Tag Archives: caribbean

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Caribbean Legislators Pay Tribute to the Late Colin Powell

Caribbean legislators have been paying tribute to former United States Secretary of State, Colin Powell, who died on Monday at the age of 84.

“On behalf of the people of the 9th District of New York, the Clarke Family and myself, I extend my deepest condolences to the Powell Family and his loved ones and friends,” said Caribbean American Democratic Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants.

She said that Powell, an American politician, diplomat, statesman, and four-star general, was “a trailblazer in the US military establishment.

“He rose through the ranks to become a four-star general and the Joint Chief of Staff in the Bush administration, and he would go on to be appointed the first Black US Secretary of State,” said Clarke, chair of the US Congressional Black Caucus Taskforce on Immigration.

“Like me, he was born and raised in New York to Jamaican immigrant parents and was a proud Jamaican American. Though my tenure in Congress began after General Powell’s retirement, I was honored to have been sent alongside him by President (Barack) Obama to represent the United States to Jamaica for the celebration of their 50th Independence Anniversary

“While we both represent two different political parties, he was a principled statesman who loved his country. We are all beneficiaries of his decades of service, and his life and legacy are a testament to the greatness of this man.”

Powell’s family said that his immune system was compromised by multiple myeloma, a rare cancer that forms in the blood.  According to the Mayo Clinic, multiple myeloma forms in a type of white blood cell called a plasma cell.

“Healthy plasma cells help you fight infections by making antibodies that recognize and attack germs,” said the non-profit hospital.

The family said he was vaccinated against the COVID-19 and was being treated for multiple myeloma at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. He was also being treated for the early stages of Parkinson’s disease.

“General Powell’s distinguished life was one that immigrants, children of immigrants and all Americans could look to and emulate,” Veteran New York State Assemblyman Jamaican-born N. Nick Perry told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).

“His trailblazing efforts, including being the first Black US Secretary of State, changed the course of history for this nation,” added Perry, who represents the 58th Assembly District in Brooklyn, also a US Army veteran.

“General Powell’s accomplishments were celebrated not only by African-Americans but lauded and greatly appreciated by the Caribbean-American community, especially Jamaican-Americans, who took great pride in also claiming him as a son of Jamaica.

“On behalf of the people of the 58th Assembly District, I thank this great Caribbean-American son of New York City for his lifetime of service to America and the world, and pray that he rests in peace in a very special place in Heaven,” Perry said.

New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants, said Powell’s passing of complications from COVID-19, after a long battle with cancer, is “a sobering reminder of the state of this pandemic and the strength of this virus.

“Colin Powell, a first-generation native New Yorker and CUNY (City University of New York) graduate of Caribbean heritage, is a prominent figure, with a complicated legacy,” said Williams.

“He had a record many throughout the political spectrum – including myself – would find fault in, particularly his role in supporting very harmful foreign policy. At the same time, he was a role model for many across that same spectrum, and the importance of seeing a Black man at the highest levels of our government in that time cannot be understated.

“He was committed to his country, community and public service – before, during and after his time in government. The symbol and story of Colin Powell, the impact of his career, are all a part of the legacy we remember and the person we memorialize today,” Williams added.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, the Democratic Party nominee for Mayor of New York, said General Powell was “a true trailblazer.”

“In his four decades of distinguished public service, he consistently broke barriers — as the nation’s first Black national security adviser, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state,” Adams said.

“Born to Jamaican immigrants in the South Bronx (New York), his life is a testament to the enduring power of the American dream,” added Adams, a retired New York Police Department (NYPD) captain.

“As a Black man who has spent my career fighting for a more just and equitable society, I am in awe of Mr. Powell’s considerable accomplishments and his ability to overcome the bigotry he faced in order to reach the highest levels of the military, and, later, our federal government”.

CMC

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A&B: PM Browne Promises to Arrest Scam Couple Who May By EnRoute to Antigua

Observer- A&B Prime Minister Gaston Browne has responded to reports that a Nigerian couple on the run for swindling thousands of investors to the tune of 22 billion Naira, had obtained citizenship from Antigua and Barbuda.

Having heard the news while in Parliament yesterday, Browne said that while he is yet to verify this, the alleged fraudsters – Bamise and Elizabeth Ajetunmobi — will be captured if they enter the country.

