Syrian Civilian Deaths Undermine Arab League Mission
Syrian security forces are said to have killed at least seven protesters Sunday, as an Arab League advisory body called for the immediate withdrawal of monitors from the country. The advisory groups says the observers are failing to prevent government troops from killing civilians.
Four of the deaths Sunday came when troops loyal to embattled President Bashar al-Assad attacked protesters in the Damascus suburb of Daria. Other civilian casualties were reported in Homs.
Activists say more than 150 people have been killed across the country since the observers began their one-month mission last week.
The Arab Parliament – an 88-member committee of delegates from Arab League states – said the violence is continuing to claim many victims, including children. Speaker Ali al-Salem al-Dekbas said monitors should pull out immediately, given the ongoing violence.
The parliament operates separately from the Arab League and its recommendations are nonbinding.
Activists have accused the government of posting snipers on rooftops, an issue that appears to have triggered a dispute among observers on the ground in Syria.
One monitor filmed in Daraa said his group had seen snipers and would ask authorities to remove them immediately or face consequences. But the observer mission's head, Sudanese General Mohammed al-Dabi, later said the monitor seen in the video was making a hypothetical remark and had been misinterpreted.
Dabi, a veteran military intelligence officer, is a controversial figure because he served under Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes allegedly committed in the Darfur region.
The Arab League is scheduled to dispatch additional observers to Syria later this week, and it is not clear what impact the Arab lawmaker's call will have on the planned deployment.
The United Nations estimates that more than 5,000 people have been killed in Syria since March during a crackdown on protests inspired by the Arab Spring democracy movement. The Assad government claims armed terrorists are driving the revolt.
Syrian authorities, under increasing international pressure, agreed last month to allow Arab League monitors into the country. The deal required the government to give monitors freedom of movement through most of the country except for sensitive military sites.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said Saturday the recent violence has left hundreds of people dead or wounded and many others in military custody.
Twelve persons missing from detention centre, off Haitian sloop
On Wednesday 28th December at approximately 3:30 p.m. that the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police intercepted a Haitian sloop approximately seven miles to the North East of French Cay, carrying prospective irregular entrants to the TCI.
"A total of 117 persons were aboard - some 90 males, 21 females and six female children.
In an update to a story carried earlier by RTC news,“A total of 112 of the 117 passengers on the sloop which arrived here on Wednesday have been repatriated so far.
“The children were received Friday by IoM officials in Haiti to be looked after in safety while their families are traced. There were ten children in total rather than the six initially identified.
“It can be confirmed that an illegal Haitian vessel was seen two miles off French Cay on Friday morning, was intercepted, and towed to South Dock. The initial passenger count was put at 135. No children were identified.
“It can also be confirmed that twelve people have escaped the detention centre.
RTC News will have more details on this news item later.
One million visitors to the TCI
The Turks and Caicos Islands celebrated its one millionth visitor this month - and a week of activities will take place across the country to celebrate the milestone.
Tourism partners gathered this week to announce the upcoming special events.
Director of Tourism Ralph Higgs said: “This milestone proves that the Turks and Caicos Islands continue to be a preferred destination for many travellers.
“The week of activities will give us the opportunity to celebrate this special occasion with our1,000,000th and 1,000,001thvisitors, arriving on Grand Turk and Providenciales respectively.”
The third quarter of this year saw a massive 17 per cent increase in cruise and land based arrivals compared to 2010.
Arrivals totalled 204,084, with 78,711 land based arrivals and 125,373 cruise arrivals, while in 2010 the destination welcomed just 174,302 visitors.
Promotional and marketing efforts by the Tourist Board along with the Turks and Caicos Hotel and Tourism Association, TCI Airports Authority and Grand Turk Cruise Centre are heralded as partly responsible for the rise.
The celebratory week of activities will begin on December 26 at the Turks and Caicos Hotel and Tourism Association’s (TCHTA) second annual Maskanoo event in Grace Bay.
TCHTA’sassociation executive Stacy Cox said: “We are looking forward to being part of this significant milestone and are honoured to be promoting the week of activities at Maskanoo.
“We’re encouraging everyone attending Maskanoo to visit the Tourist Board’s booth to learn more about the ‘1,000,000 and Counting – 2011’ celebrations.
“TCHTA would like to thank our hotelmembers who will be providing visitors with rum and fruit punch when they arrive at the ProvidencialesInternational Airport on December 27 until December 30.
“We would like to also thank Bambarra for providing rum cakes on these days as well.”
On December 31, the country’s capital will be the first to celebrate as representatives from the Grand Turk Cruise Centre welcome the 1,000,000th visitor.
