VOLUME 10 - No. 28
AUGUST 2ND – AUGUST 9TH, 2014
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PNP BUILDING FOR GOV’T OFFICES T
by Vivian Tyson
he controversial Progressive National Party (PNP) Headquarters, which was seized by the Attorney General Chambers on behalf of the Crown, has been turned over to the Ministry of Government Support Services to be used as government office spaces, Attorney General Hon. Rhondalee Brathwaite-Knowles told The SUN. When The SUN reached out to BrathwaiteKnowles, she said that the PNP never came to the table and that the period for negotiations between the two parties had elapsed. She said that during the period, the Ministry of Government Support Services had taken an interest in acquiring the property, since it has been strapped for office spaces on Providenciales. She said that after the talk period with the PNP slipped away, her office turned the building to the Ministry of Government Support Services for it to utilize the building as seen fit. While government is yet to publicly decide what it would do with the building, speculation by members of the public is that could be used as the Planning Department Former Attorney General Huw Shepheard took the PNP, which is the ruling party, to court in a bid to repossess the Airport Road, Providenciales building, claiming that the former PNP Administration, run by former premier Michael Misick, acquired the land illegally. Shepheard then used the Supreme Court to pry the land from the PNP’s grasp and turned it over to the Crown. The Court, in its ruling also created an avenue for the PNP to reclaim its headquarters if it could reach a settlement deal with the Attorney General Chambers. The party was given a time-frame within which to reach an agreement with the Attorney General Chambers. In a previous conversation, new attorney general Brathwaite-Knowles told this newspaper that talks were taking place between the Attorney General Chambers and the PNP, but it was for that political entity to engage her office to finalize the agreement. Brathwaite-Knowles said then that her office was waiting on the PNP to take its seat at the table. When The SUN contacted party general secretary Trevor Cook at the time, he referred us to the party’s attorney, Carlos Simons. However, when we contacted Simons, he referred us back to the PNP, saying that he was awaiting a decision from the party to move further.
DON’T BE BOXED IN BY THE STATUS QUO. A number of young persons turned out at the Fortis TCI conference room on Tuesday (July 29, 2014) to hear guest speaker at this year’s Annual Plenary Session, economist and poet Adrian Augier, giving a motivational speech about their role in shaping the future of the Turks and Caicos Islands and what are some of thing things they need to do to get there. The St. Lucian scholar, who worked at the World Bank and in his country’s finance ministry, challenged the youngsters not to fit in a box set by society, but to allow their minds to explore. In phone Dr. Augier speaks to the students, who listen attentively.
Public outcry over death of North Caicos man – Page 9 Law requires illegal workers to pay NHIP – Page 12
Government reaches settlement with former AG – Page 7
Meet the ten Miss Teen Turks & Caicos contestants – Pages 24&25
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TURKS & CAICOS SUN
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
LOCAL NEWS
Leadership crisis in the Caribbean
however, that individuals acting There leadership a crisis as independent states are not in the Caribbean which is doing well due to the lack of resulting in the region currently resources to tackle the issues experiencing economic and social separately. decline, according to influential While agreeing that the much Caribbean economist and poet touted Caribbean Single Market Dr. Adrian Augier. and Economy (CSME) could Augier, a St. Lucia native, be one of the main drivers for who was in the Turks and Caicos greater Caribbean integration, for the Annual Fortis Plenary Augier said that there is no Session, held at Beaches Turks single element that would create and Caicos Resort and Spa on such magic. Wednesday (July 30, 2014), made “For me, the thing that is the revelation to The SUN in an missing is the mindset, which exclusive interview. then translates into practical, “There is a crisis of leadership real means of binding the in the Caribbean, which needs Caribbean together. Caribbean to be addressed. Caricom can Caribbean economist and poet people, up to a popular, have no only be as strong as the men Dr. Adrian Augier. problem with the concept of one and women who lead it. And region. However, the political unfortunately the current crop of leaders in the Caribbean has not been as strong administrations are not sufficiently eager to and single-minded as they should have about bring that about in a meaningful way,” he said. Augier believes that in order for greater the integration process. And so, we are losing a Caribbean integration to take place, regional lot of momentum,” he said. He added: “We get together and speak leader s must prepare to sacrifice some level of about grand ideals, but we all go back home autonomy. “The Single Market and Economy is a and see about our small insular agendas, and that continues to be the major setback, I think, fine concept, it’s long overdue, but it requires of Caricom and the OECS (Organisation of sacrifices because. Each country needs to give Easter Caribbean States) as well. The Eastern up a certain amount of its autonomy in order to Caribbean countries at least have some become part of a larger goal, and unfortunately commonality in the sense of common currency national agendas being what they are - defined for example, which binds them together, entirely by local politics – has not realistically brought that concept into being. whether we like it or not.” So, do we have governments who are willing He said that despite the enormous similarities between almost all the Caribbean to relinquish some of their autonomy, some of countries in culture and development, some their power to some central administration? within the region still don’t see regionalism as And the answer is no, not really,” he argued. Describing Caricom as a slave to the myopia a vehicle to upward mobility “We really are one region that respect. A lot of the politicians who control it, Dr. Augier of it has to do with the same battles against pointed out that Caribbean leaders is focused poverty, against ignorance, against insularity on political survival, they are really opening the some of the time – it is really one story. But I door economic suicide. “Our ability to govern ourselves is now at am a little bit regretful that we don’t see that especially in these days when regionalism and question. Even here in the Turks and Caicos, the concept of a single Caribbean future is less you have the indignity of someone else come in popular than it used to be. We are reminded and say ‘stop, you have got to go’, and creating that it is not the best thing to be divided up a replacement system. This should not be as nations, and we ought to be looking for our happening to us at this stage of our development common destiny in a much more meaningful – and I say ‘to us’ as the Caribbean. We really ought to be further ahead as a civilization. And way,” Dr. Aguier urged. He noted that Caricom, as a concept, the thought that we are not able to govern continues to be valid, noting that the region ourselves on a daily basis is quite apparent,” is much stronger together apart. He stressed Augier said.
TCI, Bahamas to share information, intelligence
The Turks and Caicos Islands and its closest neighbours the Bahamas have agreed to enter into a reciprocal security arrangement, which will see both countries sharing among other things, intelligence and information. His Excellency Governor Peter Beckingham and Minister for Border Control and Labour Hon. Don-Hue Gardiner made the announcement on Wednesday (July 30, 2014) in a joint news conference at the Premier’s Office in Providenciales. The agreement will take the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and intends to cover a wide area of security issues, also to include the tackling of drug-trafficking, illegal migration, illegal fishing, training for local security authorities and personnel exchanges. The intended security cooperation between the two countries was hatched during a trip by the Beckingham and Gardiner to that country this past week. Both parties see the talks becoming necessary after in the wake of their borders being constantly breached by especially illegal migrants and illegal fishing their waters by foreign fishermen. “Among the specific areas where the two governments could cooperate more were information and intelligence sharing, placement and defense forces on each other’s vessels and the operation of vessels in each other’s countries, including interdicting illegal migration, drugs and illegal fishing, and the training of staff in interdiction,” the governor said. Governor Beckingham, whose office is responsible for the security of the country, told the news conference that his desk along with Ministry of Border Control and the Bahamian authorities will formalize the agreement in an abbreviated MoU. “We agreed that officials from the Ministry, the Foreign Affairs and the Bahamian Defense Forces and TCI’s Ministry of Border Control and police force and my office will consider the possibility of formalizing these areas of cooperation in a short Memorandum of Understanding,” he said. Describing the meeting as very fruitful, Minister Gardiner said that he is looking forward to the inking of the cooperation and the benefits that is bound to derive for both countries from it. “Certain talks we had with the Bahamians were very useful and very fruitful. I look forward to certainly working with them as we work to finalise the Memorandum of Understanding ourselves covering the issues that His Excellency mentioned; those dealing with security, those dealing with intelligencesharing and just with greater cooperation between this territory and the Bahamas. The idea to forge greater security cooperation between the two country was initiated sometime in May during a visit by the Bahamas Prime Minister Perry Christie, who while here to attended the official opening of friend’s law firm in Providenciales, discussed it with the local authorities. He then invited the government for talks in the Bahamas. Christie also suggested the Haitian Authorities be invited to the meeting since his country and the TCI both shared the concern of influx of illegal migrants from that country. The Haitian President Michel Martelly attended the meeting, and according to the governor and the minister, agreed to an MoU signing to undertake to deter his people from making such voyages.
Amendment bill to require electricians’ certification heading to the House
Turks and Caicos before One of two amendments engaging in electrical to the Electricity Ordinance work. And then after that, that government is hoping hopefully on the heels of to push through the House the completed consultation of Assembly later this year on the new energy policy, will require all electricians we will be looking to put in the Turks and Caicos in place a legislation that Islands to be certified before would speak to introducing taking on any work whether new alternative sources of domestic or commercial. energies into the energy mix Premier Hon. Dr. Rufus or any recommendations Ewing made the disclosure that comes out of the while addressing the post energy policy that we need cabinet news briefing at Premier Hon. Dr. Rufus to put in the legislation,” the Premier’s Office in Ewing. the premier explained. Providenciales on Friday The premier argued (July 25, 2014). “There are two amendments to the that since it takes some level of skills Electricity Ordinance. The first one is and knowhow to wire a building for related to making provisions for the electrical purposes, persons in that need for electricians to be certified in profession should be officially certified,
especially as the country has updated its building code recently. He said that the certification should weed out the pretenders from among the authentic ones. “Electrical work is a specialist technical work and there are codes that we have to (abide by). We have recently updated our building code. We have many people around here who called themselves electrician, and they are not. And you know, it can make a big difference if you are a homeowner, whether not there is a fire, whether you lose your home or not. It is a very risky business, and we need to make sure that persons, who engage in electrical work, be it residential or commercial, are properly certified,” he emphasized. He said that the certification system would be modeled off that of the
Cayman Islands, and classes will be held at the community college. “There is a training programme that we will put in place as well as an examination for certification. The training programme will be more of a crash course. The programme that we are adopting is similar to what they have in the Cayman Islands,” he said. He added; “We are hoping that it will come on stream as early as next year, and we know that there are a number of Turks and Caicos Islanders who are indeed qualified electricians actually, and certified. There are some who almost came out as apprentices and do not have the certification, but are still knowledgeable. And they themselves can be tested and grandfathered in according to the certification. That is the purpose of it.”
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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LOCAL NEWS
Government reaches settlement with former attorney general
Turks and Caicos Islands Government has reached an undisclosed monetary settlement with embattled former attorney general Huw Shepheard, who mounted a reputational damage claim against the Dr. Rufus Ewing administration. Attorney General Hon. Rhondalee Brathwaite-Knowles confirmed the settlement during an interview with The SUN last week. She said the contents of the resolution could not be revealed at this time since a few kinks are to be hammered out. She said that her office is seeking with Shepheard to have a joint public disclosre on the settlement. “A settlement has been reached, but at this time I am not able to reveal the details of that settlement because everything has not been finalized yet. In the coming weeks, we hope to have joint public statement on the agreement,” the attorney general said. Shepheard left the territory after the Dr. Rufus Ewing government declared it would not work with him on the grounds that he had made a series of legal fumbles that placed his administration in unsavory positions. The administration was also unhappy that former governor Ric Todd had renewed Shepheard contract in the face of his government protesting the idea. Todd’s justification for reappointing Shepheard was that it was the right thing to do since he understood the politics of small jurisdictions and the
structure of overseas territories. On October 11, 2013, Premier Hon Dr. Rufus Ewing, through the law firm Misick & Stanbrook, filed court documents to challenge the lawful authority of the former attorney general to make certain decisions without consulting Cabinet. The filing sought to determine inter alia whether the Attorney General has the authority under the Constitution to commence and defend civil proceedings by or against the Government as the attorney general sees fit, without seeking the prior approval of Cabinet. The concern arose largely over Shepheard’s decision to take it upon
himself to repossess the governing party’s headquarters through the Supreme Court, without consulting government that he was planning to do so. As part of its protest, the Rufus administration said that it would not seek advice from Shepheard and would not get involved in meetings that could be construed as making recommendations to government. As a result Shepheard handed in his resignation on November 1, 2013. After departing the jurisdiction, Shepheard gave notice that he would file legal charges against the Turks and Caicos Islands Government for
reputational and other damages. In a recent interview, BrathwaiteKnowles informed The SUN that her former boss had rejected an offer made to him by government. “The former attorney general had made a claim and the government has considered the claim against advice and had made an offer settlement to him with the hope of reaching a settlement before the end of this financial year. The offer to the former attorney general has been rejected unfortunately, so we are still in negotiations. But I anticipate that we should have some resolution to the matter before the end of the year,” Brathwaite-Knowles said at the time.
First TC Islander awarded Chevening scholarship to study in the UK
Governor Peter Beckingham presents Kenisha Bacchus with her Chevening Scholarhsip Award letter.
Kenisha Bacchus will become the Turks and Caicos Islands’ first Chevening Scholar when she begins a one-year Masters course in International Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation this September at the University of Warwick, UK. Supported by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and partner organisations, the Chevening Scholarship Programme is a global initiative that provides funding for fulltime, postgraduate-level courses at UK universities.
Bacchus, who currently works as legal counsel for the TCI Financial Services Commission, was presented with her scholarship award letter by Governor Peter Beckingham at Waterloo, Grand Turk, on Friday July 25. Following the event the Governor remarked: “The Chevening scheme recognises those with the potential to become the leaders of tomorrow and to contribute positively to the development of their country. I offer my warmest congratulations to Mrs Bacchus, and wish her every success in her studies and future endeavours.”
BUTTERFIELD MOTORS, LTD. Is looking for experienced applicant for the follow position
Financial Manager
Key Function Actively assist the Dealer Principal to maximize smooth running and profitability of the dealership. Provide all necessary and relevant financial information to a consistently high standard and to agreed deadlines. Continuously review effectiveness of all accounting, administration within the business. Identify areas for development and recommend solutions. Assist the Dealer Principal with external stakeholder relationship management. Ensure the business meets all statutory requirements. Strategic Planning Responsibilities • Establish and develop the dealership organization and control systems to ensure the efficient operation of each department, consistent with its present and future objectives • Create with each Department Manager co-ordinated, detailed annual plans and budgets, in line with defined long term goals, for each section of the business covering all targets for profitability, productivity, and resource control and market development. • Enable the implementation of these plans and budgets through business management systems to identify and explain variances. To monitor continuously all adverse trends and potential problems and take corrective action in a timely manner. • Agree all operating policies of the business in conjunction with the Dealer Principal including: pricing and credit limits; customer service levels; warranty and guarantee policies; new and used vehicle trading; resource control; liaison with suppliers; discounting; payment and benefit plans. • Participates in overall Company strategic planning. Reports directly to the Owner. Specific Operational Responsibilities • Responsible for the accounting and control functions; prepares interim and annual financial statements with supporting schedules and analysis for the guidance of management. • Production of accurate and detailed management accounts in the dealership within 5 working days from end of month. • Actively assist the Dealer Principal and Management Team with interpretation of the monthly accounts and suggest actions where appropriate. • Responsible for the Company’s accounting practices, procedures and principles, maintenance of its records and the preparation of financial reports • Ensure that the business is administered legally, professionally and in keeping with the Manufacturing Brands at all times. • Ensure that reporting systems within the dealership enable accurate production of Daily Operating Controls by Department Managers. Professional requirements: • Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance or related field. • 10+ years experience in Corporate Accounting, with minimum 5 years as an Accounting Manager or Controller, with demonstrated increasing levels of responsibility and skill • Thorough understanding of general accounting processes and principles along with strong analytical skills • Knowledge of automated financial and accounting reporting systems, including familiarity with computerized general ledger systems, accounting procedures and computer programs, handling ADP system as a plus. • Proficient with MS Office, an expert with MS Excel • Experience in projections, Budget, Forecast, Long Term projections. Personal requirements: • Must be able to make decisions with minimum input, based on their experience and knowledge of the position. • Driven towards continuous personal and company improvement. • Successful Applicant will be responsible for developing and improving upon all general accounting procedures and processes on a project and company-wide basis. • Flexible work hours Competitive Salary commensurate with work experience and qualifications. All interested applicants should submit an updated resume by e-mailing info@butterfieldmotors.tc
Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital is looking for a suitable candidate to fill the position of Trainee Chef required for a busy hospital and café kitchen. • 40 hours per week. Salary from $6.50 per hour dependant on experience • Candidates much have previous experience in an industrial kitchen environment • Hours required 5 days working out of every 7. Shift pattern changes weekly and includes early and late shifts. *Latest shift finishing at 8p.m. • Belongers/PRC holders need only apply
CLOSING DATE: August 15th, 2014 Interested candidates please email kbartholomew@interhealthcanada.tc or forward resume to: Karen Bartholomew Head of Soft Services P.O. Box 1044, 16 Hospital Road Providenciales Tel: 649 941 2800 Fax: 649 946 4178
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TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
LoCAL NEWs
NHIB threatens court action after amnesty
Zaneta Burton, CEO for the National Health Insurance Board (NHIB), has warned that delinquent bosses who failed to bring their National Health Insurance Plan (NHIP) payment up to date after December 31, 2014 will be prosecuted. Burton made the disclosure while addressing a news conference to explain the workings of the amnesty, at the entity’s Salt Mills office in Grace Bay, Providenciales, on Wednesday (July 30). The House of Assembly, on July 17, unanimously passed the NHIP Amnesty Bill after discovering that a number of businesses and self-employed persons have racked up huge penalties, both of which they appeared to have had no interest in paying. Under the amnesty, the additional charges would be erased and the delinquents would be required to pay only the contributions owed. The House also ruled that the first 90 days – August 1 to October 31 – should be for the delinquents to visit the NIHP office and either pay off the sums or make plans to do so, while the remaining two months – November 1 to December 31 – will be used to settle all of the outstanding amounts. Giving clarity to the amnesty, Burton said: “In order to benefit from the amnesty two situations may apply: either (1) on August 1st, 2014, a private sector employ or self employed persons has paid in full all contributions that
Zaneta Burton, CEO for the National Health Insurance Board (NHIB), and Drexwell Seymour, Chairman of the board. were due and payable, and that the only monies owed to the National Health Insurance Board are additional charges – or penalties; “or (2) that on August 1st, 2014, both contributions and additional charges are owed but that there is a commitment on the part of the private sector employer or self employed person to pay in full the contributions that are owed whether in a lump sum payment or by way of a payment plan. “It is also important to note that where an employer or self-employed person has agreed to pay outstanding contributions by way of a payment plan that those installments payments must be completed by December 31, 2014.”
MCKNIGHTS Attorneys at Law
NOTICE OF PUBLIC AUCTION SALE
First Caribbean International Bank (Bahamas) Ltd as Chargee pursuant to the Registered Land Ordinance hereby gives Notice that it will cause to be sold by Public Auction the following scheduled property outside the offices of: MCKNIGHTS Attorneys at Law, 46 Salt Mills Plaza, Grace Bay, Providenciales 10:00 am Thursday, 14 August, 2014 Registered Title: 60003/92 North West & North Central Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands
Registered Proprietor: WendyAnn Steer Property: 0.25 ac. The property is located in Belgrave Gardens, Phase one of the Priton affordable homes residential estate. The . property supports a Model A which comprises a three bedroom, two bathrooms with open plan kitchen/living/ dining area built in or around 2008. Access is gained via paved road network which serves the sub-division leading to Millennium Highway. A reserve price will be fixed. A 10% deposit will be required after successful bid.
Terms and Conditions of Sale by Auction are available on request from MCKNIGHTS (649) 941 2330/cell: (649) 331 7250/email: peter@mcknights.tc
FLIGHT SUPPORT LTD is seeking applications for
FOUR FLIGHT ATTENDANT: • Five years or more years experience. • Willing to work flexible hours. • Proficient in Microsoft Word, Powerpoint and Exel: 90 words per minute crew qualify data entry. • Excellent written and verbal communication skills. • Manage over all safety, crew coordination briefing and paper work and in flight entertainment. • Instill quality Customer Service in front line position. Belongers only needs to apply Contact HR@intercaribbean.com Tel:9464181
While paying the outstanding contribution the client is required to be current to escape future punishment. The NHIB stated that contributions that should have been paid but were not paid during the amnesty will attract an additional 10 percent per month for each month that the sums remained outstanding as at July 31, and three percent for each month after the amnesty period that the sums remain unpaid. Burton said that since she believes employers and self-employed persons would have had enough time to pay their contributions, the NHIB would not relent to recover the monies owned. “I can tell you, after this amnesty, we will be initiating court proceedings with
anyone who has any monies outstanding with NHIP after this amnesty. December 31st is the deadline to pay, but when you see January 1, 2015 comes in, you can guarantee that you will see court proceedings initiated against anyone (who remain outstanding on their payment), because you have enough time to come in and settle your account, and so, after that our tolerance will be zero,” Burton asserted. In the meantime, Burton insisted that the NHIP Compliance rate has been very high, but said it is overshadowed by the small delinquency rate. “We are riding between 95 to 97 percent compliance for employers and about 85 to 87 percent for self employed persons. People are paying despite the misconception that we have this huge amount of arrears and huge amount of persons not paying. We have very good compliance rate as it relates to persons paying into the fund,” she said, noting that the non-compliance rate of self employed persons is about 10 percent. She said the five compliance officers employed to the NHBIP has been visible in the field. “Our compliance officers are very visible in the fact that they make contact with the employers. We have been focusing on delinquent employers in trying to get their accounts regularized and that is the reason why we felt the importance to have the amnesty,” she said.
AUTO ELECTRICIAN An experienced Auto Electrician is required for a company based in Providenciales. The successful candidate must have at least 10 years experience and must demonstrate experience and knowledge of having dealt independently with all matters relating to Auto Electrician. References will be required.
Remuneration based on experience.
