Highlights from the Print Newspaper edition - Issue No. 426
Updated as of | Wednesday, 18 June 2003 | 4:00PM
Up Front
News
Editorial
Letters to the Editor
Book Review
News Analysis
Ask Dr. Brothers
Health News
Overseas People
Overseas Feature
News From Our Region
Cayman Net News Daily Comics
Sports
Sports SUMMARY
Though little can be ascertained about their background, partially because they do not speak English, it has now been confirmed
Cubans Erect Low-Cost Homes
At least nine Cuban nationals are working on the Government's low-cost housing development, and at least some do not speak English.
Technical Director, Mr. Pierangelo Anonni inspects one of Government's low-cost homes
The project is scheduled to build 200 two and three bedrooms homes that will be available for CI$50,000 or less, and yet the quality of construction is such that it could reportedly withstand winds of 145 miles per hour.
According to Project Manager Mr. Andrew Gibb, the Cubans are here in a supervisory role because of their familiarity with the particular type of prefabricated home being erected in the project. Mr. Gibb said that he did not know the names of the Cuban workers, or any of the other details concerning them, because they were hired by one of the chief contracting companies, Vetromeccaniche Investments.
Although it has been suggested that the Cuban workers are here only as supervisors, Cayman Net News witnessed Cuban workers providing hands-on labour when the project site was visited last Monday.
Mr. Gibb also said that the Cuban workers spoke English well enough to discuss technical building details using jargon. But when one of the Cuban workers was approached and asked who the supervisor was, the man answered back in Spanish that he could not speak English.
It has also been suggested that the Cuban
workers are only being paid about $200 per month, although benefits
like food and housing are provided as well. Project technical
director Mr. Pierangelo Anonni of Vetromeccaniche Investments
says these reports are untrue, although he could not provide us
with their actual rate of pay. "It's complicated," he
said, "We pay their salaries directly to the Cuban government.
They are costing us more than Caymanians would."
Mr. Anonni confirmed that the Cuban workers are on the project
because of their familiarity with the type of prefab house being
built. "We have a contract with a Cuban company with which
we have collaborated for five years," he said.
Caymanian contractors have also been used on the project, according
to Mr. Anonni, performing the tasks of site preparation and the
building of foundations.
When questioned about whether the Cubans had been granted work permits or had been screened in any way prior to their arrival here, an Immigration official said that all inquiries on the subject had to be referred to the Ministry responsible for Housing.
Reached for comment about the situation, the Minister responsible for Housing, Dr. the Hon. Frank McField said, "We are not allowing any news on this for a few weeks. We have nothing to impart."
After speaking with us on two instances, Mr. Gibb instructed us on a third occasion to refer all questions concerning the project to Dr. McField.
Despite questions raised about the project,
Mr. Gibb expressed confidence that the project will be finished
on time. "The first stage will be complete some time in the
last quarter of this year," he said, adding that the first
stage will represent over one-quarter of the homes in the project
and that completion of the entire project is still on schedule
for May, 2004.
Contrary to some reports, Mr. Gibb said that the original prices
quoted for the homes are "still valid."
Mr. Gibb said that people would be impressed with the end result. "The homes are top-notch, European quality," he said, "Our expectation has at every stage been matched."
Mr. Anonni also thinks the homes worthy of praise. "I hope you will write good things about the project," he said, "It is a good project."
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New
Mental Health Unit Means Fewer Lock-ups
A new 6,600 sq. ft. mental health unit is set to open this August at the George Town Hospital to provide 24-hour emergency care and crisis intervention, consultation, and liaison services.
The expected opening date of the unit was announced at the press conference held by the Minister of Health, the Hon. Gilbert McLean on 9 June. Permanent Secretary Ms. Andrea Bryan said that the new facility would be instrumental in changing the practice of housing mentally ill patients in need of treatment at the George Town lock-up, as has been the case in the past.
According to Medical Department Business Manager Mr. Phil Slater, while the practice of keeping patients at H.M. Prison at Northward has been abandoned for some time, the George Town Police Headquarters lock-up has been used as a designated place of safety for patients who were too emotionally distressed to travel overseas for in-patient care. "Since the development of the Community Nurse team," he says, "the number of patients housed at the lock-up has decreased by 90 percent and no one is sent to Northward anymore when the issue is purely one of mental health."
He explains that it is hoped the new facility eradicates almost all of the remaining cases which do end up at the lock-up, but stresses that some may still occur based on the fact that patients may first be apprehended by police, and then taken to the lock-up to await assessment by hospital workers.
The new facility will be comprised of two
parts. The first is an eight-bed in-patient facility with psychiatric
nurses and an occupational therapist to provide specialised medical
treatment for acutely disturbed patients.
The second is a day-care facility to provide a supportive learning
environment, clinical assistance and social support for patients
having ongoing difficulties with community adjustment and interpersonal
relations. This programme will also offer continuing treatment
weekdays, while keeping the patient in the community.
Services will also be available for medium care treatment of acute psychiatric patients.
Outpatient services have been available at the hospital for the last fourteen years. Currently, there is one psychiatrist, two clinical psychologists, and one psychiatric social worker who provide these services; they are aided by a five-person community-based mental health nursing team.
When asked about facilities to accommodate patients for longer periods, Mr. Slater indicated that although no concrete plans have yet been made, such facilities are part of the hospital's long-term plan. "This new unit is not going to be treated as a hostel," he says, "as we do not want to institutionalise people. But it will be a part of the process of preventing people from going overseas."
He also indicated that one possibility being investigated is to keep more people in their own homes aided by the community nurses. "Social Services has been successful by placing people in some of their homes and working in conjunction with Health Services to help people to function in the community," he says. "After all, in the end you can't live in a hospital forever."
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Jet
Around Cayman Sees Record Fall
The 2003 Jet Around Cayman came to an exciting finish at the Royal Palms on Seven Mile Beach Monday afternoon with Kenny Rankin (seated front) coming in first in a new record time. Second was William Ebanks (missing from photo), third was Shane Ebanks (far right) and fourth overall was Dan Patrick, who also captured first place in the veteran's category. A full report and more photos will appear in a future edition of Cayman Net News.
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World
report
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
TEHRAN: Iran's clerical regime was bombarded with pressure from all sides, including mounting US-backed street protests at home and pressure from the UN atomic energy agency and European Union over its suspected nuclear weapons programme.
VIENNA: The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog called on Iran to allow tougher inspections of its atomic sites amid US claims that Tehran is secretly developing nuclear weapons.
MILAN: Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
prepared to testify in his corruption trial for possibly the last
time as parliament was set to pass a bill that will effectively
freeze the proceedings.
BAGHDAD: After weeks of being thrown on the defensive by a spate
of deadly attacks, the US army has launched a massive hearts and
minds campaign across western Iraq in a bid to ease the resentment
which has fuelled the unrest.
ACCRA: The Liberian government and rebels holding most of the war-riven west African country accused each other of sparking fresh clashes, raising a new hurdle to efforts for a truce to end a barbaric four-year conflict.
MOSCOW: Russia on September 1 will hand responsibility for security in Chechnya from its secret services to the interior ministry, officials said, in a symbolic move aimed at signaling that order was returning to the war-torn republic.
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News
Price reduction for Pageant Beach festival
The Quincentennial Celebrations office has announced a change in the price of tickets for this weekend's (20-21 June) cultural festival at Pageant Beach.
Adult tickets will now cost $5 instead of $15, and children under 12 will pay $1.00 instead of $5 for entry to the festival on either day.
Executive Director of the Quincentennial Celebrations Office, Mrs. Angela Martins, explained that the prices were reduced "to give all members of the community the opportunity to participate." She added, "This has been made possible by the generous support of several sponsors."
Also donated by sponsors as raffle prizes are a cruise, a Mini Cooper and $38,000.
Twenty-two countries have
signed up for booths and pavilions to showcase their music, food,
art and craft, national costumes and a wide variety of entertainment.
Participating countries are the UK, USA, Jamaica, Cuba, Honduras,
Colombia, Mexico, Costa Rica, Switzerland, Ireland, Brazil, Belize,
Russia, India, Austria, Thailand, Malaysia, Australia, the Philippines,
Holland, Guyana, and China. The Cayman Islands host pavilion will
be a central focus of the festival.
The Troubadours band from Barbados will headline the entertainment,
in addition to local bands and performers at the booths of each
country.
Tickets for the Festival are on sale at Funky Tangs, Celebrations, Jose's Service Station, Gold's Gym, Pirate's Week Office, Fosters Food Fair at the Airport and the Strand, Hurley's Supermarket, Grand Harbour, On-the-Run, Industrial Park and Red Bay, and the Quincentennial Office.
For further information on the festival, contact Mrs. Angela Martins on 946-9992.
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Government
High School Band to perform in Orlando
Some Tropical Attitude Band members with (r-l) Errol Watler and Chris Bowring of the Music Association, and Mike Galvin of George Hicks.
The combined George Hicks/John Gray High School Band has been invited to perform at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida on Friday, 27 June and fund-raising efforts are under way to finance the trip.
Recently, a donation from the Cayman Music & Entertainment Association (CMEA) was added to the monies raised so far. Presenting the cheque to Fran McConvey and Mike Galvin of the George Hicks music department, CMEA Board member Errol Watler said the trip to Florida would add to the students musical experience while helping to promote the Islands.