John Young of the Grand Turk Cruise Centre said: “2011 has been a very active year for the Cruise Centre.
“There have been some remarkable developments as it relates to cruise tourism in TCI, including the recently passed legislation which allows same day marriages for cruise ship passengers.
“We all hope that this new initiative will see us continue the growth and see more cruise passengers returning to enjoy the islands for longer stays.”
Providenciales will then celebrate as it welcomes the 1,000,001st visitor arriving on board JetBlue.
JetBlue,whose inaugural flight to the TCI took place in February 2011, will be providing the lucky passenger with a return ticket to the destination.
John Smith, CEO for the Turks and Caicos Islands Aviation Authority, played a very instrumental role in securing this new service to the destination.
He said: “The Airports Authority is always eager to promote the destination and 2011 has been very rewarding.
“We saw the arrival of Continental Airlines and JetBlue as well as Caicos Express and we look forward to more airlines coming on board.
“Without the demand these flights would not be possible so we thank every visitor to the Turks and Caicos Islands.”
The Delivery of TCIG Services in the Family Islands responses requested by 29 February 2012
This document seeks views on possible changes in the way in which TCI Government (TCIG) services are delivered in the ‘Family Islands’: North, Middle and South Caicos and Salt Cay. In particular it seeks views and comments on the suggestions that:
1) all TCIG services in these islands should be delivered by a single team of public servants led by the District Commissioner (‘one-stop shops’), and
2) TCIG should encourage the creation of informal and unremunerated groups of concerned citizens
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to give advice to the District Commissioner and his/her team,
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to facilitate communication between that team and the community, and
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to encourage a degree of community spirit and self-help.
Background
The above suggestions were made in meetings and conversations during visits to the Family Islands in the summer of 2011 by the current Governor, the previous Acting Governor and others. There were frequent suggestions that:
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the needs of those living in these islands are different to those of Providenciales and Grand Turk,
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these islands are to some extent neglected by TCIG,
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TCIG staff serving in these islands are organised in an inflexible way,
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TCIG staff serving in these islands are not provided with adequate supplies and equipment.
There were particular concerns that some isolated members of the communities on these islands were suffering unduly because of reduced family and other support as a result of the current economic situation.
The above suggestions were subsequently discussed by TCIG Permanent Secretaries who gave them a warm welcome, noting that similar arrangement had existed some years ago and had appeared successful at that time.
An example of a community service which might be encouraged by local initiatives would be a bus service – maybe running twice a day – from the North Caicos ferry terminal through to the Eastern end of Middle Caicos and then back to the ferry terminal, and serving all the key North/Middle Caicos communities on the way. This would help the elderly in particular access shops and other services that are at present an expensive taxi ride away from their homes. It would also provide an inexpensive transport link for tourists and others wishing to visit the two islands. At present there is no organisation that appears ready and willing to investigate the economics of, nor then promote the supply of, such a service.
Questions
TCIG would like to know whether there is general support for the proposals summarised in this document. In particular:
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Do you agree that TCIG services in the Family Islands should in future be delivered through ‘one-stop shops’.
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Do you agree that TCIG should encourage the development of groups of concerned citizens on the islands, with aims broadly as described at ‘2’ above. (Such a group already exists on South Caicos.) If so, how should the members of such groups be chosen and appointed?
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Do you have any other thoughts, comments or advice on these proposals? For instance, should North and Middle Caicos have separate ‘one stop shops’ and advisory groups, or would it be better if there were a stronger team providing services to the residents of both islands?
Responses
Responses to this document should be sent to Tito Lightbourne in the Chief Executive’s Office ( trlightbourne@gov.tc ) by Wednesday 29 February 2012.
Assuming that there is a generally positive reaction to these proposals, a further more detailed consultation document will then be issued in April with a view to implementing the proposals in July 2012.
Turks and Caicos among 10 Caribbean jurisdictions featured in BCQS market
Turks and Caicos among 10 Caribbean jurisdictions featured in BCQS market report, where construction costs are said to be highest.
The TCI listed as one of the costliest countries for construction to be carried out. While construction costs in the Cayman Islands and the Caribbean have risen slightly overall in 2011, property and development consultants are forecasting costs to decrease up to 2015, according to BCQS Internationals 2011 Market Trend Report.
According to the report, the two main factors behind the projected cost decrease are a decline in commodity indexes and raw materials, and the natural balancing of the market in terms of demand for new construction.
