Vol. 5; No. 2
April 2007
KINGSTON, JAMAICA (AP-3/26/07)-People across the Caribbean
bowed their heads for a moment of silence to mark the 200th anniversary
of the end of Britain's trans-Atlantic slave trade, which claimed millions of
lives and shaped the regions history.
In Jamaica, islanders held symbolic funeral rites in Kingston harbor for
slaves who died during the perilous ocean crossing. In Dominica, a cere-
mony was held at the place where slaves were held for auction. In Guyana
a tribute was held in the compound of paliament buildings where slaves
were beaten and sometimes hanged.
"We unite as a region and as a people, in a collective moment of reflec-
tion, as we remember one of the greatest tragedies in the history of
humanity, which denied over 25 million Africans for over 400 years the
basic human right of freedom, the right of self-actualization and for so
many, denial of even their basic right to life", said Ralph Gonsalves,
prime minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Enacted on March 25, 1807, the Slave Trade Act prohibited British ships
from transporting slaves, although Britain did not abolish slavery in its
territories until 1833. Researchers say tens of millions of African men,
women and children were enslaved and shipped to the Caribbean and the
Americas.
Bongo Wisely Tafari, a spokesman for St. Lucia's Rastafarian movement,
called on the government to seek reparations from Britain. When the
slaves were emancipated, reparations were paid to slave owners "as if to
reward the horror and injustice of their actions over centuries. It is time
that Caribbean leaders correct this historic wrong", Wisely said.
ST. THOMAS, US VIRGIN ISLANDS (VI DAILY NEWS-3/22/07)- The
president of the Caribbean Hotel Association focused on unity during an
appearance here, but did not blame the territory for breaking ranks with
other islands by touting its exemption from the new passport require-
ments for U.S. travelers. Tourism leaders had predicted that island econ-
omies could be devastated by the new requirements, as fewer than 1/3 of
Americans held valid passports at the start of this year.
Some major tour operators are reporting that sales are flat or down up to
15%. As U.S. protectorates, the USVI and Puerto Rico are exempt from the
new passport law, but that fact was not clearly communicated until late
January by the VI Tourism Dept.
TORTOLA, BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS (VI DAILY NEWS-3/12/07)- Des-
pite concerns that the arts and crafts of the region are dying, the Carib-
bean Artisan Network maintains that most visitors to the islands want in-
digenous souvineers and that if the network has anything to do with it,
there will be more products available on the local market. The network is
a 5-year-old organization dedicated to increasing the commercial viability
of craft as a income generator and as a crucial aspect of maintaining Car-
ribbean cultural identity.
The biggest artisan festival in the region, the Caribbean Arts and Crafts
Festival is being held here at Trellis Bay. Despite having to pay for reg-
istration, as well as their own transportation and accomodations, more
than 45 artisans from 15 countries are taking part.
"It was an economic struggle for many of us to get here", said CAN co-
founder Akilah Jaramoji. "So we're looking for governments, chambers
of commerce and culture ministries to look at the craftspeople with a
level of respect, because the demand for local craft is really high among
the tourists." Jaramoji is also founder of the Fondes Amondes Commun-
ity Reforestation Project in Trinidad & Tobago.
The Trellis Bay festival village expanded this year to include day and
nighttime entertainment featuring local, regional and international
performers.
CAP HAITIEN, HAITI (AP-3/30/07)- Trudging through muddy sewer
water, Frank McKinney sidesteps a pig wandering aimlessly through a
destitute neighborhood, passing 2 dozen children with bloated bellies.
He doesn't grimace at the stench, but seems pained when he learns the
children fish through the water looking for crabs to sell.
This multi-millionaire developer, who is building one of the most expen-
sive homes in the U.S. is also one of Haiti's benefactors. He's already
commissioned 4 villages for the poor and is planning 2 more this year.
The homes are given free.
"It's taken a lot of work to be able to understand I can live in both worlds.
I train myself to understand that this is part of the stewardship", says the
43-year-old McKinney. "I'm not in this to feel good. It's all part of the
calling." He is eccentric - and a self-promoter. When he went on a nation
wide book tour, investors joining him had to donate money to The Caring
House Project Foundation that creates the villages for the poor.
