Archives for Saturday, October 25, 2003:

Cayman Islands Attorney General appeals Afghan asylum ruling

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands: The Cayman Islands Attorney General, reportedly acting on behalf of the territory's Chief Immigration Officer, filed an action last week to overturn the Immigration Appeal Tribunal's ruling allowing three Afghan refugees "limited leave" to remain in the Cayman Islands... read more...

Grenada PM refutes Amnesty Int'l report

ST. GEORGE'S, Grenada: Mr Keith Mitchell, the prime minister of Grenada, criticized a new report by Amnesty International, which concluded that international standards were violated in the trial of 17 people convicted of killings in Grenada's 1983 coup... read more...

Sanders elected Task Force chairman

ST. JOHN'S, Antigua: Sir Ronald Sanders, chief foreign affairs representative of Antigua and Barbuda, has been elected chairman of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force, a 30-member group of Central and South American and Caribbean nations devoted to combating money laundering and terrorism financing... read more...

Prince Edward arrives in Bermuda

HAMILTON, Bermuda: Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, arrived in Bermuda yesterday to survey the damage left by Hurricane Fabian and to honour victims killed in last month's storm. Governor Sir John Vereker and Premier Alex Scott greeted Prince Edward upon his arrival at Bermuda International Airport after arriving by private jet from the Caribbean... read more...

Sparks fly as Antillean PM arrives in the Netherlands

AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands: Antillean Prime Minister Mirna Louisa-Godett arrived in the Netherlands on Friday morning, and immediately sparked further conflict between the former colony and the Dutch government by threatening to scrap landing rights for Dutch flag carrier KLM and Air Holland on the Caribbean island nation... read more...

Puerto Rico to New Jersey drug ring busted

CAMDEN, USA: Authorities say they have broken up an operation that each year mailed $25 million worth heroin and cocaine in food cans from Puerto Rico to New Jersey... read more...

Guyana's Ambassador to OAS calls for "Humane Globalization"

WASHINGTON, USA: Guyana's Ambassador Odeen Ishmael, in his last formal presentation as Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States (OAS), stressed the need for a "humane globalization." He also renewed the call for a regional integration fund to help the small member countries participate in the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) that is due to begin operating in 2005... read more...

Grenada elected to International Oil Pollution Compensation Council

ST GEORGE'S, Grenada: Grenada was yesterday elected to the 15-member Executive Council of the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds Assembly. The International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds 1971 and 1992 (IOPC Funds) are intergovernmental organizations that provide compensation for oil pollution damage resulting from spills of persistent oil from tankers... read more...

Dominican Republic to open Honorary Consulate in St. Kitts

CHARLESTOWN, Nevis: The Dominican Republic is seeking to have closer ties with the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis and this will be realised with the opening of an honorary consulate in Basseterre... read more...

Hundreds attend funeral of Dominica's Elizabeth Israel

PORTSMOUTH, Dominica: Hundreds of Dominicans from all walks of life converged at the Roman Catholic Church in Portsmouth, Dominica to pay their last respects to Elizabeth 'Pampo' Israel, who died on Tuesday, October 14th 2003... read more...

Puerto Rico Status Task Force activated

WASHINGTON, USA: The Bush Administration is in the process of activating the President's Task Force on Puerto Rico's Status, according to President Bush's Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, Ruben Barrales... read more...

BUSINESS NEWS

Bahamas tax system must change says Finance Minister

NASSAU, Bahamas: Whether or not the Bahamas decides to join a trade arrangement, the country's current tax regime will have to be reformed, State Minister of Finance James Smith said Thursday... read more...

Jamaica prepares for tourism competition from Cuba

KINGSTON, Jamaica: Jamaican tourism interests are predicting a temporary slump in visitors from America if the US lifts its 40-year travel ban on its citizens to Cuba, but said the Jamaican brand was strong enough to ensure an early recovery... read more...

LEGAL NEWS

American drops claim to Sandals' Barbados property

KINGSTON, Jamaica: An American businessman who claimed that Gordon "Butch" Stewart's Sandals hotel group reneged on a deal to sell him a 30-acre hotel property in Barbados, this week abandoned a final appeal to the Privy Council, having already lost twice in the Barbadian courts... read more...

TECHNOLOGY NEWS

Demand for submarine cable capacity on the rise in the Caribbean

NORTH ADAMS, USA: There is already a requirement for new submarine capacity within the Caribbean region and a lack of capacity specifically designed to handle intra-regional Latin American traffic, say analysts at Pioneer Consulting in a new report that analyzes the supply-demand balances in each of 40 countries... read more...

TRAVEL NEWS

Fewer cruise ships visit the U.S. Virgin Islands

CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands: Cruise ship arrivals to the U.S. Virgin Islands have decreased by 19 percent over the first 11 months of the fiscal year, officials said Thursday... read more...

SPORTS NEWS

Lara links up with Cable & Wireless

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados: West Indies cricket captain Brian Lara has signed a two-year sponsorship agreement with Cable & Wireless to do television and print advertisements for the British telecommunications giant for an undisclosed sum... read more...