All application must be submitted to: Employment Department F Corporate & Management Services Limited 007 Emily House, 1105 Leeward Highway, Providenciales Tel 649-339-6275 Fax 649-333-7777
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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LoCAL NEWs
Public outcry over death of North Caicos man
There has been a public outcry over the cause of death. “Not another murder in this country the death of North Caicos resident Quincy Gardiner, whose body was found must go unsolved. I know that there are early Saturday morning, July 26, 2014, people who saw and knew. “Stop being sympathetic, be empathetic along the main road leading to Kew. Special Constable Audley Astwood, – put yourself in these families’ shoes. I the media relations point man for the am asking that we remember Dorsette Royal Turks & Caicos Islands Police Gardiner, Wensley Joseph, Robert Been, Force, in a statement on the suspicious the man who killed on Old Year’s Day death, said that crime sleuths are last year (Odisse Jocelin). May those investigating the circumstances under responsible be tormented and exposed. how the 31 year-old Kew resident lost his Do not let Quincy Gardiner join this list! Please step up,” the opposition leader life. He said that a police officer discovered pleaded. There was also a great deal of Gardiner’s lifeless body alongside the road leading to Kew “from a Whitby responses from Cartwright-Robinson’s pleas, with more 100 hundred responses. direction”, at approximately 5:28 a.m. One of the responses came from Nichol “Officers from multiple units were contacted and launched an investigation. Gardiner, who posted: “One of the main Initial investigation revealed that the reasons these cases are not solved [is body had multiple injuries. The body that] everyone wants to blame the police, was later removed from the scene and but no one wants to help the police. I a post-mortem exam to determine the want to remind everyone that police work exact cause of death is expected later this from information and information comes from us, the people. We have developed a week,” Astwood said. Gardiner’s death has received mentality that if it’s not me or my family, widespread public reaction, even from it’s not my problem. Remember, what affects the country, affects the people.” places of prominence. Quincy Jamie Edward Williams, who One of those lending their voices to his death is Leader of the Opposition Hon. chimed in on the conversation, wrote: Sharlene Cartwright-Robinson, who took “What the people forgot (is) today for me, to popular social media site – Facebook – tomorrow for you. People know who the to detest the circumstances surrounding killers are, if they can take someone (sic)
life, they can take yours too. You are just as guilty as the person doing the killing by saying nothing. I know GOD saw it all and time will tell.” Shyvonne Missick Ernest posted: “So sad ...Can’t believe this is happening in our small country!! When we start accepting this type (sic) of violence, we will be just like the other Caribbean countries we accuse of being crime infested.....one murder is one too many in our country! We are our brother’s keeper!!!” Curtis Odell Handfield posted: “I just wish I knew who the killer or killers is (sic). I would have told the police, it’s a shame on the people who know who kill (sic) Quincy and the others, and wouldn’t speak up. There will be your time when you need others to help solve your problems and the same thing will happen. Speak up against murder, or any crime you see. Let’s build a better Turks and Caicos.” In the meantime, Astwood is asking that anyone with information about this in Gardiner’s death are asked to called Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477. Astwood is reminding the public that the calls are answered in Miami, Florida, and only the information provided will be passed on to the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force.
Turks and Caicos sun Suite#5, Airport Plaza Providenciales Turks and Caicos Islands Tel: (649) 946-8542 Fax: (649) 941-3281 Email: sun@suntci.com Read us online at www.suntci.com Publisher & Editor-in-Chief: Hayden Boyce Senior Editor: Vivian Tyson Office Manager: Dominique Rigby Information Technology and Production Manager: Kelano Howell The Turks and Caicos SUN is a subsidiary of The SUN Media Group Ltd. We are committed to excellence in journalism, educating and informing our readers, serving and satisfying our advertisers and assisting in the overall development of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
CARIBBEAN AVIATION MAINTENANCE SERVICES
is seeking:
Aircraft Mechanics Experience working on piston and turbo-propeller aircraft. Responsible for inspecting, servicing, repairing and testing aircraft, engines and related systems as directed. Read, understand and work from aircraft maintenance manuals and specifications. Salary commensurate with experience. All positions require the following: • Excellent command of the English language – reading, writing and speaking. • Good communication skills and team player • Detail oriented & organized individual • Ability to work shifts, early mornings, late nights, weekends and Holidays. • Clean police record • Able to work under pressure Belongers need only apply. Interested persons should apply to HR@intercaribbean.com or via fax to HR Department 649-946-4040. No phone call please. Qualified candidates will be contacted for interview.
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TURKS & CAICOS SUN
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
LOCAL NEWS
TCI, Haiti plan illegal migration MoU signing
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) expected to be signed in September between Turks and Caicos and the Haitian Government could become the long-awaited panacea for the influx of Haitians by boat into the TCI. The intended MoU signing was announced by His Excellency Governor Peter Beckingham and Minister of Border Control and Labor Hon. DonHue Gardiner during joint news conference held at the Premier’s Office in Providenciales on Wednesday (July 30, 2014) The MoU deal was struck Haitian President Michel Martelly during a high-level meeting in the Bahamas, which also included members of the Bahamian government. “We talked about that (Haitian migration problem) with both governments – with the Bahamians first on Monday afternoon (July 28, 2014) and then on Tuesday with the Bahamian Government and with the President of Haiti,” Governor Beckingham explained.
Governor Beckingham (right) and Minister for for Border Control and Labour Hon. Don-Hue Gardiner.
He added: “We expressed to the forward to being able to finally formalize president of Haiti the appreciation that and sign-off on the Memorandum of we have in TCI for the contribution Understanding between us and them of the people from Haiti. I made it sometime in September,’ the minister very clear that they make a valuable said. He told the news conference contribution in many ways. But I also said that we had concerns about the that since the TCI government has number of illegal migrants from his had discussions with its Haitian counterparts before, where plans were country. “And I said that I hoped that he would hammered out, most of the clauses for be able to finalize an agreement with the MoU has already been in place. “As far as I am concerned there is not his government, which the minister of border control is working on, for a a lot left to be covered. What is left is number of specific ways of agreement for us actually to reach agreements on to work to try and prevent more illegal the things that we can, and I believe migration. And the president welcomed that we are there, and that we can look that; he said that he would encourage forward to, perhaps, travelling to Porthis ministry of foreign affairs to finalize Au-Prince or perhaps Cap Haitien in that agreement with the minister. We September this year. “I expect that it will bring about talked about doing that by the second some change. the measure of the half of September.” For his part, Minister Gardiner change depends on the willingness of said that he is happy that the Haitian the parties, who signed on to actually Government has decided to cooperate see through to see to the changes that with the TCI to battle illegal migration. we, ourselves – TCI and Port-au-Prince “We are certainly happy to have – would wish to achieve; chief among had further talks with the Haitians on those things, in example, that we have migration issues, and certainly we look in the agreement is a time-frame for
which persons may be repatriated and the protocols to actually follow in those repatriations,” the minister said. He said that MoU should also cover the Haitian government taking steps to deter its citizens from boating here and repatriation turn-a-around time for those who make landfall. “That Memorandum of Understanding will also cover areas of things that we expect that the government in Port-auPrince will be doing to deter persons from taking that treacherous journey, many miles across the ocean to TCI. “There is a key component, however, to the draft that sets up a monitoring group of personnel from both countries, that will monitor the progress of the arrangements, how it is being enforced and how it is actually working, number one, to deter migrants, and number two, to ensure a safe and humane repatriation of migrants once those situations arise,” the minister said. In the meantime, Governor said that the talk was initiated by Bahamian Prime Minister Perry Christie, who visited the TCI recently.
Parrot Cay Resort and COMO Shambhala have vacancies for the following position:
LAUNDRY AND KITCHEN MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN To carry out all engineering works required to ensure all Kitchen and Laundry operating equipment is maintained in good working order at all times. RESPONSIBILITIES: • Maintain a safe working environment in accordance with Company policy and applicable law. • Repair and maintain industrial laundry and kitchen equipment and associated building. • Perform scheduled preventative maintenance on industrial laundry and kitchen equipment and associated laundry building facility. • Account for materials used and time spent for job completion per Company. • Maintains a spirit of cooperation within department and throughout the property. • May assist with training and familiarizing Laundry personnel with the proper operation and maintenance of laundry equipment. • Performs other non-related tasks when necessary. SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE: • Must possess the analytical ability required to perform predictive, scheduled and emergency maintenance for all industrial laundry and Kitchen equipment and mechanical systems throughout Company operated facilities. • Knowledgeable of tools and materials required to efficiently start up, maintain, repair, and shut down commercial laundry equipment and mechanical systems. • Working knowledge of LPG-fired boilers, 480-volt 3-phase electrical systems, and mechanical systems. • Knowledgeable in electrical, mechanical, plumbing and carpentry skills. • Must possess the interpersonal skills required to efficiently communicate at all levels. • Must possess the working knowledge and comply with current International Codes, NFPA and OSHA regulations. • Ability to read blueprints, equipment manual and maintenance procedures. • This position may require the use of respiratory protection and will require compliance with applicable regulations. • Must be knowledgeable, understand and comply with all Company policies and procedures. • Must be able to differentiate colors required for boiler water testing. • Must be self-motivating, be able to work independently with limited supervision, and be willing to work off-hours when required. PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: • Must be able to work in confined areas.
• Must be able to work in areas with hot temperatures ranging from 80 to 120 degrees for up to 30 minutes. • Must be able to work in a noisy environment and be willing to wear hearing protection. • Must be able to climb ladders and work at heights of up to 10 feet off the ground. • Must be able to differentiate colors required for boiler water testing. • Must be capable of lifting objects weighing up to 70 pounds. • Must possess physical stamina and condition to be continuously active including walking, bending, crawling, and lifting overhead throughout an eight-hour shift Experience Essential • Minimum of 3-Years Experience.
Other Managerial Positions: • • • • •
Recreation Manager Asst. Restaurant Manager Asst. Executive Housekeeper Asst. Financial Controller Chief Engineer
OTHER POSITIONS Pilates Teacher Commis Chef Food & Beverage Server Spa Attendant K9 Dog Handler Spa Night Receptionist Laundry and Kitchen Technician
Resort Butler Chef de Partie Spa Therapists Private Estates Attendant Water Sports Instructor Night Kitchen Steward AC Technician
Private Estates Supervisor Sous Chef Senior Therapist Bartender Mechanic Helper Carpenter Supervisor Electrician
Salary for this position will be paid base on qualification and experience. Please note that all application must be submitted with a valid Police Record, two reference letters from previous employers or a notary public and current educational certificates. Only suitable candidates will be contacted for an interview. Forward your resume to the Human Resources Department at the following address: Parrot Cay Resort and COMO Shambhala P.O. Box 164 Providenciales, Turks & Caicos Islands Ph: (649) 946 7788, Fax: (649) 946 7749 Email: careers.parrotcay@comohotels.com
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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LoCAL NEWs
Former education minister blasts CVQ curriculum for TCI
to whether they want to Former minister of go for academics based education Dr. Carlton subjects of vocational Mills has knocked the Dr. subjects. Rufus Ewing’s adminisBut Mills cautioned tration’s intention to imthe government’s wisplement the Caribbean dom to institute such Vocational Qualification system in our school. He programme (CVQ) to its said that while governcurriculum, saying that ment is moving towards the model is not Turks hugging the curriculum, and Caicos Islands-taithere are critical areas lored. in the country that are Dr. Mills made not yet a part of the curthe declaration while riculum of the educaaddressing the Fortis tional system. TCI Annual Plenary “The Caribbean Session at Beaches Turks countries that and Caicos Resort and Former Minister of Education have adopted this Spa on Wednesday (July Dr. Carlton Mills. programme are more 30, 2014). Minister of Education Hon. Akierra industrialized that the TCI. That Missick first mentioned the CVQ programme is geared towards those publicly while attending the Grade types of economies – not that of the Six Achievement Test (GSAT) awards TCI, which characterized itself as a ceremony held at the Gustarvus service-type economy. The question then is: is this programme relevant Lightbourne Complex recently. The Caribbean Vocational to meeting the needs of the TCI Qualification is based on a competency students? What has happened to the based approach to training, assessment Technical programme that the TCI and certification. Candidates are Community College offers? Where is expected to demonstrate competence the work experience component that in attaining occupational standards was once a part of these programmes, developed by practitioners, industry where young men like Devon Cox and James Julien (two of Fortis TCI upper experts and employers. The minister told the audience managers) came through, and who are at the time that once students reach now employed with Fortis TCI?” Mills a certain grade in high school, they queried. Mills noted that the TCI needs an would be made to choose a bit earlier as
Graceway Gourmet invites applications from suitably qualified applicants for the position of:
LOSS PREVENTION OFFICER Main duties and Responsibilities: • Ensue all security procedures and security surveillance are in place to detect, minimize and or eliminate shoplifters and or other theft offense within the store environment • As required, shall conduct in-dept investigations into suspected case (s) of fraud and theft • Shall conduct routine inspections of the store both internal and external grounds to maintain physical security and protection of assets • Must apprehend dishonest individuals and shoplifters and turn them in to the local police department for criminal proceedings • This position will work in collaboration with Local Law Enforcement Agencies to apprehend and eliminate in-store theft at all operation levels
Required Qualification and Experiences • Previous experience and credentials in security surveillance will is an added plus
• Must be able to handle difficult situations with fairness, respect and diplomacy • Maintain good communication with staff members, associates and the management team • Must be able to meet the physical requirements of the position, with or without reasonable accommodations • Must demonstrate the ability to work effectively with staff and management to achieve the department / store desired results • Observe and ensure compliance with all company policies and established procedures including general health and safety standards • Must be able to work varied hours/days, including nights, weekends, and holidays as needed. Salary ranges from $30, 000.00 – 36,000.00 annually Applications along with references must be submitted no later than Friday August 15th 2014 To: Graceway IGA Supermarket main office complex or email: hr@gracwayiga.com Please Note: Only short-listed applicants will be contacted to attend interviews
education system that aligns with the industry from which the TCI can benefit. He said that in order for alignment to take place there has to be an overhauling of the education system. “The curriculum needs to be relevant to meeting the needs of the Turks and Caicos in relation to the kinds of businesses that operate here. There needs to be a connection starting at the primary level, progressing into the secondary level and ending at the community college. This gives rise to a three-pillar system, where each pillar is based on as the child or the student advances through the system,” Mills suggested. “He added: “To bring about this alignment, one must first answer these questions: what are the national goals of the TCI, if we have any? Because any adjustments in education must be done in collaboration with the set goals of the country. How do these goals tie in with our education system? What is the mainstay of the TCI economy? We cannot set goals without knowledge of these questions.” Mills also questioned the level of tourism being taught in our schools. “Everything in this country revolves around tourism, which also brings me to other questions: how much of this subject is taught in our school? Who is teaching it? What expertise and knowledge do they have on local tourism product? In places it is being taught, is it being aligned to the
kind and quality of tourism product? Are we teaching our students about hotel, when we have strata, condo management system and high-end tourism? “What about offshore banking, real estate and fishing? Are our students being taught about the relationship between these industries and that of tourism? Are we satisfied that we are equipping our young people to become more efficient in these critical areas of our country? If not, why not?” Mills, once again asked. He suggested that in order for alignment with the country’s curriculum and institutions to take place, there must be a stronger working relationship between the high schools, the community college and the business community. “It is imperative that government and industry stakeholders work together to identify specific needs, and hence, provide work-based learning opportunities, such as internships, apprentice in the fields identified, to drive economic development. An internship or apprenticeship programme can be a mandatory initiative on the part of the government to ensure that high school and community college students get the needed exposure through the industry. This can be done through the signing of an MoU with businesses or be embedded in the development agreements,” recommended.
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AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
LOCAL NEWS
Law requires illegal workers to pay NHIP The law has made it okay for the National Health Insurance Board (NHIB), through its health covering and collection arm – the National Health Insurance Plan (NHIP) – to deny coverage to an individual while still collecting contributions from them. Zanita Burton, CEO of the NHIB told a group of media practitioners at her office in Grace Bay on Wednesday, July 30, 2014, that the law actually requires that everyone working in the country to pay into the NHIP, but those without a valid work permit, though paying into the scheme, would not be entitled to get medical coverage. “We have two regulations; we have a contributions regulation and an eligibility regulation. The contribution regulation states that contributions are due from all employed persons in the country. Now to be eligible for the benefit the caveat there is the legal status. So by law you can pay your contributions as long as you are employed, to be eligible for the actual benefit requires you to be legal in the country,” she said. Persons have been complaining that they are being denied NHIP benefits during the period their work permits are in for renewals. During that time, they said that NHIP
NHIB CEO Zanita Burton
deductions have been extracted from their earnings. But Burton said that the NHIB advises employees of work permit holders to ensure that their staff’s document is put in about three months prior to the expiration of their document so that they could be kept current. He said that when the document is okayed by the Immigration Department, the contributor should visit the office to update the document for recordkeeping purposes. “Basically, the NHIP Ordinance for eligibility for medical care under the NHIP; you must be legally residing in the country, which means that you either have a valid work permit, you are a Turks and Caicos Islander or a permanent resident with the right to work in the country – basically free of immigration control. “We always advise work permit holders and their employers that their work permit has a begin date and an expiration date. Once your work permit has been expired, from an NHIP standpoint, and you have not renewed the work permit, it means that you are not legal in the country,” she said. She added: “Instances were persons are on permits, we advise them, and
we send out a notice on a monthly basis that at least three months before at a minimum, you advise the NHIP that you have renewed the work permit, and once you would have brought in a copy of the receipt and you would have paid for the renewal of the work permit, your eligibility continues. “We also tell the employers that once you receive the actual work permit, come into the NHIP so that we can update our system as to the actual date that is on that work permit for record-keeping purposes. Persons who are on work permits, as long as the permit is being renewed and they would have paid for the renewal, their eligibility continues.” Burton told the news conference that there are individuals on their books whose work permits have been expired since almost five years, and while contributions are being paid in, they are not eligible for coverage. “We have some instances of persons where their work permits have been expired in 2009, and they are not eligible because they have no status in the country. NHIP will continue for the eligibility of persons for work permit as long as we are advised that the work permit has been renewed, and we are showed evidence of the fact,” she said.
Provo Water Company Limited is seeking a Qualified Chartered Engineer to fill the position of Head of Engineering. Position Summary The Head of Engineering Department of Provo Water Company shall manage, supervise and oversee the over-all technical operation of the company’s water distribution system including but not limited to the development of piping structural plans and the subsequent implementation thereof. This includes the following duties and responsibilities:
Description of Duties • Designing of overall water distribution schemes and associated structures such as pumping stations, pipe works and earthworks where necessary. • Formulations of technical policies governing operational procedures in the building, renovation and expansion of the water distribution infrastructures and the proper utilization of material resources; • Development and maintenance of standards and practices for water installation and engineering practices within the company; • Transacts and negotiates with consulting engineers, government departments, others utilities, contractors and suppliers on works required by the company or as solicited by any government or private entity for the best interest of PWC; • Organizes work activities within the engineering department and delegate task among engineering staff in accordance with the level of importance and priorities as required in the distribution and maintenance; • Set up and maintain a data base that will consolidate all generated technical and administrative data from the engineering and distribution that will serve as primary source of information and reference in PWC’s future undertakings; • Carry out and implement all other activities for the engineering department as mandated and required by the Managing Director which includes among others the following: • Design of capital works, preparation of drawings and contract documents • Provision of standard specification for all material requirement in the distribution works • Implement health and safety, safe working procedures within the engineering and distribution department • Gathers data of meter readings for use in the billing and technical analysis • Conducts investigative and analysis works arising from technical complaints • Carry out land surveys for distribution requirement or in drawing out quotations • Coordinates main testing, flushing and sterilization function • Formulates leak detection plans and activities
• Updates the mainlaying programmes • Prepares reports and technical information as required by the Managing Director • Attends meeting and seminar for the furtherance and upliftment of engineering operation • Supervises and controls all other technical activities as delegated by the Managing Director.
Performs all other delegated functions from the Managing Director that is in line with engineering works and in consonance with the existing rules, policies and standards of Provo Water Company.
Education Successful applicant requires an accredited bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. A post-graduate degree in civil engineering or water related field is preferred. Relevant professional qualification is required.
Desired Experience Applicant must have 7 to 10 years of progressive civil engineering experience, including previous supervisory duties. Experience in water supply utility environment is a must. Candidate should have a strong analytical background with a proven record of achievement.
Salary Salary starts at $63,000 p.a. plus benefits
Deadline
All applications (inclusive of cover letter, CV & copies of qualifications) must be submitted by 8th August 2014 to: Managing Director PO Box 39 Provo Water Company Limited Grace Bay Road Providenciales Turks and Caicos Islands provowater@tciway.tc Only applicants selected for an interview will be notified.
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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LOCAL NEWS
Police Commissioner knocked for snubbing predecessor’s wife’s funeral
Some members of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force are unhappy that Commissioner of Police, Colin Farquhar, did not attend or arrange for any of his officers to be present at funeral service of longstanding member of the force Annie Hall, who was also the wife of the former commissioner of police, Edward Hall. The rattled officers said that Annie Hall gave approximately 22 years of service to the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force, and was deserving of greater respect from the top cop. “By virtue of her giving more than 20 years of service to the Royal Turks
and Caicos Islands Police Force, there man who himself, served the Royal should have been a much greater Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force presence of the members of the Royal with distinction and honour,” the police Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force,” officer said. Another officer, who supported the one disgruntled officer said. The police source said that the idea, exclaimed that Commissioner commissioner, if not for his wife, Farquhar should have gone further should have attended for the former than just attending the funeral, but to commissioner of police as a show of ensure that the funeral expenses was borne by the force, owing to Annie support. “I think the commissioner of police Hall’s contribution to the organization. “Since she contributed so much for should have attended the funeral based on her contribution to the force. the community, and that her husband But even if he did not see it fit to was not only a police officer, but the attend because of her, he should have commissioner of police, Farquhar attended because she was the wife of should have made sure that the force the former commissioner of police; a bears the expenses of the funeral and
not the family. “I also believe that he should have provided transportation for especially senior officers, who had to travel at their own expenses to the funeral. He could have requested the police boat to take senior officers to the funeral; that should be a no-brainer for him,” the police officer said. The SUN understands that senior officers, who attended the funeral in North Caicos, paid their way to get there. Some of them, it is understood, flew in from Grand Turk to Providenciales and then boarded a boat with their Providenciales counterparts to North Caicos for the send off.
Telephone interconnection rate to drop
Come September phone consumers should begin to see a reduction on their interconnection bills after calling another networks, as cabinet has approved the reduction of interconnection termination rate from 8.5 cents to 7.5 cents. Premier Hon. Dr. Rufus Ewing made the announcement during government’s post
cabinet news briefing on Friday (July 25, 2014) at the Premier’s Office on Providenciales. The premier pointed out that the reduction will affect both fixed line as well as cellular phone calls. The rate reduction, the premier said, was recommended by the Telecommunications Commission. He said, too, that
government will apply a further reduction come April next year. The Telecommunications Commission made presentation to the government for approval for the reduction of interconnection rate, both on mobile termination rate and the fixed line termination rate, and these have been reduced as follows, the mobile
communication rate will be reduced from the current 8.5 cents to 7.5 cents effective September, with a further reduction in April, 2015 to 6.75 cents and then to 6 cents in 2016,” the Premier pointed out. He said that government will be looking to chip away at the interconnectivity rate until no charges is applied to cross calls, saying that government
is committed to save consumers money where possible. “This will further reduce expenditure by consumers in calling across networks – Digicel calling LIME; LIME calling Islandcom etcetera, and reducing cost to consumers, and it is hoped that in the future this will probably hopefully reduced to zero,” the Premier told the news conference.
T&C Refreshments Ltd Department: SALES TITLE: VENDING TECHNICIAN REPORTS TO: VENDING SUPERVISOR FUNCTION
Blue Haven Resort is inviting applications for the following line positions: CASHIER/CLERKS
Must have excellent customer service skills, must have strong leadership skills, be able to multi-task. Very mature with strong writing and oral communication skills. Work schedule for this position is flexible.
