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‘Banned’: Cinema slams film rating

‘Demonic content’ among reasons for blocking screening

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

FUSION’S chief legal officer called for the “archaic and outdated” Theatre and Cinemas regulations to be amended after the Film Control Board reportedly restricted the company’s ability to show a movie by giving it a D

rating. The movie, “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no YaibaTo The Hashira Training”, is an anime released worldwide on February 2nd.

Tecoyo Bridgewater, Fusion’s chief lawyer, said the Film Control Board gave the movie a D rating, which means “unsuitable

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor rrolle@tribunemedia.net

and forced him to confess to the crime. Because the confession was the Crown’s confession was M ade under duress, supre Me court rules Dr Charelle loCkhart

SEE page four

A dance supporting young hearts

SEE page five the prime Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis and his wife Ann Marie Davis dance while attending the 58th annual Sir Victor Sassoon Heart Foundation ball was held at Baha Mar on Saturday. The foundation has provided financial assistance to Bahamian children who need heart surgeries for more than 50 years. For more pictures see Weekend section on Friday. Photo: moise amisial

Medics ‘fatigued’ by gun violence

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

THE president of the Consultant Physicians Staff Association (CSPA) said doctors and nurses at Princess Margaret Hospital are “strained and fatigued” by the increase in gun violence.

“Obviously, it’s been traumatic for everybody,” Dr Charelle Lockhart told The Tribune yesterday. “I’m a paediatrician, so we’ve

had children involved in a number of these incidents, and so that has been pretty traumatic for us.”

A 16-year-old girl was taken to the hospital yesterday after she was caught in the crossfire of a shooting incident that left her 35-year-old father dead after he picked her up for church on Wilson Track

a rawakX to be reported to police on $4M insolvency

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas’ first-ever crowd funding platform is suffering from a near-$4m insolvency, its provisional liquidators have asserted, as they prepare to report “multiple criminal infractions” to the police.

A report to the Supreme Court revealed that ArawakX’s insolvency has almost doubled from the Securities Commission’s initial $2m estimate after they wroteoff more than $1m in assets listed on its balance sheet.

father of si X Murdered as he drove child to church

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

A FATHER of six was murdered yesterday morning while taking his 16-year-old daughter to band practice.

The girl was grazed with a bullet, but did not suffer a serious injury.

Michael Woodside’s uncle, Fredrick Wallace, said the murdered man was a hard worker and a good father who played an integral role in his

FULL story - see business SEE page three SEE page three

Historic ordination of first Bahamian to clergy of Greek Orthodox Church

History was made at the Annunciation Greek orthodox Church yesterday. For the first time, a Bahamian was ordained to serve in the clergy of the church, on West street, Nassau. in a full Hierarchical Divine Liturgy and ordination service, Alexander Maillis officially became a deacon. it was a proud moment for the

church, as Deacon Maillis grew up in the church, along with his father, attorney and environmentalist Pericles Maillis, and his entire family.

Archbishop Elpidophoros of America travelled from New york to Nassau to lead the Holy sacrament of ordination. He and his delegation were well-received by the

congregation, who were happy to host them in the country for a second time. the archbishop also travelled to the Bahamas in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian to provide humanitarian assistance to the survivors.

“i am so happy to visit this wonderful parish of our Archdiocese,” said Archbishop Elpidophoros.

“We hope that our church and our faith will grow in this beautiful country. We are happy to be a part of Bahamian society and history. it was a priest of our Archdiocese (rev Father theophanis Kolyvas) that the invocation prayer during the first Bahamian independence celebrations (1973). We feel that we are part of the history of this country and we are deeply honored for that.

the service included the reciting of the Lord’s prayer in nine different languages, honouring all of the countries represented at the church. the Greek orthodox Church, being the only orthodox Church in the Bahamas, is home to all orthodox religions. Parishioners and guests include those who were baptised in the orthodox faith from countries such as turkey, india, Cuba, russia and Ethiopia.

“it is a huge step for

our parish,” said the new deacon, who is a practicing attorney. i am deeply honored to have been approved by His Eminence to ordination and it is my pleasure to serve this community. As a young adult, contemplating marriage and family, i came to the realisation of how important spiritual life was to the health of the church and community. i made a promise to my intended wife that i would do everything within my power to ensure there was a church here that was vibrant and alive for her. that led me, in turn, to get involved in parish administration, parish council, and as i served i learned. the more i learned, the deeper i wanted to serve. that is the road that ultimately led me to this point today.”

Deacon Alexander and his wife, Diakonissa Panayiota, welcomed guests to a reception after the service.

Dignitaries included rev Protopresbyter Father Elias Villis, Chancellor of the Archdiocesan District; our Proestamenos rev Fr irenaelis Cox; rev Fr Demetrios Kazakis; rev Archdeacon Dionysios Papiris; rev Dn salvatore Fazio; rev Dn tikhon Cobb and others. Parish President Alexandra Maillis-Lynch assisted in hosting the reception, in which Archbishop Elpidophoros and his delegation were presented with gifts, including those from the children of the sunday school of the Greek orthodox Church. Archbishop Elpidophoros and his delegation met with Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis prior to the ordination, and they invited the Prime Minister to attend a special service in New york to bless the seas in January of 2025, noting his commitment and advocacy for the environment and climate change.

Newly-appointed Deacon Alexander Maillis, Diakonissa Panayiota and their children pause for a photo in the sanctuary of the Greek Orthodox Church with His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, who conducted the historic ordination

Medics ‘fatigued’ by gun violence

from page one

off Cordeaux Avenue.

The girl’s uncle said she was grazed in the shooting, but did not sustain serious injury.

“The emergency room has been very busy, and it really puts a strain on all of us as we are trying to take care of the usual things that come into the emergency room, and you basically have to stop and have all hands on deck to take care of people who are critically injured from these incidents,” Dr Lockhart said.

Dr Lockhart said a shortage of staff and supplies is taxing doctors and nurses even more than gun violence.

She said issues retaining nurses are at a “critical point”.

“They have made attempts to hire nurses, which is obviously going to be very helpful to us,” she said. “In terms of physician staff, not quite sure there has been much relief on that particular front. So we see that the government is trying, but we really are at a critical point when it comes to staffing and supplies, and we do need some more urgent and immediate relief.”

To relieve some of the pressure placed on emergency physicians, Dr Lockhart urged the public to seek medical assistance at poly-clinics or outpatient facilities for immediate non-lifethreatening illnesses.

“We are not a clinic,”

she said. “We are not designed to see coughs and colds, and splinters in the finger, and fever for a day, those kinds of things.

Police investigating fatal motorcycle crash on eleuthera

POLICE are investigating a fatal crash in Eleuthera on Sunday that resulted in the death of a 39-year-old man.

Initial reports indicate that shortly after 7am on Queen’s Highway, Hatchet Bay, the man reportedly lost control of a white and black coloured 650 HP Suzuki Dual Sport motorcycle and was subsequently thrown from the vehicle, sustaining head trauma.

Responding officers arrived and found him in

We are an accident and emergency department, and I think that we should be treated as such. And so our poly-clinics

and our outpatient clinics really should be used for those minor non-lifethreatening illnesses and injuries.”

Father of six murdered as he drove daughter to church

from page one

children’s lives.

The 35-year-old was a watersports operator and a professional welder.

“Mikey had a bubbly personality,” Mr Wallace said. “Everybody loved him.”

Police press liaison Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings said shortly after 7am, Mr Woodside went to collect his 16-year-old daughter from a residence on Wilson Track to take her to church.

“As he pulled off from the residency, a small silver coloured vehicle pulled alongside,” she said, adding that two men got out of the car and opened fire.

“She’s actually a musician,” she said of the girl. “So can you imagine now, a young musician with so much potential to help contribute to this country on the way to church by some senseless careless act of two young men, men who are supposed to be protecting women.”

Mr Wallace said his nephew’s father was nearby when his son was killed. The father and son spoke yesterday morning. He said the father’s last words to his son were: “Don’t forget to bring back the dog food.”

“He didn’t see it happen, but when he heard the gunshots outside, he said that persons were calling him and shouting to him, and he got frantic because he heard the gunshots,” he said.

Mr Wallace said to his knowledge, his nephew did not have a criminal record.

nearby bushes, unresponsive. The local doctor and the medical team on the island visited the scene, examined the victim, and pronounced him dead.

The Serious Accident Reconstruction Team (SART) from the Traffic Division-New Providence will be conducting investigations into this incident. Police encourage all motorcyclists to wear protective helmets when operating any motorised cycle to save their lives.

shooting death in eleuthera

A MAN was shot dead in Eleuthera overnight. As The Tribune was going to press, police reported that a shooting incident had left a man dead on the island. No further details were available. See www.tribune242.com for more details.

Labour on the Blocks

More than 300 job seekers participated in a job fair at Stephen Dillet on Friday, according to Centerville MP Jomo Campbell. Comfort Suites, Family Guardian, Mexicaba, AML Foods, and Lowes Wholesale Drug Agency were among the featured employers. Labour Director Howard Thompson, Jr, said the fair was a continuation of the Labour on the Blocks initiative, which was relaunched in 2022.

Photos: Moise amisial

Consultant PhysiCians staff assoCiation (CsPa) Dr Charelle loCkhart

Confession was made under duress, Supreme Court rules

not under oppression.

Javis Smith testified that his first interview was given voluntarily and without force on October 31, 2018, the day he was arrested. He denied knowledge or participation in the armed robbery incident.

According to Justice Hilton’s judgement, he testified that his other interviews involved oppression because he was beaten with a cutlass and had a fish bag placed over his head “which almost suffocated him”.

In court, he urged the judge not to accept the records of the interview and confession he gave

on November 1, 2018, and November 4, 2018, because Cpl Walkes and other police officers abused him. He alleged he was beaten on multiple days with a cutlass. “He said he confessed to something he did not do because of being beaten and threatened that he would be beaten again if he did not admit to the offence,” Justice Hilton wrote. “He testified that he was never picked out on an identification parade, nor did he show the police anything that they said was stolen in the robbery.”

“Under cross-examination, he maintained that he was beaten by the

police with a cutlass to his buttocks and fish bagged. He also said that officers held him down and put hot sauce in his eyes.”

“He stated that he slept two nights in Central Detective Unit because of being beaten and that no other police station would accept him while he was in custody.” A doctor who examined Mr Smith on November 8, 2018, found no signs of injury, though he noted that various factors could affect whether there are visible signs of injury, including someone’s skin complexion and the number of days between when they were beaten and examined. Justice Hilton identified

several concerns. “After having considered the evidence of the Crown,” he wrote, “I am concerned that there was no satisfactory explanation for the accused who was arrested and interviewed on 31 October 2018 and 1st November 2018 not to be taken to court until 5th November 2018, particularly as there was what purports to be a full confession by the accused on 1st November 2018.”

“What is the reason for the accused being kept in custody for that length of time? I am considering this in the context of the accused’s allegation that he was being beaten with a cutlass to his buttocks,

and being kept in custody for the length of time would lessen any visible signs of injury.”

Justice Hilton also alluded to a Privy Council ruling last year where the appellate judges expressed “deep concern” after finding that a man was languishing in prison for over 12 years based on a confession that should not have been admitted as evidence. The Privy Council highlighted the improbability that an appellant would voluntarily confess, without a lawyer, to several crimes absent independent evidence.

Justice Hilton wrote: “In addition to the fact that in the present case,

the accused was subjected to interviews on four separate offences within the space of eight hours and voluntarily confessed to all of them without a lawyer and without being confronted with any independent evidence, there is the fact that for the present offence, he has made a complete denial less than twenty-four hours earlier in a Record of Interview conducted by Cpl. Walkes, without any reason proffered by the police for him to make a full confession the next day.

