a significant decrease in murder incidents during the final quarter of 2017, indicating that they had put a dent in that activity.

“This decrease was meaningful as murders previously averaged about twelve per month… We know that this was not mere coincidence, but the result of analyzing trends, refocusing policing operations and getting valuable intelligence from members of the public,” said Commissioner Ferguson.

Details of his 2018 strategy to combat crime was not shared by the Commissioner, who said that he did not want to preempt his presentation to the Minister of National Security - opting instead to share his policing priorities for 2018, which he said would be geared towards effective management, professionalization of the service, optimizing the use of technology, interacting with at risk youth, improving road safety, and the continued prevention and reduction of crime.

Pictured: On far left, OIC Chief Superintendent Stephen Adderley sits next to Ministry of Tourism Manager Jacqueline Gibson. OIC Adderley is also joined by his Executive Team, representing South, Central and North Eleuthera.

areas - and it requires more than what we have… So we look forward to a number of additional staff, as well as vehicles and equipment. We have a Superintendent being transferred here in February, and we also have a Scenes of Crime Officer who will be here very soon as well - so we will have a number

In response to a question posed

by The Eleutheran Newspaper to the Commissioner about his strategy to combat the higher burglary and other major crime incidents in the Family Islands and Eleuthera in particular, he stated, “In Eleuthera we have strategically placed a number of well-trained officers, including from the Central Detective Unit - specifically in Harbour Island, which has been a challenge area in Eleuthera. The results in Harbour Island are very encouraging… and as you move along the mainland the same is happening there, but comparatively there is not much crime in Eleuthera.

However, one crime is too many, so we will continue to partner with people in Eleuthera and the rest of the Family Islands to ensure that they don’t experience what people in New Providence, Grand Bahama, and even in Abaco are beginning to experience.”

In an interview with OIC Eleuthera Division, Chief Supt. Stephen Adderley, following the Commissioner’s Briefing, he made comment on the readiness of the RBPF in Eleuthera for 2018.

“We are not at the optimum manpower where we would love to be, but we are working with what we have, and we cannot use this as an excuse. As the Commissioner alluded, there was a manpower audit being done by the Ministry of National Security, now to be tabled, which will speak to the fact of what each division requires, in terms of manpower.

“If you look at Eleuthera, it’s growing, and it has a number of touristic properties, as well as a number of developments on stream that have already been approved, so in that vein, we are looking to ensure that we have sufficient manpower to cover these

of persons coming into the district. We look forward to the continued support of the Eleuthera public, and we are committed to providing the service required.

For any assistance needed, they should just reach out to us and we will gladly assist,” said Chief Supt. Adderley.

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F EAT U R E

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An Eleutheran Profile:

Bernadette Rose Bethel Colebrook

By Elizabeth bryan

Introduction Nurse Bernadette Rose Bethel Colebrook of James’ Cistern, Central Eleuthera, has made a significant impact within the Eleuthera community, helping to save lives, and train and teach others in many areas, including emergency health care and services. Born in James’ Cistern, on June 6th, 1967, to Bernard and Sylvia Bethel, she grew up in a family with six siblings, three sisters and three brothers.

Early Life - Growing up “I enjoyed my childhood years very much,” smiled Bernadette, and continued, “I grew up actually with my grandparents, Philip and Olivia Bethel, on what was called ‘Big Hill’. I was still very active in my parent’s home as well.

I was born a twin, and was ill, so to help my Mom, my grandmother took care of me. Big Hill was a very close knitted community. My grandfather was a lay preacher in the Methodist church, so we were very involved in the church and attended three times on Sunday. At home we read the bible and had devotions every day, and I was the reader for grandfather when he would preach.

“We also had a lot of community activities, like telling stories with the old people sitting on the rocks and ring play at the James’ Cistern All Age School, that I attended up to grade nine. Also at that time, they used to bake bread and everything in the outside ovens, and my cousin and I were what they called, ‘the runners’, carrying the fresh bread to this one and the next one. We would sit on the side sometimes and sneak a little piece, and just about every night there would be some sort of games going on at ‘Big Hill’. The Hill was so active

at that time, the other areas within the community tended to navigate there. So everything we did was centered at the front of ‘Big Hill’ - if it was bottling tomatoes, everybody brought their tomatoes right there. I also remember the graping and guineping and plumming those are things we looked for while we were growing up.”

Loss Bernadette lost her twin brother as a young teenager, and the experience she said impacted how she lived the rest of her life, “I was a twin with a brother who passed away when he was just 15 years old in a drowning accident. That was very traumatic for me, and in thinking about it, also played a part in me learning and teaching CPR. I remember my Mom saying, “If I knew how to give CPR, I’m sure I could have saved him, because he was still alive when they moved him from the accident site to get help, but he died in route to the clinic in Governor’s Harbour. So I think about how enthusiastic I get when I teach CPR to people, and I tell them that they may be just taking the course because their job requires that they do it, but this could actually save a life!”

High School Young Bernadette completed her high school education away from home in Savannah Sound, at Windermere High School. “I didn’t ask to go to Windermere, and as a matter of fact when I went, I cried for weeks. I thought it was like a punishment, like what did I do, why don’t you all want me around… I didn’t fit in for a very long time, almost up until the time for graduation. I kind of stayed to myself. I liked the inspirational part of the curriculum, and I was always independent. You know at Windermere, you basically do everything

for yourself, plus you had chores. But, in the end, I made some good friends.”

Inspiration Speaking a bit about what helped to inspire her in her career choice, Bernadette shared, “I have an aunt, Gwendolyn Johnson, who is a nurse, and at first I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to be.

I was leaning towards being a teacher or a nurse, but because of my aunt who always talked about nursing, and she and her nursing colleagues would always come up to Eleuthera, and they were very close - I saw how they got along, and how she was so caring when taking care of other people.

“At Windermere, when I was about to graduate, I hadn’t decided what I was going to do yet. The entrance examination for the College of the Bahamas (COB) was coming up, and nobody wanted to take it, because our aspirations were really to go away (abroad) to college. So my best friend and I we said, ‘Let’s just go and take the exam so they won’t feel bad that nobody was taking the exam’. So we went and took the exam, and then heard back that we had passed it.” Bernadette, who smiled as she reminisced, graduated from Windermere High School in 1983, at 16

years of age, and was considered too young to go to the College of the Bahamas right away, so she worked in her father’s retail businesses, and entered the College during the Fall of 1984.

College, Early Career, Family It wasn’t all smooth sailing getting started in college, but it all came together, she shared, “It kind of also worked out that I went to COB in 1984, and didn’t quite know - I started in the Sciences, but there was also a problem with accommodations, and I wasn’t happy with where I was living and couldn’t get settled. However, my mother had a good friend who was a doctor, living here in Rainbow Bay - so at that point I began looking at the possibility of going off to a Nursing School in the U.S. He wrote all the recommendations, but in the end my parents did not have the finances for me to go. So then I applied to join the new Nursing program at COB, and that was it.”

In January of 1985, Bernadette entered the Associates Nursing program, which had been recently introduced to Continued On Page 9

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the course lineup at the College in 1984.

At the age of 20, as Bernadette approached the completion of her studies, she gave birth to her first child, a son named Dwight - in 1987. She formally graduated from the Nursing program in December of 1988, having passed her Nursing Council examinations, and finished up her one year Nursing Internship, which she had started during Summer of 1988, at the Princess Margaret Hospital in May of 1989.

“That’s when we got our official letter, saying we were now employed with the Department of Public Health… So I started out in the Female Medical area, and then I rotated through the hospital, and ended up working in the Children’s Ward for several years.” Bernadette got married the year after completing her internship, in 1990, to Tony Colebrook Sr., and they were blessed with three children, Tamara, Tony Jr., and Andre (Eleuthera’s middle distance high school track star).

Crooked Island Adventure In 1995 Bernadette said she asked for a transfer from the hospital to Community Nursing Services, and in 1996, she was transferred to Acklins/Crooked Island, where she was the only nurse on the island. “I was there for about a year and a half, and it was an awesome experience. I would have stayed, but my husband didn’t like it, being away from the city and all that.” Her eldest son Dwight, who had been staying with her parents, joined her and her three younger children in Acklins/Crooked Island, while her husband stayed on in New Providence. “That was one of the most exciting experiences in my life. I was the only nurse on the whole island, so I had to cover all areas. The doctor was stationed on Acklins, while I was on Crooked island, and at that time it was considered to be a hardship, with no lights, no running water - everything was operated by generator that you turned on in the evening and off again in the morning - so nights were noisy. But I loved the nature part of it. I was able to take care of my children, and I got to really experience island life. I got to do fishing, and swimming, plus enjoy my work at the same time. Also, it was a real community, where people were involved and cared for each other.”

“I came back to New Providence in 1997, and continued to work in Community Nursing. I was between all of the clinics, including Elizabeth Estates

and Flamingo Gardens, and during the same year, my husband and I divorced,” shared Bernadette. After the separation she returned home to Eleuthera for a brief period in 1998. “I stayed home for about six months, before going back to Nassau. Then I asked for a transfer back home, because after being back for that short time, it was really good, and I thought about building and getting things together,” said Bernadette.

Eleuthera Move She officially returned home to Eleuthera in 2000, and worked out of The Bluff, and Lower Bogue in North Eleuthera beginning in August that year.

“I’ve worked all the areas in the North, in The Bluff, Lower Bogue, Spanish Wells, Harbour Island. My first year was spent in Lower Bogue, where I took part in the opening of the clinic there, and then I moved to The Bluff, which is where I had been originally earmarked for. I went to Spanish Wells and Harbour Island periodically to work, but was never stationed there. If they needed me I went over temporarily, and in 2005 I was transferred to Governor’s Harbour.”

Emergency Service Training The following year, in 2006, Bernadette took up an opportunity to complete a six-month postgraduate specialization course in Emergency Nursing at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica. “It was very intensive… It could have been two years,” she chuckled. The six month course was wrapped up with two weeks at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Florida, said Bernadette.

“Once I had gotten into nursing I had always wanted to do emergency nursing, it’s more dynamic, and I don’t like being stagnant, and doing the same thing over and over. I really saw the need in Eleuthera, once I moved, as we didn’t have any kind of structured emergency program or services. I always worked the Red Cross as a volunteer student nurse and with the ambulance - called Detachment 1 at that time - where we did emergency calls, so I kept up to date with emergency management, but from a different aspect. I’ve always been active with them.”

After I got back, I was still stationed in Governor’s Harbour, and I was very excited about the training. There were some ambulances here at the time, but with no structure. So I began right away doing some teaching and getting a

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

number of the volunteers certified, first with the American Heart Association through Doctor’s Hospital in CPR and other emergency techniques. Partnering with the Health Association of Central Eleuthera (HACE), we furnished and better organized the ambulances - to be better prepared and volunteers were kept up to date with basic training, and given insight on dealing with emergency patients and stabilizing them. So that was one of the things I introduced and asked them to do… and with emergency management you should update every two years.” In 2008 Bernadette was transferred from Governor’s Harbour to the clinic in Hatchet Bay, where she continued her work in emergency training.

Volunteers and Nurses “In 2010 I introduced the first EVOC (Emergency Vehicular Operating Course), which was the first introduced to Eleuthera, and at the same time, worked along with the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) emergency services team to come and train the ambulance drivers. We also did the First Responders training, as well as a Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) Exercise - to show them how you would manage that scenario.” Bernadette shared that she has also organized training for her nursing colleagues, sponsored largely by the HACE organization, and conducted emergency training with volunteers in North Eleuthera.

Bernadette commented that the aspect of emergency services in the Family Island is a fairly new one for the Department of Public Health, which focuses more heavily on community health services, “We are not working with a hospital scenario, but I don’t know why they are not putting more emphasis on emergency care, when it is a very high demand area here. By far right now all we have are volunteers with the emergency health services on island, even though all nurses are trained to a degree for some emergencies,” she said.

“In South Eleuthera, I’ve worked with the South Eleuthera Emergency Partners (SEEP), doing training in 2016. They too had services, but they weren’t organized and trained, so I was the person that they called. Instructors were also brought in from the PMH emergency services team, to provide training in first responders, MCI, and the EVOC. Another set of refresher training is planned for volunteers in Central and South Eleuthera, incorporating first responders, MCI and EVOC, in addition to a fire emergency training element during February 2018,” explained Bernadette.

Mrs. Colebrook has also been part of the Eleuthera branch of the Bahamas Nurses Association since it was started

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in Eleuthera in 2010, with a focus on continuing education and needs of the nursing community. Nurse Regina Ingraham of Tarpum Bay she stated, was the first Chairperson, and she became Chairperson in 2012, which continues to today.

Community Work “I love teaching. After my 30th year, I will probably go into the classroom to do nursing lectures. I spend a lot of time teaching in the schools here, focusing mainly on grades 1 and 6, and was also a School Health Nurse during some of my time in New Providence,” shared Bernadette. “I also do some work with the Breast Cancer Outreach Program (BCOP), coordinated

by Maisie Thompson, as well as health talks with church groups and others. I used to be very active in the Diabetic Club, and now and then we would set up exercise challenge programs.

“I also work with the Catch Jerry Chile organization, which began in 2013 by founder and visionary, Mr. Miska Clarke, and have since made significant contributions to the Central Eleuthera community. I’ve also worked with the New Developers group out of James’ Cistern, which refused to accept the condemning of the township’s clinic in 2010, and worked with partners to completely restore the location and make it usable once more. I acted as a liaison between the group and the Department of Public Health. It was completed and reopened in 2014,” she said with admiration for the resolve of the people of her hometown.

Advice for Aspiring Nurses When asked what advice she would offer to those interested in going into Nursing, Mrs. Colebrook answered, saying, “Nursing is an awesome profession, and very dynamic. You have to be on the ball. Don’t go into nursing and become stagnant, because it’s a vast field. The money, however, does not match the work that you do, and people can never pay you for what you do, so your reward and satisfaction must come from knowing that you successfully treated or saved someone’s life.

That’s what keep me and a lot of other nurses going, just knowing that people depend on you. You can be a means of life or death for someone, and you must give of yourself and your time. So get into it for the right reason. If it’s just for the money, you won’t have that satisfaction.”

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New School Boards Installed in three Eleuthera High Schools

BY THE ELEUTHERAN NEWS TEAM

The School Board structure which has existed since 1996 in New Providence and Grand Bahama, and piloted in Eleuthera in 2014, is now in place in three Eleuthera High Schools.

During November 2014, The Central Eleuthera High School (CEHS) in Eleuthera was among the first in the Family Islands of the Bahamas to pilot the nearly twenty year old School Board structure which has existed, and been implemented in schools throughout New Providence and Grand Bahama since being legislated in 1996.

