Army, Police in
Buxton lockdown
MORE than 400 soldiers and police swooped before dawn yesterday on the troubled Buxton village on the East Coast Demerara in an unprecedented operation officials said is designed to round up dangerous criminal elements and net illegal guns and ammunition.

`Operation Stiletto’ kicked off at about 05:00 h and by last night, Army and Police officials reported that three dangerous wanted men were among more than 100 persons pulled in after a sweep that had combed more than 340 houses.

No incidents were reported in the lockdown that covered Buxton and neighbouring Friendship and - unlike previous incursions in the notorious criminal safe haven that Buxton has been turned into - the troops did not come under hostile fire.

Armed and dangerous criminals turned the village into a safe haven after five of them broke out of the Georgetown prison in a meticulously planned and deadly escape in February 2002 and it has been the epicentre of a crime wave that has gripped the coast since then.

The Police and Army are maintaining a heavy presence in Buxton/Friendship in the joint operation being run from a command centre at Police headquarters in Georgetown.

The soldiers and policemen are now camped in Friendship, which adjoins Buxton, and sources said the operation will continue for several days.

Among the wanted men arrested were Albert Andrews called “Donie”, who a Police source said was fingered in the latest mysterious murders tied to Buxton in which two men, believed to be Policeman Sundat Ramoutar and fishmonger Suresh Persaud, were found burnt beyond recognition in a car trunk last Wednesday.

An arrest warrant was issued for Andrews on October 6, 2005 on a charge of conspiring to commit murder.

Up to press time, 112 persons had been arrested and taken to Georgetown for questioning. The other wanted men among them were Eon Anderson called “Madman” who was wanted on a charge of attempted murder, and Dexter Nero who was wanted for four counts of robbery under arms.

For the operation, joint Army/Police roadblocks were set up from Annandale to the west and Strathspey to the east.

There were also air and sea aspects of the operation, with flyover searches to comb the dreaded Buxton backlands which were locked down and water surveys in the conservancy and central navigation canals, officials said.

Commander in charge of the ground troops, Major Brian Bristol, reported that part of the operation is to fix damaged bridges and repair ditches dug on roads during previous incidents in the village.

The ditches were being used as traps where unsuspecting persons who got stuck in vehicles were pounced upon and if lucky escaped with their lives after being robbed and assaulted as was the case with a West Demerara family who landed in a newly-dug ditch Sunday evening.

Bristol, standing on steel plates just replaced on the Friendship railway embankment bridge, said residents did not resist their exercise.

However, he said there were “emotional outbursts” when their “sons, fathers, spouses and so on,” were being arrested.

Some of the relatives of those arrested made their way to the Police Sports Club in Eve Leary where they shouted against the Police/Army convoys taking in those detained for questioning and screening.

The Army was primarily involved in the reconstruction exercise and yesterday had repaired four ditches and today they are expected to fix the other ditches on the `cross’ streets in the two villages, namely Church of God and Company roads in Buxton and Brushe and Sideline dams in Friendship.

French cops to help Guyana crime fight
By Renu Raghubir
FRANCE will be sending a team of police experts here to help local cops in the fight against crime, a French Government Minister announced in Georgetown yesterday.

The team will also help boost the Guyana justice system, French Tourism Minister, Mr. Leon Bertrand told reporters after a hectic round of meetings, including talks with President Bharrat Jagdeo and Home Affairs Minister Gail Teixeira.

The first French Tourism Minister to visit Guyana since Independence, he is urging Guyana to set up a permanent consulate in French Guiana, expecting it will lead to faster resolution of several issues affecting both countries and foster bilateral cooperation.

At the end of his one-day visit to Georgetown, Bertrand, through a translator, said he found out through discussions with Mr. Jagdeo, that Guyana and France share many common views.

He also met Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation, Mr. Clement Rohee and Mayor of Georgetown, Mr. Hamilton Green as well as some French citizens residing here.

At a press conference at Herdmanston House in Peter Rose Street, Queenstown, Bertrand told local and French reporters, who came with him, that stemming from his talks with Ms. Teixeira, a team of police experts from his country would be sent here to help local police in their struggle against crime and to assist in reviving the justice system.

He also announced that the French Government would send another mission of experts, before year end, to build cooperation between Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana.

Bertrand could not say when the consulate would be established but explained that special focus will be on issues such as illegal immigration and the movement of transportation and criminals between French Guiana and Guyana.

Of equal importance, he pointed out, is to create mechanisms to help each other’s tourism industry as well as the environment, health and education sectors.

Acknowledging that the movement of people is getting intense because of globalisation, the minister pointed out that the expected consulate should have a broad mission, and be the basis for cooperation to effectively deal with certain issues.

“It is important for us to start dialogue and my visit here is the starting point. I am here to build bilateral cooperation between Guyana and France and to strengthen the relationship between French Guiana and Guyana…cooperation will allow us to deal with a number of issues,” he said.

French Guiana is a French protectorate.
Guyana’s Minister of Tourism, Manzoor Nadir who was also at the press conference, concurred that the consulate would serve both countries beneficially.
Bertrand flew out of Guyana last evening.

Flood victims get house lots
By Delana Isles
FIFTEEN families left homeless after raging high tides last week battered fragile sections of the sea defence along the Stewartville/Leonora stretch on the West Coast Demerara and flooded several houses, yesterday got house lots in the new Tuschen housing scheme.

Two Ministry of Housing officers visited the Shirley Merle Field-Ridley Nursery School at Phoenix Park, West Bank Demerara and the Uitvlugt/Leonora Community centres yesterday where the 15 dislocated families are being housed.

One member of each of the families was allowed to choose a lot number and sign allocation letters for the house lots.

Four other families, who were also squatting on the sea defence reserve, but whose houses were not totally destroyed by the flood, will also receive house lots from the ministry, Regional Housing Officer for Region Three (West Demerara/Essequibo Islands), Mr. Ravi Samaroo said.

Housing and Water Minister, Mr. Shaik Baksh, who had earlier said these persons will have to pay for the lots “on terms”, reported over the weekend that one businessman has indicated to the ministry that he is willing to assist some of those left homeless to rebuild their homes.

The families, who were allocated house lots, will be taken to the Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo scheme today so that they can see their designated lots and mark them off for building to commence soon.

The persons who received house lots are squatters from the Seaview (Stewartville), Anna Catherina North and Cornelia Ida areas who were forced to evacuate their homes due to the destruction wrought by the flood and the danger of remaining on the reserve.

According to the minister, these persons were within 50 or 100 feet of the sea defence squatting on the reserve, which accounted for them being affected by the onrushing water when the sea defence along that area collapsed last week Sunday.

Baksh had stated that this is a problem that his ministry had before tried to rectify but was unsuccessful due to the squatters’ reluctance to remove from the reserve area.

The families in the shelters were among others dislocated by the flood waters which swept ashore when unprecedented high waves lashed the Guyana coast two Sunday nights ago.

Four charged with kidnapping Indian nationals in Georgetown
FOUR men, including an Indian national, were charged and appeared in a Georgetown court yesterday following the disclosure of an alleged recent kidnapping of two other Indians.

Patel Mukesh Kumar, 37, from India and Guyanese co-accused Wayne Joseph and Sean Griffith, 30, both of William Street, Kitty, Georgetown as well as Hubert Clarke, 30, of Lot 60 Soesdyke Public Road, East Bank Demerara, faced a joint indictable charge before Acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan.

It is alleged that the quartet abducted Hiren and Vaisal Patel from Hotel Glow in Kitty on October 19, with intent to secretly confine them.

The accused Kumar and Griffith were also not required to plea to a separate joint indictable charge of obtaining US$12,500 from Jimi Patel, between April and May 2004, in order to obtain a United States visa for him.

Kumar alone is on another indictable charge of false pretence which said, between June and July 2004, in Kitty, he obtained US$2,500 from Jimi Patel to secure a U.S visa for him.

Kumar and a fifth man, Conwell Wright (no address given either) were also indictably charged with obtaining money by false pretence.

Particulars of that offence said, during June and August, 2004, with intent to defraud, they obtained US$6,000 fromVaisal Patel by falsely pretending they were in a position to get a U.S. visa for him, too.

Upholding an objection to bail by Police Inspector Lloyd Thomas, prosecuting, the magistrate remanded Kumar, Joseph, Griffith and Clarke to prison until next Wednesday when all five of them will make their next appearance.

Wright was allowed pre-trial liberty on a $40,000 bond.
Thomas said the virtual complainants are Indian nationals like Kumar, who is married to a Guyanese woman.

The Prosecutor said Kumar told the victims his wife works at the U.S. Embassy here and he could get the travel documents for them.

According to Thomas, Kumar, Joseph, Griffith and Clarke abducted Hiren and Vaisal Patel at gunpoint from the Kitty hotel and took them to Griffith’s home where Police found them.

But Defence Counsel Mortimer Coddette, for Joseph, Griffith and Clarke said the duo denied their abduction during a confrontation at a Police station. (PRIYA NAUTH)

HBTV pulls Waddell off air
HBTV Channel Nine in Georgetown has pulled controversial `talk show’ host Ronald Waddell off the air indefinitely following his controversial remarks on his `Taking Care of Business’ programme last week.

Mr. Waddell was last week invited to a meeting with the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) after Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon sent in a letter of complaint to the race relations body.

Dr. Luncheon, on behalf of the government, on Thursday expressed strong concerns about statements made by Mr. Waddel which it claims promote racial incitement and violence and hail killings in the troubled Buxton, East Coast Demerara village.

The management of HBTV Channel 9, on which Waddell’s programme is aired, were also invited to meet the ERC yesterday.

According to a press release from the ERC, Ms. Eve Blackman, Director of HBTV 9, said that even before receiving the letter of invitation, the station’s management had instituted its disciplinary actions against the television host, including the indefinite suspension of Waddell, an independent producer, from airing his programme.

Although Blackman was not there when the Guyana Chronicle called yesterday, a member of HBTV 9’s management team confirmed the suspension.

Mr. Joseph Harmon, legal counsel for HBTV 9, as well as a member of its Board of Directors, said – according to the ERC release – that the television station has provided the Advisory Commission on Broadcasting (ACB) broadcast guidelines, as well as the station’s policy guidelines to all independent producers. Harmon stated that HBTV 9 has made it clear to independent producers the station could not take responsibility for any broadcast outside of its guidelines’ parameters.