“It is inherently improbable that the subsequent records of interview and statement could be obtained in circumstances that were not oppressive.”

Registrar General continues testimony over land and company records

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

THE registrar general’s testimony continued on Friday in the criminal trial of Long Island MP Adrian Gibson and five others.

Damian Gomez, KC, questioned Registrar General Camille GomezJones about documents she entered into evidence.

Earlier last week, she submitted registration records of companies connected to the accused and conveyances of land Mr Gibson allegedly acquired between 2018 and 2020.

During cross-examination on Friday, Mrs Gomez Jones said she couldn’t remember if the documents she submitted had Gibson’s name.

Mr Gomez showed her a copy of Mr Gibson’s mortgage dated May 30, 2020, and told her that Mr Gibson had mortgaged his house to purchase property in Long Island.

Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Cordell Frazier, who served as prosecutor, objected to this line of questioning. In response, Justice Grant-Thompson questioned Mr Gomez about how the witness would know Mr Gibson’s private financial affairs.

Mrs Gomez-Jones agreed with Mr Gomez that not all mortgages need to be recorded.

Mr Gomez noted a conveyance showing charges from Mr Gibson’s mortgage and that he borrowed $93,030 on June 8, 2020.

He further said that the letter of acceptance for the Blue Hill Low-Level Tank project was dated June 23, 2020.

Mrs Gomez-Jones agreed with the attorney that the conveyances for Mr Gibson’s Venice Bay property date back to 2018, two years before the WSC issued the Blue Hill Tank Project.

She also agreed that between 2018 and June

2020, no payments were made to Baha Maintenance from WSC.

It was previously revealed that Elite Maintenance was incorporated in 2018, and Baha Maintenance was incorporated in 2020. Although Mr Gomez told Mrs Gomez-Jones that the property purchased by Mr Gibson prior to June 2020 had nothing to do with payment made to WSC up to that point, she said she could not speak to that.

He further suggested that none of Mr Gibson’s property purchases had anything to do with WSC contracts issued after June 2020.

He also suggested that none of the property Mr Gibson purchased had anything to do with payments received from WSC to Elite Maintenance or Baha Maintenance and that the Venice Bay transaction involved a gift from Dr Rooseveit Whyms.

In response to all these suggestions, Mrs GomezJones said she did not know about Mr Gibson’s personal finances or contractual dealings.

During questioning from Mrs Frazier, Mrs Gomez-Jones confirmed that landscaping contract cheques from the WSC pre-date the purchase of property by Mr Gibson and that the conveyances shown in court are less than the total payments made. She also said Leonardo Gibson and Rashae Gibson own property in Venice Bay through a holding company.

Adrian Gibson is facing charges concerning his tenure as WSC executive chairman under the Minnis administration.

The charges stem from Mr Gibson’s alleged failure to declare his interest in contracts awarded by the WSC.

The FNM politician is charged with Mr Elwood Donaldson, Jr, former WSC’s general manager,

Rashae Gibson, his cousin, Joan Knowles, Peaches Farquharson and Jerome Missick.

Alongside Mr Gomez, KC, Murrio Ducille, KC, Bryan Bastian, Ryan Eve, Raphael Moxey, Christina

Galanos, Ian Cargill and Donald Saunders represent the defendants. In addition to Mrs

Frazier, the Crown’s lawyers include Cashena Thompson, Karine MacVean and Rashied Edgecombe.

Long IsLand MP adrIan gIbson

‘Banned’: Cinema slams film rating

from page one

for public viewing”.

“They cited that the movie had no storyline (preposterous, in my opinion), that it was not in English, and that it had demonic content because of beheading and dismemberment,” he said yesterday. “This is literally the content of 90 per cent of horror films.”

“Their position, in my estimation, to restrict a movie for adult viewing in 2024 under some archaic and outdated legislation is unreasonable when this series is already displayed on Netflix and will be displayed on cable TV with an R rating.”

“The Theatre and

Cinemas Act allowing the board this unilateral power must be addressed and amended. It is a law that no longer serves the purpose for the time and, in this estimation, an abuse of authority.”

“We understand that the board is, in essence, attempting to protect young viewers, but this can be done by a C rating. It’s the age of the internet and cable TV. Fusion Superlex can be akin to a pay-per-view movie. We are a private business that allows viewing by the public for compensation. The only difference is you physically come to the cinema because we offer an added visceral experience, better sound, bigger screen, and better

seating.”

Mr Bridgewater said that not showing a movie impacts revenue, employment, and the GDP.

“We believe this is an unprecedented act on the board’s behalf. I’ve reached out to the minister of youth, sports and culture on the matter.”

Minister Mario Bowleg initially told The Tribune a D rating meant people under 18 could not watch the film. He later said he would speak to the head of the Film Control Board to clarify the matter.

The New York Times reported that “Demon Slayer” was rated R for “graphic cartoon violence and some strong language”.

Many Touris T s ‘dishear T ened’ by s T ray dog populaT ion in The baha M as, says huM ane socie T y

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS Humane Society president Kim Aranha said tourists are “disheartened” by the stray dog population they encounter in The Bahamas.

“Some of the tourists end up writing to us and saying, ‘I saw a black dog on this beach, etc, ‘here’s a picture’, and we end up catching it and sending it to the States to them,” she said yesterday. “That happens time and time again. Tourists are heartbroken when they come here and see the stray population, and they want to help.”

Ms Aranha said many dogs that roam the beaches have owners who fail to keep them on their property.

“I need to point out that our stray population isn’t as stray as we think,” she said. “A lot of those ‘strays’ are actually owned dogs who people feed, but they leave their

gates open, and the dogs come down to the beach for the day, and they go back home at the end of the day.”

Ms Aranha said her organisation helps people fence their yards and meet the challenge of keeping their dogs on their property. She said during the last Operation Potcake campaign to spay or neuter animals, 2,253 animals were spayed or neutered over eight days. She urged the public to report animal abuse and called on the church to help in the fight against animal cruelty. “A major problem is that nobody wants to report their neighbour; they are afraid to,” she said. “But even when we go in and we find a dog who is chained up, or their collar is too small and the skin’s grown over the collar and they’re emaciated and they’re dehydrated, it’s very difficult to get these people charged. It’s very difficult to have them see their

day in court. It’s very difficult to send them to jail or have them pay fines. I can’t remember the last successful one we had.”

“The church could help us enormously. I think it’s time they join the crusade of being kind to God’s creatures. Some of these people who are doing what I’m talking about go to church every Sunday.

What is it they are not listening to?”

While Ms Aranha said she would meet government officials soon to discuss some of the issues her organisation faces, she said not enough is being done to enforce laws that protect animals.

“There is so many things government could do,” she said. “If we could just enforce some of the laws, if we could enforce the cruelty laws, if we could enforce breeding control, things would improve. The Animal Protection and Control Act has all of these provisions in there, but we are not getting the support we need.”

Fusion Superplex is calling for a review of the Theatre and Cinemas Act and board that reviews films.

Poster for the Demon Slayer movie that received a D-rating by the Film Control Board.

A strAy dog recovering in a cage during one of the spay neuter clinics.

Picture of the day

SIR

Publisher/Editor

Publisher/Editor

Contributing

Enforce the laws to reduce stray dog numbers

actually back them up with action? Ignoring them leaves the law itself held up to ridicule.

it is familiar does not make it right.

kim aranha has nothing but compassion for animals. The president of the Bahamas humane Society has spent many years working for the good of the animals in our country, and she is right when she points out some of the challenges faced in our nation.

She says that she often hears from tourists who are concerned about the stray dog populations in our country. She is far from alone. Many of us will have had visitors come to our shores and will doubtless have heard questions as to why there are so many stray animals on the streets.

Ms aranha is right when she points out that many of the strays are not without owners – they are just left to roam by owners who don’t close their gates or fence their yards.

There are efforts to reduce the numbers – notably in Operation Potcake, a project that endeavours to spay or neuter animals so that they do not add more puppies to the numbers already on our streets. In the last campaign, more than 2,000 animals were spayed or neutered. It is an excellent project, but it is not enough, the rest of us need to play a part too.

There are other worries – The Tribune often hears from cyclists and joggers, for example, who have issues when encountering dogs on the street. Sometimes the dogs try to bite, or chase.

and what of cases where children might be out on the street, and vulnerable to an attack from a dog – again, there have been cases. This is said not because of a dislike of dogs, but because of a love – a pet dog is patiently waiting for its supper as I write this column.

Dogs on the street can get hurt, can get hit by cars, can be killed. Many times you will see a dog that has an injury, or a limp. Many times you will see a heavily pregnant dog looking for a place to have her puppies. These are not ideal, this is not how a nation that cares for dogs should treat them.

as Ms aranha says, “If we could just enforce some of the laws, if we could enforce the cruelty laws, if we could enforce breeding control, things would improve.”

Enforcing the law should be a start. What is the point of such laws if we do not

She also urged the church to “join the crusade of being kind to God’s creatures”. We agree. It should not just be limited to the church, however, and The Tribune is more than happy to lend its voice to calls for better treatment of animals in our society.

a quote often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi (though possibly erroneously) says that “the greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated”.

If that is so, then the greatness to which we aspire is falling short. We can do more, we can do better, and we can start with further neutering of animals, and ensuring that animals we own do not roam more than they should.

If we are not prepared to do so, then frankly we do not deserve to be animal owners at all. Pets bring such love into our lives, we ought to return the love and care the best we can.

What is choice for?

The news that a film has been given a certificate that prevents its public viewing is a throwback to an earlier age.

The film, called Demon Slayer, has been given a D rating by the Film Control Board, which means “unsuitable for public viewing”.

Frankly, however, this is a different age.

The film is part of a series that has, in book or movie form, been around since 2016, and itself is a compilation film of episodes that have largely already been available to watch on people’s TVs or computers for some time now.

It is unlikely anyone going to watch this film would be encountering it for the first time, so fans will know what to expect. In short, putting such a rating on this is trying to put the genie back in the bottle – and seems an overreaction.

The film is rated R elsewhere, fit for adult viewing, though we are sure the content of bloody violence will not be for many viewers. But that is what choice is for, and this rating smacks of days when there was more of a nanny state that sought to control what people can and cannot watch or do.

Worse, attempts to stifle it will probably give it more attention. There may be more than a few people who would never have heard of the movie who now want to watch it because it has been “banned”. If nothing else, it all seems very counterproductive.

EDITOR, The Tribune.

ThE Bahamas’ image and reputation as a safe place for Canadian tourists has now been impacted by the Canadian Government issuing a warning to Canadian tourist citizens that the Bahamas has a high crime rate of murders, robberies and rapes. I am deeply saddened to be sharing this news. The severe impact on Tourism because of the high crime rate, murders, robberies and rapes will definitely have an impact on Bahamas Tourism with american, Canadian and European tourists who are now being warned that the Bahamas is unsafe for tourists to travel, it should be noted that all Travel agents must inform all their clients who will be deciding to purchase tickets to the Bahamas of the US State Department issuing an advisory warning that american tourists

should be careful when travelling to the Bahamas

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Thank you again for space in your valuable publication.

In a world that has gone topsy-turvy or one that is seeing its karma in spades, it is difficult to know where to begin. In this moment we will step outside of The Bahamas and cast our gaze elsewhere.

For this time we will begin in what is called the Middle East. Given the genocide and the inhuman savagery being visited upon the people of Gaza, it is far beyond our ken to understand much less accept how the world continues to stand in apparent paralytic silence and allow the public annihilation of a people without raising a finger!

