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Essential Afro-Latino/ Caribbean Current Events
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Óscar Figueroa and the Precarious World of an Afro-Colombian Gold Medal Winner
08.11.16
by PABLO MEDINA URIBE
Oscar Figueroa Photo via Twitter
“Gracias, mi negro hermoso” (“Thanks, my beautiful black man”)
—Colombians on Twitter after their countryman won a gold medal.
On Monday, Colombia was at a standstill for an uncommon reason: thousands of kilometers away, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, one of our own was lifting weights. It was Óscar Figueroa, who had won a silver medal in London 2012 and now had a chance for gold.
Right before Figueroa’s third and last attempt at the clean and jerk, Indonesia’s Eko Yuli Irawan tried to lift 179 Kg, but failed. This meant that a gold medal was secured for the Colombian, who had lifted a total of 318 Kg. Still, Figueroa had to make his last attempt.
Knowing he had already won the competition, he failed at his last attempt to lift 179 Kg. He then collapsed and fell to his knees crying and extending his arms in celebration, as the big crowd of delirious Colombians present at the venue cheered him on. Figueroa had just become the first Colombian medalist in Rio 2016.
Capping an astonishing career, Figueroa then removed his shoes, kissed the weights, and then led the crowd in possibly the loudest national anthem singing for non-Brazilian winners in this games. Thus, he was inducted into a very select group of Colombian athletes.
Colombians have now amassed 20 medals in Olympics history, but only two others have won gold:María Isabel Urrutia, who also won in weightlifting, at Sydney 2000, and Mariana Pajón, who won the BMX race at London 2012.
Figueroa and Urrutia also share something else in common, besides their gold medals and their sport: they are both black in a country that tends to qualify the existence of its black population and condition it to the color of their skins.
So, when Figueroa won, social media filled up with celebratory remarks highlighting his race.“Gracias, mi negro hermoso” (“Thanks, my beautiful black man”) and similar phrases became commonplace. This is a welcome positive feeling in a sea of racial insults to black athletes (and black Colombians in general) who happen to make a mistake. “Negro tenía que ser” (“He had to be black”) is often heard at the stadium or at the bar when a black footballer messes up, for example. But it is also indicative of something else.
Not only are black Colombians subject to the instances of racism unfortunately common in many places of the world, they are also seen as not exactly nor entirely Colombian, and are required constantly to prove their worth as an integral part of the country.
As I have written before, Colombia is a racist country that is unable to face this problem because, for the most part, Colombians feel like “race” is not a concept that applies to them. But it does apply to black people, who are then inevitably seen as outsiders.
The most recent national census, done in 2005, asked about ethnicity, rather than race. In it, 3.43 percent of the country’s population identified as “indigenous,” 10.62 percent as “afro-Colombian” and 85.94 percent as “without ethnicity.” It is hard to speak about racism in such a place where “race” and “ethnicity” are largely not a concept. Modern Colombia lacks the vocabulary for it. “Race,” “ethnicity” and “racism” are things that only apply to others, to those who are not part of that “mixed country.”
And those who are outside might find it hard to be welcomed into the majority group. But with the Olympics, a nationalistic, sports-crazy country such as Colombia can, for a while, welcome everyone, regardless of color, gender or origin, into their team, especially if they look like they’ll fight for some silverware.
It is not an ideal situation, but surely it can help to bring forth the positive representations of black people in national media, and to make them a part of the national conversation. For example, after her medal, Urrutia was elected for two terms to the country’s House of Representatives (to a special seat reserved for black communities). She was also a commentator for the weightlifting events for a TV broadcast. In a different TV broadcast, Diego Salazar and Mábel Mosquera, another two Olympic medalist in weightlifting for Colombia who are black, were analyzing the sport and rooting for their compatriots. Three black Colombians on TV at the same time would be almost unheard of in any other circumstance.
And though sports might not cure the ills black people in Colombia have to face daily, this Olympic run might help in bringing the country closer together and in accepting our diversity. There is still a good outlook for black Colombian athletes: boxer Yuberjén Martínez has at least a bronze medal assured, and Caterine Ibargüen is a favorite in the athletics competitions.
The Precarious World of an Afro-Colombian Gold Medal Winner
08.11.16
by PABLO MEDINA URIBE
Oscar Figueroa Photo via Twitter
“Gracias, mi negro hermoso” (“Thanks, my beautiful black man”)
—Colombians on Twitter after their countryman won a gold medal.
On Monday, Colombia was at a standstill for an uncommon reason: thousands of kilometers away, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, one of our own was lifting weights. It was Óscar Figueroa, who had won a silver medal in London 2012 and now had a chance for gold.
Right before Figueroa’s third and last attempt at the clean and jerk, Indonesia’s Eko Yuli Irawan tried to lift 179 Kg, but failed. This meant that a gold medal was secured for the Colombian, who had lifted a total of 318 Kg. Still, Figueroa had to make his last attempt.
Knowing he had already won the competition, he failed at his last attempt to lift 179 Kg. He then collapsed and fell to his knees crying and extending his arms in celebration, as the big crowd of delirious Colombians present at the venue cheered him on. Figueroa had just become the first Colombian medalist in Rio 2016.
Capping an astonishing career, Figueroa then removed his shoes, kissed the weights, and then led the crowd in possibly the loudest national anthem singing for non-Brazilian winners in this games. Thus, he was inducted into a very select group of Colombian athletes.
Colombians have now amassed 20 medals in Olympics history, but only two others have won gold:María Isabel Urrutia, who also won in weightlifting, at Sydney 2000, and Mariana Pajón, who won the BMX race at London 2012.
Figueroa and Urrutia also share something else in common, besides their gold medals and their sport: they are both black in a country that tends to qualify the existence of its black population and condition it to the color of their skins.
So, when Figueroa won, social media filled up with celebratory remarks highlighting his race.“Gracias, mi negro hermoso” (“Thanks, my beautiful black man”) and similar phrases became commonplace. This is a welcome positive feeling in a sea of racial insults to black athletes (and black Colombians in general) who happen to make a mistake. “Negro tenía que ser” (“He had to be black”) is often heard at the stadium or at the bar when a black footballer messes up, for example. But it is also indicative of something else.
Not only are black Colombians subject to the instances of racism unfortunately common in many places of the world, they are also seen as not exactly nor entirely Colombian, and are required constantly to prove their worth as an integral part of the country.
As I have written before, Colombia is a racist country that is unable to face this problem because, for the most part, Colombians feel like “race” is not a concept that applies to them. But it does apply to black people, who are then inevitably seen as outsiders.
The most recent national census, done in 2005, asked about ethnicity, rather than race. In it, 3.43 percent of the country’s population identified as “indigenous,” 10.62 percent as “afro-Colombian” and 85.94 percent as “without ethnicity.” It is hard to speak about racism in such a place where “race” and “ethnicity” are largely not a concept. Modern Colombia lacks the vocabulary for it. “Race,” “ethnicity” and “racism” are things that only apply to others, to those who are not part of that “mixed country.”
And those who are outside might find it hard to be welcomed into the majority group. But with the Olympics, a nationalistic, sports-crazy country such as Colombia can, for a while, welcome everyone, regardless of color, gender or origin, into their team, especially if they look like they’ll fight for some silverware.
It is not an ideal situation, but surely it can help to bring forth the positive representations of black people in national media, and to make them a part of the national conversation. For example, after her medal, Urrutia was elected for two terms to the country’s House of Representatives (to a special seat reserved for black communities). She was also a commentator for the weightlifting events for a TV broadcast. In a different TV broadcast, Diego Salazar and Mábel Mosquera, another two Olympic medalist in weightlifting for Colombia who are black, were analyzing the sport and rooting for their compatriots. Three black Colombians on TV at the same time would be almost unheard of in any other circumstance.
And though sports might not cure the ills black people in Colombia have to face daily, this Olympic run might help in bringing the country closer together and in accepting our diversity. There is still a good outlook for black Colombian athletes: boxer Yuberjén Martínez has at least a bronze medal assured, and Caterine Ibargüen is a favorite in the athletics competitions.
The Precarious World of an Afro-Colombian Gold Medal Winner
ZoeGod
I’m from Brooklyn a place where stars are born.
August 9, 2016 ↔ no comments
As Trinidad and Tobago Examine Root Causes of Citizen Joining ISIS, Should Other Caribbean Islands Be Concerned?
Lena D
National Security Minister Edmund Dillon
PORT OF SPAIN, TRINIDAD — Along with ongoing moves to tighten overall security in Trinidad and Tobago, National Security Minister Edmund Dillon said that, in seeking to examine the factors luring citizens to leave to join the terror group ISIS, the government will engage the Muslim community to “dialogue on this and, together, examine root causes.”
According to the Trinidad Guardian, the number of Trinidad and Tobago nationals — fighters as well as family members — who have gone to ISIS zones from late 2012 to date is now estimated at close to 120, an increase over previous figures.
Most recently, nine Trinidad and Tobago nationals were detained in Turkey on July 27. They were held with a Syrian man who was taking them via truck to Syria for recruitment by ISIS, Turkey’s Daily Sabah reported. They are now at Turkey’s Adana Migration Center. The Trinidad and Tobago government is awaiting a report on the circumstances of their presence there from Turkish authorities.
Dillon said there had been a lull in the number of people ISIS-bound in the latter half of last year, but confirmed the security sector has been “seeing activity.”
“In light of what has happened (nine in Turkey), although we’re still uncertain if they were really going to ISIS, we’re examining what factors are luring people to leave Trinidad and Tobago to go there; what’s happening locally with that. So we’ll be engaging the Muslim community to dialogue on this and together examine root causes,” Dillon said.
Turkey, in recent years, has been the gateway to ISIS conflict zones, since no visa is required for Trinidad and Tobago nationals particularly.
In January, Turkey’s Hurriyet News reported four Trinidad and Tobago nationals were held among 913 foreign jihadists from 57 countries fighting with ISIS, over the period January to November 2015. Trinidad and Tobago was the only Caribbean country. Last Thursday, security agencies confirmed two Trinidad and Tobago nationals were sent back from Turkey in January.
So far, only one Trinidad and Tobago person — Kareen Ibrahim — has been deemed a terrorist under the Anti-Terrorism Act. No Trinidad and Tobago nationals have so far been listed on the United Nations Security Council’s list of people subject to sanctions for being involved with Al-Qaeda and ISIS.
But this might change, Dillon confirmed, when Trinidad and Tobago pursue action by the attorney general for court declaration of 74 entities as terrorists, among other measures.