The band, with 45 players, will be performing under the name of Tropical Attitude.
George Hicks Music Director Fran McConvey, who will be playing along with the students, said, "We have to raise the money for this trip, so we are grateful for the Music Association's help. We also see some of these youngsters with a possible career in music ahead of them."
Persons wishing to contribute to the effort are asked to contact Fran McConvey at 949-9488.
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BPW
Club meeting focuses on domestic abuse
Joyann Rollings
The General Meeting of the Business and Professional Women's (BPW) Club of Grand Cayman was held on Thursday, 12 June at the Lobster Pot.
President Joyann Rollings welcomed the members, in particular the Young BPW Club members who have recently become a part of the main club.
The speaker for this event was Dr. John Epp of the Cayman Islands Law School. "Since the inception of the BPW Club's 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, Dr. Epp has always been very supportive and given his invaluable advice whenever called upon," commented Ms. Rollings.
On this occasion, Dr. Epp challenged the Club to another facet of the domestic violence problem and focused his talk on the abuser. He gave three reasons for this approach.
First, Dr. Epp suggested that assisting the abuser or curing the abuser would break the cycle of violence, therefore fewer victims would suffer and fewer children would witness and learn the behaviour.
Second, he predicted, "Curing abusers will lower the demands on the Crisis Center, Police and Court time, and will keep abusers out of jail".
Lastly, he added, "Curing abusers would allow them to be good citizens and family men, and keep them working and paying child support."
Dr. Epp cited a research programme now being tested in London, Ontario, called "Changing Ways." It would require our Courts to approve the programme and have first-time offenders assigned to it. Then, once the offender had successfully completed the programme, a lighter sentence or conditional discharge could be awarded.
BPW Club executive members discussed this programme briefly after the meeting, and are interested in learning more from some of the Ontario cities that are running this programme, with a view to starting a similar one in the Cayman Islands.
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Seafarers
Continue Support of HSA
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Cayman Islands Seafarers' Association President, Mr. Astor Ebanks, hands over a CI$15,000 cheque to Manager of Patient Financial Services, Ms. Carole Appleyard.
Cayman Islands Seafarers' Association continued its pattern of supporting the Health Services Authority recently with a donation of CI$15,000.
Association President, Mr. Astor Ebanks, handed over the cheque to Manager of Patient Financial Services Ms. Carole Appleyard on Wednesday, 7 May, at the Cayman Islands Hospital. He commented, "The donation is the Seafarers' way of saying 'thank you' to HSA staff for the service we and our spouses receive."
The Seafarers' Association's contribution was taken from a special account that it established in June 2001. Each member donates monthly, and monies are periodically handed over to the ministry responsible for health services. Since the fund's inception, association members have donated a total of $45,000.
Ms. Appleyard, who is also the HSA's accounts receivables consultant, noted the authority's gratefulness for the donation.
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GIS
receives commendations for Royal Visit assistance
Ms. Patricia Ebanks, Chief Information Officer
Buckingham Palace has written to commend Cayman's Government Information Services for its assistance during the recent visit of HRH the Earl of Wessex. The Governor HE Mr. Bruce Dinwiddy has also conveyed similar sentiments.
"From what I have seen, media coverage has been extensive and positive, and this was certainly due to your considerable efforts," wrote Assistant Press Secretary to HM The Queen, Ms. Ailsa Anderson. "It was a pleasure to work with you, and I hope to do so again in the future."
In his commendation, the Governor thanked the unit for the its "very big contribution to the success of the recent visit by His Royal Highness the Earl of Wessex."
"Your help with advance publicity was of course invaluable, but I also greatly appreciated your management of the media representatives covering the visit and all you did to publicise the visit afterwards," the Governor said, adding: "I was particularly impressed by the timely and excellently presented report on the Government's web site."
In his wide-ranging May 9-12 visit, HRH The Earl of Wessex, Queen Elizabeth's youngest son, enjoyed a panoramic view of the three Islands' cultural, environmental, historical and social development.
In addition to publicising
the visit, the Government Information Services played a major
role in briefing media on relevant arrangements and protocol for
the visit. This role included preparing a comprehensive press
kit, conducting various
pre-visit media briefings, and accompanying the press throughout
the visit to ensure that they had the fullest opportunity to do
their job, while complying with protocol, etc.
While some staff was assigned to assisting the media, others covered the visit, taking pictures and writing reports. As the visit progressed, these were uploaded on the Government's web site as a public service. The royal visit report can be viewed at www.gov.ky.
Ms. Patricia Ebanks, Chief Information Officer, paid tribute to her staff as well as local media for their cooperation. "A visit as extensive as this places extra demand on my very busy staff, so the credit really goes to them for its success from the media perspective," Ms. Ebanks said, while also paying tribute to the local media for all the arrangements that they had to put in place for the visit.
"It is always a pleasure
working with local media on visits like these," Ms. Ebanks
said, adding that the visit would not have been quite the same
without their hard work in telling the story for the benefit of
the wider Cayman audience and beyond. GIS also received invaluable
support from RCIP's Michael Cansell, who joined the team assisting
the press.
"It was particularly helpful to have the Earl's press secretary,
Ms. Anderson, who was always ready and available throughout the
visit for consultation and advice," Ms. Ebanks said. "She
definitely helped assure balance to that delicate equation of
facilitating press access while preserving necessary protocol."
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Local
teens to attend global conference
|
Mr. Brandon Bernard |
Miss Laura McLaughlin |
Two local Caymanian Triple C School students have been selected to attend the Global Young Leaders Conference in Washington DC and New York City in June and July.
Recent graduate of Triple C School, Ms. Laura McLaughlin, will attend the 15-26 June conference, while Mr. Brandon Bernard, who has one more year left at Triple C, will participate in the 13-24 July session.
The conference is a unique leadership development program for secondary school students from around the world, especially for those who have demonstrated leadership potential and scholastic merit. A total of 350 other outstanding scholars from around the world will attend.
The theme of the event is "the leaders of tomorrow preparing for the global challenges and responsibilities of the future." Students will interact with key leaders and newsmakers with powerful influence over politics, finance, culture and diplomacy, and will take part in a carefully designed curriculum, which includes thought-provoking simulations that build leadership skills.
"The Global Young Leaders Conference
(GYLC) challenges students to cross cultural barriers and collaborate
in a team effort to tackle many of the conflicts facing the world
today," said Michael Lasday, Executive Director of the Congressional
Youth Leadership Council (CYLC), the organization that sponsors
GYLC. "We firmly believe that for a student who may have
a history of conflict with a student of a different culture, the
barriers can be lowered by recognising differences and building
on similarities. When ideas and points of view are shared, the
true results of the Conference are realised."
Both students are excited about the trip. "I think it will
be a great experience," says Laura, "because it's a
good way to learn to interact with different cultures and to learn
about current political issues."
Brandon is also looking forward to what the conference will offer him. "It will give us an opportunity to learn how the United Nations works," he says, "as well as the chance to meet foreign students and learn about life in various countries."
GYLC culminates with the Global Summit, in which students apply what they've learned throughout the conference as they debate, negotiate and build coalitions dealing with issues such as foreign aid, global warming, cooperative efforts in space, terrorism and human rights. Past highlights of the program include welcoming remarks from a variety of young leaders who make and leave their mark on the international community, a briefing at the US Department of State, and address at the United Nations and site visits at financial institutions on Wall Street, among several other events.
CYLC is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization. Founded in 1985, the Council is committed to fostering and inspiring young people to achieve their full leadership potential. More than 400 members of the US Congress join this commitment by serving on the CYLC Honorary Congressional Board of Advisors. In addition, more than 25 embassies participate in the CYLC Honorary Board of Embassies.
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AT&T
donates to Cancer Society
Mr. Jim Wilson, AT&T Wireless Business Development Lead for the Cayman Islands presented a cheque for CI$500 to the Cancer Society earlier this week.
Mr. Wilson commented that, "AT&T is pleased to assist the worthwhile efforts of the Cayman Islands Cancer Society. This is something very close to my heart." He added, "My mother was a tireless fund-raiser for the Cancer Society in Syracuse, New York, so as a young man I learned by example the importance of volunteerism and commitment to the needs of one's community."
The Cancer Society's main focus is one of education and awareness including creating programmes to assist in quitting smoking, conducting educational seminars and presentations, and providing financial aid for cancer patients and support groups for cancer survivors.
Those interested in further information regarding the Cancer Society should call 949-7618.
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Editorial
The Minimum Wage Debate
The Cayman Islands has come a long way since
its days of seafaring and lack of employment. Today, it boasts
the highest standard of living in the Caribbean, thanks to the
influx of industries that have settled upon its shores.
Many people come to Cayman to partake in the economy, and to benefit
from its tax-free status. While some come from countries that
are also economically stable, others come here to find a better
life than they ever might have found in their country of origin.
For those who have few opportunities at home, no job is beneath them. They come to do the work that others don't want to do, and will often accept far less in terms of remuneration than others would. Frequently, they send their earnings home to loved ones who are left behind. That money can afford them things they would have otherwise had to go without.
One cannot help but think, however, about the person who sends the money. As long as they are still living here, they must cope with the high cost of living. Chances are, they will not rise to the levels of the wealthier classes, but many are not dismayed by this fact. They are content to work hard and receive whatever money they can.