Well, the United nations is again demonstrating its impotence in the face of Right Wing Zealot Prime Minister Benjamin netanyahu and Israel’s intransigence and insistence on snuffing out the lives of millions of Palestinians without penalty! We commend the International Court of Justice in The hague (where our own eminent jurist Sir Burton hall has laboured for many years), but of what utility is it to pass resolutions that are ignored and cannot be enforced?

no sane or rational human being would deny the horror visited upon the citizens of Israel on October 7, 2023, or the

right of Israel to defend and avenge this tragedy. But the destruction and or destabilisation of an entire population? no!

That cannot be right!

The idea that the only way to avenge this atrocity is to annihilate an entire population is unacceptable!

We are old enough to remember Operation Wrath of God in 1972, directed by the Mossad and authorised by then Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, to assassinate individuals they believed responsible for the kidnapping and massacre of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics in Munich. We also remember the successful raid to get Israeli citizens who were under threat of death, out of the Entebbe airport in Uganda in 1976!

Well who could forget?

They made movies glorifying what they called the unmatched bravery and skill of the Israeli Mossad in executing such surgical operations. Raid on Entebbe was hailed far and wide! Why not in Gaza? One irony in all of this is the only casualty in that Entebbe exercise was Yonathan netanyahu. You guessed it; he was Benjamin’s older brother!

If for no other reason

than to address the critical health crisis that has been visited upon the citizens, especially women and the, oh so innocent children of Gaza, for God’s sake, won’t the world intervene and stop this crazy bloodlust that seems to have consumed the leaders and armies of Israel?

It was encouraging to see US President Joe Biden say that the Israeli actions in Gaza are “over the top” and Secretary of State anthony Blinken say that new Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal. Really a decades-long US position that was changed by President Donald Trump. Let’s see how far this will go and whether it will bring some relief to the beleaguered residents of Gaza who are being slaughtered daily!

We ask forgiveness if we missed it, but It would also be uplifting to hear the voices of our local comm. unity, especially those who made it a yearly ritual to pilgrimage to Israel? has your belief in God and the spiritual principles you hold so dear not moved you to cry shame on the behaviour of your brethren in the holy Land? Or do you also believe that their status as the “Chosen Ones” gives them carte blanche to slaughter anyone who offends them?

ANTHONY “Ace”

NEWBOLD

new Providence

February 25, 2024

A full moon rises behind the Camlica mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday. Photo: Emrah Gurel/AP

As 6,000 driver’s licences await collection ‘important to have in your possession’ says police

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

POLICe said over 6,000 outstanding driver’s licences are awaiting collection from 2022.

Superintendent Coran Jennning, second in command of the royal Bahamas Police Force traffic division, encouraged motorists to collect their outstanding driver’s licence.

he noted the importance of motorists having a driver’s licence in their possession while highlighting the penalties for failing to adhere to road traffic laws.

“Once an officer would stop you and inquire as to whether you have a driver’s licence in your possession it is mandated that you present a driver’s licence ID to the officer,” SP Jennings said.

“And if you don’t have a driver’s licence, you could be ticketed and the fine for that ticket is $250. Now if you have a driver’s licence, and it is not in your possession, the fine will be a lesser fine, which is $40.”

he noted that the turnaround time for the collection of driver’s licences is two to three days. The renewal cost is $25 for one year or $75 for three years.

Meanwhile, Chief Superintendent eugene Strachan, officer in charge of the road traffic division, noted an “alarming concern” for Japanese cars being major contributors to traffic accidents.

he appealed to motorists to reduce speed and cell phone use while behind the wheel.

“The little vehicles that we are finding ourselves having to buy, we are competing with larger vehicles and with that larger vehicle a crash occurs and the only end result is either major injuries or fatalities,” he said.

“So we’re going to appeal again to the members of the public when you get behind a steering wheel, we’re begging you to make sure that every individual is properly strapped in with a seatbelt and that the driver is adhering to the speed regulations on all of the major roads.”

The country has recorded seven traffic fatalities for the year, with the most recent incident in Abaco claiming the life of a mother and her four-year-old child.

The Tribune understands the mother is 22-year-old Michelleda and her son, Armani. Police said the crash happened around 8 am on Tuesday near ernest Dean highway.

The woman and her son were reportedly in a honda Fit travelling north on ernest Dean highway when she veered into oncoming vehicular traffic and collided with a male driver and a woman passenger in a grey Dodge Caravan travelling in the opposite direction.

Police said the initial impact resulted in the Dodge Caravan colliding with a grey Nissan Cube driven by a woman. After the crash, passengers were taken to the island’s local clinic, but the mother and son died on the scene after suffering serious injuries.

Three sure T ies ordered To pay $15k af T er man accused of armed robbery disappears

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

Three sureties must pay $15,000 after a defendant absconded months before his trial for kidnapping and armed robbery was set to begin.

Justice Cheryl GrantThompson ruled on Friday that Margaret Bethel, Larry Demeritte and r aynell Wiley must pay the funds after they failed to locate Shaquille Demeritte, 29, who went missing in October.

Ms Bethel and Mr Demeritte, the defendant’s parents, along with Ms Wiley, signed a $15,000 bail form for the defendant after he allegedly kidnapped Michael Lightbourne and stole his Ford F-150 truck along

with other belongings on January 4, 2023.

Shaquille Demeritte faced a prior bail breach for these charges in August of last year. h e was required to report to police regularly but his mother indicated that he stopped signing in sometime last October.

Ms Bethel further told that while she reported her son missing to the commissioner, she claimed that she only went there after it was claimed police put a hit on her son.

In issuing her judgment, Justice Grant-Thompson stated that all three sureties failed to contact the defendant’s attorney, children or associates to ascertain his location.

She stated that they demonstrated “a casual

disregard for their duties as sureties” as they failed to ensure that the defendant appeared for his court dates as stipulated in the bail they signed.

Although Ms Bethel offered to pay the full $15,000 bond, Justice Grant-Thompson said she could not allow this in good conscience as all three signed the bond making them all liable to pay it. She ordered that each pay $5,000 to the public treasury on April 29. h owever, she informed them that one person could still write a cheque for the full amount.

All three sureties are to return to court on April 30 and were urged to bring Shaquille Demeritte in to authorities.

Man charged with the murder of Edlin Severe on Hospital Lane

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A 21-yeAr-OLD man was imprisoned on Friday after he allegedly ambushed and killed a man who was out on bail for murder. The offence allegedly took place in hospital Lane earlier this month.

Magistrate Kendra Kelly charged Kevin Bain with murder.

Bain allegedly sprang up from a nearby park and shot and killed 31-year-old edlin Severe as he was walking on hospital Lane at 3pm on February 6. Before his death, Severe was accused of the murder of Ashanton Newbold on

July 21, 2017. Bain was told that his case would be moved to the Supreme Court by a voluntary bill of indictment (VBI). he will be sent to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services until the higher court grants him bail. The accused’s VBI is slated for service on May 29.

Man accused of sexual assault of 18-year-old girl granted $6,000 bail

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A 40-yeAr-OLD man was granted bail Friday after he was accused of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old girl last week. Assistant Chief

Magistrate Carolyn Vogtevans charged Lawrence Brown with indecent assault. Brown is alleged to have inappropriately touched an 18-year-old female in New Providence on February 21. After pleading not guilty to the charge, the defendant’s bail was set at $6,000

with one or two sureties. Under the terms of his bail Brown must sign in at the Wulff road Police Station every Sunday by 7pm. he was also warned not to interfere with any of the witnesses in this matter.

Brown’s trial begins on March 21.

By TimoThy RoBeRT s Tribune Night editor

“A boy needs a father to show him how to be in the world. He needs to be given swagger, taught how to read a map so that he can recognise the roads that lead to life and the paths that lead to death, how to know what love requires, and where to find steel in the heart when life makes demands on us that are greater than we think we can endure.”

― Ian Morgan

A nurturing mom goes beyond being the “maintenance person” in a child’s life. She doesn’t just keep a child clean, fed, warm, and dry. She also helps enable her children to develop fully by pouring life into them. She models joy and passion. Nurturing is filling your child up with aliveness.

― Timothy L Sanford

THE home life of men in prison is dominated by numerous “stressors”. In some places statistics show that as many as eight of ten men in prisons came from abusive or broken homes.

The statistics are not that different here, in The Bahamas, as Marlon Johnson highlighted in his Citizen Safety Diagnostic Report which he completed in 2004. In a recent conversation he says that the predictors of crime have not changed, except that there is more of the same.

“Children from unwanted pregnancies, again, no surprise: yeah, most at risk,” he said. “Because of course, their parents either didn’t want them or were unable to financially or emotionally support them.”

Johnson said that a part of our long-term strategies in reducing crime and violence is to reduce the number of broken homes and interventions need to begin at the pre-school level. He said between the ages of two and five are the most formative years of a child’s

life, when they are learning intellectually and emotionally, and the best time to intervene in a positive way. He said many at-risk children’s home situation is usually a single mom, unemployed or employed with multiple jobs. In troubled areas a social worker should come for frequent visits to check on the welfare of the child, which which in turn would reduce the chance a woman would neglect or abandon her child knowing that a social worker could pop up at any time.

The social worker would go inside and see that the conditions [in the home] so a timely intervention could mitigate a bad situation, or in the worst case a social worker may take the children away from the troublesome environment.

Johnson notes in dealing with broken homes, issues like sex education and how children are punished by parents (spanking) are important areas to address.

“We need some coordination of activities in order to make it happen and get it done and over the longer term, it’s really about how we re-engineer our neighborhood and community spaces; how we address the issues around honest discussions around sex, sexuality, family planning, avoiding unwanted pregnancies, because, again, the studies are clear, children from unwanted pregnancies are most at risk,” he said.

“We have to be honest that young people are going to have sex. It is an exercise in futility to tell them not to do it,” Johnson said.

“In Christian, Muslim, atheists, and in any society, the vast majority of young people are not going to wait until they are married before they have sex. That is not going to happen. Some will, but most won’t.

So, we can’t craft issues for some, we have to craft policies that work for all,” he said. He suggests instead of

The solutions to our crime issues begin with

our children

The resposnibility for a stable society begins with a mother and father in the home and extends to the neighbours, community and all of the country. We are all a part of the solution for what ails us.

“We gotta ask ourselves if we have such punitive laws around hitting adults why do we hit the people who are much more vulnerable than that? That’s the fundamental question - if you can correct a child without hitting them then why hit them?”

just preaching abstinence, we must promote safe sex education if we want to succeed. “I’ve got to be realistic. If my goal is to not create a whole lot of unwanted children, I can’t discount the notion that people have to be sexually responsible. So, I tell my kids, not rush to have sex, but if you do it, this is what you must be mindful of.”

“This is what you have to understand. Because I’d much rather tell her that than be the parent who says, don’t have sex, don’t have sex, and all of a sudden end up at a pregnancy.”

He said if we hope to end as other stable and secure societies, “they’re not preaching abstinence, but are preaching good sensible sex practices. My problem is we tend to colour these discussions with our religious and cultural convictions, but if our goal is a great, peaceful, tranquil society, then [we’ve] got to realize that some of the things [we] really firmly held on to aren’t necessarily consistent with what actually works.”

The other issue, which Johnson calls a “controversial drug” is corporal punishment.

“The truth is this, and I’ve studied this extensively, they have not only done studies, they’ve done meta-analysis over 50-year periods; children who get hit are more likely to be dysfunctional than those who do not. The evidence is overwhelming.”

He said, “it don’t mean

that hitting a child is going to cause some dysfunction, it just means that if you want to minimize a child’s incidence of dysfunction, you can discipline children without it.