Dillon confirmed another matter “thoroughly engaging security attention” is the pitch in ISIS’ July magazine made by Trinidad and Tobago-born ISIS fighter Abu Sa’d al-Trinidadi, who some claim is Shane Crawford.
He urged sympathizers to launch local attacks on Christians, businesses, embassies and civilians. Nationals of four other states made similar pitches to countrymen. Trinidad and Tobago Muslim leaders have rejected his call.
Read more here.
As Trinidad and Tobago Examine Root Causes of Citizen Joining ISIS, Should Other Caribbean Island Be Concerned?
As Trinidad and Tobago Examine Root Causes of Citizen Joining ISIS, Should Other Caribbean Islands Be Concerned?
Lena D
National Security Minister Edmund Dillon
PORT OF SPAIN, TRINIDAD — Along with ongoing moves to tighten overall security in Trinidad and Tobago, National Security Minister Edmund Dillon said that, in seeking to examine the factors luring citizens to leave to join the terror group ISIS, the government will engage the Muslim community to “dialogue on this and, together, examine root causes.”
According to the Trinidad Guardian, the number of Trinidad and Tobago nationals — fighters as well as family members — who have gone to ISIS zones from late 2012 to date is now estimated at close to 120, an increase over previous figures.
Most recently, nine Trinidad and Tobago nationals were detained in Turkey on July 27. They were held with a Syrian man who was taking them via truck to Syria for recruitment by ISIS, Turkey’s Daily Sabah reported. They are now at Turkey’s Adana Migration Center. The Trinidad and Tobago government is awaiting a report on the circumstances of their presence there from Turkish authorities.
Dillon said there had been a lull in the number of people ISIS-bound in the latter half of last year, but confirmed the security sector has been “seeing activity.”
“In light of what has happened (nine in Turkey), although we’re still uncertain if they were really going to ISIS, we’re examining what factors are luring people to leave Trinidad and Tobago to go there; what’s happening locally with that. So we’ll be engaging the Muslim community to dialogue on this and together examine root causes,” Dillon said.
Turkey, in recent years, has been the gateway to ISIS conflict zones, since no visa is required for Trinidad and Tobago nationals particularly.
In January, Turkey’s Hurriyet News reported four Trinidad and Tobago nationals were held among 913 foreign jihadists from 57 countries fighting with ISIS, over the period January to November 2015. Trinidad and Tobago was the only Caribbean country. Last Thursday, security agencies confirmed two Trinidad and Tobago nationals were sent back from Turkey in January.
So far, only one Trinidad and Tobago person — Kareen Ibrahim — has been deemed a terrorist under the Anti-Terrorism Act. No Trinidad and Tobago nationals have so far been listed on the United Nations Security Council’s list of people subject to sanctions for being involved with Al-Qaeda and ISIS.
But this might change, Dillon confirmed, when Trinidad and Tobago pursue action by the attorney general for court declaration of 74 entities as terrorists, among other measures.
Dillon confirmed another matter “thoroughly engaging security attention” is the pitch in ISIS’ July magazine made by Trinidad and Tobago-born ISIS fighter Abu Sa’d al-Trinidadi, who some claim is Shane Crawford.
He urged sympathizers to launch local attacks on Christians, businesses, embassies and civilians. Nationals of four other states made similar pitches to countrymen. Trinidad and Tobago Muslim leaders have rejected his call.
Read more here.
As Trinidad and Tobago Examine Root Causes of Citizen Joining ISIS, Should Other Caribbean Island Be Concerned?
political breh got dem scotland yards and murk beef problems
August 14, 2016 2:07 PM
Jamaica murder yarn has political ties, with a Scotland Yard twist
James Robertson, Jamaica's minister of energy and mining, prepares to speak to Gramercy Alumina plant employees Sep. 3, 2009. Jamaica is the majority owner of the mine that supplies bauxite to the plant. BRETT DUKE AP
Tristram Korten
Special to the Herald
In February, James Robertson won re-election to the Parliament of Jamaica. It was the latest in an unbroken string of victories for the 50-year-old politician since winning his first campaign in 2002.
During that time, Robertson, a member of the conservative Jamaica Labour Party, has survived a political career that would have derailed many. He was reelected in 2012, when a backlash against the JLP’s association with a drug trafficker forced the prime minister to resign, and the rival People’s National Party (PNP) nearly swept the elections. When he tried to push out his party’s leader in 2013 and lost, he kept his deputy leader position in the party anyway. But those episodes were child’s play compared to what he faced in 2010.
That year the U.S. State Department revoked Robertson’s visa for reasons never made public. Then he was accused of murder.
The accusations against him dominated headlines in Jamaica. But Robertson was never charged and has denied the accusations, attributing them to political enemies. He’s never been charged, let alone convicted. His accuser, a small businessman, has left the country. Officials made no comments. The news media eventually dropped the story. The matter seemed to simply disappear.
Until now.
Leslie “Les” Green, a former assistant commissioner of police for the Jamaican Constabulary Force who has since retired, revealed to the Miami Herald that he investigated accusations that Robertson tried to arrange at least two murders, and found enough evidence that he recommended that prosecutors charge the politician.
“Investigations have been conducted alleging serious offenses against Robertson and others,” said Green, who is English and a former Scotland Yard detective. In 2006, the Jamaican government hired him on contract to help professionalize the force. “The Department of Public Prosecutions made a ruling there was sufficient evidence to charge Robinson.”
But after carefully assembling his case, Green said, Jamaica’s Ministry of National Security refused to offer to protect one of the key witnesses. The witness fled, and the case fell apart.
The guilt or innocence of Robertson aside, the episode highlights a problem holding the powerful accountable in a region dogged by violence. The U.N.’s Caribbean Human Development report noted in 2012 that Latin America and the Caribbean made up 8.5 percent of the world’s population, but tallied 27 percent of its homicides. Jamaica has the highest homicide rate in the Caribbean.
Day at the dealership
On a sunny afternoon in 2008, Ian Johnson was finalizing the purchase of a silver Mitsubishi Pajero at Motorsales of Jamaica when he saw James Robertson enter the dealership. Johnson owned two convenience stores and a construction company in St. Thomas, the parish Robertson represented in Parliament. He was active in the JLP and had raised money for Robertson’s previous campaigns.
Robertson “beckoned me aside,” Johnson said in a sworn statement filed by his Fort Lauderdale lawyer and attached to an application for asylum in the United States.
“We walked a few feet away from the sales rep that I was talking to,” Johnson said in the sworn statement.Robertson told him he was having problems with a businessman in St. Thomas. The rival businessman’s name was Cecil Riley, known locally as “Petrol.”
“Specifically, [he] asked me to arrange to kill ‘Petrol’ Cecil Riley,” Johnson said in his statement.
Johnson said he was shocked, and left without giving an answer.
Robertson did not respond to repeated requests for comment by email and telephone. His lawyer at the time, Patrick Bailey, said: “He’s not going to talk about that.”To the Jamaican news media, however, and in a court document, Robertson acknowledged Johnson’s allegations but vehemently denied them. He ultimately would file a libel suit against Johnson’s lawyer.
A few weeks after the encounter, two gunmen shot Riley dead outside a nightclub he owned in St. Thomas.
Even by Jamaican standards, Robertson’s alleged request stood out. Robertson was not just a member of Parliament, he was the country’s minister of energy and mining. He was in his 40s and the deputy leader and a rising star of the JLP.
In addition, he would seem to make an unlikely criminal. He is from a prominent Kingston family. They own a shipping company and cold storage facilities. Robertson himself had gone to high school in England and then graduated from Southern Methodist University in Texas in 1988. He was a polo-playing socialite.
By the mid-2000s, however, the young politician’s rise had caught the attention of Jamaican and U.S. officials for the wrong reasons. A 2005 diplomatic cable sent by the U.S. Embassy in Jamaica and obtained by Wikileaks stated that “like many Jamaican politicians of whatever party affiliation, Robertson is known to associate with criminal elements.”
A 2007 cable obtained by Wikileaks stated that sources told the Drug Enforcement Administration that Robertson was “involved with money laundering and organized crime,” and that Robertson’s father had once been “forced to hand over acres of land to settle his son’s drug debts.”
James Robertson would seem to make an unlikely criminal. He went to high school in England and then graduated from Southern Methodist University in Texas, and was a polo-playing socialite.
The U.S. Embassy declined to comment for this article.
Immediately after Riley’s execution on May 26, 2008, Robertson expressed shock. He praised Riley as a role model for young people. “Morning, noon and night, you could always look to him,” Robertson was quoted in Jamaica’s RJR News.
No one has been arrested for that homicide.
Suddenly a target
Shortly after Riley’s death, Johnson said he became a marked man. According to a police summary of incidents, gunmen shot at him as he drove home from work one night, but missed. They shot at him inside one of his convenience stores, missing him but wounding an employee. Johnson said local police told him they could not protect him.
Then, on June 6, 2008, three men entered one of Johnson’s stores and shot and killed his mother, Hyacinth, while she worked.
Johnson took his wife and young daughter and went into hiding. He continued to speak to police, but says he came away with the message each time that there was little they could do to protect him.
After about a year, Johnson moved back to his gated house. On the night of July 17, 2009, a gunman stepped out of a car and fired at him as he talked to employees in his carport. Bullets hit Johnson in the thigh, arm, and neck, but the wounds were superficial. A nearby police car rushed over and arrested the driver of the getaway car. The gunman fled on foot.
A few days after the shooting, according to Johnson, Robertson himself showed up at his front door, saying he was concerned for Johnson’s safety.
In the carport Robertson “wrote two names on a piece of paper,” Johnson said in his sworn statement and told the Herald — Kayon “Treasure” Campbell, and the name “Guns,” which was an alias for a man Johnson knew. But then Robertson crossed out Campbell’s name and “told me this name I should not pay attention to,” according to Johnson. “But he pointed directly at Guns’ name and said to me if I killed this man for him, all my problems … would go away immediately.”
Johnson said once again he did not respond.
Robertson’s lawyers stated incourt papers in connection with the libel lawsuit that the allegation he asked Johnson to kill “Kayon Campbell, and a man with [sic] alias ‘Guns,’” was not true. “The statements made by Mr. Johnson are false.”
According to police and other sources, Guns is Kemar Williams, a local gangster affiliated with the the rival PNP.
Les Green, the assistant commissioner of police, later tracked Williams down abroad.
