When Hurricane Ivan pummelled Grenada in 2004, fierce gales snapped telephone masts like twigs. With the lines down, it took days before the outside world learnt the scale of destruction the tropical storm had wreaked in the Caribbean state. In a country of just 100,000 people, 39 died. Aside from the physical scars, Ivan left [...]
Black Caucus Aims to Save Diversity Visas in Immigration Reform Bill
April 20, 2013 | Posted by
Black lawmakers and civil rights groups are concerned by a proposal in the Senate’s immigration reform bill that would do away with diversity visas that are often a pathway for African and Caribbean immigrants to enter the United States. Advocates said they haven’t seen evidence yet that a new merit-based program is an acceptable replacement [...]
Caribbean Satisfied With UN Small Arms Trade Treaty
April 4, 2013 | Posted by
Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries yesterday expressed satisfaction with the roles they played in a United Nations Arms Trade Treaty. The countries voted in favor of the treaty on Tuesday to regulate the $70-billion global trade in small arms, light weapons and ammunition. Lead Caricom negotiator, Ambassador Eden Charles of Trinidad and Tobago, speaking on behalf of the [...]
You Can Take in Nevis, St. Kitts by Bike and Hike
March 13, 2013 | Posted by
Dry pastureland sprawls across the slopes of the hill while prickly plants and cotton trees fill both sides of the trail. On our left lies the dramatic coastline of the Atlantic Ocean, its dark blue waters lapping onto the empty shores of the island. To the right, Mount Nevis looms overhead, reaching over 3,500 feet [...]
Hugo Chavez Remembered as Champion of Caribbean
March 7, 2013 | Posted by
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – “A huge blow” has been dealt to Latin America and the Caribbean, said Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer in the wake of the death, on Tuesday, of Venezuela President Hugo Chavez. Venezuela’s Vice President Nicolas Maduro announced that Chavez, 58, lost his two-year battle with cancer. Maduro was named by the Venezuelan [...]
Caribbean Leaders Explore New Crime and Security Strategies
February 26, 2013 | Posted by
St. Kitts and Nevis’ prime minister, Dr. Denzil L. Douglas, says Caribbean leaders at the just concluded 24th Inter-Sessional of Caribbean Heads of Government, received an eight-point plan during a presentation from the lead head for crime and security, Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar. Douglas said the plan is designed to lend support [...]
Taking in The Sweet, Spicy Island of Grenada
February 21, 2013 | Posted by
All I wanted to do in Grenada was veg on the beach. I had a stack of paperbacks, SPF 70 and reservations for a Balinese massage. It was my first time back to the Caribbean in 10 years, and my first beach vacation in nearly as long. The prospect of eternal days of sunshine, frothy [...]
Haiti Hosts First Caricom Meeting of 2013 For Caribbean Leaders
February 18, 2013 | Posted by
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder will attend a conference for the leaders of the 15-member Caribbean Community (Caricom) regional bloc this week in Haiti. Haitian President Michel Martelly, the chairman of the group, has made Haiti’s participation in regional and international affairs a priority, despite years of diminished involvement. It has been just over a [...]
Saba: Scenic Caribbean Peaks Above And Below The Sea
February 10, 2013 | Posted by
The small propeller airplane lands quickly and softly, like a butterfly, on one of the world’s shortest commercial runways on the rain forest-capped island of Saba, which rises stunningly out of the Caribbean. It won’t take long for visitors to see why the sign outside declares: “Welcome to the Unspoiled Queen.” Saba’s Mt. Scenery, at [...]
Ritz-Carlton, Waldorf and Others Bank on Puerto Rico for High-End Clientele
February 5, 2013 | Posted by
A few miles past the last strip mall in this north coast town, a discreet sign beckons the privileged .01 percent down a lush ginger- and palm-frocked lane. It ends at a rushing wall of water flanked by a lily pond, a sleek, open-air pavilion, and a personal valet who greets new arrivals with a [...]
