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CARIBBEAN DEBATES: TO HANG OR NOT TO HANG, Page 18op-ed

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STILL HAUNTS JAMAICAN PRIME MINISTER

U.S. President Barack Obama (2nd R) speaks with Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding.

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Buju’s Trial Pushed Back Again

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Wyclef Jean

Radio stations were broadcasting the song by Jean in Creole in which he called for the jailing of electoral officials who disqualified him while for the first time directly blamed Pre-val.

In his Creole composition en-titled “Prizon Pou K.E.P.a” (Jail for the Provisional Electoral Council), a somber-voiced Jean sings that Preval “expelled me from the race.”

“I know all the cards are in your hands ... I voted for you to be presi-dent in 2006, why today did you re-ject my candidacy?” the song says, addressing Preval, who cannot seek re-election after serving two terms as president.

“It’s not Wyclef that you have expelled, it is the youth you have de-nied ... it’s the population you have denied, its the peasants you have de-nied,” Jean sings.

Aides to president Preval Preval said that while he has been informed of the song, he has no comments.

A lawyer for the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) said that its ruling regarding Jean’s non inclusion as a candidate for the election could not be appealed.

“Therefore there is absolutely no possibility for Wyclef Jean to be added to the list of candidates ap-

proved to run in the next presidential elections. So it’s over,” said Samuel Pierre of the CEP’s legal department.

The CEP disqualified Jean and 14 others, while it approved 19 can-didates without providing justifica-tion for the decisions.

Jean said the election board used “trickery” in rejecting his candidacy. Besides Jean, the Council also re-jected the candidacy of US Ambassa-dor Raymond Joseph, who is Jean’s uncle.

The Council, however, approved two leading presidential candidates, former prime minister Jacques-Ed-ouard Alexis and Yvon Neptune, who was the last prime minister un-der ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and has been active in help-ing to coordinate reconstruction ef-forts.

Jude Celestin, head of the gov-ernment’s primary construction firm and the candidate supported by Presi-dent Rene Preval, and Michel Mar-telly, a well-known Haitian singer known as “Sweet Mickey,” have also been approved to contest the polls.

Under Haitian law, a presiden-tial candidate must have lived in the country for five consecutive years leading up to an election.

Jean argued that he was not re-

quired to comply with the law so strictly because, after the president, Rene Preval, appointed him as a roving ambassador in 2007, he was

allowed to travel and live outside Haiti.

Political observers say that the dispute involving the 40-year-old international star has raised fears of tensions that could disrupt the ef-forts to rebuild the French speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country that was devastated by a ma-jor earthquake on January 12.

Jean Protest Omission From Election With New Song

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Internationally acclaimed hip-hop star Wyclef Jean, who was barred from contesting the November 28 presidential elections in Haiti, has released a song criticising outgoing President Rene Preval for allegedly engineering his rejection as a candidate.

Barbadian Mother Gets Extra Stay With Cancer-Stricken Daughter

MIAMI, Fla. – The trial of reggae superstar Buju Banton - whose cor-rect name is Mark Myrie - has again been reportedly pushed back, leaving the Jamaican to spend more time in an American jail before getting a chance to clear his name. The latest postponement has left the legal team of the reggae icon frustrated.

“The trial was pushed back to September 20 de-spite our objection,” David Oscar Markus of Myrie’s legal said. “We are ready to go and Buju is looking for-ward to his day in court.”

United States District Judge James Moody Jr last Thursday granted a one-week delay in the start of the trial based on a request by attorneys representing one of Myrie’s co-defen-dants, James Mack.

Mack’s lawyers had written to the judge seek-ing more time to prepare his defence.

“The court grants this continuance to allow defen-

dant Mack additional time to prepare for trial. The court finds the ends of jus-tice served by the continu-ance to allow the defendant more time to prepare out-weighs the best interest of the public and the defendant in a speedy trial,” the judge said in his ruling handed down last Thursday.

This is the fifth change in the scheduled start of a trial for Myrie, who has been languishing in custody in Florida since last Decem-ber when he was arrested on charges of conspiracy to possess cocaine, and aiding and abetting the possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.

Myrie, Mack, and Ian Thomas were held follow-ing a sting operation by US law enforcement officials.

ATLANTA, Ga. – The United States government has reversed its decision to deny a Barbadian woman more time with her cancer-stricken daughter.

Petra Gooding, 30, said she was given a Sep-tember 2 deadline to leave the United States after her visitor’s visa expired.

She has spent 10 months here as her 7-year-old-daughter, Niamh Stoute, undergoes intense chemotherapy for stage four cancer at the Aflac Cancer Center on the Egleston cam-pus of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

Gooding said she had filed all the proper paper work to stay in the United States, so she was stunned when she was denied a visa extension with no explana-tion. She said when her ap-peal was denied, she was faced with the agonising prospect of abandoning her

daughter, who is too sick to travel.

Gooding, however, learned over the weekend that her visa was extended to November.

“It feels like a load has been lifted off of my shoul-ders,” she told reporters. “I’m so happy.”

Gooding said she now will concentrate on helping Niamh cope with the high-intensity chemotherapy she is receiving for Stage 4 neu-roblastoma. The rare cancer has created a large tumor in Niamh’s abdomen.

Ana Santiago, spokes-woman for the US Immigra-tion and Citizenship Ser-vice, declined to comment on the initial denial, citing immigration privacy laws.

But a spokeswoman for Georgia US Senator, Saxby Chambliss, said a case worker in the senator’s of-fice contacted the agency on the matter, as news spread about Niamh’s plight.

“Our office is more than happy to assist indi-viduals who are encounter-ing difficulties with federal agencies,” said the spokes-woman Ashley Nelson.

Gooding said her daughter, who has under-gone surgery and chemo-therapy, seemed very happy with the good news.

“I told her, and she gave me a smile. If she was up and walking, she would be doing a little dance for the nurses. I’m so grateful and so thankful.”



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Meeks said the best option for the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) is for Golding to step down and allow for the election of a new leader.

“…I don’t know if that will be the option the JLP chooses, (but) I think is the best option for them,” he said.

The extradition issue flared into the public domain over the weekend after the Gleaner news-paper published emails obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, suggesting that the govern-ment had played a more meaning-ful role in seeking to stop the extra-dition of Coke who is facing drug and gun trafficking related charges in the United States.

The newspaper published emails showing correspondence involving Solicitor General Doug-las Leys, local attorney Harold Brady and officials of the US law firm Manatt, Phelps and Phil-lips suggesting it had been work-ing on behalf of the government, even though it had been officially engaged by the ruling Jamaica La-bour Party (JLP).