He said that he heard “that he and his wife obtained Antiguan and Barbudan passports, citizenship under the CIP programme and now that person is now wanted for defrauding a number of Nigerians.”

“I have already put systems in place to ensure that if he is not here as yet that they could capture him on his way here because Antigua and Barbuda is not gonna be a refuge for scamps,” he stated.

Browne reiterated that the Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP) is not meant to attract criminals saying “our CIP programme is designed to attract and to incentivise investments, not to be a safe haven for crooks.

“This government will continue to do all in its power to ensure that those who violate and they seek refuge here that eventually they are repatriated from whence they came. It’s just a matter of time. Some of them may get temporary refuge here but we have no doubt that ultimately, they will be repatriated.”

According to Nigerian news, passports of the couple and their minor children surfaced online some time Monday night, hours after reports emerged that they had fled Nigeria after their ponzi scheme Imagine Global Solutions Ltd collapsed, leaving thousands of investors stranded.

The passports also reportedly showed that the couple had planned their disappearance months in advance to avoid the suspicion of investors.

Data entries on their passports showed that the husband and one of their minor children procured their passports on the same day — April 29, 2021.

The wife procured her own passport a few days later on May 4, 2021.

The Ajetunmobis were only detected to have fled Nigeria over the past weekend.

They apparently operated a company called Imagine Global, a micro lending service to small and medium businesses, and offered 22 percent interest on loans and 10 percent returns to investors.

Several victims on social media are said to have detailed how they lost as much as 500 million Naira.

A WhatsApp group as well as a Nairaland forum had been created for those affected by the fraudulent scheme to pool resources towards recovering their investments.

Imagine Global, which was registered in 2017, stated on its website that it has a customer base of 90,000 Nigerians, but it was unclear how many of them were able to recoup their investments before the couple disappeared.

The Ajetunmobis reportedly fled to London, where a branch of Imagine Global was incorporated in August 2019.

Peoples Gazette had attempted to reach them but the company’s address in Lagos had been locked and telephone numbers for the couple failed to connect on Monday morning.

A spokesman for Zuriel Consulting Limited — Imagine Global’s legal adviser — said the law firm could not comment on investors’ funds and the disappearance of the couple, adding that it can neither deny nor confirm claims that the amount squandered was up to N22 billion.

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UWI: Plans for Five Islands Won’t Be Changed By Financial Restructuring,

By Orville Williams

According to Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West Indies (The UWI), plans to develop the Five Islands Campus will not be negatively impacted by efforts to restructure the university’s finances; instead, the campus will play a vital role in charting the path for the future.

Sir Hilary made that declaration over the weekend as he gathered with the UWI’s five Campus Principals and three Pro Vice-Chancellors at a retreat here in Antigua, to further discuss “the strategy to monetise [the UWI’s] global reputation into sustainable revenue”.

One major component of that strategy is a Global Online Campus initiative which will see the UWI broaden its scope by offering courses and programmes not only in a traditional, site-based context, but also digitally, to markets across the region and the world.

Even though the UWI Open Campus will support this initiative via its already-established online operating system, achieving the historical feat will require significant investment. This begged the question, how will the university’s other plans – including growing the Five Islands Campus – be affected?

Sir Hilary explained to Observer that, instead of being left out of the plans or forced to deal with budget cuts as a result, the Antigua-based campus will play a major role, having always been considered an important cog in the university’s future planning.

“We are now looking at this global campus and the Five Islands Campus is going to be at the center of this global vision for taking the university out to the world,” he said.

The Vice-Chancellor spoke on the university’s beginnings in reinforcing his point, referencing the eagerness of the Jamaican government to “host and nurture” the first campus, Mona, back in 1948, as well as similar enthusiasm by the leaders of Trinidad & Tobago and Barbados to establish campuses in those countries.

The importance of the Five Islands Campus is undeniable, he affirmed, especially as it is coming to the fore during this current period of digital innovation.

“Because the Five Islands Campus was always at the center of our imagination, [in terms of] the kind of campus we were going to develop here [and] our relationship with the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, this was seen as the beginning of a new system.

“We have Prime Minister [Gaston] Browne, who is filled with the same ideas, the energy and the projections and he says, ‘I want a campus here in Antigua and Barbuda…and we are going to build out a new dynamism around technology [and] science’.

