Tag Archives: caribbean

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Facebook to Stop Using the Website to Illegally Sell Protected Parcels of the Amazon Rainforest

Facebook says it will begin clamping down on the illegal sale of protected areas of the Amazon rainforest on its site.

The social media giant changed its policy following a BBC investigation into the practice.

The new measures will apply only to conservation areas and not to publicly owned forest.

And the move will be limited to the Amazon, not other rainforests and wildlife habitats across the world.

According to a recent study from the think tank Ipam (Instituto de Pesquisa Ambental da Amazonia), a third of all deforestation happens in publicly-owned forests in the Amazon.

Facebook said it would not reveal how it planned to find the illegal ads but said it would “seek to identify and block new listings” in protected areas of the Amazon rainforest.

Illegal deforestation exposed

In February, the BBC Our World documentary Selling the Amazon revealed that plots of rainforest as large as 1,000 football pitches were being listed on Facebook’s classified ads service.

Alvim Souza Alves
Image caption, Alvim Souza Alves was trying to sell land for about £16,400

Many of the plots were inside protected areas, including national forests and land reserved for indigenous peoples.

In order to prove the ads were real, the BBC arranged meetings between four sellers and an undercover operative posing as a lawyer claiming to represent wealthy investors.

One land-grabber, Alvim Souza Alves, was trying to sell a plot inside the Uru Eu Wau Wau indigenous reserve for about £16,400 in local currency.

In response to the BBC’s investigation, Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court ordered an inquiry into the sale of protected areas of the Amazon via Facebook.

Despite calls from indigenous leaders to do more, at the time Facebook said it was “ready to work with local authorities”, but would not take independent action to halt the trade.

Now the company says it has consulted the UN Environment Programme (Unep) and other organisations to take its “first steps” in trying to address the issue.

“We will now review listings on Facebook Marketplace against an international organisation’s authoritative database of protected areas to identify listings that may violate this new policy,” the Californian tech firm clarified.

Indigenous person
Image caption, Much of the land being sold is in indigenous reserves

The announcement comes at a time when the social media giant is under increasing pressure from US lawmakers, following a series of bombshell leaks by whistle-blower and former Facebook employee, Frances Haugen.

Facebook also faced criticism this week when a failure brought down the entire platform for five hours worldwide. Instagram and Whatsapp, both owned by Facebook, were also offline during the period.

Will it work?

To try to catch criminal sellers, Facebook is using a database managed by the Unep World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Unep says it is the most “comprehensive” database of its kind and is updated monthly using reports from “a range of government and other institutions”.

But Brazilian lawyer and scientist Brenda Brito questions the effectiveness of Facebook’s proposals, saying: “If they don’t make it mandatory for sellers to provide the location of the area on sale, any attempt at blocking them will be flawed.

“They may have the best database in the world, but if they don’t have some geo-location reference, it won’t work,” she added.

In its investigation, the BBC found some ads featured satellite images and GPS co-ordinates but not all shared that level of information.

Facebook told the BBC it did not intend to require sellers to post the precise location of advertised land.

“We know there are no ‘silver bullets’ in this topic and we will continue to work to prevent people from circumventing our inspection,” a company spokesperson said.

The Amazon rainforest occupies 7.5 million sq km and spans more than seven countries, including Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.

The tech firm would not confirm whether it was also working with each region’s respective government to strengthen enforcement.

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Guatemala Police Free 126 Migrants from Abandoned Truck Container

Police in Guatemala have rescued 126 migrants, most Haitians, who were abandoned inside a shipping container at the side of a road.

They were found at dawn between the towns of Nueva Concepción and Cocales after locals reported hearing screams inside the trailer.

Authorities believe they were abandoned by smugglers who had been paid to take them to the US via Mexico.

More than 100 of those discovered are from the crisis-hit nation of Haiti. There were also people from Nepal and Ghana.

Speaking after the discovery, a police spokesperson said: “We heard cries and knocks coming from inside the container. We opened the doors and found 126 undocumented people.”

Officers gave the migrants first aid before escorting them to a shelter run by the Guatemalan Migration Institute.

A spokeswoman for Guatemala’s migration authority, Alejandra Mena, said that the migrants had arrived in Central America in Honduras and from there begun to make the treacherous journey north to the US.

They will now be transported back to the border with Honduras and handed over to authorities.

The discovery comes just a day after Mexican authorities detained 652 migrants, including some 350 children, travelling in three refrigerated double-trailer trucks near the US southern border.

Soldiers at a military checkpoint in Tamaulipas searched the trucks after hearing voices inside.

The incident reflects growing concerns over the amount of migrants, among them large numbers of Haitians, taking significant risks in their attempts to reach the US.

Since the start of 2021, more than 50 migrants have died while trying to cross a jungle corridor called the Darien Gap in Panama, on the border with Colombia, according to the Panamanian prosecutor’s office.

Haiti has suffered from years of instability, culminating in the assassination of President Jouvenal Moïse in July. The following month, the country was hit by a deadly earthquake.

Thousands of Haitians had already left the country, seeking work in countries across Latin America.

Many have begun attempting to reach the US in the belief that they qualify for Temporary Protected Status, a temporary right to remain in the country which has been extended to Haitians already living in the US but not to new arrivals.

Last month about 13,000 Haitians gathered under a bridge connecting Del Rio in Texas to Ciudad Acuña in Mexico. Since then the US has deported more than 7,500 people to Haiti, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The US special envoy for Haiti, Daniel Foote, resigned in protest over the deportations, saying that returning people fleeing an earthquake and political instability was “inhumane”.

