Tag Archives: caribbean

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Premier Brantley: Lockdown necessary to prevent COVID-19 outbreak on Nevis

IA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (July 05, 2021) – – Premier Hon. Mark Brantley says the full lockdown now in effect on Nevis was necessary to prevent COVID-19 outbreak on the island.

 Premier Brantley, Senior Minister of Health in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) said, “We thought it was the prudent thing to do to seek to contain any spread of this virus, bearing in mind the limited capacity of our health care system on Nevis. We prefer to err on the side of caution given the nature of the most recent cases and the ongoing contact tracing efforts.”

 Nevis was on July 3 placed under a 24-hour lockdown with a Shelter in Place Order until July 12, in the first instance.

 The Premier said he is cognizant of the hardship and inconvenience that these restrictions cause to citizens and residents and to the business community.

 “As Premier of Nevis, I sincerely regret such hardship. However, the recent positive COVID cases on Nevis and the ongoing contact tracing has caused great concern among our healthcare professionals. The decision was not taken lightly but we are primarily concerned with the preservation of life and the protection of our people.

 “As the contact tracing continues, I am prayerful that there will be no more positive cases but we simply cannot be sure. The next several days therefore will allow our Health team to undertake the contact tracing more efficiently and permit us to reset and recharge ourselves for the continuing battle ahead.”

 Mr. Brantley admonished the people of Nevis to understand that it cannot be business as usual during this unprecedented time. He encouraged all who had not taken the COVID-19 vaccine during the first phase of the program to do so when the program resumes on July 08.

 “We shall never ever surrender to this enemy of COVID-19. I urge once again all the people of Nevis to go out and get vaccinated. Please help us avoid these lockdowns, quarantines, curfews and other restrictions. Please help us restart our economy. Please help us restore normalcy to our island and our Federation.”

 As at June 30, 5,225 persons on Nevis had taken a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine and 4,418 or 51 percent of the target population of 8594 had taken their second dose.

 The Ministry of Health in the NIA has confirmed three positive cases of COVID-19 on the island of Nevis since June 29. According to the Ministry, the most recent case, which is imported, is fully vaccinated and has been in quarantine on island since arrival on June 27, 2021.

 

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13 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases recorded at Her Majesty’s Prison

Basseterre, St. Kitts, July 02, 2021 (SKNIS): Thirteen additional inmates at Her Majesty’s Prison (HMP) in St. Kitts tested positive for COVID-19 bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 55 with 40 inmates showing signs of recovery.

These additional cases were announced by Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr. Hazel Laws, while presenting the Health Emergency Operations Committee (HEOC) Situation Report on Friday, July 02, 2021, during the NEOC COVID-19 Press Briefing.

“On July 01, we identified an additional 13 inmates who have been diagnosed with COVID-19. This brings the total number of inmates diagnosed to 55,” said CMO Dr. Laws. “But, it is important to note that 40 of these inmates are well on their way to recovery. We had mass testing at Her Majesty’s Prison two days ago and 40 of those inmates have received their first negative test. They were retested today and we are keeping our fingers crossed that their test would return negative.”

Dr. Laws explained that to be deemed fully recovered from COVID-19, serial testing would be done until two consecutive negative tests are recorded.

According to Dr. Laws, the first case was identified on June 09, with an additional eight cases registered on June 11 and two on June 15. On June 17, 26 positive cases were recorded, two each on June 19 and 29 and 13 on July 01, bringing the total number to 55 inmates infected with COVID-19.

CMO Dr. Laws also reported that eight staff members were tested positive for COVID-19, six were identified on July 01, while two were confirmed at the beginning of the outbreak at HMP. Those two have since fully recovered.

St. Kitts & Nevis COVID-19 Situation Report No. 463 as of Friday, July 02, 2021, states that the total number of confirmed cases now stands at 476 with 268 active cases, 205 recovered cases and three deaths. Four hundred and fifty-nine (459) of those cases were recorded in St. Kitts while 17 were registered in Nevis. To date, there have been 21, 034 negative results.