“I met him outside the country, I’m not going to say where,” Green said in an interview. “The crux of the conversation was that he knew James Robertson wanted to kill him. He knew it was a credible threat. So he fled.”
Johnson said he worried there would be repercussions for not following Robertson’s alleged orders. He believed those repercussions came to fruition on July 29, 2009, when Johnson’s most trusted employee, Jermaine Jones, was lured to a friend’s home, where a waiting gunman shot him. Jones escaped to a nearby hospital. Two days later, gunmen tried to kill him there. Again, he survived.
Johnson and Jones went into hiding.
Johnson reached out to officials at the U.S. Embassy in Kingston for help. He also contacted David Rowe, an expatriate Jamaican lawyer practicing in Fort Lauderdale and teaching at the University of Miami, to assist with a bid for political asylum.On Nov. 9, 2010, Johnson gave a sworn statement in connection with the asylum bid over the telephone to Rowe and a court reporter in Fort Lauderdale. Johnson relayed his entire story, which was turned over to U.S. officials.
August 14, 2016 2:07 PM
Jamaica murder yarn has political ties, with a Scotland Yard twist
James Robertson, Jamaica's minister of energy and mining, prepares to speak to Gramercy Alumina plant employees Sep. 3, 2009. Jamaica is the majority owner of the mine that supplies bauxite to the plant. BRETT DUKE AP
Tristram Korten
Special to the Herald
In February, James Robertson won re-election to the Parliament of Jamaica. It was the latest in an unbroken string of victories for the 50-year-old politician since winning his first campaign in 2002.
During that time, Robertson, a member of the conservative Jamaica Labour Party, has survived a political career that would have derailed many. He was reelected in 2012, when a backlash against the JLP’s association with a drug trafficker forced the prime minister to resign, and the rival People’s National Party (PNP) nearly swept the elections. When he tried to push out his party’s leader in 2013 and lost, he kept his deputy leader position in the party anyway. But those episodes were child’s play compared to what he faced in 2010.
That year the U.S. State Department revoked Robertson’s visa for reasons never made public. Then he was accused of murder.
The accusations against him dominated headlines in Jamaica. But Robertson was never charged and has denied the accusations, attributing them to political enemies. He’s never been charged, let alone convicted. His accuser, a small businessman, has left the country. Officials made no comments. The news media eventually dropped the story. The matter seemed to simply disappear.
Until now.
Leslie “Les” Green, a former assistant commissioner of police for the Jamaican Constabulary Force who has since retired, revealed to the Miami Herald that he investigated accusations that Robertson tried to arrange at least two murders, and found enough evidence that he recommended that prosecutors charge the politician.
“Investigations have been conducted alleging serious offenses against Robertson and others,” said Green, who is English and a former Scotland Yard detective. In 2006, the Jamaican government hired him on contract to help professionalize the force. “The Department of Public Prosecutions made a ruling there was sufficient evidence to charge Robinson.”
But after carefully assembling his case, Green said, Jamaica’s Ministry of National Security refused to offer to protect one of the key witnesses. The witness fled, and the case fell apart.
The guilt or innocence of Robertson aside, the episode highlights a problem holding the powerful accountable in a region dogged by violence. The U.N.’s Caribbean Human Development report noted in 2012 that Latin America and the Caribbean made up 8.5 percent of the world’s population, but tallied 27 percent of its homicides. Jamaica has the highest homicide rate in the Caribbean.
Day at the dealership
On a sunny afternoon in 2008, Ian Johnson was finalizing the purchase of a silver Mitsubishi Pajero at Motorsales of Jamaica when he saw James Robertson enter the dealership. Johnson owned two convenience stores and a construction company in St. Thomas, the parish Robertson represented in Parliament. He was active in the JLP and had raised money for Robertson’s previous campaigns.
Robertson “beckoned me aside,” Johnson said in a sworn statement filed by his Fort Lauderdale lawyer and attached to an application for asylum in the United States.
“We walked a few feet away from the sales rep that I was talking to,” Johnson said in the sworn statement.Robertson told him he was having problems with a businessman in St. Thomas. The rival businessman’s name was Cecil Riley, known locally as “Petrol.”
“Specifically, [he] asked me to arrange to kill ‘Petrol’ Cecil Riley,” Johnson said in his statement.
Johnson said he was shocked, and left without giving an answer.
Robertson did not respond to repeated requests for comment by email and telephone. His lawyer at the time, Patrick Bailey, said: “He’s not going to talk about that.”To the Jamaican news media, however, and in a court document, Robertson acknowledged Johnson’s allegations but vehemently denied them. He ultimately would file a libel suit against Johnson’s lawyer.
A few weeks after the encounter, two gunmen shot Riley dead outside a nightclub he owned in St. Thomas.
Even by Jamaican standards, Robertson’s alleged request stood out. Robertson was not just a member of Parliament, he was the country’s minister of energy and mining. He was in his 40s and the deputy leader and a rising star of the JLP.
In addition, he would seem to make an unlikely criminal. He is from a prominent Kingston family. They own a shipping company and cold storage facilities. Robertson himself had gone to high school in England and then graduated from Southern Methodist University in Texas in 1988. He was a polo-playing socialite.
By the mid-2000s, however, the young politician’s rise had caught the attention of Jamaican and U.S. officials for the wrong reasons. A 2005 diplomatic cable sent by the U.S. Embassy in Jamaica and obtained by Wikileaks stated that “like many Jamaican politicians of whatever party affiliation, Robertson is known to associate with criminal elements.”
A 2007 cable obtained by Wikileaks stated that sources told the Drug Enforcement Administration that Robertson was “involved with money laundering and organized crime,” and that Robertson’s father had once been “forced to hand over acres of land to settle his son’s drug debts.”
James Robertson would seem to make an unlikely criminal. He went to high school in England and then graduated from Southern Methodist University in Texas, and was a polo-playing socialite.
The U.S. Embassy declined to comment for this article.
Immediately after Riley’s execution on May 26, 2008, Robertson expressed shock. He praised Riley as a role model for young people. “Morning, noon and night, you could always look to him,” Robertson was quoted in Jamaica’s RJR News.
No one has been arrested for that homicide.
Suddenly a target
Shortly after Riley’s death, Johnson said he became a marked man. According to a police summary of incidents, gunmen shot at him as he drove home from work one night, but missed. They shot at him inside one of his convenience stores, missing him but wounding an employee. Johnson said local police told him they could not protect him.
Then, on June 6, 2008, three men entered one of Johnson’s stores and shot and killed his mother, Hyacinth, while she worked.
Johnson took his wife and young daughter and went into hiding. He continued to speak to police, but says he came away with the message each time that there was little they could do to protect him.
After about a year, Johnson moved back to his gated house. On the night of July 17, 2009, a gunman stepped out of a car and fired at him as he talked to employees in his carport. Bullets hit Johnson in the thigh, arm, and neck, but the wounds were superficial. A nearby police car rushed over and arrested the driver of the getaway car. The gunman fled on foot.
A few days after the shooting, according to Johnson, Robertson himself showed up at his front door, saying he was concerned for Johnson’s safety.
In the carport Robertson “wrote two names on a piece of paper,” Johnson said in his sworn statement and told the Herald — Kayon “Treasure” Campbell, and the name “Guns,” which was an alias for a man Johnson knew. But then Robertson crossed out Campbell’s name and “told me this name I should not pay attention to,” according to Johnson. “But he pointed directly at Guns’ name and said to me if I killed this man for him, all my problems … would go away immediately.”
Johnson said once again he did not respond.
Robertson’s lawyers stated incourt papers in connection with the libel lawsuit that the allegation he asked Johnson to kill “Kayon Campbell, and a man with [sic] alias ‘Guns,’” was not true. “The statements made by Mr. Johnson are false.”
According to police and other sources, Guns is Kemar Williams, a local gangster affiliated with the the rival PNP.
Les Green, the assistant commissioner of police, later tracked Williams down abroad.
“I met him outside the country, I’m not going to say where,” Green said in an interview. “The crux of the conversation was that he knew James Robertson wanted to kill him. He knew it was a credible threat. So he fled.”
Johnson said he worried there would be repercussions for not following Robertson’s alleged orders. He believed those repercussions came to fruition on July 29, 2009, when Johnson’s most trusted employee, Jermaine Jones, was lured to a friend’s home, where a waiting gunman shot him. Jones escaped to a nearby hospital. Two days later, gunmen tried to kill him there. Again, he survived.
Johnson and Jones went into hiding.
Johnson reached out to officials at the U.S. Embassy in Kingston for help. He also contacted David Rowe, an expatriate Jamaican lawyer practicing in Fort Lauderdale and teaching at the University of Miami, to assist with a bid for political asylum.On Nov. 9, 2010, Johnson gave a sworn statement in connection with the asylum bid over the telephone to Rowe and a court reporter in Fort Lauderdale. Johnson relayed his entire story, which was turned over to U.S. officials.
Johnson also released his statement to the Jamaican news media to bring attention to the matter as a form of protection. “If I hadn’t released it I’d be dead,” he claimed.
Johnson’s accusations made headlines days before the JLP’s November 2010 annual conference. Robertson marched onto the stage at Kingston’s National Arena to defend himself. He called Treasure Campbell, who is described in news media accounts as a student, contractor and JLP activist, to come on stage with him. The two men joined hands.
“This is the man …that they say I want to hurt!” Robertson declared, according to newspaper accounts. (The papers didn’t mention that Johnson had said Campbell’s name was crossed out.) Robertson never mentioned “Guns.” Campbell told the Gleaner newspaper, “I have known Mr. Robertson for more than 10 years and the allegation that he wants me killed is rubbish.”
A month later, on Dec. 20, 2010, Robertson filed the libel lawsuit in Fort Lauderdale.
Robertson withdrew the case a few months later. Rowe declined to comment about the case.
Team of investigators
It was only after Johnson’s statement went public that Green, the assistant commissioner of police in charge of homicide, heard about the case.
He assembled a team of about six investigators to corroborate Johnson’s statement. Green did not want to publicly disclose evidence because the case is technically still open. According to Jamaican police sources who asked not to be named, the investigation matched ballistics at several of the shootings, and traced cell phone records and car rental receipts that linked Treasure Campbell to the shooting outside Johnson’s house, and cell phone records with one of the gunman who allegedly shot Jones in the hospital. When police searched Campbell’s home, according to the police sources, they found cell phone records between Campbell and Robertson from around the time of the shooting. There were also “records of financial payments” from Robertson to Campbell.