Employers in Cayman in most cases are aware of the economic hardships of many of those who come to work here. One would hope that this desperation would not be taken advantage of, merely because of the lack of local minimum wage laws to protect workers from exploitation.
After all, in developed societies, most
would feel ashamed to know that eager, hardworking people were
paid sums below that which they need to reasonably sustain themselves,
regardless of the type of work they are engaged in.
While it is mostly the imported labourer who is paid below reasonable
market value for their services, the are also certain segments
of Caymanian workers who would benefit from the enactment of a
minimum wage.
Some, however, do not share the same view. They would prefer to adhere to a more 'laissez-faire' approach, which allows for the hiring of personnel for whatever wages the workers might accept.
Moreover, some feel that Cayman should not bear responsibility for those who come here from countries that offer them little in the way of opportunity. By allowing employers to pay whatever they want, these people will still be grateful, since they will still be making more than they ever would in their native countries.
These people too, have choices. They do not have to come here to work. They could perhaps go somewhere where minimum wage laws might be in force, if they see the opportunity as more beneficial in the long run. That way, employers will not be forced to cut profit margins when they are already facing higher business costs, such as pension and healthcare benefits for their employees.
Beyond the possible moral quandary of paying employees below their worth based on their country of origin, having a system whereby entire sections of people earn too little to reasonably survive can create problems in a society.
The stratification of classes is more evident than ever these days in Cayman, and while the recent spate of crime might be unrelated to wages, it is certainly something to consider when pondering the question of the need for a minimum wage.
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Letters
to the editor
Let cultural choice decide on Batabano
Dear Sir,
As the creator of Batabano, I have been following the interesting recent debate about the event, in public and private and would ask space for the following.
Unlike the Eastern Caribbean, where I originate, there is no carnival tradition in the Cayman Islands, and when I started the event with Rotary almost two decades ago, I took pains to point this out on several occasions, and to stress the need to nurture the event, to explain the concepts, to create understanding and acceptance, and thereby, to generate the critically needed corporate support.
Unfortunately, this has not happened and it contributes to the present situation. Corporate support is essential here because unlike Trinidad, where people actually save monthly (as if buying a car) to buy a costume to play mas', people in Cayman expect to be given a costume. That's one aspect of the absence of tradition, but there are others.
In the first place, carnival is a complex
and multi-layered phenomenon, and it is important to understand,
from the outset, that there are significant cultural, spiritual
and religious aspects to the event. It is described as bacchanal,
and it is that, but there are immense sociological factors behind
the bacchanal that have evolved over time into the event we see
today in various Caribbean territories as well as in extra-regional
locations where Caribbean people have migrated.
Carnival is a powerful cultural magnet that has a significant
and enduring hold on Caribbean people, (Trinidadians, in particular)
and it is truly present in their lives, in all its various aspects,
year-round, not just at the time of the event. (I introduced one
Trinidadian to another one here recently, and after the initial
name exchange, the very first question from one Trini to the other
was, "So you went home last year for Carnival?" It is
not just a happening; it is part of their way of life in ways
that most people in Cayman don't truly comprehend. That attitude,
if you will, is therefore a resource that drives Carnival and
it is obviously one that the Batabano organisers do not enjoy
here.
In the second place, to evaluate what you
see on the street in Trinidad carnival (which Batabano emulates)
it is critical to understand the varied concepts behind that visual
display. The Mudders, for example, oft maligned in Cayman, is
in its original conception, actually a public spiritual affirmation
of man's connection with Mother Earth. The masqueraders are covering
their bodies with earth, moistened so it would stick, to acknowledge
their reliance, their very existence ("dust thou art")
on Nature. Of course, the display can be corrupted, but it is
important to understand what the idea is.
Many of the events in Trinidad carnival are, as the Trinis say,
"serious business, padna". The Blue Devils, for instance,
or other devil costumes, are not intended to glorify Satan at
all; these displays are actually put on by deeply devout Christians
who are using the costume to remind us of the presence of evil
in the world and to reinforce that we must guard against it. In
the same way, a bandleader whose elaborate Carnival King costume
is Lucifer is not endorsing Satan; he is sounding a warning. Carnival
costume designers regularly tackle religious, spiritual, mythical,
and literary concepts in their portrayals. Yes, some bandleaders
give in to the commercial inclination to "show skin,"
but the concept of the mas' being "played" remains on
the table. Space does not permit me to provide explanations of
other aspects of carnival (midnight robber; ol' Mas; Moko Jumbie;
Sailor etc.) that fall into the category of sociological or religious
manifestations of daily life. The people who engage in these portrayals
are deeply committed to what they do; they come out every year,
some for decades, in this endeavour. In many cases, only ill-health
or death, prevent them from being on the road for the carnival
Monday and Tuesday before Lent. In sum, Carnival is way more than
the pretty mas' some people refer to; it is virtually a way of
life to these people; it affects, and this is no exaggeration,
the fibre of their daily lives.
Of course, at play in the Batabano debate here is the question
of what Cayman will accept or reject, and that is another matter
completely, but as I submitted to Rotary in the 1980s when I started
Batabano with Rotarian David Peynado, the education process is
very germane for the event. What you see in the carnivals of Trinidad,
St. Vincent, Barbados, Grenada, Antigua, etc. has evolved over
time on the usual basis of cultural selection or adaptation. Aspects
that those societies didn't want, or that proved difficult to
sustain (Ol' Mas, for example), have fallen by the wayside, and
the same process will work on Batabano as it does in every cultural
evolution.
When we adopt a recipe from another culture,
as we do with Batabano, while there is nothing wrong with the
adoption, it is very often the case that we have to tailor the
recipe to suit the taste of the indigenous culture. Trinidad,
for example, took the sedate ballroom masquerade behaviours of
French high society, present in early colonial Trinidad, and changed
it into a street explosion more akin to Trinidad's African/Indian
taste. They changed the recipe to suit them.
Ultimately, that will be the criterion, that is simply the way
of social evolution, and don't expect it to happen overnight.
The essential point, however, is that carnival has evolved over
many decades in the Eastern Caribbean through a long, slow process.
As is so often the case in Cayman, we are coming to many things
50 years after the rest of the Caribbean, and the carnival evolution
process is only now starting here.
To the people involved in the present pulling and tugging, my only advice is that rancour and intransigence don't lead anywhere. Look at what's in front of you and at what the indications are. Cultural choice is the most powerful social force in the world; it dominates all political, economic and social decisions. In this case, as in others, it will eventually settle the question.
Dave Martins
Pirates' Week National Festival
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Pakistan
to change Kashmir stand
By Anwar Iqbal, UPI South Asian Affairs Analyst
WASHINGTON (UPI) Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will propose a composite dialogue with India on the entire spectrum of their relations rather than just the Kashmir dispute when he visits Washington next week, diplomatic sources told United Press International.
Musharraf arrives in the United States on June 20 on a 10-day visit, but his official engagements start June 24 when he meets President George W. Bush at Camp David, MD. He will be the first South Asian leader to visit the presidential resort.
Pakistan's offer for simultaneous talks on all issues reflects a paradigm shift in the country's position on Kashmir, the sources said.
Both nations claim Kashmir in its entirety. India controls some two-thirds, Pakistan a little less than one-third, and China the rest. In the past, Kashmir has remained a stumbling block between the two sides because Pakistan says it is the first dispute that must be settled before other issues are taken up.
"The concept of composite dialogue goes beyond Pakistan's traditional stance that Kashmir should be settled first before other issues are discussed," said a senior South Asian diplomat. "What Pakistan is saying now is that India and Pakistan can discuss bilateral trade, Sir Creek, boundary disputes, people-to-people contacts and other issues along with the Kashmir dispute. They do not have to finish Kashmir first."
Sir Creek refers to the area of water with access to the sea between the Pakistani province of Sindh and the Indian state of Gujarat. Both nations claim it.
At the same time, diplomatic sources said
though efforts to resume Pakistan-India dialogue would be high
on the agenda of talks between Bush and Musharraf, it would be
wrong to expect a breakthrough, especially on Kashmir.
"The talks will be about resuming bilateral dialogue between
India and Pakistan and President Bush will see it as a major achievement
if he succeeds in bringing the two sides to the table," said
a senior South Asian diplomat.
"He realizes that disputes like Kashmir are not so easy to
resolve."
The issue of Kashmir is an emotional one for both nations. It is predominantly Hindu India's only Muslim majority state and has been the scene of a separatist uprising since the late 1980s that has killed several thousand, mostly civilians. India accuses Muslim Pakistan of financing the rebels; Islamabad says it gives them moral support only. The two nuclear-armed neighbors have fought two wars over Kashmir and have come close to a third on more than one occasion.
Over the past few weeks, however, there has been a thaw in relations with both sides announcing a series of confidence-building measures that many hope will lead to talks between them.
After their initial contacts with Indian and Pakistani officials, U.S. officials have indicated they see a genuine desire for talks on both sides.
"We can hope for a real improvement in the environment," said a U.S. official. But on the Kashmir issue, both sides were still staying close to their traditional stances, he added.
"These are, of course, extreme positions and we expect them to soften their stances when the talks begin," the diplomat said.
Both Indian and Pakistani diplomats are urging reporters from their countries in Washington not to expect a breakthrough on Kashmir - at least not yet.