But Information Minister Douglas Vaz in a lengthy statement on Tuesday reiterated the position of the government that it did not engage the US law firm adding “that the Prime Minister had given the ruling party explicit approval to engage with the law firm while making it clear that it was not an engagement with the government of Jamaica”.

Meeks, who is Director of the Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of So-cial and Economic Change at the

Mona campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI), told CMC that the new allegations were even more damning and believes it’s time Golding takes a decision in the interest of the country.

“The best option for the JLP actually is for Golding to step down and for a new leader - untainted to a significant decree, by the events of the Manatt Phelps and Phillips and Dudus etcetera to take the reins… try to continue through the term and to hope that the economy and other measures improve so that they can fight an election on a fair platform when election are due in two and a half years time.

“The storm isn’t dying over and there is obviously more to come, it’s not clear what further is going to be revealed but it’s cer-tainly clear that this is a new and frightening case of revealed decep-tion,” he added.

Meeks said that there were two options the government could consider in dealing with the mat-ter and ruled out a Commission of Inquiry “because (it) takes a long time to set up”

He warned also that it was likely that more “damaging “rev-elations may come out during a Commission of Inquiry.

“So I think they are caught between a rock and a hard place frankly. The alternative would be a national engagement in various forms,” Meeks said with the Prime Minister facing contin-ued pressure to step down.

“Calling a general election now will be dangerous particularly

in the light of the second revela-tion of deception but it would not be completely ruled out because the possibility does exist that with work and funding the JLP could do reasonably well.”

But he said that a “snap elec-tion now is dangerous” and al-though “the option taken so far has been of one of digging in heels and sort of hoping that the tide will ride itself out, and to be fair to them so far it has worked, this new rev-elation has shifted the ground somewhat”.

“The first lesson of course is honesty and trans-parency in government. The second lesson is not to get in bed with gang leaders and Dons because I suspect that the reason for all of the gymnastics that we’ve seen in the last year par-ticularly in the

last six months is that the ruling party and now clearly the govern-ment in Jamaica felt that it had to defend the interest of a man who is wanted by the US government on credible charges,” Meeks said.

“The fact that they felt that they had to do this is unbelievable but it is the underlying factor and of course once you do that then you weave a tangle web of de-ceit out of which it is difficult to emerge intact and that is what we have seen.

Former prime minister Owen Arthur is calling on the private and public sectors as well as the labour movement to help produce a new economic plan for Barbados.

Arthur told a public meeting at the week-end that the mid-term economic plan of the present government has failed to bring relief to Barbadians.

“Barbados needs to have a recovery pro-gramme set out clearly drawing from the best minds in this country, from the private and pub-lic sectors and from the labour movement,” Ar-thur said, saying he has been working on similar economic programmes for St Kitts and Nevis and Grenada focusing on debt management.

“We can do it,” he told supporters remind-ing them that Barbados found itself in the same situation in 1994.

“I can tell you this …once you tap the in-genuity of the people of this country, once you call on then to do what they can do in an effort to have this country succeed … they will. The people of Barbados want Barbados to succeed,” he said.

“What we have here in Barbados is not the Standards and Poor’s rating but the destruction of our standard of living unless something is done urgently to turn things around.

He said the free bus passes for school children, which was announced by the David Thompson administration, the development of constituency councils and the summer camps which were subsidised “cannot and will not turn around the economy”.

Arthur was also critical of the government over its handling of the CLICO and British American Insurance matter following the finan-cial problems plaguing their parent company, CL Financial in Trinidad and Tobago.

He said in contrast, the governments of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) had put in place strategies to deal with the collapse of the insurance companies.

“The governments haves also launched a medical insurance fund, which will allow people with existing claims to get their benefit. They are on the point on establishing a new insurance company to take over CLICO,” he said.

Former Bajan PM Wants An EconomicRecoveryProgram

“The Jamaica National Heritage Trust (JNHT) has estimated that it will cost $3 million (US$35,377) to restore the birthplace of Marcus Garvey, and the Department of Lo-cal Government is placing publicly on record that we will put up that money,” Minister of State with re-sponsibility for Local Government, Robert Montague, said.

“There is an issue of ownership of the premises (Garvey’s birthplace) and we would like that issue to be re-solved. If the people of St. Ann can resolve that issue, the Department of

Local Government will put up that money to make that birthplace into a thing of beauty, a mark of respect that the world is waiting on Jamaica to do,” Montague added.

Garvey, who was born in 1887, was a publisher, journalist, entre-preneur, Black Nationalist, Pan Africanist and orator. He was also the founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and African Communities League that inspired blacks in the US and elsewhere to return to their ancestral home of Africa.

Government To Help Restore Birthplace Of Marcus Garvey

The Jamaica government says it will provide funds for the restoration of the birthplace of the island’s National Hero, Marcus Mosiah Gar-

Political Scientist Calls On Prime Minister To ResignExpert Says Bruce Golding Bad For JLPProminent Caribbean political scientist, Professor Brian Meeks, be-lieves that Prime Minister Bruce Golding should resign in the wake of new allegations surrounding his government’s role in the extradition of Christopher “Dudus” Coke to the United States.

Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding

Former Prime Minister Owen Arthur

Marcus Mosiah Garvey


Trinidad GovernmentSpending $83 Million On 20,400 Laptops For Students

Caribbean Consulates Caribbean Consulates In New York CityIn New York City

Antigua & Barbuda 305 East 47th StreetNew York, N.Y. 10017212-541-4119

Bahamas231 East 46th StreetNew York, NY 10017(212) 421-6420 Barbados 820 Second Avenue, 2nd Fl.New York, N.Y. 10017212-551-4300 Belize 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400GNew York, N.Y. 10017212-421-6934 Cayman Islands (Dept. of Tourism)641 Lexington Ave, Suite 1435New York, NY 10170(877) 874-5104

Dominican Republic 1501 Broadway, Suite 410New York, N.Y. 10036212-768-2480

Grenada 820 Second Avenue, Suite 900DNew York, N.Y. 10017212-599-0301

Guyana 370 7th AvenueNew York, N.Y. 10017212-947-5110

Haiti 271 Madison Avenue, 5th FloorNew York, N.Y. 10016212-697-9767 Honduras 80 Wall Street, Suite 415, 4th FlrNew York, N.Y. 10005212-269-3611

Jamaica 767 Third AvenueNew York, N.Y. 10017-2993212-935-9000

Martinique 444 Madison Avenue, 16th FloorNew York, N.Y. 10022212-838-6887

Montserrat 845 Third AvenueNew York, N.Y. 10022212-745-0200

Panama 1212 Avenue of the Americas, 6th FloorNew York, N.Y. 10036212-840-2450

Puerto Rico 666 Fifth Avenue, 15th FloorNew York, N.Y. 10103800-223-6530 St. Kitts & Nevis 414 East 75th Street, 5th FloorNew York, N.Y. 10021212-535-1234

St. Lucia 800 Second Avenue, 9th FloorNew York, N.Y. 10007212-697-9360 St. Maarten 675 Third Avenue, Ste. 1807New York, N.Y. 10017800-786-2278 St. Vincent & The Grenadines 801 Second Avenue, 21st FloorNew York, N.Y. 10017212-687-4981 Trinidad & Tobago 125 Maiden Lane, #4New York, N.Y. 212-742-8021

A High Court judge Wednesday ruled that Prime Minister Roos-evelt Skerrit and his Education Minister Peter Saint Jean will have to face trial over charges that their elec-tions last December were null and void.