“And, even for those parents who hit responsibly, meaning that they don’t necessarily, you know, virtually abuse children, as long as you allow it, a lot of these parents come from very stressful environments, and are too stressed out and whatnot.”

Johnson says not every parent is responsible enough to use corporal punishment, and the abuse of it can have devastating effects on children. “So, I think we do need to have a national discussion, but you’ve got to start from the vantage point of saying, listen, even if most of you can hit responsibly, you can raise well-meaning, welladjusted children without having to do so.” In those men who ended up committing crimes and particularly violent crimes, he said we see that as children they were hit quite a bit in the home.

“The message you send the child is, if somebody offends me, a lot of times, I got hit, wasn’t because I was necessarily doing something bad, but my mother was doing it because she was vexed. That ain’t a correction, that’s you child upsetting you and you retaliating. And that’s the messages that these most kids get,”

he said. He added that if it is an offensive thing for an adult to hit another adult, why then is it okay to hit a child?

“We gotta ask ourselves if we have such punitive laws around hitting adults why do we hit the people who are much more vulnerable than that? That’s the fundamental question - if you can correct a child without hitting them then why hit them? If we really want to rid ourselves of violenceas violence should only be deployed when there is no other recourse - we have to let go of some of our sacred cows, and fundamentally rethink and focus on what works, as opposed to what our sentiment tells us works.” Johson said that our solutions to our social ills must be consistent with what is going to optimise the outcomes. “Ultimately, we have to let the empiricism drive our decisions, number one, and we really have to focus in on the day-to-day management of the interventions discreetly, and from a macro standpoint, to make sure that they’re integrated, and that it bears fruit.” He said as we seek to reduce crime that it comes down to being able to get the right group of ideas together, working together with evidence-based solutions.

“The final thing I think, when we now articulate this plan, and the Prime Minister is talking about planning and strategy, there needs to be targeted KPIs (key performance indicators) and milestones. The reason for that is if we understand what the goal is that helps us make mid-term re-evaluations to see if it worked or if it is not working. If you’re not measuring against something, then how do you measure success?”

If you want to see decline in 20 percent of murders, or 30 percent of rapes and you seek to involve a certain number of young

men, and young women in the programme we can now measure those targets and evaluate the results; whether targets are made and why or why not, and then how do we adjust and improve?

Johnson said, “I want us to move on from this being a political football, because truthfully, governments only realise this when they get into government that it isn’t political. We as a civil society must encourage governments to set milestones that we will be prepared as a civil society to have honest engagement in and be prepared to adjust our strategies and our tactics when certain things are not working.”

He adds that, “if you do not have people, especially at the end of that line, who are interacting with especially at-risk youth that actually care about them, It’s not going to work. Which is why you need civil society partners who are genuinely interested.”

“It can’t be a bureaucrat doing it because a bureaucrat is there for the measure of success. It isn’t their passion or their job. You want people who are doing it because they are motivated to do it as opposed to doing it for a paycheck. And the good news for us is that we have more than enough people who want to assist.”

We all have a role to play in the betterment of the society we live in. The government has the authority to do their part with laws and enforcement and aid programmes, but the real impact of change – real long-term tangible change – will only come from us as we live and interact with the very community and country we live in.

Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in. Unknown

Triplets’ journey takes a LEAP

Today we welcome back the Gain An Edge column, a series of articles spotlighting education, the young people taking part in it and more. The column will run each week on Mondays.

TripleTs sammia, serrenda and Brenden are bubbly fifth graders who love attending Uriah Mcphee primary school.

They are naturally curious. Two years ago, their curiosity changed their educational journey.

They remember the day they heard a presentation at school about leAp (learning environment to Accelerate progress), an educational pilot programme developed by lyford Cay Foundations to address the learning loss created by the pandemic. The tuition-free programme, for selected

GAIN AN EDGE

students in Grades 1 through 4, offers support in critical areas including numeracy, literacy and social emotional skills.

“leAp sounded like fun. i didn’t really know what it was, but i wanted to learn more,” said serrenda. With the help of their family, they applied

and were accepted into the first cohort of 41 students. That’s when their learning adventure began. For ten saturdays, they woke up early, packed leAp backpacks, dressed in uniforms provided by leAp, boarded a bus and rode to lyford Cay international school (lCis).

Their half-days at lCis included interactive lessons to boost skills in reading, comprehension, written language and problem solving in math and numeracy. A hearty breakfast, healthy hot lunch, time on learning tablets and playtime on the lCis playground were fun parts of the day! Their instructors were teachers from both lCis and Uriah Mcphee primary, creating a unique public-private school partnership. “i was excited to be a part of a programme that would help close the learning gap,” shared Ms Tamea Johnson-King, a leAp teacher from Uriah Mcphee primary. “The collaboration with other teachers gave us an

opportunity to bounce ideas off each other and students learned in an environment with minimal distractions.”

Mr O’Niel Bain, lCis’s marketing, advancement and communications director noted: “An important strategic goal for lCis is to develop partnerships that enrich the broader Bahamian community. We are delighted to share our facilities and expertise with leAp.”

The triplets believe that leAp helped them academically. serrenda noted: “leAp helped me stay focused and one step ahead.” sammia shared, “Because of leAp, i read more books!”

lyford Cay Foundations is now expanding

le A p with a new partnership between ep r oberts p rimary s chool and s t Andrew’s i nternational s chool which will allow 40 additional students to participate. Brenden thinks this is a good thing.

“leAp would be great for all students,” he said. “But you can’t force them. Doing better is something you have to want to do.”

* Gain An Edge is a collaboration of Lyford Cay Foundations, the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute and the University of The Bahamas aimed at promoting a national dialogue on issues surrounding education. To share your thoughts, email gainanedge@tribunemedia.net.

TripleTs sammia, Serrenda and Brenden fifth graders who attend Uriah McPhee Primary School.

A NeW book charts the history of a cholera pandemic that swept the globe - including The Bahamas, as told by one of the country’s foremost medical experts.

Dr Harold Munnings (2nd from right) with Dr Grace Turner, Dr Christopher Curry, AMMC librarian, and Dr Rita Pemberton.

Government in the ‘blame dem’ phase

“So, court delays? Blame dem. Murder count bringing bad publicity to the country? Blame dem. Counting the murders themselves? Blame dem. Problems with government revenue? Blame dem.”

By Tyler McKenzie

IT seems to me that the Davis administration has entered its “blame dem” phase of government.

Something wrong?

Blame dem. Getting some bad press? Blame dem. Don’t have a solution? Blame dem instead.

The thing with “blame dem” moments is that once you start noticing them, suddenly you see them everywhere.

The first one to catch my eye this week was Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis criticising Bahamians over jury duty – and saying that avoidance of jury duty is causing challenges for swift justice.

“Many Bahamians don’t want to serve,” he said. “We talk about swift justice, but we need to encourage people that when they’re called upon to provide service, to do so as part of their civil duty. But then anytime they see their name, they go try to make excuses to be excused.”

Typically, Mr Davis did not bring any statistics or details to back up his claim, but rather went on about how murder trials didn’t take so long back in his day.

He said: “I would finish a murder trial with the judges within a week. The

longest trial I had back in the day in a murder was two weeks. That’s a long time. But today, a murder trial taking two, three months. So, something is happening. I’ve raised this matter as well, that we need to see why trials are taking so long.” After a couple of years in office now, and a lengthy career as a lawyer, it is somewhat concerning that Mr Davis is only just beginning to look to see why trials are taking so long – but from this very same week, there are a couple of examples of impediments to swift justice that have absolutely nothing to do with his petty sniping at people over jury duty. Bahamas Crisis Centre director Dr Sandra DeanPatterson, for example, highlighted the lack of capacity in the country to analyse the evidence in rape kits. Not just now, but for the past 30 years. She said: “When a person is raped and they go to the hospital, the evidence is taken. But unfortunately, up to now, we haven’t been able to analyse it locally. And so, a lot of times, the cases depend on the stories of the victim. So victims are put through a whole lot of horrendous things during the courts because we

don’t have access to that kind of information. So, hopefully, the minister is saying that we’re moving on that at last, 30 years later. So we’re looking forward to seeing it.”

Interesting that the government has been talking up introducing DNA testing for citizenship, but women who are victims of rape have been left behind for so long.

Then there is the coroner, who during an inquest into the police-involved killing of three men in Blair Estates, criticised the police, saying it was “unacceptable” that only eight out of the 15 weapons used by officers in the shooting were submitted as evidence.

The coroner asked about the delay – note the word delay – in retrieving the remaining weapons, and was told the remaining weapons are in active circulation, mainly in Abaco.

The case goes on – but it is an example of delays that have nothing to do with jurors, but rather the processes behind the scenes.

How many times do we see cases delayed because lawyers don’t show up, or witnesses don’t show up, or documentation is not present, and so on.

National Security

Minister Wayne Munroe got in on the blame game too, grumbling about the fact that judges have holidays. He said: “We now have 12 judges who all have five weeks vacation, which is 60 weeks a year, which is over a year of trial time.” Hands up anyone out there who has ever worked in any kind of environment where people have holiday time – yep, that’s everyone. Dealing with the fact that people are entitled to holidays is a simple fact of life – you plan around it. If those working hours have to be filled and can’t be done by the staff you have, you hire more staff. Need another year of trial time to catch up? Hire another judge. They will have holiday time too, though, so don’t be surprised, Mr Munroe.

Mr Munroe also complained about people who “are into” murder statistics. He said: “I’m not one for counting murders because one is too much, 70 too, but at the end of the day, the people who are into statistics trouble me because every murder isn’t really a statistic. It’s a person, and it doesn’t matter whether or not you say this person is somebody who’s in the game and so makes themselves

a target.”

First, I hope he reserves some of that “trouble” for his own Prime Minister, who famously defended the murder billboards put up by the PLP listing the number of killings under the FNM administration. And secondly, people have tended to keep a count of the murders because they were not certain of the official numbers any more and started to keep track independently.

As an aside, he also said “when we came out of our lockdown, it wasn’t surprising you have a spurt of murders”. Back when Police Commissioner Paul Rolle was asked if lockdowns had an effect in reducing murders, he called it “nonsense” and said it was down to “the work that officers did… y’all have to give us the credit because we have done a whole lot and when crime goes up, we take responsibility”.

The PM himself, of course, has reacted to the rise in the murder count this year by suggesting that the press could play down its coverage of murders. Rather than dealing with the murders, once again it’s blame dem. Also last week, the midyear Budget revealed the government is overshooting its deficit projections

significantly. The fullyear projection is $127m. Where are we at now? $258m, nearly double.

How does the government address that? Well, it spent some time blaming alcohol and tobacco smuggling, saying the country loses nearly $100m each year that way. I’m not quite sure how they come to such a number that they have missed – because it strikes me that this is something that if you’re not aware of, how can you count it? Perhaps it’s like with my fishermen friendsthe one that got away is always bigger. But blame they did. It may be true, and good luck to them in clamping down on it if so, but while they tutted about that, they tossed another chunk of money onto the PM’s travel budget, now $2.1m, up from $569,721.

So, court delays? Blame dem. Murder count bringing bad publicity to the country? Blame dem. Counting the murders themselves? Blame dem. Problems with government revenue? Blame dem.

Like I say, once you start seeing them do it, it’s hard to stop noticing. Let’s see what the coming weeks bring. Blame? Or taking responsibility.

France and the US broke Haiti; they should be the first to mend it

WHEN the Foreign Ministers of the world’s wealthiest nations gathered in Brazil from February 21, 2024, Haiti’s dire situation found a brief moment of attention — not in the main agenda but on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Rio de Janeiro. This sidelining is emblematic of the low priority assigned to Haiti by these global powerhouses.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken took the initiative to put Haiti on the agenda, highlighting US concerns over the country’s instability and the continuous arrival of Haitian refugees to US shores, which has been a contentious issue. Yet, as of February 23, 2024, major G20 nations have not shown an enthusiastic response.