"Right now, we are talking about talks how and when to start the dialogue," said another senior South Asian diplomat. "Once the talks start, we will discuss the modalities and the less difficult issues first and then we move on to Kashmir."
Hillary Clinton, the Neo of her own matrix
By MICHAEL WALSH, United Press International
To properly appreciate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's new book, "Living History," it's essential to understand what it is. Mrs. Clinton's work is neither a soul-searching literary autobiography, a self-serving campaign manifesto, nor even a celebrity memoir, though it comes closest to that.
Rather, it's best comprehended as a kind of homage to the mythos of Joseph Campbell, a 500-plus-page odyssey of a starry-eyed heroine, who hears the call to action, leaves the Ordinary World and bravely ventures forth into a dark and hostile place. Increasingly sure of her mission, and convinced of the rightness of her cause, she engages the forces of darkness and combats them, emerging into the light to guide her people to a new and better destiny in a place called Hillaryland.
In other words, think of Sen. Clinton, as Neo in The Matrix and you won't be far wrong.
What's missing, though, is the most essential mythic element of all - passion. In this arid, airless, antiseptic memoir, the product of at least three ghostwriters, there is no animating spirit, no sense of a grand quest, and no display of high moral purpose. Just a steady, plodding forced march through names, dates, events, crises and triumphs as the changeling Hillary transforms herself from benighted Goldwater Girl to Watergate scourge to feminist wife of the governor of Arkansas, to First Lady and, at last, a Senator in her own right. Indeed, to hear Mrs. Clinton tell it, her life has basically been an unending procession of meetings, hearings, institutes and conferences - unaccountably punctuated by deaths, mysterious suicides, lawsuits, investigations, bimbo eruptions, electoral defeats and scandals vile and various. You know, the kinds of things that happen to everybody.
A full and frank account of the latter category would be fascinating, and no doubt Simon & Schuster, the publisher, thought it might be getting some of the juicy bits for its $8 million advance. No such luck. Her father's death, Vince Foster's suicide, her and Bill Clinton's various trials of body and soul are all recounted in the same flat, matter-of-fact midwestern accent that characterizes Mrs. Clinton's speech patterns. Where's the outrage? Where's the ardor? Where's the beef?
Even a moment as profoundly human as giving birth to her daughter, Chelsea, which Mrs. Clinton rightly calls "miraculous and awe-inspiring," elicits this extraordinary bureaucratic meditation on page 85, just four paragraphs later: "Bill and I... emerged from our experience committed to ensuring that all parents have the option to stay home with their newborn children and to have reliable child care when they return to work. That's why I was so thrilled when the first bill he signed as President was the Family and Medical Leave Act."
That's about as reflective as Mrs. Clinton gets in "Living History." The enchanted world of HRC - a place she refers to throughout the book as "Hillaryland" - does not revolve around people, but programs. In Manichean Hillaryland, Democrats are centrists while Republicans are right wing; national universal health care is an unexamined Great Good and the more rights children have the better. And anybody who thinks different is not just wrong, but evil.
This wouldn't be a Campbell story without a panoply of archetypes, and Hillaryland fairly bristles with mentors, guardians and heralds, who warn and challenge her. When she's first hired by the Rose Law Firm, one of the partners gives her a copy of Dickens' Hard Times; "who could have known what an appropriate gift that would be?" During the first presidential campaign, veteran ABC newsman Hal Bruno emerges from the shadows of the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles to warn: "Be careful who you trust." In her living room on Fifth Avenue, Jackie Kennedy advises her to "protect Chelsea at all costs," and as for Bill: "he has to be very careful. Very careful."
By page 140, Hillary finally realizes what's happening to her: "I have been a wife, mother, daughter, sister, in-law, student, lawyer, children's rights activist, law professor, Methodist, political adviser, citizen and so much else. Now I was a symbol..."
In any fable, once the Heroine realizes her true messianic nature, all opposition is immediately discredited. When Gennifer Flowers goes public with her allegations of a long affair with Bill Clinton, Hillary refuses to believe it because, "He told me it wasn't true." Paula Jones is self-evidently lying and as for Monica Lewinsky, the scales only fell from her eyes when Bill finally fessed up. Nixon's near-impeachment and resignation may have been the well-deserved comeuppance of a villain, but her husband's actual impeachment "was part of a political war waged by people determined to sabotage the president's agenda on the economy, education, Social Security, health care, the environment and the search for peace in Northern Ireland, the Balkans and the Middle East."
In the end, "Living History" is a handy pullout guide to the highlights of 1969-2002 with a fierce partisan spin. Still, it's not Mrs. Clinton's observations that are the problem, but what she doesn't observe at all. For the smartest woman in the world, an awful lot of things fly under her radar.
One would love to know, for example, her reaction to arriving in the fabulously corrupt town of Hot Springs, Ark. as a Chicago-bred, Yale-educated Yankee. When Clinton was growing up there, the town (and by extension, the state) was essentially run as a criminal fiefdom by the notorious gangster Owney Madden, a Prohibition-era mobster with strong Tammany Hall connections who "retired" to Hot Springs in 1935 and lived there as one of the major figures in American organized crime until his death in 1965.
Madden, who had founded the Cotton Club in New York, produced Mae West's shows on Broadway and fixed Primo Carnera's fights, controlled a number of gambling nightclubs in Hot Springs and environs, ran a racing wire with Moses Annenberg and routinely paid off whoever was sitting in the governor's chair in nearby Little Rock with suitcases full of cash. When Lucky Luciano was indicted by Dewey in 1936, he fled to Hot Springs for protection and it was only the threat of the Arkansas National Guard that made Madden cough Charlie Lucky up to the feds. The kind of place where Hillary's quick $100,000 profit in the commodities market (for which she still has no adequate explanation) was strictly amateur night at the Roxy.
Everybody in Hot Springs, most certainly including Bill Clinton, knew who Owney Madden was, and what he did. Indeed, many of the Clintonistas' later tactics were drawn directly from Madden's own legal machinations in New York in the 1930s, including the routine dismissal of serious allegations as "old news."
But Hot Springs was Bill Clinton's hometown,
the place were his colorful, much-married mother, Virginia Cassidy
Blythe Clinton Dwire Kelley lived, worked and played. (in her
capacity as a nurse, she helped treat Madden on several occasions.)
So what could be wrong with it? Hillary beholds the sinkhole of
corruption that spawned the
Clinton Administration and observes: "the thoroughbred racetrack
and illegal gambling had attracted visitors like Babe Ruth, Al
Capone and Minnesota Fats." The Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce
can do better than that, and more honestly.
From time to time, if only to provide dramatic rhythm, Mrs. Clinton admits to fleeting moments of self-doubt. After the midterm elections of 1994, in which a Republican became Speaker of the House for the first time four decades, she wonders "how much I was to blame for the debacle: whether we had lost the election over health care; whether I had gambled on the country's acceptance of my active role and lost. And I struggled to understand how I had become such a lightning rod for people's anger."
The struggle, no doubt, will continue in the sequel. If The Matrix can reload, so can Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Shame of Duranty's Pulitzer
By MARTIN SIEFF, UPI Senior News Analyst
WASHINGTON (UPI) - As the U.S. media still digests the shock and lessons of the Jayson Blair affair at The New York Times; a far older and far worse journalistic wrong may soon be posthumously righted. The Pulitzer Prize board is reviewing the award it gave to New York Times Moscow correspondent Walter Duranty more than 70 years ago for his shamefully - and knowingly - false coverage of the great Ukrainian famine.
"In response to an international campaign, the Pulitzer Prize board has begun an 'appropriate and serious review' of the 1932 award given to Walter Duranty of The New York Times," Andrew Nynka reported in the May 25 edition of the New Jersey-published Ukrainian Weekly. The campaign included a powerful article in the May 7 edition of the conservative National Review magazine.
Sig Gissler, administrator for the Pulitzer Prize board, told the Ukrainian Weekly that the "confidential review by the 18-member Pulitzer Prize board is intended to seriously consider all relevant information regarding Mr. Duranty's award," Nynka wrote.
The utter falsehood of Duranty's claims
that there was no famine at all in the Ukraine - a whopping lie
that was credulously swallowed unconditionally by the likes of
George Bernard Shaw, H.G. Wells and many others - has been documented
and common knowledge for decades. But neither the Times nor the
Pulitzer board ever before steeled themselves to launch such a
ponderous, unprecedented - and potentially immensely embarrassing
-
procedure. Indeed, Gissler told the Ukrainian Weekly that there
are no written procedures regarding prize revocation. There are
no standards or precedents for revoking the prize.
The Ukrainian famine of 1929-33, named the "Harvest of Sorrow" by historian Robert Conquest in his classic book on the subject, was the largest single act of genocide in European history. The death toll even exceeded the Nazi Holocaust against the Jewish people a few years later.
In all, 10 million Ukrainians, most of them peasants, died as catastrophic, stupid and cruel collectivization policies were imposed by Soviet dictator Josef Stalin on the richest, most fertile, wheat-exporting breadbasket in the world. In the decades before World War I, its annual grain exports regularly vastly outstripped those of the American Midwest.
The enforced collectivization of land and the unbelievable death toll were deliberately whipped up by conscious policy and malice. Stalin was determined to crush the slightest remaining glimmer of Ukrainian national identity and also to liquidate the "kulaks" or wealthy peasants, which in practical terms meant any family with the expertise to raise a decent crop on the land. Mass shootings of entire families, or so-called liquidations, were commonplace. The production of food collapsed.
