UNITED NATIONS, CMC – Sri Lanka has established formal diplomatic relations with St. Vincent and the Grenadines. In a statement issued here on Tuesday, Sri Lanka’s External Affairs Ministry said the relations have been established with a view to promote trade and sports. The joint communique was signed by Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Palitha Kohana and his Vincentian counterpart, Camillo Gonsalves.
(Trinidad Guardian) - Local farmers may soon be getting more opportunities to export produce to the region, Food Production Minister Devant Maharaj said yesterday when he oversaw the export of 1000 kilos of paw paw to Barbados. Maharaj and a team from the National Agricultural Marketing and Development Corporation (Namdevco) arrived at the Servis terminal at Piarco shortly before 6 am for the loading of paw paw grown by Wallerfield farmer Nita Hinds. Maharaj said he was glad to see T&T’s farmers enter the Barbadian market after almost a decade.
CASTRIES, St. Lucia, CMC – The St. Lucia government says it expects to accrue major benefits for the island following the decision of Castries to join the Venezuelan oil initiative, PetroCaribe. “This will make it possible for the country to receive a regular supply of petroleum products from Venezuela under the PetroCaribe arrangements that are currently being utilized by several other nations in the Caribbean,” a statement issued by the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Energy.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad - BY the time you read this column, the official results of yesterday's general election in Grenada should have been publicly declared. Grenadian voters had trekked to polling stations aware that, according to forecasts by credible pollsters, the incumbent National Democratic Congress (NDC) of Prime Minister Tillman Thomas was facing defeat by former prime minister Keith Mitchell's New National Party (NNP).
KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent, CMC – Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves says he has received the support of his fellow Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders amid reports that an investor had left a bag containing money at his office. “I put my faith and trust in the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Caribbean. … I have nothing to hide,” Gonsalves said on WE FM radio in one of his several calls to two radio stations here about the allegation.
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – Caricom has backed Antigua & Barbuda’s latest move in its World Trade Organisation (WTO) dispute with the US. CARICOM, at the end of its 24th Inter-Sessional Meeting in Haiti on Tuesday, released a statement saying it affirmed its full support for Antigua & Barbuda. Heads of government called on the US to settle the dispute by honouring its obligations and respecting international rules in compliance with the WTO’s decision.
Port au Prince, (Prensa Latina) The leaders of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) demanded the United States (U.S.) more control over firearms as part of security efforts in the region, the press reported today. During a closed-door meeting with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, area leaders explained the damage that causes the arms trade to the Caribbean and requested the signing of an international treaty on the subject. "Small arms and munitions are the ones that cause more damage in CARICOM", said Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
St. John’s Antigua- Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer has urged the United States to do more to help CARICOM countries fight against crime and narcotics trafficking in the region. His remarks followed a presentation by the US Attorney General, Eric Holder at the CARICOM inter-sessional heads of government meeting in Haiti. Spencer indicated that crime and security have a direct connection to the economic survival of small vulnerable countries.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad - On the day after a weekend murder spree left eight dead, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, speaking in another country, put a dollar cost of crime to Trinidad and Tobago. It was an admission that her administration has not been able to get a handle on criminal activity. However, her solution proposed to the CARICOM 24th Intersessional Summit would have little impact on crime locally. Mrs Persad-Bissessar focused on tourism revenues, revealing that T&T loses more than $200 million a year because of crime.
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC – Supporters of the main opposition New National Party (NNP) took to the streets in celebration here on Tuesday night after the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) conceded defeat in the general election. The NNP, headed by former prime minister Dr. Keith Mitchell, appears heading for a clean sweep of all the 15 seats, a repeat of the 1999 performance. Prime Minister Tillman Thomas as well as his senior cabinet ministers were swept aside in the general election, four and a half years after their had won the polls by an 11-4 margin.