BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - The major issue preoccuping those interested in the Middle East is what to do about Syria, and whether the United States and Europe should provide military assistance to the opposition groups fighting to topple the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. It is topical given the current trip to the region by United States Secretary of State John Kerry, who has met with the head of the main political opposition group in Syria, the Syrian National Coalition. Kerry also announced US$60 million in non-military aid to help the Syrian opposition.
Barbados
GEORGETOWN, Guyana – The narrowness of the election results in Barbados reflects a decision on the part of voters to keep close to the parties to which they have had allegiance. Though it also suggests that Mr Owen Arthur and his team failed to persuade the electorate at large that in the context of the recession which the country has been experiencing, the proposals which Arthur, as an experienced economic practitioner, had put forward, were no more acceptable than the Democratic Labour Party’s promise of patent more of the same.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC- Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias, who for more than 14 years, used his influence, oil and cash to fashion closer relationship among countries in the Caribbean died Wednesday, less than a month after he returned to Caracas from Cuba where he had been receiving treatment for cancer.
His death was announced by Vice President Nicholas Maduro in a brief television broadcast.
A tearful Maduro said Chavez had died at 16_25 (local time) "after battling a tough illness for nearly two years".
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - The fight against crime goes on. Varying reports suggest that countries within the region are facing escalating levels of crime – some unarguably more alarming than others. The crimes vary from drug trafficking to firearms, theft and bodily harm, as well as cyber-crimes. Three interdependent approaches to countering this scourge bear heavily on the mind. Firstly, it’s a fight of morality.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - Two weeks after being replaced as party leader following the Barbados Labour Party’s (BLP) February 21 defeat at the polls, Owen Arthur says he is not disturbed by no longer being at the helm. “The notion of not leading the BLP is not a problem for me . . . . I really have had a wonderful life in politics. I am not bitter at all,” Arthur told the media yesterday.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Two weeks after he failed in his bid to regain the position of prime minister of Barbados, Owen Arthur is now indicating that he intends writing his memoirs after having had a “wonderful life” in politics. "I will be writing my memoirs in three phases. One is called a country boy giving a perspective of what it was like growing up as a country boy in Barbados…and the one I like the most is my Jamaican days.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - Prime Minister Freundel Stuart says he is anxiously awaiting the opening of a new session of Parliament and he is excited about the programme the Government has in place for the next five years. The Prime Minister made these comments recently, as he addressed members of the media, concerning the way forward for his Cabinet and the country. A new session of Parliament will be ushered in this week, as Governor General, Sir Elliott Belgrave delivers the Throne Speech in the Senate Chamber this Wednesday, March 6, beginning at 4_00 p.m.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - THE RECENT DECISION by the United Nations to invoke “legal immunity” in support of its rejection of compensation claims by thousands of Haitian cholera victims poses an immediate challenge for the 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM).
It’s of particular significance – coincidental or not – that the UN’s announcement of its rejection of damage claims on behalf of more than 5 000 Haitian cholera victims was made public within two days after President Michel Martelly had hosted Haiti’s first summit of CARICOM Heads of Government on February 18 and 19.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - Elections are over, the Cabinet has been sworn into office, as have been the senators recommended by the Prime Minister, and Parliament sits for the first time during the course of this week. Prime Minister Freundel Stuart and his colleagues are to be congratulated on having pulled off a nail-biting win, and should now expect to receive the goodwill of all Barbadians, tempered by such constructive criticism in keeping with the traditional decencies associated with our adversarial system of politics.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - With an eye to the economy and Government’s renewable energy platform, Prime Minister Freundel Stuart is eagerly looking forward to his new term starting on Wednesday with the opening of Parliament and reading of the Throne Speech by Governor General Sir Elliott Belgrave.
Speaking to the media after last Friday’s swearing in of Cabinet at Government House, Stuart said the Government was excited about its programme for the next five years and the prospects for Barbados.