Freedom of Information Act inevitable but in time
-- Prime Minister Hinds
By Tajeram Mohabir
PRIME Minister Samuel Hinds yesterday assured that a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is inevitable in Guyana.

But it is a matter of time and preparations in getting there, he said, after a Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) press briefing in its Brickdam, Georgetown library.

Mr. Hinds contended that Guyanese are currently enjoying about 80 to 90 per cent of what an FOIA delivers.

“We are making things available, a lot of information is available, so one, maybe, is also enjoying, in Guyana, what the act entails,” he told reporters.

The issue of the legislation was raised last week at the Guyana Parliament and Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) sponsored workshop for local parliamentarians and media practitioners at Grand Coastal Inn, Le Ressouvenir, East Coast Demerara.

Hinds said, even though Government recognised the need for the law, at that forum there were presentations on the increased volume of work, recording, as well as storage and coverage of required information.

In addition, personal issues, which should not be included in the statute, were discussed and reference was made to England where, before the enactment, there were laws governing secrecy and confidentiality, he observed.

Asked if Alliance for Change (AFC) Co-Leader Raphael Trotman’s proposed bill, tabled in the National Assembly in 2006, would be passed should it resurface, Hinds reiterated that timing and sequencing is required, because issues of privacy and overriding will have to be taken into account.

He said that was done in England and Trinidad and Tobago to contain certain areas of personal interest and, in that case, where issues of significance, including sales of arms that had aspects of political relations and closeness, business, industry and jobs, had to be kept secret for certain investigations.

“I presume that, with any government in Guyana, there may be occasions when we may want to take similar deliberate actions, too,” Hinds remarked.

Infrastructural, technical capacities of present Parliament ‘are the best they have ever been’
- Minister Ramsammy
‘People who come from abroad to lecture us ought to be more careful in trying to understand from whence we came’
THE recently concluded workshop on Parliament and the Media attracted much interest and some persons have chosen to use the event to cast a bad light on the functioning of Guyana's Parliament and its role in the country’s democracy.

Minister of Health Dr. Leslie Ramsammy said he even noticed one of the resource persons from the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) team stating that it is an embarrassment for any democratic government not to have a Freedom of Information Act.

But the Minister, in a response yesterday, chided that: ‘People who come from abroad to lecture us ought to be more careful in trying to understand from whence we came.’

Ramsammy also declared that the governing People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) is very proud of its stewardship of Guyana's National Assembly.

“It is a genuine institution of our fledgling democracy, making a sharp detour from the shameful place it occupied between 1964 and 1992,” the health minister said.

The following is the full text of the response issued yesterday by Minister Leslie Ramsammy:

‘The recently concluded workshop on Parliament and the Media attracted much interest and some persons have chosen to use the event to cast a bad light on the functioning of Guyana's Parliament and its role in our democracy.

I noticed one of the resource persons from the CPA team, a Canadian from Article 19, stated that it is an embarrassment for any democratic government not to have a Freedom of Information Act.

Unless the infrastructure for information gathering and archiving exists, freedom to information is always restricted.

The advocacy for freedom of information in Guyana is a legacy of the PPP/C. The fact that the AFC has introduced a Bill in Parliament does not give them that title. The PNC has no moral voice in this. It controlled the Parliament with a mighty hand and prohibited information flow through various means.

The PPP/C Government's position on the FOI Act is that it is inevitable. The FOI is part of the PPP/C Government's parliamentary agenda. However, the FOI is not the only way of accessing information. It would enhance the flow of information in our country and it is in this context that we support the FOI.

The distraction being sought by the Opposition and the ill-advised position taken by some of the resource persons fail to recognize that Guyana's Parliament has evolved into a strong participatory parliament that provides several mechanisms for information flow. These provide already a powerful environment for information access.

For example, the ability for parliamentarians to ask questions, both without notice and with notice and both for oral and written answers is one way for Parliamentarians who do their homework to extract information from Ministers. There are examples from the 9th Parliament to demonstrate this possibility.

The standing sector committees represent another opportunity for Parliamentarians to seek answers and to extract information. The existing Parliament has Standing Sector Committees, some of which are chaired by the Opposition.

These were established after the reformed constitution in 2000/2001. But the PPP/C Government had moved since June 16th 1994 to establish Standing Sector Committees.

The PPP/C initiated the amendment of the Standing Orders by the addition of Section 70A to provide for Standing Committees to enact the vision of President Cheddi Jagan of a truly deliberative body monitoring Government. Unfortunately, the first attempt by the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable Clement Rohee, to establish a Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs met with less than enthusiastic response from the Opposition.

They were absent from most of the meetings. As a result we had to wait until the reforms to the Constitution in 2000/2001 to get this process going with the recommendation for the establishment of Sector Committees, which were enshrined in Section 119B of the Constitution.

The Constitution makes provision for the establishment of various human rights commissions (Article 212G) and commissions that add to financial and procurement accountability (212W) and the appointments of members for these commissions and their functioning are in various ways under the control of the National Assembly.

The Human Rights Commission that oversees Commissions for Indigenous Peoples, Children, Women and Gender Equality and Ethnic Relations not only create avenues for shared political responsibility in terms of appointments, but also expand the inclusiveness principle by extending governance to civic society.

The Ethnic Relations Commission has been functioning for more than four years now. It is unfortunate, that we have not been able to appoint the other Commissions as yet. Importantly, these commissions can order investigations into a number of issues, creating another avenue for information gathering.

These are not all ideal mechanisms. But they are also not trivial mechanisms. Guyana's democracy is still a fledgling one. We have just only celebrated our 42nd Independence Anniversary. For almost 26 years of this period, Guyana experienced a period in which all democratic institutions in our country – the Parliament, the Judiciary, Elections Commissions, the media and other institutions – saw an erosion of their independence.

Guyana has spent the last 16 years trying to restore the transparency and independence of these institutions so that they can play their part in the strengthening of our democracy.

Thus, our democratic capacity building has been a very short period. This is in stark contrast to the developed countries where they have had centuries of development of their democratic institutions and practices.

Even in CARICOM countries, they have had a longer period of development since Guyana lost almost 26 years due to the "paramountcy of the party" principle.

For both Parliament and the Media, we have attained the highest level of development ever in our history as a country – pre-and post--independence.

Guyana's Parliament today cannot be compared to the Parliament in any other era of our history.

The PPP/C Government from day one had set in motion a menu of actions intended to improve the functioning of the National Assembly and to enhance its role in strengthening and sustaining Guyana's democracy.

In this context, we must consider the financing of this important body. In 1992, the Parliament received a budget allocation of $12.5M.

This was an election year and it represented the highest allocation ever to Parliament by the PNC Government. This allocation did not cater for any capital expenditure by Parliament.

The PPP/C Government has consistently increased the budget to Parliament and this year the allocation in the 2008 Budget Estimates is almost $800M.

Every year since 1993, the PPP/C Government has allocated money for capital works. The fact is the infrastructural and technical capacities of the present Parliament are the best they have ever been.

The functioning of the Speaker of the National Assembly is critical for the National Assembly to play its role as an important institution of a democracy.

No one could say that the Speaker of the National Assembly is a "creature" of the Government.

For sure the Speaker was elected after being nominated by the PPP/C. The Speaker is actually a member of the PPP/C. It is true in all democracies that the governing party is able to have its nominee elected as Speaker of the National Assembly.

But the present Speaker is no "creature" of the governing party. He acts in accordance with the Standing Orders and with well-established parliamentary practices. He is not beholden to the governing party and he has acted with impartiality in the House.

The Public Accounts Committee is one that has always existed. But for more than a decade, it had no work to do since the Auditor General's Report was unavailable for it to scrutinize. Since 1993, the PAC has met and considered every Auditor General's Report and is the most up-to-date PAC in the Caribbean. In addition, the Auditor General no longer reports to the Minister of Finance, but to Parliament directly, through the PAC.

There are still on-going reforms within our Parliament. Workshops, like the just concluded ones, are meant to further the process of reforms and to strengthen Guyana's Parliament. It is continuing Parliamentary reform process. Further changes are now inevitable. But the changes will be additional changes, adding to many other changes that have occurred over the last 16 years. Thus, the Parliamentary reform movement in Guyana is not a phenomenon waiting to occur.

The PPP/C is very proud of its stewardship of Guyana's National Assembly. It is a genuine institution of our fledgling democracy, making a sharp detour from the shameful place it occupied between 1964 and 1992.

People who come from abroad to lecture us ought to be more careful in trying to understand from whence we came.

Three hurt, cars wrecked at numerous accidents scene
By Shirley Thomas
A COLLISION, between an ‘Oasis Ride’ taxi and a private car, at the junction of North Road and New Garden Street, Georgetown, yesterday left three persons injured and the two motor vehicles wrecked.

Those who suffered injuries are Manav Boodhoo, 32, of Bouganvilla Apartments, Farm, East Bank Demerara, who was driving HB 5606; Kevin Vyfhuis, 32, of Lot 144 D’Urban Street, who was at the wheel of PGG 4349 and a woman, only name given as Hazel, also employed by Guyana Power & Light (GPL), who was with Vyfhuis.

The accident occurred around 11:30h when Vyfhuis was proceeding West along North Road and the hire car South on New Garden Street.

The impact caused the taxi to end up in the nearby North Road trench and Vyphuis’s car against a lamp post.

Boodhoo was taken out of his vehicle by passersby who expressed surprise that Vyfhuis emerged alive from his badly damaged car, in which he was strapped to the seat belt and had difficulty freeing himself.

Vyfhuis was hurt in the chest and shoulders and endured abrasions while Boodhoo complained of pain in his limbs, cuts and bruises.

The woman casualty had cuts to the face among other injuries.

Meanwhile, at the scene where there have been numerous accidents over the years, some experienced motorists lamented that the concrete rail on the bridge across New Garden Street poses a serious problem because of its height.

They said drivers travelling South along New Garden Street usually have difficulty seeing other vehicles moving West on North Road, until they are almost in their path.

ACP countries bullied into submission by EU
-- President tells GBTI’s second biennial business forum
PRESIDENT Bharrat Jagdeo has again expressed his dissatisfaction that African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries were bullied into submission in agreeing to the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU).

The agreement has already been initialled by the ACP countries and the Guyanese Head of State was adamant that the EU put a time frame on the agreement and did not allow enough time to the ACP for certain considerations to be made and for certain preparations by the countries.

The President was at the time addressing a large group of persons in the business sector and representatives of international organisations such as the European Commission and regional bodies at the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI’s) 2nd Biennial Business Forum yesterday at the Le Meridien Pegasus hotel in Georgetown.

&Let us admit that we were a junior partner in these negotiations, that Europe had all the trump cards. When they didn’t have the trump cards, they negotiated in bad faith. Let us accept that rather than try to defend every element of it,” the President told the gathering after listening to the feature address by Deputy Senior Director of the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery (CRNM) body and one of Guyana’s former Ministers of Finance, Mr. Carl Greenidge.

Greenidge had not agreed to specific aspects of the President’s analysis of the situation surrounding the agreement during his address as he contended that the ACP countries were fully aware that non-reciprocity was removed years before and it was sacrificed since the previous COTONOU agreement which they had signed on to. 

The President had noted that non reciprocity was important as most of the issues in the earlier rounds of negotiation had already benefited the developed world.

