Libya: Nato must do more, say France and UK
Nato must do more to destroy heavy weaponry used by Muammar Gaddafi's forces in Libya, the French and British foreign ministers have said.
Libyan civilians remain at risk, France's Alain Juppe said, despite the ongoing Nato-led bombing campaign.
The UK's William Hague urged Nato allies to intensify military operations against the Libyan regime and called on Col Gaddafi to step down.
Libyan rebels opposing Col Gaddafi have been pushed back despite the air raids.
'Intensify efforts'
"Nato must play its role fully. It wanted to take the lead in operations," Mr Juppe said, calling efforts so far "not enough".
Mr Hague later echoed Mr Juppe's comments, saying: "We must maintain and intensify our efforts in Nato.
"That is why the United Kingdom has in the last weeks supplied additional aircraft capable of striking ground targets threatening the civilian population.
"Of course it would be welcome if other countries also did the same," he said on arrival at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
The US and other Western allies began air strikes on 19 March after UN Security Council Resolution 1973 authorised "all necessary measures" to protect civilians from Col Gaddafi's forces.
After initial sorties were flown under US command, Nato took over operational responsibility for the campaign on 31 March.
Despite this, heavy weapons are still being used to bombard the rebel-held western Libyan city of Misrata, reports say. Mortars and rocket launchers are thought to be hidden in built-up areas that are difficult to target safely from the air.
Libyan government forces began a renewed attack on Misrata on Monday, hours after news emerged of an African Union ceasefire plan.
There are grave concerns for the humanitarian situation in Misrata and for the safety of civilians still inside the city.
"It [Nato] must play its role today which means preventing Gaddafi from using heavy weapons to shell [civilian] populations," Alain Juppe said on Tuesday.
Nato said the scope of Resolution 1973 was the guide to how intense its air campaign should be.
"Nato is conducting its military operations in Libya with vigour within the current mandate. The pace of the operations is determined by the need to protect the population," the alliance said.
'A new Somalia'
State TV in Libya said on Tuesday that Nato air attacks killed a number of civilians overnight in the town of Kiklah, south-west of Tripoli. The report could not be independently confirmed.
Mr Juppe and Mr Hague's remarks came after the African Union (AU) proposed a ceasefire plan that was rejected by rebel leaders in Benghazi.
The plan included a call for an immediate end to hostilities, unhindered humanitarian aid, protection of foreign nationals, dialogue between opposing sides and an end to Nato air strikes.
The AU said Col Gaddafi has accepted the plan, but the rebels said it was unfeasible as it did not include a provision for the Libyan leader to step down.
On Tuesday the AU urged the rebels to reconsider, blaming the Transitional National Council (TNC) - in effect the rebels' parallel government in Benghazi - for imposing preconditions.
The AU "makes an urgent call on the TNC to fully co-operate, for the sake of Libya's higher interests, and assist in the quest for and implementation of a fair and lasting political solution", AFP news agency reported.
In clashes reported on Tuesday, rebels near the town of Ajdabiya said three of their fighters were killed overnight amid battles with pro-Gaddafi forces, Reuters news agency reported.
In the UK, Former Libyan Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa has warned against the risks of civil war and the possibility of his country becoming "a new Somalia".
Mr Koussa, the highest-profile figure to defect from Col Gaddafi's Libya, told the BBC in a prepared statement that the unity of Libya was essential to any settlement.
Libya's Minister for Social Affairs, Ibrahim Zarouk al-Sharif, said he could not comment on Mr Koussa's statement while the former foreign minister was "captured" in a hostile country.
Swaziland police arrest democracy activists in Manzini
Police in Swaziland's main city, Manzini, are arresting anyone in a group ahead of planned protests to demand reform in Africa's last absolute monarchy.
The demonstrations were called to mark the 38th anniversary of the banning of political parties.
The authorities have banned the protests and arrested five organisers.
A BBC correspondent in the main city, Manzini, says there are more security agents than civilians on the streets.
The BBC's Nomsa Maseko saw a group of riot police marching up the street singing: "You will get arrested if you dare."
People can only approach the venue of the planned protests if they are on their own, she says.
Mario Masuku, head of the banned opposition People's United Democratic Movement (Pudemo), has been put under house arrest, his deputy told the BBC.
Most of the protesters are said to be in the capital, Mbabane, and are unable to get to Manzini, a 45-minute drive away.