But the US Department of Homeland Security’s Marsha Espinosa reiterated that “our borders are not open, and people should not make the dangerous journey”.

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US Faces Daunting Task in Relationship with Haiti

By Rafael Bernal

US faces daunting task in relationship with Haiti
© Getty Images
U.S. policy toward Haiti is in flux, amid chronic crises in the ravaged Caribbean nation and increasing domestic political pressure on the Biden administration to deliver a diplomatic breakthrough.

The White House and the State Department face a daunting task in Haiti as Washington seeks to disentangle itself from traditional interlocutors in the political establishment without triggering further instability in the country.

Administration officials have rhetorically recognized the need to bolster Haiti’s civil society, while in practice supporting acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry, an establishment figure with de facto control of the government.

“I think it’s risk. I think the risk of changing governments in a country like Haiti makes us nervous, to be honest with you,” said Ambassador Daniel Foote, the former special envoy to Haiti who resigned last month over the administration’s repatriations of Haitian nationals.

Foote was speaking at a House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) briefing held Thursday in response to his resignation, which he delivered in a scathing letter that accused the administration of ignoring his recommendations.

After some back and forth with the State Department, HFAC Chairman Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) brought Foote in for a briefing, though not for a formal hearing on the state of the bilateral relationship.

In opening the briefing, Meeks recalled how he put pressure on the Biden administration to name a special envoy to Haiti, “and was pleased to see the appointment of Ambassador Foote two months ago to that position.”

“Unfortunately, Ambassador Foote’s role ended last month after he resigned citing irreconcilable policy differences between himself and the Biden administration,” said Meeks.

While Foote’s resignation was triggered by the repatriation of about half of the nearly 15,000 Haitians who arrived last month in Del Rio, Texas, the core controversy over the U.S. role in Haiti rests on the American practice of playing kingmaker in the Caribbean country.

Henry was President Jovenel Moïse’s handpicked prime minister, although Henry did not take office until after Moïse’s assassination in August.

Moïse was himself the handpicked successor of former President Michel Martelly, whose inauguration was the first peaceful transfer of power to an opposition party in the history of Haiti.

The Obama administration supported Martelly’s election, and the United States has since been seen to have a “thumb on the scale” supporting the Haitian Tèt Kale Party (PHTK) created by Martelly.

Questioned by Rep. Andy Levin (D-Mich.) about whether the PHTK government would remain in power without U.S. support, Foote said, “I do not believe they would survive or remain.”

“The consensus, almost unanimous, outside the ruling party in Haiti is that the ruling party PHTK put Haiti where it is today and probably doesn’t deserve to be part of the solution,” said Foote.

The Biden administration has not shown willingness to fully step away from the PHTK or Henry, although it has shifted rhetorically from the Obama administration’s explicit support of Martelly and his allies.

“What that means on the political side is not putting our thumbs on the scale and on, on the side of any one particular actor, but rather, being seen as supporting this broad dialogue,” said a senior Biden administration official.

The official added that Biden himself has been the “differentiating factor” in the shift from explicit support of the governing party to “a long view [in] Haiti and trying to play a constructive, transformational role.”

“That’s something it doesn’t lend itself to political timelines, but it’s ultimately what will have us doing right by the Haitian people,” said the official.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration is focusing its efforts on humanitarian and vaccine aid to Haiti, in necessary collaboration with Henry’s provisional government.

But two matters have blunted the effectiveness of those efforts: The Biden administration has been unwilling or unable to specify its position on the timing of elections to formally replace Moïse, and continued repatriations of Haitians to the ravaged country have stained the administration’s humanitarian credentials.

Since Sept. 19, the Department of Homeland Security has sent 70 flights back to Haiti, and around 7,000 Haitians have been returned to the country.

U.S. officials say the repatriated Haitians are receiving a stipend and services like SIM cards on arrival in Haiti, but that aid — which some activists say has not been forthcoming — pales in comparison to the cost of repatriating the Del Rio Haitians.

According to Jesse Franzblau, senior policy analyst at the National Immigrant Justice Center, DHS documents show that the federal government paid up to $15 million to private prison company GEO Group to operate the flights.

On Friday, 15 Democratic senators led by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (N.J.) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on the Biden administration to establish a reintegration program for repatriated Haitians, and access to the asylum process for all Haitians arriving in the United States.

“Ensuring the integrity of U.S. borders is of utmost importance, and is not incompatible with the fundamental duty to respect the dignity, humanity, and rights of all individuals seeking entry to the United States,” wrote the senators.

While there is debate among advocates and civil society groups as to the role that the U.S. Haitian diaspora should play in defining the country’s political future, there is a relatively broad consensus that Haitian communities in the United States are well-prepared to integrate newcomers into their ranks.

“Over the course of our lifetimes, our Haitian brothers and sisters have endured dictatorships, constitutional crises, food insecurity, pandemics, natural disasters, forced displacement, the assassination of their President, and the criminal takeover of their communities. Their resilience is unparalleled and our communities in the United States have flourished as a result of the presence of Haitian immigrants and their American children,” wrote the senators.

And many Haitian civil society leaders — including in the U.S. diaspora — have put their weight behind the creation of a transitional commission formed by non-governmental organizations to chart a political path ahead for the country.

For the commission to succeed, say its proponents, the Biden administration would have to follow through on its rhetoric of taking the U.S. thumb off the scale in Haiti’s political process.