On Thursday, January 18th, 2018, an Installation Ceremony was held at the Ministry of Education’s Resource Center in Savannah Sound, where new Board Members from both Central Eleuthera High School, and Preston H. Albury High School (PHAHS) were officially sworn in. Harbour Island All Age School (HIAAS) also had a new School Board Installed, with Members sworn in one day earlier on Wednesday, January 17th, 2018.

The new School Boards, on which the schools’ Principals will serve as Secretary, at HIASS, included Rev. Melvin Higgins, Rev. Henry Knowles, Fredrica Higgs, Bishop Anthony Dean, Shanta Stuart, Chanella Percentie, and Tanya Farquharson. The new School Board at PHAHS included, Bishop Earnest Sweeting, Marsha Neely, Avryeal MoxeyRussell, Gigi Morley, Danielle Maynard, Hilbert Richards Jr., and Althea Bowe. The CEHS Board, after operating for three years since the initial pilot installation in 2014, saw the return of some members, as well as new volunteers taking up the mantle, including Darrel Smith, Shauna Knowles, Pastor Orlando Thompson, Camilla Adair, Bridgette Farquharson, and Sheria Evans Smith.

The Boards, will serve for a period of three (3) years, before a new set of elections determine new members,who receive no compensation as the positions are considered a volunteer service to the school and community.

Made up mainly of parents of students at the three schools, the Boards, working along with the administration of the school, will now take on a number of responsibilities, including small repairs, maintenance and upkeep of school facilities; providing furniture and equipment to the school; disciplinary issues in conjunction with the principal, and budgetary planning for the purchase of supplies, materials and services - providing a checks and balances system for the financial management of the school’s operation, while deepening parental and community involvement.

Immediately following the Installation Ceremony, a Workshop was held, covering Continued On Page 11

Above: The new members of the Harbour Island All Age School Board were officially installed on Wednesday, January 17th, 2018.

Above: Preston Albury High School’s new School Board volunteer members were installed at the Resource Center in Savannah Sound on Thursday, January 18th, 2018.

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Above: Central Eleuthera High School’s new board as the first to pilot the program three years earlier, had both some new and some returning volunteer members, who were installed during a ceremony at the Resource Center in Savannah Sound on Thursday, January 18th, 2018.

topics including; the Education Act. 1996 (School Boards) scope of authority; responsibilities and functions of school boards; relationship with school administration and general public; deficiencies in the school board and school accounts/audit re-

ports; and the role and responsibilities of school boards in financial management. Presenters at the Workshop from the Ministry of Education included, FAS Clarence Cleare, Finance Officer - Zella Symonette, and Internal Auditor - Judy Capron.

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Have Everything in Order, Says Eleuthera Immigration OIC

BY THE ELEUTHERAN NEWS TEAM

During a recent interview with Chief Immigration Officer In Charge (OIC) of the Eleuthera District, Mrs. Shema Darling, she stated that her team throughout Eleuthera, Harbour Island and Spanish Wells were continuing their heightened surveillance activities. She also shared the following warnings once again with the Eleuthera public, saying, “Anyone (all foreign nationalities) working without a work permit, should cease or face the consequences. New applicants, even though they may have submitted and were here (in the Bahamas) - they should not be here. They need to be in their country of origin, as they will have to verify and wait until a decision is made - so we are stressing that they should not be here.

“Also people who have not submitted renewals, but have permits that have expired - they need to do so. Persons who have permits should ensure that they have proof of status, and people working outside of the scope of their permit, should cease. Employers hiring illegal immigrants or persons for whom which they did not apply for a permit, need to cease. Persons who have approvals, but have not paid the fees for their permits, they need to come in and complete payment. Also, any delinquent fees out there, need to be brought up to date.

OIC Mrs. Darling continued saying, “There will be no acceptance of applications without all of the required documents. Necessary documents for permit renewals include, a cover letter from the employer addressed to the Director of Immigration, an employee police certificate, an employee medical certificate, two passport photos of employee, copies of both employer

and employee passports, employer’s NIB letter of good standing (saying that they are currently paying for the employee), a completed employer’s information form, a copy of the expired permit, and the $100 processing fee - payable to the Public Treasury.”

OIC Darling also emphasized that people found harbouring illegal immigrants faced heavy fines and possible imprisonment, with penalties standing at up to $10,000 and 5 years in prison currently. Authorities, she said, were now looking at possibly increasing those penalties. “The pressure will be on,” she said, adding, “We are ready, and if we need enforcement, we have the support. We also thank the public for their assistance and encourage them to continue.

Persons can contact the Department of Immigration in Eleuthera at the following locations for further information: North Eleuthera Airport - 335-1124; White Crown Aviation - 335-1859; Lower Bogue - 335-1858; Governor’s Harbour - 332-2576; Rock Sound - 3342055; Harbour Island - 333-0350; and Spanish Wells - 333-5955.

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Statement from the Ministry of Social Services and Urban Development RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS POSED IN REFERENCE TO DISABILITIES ACT

The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities), Act 2014 and its provisions are largely monitored by the Disabilities Commission, a Board appointed by the Cabinet under the Ministry of Social Services and Urban Development.

The Commission recognizes that the date for enforcement with respect to the Disabilities Act was 31st December, 2017.

The public and all persons and businesses affected have been given two (2) years to become compliant with the provisions of the Act, from 1st January, 2016 to 31st December, 2017. The implementation of such measures require financial adjustments, in addition to engineering and structural arrangements.

Given that backdrop, it is the Commission’s considered position that a widespread extension is not preferable. However, there have been requests for extensions which have been responded to on a case-by-case basis.

While not all government or private buildings are compliant to date, we have noticed that private businesses and government building operators have been making considerable efforts to ensure their buildings are accessible as required by law. The current challenges include the ability of proprietors to make the necessary investments in the physical upgrade of premises, in addition to the difficulty with older building structures challenged with spacing and otherwise to make the necessary accommodations.

The Commission on behalf of the Ministry will facilitate the enforcement of the Act for and on behalf of members of the disabled community. We will continue to work with all stakeholders to ensure the disabled are enabled to obtain equal access and opportunities to function effectively in the society.

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National Alert Messaging System Pilot Period Expires The Government of The Bahamas wishes to advise the public that the ‘Alert Bahamas’ pilot period expired in December 2017.

The pilot solution was provided by Unified Messaging Systems Americas (UMS) on a pro-bono basis as part of the Sustainable Nassau initiative, and led by the Office of The Prime Minister with technical assistance from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

The solution was first introduced to the public in September 2017, and provided the opportunity for NEMA, Bahamas Information Services, the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the Department of Meteorology to disseminate critical information to the public via multiple communication channels (SMS messages, email, and Facebook), comprising a national alert messaging system.

The Government of The Bahamas extends its gratitude to its partners (UMS, IDB, BTC and Aliv) for their generous

participation in making this pilot possible.

On 12th December 2017, during a mission of the Sustainable Nassau IDB team, representatives of the participating agencies and project partners met to discuss the lessons learned from the project.

There was consensus that the experience will enable the Government to be in a better position when developing appropriate terms of reference for a longer-term solution. The pilot implementation also provided insight into the enabling structures and frameworks that would be necessary to facilitate the effective implementation of a national alert messaging system.

The Government also thanks the public for its tremendous support and for the feedback provided over various platforms. Over three thousand persons registered on the citizen portal at www. alertbahamas.com to participate in the pilot and received messages from all four participating agencies. The wider national community and visitors would have also received hurricane and tropical storm

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

warnings from NEMA. A satisfaction survey targeted at persons registered on the portal was conducted, and revealed that registrants were generally happy about the opportunity to participate in such an initiative, and were very encouraging of a longer term solution. A number of useful recommendations were also provided that will be taken into consideration by the Government as it explores options for procuring a permanent solution. The results of the satisfaction survey are available on the

13

Alert Bahamas web portal (www.alertbahamas.com).

It should be noted that login and registration capabilities have been deactivated on the web portal, and all personal information registered during the pilot period has been securely discarded in accordance with the UMS privacy and data protection policy and data protection requirements of The Bahamas.

On behalf of the Government, the Office of the Prime Minister again thanks all stakeholders and participants.

Quick Stat.

In 2017, the Defence Force apprehended or assisted in apprehending some 1,300 migrants including 14 foreign nationals from five countries aboard a motor yacht off Fort Montagu.. The vessel was believed to have been involved in a migrant smuggling operation. The case is ongoing before the court. According to the RBDF approximately half of the apprehensions were made jointly with the RBDF and local Immigration and Police authorities, as well as the United States Coast Guard.

Holidays and Observance Days: Wednesday, February 14th, 2018 - Valentine’s Day

highlights in February 2018 A Taste of Eleuthera Sunday, February 18th, 2018 This annual event, sponsored by the Bahamas Conference of the Methodist Church, is spearheaded by the five Methodist Churches in the Central Eleuthera Region. The aroma of delicious native dishes, mouthwatering deserts and an assortment of drinks and teas fill the air and the temptation to taste everything will be hard to resist. This exciting festival attracts locals and visitors, for a down home flavor filled experience. For information, please contact Mrs. Vernetta Bethel at 242-332-2720

HACE Annual Fundraising Event 2018 Date: Saturday, February 24th, 2018 Venue: Sunset Inn Time: 11:30am to 2pm Music, Food, Drinks and a Good Time! Entry $30, all inclusive. A limited number of items will be auctioned. All funds raised will be used to support HACE (Health Association of Central Eleuthera).

Palmetto Point Homecoming PreEvents (Homecoming scheduled for May 17th to 21st) February 10th - Pre Valentine’s Boat Cruise.

Boarding time 6:45pm leaving from the Gov’t dock Governor’s Harbour. Tickets are $20.00.

March 4th - Steak-Out event at R.M. Bailey Park, Nassau. Other upcoming events will also be posted, stay tuned!

Daily Tour at the Leon Levy Native Plant Preserve, Governor’s Harbour: The Leon Levy Native Plant Preserve, protects 25 acres of coppice and mangrove forest, with the goal of conserving indigenous species and researching Bahamian bush medicine.

Visitors can explore the traditional uses of native trees and shrubs on the Medicinal Plant Trail, which groups plants according to the ailments they treat. The Mangrove Boardwalk will take you through an otherwise inaccessible wetland ecosystem. Birders will enjoy the Coppice Trail through a Bahamian hardwood forest where birds abound. The Preserve features a Welcome Centre and gift shop, as well as an open-air Education Pavilion.

For information, please call: 242-3323831 or 225-7832.

Annual Second Homeowners’ Reception Thursday, March 8th, 2018 This is an appreciation reception.

Winter residents get the opportunity to interact and fellowship with local residents and industry partners during this time. Time: 4-6pm Contact: Ministry of Tourism, Governor’s Harbour at 242-332-2142 for more information.

Public Notices: DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR VISITATION A representative from the Department of Labour will be visiting the Spanish Wells District on Wednesday 7th February, 2018 between the hours of 10:30am & 3pm. Persons seeking assistance with unemployment benefit, labour disputes, job inquiries or Labour Certificates should visit the representative at the Department of Immigration’s office in the Eagles Landing complex on the corner of Leo Pinder Main St. & 18th St.

Junior Junkanoo Parade Saturday, February 17th, 2018 Beginning at 4:00pm This event is held mainly for pre-school, primary and secondary schools to learn about this important aspect of their heritage. This will ensure the growth and survival of Junkanoo for years to come.” Come feel the rush Eleuthera style!! Location: Queen’s Highway Governor’s Harbour CE Contact Information: Eleuthera Tourist Office (242) 332-2142

The Eleuthera Animal Rescue Society Invite you to the First Annual Fundraiser for Animal Rescue Shelter and Spay/Neuter Project Thursday February 1, 2018 PIZZA NIGHT at Rainbow Inn is hosting a fundraiser for E.A.R.S for a greatly needed shelter facility on the island as well as the ongoing spay and neuter project.

One dollar from each pizza sold will be donated to the cause and there will also be a silent auction. We have received donations from many wonderful supporters, LIVE MUSIC BY DON BOUCHAT . Phone 335-0294 or Online on Facebook @ . Eleuthera Animal Rescue Society

School Events Mid Term Break February 22nd - February 23rd, 2018

Literacy Week Events: Samuel Guy Pinder All Age School February 12th to 17th, 2018

CEHS Awards Ceremony February 6th

Sporting Events: High School Track and Field Championships: February 8th - February 9th, 2018 Venue: Rock Sound, South Eleuthera

High School Basketball District Championships: Thursday, February 15th - Primary and 14 & Under Boys/Girls Divisions Friday, February 16th - Juniors and Seniors Boys/Girls Divisions Venue: Governor’s Harbour, Central Eleuthera

14

Education Beat

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

Top Eleuthera Students and Schools recognized at Annual National Exam Awards

By The Eleutheran News Team

Three High Schools in Eleuthera were represented at the recent Annual National Exam Awards held in New Providence on Monday, January 15th, 2018, where top students who sat the 2017 national BJC (Bahamas Junior Certificate) and BGCSE (Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education) examinations were recognized for their stellar achievements.

Of the 27 BGCSE subjects offered, 4 of the national top A result awards presented were captured by Eleuthera students, including Jason Pinder of Samuel Guy Pinder All Age School (SGPAAS) who received the top A result in Mathematics; and Carson Pinder also of the Samuel Guy Pinder All Age School who received the top A results in both Office Procedures and Art & Design (Craft).

Saiydah Bryan of Central Eleuthera High School (CEHS) received the national top A result in Literature.

Of the 13 BJC subjects offered, 1 of the national top A result awards presented was earned by an Eleutheran student, Equoia Gibson of Central Eleuthera

High School (CEHS) who received the top A result in Mathematics.

Erin Mullin of Samuel Guy Pinder All Age School (SGPAAS), earned the Best BGCSE results for the island of Eleuthera in 2017, having achieved 5 A’s, and 3 B’s. Christianna Wallace of North Eleuthera High School walked away with the Best BJC 2017 results for Eleuthera, with 7 A’s and 1 B. Students who received Honourable Mention awards for achieving five or more A’s in their national exams included: Equoia Gibson of CEHS - BJC (6 A’s, 1 B, 1 C); Kristman Moss of CEHS - BJC (5 A’s, 2 B’s, 1 C); Sanchez Albury of NEHS - BJC (5 A’s, 2 B’s, 1 C); Christianna Wallace of NEHS - BJC (7 A’s, 1 B); Collen Woods of NEHS BJC (5 A’s, 2 B’s); Leah Elizabeth Key of SGPAAS - BGCSE (5 A’s, 1 C, 1 D); Erin Mullin of SGPAAS - BGCSE (5 A’s, 3 B’s); Carson Pinder of SGPAAS - BGCSE (5 A’s, 1 B, 1 C); Charlton Roberts of SGPAAS - BGCSE (5 A’s, 1 B, 1 C); and Saiydah Bryan of CEHS BGCSE (5 A’s, 1 B, 1 C).