According to the ERC release, the meeting yesterday served to establish a relationship between the commission and HBTV 9 management.

Luncheon in his letter to the ERC head on Thursday, said: “After perusal of the transcript I have enclosed and whose content I find monstrous, I am certain that the Commission will appreciate the fears of the Administration that the author and broadcaster are in conflict with the law and liable to sanctions by the Commission.”

The station has come under fire in the past for controversial programmes broadcast by a few of its independent producers/talk show hosts.

Second failed arson attempt at St George’s Cathedral
THE Rector, Rev Terry Davis and public-spirited citizens saved the historic St George’s Cathedral in Georgetown from destruction by fire early Sunday morning.

Reports said the Guyana Fire Service also helped extinguish the flames believed set by vagrants.

After the blaze was put out, it appeared that pieces of paper and other materials had been put and lit under the northern door of the historical building.

A section of the door facing Church Street and part of the flooring inside were scorched and a heap of wet sand was still visible when the Guyana Chronicle visited the scene yesterday.

The fire started shortly before 05:00 h Sunday and Davis, who lives nearby in Carmichael Street and was alerted, immediately ran over to the tallest wooden structure in the world with extinguishers.

This second arson attempt on St George’s, following one after the 2001 general elections, was the subject of a meeting at which officials discussed improved security for the place of worship.

A member said vagrants and mentally challenged persons usually linger around there and some were seen early Sunday morning.

“They have to be of unsound mind to want to destroy such a beautiful and holy edifice,” he declared.

Commonwealth envoy finds:
Commitment to democratic growth in Guyana
THE special Commonwealth envoy trying to promote a peaceful and conflict-free Guyana says he has found a commitment to democratic growth here.

The assessment by Sir Paul Reeves, appointed by Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon as his Special Envoy to Guyana in August 2002, came when he addressed the National Assembly on Thursday.

Sir Paul was here last week on his latest visit to promote constructive dialogue between the main political parties and, among others, met President Bharrat Jagdeo and Opposition and People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Leader Robert Corbin.

“Over three years and in the midst of some real struggles, I have observed progress and a commitment to democratic growth in Guyana. I have witnessed the National Assembly beginning to come into its own as a legitimate and democratic forum for debate and decision making,” he said.

“Never forget that you have friends, like the Commonwealth and the international community, ready to stand with you as you strive for a peaceful and democratic Guyana,” he stressed.

The Government Information Agency (GINA) said he noted that the country’s Constitution is not flawless and is still open to debate and modification and offers a way forward for the nation.

This, he said, gives the National Assembly a chance to develop independently.

Sir Paul listed number of positive developments in the National Assembly that are encouraging:

* five or six committees have been established

* Standing Orders are due to be amended to make the National Assembly function more efficiently

* there is an enormous increase in questions asked and answered in the assembly

* motions are being considered on a timely basis and

* the building has been refurbished

GINA said he expressed his hope that the National Assembly would be the forum for constructive discussion on matters crucial to Guyana’s future and congratulated Speaker Ralph Ramkarran for his determination and commitment in seeing the improvements through.

Noting that general elections are due next year, he said the next 12 months will be “a testing time for Guyana as you face a general elections and a challenging world economic order,” adding that there are many decisions and procedures yet to be put in place.

“We all know that there are contentious issues which potentially could let in confusion. It is a time to be decisive,” he urged.

He told the Members of Parliament that they should trust the democratic processes and institutions such as the National Assembly.

Birth revellers attacked, robbed in Buxton
FIVE persons in a motor car visiting relatives at Coldingen, East Coast Demerara, were yesterday still reeling from shock after they took a wrong turn and ended up in a freshly dug ditch on the Brusche Dam railway embankment at Buxton, East Coast Demerara on Sunday night.

They were assaulted and robbed of money and jewellery by four gun-toting bandits who capitalised on their plight.

During the ordeal the victims begged for mercy from the gunmen who eventually ordered them out the area.

Reports said the three men and two women were returning to their Wales, West Bank Demerara home about 18:30 h Sunday when they took a wrong turn and came to a standstill in a ditch across the Brusche Dam railway embankment.

They had gone to relatives at Coldingen for a birthday celebration and fled after they were forced to abandon their vehicle by the gunmen.

They reported the robbery attack to the Vigilance Police Station and a police crash truck went to the scene and was able to tow the car away.

Fishmonger, Suresh Persaud and his policeman neighbour, Sundat Ramoutar, who were travelling in a car owned by Ramoutar’s sister last week, were killed and burnt beyond recognition in the vehicle by gunmen on the Stratsphey railway embankment after they were waylaid at a freshly-dug ditch on a road in Buxton.

Hindus want more pandits as marriage officers
HINDU leaders want more pandits to be made official marriage officers and President Bharrat Jagdeo has promised to help their case.

The Government Information Agency (GINA) said Hindu leaders raised the issue with Mr. Jagdeo at his official State House residence in Georgetown on Saturday when he hosted a Diwali Utsav.

The President said he is willing to help more pandits be accredited to perform legal marriages and will be working with Hindu organisations to ensure this happens, the agency reported.

It said that after the Utsav function on the State House lawns ahead of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, on November 1, the leaders were given a chance to air their views and concerns on national issues, as well as seek the government’s response and assistance.

GINA said one leader highlighted the need for more pandits to be licensed to do legal marriages as there is none in his village on the East Bank Berbice and couples often have to resort to be married by priests of other religions.

The President urged the leaders to come up with lists of persons the communities would recommend to be licensed and forward these to his office, the agency said.

“If you get me these lists then I promise you I will ensure these people get licensed within a month,” he said, adding that the names must be reputable and have broad-based community support.

GINA said Mr. Jagdeo also noted the need for the lists to be representative of the various geographical locations to avoid some villages having too many and others having none.

Additionally, not every individual will be automatically licensed.

The President was informed also of a long list of persons awaiting approval to become Justices of the Peace and GINA said he noted that these appointments are made by him after the names are verified by his staff as being credible.

“One thing that most of these names lack is community support and I would be frank here, no one is going to be appointed if they do not have the support of the community because many persons see this appointment, not as a service to the community, but as a money-making venture,” he said.

Several concerns were also raised about persons using the names of Hindu festivals, including Phagwah and Diwali, to promote non-religious events such as dances, the agency said.

The government cannot do anything about this, President Jagdeo said, but the religious community needs to be more vocal in its condemnation and urge persons not to support such events.

Calls were also made for the perseveration of certain parts of the foreshore for Hindu religious functions.

One leader, GINA said, sought more cooperation from the Police Force in protecting the property of mandirs (churches) including the public address systems and Mr. Jagdeo said the matters will be looked into.

A group of Hindus will also meet the President and Minister of Housing and Water Shaik Baksh to discuss allocation of land in new housing schemes for the construction of temples, the agency said.

President Jagdeo also reaffirmed his commitment of working with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to address social ills, as this was a pressing concern of the Hindu community. They complained about the prevalence of drug houses in various communities, particularly rural areas, as well as “junkies”, GINA said.

The President pointed out that he has already spoken to the Police Force about frequently raiding communities and talking directly to residents to ascertain where the drug houses are. He said that even if the frequent raids do not find any evidence of drug sale or use, then a least these would make the selling of drugs unprofitable.

On the issues of drug abuse, homeless persons, teenage pregnancy and other social ills, President Jagdeo urged NGOs to come up with proposals of how the government can assist and the help would be given.

The age of consent was also raised and the agency said he explained that the government recognised the need to have it raised from 13 to 16 years.

However, whether it would remain at 16, or change, is subject to the end of the consultations and the Parliamentary process, as legislation to this effect has been tabled in the National Assembly, he advised.

New mandir for Hague
THE new Saraswati Devi Mandir at Hague Village on the West Coast Demerara was earlier this month religiously and officially opened by Pandit Yoganand Ramnarain of Queens, New York.

Construction of the mandir complex commenced almost three years ago, mostly from numerous fund raising activities and funds donated by devotees, mandirs and businesses in the New York area, a press release from the group said.
The project was spearheaded by U.S. trustee Mr Anil [Deon] Bedasie, a former resident of Hague Village.

The press release said the mandir complex was designed by Bedasie, who consulted numerous pandits from the USA, Guyana, Trinidad and South India, Swamis and other specialists with experience in temple building.

On behalf of the organisation, he thanked the numerous devotees, businesses and mandirs locally and abroad who contributed either financially or otherwise to make the mandir a reality.
Services at the church are held every Sunday starting at 07:00 h.

Cameron and Shepherd Prize awarded
THE Cameron and Shepherd law firm in Georgetown yesterday awarded its 2005 Prize to Ms. Manjusha Singh-Rahaman.

The award is a book prize, offered annually to a Guyanese graduate of the Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad, who has excelled in Civil Procedure.

Ms. Singh-Rahaman, recently admitted to the Bar, graduated with a Law Degree from the University of Guyana in 1999 and the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2005 with a Legal Education Certificate.
At the simple ceremony, Mr. Hari Narayen Ramkarran, S.C., of the firm, explained that the legal profession is very demanding and success only comes to those who accept and confront the challenges which are offered.

He stated that Singh-Rahaman will be well aware of these challenges having achieved the distinction of leading her colleagues in the subject area of Civil Procedure.

The awardee said she is grateful she was chosen for the prize, adding that she enjoys drafting which is a main topic in Civil Procedure.

Also at the presentation were Ms. Josephine Whitehead, Mr. Rafiq Turhan Khan, Mr. Nikhil N. Ramkarran, Associate, Mr. Kamal Ramkarran and Consultant, Mr. Joseph Arthur King, S.C.

Despite glitches:
Car & bike show sparks in Berbice
By Clifford Stanley
LAST weekend’s `Car and Bike’ show in Berbice was in the opinion of many spectators a reasonably successful affair which would have been more impressive had it been better organised in terms of physical facilities for the event and management of the programme.

During the show, many vehicles were unable to climb the ramp apparently because the incline was too steep and one motorcyclist narrowly escaped serious injury when his 600 cc machine fell off the ramp with him astride on it.

Conversely, the stage on which the artistes performed was too low providing a clear view to spectators from only one side of the ground.

As a consequence of the ramp problem, many of the vehicles which were on show had to be judged at ground level where large crowds effectively blocked out the view of those who were reluctant to force their way through.

Glitches aside many felt that the show provided good entertainment and a pleasant Saturday evening distraction.
Some patrons said they had been impressed, even awed, by the extent to which vehicles on the show had been equipped and decked out for the competition.