“The United States continues to bolster a Haitian regime that has dismantled democratic institutions and has not held elections, leaving only 11 elected representatives in office throughout a country of 11 million people,” wrote Pierre Espérance, executive director of Haiti’s National Human Rights Defense Network.

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NTA Measures in Place for Vaccinated Travellers to Nevis, Free Masks and Sanitizers Offered

NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (October 08, 2021) — The Nevis Tourism Authority (NTA) says as of October 07, 2021, fully vaccinated travellers visiting the island will be required to stay at a travel-approved hotel for 24 hours before they are encouraged to explore all the island has to offer.

The reduction in the “vacation in place” requirement is due to an announcement of the revised protocols in St. Kitts and Nevis.   Previously, fully vaccinated travellers were required to stay in a travel-approved hotel for four days.

The island’s four travel-approved hotels are the Four Seasons Resort Nevis, Golden Rock Inn, Montpelier Plantation & Beach, and Paradise Beach Nevis.

During the 24-hour stay, all travellers must take a COVID-19 RT-PCR test and produce a negative result before departing the hotel.

A negative COVID-19 RT-PCR pre-departure test is also required, which must be taken no more than 72 hours ahead of travel to Nevis. Airport health screening remains in place.

The NTA is urging travellers who wish to vacation on the island to visit: nevisisland.com for up-to-date information regarding travel requirements in Nevis.

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NIA to distribute masks, hand sanitizers from October 11

The general public is asked to note that the Ministry of Health and Gender Affairs has made masks and hand sanitizers available at community centres throughout the island of Nevis effective Monday 11th October, 2021. These items will be distributed during the hours of 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily while supplies last.

Please visit the community centre in your area to be further guided.

 

The post NTA Measures in Place for Vaccinated Travellers to Nevis, Free Masks and Sanitizers Offered appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

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World View: Humanitarian Afghanistan Aid, More French Catholic Church Abuse Claims, Iraq Elections, More

Oct 11, 2021

Alternate text
  • Taliban say U.S. to provide humanitarian aid to Afghanistan
  • U.S. lawmakers brace for battles that pose risks to parties, leaders
  • French actor breaks silence on children sex abuse within the church
  • South California beach set to reopen after oil spil
  • Sydney opens to vaccinated after 100-plus days of lockdown.
  • Early results show record low in Iraq election
  • Poll shows cyberattacks concerning to most in U.S.
  • India, China talks to defuse border tensions fail
  • Fiona Hill offers a sober, alarming portrait of Trump in new book

Menelaos Hadjicostis

The Associated Press

The Rundown

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ISLAMABAD (AP) — The U.S. has agreed to provide humanitarian aid to a desperately poor Afghanistan on the brink of an economic disaster, while refusing to give political recognition to the country’s new Taliban rulers, the Taliban said Sunday….Read More

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Year-end pileups of crucial legislation and the brinkmanship that goes with them are normal behavior for Congress. This autumn, lawmakers are barreling toward battles that are striking for the risks they pose to both parties …Read More

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PARIS (AP) — At the age of eight, Laurent Martinez was sexually abused by a priest. Forty years later, he has chosen to make his story into a play, to show the devastating consequences and how speaking out can help victims heal and rebuild. …Read More

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HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Richard Beach stayed clear of the ocean for several days after an undersea pipeline leaked crude into the waters off Southern California, sending a foul smell across the shore. …Read More

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CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Sydney hairdressers, gyms, cafés and bars reopened to fully vaccinated customers on Monday for the first time in more than 100 days after Australia’s largest city achieved a vaccination benchmark. …Read More

OTHER TOP STORIES

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq saw a record low turnout in this weekend’s parliamentary elections, the independent body that oversees the election said Monday. The preliminary resu…Read More

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Most Americans across party lines have serious concerns about cyberattacks on U.S. computer systems and view China and Russia as major threats, acco…Read More

NEW DELHI (AP) — Talks between Indian and Chinese army commanders to disengage troops from key friction areas along their border have ended in a stalemate and failed to …Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vladimir Putin paid scant attention to Fiona Hill, a preeminent U.S. expert on Russia, when she was seated next to him at dinners. Putin’s people place…Read More

The post World View: Humanitarian Afghanistan Aid, More French Catholic Church Abuse Claims, Iraq Elections, More appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

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Are COVID-19’s Big Waves Over?, UnVax Pregnancy Danger, World Stats, More

By Justine Coleman

The Hill

Experts are split on whether the waning delta surge will be the last major COVID-19 wave to strike the U.S., as Americans grow eager for the pandemic to end after 19 months.

The vaccination rate and decreasing cases in most states have provided a ray of hope that the pandemic could be winding down after its final large wave, some experts say.

But other public health experts caution the unpredictability of the virus suggests another surge could still happen as the country braces for winter — which led to skyrocketing cases, deaths and hospitalizations last year.

Nicholas Reich, a professor of biostatistics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said declaring there won’t be another major wave after delta “feels like” a “premature” and “bold” statement.

“Is there a chance? Sure, but I feel like if there’s one thing we’ve learned from this, it’s that there’s a lot more sort of uncertainty and randomness … in COVID then we’ve given it credit for so far,” he said.

Some experts, including Reich, pointed out that factors such as the potential development of variants and the unknown endurance of immunity after infection and vaccination could spark larger-scale rises in COVID-19 cases after the country has seen a national decline.

The downturn in cases comes after the delta strain fueled a spike, reaching a seven-day average of more than 175,000 daily cases in mid-September. But on Thursday, that average dropped below 100,000 for the first time since Aug. 4, according to data from The New York Times.

