BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, October 1, 2021 (MMS-SKN) — Sylvers Domino Club, the only team captained by a female in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, caused tremors on Thursday evening September 30 as they beat defending champion team Tabernacle Domino Club 14-10.

In the game that was played at the Tabernacle Community Centre, Sylvers captained by Octavia Huggins-Sewell went for an early kill. Galvanised by the gallant showing by the pair of Kemar Francis and Shaquille Sewell who won seven games, Sylvers were 4-0 before Tabernacle earned their first game.

They then moved to 7-1 and 9-4, the time at which Tabernacle pulled back some games to their favour. The last game, with Sylvers leading 12-10, was so one-sided that Sylvers raced to 100 points before Tabernacle could earn a single point, a feat which earned them a bonus game. The feat also earned the champion team a one dollar fine.

This is the second game Sylvers Domino Club from Hidden Alley in Lodge Village would have won in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, as on the opening night on Tuesday September 28 they floored Guinness Domino Club 13-8.

Two former Constituency Number Seven Domino League champions met at Cuban Bar in Lodge Project, on Thursday September 30, where Unity Domino Club emerged winner after beating Parsons Domino Club 13-8.

Another former champion, Lodge Domino Club, had an easier task in a game played at the old Lodge Community Centre in Lodge Project as they scuttled Small Corner Bar Domino Club 13-4. In the second game at the same venue, Christ Church Domino Club beat Unstoppable Domino Club 13-7.

At the Edgar Gilbert Sporting Complex pavilion in Molineux, Ottley’s Domino Club’s return to the league after a number of years’ absence got a rude awakening when in their very first game they suffered a 6-13 beating at the hands of Guinness Domino Club. Phillips Domino Club playing at the same venue beat Mansion Domino Club 13-11.

The game between Saddlers Domino Club and Molineux Domino Club, which was supposed to have taken place at Tabernacle Community Centre, did not take place as a player on the Saddlers side had a funeral earlier in the day and his colleagues were away supporting him. The game has been rescheduled to be played on Sunday October 3.

It therefore means that Molineux Domino Club is yet to play a game, as their game on the opening night against Ottley’s Domino Club was shelved as the teams could not raise the full complement of players. The game was as a result rescheduled but a new date is yet to be announced.

Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League is sponsored by Prime Minister of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, and Area Parliamentary Representative for St. Christopher Seven, Dr the Hon Timothy Harris.

Third segment of play in this first and only round of play in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League will be on Tuesday October 5 at the same four venues with all games starting at 7:00 p.m.

Tabernacle Community Centre will host the games between Saddlers and Unstoppable, and Parsons and Ottley’s. The Edgar Gilbert Sporting Complex pavilion in Molineux will host games between Phillips and Guinness and Molineux and Sylvers.

The old Lodge Community Centre in Lodge Project will be the venue for the Mansion vs. Small Corner Bar, and Lodge vs. Christ Church games. The final game, between former champion Unity and defending champion Tabernacle, will be held at Cuban Bar in Lodge Project.

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By Sir Ronald Sanders

The announcement by the President of Kenya Uhuru Kenyatta that his government has nominated the country’s energy minister, Monica Juma, for the post of Commonwealth Secretary-General, has re-opened the contention surrounding “turns” to hold the post.

However, there is no such thing as ‘turns’ in the rules of the Commonwealth. And, the concept of ‘turns’ has never been used as a criterion for proposing candidates for the job.

‘Turns’ is a contrivance utilised by governments of countries in regions of the world that have not held the post. But, the job of Secretary-General has always been open to any Commonwealth citizen qualified for the consideration by Heads of Government. Below, I set out the Secretaries-General of the Commonwealth from the inception of the job; the countries from which they came; the candidates who challenged them to demonstrate that ‘turns’ is a stratagem of recent vintage which, if slavishly followed, would deprive the Commonwealth of the best talents to carry out the vital duties of Secretary-General.