A Starlet motor car decorated with art depicting a mermaid swimming in a blue bubble-filled ocean, released similar bubbles continuously into the air from a machine inside the vehicle and was one of the star attractions.

Impressive also were the big bikes, mainly Suzuki and Yamaha 600s, several of which discharged intermittent spurts of what appeared to be fire from their exhaust pipes when being revved by the riders.

Paragon Sound System and Rhythm Star dished out popular music continuously and at high decibels and scantily-clad `Passa Passa’ female dancers entertained with flexible, energetic and exotic gyrations on the stage for those who were able to see.

A. Ally & Sons of New Amsterdam won prizes for the Cleanest Motor Car, the best Fully Loaded motor car and runner-up for Best Music.

Other winners were Cleanest 4x4, PHH 3778 owned by Sukhpaul, Best Music in 4x4, PJJ 1828 owned by Sheik Haniff, Cleanest Motor Van PJJ 3582 (name of owner not given), the Smallest Car PDD 3480 owned by Sukhpaul and Hassan Inshan (vehicle # not given) got the prize for Best Music.

The adjudged Oldest Vehicle on show was P 9400, a Land Rover reportedly manufactured in 1975.

Inshan also won the runner-up prize for the Cleanest Motor Car.

Tito Samuels won the prize for the Cleanest and Biggest Bike on show -- CD 5042.

Motorcycle CC 1686 was adjudged the Oldest Bike on show (name of owner not given).

Prizes given away included close to $100,000 in US and Canadian currency plus jewellery, cell phones and trophies.

Chief of the Judges Jeanesse Gray said the show compared favourably with those she has attended in Georgetown though there could have been better management of schedule of the events.

As a motor vehicle enthusiast who has attended many car and bike shows, she added that she had found the value and range of prizes offered in the Berbice show to be matchless so far.

Echoing the views of many, one young lady said: “I enjoyed the show, the music, the mood. This is the third show and it was better than the last one. We hope/expect that there will be more participation and the promoters get better at it the next time around.”

France, one of the promoters had earlier said that proceeds from the event would go towards hosting a buffet Christmas luncheon for the less fortunate children in Edinburgh Village.

The promoters will also give gifts to the oldest male and female living at Edinburgh Village as well as to the mother of the first baby born to the village on the night of the show.

Plaisance vendors to be moved off highway
HOUSING and Water Minister Shaikh Baksh on Saturday visited the Plaisance market on the East Coast Demerara to inspect a site for the construction of a bigger annex for vendors encumbering the highway.

He told the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) that funds are available to extend the annex situated south across the highway, opposite the market.

Mr. Baksh visited the market along with Minister within the Ministry of Local Government Clinton Collymore, whose ministry is tasked with developing municipalities and rural communities under the ambit of NDCs.

Baksh told the NDC that an engineer from his department would return to draw up the plan for the extension of the annex to hold some 300 vendors who usually line the highway, disrupting the flow of traffic.

According to the minister, he was directed to undertake the relocation process by President Bharrat Jagdeo, and assured vendors that they would be consulted on the plan before the work is undertaken.

He assured the NDC that the process will not be drawn out, since funding is already available.

The NDC chairman, Mr. Clinton Rollox, welcomed the news from Baksh that funds are also available for repairs to the original Plaisance market.

An inspection of the market will be done, and it is expected that repairs to the market and the extension to the annex will be undertaken simultaneously.

Meanwhile, Baksh visited other communities on the East Coast Demerara Saturday. Among these wereVryheid’s Lust North, where $22M was spent on road works in the area.

The other areas he visited were Montrose North, D’Endgragt South and Industry Area JJ.

PCA Chairman going to Essequibo next week
CHAIRMAN of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA), Justice Cecil Kennard is making another outreach visit next week.

A press release said he is going to Essequibo Coast, on Friday, November 4 and staying through Saturday, November 5.

During his stay, Mr Kennard is slated to speak with residents about the PCA functions and receive complaints against members of the Guyana Police Force.

The release said interested persons can contact him in the boardroom of the office of the Regional Administration of Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam) at Anna Regina, from O8:30 h on November 5.

While in Essequibo, Justice Kennard will appear on RCA Channel 8 television the Friday evening and answer questions relating to the conduct of the Police there, as well as other related matters and talk on issues of national importance, the release said.

Justice Kennard has already visited several rural areas within recent times and he is also scheduled to meet residents of Linden, Upper Demerara River; Lethem, Rupununi; Mabaruma, North West District; East and West Coast Demerara and Berbice, soon.

Hurricane Wilma affects BWIA Miami flights
BWIA West Indies Airways Limited has announced that passenger flights BW 432 and 431, to and from Miami in the United States, respectively, were cancelled yesterday due to effects of Hurricane Wilma that closed Miami International Airport.

But flights to and from the same destination remain on schedule for today, Area Manager, Mr Carlton Defour said in a Georgetown press release.

Passengers due to travel on today’s services are asked to contact BWIA on telephone numbers 227-1250, 226-1260 and 1-800-538-2942 to confirm their arrangements.

Defour said the BWIA Hurricane Preparedness Team is closely monitoring the situation and bulletins will be issued as necessary.

Guyanese among Wilma victims in Florida
A GUYANESE and her daughter were injured when Hurricane Wilma slammed southwest Florida, reports said yesterday.

The girl's name is Julia Bijuli-Singh and her mother's name is Emily Singh, a report said.

The Guardian newspaper in London carried an Associated Press dispatch which said the girl was seriously injured in Florida on Sunday.

She suffered a fractured skull in Wellington when falling hurricane shutters struck her head, said Palm Beach County Sheriff's spokesman Paul Miller.

She was reported in critical condition at Delray Medical Center, Miller said.
Her mother was also hospitalised with cuts, Miller said.

More bird flu in Russia:
UN urges focus on Asia
By Aleksandras Budrys
MOSCOW, (Reuters) - Russia confirmed more bird flu cases yesterday, raising fears it could spread over Europe, but a U.N. official said the best way to stop it was for donors to pay up and fight it where it began, among Asian fowl.

The European Union was poised to ban all imports of captive wild birds after a parrot died of H5N1 in quarantine in Britain.

More dead birds were found and taken for tests in Croatia, Hungary and Portugal as suspect cases multiplied.

But the numbers involved in Europe are still small and no humans there have been infected, unlike Asia where 61 people died after close contact with infected birds.

A World Health Organisation official from Asia said Europe still had good prospects of stopping H5N1 reaching its tame bird population because it had reacted faster and more openly.

"There is an excellent chance for Europe to contain the Asian flu," said Shigeru Omi.

The U.N. food agency's head said the world must focus on Asia, and on stopping the virus passing between birds, as the best way to prevent the nightmare scenario of it mixing with a human strain to cause pandemic deadly flu.

"Too much time has gone by and even now we seem to focus more on addressing a possible pandemic which is spread from human to human," said Jacques Diouf, director general of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

"It's good to be ready should this happen. But for the time being we have 140 million birds killed or dying or have died because of avian influenza, with $10 billion of costs ... and it is still there (in Asia) that we are having contamination to human beings," he told Reuters in an interview in Canada.

He said the FAO had helped develop a $175 million strategy to control H5N1, which surfaced in South Korea two years ago, and had received pledges of $30 million in aid -- but donors had not yet handed over a single cent.

WESTWARDS
Carried by migratory birds, H5N1 has now moved west as far as European Russia, Turkey and Romania.

"If, as we think, migratory birds will be one of the ways by which avian influenza is spreading around the world we can expect ... the problem in the Near East, in East and West Africa and naturally in North America and South America," said Diouf.

Croatia said it would cull more poultry after finding two more dead wild swans suspected of having an avian flu strain in a rural area where flu was found last week. The strain has yet to be identified.

Several geese and seagulls found dead north of Lisbon, in a fishing port where migrating birds are common, were being tested for flu, Portugal said.

Countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa have taken steps to try to stop migrating birds mixing with domestic fowl.

To close one possible channel of infection, the European Commission proposed a temporary ban on imports of wild fowl as pets. Veterinary experts will decide on it today.

Fernand Sauer, director of public health and risk assessment at the European Commission, said confusion between different types of influenza was to blame for an exaggerated fear in Europe about the risks, which had reached hysteria.

ASIA
Countries that have already suffered from flu outbreaks were redoubling their efforts to stop its return.

North Korea said mechanisms were in place to eliminate "any slight symptoms in time", using its experience from an outbreak of a different strain earlier this year when more than 200,000 chickens were destroyed and 1.1 million poultry vaccinated.

A report that China would close its borders if it detected human-to-human transmission of bird flu unsettled Hong Kong stocks, with shares in hotels, retailers and airlines sliding.

An Australian firm said yesterday it was confident a vaccine it was testing in humans could protect against a pandemic form of the H5N1 virus unless it undergoes major genetic changes.

CSL Ltd, the world's largest maker of blood plasma products, has begun human vaccine trials using different dosages and hopes to know results by February.

Dead Suriname parrot had deadly H5N1 bird flu
By Mike Peacock
LONDON, (Reuters) - A parrot that died in quarantine in Britain has been found to have the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, the agriculture ministry said on Sunday, and the spread of the virus meant the country was now at greater risk.

A spokeswoman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed that scientists had found "the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus" in the parrot.

"The closest match is to a strain found in ducks in China earlier this year," the ministry spokesman said.

The parrot, imported from Suriname, was part of a mixed consignment of 148 birds that arrived on Sept. 16, the ministry said. They were held with another consignment of 216 birds from Taiwan.

All the birds were culled while in quarantine.

Debbie Reynolds, Britain's chief veterinary official, told reporters during a teleconference that the parrot likely caught the virus while in the quarantine centre where it was kept with the Taiwanese birds.

Her staff reviewed the global threat and determined "there is a high risk of further global dispersion of this virus".

As a result, Britain and others must increase their vigilance.

"There is a risk to the United Kingdom and this risk has increased," she said.

She said however that the finding did not affect Britain's "avian influenza disease-free status".

Reynolds said the parrot's tissue samples were mixed by mistake with another bird's so there may be two infected birds in the quarantine centre but that is not clear.

The H5N1 strain has killed more than 60 people in four Asian countries since breaking out in late 2003 in South Korea.

It has also reached European Russia, Turkey and Romania, tracking the paths of migratory birds.