&Frankly speaking, I’m not happy here now in spite of all the people who call us old fashioned and we’re out of sync with the times. I’m not happy that we gave it up because the circumstances in our countries have not been transformed,” President Jagdeo emphasised. 

Held under the theme ‘The Cariforum/EU, EPA – The Challenge to Transform’ at the Le Meridien Pegasus, the forum also featured addresses by Dr Henry Jeffrey, Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation; and CRNM officials - Messrs Nigel Durrant, Technical Analyst; Mr. Lincoln Price, Private Sector Liaison and Ms Natallie Rochester, Services Analyst.

The well-attended seminar at which Prime Minister Sam Hinds, Chief Executive Officer of GBTI, Mr. Radhakrishna Sharma, members of the Diplomatic Corps, and other senior and junior GBTI staffers were present, targeted members of the business community, producers and exporters, regulatory agencies, non-governmental organizations, cultural artistes and members of the academic community.

The EPA replaces the trading arrangements in the Cotonou Agreement arrived at between a grouping of African Caribbean Pacific (AFC) countries and the EU in 2000 and which expired at the end of December last year. Cariforum comprises CARICOM countries and the Dominican Republic.

PRAGMATIC, SELFISH and NARROW
Noting that he views the position as purely “pragmatic, selfish and narrow”, as he did not want to subject exports from Guyana to the tariffs, President Jagdeo said ACP countries were bullied into submission into agreeing to the EPA with the EU.

He is of the view that some leaders, rather than basically trying to defend something that many of them had publicly expressed concerns about, need to make the people more aware of the agreement.

As for Guyana, President Jagdeo said there is need for this country to address the strategy of competitiveness, noting that to be internationally competitive, issues such as time and cost in doing business, harnessing of the tax system, the availability of financing to businesses, as well as facilitating trade and infrastructure among others, must be looked at.

These, President Jagdeo stressed, will have to be addressed whether or not Guyana is a signatory to the EPA and if it wants to position the country in a way that it can grow welfare and make greater profit for the private sector.

And on the issue of liberalization, President Jagdeo said reciprocity is a very important development tool, as non-reciprocity recognizes there were differences in the capacity of the country to trade, in their levels of development, institutions and size of enterprise to trade.

Reiterating that while the circumstances in countries have not being transformed, he stressed that it is not trade policies that matters but what happens to build capacity.

Mr. Greenidge, a former Minister of Finance under the PNC Government, who had different views on some of the sentiments offered by the President, said there is need for the region to be careful to distinguish reciprocity was part of the agreement.

For him, among issues which are a cause for concern include the length of time the region has taken to establish the CSME, the concentration of the Caribbean on tourism and the nature of trading agreements to the preferential markets.

Greenidge argued that the EPA is imbedded and is an extension of the Cotonou Agreement, and said among its advantages are -- it contains chapters in agriculture and fisheries that speak to objectives of sustainable development competitiveness, poverty eradication, food security, diversification, additional market access, duty-free and quota-free access for all products.

Under the new agreement, which he said also helps the region to address issues by providing safeguards; Cariforum states will have duty-free and quota-free access to all goods exported to EU markets, with the exception of sugar, rice and bananas, where a short transitional arrangement is in place.

The EU will also open 94 per cent of its services sector to the region, but in return, More Developed Countries will grant 75 per cent access to the EU while the Less Developed Countries (LDC) will have 65 per cent access of the services sector.

In addition, Cariforum has also undertaken to eliminate the duties on 82 per cent of its imports from Europe in the first 10 to 15 years of the EPA.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Sharma -- GBTI’s Chief Executive Officer -- gave a vision of the forum, and said the bank recognized the importance of local businesses becoming more aware of the challenges and opportunities within the various sectors that arise from the ever-changing internal and external environment.

As such, yesterday’s activity, the second to be hosted by the Bank (the first two years ago), was viewed as a tool for aiding the growth and development of the local business sector.

Sharma noted that the EPA highlights a number of issues which Guyana needs to be vigilant about, among them issues of sustainable development, good governance and intellectual property rights, which if properly addressed, could open new business opportunities for all. (Wendella Davidson)

Delta a dream come true
- Minister Prashad
By Priya Nauth
MINISTER of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Mr. Manniram Prashad has posited that the introduction of airline giant Delta Airlines is as a result of the increase of visitors’ arrival here and the country’s progress.

He made this pitch at the launching of Delta Airlines in Guyana last Saturday evening at the Le Meridien Pegasus, Kingston, Georgetown.

Welcoming the international carrier on stream, he noted that this is a dream come through for Guyana with non-stop service from New York to Guyana.

“Because for a very long time we have been trying to get an international airline back into Guyana and the only reason they are here is because they are seeing tremendous progress in the country…they have seen the increase in visitors’ arrival over the last few years,” he noted.

“This is despite the little irritants that we may have now and then and some of the serious problems like so many other countries that Delta operates in,” Prashad said.

“Delta is very special to us because Delta is a very progressive airline internationally and in the last two years they have included 25 new destinations especially in the Caribbean and Latin American part of the world,” he posited.

The minister noted that Guyana is a new kid on the block in tourism mainly nature tourism, adventure tourism and eco tourism.

He said now if visitors from North America and Europe wish to visit an eco tourism destination, persons are now thinking about whether they should go to Costa Rica, Belize or Guyana.

“So it seems that we have arrived in a sense, but success is a journey not a destination and we have to work very hard and I think in partnership with Delta we will go a far way,” he said.

Another stride, Prashad noted, is that a lot of infrastructure work has been done to improve the Cheddi Jagan International Airport to ensure service.

“About 18 months ago we had a stock of hotel rooms just about 300 now after Cricket World Cup (CWC), we have got over 3000 rooms and there were some skeptics during CWC season about what will happen after CWC, that we would not have enough people to fill these hotels,” he explained.

However, he pointed out that the Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel was filled to capacity last summer because of the influx of Guyanese returning in large numbers.

“Right now as we are preparing for the Tenth Caribbean Festival of Arts (Carifesta X), the Carifesta fever is on and people are booking, over 1,500 hotel rooms are booked already for Carifesta…27 countries have already signed on for Carifesta and they are booking directly to these hotels,” he attested.

“… the future looks great for Guyana, very soon in two weeks time there will be a ground breaking ceremony for an international hotel, a name brand hotel and a Memorandum of Understanding will be signed shortly for another big hotel,” he revealed.

The minister also informed that the Ministry is currently engaged in discussions with another very reputable international carrier about possible operations in Guyana.

“So why this sudden interest in Guyana -- because Guyana is on the move, we are doing well and people with vision are looking ahead and planning and they are taking advantage of the situation now to come into Guyana,” he alluded.

He also added that the tourism industry is growing at a rapid rate noting that three years ago nobody thought of birding as a big aspect of tourism.

Prashad noted that a birding programme was launched and Guyana has over 800 species of birds 200 of which are found in Georgetown.

He said it is a record for any capital in the world to have 200 species of bird.

“We are rated as one of the best birding destinations in the world in a very short time,” the minister exhorted.

Delta Airlines Sales Manager, Mr. Junior Horatio said that Delta will be the first global United States (U.S.) carrier to have come into Guyana since Pan American and British Airways.

“I believe everyone in Guyana is looking forward to quite a rewarding experience travelling on Delta with its connectivity into the United States (U.S.) and its ability to take one to many worldwide destinations,” he alluded.

“And I am quite sure that the Guyanese public will feel extremely relieved to have an operation that is reliable, that is safe and that is noteworthy.” Horatio stated.

He said that air transportation is very critical to the development of any country and particularly for Guyana, a developing country.

Regional Sales Officer and Government Affairs- Bermuda, Caribbean, Central America and Guyana, Mr. Miguel Lopez said that the increase in flights over the last two years has made Delta company the largest expansion ever in the international sector with worldwide destinations.

Delta Airlines over the last two years have added more international capacity than any other major U.S. airline and is the leader across the Atlantic with flights to 38 trans-Atlantic markets.

Delta offers more than 478 weekly flights to 58 destinations in the Caribbean and Latin America and through its marketing alliances; customers can earn and redeem Sky Miles on nearly 16,409 flights offered by Sky Team and other partners.

Delta, a founding member of Sky Team, a global airline alliance that provides customers with extensive worldwide destinations, flights and services and along with other partners offers flights to 474 worldwide destinations in 104 countries.

Delta began operations on Sunday with three flights per week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays and there will be an increase from July 1.

Delta has appointed Della Air Services as the General Sales Agents headed by Mr. Horatio and his team who will be responsible for the daily operations of the Reservations and Ticketing Office located at 126 Carmichael Street, Georgetown.

PM Hinds reiterates punitive measures for mining irregularities
By Tajeram Mohabir
PRIME Minister Samuel Hinds yesterday warned that, while the mining sector has been making significant gains over the years, irregularities among small and medium gold and diamond miners will not be tolerated.

He told reporters, at a press briefing convened in the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) Library, on Brickdam, Georgetown, that the time has passed for miners to be educated on the conscientious use of mercury and punitive sanctions will be imposed for its wanton exploit.

Mr. Hinds said, in the case of muddied water, all operations will be discontinued and punishment will be inflicted on those who are guilty of more than one infraction.

The interaction, with other senior officials including GGMC Commissioner William Woolford present, was also to solicit media support for advancing the agency’s agenda and addressing key areas of concern.

The Prime Minister emphasised that GGMC welcomes constructive criticisms on related activities but said some reports in the press were exaggerated and are unhelpful to the situation.

He said small and medium scale gold and diamond mining have been progressing steadily but, of late, running ahead into a situation which demands the sub-sector rises to a new level.

Hinds pointed out that some 700 separate operations are ongoing in various parts of the country and provides direct employment to about 10,000 people.

He said those employed for the past 15 years have been responsible for increasing the less than 100,000 ounces of gold and 50,000 carats of diamonds per year declared to about 250,000 ounces of gold and the same amount of diamond carats today.

“Over this time, production, too, has moved largely from missile dredges in rivers to operations on land,” Hinds observed.

At the end of last month, the declaration of 98,000 ounces of gold earned the country US$85M but 84,225 diamond carats reported were lower than expected because the product was rigorously scrutinised to ensure it was mined here, he disclosed.

Hinds said he believes a large percentage of gold and diamonds mined here pass through the GGMC and allegations of them being smuggled out of Guyana undeclared are more a matter of policing but he maintained concern over the declaring of diamonds.

According to him, there is a situation in which many new operators are doing things for the first time with unintended or unexpected results which cannot be tolerated.

He said a unit was established in GGMC, some 15 years ago, to address environmental issues and has enforced several tough sanctions which were not publicised.

But Hinds said that a number of mining operations were closed in 2001 because of the intolerable conditions in the Mazuruni River.

On that occasion, he recalled that, three weeks after, eight of the 10 operations there were able to convert some of their pits to ponds and reduce the turbidity (muddiness in the water) that was escaping into the river.

Hinds said miners have called for a separate minister to exclusively champion their cause but explained that the sector has had programmes with the Canadian Agency for International Development (CIDA) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to improve the operations.

“The sector is important to us, but there are very great difficulties involved; difficulty of at least 700 separate operations in many places across the country, so the challenge to manage and stay abreast with what all those 10,000 people (the employees in the sub-sector) are doing is a real one,” he admitted.

However, Hinds assured that GGMC is constantly working to keep miners within the rules and, in the case of the environment, new rules were introduced as the situation requires.