Pictured: CEHS Recipients - (l)Equoia Gibson, (r)Kristman Moss and (below, r) Principal Marie Galanis.

Two Eleuthera high schools were recognized for their national performance as a whole. CEHS took the 1st place award for Most Improved Performance in Government Schools (BGCSE - Category B: 101-500 entries). CEHS also received a 2nd place award for Most Improved Performance in Government Schools (BJC

Pictured: North Eleuthera High School recipients: L-RChristiana Wallace, Collen Woods and Sanchez Albury.

- Category B: 101-500 student entries), and SGPAAS received the 3rd place award for Most Improved Performance in Government Schools (BJC - Category B: 101-500 student entries. CEHS was also awarded 3rd place for Outstanding Performance by Government Schools in Career & Technical Education.

Education Beat

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

Above: 2017 Eleuthera Graduates who were among the recognised outstanding students: (L-R) - Saiydah Bryan, Charlton Kade Roberts, Erin Mullen. Bottom: (L-R) - Jason Pinder, Carson Pinder and Leah Key.

Airline back in full operation after a Crash Landing at GHB Airport - All passengers disembarked safely from the damaged craft

By The Eleutheran News Team

At about 8:00pm on January 9th, 2018, a Pineapple Air Charter Flight from New Providence to Governor’s Harbour experienced apparent landing gear failure upon landing at the Governors Harbour International Airport in Central Eleuthera and skidded off the left side of the airstrip, authorities confirmed.

There were fifteen (15) passengers on board the airplane, along with two (2) pilots. It was reported that one passenger received minor injuries, and that they were examined by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) on scene and referred to the Levy Medical Clinic for further evaluation.

Authorities noted that there was inclement weather at the time of the landing incident.

The Governor’s Harbour International Airport was subsequently closed to air traffic following the incident. It was reopened shortly after 1pm on Wednesday, January 10th, 2018, after being visited by personnel from the Airport Authority and Civil Aviation.

Up to press time, the airline confirmed that they were currently operating their regular flight schedule to airports on Eleuthera.

| 01/02 2018

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16

Local

Jan/Feb 2018

RCE President Reviews her Midterm Performance and

Shares Vision for 2018

By The Eleutheran News Team

www. EleutheraNews . com

Mrs. Sherrin Cooper, current President of the Rotary Club of Eleuthera (RCE), marked the halfway point of her year as leader of the active club during December 2017. At the beginning of July 2017 as she took up the mantle of leadership, Mrs. Cooper chose six strategic areas, in line with Rotary International, that she would focus on during her time at the helm, including: basic education and literacy, disease prevention, economic and community development, water and sanitation, maternal and child health, and conflict prevention and resolution. “Whenever we take on projects, we try to do those that fall under one of these areas,” explained President Cooper.

Now a full retiree, having completed a 43 year career as a registered nurse at the end of 2015, Mrs. Cooper threw herself into doing her best at moving the Rotary Club of Eleuthera forward.

The first project Mrs. Cooper took on in partnership with the School’s Board In September 2017 was the construction of a lunch deck and benches at the Central Eleuthera High School, which fell under the basic education and literacy area. The Principal, Mrs. Galanis shared the plight of the children at the school having limited areas where they could sit and have lunch outside of the classrooms.

“We also constructed work tables

and benches for the Bannerman Town library and community center, which was done in conjunction with the Rotaract Club and two Rotary Clubs out of Nassau - Old Fort Bay, and East Nassau Clubs, as a joint effort,” said Mrs. Cooper. During the same time, she shared that the RCE had started painting the South Eleuthera Mission in Rock Sound assisted by the Unity Builders, as well as Kiwanis. Work she said was ongoing with that project, which they aimed to complete early in 2018.

Rotarian member, Mr. Brian Carey, shared Mrs. Cooper, who holds responsibility for community projects, began an upgrade of the IT system at the Tarpum Bay Primary School, which was not yet fully completed, but expected to also be completed with just a few more volunteer hours of work. A reading marathon literacy event took place as well during September of 2017. It was an annual Club event, Mrs. Cooper explained, where Rotarians would go and read in different primary schools once per week.

Mrs. Crean, retired School Principal was also engaged (as a volunteer) to start a literacy program at Governor’s Harbour Primary. Students who were having a challenge with reading, she Continued On Page 17

Local

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

RCE Continued from pg. 16

went in and assisted them once per week from September through the end of November. “That was a good partnership,” said Mrs. Cooper.

The RCE has placed a strong emphasis on growing and strengthening the Club, both through new memberships, as well as through the introduction of young feeder clubs, like Rotaract, Interact, and Earlyact. The Rotary Club of Eleuthera has seen significant growth in feeder clubs, with several new groups formally pinned by the District Governor, Robert Leger, during his visit to the island in December 2017. The Rotaract Club, Central Eleuthera High School Interact Club, Deep Creek Middle School Earlyact Club, Emma Cooper Primary School Earlyact Club, and Governor’s Harbour Primary School Earlyact Club, are all now part of the Rotary network on island, with P.A. Gibson Primary Earlyact community based afterschool club currently being organized. Mrs. Cooper commented that it was hoped that the young members of these clubs would become future Rotarians, transitioning from Earlyact to Interact to Rotaract as they grew.

During the next six months of her year long term as RCE President, Mrs. Cooper, expressed that she is looking at the goals set earlier in July to see what has not been accomplished, and hopes to get them all done. Growing and retaining the membership targets of the Club, training for leadership to empower members, increasing member commitment to volunteerism with service projects as well as with mentoring and assisting the youth clubs, also to continue to support PTA’s and to work in the area of disease prevention in partnership with the Department of Public Health, are just some of those goals.

“The experience has been fantastic. It’s a lot of work, and you have to be on top of things. When I set goals, I really want to accomplish them, because I like to achieve. I enjoy volunteer work and working with service projects, so that’s been very enjoyable for me. I’ve met so many people who were willing to work with me, which made it a little easier as well. The Rotary Club of Eleuthera has always been a very strong Club, and I certainly wanted to maintain that standard,” smiled Mrs. Cooper, as she summed up her time to date.

Above: Mrs. Sherrin Cooper, RCE President, 2017/18.

| 01/02 2018

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18

National

Jan/Feb 2018

Visit This - Changing of the Guard

at Government House

NASSAU, – The Royal Bahamas Defence Force Band enthralled guests at Government House including tourists, teachers and sixth-grade students during the Changing of the Guard ceremony, Friday, January 19th, 2018.

The historic event included a marching display of precision drills by the Defence Force Band followed by a change of guard at the sentry.

In 1958, Dennis Morgan, then director of music for the Royal Bahamas Police Force Band, introduced the “Changing of the Guard” at Government House and “Beating of the Retreat” at Christmas. The Changing of the Guard took place every first and third Saturday of the month during which members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force Band marched from the Police headquarters on East Street to Government House and performed for 15 to 20 minutes’ display.

In 1990, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force assumed the duties of the Royal Bahamas Police Force as Security Guards at Government House.

The 30-minute ceremony is held in honor of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and has become an attraction for tourists and Bahamians.

www. EleutheraNews . com The ceremony is currently held every second Friday in the month at 11 a.m.

The 2018 dates for the Changing of the Guard are:

Feb – 2nd & 16th; March 2nd & 16th; April – 13th & 27th;

May – 11th & 25th; June – 8th & 22nd; July – 6th & 20th; Au– 3rd, 17th & 31st; Sept – 14th & 28th; Oct. – 12th & 26th; Nov. – 9th & 23rd; Dec. – 7th & 21st.

Local

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

| 01/02 2018

19

North Eleuthera Shopping Center The Bluff, Eleuthera, Tel: (242) - 335-1880; ; Email: neshoppingctr@yahoo.com Happy Valentines 2018 from North Eleuthera Shopping Center

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22

Island “Buzz”

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

Gregory Town, the setting of 2017’s Christmas Junkanoo The Eleuthera Christmas Day Junkanoo Parade 2017, which kicked off the month long season of Junkanoo in The Eleutheras, was held this year in Gregory Town, where three groups - representing townships from north, central and south Eleuthera came together to compete for the Christmas Parade title.

Tarpum Bay United, The Hatchet Bay Village Boys, and The North Eleuthera Cowboys did not disappoint the crowds assembled along the main thoroughfare in Gregory Town on Christmas evening, entertain-

ing with a colourful spectacle of creative lead banners, costumes and off the shoulder pieces, choreographed dance troupe routines, combined with heart pounding and foot tapping Junkanoo music.

The overall performance results saw Hatchet Bay reigning on the night, taking the 2017 title with 508 points. The North Eleuthera Cowboys came in a close second with 452 points overall, and Tarpum Bay United followed in third garnering Eleuthera. Best mu309 overall points. Best lead sic, best off the shoulbanner was awarded to North der costume, and best lead costume all went to the winning Hatchet Bay group, as well as the best choreographed dancers title.

The beautiful cultural celebration continued on Boxing Day evening in Harbour Island with an energetic and colourful, but friendly face off between the Zulu and the Barracks Hill Warriors, who entertained the visitors that swelled the island population during the holiday weekend.

Junkanoo festivities continued in The Eleutheras on New Year’s Day with rush-outs in Deep Creek, and another performance in Harbour Island.

The 3rd installment of the highly successful Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival also took place in Governor’s Harbour on Friday, January 5th to Sunday, January 7th. The main parade, featuring five Junkanoo groups from throughout The Eleutheras, including Harbour Island, lit up Governor’s Harbour’s main thoroughfare on Saturday evening, January 6th.

A brief prize ceremony for the Christmas Day Junkanoo was held on Friday, January 12th, where representatives of the three competing groups accepted cash awards for overall performance and special category wins.

Hatchet Bay took home $4,000 for their overall performance win and an additional $1,800 for wins in music, choreographed dancers, off the shoulder costumes, and lead costume categories.

North Eleuthera received $3,000 for their overall second place performance, and an additional $500 for their

best banner win, while Tarpum Bay pulled in $2,000 for their third overall performance finish.

Junkanoo season on island wraps up on Saturday, February 17th, 2018, at the Eleuthera Junior Junkanoo Parade, also being held in the central capital township of Governor’s Harbour.

Island “Buzz”

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com www.eleutheranews.com/?p=15265

Online Gallery Of Each Group

300+ photos online www.EleutheraNews.com

| 01/02 2018

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24

F EAT U R E

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

Richest 1 % bagged 82 % of wealth created last year - poorest half of humanity got nothing.

BY OXFAM Published: 22 January 2018 Eighty two percent of the wealth generated last year went to the richest one percent of the global population, while the 3.7 billion people who make up the poorest half of the world saw no increase in their wealth, according to a new Oxfam report released today. The report is being launched as political and business elites gather for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

‘Reward Work, Not Wealth’ reveals how the global economy enables a wealthy elite to accumulate vast fortunes while hundreds of millions of people are struggling to survive on poverty pay.

Billionaire wealth has risen by an annual average of 13 percent since 2010 – six times faster than the wages of ordinary workers, which have risen by a yearly average of just 2 percent. The number of billionaires rose at an unprecedented rate of one every two days between March 2016 and March 2017.

It takes just four days for a CEO from one of the top five global fashion brands to earn what a

Bangladeshi garment worker will earn in her lifetime. In the US, it takes slightly over one working day for a CEO to earn what an ordinary worker makes in a year.

It would cost $2.2 billion a year to increase the wages of all 2.5 million Vietnamese garment workers to a living wage. This is about a third of the amount paid out to wealthy shareholders by the top 5 companies in the garment sector in 2016.

Oxfam’s report outlines the key factors driving up rewards for shareholders and corporate bosses at the expense of workers’ pay and conditions. These include the erosion of workers’ rights; the excessive influence of big business over government policy-making; and the relentless corporate drive to minimize costs in order to maximize returns to shareholders.

Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International said: “The billionaire boom is not a sign of a thriving economy but a symptom of a failing economic system. The people who make our clothes, assemble our phones and grow our food are being exploited to ensure a steady supply of cheap goods, and swell the profits of corporations and billionaire investors.”

Women workers often find themselves off at

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Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera

the bottom of the heap. Across the world, women consistently earn less than men and are usually in the lowest paid and least secure forms of work. By comparison, 9 out of 10 billionaires are men.

“Oxfam has spoken to women across the world whose lives are blighted by inequality. Women in Vietnamese garment factories who work far from home for poverty pay and don’t get to see their children for months at a time. Women working in the US poultry industry who are forced to wear nappies because they are denied toilet breaks,” said Byanyima.

Oxfam is calling for governments to ensure our economies work for everyone and not just the fortunate few: Limit returns to shareholders and top executives, and ensure all workers receive a minimum ‘living’ wage that would enable them to have a decent quality of life. For example, in Nigeria, the legal minimum wage would need to be tripled to ensure decent living standards.

Eliminate the gender pay gap and protect the rights of women workers. At current rates of change, it will take 217 years to close the gap in pay and employment opportunities between women and men.

Ensure the wealthy pay their fair share of tax through higher taxes and a crackdown on tax avoidance, and increase spending on public services such as healthcare and education. Oxfam estimates a global tax of 1.5 percent on billionaires’ wealth could pay for every child to go to school.

Results of a new global survey commissioned by Oxfam demonstrates a groundswell of support for action on inequality. Of the 70,000 people surveyed in 10 countries, nearly two-thirds of all respondents think the gap between the rich and the poor needs to be urgently addressed.

“It’s hard to find a political or business leader who doesn’t say they are worried about inequality. It’s even harder to find one who is doing something about it. Many are actively making things worse by slashing taxes and scrapping labor rights,” said Byanyima.

“People are ready for change. They want to see workers paid a living wage; they want corporations and the super-rich to pay more tax; they want women workers to enjoy the same rights as men; they want a limit on the power and the wealth which sits in the hands of so few. They want action.”

National

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

25

PM Minnis Meets with Families of Andros Plane Crash Victims - six fatalities recorded.

Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert A. Minnis and a delegation from New Providence traveled to North Andros on Friday, January 19th, 2018, to meet with the families of the six Androsians reported to have been on-board the twin-engine Piper Aztec aircraft that crashed into waters off North Andros.

Prime Minister Minnis and his delegation arrived at the North Andros (San Andros) Airport where they were met by senior government and local government officials before being whisked away to the Government Administration Complex where the meeting took place.

The Prime Minister’s delegation included Minister of Transport and Local Government and Acting Aviation Minister, the Hon. Frankie Campbell, Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources, the Hon. Renward Wells, Bishop Delton Fernander, President of the Bahamas Christian Council and Mr. Jack Thompson, Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister.

Prime Minister Minnis’ first effort was to console the family members and representatives of the six Androsians.

“To the family and Andros at-large I came here to bring condolences not only on my behalf but the Cabinet and the entire Commonwealth of The Bahamas,” Prime Minister Minnis said.