But the court threw out a number of petitions filed by the main oppo-sition United Workers Party (UWP) regarding allegations of irregulari-ties, bribery and corruption during the polls.

Judge Errol Thomas, in a 65 page judgement, said the matter chal-lenging the Prime Minister’s election in the Vieille Case constituency on December 18 last year on the grounds that he holds dual citizenship, was substantial enough to be taken to trial.

“In all the circumstances, the Court agrees that the elements of disqualification have been pleaded. And it is the further conclusion of the Court that the First Respondents have been made aware of the case they have to face, namely disqualifica-tion; and further still a cause of action has been made out,” Justice Thomas said.

He also ruled that the petition by the UWP leader Ron Green challeng-ing the election of Saint Jean in the La Plaine constituency deserved to be heard before a jury.

In an immediate response, Green told reporters he was pleased with the ruling regarding the Prime Minister’s dual citizenship status.

“It is important that the question of allegiance of Prime Minister Sker-rit and Peter Saint Jean is going to be tried in a court of law and evidence will be brought forward to see wheth-er they in fact eligible to contest,” he added.

But Attorney General Francine Baron Royer said she was confident that when the matter goes to trial, the Prime Minister would be victorious.

“I believe that having been suc-cessful in this instance we will also be successful in relation to the other

remaining allegations,” she said.“We believe that the allegations

that are being made are not sufficient …to disqualify the Prime Minister and Honorable Saint Jean”.

According to the petition filed on behalf of the UWP candidate, May-nard Joseph, Prime Minister Skerrit “at the time of his nomination and at the material time, was a person by his own act under an acknowledgement of allegiance and/or adherence to a foreign power of state, namely the Republic of France.”

Joseph is also arguing that Prime Minister Skerrit “was not qualified and was disqualified from being nom-inated and from being elected and/or returned as a member of the House of Assembly for the said constituency of Vielle Case in the said election.”

Skerrit’s Dominica Labor Party (DLP) was returned to office for a third consecutive term with a con-vincing 18-3 victory in the December election, but the UWP subsequently filed petitions challenged the results in five constituencies, claiming wide-spread voter irregularity, bribery and fraud.

However, Justice Thomas dis-missed the bribery allegations de-scribing them as “vague” and “a fish-ing expedition.

“The petitioners have complete-ly and absolutely failed to properly plead or perfect the allegations of bribery. Instead of the material facts and particulars, which were required by law, the petitioners pleaded gen-eral allegations, the language of the Act, and mere statements of opinion and conclusions.

“In view of the requirement to plead bribery specifically and fully, and the consequences of a finding of bribery, the pleas of bribery are wholly inadequate and do not dis-close a reasonable cause of action,” the judge said.

He said that Dominicans residing overseas were eligible to vote “unless their names had been deleted” from the voting list and there was no cause of action on the charge that overseas Dominicans, according to the UWP petition, were brought in to vote il-legally.

“Contrary to the submissions on behalf of the petitioners, it is the ruling of the Court that persons liv-ing abroad in excess of five years are

qualified to vote, unless their names are deleted in accordance with Sec-tion 7 and 11 (b) of the Registration of Electors Act,” the judge said.

Justice Thomas also struck out the UWP petition regarding access to the State-owned Dominica Broad-casting Service (DBS) radio during the election campaign.

“In the petitioners’ case, it is clear from their own affidavits that they were given access to the

State radio over time. As it turned out, their concern was unequal access. Therefore, the allegation of denial or refusal of access does not give rise to a cause of action as what is pleaded amounts to a bare statement without supporting material facts,” he said.

Green told reporters he was dis-appointed with the judge’s decision to strike out the matters relating to bribery.

“I felt that a number of matters were struck out that should have gone forward for trial. The issue of bribery was struck out and I think that is a major issue and it pains me that we will not be able to try on the issue of bribery … that is very dangerous in terms of free and fair elections,” he added.

The Attorney General said the judgment sent a strong message about bribery allegations.

“All the allegations that have been made have been struck out ex-cept for the allegation of disqualifi-cation against the Prime Minister and Peter Saint Jean. It is an indication that it is not just a matter of making statements or making allegations. One has to have something of substance to stand in a court of law,” she said.

Legal Affairs Minister Ian Douglas said he was satisfied with the court ruling saying “it reempha-sizes and confirms what we have said along that there was no basis in those petitions.

“The electorate went to the polls and quite correctly elected represen-tatives of their choice like they have done in elections past,” he said, not-ing “we have always said that our elections are free and fair and we had election observers here who gave their reports saying that there was nothing wrong with the elections … and the court is just confirming what we have said along”.

The attorney for the UWP, Geof-frey Letang, said that a decision would be taken on whether there would be an appeal against the court ruling regarding the matters that were struck out.

“The judge has given a judge-ment and we have to look at it to see if the issue of appeal arises,” he said.

Dominica PM Faces Trial Over Dual Citizenship

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit

At least three people were killed and sev-eral others injured during an early morn-ing smash up, involving three vehicles, along the Churchill–Roosevelt Highway in Central Trinidad, police said Thursday.

They said that the accident occurred after one of the vehicles crossed the median and slammed into the other two vehicles near Chaguanas in Central Trinidad.

The dead persons have been identified as 56-year-old Er-rol Francis, Basdai Boochoon, 57 and 29 year-old Sherwin Thomas. The police said that the injured persons had been taken to hospital, some in a critical condition.

More than 100 people have been killed in vehicular acci-dents here so far this year.

Three Killed In Early Morning AccidentInjured Still In Critical Condition

The Trinidad and Tobago government will spend TT$83 million (US$13 million) on 20,400 laptop computers for Second-ary Entrance Assessment (SEA) students.

The laptops are expected to arrive in mid September, Education Minister Tim Gopeesingh said during a news briefing on Wednesday.

The Trinidad Guardian reported that Gopeesingh said, “I am pleased to an-

nounce that the evaluation process for the bids submitted in response to the student laptop initiative has been completed, and the best overall accepted proposal has been accepted as Hewlett-Packard. The cost of the preferred bidder is approxi-mately $83 million.”