H5N1 has triggered widespread concern because it can transfer to humans in some cases, although only if they have had prolonged and close contact with infected birds, and some experts fear it could mutate to transfer between humans.

Youth parliamentarians in high-energy sessions
By Mark Ramotar
THE sixth National Youth Parliament (NYP) kicked off at the Ocean View Convention Centre at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara yesterday with President Bharrat Jagdeo urging the young parliamentarians to make full use of the `golden opportunity’ to express their views, ideas and opinions in a constructive and civilised manner.

He said the NYP provides one of the best fora to inspire young persons to demonstrate leadership qualities which will help them realise they have the power to shape their future and that of Guyana.

More than two dozen smartly-dressed young people, in a sitting mirroring the National Assembly, engaged their audience with some high-energy and constructive arguments during both morning and afternoon sessions on several bills and motions covering a wide array of topical issues.

Among the topics debated was an Opposition Motion that sex education should be included in the school’s curriculum, and a Government Bill that favours the immediate introduction of a biometric database management system as part of the Government’s crime fighting mechanism.

And a new feature of this year’s NYP was the 10-minute rule bills which were presented by several participants on various topics, ranging from global warming and teachers rights to the mandatory age of secondary education and Guyana’s preparedness for recycling.

Chairman of the NYP, Kwame McCoy said this was a diversion from the previous Youth Parliaments here when only one bill was discussed and debated and the session started in the afternoon (from 14:00 h) instead of the morning as was the case yesterday.

McCoy also pointed out that the participation at this year’s NYP was “most reflective” in terms of the wide and diverse representation from the different regions of Guyana. “We also have this year, more than ever, participation from areas outside of Region Four,” he posited.

He noted that in spite of several limitations such as lack of adequate financial and other resources, the NYP has improved significantly over the years.

The annual Youth Parliament is one of the many projects undertaken by the Guyana Youth Development Association (GUYDA) which is registered with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport.

Yesterday’s NYP had Dexter Todd performing the duties of Speaker of the House while Shaun Cooper was Clerk of the National Assembly; Gary Hinds as Deputy Clerk and Carl Phillips as Sergeant-at-Arms.

The 13 members on the Opposition side were Iman Chin, Sherry Van Lange, Hubert Forrester, Sadhana Samtani, Delon Earle, Bonita Mitchell, Lakerajie Persaud, Latoya Drakes, Sophie Sancharra, Arletta Carmichael, Victor Wills, Premchand Persaud and Sheanna Briggs.

The 15 members on the Government side were Lennox Gasper, Mark Ross, Nimran Persaud, Deanne Joseph, Roschelle Allison, Sueann Lyle, Shawn Freeman, Tracie Mohabir, Melissa Sealey, Nevio Daniels, Godfrey Collins, Natoya Munroe, Ivan Bentham, Shripaul Rooplall and Marlong Laing.

President Jagdeo, in the feature address at the opening ceremony which preceded the start of the second (afternoon) session, said he was “pleased to see the many new faces” and congratulated the youths for being selected as parliamentarians and getting the wonderful opportunity to participate in the NYP.

He implored them to make the most of this opportunity saying, “You are here on a very important mission and while many persons might want to make light of your presence here…I know (it) has much significance for our country and the progress that we are trying to (make) in developing Guyana.”

Guyana, according to President Jagdeo, is on the right path when young people can get together from across the regions of the country and across other kinds of differences and in a civilised way, share their views and at the end of the day, find solutions to those differences instead of creating enmity in their hearts.

He also emphasised the need to change the culture of the country, especially the political culture. He noted that many people, through intolerance or narrow-mindedness for instance, cannot come to the realisation that regardless of their differences - what is important is that they are, first of all, Guyanese.

He expressed the hope that changes being made at the Parliamentary and national levels will translate or aid other changes in the Guyanese culture. “A change in people’s attitudes to one another is what is needed”, the President asserted.

He also gave the young parliamentarians a brief background of the changes being made at the levels of the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary and underscored that Guyana has one of the most progressive constitutions in the world, an achievement which all Guyanese should be proud of.

With regards to the Executive, President Jagdeo said changes were made in the Guyana Constitution to reduce the powers of the President and more importantly, put in place term restrictions on the President. He noted that a President in Guyana, starting from when the constitutional changes were made in 2001, cannot run for office for more than two terms, pointing out that most countries in the world, and none in the English-speaking Caribbean - do not have this sort of term restriction.

He said this change was “necessary” due to the need to have a “constant renewal at the top” because no matter how good or how smart a person is, changes at the leadership level are needed from time to time.

President Jagdeo also urged the NYP participants to be familiar with events taking place around the world and in their country and to be aware of critical issues such as HIV/AIDS, hunger, malnutrition and the changing faces of crime and criminal activities across the globe.

He wished them well in the future, and expressed the hope that many of them might very well end up being future Parliamentarians of Guyana.

Yesterday’s ceremonial opening of the NYP was chaired by Christine Bailey, General Secretary of GUYDA, while Lester Paul, Executive Member of GUYDA gave the closing remarks.

Canadian visas warning
WITH a growing number of immigration consultants advertising their services in the media here, the Canadian High Commission in Georgetown is advising visa applicants that if they choose to hire a representative their application will not be given special attention, faster processing or a more favourable outcome.

“The Canadian High Commission in Georgetown receives applications from individual applicants. No one is obliged to hire a representative for immigration matters. The use of a representative to assist in completing an immigration application is a personal choice,” a statement from the High Commission said yesterday.

“The Government of Canada treats everyone equally, whether they use the services of a representative or not,” the statement added.

However, for individuals who choose to pay a representative to act on their behalf when applying for visas to Canada, the paid representative must be "authorised", the High Commission said. 

According to the High Commission, "authorised" paid representatives may only be: lawyers who are members in good standing of a Canadian law society and students-at-law under their supervision; or immigration consultants who are members in good standing of the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants (CSIC); or notaries who are members in good standing of the Chambre des notaires du Québec and students-at-law under their supervision.

Applicants will be required to disclose the name and membership information of their representative when they apply, the High Commission added.

Applicants may also be represented by family members, friends, and members of non-governmental or religious organisations if no fees are charged for their services and as long as the representative has been authorised by the applicant.

For consumer protection, the High Commission noted that the Government of Canada will only deal with authorised representatives who belong to the organisations listed above.

Deadly cocaine lessons
WE YESTERDAY followed up on our report last week on the death of Guyanese footballer, Marlon Hendricks, in Barbados after one of nine packets of cocaine he had in his stomach burst, eventually causing his heart to stop.

According to a report carried in another daily newspaper, Hendricks left a note in the guesthouse where he was staying asking his family for forgiveness. Hendricks’ final act is a significant one.

Whenever reports hit the press about “drug mules” being caught, a special sort of derision and scorn is reserved for these people. We are quick to descend a thousand moral judgements on what they have been caught doing.

Whenever reports hit the press about a “drug mule” dying from cocaine ingestion, there is little sympathy for any person stupid enough to go swallowing a lethal substance especially after repeated reports of others who suffered the same fate.

We cannot imagine what the final hours of Marlon Hendricks might have been like. According to our report yesterday, on Wednesday he reported that he was not feeling well and was taken to a private doctor.

The doctor summoned an ambulance to take him to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. On arrival at the hospital, Hendricks fled before receiving medical attention. Hours later his body was found on the lawn in front of a house.

A rising human talent, snuffed out as ignobly as any stray animal’s life. On someone else’s lawn.

The trade in cocaine corrupts. It corrupts law enforcement officers in poor countries like ours who are paid better to turn a blind eye than they are to do their jobs. It corrupts community leaders who watch as it turns neighbourhoods they had worked hard to better become increasingly populated by drug fiends. It corrupts public officials who find it easier to succumb to the seduction that quick wealth brings, even if it means betraying the immense trust put in them by the public.

Today, when we find policemen who use their weapons for tasks other than to serve and protect; when we find people who watch without comment as the young girls in their communities – their daughters included – sell their bodies for money; when we see that one public institution or the other is not functioning as it should; then there’s a good chance that the lure of a “better” life that the narcotics trade offers is behind it.

At the base of this communal and societal corruption, however, is the individual corruption that inhabits the persons who use drugs, who sell drugs, who traffic drugs, as well as those who facilitate all of the above by shirking their duties to prevent the same.

It is clear from what is known about that last note written by Marlon Hendricks to his family that the promising footballer had indeed become personally corrupted; but more important than this is that, before he suffered the ultimate penalty for that corruption, he recognised what he had become and sought a sort of redemption from it.

That that redemption could not in the end save him as the cocaine began its insidious task to stop his heart from beating, should be a lesson to all of us who are faced with enticement of cocaine riches.

At Berbice Assizes…
Defence in Police outpost murder case pleads accident
By Jeune Bailey Van-Keric
THE Defence in the Lewis Manor Police Outpost murder case at the Berbice Assizes yesterday submitted that the victim was killed by accident.

Defence Counsel Rupert Trim said the gun exploded unintentionally and, while the Prosecution is based on the caution statement by the accused, there are doubts as to who pulled the trigger.

Such doubt must be resolved in favour of the prisoner, Trim urged the mixed jury sitting with Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards.

Ex-Rural Constable Normam Mitchell is on trial for unlawfully killing his lover, Hemmattie Paramsook called Sharda, at the Number 11, Corentyne Police outpost on June 29, 2003.

State Prosecutor Nyasha Williams, rebutting Trim’s argument, said, although there were no eyewitnesses to the crime, she was not blindly accepting the Defence proposition.

Williams said it has been accepted that the woman and the accused had an intimate relationship.

However, strangely enough, the accused was satisfied and the other party was dissatisfied with the status of the friendship and it posed a problem.

Williams said, consequently, Paramsook demanded that the accused leave his common-law wife and take her fully.

Earlier, after the Prosecution closed, Mitchell made an unsworn statement from the dock and said he is relying on the attestation he gave the Police on the day of the shooting.

Mitchell said he and Paramsook had a good relationship and they had no problems.

He added: “Sometimes, while at work, she would cook and bring my meals and spend time. She was nice to me. Prior to the commencement of the relationship, Sharda knew I had my child mother.

“But, as the relationship grew, she asked me to sever the links. When Sharda fell to the ground, I held her in my arms, calling her name but got no response.”