“So, this is now another leg of that journey…we had the Jamaica moment, then we had the Trinidad moment, then we had the Barbados moment. Now, we have the Antigua moment and Antigua is now the center of our imagination. Antigua is the place where we are imagining new and creative things, because we have the ecosystem here that is charting the future.”

The UWI Five Islands Campus was established back in 2019 with approximately 200 students and three schools, with plans to essentially double the student complement and establish more schools as the campus develops.

Along with the traditional programme areas, the Five Islands Campus is foraying into new territory, in the form of robotics and other similar areas of study.

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US Sec. of State Seeks to Shore Up Democracy in S. America

BBC- Antony Blinken’s maiden trip to South America as secretary of state is to two of the continent’s strongest democracies, Ecuador and Colombia. Both at home and abroad, the high-level visit is being regarded as a show of support for allies in a turbulent region increasingly rent by ideological splits and facing challenges from organised crime and drug-trafficking.

On Tuesday, he met recently elected Ecuador President Guillermo Lasso and Foreign Minister Mauricio Montalvo. He has a sit-down scheduled on Wednesday with Colombian President Iván Duque and Vice-President and Foreign Minister Marta Lucía Ramírez.

The US agenda

The meetings in Ecuador and Colombia will give the American secretary of state a chance to address a number of pressing concerns in a region that is geographically close to the US, but not always at the top of its diplomatic agenda.

Venezuela: The Nicolas Maduro regime has been a thorn in the US side through three presidential administrations. Now President Joe Biden’s team will take its turn trying to rally regional support for democratic reforms in the socialist-run nation. The effort is off to a rocky start, however, with Maduro cancelling talks last weekend with the Venezuelan opposition coalition led by Juan Guaido following the extradition to the US of a Colombian businessman accused of money laundering for the Maduro regime.

During a press conference in Quito on Tuesday, Blinken said Maduro’s action was “deeply unfortunate” and was indicative of a leader putting his personal interests over those of the people he should serve.

The standoff is casting a shadow over next month’s regional elections, which the US has warned already appeared unlikely to produce a free and fair result

“Irregular” Migration: Venezuela’s political and economic crises have created an outflow of millions of refugees into Colombia, Ecuador and other nearby nations, threatening to destabilise the region. Of similar concern to the US, however, is the role South American countries have served as “transit nations” for migrants from elsewhere.

The recent unprecedented surge of Haitian migrants arriving at the US-Mexico border had its origin in countries like Chile and Brazil, where dwindling job opportunities and new immigration restrictions prompted recent arrivals and long-term residents alike to consider the arduous journey north in the hope that the US would be more welcoming.

Brian Nichols, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, said in a pre-trip briefing that the Haitian situation will be a “substantial focus” of a regional ministerial meeting in Bogota on Thursday – and that every country in South America has a shared responsibility in stemming the migrant flow.

A Venezuelan migrant sells handbags in a Colombian refugee camp
A Venezuelan migrant sells handbags in a Colombian refugee camp

China: In Quito on Wednesday morning, Blinken is scheduled to give an address on “democracy and good governance”. Part of the purpose of this trip, according to Nichols, is to underline what the US sees as the “vibrant and inclusive” democracies of Colombia and Ecuador. Unstated is the contrast the US wants to draw with decidedly undemocratic China – as the strategic and economic rivalry between the two global powers plays out across South America.

On Tuesday, Blinken said that the US partnership with Ecuador was not defined by any third country and that no nation should have to choose between the US and China.

But he followed that with a warning – that in certain “narrowly defined areas”, working with China comes with risks; that Chinese companies, when push comes to shove, will do the bidding of the Chinese government.

Free and open democracies, the American thinking goes, will be more inclined to become “partners of choice” with the US than with authoritarian China. That marks a distinct contrast with the Trump administration, whose “America first” foreign policy was more transactional and less focused on a partner nation’s governance.

This change in US outlook fits neatly with Biden’s rhetorical emphasis on what he sees as an era-defining struggle between the world’s democracies and authoritarian governments.

“Ultimately we’re focused together on demonstrating that democracies can achieve tangible results for our people,” Blinken said. “That’s the test.”

But if South American nations do have to pick a side, the American hope is that they look north, not across the Pacific.

The view from South America

Reports in Colombian and Ecuador’s media highlighted US officials saying that Blinken’s presence in these countries was intended as a “clear sign” of support for “vibrant and inclusive democracies that respect the rights of their citizens”.