In 1965, when the Heads of Government elected the Canadian Arnold Smith as Secretary-General, there were five other contenders from Australia, New Zealand, Sierra Leone and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). In 1975 and again in 1980, Shridath ‘Sonny’ Ramphal of Guyana was elected unopposed, but he was unsuccessfully challenged by an Indian in 1985. In 1990, Emeka Anyaoku of Nigeria was elected, having fended off a strong contender in Malcolm Fraser of Australia, but term limits were then limited to two; he was re-elected in 1995 when the period of a term was reduced from five to four years. In 2000, the New Zealander, Don McKinnon, was elected but he had to fight off a challenge from Farook Sobhan of Bangladesh. In 2008, the Indian, Kamalesh Sharma, was elected but faced a strong challenge from Michael Frendo of Malta. In 2014, the contenders were Baroness Scotland nominated by Dominica and promoted by Britain where she had been Attorney-General and continues to be a member of the British House of Lords; Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba of Botswana and me from Antigua and Barbuda.

The Secretary-General therefore has come from: Canada, Guyana, Nigeria, New Zealand, India, Dominica. In terms of regions and the contrivance of ‘turns’, this translates into: Canada, Caribbean Arica, Pacific, Asia, Caribbean. But if ‘turns’ were really the criterion, after India (Asia), it should not have been Caribbean’s ‘turn’; it should have been the turn of Europe (either Cyprus or Malta) and if Europe gave-up its ‘turn’, it should have gone to Canada at which point the cycle should have been re-started.

However, the reality is that there is no such criterion as ‘turns’ for the job of Commonwealth SG. And if there is, then the Caribbean jumped its turn in 2015, and it should now definitely be the turn of either Malta or Cyprus before returning to Canada. If not Europe and North America are being denied the chance of nominating candidates for the post. The idea of regional ‘turns’ is limiting and self-defeating.

Some countries in the Caribbean are insisting that it is the Caribbean’s “turn” to hold the post for two terms (eight years). Therefore, even though English Baroness Patricia Scotland was elected, ostensibly as coming from the Caribbean because she was born in Dominica which she left at the age of two, for the term 2016 to 2020, it is contended by her Caribbean supporters that she is entitled to a second term, running from April 2020 to 2024.

The story gets complicated because, the Baroness’ elected-term officially ended in April 2020, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Commonwealth Heads of Government could not meet to consider candidates for the term 2020 to 2024. Consequently, the Baroness was allowed to remain in the post until such time as the election could be held. She has, therefore, not only served the term for which she was elected by a majority of one vote with several abstentions, she has also segued into a further year and six months, so far, into an unelected term.

This period has not been uncontroversial. In February 2020, Boris Johnson, who has been serving as Chair of the Commonwealth since 2019 when he was elected Prime Minister of Great Britain, stated in a letter to all Commonwealth Heads of Government that a majority of them had indicated to him rejection of a plan “to offer Lady Scotland another four years in office”. The leaders agreed only to a short three-month extension of her contract which ended on 31 March, 2020.

As it turned out, the Heads of Government meeting, slated for Rwanda in June 2020, was postponed twice, first to June 2021 and now to later this year.

The Government of Kenya now feels that, in so far as it believes ‘turns’ exist, the Caribbean has had its turn, and now it is Africa’s turn. Significantly, African countries did not support the British Baroness at the 2015 election in Malta; they stood solidly behind the Botswana candidate, Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba, in the second round of voting. I was eliminated in the first round because promised African votes went to Masire-Mwamba.

In reality, the notion of ‘turns’ was never a criterion for the job, and persons are only elected for one term at a time. The criterion for the job was – and should be – a Commonwealth citizen with a proven track record of knowledge and experience of Commonwealth affairs; a deep commitment to its values; a vision of the role it can play in effectively serving the interests of each of its 54 states, especially its 32 small members; and advancing the Commonwealth as a force for good in global affairs.

There should be a contest for the post, and outstanding candidates from anywhere in the Commonwealth should contend without restriction.

Responses and previous commentaries: www.sirronaldsanders.com

(The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organization of American States. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto. The views expressed are entirely his own)

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CNW- A US Haitian legislator has written to United States President Joe Biden, appealing to him to stop the deportation of Haitian migrants and end what he described as “the cruel treatment of Haitians.