“… I later went to Central Police Station where I requested, from Constable Chichester, a vehicle with which I had hoped to take Sharda to the New Amsterdam Hospital. But, when I explained that she was shot in the eye, Chichester said no use going with a vehicle, as the person will die.

“I was placed on the Detention Bench where I remained for four hours before being taken to the outpost at Number 11 Village, Corentyne,” the accused stated.

The final Prosecution witness to testify yesterday was Dr Vivekanand Brijmohan, who performed the autopsy on the body of the dead woman.

The forensic pathologist said she suffered a laceration to the medial angle of the left eye, which was the bullet entry wound.

He said the shot moved downwards and upwards, fracturing bones at the base of the skull.

Brijmohan said there was no tattooing visible and explained that the close proximity of the target when the weapon was fired was responsible for the release of gases that caused the blackening or smearing.

He said blood loss resulting from the wound would also cause the evidence to be marred.

In answer to the judge, Brijmohan said the wounds were serious and the victim would have succumbed shortly after suffering them.
Justice Cummings-Edwards is expected to sum up the evidence today.

Defendant fined for traffic breaches faces other charges
DELON Fraser, of Lot 516 East Ruimveldt Housing Scheme, Georgetown, appeared before Acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan yesterday on 11 charges.

He pleaded guilty to three and was fined a total of $18,000 for unlicensed driving without a third party insurance policy and not having a licence in respect to the Traffic Act on July 15.

The defendant denied that he fraudulently used an identification number on an unregistered motorcycle he rode when it did not have a certificate of fitness.

On the indictable forgery and uttering charges, the accused is alleged to have:

* with intent to defraud, on June 16, 2004, forged a road licence for motor cycle CC 9685;

* also with intent to defraud on June 3, 2000, forged a certificate of registration to show that he is the owner of the motorcycle;

* uttered to Police Corporal Errol Bhagat, at Leonora, West Coast Demera, on July 13, 2005, the forgery knowing it to be forged;

* uttered to Police Constable Kevon Denny, on July 15, 2005, in the city, the forged road licence purporting to show that it was issued by the Licence Revenue Office and

* also uttered to Police Constable Denny the forged registration certificate knowing it to be false.

Fraser was granted $50,000 bail in the pending indictable cases and will make his next appearance in another city court, to which they have been transferred, on November 16.

For the other case that has been transferred there, he will go to Leonora Court on November 17.

Three drug defendants remanded, cases transferred
THREE drug defendants, in different cases before Acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan, were all refused bail and remanded to prison yesterday.

Two of them, Jimmy Anderson (no address given) and Christine Franklin, 20, of Lot 324 Craig, East Bank Demerara, pleaded not guilty to trafficking 152 and 277 grammes of cannabis (marijuana), respectively, on October 21.

Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) Prosecutor Oswald Massiah said Anderson threw a transparent plastic bag from the verandah of Franklin’s home on to a neighbouring shed from where it was retrieved and found to contain the illegal drug wrapped in foil.

Massiah said another black plastic bag with more of the narcotic was on Franklin’s bed.

The duo will make a second appearance in another court, to which the case has been referred, on November 3.

The other defendant, Danius Hercules had his case transferred to Wales Court, West Bank Demerara, for October 28.

Particulars of his October 21 offence said he had 18.5 grammes of cannabis for the same purpose, at Sideline Dam, Sisters Village, on West Bank Demerara, too.

To the `Buxton Conspiracy’ masterminds
AN OPEN letter to the masterminds of the `Buxton Conspiracy’.
You thought you could take us on. But you are wrong.

Your view is based on your assessment that we will not retaliate to your wanton terrorism. But you are wrong. Civil society WILL fight back.

I appeal to you. Listen to reasoned leaders like Dr. David Hinds, Eusi Kwayana, Andaiye (to name a few).

End this now before it is too late.
Our impatience grows with you by the day. You, childishly, challenged us to a duel.

But you are no match for us. You never were. For too long we have endured your wanton terror. Our hearts grow cold over your dastardly deeds.

In your ignorance you have no knowledge of the amount of power that we can wield.
We are watching you.
SEAN ADAMS

Confirmed Buxton connection
WHEN President Jagdeo on October 6, 2005 at a press briefing at the Office of the President said he believed that the disappearance of four East Coast Demerara sugar workers was done not for financial gains but as an act of terror aimed at creating and keeping fear alive in the society, he was bang on target.

President Jagdeo is on record as stating that “What is at stake here (are) not criminal activities aimed at gaining money; what is at stake here I think, frankly speaking, is political power.”

Recalling an earlier debate that had arisen about the word terror, President Jagdeo said that “when we said it was akin to terror people said we were making light of the word terror.”

These statements assume great significance and relevance having regard to recent revelations by Ronald Waddell during the programme “Taking Care of Business” on Monday, October 17, 2005. This is what Waddell had to say:

“We thank God for the Buxton resistance. Without that there might have been hundreds more killed over the past two years and we pray for the Father to protect those young men and women who are fighting to defend the African nation in Guyana.”

Waddell went on to say:

“They are the ones who have the courage and they have already made the ultimate sacrifice…so that we can live in freedom and dignity.”

And as though this was not enough, he added:

“We must never get tired. What we are doing is good and what the militants in Buxton are doing is good, it is righteous and just and they must never get tired and we must hold them up and we give praise and thanks to the Almighty. We hold them up high.”

Mr. Waddell concluded by stating:

“…that the armed African descendants are not going to end their resistance. When we are assured that we can build businesses and employ our children in this country like any other person, then and only then, they would have peace!”

Waddell has unashamedly informed the nation of his Buxton connections. These are serious revelations.

In the first place we now have a confirmed connection between Mr. Waddell and those in Buxton on whose behalf he speaks.

Secondly, Waddell’s programme revealed the real intention of those who have entrenched themselves in Buxton and waging war from that enclave.

Thirdly, Mr. Waddell by his very pronouncements has confirmed what the nation knew long ago and that is that there is an armed group in Buxton using terrorism and murder in pursuit of political objectives and motivated by racial prejudices, particularly against the Indo-Guyanese population.

Fourthly, it is clear that terror is the name of the game and the immediate targets regrettably, are the peace-loving citizens on the East Coast who, thus far, have restrained themselves admirably from reciprocating in a similar fashion – a situation which would obviously throw the nation into a racial conflagration.

In this regard, the PPP/C and the Government must be commended for their leadership and the responsible role they have faced in the face of immense provocation and the brazen attempts to destabilise the political situation in the country.

It is in this context then that we must view the statement by President Jagdeo to the effect that:

“I guess people will have to judge us on the security situation, but they should also judge us from all the attempts to promote instability or plots to overthrow the Government.”

Imagine a hypothetical situation prior to 1992 when the PPP was in the opposition, say in Enmore – a PPP stronghold where a group of Indo-Guyanese has established a beachhead and uses it as a base to drive fear among Afro-Guyanese on the East Coast. The truth is that there is absolutely no way such a group of persons would have been given access to a TV station to propagate their views in the way Waddell is doing (bearing in mind that only one existed at the time). Moreover, to maintain an enclave of the Buxton type in Enmore in those days is unimaginable.

I have absolutely no doubt that the full force of the coercive apparatus of the State under the PNC would have been brought to bear to physically eliminate such a group.

Now we have a democracy, several private newspapers and TV stations, along with all the freedoms associated with such a democracy. However, there is but one particular freedom which was introduced with the assumption of the PPP to office - freedom from fear - a freedom that is now under threat.

In this respect, the wheel has moved a full circle from a society characterised by fear while the PNC was in the Government to a society in which fear is being kept alive with the PNC in the opposition.

This is not the time to remain silent not to sit on the fence, hoping that those who are determined to wreak havoc in our country would simply pack up and wind down their nefarious operations.

The attempts to overthrow a government by force of arms must not be tolerated by those who cherish peace, democracy and social progress.

In closing, I quote from a speech made by Sir Paul Reeves, the Commonwealth Secretary General’s envoy to Guyana, in the National Assembly on October 20, 2005:

“I have never met a Guyanese who did not want the best for their country. But somehow, with elections every five years, resources in short supply and the weight of history on your backs, it has not been possible to completely transcend your fears. But while you can’t change the past, you can influence the future.”

CLEMENT J. ROHEE
MEMBER OF THE CENTRAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
PEOPLE’S PROGRESSIVE PARTY

Lengthy political DNA
FROM all reports, there are individuals and groups who are taking advantage of our much touted democratic freedoms to engage in nefarious activities.

In all of this, a common thread emerges. It is the continued claims from the opposition that its hands are clean.

Let us start with some examples. The two dozen `nationalists’ in Buxton, and some 200 kindred spirits operate in a vacuum characterised by raid and retreat. They belong to no one; they have no master(s); they answer only to themselves.

In one word, they are independent.
Move from the shadowy badlands and their secretive inhabitants to the full glow of a public stage and what is really an electronic talking box; it is called television. More specifically, a talk show programme and an accompanying master of ceremonies, the host. If the extracts are accurate, then there is trouble afoot; and it is of the kind that divides, instigates, and destroys.

Again, this is an individual exercising democratic rights at freedom of speech, as enshrined under freedom of the press provisions. Ignoring temporarily the merits of individual freedoms versus the collective good and safety, there is - one more time - the public posture of opposition disconnect and innocence in what may be mildly seen as an appeal to racist violence.

In other words, this man speaks for himself, and we distance ourselves from his philosophy and calls.

Lastly, the opposition has dismissed any association with threats and reports of a burglary at the residence of one previously its own. For the third time, the voluble public pretence has been “we kno nuthin” and “we ain’t deh pun dem runnins and we doan deal with dem kinda people.”

As many will say, “maybe, maybe not.”
It is quite conceivable that the not so covert warriors, the very public rousers and mongers, and the selectively enterprising intimidators and plumbers are just fiercely individualistic in outlook and operations, and thus have no relationship whatever with politics and politicians of any contour.

They are simply making a living the best way they know how, and what happens to be most convenient. As highly unlikely as this may sound or be, due consideration should be given.

On the other hand, violence, a history of violence, targeted ethnic violence, political intimidation, and murders camouflaged - and catalogued - as criminal endeavours all have a lengthy and irrefutable political DNA, towards two sources. Since so much political mileage has been gained from the heavy-handed approach, how can it now be abandoned in favour of methods less fulminatory and covert, and more conciliatory and open?

More pointedly, how meaningful are the calls for a national crime fighting effort?