ROOM ATTENDANTS
To ensure the cleanliness and orderliness of the assigned guestroom, work areas and equipment. Must be able to push and pull carts weighing up to 150lbs and be able to climb flights of stairs several times daily.
LABOURERS
To assist in maintaining the buildings, of the resort. Must be able to lift 50lbs, bend, stand for long periods of time and must be able to push and pull carts weighing up to 250lbs. Be able to lift 50lbs, bend and stand for long periods of time. Must be able to speak English and understand instructions. Must be in excellent health.
Perform refrigeration, electrical instillation, and air-condition functions to ensure efficient management of all market equipment.
TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
• Assist with maintaining fountain and vending equipment • Collect water samples every three months and carry out microbiological tests • Execute sanitation process of all syrup lines every three months • Perform calibration exercise every month • Execute weekly Preventative Maintenance checks • Place marketing equipment (fountain dispensing & Vending Machines) • Assist with maintenance of marketing equipment in the market place. • Participate in special events involving coca-cola marketing equipment. • Perform other duties as requested
COMPETENCY
Education/Experience • High school Diploma • A Valid Driver’s License • Minimum of two years experience with equipment repair (coolers, vending machines, refrigerant equipment preferred)
SKILLS
GARDENERS
To assist in, maintaining the grounds of the resort. Duties to include: removal of trash, weeding, mowing, planting, pruning, watering and application of chemicals. Must be of good character. Be able to lift 50lbs, bend and stand for long periods of time. Must be able to speak English and understand instructions. Previous experience is a must. Must be in excellent health. Salary for these positions will commensurate with qualifications and experience.
Please Submit Applications to: cgibbons@wihl.com A copy should also be submitted to the TCI Labour Department. Submissions to be no later than August 9th, 2014 Belongers need only apply.
• Analytical skills • Excellent communication skills (both written and verbal) • Ability to lift, push and pull a minimum of 40lbs repeatedly • Working with mechanical systems (e.g., knowing mechanical concepts, troubleshooting and repairing appliances, performing basic circuits, fuses and electrical components, operating hand tools and power tools, etc.) • Working with electrical systems (e.g., understanding flow, wring, outlets, etc.) • Working with moving equipment 9e.g., forklifts hand trucks/dolly, etc.)
Salary: commensurate with experience
Submit applications and resume by August 11th, 2014 T & C Refreshments Ltd., 10 Parade Avenue, Downtown Providenciales 649-941-3917
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TURKS & CAICOS SUN
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
PALM MANAGEMENT SERVICES needs a
Housekeeper Must be able to work nights and weekends
Salary $5.00 per hour Contact 339-0221
FLIGHT SUPPORT LTD Is seeking applications for:
General Manager
FOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE AGENTS:
3-5 years experience as a Customer Service Agent. Qualified in but not limited to customer Service Agent servicing Delta, Us Airways and Air Canada.
Are you a people person? Join a team where people come first. About Us – A leading regional player in the retail insurance sector, the Colonial Group, with over 280 employees and offices in Bermuda, the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and Turks & Caicos, offers a complete range of premier financial and insurance services to our individual and corporate clients. We know that our products make a real difference to our clients and their families.
TWO AIRPORT HOSTS:
3-5 years experience as an Airport Host servicing international flights
Belongers only needs to apply Contact HR@intercaribbean.com Tel: 9464181
FRESH CATCH
SANDRA JOSEPH SEEKS
ONE LABOURER Salary $5.00 per hour Mon-Sat
Interested person should email freshcatchtci@gmail.com
WANTED
A domestic worker/ nanny The person is also required to take care of an elderly woman
CARAMBOLA RESTAURANT SEEKS
1 COOK
ONE COOK Salary $6.00 per hour
Contact 344-8886
Salary $5.00 per hour Contact 231-3617.
SEEKS
WANTED
Salary $6.00 per hour Interested persons should contact 941-8122
The Person – You will have a Bachelors degree and/or a relevant professional insurance qualification (e.g. DipCII/ACII) along with a Project Management Certification (PRINCE2/PMP). You will have a minimum of 15 years general insurance experience within a Property and Casualty or Medical Insurance Company, with at least 5 of those years at Senior Management level. You will have the ability to work under pressure to tight deadlines and a willingness to work extended hours to meet the needs of the clients and the Company. You will have proven ability to negotiate, influence and persuade internal and external stakeholders as well as excellent presentation and communication skills. The Benefits – The salary range is USD$91,000 -USD$130,000 depending on experience and qualifications. We also offer an attractive benefits package. To Apply – Please send your resume/cv to our Vice-President, Human Resources at hr_manager_bm@colonial.bm Closing date for applications August 15, 2014.
ONE GARDENER To work 6 days per week 7am to 2:30 pm
COLONIAL INSURANCE BROKERS LIMITED A member of Colonial Group International: Insurance, Health, Pensions, Life
Contact Management 941-3312 The Proprietors, Strata Plan #38 (The Grandview on Grace Bay)
TOYOTA CONSTRUCTION
EXECUTIVE TOURS LTD
THREE A LABOURERS Labourer Salary $7.00 per hour To work in and around garage Is seeking:
Shanda Restaurant
and gas station.
Three Waitresses
Cleaning of compound, and assisting mechanics in garage/ body shop when needed.
Contact 341-5121
Contact 231-2358
Seeks
To work 6 days per week
The Role – reporting to the Executive Vice President – Property and Casualty and Chief Operating Officer – Health at headquarters in Bermuda, you will be responsible for managing and coordinating all aspects of the Company’s operation including business development and retention, technical, staff, administrative and support service functions, e.g. financial, computer and human resources. You will plan and accomplish agreed goals that are outlined in the business plan and contribute to the achievement of strategic corporate objectives. You will provide a critical link with corporate headquarters in Bermuda while focusing on new business development for the Medical and Property and Casualty portfolios. You will also be required to service existing clients ensuring that their day-to-day administration needs relating to claims, eligibility and overall customer service are fulfilled to the required standards. Excellent and innovative customer service delivery is important to us, critical to our strategic objective of business retention and growth and applies to all roles across the Group.
Salary $5.00 per hour
Duties Include:
Starting salary is $5.00 per hour (44) forty-four hours per week
TURKS & CAICOS AIRPORT HOTEL
Cyril Withfield Forbes
for HOUSEKEEPER Looking a labourer WANTED • Must be able to work flexible hours if required. • Must be hardworking and reliable. Salary $5.50 per hour Interested persons should contact 946-4701
For 5 days a week Salary $ 5.50 per hour Contact – 231-4189
AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 9TH, 2014
TURKS & CAICOS SUN
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LOCAL NEWS
Providenciales International Airport nears completion The month of July has been momentous for the TCIAA Terminal Redevelopment Project. The Airports Authority and Dolmen have been able to breathe new life into some of the renovated space and open more usable space to enhance passenger facilitation. In early July the old Security Check Point has been closed off for construction and passengers have been redirected to a partially completed Departure Lounge and new Security Check Point. The Departure Lounge will continue to expand as walls are in the process of being removed to further open up the floor space. A staircase and floor lift will be installed to take passengers to the second level of the Departure Lounge which has not yet been made available and is still under construction. Passengers are able to access the newly constructed bathroom facility inside of the Departure Lounge and for the first time, have access to handicapped stalls inside of the Lounge. Our first renovated retailer Jais has now been relocated and is open for business. Other retailers are on schedule to occupy their new store location within the coming weeks. The International Arrivals Hall has seen a face lift, as offices for the Customs, Police and Immigration
New Customs Hall
New Security Check Point
International Check-in rendering Department have been relocated within the newly constructed building. The old offices have been demolished and the floor space will form a part of the extended Immigration line up. The transition will allow for wider queues for the immigration officers and more space for passengers to be reunited with
their luggage from the two impending luggage belts. The Customs Hall has been gifted with an abundance of space to process passengers like never before. Newly constructed bathrooms are available inside of the Baggage Hall to service passengers upon exit. Passengers can
freely flow to the curbside to be greeted and transported to their destination via taxi or mode of transportation of their choosing. Construction works will continue in the new Domestic Area, the Upper Departure Lounge, the roadway and overall finishing works will ensue. The project is approximately 85% competed and is on target for a winter 2014 grand debut.
IMMEDIATE OPENING Manager of Travel Industry Sales Regent Palms Turks and Caicos is a 72-suite luxury resort, which features elegantly appointed luxury rooms, with one, two and three bedroom suites. World class amenities include a 25,000 square foot spa, banquet facilities and two signature restaurants. The Manger of Travel Industry Sales is a key part of our U. S. based sales team, responsible for group and leisure sales. Requirements: • Post secondary degree or equivalent qualification by experience • Strong written and verbal skills with documented responsibility for promotions, sales and marketing. • 5-7 yrs in luxury travel/hospitality sales, with established relationships with top luxury wholesalers, travel agents, incentive houses, and meeting planners • Must have experience selling luxury Caribbean properties and understand wholesalers, FIT and high-end travel agency professionals. • Must understand sales metrics and reporting • Must be able and willing to work all days and shift Duties Include: • Analyzing sales and marketing statistics to determine profitability of sold business and opportunities within target markets • Negotiating and closing contracts, with approval of Director of Sales and Marketing, with key customers • Creating 100% guest satisfaction and delivery of Regent experience • Communicating sales and guest information to departments as appropriate • Identify potential customers, initiate contract, and make sales call • Conduct on-site tour sales presentation in accordance with brand standards Starting salary $40,000- 60,000 per annum not including service charge
Public Area Attendant Requirements: • Ability to work with heavy cleaning machinery. • Must be able and willing to work all days and shifts Duties include: • Ensuring that standards of cleanliness and organization are met at all times in
assigned areas. • Responsibility for care and maintenance of all equipment and machinery • Restock linens and amenities on carts • Run needed items to guest floors • Assist housekeepers as required Starting salary $5.25 not including service charge
Junior Sous Chef Requirements: • Minimum 5 years culinary experience in a full service, fine dining establishment as Sous Chef • Post secondary degree or equivalent qualification by experience • Post secondary degree or equivalent qualification by experience • Must have strong knowledge of kitchen inventory and ordering process, staffing, expediting and ability to supervise the staff and kitchen operations under the direction of the Executive Chef • Excellent culinary technique and ability to work the line during all meal periods • Exceptional customer service orientation, complying with company service culture • Must be willing and able to work all days and shifts Duties Include: • Recruit and select qualified candidates, provide training and communication performance expectations • Coordinate the inventory, purchasing and disbursement of all supplies with the purchasing manager • Inspect and ensures the proper set up and readiness of each item on menus • Supervise daily food preparation for assigned areas. • Ensure that the level of quality, portion control, and plate presentation is adhered to consistently • Work closely with staff to exceed guest expectations • Maintain product consistency by conducting inspecting or seasonings, portion and appearance of food Starting salary $20,000.00 per annum, not including service charge.
Interested applicants should apply to Regent Palms, Human Resources Department, Monday through Friday, and bring along an updated resume, or by emailing your resume to marjorie.dorsett@regenthotels.com, no later than end of day Friday, August 1st, 2014
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LOCAL NEWS
Helen Garlick’s whitewash of an investigation and her SIPT’s judge alone trials by John Thompson Whatever you might think of Helen Garlick, her tenacity is admirable. On 23 June 2014, Judge Paul Harrsion granted her Special Investigation and Prosecution Team’s (SIPT) request to try Belonger defendants by judge alone. That decision removed rights that had been enshrined in the Turks and Caicos Islands for more than a hundred years. To secure its removal, Garlick’s SIPT had to clear three hurdles: (1) it had to amend the Constitution removing the right to trial by jury, it (2) then had to secure the passage of legislation to regulate requests for trials by judge alone, and finally (3) it had to convince the Court it was appropriate to dispense with a jury in its case. There isn’t a free and democratic country in the world where, to convict a dozen or so citizens, a prosecuting authority could have secured a constitutional amendment, much less clear all three of those hurdles. That level of manipulation of the criminal justice system by a prosecuting authority challenges traditional notions of fairness; but if 18th-century British judge Sir William Blackstone was even remotely correct when saying ‘a right to a trial by jury is one of the last fortifications of a person’s freedoms’, Helen Garlick and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s engineering of the SIPT’s trials is a serious encroachment into the civil liberties of all Turks and Caicos Islands residents. The manipulation is all the more worrying when you consider the role of a jury, the complexion of the SIPT, as well as the make-up of the main characters in the post-InterimAdministration’s criminal justice system. Consider this: Juries allow the public to participate in the criminal justice system, which allows for public buy in to its decisions. That role is particularly important in the Turks and Caicos Islands in a post Interim-Administration trial, and even more so with the SIPT’s prosecutions,
Special Prosecutor Helen Garlick
since Garlick’s lily-white Anglo-Saxon SIPT is as far from representative as one could get. That is contrary to every modern recommendation of how policing and prosecution authorities should be selected, and it shows. The complexion of the SIPT’s defendants is the classic illustration of the dangers of an unrepresentative prosecution team. In the alleged crimes that Sir Robin Auld’s Commission of Inquiry says involved white developers and their white attorneys bribing black politicians and their black attorneys, virtually all of the SIPT’s defendants are black. If a chimpanzee had thrown darts at all the suspects in Auld’s report, a group with a complexion entirely different from Garlick’s group of defendant would have emerged.
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This is not an apology for SIPT’s defendants. If the defendants are guilty they should pay for their crimes. Justice, however, should be blind, and a prosecuting authority should pursue all suspects with equal zeal, prioritizing cases only on the seriousness of the crimes and the weight of the evidence against suspects. Instead, the SIPT and the FCO have stood justice and common sense on its head in the Turks and Caicos Islands. While dozens of white participants in the very schemes Garlick’s SIPT say are illegal are still actively engaged in business in the Turks and Caicos Islands, she has overwhelmingly charged Belongers. In some cases she has brazenly pursued vendettas, with concocted allegations, while in others she has
charged persons on the flimsiest of matters. That is all while by far the largest allegations of corruption in the country’s history remain completely untouched, because connected and powerful Brits are at the center of those allegations. Many countries are not on speaking terms for lesser affronts to their citizens, but the Turks and Caicos Islands now has an elected Government that seems oblivious to these issues, and that is lamentable. The cultural legacy that this type of targeting will have on its people, or indeed the financial drag that these very expensive corruption investigations and trials will have on the economy is enormous. After five years of living it up at five star resorts in the Turks and Caicos Islands, in what is by far the world’s most expensive investigation as a percentage of GDP, it is too kind a conclusion to suggest that the SIPT is just culturally out of touch. On any even-handed assessment, the SIPT’s prosecutions are a whitewash. What will be the impact of confidence and respect for our criminal justice system, when a lily-white prosecution team convicts its Belongeronly defendants in a judge alone trial after a whitewash of an investigation? You can be certain that for at least one third of the population, any convictions by a judge alone, in what are highly engineered trials, will be rejected as fundamentally wrong. Given the complexion of Garlick’s SIPT, the Governor’s appointment of a foreign judge, and the judge’s decision to have a trial without jury, the only participation of locals in the SIPT’s trials are as defendants, and they are the only defendants at that. The SIPT and FCO have gamed the TCI’s criminal justice system, and it is past time for the legislature to send a clear message to them. For starters they can repeal the Trials Without a Jury Ordinance. TCIG should also refuse to fund one penny of the SIPT’s investigations/prosecutions, and it should also ask for a full refund of all monies previously spent. It is never too late to push back.
VACANCY
British Caribbean Bank is looking for applicants to fill the role of Supervisor – Credit. Interested parties should possess: - At least 10 years banking experience; - Professional qualifications in the field Banking or Finance; - Experience in Retail Banking, Operations, Commercial Lending, Relationship Management and Computer Literacy Contact: PO Box270, 101 Governor’s Road, Leeward, Providenciales Belongers need only apply
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PROPERTIES FOR SALE OFFERS IN WRITING ARE INVITED FOR PURCHASE OF THE FOLLOWING PROPERTIES BEING SOLD BY PRIVATE TREATY UNDER POWERS OF SALE CONTAINED IN A MORTAGE LONG BAY-PROVIDENCIALES 1. Parcel 61113/59- Long Bay Hills. Single Storey Residence. 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Price $185K 2. Parcel 61112/50 & 52 Long Bay Hills. 2 Residential Buildings. Single Storey Residence - 2 bedrooms, one bath, kitchen and living area. Guest house- 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom and kitchen. Price $105K
LEEWARD-PROVIDENCIALES 1. Parcel 60900/59 Leeward Going Through. 2 storey residence. The upper floor- 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 living, 1 dining area and 1 kitchen. The lower floor- 1 bedroom apartment unit, 1 living area 1 kitchenette, 1 bathroom. Price $240,000 2. Parcel 60900/225 Leeward Going Through. Single storey residence. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms 1 living, dining and kitchen. Front porch and terrace. Price $260K 3. Parcel 60900/194 Leeward Going Through. 2 Residential Buildings. 2 storey building- Upper Floor-3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, Lower Floor-3 rental units. Single Storey building- 3 apartments each comprising of 1 bedroom,1 bathroom, 1 kitchen/dining/ living room area. Price $250K
Guest House#2 - 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom and 1 garage. A pool lounge and swimming pool. Price $520K 2. Parcel 60804/49 The Bight and Thomas Stubbs. 2 storey residential building. Lower Floor- 1 bedroom, 1 living room, dining room and kitchen and 1 powder room. Upper Floor- 2-bedrooms, 2-bathrooms and an open deck on the second floor level. Also a covered bar area with open deck. Price $200K 3. Parcel 60809/188 The Bight & Thomas Stubbs. Single family residence. 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 kitchen and living area. Price $220K
CHESHIRE HALL & RICHMOND HILL-PROVIDENCIALES 1. Parcel 60715/308 Cheshire Hall and Richmond Hills. Single storey residence. 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 living/dining area and kitchen. landscaped grounds, front and rear decks, concrete surfaced driveway and parking. Price $350K 2. Parcel 60701/36 Cheshire Hall & Richmond Hill, Thompson Cove. Single residence. 3 bedrooms, 1 Living, 2 full bathroom a kitchen. Price $340K
3. Parcel 60718/159 Cheshire Hall & Richmond Hill. 2 -Residential buildings. Main residence-3 bedroom 2 bathrooms, 1 living and 1 kitchen. Two-storey-apartment building; 1 # 3 bed 2 baths unit, 1# 2 bed, 2 bath unit, 5# 1 bed, unit and 4. Parcel 60900/123 Leeward Going Through. 2# efficiency units. 2 Residential Buildings. Main dwelling- 3 bedrooms, 1 Living, 1 dining room, 4 bathrooms Price $750K and 1 kitchen. Guest house -1 bedroom, 1 bathroom, 1 living/dining room and 4. Parcel 60716//138 Cheshire Hall & Richmond Hill. The main residence 2- bedrooms, 3-bathrooms, 1-living area & 1 kitchen. kitchen. Price $350K Guest home 1- bedroom, 1-bathroom & kitchen. Open timber deck, porch, pool, gazebo and storage. 5. Parcel 60900/190 Leeward Going Through. Price $425K 2 Residential Buildings. Main dwelling- 4 bedrooms, 1 Living, 1 dining room, 4 bathrooms and 1 kitchen. Five Cays-Providenciales Guest house -2 bedroom, 2 bathroom, 1 living/dining room and kitchen. 1. Parcel 60604/20 Norway and Five Cays. Price $300K Single storey residence comprising of 3-bedrooms and 1-bathroom, kitchen/dining area and living room. Listing Price $95K . THE BIGHT & THOMAS STUBBS- PROVIDENCIALES 1. Parcel 60807/90 The Bight and Thomas Stubbs. 3 Residential Buildings. Main house - 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 1 kitchen and 1 dining room. Guest House #1 - 2 bedrooms, 1 bath
2. Parcel 60609/23 Norway and Five Cays. Located on Couth Dock Road. Two story residence comprising of 4-bedrooms, 2-bathrooms, kitchen, dining room, family room, Office & Storage. Listing Price $600K
INTERESTED PERSONS MAY CALL 232-3488 OR 339-7088 BETWEEN 9:00 AM AND 4:40 P.M. MONDAY TO FRIDAY
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NOTICE OF SALE BY PUBLIC AUCTION TCI Bank (In Liquidation) Unit F203 Regent Village, Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands hereby gives notice of its intention to sell by Public Auction the following properties pursuant to its power of sale as registered Chargee under the Registered Land Ordinance of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
1. 60900/280 LEEWARD GOING THROUGH, PROVIDENCIALES, LEEWARD HIGHWAY Go-Kart track and arcade/game room facility, detached storage building with adjoining male & female restrooms, fuel storage tank, surfaced car park and boundary fencing. The property is located adjacent to Provo Miniature Golf Course on 1.07 acres.
5. 60503/167 BLUE HILLS & STAMERS RUN, PROVIDENCIALES The development comprises six one bedroom apartments with bathroom and open kitchen/living areas and utility closet. There is also a retaining boundary wall to the rear of the property and covered terrace and balcony with railings to the front on 0.70 acre.
Registered Proprietor: David Earle Been
Registered Proprietor: Susan Capron
2. 60503/325 BLUE HILLS & STAMERS RUN, PROVIDENCIALES, #15 ROCKY ROAD Two story building with 8 self-contained residential units. The ground level supports 3x1 bedroom and 2x1 bedroom apartment units with open kitchen, living area and bathroom. Upper level has 1x2 bedroom apartment and 3x1 bedroom apartments with open kitchen, living area and bathroom.0.34 acre.
6. 60713/69 CHESHIRE HALL & RICHMOND HILL, PROVIDENCIALES, LEEWARD HIGHWAY Two-storey school (Whole Gospel Christian Academy) development on 1.336 acres. Registered Proprietor: Abundant Life Ministries International Ltd.
Registered Proprietor: Michael Saunders
3. 60900/282 LEEWARD GOING THROUGH, PROVIDENCIALES, LEEWARD HIGHWAY Single story residential house with open plan kitchen, living/dining area, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, laundry closet and two storage closets. There is an open covered porch to the front and a timber deck to the rear on 0.33 acre Registered Proprietor: Paul Michael Jenkins and Sandy Candice Jenkins
4. 61107/85 LONG BAY HILLS, PROVIDENCIALES Two partially complete 2x2 bedroom, two bathroom detached residential homes. The north property is without kitchen and bathroom fittings, part of the floor tiles or appliances. The south property is similar with no floor tiles. Both properties have been vacant for some time and require attention. Each dwelling approximately 1,254 sq. ft. of internal space plus covered decks. External works include septic tanks and one partially complete swimming pool on 0.98 acre. Registered Proprietor: John Williams
7. 61108/28 LONG BAY HILLS, PROVIDENCIALES Residential building parcel consisting of undulating and uncleared land located on the marl surfaced Blue Water Road, five lots from the junction with Long Bay Highway on the south east side of the road. Frontage onto Long Bay Highway. Parcel slopes significantly from south east to north west with highest part fronting the Long Bay Highway. Power will require connecting from Blue Water Road and Long Bay Highway. On 1.009 acre. Registered Proprietor: Coleta Alexander Williams III & Chiquita Francine Williams
8. 60715/188 CHESHIRE HALL & RICHMOND HILL, PROVIDENCIALES, BUTTERFLY CLOSE, DISCOVERY BAY (i) Two-storey building which consists of a ground level one bedroom apartment and an adjoining above ground cistern. Two bedroom, two bathroom unit on the upper level with wrapped around timber decks. (ii) A new building has ground level 2x2 bedroom apartments with bath and open kitchen/dining/living area. Upper level comprises the main accommodation with three bedrooms, three bathrooms, powder room, three-walk-in closets and open concept living/dining/kitchen area on 0.56 acre. Registered Proprietor: Bennett Stubbs
The auction will be held at the offices of TCI Bank (In Liquidation), Unit F203 Regent Village, Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, at 10 o’clock in the morning on Wednesday, 13th August, 2014. A reserve price will be fixed on all parcels. A deposit of 10% is due immediately upon all accepted bids. For further information contact Eunice Sands, 941-7502, email e.sands@kikivarakis.com.