“This is indeed a sad moment and a tragedy for Andros as we are a large land mass but a small community and I note that when one looks at the victims of this tragedy, it involved mother and daughter and many of the victims would have left behind siblings family members and they too will need our support.

“The question is always asked why would such an event occur? Why me? Why us? And why a 10-year-old at this time when they would not have yet begun their life? But what we do know for certain is that whatever happens in this world, one man knows why and that’s God,” the Prime Minister added.

Prime Minister Minnis said Administration Officials will dispatch grief counselors to the island early next week to provide counseling services for those in need of it.

“I know that in times of bereavement it not only affects you but the extended family, it affects the community, the children and it also affects the school where that ten-year-old and the children of the victims would have schooled.

“Recognizing that, we will have counselors here in your community as early as next week to be available both for family members and the school communities.

Again on behalf of the Government of The Bahamas I bring condolences and as soon as I return from my trip next week I will be here with you again and I assure you that the Government of The Bahamas will offer our entire support to ensure that you get through this so remain firm, remain steady and let us all continue to pray and ask for

God’s Blessing or the entire nation of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas,” Prime Minister Minnis added.

Meanwhile, the Air Accident Investigation Department of The Bahamas on Friday, January 19th, released a statement.

Below is the full text of that statement: “On 17 January, 2018 the Air Accident Investigation Department (AAID) was notified by Nassau Air Traffic Control that an aircraft N62769, a Piper Aztec, six-seater aircraft went missing around 8:00am while en route to the Lynden Pindling International Airport from San Andros Airport.

Search and Rescue assets with assistance from the Royal Bahamas Defense Force, the United States Coast Guard and BASRA, as well as other aircraft from Nassau and local boaters in Andros, participated in the search for the missing aircraft and its occupants.

Around 5:00pm, the AAID was notified that a debris field was located where the aircraft crashed. Due to nightfall search and rescue efforts had to be suspended and commenced around 7am Thursday January 18.

On Thursday 18 January, Investigators from the AAID with assistance from the Bahamas Civil Aviation Authority, Safety Oversight Department traveled to Andros Island to commence the investigation.

Around 10:00am, the investigation team was notified that the debris field was located and what remained of the aircraft was retrieved and brought to the island. As the complete aircraft could not be located and retrieved, no further analysis can be conducted on the aircraft. Subsequently the search and rescue efforts were officially terminated. The pilot and five passengers on board perished in the accident, which occurred in waters approximately four (4) miles southeast of the Mastic Point Settlement.

Above: Photos show the Prime Minister of The Bahamas, Rt. Hon. Hubert Minnis meeting with grieving family members of the Androsians who died.

Christmas Junkanoo Prize Presentation Pictured: Representatives of two of the three participating groups in the Eleuthera Christmas Day Junkanoo hosted in Gregory Town were presented with their cash prizes on January 12th 2018.

(L-R): Pamela Gibson, Local Government; Kennedy Scavella, Hatchet Bay Village Boys; Clara Young, Ministry of Youth & Culture; and Joshua Daniels, North Eleuthera Cowboys.

26

Local “Plus”

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

Young Eleutheran Professional Part of Bahamas delegation in Geneva Switzerland The Bahamas underwent its Third Cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the 29th Session on Wednesday, January 17th, 2018, at the Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva, Switzerland. The delegation was led by Senator, the Honorable Carl Wilshire Bethel, Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

Eleutheran, Ms. Alicia Gibson, from the Bluff, Eleuthera was part of the delegation in her capacity as Assistant Counsel in the Office of the Attorney-General

and Ministry of Legal Affairs.

Ms. Gibson, who graduated from Windermere High School in 2009, went on to study Law and Criminal Justice at the College of the Bahamas, finishing in 2011. She continued her schooling, studying Law with Business at the University of Sussex, and after graduating in 2014, entered City University London to complete the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC). In 2015, she began her position as Assistant Counsel within the Office of the Attorney General, and is currently studying International Dispute

Photo Caption: (L-R) Ms. DeAndra Cartwright, Foreign Service Officer within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Frank Davis, Minister Counsellor/Deputy Permanent Representative & Charge d’affaires; Ms. Bernadette Butler, Minister Counsellor; Senator, The Honourable Carl Wilshire Bethel, AttorneyGeneral; Ms. Jewel Major, Chief Counsel within the Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Legal Affairs; and Ms. Alicia Gibson (from The Bluff, North Eleuthera), Assistant Counsel in the Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Legal Affairs.

Resolution with the University of London.

According to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), “The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique process which involves a review of the human rights records of all UN Member States. The UPR is a State-driven process, under the auspices of the Human Rights Council, which provides the opportunity for each State to declare what actions they have taken to improve the human rights situations

in their countries and to fulfil their human rights obligations.

As one of the main features of the Council, the UPR is designed to ensure equal treatment for every country when their human rights situations are assessed. The ultimate aim of this mechanism is to improve the human rights situation in all countries and address human rights violations wherever they occur. Currently, no other universal mechanism of this kind exists.”

Picture this The 48th Governor of the

State of Texas, Greg Abbott, hosted Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert Minnis and his delegation to lunch on Monday January 22, 2018, at the Gover-

nor’s Mansion, in Austin

Official Group Photo. Front row, from left: Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert A. Minnis; 48th Governor of the State of Texas, Greg Abbott; and the Hon. Darren Henfield, Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Standing, from left: Cornelius (CA) Smith, Non-Resident Ambassador-designate for Central American States; Linda Mackey, Consul General, Miami FL; HE Sidney Collie, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States; Joshua Sears, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of the Prime Minister; Lynden Rose, Honorary Consul, Houston, Texas; Senator the Hon. Kwasi Thompson, Minister of State for Grand Bahama; and Rolando B. Pablos, Secretary of State, Austin, Texas. [Photos/Yontalay S. Bowe/OPM Media Services]

Local “Plus” PM: Commercial Enterprises Act to Employee shot as masked help create small, medium-sized Bagunmen rob Palmetto hamian businesses Point Gas Station.

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

27

By Matt Maura (bis)

The implementation of the Commercial Enterprises Act will assist Bahamians at home “and in the Diaspora abroad” in the creation, and development, of small and medium-sized businesses, Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert A. Minnis said Thursday.

The Act was passed in the House of Assembly on November 22, 2017 and in the Senate on December 4, 2017.

Delivering the keynote address during the Opening Session of the 27th Annual Bahamas Business Outlook Seminar, Prime Minister Minnis said the Act will encourage both domestic and foreign investment in The Bahamas, while allowing for the creation of certain economic zones where deemed necessary throughout the country.

The Prime Minister said the Act will help to encourage investment in The Bahamas, and places a high level of prioritization on Bahamian labour and talent.

The Act targets specialized businesses in Captive Insurance, Nanotechnology, Computer Technology, Software Design, Data Storage, Maritime Trade, Aviation Registration, Wealth Management and Manufacturing Enterprises.

“We must utilize our strategic assets and comparative advantages to create more Bahamian entrepreneurs even as we seek international investors and partners from North America, Asia, Europe, South America, Africa, the Middle East, Australia and the Pacific,” Prime Minister Minnis said.

“Small and medium-sized Bahamian businesses are a critical part of our economy. These businesses employ thousands of Bahamians. They are critical for economic growth.”

Prime Minister Minnis said to further promote the ease of Doing Business for such enterprises, the Government of The Bahamas – after consultation with the Central Bank of The Bahamas – in the final quarter of 2017, announced the relaxation of Exchange Controls on capital transactions, namely on capital (investment) and current account (trade) transactions. The changes come into effect as of February 1, 2018.

“This reform was long overdue,” Prime Minister Minnis said.

RDBF Arrests Haitian Nationals aboard Sailing Yacht

Coral Harbour Base, 22 JAN. ‘18 (RBDF): A group of Haitian migrants are on the way to the capital after they were apprehended in Bahamian waters on Monday evening by the Royal Bahamas Defence.

While on routine patrol, the Defence Force’s aircraft P-68 piloted by Chief Petty Officer Gregory Storr spotted the sailing vessel early Sunday morning. Shortly after 5:00 p.m. Monday evening, a US Coast Guard helicopter from the Operation Bahamas, Turks and Caicos (OPBAT) spotted the 40-ft Sailing vessel approximately 8 nautical miles east of Wemyss settlement in south Long Island and alerted Defence Force patrol craft, HMBS ROLLY GRAY, which was also searching for the vessel under the command of Lieutenant Commander Granville Adderley.

Further investigations resulted in the apprehension of 70 undocumented Haitian migrants aboard the sailing vessel, “ISLAND GIRL” The migrants were detained

by HMBS Rolly Gray and will be taken to the capital.

The Commander Defence Force, Commodore Tellis Bethel, commended the vigilant efforts of Defence Force, as well as US Coast Guard members, who had conducted an extensive joint operation to capture the vessel.

This incident is the first migrant apprehension for the year. Last year, the Defence Force apprehended or assisted in apprehending some 1,300 migrants including 14 foreign nationals from five countries aboard a motor yacht off Fort Montagu late last year.

The vessel was believed to have been involved in a migrant smuggling operation.

The case is ongoing before the court.

Last week, Defence Force divers assisted local authorities in North Andros with the search and recovery of victims of a plane crash in nearby waters. Also, the vigilant search for Mr. Samuel Moss Jr., who was reported missing since 15th January is also ongoing. Mr. Moss departed Bimini for New Providence in a white 21 foot single engine Angler small craft, and has not been heard from since.

According to the Royal Bahamas Police Force Eleuthera Division, an armed robbery incident took place in Palmetto Point at a local service station on Thursday evening, January 18th, 2018, shortly after 10pm. The proprietor of the service station contacted Governor’s Harbour Police by telephone and reported that the business had just been robbed by three masked gunmen.

A male employee at the service station was said to have been shot, and a male customer gun-butted during the robbery incident, before the masked gunmen escaped with a large sum of cash. According to an eyewitness the victim was “heartlessly” shot to the chest subsequent to the gunmen’s demands being met. Officers quickly responded to the scene which was then processed.

Police reported on Friday morning, January 19th, 2018 that as a result of ongoing investigations, three adult males were taken into custody. The three suspects currently being held

in relation to Thursday night’s armed robbery, were described as having recently moved to the island from New Providence. A team of Police Officers from New Providence also came to Eleuthera to assist with the investigation.

The employee who was shot was confirmed to have been airlifted into New Providence by emergency flight for further medical attention.

On Monday morning, January 22nd, 2018, authorities confirmed that two additional people had been arrested in connection with the January 18th armed robbery, another adult male, along with an adult female. As of January 24th, no one had been charged in the case. Investigations were said to be continuing as authorities awaited results of forensic evidence collected from the crime scene.

Police recorded one attempted armed robbery in Eleuthera during 2017.

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Perspective

Jan/Feb 2018

OP-ED

By Sir Ronald Sanders www.sirronaldsanders.com

By Sir Ronald Sanders

(The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the OAS. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto. The views expressed are his own) The effect of the inappropriate depiction of Haiti, El Salvador and all African nations as “shit hole” countries is a matter that the people of the United States of America and their government and Congress should contemplate seriously.

The responses have been swift, showing a mixture of outrage and shock. At the time of writing this commentary, there has been no expression of regret about the comment that has done nothing but injure the relations between the United States and many countries.

Hopefully, representatives of the U.S. in other countries will distance themselves from it, and apologise as discreetly as they can.

I am here concerned particularly with the remarks about Haiti, a member state of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the current Chair of the group’s Heads of Government caucus.

My colleague, the Ambassador of Haiti to the United States, Paul Altidor, rightly said, “We feel in the statements, if they

Policy Statement: The Perspective, Conservation Corner,’ Op-ED and Letters section of The Eleutheran newspaper is a medium we provide for writers to express their views and opinions on issues that directly or indirectly affect any part of our society. These views do not in anyway reflect the views of this newspaper. While we aim to publish all letters sent to us, please note The Letter to the Editor section is not a vehicle for people to air personal gri pes against another person and letters may be refused on the basis of ethics, which includes, but is not limited to, personal vendettas or attacks.

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No regrets for making Haiti a ‘shithole’? were made, the president was either misinformed or miseducated about Haiti and its people”. The United Nations spokesman Rupert Colville, described the remarks as “racist”, adding that, “You cannot dismiss entire countries and continents as ‘shitholes,’ whose entire populations, who are not white, are therefore not welcome.”

Haiti, for us in the Caribbean is more than just a member of our community, it is the first nation to rise up against slavery and oppression in our region. Importantly when the Republic of Haiti was established on January 1, 1804, it was the first free nation of free black people to rise in a world of Empires of Western European nations.

And, Haiti paid a very high price for its assertion that black people were born free, entitled to freedom and the right to fight for it.

In a real sense, from the moment of that assertion of freedom, Haiti was earmarked for the “shithole” status now applied to it. It was punished by every European nation, particularly France, and successive governments of the United States aided and abetted in the process.

France demanded huge reparations for the slaves and plantations it lost at the revolt of Toussaint L’Ouverture. In 1825, Haiti’s leaders were forced to agree to pay France the harsh levy of 90 million gold francs, which the country did not finish repaying until 1947.

For almost a hundred years, Haiti was pushed into poverty by the French demand, upheld by Western European nations and the US. Indeed, the U.S., which continued to be a slave-owing nation after European nations outlawed it, did not recognise Haiti as a free nation until 1862 – the last major power at the time to do so.

But, even that recognition was meaningless. Taking advantage of Haiti’s lack of capacity to defend itself from external intervention, U.S. naval ships entered Haitian waters no less than 24 times between 1849 and 1913, ostensibly “to protect American lives and property”.

Finally, in 1915, the U.S. invaded Haiti and ruled the country as an occupying force for 20 years.

During that period, Haiti and the Haitian people, already impoverished, exploited and isolated by what was then ‘the international community’ - Western European nations and the U.S – were further disadvantaged. Their constitution was rewritten against their will, something the U.S. State Department admitted in 1927. Under that Constitution, laws preventing foreigners from owning land were scrapped, allowing U.S, companies to take what they wanted.

In 1926, a New York business publication described Haiti as “a marvellous opportunity” for U.S. investment, stating that “the run of the mill Haitian is handy,

easily directed, and gives a hard day’s labour for 20 cents, while in Panama the same day’s work cost $3”. U.S. corporations grew from 13 in 1966 to 154 in 1981, enriching themselves, pauperising the Haitian people even more and doing little to add wealth to the economy.

And, as with slavery, the excesses of U.S. occupation by U.S. companies were justified by the language of racial superiority. Haitians were described as “coons”, “mongrels”, “unwholesome”, “a horde of naked niggers”.

The New York Times reported U.S. representatives as saying that Haiti needed “energetic Anglo-Saxon influence”.