The average cost of one laptop worked out to be TT$4,068.

Of the 17,270 pupils who wrote the examination this year, 2,000 scored less than 30 percent. However, 401 will repeat, while 1,599 will be allowed to attend secondary schools, but under a remedial system. This means that in all, 16,869 students will be given laptops.


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The St. Lucia government Tuesday announced that it would hold an official funeral service and burial on Satur-day for Dame Marie Selipha Descartes, widely regarded as the island’s Queen of Culture, who died earlier this month.

A government statement said that Prime Minister Stephenson King will use the occa-sion to announce decisions made by his admin-istration to immortalize the name and work of Descartes, popularly known as “Sesenne”.

“Dame Marie Selipha “Sesenne” Des-cartes will receive a send-off be-fitting of her status as Saint Lucia’s Queen of Culture dur-ing an elaborate ceremony to be held at the St. Lucy’s Catholic Church in the village of Mi-coud,” the government statement said, adding that the event will comprise a two hour Tribute Forum featuring cultural performances and presentations by various cultural groups and individuals”.

The statement said that prior to the Tribute Forum members of the public will be able to view the body of the late cultural icon at the Church.

Sesenne, 96, will be buried at a cemetery approximately 150 yards away from her home.

“We have lost a lot both tangible and in-tangible. She has been responsible for the sur-vival and sustainability of a lot of our cultural forms, whether it be in song, dance, story tell-ing, games, her use of the Creole language, and for the intangibles she was able to identify with just who we are,” executive director of the Cul-

tural Development Foundation (CDF), Kenne-dy “Boots” Samuels, said in paying tribute to the late cultural activist.

Official Funeral For Cultural Icon

Sesenne Descartes is the grand dame of St Lucian folk culture. A chantwelle of extraordi-nary talent, Sesenne captivated the imagina-tion of all who heard her and as a result she was a central figure in the revival of the folk song and dance traditions of St Lucia that had threatened to fade into obscurity.

The annual Irie Jamboree concert may not be jamming in Roy Wilkins Park, Queens, New York this Labor Day Sunday, Sep-tember 5, however to fill the void the organizers Irie Jam Media has now teamed with Genesis One & Chef Garfeld to host a hot new event billed “Island Jam 2010 - A Caribbean Family Funday.”

Barrington Levy, Spragga Added To Island Jam Lineup

Chino’s Japan TourBlasting Off

The concert which will kick start Chi-no’s two week tour of Japan to promote his newly-released Japan album, Never Change, is slated to take place this Saturday, and is the annual brainchild of the Mighty Crown Sound System selectors. For this its 16th year, Chino who is currently in Japan says, “This will be the first show to kick off the Japan tour and I’m going to make my set as enjoyable as possible. This concert usually has more than 40,000 people in attendance and my fans here have been extremely sup-portive so I really want to make it a great ex-

perience for them.”The support Chino refers to, is releasing

his sophomore album, Never Change, a few weeks ago and having it debut at the num-ber seven spot then later that day the album rocketed its way to the second position on the Japan Reggae iTunes chart. After the Yo-kohama Reggae Bash, Chino will continue on to Nagoya, Osaka, Tokyo, Kobe, Fukuoka and other spots in Japan. Fans can keep up with Chino and Di Genius as they make their trek across Japan at their youtube video blog, (vlog), “BigshipBlogs”.

On Sunday, September 12, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, the Brooklyn Literary Council and Brooklyn Tour-ism will host the fifth annual Brooklyn Book Festival, Each year, the Brooklyn Book Festi-val “BoBi” award is given to an author who has made a broad impact on the field of literature. This year’s recipient is John Ashbery, who will be honored at the Brooklyn Book Festival Gala Mingle on Saturday, September 11.

The award was established in the festival’s second year. Previous BoBi recipients are Ed-widge Danticat (2009), Walter Mosley (2008), and Paul Auster (2007). Ashbery will also par-ticipate in this year’s festival program, in an on-stage conversation with Paul Auster, September 12.

“The selection of John Ashbery as the in-augural Best of Brooklyn poet is perfect,” said Alice Quinn, Executive Director Poetry Society of America , a BKBF programming partner. “Ashbery is the absolute incarnation of a New York poet—identified with the famous New York School , a lively and distinguished writer on the arts, an enduring and incandescent figure in our poetic landscape.

Ashbery’s first collection, Some Trees (1956), won the Yale Younger Poets Prize. His collections include The Tennis Court Oath, The Double Dream of Spring, and Houseboat Days. The 1975 Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror garnered the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the National Book Critics Circle

Award. His 1984 A Wave won the Bollingen Prize and the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize. His most recent collection, Planisphere, came out in 2009 from Ecco Books, an imprint of Harper-Collins Publishers.

“Of all the poets now at work in English, John Ashbery has cast the broadest and the deepest influence over the poetry of the past 40 years,” said acclaimed poet Stephen Burt.

Renowned Poet John Ashbery To Be Honored At Fifth Annual Brooklyn Book Festival

The all day event will feature Domino Tournament, Ludo, Chess, Checkers, Drafts, Bounce About, clowns, face paintings, little kiddies rides and dunk tank.

For music lovers, reggae sensation Gyptian who is the current rage on the Billboard charts is confirmed for the event. Gyptian will charm fans with his current hit Hold Me and other songs from his vast catalogue of reggae ballads.

Other acts confirmed to perform are Regge Ca-nery Barrington Levy, Spragga Benz and Mr. Vegas. The musical juggling will be handled by Stone Love, Supa Claude, Richie Poo, DJ Elly, Madd Out, Glama Wayne, Road Inter-national, 13 Squad, Steelie Bashment and Killa Boo.

Gates open at noon, show time is 1pm sharp.

Barrington Levy

It’s going to be quite the ex-perience this weekend in Ja-pan, as Chino, Stephen “Di Genius” and other members of the Big Ship family pre-pare to set the stage ablaze at the Yokohama Reggae Bash. Chino

John Ashbery


Drinking Water Before Meals Could Help You Lose Weight

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A new study found that middle-aged and older adults who drank two cups of water be-fore each meal consumed fewer calories and lost more weight than those who skipped drink-ing water.

Researchers divided two groups of over-weight and obese men and women aged 55 to 75 into two groups: one group was told to fol-low a low-fat, low-calorie diet; the other group was told to follow the same diet and to drink two cups of water before breakfast, lunch and dinner.

After 12 weeks, those who drank water be-fore meals had lost 15.5 pounds, compared to 11 pounds for the non-water drinkers, a nearly 30 percent difference.