There are police roadblocks around Manzini and some bus drivers are refusing to transport the protesters in case they are arrested.
The demonstrations are supposed to last for three days.
The organisers say they want the government to resign - to be replaced by a transitional authority - and political parties to be unbanned and allowed to compete for seats in parliament.
Last month, thousands of civil servants held the biggest march in Swaziland for several years, to protest at a pay freeze and demand that the government resigned.
The protesters are keen to stress that they do not want to oust King Mswati III but they want a constitutional monarchy.
The king - who has 14 wives - has been accused of living a lavish lifestyle, while hundreds of thousands live in poverty.
Swaziland has a population of only 1.4 million but 40% of them are unemployed, and 70% of the population is living on less than $1 (75p) a day.
Mitt Romney exploring 2012 presidential run
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has taken the first formal step towards running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.
Mr Romney, who ran a failed bid in 2008, is setting up a committee to explore the feasibility of a run.
"It is time that we put America back on a course of greatness," he said
Mr Romney is the second high profile Republican to announce a bid following former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty's move in March.
While Mr Romney is widely expected to enter the 2012 race, correspondents say he has several hurdles to overcome, notably his moderate record as Massachusetts governor, which does not sit well with conservative primary voters.
Mr Romney's reform of the Massachusetts health care system - an overhaul that has been viewed remarkably similar to the one President Barack Obama passed in 2009, in the face of forceful Republican opposition - is considered as albatross around his neck.
Some also see Mr Romney's Mormon faith as an issue.
Mr Romney ran in 2008 but lost the Republican nomination to Senator John McCain.
'Best days ahead'
The BBC's Steve Kingstone, in Washington, says that while Mitt Romney isn't quite in the race yet, he is clearly positioning himself for a presidential run.
By setting up an exploratory committee, the former governor of Massachusetts can officially begin to raise money, and build on the name recognition that's given him the highest poll ratings of the potential Republican challengers to Barack Obama.
US media coverage, meanwhile, has focused on two colourful but as-yet undeclared contenders - the former vice presidential nominee, Sarah Palin, and the billionaire businessman, Donald Trump, our correspondent adds.
In a three-minute video announcing his latest move, Mr Romney trumpeted his highly successful business career and criticised President Obama's attempts to turn around a faltering US economy.
"Across the nation, over 20 million Americans still can't find a job or have given up looking," Mr Romney said.
Mr Romney, a Boston venture capitalist and founder of a management consultancy, said he believes Mr Obama's policies have failed because "all the people around him have never worked in the real economy".
"America has been put on a dangerous course by Washington politicians and it's become even worse during the last two years. But I'm also convinced that, with able leadership, America's best days are still ahead," he added.
Mr Romney has lined up donors, staff and advisers for his expected presidential bid.
The former venture capitalist invested more than $40m (£24m) of his own money in the 2008 presidential race.
Since that time, Mr Romney has written a book on government and has raised money for other Republican candidates.
Guns for bribes, says Trinidad attorney general
Trinidad and Tobago Attorney General, Anand Ramlogan, has called on Police Commissioner Dwayne Gibbs immediately to investigate claims that senior police officers take bribes in exchange for awarding firearm users licences.
The Guardian newspaper reported that, in an interview, Ramlogan, who expressed concern about the allegations made by the president of the Police Service Social Welfare Association Anand Ramessar and secretary Michael Seales, said such claims raised the question, "Who will guard the guards?”
Saying that his office was not authorised to probe the allegations, Ramlogan said, "I am extremely concerned about these serious allegations. It raises the age-old problems of ‘who will guard the guards?’ I am of the view that the issues raised should be investigated. This is not the first time such allegations have been made. Indeed, the office of the Attorney General frequently receives complaints from aggrieved persons who have applied for firearm users licences."
He added that many of the applicants did not "have the courtesy of a response" even though their applications were duly processed and recommended for the award of a licence.
They are reportedly delayed until a bribe is paid.
Foreigners want to invest in Trinidad, says PM
Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister, Kamla Persad Bissessar, who spent nearly a week in Washington meeting with OAS officials, investors and other business groups, said that a large number of people expressed interest in investing in the twin island republic.
She told the media that her mission abroad was very successful and she is optimistic that in the very near future investors will travel to Port of Spain to make arrangements for investments in several areas.