Yet the mainstream Western media was virtually
blind to what was going on. And in the United States, serious
newspapers across the nation took their lead from the then-revered
and utterly trusted Duranty. As Richard Pipes, a leading U.S.
authority on Soviet history, noted, "It has been said that
no man has done more to paint in the United States a favorable
image of the Soviet Union at a time when it was suffering under
the most savage tyranny known to man."
British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge, London correspondent for
the left-wing Manchester Guardian, scooped the world by fearlessly
going into the Ukraine and defying the Soviet secret police -
then known as the OGPU - to expose the true horrors of the famine.
He also knew Duranty well and observed him closely.
Writing 40 years later in his classic memoirs "Chronicles of Wasted Time," Muggeridge concluded that Duranty was a sociopath without a grain of professional integrity or human decency to his name. He described Duranty as "a little, sharp-witted, energetic man" who liked "to hint at aristocratic connections and classical learning, of which, I must say, he produced little evidence. One of his legs had been amputated after a train accident, but he was very agile at getting about with an artificial one."
Duranty may well have been blackmailed or bribed or both by the Soviets, but Muggeridge concluded that his real motive in lying outright about what he knew to be true and helping the Soviets in their unprecedented, astonishingly successful cover-up was a far simpler one: He loved and revered Stalin precisely because he was so colossally murderous and cruel.
"He admired Stalin and the regime precisely
because they were so strong and ruthless. 'I put my money on Stalin'
was one of his favorite sayings.'" Indeed, Muggeridge related
that in one conversation they had, Duranty even
admitted to him that he knew there was a catastrophic food shortage,
even famine in Ukraine and that he knew the Soviet authorities
were prepared to kill large numbers of people there to keep control.
As Muggeridge described the conversation,
"But, he said, banging the sides of the sofa, remember that
you can't make omelettes without breaking eggs - another favorite
saying. They'll win, he went on; they're bound to win. If necessary,
they'll harness the peasants to the ploughs but I tell you they'll
get the harvest in and feed the people that matter. The people
that mattered were the men in the Kremlin and their underlings.
... The others were just serfs, reserves of the proletariat, as
Stalin called them. Some would die, surely, perhaps, quite a lot,
but there were enough, and to spare."
An appalled and a fascinated Muggeridge listened to all this and
later recalled, "I had the feeling, listening to this outburst,
that in thus justifying Soviet brutality and ruthlessness, Duranty
was in someway getting his own back for being small, and losing
a leg, and not having the aristocratic lineage ... he claimed
to have. ... Duranty was a little browbeaten boy looking up admiringly
at a big bully."
In his own lifetime - he lived to the age of 73, though he died broke and forgotten - Duranty was never called to account. Indeed, as Muggeridge also noted, "He came to be accepted as the great Russian expert in America, and played a major part in shaping President Roosevelt's policies" towards the Soviet Union.
The Pulitzer Prize board's re-evaluation of Duranty's award therefore comes late in the day, to put it mildly, but it is still a welcome, indeed necessary gesture towards American journalistic integrity and to the hecatombs of dead whose cries were hushed.
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Ask
Dr. Brothers
Cars and driving
Dr. Brothers
Does your personality affect your driving?
How much do you know about cars, driving and what affects your
safety? Here's an opportunity to check up on yourself.
1. How you think about yourself has no relationship to the likelihood
of your having a serious accident
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
2. Cars don't have blind spots only
drivers who aren't paying attention.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
3. Most people buy SUVs because they are
safer and offer more protection than smaller cars.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
4. If you drink wine or beer, your blood
alcohol level will always be much lower than if you are drinking
gin, vodka or whiskey.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
5. If you're driving after a few drinks,
coffee, a brisk walk or a cold shower will help you avoid getting
a ticket on the way home.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
6. Drugs and alcohol have the same effects
on men and women.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
7. Young drivers, especially young male
drivers, are more dangerous only because of inexperience.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
8. Whatever your sex or age, if you drive
when you're angry or upset because of personal problems or job
frustration, your likelihood of an accident increases.
TRUE ( ) FALSE ( )
ANSWERS:
1. FALSE. Studies have revealed that those who have a low opinion of themselves, and consequently of others, are more apt to disregard traffic laws and are often dangerous drivers.
2. FALSE. Even though your side mirrors and the mirror in front of you might be properly adjusted, cars DO have blind spots, and trucks have even larger blind spots that prevent the drivers from seeing smaller vehicles.
3. FALSE. Most people buy SUVs because the feeling of being above others on the highway gives them a sense of power and control. They also feel they're safer as family cars, but studies show they are actually less safe and have a 6 percent higher death rate than cars do.
4. FALSE. Your blood alcohol level doesn't depend upon what kind of alcoholic beverage you drink. Different types of alcohol do not affect you differently. It's the amount you drink that matters.
5. FALSE. Coffee, exercise and cold showers won't sober you up and won't reduce your blood alcohol level. Only time will do that.
6. FALSE. Females are likely to be affected more quickly than males, and a woman's body is apt to remove and process alcohol from the blood more slowly than a man's. This might result in a higher blood alcohol level over a longer period of time.
7. FALSE. They tend to be more dangerous because many feel alienated from the authority of the adult world around them, and some demonstrate their rebellion with a more aggressive lifestyle, more aggressive driving and greater risk-taking.
8. TRUE. Frustration can translate into road rage, and any emotional turmoil is likely to lead to less concentration and less safety behind the wheel of a car.
If you answered six of these eight questions correctly, you're better informed than most on this particular subject.
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Health
News
Looking to get fit? Questions to ask before you join a health club
The beginning of the year is the peak period for new health club memberships, as millions all across the country resolve to improve their fitness level for the year ahead.
However, as you shop around for a health club, there are so many options available that it's often easier to decide to workout than it is to find a gym that's ideal for you. Here are some tips to help you make the right choice.
* Take a tour. Visit at the time you'd workout to see how crowded it is and who works out there. Look for out-of-order signs, the cleanliness of the locker rooms and the condition of the machines. You want to ensure that hygiene and maintenance are the gym's priorities.
* Monitor the staff. See how nice and friendly
employees are to you. Investigate staff training, education and
certification.
* Decide if its convenient. Choose a gym that's location and hours
are near your office or home. It's not worth joining if you'll
never go because it's too far.
* Check out classes and services. If you want certain kinds of classes, make sure they are offered and available at times convenient for you. Make sure the equipment and other amenities (pool, sauna, etc.) meet your needs.
* Investigate parking. Make sure there's ample spots and it's well-lit if you plan to go at night.
* Inquire about baby-sitting. If you need it, make sure that childcare is available during the times you would want to workout.
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The
membership contract
In most cases, you'll have to sign membership commitment or contract when you want to join a health club. Read this before you sign:
* Make sure there's no hidden costs or unreasonable
cancellation policies.
* Don't feel like you have to sign up on the spot. Bring the contract
home so that you'll have the time to read it alone, slowly and
carefully.
* See if membership includes free guests passes, classes and training
sessions.
* Make sure you aren't getting charged for services you don't
use. For example, if you just want to use weights, you shouldn't
have to pay for the pool, sauna or other services.
* Check what kind of membership plans they have (month to month,
one year, etc). Decide if it's better for you to pay monthly or
pay for a year in a lump sum.
* Ask if the membership rolls over when your contract is completed
(where you will automatically be signed up again even if you didn't
want to be).
* See if you can pay with a credit card. That way you can get
your money back if the gym goes out of business.
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Overseas
People
Roger Moore on Queen's honours list
British actor Roger Moore
LONDON (UPI) Former James Bond actor Roger Moore became Sir Roger as one of more than 500 people honored Saturday for Queen Elizabeth's annual birthday honours.
Moore, who portrayed Bond seven times, told the British Broadcasting Corp., the honour was due to his work for UNICEF not his action role as a fictious British spy.
The singer Sting, actress Kristin Scott Thomas and Pink Floyd guitarist Dave Gilmour were among the stars on the honours list.
Those celebrated for their services were selected by the government or nominated by the public.
In addition, six Britons received awards for their "sterling, gruelling and tireless" service to help victims and their relatives after the double Bali car bombing last October that killed more than 200 people, the BBC reported.
Among the other honourees are a Scottish minister and his wife who helped clothe and feed refugees and "Naked Chef," Jamie Oliver.
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Poll:
Most New Yorkers think Stewart guilty
Martha Stewart
LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. (UPI) In a poll, a majority of New Yorkers said they thought Martha Stewart was guilty and should be punished.
The poll, conducted by telephone by the Siena Research Institute in Loudonville, NY, found that 60 percent of the 567 people interviewed thought Stewart was guilty of insider trading, and 51 percent thought she was guilty of obstruction of justice.
Stewart, the founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, was indicted June 4 on charges of conspiracy, false statements, obstruction of justice and securities fraud. The Securities and Exchange Commission accused her of insider trading in a civil lawsuit.
She has pleaded not guilty.
Fifty-four percent thought she should be punished if convicted. In a separate question, 46 percent said she had "suffered enough," The New York Times reported.
Twenty-two percent said her legal problems would influence whether they buy her products. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.