The researchers got the idea for the weight-loss program from their prior research, which found that when middle-aged and older adults drank water before meals, they ate between 75 and 90 fewer calories at the meal.

What they weren’t sure about, however, was if water drinkers would compensate by eating more throughout the rest of the day, said senior study author Brenda Davy, an associate professor in the department of human nutrition, foods and exercise at Virginia Tech. But after 12 weeks of dieting, that didn’t happen.

“Drinking more water is a pretty simple strategy that may be helpful to people trying to lose weight,” Davy said. “We’re not saying, ‘Drink more water and the body fat will melt away’. But for people who are trying to lose

weight and trying to follow a low-cal diet, it’s something they can do as part of that.”

The research was to be presented Monday at the annual meeting of the American Chemi-cal Society in Boston.

One of the most vexing issues with dieting is how difficult it is to keep the weight off long-term, Davy said. After the 12 weeks were up, Davy and her colleagues have continued to fol-low the participants.

After one year, preliminary data shows that those who continued to drink water before meals not only kept those pounds off, but have even continued to lose a bit more -- about 1.5 pounds on average.

Yet pre-meal water chugging comes with one caveat: it may only work if you’re middle-aged or older, Davy said.

Prior research has shown that in those aged 18 to 35, drinking water before the meal did not cause them to eat fewer calories at the meal, Davy said.

In older people, it takes longer for the stomach to empty, which may be why the water helps them feel fuller and less hungry, while in younger people, water begins leaving the stom-ach almost immediately, Davy said.

Barry Popkin, director of the University of North Carolina Nutrition Obesity Research Center, called the findings “promising.” His research has shown people who drinks lots of water drink fewer sugary beverages, eat more fruits and vegetables and overall consume few-

er calories throughout the day.One culprit in the obesity epidemic is that

Americans consume some 300 calories more a day in sugary beverages than they did 30 years ago, Popkin added. That includes soda, punch and fruit juices with added sugar, sports drinks and sweetened tea.

“If you drink some more water right before a meal and fill up a little bit right before, there is the potential you may reduce your food intake,” Popkin said. “But what we’re concerned with is encouraging people to drink water to replace all the caloric beverages we’re drinking.”

Another challenge to the water-before-meals weight-loss strategy is getting people to do it, said Carla Wolper, an assistant profes-sor in the Eating Disorders Center at Columbia University and a research faculty member at the New York Obesity Research Center at St. Luke’s Hospital in New York City.

“The question is, do people continue to drink the water in a non-study situation?” Wolper said. “We know there are a lot of simple things people could do to lose weight. Clinical trials have shown if people write down what they eat, they lost twice as much weight. Yet it’s very hard to get people to write down what they eat. Or, if people would reduce por-tions just a little bit, they would lose weight. But people don’t do it.”

The same goes for drinking more wa-ter. Even seemingly small changes require

commitment. “Changing a pattern of behavior is complicated, and requires time and energy,” Wolper said.

Still, it could be worth a try, she added. “Unless people overload on water, it’s harm-less, inexpensive. And if over the course of the entire day, it reduces the amount of food people take in, then of course it’s a good idea,” Wolper said.

However, the researchers stress that the findings do not prove that allergies actually cause heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S.

To look for ties between common allergic symptoms and heart disease, Dr. Jongoh Kim of Albert Einstein Medical Cen-ter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and colleagues analyzed data on more than 8,600 adults aged 20 or older who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conduct-ed between 1988 and 1994.

They found that common allergies and heart disease fre-quently paired up.

Eighteen percent of the adults reported wheezing and 46 per-cent suffered bouts of a stuffy nose or itchy and watery eyes -- a combination of allergic symptoms known as rhinoconjunctivitis.

Heart disease was present in 6 percent of the adults overall. It was found in 13 percent of wheezing cases, 5 percent of rhino-conjunctivitis cases and 4 percent of people without any allergic symptoms.

After adjusting for other related factors, such as age and asthma, there was a 2.6-fold increased risk of heart disease with wheezing and a 40 percent increased risk with rhinoconjunctivi-tis, compared to no allergies. The association was mainly seen in women younger than age of 50.

Kim suggests that the intermittent inflammation that comes with allergies may lead to the thickening of artery walls, and eventually heart disease. It could also be that some people simply carry genes that are linked to the development of both allergies and heart disease, Kim added.

But given the nature of the study, the researchers are not yet able to say if allergies truly have a role to play in the develop-

ment of heart disease.Much more study is needed to “clearly see” whether

there is a cause and effect relationship, Kim said. “And even if there is a cause and effect, it is not clear whether treating allergic disease can reduce the risk,” Kim noted.

Dr. Carlos Iribarren, a research scientist at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, California, who was not involved in the study, said: “Because common allergic symptoms are highly prevalent in asthma, these findings are consistent with prior research conducted at Kaiser Permanente showing a significant association between self-report of asthma and future risk of coronary disease, particularly among women.”

But he cautioned, in an email to Reuters Health, against jumping to any “premature conclusion, consumer-level advice or public health recommendation based on these findings.”

Iribarren also noted that study subjects with allergy (particu-larly wheezing) had a greater burden of heart disease risk factors (for example, smoking, obesity, high blood pressure), compared with allergy-free subjects. Therefore, “allergists, internists and cardiologists should be made aware of this link and intensify cardiovascular risk profile assessment and modification among patients presenting with allergy.”

Dr. Viola Vaccarino, of the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, told Reuters Health that the current findings also fit with studies she and her colleagues have done, “finding of an association of chronic in-flammatory conditions such as asthma and other allergic condi-tions with coronary disease in women but not in men.”

“Young women may have a stronger inflammatory response due to allergic conditions than men, perhaps due to estrogens,”

explained Vaccarino, who was also not involved in the current study.

It’s also possible, she said, that “people with history of coro-nary heart disease are sicker with respiratory symptoms just be-cause they have coronary heart disease and not vice-versa.”

“I really wouldn’t draw any strong message from this study,” said Vaccarino. “I would not alarm the public with the news that common allergic symptoms (other than asthma) increase the risk of coronary heart disease in women, based on this study.”

Are Allergies Associated With Heart Disease?

Close the diet books and skip the pills. The latest weight-loss trick may be as simple as gulping a couple of glasses of water before you eat.

Older Adults Who Drink Two Cups Of Water Before Each Meal Consume Fewer Calories

Common allergies that bring on wheezing, sneezing and watery eyes could be next to join the list of factors linked to heart disease, suggests a large new study.



