`Stingray’ soldiers die in accident
`That front-end loader was God’s work’ – Denis Rigby, GPL Supervisor
By Michel Outridge and Clifford Stanley
THREE soldiers being deployed in the Army’s `Operation Stingray’ against illegal activities in the country’s waterways, died when the truck they were in plunged into a drain on West Coast Berbice yesterday morning.

The tragedy was the latest shock for the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) following the killing of a young soldier by bandits early Sunday morning and the bizarre setting alight of another soldier by a comrade at an Army outpost in eastern Guyana Saturday night.

The three GDF Coast Guard members who died in yesterday’s accident were Corporal Royan Drennon, Lance Corporal Ian Abrams of Moruca, North West District, and driver of the truck Corporal Paul Thompson.

Those injured are Senior Petty Officer Lawrence Lewis and Commander of the group, Lieutenant Seon Harmon and they were admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

Coast Guard rank, Sanichara Ravi Dev, who went to the hospital with his injured colleagues, said he and nine others were in the truck with two inflatable 40-horse power boats, personal effects and weapons for an army operation in the Berbice River.

He said that at about 08:45 h, the truck skidded off the road, slammed into a telephone pole and toppled into a drain in front of the Guyana Power and Light Limited (GPL) office at Onverwagt, West Coast Berbice.

Ravi Dev said it was raining heavily at the time and he was pitched from the back of the vehicle where he was sitting and ended up unhurt on the parapet of the road.

The soldier told the Guyana Chronicle that three of his colleagues died on the spot and the injured two were taken to the GPHC for further treatment.

“I was very fortunate I survived and I thank God because it was a nasty accident and I can’t believe my colleagues are dead,” he said.

The soldier was still wet and covered with mud and shaking uncontrollably from shock when he spoke to the Guyana Chronicle at the hospital.

Witnesses felt more would have died if the front-end loader was not on hand to pull the six-wheeler Army truck to its side.

The CAT 398F loader was on its way to dig drains for the Dipcon company which has a road-building contract in the region.

Operator Curtis Hunte said he drove quickly to the scene and with a wire rope GPL staffers provided, he was able to haul the truck on to its side, enabling at least four Coast Guard men trapped in the mud under the overturned tray to be pulled to safety.

“It’s a good thing the wire rope did not snap too”, he said.

When the injured and dead were removed from the vehicle and a count made, the survivors realised that their radio signaller was missing.

They then heard him tapping from the truck and he too was pulled to safety, witnesses said.

The three men who died were trapped in the cab of the truck, witnesses said.

A motorist approaching the lorry from the opposite direction, said he saw the vehicle gently swerve over to the opposite lane and then on to the parapet where it smashed into a telephone pole and then toppled into the drain.

“I saw the driver with his hands on the wheel. At first I thought the driver was turning to go to the GPL office. It was raining at the time, but it was a one vehicle accident; there was no other vehicle”, he added.

Supervisor at the GPL office, Denis Rigby said he and several other workers were in the office preparing to go on field assignments when he heard the crash and saw the vehicle in the drain with the six wheels in the air.

“Every man on the location ran to the scene. About 20 of us tried to lift the truck but it was no use. No amount of manpower could have moved that truck. Had it not been for the timely presence of the front-end loader those who survived would have been trapped for a long time, quite possibly too long. That front-end loader was God’s work.”

Firearms and ammunition belonging to the Coast Guard group were subsequently retrieved from the drain.

The bodies of the dead were transported to the New Amsterdam Hospital mortuary for post mortem examinations.

Army sources said the group was being deployed to the GDF outpost at Benab on the Corentyne as part of `Operation Stingray’ which the Coast Guard has mounted against illegal activities in the country’s rivers and other waterways.

UNDP funds project to reduce social tension
THE United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development to help reduce social tension in four of the 10 administrative regions of Guyana.

The Social Cohesion Project, targeting Regions Three (West Demerara/Essequibo Islands), Four (Demerara/Mahaica), Six (East Berbice/Corentyne) and 10 (Upper Demerara/Berbice), represents the culmination of efforts to ensure economic security and will realise initiatives in all sectors of those regions, said Permanent Secretary in the signatory ministry, Mr Ganga Persaud, who chaired the proceedings.

Signatories to the agreement were Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Mr Harripersaud Nokta; UNDP Resident Representative, Mr Youssef Mahmoud and Regional Chairmen of Three, Mr Esau Dookie; Four, Mr Alan Munroe; Six, Mr Kumkarran Ramdass and 10, Mr Mortimer Mingo.

After the signing, at the ministry in Georgetown, Mingo said a Regional Development Plan (RDP) is expected to be established through collaboration with UNDP, the Region 10 Regional Democratic Council (RDC) and the Linden Economic Advancement Programme (LEAP).

He said the Region 10 RDC had approached UNDP for assistance towards the objective and that was the response.

Under the arrangement, UNDP will contribute resources to formulate the five-year RDP in accordance with the National Development Strategy, and train personnel to properly coordinate the process.

Mingo said LEAP has made a $3 million contribution to pay the salary of an economic planner, buy office and electronic equipment and meet other expenses related to the functioning of a Regional Development Unit within the Region 10 RDC.

“A regular public/private sector forum has also been initiated by LEAP to serve as a high level exchange platform on issues relevant for the regional economy,” he explained.

For that purpose, the public sector will be represented by the RDC and Linden Mayor and Town Council and the private sector by the Linden Chamber of Commerce and Development, he said.

He added that residents will be consulted to make sure they are involved in determining the content of the RDP and the regional economic planning will be based on the ‘Participatory Appraisal of Competitive Advantage’ methodology, which was developed to identify the most promising sectors or clusters in the region when compared to other regions.

The other Regional Chairmen all suggested that more projects be initiated to better equip Local Government Councillors for youth training.

Acknowledging the importance of social cohesion, Mahmoud said UNDP is pleased to make the contribution and described the project as an empowerment initiative that would assist young people, in particular, to meaningfully contribute to development.

“It’s a challenge to work towards oneness and the UNDP is really impressed with the commitment of Guyanese youth who are the change managers and the inheritors,” the diplomat said.

UNDP Project Coordinator, Mr Trevor Benn also witnessed the signing. (RENU RAGHUBIR)

School revolution
THE Health and Education ministries have launched a revolution in schools with the help of the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO).

It’s geared to improve health standards, Health Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy announced yesterday as St Sidwell’s Primary School on Vlissengen Road, Lodge, Georgetown, was certified as a ‘health promoting’ school.

He said young people can and should be given the opportunity to lead in developing every sector of Guyana, with parents and teachers setting good examples for them to follow.

The minister said primary schools were chosen for the project because children begin to adopt habits and form opinions at that stage of their education and are more open to change.

“...it’s never too early to start…the child that does not litter will be the adult that does not litter,” Ramsammy observed.

He said St Sidwell’s is pioneering the ‘Health Promoting School’ project along with Enterprise and Sophia primary schools, also in the city.

He reported that, currently, health promoting clubs are in 60 schools and he projected that the number would soon increase to about 100.

He beseeched parents to be partners in the effort, together with teachers and the children to create and maintain high standards of environmental and health awareness in schools.