And most importantly and broadly, if our political bosses are part of the problem, how can they be part of any genuine and lasting solution?
GHK LALL

Reporters should also be translators
THE Stabroek News insists on its right to use broken English in that newspaper for direct speech.

In an editor's note to a letter by Mr. Lutchman Gossai (Oct.23) the paper said such speech is a more vivid and accurate presentation of what is told to its reporters.

I understand this defence, even though it seems quite strange coming from an English language newspaper in an English-speaking country.

This leads to the question: shouldn't reporters be translators to a certain extent? Would the paper report in French if a Frenchman is interviewed?

Wouldn't the reporter make a French to English translation for the benefit of its readers? Would the translation be any less accurate and vivid in standard English?

But, you might argue, many people in Guyana speak broken English and so no translation is necessary for such speech.

But if the readers benefit is paramount, which is the argument Stabroek News is making, then the editors should be paying attention to what Mr. Gossai said: "a newspaper has a crucial role in correctly educating the public and therefore is no place to showcase an adulteration of what our children are taught in their schools as our national language."

"Meh see wan man ah hide in de bush and meh hallah, 'ayo come quick, de tief man de hey suh'".

Couldn't a reporter write this just as vividly and accurately as: "I noticed someone hiding in the bushes and so I alerted everyone by shouting, 'here, quick, the thief is over here'"?

Is such an interpretation, made in the best interest of an English speaking public, a violation of the rules of direct speech?

If it is, then I would say the Frenchman must also be directly quoted in French.
DAVID SEEGOBIN

Danielstown post office probe needed
I AM a citizen of Danielstown Village on the Essequibo Coast and the report about the Danielstown Post Office Postmaster is not true.

I was there when the postmaster along with the cleaner found tampered mail that were supposed to have been delivered by a postman who tampered with them and left them stored away under a hiding place in the post office.

The Postmaster is the one who reported the matter to the Chief Postmaster at Anna Regina, where there was also a witness, and not the Post Office officials.

The heads at the Post office General office and the Government should look into this matter.

Some post office officials are destroying the integrity of the postal services by condoning theft by staff.
CONCERNED CITIZEN

Synthetic track and velodrome for D’Urban Park Sports Complex
… GOA head praises Cleveland Forde
By Isaiah Chappelle
THE long dream of cyclists and track & field athletes will finally become a reality when the D’Urban Park Sports Complex is completed.

Member of the committee, K. Juman-Yassin, officially announced on Sunday, that the complex would have a synthetic athletics track and a velodrome, among other facilities.

Juman-Yassin, in his capacity as president of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA), was speaking to athletes at the presentation ceremony of the 3rd South American 10 km Road Classic Run, Race 1, at the Thomas Lands YMCA.

The sport administrator thanked the government for the project, in which basketball, volleyball and tennis courts would be accommodated in the 468-hectare complex.

Juman-Yassin said there were several plans for sport which did not materialise, but this one would become a reality.

“This one has gone a far way and will be completed. I wish to applaud and encourage the government.”

The GOA boss was high in praise for president of the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) Claude Blackmore and his staff for organising a successful race.

“They planned way in advance to bring off a good meet.”

He was loud in praise, too, for Kenya-based distance runner Cleveland Forde who placed second in the race after giving eventual winner Brazilian Jose do Nascimento Souza a strong challenge.

Juman-Yassin recalled that the GOA had promised Forde last year when he placed third to afford him professional training and the local Olympic committee was now funding his stint in at the High Performance Centre in Kenya.

“All the money spent on him was money well spent.”
The GOA head announced that Forde would return to Kenya in another couple of weeks to continue his training there.

Minister of Sport Gail Teixeira was brimming with confidence and praise for Forde’s performance.

“We know Cleveland will beat you (Brazilians) the next time.”

Technical Director of CONSUDATLE (the South American Athletics Conferation), Carlos Cavalheiro, said for the third year in a row that the race expanded.

“We have achieved our aim. We’re going to be a big race here. For the first time, Colombia fielded male athletes and we welcomed one more country. That is a very good sign.”

The South American 10 km Road Classic Run is in the CONSUDATLE three countries without synthetic track, with Race 1 hosted by Guyana, Race 2 in Suriname and Race 3 in Panama.
Race 2 will be staged on Saturday and Race 3 on November 14.

Pele hold Conquerors to 2-2, Tigers beat Beacon 1-0
By Allan La Rose
CAPTAIN Shawn ‘Fatso’ Bishop scored twice to deny Champions Fruta Conquerors victory and help Pele FC to move further away from the Premier League’s relegation zone as the two sides played to an entertaining 2-all draw on Sunday night at the GFC ground.

In what could be considered one of the best contested Premier League fixtures to date Bishop ensured that Pele’s unbeaten run in the second round was maintained when he netted an incredible equaliser from a direct free kick in the final seconds to earn two valuable points for his team and pushed his season tally to nine.

From about 30 metres out on the attacking right and about 15 metres from the corner flag ‘Fatso’, as though he had measured the distance with a tape-measure, executed a high curling inside left booter which dipped at the far post and into the ‘V’ to leave Conquerors and their fans dumbfounded as Pele’s fans erupted in celebration.

Despite dominating the opening minutes with precise passing and build-ups down the flanks the gold shirts failed to convert any of the numerous raids which created several goal-scoring opportunities. Against the run of play Conquerors took the lead in the 30th minute when a ball played from the right side caught the Pele defence square, and Dexter ‘Dribbler’ Bentick coming from the opposite side collected just inside the box and placed a left footer along the ground past a flat-footed Shemroy Arthur, whose poor positioning in goal left the opening at the far post.

Pele continued to control the proceedings but still could not find the target until nine minutes into the second half when ‘Fatso’ buried one from about 35 metres out. In controlling the ball down the middle and seeing goalkeeper Leeron Bailey off his line the Pele captain, who wasted several free kicks earlier on, instinctively placed the ball inches under the crossbar as Bailey tried desperately to tip it over the bar.

Inspired by the equaliser and urged on by their supporters Pele went in search of the go-ahead, but unimaginative finishing, together with stout defending by national sweeper back Neville Stanton kept the score at one-all. In the 18th minute Conquerors’ custodian Bailey was forced to leave the field after a collision with an opponent and was replaced by teenager Akel Clarke.

In the 31st minute the dreadlocked forward Konata Manning muffed a golden opportunity to give Pele the advantage. A perfect thru pass from ‘Fatso’ was well read by ‘Natta’ but his shot from close up went soaring over the bar, much to the disbelief of all. On the very next play Bentick broke free down the middle to give Conquerors the lead again. It was ‘Dribbler’s’ third double of the competition as he carried his tally to seven goals.

‘Natta’s’ nightmare continued when five minutes from the final whistle he was again presented with a gift, but this time his effort from in the area was denied by the goalkeeper’s best friend as the ball hit the far post and rebounded into play. Within two minutes it was a similar situation at the opposite end for Delon Williams.

The two points gained took champions Conquerors to 33 and Pele to 18 as they remain the only two unbeaten sides in the second round with two more games to play. The two have also accumulated the same amount of points in the second half of the eight-team Premiership from 3 wins and 2 score draws.

The first of the two Premier fixtures played on Sunday also provided the fair-sized crowd with some degree of quality football, though the finishing was also wanting until Ryan ‘Yellow’ Thomas found the back of the nets a minute from full time. It was a fine breakaway by Shawn Beveney who took the ball to the back line and squared it across the goal for Thomas who was unchallenged coming from the far side to tap into the goal.

It was just reward for the Tigers who wasted no fewer than five chances from similar plays created in attack. Beacon would want to say they were unlucky as in the final attack of the game Culbert White delivered a well-measured right cross but an unchallenged Andre Mayers failed to convert. It was the third consecutive loss for Beacon who are left in third position on 20 points while the Tigers lifted themselves to 17, three more than second-from-the-bottom GFC.

In the afternoon’s first encounter Uprising routed Northern Rangers 4-0 in a division one fixture. Telson Bowen led the way with a double (51st and 62nd) while there was one apiece for Mannaseh Primo (4th) and Lance Browne (69th).

Waugh, Lara confrontation could have become physical
… says former Aussie skipper
By Fazeer Mohammed
BRISBANE, Australia, (CMC) - Even when he is keeping a low profile, Brian Lara remains a subject of obsession in Australian cricket and media circles.

While the West Indies' star batsman was practising with his teammates at Allan Border Field over the weekend, former Australian captain Steve Waugh released his latest book, "Out of My Comfort Zone", excerpts of which are appearing in the country's national newspapers.

In one of those excerpts, highlighted in yesterday’s edition of ‘The Australian’, Waugh claims that a verbal confrontation with Lara during the Antigua Test of 2003 could have become physical but for the intervention of English umpire David Shepherd.

According to Waugh's account of the incident, Lara, while batting during his team's pursuit of a world record target of 418, initiated the exchange by lashing out at the then Australian skipper for not walking when the West Indies thought he was out during the first innings.

According to the book, Waugh responded by suggesting that while he never walked, Lara was a convenient "walker" doing so only when it suited him.

Subsequently, a concerted but unsuccessful appeal for a catch behind prompted Waugh, who was fielding at short mid-on, to remind Lara of what he had said earlier.

Describing the left-hander's reaction as similar to Glenn McGrath's heated exchange with Ramnaresh Sarwan later that same day - "it seemed an alien took control of his being" - Waugh said he and Lara engaged in a short-range shouting match until the Trinidadian came within inches of him, prompting Shepherd's intervention.

In the book, Waugh describes Lara as "charming, vulnerable, endearing, moody and impossible to work out at times, and endlessly fascinating."

Despite the confrontation and the highly-publicised clash between McGrath and Sarwan, Waugh said the series, which Australia won 3-1, "was the most pleasant I'd seen between the two sides, with regular sharing of cricket information and advice in the change rooms at the end of the day."

Despite losing the captaincy to Shivnarine Chanderpaul earlier this year in the midst of the protracted team sponsorship dispute, Lara remains the immediately identifiable face of West Indies cricket here, with even a promotional brochure put out by the Queensland Bulls urging fans to come out and see the home side taking on "Brian Lara's West Indies team".

With the four-day fixture beginning at Allan Border Field on Thursday as their only warm-up match ahead of the first Test at The Gabba a week later, the tourists are likely to field a virtual Test 11 against a full-strength Bulls outfit that includes opening batsman Matthew Hayden and all-rounder Shane Watson, both of whom are expected to be in the Australian team for the opening encounter of the three-match series.