Green arranged to relocate Jones to another country in exchange for his testimony. Johnson left for the United States, but agreed to return and testify.
On April 1, 2011, Green sent the investigative file to the Office of Public Prosecutions, outlining the case.Then he waited.
Robertson, meanwhile, was facing other problems. A government investigation into a contract to supply natural gas to the island found numerous irregularities. The contract was canceled and Robertson, under pressure, stepped down as minister of energy. He remained in Parliament.
Days later, Robertson confirmed to reporters that both his and his wife’s U.S. visas had been revoked. The U.S. State Department declined to comment.
On June 4, 2011, Paula Llewellyn, Jamaica’s director of public prosecutions, responded to the evidence that Green submitted. She sent a memo to Green stating that there was “prima facie evidence to base the charge of soliciting murder against Robertson.” (The memo has never been made public, but was obtained from law enforcement sources close to the investigation, with parts redacted.)
In a “caveat,” the memo noted that the case was “based on persons who appear to have very significant credibility issues” referring to Johnson and Jones.The issues: Johnson “alleges that Robertson is connected in some way to the murder of his mother and believes that Robertson has given orders to have him [Johnson] killed.” Meanwhile, Jones “appears to be a gunman or very closely linked with them,” the memo stated.
On June 6, 2008, three men entered one of Ian Johnson’s stores and shot and killed his mother, Hyacinth, while she worked.
The memo also offered the recommendation that “given the status of former Minister James Robertson and the nature of these allegations, one should anticipate significant challenges in bringing this matter to trial.”
She was right.
In late July 2011, a member of Jamaica’s witness security team visited Jones in a foreign country, where he was under police guard. Jones, who had been seeking relocation, “was told by witness protection the offer had not been approved” by the Ministry of National Security, Green recounted. “The next day he was told he was required to appear in court to give evidence.”
The combination of events scared Jones.“He basically walked off the system and left,” said Johnson, who was hiding with Jones.
Without Jones, prosecutors declined to pursue the case. Through Johnson, Jones declined to comment for this story.
In January 2012, Green learned that the Ministry of National Security did not renew his contract with the police department. He returned to Europe.
The investigation and its collapse were never reported. Green has never before spoken publicly about the case.
Johnson said he would gladly return to testify — if his safety could be guaranteed. “The minute one politician is held accountable for their crimes, Jamaica will be a different place,” he said.
Robertson, meanwhile, still cannot travel to the United States.
Read more here: Jamaica murder yarn has political ties, with a Scotland Yard twist
JLP wins St Thomas Western, 2016 elections - News
Johnson’s accusations made headlines days before the JLP’s November 2010 annual conference. Robertson marched onto the stage at Kingston’s National Arena to defend himself. He called Treasure Campbell, who is described in news media accounts as a student, contractor and JLP activist, to come on stage with him. The two men joined hands.
“This is the man …that they say I want to hurt!” Robertson declared, according to newspaper accounts. (The papers didn’t mention that Johnson had said Campbell’s name was crossed out.) Robertson never mentioned “Guns.” Campbell told the Gleaner newspaper, “I have known Mr. Robertson for more than 10 years and the allegation that he wants me killed is rubbish.”
A month later, on Dec. 20, 2010, Robertson filed the libel lawsuit in Fort Lauderdale.
Robertson withdrew the case a few months later. Rowe declined to comment about the case.
Team of investigators
It was only after Johnson’s statement went public that Green, the assistant commissioner of police in charge of homicide, heard about the case.
He assembled a team of about six investigators to corroborate Johnson’s statement. Green did not want to publicly disclose evidence because the case is technically still open. According to Jamaican police sources who asked not to be named, the investigation matched ballistics at several of the shootings, and traced cell phone records and car rental receipts that linked Treasure Campbell to the shooting outside Johnson’s house, and cell phone records with one of the gunman who allegedly shot Jones in the hospital. When police searched Campbell’s home, according to the police sources, they found cell phone records between Campbell and Robertson from around the time of the shooting. There were also “records of financial payments” from Robertson to Campbell.
Green arranged to relocate Jones to another country in exchange for his testimony. Johnson left for the United States, but agreed to return and testify.
On April 1, 2011, Green sent the investigative file to the Office of Public Prosecutions, outlining the case.Then he waited.
Robertson, meanwhile, was facing other problems. A government investigation into a contract to supply natural gas to the island found numerous irregularities. The contract was canceled and Robertson, under pressure, stepped down as minister of energy. He remained in Parliament.
Days later, Robertson confirmed to reporters that both his and his wife’s U.S. visas had been revoked. The U.S. State Department declined to comment.
On June 4, 2011, Paula Llewellyn, Jamaica’s director of public prosecutions, responded to the evidence that Green submitted. She sent a memo to Green stating that there was “prima facie evidence to base the charge of soliciting murder against Robertson.” (The memo has never been made public, but was obtained from law enforcement sources close to the investigation, with parts redacted.)
In a “caveat,” the memo noted that the case was “based on persons who appear to have very significant credibility issues” referring to Johnson and Jones.The issues: Johnson “alleges that Robertson is connected in some way to the murder of his mother and believes that Robertson has given orders to have him [Johnson] killed.” Meanwhile, Jones “appears to be a gunman or very closely linked with them,” the memo stated.
On June 6, 2008, three men entered one of Ian Johnson’s stores and shot and killed his mother, Hyacinth, while she worked.
The memo also offered the recommendation that “given the status of former Minister James Robertson and the nature of these allegations, one should anticipate significant challenges in bringing this matter to trial.”
She was right.
In late July 2011, a member of Jamaica’s witness security team visited Jones in a foreign country, where he was under police guard. Jones, who had been seeking relocation, “was told by witness protection the offer had not been approved” by the Ministry of National Security, Green recounted. “The next day he was told he was required to appear in court to give evidence.”
The combination of events scared Jones.“He basically walked off the system and left,” said Johnson, who was hiding with Jones.
Without Jones, prosecutors declined to pursue the case. Through Johnson, Jones declined to comment for this story.
In January 2012, Green learned that the Ministry of National Security did not renew his contract with the police department. He returned to Europe.
The investigation and its collapse were never reported. Green has never before spoken publicly about the case.
Johnson said he would gladly return to testify — if his safety could be guaranteed. “The minute one politician is held accountable for their crimes, Jamaica will be a different place,” he said.
Robertson, meanwhile, still cannot travel to the United States.
Read more here: Jamaica murder yarn has political ties, with a Scotland Yard twist
JLP wins St Thomas Western, 2016 elections - News
PM wants closer relationship with Panama
BGIS, Added 15 August 2016
Prime Minister Freundel Stuart. (FP)
PRIME MINISTER Freundel Stuart has expressed the view that the strong ancestral and cultural links connecting Panama to Barbados warrant a strengthening and enhancing of the existing diplomatic relationship.
According to him, this is necessary to “solidify a partnership that is mutually beneficial”. Stuart made the comments in a message today to celebrate Panama Day in Barbados. The Panama Canal was inaugurated on August 15, 1914, and Panama Day pays tribute to those Barbadians who contributed to the construction of the waterway.
The Prime Minister noted that Barbados and Panama have enjoyed a cordial and productive relationship since they established diplomatic relations in August 1975.
“The Government of Barbados recognises that Panama is a reservoir of potential philanthropy, social and political capital and a conduit for trade, investment, and tourism for Barbados. To this end, the Government of Barbados has made a conscious commitment to pursuing all opportunities available in and by way of Panama, and to fully engaging the untapped human capital of Barbadian descendants of Panama in support of this effort. Barbados also embraces the Barbadian Diaspora in Panama,” he stated.
Stuart stressed that Barbados and Panama were forever linked by the Panama Canal. He recalled that at the start of the 20th century, tens of thousands of Barbadians, mainly men, recruited by the Isthmian Canal Commission to work on the construction of the Panama Canal, set out on a journey from their homeland.
He noted that not only did those Barbadians play a pivotal role in what at that time was the world’s most ambitious project to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but they also bolstered this country’s economy through their remittances, at a time of limited prospects for jobs and economic activity at home.
The President of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, visited Barbados last year, and the Prime Minister visited Panama in April 2015 and in June this year for the Inauguration of the Expansion of the Panama Canal.
Stuart underscored the importance of such exchanges. “Visits such as these at the political level, together with increased people-to-people exchanges, have the potential to reap dividends in the future for the peoples of our two countries. The conclusion of agreements aimed at facilitating and boosting trade and other services, and at deepening cultural and tourism linkages and promoting cooperation in a range of disciplines, will enhance the overall relationship between Barbados and Panama,” he suggested. (BGIS)
PM wants closer relationship with Panama
BGIS, Added 15 August 2016
Prime Minister Freundel Stuart. (FP)
PRIME MINISTER Freundel Stuart has expressed the view that the strong ancestral and cultural links connecting Panama to Barbados warrant a strengthening and enhancing of the existing diplomatic relationship.
According to him, this is necessary to “solidify a partnership that is mutually beneficial”. Stuart made the comments in a message today to celebrate Panama Day in Barbados. The Panama Canal was inaugurated on August 15, 1914, and Panama Day pays tribute to those Barbadians who contributed to the construction of the waterway.
The Prime Minister noted that Barbados and Panama have enjoyed a cordial and productive relationship since they established diplomatic relations in August 1975.
“The Government of Barbados recognises that Panama is a reservoir of potential philanthropy, social and political capital and a conduit for trade, investment, and tourism for Barbados. To this end, the Government of Barbados has made a conscious commitment to pursuing all opportunities available in and by way of Panama, and to fully engaging the untapped human capital of Barbadian descendants of Panama in support of this effort. Barbados also embraces the Barbadian Diaspora in Panama,” he stated.
Stuart stressed that Barbados and Panama were forever linked by the Panama Canal. He recalled that at the start of the 20th century, tens of thousands of Barbadians, mainly men, recruited by the Isthmian Canal Commission to work on the construction of the Panama Canal, set out on a journey from their homeland.
He noted that not only did those Barbadians play a pivotal role in what at that time was the world’s most ambitious project to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but they also bolstered this country’s economy through their remittances, at a time of limited prospects for jobs and economic activity at home.
The President of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, visited Barbados last year, and the Prime Minister visited Panama in April 2015 and in June this year for the Inauguration of the Expansion of the Panama Canal.