These reports also noted that Ecuador and Colombia and Latin America as a whole, as well as the United States, were grappling with the phenomenon of big surges of migrants on the move. The installation over the last year of left-wing governments in Bolivia and Peru had also reduced the numbers of Washington’s friends in the Andean region.

Haitian migrants crossing the Panama-Colombia border
Haitian migrants crossing the Panama-Colombia border

A 19 October editorial in leading Ecuadorean daily El Comercio noted that after a decade in which bilateral ties were distant during the 2007-17 rule of the country’s left-wing President Rafael Correa, Ecuador and the US had resumed a closer relationship after 2017 and Blinken’s visit would strengthen relations with the current government of President Guillermo Lasso.

El Comercio predicted that Lasso’s government would be looking for more generous US co-operation to help it fight corruption and confront threats from transnational drug cartels.

In a move that appeared to reflect these growing problems, President Lasso late on 18 October declared a 60-day state of emergency that mobilised the army and police to fight “insecurity”.

In Colombia, leading daily El Espectador published an opinion column on 19 October that said Blinken’s visit would seek to bolster the Colombian-US “special relationship” in the midst of a “difficult panorama”. The column was written by former foreign minister Rodrigo Pardo.

Pardo commented: “The most pessimistic analysts consider that democracy itself is in danger in the region”. Citing the cases of Venezuela, Brazil, Peru and Nicaragua, he added: “That is why the visit by Blinken in these turbulent times… is as complex as it is crucial”.

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Covid in Brazil: Hunger Worsens in City Slums

By Mark Lowen
BBC News, São Paulo

The queue snakes around the block and each day it gets longer: hungry residents of Heliopolis, São Paulo’s largest favela, waiting in line for the handout that will keep them going until the next morning.

They are given a bowl of pasta with meat and a portion of rice, two packets of biscuits and a carton of milk, shared between a whole household and usually their only meal of the day. Before the pandemic, 300 people would queue up here. Now it is over 1,000, and the charity that runs it has 650 others across São Paulo.

“The vast majority of people who live in the favelas work in the informal economy, as cleaners in homes or helping to bake cakes, so when businesses close or houses stop using them, they feel the impact,” says Marcivan Barreto, the local co-ordinator.

“You see people queuing up at 03:00 for food. I’m very worried that as the pandemic continues, a hungry father will start looting supermarkets. When you’re starving, despair hits.”

During the first wave of the pandemic, Brazil’s government introduced emergency relief, known as “coronavouchers”. More than 67 million people received a monthly sum of 600 reais (£83; $107, at the time).

It was the biggest single injection of financial aid in Brazil’s history, introduced by a president, Jair Bolsonaro, who had previously railed against welfare spending. It pushed extreme poverty to its lowest level since the 1970s – and boosted the president’s support.

But the relief was temporary. With ballooning public debt, the government first suspended the programme and then reintroduced it but at a far lower level of 250 reais and for fewer people.

The drop in aiThe crisis caused by the pandemic has forced a growing number of people to depend on food donations has hit Luciana Firmino and her family hard. She and her husband now depend on the food handout to feed their five children, living in a cramped couple of rooms in one of the favela’s narrow alleyways.

When the pandemic hit, she lost her job in a manicure studio and her husband’s occasional work dried up.

Clutching her nine-month-old daughter, she says each day is a decision whether to pay for milk or diapers. “We can’t afford the rent anymore. So we will soon be out in the streets or under a bridge.”

Then she breaks down. “I was hoping for a good life,” she says through tears. “Sometimes I think I should give my children away to social services.”

Luciana holding her nine-month-old daughter
Image caption, Luciana with her nine-month-old daughter breaks down: “Sometimes I think I should give my children away to social services”

Brazil is in the grip of a health and social emergency. It has the world’s second-highest death toll from the pandemic at over 370,000, and hospitals are near collapse. A study last week found that 60% of Brazilian households have food insecurity, lacking sufficient access to enough to eat.

President Bolsonaro – who once dismissed the virus as “just a little flu”, opposed lockdowns and failed to secure vaccine supplies in time – has lost support, particularly as the food handouts have declined. Attempts at impeachment are stirring.

But he still has his devoted fans, who insist “the establishment” are trying to destroy him.

Media caption, Brazil’s Covid crisis: ‘I thought it was the end’

Three hours’ drive out of São Paulo, the corn harvest is underway on Frederico D’Avila’s farm. He has 1,300 hectares of the crop, as well as soybean, barley and fava, nestled beside dense pine forests.

