Kartel remanded into custody
Self-proclaimed 'World Boss', Vybz Kartel, made another appearance in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday on his second murder charge and was remanded into custody.
A bail application for the deejay was not made as the deejay's attorneys have not yet been served with the relevant documents.
He is to return to court on December 19.
Senior Magistrate Judith Pusey ruled yesterday that the prosecution must hand over video and voice evidence to the defence no later than December 15.
Kartel, whose real name is Adija Palmer, along with his fashion stylist Calvin 'Moonie' Haye, deejay Shawn Storm, and Cairo Jones, have been charged with the murder of Clive Williams.
It is reported that on August 16, Williams, a resident of Portmore, St Catherine, was killed in Havendale, St Andrew.
Williams was allegedly taken to a house in Havendale, where he was beaten and stabbed to death over the loss of an illegal gun.
His body has not been found.
Investigators are alleging that attempts were made to destroy the evidence when fire was set to the house.
Meanwhile, the deejay was on Thursday offered $3 million bail in the Barrington 'Bossie' Burton murder case.
He is to return to court on December 21.
It is alleged that on July 11, Kartel, along with Nigel Thompson and Linberg McDonald killed Burton of a Gregory Park address in St Catherine.
Kartel is also charged with conspiracy to murder and illegal possession of a firearm.
Nikki Z expectations high for Beach Sexy
Having been in the island for a week, overseas-based media personality is excited about her birthday party, Beach Sexy, that will be held at Sugarman's Beach in Portmore on Saturday.
Nikki Z, who has been busy promoting the event, said her expectations are high.
"My expectation is to have a good time. It's a time to party with my family, friends and fans. I want people to get drunk from good music and good vibe, and if they get drunk from liquor, I hope they have a designated driver," she told THE JAMAICAN STAR.
In addition to celebrating the night with well-wishers, Nikki Z said she will be offering a lot to her patrons. She said there will be drink specials all night, and women will enter two for one before 6 p.m. She said there will also be a fire show with professional fire-eaters. Also, patrons will get the opportunity to win prizes every hour on the hour of the party that will start at 4 p.m. and end at 2 a.m.
Selectors for the event are Razz & Biggy, ZJ Chrome, Foota Hype, Flava Unit and Chris Diamond, but Nikki Z said there might also be impromptu performances from her celebrity friends.
But after a two-year absence and finally being able to host her party in Jamaica, Nikki Z said she is grateful for the help she received from Hapilos International.
"If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be having this party. Hapilos is the one that reached out to me and say let's do this," she said.
Rory McIlroy falters as Alviro Quiros leads Hong Kong Open
A disappointing third round left Rory McIlroy three shots off the lead in the Hong Kong Open.
The Northern Irishman slipped to fifth after carding a level-par 70 as Alvaro Quiros's 67 gave him the outright lead on 10 under par.
Quiros is one stroke clear of Peter Hanson, while England's Ian Poulter went round in 67 to move to four under.
"I just didn't have anything out there and mentally I wasn't at the races," said McIlroy.
"But then I am only three behind and if I can get off to a decent start tomorrow I am right back in it."
The US Open champion, who must finish in the top two to have any chance of overhauling Luke Donald in the Race to Dubai, shared the overnight lead with Quiros.
However, he found sand at the fourth en route to two bogeys in the first five holes. Birdies on the 13th and 17th only partly repaired the damage.
Spaniard Quiros, by contrast, did not drop a shot all day and a birdie on the penultimate hole enabled him to hold off the challenge of Sweden's Hanson.
"I only used the driver four times today so this golf course is still a very different challenge for me," said the big-hitting Quiros.
Hanson's 65 featured four birdies on the back nine, while South Korean YE Yang also went round in five under at the Hong Kong Golf Club.
"It was nice," Hanson said. "To sum it up, it was very good putting."
Yang rated his chances as "fairly good", adding: "I'm in a good position - better than being ahead in the first or second round."