“We must teach the children what is in their books but, more importantly, we must teach the children through our actions.”

Also making remarks on the occasion, PAHO/WHO Representative in Guyana, Dr Bernadette Theodore-Gandi said schoolchildren should begin to make meaningful contributions to the maintenance of their surroundings and help keep them healthy.

She said the scheme engages health and education officials in efforts to promote health, strives to provide a safe, healthy environment and skills-based education and access to health services while implementing health promotion policies and trying to improve the health of the community.

Theodore-Gandi pointed out that the school is a part of the larger community and, as such, there is the need for the institution to expand its perimeters to include the wider environment.

Headteacher of St Sidwell’s, Mrs Marlyn Reid welcomed the undertaking which she said would help pupils develop positive attitudes towards general health and inculcate life changing attitudes.

She said sanitation, safe water, personal hygiene and nutrition have always been on its agenda and she looks forward to the school being declared a litter-free zone.

Songs, poems and a skit by some of the schoolchildren entertained the gathering before Theodore-Gandi handed over several bins for waste disposal in the classrooms. (TIMICA FORRESTER)

Soldier sets comrade alight
A SOLDIER who poured gasoline on a sleeping comrade and set him alight at a Guyana Defence Force (GDF) outpost in eastern Guyana, was under close arrest at Army headquarters in Georgetown, GDF sources said.

The injured soldier was in serious condition in the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation suffering from first degree burns on about 90 per cent of his body, the sources said yesterday.

The bizarre Saturday night incident was triggered by an argument between the two soldiers and two others were injured when the flames from the man on fire spread to the building, according to the sources.

One of those injured was burnt while trying to put out the raging flames and the other was hurt when he jumped through a window to escape the flames, they said.

The building was destroyed by the fire which began at about 23:45 h, the sources said.

Man found lying on corpse
THE death of Dharmattie Permaul, 21, of Toopoo, Corentyne, was sudden and shocking for her parents on Wednesday after she succumbed to self-inflicted poisoning, following a misunderstanding with two females.

But they were in for another shock after she was buried at Hampshire cemetery, Corentyne, last Saturday.

According to reports, two fishermen were returning from plying their trade and were walking along the cemetery road when they saw a young man lying on the body of the corpse.

The man, who is in police custody assisting with investigations, allegedly requested the fishermen to help him take the ‘girl’ to the nearby church.

However, the two instead alerted the villagers who responded quickly and arrested the Guyana Sugar Corporation employee after he tried to escape.

Sandra Permaul, mother of the deceased, told the Guyana Chronicle that her daughter was buried in a yellow sari, but when she later the corpse, she observed that the dress was unwrapped and torn.

The father Latchmanan Permaul said the young man who allegedly removed his daughter’s body from the tomb had earlier attended the funeral, but had remained a short distance from the graveside.

“He was still there when the family left the graveside”, he said.

An uncle, Neil Awaghun Subandar, claimed that the man in custody was not a friend of his niece, who was a planter and weeder at the sugar estate, but was allegedly sent to commit the act.

The body of Dharmattie had to be buried again at 18:00 h after it was dressed again.

Flood-hit rice farmers getting promised aid
By Chamanlall Naipaul
RICE farmers who suffered severe losses during the January floods, Guyana’s worst natural disaster, have begun receiving assistance to replant their crops as was promised by the government.

Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), Jagnarine Singh told the Guyana Chronicle that some 2,000 farmers have made claims for assistance which encompass about 25,000 acres of rice cultivation.

He said farmers in Regions Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam), Three (West Demerara/Essequibo Islands), Five (Mahaica/Berbice) and Six (East Berbice/Corentyne) are receiving $10,000 per farm and $10,000 per acre of rice lost for up to 80 acres.

In Regions Four (Demerara/Mahaica) and Five (Mahaica/Berbice) the comparable figures are $25,000 per farm and $10,000 per acre of rice lost for up to 80 acres, he said.

Mr Singh explained that farmers in Regions Four and Five are receiving more per farm because of the massive damage to their crops due to the inevitable discharge of excessive water from the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC) to avert a possible collapse of the conservancy dam.

In addition, he said each farmer is being given a bag of seed paddy for every acre of rice lost.

It is anticipated that the distribution would be completed by the end of the first week in next month, he said.

Meanwhile, he indicated that replanting the second rice crop is ongoing and overall about 50% of cultivation has been completed.

In Essequibo, all of the 32,000 acres have been replanted, while in Regions Three and Four the comparable figures are 50% of 26,000 acres and 90% of 7,000 acres, Singh reported.

At Mahaica/Mahaicony, 80% of 35,000 acres has been sown and in areas under the Mahaica/Mahaicony/Abary scheme 50% of the 55,000 acres has been completed.

In Region Six which consists of 60,000 acres, 40% of the front land of 60,000 acres has been planted and 10% of the land in Black Bush Polder has been completed, he added.

Singh said the cost of production will increase for this crop because of significant price increases in fuel and fertilisers.

However, an anticipated increase in yields expected to average 27/28 bags of paddy per acre should compensate to some extent for the increased cost, he said.

The yield for the first crop was 24 bags per acre, he said, explaining that productivity was hampered by the heavy rains.

He also indicated that the target for the current crop is 182,000 tonnes of rice, adding that this can be achieved “all things being normal”.

With production during the first crop of 141,000 tonnes, this would bring national output to 323,000 tonnes which will be below last year’s production of 340,765 tonnes, he said.

The price farmers should receive for their paddy would be about $1,500 per bag which is comparable to what they received during the first crop, Singh said.

However, he noted that farmers in Berbice have complained that they are being hampered by a lack of maintenance of the drainage and irrigation system, while those in Essequibo are dissatisfied with the schedule of release of water.

He also reported that the slug pest has affected small acreages of rice in Corentyne but assured that it is under control and there is no cause for alarm.

The pest feeds on the leaves of the paddy plant.

He said it can be controlled by flooding fields with water and using chemicals.

Singh noted that the international rice market is stable with cargo rice fetching a price of US$225 per tonne and white rice US$275/$280 per tonne.

He pointed out that Europe continues to be the largest market, buying more than 100,000 tonnes annually.

This represents 60% of exports of rice and countries within the Caribbean Community take more than 40,000 tonnes.

Singh said there is also a huge market for the commodity in Haiti which can absorb 200,000 tonnes annually.

Large markets also exist in Cuba, Colombia, Peru and other South American countries and efforts should be made to penetrate these, he observed.

He added that Guyana exports mostly cargo rice which enjoys a lower price, and is urging that a shift be made to selling packaged polished rice which has a significantly higher price.

He said there is a large market for this and it will result in increased foreign exchange earnings.

The annual quality control training and warehouse management programme of the GRDB which targets mainly millers is ongoing with training sessions in Regions Two, Four and Five completed and Regions Three and Six scheduled to be completed shortly, Singh said.

He explained that the programme deals with methods to improve drying, sampling and grading in relation to the GRDB and Rice Factories Acts.

During the programme, participants do theoretical work for three days and practical sessions for two days and receive a certificate upon successful completion of the course.