Stuart underscored the importance of such exchanges. “Visits such as these at the political level, together with increased people-to-people exchanges, have the potential to reap dividends in the future for the peoples of our two countries. The conclusion of agreements aimed at facilitating and boosting trade and other services, and at deepening cultural and tourism linkages and promoting cooperation in a range of disciplines, will enhance the overall relationship between Barbados and Panama,” he suggested. (BGIS)
PM wants closer relationship with Panama
U.N. Admits Role in Cholera Epidemic in Haiti
By JONATHAN M. KATZAUG. 17, 2016
For the first time since a cholera epidemic believed to be imported by United Nations peacekeepers began killing thousands of Haitians nearly six years ago, the office of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has acknowledged that the United Nations played a role in the initial outbreak and that a “significant new set of U.N. actions” will be needed to respond to the crisis.
The deputy spokesman for the secretary general, Farhan Haq, said in an email this week that “over the past year, the U.N. has become convinced that it needs to do much more regarding its own involvement in the initial outbreak and the suffering of those affected by cholera.” He added that a “new response will be presented publicly within the next two months, once it has been fully elaborated, agreed with the Haitian authorities and discussed with member states.”
The statement comes on the heels of a confidential report sent to Mr. Ban by a longtime United Nations adviser on Aug. 8. Written by Philip Alston, a New York University law professor who serves as one of a few dozen experts, known as special rapporteurs, who advise the organization on human rights issues, the draft language stated plainly that the epidemic “would not have broken out but for the actions of the United Nations.”
The secretary general’s acknowledgment, by contrast, stopped short of saying that the United Nations specifically caused the epidemic. Nor does it indicate a change in the organization’s legal position that it is absolutely immune from legal actions, including a federal lawsuit brought in the United States on behalf of cholera victims seeking billions in damages stemming from the Haiti crisis.
But it represents a significant shift after more than five years of high-level denial of any involvement or responsibility of the United Nations in the outbreak, which has killed at least 10,000 people and sickened hundreds of thousands. Cholera victims suffer from dehydration caused by severe diarrhea or vomiting.
Special rapporteurs’ reports are technically independent guidance, which the United Nations can accept or reject. United Nations officials have until the end of this week to respond to the report, which will then go through revisions, but the statement suggests a new receptivity to its criticism.
In the 19-page report, obtained from an official who had access to it, Mr. Alston took issue with the United Nations’ public handling of the outbreak, which was first documented in mid-October 2010, shortly after people living along the Meille River began dying from the disease.
Continue reading the main story
The first victims lived near a base housing 454 United Nations peacekeepers freshly arrived from Nepal, where a cholera outbreak was underway, and waste from the base often leaked into the river. Numerous scientists have since argued that the base was the only plausible source of the outbreak — whose real death toll, one study found, could be much higher than the official numbers state — but United Nations officials have consistently insisted that its origins remain up for debate.
Mr. Alston wrote that the United Nations’ Haiti cholera policy “is morally unconscionable, legally indefensible and politically self-defeating.” He added, “It is also entirely unnecessary.” The organization’s continuing denial and refusal to make reparations to the victims, he argued, “upholds a double standard according to which the U.N. insists that member states respect human rights, while rejecting any such responsibility for itself.”
He said, “It provides highly combustible fuel for those who claim that U.N. peacekeeping operations trample on the rights of those being protected, and it undermines both the U.N.’s overall credibility and the integrity of the Office of the Secretary-General.”
Mr. Alston went beyond criticizing the Department of Peacekeeping Operations to blame the entire United Nations system. “As the magnitude of the disaster became known, key international officials carefully avoided acknowledging that the outbreak had resulted from discharges from the camp,” he noted.
His most severe criticism was reserved for the organization’s Office of Legal Affairs, whose advice, he wrote, “has been permitted to override all of the other considerations that militate so powerfully in favor of seeking a constructive and just solution.” Its interpretations, he said, have “trumped the rule of law.”
Mr. Alston also argued in his report that, as The New York Times hasreported, the United Nations’ cholera eradication program has failed. Infection rates have been rising every year in Haiti since 2014, as the organization struggles to raise the $2.27 billion it says is needed to eradicate the disease from member states. No major water or sanitation projects have been completed in Haiti; two pilot wastewater processing plants built there in the wake of the epidemic quickly closed because of a lack of donor funds.
In a separate internal report released days ago after being withheld for nearly a year, United Nations auditors said a quarter of the sites run by the peacekeepers with the organization’s Stabilization Mission in Haiti, or Minustah, that they had visited were still discharging their waste into public canals as late as 2014, four years after the epidemic began.
“Victims are living in fear because the disease is still out there,” Mario Joseph, a prominent Haitian human rights lawyer representing cholera victims, told demonstrators in Port-au-Prince last month. He added, “If the Nepalese contingent returns to defecate in the water again, they will get the disease again, only worse.”
In 2011, when families of 5,000 Haitian cholera victims petitioned the United Nations for redress, its Office of Legal Affairs simply declared their claims “not receivable.” (Mr. Alston called that argument “wholly unconvincing in legal terms.”)
Those families and others then sued the United Nations, including Mr. Ban and the former Minustah chief Edmond Mulet, in federal court in New York. (In November, Mr. Ban promoted Mr. Mulet to be his chief of staff.) The United Nations refused to appear in court, claiming diplomatic immunity under its charter, leaving Justice Department lawyers to defend it instead. That case is now pending a decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.
The redress demanded by families of the 10,000 people killed and 800,000 affected would reach $40 billion, Mr. Alston wrote — and that figure does not take into account “those certain to die and be infected in the years ahead.”
“Since this is almost five times the total annual budget for peacekeeping worldwide, it is a figure that is understandably seen as prohibitive and unrealistic,” he said. Still, he argued: “The figure of $40 billion should stand as a warning of the consequences that could follow if national courts become convinced that the abdication policy is not just unconscionable but also legally unjustified. The best way to avoid that happening is for the United Nations to offer an appropriate remedy.”
Mr. Alston, who declined to comment for this article, will present the final report at the opening of the General Assembly in September, when presidents, prime ministers and monarchs from nearly every country gather at United Nations headquarters in New York.
Mr. Haq said the secretary general’s office “wanted to take this opportunity to welcome this vital report,” which he added “will be a valuable contribution to the U.N. as we work towards a significant new set of U.N. actions.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/world/americas/united-nations-haiti-cholera.html
By JONATHAN M. KATZAUG. 17, 2016
For the first time since a cholera epidemic believed to be imported by United Nations peacekeepers began killing thousands of Haitians nearly six years ago, the office of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has acknowledged that the United Nations played a role in the initial outbreak and that a “significant new set of U.N. actions” will be needed to respond to the crisis.
The deputy spokesman for the secretary general, Farhan Haq, said in an email this week that “over the past year, the U.N. has become convinced that it needs to do much more regarding its own involvement in the initial outbreak and the suffering of those affected by cholera.” He added that a “new response will be presented publicly within the next two months, once it has been fully elaborated, agreed with the Haitian authorities and discussed with member states.”
The statement comes on the heels of a confidential report sent to Mr. Ban by a longtime United Nations adviser on Aug. 8. Written by Philip Alston, a New York University law professor who serves as one of a few dozen experts, known as special rapporteurs, who advise the organization on human rights issues, the draft language stated plainly that the epidemic “would not have broken out but for the actions of the United Nations.”
The secretary general’s acknowledgment, by contrast, stopped short of saying that the United Nations specifically caused the epidemic. Nor does it indicate a change in the organization’s legal position that it is absolutely immune from legal actions, including a federal lawsuit brought in the United States on behalf of cholera victims seeking billions in damages stemming from the Haiti crisis.
But it represents a significant shift after more than five years of high-level denial of any involvement or responsibility of the United Nations in the outbreak, which has killed at least 10,000 people and sickened hundreds of thousands. Cholera victims suffer from dehydration caused by severe diarrhea or vomiting.
Special rapporteurs’ reports are technically independent guidance, which the United Nations can accept or reject. United Nations officials have until the end of this week to respond to the report, which will then go through revisions, but the statement suggests a new receptivity to its criticism.
In the 19-page report, obtained from an official who had access to it, Mr. Alston took issue with the United Nations’ public handling of the outbreak, which was first documented in mid-October 2010, shortly after people living along the Meille River began dying from the disease.
Continue reading the main story
The first victims lived near a base housing 454 United Nations peacekeepers freshly arrived from Nepal, where a cholera outbreak was underway, and waste from the base often leaked into the river. Numerous scientists have since argued that the base was the only plausible source of the outbreak — whose real death toll, one study found, could be much higher than the official numbers state — but United Nations officials have consistently insisted that its origins remain up for debate.
Mr. Alston wrote that the United Nations’ Haiti cholera policy “is morally unconscionable, legally indefensible and politically self-defeating.” He added, “It is also entirely unnecessary.” The organization’s continuing denial and refusal to make reparations to the victims, he argued, “upholds a double standard according to which the U.N. insists that member states respect human rights, while rejecting any such responsibility for itself.”
He said, “It provides highly combustible fuel for those who claim that U.N. peacekeeping operations trample on the rights of those being protected, and it undermines both the U.N.’s overall credibility and the integrity of the Office of the Secretary-General.”
Mr. Alston went beyond criticizing the Department of Peacekeeping Operations to blame the entire United Nations system. “As the magnitude of the disaster became known, key international officials carefully avoided acknowledging that the outbreak had resulted from discharges from the camp,” he noted.
His most severe criticism was reserved for the organization’s Office of Legal Affairs, whose advice, he wrote, “has been permitted to override all of the other considerations that militate so powerfully in favor of seeking a constructive and just solution.” Its interpretations, he said, have “trumped the rule of law.”
Mr. Alston also argued in his report that, as The New York Times hasreported, the United Nations’ cholera eradication program has failed. Infection rates have been rising every year in Haiti since 2014, as the organization struggles to raise the $2.27 billion it says is needed to eradicate the disease from member states. No major water or sanitation projects have been completed in Haiti; two pilot wastewater processing plants built there in the wake of the epidemic quickly closed because of a lack of donor funds.
In a separate internal report released days ago after being withheld for nearly a year, United Nations auditors said a quarter of the sites run by the peacekeepers with the organization’s Stabilization Mission in Haiti, or Minustah, that they had visited were still discharging their waste into public canals as late as 2014, four years after the epidemic began.
“Victims are living in fear because the disease is still out there,” Mario Joseph, a prominent Haitian human rights lawyer representing cholera victims, told demonstrators in Port-au-Prince last month. He added, “If the Nepalese contingent returns to defecate in the water again, they will get the disease again, only worse.”