After arriving in Brisbane on Thursday under grey skies and persistent showers, improved weather conditions have allowed the tourists to have intensive all-day training sessions at Allan Border Field since Saturday.

The strenuous routine will continue until tomorrow as head coach Bennett King and the rest of his technical staff seek to get the squad ready for a series in which they are massive underdogs.

However the weather could throw a spanner in the works as Brisbane experienced severe thunderstorms late last night that drenched the city.

More showers are forecast for today while longer term predictions suggest that both the four-day match and the Test could be affected by the elements.

GCC serves off first squash tourney tonight
THE country’s top male players will be in action as the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) serves off its first squash tournament, tonight, at the Bourda court.

Organiser Tariq Williams said the inaugural GCC Open has attracted a number of senior and junior national players, but the entries from the female players were not forthcoming and there would be no draw in that category.

The tournament will showcase National champion Shawn Badrinath, former National champion Regan Pollard and seasoned National player Julian Chin, along with National Under-17 and Under-19 champion, Kristian Jeffrey.

Jerazeno Bell, Alex Gouveia, Tariq Williams and Marvin Danette complete the top eight seeds.

According to Williams, who is the Clubs Chairperson of the Guyana Squash Association (GSA), the tournament was part of an expansion drive and would, also, fill the gap during the off season, between early August and February, when no major local or Caribbean tournaments are scheduled.

Play on the opening starts at 18:00 h, and continues on Thursday and Friday from 19:00 h. The finals are scheduled for Saturday, and action begins at 17:00 h.

Carib Beer Inter-county cricket brought forward
THE second round of the Carib Beer four-day senior Inter-county cricket competition between defending Champions Berbice and Essequibo which was scheduled to be played November 3-6 has been brought forward to October 28- 31.

According to a Guyana Cricket Board press release the match will be played at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) ground.

Jacobs named in Antigua & Barbuda squad for Independence Fest
ST JOHN'S, Antigua, (CMC) - Retired West Indies wicketkeeper/batsman Ridley Jacobs has been named in a strong Antigua and Barbuda team to take part in the country's 20/20 Independence Cricket fest this week.

Jacobs, who ended his international career last April, was named in the 13-man squad that will be captained by Sylvester Joseph, who just led the West Indies to the final of the Hong Kong sixes tournament last weekend.

However, Leeward Islands seamer Kerry Jeremy was not included because of a hamstring injury.

But his Leewards team-mates, all-rounder Wilden Cornwall, opener Austin Richards Jr and pacers Carl Simon, Gavin Tonge and Curtis Roberts have been selected.

The rest of the squad is Justin Athanaze, Rolston Phillip, Bertil Baltimore, Gregg Skepple, Anthony Martin and Kimoi Alexander.

Former Leewards and West Indies 'B' team pacer Anthony Merrick will coach the team and the manager is Lestroy Skepple.

Both were in charge of the team that won the Leewards three-day and one-day championships recently.

Antigua and Barbuda will oppose a West Indies Legends XI, a Lashings World XI and a Barbados XI in the 20/20 series at the Stanford Cricket Ground over four days, starting Friday.

OTHER TEAMS:
LASHINGS WORLD XI - Jimmy Adams, Stuart Williams, Richie Richardson, Chris Lewis (England), Andy Flower (Zimbabwe), Grant Flower (Zimbabwe), Ryan Tenoeschate (Essex), Gratham Napier (Essex), Ed Giddins (Sussex), Azar Mahmood (Pakistan), Vasbert Drakes, Alvin Kallicharan - Coach (West Indies), David Folb - Chairman/Manager, Hannah Major - Assistant.

WEST INDIES LEGENDS - Sir Vivian Richards, Richie Richardson, Colin Croft, Joel Garner, Carlisle Best, Desmond Haynes, Gordon Greenidge, Ezra Mosley, Curtly Ambrose, Ridley Jacobs, Roger Harper, Robert Haynes, Henderson Bryan, Junior Murray, Jimmy Adams.

ENGLAND LEGENDS - John Lever, Mark Ealham, Sid Lawrence, John Snow, Ian Gould, Neil Radford, Peter Such, Chris Lewis, Ryan Sidebottom, Arnold Sidebottom, Andy Bicknell, Neal Foster.

BARBADOS - Courtney Browne (captain), Sulieman Benn, Jason Bennett, Ian Bradshaw, Patrick Browne, Shirley Clarke, Ryan Hinds, Alcindo Holder, Martin Nurse, Ryan Nurse, Floyd Reifer, Dale Richards, Antonio Thomas, Kurt Wilkinson.

T&T cricket is in good hands - outgoing president
COUVA, Trinidad, (CMC) - Outgoing president of the Trinidad & Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) Ellis Lewis believes the country's cricket is in good hands and has a bright future.

Lewis said that on the horizon, the board is seeing the kind of assistance that will contribute to the enhancement of their development programmes.

"The recent announcement of the Sports Company of T&T is one such encouraging feature, especially with the interface which we have had so far with them. And there are other opportunities which are opening for us, including benefits which we will obtain from World Cup 2007.

"We are on the verge of exciting times and the future of cricket is in good hands," said Lewis, as he addressed the T&TCB induction class of the 2005 graduation at the Sir Frank Worrell Cricket Development Centre.

Talented T&T middle-order batsman Kieron Pollard was named ‘Inductee of the Year’.

Pollard, together with two other graduates, Jason Mohammed and Rishi Bachan, are in a 20-man West Indies Under-19 squad preparing for the Youth World Cup in Sri Lanka in February.

Trinidad and Tobago swept the TCL Group Under-19 double (one-day and three-day titles) in August and although their most recent national outing -- bottom of the table and winless in the KFC Cup as defending champions -- has worried the board into launching an investigation into the side's dismal showing, Lewis spoke positively about the national programme.

Lewis said his organisation has long recognised that the development of any individual in a particular field of endeavour must go beyond basic skills and talents.

He told the graduates that modern sport requires all those who hope to reach the top to go beyond their natural God-given skills and enter areas that are vital and complementary for success.

Lewis said that these areas include the ability to communicate properly, the development of mental toughness, an understanding of the part nutrition plays in the physical well-being, your strength and condition, an understanding of location of the sport within the society and what it means to us.

"The fact (is) that these small ex-colonial countries can match strides with the rest of the world in a field of endeavour in which the opportunity was given to us, and which we took.

"Graduates, these are -- in my view -- important considerations which we must understand and grasp with both hands, as we seek to develop our country in our special field of endeavour - cricket," Lewis stated.

He told the group of young players, that they have a special responsibility to themselves, their parents, the community and the board for making special use of the opportunity given them, by going out and doing what was required -- continue to make strides in their quest to reach the stars.

"If you are not thinking of making major improvements in your careers, as a result of the programme which you have just completed, then we would have wasted out time. But I feel sure that we have not wasted out time, and that you would go out into the world with messianic zeal to assist in the development of yourself and T&T's cricket," Lewis said.

He told the gathering that the development of the individual and T&T's cricket is of paramount important to his organisation, as they will continue to seek ways and means to improve the programmes in accordance with the dynamic environment of today's world.

In his last official function before he demits office on October 31, Lewis said that the board believes it is at the threshold of making a major leap forward.

Simmons told to leave Zimbabwe
FORMER Zimbabwe coach Phil Simmons is still waiting to see if he is going to be kicked out of the African country.

The West Indian was recently axed as Zimbabwe coach and served with a deportation order four days ago, but he claims he was not formally sacked.

"I am not even thinking about where I will go if I have to.

"Nor do I have any plans about how I will eventually deal with Zimbabwe Cricket about the remainder of my contract with them," he said.

"I am keeping an open mind on everything."

Simmons is currently coaching unofficially in the country, mainly working with youngsters as well as some senior players. (BBC Sport)

Pakistan draws up evacuation procedure for England tour
KARACHI, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistan has drawn up an emergency evacuation procedure in case a natural disaster occurs during next month's tour by England, a senior security officer said yesterday.

The tourists are due to leave England today and arrive in Islamabad early tomorrow.

A massive earthquake earlier this month in the northern areas of Pakistan killed at least 53 000 people and left about three million homeless.

Sohail Khan, a senior police official who has been appointed tour security officer, told Reuters an emergency evacuation plan had been drawn up in the security arrangements.

"The evacuation plan has been added by the administration for the teams in case of a natural disaster," he said.

Khan added that nothing was being left to chance as far as security arrangements were concerned and advance work had been done on all aspects of the tour.

"We have informed experts (with the teams) of what their players are expected to do in case of any natural eventuality," he added.

England are scheduled to play three Tests and five one-day internationals in Pakistan.
The first Test in Multan starts on Nov. 12.

Ponting defiant about captaincy
RICKY Ponting has told would-be suitors to his Australian Test cricket captaincy that he's staying put.

Ponting, along with team coach John Buchanan, received most of the flak after Australia lost the Ashes.

But he is adamant that he wants to remain in charge and denies leg-spinner Shane Warne was effectively the man in charge on the tour of England.

Ponting writes in his book Ashes Diary 2005: "There was only one person in charge on the field and that was me."

Of Warne's claims to higher office, he added: "If he does still have captaincy aspirations he had better join the queue, because I am not planning on going anywhere just yet."

Ponting predicts that Warne, who retired from international limited-overs cricket after failing a drugs test before the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, might be back for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.

"I would not rule out the idea of him coming back into the one-day side for the 2007 World Cup," he writes.

"The trouble is that I do not think he will make himself available unless he gets an assurance from the selectors that they will pick him.

"He will not want to go to the trouble and possible embarrassment of announcing his availability only to be overlooked."

Ponting also admitted in his new book that he initially wanted Andrew Symonds sent home after a late-night drinking binge forced him out the one-day match against Bangladesh in Cardiff last June.

Bangladesh stunned the cricket world when they beat the Australians by five wickets, collecting only their 10th win in 108 one-day internationals at the time.

Ponting described the defeat as dreadful and embarrassing, and all-rounder Symonds' behaviour as unacceptable after it became clear during the warm-ups that he was intoxicated.

"I was furious at a player being so disrespectful to himself, his teammates, his opponents and his country by turning up to play a game in that state.” (BBC Sport)

Ex-England men join umpires list
FORMER England players Richard Illingworth and Rob Bailey are among four new appointments to the full list of First Class umpires.