Out of the 10 Caribbean jurisdictions featured in BCQS market report, construction costs are said to be highest in the Turks and Caicos Islands, followed closely by Barbados and Cayman. Construction costs in Cayman are particularly high in the commercial sector, as opposed to residential or hotel. By a significant margin, Cayman has the highest commercial construction costs in the Caribbean, and Caymans commercial rental rates are second only to the Bahamas.
Costs in that sector are high in Cayman generally because of requirements of offshore financial firms, and lessons learned from Hurricane Ivan's devastation in 2004.
Identified as the most expensive place to build in the Caribbean, Turks and Caicos is looking to become a little less pricey.
According to the BCQS report, the Turks and Caicos government has instituted a reduction in stamp duty for property transactions with the aim of mitigating the effects of the recession.
Another boat load of Haitians attempt to reach Turks and Caicos shores
Illegal immigrants from Haiti continue to brave the high seas and so risk their lives, determined to make the Turks and Caicos their ultimate stop.
It was just two days ago Wednesday 28th December at approximately 3:30 p.m. that the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police intercepted a Haitian sloop approximately seven miles to the North East of French Cay, carrying prospective irregular entrants to the TCI.
"A total of 117 persons were aboard - some 90 males, 21 females and six female children.
In his 24 Hour Crime Recap in Providenciales today, Friday 30th December,Detective Inspector Calvin Chase reported another interception of illegal Haitians.
During the course of this morning, Chase reported that Police Officers from the Marine Division intercepted an illegal 45foot wooden sloop,
equipped with an outboard engine 2 miles off of French Cay, within the territorial waters of the TCI. That sloop was towed to South Dock where a
total of 139 irregular immigrants, inclusive of 115 males and 24 females, were handed over to Immigration Authorities.
TCIG Immigration officials were to have started the repatriation process for those Haitians intercepted on Wednesday, yesterday, Thu, 29 Dec 2011,
beginning with the children.
Inspector Chase also reported in his 24 hour crime recap that Police in Providenciales responded to six reports of serious nature, including Three Burglaries off Millennium Highway, Kew Town and Behind Glass Shack, Three Thefts, 2 in Five Cays and 1 in The Bight
One male was arrested on suspicion of Theft in connection with a report made on Thursday 29th December 2011.
Michael Buble Remains No. 1, Adele's '21' Has Best Sales Week Yet
Michael Buble's "Christmas" album spends a fifth straight week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 467,000 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan. Its sales were up 4% in the tracking week that ended on Dec. 25, Christmas day.
Buble's "Christmas" is now -- so far -- the year's second-best selling album with 2.43 million sold. Adele's "21" is 2011's biggest, with 5.68 million. As there is one more week left in the year (ending Jan. 1, 2012), we'll have the full report on the year's top sellers on Wednesday, Jan. 4.
As for this week's chart, Adele's "21" holds at No. 2, selling 399,000 (up 44%) -- its best sales week yet. Its previous high came during its debut frame (44 weeks ago!), when it bowed at No. 1 with 352,000.
Watch for "21" to return to the top of the chart next week -- for a 14th non-consecutive frame -- as Buble's "Christmas" set will certainly tumble from the No. 1 position. (Holiday albums fall down the chart rapidly once Christmas passes. Last year, Susan Boyle's "The Gift" fell from No. 2 to No. 31 in the week following Christmas.)
Young Jeezy's "TM 103: Hustlerz Ambition" debuts at No. 3 with 233,000 -- the rapper's fifth-straight top five set (his entire output, including the U.S.D.A. mix tape in 2007). His last release, 2008's "The Recession," started at No. 1 with 260,000.
Justin Bieber's "Under the Mistletoe" slips 3-4 with 225,000 (up 32%), Drake's "Take Care" moves 7-5 with 131,000 (up 71%) and Lady Antebellum's "Own the Night" slides 5-6 with 110,000 (up 36%).
Rihanna's "Talk That Talk" jumps 14-7 (99,000; up 83%) after AmazonMP3 sale priced the set. Naturally, it also saw a huge 163% increase in download sales.
Nickelback's "Here and Now" drops 6-8 (with just under 99,000; up 23%) while the Black Keys' "El Camino" falls 4-9 (92,000; up 9%) and the "Now 40" compilation rises 11-10 (88,000; up 38%).
After Young Jeezy, the next highest debut is found at No. 18, where Common's "The Dreamer, the Believer" enters with 69,000. Jeezy and Common are the only two debuts on the entire Billboard 200 tally this week.