Overall, 39 states have seen their seven-day averages of COVID-19 cases fall within the past two weeks. Despite these drops in cases, COVID-19 is not eliminated and “many hundreds of thousands of people are still gonna get infected” as the pandemic continues, Reich said.

While COVID-19 numbers are moving “in the right direction,” some areas of the country, including Alaska and West Virginia, are still “very much in the midst of the delta wave,” said Leana Wen, an emergency physician and public health professor at George Washington University.

“I’m very concerned about people becoming complacent because they think that the delta wave is passing us,” she said. “We have seen this happen before, where there is a rise in the number of cases, then a decline, and then people let down their guard. And as a result, we plateau at a very high level of cases. That’s unacceptable.”

The approaching winter season also makes it difficult to forecast future COVID-19 trends, as coronaviruses can more easily spread in colder weather and in indoor spaces. Last winter, the U.S. saw its highest surge of cases, hospitalizations and deaths amid holiday gatherings held before vaccines became widely available.

Christopher Murray, the director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, said he expects cases to increase in the winter after bottoming out in October, but that it is likely to be lower than the delta surge.

“I think some people will be surprised that it doesn’t just keep going away, and … that doesn’t seem very likely,” he said.

Wen of George Washington University said having just 56.2 percent of the total U.S. population fully vaccinated and fewer restrictions than last year leaves it uncertain that the delta wave could be the U.S.’s final major COVID-19 surge.

“I don’t know how we could possibly say that considering we don’t know what’s going to come our way,” Wen said.

“I’m not sure how we can know for certain that the level of protection we have nailed through vaccination is sufficient,” she said, adding she’s hopeful the end is “on the horizon” with children’s vaccines, oral treatment and more testing.

Others, including former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Scott Gottlieb, took a more optimistic stance, anticipating that cases won’t rise to the summer delta levels again.

“Barring something unexpected, I’m of the opinion that this is the last major wave of infection,” Gottlieb told The New York Times this week.

Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, told MSNBC on Friday that any rise in winter cases will likely be “more decoupled from hospitalizations and deaths” due to the increased immunity due to vaccines and infections.

“Many more people have been vaccinated, so many more people have natural immunity from this big delta wave and unfortunately so many people have died that we probably won’t see peaks that are anything like we saw in the past, especially when it comes to what matters which is hospitalization, serious disease and death,” he said.

“I think delta was hopefully the worst that this virus can throw at us,” he added.

David Dowdy, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said he thinks it’s “unlikely” that the U.S. will endure another COVID-19 wave “to the level” of the summer delta and previous winter surges.

With the vaccination level rising and a “fair amount” of the unvaccinated getting infected, Americans’ immunity is “higher now than it’s ever been,” he said.

The emergence of a new variant could potentially threaten that immunity if the strain evades the vaccines. But Dowdy said he doesn’t expect that in the short-term, as delta has reigned as the dominant variant worldwide for months without another strain usurping it.

“I think anyone who says that they can predict the future of this pandemic is probably lying to you,” Dowdy said. “But I think we have a lot of reasons to be optimistic that we will not see another massive wave the way that we have seen so far.”

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Pandemic Summary

UK-One in Six Critical COVID Patients are Un-Vaxed Pregnant Women

According to new figures from NHS England, one in six of the most critically ill patients are unvaccinated pregnant women with Covid.

Our community team would like to hear from women in the UK about their experiences of Covid vaccines. Have you recently changed your mind having previously been hesitant, or vice versa?

Find out more details of how to get in touch here: Pregnant women in the UK – have you changed your mind about Covid vaccination?

Russia’s daily Covid numbers remain close to their highest figures. Reuters are carrying the latest figures of 957 coronavirus-related deaths in the previous 24 hours, which is just shy of the record of 968, set two days earlier. There were 29,409 new cases over the same period.

Heathrow passenger numbers 38% of pre-pandemic levels

Heathrow’s passenger numbers remained only 38% compared to their pre-pandemic levels last month, the airport has announced.

2.6 million people travelled through the west London airport in September, compared with 6.8 million during the same month in 2019. The airport says the decline was driven by North American traffic being only a quarter of 2019 levels.

Neil Lancefield, PA’s transport correspondent, notes that the US has been closed to UK visitors during the coronavirus pandemic, although the restriction is expected to be lifted in November for those who are fully vaccinated. Heathrow said rival airports in the European Union “enjoyed stronger resurgence over summer”.

John Holland-Kaye, the airport’s chief executive, added an environmental message to the numbers release, saying: “We should aim for 2019 to have been the peak year for fossil fuel use in global aviation.

“The UK Government can show real leadership in decarbonising aviation at Cop26 to accelerate the transition to sustainable aviation fuel in the UK, which will protect the benefits of flying for future generations.”

AstraZeneca says it has demonstrated that a new antibody treatment AZD7442 was effective in preventing severe disease in non-hospitalised patients with mild to moderate coronavirus, when compared with a placebo.

The study found that a single dose of 600mg of AZD7442 given by injection into muscle managed to reduce the risk of developing severe Covid-19 or death from any cause by 50%, when compared with a placebo, in people who had been symptomatic for seven days or less.

For those who received the treatment within five days of their symptoms first appearing, AZD7442 reduced the risk of developing severe Covid or death by 67% compared with a placebo.

Jane Kirby, PA’s health and science editor reports that the treatment has been billed as suitable for those who cannot have a regular vaccination, who respond poorly to Covid-19 vaccines or whose health conditions put them at particular risk of serious illness.