Yang heads into the final day tied for third with Thailand's Pariya Junhasavasdikul, with McIlroy their closest challenger and Englishman David Horsey one of five players who are a further two shots adrift on five under par.
Poulter, whose outward nine contained four birdies and two bogeys, said: "This week is as tough as the course has played."
McIlroy is third in the order of merit, £970,000 behind Englishman Donald, who is not playing in this event.
Brazil football legend Socrates dies at 57
Former Brazil captain Socrates has died at the age of 57.
He had been in a critical condition with an intestinal infection since being admitted to intensive care on Friday at a hospital in Sao Paulo.
Socrates, who was widely regarded as one of the greatest ever midfielders, was moved onto a life support machine on Saturday.
He played in two World Cups, won 60 caps for his country between 1979 and 1986 and scored 22 goals.
The former Corinthians player, whose full name was Socrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Sousa Vieira de Oliveira, was taken to the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo with food poisoning on Friday, according to his wife.
A hospital statement said on Saturday that the former footballer was "in a critical condition due to a septic shock of intestinal origin".
It added he was breathing with a ventilator and using a dialysis machine.
Socrates was taken to hospital twice in August and September this year with bleeding in his digestive tract.
After these incidents he admitted he had problems with alcohol, especially so during his playing career. He is also well known for his smoking habit.
In a recent television interview, Socrates said he had considered alcohol his "companion" but believed its regular use did not affect his performance on the field.
"Alcohol did not affect my career, in part because I never had the physical build to play this game," he said.
"Soccer became my profession only when I was already 24. I was too thin and when I was young I did not have the opportunity to prepare myself physically for the sport."
T20 semis today
The final three semi-final spots in the Sagicor General Twenty/20 Competition will be decided today after the fifth and final preliminary round of matches.
Play is slated to start at 1 p.m. at the various venues.
Those teams going forward will join former champions TeleBarbados Carlton who have already booked a spot in the final four with an unassailable 14 points in zone “A”.
All and sundry will be hoping for improve weather conditions in a competition that has been severely affected by rain.
Of the 24 matches gone to date, 11 have resulted in no-decisions with all but one having no play at all.
Carlton will take on BNB St Catherine who are on ten points at Bayfield. A win will carry St Catherine straight into the knockout phase.
However, a defeat for them and a win for defending champions ICBL Empire over Banks at The Brewery, would put them out. Empire are on eight points, while Banks are on six points and must win to stand any chance of advancing.
ESA Field Pickwick with six points are also in with a mathematical chance base on what transpires at Bayfield and The Brewery.
They must beat Guardian General Barbados Youth at Waterford “A” and await the outcome of the other matches.
In Zone “B” YMPC are out front with 12 points from three consecutive wins and one defeat.
In order to have a clear path to the semis, they must try to avoid defeat against Super Centre Spartan with ten points at Beckles Road.
If they lose, there will still have a lifeline once Sagicor UWI on eight points triumph over CGI/ Sandy Crest Maple ten points at Trents.
UWI and YMPC will then finish on 12 points each but YMPC would be higher placed having won three matches to UWI’s two. A win for Maple will automatically take the inaugural champions to the final four.
A no-decision in both matches will leave Spartan and Maple battling for the final position as they will end on 12 points each with one win and four no-decisions.
The net run rate will then determine which one advances.
The semi-finals are slated for Thursday and Friday and the final next Sunday all at Kensington Oval under the lights starting at 7 p.m.
The winners will pocket $20 000 an increase of $ 5 000. The runners-up will collect $10 000 a top- up of $2 000. The losing semi-finalists will take away $6 000 each.
New regional bloc established at Caracas conference
Leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean have approved the creation of a new regional bloc that excludes the United States and Canada.
But, unlike the Washington-based Organisation of American States, the new group (known by its Spanish initials as Celac) includes Cuba.
At the end of the summit in Venezuela, the leaders pledged closer ties.
They pledged to try to withstand the financial crisis affecting Europe and other developed economies.
The host, President Hugo Chavez, called the summit "historic".