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Jennifer
Lopez plans screen role as her "altar ego"
Actress and singer Jennifer Lopez
LOS ANGELES (AFP) Actress and singer Jennifer Lopez is negotiating a film role as young woman with marital difficulties, a theme she has faced in real life, Variety said.
If it pans out, "Monster in Law," by New Line Cinema, would star the beauty from the Bronx who finds the perfect man to marry, but whose future mother-in-law does everything possible to prevent it.
New Line bought Anya Kochoff's script for 1.3 million dollars earlier this year, Variety, the bible of the entertainment industry, said Monday.
In real life, Lopez does not have such formidable obstacles between her and her fiance, actor Ben Affleck, although they have not set a wedding date.
The couple met about a year ago during the filming of Gigli, to premier in July.
She hopes that the third try will be the charm after two failed marriages.
The first, with Cuban Ojani Noa, ended in divorce after a year in 1998.
She married dancer Cris Judd in 2001 and separated 10 months later.
Lopez also had a long romance with rapper and entertainment mogul P. Diddy, but they never tied the knot.
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Overseas
Feature
New court appearance for Boris Becker
Boris Becker
MUNICH, Germany (AFP) Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker will appear in court here next September following the collapse of his internet company.
A court spokesman told Focus magazine that
Becker himself had been ordered to appear before the court in
September.
Administrators of his internet company Sportgate are demanding
1.5 million euros damages and interest from the retired player
who has not covered losses he had undertaken to in writing in
June 2000.
Sportgate went bankrupt in June 2001.
Becker has had several brushes with the law in recent years and was handed a two-year suspended jail sentence last October and was ordered to repay three million euros in back taxes after a court in Munich found him guilty of tax evasion.
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Man
sues NYC transit for finger part loss
NEW YORK, N.Y., (UPI) A South African
man is suing the New York City Transit Authority for the partial
loss of his finger.
Pieter Swanepoel, 62, and his wife, Sheila, 59, had a 12-hour
layover at John F. Kennedy International Airport on their way
home from a Los Angeles vacation Dec. 10. They decided to spend
the
time sightseeing and Swanepoel said he approached a subway conductor to ask if he had the right train for the airport. However, he said the conductor's manner wasn't friendly or helpful.
He said he placed his right hand on the conductor's windowsill to balance himself and suddenly the window slammed shut and a sharp pain shot through his hand.
Swanepoel said his right index finger had been severed between the first two knuckles.
A Transit Authority spokeswoman said she was not aware of the case and declined to comment.
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Tough
teen summer job market
WASHINGTON (UPI) Teens are facing one of the toughest summer job markets in years two-thirds are likely to end at the swimming pool rather than the labor pool.
The tight job market means more teens ages 16 to 19 will be idle this summer, giving them less work experience down the road. It will also squeeze already tight family budgets in a sluggish economy.
The unemployment rate for teens in the workforce was 18.5 percent in May. The unemployment rate for black teens was 37 percent last month, more than double the rate of whites, 15.3 percent, USA Today reported.
With the overall unemployment rate at 6.1 percent last month and the highest since July 1994, teens are being forced to compete with new college grads who are jobless, current college students who can't find paid internships, and even laid-off adults for what seems to be a smaller pool of summer jobs.
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Vandross
condition improves
Luther Vandross
NEW YORK (UPI) Grammy-winning music performer Luther Vandross has been moved out of the intensive care unit at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York.
The entertainer suffered a serious stroke
16 April and had remained in the intensive care unit until Thursday,
12 June.
Business manager and longtime friend Carmen Romano said Vandross
is becoming "more responsive each day."
People magazine reported last week that on June 2, six weeks after
a stroke rendered the 52-year-old R&B artist all but comatose,
his mother, Mary Ida Vandross, said he responded with a smile
when she said, "Your momma's here."
"He looked at me a long time ... and he tried to say, 'Momma,'"
the 79-year-old mother said.
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Japanese
diplomat named to top OECD post
PARIS (AFP) The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has appointed a senior Japanese diplomat, Kiyotaka Akasaka, to be its deputy secretary general, the OECD said in a statement here.
Akasaka, 54, a former Japanese ambassador to the United Nations, is currently Japan's consul-general in Sao Paulo, Brazil, a post he has held since November 2001.
The OECD, which groups 30 of the world's most advanced industrialized nations, said Akasaka had also been among Japan's leading negotiators at the Kyoto Conference on Climate Change in December 1997 and has held posts at the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the precursor of the World Trade Organization, and the World Health Organization.
He served as Japan's UN ambassador from
2000 to 2001.
Akasaka will take up his OECD post on August 20.
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Rebels
kill seven troopers
JAKARTA (UPI) Separatist rebels in Indonesia's Aceh province killed seven soldiers, the military said Tuesday.
A military spokesman said seven others were hurt in the battle that ended Tuesday in Matang Kumbang village of Bireuen district. The toll was the worst since the military began its offensive against the Free Aceh Movement on May 19.
The spokesman also said GAM, as the movement is known, suffered large losses, but could not provide details.
Last month, Indonesia ordered an offensive to end the 27-year rebellion that has killed more than 12,000 people.
Meanwhile in Jakarta, Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, the military chief, blamed the shooting death of a German tourist last week by troops, on the man's decision to visit Aceh for a picnic. "I have said for the past two years that Aceh is not a place of recreation or for picnics," he said. "If people want a picnic, go to Bali."
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ImClone
founder sentenced to more than seven years in prison for insider
trading
Disgraced ImClone founder Sam Waksal
NEW YORK (AFP) ImClone founder Sam Waksal was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for his central role in an insider trading scandal.
The prison sentence of seven years and three months, along with a four-million-dollar fine, was handed down eight months after Waksal, 55, pleaded guilty to six charges of a 13-count indictment, including bank fraud, securities fraud and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Waksal had admitted tipping off his daughter to sell ImClone stock before an announcement by the Food and Drug Administration that it was rejecting his company's cancer drug, Erbitux.
During the sentencing hearing, Waksal's lawyer had appealed for leniency, saying his client's life had already been ruined by the scandal, which has also implicated homemaking celebrity Martha Stewart.
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Winslet,
Mendes secretly tie the knot in WI
British actress Kate Winslet (l) and director Sam Mendes
LONDON (AFP) "Titanic" star Kate Winslet and "American Beauty" director Sam Mendes have married in a secret ceremony in the Caribbean, said a statement released on behalf of the couple. "This is to formally announce that Sam Mendes and Kate Winslet married in late May in a very small ceremony whilst on holiday in the West Indies," it said. "Present were Kate Winslet's daughter Mia and three close friends."
The pair have managed to keep a low profile, making their first British public appearance last year at the West End premiere of Mendes's second film, "The Road To Perdition."
Asked on that occasion if they had any plans to tie the knot, Winslet replied: "Get out of here."
Mia, born in October 2000, is Winslet's daughter from her first marriage, to assistant director Jim Threapleton, which ended in divorce in December 2001.
Oscar-winner Mendes, 37, one of Britain's top stage directors, and Winslet, 27, have homes in London and a country retreat in the Cotswolds, a postcard-perfect part of the west of England.
"We are very happy, unbelievably happy," Winslet once said of her relationship with Mendes, whose past loves have included actresses Jane Horrocks, Rachel Weisz and Calista Flockhart of "Ally McBeal."
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Barefoot
student electrocuted at concert
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (UPI) State officials were investigating the death of a University of North Carolina-Charlotte student who was electrocuted while walking barefoot at concert by Snoop Dogg and The Red Hot Chili Peppers.
The Charlotte Observer reported 26-year-old
Ashley Faris was walking on a lit concrete stairway with metal
edges at
the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater when he was shocked to death
on Friday night, 6 June. There was a light rain at the time, the
newspaper said.
Another student who reached out to help
Faris was shocked and was hospitalized overnight, the newspaper
said.
Verizon released a statement saying, "We are working with
local authorities and investigators to determine how the incident
took place."
Verizon also expressed "heartfelt sympathy" for the family and friends of the victim.
Faris was climbing the stairs between the lawn seating and concession areas when stricken. The concert continued with most people unaware of the tragedy.
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Convict
found guilty of killing police officer
DENVER (UPI) One of seven-men who
escaped from a Texas prison has been convicted of the Chrismas
Eve 2000
slaying of a police officer during the robbery of a sporting goods
store.
Prosecutors said Monday they will seek the death penalty for Randy Halprin, 25, for the murder of officer Aubrey Hawkins, 29, who was shot 11 times and run over twice by a car.
Four of the escaped convicts have already
been sentenced to death in the case, while another committed suicide.
Halprin and the other convicts escaped from prison on Dec. 13,
2000, prompting a nationwide manhunt.
The men allegedly took $70,000 and a large cache of weapons from
the Irving, Tex., sporting goods store. They were captured in
Colorado nearly a month later.
Caribbean Court of Justice will not be influenced
Governments of the region will not influence the Caribbean Court of Justice. That's the word from Mr. Sheldon McDonald, project co-ordinator of the CCJ.
McDonald told Jamaican journalists at a media clinic on June 10 that despite the court's mode of financing, it will be free from political influence. CCJ members are expected to contribute to a US$100 million trust fund that will be managed by a board of trustees, named under an international agreement and representing a range of regional entities, the Jamaica Information Service reported. Jamaica's has contributed US$26.8 million to the fund.