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LOCAL NEWS
Liéacha Smith, 16, Miss Teen North Caicos
Alicia Duncanson, 14, Miss Teen Pine Cay
10 compete fo Turks and C
Shanaz Gardiner, 18, Miss Teen Salt Cay
Michalia Clare, the unveiling opened After months of anticipation, the with a red hot fire dancing act, and ten beautiful, poised, and intelligent featured the debut of Jeritt Jermel’s young ladies, vying to be the first Miss Teen Turks and Caicos, displayed their “Belle Creek” Collection, a speed painting show, an auction, music by personality, poise, grace and charm Prime DJs, and special guest of honour at the Miss Teen Turks and Caicos Contestants Unveiling and Live Auction Shanice Williams, Miss Turks and last weekend at the Blue Haven Resort. Caicos Universe, who officially sashed each contestant. The “flawless ten,” as they are The night’s surprise was an known are: Davetria Robinson, 16, Miss impromptu question and answer Teen East Caicos; Mary Fulford, 17, Miss Teen Grand Turk; Mitiana Simons, segment, where each contestant tackled a question that displayed her charisma 16, Miss Teen Middle Caicos; Liéacha Smith, 16, Miss Teen North Caicos; and interview skills. The audience awed Joanna Previl, 17, Miss Teen Parrot at the wit in each response. Cay; Alicia Duncanson, 14, Miss Teen “We couldn’t have asked for a better Pine Cay; Uxslene Andre, 16, Miss Teen show of support from the public at Providenciales; Shanaz Gardiner, 18, our first public event. We hope to Miss Teen Salt Cay; Ludina Fulford, 16, create sophisticated and memorable Miss Teen South Caicos; and Malique experiences at all of our events,” says Ferrette, 18, Miss Teen West Caicos. MTTCO. Hosted by Mr. David Ellis and Ms. “Our aim is to set the highest
Ludina Fulford, 16, Miss Teen South Caicos
Mitiana Simons, 16, Miss Teen Middle Caicos
AICOS SUN
AUGUST 2ND – AUGUST 9TH, 2014
Mary Fulford, 17, Miss Teen Grand Turk
or Miss Teen Caicos title standard for pageantry in the Turks and Caicos Islands; one that is first of all a non-profit youth program, fair in all sense of the word, rewarding, and one that will sustain itself for years to come. Our contestants, currently called the “flawless ten” by followers on social media, are extremely intelligent, creative and very much excited to showcase skills and talent. They are putting in the time and effort to prepare them for an amazing journey. At this point we are just looking forward to the public’s support and support from potential sponsor to make this program successful.” Within 24-hours of the unveiling, the official beauty headshots for each contestant were uploaded to the organization’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, encouraging followers to vote for their favorite contestant to win the
Davetria Robinson, 16, Miss Teen East Caicos
“Miss Popularity” award and prizes. During the next several weeks, the contestants will engage in a rigorous training program and schedule of events and appearances. The contestants will complete workshops on confidence, media presentations, and interviewing skills, culture and self defense, to name but a few, and will receive training in etiquette, stage presence, poise and appearance - walking, standing, posing, sitting, turning, entering and exiting on stage and off, and speech and grammar. The ten beauties will also participate in the first ever lifestyle and fitness challenge prior to coronation night. The 1st Annual Miss Teen Turks and Caicos pageant is slated for September 27, 2014 in Providenciales, to coincide with activities planned for this year’s National Youth Day.
Joanna Previl, 17, Miss Teen Parrot Cay
Malique Ferrette, 18, Miss Teen West Caicos
Uxslene Andre, 16, Miss Teen Providenciales
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ENTERTAINMENT
‘Big Bang Theory’ contract talks stall production Brace yourselves, “Big Bang been viewers’ No. 1 comedy since Theory” fans: Production on the the 2010-2011 season, for three CBS comedy has been put on pause. more years. But according to The Warner Bros. Television, which Hollywood Reporter, which first shares a parent company with reported on the production holdup, CNN, has confirmed that because stars Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, of “ongoing contract negotiations,” Johnny Galecki, Kunal Nayyar production on “The Big Bang and Simon Helberg have yet to Theory’s” eighth season has reach a new contract deal with been postponed. It was originally WBTV. THR has heard that Cuoco, scheduled to begin on Wednesday. In March, CBS renewed “The Galecki and Parsons are seeking Big Bang Theory,” which has a sizable pay increase that would
take them from $325,000 per episode to up to $1 million per episode, in addition to having a piece of backend profits. Helberg and Nayyar are also said to be negotiating for a pay raise, while stars Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch reportedly landed a pay hike last September. It isn’t known how long the production delay will last, but CBS has already scheduled the comedy to return on September 22.
Alicia Keys announces second Jessica Alba: pregnancy I’m not
Jessica Alba on the cover of Maxim
apologizing
As she prepares for a press onslaught in support of “The Sin City: A Dame to Kill For,” 33-year-old mom, entrepreneur and actress Jessica Alba sounds like she’s steeled herself against the potential pitfalls of the spotlight. “If you put your whole identity behind this business, it’s brutal,” Alba tells Maxim in the magazine’s new cover story (via Us). “It chews you up and spits you out; it spits out a lot of people.” Though she opted not to share the all-too”personal” details of her ascent in showbiz, she did say the challenges and struggles she endured had a silver lining. “I definitely feel like I tackled something and came out the other side. Everything that led up to all this was worth it. I’m really comfortable in my own skin, and I’m not apologizing for myself,” she declared. Looking ahead, Alba says she’ll be busy with press for “Sin City” and the usual grind of running The Honest Company, her eco-friendly source for baby products, as well as mothering her two kids with hubby, Cash Warren. “We also have weekend family BBQs at home,” she added.
Sharknado 2 a runaway ratings hit
The Syfy channel’s first “Sharknado” movie last July generated buzz through social media chatter. The second movie, appropriately titled “Sharknado 2: The Second One,” used a different tactic -- getting attention through ample news coverage in the run-up to air. And it earned much higher ratings as a result. About 3.9 million viewers tuned into Wednesday’s sequel, a dramatic increase from the 1.4 million who tuned in for the original “Sharknado” last July. Syfy said the sequel ranked as its highest-rated original movie ever. The channel also called it “the most social movie on TV ever.” Twitter and other social networking sites almost certainly helped the silly sequel gain an audience: Nielsen found around 580,000 tweets related to “Sharknado 2” on Wednesday night, nearly twice as many as there were on the day the first “Sharknado” premiered. But the big difference this time around was the bounty of free publicity from news outlets, including TV shows like NBC’s “Today” show, which has the same owner as the Syfy channel. Interest in the “Sharknado” phenomenon -- if it can be called that -- was so high that the Discovery channel even bought an ad during the movie for its forthcoming “Shark Week” programming.
Alicia Keys has revealed that she is expecting her second child with husband Swizz Beatz. The singing superstar made the announcement on Wednesday night via her Twitter and Instagram pages while wishing her man a happy fourth wedding anniversary. The 33-year-old, who is already mother to Egypt Daoud Dean, three, with the hip hop star, displayed her already burgeoning bump in an accompanying picture. The R&B beauty told her fans: ‘Happy Anniversary to the love of my life @therealswizzz! And to make it even sweeter we’ve been blessed with another angel on the way! ‘You make me happier than I have ever known! Here’s to many many more years of the best parts of life!’ The loved-up image sees Alicia clutching her rotund belly while dressed beautifully in a floaty white gown, and looking towards Swizz who is sat down next to her. Alicia’s ensemble has a distinctly Grecian theme, complete with metallic detailing under the bust, while her long tresses are braided over one shoulder. Her Money In The Band companion, 35, keeps his arm protectively around while looking dapper in a white shirt and rolled-up black trousers. He also echoed her thoughts on his own social media pages. Writing: ‘Love is life & life is love and we’re so excited for another GIFT from up above. ‘Happy Anniversary my Goddess 4 years of greatness & cheers to 100 plus more inshallah @ aliciakeys’.
Already showing: Alicia Keys has revealed that she is expecting her second child with husband Swizz Beatz.
Homeless man held for stalking Rihanna at her New York pad
Kevin Mcglynn, a 53-year-old homeless man has been arrested for stalking and harassing Barbadian pop princess Rihanna at her home in New York. Mcglynn was held after allegedly being caught on surveillance video delivering sinister letters to the superstar’s plush pad on three separate occasions in July. According to court documents, Mcglynn handed the letters to one of the singer’s assistants at her SoHo apartment block. Sources indicate that the Diamonds girl was left terrified and fearing for her safety after the deliveries began at the upmarket building that has served as Rihanna’s home in the Big Apple since late last year.
Mcglynn reportedly visited the Unapologetic star’s building at 6:30 a.m. and again around midnight on July 8, returning around midday on July 11. He nevertheless remained at large until Thursday. Lawmen located him after he virtually left his calling card at the 26-year-old’s residence by dropping his benefits card – complete with his name and address – at the posh SoHo building. Mcglynn also allegedly sent at least four letters to the multiple Grammy award-winner’s palatial home in California. According to a report in the New York Daily News, the criminal complaint says he “repeatedly called her a b***h,” and threatened to “bum in her apartment” in his
messages. At his arraignment hearing at Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday, Assistant District Attorney James Vinocur said: “The nature of these letters (is) confusing. They all do indicate a personal relationship, as I indicated before, that simply does not exist.” Mcglynn, who has been busted at least a dozen times, four of which were for trespassing, also claimed that Rihanna, Jay Z and Kanye West had ripped off “my material.” He also shouted “You are lying” at Judge Abraham Clott when he was told he would not be allowed to represent himself. He was ordered held without bail.
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ENTERTAINMENT
Ding, ding: An eye witness told one newspaper that there was more than one punch thrown between Lord Of The Rings actor Orlando Bloom (left) and pop singer Justin Bieber (right) .
Aerial view of Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch.
MJ’s Neverland may hit the real estate market
Los Angeles – Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch could be put up for sale, according to the investment company that owns a controlling interest in the estate. The 2,700-acre property, nestled in the rolling hills and cattle ranches of Santa Barbara County, California, was Jackson’s refuge from the world from 1988 until he essentially abandoned it after he was acquitted on child molestation charges in 2005. The zoo and amusement park rides, including a Ferris wheel and a railroad, are long gone, but Neverland remains an important pilgrimage for die hard Jackson fans from around the world. A constant flow of flowers, cards and gifts are left at the closed gate. Tom Barrack’s Colony Capital got a major stake in property when it bailed Jackson out of financial trouble in 2008, a year before the singer died while preparing for a comeback concert tour. Barrack “is considering”
selling he rural property, which owners of Neverland will respect is surrounded by rolling hills and the historical importance and cattle ranches, but it has not yet special nature of this wonderful been listed for sale, according to property,” the Jackson estate said. Owen Blicksilver, the spokesman “Michael’s memory lives on in the hearts of his fans worldwide.” for Colony Capital. While Jackson vowed in his last Jackson’s estate still owns a minority interest in Neverland, years to never return to Neverland, but there is no indication from its some of his family members executors that they are considering pushed for his burial there after buying out Colony Capital’s stake his sudden death on June 25, 2009. He was finally entombed at Forest to preserve it. “We are saddened at the prospect Lawn in Glendale, California. Jackson was close to losing the of the sale of Neverland which, under the agreement negotiated land in 2008 when Barrack agreed during Michael’s lifetime, Colony to put up a reported $35 million to has the right to sell,” the Jackson pay the mortgage and help fund estate said in a written statement the entertainer’s lifestyle. The deal gave Barrack’s Colony Capital Thursday. The estate’s statement said it control of the property. Jackson’s death from an would “maintain Michael’s family home in Encino, including its overdose of a surgical anesthetic during preparations iconic recording studio there,” as came part of his legacy. It also pointed for his “This Is It” tour set to to other legacy projects such as debut in London in July, which Cirque du Soleil’s Michael Jackson Jackson hoped would revive his performance career and restore is ONE show in Las Vegas. “We hope and trust that any new wealth.
Orlando Bloom was cheered on as he threw punches at Justin Bieber
The eyewitness who took a video of Orlando Bloom throwing a punch at Justin Bieber has said that it wasn’t their only scuffle on the night - and that the actor was being cheered on by his A-list pals at the time. Former Spanish journalist Anastasia Skolkova was quick to share her video of the fight, which took place at Cipriana restaurant in Ibiza on Wednesday night, using Twitter and Facebook. But she told The Mirror, that the Pirates of The Caribbean actor threw more than one punch at pop singer Justin, much to the delight of fellow diners, which happened to include Leonardo DiCaprio, Lindsay Lohan and P Diddy on the night. The eyewitness remembers the Baby singer provoking the first punch. ‘Justin said something when he came in which was aimed at Orlando, who then jumped onto a sofa to try and get at Justin.’ she recalls. She added to the Daily Mirror: ‘When Orlando punched Bieber, everyone started clapping. Lindsay was laughing. It was amazing. The whole table he and DiCaprio were on were clapping. Afterwards, I don’t know if people were congratulating Orlando or trying to calm him down. ‘When security saw that when they got separated, Bieber and Orlando tried to punch each other again, security were like, ‘Bieber came, Bieber provoked this fight’, so they took his hands behind his back and took him away from the restaurant.’ Anastasia, who was sitting next to Orlando’s table where he dined with actor Leonardo Dicaprio before the fight broke out, filmed Bieber allegedly yelling, ‘What’s up, b***?’ to Bloom in the video. She said: ‘There were actually two moments when it turned violent, it wasn’t just the one punch thrown.’
Jay Z’s desperate bid to save marriage by whisking Beyoncé away on a romantic five-week retreat to win her back
1. Lucy (R) Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman 2. Hercules (PG-13) Dwayne Johnson, John Hurt 3. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (PG-13) Gary Oldman, 4. The Purge: Anarchy (R) Frank Grillo, Carmen Ejogo 5. Planes: Fire and Rescue (PG) animated 6. Sex Tape (R) Jason Segel, Cameron Diaz 7. Transformers: Age of Extinction (PG-13) 8. And So It Goes (PG-13) Michael Douglas 9. Tammy (R) Melissa McCarthy, Susan Sarandon 10. A Most Wanted Man (R) Grigoriy Dobrygin
marriage - it’s throwing away a brand. strife. At their concert at Seattle’s Safeco But it may be that Bey has just had enough. She has some trust issues with Field last week, she once more changed the lyrics to her 2006 song, Resentment Jay.’ The couple are currently on the West –and was clearly seen without a wedding Coast on their On The Run Tour, from band. During the song, which is about a which they stand to earn up to $120 cheating scandal, she altered the track million. The source said their marriage has to reflect the current length of her not been the same since they became romance with the rapper, singing: ‘Been parents and settled down to family life ridin’ with you for twelve years. Why did with their daughter, now two. The stress I deserve to be treated this way by you?’ The original lyric should read: ‘’Been is said to have led them to a point where Beyoncé yet again hinted at marital ridin’ with you for six years.’
1. MAGIC! “Rude” 2. Iggy Azalea feat. Charli XCX “Fancy” 3. Sam Smith “Stay With Me” 4. Ariana Grande feat. Iggy Azalea “Problem” 5. Nico & Vinz “Am I Wrong?” 6. John Legend “All of Me” 7. Maroon 5 “Maps” 8. Jason Derulo feat. Snoop Dogg “Wiggle” 9. Disclosure feat. Sam Smith “Settle” 10. Calvin Harris “Summer”
TOP 10 MUSIC ALBUMS
to persuade Beyoncé - who is now looking at apartments in both New York AND LA - to join him, saying: ‘Jay wants to save the marriage, they have their final US tour date in San Francisco on August 6 and then they have two dates in Paris from September 12 - that’s it. ‘He adores his daughter Blue Ivy and he wants a sibling for her, but Beyoncé isn’t sure what she wants to do - their marriage is in flux, that’s the truth. Jay just wants them to spend some time alone together to try and work it out. ‘And it’s not just throwing away a
TOP 10 MUSIC SINGLES
TOP 10 MOVIES
They are the billion dollar couple whose marriage has been a carefully orchestrated affair - even down to the announcement of their first child live on TV. But as rumours continue to swirl surrounding an impending split between Jay Z and Beyoncé, sources tell MailOnline the rapper is desperate to save his marriage and plans to whisk his superstar wife away on a five-week ‘make or break’ vacation in between their final tour dates. A source revealed that Jay Z is trying
1. Weird Al Yankovic “Mandatory Fun” 2. Jason Mraz “Yes!” 3. Rise Against “The Black Market” 4. Kidz Bop Kids “Kidz Bop 26” 5. Soundtrack “Frozen” 6. Sam Smith “In the Lonely Hour” 7. Ed Sheeran “X” 8. Various Artists “Now 50” 9. Trey Songz “Trigga” 10. Blake Shelton “Based on a True Story”
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GILLEY’S ENTERPRISES
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Imperial Dry Cleaning Seeks
Bookkeeper Candidate must have at least five years experience In accounting or business administration, or equivalent business experience, as well as knowledge of bookkeeping and generally accepted accounting principles. Salary based on experience Contact: PO Box 270, 101 Governor’s Road, Leeward, Providenciales Belongers need only apply
Assistant Facilities Manager Assistant Facilities Manager
Position: Finance Assistant Assistant Facilities Manager Location: Cheshire Centre, Providenciales TCI Catering/Administration an InterHealth Canada seeks an Assistant Facilities Manager to manage Catering/Administration andInterHealth Helpdesk Services CanadaHall seeks at Medical an Assistant Facilities Manager to manage
InterHealth Canada seeks an Assistant Facilities Manager to manage Catering/ Cheshire Hall Medical Centre. Administration and Helpdesk Services at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre. Base Requirements: Base Requirements: Qualifications: Qualifications: (a) In Facilities management or similar acceptable discipline. (a) In Facilities(b)management or similar Health acceptable discipline. NEBOSH advanced and Safety (or equivalent) (c) Qualification in Catering. (b) NEBOSH advanced Health and Safety (or equivalent) (d)in Catering. Advanced food hygiene certificate or equivalent. (c) Qualification IT literate – proficient in excel and word. (d) Advanced (e) food hygiene certificate or equivalent. (e) Experience: IT literate – proficient in excel and word.
Cheshire Hall Medical Centre.
Job Summary: The Finance Assistant is responsible for assisting the Finance Manager in Base Requirements: planning, developing and monitoring all financial activities for the Hospitals at Providenciales Qualifications: and Grand Turk,(a) including budgeting, cost accounting, financial planning, In Facilities management or similar acceptable discipline. financial analysis (b) NEBOSH advanced Health and Safety (or equivalent) and reporting, annual and special audits. (c) Qualification in Catering. (d) Advanced food hygiene certificate or equivalent. (e) IT literate – proficient in excel and word. Responsibilities:
Additional • Timely preparation of payroll in accordance with government and company policies. Experience: (a) 5 year proven operational soft services management experience with a catering back ground. 5 year proven operational soft services experience with a catering back ground. • Maintain all (a) payroll related records and reconcile the management necessary GL Accounts. Experience: (b) Experience in managing a large and diverse workforce across a number of specialties (b) Experience in managing a large and diverse workforce across a number of specialties (a) 5 year proven operational soft services management experience with a catering back ground. • Assist Deputy Finance Manager with the preparation of audit schedules for the external (c) Management and administration of soft FM services with an emphasis on compliance and performance monitoring (c) Management and administration of soft FM services with an emphasis on compliance and per (b) Experience in managing a large and diverse workforce across a number of specialties audit. (d) Experience quality accreditation ISO or equivalent. (d) Experience quality accreditation ISO or equivalent. (c) Management administration FM servicesconditions, with an emphasis compliance and and other relevant legislation. (e) Sound knowledge of employment conditions, hygiene, health and safety and other relevant le (e) and Sound knowledgeofofsoft employment hygiene,on health and safety • Reconciliation and maintenance of all external supplier accounts. performance monitoring (f) Management of Healthcare service contracts essential, including catering management. Management of Healthcare service contracts essential, including catering management. • Receive and(f)process the payment of all supplier invoices while ensuring all requisite (d) Experience(g)quality equivalent. Ableaccreditation to manage, ISO leador and motivate a team of staff to a high level of performance and have excellent interpersonal (g) Ableskills. to manage, lead and motivate a team of staff to a high level of performance and have exc conditions for(h)payment been met. (e) Sound knowledge of employment conditions, hygiene, health and safetyofand othermulti relevant (h) Budget accountability essential including management a large tasked team. Budgethave accountability essential including management of a large multi tasked team. legislation. • Assist with the preparation of the monthly Financial Statements. Role: Role: (f) Management of Healthcare service contracts essential, including catering management. with the inventory Reporting to the General Manager this role carries professional responsibility for a range •ofAssist services provided Reporting at Turkscounts. to the General Manager this role carries professional responsibility for a range of (g) Able to manage,and leadCaicos and motivate of staff to awill highmanage level of performance and havestaff associated with Islandsa team hospital. You directly employed Catering/Helpdesk Caicos and sales Islands You will manage directly employed staff associated with • Reconciliation ofand the daily and hospital. cash receipts. excellent interpersonal skills. Administration services and actively review and improve all services within your remit Administration services and actively review and improve all services within your remit • Liaise with internal and external customers and suppliers when necessary to facilitate the (h) Budget accountability includingallmanagement a large multirelevant tasked team. These essential services include Health and of Safety issues to the services provided and to ensure compliance Thesewith services include all Health and Safety issues relevant to the services provided and to efficient and effective operation of (UK the &Finance current legislation (UK & TCI). current legislation TCI). Department. Role: Other: Other: • Preparation and maintenance of General Ledger journals vouchers. Reporting to the General Manager this role carries professional responsibility for a range of services (a) Based at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre on Providenciales but may be required to travel• Prepare to Cockburn (a) townBased medical at Cheshire Medical Centre on Providenciales but may be required to travel to all statutory payments on Hall a monthly basis. provided at Turks and Caicos Islands hospital. willrequire manage directly employed associated Centre. Work at Grand TurkYou may stays on island of onestaff or more days, including occasional weekends. Centre. Work at Grand Turk may require stays on island of one or more days, including occasi • Assist with the Finance Manager with the regular monitoring of the Hospital’s internal with Catering/Helpdesk and Administration services and actively review and improve all services within your remit. These services include all Health and Safety issues relevant to the services controls. provided and to ensure compliance with Qualified current legislation (UK &will TCI).be given first consideration. Belongers Belongers will be given first consideration. • Any other duties as assigned by theQualified supervisors. Other: Requirements and Experiences: Salary: Negotiable, commensurate qualifications and be experience. Salary: Negotiable, commensurate with qualifications and experience. (a) Based at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre onwith Providenciales but may required to travel to Cockburn • A bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance or related field is required. town medical Centre. Work at Grand Turk may require stays on island of one or more days, including Apply in writing together with an up to date curriculum vitae to: m.dawtry@interhealthcanada.tc Apply in writing together with an up to date curriculum vitae to: m.dawtry@interhealthcanada.tc occasional weekends. • Three (3) years accounting or finance experience in a similar capacity. Informal enquires or further information: m.dawtry@interhealthcanada.tc Informal enquires or further information: m.dawtry@interhealthcanada.tc Qualified Belongers will be given first consideration. CLOSING DATE: 31st August 2014 Salary: Negotiable, commensurate with qualifications and experience. .