This lack of enthusiasm reflects the acute rivalry of other major G20 countries, particularly Russia and China, with the US, as they have differing interests concerning Haiti.

In the case of China, it has argued for a multifaceted approach that includes political stability and security support to create a sustainable path forward for Haiti.

For its part, Russia has expressed scepticism towards international military interventions without a clear national

World View

By SIR RONALD SANDERS

consensus and detailed operational plans. Russia abstained from voting on the UN Security Council Resolution, which authorized the deployment of a Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission to Haiti by likeminded countries, led by Kenya.

Nonetheless, Secretary Blinken has continued to encourage G20 and other nations, from both developed and developing regions, to join the MSS mission. To date, the US has not managed to secure troop commitments except from Kenya and a few countries of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). The particularly notable absence of troop commitments from European nations, especially France — a former imperial power in Haiti and a major beneficiary of its slave-produced wealth — underscores this point.

The US itself has committed no troops. Instead, it has concentrated on trying to get African and Caribbean nations

to send their military personnel. The Biden administration’s reluctance to commit troops to Haiti may be influenced by the stance of Donald Trump, Biden’s presidential rival, known for his reluctance to deploy US troops abroad. Nonetheless, it irks some nations that the US is calling on them to provide troops who would be endangered in Haiti, while choosing to keep its soldiers at home.

Further, while the US government is touting its willingness to pay $200 million to finance an intervention in Haiti, it says half will come from the Department of Defence, but the other half must come from the US Congress. To date, the Congress has not voted to allocate any money. Therefore, the full amount of the US government pledge is not available and is $100 million short of the Kenyan demand.

Jake Johnson, in his insightful book “Aid State: Elite Panic,

Disaster Capitalism, and the battle to control Haiti,” suggests that Western perceptions of Haiti are marred by a history of colonialism and racism. While I share Johnson’s view and commend his work for its depth, I argue that the issue is primarily one of passive racism — a disregard for Haiti that likely wouldn’t exist if its population were white.

That passive, almost unthinking, reflexive racial attitude is also mixed with the view that Haiti is a corrupt country where billions of dollars of aid has either been mismanaged or stolen. The two elements have been a toxic brew for western policy makers to swallow.

A further unofficial consideration in the minds of many governments, and one that is whispered in the margins of international gatherings, is that tens of billions of dollars have been spent on peacekeeping efforts in Haiti in the past by the United Nations and participating governments. Yet, as soon as peacekeeping forces leave, Haiti returns to instability resulting from conflicts between rival political forces in the country.

It is noteworthy that while Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has generally agreed to support a humanitarian intervention in Haiti,

less than five of its 15 members have actually offered troops. In the event, CARICOM lacks the capacity to make any significant military contribution to any intervention in Haiti. The grouping has done so because Haiti is a member state, and, more importantly, because the Haitians were the first nation to rise up against slavery and create a black independent nation in 1804. But, in any analysis of the Haitian situation, France and the US have a particular responsibility, having significantly profited from and subsequently destabilized the country. Neither country, whatever internal political issues they face, can be excused from their responsibility for impoverishing Haiti. The heavy debt imposed by France following Haiti’s independence and the US’s prolonged financial and political interference have left deep scars on Haiti’s ability to self-govern and prosper. In light of this, the primary onus for aiding Haiti lies with France and the US They should be at the forefront of efforts to restore order and rebuild the nation, contributing not just through police presence now but also by investing in Haiti’s infrastructure and social systems, rectifying the historical injustices that

continue to impede its progress.

Haiti’s relegation to the sidelines of international discourse is a stark reminder of the need for a renewed, committed global effort to address its crises. It is time for those nations most implicated in its historical exploitation, to fulfil their moral and ethical obligations to Haiti.

There is need for an intervention in Haiti to end the current lawlessness, but the support for such an intervention should come from the broadest representation of the Haitian people. It should also include a timetable and a comprehensive plan, with resources, to build Haiti’s much needed physical, social, political and governance infrastructure at the intervention’s conclusion.

Only then can we hope to see Haiti as a stable, sovereign, and thriving nation, rather than perpetually labelled as a “failed” state or an “aid” state.”

• response and previous commentaries: www. sirronaldsanders.com

The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the US and the OAS. The views expressed are his own.

NatioNal police officers ride past a car set on fire by protesters during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, in Port-auPrince, Haiti on Ferbruary 7, 2024.

Photo: odelyn Jospeh/AP

242 Day celebrated with a pop-up by the Independence Secretariat on East West Highway

The Bahamas Independence Secretariat, recognizing ‘242 DAY’ February 24, staged an Independence Pop-Up! on Friday afternoon, February 23, 2024 at the Independence Roundabout on East Street South and East West Highway. All were encouraged to wear National Flag colours to celebrate. The team was joined by executives of SuperClubs Breezes, as sponsors of the 50th anniversary celebration were invited to attend.

Photos: Patrick hanna/AP

Tractor protests threaten to drive the EU’s green farming policies into a ditch

Belgium Associated Press

It was the puddles of green sludge left by the tires of massive tractors in western Belgium’s industrial farmlands that drew the attention of biological engineer Ineke Maes.

the slime was destructive algae, the result of the excess of chemicals used by farmers to boost their crops, but at a high cost to nature. Maes had hoped the European Union’s environmental policies would start to make a fundamental difference by improving exhausted soils.

In recent weeks, some of those tractors moved off the land and onto the roads, blocking major cities and economic lifelines from warsaw to Madrid and from athens to Brussels. Farmers were demanding the reversal of some of the most progressive measures in the world to counter climate change and protect biodiversity, arguing that the rules were harming their livelihoods and strangling them with red tape. and the impact has been stunning. the farmers’ protests affected the daily lives of people across the 27-nation bloc, costing businesses tens of millions of euros in transportation delays. the disruption triggered knee jerk reactions from politicians at national and EU level: they committed to rolling back policies, some of them years in the making, on everything from the use of pesticides to limiting the amount of manure that could be spread on fields. to environmentalists like Maes, who works for the

Belgian Better Environment Federation umbrella group, it would almost be laughable if it were not so depressing.

“In the environmental movement, we joke that we should get tractors ourselves to make a point. then we would be competing fair and square. the purpose should be that we get negotiations, and that we get a deal through democratic process — the rules, you know,” she said. Reasoned arguments, she says, have been drowned out by the rumble of tractor engines. and there’s no end in sight. after hundreds of tractors disrupted the EU summit in Brussels early this month at a volume that kept some leaders awake at night, farmers plan to return on Monday. they intend to be there when agriculture ministers discuss an emergency item on the agenda — the simplification of agricultural rules and a decrease in checks at farms that environmentalists fear could amount to a further weakening of standards. the political noise level from the tractors — not to mention the loads of manure dumped outside official buildings — does get through, officials said. that puts a bit more pressure on the ministers inside. so I would believe that ministers will be a bit more — insisting to have concrete results,” said a high-level EU official, who asked not to be identified because the meeting has yet to take place. It is this attitude that drives the environmental lobby and NGOs to distraction: knowing that scientific

arguments are too often no match for the rule of the street. as a result, the EU’s flagship Green Deal, that aims to make the continent carbon-neutral by 2050, is under threat.

“You really should not lose that long-term view, that vision of the future when you are working on policy,” said Maes. “You should not respond to the issues of the day by simply scrapping very important rules that have been seriously discussed, considered, that have been included in environmental impact reports and so on — and that have also been democratically approved in that way.”

Yet ahead of Monday’s farm protest and meeting of agriculture ministers, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, for many the most powerful EU politician, insisted that she “remains fully committed to delivering solutions to ease the pressure currently felt by our hard-working farming women and men.”

Von der Leyen’s change in emphasis comes ahead of the June 6-9 elections, when a good showing by her Christian Democrat group, the European People’s Party, will be key to keeping her at the helm of the all-powerful Commission. as her party has swayed toward putting farmers and industry first, so has she.

“It is a bit difficult putting a pin on Mrs. von der Leyen,” said Jutta Paulus, a Green member of the European Parliament. “she started off in 2019 being a climate and environment champion, more or less saying, ‘we don’t need the Greens anymore, we

A leek grows out of a flooded gulley in a field in West Flanders, Belgium, Wednesday. After hundreds of tractors disrupted an EU summit in Brussels in early February, farmers plan to return on today to be there when farm ministers discuss an emergency item on the agenda; simplification of agricultural rules that some fear could also amount to a weakening of standards.

are green ourselves.’ and now she says: ‘well industry called me and they are worried. so I have to do something.’”

In the wake of the tractor protests, action came fast and furious.

Early this month, von der Leyen’s Commission shelved an important antipesticide proposal, insisting “a different approach is needed.” she also allowed farmers to continue using some land they had been required to keep fallow to promote biodiversity. and the proposals on the table

for Monday’s meeting about simplifying paperwork go in the same direction.

at the same time, a nature restoration law which was seen as another element in the Green Deal aspiration has already been watered down to appease farmers before it goes to a final legislative vote next tuesday. and at a national level, politicians have been bending the same way, from France to spain and Belgium.

Flanders, in northern Belgium, has already

relaxed its policy on the use of manure which was intended to limit emissions of nitrates that can harm water quality. Under pressure from multinational food manufacturers, whose processing plants dwarf even the biggest family farms in western Belgium, farmers are likely to stick with the industrial methods that exhaust soils and pollute waterways, Maes fears.

“It is mind-boggling that this whole process is now grinding to a halt,” she said.

Photo: Virginia Mayo/AP

SPORTS

FIBA 2025 AMERICUP

Puerto Rico routs Bahamas 86-67

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports

After winning their opening game by 11 points on Thursday at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente Gymnasium, The Bahamas men’s national basketball team watched helplessly as Puerto Rico came to town and turned the tables with a 19-point rout.

Puerto Rico, rebounding from their 88-77 loss to the Bahamas last week in the first game of their FIBA 2025 AmeriCup Qualifier, posted a 86-67 decision last night at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium as the two teams split their head-tohead encounter.

“We didn’t play with any aggression,” said Bahamas head coach Moses Johnson in trying to describe the difference in the two games. “We let them dictate the tempo, we let them dictate the pace.

“They were more aggressive, they dominated the offensive rebounds. This was just not our day. The guys just didn’t come out to fight.”

Puerto Rico, who led from start to finish, was led by Ismael Romero with a game high 22 points with five rebounds. Alfonso Plummer had 11 points with five assists and Tjader Fernandez added 10 points with five steals and four assists and as many rebounds.

For Team Bahamas, NBA free agent Kai Jones paced the way with 14 points, nine rebounds and two block shots. Domnick Bridgewater had 13 points and Tavario Miller chipped in with 11 points and seven rebounds. Jones, back on the team after missing the Bahamas’ victory at the America’s Pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournament, said he was

delighted to be given another opportunity to play.

“When I got the invite to play, I was excited,” Jones said.

But he admitted that, as a team, they didn’t have the continuity to deal with Puerto Rico and that made the difference in the outcome.

But he said if they can stay positive and play with

Shannon secures The Bahamas’ first international medal in wrestling

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

a little more aggression, they will be better for the next window of the AmericaCup in November.

In last night’s game, Eron Gordon and Kentwan Smith both contributed seven points and Jaraun “Kino” Burrows helped out with six down the stretch in the fourth quarter. “It was definitely a let down,” Smith said. “They had higher energy than us.