On the Digital Songs chart, LMFAO profits from Christmas day purchases (likely on newly-acquired electronic devices) as "Sexy and I Know It" retains the No. 1 slot, but with a massive sales gain. The song sold 395,000 last week -- up a whopping 159%. This is the biggest sales week for any song since Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" shifted 509,000 in its second week at No. 1 on the chart dated March 5.
Katy Perry's "The One That Got Away" vaults 6-2 with 297,000 (up 157%) thanks in part to the release of a new remix featuring B.o.B. The latter mix accounted for 76,000 of the overall 297,000 sold.
Rihanna's "We Found Love" (featuring Calvin Harris) slips 2-3 (276,000; up 86%), Bruno Mars' "It Will Rain" holds at No. 4 (266,000; up 112%) and Jay-Z and Kanye West's "Ni**as In Paris" is also stationary at No. 5 (227,000; up 93%).
Flo Rida's "Good Feeling" drops 3-6 (219,000; up 74%), Adele's "Set Fire to the Rain" is steady at No. 7 (217,000; up 118%) and LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem" returns to the top 10, climbing 13-8 (214,000; up 170%). The latter's rise is again chalked up to Christmas day purchases of the year's biggest hits. Other likely beneficiaries of the holiday: Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass" (35-29; 106,000 - up 167%), Lil Wayne's "How to Love" (75-33; 83,000 - up 324%) and Jason Aldean's "Dirt Road Anthem" (49-42; 67,000 - up 146%).
Rounding out the top 10 on the Digital Songs chart is Big Sean's "Dance (A$$)" featuring Nicki Minaj (8-9 with 200,000; up 126%) and Adele's "Someone Like You" (9-10 with 183,000; up 109%).
The highest debut on the Digital Songs tally this week is Taylor Swift's "Safe & Sound" (featuring the Civil Wars), which enters at No. 19 with 136,000. The song was released digitally on Dec. 23 -- meaning that it starts on the list with only two days of sales. Expect the track to make a big jump on next week's list after a full week's sales are registered.
Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending Dec. 25) totaled 15.11 million units, up 35% compared to the sum last week (11.20 million) and up less than 1% compared to the comparable sales week of 2010 (15.08 million). Year to date album sales stand at 322.86 million, up 1% compared to the same total at this point last year (319.01 million).
Digital track sales this past week totaled 38.25 million downloads, up 70% compared to last week (22.48 million) and down 13% stacked next to the comparable week of 2010 (43.96 million). Year to date track sales are at 1.22 billion, up 8% compared to the same total at this point last year (1.13 billion).
Next week's Billboard 200 competes with the same week in 2010 when: Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" was No. 1 for a fifth non-consecutive week, selling 77,000 (down 72%) while Eminem's "Recovery" charged 7-2 with 63,000 (but down 54%). The chart's highest debut was the Maine's "In Darkness & in Light" soundtrack at No. 93 with 7,000 sold.
BILLBOARD
Hollywood hopes for better 2012
Tom Cruise's new mission remains impossible to beat at the box office.
Studio estimates yesterday placed Mission: Impossible Ñ Ghost Protocol in the No. 1 spot for the second-straight weekend with US$31.3 million. With a US$134.1 million domestic total, it's the first US$100-million hit with Cruise in the lead role since 2006's Mission: Impossible III.
The Paramount release led a solid New Year's weekend as Hollywood managed fair business to end a sluggish year on a more promising note for 2012. Domestic revenues closed out at US$10.22 billion for 2011, down 3.4 per cent from 2010's, according to box-office tracker Hollywood.com.
That was a slight improvement over Hollywood.com's projections a week earlier, when Hollywood was limping through the normally busy holiday season with a lineup of underachieving movies.
"This week was a pleasant surprise," said Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian. "Last week, we were really pretty gloom and doom, but this final push at the end of the year was stronger than expected. It's a good way to head into 2012, with at least a little bit of momentum at the box office."
Still, movie admissions were down sharply for the second year in a row. Factoring in higher ticket prices, domestic attendance slipped to 1.28 billion in 2011, off 4.2 per cent from 2010 admissions and the smallest audiences Hollywood has had since 1995, according to Hollywood.com.
Hollywood started the year in a deep rut, with domestic revenues trailing 2010's by 20 per cent or more as a weak first quarter fell far short of the previous year's spectacular results for the sci-fi sensation Avatar.
Studios nearly dug themselves out from that deficit over the summer, but business lagged through the fall and holidays as audiences had a ho-hum response to most movies.
Some studio executives had predicted record revenues for 2011. The movies themselves may simply have held less appeal to fans than expected, though audiences also could be skipping trips to theatres to watch movies on big-screen home setups or to play with the countless entertainment gadgets now on the market. Viewers can watch films at home or on portable devices for a fraction of the cost of going to theatres.