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TravelNEW

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The report projected that, based on volume of sales from last year, The Bahamas would once again be the top travel destination, ahead of

regions such as the Mediterranean and Europe. It also mentioned that so far in 2010 the country accounts for almost half of the occupancy rate of

fleets associated with CLIA.“From a capacity standpoint, uti-

lization is consistently over 100 per-cent,” the report stated. “In 2009 the CLIA industry occupancy rate was 103.9 percent. For 2010 the Caribbe-an and Bahamas represent the number one destination with 41.3 percent of capacity deployment. The Mediter-ranean, Europe, Alaska, and Mexico follow the Caribbean in popularity.”

The Bahamas was also among

the highest destinations in total bed days so far this year, ranking fourth in total bed-days at 6.8 million, a 31 percent increase from last year. Only the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and Europe had higher amounts.

Visitor arrivals by cruise have been relatively consistent for the country, with over 1 million tourists voyaging by sea in the first quarter. Out of those passengers, 54 percent make Nassau or Paradise Island their destination, 35

percent go to the Family Islands, and 11 percent travel to Grand Bahama. CLIA is associated with nearly 16,000 travel agencies and individual agents and 25 cruise lines that include a host of ships that offer services to the country. The organization projected a total of 14.3 million cruising passengers this year. The industry is still ranked first among travel consumers for perceived value, vacation interest and ease in selling for travel agents.

Bahamas Still Favorite For CruisersCruise ship passengers still prefer voyaging to Bahamian shores as the destination was recognized as the top choice for travelers this year.

Paradise Island, Nassau, Bahamas

Couples on the hunt for a tropical destination to ex-change vows and celebrate the joys of wedded bliss, will find their dreams come true on the enchanted isle of Jamaica. The destination makes it easy for couples to get married just 24 hours af-ter their arrival; and to allevi-ate the couple’s stress, many of the island’s hotels and re-sorts will make all the wed-ding arrangements to suit the desires of the bridal couple.

“It’s a piece of cake to tie the knot in Ja-maica, with just 24 hours needed for couples to receive a marriage license,” said John Lynch, Jamaica’s Director of Tourism. “The ease and convenience in which people can get married, coupled with the island’s vibrant culture and unparalleled beauty, have made Jamaica a preferred choice for destination weddings.

With little advance planning necessary, a couple’s wedding day will be an effortless occasion. Specially designed packages from hotels will suit any couple’s budget, and many include the cost for the minister, air-port transfers, wedding cake and other spe-cial requests.

Marriage LicenseCouples can be married just 24 hours af-

ter arriving in Jamaica, providing prior appli-cation has been made for a marriage license. In order to apply for a marriage license,

couples should contact Jamaica’s Ministry of Justice at (876) 906-4923.

Necessary DocumentsUnlike many countries, Jamaica does

not require couples to take blood tests in or-der to get married. However, the following documentation is required:• Proof of citizenship - certified copy of

birth certificate, which includes father’s name.

• Parent’s written consent if under 18 years of age.

• Proof of divorce if applicable (original certificate of divorce).

• Certified copy of death certificate for widow or widower.For more details on planning a wed-

ding in Jamaica, go to the Jamaica Tourist Board’s Web site at www.visitjamaica.com, or call the Jamaica Tourist Board at 1-800-JAMAICA .

Weddings, A Piece Of Cake In Jamaica

The information was revealed in the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) 2010 market overview of the cruise industry, which provided an analysis of the sector for the first half of the year from a global standpoint.

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To Hang Or Not To Hang

Q. My son is attending school for the first time this year. I’m still at work when he gets out of school and I’m looking for a good after school program. What should I look for in an after school program?

A. Many parents have to rely on after school

programs so that their children will not be home alone for hours. Some schools offer aftercare at the same facility which is very convenient for parents. Some after school programs have buses or vans that go to each school in each district that they have students to pick them up after school. One way to find a good and safe pro-gram is to ask other parents. If you don’t know any other parents you can ask members of your local church. Many churches offer after school programs as a way to raise money. Another op-tion is to find a retired senior who wouldn’t mind picking up your child from school and keeping him until you return from work. Often this is cheaper and provides extra cash to your caregiver. You’d have to check out any person or facility that will care for your son of course. Below are some guidelines for what a good af-ter school program should offer:

1. Develop their personal and interpersonal social skills, and promote respect for cultural diversity.

2 Provide help with homework, tutoring, and other learning activities.

3. Provide time and space for quiet study.4. Provide new, developmentally-appro-

priate enrichment activities to add to students’ learning at school, help them develop thinking and problem-solving skills, and spark their cu-riosity and love of learning.

5.Provide recreational and physical activi-ties to develop physical skills and constructive-ly channel children’s energy pent up after a day sitting in a classroom.

6.Encourage participation in individual sports activities to help youth develop self-es-teem by striving for a personal best, and partici-pation in group sports to provide lessons about cooperation and conflict resolution.

7.Provide age-appropriate job readiness training.

8.Provide information about career and ca-reer training options, preferably through first-hand experiences with community business leaders and tours of local businesses.

What should parents look for?1.Does the staff consist of responsible and

caring adults who really like children and who can provide support and guidance? Is supervi-sion adequate?

2.Is the program in a safe and clean envi-ronment? Is there enough space for activities and quiet time? Are the rest rooms adequate? Is the space decorated in an inviting way?

3.Are nutritional snacks or meals provid-

ed?4.Are there good resources, such as a li-

brary and sports equipment?5.Do the activities look exciting and chal-

lenging? Are they age-appropriate? Are the par-ticipants having fun as well as learning?

6.Are the activities offered the ones that your children like to do or want to learn?

7.Does the program coordinate group and individual learning with the school to be sure that participants benefit as much as possible from it?

8.Can children come before school and on holidays as well as in the afternoon? Is there an extra fee for that? Is there a late fee if you must pick up your children after the program is over?

9.Can children attend only a few times a week instead of every day--to accommodate parents’ schedules, to save on costs, or to allow for partial sibling care?

10.What are the costs? Are there extra fees for trips, personal tutoring, and lessons?

Some information gathered from the www.kidsource.com website.

Lisa-Anne Byers is a licensed and certified speech-language patholo-gist who has worked in education for over two decades. She holds gradu-ate degrees in speech-language pa-thology and multicultural education. She is also holds certification in ed-

ucational administration. She is the author of the book, They Say I Have ADHD, I Say Life Sucks! Thoughts From Nicholas. You may contact her at [email protected] or visit her website at www.AskLisaAnne.com.

CommentaryNEW

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What Should Parents Look For In An After School Program?

By Oscar Ramjeet

At the height of the upsurge of gruesome murders in Trinidad and Tobago, there is much dialogue/controversy as to whether or not convicted murders should be executed.

I must confess my ignorance about Ambassador Mathurin’s perma-nent location but am extremely aware of her air jaunts between Grantley Adams and Cheddi Jagan airports.