In 2011, when families of 5,000 Haitian cholera victims petitioned the United Nations for redress, its Office of Legal Affairs simply declared their claims “not receivable.” (Mr. Alston called that argument “wholly unconvincing in legal terms.”)
Those families and others then sued the United Nations, including Mr. Ban and the former Minustah chief Edmond Mulet, in federal court in New York. (In November, Mr. Ban promoted Mr. Mulet to be his chief of staff.) The United Nations refused to appear in court, claiming diplomatic immunity under its charter, leaving Justice Department lawyers to defend it instead. That case is now pending a decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.
The redress demanded by families of the 10,000 people killed and 800,000 affected would reach $40 billion, Mr. Alston wrote — and that figure does not take into account “those certain to die and be infected in the years ahead.”
“Since this is almost five times the total annual budget for peacekeeping worldwide, it is a figure that is understandably seen as prohibitive and unrealistic,” he said. Still, he argued: “The figure of $40 billion should stand as a warning of the consequences that could follow if national courts become convinced that the abdication policy is not just unconscionable but also legally unjustified. The best way to avoid that happening is for the United Nations to offer an appropriate remedy.”
Mr. Alston, who declined to comment for this article, will present the final report at the opening of the General Assembly in September, when presidents, prime ministers and monarchs from nearly every country gather at United Nations headquarters in New York.
Mr. Haq said the secretary general’s office “wanted to take this opportunity to welcome this vital report,” which he added “will be a valuable contribution to the U.N. as we work towards a significant new set of U.N. actions.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/world/americas/united-nations-haiti-cholera.html
Curaçao Slave Revolt Hero Tula Honoured In The Netherlands
Published On: Thu, Aug 18th, 2016
AMSTERDAM–Leader and hero of the August 1795 slave revolt in Curaçao Tula was commemorated and honoured during a special gathering at the Amsterdam City Hall on Wednesday.
The very well attended evening with dance, speeches, a monologue and debate was organised by the National Institute for the History of Dutch Slavery and its Legacy NiNsee together with the Antillean Network Association VAN, in cooperation with the City of Amsterdam.Tula was the leader of one of the largest slave revolts in the Dutch Caribbean. On August 17, 1795, several dozen slaves, lead by Tula, put down their work on the Knip Plantation in the western part of Curaçao. A sizable group of military was dispatched on the order of the colonial authorities in Willemstad. The group of slaves attacked several other plantations in Banda Bou. The action soon turned into a violent struggle that claimed several lives. Tula asked for the slaves in Curaçao to be freed just as the slaves in Haiti were when the French abolished slavery and since the Netherlands was occupied by the French, the abolition of slavery should apply to Curaçao as well.
Tula and the other leader, Bastiaan Karpata, were arrested on September 19 and on October 3 they were executed at Rif, their heads placed on a pale and bodies thrown into the sea. A third instrumental person in the revolt, Pedro Wacao, was also executed and 29 other slaves were hanged. To this day, the 1795 slave revolt is commemorated as the start of a long and hard process of the emancipation of the Curaçao people.
This emancipation process, the importance of eradicating racism and fighting for equality were recurring phrases during the event in Amsterdam on Wednesday evening in the speeches by NiNsee Chairman Antoin Deul, Dutch Caribbean organisation Foundation Ocan Glenn Helberg and spoken words artist/poet Gershwin Bonevacia, as well as the panel debate.
Deul and Helberg drew a comparison to slavery, oppression and the initiative law proposal of Member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament André Bosman of the liberal democratic VVD party which seeks to restrict the admittance of new immigrants from Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten to the Netherlands. This law is slated to be handled in Parliament next month.
“A civilised country doesn’t have admittance regulations for citizens of countries that are in the same Kingdom. A civilised country offers formal apologies for 400 years of slavery and goes over to reparation payment,” said Deul.
“Is it treason if I implore on the Dutch politicians not to treat people from the Dutch Caribbean as second class citizens?” asked Helberg, referring to the title of his keynote address: Tula, a traitor or changer? He asked everyone to look in the mirror and decide for themselves who they were: a traitor or a changer, someone who progressed at the expense of others or someone who looked for new paths that would benefit the future generations.
Deul wanted to know why there was still no real recognition for the Dutch slave trade, why to this day there was still racism and why a white life was still worth more than a black life. He said it was up to the people with slaves as their ancestors to force equality and true freedom of the people, a matter which Deul said NiNsee would again bring to the attention of the Dutch Government.
Tula fought for freedom and equality. What drove him to do so, asked speakers Deul and Helberg. “Nowadays we would call Tula a human rights activist. He had a clear goal, he had ideals and felt responsibility. He wanted freedom and equality for his people. He was a man of change. But, like anyone who fights for change, he was met with resistance and seen as a traitor by the establishment and executed as a traitor,” said Helberg, who called Tula one of the great men of this world.
Deul painted a picture of a wise man who knew several languages, who along with an army of some 2,000 slaves and freed slaves fought a hard and smart battle for five days against a cruel colonial regime. “He wasn’t prepared to stand down because he was convinced that freedom and equality was a right of everyone.”
Poet Gershwin Bonevacia spoke of Tula as his source of inspiration to carry on the struggle of true freedom and equality for the descendants of slaves. “Centuries later, our brothers are still in living in captivity.” Stylist and artist Laurindo Andrea shared a monologue with Tula, an imaginary meeting with the revolt leader in which they spoke of the struggle of the people, back in 1795 and nowadays. He thanked Tula for his inspiration and said that he would continue the struggle.
Wednesday’s event was not the only one that was organised in honour of Tula and the great slave rebellion. Last Sunday, August 14, Tula was commemorated in a musical way during the 19th edition of the Amsterdam Canal Festival. There were performances of ZO Gospel Choir and singers Shirma Rouse from St. Eustatius and Giovanca from Curaçao.
On August 27, the Dutch Caribbean organisation Foundation ProFor, in cooperation with NiNsee, will dedicate attention to heroes Tula, Bastiaan Karpata, Pedro Wacao and others who gave their lives for the liberation of slaves.
Through the so-called Tula Table, ProFor wants to promote the sharing of information on the slave revolt heroes and slavery in general. Joan de Windt will organise a workshop about slavery. A panel discussion will be held after the showing of the movie Buchi Fiel, which tells the story of a Curaçao slave. Financial support for the event was granted by the City of Amsterdam.
Source: The Daily Herald
Curaçao slave revolt hero Tula honoured in the Netherlands
Published On: Thu, Aug 18th, 2016
AMSTERDAM–Leader and hero of the August 1795 slave revolt in Curaçao Tula was commemorated and honoured during a special gathering at the Amsterdam City Hall on Wednesday.
The very well attended evening with dance, speeches, a monologue and debate was organised by the National Institute for the History of Dutch Slavery and its Legacy NiNsee together with the Antillean Network Association VAN, in cooperation with the City of Amsterdam.Tula was the leader of one of the largest slave revolts in the Dutch Caribbean. On August 17, 1795, several dozen slaves, lead by Tula, put down their work on the Knip Plantation in the western part of Curaçao. A sizable group of military was dispatched on the order of the colonial authorities in Willemstad. The group of slaves attacked several other plantations in Banda Bou. The action soon turned into a violent struggle that claimed several lives. Tula asked for the slaves in Curaçao to be freed just as the slaves in Haiti were when the French abolished slavery and since the Netherlands was occupied by the French, the abolition of slavery should apply to Curaçao as well.
Tula and the other leader, Bastiaan Karpata, were arrested on September 19 and on October 3 they were executed at Rif, their heads placed on a pale and bodies thrown into the sea. A third instrumental person in the revolt, Pedro Wacao, was also executed and 29 other slaves were hanged. To this day, the 1795 slave revolt is commemorated as the start of a long and hard process of the emancipation of the Curaçao people.
This emancipation process, the importance of eradicating racism and fighting for equality were recurring phrases during the event in Amsterdam on Wednesday evening in the speeches by NiNsee Chairman Antoin Deul, Dutch Caribbean organisation Foundation Ocan Glenn Helberg and spoken words artist/poet Gershwin Bonevacia, as well as the panel debate.
Deul and Helberg drew a comparison to slavery, oppression and the initiative law proposal of Member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament André Bosman of the liberal democratic VVD party which seeks to restrict the admittance of new immigrants from Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten to the Netherlands. This law is slated to be handled in Parliament next month.
“A civilised country doesn’t have admittance regulations for citizens of countries that are in the same Kingdom. A civilised country offers formal apologies for 400 years of slavery and goes over to reparation payment,” said Deul.
“Is it treason if I implore on the Dutch politicians not to treat people from the Dutch Caribbean as second class citizens?” asked Helberg, referring to the title of his keynote address: Tula, a traitor or changer? He asked everyone to look in the mirror and decide for themselves who they were: a traitor or a changer, someone who progressed at the expense of others or someone who looked for new paths that would benefit the future generations.
Deul wanted to know why there was still no real recognition for the Dutch slave trade, why to this day there was still racism and why a white life was still worth more than a black life. He said it was up to the people with slaves as their ancestors to force equality and true freedom of the people, a matter which Deul said NiNsee would again bring to the attention of the Dutch Government.
Tula fought for freedom and equality. What drove him to do so, asked speakers Deul and Helberg. “Nowadays we would call Tula a human rights activist. He had a clear goal, he had ideals and felt responsibility. He wanted freedom and equality for his people. He was a man of change. But, like anyone who fights for change, he was met with resistance and seen as a traitor by the establishment and executed as a traitor,” said Helberg, who called Tula one of the great men of this world.
Deul painted a picture of a wise man who knew several languages, who along with an army of some 2,000 slaves and freed slaves fought a hard and smart battle for five days against a cruel colonial regime. “He wasn’t prepared to stand down because he was convinced that freedom and equality was a right of everyone.”
Poet Gershwin Bonevacia spoke of Tula as his source of inspiration to carry on the struggle of true freedom and equality for the descendants of slaves. “Centuries later, our brothers are still in living in captivity.” Stylist and artist Laurindo Andrea shared a monologue with Tula, an imaginary meeting with the revolt leader in which they spoke of the struggle of the people, back in 1795 and nowadays. He thanked Tula for his inspiration and said that he would continue the struggle.
Wednesday’s event was not the only one that was organised in honour of Tula and the great slave rebellion. Last Sunday, August 14, Tula was commemorated in a musical way during the 19th edition of the Amsterdam Canal Festival. There were performances of ZO Gospel Choir and singers Shirma Rouse from St. Eustatius and Giovanca from Curaçao.