“I remain deeply troubled by the treatment of Haitian immigrants arriving at the Texas border as they travel north through South America and are subsequently being deported back to Haiti,” said New York City Council Member Dr. Mathieu Eugene, the first Haitian to be elected to the City Council, in his letter to Biden.

“Since 2010, Haiti has been subjected to several natural disasters, including tropical storms, two catastrophic earthquakes that caused significant devastation, and continued political unrest and socioeconomic instability,” added Eugene, chair of the Council Committee on Civil and Human Rights, who represents the predominantly 40th Council District in Brooklyn.

“With each successive crisis, the rebuilding and recovery process is put into disarray, and the availability of critical resources for the country becomes even more limited.

“As I have stated on many occasions, Haiti is not prepared to handle an influx of deportees,” Eugene wrote in his letter, a copy of which was made available to the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).

“The country is hurting, and the Haitian people are struggling every day to cope with a substantial amount of personal loss, including emotional and physical trauma, and financial uncertainty.

“Sending Haitian immigrants back to Haiti will only worsen the ongoing situation and will also increase the burden on their family members living in the United States, many of whom have established careers here,” he said.

“They are doctors, nurses, cab drivers, medical professionals, business owners, teachers and entrepreneurs. Their work has supported our national economy for generations, and they have served a critical role during the COVID-19 pandemic when the labor of our essential workers helped get our city, our state and our country through the darkest days of this public health crisis.”

The legislator said the Haitian refugees, who are traveling through Mexico into Texas, are “enduring extremely unsafe living conditions and are putting their lives at risk.

“They are human beings, and they have embarked on a very dangerous and treacherous journey to reach what they hope is a safe and stable environment. I am urging you to stop their deportation, to help them, and to give Haitian immigrants the due process that they are entitled to.

“It is an important humanitarian gesture to accept Haitian immigrants in the United States because it aligns with the principles and philosophy that this country was founded on. We are known around the world as a beacon of freedom, liberty and opportunity for all who seek it, and it is heart-breaking to witness the violent treatment of Haitian refugees at the border, knowing that this type of attack on human dignity should no longer occur in modern-day America.”

Eugene said he remains confident that the Biden administration will do what is right for these immigrants because this situation is sending the wrong message to the global community about the values that the United States upholds.

Over the last weekend, New York Attorney General Letitia James joined a coalition of 17 attorneys general across the United States in dispatching a letter to President Biden and US Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on the situation.

In their letter, the attorneys general are calling on the Biden administration to ensure US federal officials treat Haitian refugees with dignity and compassion.

CMC

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The John A Osborne Airport in Montserrat reopened for normal operations this morning following an incident yesterday with an SVG Islander aircraft which left two passengers injured.

A statement from the airport says on September 29, SVG Islander (BN2) J8VBI aircraft flight 207 with seven people and 1 hour 20 minutes fuel, en route from Antigua, landed on John A Osborne Airport (Montserrat) at 21:33 UTC or 5:33 pm LST and veered to the right, taking it off the runway where it came to rest on the southern embankment.

It said thankfully, no lives were lost, however, two passengers sustained injuries. We hope that all passengers will recover quickly from the distressing event.

The Airport reopened at 8:30 am on September 30 for normal operations. The UK Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) is investigating the cause of the incident and a report will be published once the investigations are completed.

The aircraft is reported to be owned by SVG Air.

The Governor’s Office in Montserrat expressed sympathy to all those involved in yesterday’s incident at the airport and hoped that the two injured passengers will recover swiftly.

The Office said the UK’s Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) have engaged their local Accident Investigation Manager (AIM) to commence the investigation process which began last night.

A report will be published when all investigations are completed.

The Governor’s Office in Montserrat added that such incidents are inevitably traumatic for all concerned but hope the stress will ease soon now that all are safe.

It said that no lives were lost is the most important thing.

The Governor also thanked the emergency services and airport staff who responded swiftly with courage and commitment.

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