The Haitians have also suffered from governments that suited foreign powers being put into office, only to be removed if their policies ceased to serve the interest of those foreign powers. Therefore, democracy in Haiti was emasculated not by the Haitian people, but by external forces and Haitian elites that they suborned.

Incidentally, the U.S. has had balance of trade surpluses with Haiti for many decades.

For instance, in 2014, the U.S. trade surplus with Haiti was $356.4 million; in 2015 and 2016 respectively it was $190.5 and $191.9 million. For the 11 months, ending November 30, 2017, the surplus in favour of the U.S. was already $385 million. So, for a ‘shithole’ country it has provided annual revenues and employment to the U.S, of some magnitude.

Sadly, from this entire experience, Haiti is

the poorest country in all the Americas.

But it is far from a “shithole”, possessing as it does some of the most beautiful landscapes and seascapes in the Caribbean; a remarkably talented and creative people – Haitian art and craft is natural, untrained aptitude; and hard workers.

Of Haiti’s population of 10.4 million people, only 500,000 have permanent employment. Yet, the Haitian people maintain stability in a continuing struggle.

If Haiti is a “shithole”, those who made it so, should acknowledge their devastating role, and in their shame, they should pledge to do better.

Every Caribbean person, at all levels, should make it abundantly and crystal clear that we resent this depiction of Haiti; we call for acknowledgement by all who have exploited it and kept it in poverty; and we urge that, instead of dismissing it in unfortunate language, they implement programmes to atone for their part in its pauperisation.

For our part, the Caribbean should stand-up for Haiti with pride and gratitude.

Responses and previous commentaries: www.sirronaldsanders.com

Perspective

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

Conservation Corner (By CEI)

The Emerging Stone Crab Fishery in The Bahamas

Over the last decade, the stone crab

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changes that occur due to fishing or other pressures.

The Cape Eleuthera Institute is continuing stone crab research in hopes of ensuring the development of a long-term and sustainable fishery whilst maintaining a healthy crab population.

claw and re-enter the fishable population.

However, little is known in The Bahamas about what happens to the crabs after this claw-removal event occurs. Research is being done at the Cape Eleuthera Institute and the Island School to answer this question.

Stone crabs in trap

Stone crabs have one claw that is larger than the other and have the ability to slowly regrow a claw after it has been removed

fishery in The Bahamas has expanded into a sizable export operation spanning several of the Family Islands. With Bahamian stone crabs being considerably larger than Florida crabs, two new size classes (“Jumbo” and “Colossal”) have been created and command a competitive price in the US market. This influx has pushed stone crabs to be the 3rd largest export seafood by value, passing grouper.

With the fishery beginning to grow, work must be done to ensure the resource is used and managed sustainably.

Stone crabs are an interesting fishery example because the whole crab is not actually intended to be harvested. Instead, after being trapped, the crab’s claws are removed and the animal is released alive.

Stone crabs have the ability to regrow their lost claws, which means that after being caught once, they can regrow that

The stone crab fishery is closed from June 1st to October 15th when the crabs reproduce. In The Bahamas, regulation states that it is legal to remove both claws from a crab if the claws are greater than 4 inches long and it is within season. However, the research is showing that almost one third of crabs that have had both claws removed die within a day of being released into a laboratory tank, and this number may be much higher in the wild where predators may target these crabs without their defensive claws. In Florida where the regulations are similar, “bestpractice” is to only remove one claw from each crab but it is unknown how well this guideline is followed.

A country-wide stock assessment has never occurred for stone crabs in The Bahamas, which is important for establishing baseline information on population numbers and for monitoring any

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Local “Plus”

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

The Ministry of Education Announces the Appointment of New

Leadership Team

Minister of Education, the Hon. Jeffrey Lloyd, on Friday, January 19th 2018, announced the appointment of and introduced to the Ministry of Education’s staff, a new executive team at the Ministry and Department of Education.

The Department is now led by Mr. Marcellus Taylor; Acting Director. His new team comprises: Mrs. Eulease Beneby, Acting Deputy Director, School Management and Registration; Ms. Sharon Poitier, Acting Deputy Director, Curriculum; and Mr. Julian Anderson, Acting Deputy Director, Technology and Innovation.

The Ministry’s new team remains headed by Permanent Secretary, Mrs.

Donnella Bodie, who is now joined by: Mr. Reginald Saunders, Under Secretary, General Administration and the Scholarship and Educational Loan Division;

Minister’s apparent supporting position on Plastics in The Bahamas, Buoys visiting Warriors from Eleuthera.

Bahamas Plastic Movement’s Youth Delegation: Pictured L to R: Tarryn Johnson (14) Tiny McKinney (adult), Glenderia Francis (16), Kristal Ambrose (adult), Abigail Ramnarine (10), Charma Morley (15), Traliyah Carey (15).

Press release On January 3rd, 2018, the Bahamas Plastic Movement’s youth delegation from the island of Eleuthera, travelled to Nassau, New Providence to meet Minister of Environment and Housing, The Hon. Romauld Ferreira, to propose the need for a nationwide ban on plastic bags for the country.

The self-proclaimed “Plastic Warriors”, members of the environmental NGO Bahamas Plastic Movement (BPM), visited the Ministry of Environment’s Charlotte House office in Nassau, where they presented a thorough presentation on the economic and environmental implications of plastic pollution in The Bahamas. Single use- disposable plastic items

such as plastic bottles, straws, cups, styrofoam and plastic bags are known to be a nuisance in the environment. Plastic bags in particular are used in abundance within the country, globally up to 1 trillion plastic bags are used annually.

Used on average for around 12 minutes, these extremely lightweight and aerodynamic plastic bags escape with the wind, evading trash cans and local landfills before eventually polluting our environment and finally making their way to the ocean before severely harming marine life such as whales, turtles and seabirds.

“In our country, single use plastic items are commonly used and is very bad for the environment because it is a non biodegradable material, so it just persists in our environment for an extended period of time, especially on

The new executive management team of the Ministry of Education. Pictured in the front row; L-R are: Sharon Poitier, Acting Deputy Director, responsible for Curriculum; Marcellus Taylor, Acting Director of Education;The Minister of Education, The Hon. Jeffrey L. Lloyd; Donovan Turnquest, Acting Deputy Permanent Secretary, responsible for General Administration and Understudy for the Physical Plant Division and Serethea Clarke, Acting Under Secretary, responsible for Human Resources and the Examination and Assessment Division. [Back Row, L-R] Julian Anderson, Acting Deputy Director, responsible for Technology and Innovation; Eulease Beneby, Acting Deputy Director, responsible for School Management and Registration. Isla Deane, Deputy Permanent Secretary, responsible for General Administration and the Scholarship and Educational Loan Division; Reginald Saunders, Under Secretary, responsible for General Administration and the Scholarship and Educational Loan Division.

Ms. Serethea Clarke, Acting Under Secretary, Human Resources and Examination & Assessment Division; ·Ms. Isla A. Deane, Deputy Permanent Secretary, General Administration; Mr. Donovan Turnquest, Acting Deputy Permanent Secretary, General Administration and Understudy for the Physical Plant Division; and Ms. Joan Darling, Financial Controller.

Minister Lloyd presented to the new team during a series of staff meetings last Friday at the Ministry’s Headquarters on University Blvd, New Providence, advising his audience that, “ while change is often regarded as something negative, in this fast paced, fast moving world, if you’re not growing, you’re going backward.”

During the meetings, Minister Lloyd advised the new leadership team that the people of The Bahamas, through its Government, insists on an our beaches where they may deter tourists”, states BPM’s Ocean Ambassador Glenderia Francis. Approximately 70% of visitors to the Bahamas said that their decision to visit was influenced by its beaches. Recent scientific research suggests that if the rate of litter on a beach increases to 15 litter items per square meter, that would deter 85% of users, causing up to US$8.5 million in tourism losses annually. “Plastic bags are a major issue in this country as they are commonly used in businesses, so we wanted to confront this issue head on and propose a nationwide ban on plastic bags,” continued Francis.

Leading up to their meeting with Minister Ferreira, the students participated in a Youth Activism Workshop hosted by BPM. “Our youth activism workshop was designed to give students the tools that they need to take action against plastic pollution at the policy level, states BPM founder, Kristal Ambrose. Over

ambitious transformation agenda for the education system, and that the team must be aggressive in pursuing that agenda, ensuring that they “bear fruit in the shortest possible time”.

Education reform is high on the list of priorities enunciated by Prime Minister Hubert Minnis upon coming to office on May 12, 2017. In an address to Parliament, the Prime Minister laid out the FNM Governments comprehensive vision for a 21st Century Bahamas, which included, among other plans, “ education, healthcare, housing, child, youth and community development.”

Minister Lloyd also thanked former members of the education team, including former Director of Education Mr. Lionel Sands, a 47 year veteran educator, now at the Ministry of Labor, and former Deputy Director, Mr. Joel Lewis, a 30 year education veteran, now with the Department of Local Government. the course of four (4) days, students learned to conduct social science surveys to gather data on the amount of plastic bags used by locals on a daily basis. With the help of local lawyer Ronique Carey, they learned about the legislative process of The Bahamas. After reviewing several case studies of countries around the world with effective plastic bag bans in place, the students successfully drafted a legally binding bill for a plastic bag regulation for The Bahamas, which was then presented to the Minister. The first phase of the proposed regulation requested a levy on plastic bags for businesses and an imposed plastic bag tax for consumers wishing to receive a plastic bag at the point of sale. “Our goal is to see a reduction in plastic bag use and plastic bag litter in the

Continued On Page 31

Perspective

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

Evolution to Revolution.

Americas! What he did was open pathways for people who had the ability to take control of other people’s vast lands for their own profit, to do so. As a result the present world is populated with billions of people who are unable to relate to their places of living.

Before the arrival of the Europeans to the Americas, the continent was inhabited by many native people. The Bahamas and other Caribbean Islands were already owned and occupied by Arawak ‘Indians’ who welcomed the newcomers to their own peril! (and I should celebrate ‘Discovery day’)??? The Bahamas we call home today, where my parents caused me to be born By: Andrew L. Burrows and raised did not belong to the andrewburrows1@gmail.com Spaniards, they stole it from the Arawaks, and the Colonial It is a national shame that at powers from whom we received this stage in the development of this country were not unlike the this country there is no sensible Spaniards. policy of land control; a national So, we are the inheritors of disgrace! To begin with, Christo- a country that we cannot feel we pher Columbus, who opened the own with pride, because it was doors to the world being pirated stolen property, handed over to and stolen did not “discover” the us and what a mess! It is no won-

Plastic Warriors Continued from pg. 30

country, however our ultimate goal is to have a complete ban on plastic bags and styrofoam for the entire Bahamas by the year 2020”, said Kristal Ambrose.

Combining their knowledge of plastic pollution with their research findings, proposed draft bill and effective communication skills, these plastic warriors successfully built an engaging and informative presentation that was a call to action for Minister Ferreira and a guide to leading The Bahamas “Towards a Plastic Free Future . Courageously, the “Plastic Warriors”, composed of, Charma Morley (15), Traliyah Carey (15), Glenderia Francis (16), Abigail Ramnarine (10) and Tarryn Johnson (14), marched into the Minister’s office and clearly outlined what action steps were required of the Ministry of Environment. The team recommended 1) a partnership between the Ministry of Environment and Bahamas Plastic Movement to launch a national plastic pollution education campaign, 2) The Hon. Romauld Ferreira, Minister of the Environment and Housing agrees to push legislation for a plastic bag ban in The Bahamas by the end of the first quarter 2018 and 3) The Bahamas agrees to join the UNEP Clean Seas Initiative which is a global Call to Action for governments to introduce regulations and incentives to tackle marine debris.

“Someone has to make the change for our generation and if we don’t do it, no one else will, so we have to be the voice of our com-

der we live on little lots, carved out of little tracts of land that some Colonial masters allotted to those who were before us, while millions of acres of undeveloped land surrounds us. I was shocked when I was younger in the seventies and eighties to learn that many square miles of land between Gregory Town and Hatchet Bay were at that time owned

by The Harrisville Co. while the settlement of Alice Town was confined to an area less than a square mile with home sites of less than one hundred square feet, a national disgrace. To add injury to insult, to the south of the Harrisville acreage almost half way to James Cistern a new subdivision was being opened by a non-Bahamian and much of the lots eventually were sold off at rates locals could not afford. I understand now why there is so much hunger, famine, war and hatred throughout the world.

From our former Colonial masters we have inherited a mess that will take nothing short of a revolution to resolve. No, not a bloody killing spree, a revolution

munity and make a change in society” says, Charma Morley, BPM Ocean Ambassador.

Following the presentation, Minister Ferreira, expressed his gratitude, contentment and pride for the courage and commitment displayed by the “plastic warriors”. To the surprise of the group, he proposed to ban plastic bags completely in The Bahamas, followed by various types of single use plastics such as styrofoam. The Minister revealed that the Ministry of Environment has been working diligently on formulating and pushing regulations with Parliament that address plastic use in the country and agrees that through laws and swift action, we will be able to mitigate plastic pollution in The Bahamas. “We are all ecstatic to have both the Minister’s and the Ministry’s full support in both the national and global fight against plastic as this will reap positive benefits for the ecosystem and human health and economic wellbeing of this country”, states Ambrose. At the 2018 Abaco Science Alliance Conference hosted by Friends of the Environment on January 4th, Minister Ferreira publicly announced his plans to move forward with a plastic bag ban for The Bahamas, joining a growing list of more than 40 countries who have already implemented plastic bag bans.

Following their high-profile meeting with Minister Ferreira, the “plastic warriors” visited radio and news outlets to publicize their proposal and raise awareness of plastic pollution and its solutions to the general public of The Bahamas. Guest appearances on Guardian Talk Radio’s The Revolution with Juan McCartney saw the students discussing alternatives to single use plastic items by using products such as reusable shopping bags, metal or glass straws and reusable water bottles. The team even shared tips on how to make reusable shopping

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

of our intellect and will. You see, God does not hold us accountable for the evil deeds of those who preceded us, no, He wants us to be courageous, and correct the errors of the past. Right now, there are large tracts of land throughout this island, some abandoned a long time ago, some left to people whose inheritors are unaware that they own; and then there is that law. Yes, there is that LAW known as The Quieting of Title Act which has given people who could afford to exercise it, the ability to own large tracts of ‘abandoned’ land and sell it back to the very people who owned it but did not know, and to foreigners, from whom it will never be affordable to repurchase!

Revolution, yes we need a fresh vision for this mess - of- a - mess we inherited. This present generation must break away from the inherited cycle of JOB HUNTERS and become the owners of this, our beautiful home land. The island of Eleuthera, the land called ‘FREEDOM’ is being advertised, and offered for sale around the world; while our children and grandchildren are denied ownership of the land under their feet, while it is being sold out to

31

the highest offer!