AstraZeneca submitted a request to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week for emergency use authorisation for AZD7442, which is made up of two antibodies.

A separate study on the treatment published in August showed there were no cases of severe Covid or coronavirus-related deaths in those treated with AZD7442.

You can excuse my colleagues down under from being a little bit excited about lockdown in Sydney and the rest of New South Wales ending after more than 100 days. Here’s a photo gallery – not of them – but of other Sydney residents enjoying the day.

Drakeford: Welsh Covid passes will ‘help’ hospitality venues stay open during autumn and winter

First minister of Wales Mark Drakeford has been on the media round this morning talking about the NHS Covid pass system for events which comes into effect in the country today.

Pressed on ITV’s Good Morning Britain he conceded there was a vulnerability in the system, in that people could falsify lateral flow test results. He said:

“We have created a specific offence which will mean that if someone deliberately falsifies the result of a lateral flow test they will be breaching the law in Wales.

“The broader point for me is that we have literally thousands and thousands of people taking lateral flow tests in Wales every day of the week – they’re not doing it in order to evade the law they’re doing it to make sure they themselves are safe from coronavirus and they’re keeping other people safe as well.

“I’m quite sure that the huge bulk of people who are attending a rugby match or visiting a nightclub will use the lateral flow devices in exactly this way – not to get round the rules but to make sure they’re keeping themselves safe from this dreadful disease.”

PA media report he went on to tell the show: “If we see rising numbers of coronavirus in Wales – and we have high numbers already in the community – then the first places that will have to close will be the highest risk venues.

“Having the Covid Pass there will help them stay open during the autumn and winter – that is the purpose of it, not to be an extra burden on them or to single them out, but to protect them so they can go on operating successfully as we go into what is going to be a challenging time of year.”

French study: vaccination highly effective at preventing severe Covid cases

Agence France-Presse have news this morning of a vast study in France which shows that vaccination is highly effective at preventing severe cases of Covid-19, even against the Delta variant.

The research on prevention of severe Covid and death, not infection, looked at 22 million people over 50 and found those who had received jabs were 90 percent less likely to be hospitalised or die. Researchers say it is the largest study of its kind so far.

Looking at data collected starting in December 2020, when France launched its jab campaign, the researchers compared the outcomes of 11 million vaccinated people with 11 million unvaccinated subjects.

They formed pairs matching an unvaccinated individual with a vaccinated counterpart from the same region and of the same age and sex, tracking them from the date of the vaccinated person’s second jab to 20 July.

Starting 14 days after a second dose, a vaccinated subjects’ risk of severe Covid was reduced by 90 percent. Vaccination appears to be nearly as effective against for the Delta variant, with 84 percent protection for people 75 and older and 92 percent for people 50-75.

Sydney reopens after more than 100 days in lockdown

There were long queues outside pubs, hairdressers and beauty salons as Australia’s most populous city reopened on Monday, as part of Sydney’s first steps towards living with Covid-19 after more than 100 days of lockdown.

About 5 million Sydneysiders awoke to new freedoms on Monday morning after enduring 106 days of strict stay-at-home orders in a bid to battle the highly contagious Delta strain.

Despite an unseasonably cold and rainy start to the day, thousands defied grey skies and flocked to newly opened cafes, barbers and beauty salons to kick off what some have described as “freedom day”.

Some even queued outside department stores in the minutes before midnight to shop in-store for the first time in nearly four months. Others crowded into pubs to enjoy the day’s first freshly poured beers in a boost to the city’s hospitality and entertainment industry.

Read more here from my colleagues Samantha Lock, Mostafa Rachwani and Rafqa Touma in Sydney: With queues at the pubs and beauty salons, Sydney reopens after more than 100 days in lockdown

NHS Covid pass compulsory for large events in Wales from today

It is possibly a less exciting day if you are running a nightclub in Wales. From today people must show an NHS Covid Pass or demonstrate their vaccination status to enter nightclubs and attend large events in the country.

It means all over-18s need one to enter nightclubs, indoor non-seated events for more than 500 people, such as concerts or conventions, outdoor non-seated events for more than 4,000 people and any setting or event with more than 10,000 people in attendance.

People will also be able to show they have had a negative lateral flow test result within the last 48 hours.

But those who fake a coronavirus test result or vaccination status will be committing a criminal offence and face a fixed penalty notice.

Rod Minchin reports for PA Media that Wales is facing some of the highest infection rates since the beginning of the pandemic, particularly among young people.

Economy minister Vaughan Gething said: “Our fantastic vaccination programme continues to go from strength to strength but the pandemic is not over.

“Cases remain high across Wales and, unfortunately, families across the country are losing loved ones to this awful virus. The clear advice from our scientific advisers is that we need to take early action now.

“The Covid Pass is just one of a series of measures in place to help prevent people spreading and catching coronavirus while helping to keep the economy open.

“None of us want to see further lockdowns and for businesses to have to close their doors once again. Showing a Covid Pass is already part of our collective effort to keep businesses open.

England’s travel red list changes take effect

It is potentially a big day for the travel industry in the England. At 4am this morning, forty-seven countries were removed from the international travel red list. Arrivals from those locations will no longer need to spend 11 nights in a quarantine hotel.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has lifted its advice against non-essential travel to a further 42 countries and territories, following the removal of travel advisories to 41 locations last week.