Mr Chavez read out several statements approved by the leaders, including one opposing the US trade embargo on Cuba.
The Venezuelan leader, along with some of his closest allies, said the new bloc would help Latin America stand up to US influence.
But other leaders chose to highlight the region's economic concerns and issues such as drug trafficking and climate change.
Regional trade
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said that Latin American countries would need to rely more on their neighbours to continue thriving.
The region has so far achieved continued growth despite the problems affecting Europe and the United States.
President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia said countries like his would have to increase their trade with other countries in the region because "a hurricane was hitting the developed economies".
President Sebastian Pinera of Chile, who took over the rotating presidency of the bloc, said he hoped Celac would help build regional cooperation despite the differences between some of the 33 member states.
Other leaders said they expected Celac to serve as a forum to resolve regional conflicts and build stronger ties but not to replace other organisations like the OAS.
The next summit, in 2012, is scheduled to be held in Chile.
On Friday, Mr Chavez said Celac would leave behind the Organisation of American States, which he said was worn-out and dominated by the US.
The inaugural summit was due six months ago but was postponed because Mr Chavez was recovering from surgery to remove a cancerous growth.
The Venezuelan president has said he is completely recovered after four rounds of chemotherapy.
He is expected to run in next October's presidential election for another six-year term.
CAL’s flight to Jamaica makes ‘forced’ landing
A Caribbean Airlines (CAL) flight, bound for Kingston, was forced to land at Sangster International Airport on Thursday night in what the airline called a “controlled emergency landing.” Flight BW 62 had departed from Nassau, Bahamas, for Kingston, Jamaica, with a scheduled stop at the Sangster International Airport, Montego Bay. However, the pilots were forced to undertake “a controlled emergency landing” at the airport. In a press statement, CAL said the unscheduled stop resulted in cancellation of the connecting flight, BW 62, to Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston.
The statement added: “The airline is following standard operating procedures to assess the situation and we apologise for the inconvenience. “We assure you that the safety of our passengers is our primary focus and we are doing all possible to ensure that the aircraft is fully operational.” The airline said all 79 passengers on board were accommodated. It said 12 passengers were provided with hotel accommodation in Montego Bay while 52 people were provided with ground transportation to several destinations in St Thomas, New Kingston and to the Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston.
The company said: “The remaining passengers, who were scheduled to connect onto Trinidad and Guyana, have been accommodated on alternative flights. “We apologise for the inconvenience and thank you, our customers, for your continued support.” On July 30, a CAL 737 aircraft was written off after it split into two following a runway incident at the Cheddi Jagan Airport, Guyana. The airline is awaiting a final report from the Guyanese Civil Aviation Authority on the cause of the incident. To date, the T&T Guardian understands CAL has received about 140 legal letters from some of the 157 passengers who were on that flight.
US renews calls for the release of jailed contractor in Cuba
The United States yesterday renewed its calls for the immediate release of US contractor Alan Gross, as he prepared to mark two years behind bars in Cuba on state security charges.
Gross was arrested December 3, 2009, for delivering laptops and communications equipment to Cuba's small Jewish community under a State Department contract.
In March, he was found guilty of "acts against the independence or territorial integrity" of Cuba, and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
"Tomorrow Alan Gross will begin his third year of unjustified imprisonment in Cuba," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said in Washington.
"Mr. Gross is a 62-year-old husband, father, and dedicated professional with a long history of providing assistance and support to underserved communities in more than 50 countries," Toner said.
"We continue to call on the Cuban government to release Alan Gross and return him to his family, where he belongs."
White House spokesman Jay Carney called for Havana to free the American "immediately."
"Our deepest sympathies are with Mr. Gross and his family and friends, who have suffered tremendously during this ordeal," Carney added.
"It is past the time for Mr Gross to return home to his family where he belongs. Cuban authorities have failed in their efforts to use Mr Gross as a pawn to their own ends. They must heed the call of Mr Gross's family and friends, the international community and the United States, to immediately release Mr Gross."
The renewed calls from the US government come following appeals from US President Barack Obama, former president Jimmy Carter, Gross's family members and others.