“We have introduced rules on the turbidity of the discharge of any water leaving the operations. It must be no more than 30 NTU (turbidity units). We have had, for some time, programmes to educate small miners on the responsible use of mercury,” he reiterated.

He said much interest is being paid to the restoration of lands disturbed by mining and the time has to be shorter, from the start of clearing and mining, to lessen erosions and promote re-vegetation at a faster rate.

Hinds commended the restoration process undertaken by Omai Gold Mines Limited (OGML), which is presently continuing but acknowledged that, while, previously, “we largely depended on natural restoration, it now has to be done consciously and deliberately.”

He also confirmed that, of the total number of persons in the sector, 1,000 are Brazilians who do not own lands and are tenants of Guyanese.

AN EYE ON GRAINS
Perspectives of the Rice Industry in Guyana (Part One)
By Irfaan Ali
THE rice industry has been pivotal in the economic and social development of the country. This series of ten articles analyse the various factors that contributed to the dynamics of the industry. This article provides highlights of the analysis of each article.

In the metamorphosis of rice cultivation, there are many factors which are almost unknown to a very large section of the Guyanese population. There are many interesting facts, figures and episodes which so far have not been analysed and are undocumented.

From its introduction as a crop during slavery and later engineered by East Indian immigrants, the rice industry established itself as a major contributor to national development. Rice was described as a political substance. Today it has provided ensured food security not only for Guyanese but for Caribbean countries.

The second article provides an historical perspective of the growth of the industry. It will indicate that with sweat, tears and blood, the Indian immigrants used effectively their bare hands with cutlasses and axes to cut down thousands of acres of dense forests and established their expansive, flat, rolling rice fields. They utilised bull power to clear the stumps and without any mechanization, planted, harvested, transported and milled their paddy into rice.

The third article analyses the growth of the industry in the period 1953-64 during the People’s Progressive Party’s tenure in government. It was the vision of Dr. Cheddi Jagan that the take off of the rice industry became a reality. This signalled the beginning of mechanization with Massey Ferguson tractors and combines. During this period the Black Bush Polder and Tapacuma schemes were initiated that increased the cultivated area to almost 50,000 acres.

After a period of steady growth the industry experienced a precipitous decline in production under the People’s National Congress administration from 1966-1992. The acreage harvested in 1968 declined from 126,720 hectares by almost 40% in 1972 to about one third of production during the PPP administration.

The fourth article will indicate that there was a deliberate policy to demotivate rice farmers with administrative mechanisms that dismantled the foundations of what was then termed the former “rice government”. Prices plummeted and rice farmers rapidly abandoned their lands with agricultural infrastructure particularly drainage. This situation precipitated the mass migration of rice farmers and many others to North America, Suriname, the Caribbean and other countries.

The fifth article analyses the measures that were initiated by the new PPP government from 1992-2008 which undertook the Herculean task of rebuilding the entire rice industry. Attention was given to water management as a prerequisite for cultivation. Billions of dollars have been spent to secure irrigation water and the use of pumps to get water to the fields for cultivation. The conservancies have been reinforced and made stronger to withstand the vagaries of climate change.

The sixth article reviews the marketing strategies for domestic and foreign sales. The withdrawal of the European Market for mainly cargo rice precipitated a change of the market structure with the focus on Caribbean markets mainly in Jamaica and Trinidad. Millers were forced to invest in new parboiling technology with grading of products and packaging for the markets.

Management of the industry is addressed in the seventh article. Since the days of the colonial Rice Producers Association many changes were initiated in the industry. The Guyana Rice Development Board came into existence. The Rice Procurers Association has been invigorated to represent the interests of rice farmers. New laws were enacted to ensure that farmers receive timely payment for their products and now rice millers are complying with payment schedules and international environmental standards.

The vibrancy and growth of the rice industry is directly related to research and development activities. The eight article reviews the impact of the rice research station at Burma. New high yield varieties have been initiated and there are more attention to soils types in relation to the use of fertilizers and the control of weeds and insects in the industry. As a result of Farmers Field Schools there is training for about 4,000 farmers to become more efficient producers of rice.

The ninth article provides an insight into growing of rice in non wet conditions in the Intermediate and Rupununi savannahs, and the research and development challenges of the Guyanese rice industry. The future of the industry would be steady growth with the strategies and initiatives of the PPP government. A modernized rice industry is in the making and will contribute significantly to the income earning capacity of farmers and will have many tenuous linkages to the overall economy.

The tenth article projects the role of the rice industry in an international perspective. Though small in total production by international standards, Guyana’s rice will provide the food security for Caribbean countries at sufficient and affordable prices. This article reviews the local industry in the context of global changes in rice production and markets.

These ten articles on the rice industry would provide a holistic perspective of the industry. The Guyanese and the Caribbean population will have a better perspective of the growth and development of this vital Caribbean industry. The technological advances and marketing forces will transform this industry as a major contributor to food stability and economic changes in Guyana.

Convict jailed for burglary, larceny
MAGISTRATE Chandra Sohan, last Friday, imposed a one year prison sentence on Kamal Deen, 29, a convicted thief, of Crabwood Creek, Corentyne, at New Amsterdam Court, also in Berbice.

The prisoner pleaded guilty to break and enter and larceny, admitting that he broke and entered the dwelling house of Dhanmattie Paraj, on May 22, when he stole a bottle of cooking oil, two bottles of juice, a bottle of poison, eight pounds of potatoes, bath soap and other things, all worth $7,000.

In addition, Deen confessed to the May 25 theft of a pair of boots valued $7,500, belonging to Anthony Hanoman.

Police Inspector Fazil Karimbaksh, prosecuting, informed the Court that the convict was previously charged with stealing from Paraj.

Murder accused awaiting trial jailed for drug trafficking
CHETRAM Nowrany, awaiting trial for murder, was sentenced to a total of 15 years imprisonment, on Friday, after being convicted on three drug charges.

But, following his conviction, at New Amsterdam Court, Magistrate Chandra Sohan ordered that the trafficker (no address given) serve the individual five-year sentences concurrently.

Consequently, Nowrany will spend only five years in jail for the 69 grammes of cannabis (marijuana) which he had in possession for the purpose, introducing the narcotic into the New Amsterdam penitentiary and conspiring to traffick it.

In addition, Nowrany must pay a fine of $82,500, three times the street value of the prohibited substance with the alternative of 12 more months in jail.

His co-defendant in the conspiracy case, Candace Bakker, a mother of seven, of Betsy Ground, East Canje, also in Berbice, denied the joint conspiracy charge and was remanded to prison until June 20.

Police Inspector Fazil Karimbaksh, prosecuting, said a bottle of nut butter, also containing leaves, seeds and stems of the illegal plant, was given to Nowrany, who is facing a charge for the capital offences, as well.

The Prosecutor said the prisoner was to deliver the drug to another inmate, on May 28.

Bail reduced, fourth defendant charged in counterfeit case
MAGISTRATE Chandra Sohan has reduced the surety for three of the defendants in the counterfeit money case, from $1M each to $700,000.

But, when it happened at New Amsterdam Court last Friday, one of the trio, Melshock Bazilio, 27, a clothes vendor of Lot 261 Blue Sackie Drive, South Ruimveldt, had already lodged the sum originally ordered.

However, Rehama Smart also known as Lilowattie Isfahamia has also been joined as a defendant on the charge of being in possession of bogus money.

She, like Bazilio, Mark Joseph called Mark Tyrell, 36, of Lot 335 East Street, Alberttown and Melanie Hamlington or Lisa, 25, of Lot 44 George Street, also in Georgetown, had all been convicted of illegal departure from Guyana via Springlands, Corentyne, in Berbice, as well.

The group had gone to Suriname without presenting themselves to an immigration officer in Guyana and each was fined $25,000 with the alternative of six weeks imprisonment and Joseph opted to serve the jail sentence.

Joseph had applied to the High Court before and his bail, in the counterfeit case, was lowered to $200,000.

Defence Counsel Mursalene Bacchus had requested a substantial reduction of the bail, on the ground that the trial delay was caused by the Prosecution.

However, Magistrate Sohan said there are too many cases left unfinished because the defendants, having posted bonds, never return for trial.

Police are alleging that, on their return from Suriname, where they allegedly traded cannabis (marijuana) for United States (U.S.) dollars, the counterfeit notes were found on  Bazilio, Joseph and Hamlington.

The case, now involving a quartet, will be called again on June 6.

At Demerara Assizes…
June criminal sessions open today as April continues
THE June criminal sessions of the Demerara Assizes will open today, with the usual ceremonial parade, although those for April are unfinished.

The same two judges, Justices Dawn Gregory-Barnes and Roxanne George, who presided over the previous sessions, have been assigned again.

Before them will be 76 cases, including 13 murder, 15 manslaughter, 11 rape, six buggery and six carnal knowledge.

Justice Gregory-Barnes was to have summed up the evidence in the Non Pariel rape trial yesterday but decided to do it tomorrow, with the consequence being continuation of the April sessions.

In the extant trial, Ragendra Gossai is indicted for having forced sexual intercourse with a 14-year old girl on September 4, 2004.

Demand factors scapegoats in global price spikes
As I reflect on the Gitanjali Singh’s letter captioned “The government menu of measures is not adequate to increase the disposable income of Guyanese”, in the Stabroek News, May 30, 2008, I am more convinced that Singh is totally misguided on the Government’s relief package, and as such, I feel I must further address the misrepresentation of facts evident in Singh’s letter.

Indeed, the Government’s relief package will not solve the issue of rising food and fuel prices in Guyana. Certainly, the package is not a one-stop shop as implied by Singh in her letter. However, I believe that the relief package was setup to cushion the effects of inflation on a day-to-day basis; and most importantly, to assist the vulnerable in our society. Certainly, disposable incomes of individuals in Guyana differ and so, the impacting capacity of the relief package will be measured out differently in accordance with the varying levels of low incomes.

I felt that Gitanjali Singh misunderstood the thrust of the Government’s relief package. Singh’s letter questioned the adequacy of the relief package. It seems to me that the sole purpose of the package was to have a cushioning effect on increased prices in the economy. As I pointed out in my previous letter published in the Chronicle of May 31, 2008, the relief package is comprised, among other things, of zero rating on diesel, zero rating on VAT, temporary incentive of $4,000 per month for incomes below $50,000, and 5% increase for public sector, assistance to GPL’s fuel bill to avoid tariffs being passed on to consumers; this relief package is presented at a cost to the Government in excess of $25 billion.

To date, no Caribbean country has produced a comparable package to assist its citizens amid the rising global food and fuel prices. And it’s a crying Shame that here comes Gitanjali Singh as “Mary Poppins” or is she really Alice in Wonderland, with full support from the usual suspects, trying to label every PPP/C Government program as ‘not good’, ‘not properly thought out’; and specifically attempting to besmirch the Relief package.

I want now to talk about Alice in Wonderland Singh’s propaganda. I agree with Dr. Misir that Guyana at this time has no food crisis. He never said that that there is a correlation between shortage of food and the rising global food and fuel prices. In fact, having a relief package is testimony to the Government’s acknowledgement that Guyana is hit hard by these rising global prices.

Singh presents gross untruths by suggesting that Guyana has an erratic supply of rice to Jamaica and erratic supplies of products to other markets; and uses this erratic supply argument as a basis for possible price increases in those markets. Well, she needs to learn about the current developments with regard to rice exports to Jamaica; clearly, she is not conversant with the current spate of affairs.