And as the harvester cuts through the stalks of corn, he talks of how the president is slashing “the system of kleptocracy – chains of corruption – that have run here for 35 years”.

“President Bolsonaro wants to preserve liberty; he wants people to get out, work, feed their children,” he says. “He wants people to decide if they want the vaccine, not to be obligated by the state. Freedom in Brazil has always been under threat.”

I put it to him that the price of that policy is the public health disaster that Brazil is living through. “It’s not a disaster”, he replies. “We don’t have all the data from other countries so we don’t know true numbers of dead.”

Farmer Frederico D'Avila
Image caption, Frederico D’Avila says the president’s hands were tied by other institutions, a claim repeated by Bolsonaro supporters

Supporters of the president echo the same line, hammered home by the effective Bolsonaro communication machine with claims that if other institutions, including the Supreme Court, had not tied his hands, he could have managed the pandemic fully.

To the charge that Brazil was desperately slow to order vaccines, they reply that the shots could not have been ordered earlier as they had not yet been approved by Brazil’s health regulator.

When I remind him that many countries ordered large quantities of vaccines pending regulatory approval so they could then be rolled out quickly, Mr D’Avila tells me the Supreme Court could have sued the president if the shots were ordered and then not approved.

“If he had unlimited power like a king, it would be better. He wouldn’t need to deal with the Supreme Court and pressure groups,” he says.

The Vila Formosa cemetery, where the bodies of the victims of the coronavirus pandemic are buried in Sao PauloImage source, Getty Images
Image caption, Brazil has become the epicentre of the pandemic, with thousands of deaths every day

President Bolsonaro is on the back foot. Under fire for mishandling what is becoming a humanitarian crisis and facing a threat from former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, whose conviction for corruption was recently overturned, paving the way to challenge the president in next year’s election.

And all the while hospitals fill up, the food queues grow longer, and this shattered country watches helplessly as fresh graves are dug.

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Covid Report: Brazil’s Bolsonaro ‘Should Be Charged with Crimes Against Humanity’

A protester holds a cross at a protest against Bolsonaro and his handling of the pandemic. File photo
With more than 600,000 fatalities, Brazil has the second-highest Covid-related death toll in the world behind only the US

BBC- Brazil’s president should be accused of a series of crimes over his handling of the country’s Covid-19 pandemic, a draft of a major inquiry report says.

The report is the culmination of a six-month inquiry that has revealed scandals and corruption in government.

President Bolsonaro has been accused of failing to control the virus that has killed more than 600,000 Brazilians.

Excerpts leaked to the media indicate that the panel wants Mr Bolsonaro to face nine charges.

Initial drafts of the report had recommended the president be charged with homicide and genocide against indigenous groups.

But these recommendations have now apparently been dropped from the 1,200 page report, which urges charges of crimes against humanity, forging documents and incitement to crime.

Despite the serious allegations, it is not clear what this means for Mr Bolsonaro, according to the BBC’s South America correspondent Katy Watson.

The draft report still needs to be voted on by the Senate commission where it could be vetoed and altered, and there is no guarantee it will lead to criminal charges.

President Jair Bolsonaro. File photo
President Bolsonaro continues to oppose any lockdown measures to curb the outbreak

President Bolsonaro has dismissed the Congressional inquiry as politically motivated. He has frequently spoken out against lockdowns, masks and vaccinations.

In March, he told Brazilians to “stop whining” about Covid, a day after the country saw a record rise in deaths over a 24-hour period.

However, Mr Bolsonaro’s popularity has already been dented by the pandemic, and this report could make life much harder for him if he wants to run for a second term in Brazil’s 2022 elections.

Brazil’s confirmed Covid-related death toll is the second-highest in the world – behind only the US.

Speaking to the BBC ahead of the report’s publication, the inquiry rapporteur, Senator Renan Calheiros, said the panel wanted to punish those who contributed to “this massacre of Brazilians”.

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UK: New COVID Wave Fears, Vaccine Effective for Teens, Rush for New Corona Pill, World Stats

 

NHS in danger of ‘stumbling into crisis’ as winter looms …
NHNHS test and trace site in Wolverhampton
NHS Test and Trace site

 ‘Early action can be less drastic action’

UK Ministers must urgently implement sweeping plan B winter measures or derail efforts to tackle the backlog of 5 million patients, the head of the NHS Confederation has warned.