Gunmen rob city hotel, restaurant
GUNMEN yesterday morning robbed a supervisor of the Dawn Cari Hotel on Public Road, Kitty, Georgetown, police reported.

A police press release said two men armed with handguns went to the hotel at about 01:40 h and approached Candacy Da Silva, a supervisor, purporting to do business.

They then stuck her up and robbed her of $80,000.

Police said they ordered the supervisor and two other employees to lie face down before escaping.

Police reported that gunmen also robbed the Lucky Star Restaurant at Louisa Row and Bent Street in Georgetown yesterday morning.

Four men, one with a handgun and another a shotgun, went there at 01:00 h as the proprietor was about to close and ordered meals.

As he was filling the order, they stuck him up and robbed him of $300,000 in cash and phone cards before escaping, police said.

And robbers struck again later in the day.

Bibi Shazeda Khan of Public Road, Agricola, East Bank Demerara, and others in the house were sleeping at 14:30 h when three men armed with a handgun, knife and a cutlass broke into the building.

They robbed them of $8,000 in cash, jewellery and articles and assaulted a female before escaping, police said.

Highway work picks up pace
THE pace of work on the four-lane highway from Ruimveldt to Bagotstown on the East Bank Demerara has picked up significantly since the Trinidadian construction company Seereeam Brothers acquired a supply of stones from local quarry companies last week.

Technical Consultant to the Ministry of Public Works and Communications, Walter Willis told the Guyana Chronicle that it is hoped that the progress continues and the ministry and the consultants on the project are encouraging the company to maintain this momentum.

The company had attributed the slowed down pace on the roadway to a shortage of materials, intermittent rainfall and breakdown of machinery and equipment.

It as a result sought a six-month extension of the contract period but was granted two months which concludes on July 9, Willis said.

Meanwhile, a top official from the company who resides in Trinidad has been invited to meet governmental officials on Thursday to discuss whether the company has the capacity to complete the project.

Hopes all but gone for missing sugar workers
By Mark Ramotar
THE little hope remaining has finally faded into a deep, dark abyss of despair as relatives and family members of the two missing sugar workers who mysteriously disappeared six weeks ago finally begin to accept the harsh and brutal reality of a life without their loved ones.

“The little hope we still had is beginning to fade…the future looks so uncertain right now,” said a weeping Kamini, the 34-year-old wife of Sampersaud Taranauth, one of the missing workers.

Today is 39 days since Taranauth, called ‘Shammie’, 37, of Fernandes Street, Enterprise and his colleague Maikhram Sawh, called ‘Bharrat’, 46 of Section ‘B’ Non Pariel, East Coast Demerara mysteriously disappeared on May 21.

The two sugar workers were at the time cleaning a Guyana Sugar Corporation (GUYSUCO) drainage canal aback Vigilance.

Up to yesterday, there was still no trace of the men in spite of a series of searches of the East Coast backlands – spearheaded by the Police and Army and including residents and family members.

The calling off of the much touted Operation Hawk Eye – the joint Police/Army operation which entailed the ‘forensic search’ of the East Coast backlands behind the violence prone and volatile villages of Buxton, Friendship and Vigilance - more than two weeks ago only served as a catalyst of confirmation that the missing men might never be found alive again.

But despite the end of Operation Hawk-Eye, the relatives of the missing sugar workers never gave up and hope was the one word they thrived on every day.

Following an article in this newspaper on June 19 (Father’s Day) regarding the missing sugar workers, several telephone calls were received from relatives, friends, and sympathisers of the missing men who all vented their frustrations and emotions at the men’s disappearance and the seemingly unacceptable impotence by the law enforcement agencies in locating them.

In a touching display of emotion, the 25-year-old daughter of Maikhram Sawh wrote a poem for her missing father on the occasion of Father’s day, which was published in the article.

With tears in her eyes and a heart full of love, Monica Sawh wrote these few lines on a piece of paper:

“One of the most precious blessings in our lives is to have you as our dear father
You were beside us when we first opened our eyes,
When we whispered our first words
When we took our first steps, and when we went through all those difficult tasks in our lives
It filled us with joy and pride to have a dad like you
Today, all we want to say is how much you mean to us and that we love you
The 21st May is a day we will never forget
You left home and not even your shadow we cannot find
God knows how much we love you and still chose this path for us
if you are with him we pray that he keeps you in his caring hands forever
and if you are on Earth still alive
we beg that we can hear your voice
and that we can hug and kiss you once again
Life can never be the same without you here dad
we love you, wherever you are”

Kamini told this newspaper shortly after the men disappeared about six weeks ago that she is hoping and praying that nothing is wrong with her husband and that he would return safely to her and their three children – eight-month-old Divya, four-year-old Lisa, and six-year-old Sarah.

She reiterated a week ago that the same “dream” continued to live on in her heart.

Yesterday, while speaking to the Guyana Chronicle, she was not so sure anymore that her dream can ever come through.

Crying uncontrollably during a telephone conversation, Kamini said her two elder daughters - Lisa and Sarah – continue to offer prayers daily for the safe return of their father.

“I love my daddy and I want him to come home,” little Sarah told this newspaper the day before Father’s Day. The smile she had on her face then, though lovely, could not hide the sadness in her eyes.

Hope is the one word that the members of the two families held on to on Father’s Day. That hope has diminished drastically in the few days since this newspaper last spoke to the family members.

It is fading into oblivion and being replaced by an unwilling acceptance of life without the two men – both of whom were bread winners for their families.

Fire relief hampers for West Berbice families
STAFFERS and volunteers of the Josliet Missionary Outreach Health Project (JMOHP) have handed over hampers containing household utensils, clothes and foodstuff valued at more than US$2,000 to five West Berbice families who lost their homes and possessions to fire earlier this month.

They recently made the fire relief presentations at the headquarters of JMOHP at Golden Fleece.

The beneficiaries included four families from Golden Fleece who lost the wooden apartment type building they were living in to fire of a yet unknown origin on June 6.

The fifth beneficiary was a family in Bush Lot Village who lost their two-storey home on June 20.

“Our goal at JMOHP is to improve the quality of life of people through education, medication and social action. We help people socially so that they can get a jumpstart into improving their quality of life.”

She made the comments during the handing over of the hampers which included new mattresses for each beneficiary.

Archer said the hampers comprised donations by well wishers locally and internationally as well as items bought by members of JMOHP who had launched a special fund raising effort for the fire victims.

She explained that the children of some of the fire victims had been beneficiaries of the Education Ministry of JMOHP and their parents were known to be members of the mission.

She said the mission had been helping these families from the day of the fire. The special fundraising project, an additional effort, included making and selling hot dogs which netted $100,000.

The four families originally targeted were those of Curlin Wilson, Preya Wilson, Natasha Joseph and Salana Wilson -- a total of 23 persons left homeless.

The family of Mrs Phulmattie Singh of Bush Lot benefited at the last minute when members of the mission heard of her recent plight.