McKinney ran into government red tape when he tried building for Flor-
ida's homeless and quickly realized he could build more cheaply and
faster in the poorest country in the western hemisphere. His Haitian
villages cost about $500,000 to build. Each village includes homes for 30
families, a community center, clinic, school, orphanage and acres of farm
land with goats and chickens so the village can be self-sufficient.
"This is the best thing that ever happened to me", said Jean Louis who
lives with his wife and 5 children in a village McKinney built.
ST. CROIX, USVI (VI DAILY NEWS-3/29/07)- Zada, the injured green sea
turtle rescued from waters near here in December, was sucessfully return-
ed to the sea. She was struck by a boat Dec. 17 and discovered by divers.
Her left front flipper was almost cut off and her upper shell had deep
propeller wounds.
Veterinarians amputated Zada's flipper, but her other wounds healed on
their own. After 3 months of a difficult recovery, she was able to eat,
swim and dive with just 3 flippers. Vets deemed her healthy and ready to
survive on her own.
After a brief flight from St. Thomas to St. Croix on CAPE AIR, she was
transported to Fredericksted pier. Once she was carefully lowered into
the water, Zada appeared relaxed. After swimming near the surface for
awhile, she dove deeper and made her way out to sea. Experts estimated
Zada is 10 years old and likely will nest next year.
We can only stress the importance of boaters maintaining a watch and
being careful in local waters.
HAVANA, CUBA (AP- 4/1/07)- Work to restore Ernest Hemingway's
Cuban hideaway won't be finished until the end of 2009, held up in part
by efforts to build a garage to house the author's long-lost Chevy con-
vertible, museum officials say. Hemingway lived at Finca Vigia, or Lookout
Farm, on Havana's southeastern outskirts from 1939 to 1960. He wrote
"The Old Man and The Sea" and children's fables here.
Following his suicide in 1961, his widow turned the property over to the
Castro government and it became a museum the next year. But time and
tropical elements have ravaged the eggshell-colored home and the docu-
ments inside, which include the never-published epilogue of "For Whom
the Bell Tolls".
Efforts began in 2005 to restore Finca Vigia along with the papers, furni-
ture and other objects inside.
VIRGIN GORDA, BVI (VI DAILY NEWS-3/27/07)- The work of 10-year-old
Virgin Gorda student Omar Pina is featured in this year's Mangrove
Action Project children's art calendar. The calendar, which is distributed
world-wide, aims to promote the importance of mangrove conservation.
Children between the ages of 7 and 13 were invited to submit artwork de-
veloped around the question: "Why are conservation and restoration of
mangroves important to my community?"
Pina attends St. Mary's Primary School here. He received a certificate and
3 calendars. About 1600 children from 14 nations entered the contest.
Every year, MAP invites teachers from around the globe to spend time
educating children about the beauty and bio-diversity of mangrove for-
ests, especially the important roles they play in the lives of children and
their communities.
ST. JOHN, USVI (VI DAILY NEWS-3/27/07)- A Senate hearing on a re-
zoning request that would allow a controversial development above Cruz
Bay to be enlarged brought out 2 competing camps: site workers and
supporters who touted the projects economic benefits, and island resi-
dents who said it would overburden St. John's already-pinched infra-
structure. Developers have asked that the 5-acre hillside on which the 15-
building SIRENUSA condominium project sits be changed from resident-
ial low-density to medium-density in order to allow 3 of its buildings to be
heightened another story.
The workers were given the day off and were being paid instead to be at
the hearing, the developer admitted after persistent questioning from
Senator Terrance Nelson.
The Dept. of Planning and Natural Resources(DPNR) stands by its recom-
mendation that no zoning change or variance be granted. A change in the
zoning would change the requirements for setbacks, parking, etc. and
nullify the group-dwelling permit to build the project in a low-density
neighborhood. The project initially received the group-dwelling permit to
construct 40 units in 29 buildings. After builders encountered more rock
than they had expected (because of the developers poor survey), 18 units
were condensed into 2 larger structures.
Some of those speaking against the rezoning said it would set a danger-
ous precedent for future development while others said that poor plan-
ning should not be rewarded. Sharon Coldren said, "If this happens...,
other developers will do the same thing. We need your help to say, the
law is the law, spend some money in advance to plan your project right
so you don't have to come back before us and say 'We made a mistake.
Fix it for us.'" Coldren is president of the Coral Bay Community Council.