They were the more physical team, which resulted in us getting more turnovers. They took the momentum throughout the game.”

Puerto Rico was able to stave off any comeback that The Bahamas made, especially in the second quarter and the fourth quarter in particular when it counted the most.

SEE

THE Sir Durward Knowles National Junior Sailing Championships returned for the first time since 2018 over the weekend at Montagu Bay and did not disappoint.

After three days of competition, Joss Knowles, of the Exuma Sailing Club, was victorious in the E-Class and Sunfish Class.

Norman Cartwright, of the Bahamas National Sailing School, was crowned the champion in the Laser class.

Finley McKinney-Lambert earned bragging rights in the Opti Championship fleet and Edward Knowles Jr won the Opti Green fleet.

Dallas Knowles, head coach of the Exuma Sailing Club, was proud of the performances on display over the weekend.

“The Exuma Sailing Club performed very well in this regatta, very happy across the board with them. We had sailors in the Opti Class, the Sunfish Class and the E-Class.

“We won two of those classes and we swept the top three spots in the E-Class so we were very happy with that performance. That was a big goal of our club coming into this.

“The last time we had this competition in 2018, we weren’t quite as prepared but now we have had a lot of years with these boats and we feel like we should be performing at a high level so I was very happy

BITTER DEFEAT: The Bahamas men’s senior national basketball team lost to Puerto Rico 86-67 last night in the FIBA 2024

AmeriCup Qualifier at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium. NBA free agent Kai Jones dribbles the basketball. Photo: FIBA Americas

The Campbell

student

Peru’s Auccapina Pedragas

Sixto Miguel in the qualification round 4-1. The 22-year-old also defeated

MAKING HISTORY: SHOWN, from left to right, are silver medallist Agustin Destribats of Argentina, gold medallist Nicholas Lee of the United States, second bronze medallist Jacob Alexander Torres of Canada and Bahamian Shannon Hanna.

Photo: United World Wrestling

SHANNON HANNA EARNS THE BAHAMAS’ FIRST INTERNATIONAL WRESTLING MEDAL IN MEXICO

the Dominican Republic’s Albaro Rudecindo Camacho 11-9. He only dropped one match which was against Argentina’s Agustin Alejandro Destribats 5-2.

Despite a good showing at the Pan-Am Championships, Hanna has now shifted his focus to the Pan-Am Olympic qualifiers set for February 28 to March 1 in Acapulco, Mexico. The bronze medallist is confident in his ability to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

“I know I am capable now. I have wrestled these guys and I have medalled at this level. I know I can compete at this level. As far as mindset, I want to just go out and give it my all. It is just another thing that motivates me. I want to grow the sport of wrestling in The Bahamas so that younger black kids in The Bahamas can see that this is possible and we have someone from The Bahamas that was able to do this, and they can feel like they can do it as well. That is the ultimate goal,” he said.

Hanna has received lots of support from Bahamians on social media and said the support gives him motivation to keep going and get to the next level.

Clarence Rolle, president of the Bahamas Amateur Wrestling Federation, said Hanna’s latest milestone is an indicator that wrestling is trending in a positive direction.

“It is very gratifying.

There is a lot of work that has gone into building our federation and grooming athletes and just building all of the apparatus needed to

keep wrestling going. To see that someone has accomplished that is an indicator that we are making some accomplishments and getting somewhere is very gratifying and we are looking forward to hopefully more in the future,” Rolle said.

Hanna got his start in wrestling while attending the Lake Gibson High School in Lakeland, Florida where he had a coach who saw his potential which then led to him becoming the Florida State champion. He pursued a bachelor’s degree at Campbell University and, as a student athlete, excelled both academically and athletically. The 22-year-old was

awarded as the Southern Conference Champion in the NCAA D1.

Hanna is The Bahamas’ best hope of qualifying for wrestling in the Olympics for the first time since 1968.

Rolle believes Hanna has a great opportunity ahead of him.

“Shannon has as much of a chance as anyone else in that competition. He is a very accomplished wrestler and has been competing for several years at two different universities in the United States and he is still on the Campbell University team now as a graduate student. He is dedicated to the sport and is putting in countless hours, building up his strength and endurance,

working on technique and skill and has as much of a chance as anybody else,” he said. Due to his extensive list of accolades, Rolle knows the decorated wrestler has what it takes. “He is a former South Conference champion and has won it

twice so he knows what it is to be at the highest level of competition. He is not taking it lightly and he is definitely grateful for what he accomplished yesterday but he is right back at work today because on March 1 he has the opportunity to qualify for the Olympic

Games. That’s his goal right now and he is really focused on it,” he stated. The Pan American Olympic Qualifiers begin on Wednesday. The top two athletes in each division will earn a spot at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France.

Liverpool wins the English League Cup, Klopp savours his ‘most special trophy’

By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer

LONDON (AP) — Jurgen Klopp just couldn’t keep the smile from his face.

It was deep into extra time at Wembley yesterday and the English League Cup final against Chelsea was locked at 0-0. A penalty shootout loomed.

Yet, with tensions running high, Klopp turned to the Liverpool fans, savoured the moment and produced that trademark toothy grin. Perhaps he knew what was coming.

That Virgil van Dijk was about to score a 118th-minute winner to finally break down Chelsea’s resistance and secure a record-extending 10th League Cup trophy for Liverpool. Perhaps not.

“That would be cool if I could see goals coming.

That would relax a lot of moments in my life,” Klopp said afterward — his voice hoarse, likely from the wild celebrations that greeted his eighth trophy as Liverpool manager.

Klopp is stepping down at the end of the season and this may well be his last Wembley final with the club. He said he was simply taking it all in and enjoying

watching a new generation of Liverpool players that may turn out to be his lasting legacy after he goes.

“I loved it ... What I see today is so exceptional, we might never see it again. Not because I am on the sidelines but because these things don’t happen in football.

“It is in my more than 20 years, easily the most special trophy I ever won. It is absolutely exceptional.”

Van Dijk, Liverpool’s 32-year-old captain, might have produced the decisive moment but it was the efforts of a string of young players, called upon to help ease Liverpool’s extensive injury list, that had Klopp so enthused.

Seven of his winning team were aged 21 or under.

Jayden Danns, aged 18, came on for only his second senior performance.

Bobby Clark and James McConnell are both 19. Their efforts meant that even without the injured Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota, Trent Alexander-Arnold and more, Liverpool still triumphed.

“I got told outside there is an English phrase, ‘You don’t win trophies with kids,’” Klopp said. “I didn’t know that. Yeah right.

“Sometimes I’m asked if I am proud of this, proud of that. I don’t know. I wish I could feel pride more often. Tonight was an overwhelming feeling of ‘Oh my God, what is going on here?’ I was proud of everybody involved.”

Victory keeps Klopp on track for a quadruple of trophies in his final year with Liverpool as he looks determined to go out on a high. His team is currently

top of the Premier League and still in contention to win the FA Cup and Europa League. But even if Klopp cannot add those trophies to the full set he has already delivered, he provided Liverpool with another memorable day at Wembley.

Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, must wait for his first piece of silverware in English soccer after failing to lift trophies with

Southampton and Tottenham before taking charge at Chelsea. While he won three trophies including the French league title with Paris SaintGermain, he is still to taste glory in England. A first trophy at Chelsea would have eased the pressure after a troubled season in the league. “If you ask the players how they feel, I feel the same. (It is) so disappointing, so painful,”

Pochettino said. “I am a guy that (has) less time to win titles (than the players). They are younger than me, they have time. In football it is always about when you have the opportunity (you take it).

PREMIER LEAGUE

Sheffield United’s players showed the wrong kind of fight after suffering a 19th loss of the season to stay at the foot of the Premier League.

Pablo Sarabia’s 30th-minute header secured a 1-0 win for Wolves at Molineux in the league’s only game yesterday, but perhaps the most notable incident in the match was a clash between Sheffield United players Jack Robinson and Vinicius Souza.

The teammates pushed each other in a heated exchange that led to a VAR review. Not that Blades manager Chris Wilder seemed too concerned.

“That happens at every club up and down the country, three or four times a year,” he said. “They were told about their responsibilities at halftime. We talked to the boys and they are fine and cool.”

Defeat left Sheffield United eight points off safety. West Ham hosts Brentford today.

Hanna in action above, delivered The Bahamas’ first international medal in wrestling on 242 Day while competing in Acapulco, Mexico.

SHANNON HANNA, a graduate student at Campbell University in North Carolina, took the bronze medal in the Pan American Championships of wrestling. It was the last day of competition in the tournament, which began on February 21.

LIVERPOOL’s manager Jurgen Klopp lifts the trophy next to Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk as the team celebrates winning the English League Cup final soccer match between Chelsea and Liverpool at Wembley Stadium in London yesterday.

(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

AYTON LEADS PORTLAND WITH DOUBLE DOUBLE - 26 POINTS AND 19 REBOUNDSIN 93-80 LOSS TO HORNETS

PORTLAND, Oregon

(AP) — Nick Richards had 21 points and 10 rebounds and the Charlotte Hornets took advantage of Portland’s horrible 3-point shooting to beat the Trail Blazers 93-80 last night.

Portland was 3 of 32 from 3-point range, with two of the makes coming in the final minutes.

The Trail Blazers missed 23 in a row at one point in dropping their eighth straight to fall to 15-41. Miles Bridges added 18

points and 10 rebounds for Charlotte, and Brandon Miller had 17 points. The Hornets improved to 15-42.

Deandre Ayton led Portland with 26 points and 19 rebounds. He was 11 of 16 from the field, while the Trail Blazers shot 34.7% overall from the field.

Jerami Grant added 15 points for Portland. Anfernee Simons had 10 points on 4-of-21 shooting. He missed all eight of his 30-point tries.

Jokic has 3rd straight triple-double, Nuggets beat Warriors by 16

SAN FRANCISCO

(AP) — Nikola Jokic had 32 points, 16 rebounds and 16 assists for his third straight triple-double and 18th of the season after his long buzzer-beater against Golden State sealed the last meeting, leading the defending champion Denver Nuggets past the Warriors again in a 119-103 victory last night.

Jokic hit a Stephen Curry-like 40-footer as Denver rallied for a 130127 win at Chase Center on January 4, then topped Curry and Co. to sweep the four-game season series. On Sunday, Jokic shot 13 for 24 on the way to his 122nd career regular-season triple-double.

Klay Thompson scored 23 points all in the first half and Curry overcame a slow start missing his first seven 3-point tries before finishing with 20 points — all but four scored in the second half.

He hit his only 3 with 3:26 left in the third in a 1-for-10 performance from deep. The two-time MVP passed both Dwyane Wade (23,165) for 32nd place and Adrian Dantley (23,177) for 31st on the NBA’s scoring list.

Jamal Murray scored 27 points and Aaron Gordon 17 in the Nuggets’ seventh consecutive victory against the Warriors and 10th in 11 and also their fifth in a row on Golden State’s home floor since a 113-102 defeat on March 10, 2022.

SUNS 123, LAKERS 113

PHOENIX (AP) —

Grayson Allen scored 24 points, Kevin Durant added 22 and Phoenix pulled away late in the fourth quarter to beat Los Angeles.

Allen and Royce O’Neale hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to put the Suns up 116104 with three minutes left. Jusuf Nurkic added 18 points, 22 rebounds and seven assists.

The Lakers trailed by 20 points late in the first quarter, but slowly cut the deficit to 92-90 by late in the third. Phoenix responded with the next six points and didn’t trail in the fourth.

LeBron James led the Lakers with 28 points on 12-of-19 shooting and also had 12 assists. Anthony Davis had 22 points and 14 rebounds.