Her comments came after the signing of an agreement between the president of the Public Service Association and the Chief Personnel Office concerning salary increases and better incentives for the 35,000 public servants.
The prime minister said she wants a peaceful industrial climate, which will held to by government in its thrust to woo international investors.
Drilling of geothermal wells in Dominica to commence late July
The drilling of three exploratory geothermal wells in the Roseau Valley in Dominica is expected to commence at the end of July this year.
The contract for the over 4.5 million euros project was signed in Roseau last week.
The contract was awarded to the Iceland Drilling Company and is being funded by the Agence Francaise de Development, the European Union and the government of Dominica.
Project Coordinator, Jason Timothy, explained that the long term objective is to confirm the nature and extent of the potential geothermal resource at various sites within the Wotten Waven area to determine the capacity of wells for sustainable commercial exploitation in generating electric power.
“We have continued studies into the 90s and recently as 2005, which have indicated that we have a very good resource to provide for development of all our energy needs and possibly to share with our French colleagues in the neighbouring islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique. We have indications that these temperatures range from 250° - 300° which, in the context of geothermal energy is a very good resource. The area we are looking at is approximately 15 square kilometres and with this, we hope for close to one hundred and twenty megawatts.”
The European Union is providing 1.5 million euros grant funds towards the project.
Charge d’Affaires of the EU delegation to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Hubert Perr has voiced support for the project.
“It is a unique Dominica resource that is to be tapped into. It is important, as well, because it has great potential for export as much as for domestic use so that foreign revenues can be generated from the project,” he said.
Meantime, Minister for Energy Rayburn Blackmoore said that the move towards this renewable source of energy is a welcome one for the Government and people of Dominica.
“In 2008, we spent 49.1 million East Caribbean dollars on dieseling power for the purpose of energy generation. In 2009, we spent 63.1 million dollars for the same activity. For the first half of 2010, we spent 38.9 million dollars. This simply means we are spending too much money on the importation of diesel for the express purpose of energy generation,” he said.
Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Roosevelt Skerrit, believes that the contract is being signed at a critical time in the global energy sector.
“We are signing this contract at a time when the price of fossil fuel on the international market has surpassed US$100 a barrel. One can appreciated the challenges this will pose to countries like Dominica and indeed the entire world because it will certainly increase the price to the public. It will increase the price of food on the shelves and in a time when all of us in this global environment are grappling with our own economic challenges,” he said.
Jamaican Senate approves bill to exempt certain CARICOM nationals from work permits
The Jamaican Senate, on April 7, approved amendments to a bill that will exempt certain categories of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) nationals from the work permit requirement.
Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Senator Dorothy Lightbourne, who piloted the Foreign Nationals and Commonwealth Citizens (Employment) (Amendment) Act, said the changes are in keeping with Chapter Three of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, establishing CARICOM and the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).
Some of the categories of workers, who will be exempted from work permits, are: self-employed persons, nurses, teachers, holders of associate degrees, artisans with vocational qualifications, and household domestics.
“I would like to emphasise that CARICOM nationals, who do not fall within the classification of the limited categories of skilled nationals, service providers or persons seeking to exercise rights of establishment, must still get a work permit or work permit exemption from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security,” Lightbourne said.
The accompanying Regulations were also amended to require that persons exempt under the Principal Act will now have to apply to the Labour Minister for certificates stating the nature of the exemptions.
“This provision is really important because it addresses the current gap in the law where, although it clearly provides for exemption certificates in specified cases, it does not mandate that the relevant categories of persons apply to the Minister to access the exemption,” the justice minister said.
The amendments to the Principal Act, also seek to remove the requirement for exemption certificates to be issued to persons, who wish to transact short-term business-related activities within the island.
In addition, provision has been made for an increase in fines and penalties for breaches of the work permit requirements.
“Sections three, two A and B, creates an offence where foreign nationals work without a valid work permit and where an employer has such a person in his employment in contravention of the Act. The applicable fine at present is the sum of $200, but this is being increased to $500,000,” Lightbourne said.
Also, the fine for refusing to produce a work permit without reasonable excuse, or to permit or submit to fingerprints being taken by an authorised person or a constable, has been increased to $250,000 up from $50.
In her remarks, Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Marlene Malahoo Forte noted that the Act is a fulfilment of Treaty obligations.