The hampers were handed over by members of the JMOHP who comprised Pastor Samuel Wilson on behalf of the Elderly Ministry, teacher Clarissa Bassoo, Pre-School Supervisor of JMOHP Pre-School Department, Pastor Ray Inniss on behalf of JMOHP’s Visitation Team, Mrs Joy Gonsalves, Head Mistress of the JMOHP’s Nursery school and Sister Preya Shakooor of JMOHP’s Bush Lot, West Coast branch.

Mrs Gonsalves chaired the one-hour proceedings which were enlivened by cultural presentations by members of the nursery school and the 50-plus club.

JMOHP was founded in 1997 at its current home at Golden Fleece by Archer, a Guyanese doctor formerly resident in the United States who decided to dedicate her life to helping poor and needy Guyanese of all races.

“It all started with a vision -- a very vivid vision I experienced in which God showed me what he wanted me to do with my life”, she said. “I then knew that I had to return home to help my less fortunate fellow Guyanese to make a difference in their lives.”

Archer is a daughter of the late Senior Counsel Mr Donald Robinson and his surviving wife Mrs Eileen Robertson. (CLIFFORD STANLEY)

Damaged cable shuts down GPL supply system
THE Guyana Power and Light (GPL) company yesterday said technicians were deployed to its station at Garden of Eden, East Bank Demerara to replace a damaged cable and other damaged components which caused the Demerara Inter-connected System to shut down at about 17:47 h Sunday.

Repairs should have been completed by yesterday evening and normal transmission of power restored, GPL said in a press release.

It added that power supply was restored to most areas on Sunday evening even though the damaged component prevented transmission of power from the Wartsila station at Garden of Eden.

This cable failure temporarily deprived the system of 11 megawatts of power and it became necessary to de-energise several areas in South and Central Georgetown and on the East Coast Demerara for four-hour periods during yesterday, GPL said.

However, the steam turbines at Kingston were put into service around mid-day yesterday to cushion the temporary shortfall in power and the affected areas re-powered, it said.

It said that on Sunday afternoon all the generating sets at Garden of Eden and the Wartsila plant at Kingston, Georgetown, shut themselves down.

“Preliminary findings indicated that a distribution cable in the transmission yard at Garden of Eden developed a fault which disabled the protection systems and caused the generating set to shut down as a precautionary measure”, the firm said.

It said the steam turbines at Kingston which are used as “spinning reserve”, were not in operation at the time.

Cingular Wireless sells Caribbean assets to Digicel
CINGULAR Wireless, a joint venture between SBC Communications Inc. and BellSouth Corp. has announced that it is selling its operations and licences in the Caribbean and Bermuda to Digicel Limited.

A press release from the firm said the parties have also entered into a roaming agreement that provides favourable roaming rates in each other's markets.

Under the terms of the agreement, Cingular will sell to Digicel former AT&T Wireless properties, including licences, network assets, and subscribers, in the following markets: Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

In addition, Cingular will sell its cellular licences in Curacao, Jamaica and the French West Indies.

Financial terms were not disclosed and the press release said closing of the transaction is contingent upon approval from each nation's regulatory authority.

Cingular Wireless is the largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving 50.4 million customers.

It has the largest digital voice and data network in the U.S. and the largest mobile-to-mobile community of any national wireless carrier.

Cingular is the only U.S. wireless carrier to offer Rollover (SM), the wireless plan that lets customers keep their unused monthly minutes.

Since its launch in 2001, Digicel has become the fastest growing mobile telecommunications operator in the Caribbean.

In four years, Digicel has become renowned for competitive rates, unbeatable coverage, superior customer care, a wide variety of products and services, and state-of-the-art handsets.

By offering innovative mobile services and community support, Digicel has become a leading brand in the Caribbean and has placed the region at the cutting edge of mobile communications, the release said.

Digicel is incorporated in Bermuda and operates in nine countries including Aruba, Barbados, Curacao, the Cayman Islands, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

It is the largest GSM mobile operator in the region and plans to extend its footprint into other Caribbean countries.

The company is also the lead sponsor of Caribbean sports teams including the West Indies cricket team, Special Olympics teams across the Caribbean and is title sponsor of the Digicel Caribbean Football Union Cup, which involves more than 30 Caribbean countries and is an important qualifier towards the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Prime Minister for Venezuela summit
THE government yesterday announced that Prime Minister Samuel Hinds will be attending a summit on oil tomorrow in Venezuela, instead of President Bharrat Jagdeo.

The Government Information Agency (GINA) last week said Mr Jagdeo would have been attending the summit called by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez but it yesterday said that Mr Hinds would be going instead.

The summit is to take place in the Venezuelan resort city of Puerto la Cruz, 150 miles east of Caracas.

A source said the meeting will discuss the way forward for the implementation of the PetroCaribe initiative launched by Chavez last year.

This initiative is aimed at assisting Caribbean countries in obtaining fuel at cheaper rates from Venezuela.

The initiative also aims at providing assistance to members in the areas of exploration, refining and marketing petroleum.

All Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries, as well as Cuba and the Dominican Republic, have joined Venezuela in the initiative aimed in the long run at ensuring energy integration in the Caribbean.

It is promoted by Venezuela as complementary to the PetroSur initiative which promotes energy integration for the rest of South America.

Among the leaders who have indicated their attendance are 10 from CARICOM and Cuban President Fidel Castro, the source said.

The source said Chavez will be meeting the Presidents of Argentina and Brazil in Caracas today.

They will be discussing energy integration and coordination between the PetroCaribe and PetroSur initiatives, he added.

Campaign against TIP continues
THE Human Services Ministry is continuing its campaign against Trafficking in Persons (TIP) and is focusing on exploitation.

Its latest target area was the Kato sub-region in Region Eight (Potaro/Siparuni) where the ministry held a workshop on Sunday.

Residents of Kato, Paramakatoi, Monkey Mountain and surrounding villages at the session were advised on how to protect themselves from traffickers, the resultant abuse, and domestic violence, among other forms of exploitation, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.

TIP is the exploitation of persons by others for their benefit and usually entails victims being forced to work for little or no wages, abuse and deprival of basic necessities.

Laws have been passed against TIP and tough penalties prescribed for those found guilty of human trafficking.

These include prison terms, forfeiture of property, and an order to pay full restitution to the victims. Persons convicted of the crime of transporting person(s) for prostitution purposes are liable to a fine of $2 million and imprisonment of not more than 10 years.

GINA said Human Services Minister Bibi Shadick told the Kato workshop that the government's aim is to educate Guyanese because, "We want people to be aware, people to understand the dangers and all the traps that they can fall into so that people can understand what their rights are."

She explained some incidents of TIP which have occurred in other areas and how the ministry was dealing with these, the agency said.

She urged residents to report any suspected cases of TIP in their area and promised that the information will be treated confidentially.

GINA said residents reported to the minister several suspected TIP cases and she promised the large gathering of mostly Amerindians that her ministry will investigate these.

The government has outlined several actions to be taken this year to further develop and educate the public on TIP.

These include further training of police officers, Community Development Officers of the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, and 300 volunteers for establishing a network to disseminate information to the public, GINA said.

It added that the ministry has been informed of several incidents affecting mainly hinterland young people, mostly girls, who are taken to the coastland to work as attendants in bars, hotels and restaurants.