 

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Premier Brantley: Lockdown Necessary To Prevent Covid-19 Outbreak On Nevis

NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (July 05, 2021) – – Premier Hon. Mark Brantley says the full lockdown now in effect on Nevis was necessary to prevent COVID-19 outbreak on the island.

Premier Brantley, Senior Minister of Health in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) said, “We thought it was the prudent thing to do to seek to contain any spread of this virus, bearing in mind the limited capacity of our health care system on Nevis. We prefer to err on the side of caution given the nature of the most recent cases and the ongoing contact tracing efforts.”

Nevis was on July 3 placed under a 24-hour lockdown with a Shelter in Place Order until July 12, in the first instance.

The Premier said he is cognizant of the hardship and inconvenience that these restrictions cause to citizens and residents and to the business community.

“As Premier of Nevis, I sincerely regret such hardship. However, the recent positive COVID cases on Nevis and the ongoing contact tracing has caused great concern among our healthcare professionals. The decision was not taken lightly but we are primarily concerned with the preservation of life and the protection of our people.

“As the contact tracing continues, I am prayerful that there will be no more positive cases but we simply cannot be sure. The next several days therefore will allow our Health team to undertake the contact tracing more efficiently and permit us to reset and recharge ourselves for the continuing battle ahead.”

Mr. Brantley admonished the people of Nevis to understand that it cannot be business as usual during this unprecedented time. He encouraged all who had not taken the COVID-19 vaccine during the first phase of the program to do so when the program resumes on July 08.

“We shall never ever surrender to this enemy of COVID-19. I urge once again all the people of Nevis to go out and get vaccinated. Please help us avoid these lockdowns, quarantines, curfews and other restrictions. Please help us restart our economy. Please help us restore normalcy to our island and our Federation.”

As at June 30, 5225 persons on Nevis had taken a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine and 4418 or 51 percent of the target population of 8594 had taken their second dose.

The Ministry of Health in the NIA has confirmed three positive cases of COVID-19 on the island of Nevis since June 29. According to the Ministry, the most recent case, which is imported, is fully vaccinated and has been in quarantine on island since arrival on June 27, 2021.

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DNA Results Identify Human Remains as Missing Man

Basseterre, St. Kitts, July 02, 2021 (RSCNPF): The identity of the human remains found in the Needsmust area on April 23, 2021, has been determined by the Police. Based on evidence taken from the scene, the Police narrowed their investigations to focus on a person of interest.

DNA samples from the remains and a close relatisve were sent abroad for testing. The results were recently received and proved to be a match. The Police have determined that the remains are that of Jabal Henry of Upper Cayon who had been reported missing in February, 2020. He was 39 years old at the time of the report. Investigations into the matter are ongoing.

Persons with information regarding this matter are urged to contact the Violent Crimes Unit by dialling 467-1887, 467-1888, 662-3468, their nearest Police Station or the Crime Hotline at 707 where information can be given anonymously.

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CARICOM Day Fetes Eminent Caribbean People

The role played by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), in shaping and sustaining the region has been lauded with the unveiling of six wax figures of eminent Caribbean people, during a special ceremony to mark July 4th CARICOM Day, at the Caribbean Wax Museum.

The figures were of Barbados’ first female Governor-General, Dame Nita Barrow; winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in economics, Sir Arthur Lewis of St Lucia; St Vincent and the Grenadines’ national hero, Joseph Chatoyer; Jamaican Olympic sprinter, Shelly-ann Fraser-Pryce; former Commonwealth Secretary-General,  Sir Shridath Ramphal of Guyana, and Calypso Rose of Trinidad and Tobago.

In his remarks at the unveiling ceremony, Barbados’ Ambassador to CARICOM, David Comissiong, described the exhibition as one of “the most unique CARICOM Day celebrations there has ever been”, adding “ I don’t know if any member state has ever celebrated CARICOM  Day with a wax statue exhibition”.