The death of the CRNM was not a surprise. In the first instance, its creation should not have been enter-tained but the arm twisting of former Prime Minister Patterson by Sir Shri-dath and his other regional cronies resulted in “PJ’s” agreement for the creation of the CRNM.

It was very clear from the start that Sir Shridath brought forward the creation of the CRNM as he was de-termined to establish his own beach-head in Barbados and to flex his muscles within the multilateral com-munity as a former secretary-general of the Commonwealth and foreign minister of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.

It worked well for him, which led to the recruitment of key lifeguards, including Richie Bernal of Jamaica and Henry Gill of the Republic of Trinidad. Both individuals are well known within regional circles and have always demonstrated their dis-tinctive qualities, skills and experi-ence.

The exit of Sir Shridath from the CRNM was influenced by many occurrences. Prime Minister Pat-terson made the decision to demit office; there were couple of general elections held in the region, which re-sulted in the change of governments.

Sir Shridath saw the death war-rant and was not prepared for the sen-tencing so his only saved-face option was to quietly exit from the CRNM. His clout and influence with some of the CARICOM Heads had dried up, thus making his reliance for survival untenable.

Prior to his departure from the CRNM, he carefully crafted his re-placement which resulted in Jamai-can-born Ambassador Richard Bernal assuming the direction of the CRNM.

Although Bernal assumed the position with great pomp, the wea-riness of the CRNM by CARICOM Heads grew, which made it difficult for the ambassador to run and man-age and effective institution within the region. With much frustration, Ambassador Bernal saw an opening at a Washington-based international agency and decided to accept a posi-tion where he is now based and might

be considering a run for the Secretary General position of CARICOM. We will have to wait and see as his cell phone number remains the same.

Bernal’s departure ensured that another lifeguard in the name of Hen-ry Gill was quite appropriate for the position and assumed direction of the CRNM. Unfortunately, Gill’s term at the CRNM was short-lived.

The Heads of CARICOM at the Belize meeting made the firm deci-sion that all trade negotiations should be under the aegis of the Secretariat, which meant that a major part of the CRNM based in Barbados would have to merge within the Georgetown Secretariat, thus bringing Gill under the reporting umbrella of the Secre-tary General.

As rumours have it, Gill vowed not to re-locate to Guyana and want-ed no part of reporting to Carrington. This led to Gill’s demittal from the CRNM where he has now entered the regional lucrative environment of consulting.

In essence, Carrington and his group at the Secretariat won the fight, which led to the Secretary General’s immediate task of creating the OTN within the Secretariat.

By Ian Francis

There was no wake, prayers or visitation when the Heads of CARICOM Governments made the decision in Belize to bury the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery (CRNM) and support the emergence of the Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN), which is now under the direct supervision of the CARICOM Secretary General headed by Ambassador Gail Mathurin.

Demise Of Our Negotiating Machinery

The death penalty is on the statute books of the twin island republic as well as all CARI-COM governments, but it is not being imposed. The last execu-tion in Trinidad and Tobago was 11 years ago.

In fact, in 1999, during the United National Congress (UNC) administration, the hangman was extremely busy, since there were ten executions, including nine within three days -- three a day between Thursday and Saturday -- the notorious Dole Chadee and company.

During that year, the public was in full agreement with im-posing the death penalty because at the end of that year the murder rate dropped drastically to as low as 93, but the next year it went up to 118. In 2003, the second full year of the People’s National Movement (PNM), the rate rose to 229. It climbed to 260 in 2004 and shot to 386 in 2005.

The last person to be hanged in Trinidad and Tobago was An-thony Briggs on July 28, 1999 and his sister said that before his execution he said that he had accepted Jesus Christ as his personal lord and saviour, and

all was well with his soul. His sister was confident at the time, however, that her brother was the wrong man sent to the gallows.

Briggs told her that he hoped that he was the last person to suffer this fate, and for 11 years there has been no execution.

About three years ago, more than 50 murderers who were on death row were spared the noose because they were not executed within the five year period as re-quired by law following the Privy Council ruling in Pratt and Mor-gan in 1994, in which the high-est court in the Commonwealth found that it was inhumane to carry out executions more than five years after the death sen-tenced had been passed.

Whether or not hangings are useful as a deterrent to those who will commit murder, the govern-ment seems determined to press ahead.

However it has been stymied all the way to the gallows by a combination of commitments to the Privy Council and a host of other international human rights bodies, treaties, conventions to which Trinidad and Tobago is a signatory.


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Caribbean Athletes To Cool Red-Hot Gay

Haiti Whipped At Youth Olympics

SportsNEW

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ALL-DACOSTA VS. ALL-MANNING MASTERS SOCCER FESTIVAL QUEENS, NY, AUG. 21. /1:30PM

While a release from Bolt’s han-dlers did not name a figure, CMC Sports understand the deal could be worth as much as US$400 million.

The 24-year-old is one of the most recognizable in world sport, following breathtaking World record feats in winning the 100 and 200 me-tres at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and the World Championships in Ber-lin last year.

“PUMA’s been by my side since the beginning, before anyone knew what I was capable of achieving,” said Bolt.

“They saw potential in me and they took a chance, supporting me all the way, especially when things weren’t easy for me due to injuries I suffered in my teens.

“We’ve been partners in the tru-est sense of the word since day one, and so it’s an easy decision to re-sign with them. PUMA gets me; we fit together. They take the business of running seriously but we also know how to have fun, to be spontaneous.

We both bring a lot of personality to the sport.”

The deal is expected to run until the end of 2013 and will see PUMA continue to outfit Bolt in training and lifestyle clothing and footwear.

Bolt will be in the forefront of the company’s global marketing cam-paigns and will be key to their Lon-don 2012 Olympic programme.

“Usain Bolt has been a revela-tion for track and field athletics,” said Jochen Zeitz, the chairman and CEO of PUMA AG.

“He’s shined a global spotlight on the sport. His winning personal-ity and phenomenal physical prowess are a unique combination. The way he both engages his fans and is en-ergized by them has helped his popu-larity escalate to extraordinary levels over the past two years.”

Bolt has been aligned with PUMA since his youth days when he became the world’s fastest junior at age 16 in 2003.

And though speculation was rife

that Bolt would have maybe parted ways with the brand after his huge success at the Beijing Olympics, the Jamaican remained put, placing the brand on show when he dominated last year’s World Championships in Berlin.

“Usain has been a tremendous force for the PUMA brand. He em-bodies the joy, playfulness and irrev-erence that are the cornerstone of our brand,” Zeitz pointed out.

“His Lightning Bolt ‘To Di World’ pose from the Beijing Games in 2008 is now one of the most recog-

nizable symbols in sport. He’s obvi-ously a lot of fun to work with.