"After member states contribute to the trust fund, they will not be able to influence the court and its judges, who may be concerned about being paid," JIS Quoted Mr. McDonald as saying.
He added that the method of appointing CCJ judges in the inter-governmental agreement further insulates the court from political influence.
CCJ judges will be appointed by a Regional, Judicial and Legal Services Commission, made up of persons, "one would think ought to represent either the views of their constituents or independent points of view, and not the view of Cabinets," Mr. McDonald added.
The CCJ will replace the United Kingdom-based Privy Council, which heard appeals and was the final court of appeal. It will hear a wide-ranging set of cases, from murder to civil disputes.
Jamaica's Prime Minister P.J. Patterson on June 9 became the latest country to join the CCJ when he ratified the treaty to clear the way for membership. Legislation to abolish the Privy Council, as stated in section 110 of the Jamaican Constitution, will come before the Jamaican Parliament in six months.
However, the Jamaican Labour Party says the Patterson administration should have consulted the people in a referendum first before ratifying the agreement.
Ten countries have now signed and ratified the treaty to make the CCJ its final appellate court, which will be stationed in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and is set to open in November. Others include Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, The Republic of Suriname and of course Trinidad and Tobago. 14 nations are expected to use the CCJ as an appellate court, although a 15th, Haiti, also would use the Caribbean Court of Justice for trade disputes, Marcia Hope, a spokeswoman for the Caribbean Community, said recently. The CCJ is also being viewed as the first step towards the establishment of a regional trading bloc and as Barbados' Prime Minister Owen Arthur has said repeatedly, it is vital to the Caribbean's economic development.
Human rights activists have, however, accused the region's governments of establishing a "hanging court," to support the death penalty.
But Caricom Secretary General Edwin Carrington has said the CCJ " is not only overdue but is an indispensable vehicle for moving the Caribbean forward."
"There is hardly a better gift to our community on this its 30th anniversary than the inauguration of the court, later this year," he added in a recent viewpoint.
Justice Telford Georges,
former President of the Court of Appeal of Belize, has reiterated
that, "an independent country should assume the responsibility
for providing a court of its own choosing for the final determination
of legal
disputes arising for decision in the country."
"It is a compromise of sovereignty to leave that decision to a court, which is part of the former colonial hierarchy, a court in the appointment of whose members we have no say," said the jurist recently.
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Bahamas'
AG says FATF should ensure level playing field
By Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London
As it was revealed the Bahamas has spent some $35 million on implementing new financial compliance laws in recent times, the chairman of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) and Bahamian Attorney General, Alfred Sears, has urged UN intervention to ensure that anti-money laundering principles are fairly applied to all countries.
Speaking to lawyers at a workshop for Central Bank Lawyers on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing this week, Sears said that pressure was being brought to bear on the FATF to host a forum under the UN's umbrella to seek agreement on the issue.
Sears argued that there has not been a level playing field with respect to regulatory requirements in FATF and non-FATF member nations, a situation that he said was unfair and must be changed.
"Some members of the CFATF, under the direction of the NCCT Initiative (Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories), have abolished or immobilized bearer shares, nominee directors, and numbered bank accounts and have regulated the gatekeepers such as lawyers, accountants, stockbrokers and real estate agents," Sears observed.
"However, in FATF member countries, bearer shares, nominee directors, and numbered accounts are allowed and the bureaux de change and gatekeepers such as lawyers, accountants, stock brokers and real estate agents are not regulated."
The implementation of a myriad of new regulations had cost some jurisdictions a considerable amount, according to Sears, who revealed that the extensive new rules imposed on the Bahamas had cost $35 million. In addition, large sums are still being spent by the Compliance Commission, the Inspector of Financial and Corporate Service Providers and the Inspector of Banks and Trust Companies amongst other organisations, the Attorney General announced, adding that this is also the case in other regional jurisdictions, and is being made all the more difficult by current economic conditions.
"The economic downturn across the region,
the decimation of the offshore banking sector in some jurisdictions
is causing governments' revenue to dwindle, and therefore the
ability of regional governments to support the new anti-money
laundering regime and combat the financing of terrorism regimes
may be placed in jeopardy since public
sector and private sector officials can be easily suborned by
the blandishments of the wealth, power and influence of the criminal
gangs. This would make the work of the CFATF more difficult,"
Sears warned.
Therefore, some measure of outside assistance is required to help the Caribbean region in this regard, the CFATF chairman concluded. As a consequence, the organisation is lobbying the IMF, the World Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, Cariforum and the European Union for help with technical assistance and training.
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Sports
Uncoventional Jim Furyk refuses to wilt as he takes US Open
Jim Furyk of the US watches his approach shot. AFP PHOTO/Stan HONDA
OLYMPIA FIELDS, Illinois (AFP) Battling Jim Furyk, the golfer with the game's most unconventional swing, became the 2003 US Open champion here on Sunday.
The 33-year-old began the day with a three shot lead over what turned out to be his only challenger, Aussie Stephen Leaney, and he refused to let it go.
At one time he even managed to stretch his lead to four but as he walked off the 18th green after a bogey to be greeted by his wife and baby daughter the gap was where he had started the day three ahead.
"I had a wonderful chance today but he kept me at arm's length. I was always three or four shots back," admitted Leaney, who shot a final round two-over par 72 to match Furyk.
Leaney knew what he was in for right from the start. While he went on a roller coaster ride, having to wait until the fifth hole for his first par of the afternoon, Furyk was playing par or better golf over the outward nine.
It was the ideal situation for Furyk, who's US Open title netted him a million dollars and a 10-year exemption to the US and British Opens.
"I love being the front runner," said Furyk. "I love being in front and hitting solid shots and trying to put the ball in the fairway and put the pressure on the other guy to hit the shots."
"It's nice having that big lead. You can afford to make a mistake. You can make a bogey and say I'm three up now instead of four, let's keep at it and keep hitting golf shots," he explained.
"It was nice having that four-shot lead knowing I could hit it anywhere on the 18th tee, I could shape it up there on the green and make double bogey and win the golf tournament.
"After I hit my second shot I was done for the day," explained Furyk.
Even a flasher on the 11th green could not
deflect Furyk as he marched relentlessly towards his first Major
title.
"She was right there. She was four feet away with a flower
or something. I just went whoa. It had no effect on me,"
laughed Furyk.
For PGA and Masters champion Vijay Singh of Fiji began the day five behind the American, but three bogeys saw him fall down the leaderboard and out of contention.
But Leaney was unable to make up any ground on an ice-cool Furyk.
When the American did drop a shot, so did Leaney.
"I guess I'm happy and sad," said the 34-year-old Leaney.
"But I've had a wonderful week. I've got my US Tour card for next year, and I get to the Masters."
Defending champion Tiger Woods, his US Open hopes shattered with Saturday's five-over 75, looked anything but the world number one despite two birdies on the outward nine.
A double bogey six on the 496-yard par four
ninth when he four putted saw him make the turn in level par.
The 27-year-old, who for the first time since 1999 will not hold
a Major title, promptly began the road home with a bogey.
Woods finished with a two-over 72.
"I hit the ball pretty good the past three days but got nothing out of it. It is fustrating when you are not able to do what you know you can do," said Woods.
"I was so close to putting it together this week."
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England
kicks to a historic victory
English flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson. AFP PHOTO/Nicolas ASFOURI
PARIS (AFP) England highlighted their position as World Cup favourites with a dramatic 15-13 win over the All Blacks on Saturday to register their first win in New Zealand for 30 years.
In Wellington, flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson kicked all of England's points with four penalties and a drop-goal as the Six Nations champions gave a graphic illustration of why they are being tipped to become the first northern hemisphere team to win the World Cup later this year.
"The boys played with desire, guts and determination," said England coach Clive Woodward after a win which extended England's record sequence of Test victories to 12.
The defining passage of play from England came in the opening 20 minutes of the second half, when they were reduced to 13 men after open-side flanker Neil Back and number eight Lawrence Dallaglio were sin-binned.
England's extraordinary defence inspired by a towering performance from captain Martin Johnson held firm and when Wilkinson scrambled over a drop goal on his less-favoured right boot before slotting his fourth penalty, England had somehow managed to pull two scores clear to 15-6.
The All Blacks had the consolation of scoring the match's only try through Doug Howlett.
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Bentley
boys back in business at Le Mans
Briton Guy Smith at the wheel of his Bentley No. 8 takes a corner during the 24 Hour Le Mans endurance race.AFP PHOTO/Andre DURAND
LE MANS, France (AFP) Bentley relived their glory days with their first victory for 73 years in the Le Mans 24 Hour Race here Sunday.
The celebrated British marque took the honours for the first time since 1930 with the car co-driven by Italian Rinaldo Capello, Tom Kristensen of Denmark and Briton Guy Smith.
It was a memorable day for the distinctive British Racing Green-liveried team as their other car, driven by Aussie David Brabham and British duo Mark Blundell and Johnny Herbert, crossed the line in second.
Kristensen made history by becoming the first driver to win the classic race four years in a row the previous three had been with Audi.
"This win is very beautiful," said the Dane.
"It was incredible to drive for Bentley and I am happy to have played a modest part in this win."
Bentley captured five editions of the ultimate endurance test between the First and Second World Wars, the 1930 race being won by co-drivers Woolf Barnato and Glen Kidston, but then retired, only to return to the fray in 2000.