Four Phoenix starters scored at least 20 points and the Suns had a 51-34 rebounding advantage. Devin Booker scored 21 points and O’Neale added 20. Bol Bol had 11 points in 24 minutes off the bench.

THUNDER 123, ROCKETS 110

HOUSTON (AP) —

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 36 points and Chet Holmgren added 29 to lead Oklahoma City past Houston.

The Thunder won their fifth straight to moved back into a tie with Minnesota

for the Western Conference lead.

Fred VanVleet and Jabari Smith Jr. had 20 points apiece for the Rockets in the first of consecutive games between these teams. Alperen Sengun added 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Smith led the team with 17 rebounds.

The teams meet against Tuesday night in Oklahoma City.

PACERS 133, MAVERICKS 111

INDIANAPOLIS (AP)

— Myles Turner scored a season-high 33 points, Tyrese Haliburton had 17 points and 10 assists and Indiana beat Dallas to snap the Mavericks’ seven-game winning streak.

Luka Doncic finished with 33 points, six assists and six rebounds for Dallas. Kyrie Irving added 29 points and six rebounds. Indiana to shoot 56% and make 14 3-pointers.

HAWKS 109, MAGIC 92

ATLANTA (AP) —

Dejounte Murray had 25 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds, finishing just short of his first tripledouble of the season, and Atlanta beat Orlando to snap a three-game skid.

Murray helped offset the loss of All-Star guard Trae Young, who will undergo surgery on his left hand Tuesday and will be reevaluated in four weeks.

Franz Wagner had 19 points to lead for Orlando,

Sunday, Feb. 25,

with Paulo Banchero missing his first game of the season because of an illness.

CAVALIERS 114, WIZARDS 105 WASHINGTON (AP)

— Jarrett Allen had 22 points and 12 rebounds, Caris LeVert added 18 points and 12 boards and Cleveland beat Washington to avoid its first three-game skid since December.

Evan Mobley added 21 points and Donovan Mitchell had 16 points in his return after missing the first two games following the All-Star break with an illness.

Jordan Poole scored a season-high 31 points for Washington. The Wizards have lost 11 straight to fall to 2-12 under interim coach Brian Keefe.

BULLS 114, PELICANS 106

NEW ORLEANS (AP)

— Nikola Vucevic had 22 points and 13 rebounds and

PUERTO RICO ROUTS BAHAMAS

86-67

IN FIBA 2025 AMERICUP

FROM PAGE 15

Coming

Jaraun

At

a time out.

But with 3:18 on the clock, Rashad Davis gave the fans something to cheer them up as he

‘BUDDY’ HIELD SCORES 11 IN 76ERS’ LOSS TO BUCKS

By ANTHONY SANFILIPPO Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA (AP)

— Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 30 points, Damian Lillard added 24 and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the 76ers 119-98 yesterday in Doc Rivers’ return to Philadelphia.

Rivers was fired by Philadelphia after last season. He coached the 76ers from 2020-23, never getting past the second round of the playoffs, and Sunday was 12th game since taking over in Milwaukee.

“It was awesome,” Rivers said of his return. “I had three good years here, and I’m not talking about basketball, I’m talking about life. I enjoyed my stay here. I have made friends for life. The fans were good, too. There were a couple hilarious comments. One guy told me that Larry David was looking for me to golf. I thought that was pretty funny.”

Tyrese Maxey had 24 points and De’Anthony Melton added 16 for the 76ers, who have dropped eight of 12 games since losing reigning MVP Joel Embiid to a left knee injury in January. Chavano Buddy Hield contributed 11 points and four assists.

Rivers was greeted by a chorus of boos from the sellout crowd during introductions, but his team quickly took the crowd out of the game with a blistering first quarter.

Lillard scored the first seven points for the Bucks and finished with 11 points in the quarter as Milwaukee built a 14-point lead.

connected on a threepointer for a 60-41 deficit. Puerto Rico, however, kept that intensity as they outscored The Bahamas 6-2 the rest of the way to push their lead to 66-42 at the end of the third. Ismael Romero scored eight in the period for Puerto Rico and both Rashad Davis and Eron Gordon had five, along with four from Kai Jones. Like they did in the first period, Puerto Rico started the second quarter on an 8-2 run, highlighted by a break away twohanded dunk from Christian Negron to go up 34-16.

This forced coach Moses Johnson to call a time out.

Every time the Bahamas made a dent in the lead,

Puerto Rico answered with at least two baskets to surge ahead 44-28 at the half as Reed led the attack with seven.

Jones led the way with six, including a monster two-handed baseline dunk, but it wasn’t enough to derail Puerto Rico.

In the first quarter, David Nesbitt completed a three-point play and Domnick Bridgewater got a steal and a lay-up to take their first lead, 9-8.

But Puerto Rico went up again 13-9 with 4:39 on the clock to force Moses Johnson to call a time out.

With 1:35 left, Kai Jones hit a three-pointer and dazzled his opponent for a two-dunk to cut the deficit to 22-14. Puerto Rico then went on a mini run to

surge ahead 26-16 at the end of the first break.

Ismael Romero led Puerto Rico with 10 points and Davon Reed added seven. Jones led the Bahamas with five. It was a good turn out of Bahamians in the stands to support the team.

“Definitely when we have this kind of support, we have to do better,” Smith said. “We should have put on a better performance for the crowd.”

Among those in attendance were Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowling, Minister of Education Glenys Hanna-Martin and Members of Parliament Baccus Rolle and Zane Lightbourne.

Chicago beat New Orleans to sweep the season series.

DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points, including a left wing 3-pointer with 30 seconds left to give the Bulls a 111-106 lead.

Zion Williamson scored 19 points, tied a career high with 11 assists and grabbed nine rebounds for the Pelicans.

JAZZ 128, SPURS 109

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Lauri Markkanen scored 26 points and Utah beat San Antonio to snap a five-game skid.

Jordan Clarkson added 22 points and 10 assists for the Jazz. John Collins had 20 points and Collin Sexton added 16 points and 10 assists.

Devin Vassell led San Antonio with 27 points, and ictor Wembanyama added 22 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks. The Spurs have lost 11 of 12.

“I thought we were consistent,” Lillard said. “We got into the paint, we were willing to make the extra pass to find the open guy and we got quality looks. To play good offense you find quality shots and have a lot of mix. I thought that’s what we did.”

Antetokounmpo, who also finished with 12 rebounds and nine assists, wrapped up the first half with a flourish, hitting a driving layup and also making a full-court pass to Brook Lopez for a dunk as the horn sounded to give Milwaukee its largest lead at 21 points. Philadelphia never got closer than 12 points in the second half.

Antetokounmpo went to the free throw line more times himself (12) than the entire 76ers team (11).

Rivers credited that to his team’s defense.

“We had been putting such an emphasis on defense,” Rivers said. “The last few games we’ve been terrific. When you have Giannis on your team, if you can get stops and get him in transition, Giannis in transition is a problem for everybody.”

DENVER Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) shoots over Golden State Warriors center Draymond Green during the first half of an NBA basketball game

2024, in San Francisco.

(AP Photo/Godofredo A Vásquez)

PORTLAND Trail Blazers centre Deandre Ayton, left, dribbles around Charlotte Hornets centre Nick Richards during the first half last night. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

FROM PAGE 15

that the kids came and sailed to their full potential,” Knowles said.

The E-Class series was a bright spot for the Exuma Sailing Club with the top three podium spots going to the respective club.

Emit and J Knowles made their late great grand uncle proud as they placed first and second in the race. The newest E-Class champion amassed three first place finishes over the weekend while his brother came second on three occasions.

The 16-year-old ended with a total of six and one point behind was his younger brother with seven. Tanaj Manos, who skippered One Bahamas, totalled 17 points for third.

The oldest Knowles brother was happy to honour his late great grand uncle with a victory despite the unpredictable weather conditions.

“It was amazing, the wind was changing, shifting and up and down so it was very different conditions. It was just fun knowing that the regatta is named after my great grand uncle. Knowing that I am a part of his bloodline and sailing in the regatta is just an honour and knowing that I am out here and able to compete in his name,” he said.

Although his younger brother pushed him to the limit, he gave him credit for great competition.

“He did some work on his boat and cleaned her up and she was real fast. Out of the first day he had me and was in first and, on the second day, I was able to get two bullets and was able to catch him but just barely. No matter where he is, you always gotta keep your eye on Mako, which is a fast boat, especially with my little brother skippering,” Knowles said. His 14-year-old brother had recently done some work on the Mako and was grateful to be neck-andneck despite coming up short. “It felt good because usually he beats me but I just redid my boat so now I was barely behind him. He got a couple good races in yesterday and passed me by one point so it feels good to be close again,” he said.

In the Sunfish Class, the older Knowles brother once again claimed a top position with eight points. Manos ranked second in the race and Aiden Sumner, of the Bahamas National Sailing School, concluded third. Coach Knowles was really impressed and overjoyed to take more trophies back to Exuma.

“We are really happy to be taking a couple trophies back to Exuma. The E-Class national championship will remain in Exuma

for the fourth year in a row so we are happy about that. Joss sailed extremely well in Lady Kayla, Emit in Mako, and Tanaj in One Bahamas, really happy with the performances from those three guys. Looking forward to great things in the other classes in April as well,” he said. In the Opti Green fleet, E Knowles Jr led competitors with nine points. Joel Ponnore, 14, trailed for second and Casey Dean from Harbour Island settled for third with 12 points.

McKinney-Lambert, former Bahamas Optimist National (Open) champion, added another title to his collection. He skippered to four first place finishes over the weekend and came first overall in the Optimist championship fleet.

Mary Jac Nash, of the Lyford Cay School, was two points behind for second and Javien Rankine finished third overall. Cartwright and Joshua Weech are always engaged in friendly rivalry on the waters in the Laser class. The former took it this time around with eight points for the victory. Just one point away was Weech with nine points. Sienna Jones totalled 22 points to end the nationals in third. Next up for sailing will be the National Family Island Regatta April 23-27 in Exuma.

Devynne Charlton leads the way

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

DEVYNNE Charlton

came within a second of a margin in matching her co-women’s world indoor 60 metres hurdles record, while Grand Bahamian Terrence Jones inked his name on another Bahamian men’s national record.

The duo highlighted another eventful weekend of action for Bahamian athletes competing in various meets around the United States of America, both in the professional and collegiate ranks.

Charlton, competing at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Madrid, had another flawless performance from start to finish as she cleared the five flights of hurdles in a time of 7.68 seconds.

It was just 0.01 seconds shy of her world record of 7.67 that she set on February 11 at the Millrose Games in New York before American Tia Jones matched the feat a week later at the USATF indoor championships.

“I set myself all of these goals. I said I wanted to win the World Indoor Tour and break the world indoor record and I want to be a world indoor champion, so I’m just ticking all of the boxes,” Charlton said after the race.

“There’s just one more to go. If this is any preview to the World Indoors, then I’d say I’m on the right track.

I’m having fun.”

In securing the meet record in the process, Charlton beat the rest of her competitors to the first hurdle and it was smooth sailing the rest of the way.

Nadine Visser was second in a personal best of 7.78 and Pia Skrzyszowska was third in 7.83.

VOLLEYBALL BBSF TOURNAMENT

THE newly formed Bahamas Baptist Sports Federation is inviting all churches interested in participating in their volleyball tournament to attend a meeting 6pm on Saturday, March 9 at the William Thompson Auditorium, Jean Street.

At the meeting, plans will be revealed for the staging of the tournament April 24-27. All churches interested in participating are urged to have at least two members present.

TRACK SPARTANS TRACK CLASSIC

THE Noble Preparatory Academy Spartans will hold their annual Track and Field Classic on Saturday, March 16 at the original Thomas A. Robinson Track and Field Stadium.