Apply in writing together with an up to date curriculum vitae to: m.dawtry@interhealthcanada.tc Informal enquires or further information: m.dawtry@interhealthcanada.tc CLOSING DATE: 31st August 2014
CLOSING DATE: 31st August 2014 .
JOB DESCRIPTION PROVIDED UPON REQUEST. SALARY RANGE: based upon experience.
Submit resumes and references to: Recruitment@interhealthcanada.tc Deadline for applications: Friday 15th August 2014
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Seven Stars is seeking suitably qualified candidates to fill the positions outlined below. The ideal candidate must possess experience in a luxury resort environment, as well as a professional, outgoing and friendly demeanor with a strong command of the English language (oral and written). Salary is based on education, experience and qualifications.
GUEST SERVICE AGENT
At Seven Stars Resort, the Guest Service Agent sets the tone for the guest experience. In addition to checking in guests, our GSA’s establish a welcoming environment and reflect the true sense of service that is expected at our resort. Individuals in this position are responsible for: • Welcoming our guests in a professional and friendly manner • Engaging our guests and ensuring they begin their stay with an outstanding experience • Responding to guests requests, queries and needs in a timely fashion • Thanking our customers for staying with us and being available to assist with their every need • Maintaining a pleasant demeanor and a warm smile and showing a sense of appreciation • Confirming guest arrival details, assigning guest suites, providing tours of the property, and ensuring guest requests are fulfilled • Following up on guest requests and following through on service delivery. • Staying knowledgeable of resort rooms, products and services, food and beverage and local attractions, activities and information. • Performing at a high standard and contributing to team success. JOB REQUIREMENTS: • Previous front desk experience in a fast-paced five star resort environment. • Candidates must possess outstanding customer service and interpersonal communication skills, excellent grooming, and customer complaint resolution skills. • Excellent follow through and the ability to accurately record information is essential. • A keen eye for detail and a strong working knowledge of Visual One is essential. This is a people oriented position and interested candidates must have a demonstrated interest in customer service. If you have an upbeat, outgoing personality with a great smile, you are encouraged to apply. All candidates must be fluent in English and available to work a rotating and flexible schedule. A clean police record and professional references is required.
FRONT OFFICE TEAM LEADER
The Front Office Team Leader has to ensure and control the smooth and efficient day-to-day operation of the Front Desk, adhering to all Company policies whilst maintaining and increase guest as well as employee satisfaction. Individuals in this position are responsible for: • Always put guests ‘first’, trying to meet and exceed their expectations and needs. • Create a welcoming atmosphere for the guests. • Greet and welcome all guests. • Repeatedly address all guests by their name, once it has been established. • Always display a caring, responsive and professional attitude. • Exercise judgement in handling guest complaints, and taking corrective action • Answer all guest queries in the most professional manner with regard to facilities, services and other features of Seven Stars Resort • Manage the Front Desk on a daily basis, controlling the day’s availability of rooms and achieving maximum occupancy and revenue. • Be familiar with and maintain the department’s Minimum Operating Standards as well as the Standard Operating Procedures. • Brief the team at the beginning of each shift about the reservation situation, any special arrivals, VIPs, special occasions, and functions in the hotel. • Report any deviations from the Hotel’s set standards of performance, operating procedures and job descriptions by any member of the team to the Rooms Division Manager • Supervise the Guest Service Agents in their work, ensuring maximum performance, good time keeping and conduct. • Maximise the Front Desk’s productivity through organisation and delegation of duties to GSA’s • Ensure that delegated duties are being completed in accordance with Company policies and operating procedures. To initialise corrective action when necessary. • Ensure adequate coverage of the Front Desk at all times, organising employee breaks and meal periods. • Identify training needs, communicate them to the Departmental Trainer/Rooms Division Manager and take corrective action when necessary. JOB REQUIREMENTS: • Previous hotel reception experience is required at a minimum of supervisor level in a 100 plus bedroom hotel or resort and you will be looking for a bigger challenge. • In your current role you will have experience of leading and motivating your team in a positive way and be able to demonstrate how you do this currently. • Excellent follow through and the ability to accurately record information is essential. • A keen eye for detail and a strong working knowledge of Visual One is preferred. This is a people oriented position and interested candidates must have a demonstrated interest in customer service. If you have an upbeat, outgoing personality, you are encouraged to apply. All candidates must be fluent in English and available to work a rotating and flexible schedule. A clean police record and professional references is required.
The Duty Manager role is an important function for the resort and it provides 24hour coverage for our guests. The selected individual will assist with ensuring the smooth operation of the resort. In the absence of department heads and/or executive management, the DM upholds quality standards, resolves guest and employee issues, complaints and conflicts, and enforces policies and procedures. The successful candidate will: • Maximize hotel occupancy, total revenue and average rate, as well as minimize guest complaints. • Assist with the preparation of work schedules. • Develop and facilitate training programs for front office staff. • Handle emergency situations and ensure staffs are conversant in all emergency and fire procedures. • Assess and promptly address guest problems, complaints or situations, and ensure the best possible satisfaction is delivered to our guests. • Maintain the confidentiality and discretion of all guests. • Keep up-to-date knowledge of local activities, events, entertainment, etc. • Maintain a Duty Manager Log Book, reviewing notes from preceding shift and taking necessary action where necessary. • Monitor VIP guest room checks and take appropriate action where necessary, i.e. repairs, etc. • Tour the property daily, including lobbies and public areas, pool, staff canteen, kitchen, garage areas, all food & beverage outlets, Front Office, etc., making note of areas requiring attention and taking action where appropriate. • In the absence of Senior Management, the Duty Manager assists departments with monitoring employees, resolving problems, and lending additional assistance where short-handed. • Maintain knowledge of in-house groups, conventions, tours, corporate business, etc. Oversees the handling of VIP Guest Services. • Prepares reports and handles special projects JOB REQUIREMENTS: • Minimum 3 years demonstrated supervisory success. • Any combination of education/luxury resort experience that will provide required knowledge, skill and ability to perform this job successfully. • Friendly demeanor with excellent interpersonal and communication skills. • Ability to multi task in a busy environment with minimal supervision. • Ability to speak read and write fluently in the English language. • Ability to work flexible schedule including early mornings, late evenings, weekends and holidays. • Clean police record and professional references required.
EVENT SALES MANAGER
Reporting directly to the Sales and Marketing Director, the Event Sales Manager will be responsible for the sale, organization and execution of all events and banquets at the Seven Stars Resort ensuring guest service and financial goals are met or exceeded. Flexibility to work long hours as business demands. JOB REQUIREMENTS: • Responsible for the sale and management of all events and banqueting for the resort and meeting targets as set by the resort • Degree in Event Management or equivalent qualification • Minimum of 5 years proven experience working in events in the following sectors; weddings, corporate, banqueting, meetings, fundraising • Minimum of 2 years proven experience working with events within a luxury resort • Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office, Agilysys Visual One and Infogenisis POS Systems • Demonstrated ability to work with and engage multicultural/ multi-ethnic teams and guests • Strong verbal and written communication skills, excellent command of the English language • Pleasant, outgoing personality with the ability to handle the pressure of a fastpaced environment. • Quality oriented with focus on details and high performance standards. • Flexibility to work evenings and weekend. In addition, we are also currently recruiting for the following: • Houseman • Cook • Room Attendant • Inventory Controller • Chef De Tourmant • Housekeeper Attendant
Closing Date: August 15, 2014 Suitably qualified candidates should apply via e-mail to Seven Stars Resort at hr@sevenstarsgracebay.com for consideration. Candidates must possess relevant skills, experience, and a clean police record.
FRONT OFFICE DUTY MANAGER ONLY CANDIDATES MEETING MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS WILL BE CONTACTED.
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NEWS
Bahamas, Haiti sign trade, migrant agreements
NASSAU, Bahamas – The Bahamas government last Tuesday signed three agreements with the Haitian government intended to further trade development between both countries and lead to a decrease in illegal migration. Prime Minister Perry Christie said it was an historic day. The agreements include a framework for bilateral cooperation, an agreement on trade and technical cooperation in agriculture and fisheries and an agreement on the promotion and protection of investments. Both Christie and Haitian President Michel Martelly said the agreements could represent a shift in the migration issue that The Bahamas has struggled with for decades. “It’s been a great day, a historic day in terms of signing these agreements,” said Christie following talks with the Haitian delegation. “I think Bahamians can look forward to a much more shared approach to not only protecting our borders, but also to Haitian President Michel Martelly paid a courtesy call on members of the official opposition in the our respective economies,” Christie said. Minority Room of the House of Assembly on Tuesday. Martelly (left) greets Opposition Leader Dr Hubert “We have extended these agreements Minnis. to ensure that they covered a number of subjects. One of them is that we have promoted in each country. matter of fact, it is happening today.” approved... the import of agricultural Martelly said he hopes that aspects He said the government is committed goods from Haiti, which is a major step to improving its relations with Haiti. of the trade agreements would take because as Bahamians would know we Martelly said the agreements would immediate effect. would take the same goods grown in ultimately impact the level of migration. The Bahamas has a large Haitian Haiti and import them via the United “We are doing something tremendous,” population. States of America. The illegal immigration issue remains he said. “Immigration has been an issue “Now we have been able to enter into for the last decades. a pressing concern for Bahamians. direct relations with that.” Illegal immigrants continue to “So we could have claimed that it is an With respect to trade and investment, inherited issue and distanced ourselves. strain social services resources and the Christie said the government has agreed We have done otherwise. We have been government spends at least $1 million to ensure that bilateral investments are determined to tackle this issue. As a every year to repatriate Haitians.
House Speaker denies kicking journalist out of parliament ROSEAU – Speaker of the house, Alix Boyd-Knights, is strongly denying that a journalist was kicked out of the House of Assembly on her instructions. Addressing the house on Tuesday, she described the matter as a total lie and misrepresentation of what actually occurred. “Nobody put him out, that is a total lie and a misrepresentation of what happened,” she stated. Editor of the Sun Newspaper, Charles James, is saying that he was unceremoniously excluded “from observing, reporting and photographing the proceedings of the Opening of Parliament on July 23rd, 2014.” In a letter to the clerk of the house, James said as main photographer of the newspaper he was taking photos of president Charles Savarin as he addressed parliament for the first time. He
was then told by a police officer, Inspector Ulando Cuffy, that he was not allowed to do so and he inquired who told to give such instructions. “I packed my equipment and sat near a cameraman of the Government Information Service who was video-recording the proceedings of Parliament for broadcast,” James wrote. “I then saw Mr Cuffy talking to the Honourable Speaker of the House of Assembly, Alix BoydKnights. Shortly afterwards, Mr Cuffy came to me and told me I had to leave the chair on which I was seated. I asked whether I could leave via a door a few feet away from where I was sitting. He responded by ordering me to walk through the gallery in full view of all the attendees of the meeting of Parliament.” James said he has been
taking photos of the opening of parliament for two decades and is not aware that taking photos or reporting “has been restricted to certain government affiliated media houses.” He further stated that a letter inviting the Sun to parliament clearly stated that arrangements were being made to accommodate a reporter and a dress code was pointed out which “also applies to camera crew.” “I can also assure you that my conduct was not in any manner disorderly or disruptive to the proceedings,” he wrote to the clerk. But Boyd-Knights said there are certain rules which must be followed when it comes to house proceedings. “People cannot just do what they want,” she stated. “There are rules and all of us must obey the rules.”
Tax not a fix for Barbados’ economy says expert Govt advised to reflect on decision A Barbadian-born British-based business development expert is advising Government that taxation is counter-productive and will not be the fix for an ailing economy. Speaking against the background of the public outcry against the controversial Municipal Solid Waste Tax, chief executive officer of Summerwood Limited, Phil Walker, said the powers that be should take another look at the increased tax burdens on Barbadians. “I’m aware of the recent tax rise and the outcry that it has caused. I think politicians might have to sit down and reflect and ask the question, ‘is this an effective way of trying to address the issue that pertains to the local economy?’” Walker told the media on the sideline of the monthly business luncheon of the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) at Hilton Barbados today. He suggested that Barbadian policymakers should examine the Lather Effect, which shows that when taxation got too high, revenue collected decreased. “People are talking about this in the US, people are talking about it in Europe. What is the appropriate level of taxation that encourages people to pay tax, that encourages the wealthy to pay their fair share of tax as opposed to putting their money in offshore accounts and devising schemes to avoid taxes in the first place?” Walker said. He suggested investment in infrastructure, roads and buildings. “If you look at the 1930s recession in America. How did they get out of that recession? The irony is, they invested,” he said.
Poverty falls from 42.2% to 36.2%: Official study Santo Domingo – Dominican Republic cut its poverty rate from 42.2% in 2012 to 36.2% in March 2014, says an Economy Ministry study. Economy minister Temistocles Montas said the reduction means that 534,139 people are outside that condition and 240,205 left extreme poverty behind. The study “Updated official estimates of monetary poverty in the Dominican Republic” says 4.25 million people were in general poverty in September 2012, of which 1.2 million were in extreme poverty. Montas said the sharpest fall in general poverty occurred in March this year, when it stood at 3.7 million people, or 36.2%, and only 881,437 in extreme poverty were, or 8.6%.
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CARIBBEAN NEWS
Jamaican-born, Toronto multi-millionaire philanthropist passes on TORONTO, Canada – He’s been named among the most ‘Outstanding Philanthropist’ by the Toronto chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, having donated upwards of $200 million. Last Sunday morning, the Jamaican-born, Toronto-based businessman and philanthropist breathed his last breath. G. Raymond Chang, OJ, OC, the founder of CI Financial, now the second largest publicly traded fund company in Canada, passed away at his home in Canada on July 27th according to Jamaica media reports, after struggling with an illness. He was 65. Chang was born in Kingston, Jamaica of Chinese parents and immigrated to
The late G Raymond Chang Canada in 1967. He earned an engineering degree from the University of Toronto and
went on to earn his qualifications as a holding company, G. Raymond Chang Chartered Accountant and Chartered Ltd., and founded software firm Mercatus Financial Analyst and pursued a career Technologies Inc. and was also a in finance. He worked for Coopers & shareholder and board member of various Lybrand until 1984 when he joined CI other Canadian and Jamaican companies. Over the years Chang has Financial as Vice-President and Chief anonymously donated millions to health Operating Officer. He was promoted to COO and and education. He donated a million here President in 1996, becoming President or there to the Royal Ontario Museum, and CEO in 1998 and then Chairman and his alma mater high school, the St. CEO from 1999 to 2010 but remained a George’s College, an institution founded by the Jesuits in Kingston, Jamaica and Director on the CI Board. Chang oversaw the company’s growth the University of the West Indies. As he told the Toronto Star in 2011: from a small money manager with $5 million in assets to Canada’s second- ““It’s not about the recognition. I really largest fund company, with more than am not doing anything different than my grandfather, or father who always gave $92 billion in fee-earning assets. Chang also owned an investment back”.
Caribbean leaders speak on Owen Arthur’s resignation
Two Caribbean leaders have expressed surprise at Owen Arthur’s decision to end his 43-year relationship with the Barbados Labour Party (BLP), with one suggesting that he still has more to offer Barbados. Baldwin Spencer, who was recently removed from office in Antigua and Barbuda after serving two consecutive terms as prime minister, told Barbados TODAY he believed something of a “deeper nature between the current leader and the former leader” must have influenced Arthur’s decision to severe his relationship with the BLP. “I would want to believe it wasn’t an easy decision. I would want to believe that he would have taken some time to reflect upon this and to have come to a conclusion that under the set of circumstances that he would have had to contend with over the past years that this might be the best way to go,” he said. “I would imagine that this might have been somewhat of a painful decision for someone who has been with that party for over 40 years. It’s not easy to make that kind of break, especially in a situation where you would have served as the longest prime minister under the banner of the BLP, and he would have also led the party in opposition on at least two occasions.” Last Friday, Arthur handed in a one-line resignation letter to the BLP, an institution he once headed for 17 years. He retains his St Peter seat in Parliament as representative for St
Owen Arthur Peter, but he will sit as an Independent MP. The former BLP leader, who has been publicly at odds with Mottley, told journalists that the party had lost its direction and its soul. Spencer said he has not sure whether this could signal “the beginning of the end of his direct political career”. “Owen Arthur would have made a tremendous contribution to the development of Barbados. He would have influenced the direction which the Caribbean has been going and also defended it and would have supported fully the interest of the Caribbean in the international arena,” he noted. “I would hope that his decision is one that would be of benefit to Barbados,
not so much from the party political stand point, but from what he may be able to inject from where he sits in Parliament, what he may be able to inject . . . to the governance of Barbados and, by extension, what it might signal for the rest of the Caribbean.” While noting that Arthur and Mottley were a good “tag team” during the BLP’s time in Government, the Antigua and Barbuda official said he was also aware of the friction between the two. Asked his advice to Arthur and Mottley, Spencer responded: “I would hope that he [Arthur] would use the opportunity to make his contribution both in and outside the Assembly of Barbados in advancing the cause of Barbados and by so doing extend that to the region. I don’t think that it would be any kind of rejoicing on her [Mottley] part. I don’t think this should be reason to create further dissension and further misgivings and disunity within the BLP.” Meantime, in a short statement to Barbados TODAY on the issue Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis Dr Denzil Douglas said: “It’s difficult to contemplate that former Prime Minister Arthur would leave a party that he has nurtured, a party of which he has been a member for all of these year.” Douglas said he could not comment any more on the issue in light of ongoing problems within his own St Kitts and Nevis Labour Party.
Defendants in Jamaican lottery scam case reach plea deal with US authorities
FARGO, North Dakota — The first plea agreements have been reached in a wide-ranging federal investigation into a Jamaican lottery scam targeting mostly elderly victims in the United States, including one woman from North Dakota who agreed to empty her savings account and then take out a loan on a life insurance policy. More than two-dozen people have been indicted in the case, including some who will likely go to trial. Prosecutors say the defendants
induced people to send millions of dollars to them to cover fees for lottery winnings. US Attorney Timothy Purdon would not comment specifically on the case, but said people should be on guard and discuss possible scams with elderly family members. “Again, North Dakotans and others need to understand that if they get a phone call telling them that they won a lottery they didn’t enter, hang up. It’s a scam,” Purdon said.
A spokesman with the federal public defender’s office in North and South Dakota was not immediately available for comment. Jamaican lottery schemes have been happening for many years. The Jamaican and US governments set up a task force in 2009 to stop the scams, but the problem has gotten worse, prosecutors say. The case being investigated in North Dakota was unsealed in March 2013 with 15 indictments.
Dominican officials destroy 2,000 seized guns SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – Authorities destroyed roughly 2,000 firearms Monday and plan to use the mangled metal to build a monument promoting peace. The Dominican Republic’s attorney general, Francisco Dominguez, and other officials gathered in the capital of Santo Domingo to watch a steamroller destroy the haul of guns seized by police over the years. The metal from the destroyed weapons will be given to sculptor Jose Ignacio Morales, who has been commissioned to build a peace memorial. It’s not yet clear where the sculpture will be located or when it will be completed. In recent years, some 70 percent of the Caribbean country’s nearly 2,000 annual killings have been carried out with guns, most of them illegal. Police and interior ministry officials estimate there are roughly 200,000 guns in the nation of more than 10 million people.
Up to 200 Haitians crossing border daily
Santo Domingo – Army Intelligence director Carlos Aguirre affirmed Wednesday that the 42 border checkpoints halt as many as 200 Haitians who try to enter Dominican territory illegal each day. He said the undocumented immigrants try to reach “economically active cities” such as Santo Domingo, Santiago and Puerto Plata. Aguirre also revealed that as many as 12 guns are seized at the checkpoints each month. “Weapons are an easy device to hide inside a vehicle. We’re instructing our staff to be aware of which are the places to most easily hide them.” Security cameras monitored from Santo Domingo have been installed along the border’s 42 checkpoints.
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Barbados opposition leader calls for Caribbean parliamentary reform BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – Opposition leader Mia Mottley has called for parliamentary reform throughout the region, as members of the Caribbean, Americas and the Atlantic region of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association opened their 39th regional conference last Monday. Mottley told the gathering there is need for change, as the same topics are being discussed at successive conferences. “It begs the question how did we get here? How do those who have responsibility for the passage of laws,
for the governance of the country… find themselves in a situation where the same things are said year after year after year,” she said. Mottley said unless parliamentarians recognize the need for urgent reform “particularly in the Caribbean Commonwealth departments, and treat it as a regional project, we will meet five years hence, ten years hence, and be saying the same thing yet again.” She added that while parliamentarians create the forum for debate and shared perspectives, the majority of the population does not
understand or think about what laws are passed until months after when the laws impact them. “And therefore those of us who sit in parliament sometimes believe that silence is consent until the impact hits the population as we have seen recently here,” she said, referring to recent protests against the newly implemented controversial Municipal Solid Waste Tax. The former attorney general called for more engagement of the public, stating that “the interest in the business of legislatures has declined substantially”.