Alice in Wonderland Singh believes that VAT has contributed to price increases. But it is disingenuous on her part not to mention the large listing of zero-rated items. She should talk about the application of an illegal consumption tax on goods and services on top of VAT by unscrupulous businessmen since January 1, 2007. VAT has extended the tax net to now include previous tax evaders.

Alice in Wonderland’s politics is naïve, to say the least. Economic liberalism did not begin under Hoyte. The Economic Recovery Program was the brainchild of the International Financial Institutions; also, it was during this period that we had dismal production levels for both sugar and rice; also, at that time, Guyana imported sugar from Guatemala. Hurrah, then, for this brand of Alice in Wonderland Singh’s liberalism.

If she feels that the revenue positions should be presented alongside the minimum wages over the years since 1992, why did she not do it in her letter to effectively rebut the point about the vast increases in minimum wage during this Government’s tenure? She should do her homework and give us this information.

Professor Thomas quite clearly said that rising food prices are linked to rising oil prices, and that the global supply-demand imbalances appear to be strongly converged in two grains: wheat and rice. Martin Wolf said more than that: “The recent price spikes apply to almost all significant food and feedstuffs… Yet these jumps are themselves part of a wider range of commodity price rises. Powerful forces are linking prices of energy, industrial raw materials and foodstuffs. Those forces include rapid economic growth in the emerging world, strains on world energy supplies, the weakness of the US dollar and global inflationary pressures.” This is a contradiction.

Further, the global supply-demand imbalances are strongly converged in not only wheat and rice, but the major crops that include wheat, corn, rice, and soya beans. Also, speculation and securitization of several commodities have been presented as other factors to explain the price spikes.

Global imbalances in demand and supply may not be telling the whole story on global price spikes. Demand factors, such as higher consumption in China and India, as part of this ‘supply imbalance’ team, are being critically reviewed and being seen as scapegoats to explain the price spikes. The Conference Board believes that the demand factors do not wholly explain the sudden price spikes in the last 15 months and even over the last three months. In fact, Adam Smith’s invisible hand may be imperfect on this occasion.

I looked carefully at the Government’s relief package and I believe it would help to cushion the effects of rising global food and fuel prices. The package will be reviewed periodically, and is not a one-stop measure. Thomas and Alice in Wonderland Singh have totally missed the point about the relief package; its focus may be more on cushioning than on adequacy of disposable income.
STEPHEN BERNARD

Criticisms of the judiciary are the cross-check and balance of power 
It was the obvious arrogance of Mr. Terrence Duncan, a contributor to the letter column of the Stabroek News (Monday, June 2, 2008) that prompted me to treat with his insularity on the issue of criticisms of the judiciary. 

The State comprises three (3) arms of Government, the Executive, the Judiciary and the Parliament each of which must act as the cross-check and balance of power. It was Lord Woolf who said that:

’The tension is a necessary consequence of maintaining the balance of power between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary …"

Tension between the Executive and the Judiciary is inevitable in societies where there is clear separation of power and certainly here in Guyana the trading of views between these two arms is intellectually stimulating.     

It is the most awkward submission to defend the judiciary’s exemption from criticisms when its role is set out in a framework of accountability and transparency.

Though the judiciary is an independent arm of the State, it has to be accountable, to explain and justify and open up areas in question to public dialogue and scrutiny. This is the kind of accountability that will assist transparency and scrutiny by other branches of the State and the public.

Criticisms of the judiciary whether by the Executive or the Public by no means signify or represent distrust or disrespect but an effort to ensure the minimum requirements for justice are met in cases where there may be lingering doubt.

Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee is a representative of the people of Guyana whose sentiment on the topic of bail is reflected in his public utterances as a serious plight for public safety.

Too often, there appears to be little consideration for public interest and victim dilemma when accused of serious crimes are allowed freedom in the name of their constitutional rights. In periods or trends of frequency of certain offences, this perception attracts criticisms to the judiciary.

In contrast to Mr. Duncan’s position, many Guyanese view judicial freedom as essential to having the space and time to make decisions that takes into account the public’s interest. 
KWAME MC COY

Flood waters hit New Amsterdam
WHAT never happened in the 15 years and more that I’ve been residing in Cumberland Village happened last Sunday. Water advanced over my bridge through my yard. The entire area was flooded. New Amsterdam was flooded. Vryman’s Erven was a virtual swimming pool. All this and we are just at the beginning of the May-June rainy season.

Oh yeah, Berbice had definitely been under ‘accumulation of water’—the famous euphemism for ‘flood’ that the “president” of Berbice and his “ministers” love to use.

The “president” of Berbice and his faithful pack of “ministers”, as usual, were out in the fields on Sunday, after the disaster, looking concerned and putting on the best act they could. It was actually aired on Channel-Fifteen, edited of course. They tried to offer sweet words to a desperate bunch of residents--words that the “accumulation of water” would soon be over. In the midst of it, national songs played as viewers were entertained by scenes of “accumulation of water” in the region.

So much “accumulation of water” in so little time over such little volume of rainfall? Again, the government is spending millions upon millions on drainage and irrigation in Guyana. Someone did not do their job properly.
LEON J. SUSERAN

All votes must be counted
ONCE again we hear the cries of "all votes are sacred and must be counted" from the mighty United States of America.

Al Gore fought for his political life in the 2000 Florida elections where Judges handed the Presidency to George Bush.

We heard of "hanging chads-dimpled, chads and dangling chads" and the cries and chants that all votes are sacred and must be counted.

It's now 2008 and once again we hear how votes are the most sacred thing for American citizens.

Now it's Hillary Clinton's turn to cry and holler all votes are sacred and all votes must be counted.

I wonder if Americans were hearing the cries of PPP voters from 1964 to 1992 in Guyana?

Hamas won free, fair and transparent elections in Gaza Palestine but yet again Americans said their votes were not sacred and must not be counted.

We hear Hillary Clinton invoking the wrath of Robert Mugabe’s rigged elections in Zimbabwe and never said a word about free, fair and transparent elections in Gaza Palestine.

Only in America, American votes are sacred and must be counted at all times.

What are we to think of the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave and the mother land of all democracies?
T. KING

Disgusting and sickening situation
I WISH to highlight a disgusting and sickening situation affecting the residents of New Market Street, North Cummingsburg and which the responsible authority, the Guyana Water Inc., seems incapable of resolving.

Over the past three months, every day the GWI underground sewage system in New Market Street (between Main and Carmichael streets) has been overflowing leaving raw sewage floating in the gutters. Not only are residents subjected to the constant foul smell of raw sewage but also with a little rain the gutters overflow leaving the human excrements floating onto the road, parapets and yards.

A few weeks ago with heavy rain, the parapets were flooded with at least ankle height water. There is a school in the vicinity. Imagine the children have to walk in sewage water to enter and leave their classrooms. In addition, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) Country Office is affected as the said gutter runs alongside its office. What image are we painting of our country to the foreigners?

More disgustingly, one would least expect this to be the description of the environment immediately outside the official residence of His Excellency, the President of Guyana.

In light of the above, I have one question for the GWI’s management: why is it taking so long to remedy this problem after numerous complaints and reference numbers. We would accept that GWI workers visited the site and seemed to be working on fixing the problem on numerous occasions. But are they incapable of doing so? I wish to call on the GWI Management to look into this problem. There have been complaints of vandalism of sewage facility in and around Georgetown but this is a clear case where nothing as such has happened but yet residents are forced to live in discomfort because of the negligence or perhaps incompetence on the part of the GWI.

Carifesta X is only 81 days away, the Government is making a huge effort to ensure the successful hosting of this mega event and issues like these would only serve to negate this effort and leave visitors with a foul stench of Georgetown in their memories.
RYAN JUMAN

Only 11 percent suitable for agriculture
AS demand for food increases with growing populations and rising living standards, numerous factors limit efforts to expand food production and alleviate hunger and malnutrition. Expansion of agricultural land is limited by many factors, including soil fertility, topography, climate, and prevalence of agricultural pests and human disease.

According to the F.A.O, only about 11 percent of the Earth's land area is suitable for agriculture. Of the rest, the soil is either frozen, too wet, too shallow, too dry, or chemically unsuited for crops.

After land is prepared for agriculture and crops are planted, many factors can limit the amount of food available for human consumption. Pests, plant disease and weeds are causes of pre-harvest agricultural loss, and may cause the loss of between 5 percent and 40 percent of the world's crop each year. Rodents destroy enough food every year to feed 200 million people. Such pests can be controlled, but improved food storage methods may be more effective in cutting losses.

Post-harvest agricultural losses can occur during harvesting, threshing, cleaning, drying, transport, processing, packaging, and distribution of food. Estimates of these losses in developing countries are about 10 percent of durable crops (cereals and legumes) and about 20 percent of perishable crops (vegetables, fruits, root crops). Such losses may cost a country billions of dollars a year.

Inefficient global food distribution systems are another constraint on efforts to alleviate hunger and malnutrition.

Food surpluses --" mountain of wheat"-- in industrial nations may be thrown away or left to rot, while food shortages exist in the world. In many countries that use high levels of fossil-fuel-based inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, irrigation, and heavy machinery, agriculture has advanced to the point where only marginal gains in productivity are achieved by increasing these inputs.

In many cases, extensive use of such inputs has made agro-systems unstable, vulnerable, and unsustainable. A growing portion of the potential gain from additional inputs is negated by land degradation caused by these energy-intensive farming methods. A number of factors that affect or limit efforts to increase food supplies and relieve hunger are soil erosion and loss of soil fertility, desertification, energy supply, irrigation and water supply, livestock production, the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, cropland conversion, loss of genetic diversity, socio-economic influences.
MOHAMED KHAN
Former Extension Officer.

Money disappears from envelope
I AM sick with the actions of the postal workers in the mail room in Guyana, especially Berbice.

My mother was sent a Mother's Day card two weeks before Mother 's Day. I was hoping that it

would arrive in time, or sometime a little later. But sad to say she has not received her card as of June 1.

I was smart not to enclose any cash since I know and have heard of the stealing of money from overseas mails.  My cousin from New York did not heed the advice not to put money in his card.  He decided to enclose 5 dollars. The card was received but the money was missing. This is a big shame and bad in practice and something should be done to avoid this kind of activity. 

I am so disappointed and sickened to see how low Guyanese would stoop.  Guyanese have sunk to a new low, people are so out of touch with right and wrong it is very sad. .  The Guyana I grew up in and loved has gone to the dogs. 

I would like the Post Masters in New Amsterdam and other Post offices in Berbice to take note of the above and put measures in place to avoid this from repeating.
SAD GUYANESE
Canada 

Not the way to go 
RECENT issues of the Stabroek News and the Kaieteur News editorialized heavily against smoking. I commend them for this. The stance of the Honourable Minister of Health against smoking is also well-known. In light of the virtual death of the tobacco lobby in Guyana the anti-smoking position is expected.

One would wish that these worthies would similarly inveigh against the equally hazardous practice of drinking alcohol. They should not allow themselves to be cowed by the powerful alcohol lobby and its reinforced ties to the powers-that-be. Come on, SN and KN, do what the independent press is supposed to do. Rum ‘til I die or drink, drunk and die is not the way we want to go.
M. XIU QUAN-BALGOBIND-HACKETT

Thankful for basic mediation training
I WISH to thank and congratulate the USAID Guyana Democratic Consolidation and Conflict Resolution (GDCCR) for the training I received in Basic Mediation.