Some are also lured into prostitution, several cases have been investigated and some persons charged, the agency said.

Japan considering aid for Corriverton water project
THE Guyana Government has reached agreement with the Japanese Government on a study that could lead to aid from Japan for a major potable water supply project for Corriverton in Berbice.

Housing and Water Minister, Shaik Baksh and Senior Advisor on Water Supply Development with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Omura Yoshiki, yesterday signed the `Agreed minutes for the Preliminary Study’ for the Corriverton potable water supply project, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.

According to the agency, during a visit to Guyana earlier this month, a four-member Japanese preliminary study team, led by Yoshiki, did a study on the feasibility of the proposed project.

The team also met Mr Baksh and officials of the Region Six (East Berbice/Corentyne) administration and Guyana Water Incorporated, it said.

The team is expected to present the findings of the study to the Japanese Government, and if given the green light it would be submitted to the Cabinet for approval, after which there will be several follow-up visits by other Japanese teams, leading up to the actual implementation of the project, GINA explained.

Baksh told the agency the project could cost about US$8 million and would benefit about 50,000 residents.

Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation, Clement Rohee, who was at the signing, told GINA he was pleased to be associated with the project. He described it as a commitment of the Japanese Government towards poverty alleviation, the agency said.

The proposed Corriverton water project was submitted to the Japanese Government for consideration for funding under Japanese Grant Aid in August last year, the agency said.

Baksh meets Tuschen residents on housing
HOUSING and Water Minister, Shaik Baksh yesterday met residents of Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo on the further development of their housing scheme.

Residents also spoke openly on infrastructure development, the Government Information Agency (GINA) said.

According to the agency, the residents were informed of the ongoing housing development programme in all housing areas across the country, in which millions of dollars are spent on infrastructural works such as roads, drainage and irrigation systems and providing potable water.

Baksh, it said, explained the need for his ministry to prioritise the basic infrastructural works in housing areas.

He pointed to the limited resources available which have to be utilised for the 100 housing schemes and 165 squatter settlements across the country, the agency said

GINA reported that to date, $409 million has been spent on major infrastructural work completed at the Tuschen housing scheme.

Baksh said it is expected that all the loam roads in the middle-income schemes would be paved later this year, it added.

There are also plans to construct a water treatment plant by September and this would benefit Tuschen residents, it said.

The plant, to be funded by the World Bank, will serve areas from Parika to De Kinderen, also on the East Bank Essequibo.

Tuschen is also earmarked to benefit from the $700 million extended Unserved Areas Electrification Programme by March next year.

The agency said Baksh indicated that unoccupied land left undeveloped for several years would be repossessed and allocated to persons who would develop the land and keep it cleared, since the bushy lots harbour criminals.

A team of officials from the Housing Ministry is doing an inventory of all the unoccupied lots, it said.

Meanwhile, the Tuschen policing group informed Baksh that its meeting Friday with Home Affairs Minister, Gail Teixeira was successful, since she instructed it to identify a suitable plot for an outpost to be established.

The Tuschen Community Development Council (CDC) also met Baksh on Friday on issues affecting residents.

The meetings followed street protests by residents of the housing scheme over the absence of electricity and water and growing crime.

Some blocked the main road with burning tyres and garbage and the police were called out to restore order.

BOB Geldof is at it again.
He’s relying on the charms of music to hopefully change the world, if not in total, then the world as experienced by some of its poorest citizens.

The Geldof-organised Live Aid concert of 1985 was a landmark event – a sort of nobler Woodstock – raising some US$80 million for the hungry in Ethiopia. During that country’s mid-1980s famine, the word “Ethiopian” became evocative of the hollowed out cheeks and vacant staring eyes that are associated with extreme hunger. Geldof’s Live Aid concert and his Band Aid single brought international activism into the realm of the hip, the cool, the urban citizenry of the economic powerhouses of Europe and North America – the then lead singer of a declining punk rock band, the Booomtown Rats, introduced a sense of human charity into the stoned out conscience of Western youth. The money raised at Live Aid was unprecedented in terms of international charitable fundraising and was put to good use.

According to a recent Newsday article by Rafer Guzman: “The Band Aid Trust [a charitable organisation set up by Geldof after the concert] spent a total of $144.1 million between 1985 and 1991, when it closed its offices and stopped actively seeking donations, according to documents provided by the trust. It still disburses leftover money to African countries: Over the past five years, it spent an additional 4 million pounds, or about $7.3 million.

About half of the total initial amount, $71.3 million, went to short-term relief projects. In Chad, $93,150 bought four Toyota Land Cruisers and a truck for the League of Red Cross Societies. In Eritrea, $400,000 went to pesticides for locust control. In Ethiopia, $917,700 bought high-protein biscuits and wheat flour. The other $70.2 million funded long-term projects, including dams, gardens, wells, grinding mills and agriculture training programs.”

Today, Geldof – no longer a raging against the machine punk rocker, notorious for his on-air lack of verbal decorum, but a middle-aged father recently featured on a television show entitled “Grumpy Old Men” – is organising again, this time to contribute towards the eradication of poverty and hunger on a more global scale. Under the theme or the banner of “The Long Walk to Justice”, the organisers of Live 8 hope to bring hundreds of thousands of people together in several countries around the world to watch performances by more than 100 musicians – all in the name of getting the leaders of the G-8 countries, scheduled to meet at Gleneagles (an exclusive luxury hotel in Scotland), to agree to commit to ending world hunger – something that results in the death, according to Live 8, of 50,000 people, 30,000 of them children, every day.

The drive by the United Nations to push its UN Millennium Development Goals notwithstanding, is it really conceivable that the leaders of the world’s most thriving economies are going to seclude themselves at an exorbitantly priced golf course to discuss global poverty as the lead item on their agenda? And are the mostly fading musicians due to take part in the concerts in it for the charity or – as critics have opined – for the exposure necessary to shore up faltering careers?

And who can blame them, these critics, when the Live 8 website makes note, among other things, that there will be two billion viewers of these concerts. Exposure like that can’t be bought anywhere. In fact, Geldof’s original roster of ‘stars’ – filled with aging white rockers and surprisingly devoid of black African musicians – tended to support the notion of an overhyped “comeback” concert (of bands like Pink Floyd) piggybacking on what was supposed to be a charity event. And it’s not lost on some that Live 8’s predecessor, Live Aid, did wonders for Geldof’s own career.

No matter the good that has come out of Live Aid, Band Aid and the Band Aid Trust, unless the organisers can prove to the world that their hearts are truly in it, the concert will go bust – a lesson that can be learnt from the commercial venture debacle that was touted as the second Woodstock.

And the real tragedy will be not only the continuing hunger in the world, but disillusionment of those who can really make a difference in stopping it.

Sugar exporters stung by cuts
`No one cares and they are not listening’ -- President Bharrat Jagdeo
By Richard Lapper, Financial Times
LONDON — Caribbean sugar producers, shielded from international competition for much of their long history, were taken aback by last week's proposal of a 39% cut in guaranteed European Union prices.

EU prices will still be nearly double the free-market level, but the cut will hit hard, and the two-year transition leaves them with less time than expected to diversify.