“From a performance standpoint, he has reset the bar for speed on the track, and we’re not sure he’s even hit his top gear yet. It’s going to be an exciting few years ahead and we’re thrilled to be along for the ride.”

Bolt recently called a premature end to his 2010 season after sustain-ing a back injury, following his first loss in two years at the DN Galan in Stockholm earlier this month.

He is the Laureus World Sports-man of the Year for 2009 and 2010.

Bolt Among World’s Highest Earners With Big Puma Deal

SINGAPORE – Haiti failed to capitalise on a man advantage for most of the game, and fell to Bolivia 5-0 in the gold medal match at the inaugural Youth Olympics here Wednesday.

The French-speaking Carib-bean side were handed a glori-ous chance to haul themselves back into the contest at the Jalan Besar Stadium when Rodrigo Mejido was red carded in the 22nd minute.

They trailed 0-1 at this point following a fifth minute strike by Mejido but failed to press home the advantage and were 0-2 down at half-time through Jorge Alpire’s 31st minute goal.

Christian Arano added the South Americans’ third in the 53 before Noel Rodriguez net-ted the fifth seven minutes later. Luis Banegas put the icing on the victory with his 72nd min-ute strike. The runners-up finish for the Haitian Under-15 boys’ side came only six weeks after the team had been organized following the withdrawal of Cuba, and seven months after an earthquake killed an estimated 220 000 in the poverty-stricken country. The game was a re-match of their group encounter in the six-team event, which Bo-livia won 9-0.

The former World super middle-weight champion from Guyana has accused Ortiz of lacking courage, after the Mexican appeared to quit in a fight against Marcos Maidana last year.

Harris has openly questioned Or-tiz’s will to fight, although his oppo-nent has strung together three straight wins since the loss to Maidana.

“I am very determined, and no-

body is going to stop me, especially no Victor Ortiz,” said Harris in a me-dia conference call on Wednesday. “He has a lot of talent, but you have to believe in yourself and I don’t think he does.”

Harris added: I’m a fighter. I know about digging deep in there. Sometimes in the ring, you’re gonna die; you gotta dig deep. I don’t think he has that kind of mentality.”

Harris and Ortiz will feature on the undercard of the superfight be-tween “Sugar” Shane Mosley and Sergio Mora.

Harris, aged 32, holds a ring re-cord of 29 wins, including 19 knock-outs, four losses, and one draw. He is trying to keep his career in the sun-shine, but he will have his hands full with Ortiz.

The 23-year-old is 27-2-1 with 21 KOs, and is ranked at No.1 by two of the four major sanctioning bodies.

Harris’ last major victory came three years ago, when he won a points decision over Juan Lazcano.

He has visited the ring only three times since Junior Witter put him away in seven rounds in a title fight the same year, so it’s difficult to as-sess his current form.

“I’m a sharp shooter,” said the Brooklyn-based Harris. “You know what I mean? My sharp shooting is definitely going to land.

“And I know once I land, he has to question himself. He better hope he doesn’t get flashbacks.”

Promoter and former World champion Oscar De La Hoya indi-cated that the fight has all the makings of a classic match-up.

He concluded: “It’s going to be a great fight between two warriors. It has the potential to steal the show be-cause of their styles, how much each one wants it and what both have gone through to get here.”

Harris Confi dent Against OrtizVivian Harris contends that he will be the only boxer with the moniker “Vicious” standing, fol-lowing his non-title fight over 10 rounds with Vic-tor Ortiz on September 18 at the Staples Center. Caribbean athletes will try to end the hot

streak of Tyson Gay in the men’s 100 metres at the final IAAF Diamond League meet of the season on Friday.

Tyson Gay

Deal Reportedly Worth As Much As $400 MillionKINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC) -- Jamaican

sprint sensation Usain Bolt on Tuesday signed a lucrative multi-million endorsement deal with sportswear giants PUMA, positioning the World and Olympic champion as one of the highest earn-ers in world sport.

Usain Bolt

With Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell sidelined with injury, the rare sight of the three fastest men in history going head-to-head has been dashed.

The job of taming the Amer-ican sprint superstar has now fallen to a brood of under-rated sprinters.

The field, which features six of the nine men who have dipped below 10 seconds this year.

Olympic silver medallist Richard Thompson of Trinidad & Tobago heads the list, which also includes Jamaicans Nesta Carter and Yohan Blake.

Thompson has not been as sharp as he was when he finished behind Usain Bolt in Beijing two years ago, and will have to show a serious improvement.

Carter and Blake improved their career bests to 9.86 seconds and 9.89 secs respectively over the past three weeks. They will be looking to reproduce that kind

of form to push Gay all the way to the line.

Gay, the 2007 World cham-pion, became the first man in over two years to defeat Bolt over 100m in Stockholm on August 6.

He also emphasised his cur-rent form, when he defied the cold and wet conditions in Lon-don 13 days ago to run a World-leading 9.78.

Vivian Harris


St. Lucian Striker Shot Dead After Victory Celebrations BROOKLYN, NY – St. Lucia’s leading goal scorer in the New York Caribbean Cup, Phillip Tisson, was shot dead early Monday morning, police here have confirmed.

Reports said the 27-year-old had just finished cel-ebrating his team’s 1-0 victory over St. Kitts and Nevis when he was killed by an unidentified gunman a short distance from a club in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn.

Only hours earlier on Sunday, Tisson had scored the lone goal in the semi-final duel with St. Kitts and Nevis, ensuring that his team qualified for the tourna-ment final against Jamaica next Sunday.

The striker, who arrived here in May for the tour-nament, had scored five goals in the 2010 campaign. He also represented St. Lucia’s national team during its recent World Cup campaign.

Police said the gunman opened fire on a car where Tisson and other passengers sat, a short distance from the Tropix night club on Carroll Street and Utica Av-enue.

A 24-year-old woman sitting next to Tisson re-ceived a gunshot wound to her chest and was taken to Brookdale University Hospital in Brooklyn. She was reported to be in stable condition, cops said.

Two other women in the car were unhurt, police said.

“The guy was celebrating the victory and was look-ing forward to playing against Jamaica and then some-body shot him,” Martin Daniel, president and CEO of the St. Lucia New York team, told CMC Sports.

Fred Ballantyne, the Cup’s Vincentian-born presi-dent, said he hoped the culprit was brought to justice.

“It’s very, very hard to leave your island and come here and get shot,” he added. “We have to help to send the body back to St. Lucia for burial.”

Daniel said, despite the tragedy, his team would beat perennial champions Jamaica to win the Cup for the very first time in its 19-year-history.

“Adversity will make our team stronger,” he said. “He (Tisson) had a passion for the game. Everybody will now have to step up.”

Ballantyne said the teams and fans would observe a moment of silence on Sunday in Tisson’s honour.


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