The other two new names are Richard Kettleborough and Neil Bainton.

"They've performed outstandingly in the past few years on the ECB reserve list and thoroughly deserve promotion," said the ECB's Alan Fordham.

They replace David Shepherd, Mervyn Kitchen, Alan Whitehead and John Hampshire, who all retired this year.

Illingworth, 42, played nine Tests for England, scoring 128 runs at 18.28 and taking 19 wickets at an average of 32.36.

The ex-Worcestershire left-arm spinner also played 25 one-day internationals, claiming 30 wickets.

Former Northamptonshire opener Bailey, 41, played four Tests, scoring 119 runs at 14.87, and four ODIs, hitting 137 runs at 68.50. (BBC Sport)

Smith fends off Kenya with polished unbeaten century
WINDHOEK, Namibia, (CMC) - Bermuda got a polished undefeated hundred from their captain Clay Smith yesterday to fend off Kenya's victory push, but the Africans still enjoy a dominant position after two days of their Intercontinental Cup semi-final at United Ground.

Kenya, building on a 61-run first innings lead, finished the second day at 85 for one -- 146 runs ahead -- with Kennedy Otieno (37) and Tony Suji (19) at the crease.

From an overnight 13 for one in reply to Kenya's first innings 403 for six declared, Bermuda's batsmen -- led by Smith’s unbeaten 126 -- battled throughout the day and dragged their total to 342 for nine declared.

Bermuda were in trouble at 72 for three early yesterday, but Smith, who was given excellent back-up by Irvine Romaine and wicketkeeper Dean Minors, who both scored fifties, dealt well with an uninspired Kenyan attack.

After struggling to 13 runs off as many overs with the loss of Curtis Jackson - without scoring -- last night, Bermuda lost opener Kwame Tucker (5) soon after the start, falling to Thomas Odoyo, who was the top bowler with three for 22 off 11 overs.

Romaine's and Saleem Mukuddem's third-wicket partnership added some respectability and obviously gave Bermuda confidence.

At Mukuddem's wicket, Smith took the attack to the Kenyans and turned a one-sided match back into a contest.

After Romaine fell for 56, Janeiro Tucker added a useful 30 from just 29 balls as Kenya continued to throw away the advantage Steve Tikolo's double century (220) had given them on Sunday.

Tucker's wicket brought no respite, Minors sustaining the fast-scoring with a run-a-ball 51, until he fell to Tikolo.

Kenya's captain was on a hat-trick after Lionel Cann fell first ball, offering a return catch to Tikolo (3-59).

When Kenya batted a second time, they lost Maurice Ouma (23) giving a return catch to Lionel Cann but have given themselves a chance to push for a victory on today’s final day.

Ireland well on top in Namibia
JEREMY Bray and Niall O'Brien both hit centuries as Ireland took control of the Inter-Continental Cup semi-final against the United Arab Emirates.

The Irish built on a first innings lead of 161, and were 306-1 at the end of the second day with Bray 169 not out and O'Brien still at the crease on 118.

Chasing Ireland's first innings 350-7 dec, the UAE were bowled out for 189 with Trent Johnston claiming 5-33.

Bray and O'Brien have scored an Irish record of 269 for the second wicket.

Bray is also in line to bypass Ivan Anderson's individual record of 198 when he returns to the crease on the final day today.

Meanwhile, in the other semifinal in Namibia, outsiders Bermuda are making a fight of things against Kenya.

They trail Kenya by 100 runs with three wickets remaining after chasing a big total of 403 for six declared. (BBC Sport)

Hatton must work with me - Warren
FRANK Warren has revealed Ricky Hatton may be forced to work with him in the near future even if he loses their impending court case.

Warren is suing IBF light welterweight champion Hatton for breach of contract after Hatton signed to fight for rival promoter Dennis Hobson.

Hatton faces WBA king Carlos Maussa in Sheffield on November 26.

But Warren has signed WBA mandatory challenger Souleymane M'Baye of France, and the winner may have to face him.

Warren said: "If Ricky beats Maussa, he will have to defend against M'Baye. If that happens, he will have to do business with me."

Ray Hatton, Ricky's father and manager, also did not rule out the possibility of them working together again.

Last week, Warren dropped an injunction to stop Hatton-Maussa taking place after Hatton's camp served witness statements.

Among other things, the statements accused Warren of putting Hatton's health at risk.

Warren also took issue with suggestions that Hatton had been hard done by financially.

"He's earned £6.5m, including VAT, over the last three years," said Warren. "Everybody pays VAT, it's part of business.

"Ricky and Ray have always had the opportunity to take contracts away and take a look at them. Ray's not some poor little guy who doesn't know what day of the week it is - he runs his own business.

"I'm not a philanthropist; I've not done it for nothing. Of course I've made money - but I wouldn't be any good at what I was doing if I hadn't.” (BBC Sport)

Vaughan tells team the Ashes party has to stop
LONDON, England (Reuters) - England captain Michael Vaughan has told his team the Ashes party must finally stop and instructed his players to concentrate on their demanding tour of Pakistan.

"It is important we get back to playing cricket and preparing well for this tour," Vaughan told a news conference on the eve of the team's departure for the sub-continent.

"We've had six weeks since the Ashes, which has been a bit of a roller coaster, and all the players now want to get a ball or a bat in the hand and play cricket."

Vaughan said life had changed for the England team after their Ashes triumph over Australia this year.

"We have to make sure we get back to doing what we do best and that is playing cricket," he said.

"The guys have to be up for the job because, as great as it is to relive the Ashes, you always have to look to your next challenge and that is Pakistan.

"The conditions are different to what we've played in here and South Africa and the West Indies. I guess this is the toughest challenge because we've got a lot of players going there for the first time.

"Hopefully we'll get our plans right and have a successful tour by doing exactly what we did in the summer, which was a lot of hard work and playing some good cricket."

Vaughan was a member of the squad who won a three-Test series in Pakistan five years ago but took no part in the Tests because of a calf strain.

He believes that experience will be vital in helping the side follow up their Ashes win with another victory on the sub-continent.

"On the last day in Karachi I can remember being seated on the balcony watching and then being sent to push the sightscreens when it got dark," he said. "Fond memories!

"I had a calf strain which kept me out of the whole series, but I was still part of a winning squad and that experience was invaluable.

"Just being a part of a squad that won out there I picked up a lot and it taught me what kind of cricket was required to do well.”

Australia's Gillespie suffers injury setback
MELBOURNE, Australia (Reuters) - Fast bowler Jason Gillespie's hopes of a quick recall to the Australian Test side suffered a blow when he was ruled out of a first-class match with a bruised lung.

Gillespie, dropped after a poor Ashes tour, was hit by a delivery from Australian fast bowler Brett Lee in a one-day match between South Australia and New South Wales on Sunday.

Scans showed Gillespie had sustained "deep bruising" to his right lung, Cricket Australia said yesterday, ruling him out of the four-day match between South Australia and New South Wales starting today at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

He is expected to be fit for South Australia's one-day game against Queensland in Adelaide on November 4.

The first Test against West Indies starts in Brisbane on November 3.

The 30-year-old Gillespie was dropped from the Australian squad after the side returned from England, with Nathan Bracken and Stuart Clark playing the one-day series against the World XI.

Australia used spinners Shane Warne and Stuart MacGill in the Test against the World XI on a spinning SCG wicket. All-rounder Shane Watson was the third seamer behind Glenn McGrath and Lee.

Gillespie's South Australia teammate Shaun Tait, who replaced him during the Ashes, had shoulder surgery this month and has been ruled out of the West Indies series.
Australia name their side for the first Test on Thursday.

Forrest wins again on comeback trail
TEMECULA, California, (CMC) - American Vernon Forrest, who defeated Guyana's Raul Frank four and a half years ago to win his first world boxing title, continued his comeback Friday night with another victory.

Forrest got a surprisingly stiff challenge from Elco Garcia before winning on a 10th round stoppage at the Pechanga Resort and Casino.

With the victory, Forrest improved his ring record to 37 wins (28 knockouts) against two losses, while Garcia slipped to 18-4.

In the final round, Garcia connected with two hard rights that pushed Forrest back against the ropes.

With both fighters standing and trading heavy punches, Forrest and Garcia nearly both went down after Garcia caught Forrest with a right hook.

But the referee ruled that Forrest had slipped and he came right back at Garcia.

Forrest pushed Garcia against the ropes and nailed him with a left hook that dropped Garcia with 1:02 left in the 10th and final round.

Forrest, once the world's premier welterweight, is now campaigning in the higher light middleweight (154-pound) category after losing his (147-pound) welterweight title in 2003 by a second round knockout to Nicaragua's Ricardo Mayorga and again losing a rematch against Mayorga by a 12-round decision later that same year.

Forrest was scoring his second win this year, after a two-year lay-off.

He had been inactive largely because of a serious injury to his left shoulder that inhibited his ability to train or spar.

Forrest was voted World Fighter-of-the-Year for 2001 when he defeated Frank - May of that year -- in a lopsided points win for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight title.

Knowles and Nestor thrilled with Madrid win
MADRID, Spain, (CMC) - Bahamian tennis star Mark Knowles, thrilled at his third Madrid Masters title win with his partner Danny Nestor on Sunday, says their success came via the "best tennis" they have played this year.

Third seeded Knowles and Canadian Nestor rallied from a set down to beat India's Leander Paes and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia and Montenegro 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the championship final.

"We are feeling good about the way we are playing at the moment. We had a tough year with injuries. This is the best we have played all year," Knowles said Sunday after their win at the US$2.23 million event.

The former US Open and Australian Open men's doubles champions have now won 13 ATP Masters Series titles and their third Madrid title in four years.

"We won here three times, we really like the surface; the court and the atmosphere are great. The fans are really appreciative of doubles and we really feel comfortable," Knowles added.

Nestor said: "They (Paes and Zimonjic) played a really good match, they won the first set but we were able to turn the match around to win the second.

We got the momentum in the third and kept going until the end."

It was announced at the beginning of the tournament that Knowles and Nestor, the 2002 and 2004 year-end No.1 men's doubles team, had already qualified for the circuit finale in Shanghai.

They have won eight ATP Masters Series titles since reuniting four years ago and it was the fourth title of the year for Knowles and Nestor following victories at Indian Wells, Houston and last week's victory in Vienna.

They are 8-0 since their surprise first-round loss to Paul Goldstein and Jim Thomas at the US Open.