Infections have been rising sharply but the government is resisting introducing extra restrictions such as masks, vaccine passports and advice to work from home.

Boris Johnson has said that if the government’s plan A – encouraging take-up of Covid booster and flu jabs – is not enough, it will roll out plan B. But Matthew Taylor, the confederation’s chief executive, said immediate action was required to prevent the NHS “stumbling into a crisis”.

As well as implementing plan B, ministers should encourage the public to use the NHS responsibly, look out for neighbours, and volunteer or re-enter the healthcare workforce, Taylor said.

Scientists are joining the call to introduce plan B: Prof Mark Woolhouse, a member of the SPI-M advisory committee, speaking in a personal capacity, said he was in favour of taking some action now “because early action can be less drastic action”.

The NHS will today launch an appeal for 100,000 new blood donors as figures reveal the number of active donors shrank last year to its lowest level since 1996. There is a particular need to recruit more black donors to treat patients with sickle cell disease

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CDC: VACCINE EFFECTIVE AGAINST YOUTH HOSPITALIZATION

The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has been found to be 93 percent effective against hospitalization for 12- to 18-year-olds, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) research from when the delta variant was predominant.

Researchers calculated the vaccine efficacy using data from 464 hospitalized patients, including 179 with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 and 285 controls without the virus, across 19 pediatric hospitals between June and September.

Out of the 179 COVID-19 patients, only 3 percent were fully vaccinated, while the vast majority had not had any COVID-19 vaccine doses.

Among the unvaccinated COVID-19 patients, 77 were admitted to the intensive care unit, 29 received life support and two died. None of the six vaccinated COVID-19 patients went to the ICU or received life support care.

Significance: The CDC study sought to add to the “limited” real-world data on vaccine effectiveness among 12- to 18-year-olds. It concluded the effectiveness aligned with the results of Pfizer’s previous clinical trial that found a 100 percent efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19 among 12- to 15-year-olds.

Despite the effectiveness, adolescents have the lowest vaccination rates out of the age groups eligible for the vaccine, with 46 percent of 12- to 15-year olds.

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COVID-19 pill sparks global equity concerns

 

© Getty Images

Concern is growing among advocates that Merck’s promising new COVID-19 treatment pill could deepen the inequalities between rich and poor nations that were exposed during the coronavirus vaccine rollout.

The vast majority of COVID-19 vaccines have gone to people in rich nations. Vaccination rates lag below 10 percent in more than 50 poor countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), while many wealthy nations boast inoculation rates above 70 percent. And experts worry the distribution of the new drug could follow a similar trend.

Merck’s antiviral pill, molnupiravir, is a treatment for people who are already infected, not a prophylactic. But the drug appears to keep infected people from being hospitalized and dying and could be another important tool for countries to use alongside vaccines.

Unlike vaccine manufacturers, Merck has already taken steps to preemptively address global access concerns by licensing its technology with five generic manufacturers in India. The move is unusual, since it comes before the brand-name drug is even authorized in the U.S.

Under the agreements, Merck will provide licenses to these manufacturers to supply molnupiravir to India and more than 100 low- and middle-income countries at a far lower price than the branded version.

Advocates and experts said the licensing agreements are encouraging, but they’re hoping for more impactful steps.

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WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

242,373,475

Deaths:

4,929,626

Recovered:

219,699,016
Highlighted in green
= all cases have recovered from the infection
Highlighted in grey
= all cases have had an outcome (there are no active cases)

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Latest News

October 20 (GMT)

Updates

  • 4,220 new cases and 446 new deaths in Mexico [source]

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Prime Minister Harris pleads for churches to be treated sacredly with respect

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, October 18, 2021 (MMS-SKN) — The church plays an important role in the holistic development of the nation and its people and Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris, while advising that it must be treated sacredly with respect, has pledged that he and his administration will ensure that the church gets justice.

“I have gathered recently there were attacks on the church, if you will, but we have sorted it out,” said Prime Minister Harris on Sunday October 17 at the Covenant Outreach Ministries in Phillips’ Estate Yard in his constituency, where he had joined members of Peoples Labour Party (PLP) Constituency Number Seven Group for morning worship.