PA note that just seven countries will remain on the red list from Monday: Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Panama, Peru and Venezuela. People arriving from those locations will still be required to enter a quarantine hotel at a cost of £2,285 for solo travellers.

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WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

238,712,932

Deaths:

4,868,662

Recovered:

215,884,993
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 11 (GMT)

Updates

  • 29,409 new cases and 957 new deaths in Russia [source]
  • 2,690 new cases and 128 new deaths in Mexico [source]

The post Are COVID-19’s Big Waves Over?, UnVax Pregnancy Danger, World Stats, More appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

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Report Details Trump’s Election Pressure Campaign

The Hill– A nearly 400-page report released by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday caps an eight-month investigation into former President Trump’s efforts to pressure the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate his claims of election fraud.

The report details how DOJ officials repeatedly resisted Trump and other administration officials’ efforts focusing on many now-debunked theories.

The report is based on documents, emails and testimony from then-acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen; then-acting Deputy Attorney General Richard Donoghue, who threatened to resign amid pressure from Trump; and Byung Pak, who was ousted from his U.S. attorney role in Georgia following dissatisfaction from Trump.

Zooming in on the role played by Perry

The report offers new glimpses into Rep. Scott Perry’s (R-Pa.) role in Trump’s efforts, pinpointing him as the person who connected Trump to Jeffrey Clark, an otherwise little-known DOJ official who was involved in a plan to remove Rosen from office.

It was Perry who invited Clark to a December meeting at the White House, the report says, to discuss Trump’s demands for an investigation into the results of the presidential election in Pennsylvania.

He also called Donoghue after Trump gave him his number and then pressured the Justice official to look into Pennsylvania’s election. He also talked up Clark during the phone conversation, the report states.

“Perry told Donoghue that Trump had asked him to call and that DOJ hadn’t done its job with respect to the elections. Perry added something to the effect of, ‘I think Jeff Clark is great. I like that guy a lot. He’s the kind of guy who could really get in there and do something about this,’” the report states.

“At the end of the call, Perry indicated that he had information about ‘things going on in Pennsylvania,’ including the claim that there were 205,000 more votes than voters,” the report continued, adding that Perry “included several refuted allegations of election fraud in Pennsylvania” such as that some 4,000 voters had cast ballots twice.

It confirms Trump forced Pak to resign

The report closed in gaps about the abrupt resignation of Pak, who served as U.S. attorney for the district encompassing Atlanta.

The report details how Pak “had not previously decided to resign on Jan. 4” and was planning to stay until Inauguration Day so as to not disrupt the state’s special election on Jan. 5.

But he was instead ousted following disapproval from Trump, who wanted an ally in the role to assist with his election fraud efforts in Georgia, which along with Pennsylvania was one of five states he was contesting.

In December, Pak was approached by then-Attorney General William Barr to make finding out more about Rudy Giuliani’s allegations of voter fraud in Georgia “a ‘top priority’ because they might come up at an upcoming meeting Barr would attend at the White House.”

The issue came to a head shortly after Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) to ask him to “find 11,780 votes,” which was the number that might have provided a victory for the Republican in the state.

“Donoghue told us that Trump looked at a piece of paper on his desk and responded ‘Atlanta, Atlanta, no surprise there. They didn’t find anything. No surprise because we have a never-Trumper there as U.S. Attorney,’” the report states.

Donoghue described Trump as being “fixated” on Pak. He said he ultimately told the then-president: “I’m not going to fire him. There’s no reason to fire him.”

But Donoghue relayed that Pak already planned to submit his resignation.

That teed up a conversation over who would replace Pak, with Trump wanting to buck the tradition of selecting Pak’s deputy and instead choose Bobby Christine, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

“Trump insisted on appointing Christine instead, telling Donoghue something to the effect of, ‘if he’s good, he’ll find out if there’s something there.’”

More information could be forthcoming

The committee has faced hurdles gaining access to some information it sought for the investigation.

The report says that the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), which controls documents from the Trump White House, has not turned over documents that relate to communications between White House and Justice Department officials between Nov. 3 and Jan. 20. The committee requested these documents in May.

“NARA has not responded to date, and has represented to the Committee that the delay in transitioning electronic Trump records from the White House to NARA may prevent the Committee from obtaining a response for several more months,” the report states.

A representative for NARA said they are in receipt of the request and would respond to it in accordance with rules governing presidential records but did not offer further information on the delay or a time frame.

The committee was also unsuccessful in obtaining testimony from Clark, despite the Justice Department authorizing him to sit for an interview in July. The report says that Clark has not agreed to sit for a voluntary interview.

When asked whether the committee plans to subpoena Clark, a spokeswoman for Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), said that committee rules require bipartisan support in order to issue a subpoena and that there is currently not support among Republican members for such a step.

It gives a new glimpse into a key Oval Office meeting

Testimony from two witnesses, Rosen and Donoghue, offers new details of a key Jan. 3 Oval Office meeting during which top Trump administration officials warned of mass resignations if Trump sided with Clark’s plan to probe unfounded election fraud theories.

Clark had drafted a letter to Georgia officials in late December calling on them to call a special legislative session to examine supposed election irregularities. Clark later informed Rosen, who rejected his plans, that Trump was prepared to fire him and replace him with Clark if he didn’t follow through with them.

It all culminated in the Sunday evening meeting in the Oval Office. Rosen, Donoghue and Clark, were joined by White House lawyers Pat Cipollone, Pat Philbin, Eric Herschmann and another Justice Department official, Steve Engel.