The 4-day Advanced Mediation Training Course is a joint government of Guyana-US government Project tailored to address disputes and issues that may arise in Community based and court connected Mediation.

There are 24 Justices of the Peace and Toshaos from the various Regions of Guyana who attended and received Certificates, among those are S. Ramnauth, Deolatchmee Ramotar, Derek Gulcharran, Paramanand Sukhu, Nasir Ally, Samuel Dasraj, Shirley Edwards, Mohamed Khan, Philip Matthews, Ruel Ferinand, Parag Sukhai, Jalallodeen Baksh, Thofa Alexander, James George, Albert James, Dhanraj, Desmond Morian, Colin Andrews, Aubry Samuels, Oliver Payne, Nobrego Williams, Valerie De Young, Hermon Bholaisingh and Vincent Emmanuel.
CONCERNED CITIZEN

Call for probe at UG
WE the students of the Faculty of Technology at the University of Guyana wish to make it known that we are being victimized in the most cruel manner by a senior official of the Faculty. The vast majority of us come from middle class and lower class families and many of us depend upon our immediate relatives to support us financially so that we may pursue studies at the University of Guyana.

We have just completed final examinations for the academic year 2007-2008 which were held between May 12 and May 23. We, however, were unable to sit our examination with the fullest confidence in our abilities after we were told a week before the finals by a student representative in the Faculty of Technology that it is likely that a senior official of the said Faculty allegedly gave instructions to the lecturers that he wanted to increase revenues from “summer course rewrites”.

According to the student representative who attended the Faculty board meeting at which this directive was given, and who expressed shock by the words of the official, it appears that the Faculty is planning to raise revenues at our expense. The representative explained that it is very likely that the senior Faculty official in question may be pressuring staff to fail students in an effort to raise the funds; an increase of 160% in repeat fees from 2007 and concomitantly a 160% increase in failure rate.

This is an intolerable state of affair. The vast majority of us will find it extremely difficult to find the money to rewrite these courses. In fact, grades in some courses are already out and it appears that there is already a suspiciously high failure rate. Further, we have no confidence in the leadership of the student society on this issue for reasons of alleged collaboration and open association with the said senior Faculty official.

In view of this, we are calling on Dr. Prem Misir, Pro-Chancellor of the University of Guyana and Dr. Nanda Kishore Gopaul, Chairman of the UG Council to urgently investigate this matter since we have no confidence in the current UG administration to do likewise.
STUDENTS OF THE FACULTY OF TECHNOLOGY

I am a proud Guyanese
I WAS there at the National Park forty two years ago when the British Flag “Union Jack” was taken down and our own Golden Arrow Head was hoisted by then our own Major Robert Roberts. Immediately after that we were no longer “British Guiana”. But we have become a Sovereign Nation; we had become “Guyana”.

I was 25 years old and I was with a contingent of members of the United Force Youth Arm, The Guyana United Youth Society. There also were members of the PPP Youth Arm. The Progressive Youth Organisation and also the Youth Arm of the PNC, People National Congress Youth Organization. It was tough previous to our Independence. We of the Youth Arms of these powerful political parties had our “ups and downs” we were all one on that night of 26th May, 1966, I was there when Cheddi Jagan, Peter D’Aguiar and Forbes ‘Odo’ Burnham embraced. Yes, we had our political difference, but we had achieved what we were fighting for and after our struggle the British Home Secretary Duncan Sandys had no alternative than to grant our country its independence.

I was there previous to our independence when the British soldiers came to British Guiana. I still remember the names of some of the troops that came here. They were the Argiles, Worchester Regiment, the Black Watch. (They were Scottish and wore kilts. We used to make fun of them in their skirts). They came with their musical instruments The Bag Pipes ( I love the sound of that instrument), I played football with some soldiers of those regiments who represented British Guiana at one time or the other ( I could now see that “Half Black” Danny Kaje (that was the name football fans of that time give to that tough, robust white man). Regardless of who say what, I am proud to be part of, or few who are still alive (I am 67) that struggled for the country’s independence.

We, Guyanese of every race should be proud to be a sovereign nation. I live through colonialism for 25 years and I can say now we the natives were treated as second class people.

Today our political founder fathers have all gone home (Cheddi, Burnham and D’Aguiar). As we go into our 43rd year of independence, I pray that all of us try to be united to make this land of ours a better place. Politicians must stop the blame game; stop the power seeking; stop the racial division. We have not achieved much economically since independence but I was there and I feel proud to be Guyanese “HIMAN” you can’t deport me from here.

My President is Bharrat Jagdeo, My opposition leader is Robert Corbin, my political leader is Mansoor Nadir. They are all my leaders and I have no apologies to give to anyone. I was politically involved since 1961. I was 30 years old. My political mentor is Mr. Kit Nacimento (Thank you Kit you can take a bow). I was there on the streets, in the trenches politically for 49 years. I am still here, I saw it all, let us stop the fighting and move on. God, Allah, Bhagwan, bless my country. Policies do not divide us, Race does.
MURTLAND SLUGGER WILLIAMS

Shiv battles to 19th Test ton on incident-filled day
… but Aussies in match-winning position
ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) – Shivnarine Chanderpaul battled to his 19th Test century but Brett Lee’s pace and accurate reverse swing, aided by three successive, contentious umpiring decisions, triggered a West Indies collapse and placed Australia in a match-winning position at the close of the fourth day of the second Digicel Test yesterday.

Securing a lead of 127 runs after dismissing the hosts for 352 after they resumed at 255 for four, the tourists reached stumps at 244 for six in their second innings, an overall lead of 371 runs.

Opening batsman Phil Jaques led the acceleration in the final session following a sedate afternoon period with 76, while Mike Hussey (40), opening the batting in the absence of the injured Simon Katich, and captain Ricky Ponting (38) ensured that the Australians were in a position to consider an overnight declaration and leave the home side with a battle for survival on the final day.

Yet whatever transpires today, the events of the fourth morning – and more precisely the circumstances that contributed to Lee’s destructive spell of five wickets for four runs in the space of 18 deliveries – will overshadow the rest of the match and could have repercussions beyond the final ball, given that it involved the highly emotive issue of umpiring errors.

In contrast to the heavy showers on Sunday morning that robbed more than half of the third day’s play, excellent weather provided the backdrop for Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo to progress serenely on the fourth morning with their fourth-wicket partnership, extending it to 132 runs when the meandering pace of the match was transformed into turbulence and controversy.

Persisting with the old ball into the 93rd over, Ponting summoned Lee after a succession of innocuous overs from slow bowlers Stuart MacGill, Michael Clarke and Andrew Symonds.

He got the breakthrough almost immediately, Bravo, on 45, being adjudged caught behind by wicketkeeper Brad Haddin down the leg-side although television replays showed that the ball had touched only the all-rounder’s thigh pad.

His obvious disappointment at the verdict by Russell Tiffin was therefore understandable, while fellow Trinidadian Denesh Ramdin also had reason to feel aggrieved when the Zimbabwean official ruled him lbw to the very next delivery, a searing late inswinger that caught the wicketkeeper-batsman on the crease.

Again, television replays confirmed suspicions that he was struck outside the line of the off-stump.

However, that would have been little consolation for the two batsmen, especially as it exposed a vulnerable lower order to a rampant Lee.

To add insult to injury, new batsman Darren Sammy, having negotiated the hat-trick delivery, fell to the very first ball of a new over from Lee, also the victim of an erroneous leg-before adjudication by Tiffin, although in this instance it was not nearly as clear-cut as the previous two dismissals.

From the comfort of 314 for four, the West Indies had slumped to 318 for seven and not even the resolute defiance of Chanderpaul, who reached his second century of the series with a boundary off Symonds in the midst of the mayhem, could stem the tide.

The 33-year-old finished unbeaten on 107, his 19th Test century, after 336 minutes in the middle during which he faced 236 balls and struck 12 fours. Not for the first time, he was almost helpless as Lee continued the demolition job at the other end without the assistance of any questionable decisions.

Jerome Taylor heaved a couple boundaries before being comprehensively bowled for 20 while there was no doubt about Lee’s third successful lbw appeal, accounting for Daren Powell for a duck to complete his ninth five-wicket innings haul in Tests.

He finished with figures of five for 59, although it was Mitchell Johnson who wrapped up the innings when Fidel Edwards became the fourth player who failed to score in the innings, giving wicketkeeper Brad Haddin a straightforward catch ten minutes before the scheduled lunch interval.

Losing their last six wickets for 38 runs was not an entirely alien occurrence for the West Indies, however the circumstances of the slide on this occasion generated a level of acrimony that resurfaced nearing the end of a long day.

Jaques and Hussey chose safety first in a comparatively quiet opening stand of 74, building on a first innings lead of 127 runs before Hussey was caught behind off Bravo, with Ramdin taking a good catch standing up to the stumps.

The acceleration began after tea, Jacques reaching the half-century mark off 109 balls, with five fours in 109 minutes, but perished 24 runs short of a hundred edging an attempted cut off Taylor to Ramdin.

Ponting, who had put on 89 runs for the second wicket with Jaques, was lbw to a full-length delivery from Taylor for 38, while Clarke was run-out for ten by Chanderpaul’s direct hit to the wicketkeeper’s end in the increasingly frenetic rush for runs.

Any prospect of the earlier ill feeling at Tiffin’s errors dying down evaporated when Symonds, on seven, stood his ground to a vehement appeal for a leg-side catch by Ramdin off Taylor and TV replays suggested that the ball had brushed the all-rounder’s glove.

Haddin was unlucky to be ruled leg-before by English umpire Mark Benson off Edwards, a dismissal that brought in Lee, who promptly sustained a fearful blow on the left side of the jaw from a venomous short-pitched delivery by Edwards.

The combative fast bowler and lower-order batsman continued after brief treatment, his sixth-wicket partnership with Symonds (43 not out) progressing amidst palpable tension that will inevitably linger into the final day of a match that was on the verge of dying on its feet 24 hours earlier.

Still there was to be a final, and in some eyes, a fitting twist when Lee was given out caught behind off the glove by Benson for four to another lifter from Edwards off what proved the final ball of the day.

The batsman was not pleased with the verdict, the telltale replays suggesting that he had solid grounds for displeasure.

The irony of the final incident was not lost anyone who had witnessed an unexpectedly incident-filled day.

Edwards finished with two for 28 while Taylor claimed two for 33.

AUSTRALIA 1st innings 479-7 declared (S. Katich 113; J. Taylor 3-95)

WEST INDIES 1st innings (o/n 255-4)

D. Smith c Symonds b Johnson 16

X. Marshall lbw b Clarke 53

R. Sarwan c Clarke b MacGill 65

R. Morton c Katich b Clarke 2

S. Chanderpaul not out 107

D. Bravo c wkp. Haddin b Lee 45

D. Ramdin lbw b Lee 0

D. Sammy lbw b Lee 0

J. Taylor b Lee 20

D. Powell lbw b Lee 0

F. Edwards c wkp. Haddin b Johnson 0

Extras: (b-17, lb-13, w-2, nb-12) 44

Total: (all out, 107 overs) 352

Fall of wickets: 1-55, 2-103, 3-105, 4-182, 5-314, 6-314, 7-318, 8-341, 9-341.