Giving his perspective of what was needed for the region’s growth, he said: “The future of CARICOM and our regional integration movement really belongs to our young people. It is very important that we celebrate CARICOM at this time. If we ever wondered whether the Caribbean people needed CARICOM, then we should have no doubt whatsoever after the events of the past year and a half.

“In fact, now more than ever do we need our Caribbean integration movement. It seems that we are receiving challenge after challenge…. The public health crisis of COVID 19; the economic crisis that it has brought, then recently we were faced with the [ash fall from La] Soufriere volcano in St Vincent. A couple [of] weeks ago Barbados was hit by this freak storm, and then just yesterday (Friday), Hurricane Elsa.”

Echoing similar sentiments, Barbados’ CARICOM Youth Ambassador, Meghan Theobalds, pointed out that the region’s strength lies in its unity.

She explained that with more threats, such as climate change and others, it was imperative for CARICOM nations to “lean on one another if we have a chance at all of overcoming them”.

“We have a lot to be proud of and sharing our ideas, news and perspectives about the region is an excellent way to encourage our less enthusiastic friends and family to become more engaged. For CARICOM Day and the foreseeable future, my hope is that CARICOM occupies a greater part of our consciousness and becomes an integral part of our identity,” she said.

The region marked its 48th anniversary on July 4, CARICOM Day.

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UnVaxed US Tourist Warns of Vacationing in A&B

by le***********@*************er.com

A woman who arrived in Antigua and Barbuda on Saturday’s inaugural Jet Blue flight from Newark, New Jersey, said she will never return to the country after being allegedly mishandled by immigration officers, a police officer and health officials at VC Bird International Airport.

Teiandra Simon, a United States citizen, told Observer that after disembarking the aircraft on July 3she proceeded through immigration where her ordeal began.

She said after being told to wait on the side of the immigration queue she was instructed to present her passport to an immigration officer who proceeded to pass her travel document to at least three people.

A concerned Simon asked for her passport to be returned to her out of fear of losing it. She alleged she was also mishandled by a police officer while waiting to be processed by immigration.

After around two hours, during which a further three flights had landed and their passengers cleared, immigration officials finally gave Simon the green light to proceed to customs where she was reunited with her bags – which she also expressed concern about as they had been left unattended due to the delay.

The unvaccinated passenger, who was visiting Antigua for a short five-day vacation, said at the health checkpoint she presented her negative PCR test and was told she would have to quarantine at Jolly Beach Resort which she was uncomfortable with as she had already made arrangements to stay in a private home in Upper Gambles.

Simon likened the quarantine facility to a prison.

She said, “The food is atrocious, the fan is broken in my room, and the water is brown. Why would you pay for something that is run down?”

She said she then asked if she could stay at a Covid-19 certified property after seeing the condition of the facility, a request which was denied by the receptionist and nurse on property as she had already been assigned to the government quarantine facility.

US visitor Teiandra Simon chided the conditions at the facility (Photos contributed)

The entire experience left a bad impression on the woman who said she has since booked a return flight to the United States to leave today.

She said, “I would not subject myself to live in prison and I didn’t do anything. This facility is not a nice place to be.”

She added, “I will not come back to Antigua, and I will tell people that Antigua is not a place for you to be any time soon.”

Simon said, on return to the US, she will file a grievance report against the police officer that allegedly mishandled her, and she will file complaints with Jet Blue and the United States Embassy about her ordeal in Antigua and Barbuda.

Efforts to reach health officials for comment were unsuccessful up to press time.

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Haiti: 6 Killed in Private Plane Crash

A private plane crash has killed all six people on board, including two American missionaries, in Haiti, southwest of capital Port-au-Prince.

The New Telegraph, the plane crashed over the weekend en route an airport in Port-au-Prince to the southern coastal city of Jacmel.

The newspaper cited a statement by the National Civil Aviation Office (NCAO) and the cause of the crash was not immediately known.

The US-based organisation Gospel to Haiti also posted an announcement on its Facebook page confirming that two of its group members, 35-year-old Trent Hostetler, and John Miller, 43, both American citizens, died in the crash.