The event will run from 9am to 2pm. The registration fee is $15 per athlete.

The entry fee will be $15 for adults in the VIP stand and $8 for children. The general admission will be $10 for adults and $6 for children.

TRACK RED-LINE YOUTH TRACK CLASSIC

THE Red-Line Athletics Track Club’s third annual Red-Line Youth Track Classic will take place over the weekend of May 25-26 at the original Thomas A. Robinson Track and Field Stadium.

The event, opened to athletes in age categories from under-7 to open, will take place between the hours of 9am to 5pm on day one and from 1-5pm on day two.

The entry deadline is May 15 with a fee of $19 per athlete and $10 per relay team.

All persons registering after May 15 will be charged $25 per athlete.

TRACK RED-LINE Field Classic

THE Red-Line Athletics Track Club will hold its Field Events Classic on Saturday, May 18 at the original Thomas A. Robinson Track and Field Stadium.

The event, designed for competitors in categories of under-13 to open, will run from 10am to 8pm.

“I thought it was a solid race overall, considering the conditions,” Charlton said. “I just arrived in Europe two days ago and still a bit jet-lagged. I’m okay with the time since I wasn’t feeling 200 percent going into the race.”

Charlton, 28, now has her sights set on her final indoor goal and that is to win a gold at the World Indoor Championships or at least a medal in Glasgow, Scotland, this weekend.

Jones tops the collegiate list

At the Big 12 Championships, Grand Bahamian Terrence Jones, now in his junior year at Texas Tech, took the victory in the men’s 200m in a lifetime best of 20.21 to add to his 60m record of 6.45 he established in 2022.

Houston’s senior Shaun Maswanganyi was second in a personal best of 20.41.

Jones also qualified with the second best time of 6.53, but didn’t contest the race won by their teammate Don’Dre Swint in 6.55. Tech’s sophomore Antoine Andrews placed fourth in 6.64.

Andrews was also third in the 60m hurdles in 7.60 after he posted the fastest qualifying time of 7.63. Houston’s senior De’Von Wilson won in a personal best of 7.55 and Caleb Dean, a senior at Texas Tech, got second in 7.58.

Florida’s junior Anthaya Charlton finished eighth in the women’s long jump with her best leap of 6.12m (20-1) as she watched as her senior team-mate Claire Bryant pulled off the victory with a season’s best of 22- 3/4 (6.72m).

Charlton also got 15th in the preliminaries of the 60m in a season’s best of 7.32, but she didn’t advance to the final, which was won by LSU’s sophomore Brianna

CHESS CARICOM CLASSIC TEAM

THE Bahamas Chess Federation announced that Avian Pride, Dr. Joseph Ferguson, Polina Karelina and Chika Pride will represent BCF and The Bahamas at the 2024 CARICOM Classic Inaugural Team Chess Tournament.

The event, hosted by the Guyana Chess Federation, is scheduled for March 3-10. “This tournament holds significance as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of CARICOM and our federation’s 50th year of FIDE membership,” the BCF said. “This tournament is also an opportunity to strengthen the bonds of friendship and collaboration within the CARICOM region.

“Participating in this event offers a unique platform for our players to showcase their exceptional talent.”

FINAL WALK WITH ‘HAWK’

THE general public is being asked to take a final walk with ‘Hawk’ as family and friends pay a special tribute to the late Alpheus ‘Hawk’ Finlayson.

The public is invited to join a special celebration of the life and legacy of Finlayson on Thursday, February 29 from 7-10pm at the Crypto Isle (formerly Luciano’s) on East Bay Street.

For more information, persons are asked to contact Stanley Mitchell at 816-6619 or Quinton Curry at 565-1178.

FAST TRACK INVITATIONAL

FAST Track Athletics announced that its third annual Spring Invitational will take place over the weekend of May 10 and May 11 at the Grand Bahama Sports Complex. The entry fee will be $10 for adults and $5 for children. For more information, persons are asked to contact 242-727-6826 or fasttrackmanagamentoo@gmail.com

BAHAMAS ESPORTS FEDERATION

THE federation is searching for eFootball players to represent The Bahamas regionally in Rio de Janeiro,

Lyston in a meet record of 7.08.

Javonya Valcourt, a sophomore at Tennessee, was 10th in the premlinaries of the women’s 400m in 52.51 - she also fell shy of getting into the final that saw Arkansas’ senior Amber Anning smash the championship record with a personal best of 50.48.

McCoy record slipped away Florida’s sophomore Wanya McCoy clocked a personal best of 20.29 for the victory in the men’s 200m at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It would have been another national record for McCoy, who previously held the record with his performance of 20.46 at the Razorback Invitational on January 28 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

But while he rewrote it with his victory over the weekend, it was short lived until Jones smashed it at the Big 12 Championships.

McCoy was also a runnerup in the 60m where he ran 6.63 to trail Auburn’s freshman Kayinsola Ajayi, who won in 6.60.

Cartwright and Kemp shine

At the NSCI Indoor Track and Field Championships, Denisha Cartwright, a senior at Minnesota State, produced a trio of victories, while Grand Bahamian Shyrone Kemp picked up a pair of victories and a thirdplace finish in his senior year at MSU-Moorhead.

Cartwright took the 60m hurdles in 9.93 after turning in the fastest qualifying time of 8.09 in the preliminaries. She won the 60m in 7.23 with a qualifying time of 8.09 and she took the 200m in 23.68 with the fastest qualifying time of 24.28 in the preliminaries.

Shavantae Roberts, a sophomore at MSU-Moorhead, was sixth in the 200m final in 25.57 and sixth in the 60m in 7.63. Kemp cleared 6-10 (2.10m) for the victory in the men’s high jump, 51-10 (15.81) for another victory in the men’s triple jump and was third in the long jump with 24-11 1/2 (7.61m).

And Tyler Missick, another Grand Bahamian in his junior year at MSUMoorhead, was fourth in the high jump with 6-7 (2.01m).

Miller Jr third best

At the Big 10 Championships in Geneva, Ohio, Ohio State’s junior Shaun Miller Jr came in third in the men’s high jump with a leap of 7-0 1/4 (2.15m).

Nebraska’s junior Tyrus Wilson and Illinois junior Kamyren Garrett both produced a personal best

Brazil and potentially at the International Championships. Other opportunities to travel and earn prizes are available.

Individuals interested can send an email to contact@besf242.org or reach out via Whatsapp at 242425-2288. Persons must

provide their full name, email and phone number. The deadline for registrants is February 23, 2024.

BASKETBALL CHANGE IN VENUE FOR NEX-GEN CAMP

THE Nex-Gen Camp, which was originally

of 7-3 (2.21m) for first and second respectively on the countback.

Moss pair of top six finishes

At the Big Sky Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in Spokane, Washington, Northern Colorado’s senior Wendira Moss picked up third and sixth-place finishes. In the women’s 200m final, Moss clocked a time of 23.94 for third. She went in with the fourth fastest time of 24.35 in the preliminaries. And she also placed sixth in the 400m final in 55.24 after she had the eighth fastest qualifying time of 56.02.

Relay team sixth

In Kingston, Jamaica at the Gibson Relays at the National Stadium, the Bahamas men’s 4 x 100 metre team, coached by

scheduled to be held at the Hope Center, has been changed to the Teleos Basketball Gymnasium on Carmichael Road. Space is limited so persons are asked to book their reservations as soon as possible. JRC Basketball Academy will stage the third annual elite training camp June 24 to July 13 each day from 9am to noon.

The camp is open to boys and girls who will be placed in groups from ages 6-9, 10-13 and 14-18.

The camp will be conducted by coach JR Cadet, owner of JRC Basketball Academy and an experienced 10-year FIBA pro basketball player who

Tyrone Burrows, and made up of Ian Kerr, Samson Colebrooke, Joel Johnson, Deedro Clarke and Yurick Dean, didn’t finish the race, which was won by the Racers Track Club in a season’s best of 38.88.

Individually, Colebrooke won the first of four heats of the men’s 100m in 10.25, but he didn’t contest the final.

Yurick Dean was third in the second heat in 11.01, but he didn’t advance to the final.

Wendell Miller, competing for the MVP Track Club, was third in the men’s open 400m C final in a season’s best of 47.11.

Roshawn Clarke of Swept Track Club Jamaica, won in 46.05, while Malik James-King of Titans International Track Club was second in 46.28, a season’s best as well.

played on the Bahamas men’s team that played in the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament.

The special guest at this year’s camp will be coach Dalton Reitmeier, the head coach at Rabun Gap School USA - a four-year NCAA athlete and former player at IMG Academy.

JUNIOR DAVIS CUP: TEAM BAHAMAS TO FACE ARUBA TUESDAY

IN their opening day matchup, Team Bahamas won over Puerto Rico 3-0 in the Junior Davis Cup in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Up first was Jerald Carroll who won easily, not giving up a game, 6-0, 6-0. Taking up the No.1

position, Jackson Mactaggart also won in straight sets 6-3, 6-3. Carroll and William McCartney would solidify a strong performance with a 6-3, 6-1 straight set win. Earning his debut national team coach win was captain Spencer Newman, 2022

Davis Cup player and 2022 national team champion for The Bahamas. The team has a rest day today and is slated to face Aruba Tuesday. Another win Tuesday would ensure a main draw advancement for Team Bahamas.

THE BAHAMAS TEAM UP AND RIDING AT THE ISA WORLD SURFING GAMES

THE Bahamas’ re-entry onto the world surfing stage began Saturday in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, at the International Surfing Association’s World Surfing Games with Hope Town, Abaco’s Chris Albury the first Bahamian to represent the country in the waves since 2009.

Albury, 26, battled nerves leading up to his historymaking early morning heat.

“I never thought about it like that, I’m not gonna lie,” said Albury from Team Bahamas’ house near the famous Margara surf break which saw 144 men paddle out in 36 heats on Saturday all vying for six spots in this summer’s Paris Olympics.

“Now that I know I think it’s friggin’ awesome.”

Albury finished fourth in his heat behind Toyko 2020 Olympic silver medallist Kanoa Igarashi of Japan, Uruguay’s Martin Ottado and Ecuador’s Roberto Rodriguez.

Next up for Team Bahamas was 17-year-old Luke Prosa, also of Hope Town, who drew three-time world champion Gabriel Medina of Brazil in heat 9 and proceeded to paddle out and catch the first wave of the heat - an 8-foot Margara lefthander.

“I’m a 17-year-old and I just caught a wave on a world champion and two other surfers and it just felt crazy,” said Prosa, who made a mid-wave celebratory claim. “I was ready to do a backflip.”

Prosa also finished fourth in his heat and moves into the repechage heats in the double elimination contest which also saw 114 female surfers begin their quest for Paris 2024 at the El Pico surf break just east of the men’s contest in downtown Arecibo.

The final surfer to enter the water for Team Bahamas was Joey Gale and his draw only got minimally

easier as El Salvador’s Bryan Perez did not compete due to injury. Gale, 22, another Abaconian, posted the team’s highest wave score, a 2.33, competing against longtime World Surf League professional Yago Dora of Brazil and Uruguay’s Marco Giorgi. He is also relegated to the repechage heats which will be held today between the surf breaks of Margara, El Pico and nearby Rastrial. “[I’m feeling] a lot more confident now,” said Gale. “Having experienced the first heat [is] helping a lot with my nerves and everything.”

TEAM Bahamas Ben Patterson, Luke Prosa, Joey Gale and Chris Albury share a moment during Saturday’s opening round.

CHRIS Albury leans into a bottom turn during his heat at the ISA World Surfing Games on Saturday.

LUKE

competes at