Bowling: Lee 21-7-59-5, Johnson 24-5-72-2, Clark 14-0-39-0, MacGill 21-1-107-1, Clarke 15-7-20-2, Symonds 12-3-25-0.

AUSTRALIA 2nd innings

P. Jaques c wkp. Ramdin b Taylor 76

M. Hussey c wkp. Ramdin b Bravo 40

R. Ponting lbw b Taylor 38

M. Clarke run-out 10

A. Symonds not out 43

B. Haddin lbw b Edwards 7

B. Lee c wkp. Ramdin b Edwards 4

Extras: (b-8, lb-6, w-3, nb-9) 26

Total: (six wkts, 61.5 overs) 244

Fall of wickets: 1-74, 2-163, 3-178, 4-186, 5-222, 6-244.

Bowling: Powell 13-3-47-0, Edwards 7.5-1-28-2, Taylor 12-0-33-2, Sammy 12-1-45-0, Bravo 14-1-59-1, Sarwan 3-0-18-0.

Position: Australia lead by 371 runs.

Jamaica showdown looms for Bolt and Powell
By Gene Cherry
RALEIGH, North Carolina (Reuters) - The two fastest 100 metres sprinters of all-time could race in Jamaica later this month.

New 100 metres world record holder Usain Bolt will run both the 100 and 200 at the June 27-29 Jamaican Olympic trials in Kingston, his coach said on Sunday.

Among his rivals in the 100 is scheduled to be compatriot Asafa Powell, the world record holder until Bolt clocked 9.72 seconds at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York on Saturday.

The meeting could be the year's most anticipated 100 metres before the Beijing Olympics in August, although Powell and American world champion Tyson Gay are also due to race in July in London.

Powell and Bolt have run the seven fastest times ever recognised in the event.

Powell has recorded five of them, including the former world record of 9.74 seconds, and the 21-year-old Bolt two but they have never raced over 100 metres.

The lanky Bolt has run times of 9.76, 9.92 and 9.72 seconds within the last month.

"I'll be doubling now (in the Olympics), definitely," Bolt told Reuters in New York after setting the world record.

But his coach Glen Mills said nothing had been finalised.

"It is not really his decision to make," the veteran coach told Reuters via telephone from Kingston. "If he wants to, maybe that's his way of telling me."

Mills, who for years had tried to push Bolt towards the 400 metres as his second event, acknowledged that the sprinter would run both the 100 and 200 metres at the Jamaican trials.

"He is going to double in the trials because if he doesn't, he would be forcing himself to make a decision this month about the Olympics," Mills said.

A 200 metres race in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on June 12 will be Bolt's only run over the longer distance before the trials, his agent Ricky Simms said.

Defoe’s double pushes England past Soca Warriors
By Jason Harper
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) – England’s Jermain Defoe scored a pair of goals in a comfortable 3-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago at the Hasely Crawford Stadium on Sunday evening.

Defoe found the back of the net in the 15th and 49th minutes after Gareth Barry opened the scoring in the 12th for the visitors.

In the game billed ‘Score to Settle’, Barry silenced the partisan home crowd at the sold-out venue, when he latched on to a David Beckham cross and beat Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Clayton Ince.

Defoe doubled the score three minutes later when he connected on a Stewart Downing cross and beat a diving Ince at his far post.

The Warriors, trying to avenge their 2-0 World Cup defeat in Germany two years ago, suffered a huge early setback when striker Kenwyne Jones was tackled hard by England keeper David James and was forced to leave the game after just 11 minutes.

Jones was replaced by Darryl Roberts, who hardly bothered the England defence, led by Rio Ferdinand.

Beckham disappointed the majority of the large crowd that came out to watch the match when he was substituted at halftime.

Defoe, the Portsmouth striker, added his second goal soon after the halftime break when he scored from a David Bentley cross.

It was the second easy win for England in five days after they beat the United States of America 2-0 last Wednesday.

Trinidad and Tobago coach Francisco Maturana did not call on the services of former captain Dwight Yorke until the 75th minute.

The former Aston Villa and Manchester United star looked comfortable on the ball from his first touch and connected well with the impressive Carlos Edwards, who ran freely down the right side for the entire match, but failed to deliver that telling cross to strikers Stern John and Roberts.

The Warriors will now meet Jamaica on Saturday June 7 in another friendly international this time at the Queen’s Park Oval.

The last time the two Caribbean giants met earlier this year, the match ended in a 2-2 draw in Kingston.

Mosley faces judgement day after sex scandal
By Alan Baldwin
PARIS, France (Reuters) - Formula One's governing body will decide today whether Max Mosley can remain as president after a sex scandal that has thrown the sport into turmoil.

A spokesman for the International Automobile Federation (FIA) confirmed yesterday that the 68-year-old Briton's fate will be sealed in a simple vote of confidence by secret ballot.

Motorsport associations and motoring clubs from 96 countries will cast 177 votes, including 19 proxies, at what could be a heated extraordinary meeting of the FIA's general assembly.

The full membership is some 222 strong but clubs that have not paid their dues are ineligible to vote.

The procedure is further complicated because some of the votes are split. Britain's RAC, the AA and Caravan Club, for example, each have a third of one vote, with that whole counting only if they all agree.

A poll in Britain's Guardian newspaper of 100 of the member clubs showed 37 per cent wanting Mosley to resign, 25 per cent for him and 29 per cent refusing to comment on their intentions. The remainder were undecided or ineligible.

Formula One's commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone, who called openly at the weekend for his long-term associate to stand down, could have a big say in convincing the waverers but Mosley also has a formidable network of allies.

TURBULENCE AHEAD
The vote leaves the FIA at a crossroads, with uncertainty and turbulence likely whichever route is taken.

Mosley has said he will resign if he loses and there will be relief in some quarters if that happens. But defeat will also bring upheaval, with no clear successor lined up and Formula One facing some big decisions about future rules and regulations.

If the FIA president wins, there is the risk of a schism within the governing body which is divided between sporting clubs and those more concerned with day-to-day motoring services.

Leading 'mobility' members such as the Automobile Association of America (AAA), with 51 million members in the United States, and Germany's ADAC have come out strongly already against Mosley.

A vote for the Briton could also lead to an impasse in Formula One, with some of the manufacturer teams and leading sponsors determined to avoid his company.

Mosley has ruled out any face-saving compromise but has said he will not stand for re-election in October 2009 even if he wins the vote, with FIA vice-presidents taking over his ceremonial duties until then.

Britain's triple Formula One champion Jackie Stewart, who has repeatedly called for Mosley to go, has a $100 wager on his foe winning the vote.

Mosley has ignored calls to quit since the tabloid News of the World newspaper published details of his involvement in what was described as a Nazi-style sado-masochistic orgy with prostitutes.

More than two months since the scandal broke, overshadowing much of what has been happening on the race track, the FIA president has continued to defend his corner.

Mosley, who is suing the News of the World for invasion of privacy, will have an opportunity to address the assembly as will other members. The outcome of the vote is expected after 1200 GMT.

Sharapova sent packing at French Open
… Federer rolls on
By Pritha Sarkar
PARIS, France (Reuters) - Maria Sharapova's French Open dreams were shredded by a familiar foe yesterday, while Roger Federer plunged a dagger into French hearts.

Sharapova has never felt at home in the heartland of claycourt tennis and yesterday her weakness was unashamedly exposed during a 6-7, 7-6, 6-2 demolition job by fellow Russian Dinara Safina.

As Sharapova muttered and spluttered her way out of Paris, Federer maintained his aura of calm to subdue the brave challenge of local hopeful Julien Benneteau 6-4, 7-5, 7-5 and reach the quarter-finals of Roland Garros for the fourth year running.

The Florida-based Sharapova had arrived in Paris announcing herself as the new face of a well-known jewellery company but during her nine-day stay at Roland Garros, her game failed to sparkle.

"It's not easy trying to write an incredible story that everybody's going to love," said the Australian Open champion.

"As much as I want to go out there and do everything perfect, especially on this stuff, it's not as easy."

After huffing and puffing past three obscure opponents in the previous rounds, she met her match in 13th seed Safina, who had beaten the top seed at the same stage here two years ago.

At 5-2 down in the second set, Safina looked to be heading out. Instead of accepting her fate, she chose to take out her frustrations on her racquet, smacking it into the red dirt in anger.

Her hot-headedness proved to have the desired effect as in the next game she went on to save a match point by unleashing a spectacular winner.

GAME EXPLODED
"I'm not the girl to keep all the emotions I have inside," said Safina, who will next face another Russian in Elena Dementieva.

"I guess I have to pay lots of fines because that's the way I am. I prefer to let it go. I feel that I have to explode then I explode."

As Safina's game exploded into life, Sharapova's started to fade. Twelve months after describing herself as a 'cow on ice' on clay, Sharapova skidded out of the tournament by ramming a forehand long.

She would perhaps be best to wipe out memories of her 2008 Paris sojourn but if she ever chooses to read up on it -- it will make for grim reading.

In four matches she piled up an astonishing 199 unforced errors and 43 double faults -- certainly not the kind of statistics a world number one would be proud of.

To compound her misery, Sharapova's premature departure could herald the end of her reign as world number one.

She was in a four-way race to secure the top ranking at the end of the tournament, but if any of her main rivals -- Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic and Svetlana Kuznetsova -- go on to lift the title on Saturday they will also climb to the top of the WTA standings.

She greeted the news with a "boo-hoo" before adding: "I came very close, just didn't go my way for some reason." While Sharapova's hopes of completing a career grand slam stalled yesterday, Federer stepped up his pursuit of an elusive French Open crown with an entertaining win over Benneteau.

WASHED AWAY
For the third match running, Federer got wet on court as the rain once again returned to Roland Garros, but the top seed made sure his title hopes were not washed away and he booked a last-eight showdown with Chilean Fernando Gonzalez.

Benneteau, one of five Frenchman to reach the fourth round, got the partisan crowd going by showing off a range of slam dunk shots, but his repertoire could not save him from defeat at the hands of a man who has reached 15 successive grand slam semis.

The day ended on a high for the French though, as Gael Monfils, who received a warning for being coached by his entourage in the stands, jigged his way to a 7-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over a resurgent Ivan Ljubicic.

David Ferrer took a leaf out of Safina's manual to make sure he lived to fight another day.

Annoyed at being broken in the third set against Czech Radek Stapanek, a raging Ferrer flung his racquet into the ground, picked it up then snapped it in two against his bended knee. The episode spurred him on to a 4-6, 6-2, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 win and a last-eight date with Monfils.

As the top-seeded Bryan brothers crashed out of the men's doubles, U.S. hopes of a singles champion vanished when Robby Ginepri bowed out following a 7-6, 6-3, 6-1 defeat by 24th seed Gonzalez.

Ginepri had been the lone American survivor in either draw, and his demise means the five-year search for a U.S. men's grand slam champion will now be put on hold until at least Wimbledon.

Seventh seed Dementieva, the 2004 runner-up, won an error-strewn Russian catfight against Vera Zvonareva 6-4, 1-6, 6-2.

Lee swings Australia towards victory with old ball
By Simon Evans
NORTH SOUND, Antigua (Reuters) - Most quick bowlers love a shiny, hard new ball in their hands but Brett Lee showed yesterday with a superb spell of five wickets in 18 balls that a battered old one can also be a deadly weapon.