On August 27, the Dutch Caribbean organisation Foundation ProFor, in cooperation with NiNsee, will dedicate attention to heroes Tula, Bastiaan Karpata, Pedro Wacao and others who gave their lives for the liberation of slaves.
Through the so-called Tula Table, ProFor wants to promote the sharing of information on the slave revolt heroes and slavery in general. Joan de Windt will organise a workshop about slavery. A panel discussion will be held after the showing of the movie Buchi Fiel, which tells the story of a Curaçao slave. Financial support for the event was granted by the City of Amsterdam.
Source: The Daily Herald
Curaçao slave revolt hero Tula honoured in the Netherlands
Shout out KòrsouCuraçao Slave Revolt Hero Tula Honoured In The Netherlands
Published On: Thu, Aug 18th, 2016
AMSTERDAM–Leader and hero of the August 1795 slave revolt in Curaçao Tula was commemorated and honoured during a special gathering at the Amsterdam City Hall on Wednesday.
The very well attended evening with dance, speeches, a monologue and debate was organised by the National Institute for the History of Dutch Slavery and its Legacy NiNsee together with the Antillean Network Association VAN, in cooperation with the City of Amsterdam.Tula was the leader of one of the largest slave revolts in the Dutch Caribbean. On August 17, 1795, several dozen slaves, lead by Tula, put down their work on the Knip Plantation in the western part of Curaçao. A sizable group of military was dispatched on the order of the colonial authorities in Willemstad. The group of slaves attacked several other plantations in Banda Bou. The action soon turned into a violent struggle that claimed several lives. Tula asked for the slaves in Curaçao to be freed just as the slaves in Haiti were when the French abolished slavery and since the Netherlands was occupied by the French, the abolition of slavery should apply to Curaçao as well.
Tula and the other leader, Bastiaan Karpata, were arrested on September 19 and on October 3 they were executed at Rif, their heads placed on a pale and bodies thrown into the sea. A third instrumental person in the revolt, Pedro Wacao, was also executed and 29 other slaves were hanged. To this day, the 1795 slave revolt is commemorated as the start of a long and hard process of the emancipation of the Curaçao people.
This emancipation process, the importance of eradicating racism and fighting for equality were recurring phrases during the event in Amsterdam on Wednesday evening in the speeches by NiNsee Chairman Antoin Deul, Dutch Caribbean organisation Foundation Ocan Glenn Helberg and spoken words artist/poet Gershwin Bonevacia, as well as the panel debate.
Deul and Helberg drew a comparison to slavery, oppression and the initiative law proposal of Member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament André Bosman of the liberal democratic VVD party which seeks to restrict the admittance of new immigrants from Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten to the Netherlands. This law is slated to be handled in Parliament next month.
“A civilised country doesn’t have admittance regulations for citizens of countries that are in the same Kingdom. A civilised country offers formal apologies for 400 years of slavery and goes over to reparation payment,” said Deul.
“Is it treason if I implore on the Dutch politicians not to treat people from the Dutch Caribbean as second class citizens?” asked Helberg, referring to the title of his keynote address: Tula, a traitor or changer? He asked everyone to look in the mirror and decide for themselves who they were: a traitor or a changer, someone who progressed at the expense of others or someone who looked for new paths that would benefit the future generations.
Deul wanted to know why there was still no real recognition for the Dutch slave trade, why to this day there was still racism and why a white life was still worth more than a black life. He said it was up to the people with slaves as their ancestors to force equality and true freedom of the people, a matter which Deul said NiNsee would again bring to the attention of the Dutch Government.
Tula fought for freedom and equality. What drove him to do so, asked speakers Deul and Helberg. “Nowadays we would call Tula a human rights activist. He had a clear goal, he had ideals and felt responsibility. He wanted freedom and equality for his people. He was a man of change. But, like anyone who fights for change, he was met with resistance and seen as a traitor by the establishment and executed as a traitor,” said Helberg, who called Tula one of the great men of this world.
Deul painted a picture of a wise man who knew several languages, who along with an army of some 2,000 slaves and freed slaves fought a hard and smart battle for five days against a cruel colonial regime. “He wasn’t prepared to stand down because he was convinced that freedom and equality was a right of everyone.”
Poet Gershwin Bonevacia spoke of Tula as his source of inspiration to carry on the struggle of true freedom and equality for the descendants of slaves. “Centuries later, our brothers are still in living in captivity.” Stylist and artist Laurindo Andrea shared a monologue with Tula, an imaginary meeting with the revolt leader in which they spoke of the struggle of the people, back in 1795 and nowadays. He thanked Tula for his inspiration and said that he would continue the struggle.
Wednesday’s event was not the only one that was organised in honour of Tula and the great slave rebellion. Last Sunday, August 14, Tula was commemorated in a musical way during the 19th edition of the Amsterdam Canal Festival. There were performances of ZO Gospel Choir and singers Shirma Rouse from St. Eustatius and Giovanca from Curaçao.
On August 27, the Dutch Caribbean organisation Foundation ProFor, in cooperation with NiNsee, will dedicate attention to heroes Tula, Bastiaan Karpata, Pedro Wacao and others who gave their lives for the liberation of slaves.
Through the so-called Tula Table, ProFor wants to promote the sharing of information on the slave revolt heroes and slavery in general. Joan de Windt will organise a workshop about slavery. A panel discussion will be held after the showing of the movie Buchi Fiel, which tells the story of a Curaçao slave. Financial support for the event was granted by the City of Amsterdam.
Source: The Daily Herald
Curaçao slave revolt hero Tula honoured in the Netherlands
Afro-Colombians Maintain General Strike for Economic Justice
According to a 2014 report by Colombia's ombudsman, 36 percent of the children in Choco did not have a healthy size for their age and weight. | Photo: EFE
Published 18 August 2016
Afro-Colombians in the Choco province are holding a general strike to draw attention to the area's extreme poverty and state neglect.
Businesses, transports and schools were all paralyzed for the second consecutive day on Thursday in Colombia's Pacific province of Choco, an overwhelmingly Afro-Colombian province that the state has ignored for decades, leaving its immense natural resources in the hands of careless mining companies.
RELATED: ChocQuibTown Puts Colombian Pacific Music on the Map
The Civic Committee for Salvation and Dignity, which called the general strike, is demanding “a systematic review of the economic model” that converted their department into Colombia's “most left behind despite being the wealthiest of the universe.”
The committee argues that the state has failed to comply with agreements reached in the past (1987, 1994, 2000, 2009), as the province still lacks the basic infrastructures and public services: roads to the main cities are commonly referred to as “the death roads” because of the high rate of lethal accidents, while drinking water and electricity are not available in many parts of the province—13 districts out of 30 only have electricity a few hours per day.
They are also urging the government to provide proper education and health services. The province only has one functioning hospital—which is going bankrupt.
Those factors combined have led the Choco to be the poorest province in the country—almost 63 percent of its residents live in poverty, according to the official estimate, while it has the highest rate of child malnutrition.
Although Colombia's ombudsman denounced the status quo in his last report on Choco's human rights situation, the government still denies any wrongdoing and refused to meet with the protesters until late Thursday, finally sending the vice minister of interior to Quibdo, the province's capital, in order to start negotiations. The committee warned they would maintain the strike until agreement is reached on concrete measures to improve life for the province's people.
Afro-Colombians Maintain General Strike for Economic Justice
According to a 2014 report by Colombia's ombudsman, 36 percent of the children in Choco did not have a healthy size for their age and weight. | Photo: EFE
Published 18 August 2016
Afro-Colombians in the Choco province are holding a general strike to draw attention to the area's extreme poverty and state neglect.
Businesses, transports and schools were all paralyzed for the second consecutive day on Thursday in Colombia's Pacific province of Choco, an overwhelmingly Afro-Colombian province that the state has ignored for decades, leaving its immense natural resources in the hands of careless mining companies.
RELATED: ChocQuibTown Puts Colombian Pacific Music on the Map
The Civic Committee for Salvation and Dignity, which called the general strike, is demanding “a systematic review of the economic model” that converted their department into Colombia's “most left behind despite being the wealthiest of the universe.”
The committee argues that the state has failed to comply with agreements reached in the past (1987, 1994, 2000, 2009), as the province still lacks the basic infrastructures and public services: roads to the main cities are commonly referred to as “the death roads” because of the high rate of lethal accidents, while drinking water and electricity are not available in many parts of the province—13 districts out of 30 only have electricity a few hours per day.
They are also urging the government to provide proper education and health services. The province only has one functioning hospital—which is going bankrupt.
Those factors combined have led the Choco to be the poorest province in the country—almost 63 percent of its residents live in poverty, according to the official estimate, while it has the highest rate of child malnutrition.
Although Colombia's ombudsman denounced the status quo in his last report on Choco's human rights situation, the government still denies any wrongdoing and refused to meet with the protesters until late Thursday, finally sending the vice minister of interior to Quibdo, the province's capital, in order to start negotiations. The committee warned they would maintain the strike until agreement is reached on concrete measures to improve life for the province's people.
Afro-Colombians Maintain General Strike for Economic Justice
Plans for bridge between St Kitts and Nevis
SKNIS, Added 19 August 2016
Minister of Public Infrastructure Ian "Patches" Liburd. (FP)
BASSETERRE – Proposals are being considered by the federal Cabinet to construct a bridge to connect St Kitts and Nevis which would bring greater ease of travel between the twin-islands.
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“I commit to you that as the Minister of Public Infrastructure that I will drive that [initiative],” he said, to much applause from the audience. “And I know I have the full support of the entire Cabinet and the Minister of Finance [Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris].”
Minister Liburd said this project would bring the peoples of the islands closer together and facilitate greater inter-island travel. He referenced plans that the Federal Cabinet already had of alternating meetings between St Kitts and Nevis.
Last September, the Independence State Service was held in Nevis and Prime Minister Harris announced that one of the events for the 33rd Independence celebrations would be held in Nevis in September. Officials also pointed to a predicted increase in economic activity and suggested that a greater distribution of such would take place between the two islands if there were a bridge.
Minister Liburd said he expects the project to be completed before the end of the first term of the Government of National Unity, which constitutionally ends in 2020. (SKNIS)
Plans for bridge between St Kitts and Nevis
SKNIS, Added 19 August 2016
Minister of Public Infrastructure Ian "Patches" Liburd. (FP)
BASSETERRE – Proposals are being considered by the federal Cabinet to construct a bridge to connect St Kitts and Nevis which would bring greater ease of travel between the twin-islands.