The ‘land pirates’ gave away the best portion of the Island of Grand Bahama called Free Port, by way of a “Lease Agreement” which although it has a term limit, it has no exit. So the Port Authority turns around and sells lots back to the Bahamians from whom they leased the land. You talk about thieves?! We live in a corrupt world where right is seen as wrong, and wrong is glorified as right. So what will it be!

Our present Government must take immediate, and deliberate, drastic measures to correct the mess that we have inherited.

The Government must abolish the present land laws, and replace them with a new righteous act of reclaiming all lands not presently properly documented and make them available to all Bahamians, never to be sold to foreigners.

Any non-Bahamian wishing to build or invest on lands in this Bahamas should be under Lease agreement only. One day we will be self-sustaining farmers, fishermen, manufacturers, and land owners. It is time to remove the shackles of mental and economic slavery.

bags using a repurposed tshirt. Following their visit with Juan, the team was featured on both Hot 91.7FM with Randy C and Our News Network to discuss their meeting with The Minister of Environment and their plans for creating a plastic free Bahamas. The Bahamas Plastic Movement and its counterparts are not only committed to raising awareness of plastic pollution but to finding feasible solutions that work for The Bahamas. To learn more about the organization and ways to decrease your Students pose with the Minister of Environment and Housing, The Hon. Romauld Ferreira. plastic footprint, visit www. bahamasplasticmovement.org.

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Crime News

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

Reports are printed to keep the public informed of the incidents of crime that are reported within our communities. All reports are to be treated as allegations only.

Reports issued by the RBPF locally.

Eleuthera REPORTS Stealing from a Vehicle Report: At about 2:25pm on Sunday 31st December 2017 an adult male contacted the Governors Harbour Police Station via telephone and reported that there is several tourist at his business who reported to him that they were at the beach in James Cistern where some unknown person/s broke into their rental car and stole some of their belongings including their passports. Police assistance requested.

Officers visited the scene where they saw and spoke with the complainants who reported that sometime after 12:00pm on 31/12/17 while travelling from Current to Governor’s Harbour along with her husband they stopped at a shed on the waterfront in James Cistern where they received directions from a young man as to how to get to the beach. Further that while at the beach they walked along the beach for about 45 minutes and when they returned to the vehicle they discovered that some unknown person/s broke the back glass to their rental black Nissan Skyline and stole a green duffle bag which contains her husband’s clothes, a Rasta colour handbag containing a pink wallet with credit card and other personal effects, a tan Army back pack containing $1200.00 in US $50’s and $100’s also their American passports and other personal effects also stolen was a grey and red OSARK cooler containing meats and other food items.

Police action requested.

Arrest ref. Stealing from a Vehicle, Damage, Stealing and Receiving: At about 3:00pm on Monday 1/01/18 Officers came in at the Governor’s Harbour Police Station with an adult male suspect of James Cistern under arrest and reported that he was arrested and cautioned at about 1:25pm while at his residence in reference to a complaint made on 31/12/17 and a complaint made on 30/10/17. He was processed and charged with both offences.

Stolen Property Recovered: At about 3:05pm on Monday 01/01/18 Officers came in at the Governors Harbour Police Station and reported that sometime at about 2:30pm on same date acting on information from the suspect they proceeded to the North Side Beach in James Cistern where the suspect pointed out to officers the smoldering remains of the alleged property stolen from the complainant on 31/12/17, also nearby was an assortment of grocery items that was reported stolen. The items was photographed and collected, they was transported to the Governors Harbour Police Station for further identification.

Arrest ref. Stealing from a Vehicle and Damage: At about 6:30pm on Monday 1st January 2018 Officers came in at the Governors Harbour Police Station with an adult male suspect under arrest and reported that he was arrested and cautioned at about 6:10pm while at his residence reference to a complaint made on 31/12/17 of Stealing from a vehicle. He was processed and charged with that offence.

Arrest Reference to Receiving: Sometime around 6:37pm on 3rd January 2017 the Officers came in at the Hatchet Bay Police Station with an adult female suspect under arrest. It was reported that she was arrested at about 6:20pm on 3/1/17 reference to receiving in relation to ongoing investigations into a complaint of stealing from a vehicle $710.00 was recovered. Investigations are ongoing.

Assault with a Dangerous Instrument with Intent to Endanger Life: At about 3:55pm on Saturday 30th December 2017 an adult male contacted the Governors Harbour Police Station via telephone and reported that a woman who was just stabbed is at his business establishment namely I 95 Sports Bar situated Dry Hill Road North Palmetto Point. Police assistance requested.

Officers visited the Palmetto Point Clinic where he saw the victim an adult female who had a single stab wound to the right abdomen and was being attended to by medical personnel. The victim was airlifted to New Providence for further medical intervention.

At about 5:47pm on Saturday 30th December 2017 while at the Palmetto Point Clinic, Palmetto Point Eleuthera Officers arrested and cautioned the suspect an adult male . The suspect was later transported to the Governors Harbour Police Station where he was processed and charged with Grievous Harm. He was later transported to New Providence for arraignment before the Magistrate Court.

Assault with a deadly weapon: On Saturday 30th December 2017 sometime around 11:42pm, an adult male came into Rock Sound Police Station and reported that sometime around 11:30pm same date while at a local bar, a female known to him scraped him across his left lower back with a knife and stated, “You think I is play.” He does not know why she attacked him. Police action was requested.

This matter is under active investigation.

Shop Breaking : At 9:44am on Wednesday December 27th 2018, an adult female contacted the Governor’s Harbour Police Station and reported that she is a cashier at FML South Palmetto Point and reported that while making a check of the establishment it was discovered that some unknown person broke and entered the establishment and stole the safe containing cash along with the internet modem. Same was secured around 9:00pm on 26/12/17.

Police assistance requested. Officers responded to the scene and verified the report and The scene was processed Arrest reference to Shop

Police Contact Numbers

HeadQuarters (GH) Governor’s Harbour OR O/C Governor’s Harbour Gov.Harb. Airport Station Deep Creek Station Tarpum Bay Station Rock Sound Station

332-3500 332-2111 332-2117 332-2723 332-2323 334-8207 334-4033 334-2244

Breaking and Stealing At 8:11pm December 27th 2017 Officers came in at the Governor’s Harbour Police Station with an adult male suspect of Palmetto Point under arrest, they reported arresting and cautioning him at 8:00pm while at his place of residence reference to shop breaking and stealing a matter reported on 27/12/2017 by Fml. The suspect was interviewed and released pending further investigation.

Stealing Report: On Thursday 28th December 2017 sometime around 8:00am, an adult male came in at Rock Sound Police Station and reported that sometime between 10:00am on Saturday 23rd December, 2017 and 4:00pm on Wednesday 27th December 2017, some person/s unknown stole a water pressure tank valued at 350.00 from the residence of his deceased brother. He further reported that sometime during the second week in December, 2017 some person/s unknown stole a Myers water pump valued at $420.00 from the residence. He suspects a male known to him also of Tarpum Bay. Police action was requested. Investigations are ongoing.

Threats of Death: On Sunday 24th December 2017, at 12:30pm an adult male contacted the R.S.P. Station via telephone and reported that a male known to him just made Threats to shoot and kill him, and that he is using obscene language to his annoyance. That he is also making threats to shoot his customers. Police action as requested. On Sunday 24th December 2017, sometime around 6:20pm, Officers came in at Rock Sound Police Station with the adult male suspect under arrest reference to a “threats of death” compliant. The suspect appeared to be under the influence of some drug or alcohol during this time.

He was later processed and charged with those offences .

Arrest Ref. Disorderly Behavior and Obscene Language & Resisting Arrest: At about 11:10pm on Friday 22nd December 2017 officers came in at the Governor’s Harbour Police Station with an adult male under arrest and reported that he was arrested at about 11:10pm while at the Fish Fry, Governor’s Harbour reference to disorderly behavior and obscene language. He was processed and charged with those offences.

Arrest ref. Obstruction of Justice: At about 11:50pm on Friday 22nd December 2017 Officers came in at the Governor’s Harbour Police Station with an adult male suspect under arrest and reported that he was arrested at about 11:50pm while at the Fish Fry, Governors Harbour reference to obstruction of justice.

Rock Sound Sgt. Office Rock Sound Airport Station Lower Bogue Station (Airport) Harbour Island Station O/C Harbour Island Spanish Wells Station Gregory Town Station Hatchet Bay Station

334-2212 334-2052 335-1208 333-2111 333-2327 333-4030 335-5322 335-0086

He was processed and charged with that offence .

Stealing by Reason of Employment: On Friday 22nd December 2017 at 9:50am the Human Resource Manager of of a with a branch in Eleuthera, came to the Rock Sound Police Station and reported that sometime between Wednesday 20th December and Friday 22nd December 2017 an employee stole $11,267.00 cash while being employed by the business in Rock Sound. Police action requested. This matter is under active investigation.

House Breaking Report: On Tuesday 19/12/17 at 5:29pm an adult female reported to the Rock Sound Police Station via telephone that she left her home along with her boyfriend and went to work. Sometime around 5:00pm she returned home and discovered that some person/s unknown broke and entered the residence from the Northern Kitchen door, the culprit searched and stole $400.00 in cash in assorted currency from out a grey book and a black sunglasses case from out a drawer of a dresser near their bedroom entrance, and also stole a buck orange handle knife value at $60.00, The culprit also searched and stole two wrapped Christmas gifts. Police action was requested. Officers visited the scene and verified the report.

Investigations continue.

Causing Harm: Sometime around 5:15pm on Saturday the 16th December 2017 an adult female came in at the Hatchet Bay Police station and reported to the police that sometime around 3:00pm on the same date while in Hatchet Bay she was attacked by a female who she knows who beat her about the head and body with a stick causing pain and swelling. She request immediate police action in the matter. Officers recorded a written statement from the complainant and issued her with a police hospital form with instructions to seek medical attention. Investigations into this matter are ongoing.

Arrest Ref. Possession of Dangerous Drugs: At about 1:10am on Sunday 17th December 2017 Officers came in at the Governors Harbour Police Station with an adult male under arrest and reported that he was arrested and cautioned at about 1:05am while at a business on Cupid’s Cay in reference to possession of dangerous drugs after he was found with a quantity of suspected marijuana on his person. The suspect was processed and charged with that offence.

Arrest Ref. Disorderly Behavior, Obscene Language and Resisting Arrest: At about 4:48am on Sunday 17th December 2017 Officers

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Online at www.EleutheraNews.com strument - Police warning requested: On Tuesday 16th January, 2018 at about 10:45am an adult male of Harbour Island came to the H.I.P.S and reported that he along with five (5) others were hired to do carpentry work on a project. They worked for nine (9) days up to the time of making the report had not been paid. On this date, while at the work site in the Narrows, they asked the man who hired them for their money and he became defensive, and came toward them swinging a cutlass putting him in fear for his safety. Police warning requested.

Assault Report - Police warning requested: On Tuesday 16th January 2016, at about 11:30am an adult male of Colebrook Street Harbour Island, came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that a man he knows, keeps parking golf carts in front of his yard.

He spoke with him about it and the man picked up a wood and came at him to hit him. This put him in fear for his safety.

Police warning requested. An Officer on same date saw and spoke with the accused who was warned of his behavior towards the complainant. All was left in order.

Found Property- Police information: On Tuesday 16th January, 2018, an adult female c/o a house situated Nesbitt Street, Harbour Island, came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime around 11:20am while at her above mention address, she found a silver gents Rolex watch hidden inside a weather proof outlet cover on her balcony, same was handed over to Inspector K Farquharson label and secured as found property.

Disturbance Report -Police warning requested: On Tuesday 16th January, 2018 at around 7:30 pm an adult female of Barrack Street, Harbour Island came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that over the past several weeks the persons renting rooms in the same building as her has been making noise to her annoyance and she suspects that it is intentional. Police warning requested.

Threat of harm report- Police warning requested: On Tuesday 16th January, 208 at around 8:20 ab adult male of Barrack Street, Harbour Island came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that at around 7:30 pm while at his residence, a Rasta male came to his room door along with six unknown males and threatened to shoot both he and his cousin placing him in fear for his life and the life of his cousin. He further reported that the Rasta male lives in the building with him but they have never had any kind of altercation. Police warning requested.

Domestic Dispute Report Police warning requested: On Monday HARBOUR ISLAND REPORTS 15th January, 2018 at about 12:25 pm an adult female of Colebrooke Street came Police Warning Requested On Tuesday 16th January 2018, an to the Harbour island police station and adult female of, Harbour Island. Came reported that on Sunday 14.01.18 while to the Harbour Island Police Station and at her residence her husband turned off reported that a family member showed her the electricity, water supply and cooking texts messages from an male trying to get gas to the home and told her to “get the her to come out to him. She further stated &^&^# out”. She requested that police that she saw the man on her property officers warn her husband of his obscene sometime between 8:30pm and 9:30pm language and behavior towards her. on January 15th 2018. He fled upon seeing Dog Attack Report Police action requested: On Monday 15th Januher, Police warning requested. ary, 2018 at about 2:10 pm an adult male Assault with a Deadly In-

came in at the Governor’s Harbour Police Station with an adult male suspect under arrest and reported that he was arrested at about 4:20am while a business on Cupid’ss Cay reference to disorderly behavior, obscene language and resisting arrest. He was later processed and charged with those offences.

Police action- Causing Harm: On Thursday 14th December 2017 sometime around 8:10pm an adult male came into the Rock Sound Police Station and reported that sometime around 6:20pm while at his residence walking a friend’s dog he was hit in the right side of his head with a blunt object causing him to fall to the ground after which he was kicked about the body by person’s unknown. Police action requested. The complainant was seen by Dr. Smith while at the Wemyss Bight Clinic who treated and discharged the complainant. Enquiries are continuing.

Damage/ Police Action: On Friday 15th December 2017, sometime around 1:45am, an adult male came into Rock Sound Police Station and reported that while in the area of Queens Highway, sitting in his grey 2010 Mazda Atenza , he was attacked by a group of males who were known to him by face. During this attack these males caused some damages to his left passenger door and left fender.

Police Action Requested. This matter is under active investigation.

Road Accident Report: On Friday 8th December, 2017 sometime around 7:35pm an anonymous caller contacted the Governor’s Harbour Police Station and reported that there is a traffic accident on Queen’s Highway Governor’s Harbour north of the Governor’s Harbour Airport involving two vehicles. Damage and injuries involved. Police assistance requested.