The identities of the other four passengers were not immediately released by officials.

Hostetler’s wife and three children escaped death after they boarded a smaller plane, leaving him and Miller to catch the next plane.

“When the second plane didn’t show up, they were very concerned and soon heard that the plane had gone down somewhere near Leogane. A search team was formed and sent out and they located the plane early this morning and confirmed that all 6 people were killed,” the group’s Facebook post said.

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World View: Condo Teen Rescued, Deadly Japan Mudslide, Elsa Hits Cuba, More

July 2, 2021

Alternate text
  • Rescuers resume the search for victims at the collapsed Florida condo
  • Teen volleyball star rescued with her mother from collapsed Florida condo
  • Rescue workers in Japan look for 20 missing after sea resort mudslide
  • Tropical storm Elsa hits Cuba
  • Malaysians struggle amid tightened COVID-19 lockdown
  • Ransomware criminals target the cyber insurance industry
  • Pope convalesces after intestinal surgery
  • Pandemic and financial crisis-hit Lebanon hope for an economic rebound
  • Airline delays hint at tough summer for U.S. travelers.

Menelaos Hadjicostis

The Associated Press

The Rundown

I'm an image

SURFSIDE, Fla. (AP) — Rescuers were given the all-clear to resume work looking for victims at a collapsed South Florida condo building after demolition crews set off a string of explosives that brought down the building’s remains in a plume of dust….Read More

I'm an image

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — When 16-year-old rising volleyball star Deven Gonzalez was pulled from the rubble of her Miami condo building, her initial reaction amid the shock was to tell firefighters that she had to compete in a major tournament in…Read More

I'm an image

TOKYO (AP) — Rescue workers slogged through mud and debris Monday looking for at least 20 people missing since a giant landslide ripped through a Japanese seaside resort town and killed at least three people. …Read More

I'm an image

HAVANA (AP) — Tropical Storm Elsa swept along Cuba’s southern coast early Monday, and forecasters said it could make landfall on the island’s central shore by midafternoon. By Sunday, Cuban officials had evacuated 180,000 people as a precaution agai…Read More

I'm an image

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — When Mohamad Nor Abdullah put a white flag outside his window late at night, he didn’t expect the swift outpouring of support. By morning, dozens of strangers knocked on his door, offering food, cash and encouragement. …Read More

OTHER TOP STORIES

BOSTON (AP) — In the past few weeks, ransomware criminals claimed as trophies at least three North American insurance brokerages that offer policies to help others survive th…Read More

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis was spending his first morning convalescing on Monday in a Rome hospital following intestinal surgery. The Vatican has given scant details about the…Read More

NIHA, Lebanon (AP) — In a village in Lebanon’s scenic Chouf Mountains, 69-year-old Chafik Mershad pulls out a massive rectangular guestbook and reads out despairingly the dat…Read More

This summer is already shaping up to be a difficult one for air travelers. Southwest Airlines customers have struggled with thousands of delays and hundreds of canceled flig…Read More

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Almost All US COVID Deaths are Among UnVaxed People

America’s top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci has said that about 99.2% of recent Covid-19 deaths in the United States involved unvaccinated people.

Fauci said “it’s really sad and tragic that most all of these are avoidable and preventable,” news agency AP reported on Sunday.

Dr. Anthony Fauci

The news agency quoted Fauci’s remarks at NBC’s “Meet the Press” programme where he said that it’s frustrating “where you have a formidable enemy” in the coronavirus and “yet we do have a countermeasure that’s highly, highly effective. And that’s the reason why it’s all the more sad and all the more tragic why it isn’t being completely implemented in this country.”

Fauci cited the reasons for opposition to the vaccine by some Americans, whether it’s “ideological” or whether some “are just fundamentally anti-vax or anti-science.” He said the country does “have the tools to counter” the pandemic and he’s asking people to “put aside all of those differences and realize that the common enemy is the virus.

He noted that the United States is very fortunate that it has enough vaccines to vaccinate essentially everybody in the country. And there are people throughout the world who would do anything to get vaccines.

