Polisario Criticizes UN Draft Resolution on Human Rights in Western Sahara
The pro-independence movement of Western Sahara has expressed disappointment that a new U.N. draft resolution on the territory is not strong enough on human rights.
The Polisario Front said Tuesday the resolution that renews a United Nations mandate for peacekeepers in Western Sahara should have set up an international body to monitor human rights abuses by Morocco.
Morocco's 1975 annexation of the former Spanish colony sparked a war between Moroccan forces and Polisario insurgents,
The draft resolution calls on both sides of the dispute to respect human rights and welcomes a pledge by Morocco to allow the U.N. Human Rights Council access to the area.
The Polisario Front is demanding that a referendum be held to decide the fate of the mineral-rich northwest African territory. Morocco has offered a limited autonomy to the region. Peace talks are deadlocked.
Ced the Entertainer to Lead ‘Hot in Cleveland’ Spinoff
TV Land has announced it’s developing a “Hot in Cleveland” spin-off starring Cedric the Entertainer.
The as-yet-untitled series will focus on a character Cedric will debut on Cleveland’s upcoming third season: a minister who gets involved with the ladies’ adventures.
“We’re definitely going to bring people quality entertainment and laughs with this new show,” Cedric said. “I’m very excited to be working with TV Land and the creative team of Hot in Cleveland.”
The project is contingent upon the pilot script, which will be co-written by Cedric and “Cleveland” creator Suzanne Martin.
“Cedric is hilarious and I’m so happy to do this show with him,” Martin said. “We are going to have a lot of fun developing and exploring his role as a minister.”
“Hot in Cleveland,” starring Betty White, Valerie Bertinelli, Wendy Malick and Jane Leeves, returns on June 15.
Pharrell Williams Tapped To Headline ASCAP's 'I Create Music' Expo
Superstar Hip-Hop producer/rapper Pharrell Williams will appear at the upcoming ASCAP "I Create Music" Expo later this month.
The event, which will take place at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles, will include panels, performances and technology demonstrations.
Pharrell will address the Expo will explore what can be accomplished with talent, ambition, vision and what it takes to make in the music business.
The producer/rapper will host the EXPO Master Session, which will also include an interview between In Living Colour drummer Will Calhoun and legendary keyboardist, Bernie Worrell.
Other panelists include Tay Zonday, Davis Was, Trevor Rabin and singer songwriter Jonatha Brooke.
The ASCAP "I Create Music" Expo takes place from April 28th-30th in Los Angeles, California.
Martial Arts Comedy Wins At Hong Kong Film Festival
Hong Kong's 30th annual film festival gave its top honor Sunday to a comic action fantasy about an old martial arts master who wakes up from a decades-long coma.
Gallants, a low-budget film that makes a humorous homage to Hong Kong kung-fu movies of the 1970s, won the award for best film. It also won for best supporting actor, best supporting actress and best original film score.
The murder mystery Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, by renowned Hong Kong director Tsui Hark, scooped up six awards - more than any other movie this year. It is based on a novel of the same name by Lin Qianyu.
Carina Lau won the best actress award for her portrayal of the powerful Chinese empress Wu Zetian.
The best actor award went to pop singer Nicholas Tse for his role in the action drama The Stool Pigeon.
Filmmaker Pang Ho-cheung won the award for best screenplay for a romantic film Love In a Puff about fellow smokers who fall in love.
Oscar-winning director of photography Peter Pau won the award for best cinematography for his work in Confucius, about the life of the Chinese philosopher.
The Hong Kong Film Awards, established in 1982, are the Hong Kong equivalent of the awards given by the American and British film academies. Award ceremonies are held every year, usually in April. Winners receive a statuette in the shape of a woman wrapped in a roll of film.
Cuban Communist Party Approves Sweeping Reforms
Cuban state-run media report that the nation's Communist Party has approved sweeping economic reforms and voted for new party leaders at a historic congress in Havana.