The Australian ripped through the West Indies batting order with a virtually unplayable spell featuring conventional and reverse swing, giving the touring side a good chance of winning the second Test.

"I do think it is definitely the best spell I have bowled with the old ball. It's probably the most I have ever moved a ball. And it's gone late too," Lee told reporters.

"There are days when it just clicks. And those moments, those six overs are the reason why I play Test cricket.

"They always talk about getting into a groove and getting into the right mindset and getting in to a part in your spell when it all happens for you.

"It happened easily, I felt like I was running in I wasn't trying to bowl the ball too fast, the ball came out perfect," he said.

The key breakthrough came when Lee removed Dwayne Bravo, who together with Shivnarine Chanderpaul had put on 132 for West Indies.

Television replays showed that Bravo had not actually hit the ball, which struck his hip, but his departure opened up the lower-middle order and Lee took full advantage with three lbws and a clean-bowled as the hosts tumbled to 352 all out.

FLAT WICKET
Lee usually swings the new ball away from right-handers and has an effective bouncer but on a flat wicket that has offered nothing to seamers the old ball was far more dangerous, shiny on one side and rough on the other.

"The conditions were perfect, when I looked at the ball it was spot on, scuffed-up on one side -- the boys looked after the ball on one side just perfectly," Lee said.

"There were a couple of times it got over the fence and got onto the gravel and that kind of thing which definitely helps and you are playing on a surface too which is very abrasive, the conditions were definitely in our favour for the ball to swing the other way.

"To pick up five wickets is always a bonus but for me it is always about trying to get that breakthrough and hopefully try and get your Test match team into a position where we can win the Test match and hopefully we have done a pretty good job there," Lee added.

Warne not interested in replacing MacGill
… but former players support his return
STUART MacGill's retirement has raised more questions over whether Shane Warne could end his international exile, but Cricket Australia is confident there will be no return.

While Darren Lehmann and Kerry O'Keeffe feel Warne could make a successful comeback, James Sutherland, Cricket Australia's chief executive, believes he has heard the final word.

"I am in Mumbai and I let Shane know that Stuart was about to announce his retirement," Sutherland told the Sydney Morning Herald. "Shane was very clear on the subject: he said that not only is he very happily retired, but also that (a comeback) is the furthest thing from his mind. So that would seem to be the end of that."

Warne's former mentor Terry Jenner told AAP it was "time to move forward" and said in the Herald there was "no logical reason to go backwards". However, his position was not as clear in the Australian.

"The very situation that Warney talked about has arrived," Jenner said. "All the criteria have been met for what Shane said would be the criteria for him to come back. Shane has been playing cricket, albeit Twenty20, MacGill has retired and the choice is to go to one of the young kids who might not be ready."

Beau Casson, who is on the West Indies tour, is the best-placed person to replace MacGill in the short term while the South Australian pair of Dan Cullen and Cullen Bailey held Cricket Australia contracts for 2007-08.

The third Test against West Indies starts in Barbados on June 12 and Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke could also be employed instead of Casson.

O'Keeffe, who played 24 Tests in the 1970s, said in the Australian Warne was a "big chance of a comeback now". "I think he would do very well in England," he said. Last month Warne said he would consider stepping in for one Test series if Australia really needed him.

"You would have to be mad not to take him if we were struggling for whatever reason," Darren Lehmann told the paper. "He definitely still has the fire in the belly. I saw that first-hand in the IPL. He is still bowling brilliantly, has been working hard on his fitness and can still bowl a lot of overs in a day.

Johnson to return Olympic relay gold
LONDON, England (Reuters) - Five-time Olympic champion Michael Johnson will return his final gold medal won in the 2000 Sydney Games 4x400 metres relay after a team mate admitted taking drugs.

Antonio Pettigrew testified at the trial of coach Trevor Graham that he had taken banned drugs since the 1996 U.S. trials. His confession followed drugs bans on Alvin and Calvin Harrison and Jerome Young who were also members of the victorious U.S. team.

"I know that the medal was not fairly won and that it is dirty," Johnson said in a column published in The Daily Telegraph today.

"So difficult as it is, I will be returning it to the International Olympic Committee because I don't want it. I feel cheated, betrayed and let down."

Graham was convicted last Thursday on one count of lying to federal agents investigating the BALCO laboratory.

Yousuf has request for leave denied by PCB
By Richard Sydenham
MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) - The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has rejected a request from English county team Lancashire to allow Mohammed Yousuf to miss this month's tri-series against India and hosts Bangladesh, a Lancashire spokeswoman confirmed yesterday.

The club signed Yousuf, 33, last month to cover for their Australian overseas player Brad Hodge who belatedly agreed to play in an Indian domestic Twenty20 event.

Yousuf's stay was extended when Hodge was required by Australia on their West Indies tour, to cover for Michael Clarke who was on compassionate leave due to the failing health of his fiancée’s father.

"The PCB have been brilliant and very helpful in allowing Mohammed to extend his contract with us after Brad was needed in the Caribbean," the spokeswoman said.

"We just hoped that they may allow us to keep him a little bit longer and we asked the question but they indicated that they wanted to take a full-strength squad to Bangladesh so he will be heading back to Pakistan today."

Yousuf is the third highest-scoring batsman in Pakistan's Test match history with 6 770 runs from 79 games.

The IPL and the art of captaincy ,,,
Different strokes
By Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
THE irony was striking. The IPL was supposed to symbolise cricket's future, but the winning captain openly sniggering at laptops.

Twenty20 was supposed to be an instinctive form that didn't offer much time for thought, but the finalists were led by the two most charismatic leaders.

"If you walk up to a bowler and look worried, it gets to him," said Mahendra Singh Dhoni after the second semi-final. "So I act as if I'm not." At once it conjured up images of Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar - anxious, nervous and hoping for the bowler to hold his nerve while appearing to be losing theirs.

There was Yuvraj Singh, who seemed to holler louder as the tension increased, and Harbhajan Singh made a habit of chewing his fingernails.

Dravid made an interesting point after the daylight robbery Bangalore pulled off in Chennai, when an inexplicable collapse helped his side to a win against the odds. When asked about how well he had led, Dravid blushed. "When you win, every captain looks good. When you lose, whatever you do appears wrong."

Admittedly a lot of analysis of captaincy relies on hindsight, but the IPL made one thing clear: the shrewdest survived.

Kolkata's John Buchanan wanted his side to approach every game as if they were confronting 240 individual battles, one for each ball. The depth of the planning was evident. Added to that was a demand for quickly adapting to the conditions and changing plans accordingly.

Shane Warne imposed himself. While hailing his leadership skills nobody should forget the value he offered as a player - no other captain played as many match-winning hands.

More than one Rajasthan player has spoken of the boost the side received after Warne's sensational finish against Deccan Chargers, when he carted Andrew Symonds for 17 off the final over. One team-mate has said how his faith in the captain increased ten-fold that evening. Warne was in the middle in the final too and the crack through covers in the penultimate over, when 12 were needed off 7, set up the finish.

Rattling the Bangalore top order with a bouncer barrage on a lively Chinnaswamy pitch was a classic case of astute planning coming off.

The sight of Warne alerting the fielders at fine leg to anticipate a catch will stick in the mind. So also, Warne giving his faster bowlers one-over spells against Chennai, in the second match between the sides, was another one of those little surprises that had a big impact.

Warne was also blessed with that enviable quality good captains usually need - luck. He won 10 of his 15 tosses, and even when some of his gambles misfired - like the promotion of Sohail Tanvir up the order - it didn't cost them too much.

The punt on Swapnil Asnodkar came off spectacularly. And whenever a match went down to the wire, Rajasthan found that extra bit of magic to pull it off.

Dhoni was the other captain team-mates swore by. His batting made a difference in a few games but it was his ice-cool demeanour that stood out. His side were unstoppable at full-strength, but even after their Australians left, Chennai continued to upset strong teams in close finishes.

The decision to hold back L. Balaji for the final overs in the second game against Punjab proved a masterstroke, and the faith he placed in Joginder Sharma to bowl the last over in Chennai's first few games never backfired. Maybe he missed Joginder in the final over of the final too.

One wonders how things would have panned out if Dhoni had kept wicket in the second half of the tournament - he has admitted he leads better when he keeps, standing in a position where one can read the game best. He also might just have been more efficient than Parthiv Patel behind the stumps, especially when it came to batsmen taking off for byes to the keeper.

Yuvraj never really inspired with the bat but was fortunate to have Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena by his side - two allies he regularly turned to. Where Yuvraj did inspire, though, was in the field - he was at the centre of the cliffhanger in Mumbai, lambasting his fielders for every minor lapse. He bowled a tight over and clinched the win with a diving run-out straight out of the Jonty Rhodes album.

The decision to give James Hopes the final over against Delhi - in the rain-curtailed game - was a brave one, and one that made the eventual difference. And the continued faith Yuvraj reposed in VRV Singh was as surprising as it proved effective.

Yuvraj was also fortunate to have the most balanced side in the tournament - one where overseas batsmen and Indian bowlers went about their jobs efficiently. Rarely did Shaun Marsh let them down, and the rest of the order always had a launch pad in place.

Early in the tournament Virender Sehwag appeared to have netted the best side among the eight. He had a new-ball pairing to die for and a top three that fired in every match; Sehwag could really run the ship on auto-pilot. But things started getting tough when Plan A didn't fall into place.

His move to bowl Amit Mishra in the final over against Deccan was inspired, and produced a hat-trick. While a smile was never too far from his face, even when the rest were suffering palpitations, Sehwag might look back on a couple of key moments - giving Shoaib Malik the final over against Chennai and bowling himself, instead of Glenn McGrath, in the crunch against Punjab. Both games slipped away and the road to the semi-finals got rougher.

The excessive faith placed in Malik was intriguing, especially when there was Tillekeratne Dilshan waiting in the wings. Sehwag could possibly have rejigged the batting order once it was clear that the middle four weren't striking the high notes.

Mumbai's three captains came with contrasting styles: Harbhajan Singh impulsive, Shaun Pollock measured, and Tendulkar fidgety. In a team with a number of unheralded players, Pollock and Tendulkar were figures to look up to. Abhishek Nayar and Rohan Raje spoke about how eager they were to pay back the faith that a legend like Tendulkar had placed in them.

Close finishes, though, were a bugbear for Mumbai. While Harbhajan entrusted bowlers who appeared off-colour - his confidence in Ashish Nehra proved costly against Bangalore - Tendulkar occasionally also under-used those who appeared on song: he left Pollock with one over to bowl against Punjab and not bowling Nehra in the final over against Rajasthan. "We didn't show enough common sense" was how Tendulkar summarised the last-ball defeat to Rajasthan. The same could have been attributed to several other close misses.

How Sourav Ganguly would wish he had found some form early in the tournament, especially after he inspired Kolkata to two wins late in the piece. Ganguly, the captain, is usually at his best when his batting clicks. He turned it on when he could with the ball, notably in his spell to thwart Bangalore.

What Ganguly might regret, though, is not getting his combination right for most of the tournament. Chris Gayle's injury was a big blow, especially after Ricky Ponting and Brendon McCullum left, but the amount of confidence reposed in Mohammad Hafeez was slightly baffling.

Ajit Agarkar started well but didn't deserve the long rope he got. It was probably in their very last game that Kolkata got their right combination. By then it was just a bit too late.