To add insult to injury, the plans have been introduced with minimum consultation with the six former British Caribbean colonies that are part of the 18-strong African, Caribbean and Pacific group of poorer countries that traditionally export sugar to Europe.

Leaders from Jamaica and Guyana — the two Caribbean countries most affected — have been especially stung by the low priority afforded their plight by the British government.

"No one cares and they are not listening," said Guyana President Bharrat Jagdeo.

About a fifth of Guyana's 750,000 people earn their livelihood from sugar, and the industry pays for sports fields, community halls and even drainage systems in rural areas. If the EU presses ahead with the proposal, the cut would cost Guyana at least $40 million in export revenues — five times the estimated $8 million relief the country will gain from the recent G8-led debt relief initiative for poor countries.

Jamaica, where sugar is not only a big employer but provides funds for fire and ambulance services, faces a similar dilemma.

It plans to develop alternative uses of sugar and sugar cane such as ethanol production, but Derick Heaven, executive chairman of Jamaica's sugar industry authority, says pleas for more time and adequate compensation have fallen on deaf ears.

Proposed EU assistance payments of nearly $50 million a year are dwarfed by the amounts being made available to European sugar beet farmers.

"There is a tendency to see us as mendicants, [as if] there is almost an arrogance about our point of view," Heaven said.

This month, P.J. Patterson, the Jamaican prime minister, protested to Tony Blair, his British counterpart, that he and other African, Caribbean and Pacific group leaders had learned about the cut through "the media, leaked documents and consultants' studies."

Both Caribbean leaders warn that job losses will lead to an escalation in violent crime and the drug trade. The failure to win support for these arguments from Britain is partly explained by the weakening of the British lobby that traditionally defended Caribbean interests.

Companies such as Cable & Wireless and British American Tobacco have maintained an interest, but the days when "30 or 40 blue chip British countries" had significant interests there are over, said David Jessop, director of the Caribbean Council.

For international relief organisations, which have helped spur action on debt relief for the region, sugar is a complicated issue. Public perceptions of the region have been influenced by the fact that Barbados, well known as a holiday destination, is relatively wealthy. And in Trinidad, another better off country, sugar's importance is dwarfed by the natural gas industry.

At the same time, other developing countries that are more efficient in agriculture will benefit from greater liberalisation.

Duncan Green, head of research at Oxfam, said that "smaller, vulnerable countries from the Caribbean and Africa are getting the short end of the stick" but that the reform needed to balance their interests with those of large, efficient producers such as Brazil.

This year, Jagdeo took EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson through the Guyanese sugar region. "[He said] 'Yes, sugar is very special'" the Guyanese leader said.

Jagdeo will be hoping his guest's views carry some sway as the EU legislative process proceeds. (From yesterday’s Los Angeles Times)

Murder trial aborted after complaint from foreman
A REPORT yesterday from the jury foreman led to the Princess Street murder trial before Justice Dawn Gregory-Barnes being aborted.

After consulting Prosecutor Nyasha Williams and Defence Counsel Hukumchand, who were told about the report from the foreman, Troy Thompson, who looked uncomfortable and kept gesticulating while putting forward his complaint, the judge took the drastic step to abort the trial that was coming to an end with two witnesses remaining to testify for the Prosecution.

She ordered that the accused Everton Joseph face a new trial at the next sessions.

The judge reported that because of certain information brought to her attention, it was her view and that of the lawyers in the case that the trial should be stopped since the accused would not be afforded a fair trial if the trial were to continue.

As a consequence, Justice Gregory-Barnes discharged the jurors without calling on them to return a verdict and ordered the accused to face a new trial at the next sessions.

The accused through his counsel wanted to know how much longer he would have to be incarcerated waiting on a trial.

Mr Hukumchand expressed the hope that the Director of Public Prosecutions will take the necessary steps to have the trial expedited.

The lawyer, who was invited by the judge to listen to the report from the foreman of the jury, later told the Guyana Chronicle that the foreman had reported that he is from the Tabernacle Church and that he visits the Georgetown Prisons from time to time to pray with the inmates.

According to Hukumchand, the foreman said that on one occasion he met the accused and shook his hand.

“Now he is saying that he feels most uncomfortable since he realises that if his jury panel returns a verdict of guilty he would not be able to return to the prison to preach", he said.

Joseph is accused of shooting his brother Oswald Paul dead on July 5, 2003.

Yesterday morning, Pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh was in the witness box about to testify for the Prosecution when the foreman left the jury box and proceeded to the Registrar's desk, where he related his complaint to the judge.

That complaint brought an end to the trial. (GEORGE BARCLAY)

Mini-bus driver in Friday fatal accident remanded
A MINI-BUS driver has been charged with causing the death of a 45-year-old mother in an accident last Friday on Clive Lloyd Drive in Georgetown.

Seon Gaskins, 35, who appeared before acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan yesterday and pleaded not guilty, was refused bail and remanded to prison until Thursday.

Particulars of the offence said it was committed when Gaskins (no address given) drove BJJ 5733 in a manner dangerous to the public on June 24 and caused the demise of Sylvia Bissoon.

Police Inspector Kevin Adonis, prosecuting, objected to the grant of pre-trial freedom for the defendant, saying the vehicle was being driven at a fast rate of speed when it struck the woman and her son who were crossing the roadway.

But Defence Counsel Raphael Trotman, in his unsuccessful application, said the child made a dash across the road and, when his mother went after him, one mini-bus swerved to avoid hitting them but the two ended up in the path of the mini-bus driven Gaskins.

Bissoon was pronounced dead on arrival at Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation where the boy is still hospitalised with injuries to his head and other parts of the body.

Two charged with drugs trafficking
TWO men nabbed in a drug bust along the Bartica/Potaro Road last Thursday appeared before acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan yesterday.

Twenty-three-year-old Eon Gonsalves (no address given) and Terrence Moe, 31, of Lot 271 Independence Boulevard, La Penitence, Georgetown, both pleaded not guilty to trafficking in narcotics and were refused bail and remanded to prison.

They will make their next appearance at Bartica Court, to which their cases have been transferred, on July 12.

Particulars of the offences charged against Gonsalves said he had four and three-quarters grammes of cocaine and forty-four and a quarter grammes of cannabis (marijuana) for the purpose of trafficking at One and a Half Miles, Bartica.

It is alleged that Moe had 252 and a half grammes marijuana for the same purpose when cops on patrol stopped the motor van in which they were passengers en route to Tiger Creek backdam, in Potaro, too.

Police said a search of the defendants yielded the illegal drugs in one of Gonsalves’ pants pockets and a haversack belonging to Moe.

Prosecution, Defence differ over gun in wounding case
THE Prosecution and Defence differed sharply yesterday when 33-year-old Clement Biggins, of Lot 703 ‘D’ Field, Sophia, Georgetown, faced charges of attempting to commit a felony and unlawful wounding before acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan yesterday.

Particulars of the June 20 offences said the defendant was armed with a gun when he attempted to rob and unlawfully and maliciously wounded Anthony Culpepper.