The reforms offered by President Raul Castro include significant changes to Cuba's economic system, including decentralization of the island nation's economy, a shift toward private enterprise and the eventual elimination of ration books and other subsidies. Reforms also include two, five-year term limits for politicians.
Details of the more than 300 proposals voted on by delegates Monday were not released.
A vote on the party leadership is highly anticipated, as Raul Castro is expected to officially take over his brother, Fidel Castro's, role as First Secretary. The vote also is expected to hint at who eventually may replace the aging brothers.
About 1,000 delegates convened for the four-day convention, which is only the sixth time the party has met in its nearly 50-year history.
Raul Castro's proposed reforms come during tough economic times for Cuba.
Fidel Castro praised his brother's proposals for major economic reforms. Together, the brothers have ruled the small Caribbean nation for 52 years.
Trinidad PM calls for unity
Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar has called on citizens to unite and work together in the best interest and development of the country.
Speaking at the Hanuman Jayanti celebrations at the Divali Nagar site in Chaguanas, Persad Bissessar told the Hindu devotees gathered there, "There is no need for destructive competition and conflict. All of our interests can be served through co-operation and sacrifice.”
The Trinidad Express reported that using the life and accomplishments of the Hindu deity Bhakta Hanuman as an example of what the power of unity and hard work can accomplish, she said, "We are at a stage in our country's life when commitment to duty, responsibility to the national interest, sacrifice, selflessness and co-operation are necessary to lay new foundations for a sustainable future.
"Dedication to one’s work, focus, courage and a lack of fear, of the kind for which Hanuman was noted, are qualities now more necessary than ever. Our ability to remain competitive in a tough global village will depend on how we collectively chose to improve national productivity."
Division, she said, can never serve the national interest because it will always threaten the future.
"This is why I continue to work tirelessly to unite our people around the common vision of achieving peace and a happier society,” she added.
More than $2 Million In Drugs Found in the Bahamas
The most recent incident took place on Saturday morning around 11 after officers of the force's Mobile Division searched a home on Montgomery Street, located off Carmichael Road.
During their search, officers found two packages of suspected marijuana and a small quantity of cash.
It is believed that the cash is to be derived from the sales of the illicit drugs.
A 28-year-old man and 20-year-old woman were arrested for possession of those drugs.
In addition, officers from the Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) nabbed a 28-year-old woman, who has been wanted by them for the last three years over the weekend.
The female suspect, police believe is connected to two large drug cases and a firearm seizure that occurred in 2008.
That arrest was made shortly before 5 on Saturday evening after officers searched a residence in western New Providence.
Additionally, DEU officers also searched a home on Blake Road shortly before midnight on Friday in search of dangerous drugs.
Police confiscated over 1,200 lbs of suspected marijuana and over 4,000 lbs of hashish oil at that residence.
From that discovery, two men were arrested – a 29-year-old and a 52-year-old – on preliminary charges of possession of dangerous drugs and possession of drugs with the intent to supply.
The estimated value of the drugs is said to be just over $2 million.
And shortly after 11:00 p.m. on Friday, police of the Northeastern Division searched a Windsor Lane residence, where 14 small packages of marijuana, along with some cash – believed to be derived from drug sales –were found.
A 20-year-old man was arrested as a result of that search.
Officials said all of the suspects are expected to be charged before the courts sometime this week.
2 000 Caribbean criminals deported
The United States has deported more than 2, 000 criminals back to the Caribbean in the past six months, according to figures released by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The figures show that from the start of the 2011 fiscal year in October last year to the end of March this year, 88,497 criminal “aliens” or migrants were deported to their country of birth in the Latin/ America and the Caribbean region.
A “criminal alien” is defined under U.S. immigration laws as a migrant who is convicted of a crime.
The number sent back to Latin America alone stood at 86,469 while 2,028 were sent back to the Caribbean.
For the Caribbean, 1,066 criminals were sent to the Dominican Republic followed by Jamaica with 528 and Trinidad and Tobago with 125.
Belize received 74 followed by The Bahamas with 65 and Guyana 64.