Trinidad, Haiti sign energy trade agreement PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – A memorandum of understanding (MOU) on energy cooperation between Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti was signed on Monday in Port of Spain. The MOU, as outlined by the ministry of energy and energy affairs director of legal, Indra Ramkisson, provides for cooperative initiatives in energy, energy security and energy exploration. It also outlined specific projects and is for an initial period of ten years the option for five year renewals as well as the establishment of a task force to push the initiatives forward, Energy and energy affairs minister, Kevin Ramnarine, noted that the MOU covers the National Gas Company, Petrotrin and National Energy and will provide for the supply LPG, lubricants and other oil products to Haiti. Prime Minister Kamla PersadBissessar and Haiti’s President Michel Martelly were on hand at the signing ceremony as both heads of government had attended the CARICOM-Japan summit earlier in the day. Persad-Bissessar noted, “For us in Trinidad and Tobago it means a lot. We are very happy that you have sought our energy products rather than from outside.” She added that initiative would provide jobs for many people in Trinidad, while generating revenue. Martelly noted that he was “enthusiastic at getting your
Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar and President Michel Martelly products at a better price than elsewhere” and added that, while there was a good relationship between TT and Haiti, “a concrete project like this one was missing”. He said that the MOU would allow Haiti “to build and manage infrastructure and port facilities, facilitate re-establishment of distribution channels, facilitate oil exploration and research”. National Petroleum (NP) chairman Neil Gosine, who was also at the signing ceremony, said NP is intending to brand nine independent stations in Haiti with the NP brand, fast track this branding process within six to nine months, establish a market for Petrotrin products as well as establish a subsidiary company on
the island and a NP office in Haiti. He said a feasibility study had been conducted for the Implementation and operationalisation of the branding of the independent stations. There would be feasibility studies for LPG, bunkering and supply of lubricants and the projects would be done with Petrotrin and NEC. Gosine added that the products would be provided under the umbrella of CARICOM therefore would be sold without duties. Petrotrin chairman, Lindsay Gillette, said Petrotrin has been working very closely with NP on this agreement, and the first shipment of 120,000 barrels of diesel would be in Haiti within the next couple of months.
“And it’s largely because we live in a world that is driven by the ease of access to information particularly through technology, and which is no longer governed by broadcasting but indeed by narrowcasting. “It means that the role and structure of our parliaments cannot be rooted in 18th or 19th century existence and we do not have to wait for the mother of our parliaments to make those defining changes, we must do it in respect of what is relevant to our own society in terms of our values and culture and the behavior of our population,” Mottley said.
Martelly laments loss of lives of Haitian immigrants Haitian President Michel Martelly yesterday lamented the loss of lives of his countrymen who try to make the treacherous journey to the Bahamas in search of a better life. He said addressing the issue is one of the reasons he is currently in the Bahamas to sign bilateral agreements with the government with the hope of creating the kind of opportunities that would improve Haiti’s economy and give Haitians a reason to remain there. His statements came a day after 50 Haitian immigrants were detained by the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) and the Department of Immigration when their sloop landed in the Marshall Road area on Monday morning. Several other Haitians believed to be on board the sloop were also apprehended yesterday. Officials suspect that some of the recent migrants have been able to evade capture by fleeing into nearby shanty towns. They were alerted to the illegal landing of the Haitian sloop around 4:30am on Monday. Mr Martelly said: “Every time a Haitian dies trying to get a better life, at the level of the state we feel like we’re responsible for not doing enough and yet we are doing enough. “After the earthquake we moved out to tents about 92 per cent of Haitians, 1.5 million people,” he said, referring to the aftermath of the catastrophic 2010 earthquake in Haiti which killed between 100,000 and 200,000 people. “Today we have about 140,000 people yet to move out of the tents. It’s a huge number but compared to what has been done, it’s very interesting. This is why we are here today.” He added that it could take several generations before significant improvements are seen in his country, progress he hopes comes from his government’s current investment in the education of toddlers.
17 cases of Chikungunya confirmed in The Bahamas
THE number of confirmed cases of the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus in the Bahamas has risen to 17, Chief Medical Officer Dr Delon Brennen said yesterday. When asked by The Tribune if officials are concerned about the rate of the spread of the virus, Dr Brennen said: “We have continued to enhance our efforts to educate and engage the Bahamian public regarding chikungunya. “Any new cases are of concern so we will continue to do what we can to halt the spread and protect the public.” The measures officials are taking to
prevent the spread of the virus include spraying and cleaning up areas around the residences of the confirmed cases as well as tackling issues around shanty towns. There have been reports that officials are targeting shanty town communities to prevent the spread of the virus. Dr Brennen said: “Our emphasis is not on clearing down shanty towns. “Instead we want all residents to be aware of the risk of breeding sites for mosquitos around their homes and when areas at risk are identified we assist
residents with clean-up of debris and water containing vessels when possible. “This is what has occurred in densely populated areas in New Providence, including areas identified as shanty towns.” Despite spreading rapidly through the Caribbean the first confirmed case of the virus in the Bahamas was diagnosed when a tourist from the Dominican Republic arrived on June 29. Several weeks ago health officials reported four new cases, with the media reporting in some instances that officials were investigating up to 60 possible
cases of the virus. Reports this week suggest up to 475,000 cases have been confirmed in the Caribbean, Latin America and the United States. The chikungunya virus is rarely fatal but causes numerous symptoms like fever, joint pain, headache and joint swelling. It is spread through bites of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the same bug that spreads the dengue fever. Residents are encouraged to use pest repellents and to wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants as protection.
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NEWs
Two former senior Murdoch editors charged over UK phone-hacking
Two more senior journalists from Rupert Murdoch’s defunct British tabloid the News of the World have been charged with phone-hacking, prosecutors said on Wednesday, weeks after the paper’s former editor was jailed for the crime. Neil Wallis, the paper’s former deputy editor, and former features editor Jules Stenson, have been charged with conspiracy to intercept voicemails on mobile phones of well-known figures or people close to them, the Crown Prosecution Service said. Andy Coulson, who edited the paper from 2003 until 2007 before working as Prime Minister David Cameron’s media chief, was jailed on July 4 for 18 months for encouraging staff to hack phones in a bid to get exclusive stories. His trial, one of the most expensive
of its kind in British legal history, heard that thousands of victims from celebrities to politicians and victims of crime were targeted by the paper. Minutes after he was convicted, Cameron apologised for employing him. Outrage at the paper’s activities forced Murdoch to close the paper in 2011 when the scale of the crimes came to light, since when dozens of reporters from his British tabloids have been arrested over allegations of criminal activity. Four other former journalists and a private detective have also admitted phone-hacking while working for the News of the World. A week ago, the CPS decided not to take action against six other staff. Prosecutors are still considering whether corporate
charges should be brought against News Corp.’s British arm, formerly known as News International (NI). “I’m devastated that more than three years after my initial arrest, this swingeing indiscriminate charge had been brought against me,” Wallis said on Twitter. “Perhaps it is inevitable that after being such an outspoken critic of the collateral damage and pain caused by this needlessly vindictive and enormously costly investigation, the ire has been turned on me for something that occurred at NI of which I knew nothing and which I have always said was wrong.” News UK, as Murdoch’s British paper business is now known, said it had no comment on the charges while Stenson could not be reached for comment.
Sierra Leone’s top Ebola doctor dies from virus Sierra Leone’s top doctor fighting an outbreak of Ebola has died from the virus, the country’s chief medical officer, Brima Kargbo, said on Tuesday. Sheik Umar Khan, who was credited with treating more than 100 patients, was infected with Ebola this month and had been moved to a treatment ward run by medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres in the far north of the country.
Ebola outbreak sparks states of emergency in Liberia Liberia and Sierra Leone have declared states of emergency, ordering the closure of schools and markets and the quarantining of affected communities, in an attempt to halt the Ebola epidemic that has claimed more than 700 lives across three west African nations. The leaders of both countries have cancelled planned trips to Washington for a US-Africa summit next week so they can meet on Friday in Conakry, the capital of Guinea, to discuss the crisis. In Nigeria, where a Liberian civil servant died of Ebola after flying to the commercial hub of Lagos, airport authorities began screening passengers for high temperatures who were arriving from places at risk. Liberia’s president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, announced the emergency measures after a closed-door meeting earlier this week in which medical officials painted a stark picture, according to an aide present at the meeting. Internal ministry of health reports obtained by the Guardian show health workers saw 606 people suspected of having the extremely contagious virus in a single day this week. In Bomi county, one of the areas recommended for quarantine, the report noted “both probable and negative cases are being held in the same room with no attention”. Health
Newspaper headlines focus on the Ebola outbreak – including ‘Burn all bodies’ – in the capital city of Monrovia, Liberia. officials there were requesting training, it added. “It’s a dire situation. The spread is overwhelming health workers and facilities. We need all the help and support we can get from the international community,” said Lewis Brown, Liberia’s information minister. He said communities hit hardest would be quarantined for as long as necessary by security forces. “It’s an emergency, so we hope people will understand.” Sierra Leone’s president, Ernest Bai Koroma, said the state of emergency
would last between 60 and 90 days. House-to-house searches to trace victims will be conducted and new atrisk neighbourhoods will be placed under quarantine if necessary. A nationwide hunt was sparked in the capital, Freetown, when a patient was forcibly removed from hospital last week. She was reported to have died while being returned to the facility in an ambulance two days later. The latest action comes as senior western officials, including from the US and UK, held meetings to assess
the risk of Ebola reaching their shores. The US has recalled its Peace Corps volunteers from the region. The measures taken are similar to those that rapidly ended a 1997 Ebola breakout in Uganda, which has sent in a medical team to help. Many rural communities view Ebola with much the same fear and misunderstanding as westerners did when the Aids epidemic began, and have sometimes attacked overstretched health officials struggling to contain the epidemic. Those on the frontlines have been among the hardest hit by the disease, which has claimed the lives of Liberia and Sierra Leone’s most experienced Ebola doctors. There are signs that some public awareness campaigns are yielding results. Doctors were forced to turn patients away at one of Liberia’s main Ebola isolation wards in a sign many were belatedly coming forward. Some residents in the capital, Monrovia, initially protested against a new ward being set up, fearing it would endanger them. Sylvia Johnson, a Monrovia resident, pulled her grandson out of summer school at the beginning of the week after seeing a government poster of graphic corpses of Ebola victims. “He cried, but no child will control me. It will be better for him to live and attend many more vacation schools than get sick from Ebola,” she said.
US warns against traveling to Ebola-hit countries NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) – U.S. health officials on Thursday warned Americans not to travel to the three African countries hit by an outbreak of Ebola, the largest on record. The travel advisory applies to nonessential travel to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. As CBS 2 reported, the outbreak in those West Africa countries has resulted in 1,300 cases and killed more than 700 people this year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the risk of the deadly disease coming to the United States
remains small. The last time the federal agency issued such a travel warning was in 2003 because of a SARS outbreak in Asia. At the White House, press secretary Josh Earnest said the U.S. is looking into Medevac options to bring two American aid workers diagnosed with Ebola back to the U.S. While the U.S. government would facilitate the response, private companies would be used. Earnest said that type of response would be consistent with how the U.S. handled other situations, including
outbreaks of SARS and drug-resistant tuberculosis, and the goal would be to ensure Americans can benefit from modern medical treatment available in the U.S. Although the CDC has concluded it’s unlikely Ebola would spread if detected in the U.S, Earnest said the CDC is alerting health care workers in the U.S. and reminding them how to isolate and deal with cases of Ebola. As CBS 2’s Dr. Max Gomez reported, some health experts say Ebola would not be as deadly in the U.S. because of
better supportive care and especially because of better isolation techniques that would limit the spread of the virus. “The particular strain of Ebola that is going through Africa right now has been reported to be killing about 60 percent of the people that are infected,” Ithaca College Biology Professor David Gondek said. The CDC has about two dozen staffers in West Africa to help try to control the outbreak. Officials announced Thursday they will send 50 more in the next month.
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WoRLD NEWs
Trial over Malaysian plane crash not likely at ICC: Dutch
The Netherlands or Malaysia are likely to try those responsible for the downing in Ukraine of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, not the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Dutch said on Wednesday. Cases are only referred to the world’s permanent war crimes court if countries involved are unable or unwilling to prosecute atrocities, Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten wrote in a letter to parliament. The Dutch are leading an international investigation into the crash and it is unlikely the
nations involved “will not be able or willing to lead the investigation and prosecution,” Opstelten wrote. Pro-Russian separatists are widely believed to have used a surface-to-air missile to shoot down the plane on July 17, killing all 298 passengers and crew. The Dutch Safety Board, which is leading the inquiry, said this week it had received a large quantity of evidence from sources outside Ukraine and will not need access to the entire crash site, now inaccessible due to fighting.
Death Toll Hits 51 From Mudslide in Indian Village
Heavy rains hampered efforts Friday by hundreds of rescue workers digging through heavy mud and debris, as the death toll from a landslide that engulfed an entire village in western India rose to 51. Rescuers are still looking for about 100 people missing and feared dead, after another 10 bodies were pulled out of the debris overnight. “We have reached the main inhabited area and are continuing efforts,” one district official, D.D. Kale, said Friday. There has been no let-up in the rain this week, he said. More than two days after the Wednesday morning landslide, authorities said the chances of survival were slim for anyone still trapped under the mud in Malin, a village of about 700 people in Pune district of Maharashtra state. Kale said the bodies of 22 women, 23 men and six children have been recovered so far. Suresh Jadhav, a district official, said about 40 homes were wiped out. Two days of torrential rains triggered the landslide and continued to pound the area as rescuers brought bodies covered in soaked white sheets to ambulances while relatives watched, weeping. Initial rescue work had been delayed by bad communications, dangerous roads and debris in the remote area.
Taiwan gas blast kills 15, injures 243: local media
An explosion caused by a gas leak in the southern Taiwanese city Kaohsiung has killed 15 people and injured another 243, Taiwanese media reported on Friday. Smoke with a “gas-like smell” was seen coming out of drains in the streets before the explosion, Formosa TV and the China Times newspaper said. The blast ignited huge fires and overturned and destroyed cars. Reuters photographs showed a scene of devastation, including the body of a dead or injured child on the ground among the rubble. Rescuers formed a chain to pull the injured from a deep crater in the road. The media said some residents described it as having felt like the area was hit by a powerful earthquake. The Kaohsiung government has set up an emergency centre, with a plan to send soldiers in to coordinate the rescue operation, the media said. The death toll was likely to rise further, they added.
Experts trying to recover remains of the victims in Ukraine were again unable to access the crash site on Wednesday due to clashes between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces, the head of the Dutch mission said. The world’s legal capital, the Netherlands is the home of several international courts, including the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal. It also hosted the trial by British judges of two Libyan secret service agents over the 1988 bombing of Pam Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.
The Netherlands, which had 195 nationals onboard the flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, has universal jurisdiction for war crimes and can prosecute suspects in other countries. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – the guardian of the Geneva Conventions setting down the rules of war – has made a confidential legal assessment that Ukraine is in a war, diplomats and officials said this month, opening the door to possible war crimes prosecutions, including over MH17.
Reports say heavy rains triggered the landslide.
Japanese schoolgirl ‘confesses’ to killing classmate
The Japanese high school girl who was arrested on Sunday has reportedly confessed to killing and dismembering her classmate, say local media. National news agency Kyodo quoted police sources as saying the girl had admitted she “wanted to kill someone” and dismember a body. The murder has made headlines in Japan which has seen a number of killings of children by children. A similar incident happened in the same city, Sasebo, 10 years ago. In the most recent case, the body of Aiwa Matsuo, 15, was found in the suspect’s home early on Sunday morning, after she failed to return home and her parents called the police, said the Asahi Shimbun newspaper. Police sources told local media the 16-year-old suspect had returned to her home, where she had been living alone since April, with the victim on Saturday night. The suspect, who cannot be named as she is a minor, had then struck the back of Matsuo’s head with a tool and strangled her with a rope in her home. Matsuo’s body was found with her head and left hand severed. Her belly was cut open. Police sources said they found a hammer and saw at the suspect’s home. She also appeared to have posted a number of messages, which include photographs of a bloody hand, on an internet bulletin board. Police are now investigating these messages which began to emerge around two hours after Matsuo was thought to have died.
California man Tom Greer shoots ‘pregnant burglar’
Authorities in California are investigating whether to press charges against an elderly man who fatally shot a suspected female burglar who said she was pregnant before he opened fire. Tom Greer, 80, shot Andrea Miller, 28, after he chased her and a male suspect from his home on Tuesday. A post-mortem examination is being conducted to determine if Miller was pregnant at the time of her death. Miller’s suspected accomplice Gus Adams, 26, has been arrested. He is being held on suspicion of burglary and felony murder for his
alleged role in the burglary that ended in Miller’s death. ‘Don’t shoot me’ “The lady didn’t run as fast as the man, so I shot her in the back twice,” Mr Greer told a local television station following the break-in. “She says, ‘Don’t shoot me, I’m pregnant... I’m going to have a baby,’ and I shot her anyway,” he added. Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell later told reporters Miller did not appear pregnant at the time of the shooting. Both Miller and Mr Adams were linked to similar crimes in the past,
Mr McDonnell added. Mr Greer is also said to have told police both suspects hit him, “body slamming” him to the floor, before he grabbed a weapon and chased them outside, shooting Miller. He had also been burgled three times before and suspected Miller and Mr Adams of being involved. Prosecutors will now determine whether Mr Greer is protected under California law, which allows homeowners to defend themselves if in imminent danger of serious injury or death.
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China says probe powerful former security chief for graft
China’s Communist Party said on Tuesday it had launched a corruption investigation into former domestic security chief Zhou Yongkang, one of the country’s most influential politicians of the last decade, in a case that has its origins in a party power struggle. Zhou, 71, is by far the highest-profile figure caught up in President Xi Jinping’s crackdown on corruption. Indeed, Zhou is the most senior Chinese official to be ensnared in a graft scandal since the Then China’s Public Security Minister Zhou party swept to power in 1949. Yongkang He was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee - China’s apex of euphemism for corruption, although it power - and held the post of security tsar could also imply additional wrongdoing. “Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao and Xi Jinping until he retired in 2012. A brief statement released to coincide reached a consensus to deal with Zhou with a regular party meeting said Zhou Yongkang for violating party discipline,” was being investigated for suspected a source with ties to the leadership told “serious disciplinary violations”, the usual Reuters, referring to President Xi and his
predecessors. The source said Zhou had been accused of corruption involving family members and accepting bribes to promote officials. “Not all charges against Zhou would be made public,” added the source, who requested anonymity to avoid repercussions for speaking to a foreign reporter without authorisation. Zhou, who was last seen at an alumni celebration at the China University of Petroleum on Oct. 1, could not be reached for comment. It was not clear if he has a lawyer. Reuters reported in early December that Zhou had been placed under virtual house arrest after Xi ordered a special task force to look into corruption accusations against him. Reuters also reported in March that Chinese authorities had seized
assets worth at least 90 billion yuan ($14.56 billion) from family members and associates of Zhou. More than 300 of Zhou’s relatives, political allies and staff had been taken into custody or questioned, sources who had been briefed on the investigation told Reuters. Zhou’s son Zhou Bin had also been arrested, the influential Chinese magazine Caixin reported on its website after news of the investigation into his father had been made public. But Zhou Yongkang’s case is also about power. Sources with ties to the Chinese leadership have previously told Reuters that Xi has been determined to bring down Zhou for allegedly plotting appointments to retain influence ahead of the 18th Party Congress in November 2012, when Xi took over the party.
Obama: Migrant youths without claims will be sent home President Barack Obama has told Central American leaders that migrant children flooding into the US without legitimate legal claims will be sent home. The presidents of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador met Mr Obama at the White House on Friday to discuss the crisis at the US southern border. More than 50,000 children, many unaccompanied, have been detained at the border since October. Mr Obama said they must deter more children from attempting the journey. “All of us recognise that we have a shared responsibility to address this problem,” Mr Obama told reporters at the White House on Friday, flanked by Guatemalan President Otto Perez Molina, Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez and El Salvador President Salvador Sanchez Ceren.
He praised his Central American counterparts for their ongoing efforts within their own nations to deter children from travelling illegally to the US, but said more work must be done to combat the “significant challenge” and alleviate the conditions that move parents to send them on the perilous trip. “We have to deter a continuing influx of children putting themselves at great US President Barack Obama (second from right) said more work remains to be done on the southern risk,” he said. But he said, “Children border crisis. who do not have proper claims and “These are the real reasons for the border. families with children who do not have Also at issue is a 2008 US law that proper claims at some point will be immigration and, as a country, we have subject to repatriation to their home to work hard to ensure Guatemalans grants unaccompanied children from don’t look towards the US, but rather countries that do not border the US countries.” The Guatemalan president, Otto find decent living conditions in an automatic asylum hearing, thereby preventing their immediate removal Perez Molina, told the BBC that he Guatemala”, he added. The migrants – mostly from Central from the country. felt frustrated and distressed by the In his remarks, Mr Obama called on situation. He called for the root of the America – have been driven north by a spike in gang violence in their home Republicans in Congress to postpone problem to be addressed. “At the heart of this are issues countries, by extreme poverty, and their upcoming August recess until of extreme poverty and a lack of amid incorrect rumours children will be they can approve legislation increasing allowed to stay if they make it across funding to ease the crisis. employment opportunities” he said.
Costa Concordia wreck enters Genoa port for scrapping The wrecked Italian cruise ship, the Costa Concordia, has entered the port of Genoa for scrapping after a two-year salvage operation. Its removal was one of the biggest ever maritime salvage operations. It limped into the port to be greeted by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and to the sound of ships’ horns blaring. Worries that the damaged hull would disintegrate under the strain of the four-day, 280km (170-mile) journey from the disaster site proved unfounded. “This is not a runway show. It’s the end of a story in which many people died, which none of us will ever forget,” Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said. “I have come to say thank you to those who have done something
that everyone said was not possible.” Environment Minister Gian Luca Galletti said it was time finally “to breathe a sigh of relief”. The BBC’s Alan Johnston in Italy says that the arrival of the vessel - which is longer and heavier than the Titanic - in Genoa at sunrise on Sunday marks the end of the biggest ever salvage operation of its kind. The Costa Concordia struck a reef off the island of Giglio in January 2012 and capsized, killing 32 people. The wreck was re-floated earlier this month and was kept above the surface by giant buoyancy chambers. It was towed to Genoa by more than a dozen vessels. A fleet of eight tugs came out of Genoa port and lined it up
before very slowly beginning to haul it into the calm waters of the harbour. Straining against stiff winds, they manoeuvred the vessel inchby-inch towards a wharf that had been specially prepared to receive it. It is still hoped that down in the depths of the vessel the remains might be found of crew member Russel Rebello, who went missing on the night of the disaster. His was the only body that was never recovered. Captain Francesco Schettino has denied charges of multiple manslaughter and abandoning ship. If convicted, he could be jailed for up to 20 years. Genoa is where the Costa Concordia was built and launched amid fanfare and celebration nine years ago.
Fourth female suicide bomber hits Nigeria’s Kano A female suicide bomber blew herself up in a college in northern Nigeria’s biggest city of Kano on Wednesday, killing six people and critically wounding another six in the fourth such attack by a woman in Kano in less than a week, a security source said. The bomber targeted youths who were looking at a notice board for national youth service in Kano Polytechnic, the source said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, although militant group Boko Haram, which is fighting for an Islamic state in religiously-mixed Nigeria, has repeatedly bombed Kano as it radiates attacks outwards from its northeast heartlands. Using female suicide bombers in the city appears to be a new tactic of Boko Haram, although they have used them on occasion for years in the northeast. Two female suicide bombers blew themselves up at a trade show and a petrol station in Kano on Monday, killing one other person and injuring at least six others.