Dravid, surprisingly, finished among the top 12 run-getters but it was never going to be enough with a faltering team. He did try and put up a brave fight and ended the campaign with a few smiles, but these were just a few positives from a forgettable campaign.

He may introspect on how Bangalore won just one game among the five where he won the toss. He said they were trying to come to grips with the nuances of the format and didn't really have a preferred option at the toss. The selections of a few XIs were puzzling, and they also made a habit of choking when the target was in sight.

Neither VVS Laxman nor Adam Gilchrist will look back on the IPL too fondly. Both watched one close loss after another and by the end one could almost see them coming. Laxman veered from too conservative to too experimental - against Punjab at home no bowler got to bowl two overs in a row - but struggled to strike a balance Things might have turned around had Warne not smashed Symonds for 17, but when it came to close finishes Deccan were always second best.

Gilchrist couldn't really express himself, with the knowledge hanging over him that a collapse was likely just around the corner. The rest of their overseas players sleepwalked through the series and it was left to Rohit Sharma and Venugopal Rao to earn a few consolation prizes. (Cricinfo)

Pakistan pick full-strength 16-member ODI squad
PAKISTAN selectors have stuck largely with the tried and tested in a 16-man squad for what will effectively be their toughest assignment of the year so far, the tri-series in Bangladesh involving India as the third side.

Disappointingly perhaps, of the many new faces trialled against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh earlier this year, only opener Nasir Jamshed and left-arm bowler Wahab Riaz find space on the plane to Dhaka.

Promising youngsters, such as openers Khurram Manzoor and Khalid Latif, fast bowler Sohail Khan and wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed have been left behind.

The last three are on the reserves list and will instead form part of a camp in Lahore for a pool of players to be considered for the Asia Cup and the ICC Champions Trophy later in the year. The three, in particular Sohail, remain in contention for the Asia Cup, say the selectors.

"It is the best available team and a well-balanced squad," Salahuddin Ahmed, chief selector, told Cricinfo. "We are aiming for some continuity in selection and that shows with the selection of players such as Nasir Jamshed and Wahab Riaz."

The team was chosen after extensive discussions between the selection committee and Shoaib Malik, the Pakistan captain.

The coach Geoff Lawson, however, wasn't present, having not arrived in time from Sydney. Lawson has had, at times, a testy relationship with the selection committee and his absence, it is believed, has not gone down particularly well with the PCB.

Though the squad was largely agreed upon, certain positions and players will be under the scanner during the tri-series, with the selectors keen to plan ahead for the Asia Cup and ICC Champions Trophy later in the year.

It is learnt that Kamran Akmal will open the innings with Salman Butt, a combination that Malik has publicly backed. But it has also been made clear by one of the selectors that this is the last chance for Akmal to make an impact as an opener, and failure could mean ouster from the team.

Shahid Afridi's form with the bat will also come under scrutiny during the tournament, one source close to the meeting suggesting that the captain was keen on Mansoor Amjad replacing the veteran all-rounder.

Bazid Khan, who made a fifty in his last ODI against Bangladesh is retained in the squad, as is Naumanullah, the middle-order batsman who made his debut against Bangladesh in the last ODI of the series in Karachi.

Naumanullah has been among Pakistan's leading domestic run-scorers in the last five seasons, though at 32, an international debut appeared to have passed him by. It was felt he deserved another chance, having batted lower down the order on his debut.

Pakistan will be pleased that they can at least call on the services of their three premier fast bowlers in Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir and Mohammad Asif, who has seemingly recovered from an injury to his bowling hand, sustained during the IPL .

Pakistan squad: Shoaib Malik (capt), Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal (wkp.), Mohammad Asif, Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Rao Iftikhar, Wahab Riaz, Fawad Alam, Bazid Khan, Naumanullah. (Cricinfo)

MacGill anoints Casson as replacement
By Peter English
THE first thing Stuart MacGill did after telling his wife he was going to retire was speak to his state and national team-mate Beau Casson.

MacGill, who is disappointed he has to depart so soon, wanted Casson, the left-arm wrist-spinner, to have a bit more time so he could organise flying his family to the Caribbean.

Casson is the only other specialist slow bowler in the squad, although Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke offer part-time options, and is in line to become the key benefactor in MacGill's mid-series decision.

"The most important thing for me was that Beau had an opportunity to get his family over," MacGill said after play on the third day. The final Test begins in Barbados on June 12.

While most of Australia worries about the state of the next rung of spin bowlers following the retirements of Shane Warne, Brad Hogg and MacGill over the past 18 months, MacGill is not concerned and rates Casson, who moved from Western Australia two seasons ago, at the top of the list.

"The reason that New South Wales chased Beau so hard was because we think he can bowl and we think he can win games," MacGill said. "He proved that this year.

"Hopefully now that he's coming into a great team, there are a lot of great players in that side who can help you along. The Caribbean is a good place to bowl spin and I'm sure he is going to do well."

Casson's first reaction on hearing the news was to ask if MacGill wanted to change his mind. MacGill was a bit upset, so Casson gave him a hug. After 44 Tests, he doesn't want to leave, but knows it is time.

"I do have lots of goals in Test cricket and I do want to play, but if things aren't working out my way I don't want to be there," he said.

"I am thinking about every single component of my game at the moment way too much because I have to, just to stay in it. That means I'm not going to be performing at my peak."

He said he "couldn't live with myself", if he let the team down and decided over the past week he had to step away. "I guess (I knew) since mid-way through the first Test and then unfortunately - the reason why I've done this mid-game - every single ball (on day two).

"His control had gone and short deliveries were mixed with full ones on Saturday, but he recovered to remove Ramnaresh Sarwan with a fine leg-spinner on day three.

"I like to make people proud," he said. "I'm proud of myself, and I don't want to take the shine off it. I've got a lot of good memories. I'd hate to chuck in another bad one."

MacGill's time in Australian teams has rarely been quiet and he missed the team bus to the ground on Saturday.

He arrived after play had started - Australia were batting after resuming at 259 for 3 - and walked in with Viv Richards, who told the Sydney Morning Herald the bowler looked "sheepish". There was no suggestion he was hung-over.

"To be honest, it's incredibly embarrassing for me, but it's very, very simple," MacGill said. "The alarm didn't go off, I missed the bus, and I was late for work. It is significant, but that's as simple as it was, and I do feel embarrassed, because I just don't really need complications to be honest.

"Caribbean tours are hard work. I love a night out, but very few of us cope well with tours over here, so it was actually a pretty early night for me. I can't guarantee you I slept particularly well - I've got a lot on my mind - but I can't even use that as a reason. I was sleeping, missed the bus and was late for work. It would be cooler if I had a better story."

The tight schedule of three games in less than three weeks has also affected MacGill's 37-year-old body, with his knee and wrist the major problems. "The rigours of this particular tour have proved a little bit too much for me," he said. "Playing against West Indies in the Caribbean is hard work. You've got some very good players who respond well to playing in this region, it's hot, the pitches are unforgiving, the grounds are quite often small, and you've really got to earn your dollars."

Disappointingly for MacGill, he expects his final Test day yesterday to be one of his worst memories of a career that currently contains 208 wickets. "A lowlight will be walking off the ground at the end of this game," he said.

"Probably the hardest thing is I thought I had already played my last Test in Hobart, so it means that two of my last three Tests I've felt pretty low. I really do because I don't want to stop playing; this is what I'm good at."

His highlights include taking nine wickets in his second Test, against Pakistan in 1998, and the 2003 trip to the West Indies. "Playing here on the last tour in Barbados, Steve Waugh said we were the only team in the world that could bowl them out twice and we did," he said.

"That was great, nine wickets. Nine seems to be my lucky number. If I get nine in this Test it would be a nice way to finish."

Cricket Australia will decide over the next month what to do with his contract for 2008-09. Playing for New South Wales for a couple of seasons remains in MacGill's plans and he also has the second series of his wine programme Uncorked to film. "Maybe I'll finally get a real job.” (Cricinfo)

Cannavaro ruled out of Euro 2008 with injury
By Mark Meadows
VIENNA, (Reuters) - Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro has been ruled out of Euro 2008 after suffering ankle ligament damage yesterday, the Italian soccer federation said.

The 34-year-old defender collided with Giorgio Chiellini in Italy's first training session in Austria and his departure was confirmed after having tests in hospital.

Alessandro Gamberini has been called up as a replacement and will arrive at their base near Vienna today.

"Fabio Cannavaro must say goodbye to the European championship," a statement on the Federation web site (www.figc.it) said.

Cannavaro, who lifted the World Cup two years ago, will hold a news conference today alongside coach Roberto Donadoni, the statement added.

Capped 116 times, Cannavaro has been a key figure in Italy's defence and was voted FIFA's World Player-of-the-Year in 2006.

However, he has become slower and more error-prone since moving to Real Madrid from Juventus following the World Cup triumph.

His place in the national side has never been in doubt but the emergence of centre back Andrea Barzagli, who has produced some assured displays for Italy in the last year, will slightly cushion the blow for Donadoni.

Defender Marco Materazzi is also in the squad while Chiellini and Christian Panucci can play at centre back rather than full back.

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon may be the most likely candidate to take over as captain with midfielders Gennaro Gattuso and Massimo Ambrosini other options.

The world champions flew into Austria earlier on Monday.

Italy face the Netherlands in their first Group C match in Berne on June 9 before playing Romania and France.

Brazil police criticised for another pitch intervention
By Brian Homewood
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (Reuters) - Brazilian police were criticised for their eagerness to intervene in incidents on the football pitch yesterday after a Botafogo player was arrested on the field and his team mates squirted with pepper spray.

Defender Andre Luis was frog-marched out of the stadium by around 10 riot police after being sent off in the 3-0 defeat to Nautico in Sunday's Brazilian championship match in Recife.

Botafogo said other players were prodded and threatened with truncheons and received pepper spray in their faces as they tried to intervene in the skirmish, which held up play for 12 minutes in the first half.

Police said Andre Luis had made insulting gestures to the crowd and defied their authority.

Palmeiras coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo said he was apprehensive about visiting Recife next week for a match against local side Sport.

"We are going to a football match," he told reporters. "I don't want to be handcuffed and I don't want to be punched. This is something we have to look at."

Abel Braga, another leading coach, told the Sportv cable channel: "It's unbelievable that this happens in the Brazilian championship and in a country which in a few years' time is going to host the World Cup."

Botafogo president Bebeto De Freitas said he was outraged at the treatment. "Footballers are not bandits and are not to be kicked and punched," he said. "This has to stop."

"The player was wrong, he will be punished and suspended; we have sporting legislation to deal with this. What is not acceptable is for him to have pepper in his face or be prodded in the back with a truncheon.

PLAYER PROTEST
Brazilian football's disciplinary tribunal said the incident would be investigated.

Brazil has a long history of police intervention on the field.

In October 2002, Santos defender Preto was knocked unconscious when a policeman hit him on the head with a truncheon as players protested about a refereeing decision in a match in Belem.

In March 2006, riot police used pepper spray against brawling players during a Vasco da Gama-Flamengo derby at the Maracana stadium, where one policeman was seen with his arm around a player's neck.

Police behaviour made international headlines in April 2005 when defender Leandro Desabato, playing for Argentina's Quilmes, was arrested on the field at the Morumbi stadium for alleged racism during a game against Sao Paulo following a first-half incident with opposing forward Grafite.

Desabato was held in custody for 40 hours, at one stage being handcuffed, before being released.