“[Trump] opened the meeting by saying ‘One thing we know is Jeff Rosen leading the Justice Department, nothing is going to get done in trying to overturn the election,’” Rosen recalled of the meeting in his testimony to the Judiciary panel.

The tense meeting took place over about three hours as Trump debated with the group whether to replace Rosen with Clark. Rosen described the meeting a “six against one” — with all the participants besides Trump arguing against Clark.

Trump was “very frustrated,” recalled Donoghue. At one point, Cipollone warned that the Georgia letter was a “murder-suicide pact” that “will damage anyone and anything that it touches,” according to Donoghue’s testimony.

Ultimately, Trump sided with the majority of the participants in deciding not to follow Clark’s plan or tap him to replace Rosen.

Donoghue recalled that Trump looked at Clark and said he appreciated him for “being willing to step up and take all the abuse” but that it wasn’t worth the “breakage” of mass resignations.

Report overlaps with special Jan. 6 panel

Donoghue’s testimony to the committee comes amid reporting from Politico that he recently sat down with investigators from the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

The report also dovetails with the House’s investigatory efforts in focusing on the role played by then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.

The House committee recently subpoenaed Meadows, as well as several organizers of the Jan. 6 rally where Trump spoke shortly before his supporters stormed the Capitol.

The House committee has also hinted it may seek the records of lawmakers involved in the “Stop the Steal” effort, the name given to efforts to overturn President Biden’s win in the election. It’s a group that very well could include Perry.

The Senate report specifically recommends investigating Perry and others, noting that Trump told DOJ officials “just say the election was corrupt and leave the rest to me and the [Republican] Congressmen.”

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the chairman of the select committee, suggested the Senate report would be a resource for its own work.

“This report has provided alarming details about the lengths to which the former President and his associates went trying to overturn the 2020 election. I take to heart the recommendations to the Select Committee, and this report will be an important resource as we work to develop the context in which the events of January 6th occurred,” Thompson said in a statement.

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Pandora Papers: 4 takeaways Focus on Offshore Holdings – Pressure to Reign-InTax Havens

By Aris Folley

A massive leak revealing the secret assets of some of the world’s most powerful figures is putting new pressure on global leaders to crack down on shadowy finances.

The so-called Pandora Papers consist of millions of leaked financial documents that were reviewed and analyzed for two years by more than a hundred news outlets, including The Washington Post and the BBC, that are part of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

The trove illustrates the secretive practices that world leaders and wealthy individuals have employed to keep their assets hidden in dozens of countries, including the United States.

Here are four takeaways from the Pandora Papers.

South Dakota emerges as tax haven

South Dakota was spotlighted in the investigation as a leading offshore tax haven that’s been used by current and former world leaders over the years.

There were 81 trusts uncovered in South Dakota in the sweeping investigation as well 37 in Florida, 35 in Delaware, 24 in Texas and 14 in Nevada.

“The Pandora Papers provide details about tens of millions of dollars moved from offshore havens in the Caribbean and Europe into South Dakota,” the ICIJ said.

The probe found that the family of Carlos Morales Troncoso, the former vice president of the Dominican Republic, began tucking away its assets in trusts in the Midwest state in 2019.

The family of Ecuador’s newly elected president, Guillermo Lasso, also shifted two offshore companies from Panama to trusts in South Dakota in 2017 after lawmakers passed legislation in Ecuador that made it illegal for public officials to use tax havens for shielding their assets. Lasso told the ICIJ that his previous offshore financial activity was been “legal and legitimate.”

The ICIJ reported that state legislation in South Dakota over the years has helped allow for more more secretive investments.

Lauren Kohr, senior director of anti-money laundering, Americas, at the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists, said South Dakota, Nevada, Delaware, Arkansas and Wyoming have a reputation as “onshore-offshore states.”

“South Dakota is a trust-friendly state with minor restrictions, making it attractive domestically and globally for legitimate and illicit use,” she said.

Lawmakers seek crackdown on financial ‘enablers’

A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation following the release of the Pandora Papers seeking to crack down on financial “enablers” that help foreign clients hide their wealth in the U.S. using shell companies, trusts and other means.

“If we make banks report dirty money but allow law, real estate and accounting firms to look the other way, that creates a loophole that crooks and kleptocrats can sail a yacht through,” Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.), one of the four co-authors of the bill, said.

The legislation would require the Treasury Department to impose stronger due diligence rules laws by the end of 2023 for “middlemen,” including attorneys who help create limited liability companies for clients who abuse the law.

Ian Gary, executive director of the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition, called the bill a step in the direction.

“Unlike the banking sector, which is highly regulated and has to file suspicious activity reports and do ‘Know Your Customer’ due diligence, these lawyers, investment advisors, accountants … real estate agents, they’re not under those kinds of basic due diligence requirements,” he said.

“That’s why the Enablers Act, I think, is so important,” he said. “Again, the U.S. is behind some other countries and not having any requirements for those industries as well.”

King of Jordan has vast overseas assets, including in US

The investigation found that King Abdullah II of Jordan possessed 14 properties in the U.S. and the United Kingdom in purchases that amounted to more than $106 million.

One of the properties, in California, was purchased for $23 million in 2017 using an offshore company. Though the company was said to be based in the British Virgin Islands, the king also had a second company that served as a nominee director for the initial company.

“In the offshore world, nominee directors are people or companies paid to front for whoever is really behind a company,” the ICIJ said.

The king’s legal team said the purchases were made partly for security purposes.

There were three beachfront properties in Malibu in total that the investigation found the king, whose lawyers also said is not legally obligated to pay taxes in Jordan, purchased through offshore companies.