The United States has registered over 605,000 deaths in the Covid-19 pandemic, the highest national toll in the world.
=======================================================

WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

184,644,577

Deaths:

3,994,990

Recovered:

168,966,712
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

July 5 (GMT)

Updates

  • 782 new cases and 2 new deaths in Libya [source]
  • 1,570 new cases and 33 new deaths in Oman [source]
  • 1,488 new cases and 6 new deaths in Japan [source]
  • 24,353 new cases and 654 new deaths in Russia [source]
  • 352 new cases and 3 new deaths in Fiji [source]

 

 

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Indigenous Mapuche Woman Picked to Lead Architects of Chile’s New Constitution

SANTIAGO, July 4 (Reuters) – Delegates chose a woman on Sunday from Chile’s majority indigenous Mapuche people to lead them in drafting the country’s new constitution – a dramatic turnaround for a group that is unacknowledged in the country’s present rule book.

Elisa Loncon, 58, a political independent, is a Santiago university professor and activist for Mapuche educational and linguistic rights. She was picked by 96 of the 155 men and women, including 17 indigenous people, who make up the constitutional body that will draft a new text to replace Chile’s previous magna carta produced during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.

Loncon accepted the position with fist clenched above her head, telling her colleagues to noisy celebrations: “I salute the people of Chile from the north to Patagonia, from the sea to the mountains, to the islands, all those who are watching us today,” she said.

“I am grateful for the support of the different coalitions that placed their trust and their dreams in the hands of the Mapuche nation, who voted for a Mapuche person, a woman, to change the history of this country.”

Her election represents a high point in a day of high drama which included the suspension of the delegates’ swearing in after protests outside and inside the venue, and clashes with police forced a delay to the event.

Problems arose after marches organised by independent, left-wing and indigenous groups fielding delegates for the constitutional body, as well as other interest groups, met heavily armed police manning barricades outside Santiago’s former congress building where the ceremony was being held.

Delegates inside the event then remonstrated with the organisers over heavy-handed police tactics, banging drums and shouting over a youth classical orchestra playing the national anthem.

A demonstrator holds an object during a rally as constitutional assembly members hold first session to draft a new constitution, in Santiago, Chile July 4, 2021. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza
A constitutional assembly member gestures as they gather for the first session to draft a new constitution, in Santiago, Chile July 4, 2021. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

A constitutional assembly member covers his eye in support of people who lost their eyes during protests, as they gather for the first session to draft a new constitution, in Santiago, Chile July 4, 2021. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

A constitutional assembly member gestures as they gather for the first session to draft a new constitution, in Santiago, Chile July 4, 2021. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

Amid demands by delegates for “repressive” special forces police to be withdrawn, the electoral court official presiding over the ceremony agreed to suspend the event until midday.

The fracas underscored the intense challenges for the drafting of a new magna carta against a backdrop of deep divisions that still simmer after Chile was torn apart by massive protests that started in October 2019 over inequality and elitism and were fueled by a fierce police response.

The constitutional body was picked by a popular vote in May and is dominated by independent and leftist candidates, some with roots in the protest movement, with a smaller share of more conservative candidates backed by the current centre-right government.

The delegates have vowed to address topics including water and property rights, central bank independence and labour practices, prompting jitters among investors of potentially significant changes to the free market system of the world’s top copper producer.

Before the ceremony began, Aymara and Mapuche delegates held spiritual ceremonies with song and dance in the downtown streets surrounding the body’s new headquarters and on a nearby hillside.

Unrecognised in the current constitution, they are hoping a new text will afford their nations new cultural, political and social rights.

The commission has up to a year to agree a common rulebook, establish committees and draft a new text.

Leandro Lima, a Southern Cone analyst for Control Risks, said the independents brought “legitimacy” to the process given Chileans’ deep mistrust in established politics but a paucity of policymaking experience and deep ideological divisions could cause critical delays to the drafting of the text itself.

Reporting by Aislinn Laing Editing by Marguerita Choy and Diane Craft

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