“From what I would say to you is that the House of God must always be treated sacredly with respect for you must never dare to touch the Lord’s anointed, and we must never dare as a people to put a hindrance to the church fulfilling its work,” stated Dr Harris. He did not elaborate on the nature of the attacks.

Accompanied by Deputy Speaker Senator the Hon Dr Bernicia Nisbett and the Peoples Labour Party National Women Representative Mrs Sonia Henry and other members of the Constituency Number Seven Group, Prime Minister Harris was welcomed to the church by Apostle Wrenville Thomas who delivered the sermon, and Prophet Paul Bridgewater.

“I shall ensure, and we shall ensure, that the church gets its justice and our people get their justice,” stated the Honourable Prime Minister, who is also the Area Parliamentary Representative, and the National Political Leader of the Peoples Labour Party (PLP).

Joining the local constituency group were members of the Peoples Labour Party Constituency Number Five Branch, led by Chairman Mr Glenville Mills, Deputy Chairperson Ms Marsha Lewis, and Branch Women Representative Ms Janice Lewis. Also present were members from the PLP Constituency Number One Branch.

The Prime Minister noted that St. Kitts and Nevis needs more churches like the Covenant Outreach Ministries where the constant message of encouragement to people is to live their lives with God. He added: “And so I was happy I was there in the beginning for this church, and this church will continue to enjoy my fullest support.”

In in his address to the congregation he said that the freedom of worship that had been experienced in the church that morning indicated that the Holy Ghost was in the house. He requested them to always give thanks to God for the good things happening in their life, noting that since the country is not overwhelmed by Covid-19 was one reason to give God thanks. The fact that the majority of the people are back out to work, he said, was also enough reason to give God thanks.

He further requested the congregation to have a memory of gratitude for the little things and the big things in their life, and to continue to give God thanks for what He is doing in the country.

“The fact that we are in a position where our government can come to the rescue of thousands of persons, even at this difficult times with a $500 cheque for some, a $1,000 cheque for some over the last three months is an indication of blessings of God,” pointed out Dr Harris.

According to the Prime Minister, some grateful people would have told him that the $500 meant a lot to them and they implored him not to stop the programme. He reminded: “Even in challenging times we must trust God, and in good times we still have to trust God.”

  • Apostle Wrenville Thomas of the Covenant Outreach Ministries in Phillips’ Estate Yard delivering the sermon during morning worship service on Sunday October 17.
  • Prophet Paul Bridgewater anointing Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris. Seated on the right is Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Senator the Hon Dr Bernicia Nisbett.
  • Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris addressing the congregation at the Covenant Outreach Ministries in Phillips’ Estate Yard, where he had joined the leadership and membership of the church for morning worship.

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Ecuador: State of Emergency Declared Over War on Drugs

QUITO, Oct 19 (Reuters) – Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso late on Monday declared a state of emergency in the Andean country as part of a crackdown on the consumption and trafficking of drugs.

Lasso, a conservative who took office in May, said the move was a response to rising homicide figures nationwide and other crimes related to narcotic seizures, which total 147 tonnes so far this year.

“In the streets of Ecuador there is only one enemy: drug trafficking,” Lasso said in a television broadcast. “When drug trafficking grows so do assassinations and homicides, robberies of homes, vehicles, goods and people.”

“Our military and police forces will be felt strongly in the streets,” he said.

The 60-day state of emergency will allow the military to join drug and arms confiscation operations in nine of the country’s 24 provinces, including Guayas, home to major city Guayaquil, Lasso said. Patrols will take place 24 hours a day.

In the rest of the country, police will increase patrols and control efforts in public places.

More than 70% of violent deaths in the province of Guayas are “in some way” related to drug trafficking, Lasso said.

Violent deaths have also risen within prisons. Last month 119 people were killed in disturbances in a prison in Guayaquil, which the government has blamed on fighting between drug gangs. read more

Lasso said he would sponsor legislation to support security forces in efforts to combat crime and create an entity to defend officers prosecuted for “simply doing their duty.”

“This government will pardon all those who have been unjustly convicted for doing their job,” the president said, asking judges to “guarantee peace and order, not impunity and crime.”

Reporting by Alexandra Valencia, Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb, Editing by Steve Orlofsky

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WORLD VIEW: Bannon Contempt Vote, Powell Remembered, N. Korea Missiles, More

Oct 19, 2021

The Associated Press

Advancing the Power of Facts

The Rundown

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