Officers responded to the scene of this two car vehicular accident situated Queens Highway north of the Governors Harbour Airport. They observed a white Buick Rendezvous driven by an adult male visitor facing a northern direction with extensive damages to the front right side. They also observed a blue Nissan March driven by an adult male Bay facing a northern direction with extensive damages to the front right side. Under caution the driver of the Nissan March stated that while travelling south on Queen’s Highway he suffered a tire blow out causing him to veer uncontrollably into an oncoming vehicle resulting in the accident. Notice of intended prosecution was served on both drivers, measurements were recorded in the presence of both drivers and police hospital forms were issued. Investigations are ongoing in this matter

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

of Nesbitt Street, HBI came to the Harbour Island police Station and reported that while walking through a yard in the Trianna Shores Community he was bitten about the body by three dogs, two of which were pit bulls causing pain and injuries. Police action requested. An officer issued the complainant with a police hospital form to seek medical attention.

Stealing Arrest (Minor) On Monday 15th January, 2018 at about 5:20 pm officers came in at the Harbour Island Police Station with an adult male of Duke Street. The suspect was reportedly arrested and cautioned by an officer at 5:18 pm while in the area of St. John’s Anglican Church, Dunmore Street in reference to Stealing a piece of 2 by 4 plywood, the property of the Bahamas Government valued at about $90.00.

Stealing Report On Saturday 13/1/18 at about 9:05am an adult male of Johnson Road Harbour Island came in at Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime between Friday 12/1/18 4:00pm and Saturday 13/1/18 8:45am some unknown person/s stole his electrical Echo Gas Blower s/n # 743184007839 valued at $149 and his 1700 PSI Ryobi power washer s/n #046396005762 valued at $149 also his employer Judy Cross well Deka Battery value unknown from her Yamaha Golf Cart year and L/P # unknown whilst they were positioned in the Garage of “Casa Del Ma” House. Police action requested.

Police Assistance Report: On Saturday 13/1/18 at about 12:45pm an adult female of Alice Street Harbour Island came in at Harbour Island Police Station and reported that she gave her baby’s father permission to keep their eleven month baby from awhile due to him now residing out of Harbour Island however he is now refusing to return the baby back to her in Harbour Island and he is making threatening remarks when she calls him enquiring on when he is going to return the baby Police assistance requested in speaking to him to return her child.

An officer reported that he contacted the male Parent via cell and he stated that he was out fishing and upon his return to land he will return the child to the complainant he was also advised reference to his behavior.

Found Property Report: On Saturday 13/1/18 an adult male of Duke Street Harbour Island came in at Harbour Island Police Station and reported that while on Duke Street Harbour Island in the area of Church of God of Prophecy he found a Silver Apple I-Phone in a black rubber phone casing same was secured and taken to the Station for safe keeping and further enquiries same reported as Police information.

Stealing Report: On Saturday 13th January 2018 at 5:50pm an adult male of Trianna Shores Harbour Island came into H.I.P.S and reported that on Friday 12th January 2018 sometime between 7pm and 8pm, some unknown person(s) came by his residence and stole his battery out of his golf cart l/p# unknown, which was parked outside of his front gate. He is requesting police action.

Found Report: On Friday 12th

33

January, 2018 an adult male of Ripley Street, HBI came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that one of his grandsons found a Charles Schwab Debit Visa Card while in the South Street area.

Same reported as police information.

House Breaking Report: Sometime around 11.50pm on Friday 12/1/18an adult male of Lemon Tree House located at Clarence Street Harbour Island. Came to Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime between 11.15pm and 11.35pm on Friday 12/1/18.while exiting his bath room and entering his bed room where his wife was in bed, he heard his wife saying to a short black male “what are you doing in here, get out” he then observed that black male run from the room.

He then gave chase catching the man a short distance away in his yard. A struggle unused during which time he received injuries to his right hand and the suspect received injuries to the face before running from the premises, leaving a blue cotton jacket behind.

Police recorded a written statement from the complainant and issued him a police hospital form for medical attention.

The jacket was labeled as exhibit. Police action was requested. Sometime around 2.00am on Saturday 13/1/17 officers came to Harbour Island Police Station with a male of no fixed place of abode and reported that he was arrested and cautioned

by Insp K.Farquharson around 1.50am on Saturday 13/1/18 while in the area of BPL power plant located at Bay Street Harbour island reference to burglary and causing harm. The suspect suffered injury to his right forehead and upper right cheek otherwise he appeared to be in good health.

The matter is under investigation Burglary Report : On Thursday 11th January, 2018 at around 9:15 am an adult female of the USA came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime between 1:00 am and 7:30 am some unknown person/s broke into his rental home namely “The Convent” situated on Dunmore Street, HBI and stole his black Samsung Galaxy S7 valued at $700.00. Police action requested. An officer recorded a written statement from the complainant where he stated that his phone took a photo of the culprit trying to gain access to the phone and also sent a location tracker indicating the last place the phone was detected. As a result he went to the location where he identified an unknown male by a tam on his head being the same one in the photo and demanded that his phone be returned. This male then took him around the street and handed over his cellular phone before leaving on foot. Police came in at S3 with a male suspect of James Cistern and of Dunmore Street, HBI. The suspect was reportedly arrested and cautioned by an officer while in the Colebrooke Street area in reference to Burglary and Stealing. While conducting a search of his person a quantity of suspected marijuana was found.

Receiving Arrest: On Thursday 11th January, 2018 at around 1:00 pm an adult female of Dunmore Street came to the Harbour Island Police Station where she was arrested and cautioned by D/Cpl.

Continued On Page 34

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Crime News

Jan/Feb 2018

Police Reports Continued from pg. 33

3214 Munroe in reference to Receiving. An officer searched the suspect and placed her in a holding cell.

House Breaking Report: On Thursday 11th January, 2018 at about 2:00 pm an adult male of the USA contacted the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime between 4:00 pm and 9:00 pm on Wednesday 10.01.18 some unknown person entered his rental home situated in the South Barr Community and stole five (5) pieces of his clothing valued at about $306.00. Police action requested.

Police Warning requested: On Thursday 11th January 2018 at 8:16pm an adult female of The Bluff Eleuthera came to the H.I.P.S and reported that at about 1:45pm on Thursday 11th January 2018 she parked her silver vehicle on Three Island Dock and she received a cell phone call from her exboyfriend who made threats to damage her vehicle. She later received information that three of her tires were flattened and she suspects her ex-boyfriend. She requested police warning in this matter.

Police recorded a written statement from the complainant .

Causing Harm Report: On Thursday 11th January 2018 at about 11:40pm an adult male of Munnings Street Harbour Island came to the H.I.P.S and reported that on Thursday 11th January 2018 at about 11:30pm while standing in the front of a Nightclub, a male known to him jumped out of a small white bus and attempted to take his cigarettes out of his hands. He stated because he did not allow him to take it, the man then punched him in his mouth bursting his bottom lip open. He then ran back to the bus and they left. He is requesting police action in this matter. Police recorded a written statement from the complainant Melvin Mather and issued him with a hospital form. See same attached to file.

Disturbance Report: On Wednesday 10th January, 2018 at around 2:30 pm an adult female of Coconut Grove Avenue contacted the Harbour Island Police Station via phone and reported that a family member was at her residence creating a disturbance. Police assistance requested. An Officer visited the scene where she saw and spoke to a teen of New Providence. He was informed of the complaint made against him and stated that the adult female was upset because he did not return to the capital on 09.01.18 as instructed by his mother however he is 18 years old and decided to leave on 11.01.18. He further stated that he gathered his belongings and will sleep at another family member’s home for the night. The Officer sternly warned him of his behavior and against disturbing the peace. The area was left quiet and in order. No further action requested.

Burglary Arrest: On Wednesday 10th January, 2018 at around 3:25 pm the crew of Alpha Eskimo #1 came

into the Harbour Island Police Station with a male of Dunmore Street. The suspect was reportedly arrested and cautioned at 3:20 pm while on the government Dock, Bay Street in reference to Burglary.

Stealing Report: On Thursday 11th January 2018 at 1:35a.m an adult female of Canada currently staying in Harbour Island, came into H.I.P.S and reported that sometime between 12:30a.m and 1:30a.m while at Daddy D’s, some unknown person(s) went into her brown Gucci purse and removed her brown Gucci wallet valued at $1,500.00 which was left on the bench outside by the balcony. Inside contained her Driver’s License, credit, debit and health cards, also assorted currency up to $1,050.00.

Police assistance requested.

Threats of Harm Report: An adult female of Queens Highway Lower Bogue Eleuthera came in at the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that on Sunday 7/1/18 at about 8:50Am while in the area of her work place in Harbour Island her baby’s father threatened her by saying “You think I joking I am going to punch you in your head” while walking en route to work - putting her in fear for her safety. Police action requested.

The crew of Eskimo 1-6 left the Harbour Island Police Station sometime around 11:45Am on enquires in reference to the accused male in regards to the matter. An officer reported cautioning and arresting him sometime around 11:55Am while on the Harbour Island Community Dock.

He was later transported to the Harbour Island Police Station for safe keeping and further investigations.

Suspect Interviewed: An officer interviewed the suspect in regards to the allegation made against him where he admitted that he did confront his baby’s mother about him seeing his 5 month old daughter and later made a remark asking her “if she want war?”He denied stating that he did not threaten to punch her. However there were no independent witnesses to verify that the suspect did threaten his ex-girlfriend.

The suspect was released at 2:15pm pending further investigation. He left in good health without any complaints.

Suspect Charged- Reference Causing Harm: An officer interviewed and cautioned an adult male of Harbour Island in reference to the offence of Causing Harm where he admitted to the offence stating that he did punch a male and it was over him touching his 10 year old daughter inappropriately. He was later charged in reference to Causing Harm contrary to section 135 (1) of the penal code and later processed and released on Bail in the sum of $2000.00 with one surety to appear before court on the 29th of January 2018.

Suspect Charged- Reference Causing Harm: Police arrested, interviewed and cautioned an adult male of Barracks Hill, Harbour Island in reference to the offence of Causing Harm where he admitted to the offence stating that he did punch a male in his mouth because he was going around running talking about him. He was later Charged in reference to Causing Harm contrary to section 135 (1) of the penal code and later processed and

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released on Bail in the sum of $2000.00 with one surety to appear before court on the 29th of January 2018.

Police Assistance/ Warning Report: On Saturday 6th January 2018 at 8:05am an adult male of Colebrooke Street came into the H.I.P.S and reported that at about 7:20am while at his residence, his son began using obscene language towards to his annoyance.

He requested that his son be warned.

At about 8:30am an officer visited the residence and spoke to the son (an adult) who stated he said nothing to his father.

He was warned to be of good behavior towards his father.

Causing Harm: On Saturday 6th January 2018, sometime around 4:55pm, an adult male of Pitt Street, Harbour Island came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that while walking through the Alley he was approached by a young man he knows who punched him in the mouth and about the body causing injuries and pain. Police action requested.

Indecent Assault: On Saturday 6th January 2018, at about 6:00pm, an adult female of Harbour Island, come to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported for her 10 year old daughter, that while in the area of Jackie Shop a young man hit her on her hip, she stated that she doesn’t know who the young man is.

Police action requested.

Annoying Telephone Call: On Friday 5th January 2018, at about 9:40am, an adult male of Colebrooke Street, Harbour Island reported to police that the mother of his young child is sending annoying messages to his cellular phone because he told her he is not in the position to keep the child when she has to work. Police warning requested.

Police saw and spoke with the accused female at her place of work. She played a voice note that she received from the complainant where he stated that he was unable to collect their daughter because he is living with someone and it is not a good environment. She was advised to try and work with the complainant in the best interest of the child.

No further action requested.

Threats of Harm/ Warning report: On Friday 5th January 2018, at about 3:59pm, an adult male of Lower Bogue Eleuthera, came in at the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that on Wednesday 3rd January 2018 while in the area of Island Luck, Lower Bogue a man known to him threatened to cut his throat placing him in fear for his safety. Police warning requested.

Police Warning Requested: A female of Pitt Street Harbour Island came to H.I.P.S and reported that while at her place of work, a male customer that she knows came to that establishment and made insulting and abusive remarks towards her after a mistake with his order. Police warning requested. An officer left H.I.P.S with complainant en route to scene and reported upon arrival speaking with suspect an adult male of Colebrooke Street, who reported that the complainant gave him smart remarks after he complained about his order and he did make a rude remark towards her. He was warned to be of good behavior towards

the complainant, area was left quiet.

Domestic Dispute - Police Assistance: An adult female of Colebrooke Street Harbour Island contacted the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that she has a male living in her home where they had a physical altercation.

She requested Police assistance in having him removed from the residence. Police visited the complainant residence and was informed of the physical altercation where she was bitten and she popped his neck chain. However he had left prior to the Police arrival. She requested no further action at the time stating that he does not have a key for the residence and she is not allowing him back on her property.

Found Property Report:- An adult female of Ripley St Harbour Island came in at the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that persons who attended the public beach in the area of Sip Sip restaurant found a debit card sometime around 4:40Pm in the name of a an American Visitor and turned it in at the restaurant. Same is recorded for Police Information. The debit card was handed over to police and secured.

Lost Property Report - Police assistance requested: An adult female of Clarence Street, Harbour Island came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime after 1:00am on Monday January 1st 2018 while at a Night Club she left her wallet cell phone and keys with a lady she knows. When she left the club she realized that she hadn’t collected her belongings. However when she met up with the lady she only had her wallet and cell phone in her care but her keys could not be found. Police Assistance requested.

Dangerous and Reckless Driving- Police information: An adult male of Barrack Street Harbour Island contacted the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that while in the area of Bay Street he observed a a young man known to him driving a green Polaris at the a high rate of speed almost colliding with other motorist and pedestrians.

Police assistance requested.

Damage Report: An adult male reported that he rented a 2006 Golf cart to a tourist and he discovered that the golf cart was stolen and left on Bay Street.

He further stated that the Golf Cart was damaged where the rear foot rest was dented, the windshield was missing and the front floor was dented. Police assistance requested.

Robbery-Police information: On Monday 1/1/18 at about 4:10pm young adult male from the USA came in at Harbour Island Police Station and reported that on the same date sometime between 5:00am and 5:25am while in the area of the a popular Night Club four unknown males forced him inside of a small white van and drove him to R.B.C located Dunmore Street Harbour Island. They then made him withdraw $100 off his account for them and on completion they dropped him on the side of the road same reported for Police information.

Stealing Report: On Sunday 31st December 2017 at about 10p.m complainant an adult female of New York currently in Harbour Island Eleuthera came into H.I.P.S and reported that

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Online at www.EleutheraNews.com sometime between 10a.m and 8p.m some unknown person (s) stole her red luggage bag valued $300.00 containing her wallet, U.S passport, shoes, clothes and other valuable items from her bedroom in her rental home. Police assistance requested.

Burglary Report: On Monday 1st January, 2018 an adult female of New York currently in Harbour Island contacted the Harbour Island Police Station via phone and reported that some unknown person/s broke into her rental home via a sliding door and stole two (2) Apple Mac Pro laptops valued at about $2,000.00 each, Cannon Camera valued at $2,000.00, a black Louis Vuitton wallet which contained about $9,500.00 and an assortment of cards. Culprits also stole her black purse valued at $100.00. Police action requested. Police made checks of the home where the sliding door was pointed out. There were no signs of forced entry. Investigations are ongoing.