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Shi’ite militia hangs up executed Sunnis in Iraqi square Iraqi Shi’ite militia forces executed 15 Sunni Muslims and then hung them from electricity poles in a public square in the town of Baquba, northeast of Baghdad, on Wednesday, police said. With Iraq sliding ever closer to allout sectarian civil war, a car bomb exploded near restaurants and shops in the capital’s Shi’ite district of Sadr City, killing 16 people, while another car bomb killed five in Baghdad’s Ameen district, police said.
A police officer at the scene in Baquba, a mixed Sunni and Shi’ite town 65 km (40 miles) from Baghdad, said he believed the gruesome display of the bodies was designed to warn Sunnis off supporting the Islamic State, an al Qaeda offshoot that has seized swathes of land in an advance through northern Iraq. The victims, who had been kidnapped over the last week, were shot in the head and chest and then hung up by cables.
“The militia forces are preventing the medical crew from taking down the bodies,” the police officer said. “They are following a new tactic of keeping bodies hanging for a longer time to deter the Sunni population from backing the Islamic State. We asked them to let us evacuate the bodies but they refused.” Even before Islamic State’s dramatic advance, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s Shi’ite-dominated government had already alienated
many in the Sunni minority with what they saw as authoritarian government biased towards Shi’ites, prompting some to find common cause with Sunni militants. The U.S.-funded and trained Iraqi army unraveled in the face of the Islamic State’s sweep through the north, and violence in other parts of Iraq has increased since then, raising fears that the OPEC member will relapse into the dark days of sectarian civil war that peaked in 2006-2007.
Supporters rally outside the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma.
A damaged classroom of the school.
‘World stands disgraced’ as Israeli shelling of school kills at least 15
United Nations officials described the killing of sleeping children as a disgrace to the world and accused Israel of a serious violation of international law after a school in Gaza being used to shelter Palestinian families was shelled on Wednesday. At least 15 people, mostly children and women, died when the school in Jabaliya refugee camp was hit by five shells during a night of relentless bombardment across Gaza. More than 100 people were injured. Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, said the attack was “outrageous and unjustifiable” and demanded “accountability and justice”. The UN said its officials had repeatedly given details of the school and its refugee population to Israel. Fighting in Gaza continued through the day despite a four-hour humanitarian ceasefire called by Israel from 3pm. A crowded market in Shujai’iya was hit in the late afternoon, causing at least 17 deaths, including a journalist, and injuring about 200 people, according to Gaza health officials. They said people had ventured out to shop in the belief a ceasefire was in place. Witnesses said several shells struck as people were running away. Israel said rockets and
mortar shells continued to be fired from Gaza. At the UN school the first shell came just after the early morning call to prayer, when most of those taking shelter were asleep, crammed into classrooms with what few possessions they had managed to snatch as they fled their homes. About 3,300 people had squashed into Jabaliya Elementary A&B Girls’ School since the Israeli military warned people to leave their homes and neighbourhoods or risk death under intense bombardment. Classroom number one, near the school’s entrance, had become home to about 40 people, mostly women and children. As a shell blasted through the wall, showering occupants with shrapnel and spattering blood on walls and floors, Amna Zantit, 31, scrambled to gather up her three terrified infants in a panicked bid for the relative safety of the schoolyard. “Everyone was trying to escape,” she said, clutching her eight-month old baby tightly. Minutes later, a second shell slammed through the roof of the two-storey school. At least 15 people were killed and more than 100 injured. Most were women or children.
Detainees begin hunger strike as part of immigration protest Hundreds of undocumented migrants at a detention centre in Washington state have started a hunger strike, according to supporters, in the runup to rallies and civil disobedience aimed at forcing through immigration reform. Detainees at the Tacoma facility started refusing food on Wednesday in a planned 75-hour fast, timed to end on Saturday when activists will march on the White House to demand that President Obama break the reform logjam. In addition to executive action to halt deportations and bypass Congress, where House Republicans have stalled legislation, the activists are demanding that the president personally meet undocumented leaders, a request which has divided mainstream immigration advocacy groups. “We’re gathering people from across the nation to pressure Obama. And when there are negotiations, we want to make sure that we have a seat at the table,” Maru Mora Villalpando, a director of Latino Advocacy, told the Guardian. In Tacoma, a detention centre outside Seattle which has been the scene of repeated protests at conditions and immigration policy, at least 10 pods, each containing 55 to 85 people, are refusing food, said Villalpando. Authorities officially recognise a hunger strike only after 72 hours, hence the 75-hour fast. Activists from #Not1More, a coalition which uses opposition to deportations to push for wider reform, are hosting small protests in Washington DC in the run-up to Saturday’s march, which they hope will help keep immigration on the political agenda while Obama and Congress head off for summer breaks.
Campus sexual assault bill unveiled with bipartisan backing in Senate
A bipartisan group of US senators plan to offer a bill to combat sexual assault on college and university campuses, after investigations, lawsuits and surveys across the country appeared to show systemic mishandling of victims’ claims. The Campus Safety and Accountability Act would require colleges and universities to create a confidential adviser to guide victims through the sexual assault reporting process, require colleges and universities to conduct sexual assault surveys, create uniform
investigation processes and increase fines associated with violating existing campus safety law. “We are done with the days of asking victims why they drank too much or wore the wrong thing. Those days are done,” said bill co-sponsor Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, at a press conference on Wednesday. “Students are embracing a new culture of accountability that will be a force for this measure.” The bill is the latest in a series of efforts to prop up investigations of
sexual misconduct on colleges campuses, including investigations by the US Department of Education. A Senate survey released earlier this month showed that 41% of schools have not conducted a single investigation in the last five years, and 21% of institutions conducted less investigations than the number of assaults they reported to the Department of Education, based on a sample of 440 campuses. A 2007 study by the Justice Department estimates as many as one in five women are targets or victims of
sexual assault on colleges campuses, but less than 5% report the assault to campus authorities or law enforcement. “What was almost worse than the actual assault for them was witnessing how their university treated them,” said Annie Clark, a sexual assault survivor and advocate from End Rape on Campus. While attempting to report her own assault at the University of North Carolina, Clark said she was told: “Rape was like a football game, and that I should look back on that game to figure out what I would do differently.”
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Wikipedia blocks ‘disruptive’ page edits from US Congress
Wikipedia administrators have imposed a ban on page edits from computers at the US House of Representatives, following “persistent disruptive editing”. The 10-day block comes after anonymous changes were made to entries on politicians and businesses, as well as events like the Kennedy assassination. The biography of former US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld was edited to say that he was an “alien lizard”. One staffer said they were being
banned for the “actions of two or three”. Edits from computers using the IP address belonging to the House of Representatives have been banned before, following similar acts of vandalism. The latest block comes after rogue edits were brought to light by a Twitter feed, @congressedits, which posts every change made from the governmentowned address. ‘Russian puppet’ One of the acts highlighted was an al-
teration to the page on the assassination of John F Kennedy, which was changed to say that Lee Harvey Oswald was acting “on behalf of the regime of Fidel Castro”. An entry on the moon landing conspiracy theories was changed to say they were “promoted by the Cuban government”. Another entry, on the Ukrainian politician Nataliya Vitrenko, was edited to claim that she was a “Russian puppet”.
Microsoft ordered to submit customer’s emails from abroad
Microsoft Corp must turn over a customer’s emails and other account information stored in a data center in Ireland to the U.S. government, a judge ruled on Thursday, in a case that has drawn concern from privacy groups and major technology companies. Microsoft and other U.S. companies had challenged the warrant, arguing it improperly extended the authority of federal prosecutors to seize customer information held in foreign countries. Following a two-hour court hearing in New York, U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska said a search warrant approved by a federal magistrate judge required the company to hand over any data it controlled, regardless of where it was stored. “It is a question of control, not a question of the location of that information,” Preska said. The judge said she would temporarily suspend her order from taking effect to allow Microsoft to appeal her decision to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The case appears to be the first in which a corporation has challenged a U.S. search warrant
A shadow of a man using his mobile phone is cast near Microsoft logo at the 2014 Computex exhibition in Taipei. seeking data held abroad. A number of technology companies filed court briefs in support of Microsoft’s position, including AT&T Inc, Apple Inc, Cisco Systems Inc and Verizon Communications Inc. The companies are worried that they could lose billions of dollars in revenue to foreign competitors if customers fear their data is subject to seizure by U.S. investigators anywhere in the world. Thursday ruling concerns a search warrant served on Microsoft by prosecutors for a
customer whose emails are stored in a data center in Dublin, Ireland. It is unclear which agency issued the warrant because the warrant and all related documents are sealed. The technology companies argued that U.S. search warrants cannot be executed overseas under the law. But lawyers for the U.S. Justice Department said the warrant only required the company to provide documents it controls, just as U.S. banks can be forced to hand over transaction records held in foreign countries.
Microsoft Xbox One to launch in China on September 23 Microsoft Corp will launch its Xbox One gamingconsole in China on September 23, making it the first foreign company to start selling consoles in the world’s third-biggest gaming market after a ban on the devices was lifted this year. Yusuf Mehdi, head of marketing and strategy for Microsoft’s Xbox group, announced the launch date at an event in Shanghai. The console will cost 3,699 yuan ($600) without the Kinect motion detection system and 4,299 yuan ($700) with Kinect. In the United States, the Xbox One with Kinect costs $499 and without it is $399, a difference of
more than $200 compared with the respective prices in China. In September last year, Microsoft reached a deal with Chinese internet TV set-top box maker BesTV New Media Co Ltd to form a joint venture to manufacture the consoles in Shanghai’s Free Trade Zone. Zhang Dazhong, a senior vice president at Shanghai Media Group, the parent of BesTV New Media, said at the event the Xbox launch had been approved by the government. Microsoft is forging ahead with the launch despite Tuesday’s government announcement
that the U.S. software giant is the subject of an anti-monopoly investigation. China is the world’s thirdbiggest gaming market, where revenues grew by more than a third from 2012 to nearly $14 billion last year, but piracy and the dominance of PC and mobile gaming may leave little room for legitimate console and game sales. This year, the government lifted a 2000 ban on gaming consoles. In May, Sony Corp said it would set up a joint-venture with Shanghai Oriental Pearl Group to bring the PlayStation games console to China.
The biography of former US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld was revised, describing him as an “alien lizard who eats Mexican babies”. However the edit that finally brought administrators to ban anonymous edits from the House IP address was made on the entry for media news site Mediaite, describing the blog as “sexist transphobic” and saying that it “automatically assumes that someone is male without any evidence”.
Russia has proposed that Apple Inc and SAP hand the government access to their source code to make sure their widely used products are not tools for spying on state institutions.
Russia wants Apple, SAP to cooperate against foreign spying Russia has proposed that Apple Inc and SAP hand the government access to their source code to make sure their widely used products are not tools for spying on state institutions. The suggestion that two of the world’s flagship technology companies disclose some of their most sensitive business secrets comes as the United States and Europe debate their most severe sanctions yet against Russia for its role in Ukraine. On Tuesday, the United States imposed a new round of sanctions, hitting three Russian banks, including the country’s second-biggest, VTB. The European Union reached agreement on Tuesday on its first broad economic sanctions, marking a new phase in the biggest confrontation between Moscow and the West since the Cold War. The Russian proposal was voiced last week when Communications Minister Nikolai Nikiforov met Apple’s general manager in Russia, Peter Engrob Nielsen, and SAP’s Russian managing director, Vyacheslav Orekhov, the Communications Ministry said in a statement. It said the proposal was designed to ensure the rights of consumers and corporate users to the privacy of their personal data, as well as for state security interests. While couched in the language of protecting privacy, any Russian move to force these companies to divulge the inner workings of their software could pose a major threat to their viability if they were to lose control of the source code. “Edward Snowden’s revelations in 2013 and U.S. intelligence services’ public statements about the strengthening of surveillance of Russia in 2014 have raised a serious question of trust in foreign software and hardware,” Nikiforov said in the statement released late on Tuesday. He was referring to bombshell disclosures by the former U.S. National Security Agency contractor that revealed widespread NSA snooping through eavesdropping on popular technology products and services. Since then, experts have concluded that U.S. government-backed standards for software encryption have created backdoors for the NSA to spy on users.
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OKCupid experiments with ‘bad’ dating matches Dating website OKCupid has matches them with potential partners revealed that it experimented on its based on the answers. users, including putting the “wrong” In one experiment, the site took people together to see if they would pairs of “bad” matches between two connect. people - about 30% - and told them they It revealed the tests after the uproar were “exceptionally good” for each other, over Facebook manipulating the feeds or 90% matches. “Not surprisingly, of its users. the users sent more first messages “If you use the internet, you’re the when we said they were compatible,” subject of hundreds of experiments at Christian Rudder, one of the founders any given time, on every site,” it said. of OKCupid, said in a blog post on the “That’s how websites work.” company’s research and insights blog. OKCupid said one revelation was Further experiments suggested that that “people just look at the picture”. “when we tell people they are a good As well as allowing users to upload match, they act as if they are. Even pictures and set up dating profiles, when they should be wrong for each OKCupid asks users questions and other.” The company later revealed the
correct scores to the participants. “This shows how easy it is for a company to put at risk the trust that users place in them,” Daniel Tozer, a commercial technology partner at the law firm Harbottle and Lewis, told the BBC. “There are data protection issues when you’re using users’ personal information, especially when it appears OKCupid are actually changing things on the page. “If you’re doing anything extremely unusual with people’s data, and I would argue this is the case here, it’s always best to seek the consent of your users first.” ‘Words worth nothing’
Beats sued by Bose over noise-cancelling patents Headphones-maker Beats Electronics is being sued by rival Bose over its range of noise-cancelling audio gear. Massachusetts-based Bose claims that Beats has infringed five of its patents. Bose alleges it has lost sales to its competitor as a consequence. Beats declined to comment. The legal action comes two months after Apple announced it was buying Beats for $3bn (£1.8bn) – its largest acquisition to date. One expert said it was not unusual for takeovers to prompt such litigation. “It’s not uncommon, because when companies are in the process of being taken over they don’t want the uncertainty of litigation,” said Ilya Kazi from the UK’s Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys. “So, they are more likely to be inclined to settle. It’s a good time to apply leverage.” The European Union’s competition watchdog approved the deal this Monday. The disputed patents have been listed on the Prior Smart patent news site. Headphones-maker Beats Electronics is being sued by rival Bose over its range of noise-cancelling audio gear. Massachusetts-based Bose claims that Beats has infringed five of its patents. Bose alleges it has lost sales to its competitor as a consequence. Beats declined to comment.
The legal action involves Beats Electronics’ Studio range of headphones. The legal action comes two months after Apple announced it was buying Beats for $3bn (£1.8bn) – its largest acquisition to date. One expert said it was not unusual for takeovers to prompt such litigation. “It’s not uncommon, because when companies are in the process of being taken over they don’t want the uncertainty of litigation,” said Ilya Kazi from the UK’s Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys. “So, they are more likely to be inclined to settle. It’s a good time to apply leverage.” The European Union’s competition watchdog approved the deal this Monday. Active noise reduction The disputed patents have been listed on the Prior Smart patent news site. The lawyers added that Beats had failed to license Bose’s tech despite being informed that it was infringing
its intellectual property. “Bose’s continued success depends in substantial part on its ability to establish, maintain, and protect its proprietary technology through enforcement of its patent rights,” they state. Beats’ site markets its adaptive noise-cancelling feature as the ability to “put the world on mute” on the web pages of its Studio range of headphones. The feature is fairly common among premium earbuds and headphones with JVC, Sennheiser, Sony and Harman Kardon among other companies to offer the facility. “Our patents cover our unique approach to active noise cancellation,” Carolyn Cinotti, director of public relations at Bose. “Other companies may have their own unique approach. We don’t license our technology to other headphone manufacturers.”
In another experiment, OKCupid ran profiles with pictures and no profile text for half of its test subjects, and vice versa for the rest. The results showed that people responded solely to the pictures. For potential daters, Mr Rudder said that “your actual words are worth… almost nothing”. The revelations come as a result of Facebook saying that in late June, it changed some “news feeds to control which emotional expressions the users were exposed to” as part of research in collaboration with two US universities. The research was conducted on 689,000 Facebook users over a period of one week in 2012.
Amazon reports $126m quarterly loss
Amazon has reported a loss of $126m (£74m) in the second quarter and warned that sales could slow in the current quarter. Amazon forecast third quarter sales of between $19.7bn and $21.5bn, which could mean sales growth of as little as 15% - well down on previous quarters. Amazon has traditionally survived on thin profit margins, but investors have been reassured by strong sales growth. But warning over sales has spooked investors. In after hours trading in the US shares slumped by 6%. Amazon has been investing heavily to build up its business, including the launch last month of its first smartphone - the Fire Phone. It has been developing digital content including computer games and TV shows. In its conference call the company said that producing its own TV shows would cost $100m in the third quarter. Amazon has also been spending money on improving its delivery systems which includes expanding Sunday delivery to 18 cities in the United States. Another major cost of Amazon has been the building of its Amazon Web Services business. It provides computer services and storage for businesses and has been growing very quickly. To match that growth Amazon has been investing heavily in infrastructure and has hired “thousands” of staff for the web services operation.
Russia ordered to pay $50 billion over Yukos LONDON – Russia was ordered Monday to pay more than $50 billion for expropriating what was once the country’s largest oil producer, Yukos, in a court ruling that adds economic and diplomatic pressure on the country at a time of increasing isolation. The Permanent Court for Arbitration, a body that rules on global corporate disputes, said Monday the Russian government owes the money - a huge sum, even for such an oil-rich nationto the former majority shareholders in Yukos Oil Co. With its economy grinding to a halt and new sanctions from Western powers hanging over the country, Moscow vowed to fight the decision. That raises the
prospect of a new round of legal battles as the shareholders seek to enforce the decision by seizing Russian state-owned assets in 150 countries around the world. They can attempt to seize any assets used for commercial purposes. That means that while embassies are safe, planes, art, commercial property, gas pipelines and oil rigs are not. “It’s the end of the beginning,” said Tim Osborne, executive director of GML, formerly Group Menatep Ltd., whose subsidiaries brought the suit to the court based in The Hague, Netherlands. The court said Russia had used tax claims to take control of Yukos in 2003 and silence its CEO, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, an opponent of President
Vladimir Putin. Khodorkovsky was arrested at gunpoint as he boarded a plane in Siberia that year and spent more than a decade in prison as Yukos’ main assets were sold to a state-owned company. Yukos ultimately went bankrupt. The case, one of the largest commercial arbitration awards in history, adds to Russia’s economic problems just as the U.S. and European Union are debating further sanctions against the country because of its support from rebels in eastern Ukraine. Though the country has ample reserves thanks to its oil and gas revenue, uncertainty over the impact of the sanctions has seen economic growth forecasts for this year plummet
to almost zero and investors are pulling money out of the country at almost twice the pace as last year. The court’s three-member panel, chaired by Yves Fortier, Canada’s former permanent representative to the United Nations, determined Russia was not acting in good faith to collect taxes when it leveled massive claims against Yukos, even though some of the company’s tax arrangements might have been questionable. The state launched “a full assault on Yukos and its beneficial owners in order to bankrupt Yukos and appropriate its assets while, at the same time, removing Mr. Khodorkovsky from the political arena,” the court said.
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Car firms sued over CD-copying entertainment systems A group representing musicians in the US is suing Ford and General Motors over in-car CD players that allow tracks to be stored on a hard drive. The entertainment systems can “rip” music from a disc, to save passengers from constantly reinserting CDs. The Alliance of Artists and Recording Companies claims the devices are made “for the express purpose” of copying CDs. It says its members, including MGMT and REO Speedwagon, are due royalties. In a class action lawsuit filed in the District of Columbia, the Alliance of Artists and Recording Companies (AARC) claims it repeatedly asked Ford and General Motors “to live up to their statutory obligations” but the firms refused. The association says its artists are due royalty payments under the Audio Home Recording Act (AHRA) of 1992, which states musicians are entitled to compensation for the copying of their works. The defendants, it says, “refused to pay the royalties that [US] congress has determined they owe for the recording devices they manufacture, import, and/or distribute”. The AARC says the devices concerned have been offered in GM brand models including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC, since at least 2011.
Argentina heads for second default as talks with bondholders break down Argentina was heading for its second debt default in 13 years on Wednesday night after negotiations with bondholders broke down in New York. Axel Kicillof, Argentina’s economy minister, said US hedge funds rejected the country’s latest offer. Kicillof has been locked in intense negotiations with holdout creditors demanding to be paid the full value for bonds they own on which Argentina defaulted. The talks have been overseen by a mediator appointed by a US judge who ordered Argentina to pay the
creditors. The court-appointed mediator, Daniel Pollack, confirmed that no agreement had been reached and “the Republic of Argentina will imminently be in default”. Pollack said that default “is not a mere ‘technical’ condition, but rather a real and painful event that will hurt real people,” including Argentine citizens, exchange bondholders and the holdout investors. The ratings agency, Standard & Poor’s, had earlier declared some Argentine bonds to be in “selective
default” because the country did not make a $539m interest payment due on 30 June. Kiciloff denied the country was in default and suggested that Standard & Poor’s was not an “impartial referee.” Argentina tried to make the payment but was prevented by a New York judge as part of an effort to force the country to settle a dispute with US creditors. The judge, Thomas Griesa, ruled Argentina could not pay the restructured bonds back unless it also paid more than $1.5bn to the holdout investors. Argentina has insisted it cannot afford to do both.
“Crashing” tablet sales give new hope to PCs, Best Buy CEO says
Do you think laptops and PCs in general will make a comeback? Are tablets just a fad like netbooks?
Google Glass rival with neck battery shown off by Lenovo
Chinese computing giant Lenovo has shown off what it hopes will be a rival to Google Glass. The device, as yet unnamed, hopes to eliminate Glass’s problem of short battery life by adding a separate power device around the wearer’s neck. The company has created NBD – a system for connected devices – to encourage other companies to make devices on its platform. In 2013, Lenovo overtook HP as the world’s biggest seller of PCs. But the company acknowledged it needed help from other companies if the future of having an “internet of things” was to be realised. “Right now there are too many kinds of devices you can develop for the Internet of Things. It’s too rich. Not one company can do it all,” said Chen Xudong, Lenovo’s senior vice president, as quoted by PCWorld magazine. Big challenge The internet of things is the idea that objects all around us - be it smartphones, fridges, toasters or thermostats – are connected to the internet. It paves the way for connected homes, where appliances can be controlled by apps, and devices can react smartly to their surroundings,
Apple may not be the only company struggling with weak tablet sales. In a recent interview with Re/code, Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly said sales of tablets have boomed and are now crashing as the volume has really gone down in the last several months. Elaborating on the subject a bit, Joly said tablets have been an unbelievable phenomenon. Thinking back, he was unable to come up with a category that’s taken off so quickly and so big in the history of tech. The executive is absolutely correct and what we are likely looking at now is saturation. Penetration happened so quickly that we’re now looking at a replacement market, just as we’re seeing with smartphones. And let’s not forget the fact that large-screen smartphones are also cannibalizing tablet sales. Innovation hasn’t been spectacular on tablets in the past year so consumers aren’t as compelled to go out and buy the latest and greatest when their existing slate meets all of their needs, he added. Elsewhere, Joly said they’ve actually noticed a revival of the PC business at Best Buy during the first quarter thanks in part to Microsoft finally ending support for Windows XP. He also noted that it helps that laptops are becoming more versatile as devices like two-in-ones are both a tablet and a laptop. Take the Microsoft Surface, for example. Is it a tablet or a laptop? Joly believes it’s both and he doesn’t think the laptop has had its last word.