Attorney Alan Smith asked the Senate to "seriously consider what's in
our code- not just the bottom-line interest of the developers...but what's
in the health, safety and general welfare interest of the people who have
made St. John their home. We're not buying $1.5 million condominiums."
FROM THE ARAWAKROOTS SPORTS CENTER:
(yeh right, like we have one of those)
ST. JOHN, US VIRGIN ISLANDS- Greetings, Cricket fans everywhere.
Reporting here from my ringside seat in front of Trinidad Charlie's TV,
tuned into SPORTSMAX's pay-per-view coverage of the 2007 ICC
World Cup. Fun and frolic have been had by all here, as Charlie has
expertly explained all the finer points of the game, as well as factoids
about all the players and teams.
The matches are being played throughout the Caribbean region- the
best being played in Jamaica and St. Kitts, but good ones in Trinidad
and Guyana also. All of the great teams are here- Australia, S. Africa,
England, New Zealand and our beloved West Indies. Bangladesh, Sri
Lanka, India and Pakistan are here, and surprise teams like Ireland,
Bermuda and The Netherlands.
The preliminaries saw a few surprises- the elimination of both India
and Pakistan, the great play of Sri Lanka, the rather lackluster play
of the Windies though they went 3-0 and the fact that Ireland made
it to The Super 8's. A couple records were broken: an Aussie
player hit all 6's in an over, although it was against Bermuda- the
team that proved to be the doormat of this World Cup. And the
highest score in a World Cup match was broken by India, 435 for 4,
though once again, against Bermuda.
The Super 8's have so far seen the Aussies and New Zealand whipping
on everyone, Ireland had a breath of a chance when they beat Bangla-
desh, and as of this writing, the West Indies have been eliminated with
their 4th loss and no wins by S. Africa, 356/4 - 289/9. This should make
the lineup for the final 4 to be Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and So.
Africa. The easy money is on Australia taking it all again, but I'm root-
ing for Sri Lanka to surprise everyone- as they have so far- and embar-
rass the Aussies. Stay tuned, sports fans.
THE LAST WORD:
While in the Virgin Islands recently, Transfer Day- the day in 1917 when
the islands were "transferred" from the Danes to the U.S. for $25 million
in gold- was celebrated. In honor of one of the strangest holidays (what's
to celebrate? The islands were "governed" by the US Navy until the
1930's), this poem was run in the VI DAILY NEWS on March 22. It was
written by Brett Harte and published in the San Francisco Bulletin on
April 25, 1868 and is titled "St. Thomas".
Very fair and full of promise, Kay the island of St. Thomas;
Ocean o'er its reefs and bars, hid its elemental scars;
Groves of coconut and guava, grew above its fields of lava.
So the gem of the Antilles, "Isles of Eden" where no ill is;
Like a great green turtle slumbered, on the sea that it encumbered.
Then said William Henry Seward, as he cast his eye to leeward;
"Quite important to our commerce, is this island of St. Thomas."
Said the mountain ranges,"Thank'ee, but we cannot stand the Yankee;
O'er our scars and fissures poring, In our very vitals boring;
In our sacred caverns prying, all our secret problems trying;
Digging blasting with dynamit, Mocking all our thunders,damn it!
Other lands may be more civil, Bust our lava crust if ye will!"
Said the sea, its white teeth gnashing, through its coral lips flashing;
"Shall I let this scheming mortal, shut with stone my shining portal?
Curb my tide and check my play, Fence with wharves my shining bay?
Rather let me be drawn out, in one awful waterspout!"
Said the black-browed hurricane, brooding down the Spanish Main;
"Shall I see my forces-zounds!, Measured by square-inch and pounds?
With detectives at my back, when I double on my track;
And my sacred paths made clear, Published o'er the hemisphere?
To each gaping prying crew, Shall I? Blow me if I do!"
So the mountains shook and thundered
And the hurricane came sweeping
And the people stared and wondered
As the sea came on them leaping
Each according to his promise
Made things lively at St. Thomas.
Till one morn when Mr. Seward, cast his weather eye to leeward;
There was not an inch of dry land, left to mark his recent island.
Not a flagstaff or a sentry, not a wharf or port of entry.
Only- to cut matters shorter, just a patch of muddy water;
In the open ocean lying, and a gull above it- flying.