The industry is looking ahead to an impressive lineup to turn things around this year. Big titles include the superhero tales The Dark Knight Rises, The Amazing Spider-Man and The Avengers; the latest in the animated franchises Ice Age and Madagascar, along with Brave, the new adventure from animation master Pixar; Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones' Men in Black 3; Daniel Craig's new James Bond thriller Skyfall; Johnny Depp's vampire story Dark Shadows; Ridley Scott's Prometheus, a cousin to his science-fiction classic Alien; and Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first in a two-part prequel to his Lord of the Rings films.
The rest of this weekend's top-three remained unchanged. Robert Downey Jr.'s Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, from Warner Bros., finished second again with US$22.1 million, raising its domestic total to US$132.1 million.
The 20th Century Fox family sequel Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked was still at No. 3 with US$18.3 million to lift its haul to US$94.6 million.
In its first full weekend, Steven Spielberg's World War I epic War Horse came in fourth with US$16.9 million, pushing its domestic total to US$43 million.
At No. 5 was David Fincher's thriller The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo with US$16.3 million. The Sony release, which stars Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara, now stands at US$57.1 million domestically.
Cameron Crowe's family tale We Bought a Zoo, featuring Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson, finished at No. 6 with US$14.3 million. Released by 20th Century Fox, the movie raised its total to US$41.8 million.
Rounding out the top films was Spielberg and producer Jackson's animated action story The Adventures of Tintin at No 7 with US$12 million. The Paramount release lifted its domestic sum to US$47.8 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Hollywood.com.
Katy Perry, Russell Brand head for divorce
Russell Brand is divorcing Katy Perry after 14 months of what appeared to be a storybook marriage.
"Sadly, Katy and I are ending our marriage," Brand said in a statement released to The Associated Press on Friday. "I'll always adore her and I know we'll remain friends."
Brand, 36, offered no other details, but in papers filed Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, the British comedian cited irreconcilable differences.
He and the 27-year-old pop singer were married in October 2010 at a resort inside a tiger reserve in India, and their mutual affection had become a rather sweet feature of the Hollywood celebrity circuit.
The couple announced their engagement in January 2010 after meeting at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, where Brand hosted and she performed.
The comedian, who once struggled with substance abuse and sex addiction, was effusive about his bride while promoting projects earlier this year, saying marrying Perry has "given me much more strength in what I do."
"For a long while, what I do professionally was all that mattered to me really," he said in March.
"Now I think, well, whatever I do, I'll just go back to her, and that's incredibly comforting."
Perry praised her husband backstage at the 2011 VMAs in August, where she won three awards and he offered a tribute to Amy Winehouse.
"I'm proud of him, whatever comes out of his mouth, and sometimes it's very colourful, right?" Perry said of Brand. "That's why I married him, because he's smart and I learn a lot."
No comment from katy
Attorneys for Perry, whose name is listed as Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson in the divorce papers, did not respond Friday to calls seeking comment.
The Internet had been abuzz recently with rumours about possible trouble for the couple after they were seen during the holidays without their wedding rings.
Perry's run of No. 1 singles earned her the distinction of becoming MTV's first artiste of the year earlier this month. She hosted Saturday Night Live on December 10 and gave no indication the couple was in trouble.
Brand's recent film credits include Arthur, Hop and Get Him to the Greek. He is among the ensemble starring alongside Tom Cruise in Rock of Ages, set for release next year.
Both Brand and Perry were conspicuously absent Friday from Twitter, where they often shared kind words to each other.
AP
LeBron James Is Engaged
LeBron James had more on his mind than just ringing in the new year on Saturday night.
At a New Year's Eve dinner and party at the Shelborne hotel in South Beach, the Miami Heat star, 27, proposed to his longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson. And he got their kids in on the action as well.
Right after popping the question, James picked up the couple's sons LeBron Jr., 7, and Bryce, 4, and swung them around on the floor. "It was so sweet to watch," a rep for Remy Martin V, who hosted the dinner, tells PEOPLE. "Everyone is extremely happy."
The party, hosted by Heat teammate Dwyane Wade and his girlfriend Gabrielle Union, was also a belated birthday celebration for James, who turned 27 the day before.
Heat star Chris Bosh and Queen Latifah were also on the guest list of 60 friends and family members.
"When it happens, it happens," Brinson, 25, told Harper's Bazaar of marriage in 2010. "If we do it, I want it to be forever."
PEOPLE