Owned by the giant Volkswagan group, they placed third in 2001 and fourth last summer and were firm favourites to regain their winning ways after a hat-trick of wins for Audi.
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Kareem
qualifies for 2004 Olympics
A long jump of 8.21 metres in Germany last Sunday qualified Kareem Streete-Thompson for both the 2003 World Championships and the 2004 Summer Olympics.
With a leap of 8.21 meters at the Bad Langensalza Long Jump Meet in Germany on Sunday 15 June, Kareem Streete-Thompson qualified for both the 2003 Paris World Championships and the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.
The jump, which occurred on his first attempt of the day, earned him a second place finish in the meet. It is the fifth time in seven events Kareem has medaled in this year's outdoor track and field season.
Kareem trailed only Yago Lamela (Spain,
World #3) who jumped 8.44m. Kareem out-jumped Ignisious Gaisah
(Ghana, World #18) and Oleksiy Lukashevich (Ukraine, World #9)
and four others that had jumped better than 8.0m this year.
Although jumping conditions were near perfect for the meet, Kareem
almost did not complete because allergy problems kept him bedridden
the whole day before.
Kareem says his renewed success in 2003
stems from a major change in his training, and a recent revamp
of his meet warm-up. "In my last 2 competitions before this
meet, I leapt longest on my last jump," he says, "To
change that outcome, I focused on warming up longer than normal,
and made sure I got some hard fast sprints in. It worked like
a charm."
The crowd was rooting for Kareem from the start. "At the
meet, they allow each athlete to play their choice of music prior
to each jump, and I chose 'Pump It Up' by Joe Buddens. They loved
the music and really got into it, but it was their huge roar when
I landed in the pit that confirmed I started with a big bang."
In his daily on-line journal posted at www.jumpstreet.com,
Kareem wrote of the importance of his medal-winning jump. "My
opening jump of 8.21m is my best effort since 2000! I couldn't
stop thinking how much this jump meant to my future how it positively
reflected on my successful changed training regimen and warm-up
I can now take solace in knowing that once again I am in the upper
echelon of jumpers worldwide, and that I am truly a threat to
win a medal "in Paris."
Now that he has already qualified for the World Championships
in August, Kareem will be highly sought after to compete in many
other events. Though he and his meet manager are carefully looking
at new meet opportunities, Kareem remains committed to compete
at the CAC Games in July, the Pan Am Games in August, and the
Paris World Championships in late August.
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Spurs
rally to crush Nets and claim NBA crown
Series MVP Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs holds up the MVP Trophy after beating the New Jersey Nets in game six of the NBA Finals. AFP PHOTO/Matt ROURKE
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (AFP)
Tim Duncan staged an amazing one-man show and Stephen Jackson
sparked an astonishing fourth-quarter rally to bring the San Antonio
Spurs their second National Basketball Association crown.
The Spurs scored 19 points in a row, erasing a 10-point deficit
in the final period to defeat New Jersey 88-77 here Sunday and
capture the best-of-seven NBA Finals four games to two.
"These guys didn't want to go home. They didn't want to give up," Duncan said. "Give a lot of credit to our guys. They stayed the whole way through."
Duncan scored 21 points, pulled down 20 rebounds, passed out 10 assists and blocked eight shots to earn NBA Finals Most Valuable Player honors in addition to his regular-season MVP awards the past two seasons.
The 7-foot power forward was the first man in a decade to have an NBA Finals "triple double" - 10 or more in three statistcal categories in a game - and only the ninth regular season MVP to claim NBA Finals MVP honors.
Former Nets guard Jackson added 17 points and center David Robinson, playing the final game of his 14-year NBA career, had 13 points and 17 rebounds. He was also a key part of the Spurs' 1999 title run.
"We played together. We won this thing together," Robinson said. "Man I love these guys."
Jason Kidd led New Jersey with 21 points while Kerry Kittles contributed 16 for the Nets, who were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers in last year's final.
The Nets led 72-63 after a Rodney Rogers 3-pointer with 8:54 remaining, but the Spurs who had not led to that point scored the next 19 points as New Jersey went 5:34 without scoring with their season and a title up for grabs.
Jackson sank back-to-back 3-pointers, the second swishing through the net to give the Spurs their first lead at 73-72 with 6:33 remaining.
After sending the sellout crowd into a loud frenzy,
Jackson added another 3-pointer in the run and Robinson scored a pair of baskets, the last capping the streak and giving San Antonio an 82-72 edge with 3:38 to play.
"We lost our composure," Kidd said. "We had control of the game. We kind of just unraveled."
Kidd made a pair of late baskets, but the Spurs hit their free throws and the cause was lost. Duncan and Robinson were removed with 35 seconds to play to a thunderous ovation and a few moments later, confetti and fireworks heralded the title.
The regular-season champion Spurs finished off all four playoff rounds in the same manner, dispatching Phoenix, the Lakers, Dallas and New Jersey in six games each.
Kittles scored five points and Richard Jefferson added a 3-point play during a 10-0 run that lifted the Nets to their largest lead, 55-43, just 3:54 into the third quarter.
But the Spurs responded with a 10-2 spurt, Duncan contributing four points in the run, and trimmed the difference to 59-55.
New Jersey answered with eight of the next 10 points, including back-to-back baskets by Kidd to open the fourth quarter, and reclaimed a 67-57 advantage setting the stage for the Spurs' awesome comeback.
"For us to fall short, it hurts," Kidd said. "But we lost to the better team. Give San Antonio a lot of credit. We couldn't get over the hump."
It was the first NBA title for veterans Kevin Willis, Steve Smith and Danny Ferry as well as newcomers like France's Tony Parker and Argentina's Emanuel Ginobili.
Steve Kerr won his fifth
title, having taken three with Chicago and another when the Spurs
won their first crown in 1999.
The game could mark the last appearance with their teams for 21-year-old
French guard Parker and Kidd, a free agent whom San Antonio has
shown interest in signing, likely to replace Parker.
"(The loss) has no bearing on what I will decide," Kidd said. "(But) this is my second time to fall short. I've got to find a better team, or stay with the Nets, to find a way to win a championship. That's what I'm playing for."
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CARICOM
torch run Wednesday
The CARICOM torch, a symbol of Caribbean unity, will be taken on a run by the Cayman Islands National Football Team on Wednesday 18 June, starting from the Truman Bodden Sports Complex at 5:30 pm.
The event celebrates 30 years of collaboration and friendship among Caribbean countries.
The run's course will take the torch along Walker's Road through South Sound, along the Linford Pierson Highway, Bobby Thompson Way, Triple C Road and eventually back to the Truman Bodden Sports Complex.
For further information, please contact the Department of Youth & Sports at 949-7082.
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Future
Sports Club puts off raffle
As a result of a number of fundraising events happening at the same time, the Future Sports Club has decided to delay their Future Fair/raffle, originally scheduled for 14 June, until 30 August 2003.
The club is raising funds to help build a field and clubhouse for youth, where education, sporting, and other wholesome activities can take place.
The Central Planning Authority recently approved the building plans, and the club says it will release details about the project in the coming week.
Sales of raffle tickets will continue, and are available from club members and at some supermarkets.
Tickets are $10 each, and purchasers will have a chance to win the $5,000 first prize or one of over25 other prizes.
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Rain
postpones Little League Championships
The Cayman Islands Little League Championships, Family Fair and raffle will be held this Saturday 21 June after weather conditions forced the event to be postponed last Saturday.
The action starts at 9:00 am with a series of division championship and all-star games.
Supporters of the Little League will now have another week to purchase a ticket to the organisation's annual raffle. Tickets are $25 and offer the chance to win the US$25,000 first prize, a US$10,000 second prize or a US$5,000 third prize.
Raffle tickets are available through Little League players and coaches or by calling 927-8853.
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Sports
SUMMARY
Sports SUMMARY
Anna Kournikova of
Russia.
AFP PHOTO/Torsten BLACKWOOD
Kournikova out of Wimbledon
LONDON(AFP) Struggling glamour girl Anna Kournikova's miserable season continued with the news that she cannot compete in Wimbledon next week because of a recurring back injury.
The 22-year-old Russian a former Wimbledon semi-finalist has been diagnosed as suffering from a chronic lumbar dysfunction and was forced out of Birmingham last week after aggravating her injury in practice.
Still searching for her first career title on the women's tour, Kournikova, a former top 10 player, has this year suffered the worst slump of her career, dropping out of the world's top 50 as a result of poor form and injuries.
Kournikova's greatest career moment came at Wimbledon in 1997 when she reached the semi-finals, but her career has stalled since then, and her ranking has slipped to 77 in the world after suffering back and leg problems.
Water polo fans sink to new depths
KRANJ, Slovenia (AFP) The genteel world of water polo was rocked here on Sunday when fighting broke out between spectators and police at the European championships.
One person was seriously injured in the trouble which erupted when Croatia lost to bitter rivals Serbia and Montenegro in the final.
Around 1,500 Croatian fans tussled with
police on the steps of the pool, said an AFP correspondent at
the game.
The problems followed tussles between the two sets of fans when
their teams met on Friday in the qualifying rounds. As a result,
police called in reinforcements for the game on Sunday which the
Serbs won 9-8 in extra-time.
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