Stealing / Damage Report: On Monday 1st January, 2018 sometime around 3:00pm an adult female contacted the Harbour Island Police Station via phone and reported receiving information that two of her company golf carts were stolen and driven into the sea by tourists. Police action requested. Officers arrested and cautioned an adult female of Rome, Italy in reference to Stealing.

Drug Arrest Report: On Monday 1st January, 2018 at around 4:05am, police came into Harbour Island Police Station with an adult female of New York. They reportedly arrested and cautioned the suspect at 3:50 am while at a popular Night Club in reference to possession of dangerous drugs.

She was taken to the H.I.P.S. The suspect was processed and released on cash bail in the sum of $1,500.00 to appear in Magistrate Court on 29.01.2018 at 10:00 am.

Police assistance report: An adult male of Ripley Street Harbour Island came to the H.I.P.S and reported that three months ago a close friend gave him a trailer containing construction supplies however up to today’s date he hasn’t collected the supplies inside the trailer and he now wishes to change the lock on the trailer. Police assistance requested. Police reported visiting the location where the complainant pointed out the mentioned trailer. It was opened in his presence and he pointed out that all the items were intact. The lock was changed and all were left secured. No further assistance requested.

Burglary report-Police Information report: An adult female of California presently staying in Harbour Island, came to the H.I.P.S and reported that on the 29th December 2017 at 9pm some unknown male clad in a blue stripe white shirt entered her residence through the south western balcony door. For police information only.

Burglary Arrest Report: On Saturday 30/12/17 at about 9:15pm an adult male of Colebrooke Street Harbour Island came in at Harbour Island Police Station.

Police arrested and cautioned the suspect in reference to Burglary.

Found Property Report - Police assistance requested: Sometime around 8.10am on Friday 29th December, 2017 an adult female of Johnson Road Estates Harbour Island came to the Harbour Island Police Station and handed over to the station’s diarist (1) black ZTE cell phone S/N

320275684922) and reported that sometime around 8.00am on Friday 29/12/17, while walking along a foot path off Ripley Street Harbour Island which leads to the Valentines area of the beach, she found it laying on the sand. The matter was reported to police for information and safe keeping.

Assault report - Police warning requested: Sometime around 2.15pm on Friday 29th December, 2017. A young adult male of Colebrook Street Harbour Island came to Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime around 1.00pm on Friday 29/12/17 while in the area of a Bar located at Colebrook Street Harbour Island, a man he knows of Harbour Island made threatening remarks towards him and his younger brother by shouting that someone is going to soon kill them “putting him in fear, he then approached the man and asked why he said such a thing which is when the man slapped him to the right side of the face causing pain. Police warning requested.

Police recorded witness statements from the complainants. The matter is under investigation.

Police assistance requested: Civil action advised - On Friday 29/12/17 at about 5:50pm an adult male of South Bar Harbour Island came in at Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime in September exact date and time unknown he battened up the windows at a residence located New Dunmore Subdivision due to a storm passing through Harbour Island at the time, at an agreed fee of $80 however the owner refuses to pay him the money agreed to on that date after he had completed the work. Police assistance requested. He was advised civil action.

Lost Property Report: On Thursday 28th December, 2017 at about 11:00Am an adult female of Chicago came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that on Monday December 25th 2017 she went to a Nightclub situated Dunmore Street. She further stated that she had an I-phone 7S in a pink case with her. When she awoke on Tuesday December 26th 2017 she realized that the phone was not with her.

Checks were made of the Night club along with the route she took home but it was not found. The phone is valued at $800.00.She added that in the case were also her school identification card and her Illinois State identification card. The matter was reported for Police Information only Lost Property Report: On Wednesday 27th December, 2017 at about 9:30am an adult male of Washington DC to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that sometime between 7:30 pm on Tuesday 26.12.17 and 8:00 am on Wednesday 27.12.17 he lost his silver with black face Rolex Sea Dweller watch valued at about $10,000.00. He further reported that he had a party at his home, went to the Junkanoo parade on bay Street and also to Gusty’s bar on Coconut Grove Avenue. Same reported as police information at the time.

Domestic Dispute: An adult male of Harbour Island beckoned to the crew of Eskimo 1-6 sometime around 8:10pm and reported that on that date Wednesday 27th of December 2017 sometime around 7:30Pm he received a phone call via cell phone where the person stated that his minor child was on the public park with other minors interacting inappropriately. As

The Eleutheran | 01/02 2018

a result he went down at the community park sometime around 8:00pm where he met the juveniles. Police assistance requested. Police along with the complainant went en route to the community park in reference to locating the young males with negative results. They left the community park en route to the residence of the mother the child. She was later advised to pay more attention to her child and to not have her under the supervision of another minor. In addition she was also admonished in reference to being a more responsible parent and also informed that the matter may be referred to The Department of Social Services.

Police Assistance Requested: On Tuesday 26th December 2017 at about 3:20pm an adult male of MA , USA, came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that at about 3:00pm while travelling along a private dirt road in the area of Ocean View club, three dogs chased behind his golf cart and one of the dogs bit his wife name on her right leg. Police assistance requested. Police issued the lady with a RBPF hospital form.

Police Assistance Requested: On Monday 25th December 2017 at around 10:05 am and adult female came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that her boyfriend of Barrack Street is in the area of “Pirate’s Perch” Old Norse Road trying to hang himself. She stated that he took his jean pant off and hung it off a balance beam attempting to hang himself. Police assistance requested.

An officer arrived on the scene where she met the man in a distraught state crying, screaming and jumping around saying that the stresses of life was too much for him. The officer was able to bring some calm to the man however his mother showed up and he became irate and hostile again so she was asked to leave. The man was taken to the clinic, however, while at the clinic awaiting medical personnel, he ran off heading south along Dunmore Street. Police affirmed that they would locate him and get him the necessary help.

Missing Property Report - Police Information: A young adult male of East St Lower Bogue Eleuthera came in at the Harbour Island Police Station along with his brother of same

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address and reported that sometime around 3:06pm he arrived at the Harbour Island dock with his brother who is a Water Taxi Captain, after travelling from Three Island Dock and later discovered that their backpacks were missing. He suspects that someone may have mistakenly taken their bags before departing the ferry boat. Same is recorded for Police Information at this time.

Found Property Report Police Information: Sometime around 6.30pm on Sunday 24th December, 2017 the Manager at Dunmore Beach Hotel located at Court Lane Harbour Island. Contacted police via phone and reported a male guest at his hotel property handed over to him two black back packs. The guest reported that he along with his wife and two children came to Harbour Island on a water taxi on Saturday 23/12/17 and mistakenly picked up the back packs thinking they were theirs. Sometime around 7.10pm police contacted the back pack owners who had earlier reported them missing and informed him of this matter. He came to Harbour Island Police Station where he identified the back packs as that of his and his brother. He then checked the contents and stated that everything was accounted for. They were then handed over to him and he left.

Trespassing/ Unlawful Entry- Police warning requested: On Friday 23rd December 2017, an adult male of Nesbitt Street came to the Harbour Island Police Station and reported that at around 12:00 am a female known to him of Princess Street walked into his home cursing and creating a disturbance asking for his girlfriend. He further stated that the house door was closed but unlocked. He requested that she be sternly warned of her behavior.

Police went to the Princess Street area where she saw and spoke to the accused adult female. She was informed of the complaint made against her. She acknowledged her wrong doings and apologized. She also stated that she went there because the complainant’s girl friend is constantly harassing her daughter and using obscenities towards her. The officer sternly warned the accused and she agreed to adhere to same.

Island “Buzz” www. EleutheraNews . com Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival 2018 – The Winners, Sights and More… Online Gallery Of Each Group 36

Jan/Feb 2018

www.eleutheranews.com/?p=15516

Crowds of Eleutherans as well as visitors to the island thronged the main thoroughfare in Governor’s Harbour on Saturday evening, January 6th, 2018, during the 3rd Annual Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival Parade Competition, which featured five fantastic Junkanoo groups from across The Eleutheras. The groups featured included, The Savannah Sound Lucayans, Harbour Island’s Barracks Hill Top Warriors, Rock Sound’s New Vision, Tarpum Bay’s Unity Builders, and The Harbour Boys.

After an on time start at about 8pm, the first two groups presented strong first laps, beginning with Tarpum Bay, followed by Savannah Sound. The colourful entertainment stalled for a time, while the third group from Harbour Island waited for some of their costumes, reportedly left behind, to catch up. However, the crowds were not disappointed as Briland’s Warriors began their first lap, bursting onto the well-lit Junkanoo venue around 10pm, with vibrant colours, enthralling music and beautifully choreographed dancers. The Harbour Boys and Rock Sound’s New Vision followed shortly after, also putting on a fabulous display of creativity and culture. The spectacle continued on into the wee hours, with second laps closing out around 2am.

Overall Winners of the Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival Parade Competition 2018, as well as winners in various categories were announced on Sunday evening, January 7th. The Savannah Sound Lucayans, who were more of a fun group, bringing exciting music and energy and a show of real community spirit to their performance, came in fifth with a total of 2,420 points. The remaining four large groups, all brought a tremendous level of creativity and high energy performance to Saturday night’s spectacle. Tarpum Bay’s Unity Builders, was announced in fourth position with 4,055 points, and The Harbour Boys came in third with 5,019 points.

The final two large groups put up a fierce competition with just 85 points separating them in the final tally.

Rock Sound’s New Vision came in a very close second with 6,807 points, and for the second year in a row, Harbour Island’s Warriors took the Overall Champions Title with 6,882 points.

Cash prizes and trophies were awarded to each competing group, beginning with $500 for fifth place, up to $2,500 to the Overall Winners. Trophies were also awarded for first through third positions in the categories of best banner, music, choreography, lead piece, off the shoulder piece, and performance. Briland’s Warriors walked away with best titles in performance and choreography. Rock Sound’s New Vision ran away with the best music title, while The Harbour Boys just edged the larger groups in banner, lead piece and the off the shoulder categories.

Demetrius Johnson, Chairman of the host Governor’s Harbour Cultural and Community Organization (GHCCO), commented following the weekend of Junkanoo Festival activities, saying, “We had some challenges coming on board, but it all came together.

Every year we try to improve the level and do some things a little different. We added an element where we had some kids activities, we expanded the vendor offerings, we changed up the site, and included the full bar for additional funding. We had great success all around, and looking at the crowd that came out, I think it may have been the biggest we’ve seen in the last three years. We hope and expect it to get even bigger and better.” He added that all five participating groups are under a three-year contract including the GHCCO committee, with the main event sponsor, BTC, to participate in the Eleuthera Junkanoo Festival - with two years, 2019 and 2020 to go. (See scores below)

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Overall Winners: 1st - Warriors - 6,882 points 2nd - New Vision - 6,807 points 3rd - Harbour Boys - 5,019 points 4th - Unity Builders - 4,055 points 5th - Lucayans - 2,420 points Best Banner: 1st - Harbour Boys - 865 points 2nd - Warriors - 840 points 3rd - New Vision - 823 points Best Music: 1st - New Vision - 945 points 2nd - Warriors - 914 points 3rd - Harbour Boys - 854 points Best Choreography: 1st - Warriors - 867 points 2nd - New Vision - 831 points 3rd - Harbour Boys - 728 points

Best Performance: 1st - Warriors - 909 points 2nd - New Vision - 904 points 3rd - Harbour Boys - 837 points Best Lead Piece: 1st - Harbour Boys - 873 points 2nd - Warriors - 871 points 3rd - New Vision - 865 points Best Off the Shoulder: 1st - Harbour Boys - 862 points 2nd - Warriors - 859 points 3rd - Warriors - 777 points

Pictured: Representatives of the participating Junkanoo Groups in the 2018 Junkanoo Festival were presented with cash prizes and trophies for overall performances and category wins on Sunday evening, January 7th, 2018

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Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

| 01/02 2018

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Island “Buzz”

Jan/Feb 2018

www. EleutheraNews . com

Cont’d from 36-37 Five Junkanoo Groups from across Eleuthera (including Harbour Island) featured a colorful display of crafted costumes, dance, music and banners, showcasing a cultural tradition that continues to endure.

Online Gallery Of Each Group www.eleutheranews.com/?p=15516

http://eleutheranews.com/?p=15516

Island “Buzz”

Online at www.EleutheraNews.com

| 01/02 2018

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Turnquest launches ‘2020 Census of Population and Housing’

By Llonella Gilbert (BIS)

NASSAU, Bahamas – In The Bahamas a census is conducted every 10 years.

Acting Prime Minister, the Hon. Peter Turnquest remarked at the official launch of the ‘2020 Census of Population and Housing’ at the Department of Statistics, Monday, January 22, 2018 that the data collected during the upcoming census -- which will start May 4, 2020 -- will be used for statistical purposes only, and will be held in the strictest confidence.

He explained, the Statistical Act of 1973 provided the necessary legal authority for the Department of Statistics to be the agency mandated by the Government of The Bahamas to conduct census and surveys throughout the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

He added it is this Act, which also stipulates and gives the assurance to the public that all data collected will be used for statistical purposes only and will be held in the strictest confidence.

“In essence, the information collected will not be used to pry into your personal affairs on behalf of any agency. It will not be used against you in any manner and will not be disclosed along with information that can identify you to any individual or any entity or agency.”

The Acting PM also noted that it is vital that the general public play its role and that the Department of Statistics relies on their as-

sistance and cooperation if the Department is to succeed in its goals of collecting timely, accurate and complete data.

“This has to be attempted in an [existing] environment of distrust where we are suspicious of any and everybody that comes knocking on our doors and asking for answers to a whole lot of personal questions, which many are not convinced are needed or relevant to them.”

He said this was evident in the recent Labour Force Survey.

“With the advances in technology moving forward, we will be taking steps to minimise the necessity for 100 per cent of these interviews to be completed in person and certainly on paper, but that is a little bit to come.”

The Acting PM explained that around the world, it is customary to conduct a census every five or 10 years. The Bahamas conducts a census every 10 years, with the most recent census in 2010.

The Population and Housing Census is the process of collecting, compiling, analysing and publishing demographic, socio-economic and environmental data pertaining to all persons in a country as well as compiling the national housing stock at a specific time.

He said since the last census was conducted many changes have taken place including changes in population growth, population age structure, employment and the average birth and death rates.

“Changes in any of these areas have implications for the demand for social services such as healthcare, education, as well as the development and upkeep of infrastructure related to utilities, such as water, electricity and roads,” Acting PM Turnquest said.

During the launch, Talamique Jolly Cadot was announced winner of an inter-departmental competition to choose a slogan for the 2020 Census of Population and Housing.