The police version, given by Inspector Kevin Adonis, was that the virtual complainant was a pedestrian in Sophia where the defendant approached him and demanded cash at gunpoint.

The Prosecutor said Biggins lashed the victim on the head when the latter said he had no money and escaped.

But Defence Counsel Debra Backer said no gun was involved and the two men had an argument over the theft of electricity.

Biggins pleaded not guilty to both charges and was granted $20,000 bail until July 7.

How sad
EVEN though I no longer reside in Guyana, I try my best to keep in touch with the current events and culture of our great nation.

The crime spree is getting very much out of control -- the disappearance of the sugar workers, the robberies and attempted robberies in the market areas prompting many not to recommend Guyana as a tourist destination and now this - the death of a soldier.

I am an officer in the United States Army. I was born and raised in the Soesdyke area.

I read the Guyana Chronicle as often as time will permit.

I was very disappointed when I read yesterday morning that Private Gilford Henry of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) was meaninglessly killed.

I may not have known Private Henry personally but he was a member of a very large family, he was a soldier no matter where he served; he was my brother.

Here was a young man, due to his profession, who put his life on the line to defend his country but yet he was gunned down by the very people he risked his life for.

I'm not saying that Guyana is the only nation in which things like this occur but it is very sad.

My sympathy goes out to the surviving family members of Private Henry who now have to cope with this sad situation, and to his roommate Ms Simone Henry.

I would also like to say kudos to GHK Lall for his letter titled `The poison spreads’ in yesterday’s Guyana Chronicle.

I think he pretty much covered exactly what is going on in Guyana when it comes to such situations.
U.S. ARMY AVIATOR

Sterling example
To Police Commissioner Winston Felix:
I write to record my pride and heartfelt gratitude at the level of professionalism displayed by one of your ranks, Constable 19704 Winston Williams, of the Tactical Services Unit based at Linden (‘E’ & ‘F’ Divisions).

While travelling along Burnham Drive, at Wismar, Linden one evening around 19:00 h, I noticed a police roadblock set up in the vicinity of the intersection with the Winifred Gaskin Highway by a detachment of the Tactical Services Unit attached to ‘E’ & ‘F’ Divisions of the Guyana Police Force.

Accustomed as I had become to gruff and unpleasant interactions with ranks at similar roadblocks, you could just imagine the very pleasant surprise I experienced when I was quite cordially asked to pull over by Constable Williams.

“Good evening Sir, this is just a routine exercise. Please pull over”, was his remark to me in a very polite, firm tone of voice.

The cordiality of this interaction was even more important to me since I had my three-year-old son with me at the time, who is at the stage of great fascination with the police, their cars and vans, their lights etc.

I am very grateful that his introduction to the members of the Guyana Police Force included this very favourable impression.

After checking the interior of the vehicle, Constable Williams then encouraged me to continue to drive safely, wished my son and I a good evening and a safe journey.

I must admit that I was so taken aback at his good manners that I did not immediately request his name, but on passing this same roadblock on my return to Mackenzie about 15 minutes after, I did stop and enquire of him his name and rank, which were given in the same cordial, respectful tone.

Lest someone get the impression that my age or other criteria dictated his manner, let me state here that I observed this same deportment by Constable Williams to other drivers that night, and since we are about the same age I am sure that I was not singled out for any special treatment.

I would like to record my appreciation for the exemplary conduct of this young policeman and extend my best wishes to him in his endeavours. Keep up the good work Constable 19704 Williams.

I would also like to encourage you, Commissioner, to ensure that conduct such as his is encouraged and rewarded, since they do the image of the Guyana Police Force a world of good.
LEON ROBERTS
REGIONAL INFORMATION OFFICER – REGION 10

Not only here
I REFER to the Kaieteur News editorial of June 27, 2005 headed `Reacting to situations’.

The editorial talks about the poor equipment provided to the police and the poor conditions of police stations.

This was all a part of what the PPP/Civic inherited when it came to office, the inheritance bequeathed to the people by the PNC.

Since then, there have been tremendous improvements, in salaries, conditions and equipment, but nobody would say that this is enough.

Equal situations were also inherited in the teaching, nursing professions and in the public service, and equally vast improvements have been recorded, but here again, a lot remains to be done.

The editorial goes on to tell us about the mass emigration of teachers and nurses, but this is not applicable only to Guyana. It happens in other countries too, including in Africa.

In respect of Guyana, although very regrettable, the fact that we can and do produce so many qualified teachers and nurses who are in demand in so many countries, says a lot for our educational system.

These teachers and nurses attend primary and secondary schools, go on to other institutions such as the University of Guyana, teachers’ and nurses’ training schools and do exceptionally well.

Just the other day, the matter of nurses emigrating from Africa came up at the G-8 meetings, and it was pointed out that the matter has to be addressed in some way as these nurses are very much needed in the poor countries of Africa. How are they ever going to improve with such emigration?

These are problems afflicting many countries and none so far have reached a position where they can afford to pay salaries equivalent to those in the developed world or provide similar conditions.

The editorial makes some suggestions, which in addition to those already being tried, can perhaps assist.
DARREN WALTERS

Brilliant idea
IT WAS a brilliant and timely idea for President Bharrat Jagdeo to decide to have the new National Archives, to be built, named in honour of the late Dr Walter Rodney, world-renowned scholar, historian, lecturer and charismatic politician who was assassinated.

Dr Rodney is recognised around the world by scholars, historians, academics and students, especially those from the continent of Africa, as well as the Caribbean.

For many decades, the real value of our national archives has been waiting for the proper recognition, funding and upgrading to provide better facilities for scholars, students and researchers, and for the safe and proper storage of an important part of our history, of common value to all inhabitants.

Naming the National Archives in honour of Dr Rodney will enhance its value, importance and worldwide recognition and it will become another landmark of Guyana.

All the historical records of the country will be stored here, not just the works and research of Dr Rodney, and with this name, it will attract many more international scholars and visitors.

It was indeed a wise decision to honour the memory of this scholar of Guyana.
GEORGE WATSON

A matter of lights
CAN you remember travelling by air from Guyana during the PNC Burnham/Hoyte years, and when you looked through the plane windows, you saw a country enveloped in darkness, with only a little light showing here and there, probably light from oil lamps?

And when you reached your destination, whether Trinidad or other countries of the Caribbean or further afield, how you were overwhelmed by the blazing lights?

Since 1992 these experiences were changed considerably with the added amounts of electrical generation provided to our national grid, plus the wider transmission and distribution.

This picture is even about to change further, between now and the end of February, 2006, when previously unserved areas will be provided with electricity, with the government absorbing the larger part of the cost to consumers for transmission and distribution.

Many thousands of households throughout the length and breadth of the country will at long last be getting their supply of electricity.
JOHN DA SILVA

Imagine the pain
I'D LIKE to thank Dr Steve Surujbally for putting the picture of someone with some iguanas tied to a stick in his column in the Sunday Chronicle Pepperpot section on June 26.

Can you imagine the pain that these poor animals have to endure as their captor awaits a buyer?

This cruel treatment to iguanas is all over the place -- you can see people walking about with them tied up in the streets of Georgetown and other places.