The king has drawn scrutiny in light of the investigation, as his nation continues to rely on aid from other countries.

The ICIJ linked the king to nearly 40 shell companies created between 1995 and 2017.

“If the Jordanian monarch were to display his wealth more publicly, it wouldn’t only antagonize his people, it would piss off Western donors who have given him money,” Annelle Sheline, a nonresident fellow at the Baker Institute Center for the Middle East, told the ICIJ.

There are also world leaders on the list who have a history of speaking out against corruption and similar offshore dealings used by the wealthy that employ the same practices or have people in their inner circle who do.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, who has previously said public servants must publicly declare their assets for transparency, has siblings who owned offshore companies that amounted to tens of millions of dollars, the ICIJ said.

Leaked files also showed Kenyatta was named as a beneficiary to “a secretive foundation in Panama,” the group said.

‘The Panama Papers wasn’t just a one-off situation’

The Pandora Papers were released by the same group behind the 2016 Panama Papers investigation, which was based on leaked offshore financial documents from a law firm in Panama that illustrated how thousands of clients, including world leaders and celebrities, used practices such as tax havens and shell companies to conceal their wealth.

The Pandora Papers, however, were centered around an even more robust investigation, sourcing documents from 14 offshore services firms across the globe that experts say provide a much wider look into an intricate underground system.

The ICIJ said its probe has exposed “financial secrets of 35 current and former world leaders, more than 330 politicians and public officials in 91 countries and territories” in addition to fugitives, con artists and murderers.

Prominent leaders named in the investigation include King Abdullah II of Jordan, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and the presidents of Ukraine, Kenya and Ecuador. The probe has also detailed some in the inner circle of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Though the group noted in its investigation that holding assets offshore or using shell companies for security purposes is legal in many countries, some advocates have urged for more regulation around the practices, which they note can also be misused for tax evasion or corruption.

Gary, with the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition, said the probe shows there is a “massive system of financial secrecy operating around the world.”

“It’s really validation that the Panama Papers wasn’t just a one-off situation,” he said, adding that the investigation indicates there are “two separate financial systems that are operating in the world.”

“One, which is people like us follow the law and pay taxes, and another one for some of the global rich and political elites who have been identified in Pandora Papers who are able to use financial secrecy to hide their assets overseas to avoid paying taxes,” he added.

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Small Corner Bar spills Guinness in Constituency Number Seven Domino League

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, October 8, 2021 (MMS-SKN) — Six of the seven games played on Thursday evening October 7 in the fourth segment of play in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League featured an all-round improved showing by the players as the competition heats up.

While they did not choose the venue, Small Corner Bar Domino Club met Guinness Domino Club at Cuban Bar in Lodge Project, where Small Corner Bar edged out Guinness 13-11 in a close contest.

First win since returning to Constituency Number Seven Domino League: Jamal Douglas of Ottley’s Domino Club in action in their 13-12 win over Saddlers Domino Club at the Edgar Gilbert Sporting Complex pavilion in Molineux.

At the neighbouring venue, the old Lodge Community Centre, two former champion teams faced their opponents with confidence as Unity Domino Club beat Sylvers Domino Club 13-6, and Lodge Domino Club stopped Unstoppable Domino Club with a 13-7 beating.

Defending champion team, Tabernacle Domino Club scrapped through a narrow 13-12 win over Phillips Domino Club in a highly competitive game at the Tabernacle Community Centre. The second game at the same venue saw Christ Church Domino Club beat another former champion team, Parsons Domino Club 13-7, after they would have beaten Lodge Domino Club on Tuesday.

Ottley’s Domino Club who returned to the league after an absence of many years won their first game by beating, in a closely contested game, Saddlers Domino Club 13-12 at the Edgar Gilbert Sporting Complex pavilion in Molineux.

The second game at the same venue between Mansion Domino Club and Molineux Domino Club did not take place after Roger Crawford, Captain of the Mansion team, raised an objection that the Molineux team had two ‘outside’ players. Players in the teams must be from their respective constituencies (Number Six or Number Seven), but an exception is allowed for one player from outside the constituency to play on the team.

At the end of the fourth segment of play in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, preliminary point standings have Christ Church and Unity sharing the top position with 18 points each, closely followed by the defending champion team Tabernacle who have 17 points.

Others, in order, are Saddlers 14 points, Lodge 13 points, Parsons 12 points, Sylvers 12 points, Phillips 12 points, Molineux 10 points, Small Corner Bar 10 points, Mansion 8 points, Guinness 6 points, Ottley’s 5 points, and Unstoppable 0 points.

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.

Fifth segment of play in this only round of play in the 26th edition of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League will be on Tuesday October 12 at the same four venues with all games starting at 7:00 p.m.

Tabernacle Community Centre will host the games between Saddlers and Mansion, and Parsons and Guinness. The Edgar Gilbert Sporting Complex pavilion in Molineux will host games between Unity and Christ Church, and Molineux and Phillips.

The old Lodge Community Centre in Lodge Project will be the venue for the defending Champion Tabernacle vs. Unstoppable, and Small Corner Bar vs. Sylvers games, while the final game between Lodge and Ottley’s will be held at Cuban Bar in Lodge Project.

Other players seen in action, clockwise from top: O’Brian Clarke of Tabernacle Domino Club, Simeon ‘Cuban’ of Unity Domino Club, Stanford James of Lodge Domino Club, and Trevor Richards of Christ Church Domino Club.

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