So far this fiscal year, 50 migrants have been sent back to Aruba and 31 to the earth-quake ravaged Haiti. Other Caribbean nations received far less criminal deportees.
Cuba received 20 in the past six months; Barbados 11; Dominica 10; St. Lucia seven and Antigua five. Four persons were sent back to Bermuda while St. Kitts received three, while two each were sent to Suriname, the British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands.
The figures show that Anguilla and the Turks and Caicos, received one criminal deportee each.
The biggest receiver of criminal migrants was Mexico with 70,874 deported as of March 28 this year. (CMC)
New visa requirements
Nationals of Guyana and Jamaica now require visas to enter St. Maarten and Aruba, the Ministry of Justice here said today.
“Please be advised that on April 11, 2011 visa requirements for nationals of Guyana and Jamaica, visiting St. Maarten, went into effect,” the ministry said in a letter to airlines and travel agencies throughout the region.
“Nationals from Guyana and Jamaica now require a visa for travel to St. Maarten and Aruba, but do not require a visa for Bonaire, St. Eustatius, Saba and Curacao.”
The ministry has also outlined the visa requirements for Guyanese and Jamaican nationals which include travel medical insurance of US$15,000, a bank letter and funds to cover stay in St. Maarten (US$100 – US$200 per day).
Last October, the Dutch Caribbean islands became independent after the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved, five years after legal proceedings began.
With the end of the Netherlands Antilles, the islands of Curacao and St. Maarten (population 37,000) will continue as independent countries but remain in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Three other islands that were also part of the Netherlands Antilles – Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba – will continue as special municipalities within the Netherlands. (CMC)
Nigerian President Reelected, Violence in North Continues
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has won reelection in a vote that has sparked rioting in the country's northern states that backed his leading opponent.
With results from all of Nigeria's 36 states, electoral commission president Attahiru Jega announced that President Jonathan is the clear winner.
"Goodluck E. Jonathan of PDP, having certified the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of votes is hereby declared the winner and his return elected," said Jega.
President Jonathan's nearly 22.5 million votes is almost twice the number of the second-place finisher, former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, who won a little more than 12 million votes. President Jonathan avoids a round run-off election by winning at least one-quarter of the vote in at least 24 states.
That provision is meant to ensure that a Nigerian president has some measure of national support and is not merely a regional candidate. But much of the vote appears to have broken down along regional lines, with President Jonathan winning the south and Mr. Buhari winning the north.
Early results showing Mr. Jonathan in the lead led to rioting in parts of the mainly Muslim north. In Kaduna state, Vice President Namadi Sambo's home was burned and a 24-hour curfew was imposed after a prison was raided and inmates set free.
In the capital of Kano state, security forces fired shots into the air as stone-throwing youths took to the streets and chanted support for Mr. Buhari. Human Rights Watch says at least 60 people have been killed in election-related violence since the first of the month.
In his acceptance speech, President Jonathan said his government is taking all necessary measures to guarantee the lives and property of all Nigerians.
"I enjoin our political and religious leaders in their usual sense of patriotism to call on their followers to eschew all acts of bitterness and violence," said President Jonathan. "As I have always stated, nobody's political ambition is worth the blood of any Nigerian."
Mr. Jonathan thanked God and Nigeria's voters for the opportunity to run the country.
"By this election, we have found our unity as one nation under God, have reiterated our faith in democracy and underscored our determination to fully join the free world where only the will of the people is the foundation of governance. We will not let you down." he said.
President Jonathan said there is no victor and no vanquished as Nigeria proved to the world that it is capable of holding free, fair and credible elections.
"This is a victory for the sustenance of our democracy, a victory which all Nigerians - irrespective of creed, ethnicity or state of origin - should celebrate," said jonathan. "It is a triumph for our common destiny as a people with shared ideals, shared dreams and shared hopes."
Mr. Jonathan congratulated the other candidates and said the country expects their continued leadership and commitment to nation-building. The president said Nigerians must move away from partisan battlegrounds and find a national common ground to build a prosperous nation.
Source:VOA