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“I commit to you that as the Minister of Public Infrastructure that I will drive that [initiative],” he said, to much applause from the audience. “And I know I have the full support of the entire Cabinet and the Minister of Finance [Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris].”
Minister Liburd said this project would bring the peoples of the islands closer together and facilitate greater inter-island travel. He referenced plans that the Federal Cabinet already had of alternating meetings between St Kitts and Nevis.
Last September, the Independence State Service was held in Nevis and Prime Minister Harris announced that one of the events for the 33rd Independence celebrations would be held in Nevis in September. Officials also pointed to a predicted increase in economic activity and suggested that a greater distribution of such would take place between the two islands if there were a bridge.
Minister Liburd said he expects the project to be completed before the end of the first term of the Government of National Unity, which constitutionally ends in 2020. (SKNIS)
Plans for bridge between St Kitts and Nevis
Granger promises 1823 Demerara Revolt memorial at Parade Ground; critics justify recognising current monument
Posted by: Denis Chabrol in Culture, News | August 20, 2016
President David Granger announced that Government will erect in remembrance of the executions of more than 200 Africans, during the Demerara Revolt 1823, during his address at the Commemorative Ceremony at the Monument on Atlantic Avenue.
Under intense pressure from sections of the Afro-Guyanese community to construct a monument at Independence Park (Parade Ground) where slaves who fought in the 1823 Demerara Revolt were executed, President David Granger on Saturday announced that a memorial would be built there.
“The government will erect a memorial at Independence Park to commemorate these executions. Future generations must not forget that freedom was bought at a high price, the price of martyrdom of hundreds of Africans on the 20th of August, 1823,” he said. No time frame was given.
Saturday marks the 193rd anniversary of the killing of hundreds of Africans, two days after the revolt had begun and 10 years before Britain had legally abolished slavery with the passage of the Emancipation Act. “This atrocity, the arrests and subsequent executions at the Militia Parade Ground and elsewhere were, perhaps, the single most significant event to hasten the abolition of slavery in the British colonies. The Demerara Revolt was the turning point in slave society and is commemorated today as one of the most important events in Guyanese and Caribbean history,” said Granger, a former military officer and historian.
The 1823 Coalition for the Parade Ground Monument, which had vehemently opposed the construction of the existing monument at the Kitty Seawall by the then People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) government, welcomed Granger’s announcement and buckled into recognising the current monument.
Executive Member of the African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA), Violet Baptiste applauded Granger for announcing that a memorial would be built at Parade Ground. “We have struggled long and hard to get the government to acknowledge Parade Ground as a historical site and now that President Granger has done that, I think we are on the right track,” she told Demerara Waves Online News. She hailed the President’s decision to attend the commemorative activity at the Kitty Seawall-based monument, saying that that revolt was a major blow to slavery in the British colonies. Baptiste credited Granger with consulting and reasoning with representatives of the Afro-Guyanese community after they learnt that he was planning to speak at the Kitty Seawall.
Head of the Coalition, Rudy Guyan said the President has acknowledged a monument at Bachelor’s Adventure where slaves were killed during an uprising in 1823. Guyan said the monument at the Kitty Seawall recognises the decapitation of slaves’ heads and placed along the East Coast Demerara. “I don’t think anything was done sufficiently to address that. This monument ironically should be addressing that. It is facing the east; it is facing the direction where those things happen and we should acknowledge the place of this monument in that particular episode of the 1823 Revolution,” he said.
He welcomed announcement by the President that a memorial would be built at Parade Ground where mock trials were held, slaves heads were cut off and placed around that open space. “We are saying before the President we were confused about this particular two episodes. Now we are clear that we have given support to every section of the remembrance of the murders of our people in 1823 Revolution so there is no contradiction. This monument here doesn’t represent a contradiction but it represents a well-meaningful addition to the remembrance of our people,” he said.
Guyan assured that the monument at Parade Ground would not merely be a piece of concrete, but would include an area that would provide meaningful education to Guyanese concerning the country’s history.
Executive member of the 1823 Coalition for the Parade Ground Monument, Dr. Melissa Ifill remained adamant that Granger should not have spoken at the monument. She claimed that the President opted to speak at the 1823 Monument after he refused an invitation to speak at a commemorative event by an African village because the the small monument the village had built to commemorate the rebellion was rudimentary and was situated around a pig pen so the area was ‘smelly’ and wasn’t befitting of a ‘national’ commemoration and certainly not worthy of his presence.
“Ah the contempt for poor/working class people and their genuine efforts continue unabated in this land of ours. Do you know where is worthy of the president’s presence and speech? Yes, you guessed it .. the Monument built by the PPP, that was vehemently protested by African Guyanese that Granger himself criticized when he was opposition leader and seeking votes.
The same government that Granger had accused of murdering hundreds of young Afro-Guyanese men and discriminating against African Guyanese … yes, that one. why? well because it cost 50 million of our dollars to build and as head of the government he can’t ignore a monument built by government with taxpayers dollars. I’m speechless. Guyana got many, many problems and I will say it – this APNU-AFC government is one of them,” said Ifill on her Facebook profile.
The Coalition Head, however, labelled Ifill’s stance “an opinion of the past” and noted that she was absent from a meeting with President Granger earlier this week when it was explained that the current monument at the Kitty Seawall respects and acknowledges Afro-Guyanese history while not negating what would be built at Parade Ground. “Anything that negates the Parade Ground I will not support. In fact it gives that drive, it gives that urgency to what we will do at the Parade Ground,” he said. Guyan believed that if Ifill was in the meeting with Granger “she would have reformed her opinion.”
Granger promises 1823 Demerara Revolt memorial at Parade Ground; critics justify recognising current monument
Posted by: Denis Chabrol in Culture, News | August 20, 2016
President David Granger announced that Government will erect in remembrance of the executions of more than 200 Africans, during the Demerara Revolt 1823, during his address at the Commemorative Ceremony at the Monument on Atlantic Avenue.
Under intense pressure from sections of the Afro-Guyanese community to construct a monument at Independence Park (Parade Ground) where slaves who fought in the 1823 Demerara Revolt were executed, President David Granger on Saturday announced that a memorial would be built there.
“The government will erect a memorial at Independence Park to commemorate these executions. Future generations must not forget that freedom was bought at a high price, the price of martyrdom of hundreds of Africans on the 20th of August, 1823,” he said. No time frame was given.
Saturday marks the 193rd anniversary of the killing of hundreds of Africans, two days after the revolt had begun and 10 years before Britain had legally abolished slavery with the passage of the Emancipation Act. “This atrocity, the arrests and subsequent executions at the Militia Parade Ground and elsewhere were, perhaps, the single most significant event to hasten the abolition of slavery in the British colonies. The Demerara Revolt was the turning point in slave society and is commemorated today as one of the most important events in Guyanese and Caribbean history,” said Granger, a former military officer and historian.
The 1823 Coalition for the Parade Ground Monument, which had vehemently opposed the construction of the existing monument at the Kitty Seawall by the then People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) government, welcomed Granger’s announcement and buckled into recognising the current monument.
Executive Member of the African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA), Violet Baptiste applauded Granger for announcing that a memorial would be built at Parade Ground. “We have struggled long and hard to get the government to acknowledge Parade Ground as a historical site and now that President Granger has done that, I think we are on the right track,” she told Demerara Waves Online News. She hailed the President’s decision to attend the commemorative activity at the Kitty Seawall-based monument, saying that that revolt was a major blow to slavery in the British colonies. Baptiste credited Granger with consulting and reasoning with representatives of the Afro-Guyanese community after they learnt that he was planning to speak at the Kitty Seawall.
Head of the Coalition, Rudy Guyan said the President has acknowledged a monument at Bachelor’s Adventure where slaves were killed during an uprising in 1823. Guyan said the monument at the Kitty Seawall recognises the decapitation of slaves’ heads and placed along the East Coast Demerara. “I don’t think anything was done sufficiently to address that. This monument ironically should be addressing that. It is facing the east; it is facing the direction where those things happen and we should acknowledge the place of this monument in that particular episode of the 1823 Revolution,” he said.
He welcomed announcement by the President that a memorial would be built at Parade Ground where mock trials were held, slaves heads were cut off and placed around that open space. “We are saying before the President we were confused about this particular two episodes. Now we are clear that we have given support to every section of the remembrance of the murders of our people in 1823 Revolution so there is no contradiction. This monument here doesn’t represent a contradiction but it represents a well-meaningful addition to the remembrance of our people,” he said.
Guyan assured that the monument at Parade Ground would not merely be a piece of concrete, but would include an area that would provide meaningful education to Guyanese concerning the country’s history.
Executive member of the 1823 Coalition for the Parade Ground Monument, Dr. Melissa Ifill remained adamant that Granger should not have spoken at the monument. She claimed that the President opted to speak at the 1823 Monument after he refused an invitation to speak at a commemorative event by an African village because the the small monument the village had built to commemorate the rebellion was rudimentary and was situated around a pig pen so the area was ‘smelly’ and wasn’t befitting of a ‘national’ commemoration and certainly not worthy of his presence.
“Ah the contempt for poor/working class people and their genuine efforts continue unabated in this land of ours. Do you know where is worthy of the president’s presence and speech? Yes, you guessed it .. the Monument built by the PPP, that was vehemently protested by African Guyanese that Granger himself criticized when he was opposition leader and seeking votes.
The same government that Granger had accused of murdering hundreds of young Afro-Guyanese men and discriminating against African Guyanese … yes, that one. why? well because it cost 50 million of our dollars to build and as head of the government he can’t ignore a monument built by government with taxpayers dollars. I’m speechless. Guyana got many, many problems and I will say it – this APNU-AFC government is one of them,” said Ifill on her Facebook profile.
The Coalition Head, however, labelled Ifill’s stance “an opinion of the past” and noted that she was absent from a meeting with President Granger earlier this week when it was explained that the current monument at the Kitty Seawall respects and acknowledges Afro-Guyanese history while not negating what would be built at Parade Ground. “Anything that negates the Parade Ground I will not support. In fact it gives that drive, it gives that urgency to what we will do at the Parade Ground,” he said. Guyan believed that if Ifill was in the meeting with Granger “she would have reformed her opinion.”
Granger promises 1823 Demerara Revolt memorial at Parade Ground; critics justify recognising current monument