Apple MacBook Pro refresh gets speed bump, memory boost The battery pack gives added capacity for a bigger battery. such as the heating coming on when it knows you’re almost home. However, the big challenge facing the growth of the internet of things is a lack of compatibility. Companies are making devices that connect to the internet, but due to a range of different systems and standards, the devices are unable to talk to each other. The NBD system is Lenovo’s attempt to solve that issue. As well as its own smart glasses, it is also
working on another device with Vuzix. Another product being worked on is an air purifier that can be controlled via a mobile app. Any attempt to create a new system would come up against efforts from Google, who recently purchased Nest, a smart thermostat device. Apple has also invested in the internet of things – it announced HomeKit, a system for developers to write programmes that can control devices around the house.
Apple has released a new set of upgrades for its high-end Retina display MacBook Pro laptops, which now come with slightly faster chips and slightly lower price tags. This year has not seen much in terms of hardware upgrades from Cupertino. Already halfway into 2014, Apple has only released a slight upgrade in its now slightly cheaper MacBook Airs and slower, cheaper iMacs. The latest upgrades follow a leaked image supposedly coming out of an Apple store in China showing updates for specifications and prices for the 13-inch and 15-inch models of Apple’s MacBook Pro lineup.
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Long arm of the law foiled in Glasgow GLASGOW (Reuters) – Catching 94kg category. Undeterred, the self-declared criminals and lifting weights is all in a day’s work for Turks and Caicos “strongest policeman on the Turks” said Islands’ policeman Michael Francois he was pleased with his performance but the strong arm of the law let him and hoped to inspire future athletes down at the Commonwealth Games on from the tiny British Caribbean territory. Tuesday. “I felt good during the competition, The 29-year-old weightlifter, a sergeant in the Turks police force, I’m happy with my results, I didn’t finished bottom of group B in the men’s train for the Games,” he said.
“I lift weights every day but I’m entering the weightlifting competition only to promote the sport in my country.” Francois arrived in Glasgow fresh from arresting a drug dealer back home and made it clear that he was not a man to be messed with. “I am the strongest policeman on the Turks,” Francois declared. “I
believe the criminals are afraid of me. Whenever there’s trouble, who do you think they’re going to call? Me. “Just at the start of July we had to do a drug bust. So they called me and I fought the dealer, kept him on the ground and took away his drugs. “Don’t worry, there is no crime because I’m there.”
Kléberson late goal for Indy highlights international players performances in NASL Colombian midfielder Rafael Castillo and Turks & Caicos Islands forward Billy Forbes each scored pivotal goals to lead host Scorpions to a 2-0 victory over Carolina RailHawks during Wednesday Night Fútbol on July 23 at Toyota Field. The crowd of 7,884 spectators also witness Trinidad & Tobago forward Trevin Caesar assist on the second tally for San Antonio. Three days later, on Saturday, July 26, San Antonio successfully extended its unbeaten streak to nine matches and a perfect 6-0-0 record on the road this year with a 2-0 win against Tampa Bay Rowdies. Polish striker Tomasz Zahorski and Gambian native
Sainey Touray each scored for the Scorpions, who are five points clear in the #Fight4Fall and two clear in the overall Combined Table. Defender Julius James (Trinidad & Tobago) and forward Eric Hassli (France) each added an assist to San Antonio’s scoring. Elsewhere on an action-packed NASL match day, Dutch forward Hans Denissen assisted on the visiting New York Cosmos goal early in the first half, however Brazilian forward Jenison Brito scored via a penalty kick to earn a 1-1 draw for 10-man Fort Lauderdale Strikers team at Lockhart Stadium. Also down south, midfielders Enzo Martinez (Uruguay) and Cesar Elizondo (Costa Rica) provided
assists to the first two goals scored by the Carolina RailHawks in the 3-0 triumph over visiting Ottawa Fury FC at WakeMed Soccer Park. The victory put the RailHawks in the fourth spot of the Combined Table to qualify to ‘The Championship.’ On Sunday, as noted above, the stoppage time goal from Brazilian midfielder Kléberson gave Indy Eleven a 1-0 victory over host FC Edmonton at Clarke Stadium. Every week throughout 2014 Season the NASL puts its international stars - both coaches & players under the ‘NASL International Spotlight’ focusing on the league’s overseas connections.
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Usain Bolt dismisses British newspaper comments as ‘nonsense’ “I’m waking up to this nonsense,” A row has broken out in Glasgow over comments a newspaper claimed Bolt tweeted. “Journalist please don’t create lies to were made by Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt to describe the Commonwealth make headlines”. However, the Times’ Scottish editor, Games currently underway here. The Times reporter, Katie Gibbons, Angus Macleod, says he had full conficlaims Bolt told her that he thought dence in Gibbons. “We stand by this story 100%,” he “the Olympics were better”, that he was “not really” having fun in Glasgow and said. “We have utter confidence in this felt the Games were “a bit shit”. However the 27-year-old sprinter story.” Reports here suggest that the Times has dismissed reports of his comments were considering whether to publish a as ‘nonsense’.
full transcript of the short interview with Bolt in Thursday’s paper. Meantime Bolt’s agent, Ricky Simms has also dismissed the reports as “utter rubbish”. “The atmosphere in and around the stadiums has been absolutely fantastic and I have absolutely no idea where these quotes have come from.” Said Bolt. Games officials say the row is not diverting attention from the track and field action.
“We take Mr. Bolt at his word. His tweet says it all. These are a fantastic Games,” said Mike Hooper, the chief executive of the Commonwealth Games Federation. “As you saw in his press conference last Saturday, he is very upbeat. He is really positive about running the relay and I don’t wish to comment on the journalist and work of the Times.” Bolt is competing only in the 4x100m relay after struggling with a foot injury.
Barbados U-15 girls ready CONCACAF
Jamaica’s 400m medallists (from left) Novlene Williams-Mills (silver), Stephenie McPherson (gold) and Christine Day (bronze) display their medals during the medals ceremony on Tuesday evening.
‘We planned for the one-two-three,’ says Day Jamaica’s historic 1-2-3 in the women’s Commonwealth Games 400m final at Hampden Park on Tuesday seemed as easy as A-B-C for the medal winners themselves. A sweep at this level is rare, but the Jamaican trio of Stephenie McPherson (gold), Novlene WilliamsMills (silver) and Christine Day (bronze) seemed unfazed by it. At post-race interview, they were cool, calm and collected. Their posture suggested they expected it to go exactly as it turned out. Perhaps not in the order it did, but certainly they had dreamt gold, silver, and bronze for Jamaica. Day confirmed it: “Before we came out here, we planned for the one-twothree.” The veteran of the trio and whose life story is a triumph of the human spirit, Williams-Mills hungered for the gold, but she graciously applauded the younger runners for their success,
and revelled in hers. “Yes, I am a little bit disappointed, but I am very happy for Christine and I am happy for Stephenie and we came out here and put on a good show,” said the 31-year-old, stooping while she spoke with Jamaican journalists. The silver for Williams-Mills, a cancer survivor, was an upgrade from the bronze she won in Melbourne, Australia, in 2006. Gold medal winner, McPherson, 25, said she simply carried out her coach’s instructions, and the victory was the end result. “I came here with my coach’s instructions and went through the rounds as best I could. It’s a good place to win my first (senior gold medal) as the Great Britain girl, Christine Ohuruogu, won her first medal here, so hopefully I can follow in her footsteps,” said the 2014 World Indoor Championships silver medallist.
Barbadian female footballers are ready for the first ever Under-15 Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Associations Football (CONCACAF) competition scheduled to take place in the Cayman Islands from August 6. Coach Thomas Jordan told Barbados TODAY preparations have been going well and he expected the girls to put on a good show in group B which included Trinidad and Tobago, Honduras and the Bahamas. “Preparation has been going well and we have had perfect attendance. They have actually improved on their techniques and their running ability, they have also improved on their awareness of the game and I am sure they would give a good account of themselves,” Jordan said. The youthful team started training from the beginning of May and even though the coach does not think the time given was sufficient he is hopeful that the girls would apply what they have learned. “We train at least three days a week and it is not enough time but it was the time allocated to us and we had problems getting venues to train. The other thing is that most of these girls are beginners so it certainly wasn’t enough but we have utilized the time well. We taught them what we thought they needed to know most of all which is the tactical awareness of the game and we also tried to improve their physical fitness at the same time,” Jordan said.
USA and The Bahamas come together
But as her teammates swept ahead of her and defending Commonwealth champion Amantle Montsho was moving up on her outside, Day needed something extra. And she found it. “I realised I wasn’t in the medal On Tuesday, August 5th, the United position, so I just kept swinging and States Embassy in partnership with the I just have to thank God that I pulled Bahamas Football Association (BFA) and through,” said the London 2012 Special olympics Bahamas will coordinate a 4x400m bronze medallist. youth outreach activity at the new Thomas Day, 27, has a message for young A Robinson National satdium. The United athletes. “Don’t matter the obstacles States men’s Olympic soccer team and the in the way, you shouldn’t give up, just Bahamas men’s national soccer team will teach keep fighting and work towards your basic soccer drills to 35 athletes from Special dream.” She should know the value of Olympics Bahamas. that message. Both the United States Embassy and the Now the historic trio looks to the BFA have developed partnerships with Special 4x400m, and the prospect for gold Olympics Bahamas and the event will support is very good. So, maybe after all, the embassy’s efforts to engage in sporting Williams-Mills will get her elusive activities that promote social inclusion for Commonwealth Games gold medal. children with intellectual disabilities. In sweeping the race on Tuesday The outreach is a prelude to an international night, McPherson clocked 50.67secs, friendly spccer match between the USA and The Williams-Mills 50.86secs, and Day Bahamas that will be played on the evening of 51.09secs. August 6, a first for the Bahamas.
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Neymar aiming to return to action with Barca on Aug 18 Neymar’s injured back is healing well and he is aiming to return to action in a friendly for his club Barcelona on Aug. 18, the Brazil forward said on Thursday. Neymar fractured a bone in his back following a challenge from Colombia defender Juan Zuniga in Brazil’s World Cup quarterfinal and was ruled out for the rest of the tournament. “I am recovering bit by bit from the injury and I will arrive in Barcelona at 100 percent,” Neymar, who is due back at Barca on Aug. 5, told reporters at a promotional event in Japan. “I want to have a good season and I would like to help my team mates get good results,” he added. Barca play Mexican side Leon in the friendly at the Nou Camp on Aug. 18, with the winners awarded a trophy named for the Catalan club’s founder Joan Gamper. They begin their La Liga campaign at home to Elche the following weekend. Barca ended last season without major silverware for the first time in six years and coach Gerardo Martino was sacked and replaced by former Spain and Barca midfielder Luis Enrique.
Muhammad Ali’s ‘Fight of the Century’ gloves up for auction
The Fight of the Century, in New The gloves that boxing legend Muhammad Ali wore in his legendary York’s Madison Square Garden, was 1971 fight against Joe Frazier in what the first of three fights between Ali and became known as the Fight of the Century Frazier during the 1970s. In 1971, Frazier officially held the will come up for auction on Thursday and are expected to fetch more than $300,000. title of Heavyweight Champion of the The auction is being run by Texas- World. Ali had been stripped of the title based Heritage Auctions at the National he had held since the 1964 bout against Sports Collectors Convention in Cleveland. Sonny Liston because of his refusal to Heritage previously auctioned a set of participate in the Vietnam War-era draft. The March 8 fight against Frazier gloves Ali wore to claim his first World was Ali’s second after returning to the Championship in 1964 for $836,500.
ring following a 3-1/2 year absence. Ali’s conviction had just been overturned earlier in 1971 by the U.S. Supreme Court and his boxing license was re-instated. “It was a controversial fight at a controversial time in America and the bout took on distinctly political and cultural overtones,” Chris Ivy, director of sports auctions for Heritage, said in a statement. Frazier and Ali were each guaranteed $2.5 million, a record purse for the time.
2014 a bad year for Serena Williams
For Serena Williams, 2014 has been a year to forget. Despite winning three top-tier tournaments and holding onto the No. 1 ranking, the world’s best player has uncharacteristically struggled in Grand Slams, failing to advance past the fourth round in any of the three majors. It’s a bizarre turnaround from a player who used to be known for excelling in Slams while sometimes playing pedestrian tennis in regular tour events. And even when Serena was outperforming in Slams, it wasn’t by much. In 2002 she was undefeated in Grand Slams, going 21-0 and winning each of the three majors she played. Her non-Slam mark was impressive too. She went 36-5, which is a mark of Serena Williams was back to her old self in her straight sets victory against Karolina Pliskova in the Bank of the West 88%. The only times Serena’s non-Slam performance was better than her Slam Classic. performance was in the past two years. These numbers were just as narrow, however. In 2012, Serena was 17-2 in majors (89%) and 41-2 outside of them (95%). Each winning percentage increased by two percent the following year. In 2012 and 2013, she was all-around dominant. So what happened in 2014? The speculation could fill volumes. The oddest thing is that the dip came without warning. Serena has lost three times in her past six Grand Slam matches. Before that, she had only lost three times in her last 41 Grand Slam matches!
Clippers sale a win for Los Angeles, NBA and Donald Sterling Donald Sterling a man, who never met a lawsuit he didn’t love, lost his battle to stop the $2 billion sale of his Los Angeles Clippers to Steve Ballmer. But even in losing Sterling stands to make hundreds of millions of dollars from the sale of the team. The sale of the team rids the NBA and the Clippers of Sterling — a man who has been called the worst owner in the history of professional sports — and changes the landscape of professional sports ownership. The $2 billion price tag increases the value of every North American sports franchise. More importantly, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Lavanas’ ruling sends a clear message — one’s actions can lead to one losing their right to own a sports franchise. Former Microsoft executive Steve Ballmer, whose personal net worth exceeds $21 billion, is expected to officially become Clippers owner in the near future. The NBA, which banned Sterling only days after the release of
offensive and repulsive statements, can now move forward. Forbes Magazine’s latest financial valuation determined the average NBA team was worth $634 million, believing the Clippers had a value of $575 million, below league average and 13th in the NBA. The New York Knicks at $1.4 billion, Los Angeles Lakers at $1.3 billion and Chicago Bulls at $1 billion were the only NBA franchises Forbes believed were worth more than $1 billion. Sterling paid $12.5 million for the Clippers in 1981 (the team then called San Diego home) walks away with a King’s Ransom. Sterling proved time and time again during the 33 years he owned the Clippers to be a challenge to the NBA and Clippers fan base. Sterling may have lost in court Monday, but he ends up with a huge financial win at the end of the day. His decision to move the Clippers to Los Angeles from San Diego in 1984 included an NBA imposed $25 million penalty. In what would become a
trademark of his tumultuous ownership, Sterling sued the NBA for $100 million in an attempt to avoid the $25 million fine. The league reduced the fine to $6 million. Over a 33-year period, the Clippers had two winning seasons and time and time again Sterling refused to sign any marquee NBA talent or try and keep the players the team drafted and developed into NBA stars. In 2009 the Clippers had the dubious distinction of being branded the worst team in professional sports by ESPN The Magazine. Basketball Hall of Famer and former Los Angeles Clippers general manager Elgin Baylor unsuccessfully sued Sterling, alleging that Sterling had fired Baylor because of his age when Baylor was the team’s general manager. Regardless the outcome of the Baylor lawsuit, the optics of a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame suing an NBA owner was terrible for the National Basketball Association back in 2008 and remains the same today.
Rafael Nadal a doubt for US Open
Rafael Nadal’s US Open participation has been called into question by an injury that will force him to wear a cast on his right wrist for up to three weeks. The world No2 won the event in 2013, beating Novak Djokovic in the final for his 13th major title, to which he has since added this year’s French Open. While Nadal’s injury is to his right wrist, not his dominant hand, his twohanded backhand could still be badly affected. He faces a tight schedule to be fit for the tournament, which starts on 25 August, after suffering an injury that will prevent him defending his Rogers Cup and Western and Southern Open titles.
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Manchester United: Champions League warning for Red Devils
Manchester United’s world record £750m kit deal with Adidas will be cut by 30% if they fail to qualify for the Champions League in consecutive seasons from 2015-16. The German sportswear giant could also cancel the contract if the club get relegated from the Premier League. United failed to qualify for any of the European competitions this season after finishing seventh in 2013-14. They will want a big improvement under new manager Louis van Gaal, 62.
Van Gaal was appointed Red Devils boss as successor to David Moyes earlier this summer. Details of the deal with Adidas, which was announced earlier this month, emerged after United offered more of their shares on the New York Stock Exchange. United announced on Wednesday that they would sell eight million shares, around 5% of the business, after selling 10% in 2012. About $150m (£88.7m) will be raised
with money going to the Glazer family, the club’s US owners. United have also been warned that interest rates on part of their £351.7m debt may rise. A prospectus reveals that the deal with Adidas features a number of conditions. Failure to qualify for the Champions League in consecutive seasons from 2015-16, when the contract begins, would see payments cut by nearly one third.
FIFA asks Italian soccer federation to probe racist allegations FIFA has asked the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) to investigate alleged comments from the front runner to become its next president that referred to African players as “banana eaters.” Reports in Italy claim Carlo Tavecchio, who is currently the organization’s vice-president, made the remarks at a conference of Italy’s amateur leagues at the weekend. He touched on the debate that has followed Italy’s group stage exit at the recent World Cup in Brazil, with some suggesting there are too many foreign players operating in the country’s top league -- Serie A. Tavecchio made reference to the system in England, which has strict rules on players from outside the European Union. “In England, they identify the players coming in and, if they are professional, they are allowed to play,” the 71-yearold was reported to have said by Reuters. “Here instead we get ‘Opti Poba’ (a fictional player) who previously ate bananas and then suddenly becomes a first team player with Lazio. “That’s how it is here. In England, you need to demonstrate what you have on your CV and your pedigree.” Tavecchio’s remarks prompted one of Italy’s leading clubs Fiorentina to say his bid to be FIGC president was no longer “sustainable” while an online campaign set up by an Italian politician asked people to protest at his candidacy. World soccer’s governing body said
World soccer’s governing body FIFA says tackling racism is one of its top priorities. on Tuesday it wanted the FIGC to investigate and stressed that tackling racism was one of its top priorities. Piara Powar, executive director of the Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE), said it was little wonder some of Italy’s top clubs, and the country’s prime minister Matteo Renzi, have come out against Tavecchio’s presidency bid. “It’s quite clear there is a strong public opinion focus on this guy and this idea he should not become president at any cost,” he told CNN. “Unfortunately, the people that will vote him in later in August don’t necessarily share that view. “To have someone who has said the sort of things that he’s said, said them
in the way he’s said them, to become a president of one of the top five footballing countries in Europe really is going to be quite a big shock.” Tavecchio has been president of the Italian amateur football federation for more than a decade and has apologized twice since he made the remarks. But he retains support from big clubs like AC Milan and is thought to be winning the battle with his rival for the presidency, former Italy midfielder Demetrio Albertini. Although his comments are not enough for FIFA or its European counterpart UEFA to block his bid, Powar thinks they may act if he is elected.
However, United could benefit from an extra £4m per year if they win the Premier League, Champions League or FA Cup. Should the club be relegated from the Premier League, the manufacturer can give 12 months’ notice to terminate the contract and reduce payments in half for every season spent outside the top flight. The shares offering comes two months after the death of owner Malcolm Glazer. His six children control the club and will retain more than an 80% stake.
Chris Bosh officially re-signs with the Heat The Miami Heat on Wednesday officially confirmed the re-signing of nine-time All-Star forward Chris Bosh, nearly three weeks after the move had been reported by multiple media outlets. Terms of the deal were not disclosed by the team, though local media estimate the contract to be worth $118 million over five years. Bosh had opted out of his previous deal to become a free agent but decided to stay in Miami after the departure of fellow free agent LeBron James, who returned to his home state of Ohio by signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this month. “Chris Bosh is a two-time NBA champion and one of the most versatile big men in the league,” Heat president Pat Riley said in a statement. “His unique skill set makes him one of the best players in the game today.” Bosh, 30, averaged 16.2 points and 6.6 rebounds for the Heat last season and, with James and Dwyane Wade, was a member of the team’s so-called ‘Big Three’ who won two NBA titles together. He initially appeared headed to the Houston Rockets, who had offered him four years and $88 million to join Dwight Howard and James Harden, before the Heat upped the ante after the exit by James and persuaded Bosh to remain in Miami.
ESPN suspends sportscaster for comments on abuse
NEW YORK – ESPN has suspended outspoken sportscaster Stephen A. Smith for a week because of his comments about domestic abuse suggesting women should make sure that they don’t do anything to provoke an attack. Smith’s commentary occurred during a discussion on ESPN2’s “First Take” last Friday about the NFL’s two-game suspension of Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice following charges he assaulted his now-wife. The remarks attracted widespread attention, including a stinging rebuke online from a fellow ESPN personality. Smith issued an on-air apology Monday, saying it was the most egregious mistake of his career.
A day later, ESPN took action. The network’s chief executive, John Skipper, told ESPN’s staff in a memo it was done after a “thoughtful discussion” about appropriate actions with men and women in his company. “I believe his apology was sincere and that he and we have learned from what we’ve collectively experienced,” Skipper said. Smith will not appear on “First Take” or ESPN radio until Aug. 6, the network said. During the Rice discussion, Smith alluded to women in abuse cases when he said, “Let’s make sure we don’t do anything to provoke wrong action ... we got to also make sure that you can do your
part to do whatever you can do to make, to try to make sure it doesn’t happen again.” Shortly after Smith’s remarks, colleague Michelle Beadle responded on Twitter that “I was just forced to watch this morning’s First Take. A) I’ll never feel clean again B) I’m not aware that I can provoke my own beating.” Beadle, host of ESPN2’s “SportsNation,” continued with a series of tweets. She said that “Violence isn’t the victim’s issue. It’s the abuser’s. To insinuate otherwise is irresponsible and disgusting.” ESPN frowns upon its personalities attacking each other on social media or other forums. But it did not announce any punishment for Beadle.
ESPN suspended sportscaster Stephen A. Smith on Tuesday for a week because of comments about domestic abuse, suggesting women should make sure they don’t provoke attacks.
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