Gross was visited this week by Michael Kinnamon, general secretary of the US National Council of Churches, who also met with President Raul Castro to press the case for a humanitarian release for the US citizen.
Kinnamon, who met the detainee for two hours, said he had lost weight and expressed concern over the health of Gross, who is confined in a military hospital in Havana.
A group of 19 US senators on Thursday expressed similar concerns.
"After two years in a Cuban prison, Mr. Gross and his family have paid an enormous personal price," the Democratic and Republican lawmakers said in a letter to the head of the Cuban interests section in Washington, Jorge Bolano.
"Mr Gross has lost 100 pounds and suffers from numerous medical conditions," they wrote. "Mr Gross's daughter and mother are both fighting cancer, and his wife is struggling to make ends meet."
On Friday, Kinnamon said that Gross, if freed, could become a "powerful spokesman" in favor of the normalization of ties between the United States and Cuba, which have not had formal diplomatic relations for decades.
St Lucia PM says road ahead will be difficult
The leader of St Lucia's former main opposition party, who was sworn in as prime minister on Wednesday, has promised to strengthen the tourism-dependent Caribbean island's economy, reduce crime and improve prospects for young people.
Kenny Anthony led the St Lucia Labour Party to victory in Monday's parliamentary elections, winning a majority in the 17-member House of Assembly.
Governor General Dame Pearlette Louisy swore in Anthony on Wednesday afternoon in front of party colleagues at her official residence.
The 60-year-old Anthony, who served as St Lucia's prime minister from 1997 to 2006, said the road ahead will be "difficult and challenging" and he called for unity.
Former Prime Minister Stephenson King had assumed the top government post in September 2007 following the death of Prime Minister John Compton.
Said Anthony: "We have to do our utmost to work together as a team, as one people, and always remember that the paramount consideration has to be at all times the best interest of the people of St Lucia."
During the campaign, Anthony's party pledged to immediately undertake a major review of the island's foreign relations policy if it won, something political analysts believe means a switch to renewed ties with China.
The issue has been a political football for years.
St Lucia, with a population of roughly 170,000 people, had diplomatic relations with Taiwan for years under Compton. But after Compton's United Workers Party was defeated by the Labour Party in 1996, St Lucia recognised China and dropped relations with Taiwan. Compton led his party back to power in 2006 elections and promptly re-established ties with Taiwan.
Jacques Delors: Euro was flawed from beginning
One of the main architects of the single European currency, Jacques Delors, has said the eurozone was flawed from the beginning.
He told Britain's Daily Telegraph that the lack of central powers to co-ordinate economic policies allowed some members to run up unsustainable debt.
As head of the European Commission from 1985 to 1995, he played a key role in the process that launched the euro.
The comments come amid growing doubts over the viability of the eurozone.
In his interview with the Daily Telegraph, Mr Delors says the debt crisis stems not from the idea of a single currency itself, but from "a fault in execution" by political leaders who oversaw its launch.
He says they turned a blind eye to the fundamental weaknesses and imbalances of member states' economies.
"The finance ministers did not want to see anything disagreeable which they would be forced to deal with," the 86-year-old Frenchman says.
Mr Delors insists that all European countries must share the blame for the debt crisis - which has led to fears for the survival of the euro.
"Everyone must examine their consciences," he says.
'Too little, too late'
Commenting on those - like the British - who objected to euro membership by saying the currency could not work without a state, Mr Delors said: "They had a point."
The reaction of the current generation of EU leaders, he added, has been "too little, too late".
In particular Mr Delors identified "a combination of the stubbornness of the Germanic idea of monetary control, and the absence of a clear vision from all the other countries".
The BBC's Chris Morris in Brussels says the comments come ahead of a critical week for the eurozone.
On Friday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Europe was working towards setting up a "fiscal union", in an effort to impose budget discipline by members.
She and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have called for EU treaty changes.
The two are to meet on Monday, to agree on joint proposals to be put to a meeting of European leaders next week.