The same cruel treatment is also meted out to birds -- parrots and macaws. Their captors would have dozens of them jammed together in cages so small that they can't move. The same thing with small monkeys too.

Ours is a country where the inhumane treatment of animals is like a way of life. The only hope for animals lies in the hands of angels like Syeada Manbodh, Sis Shamane, Dr Surujballi, Dr Mclean, Dr Waldron and the others at the Guyana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (GSPCA). But these are just a few and the cruelty is widespread.

Syeada has expressed success with children at the schools that she visited. I believe that it’s only through the eyes of the children that we can change this cycle of abuse against animals in our country.

I used to talk to the children in my Bacchon (Children's) class at our temple and explain to them that it was not right to pelt animals with stones etc. Children do not know that what they are doing is wrong because they see the adults doing it.

It is when we draw their attention to what they are doing that they realise the truth. Children always listen once you explain to them.

There is a desperate need for widespread dissemination of information with regards to cruelty to animals in Guyana.

The newspapers are doing their bit by printing all the letters that we write but if they can maybe give the GSPCA some free space that would also help.

The television stations too can be used -- NCN ought to give the GSPCA free airtime.

And last of all, maybe the GSPCA should approach the Ministry of Education and work with them -- the Broadcast to Schools programme can include something about animal protection too.
N. BISNATH

Not up for debate
LEST it be misconstrued by readers closely following the much hyped faith-science debate, particularly in the Guyana Chronicle letters column, I cannot take credit - according to Mr Justin DeFreitas in Friday's letters column - for debunking Mr Alfred Bhulai's claims that there will be Muslims in heaven, as much as I tried to answer a straightforward question posed to me by Mr Lutchman Gossai on the same claims.

I have followed, with measured interest, the debate as much as I could possibly sustain such an interest, and must admit that I was right all along: this is just an interminable rehashing of already known positions on both sides of the faith-science divide.

I believe in God and the Word of God, the Bible. I believe in science and the wonders it has done for the world. But when it comes to choosing one over the other as a means of forming an opinion on creation versus evolution, I have long settled on creation, which is what the Bible advocates.

Do I need to debate my faith, as much as some may think it useful to debate science? No, I do not think so. My faith is my God-given ability to believe what I read in the Word of God and the convictions I feel in my spirit.

This is about my spiritual relationship with God who, by faith, made the world and, by faith, continues to uphold it. It is not up for debate.

In other words, faith is the fundamental means by which God established and makes known Himself to us, for had He not, by faith, spoken the world into existence and watched it happen right before His eyes, then how could we have come to know Him and our world?

Without faith or our God-given ability to believe Him, it is impossible to relate to or please God. As far as God is concerned, faith works!

Science, on the other hand, is man's discovery and development of things God created, thus placing science as secondary to faith, even though science helps us to better understand the awesomeness of God's creative powers.

We need faith to better relate to God, as much as we need science to better relate to our world. By the way, God is not science averse; He is that confident in Himself. And it is amazing how faith and science also work to complement each other, yet we sometimes spend enormous amounts of time using them to compete with each other.

In principle, faith and science share limited unique commonalities.

One example: every scientific experiment that yielded results has its beginnings or roots in the minds of men and women who first had to have faith or the ability to believe what they were doing would yield results.

The same principle holds true for God: He first had to believe what He was about to say would yield results, so He spoke creation into existence in Genesis, and - BANG! It happened just as He called it. Only that He does not call that BANG evolution, but creation.

As humans, we can also use our God-given ability to believe God's Word or believe anything else, including the theory that science trumps creation. It simply boils down to what we believe based on the quality of information we have.

My source of information remains the Word of God.
EMILE MERVIN

Cherry-picking
ALFRED Bhulai, without addressing many of the past inconsistencies in his crusade, has moved on to other subjects such as entropy and the Big Bang.

The Big Bang Theory is consistent with a number of important observations: the observed expansion of the universe; the observed abundances of helium, deuterium and lithium - three elements thought to be synthesised primarily in the first three minutes of the universe - and the thermal spectrum of the cosmic microwave background radiation, among others.

Bhulai knows that the four forces of the universe, the weak nuclear force, the strong nuclear force, electromagnetism and particularly gravity serve as obstructions to entropy. (Note, I say "obstructions" and not "complete barriers" to entropy.)

But in a letter of almost 2,000 words (Stabroek News - Sept 4th 2004) Alfred Bhulai declared that the Big Bang "completely contradicts the Second Law of Thermodynamics that the entropy (or chaos) in the universe increases. Mind you, this is a law that has no known exceptions. In ordinary parlance, people who have suffered will testify that you never get physical order out of any explosion. To use a common analogy, a tornado in a junkyard with all the components cannot assemble a Boeing 747. But those who know neither the tornado nor the Boeing will accept that it can be done if told so by others who they trust to know such things."

By presenting a highly selective "half picture" of the second law of thermodynamics, Bhulai may be guilty of deliberately misinforming the public. He "cherry picks" small bits of incomplete information and presents it in a wordy, authoritative manner.

He states that the law has no known exceptions but fails to point out that (the rate of) entropy is relative to the composition of the system in which it functions or that there are forces that reduce entropy.

It is critical that people know of variations in the applicability of the law to what is called "closed" and "open" systems.

The second law actually states that in adiabatic systems (those which exchange no heat with their surroundings) entropy cannot decrease. So an adiabatic system will naturally increase its entropy - there will be ongoing degradation or the tendency towards chaos.

But Bhulai must be aware that it is erroneous, in the context of evolution, to say that increasing entropy applies, unhindered, to ALL types of systems.

He must know that it applies only to adiabatic systems and that there are others - "open systems" - where entropy can be decreased by obstruction. We live in such a system where energy from the sun obstructs entropy; where, as a result of the input of this energy, matter can be spontaneously ordered to bring about chemical structures with characteristics we have come to call "life".

Note this important difference. Bhulai talks about the sudden creation of a Boeing 747. In terms of life, he is talking about the impossibility of the sudden appearance of a complete modern person. On the other hand, I am talking about the chemical synthesis of the most basic microscopic organism which displays the characteristics we regard as "life", nothing as complex as a Boeing 747 or a fully functioning human being.

(One should note that entropy itself can create order. Think of stars, the second law definitely allows star formation - gravitational energy becomes energy with greater entropy (usually heat) as the star forms and the excess heat is radiated away as light to decrease the heat difference created. The sun's energy creates order on earth but the sun itself is undergoing entropy.)

High school biology teaches us photosynthesis, a process which accounts for about 99% of the energy that enters our biological system. This method of trapping solar energy decreases entropy and has been instrumental in the evolution of life. Photosynthesis is yet another obstruction to entropy.

Bhulai, the former university lecturer and teacher, knows that the biological system of our planet is not energetically closed, that we do not live in an adiabatic system. He chose not to share this bit of information. Committing such an egregious act of omission is akin to deliberately mis-educating the public. But as David Seegobin pointed out, some creationists deliberately misinterpret "science wherever they like in order to make it fit the bible." (Guyana Chronicle June 23).

These people do a great disservice to the science education of Guyanese.
JUSTIN DEFREITAS