“So, I commend the government at this time for taking this step to make free movement a better reality for the peoples of Jamaica,” Malahoo Forte said.
Opposition Senator, Navel Clarke in his comments stated that he was in support of the amendments “and I think it is augurs well for the kind of relationship that the CARICOM partners have established and we hope that we will grow from strength to strength."
BELONGERS MAKE UP MORE THAN QUARTER OF HOSPITAL STAFF
As INTERHEALTH Canada enters its second year of operation in the TCI, the company can look back with pride at its achievements.
From groundbreaking neuro surgery to a 99.5 per cent reduction in overseas referrals, there is a lot to be proud of.
One achievement that outweighs many is the amount of Belongers employed at both the Cheshire Hall and Cockburn Town Medical Centres.
With locals making up 20 per cent of the TCI's population, Belongers account for more than 25 per cent of InterHealth Canada's workforce.
It has always been our aim to employ as many Belongers as possible, explained InterHealth Canada's TC CEO, Roger Cheesman, and so reflecting on the first year of operation has been encouraging.
More than 25 per cent of our staff are local people and that bodes well for the long term future of the hospital, he added.
Belongers hold some of the key positions at the two medical centres, including the head of Provos Emergency Department and the deputy chief of medical services. And there are also on-going plans to attract qualified Belongers back to the islands from around the world.
Mr Cheesman added: We have Belongers in very senior positions at the hospital and we hope to attract more in the near future.
InterHealth is also offering a wide and varied programme of educational support to all Belongers and we are currently investigating Canadian links for training jobs for TCI doctors.
If we are able to tap into this resource, this could provide us with a whole new generation of Belonger consultants in due course, he said.
Aside from medical posts, TC islanders also occupy a wide range of positions both in support services and administration.
In fact 62 per cent of all staff in these departments are Belongers, something the company is particularly pleased about.
These are key departments in terms of the everyday function of the centres, said Mr Cheesman, and therefore it's tremendous that so many
Belongers are employed. Obviously the long-term plan is for the TCI hospital to be run by TCI people and, as we enter year two, the signs are
very encouraging.
On top of this, we regularly welcome youngsters from local schools who come into the hospital on work experience exercises and I am confident we will see a number of these students back here as members of staff in the not too distant future, Mr Cheesman added.
PPC clears the air
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The largest power supplier of the TCI Provo Power Company (PPC) has responded to comments in some sections of the media that they were instrumental in the Interim Government’s decision to raise the carbon tax.
In a statement to this media house PPC maintains that “PPC became aware of the proposed Carbon Tax on Tuesday of this week (5th April 2011) through the Government Information Service’s Press Release. There were no prior consultations or advanced notice from the Interim Government, even though the Chairman and the CEO of PPC paid a courtesy call on the Governor and senior staff as recently as the 25th March 2011. Consequently, we are still assessing the likely impact of such a Tax on our customers, on the Company, and on the Country, if it is to be implemented. As far as we can tell, a Carbon Tax does not exist anywhere in the Caribbean, and we know as a fact that it does not exist in the United States and Canada.”
“What we can say at this stage is that the Interim Government’s proposal to impose a Carbon Tax on electricity generators is based on the false presumption that doing so will “encourage the generating companies to review their generating efficiency and mix of sources, including from renewable technologies, over time.”
The Carbon Tax according to the proposal is to be paid directly by PPC and its shareholders, to finance a waste management program. PPC calls this grossly unfair.
“This is grossly unfair, violates basic and long-established regulatory principles, and will, in fact, discourage improved generating efficiency and renewable energy investments. The Interim Government’s assertions run counter to basic principles of both economics and finance. Apparently, the Interim Government does not realize that the funds needed for investments in renewable energy resources and improved operating efficiency come directly from PPC’s earnings and its ability to raise capital. Arbitrarily reducing PPC’s earnings is not only grossly unfair to PPC’s investors, but it will reduce the funds available to PPC for further capital investment.”
Since acquiring PPC in 2006, their parent company, Fortis Inc., has reinvested all of PPC’s profits (plus tens of millions of dollars more) back into PPC, in its commitment to build a modern, reliable, and environmentally responsible utility company in the Turks and Caicos Islands, this move by the Interim administration will prompt investors to ask several questions, said PPC.
“By effectively expropriating millions of dollars from PPC, the Interim Government will raise concerns from future investors, thus raising the costs of borrowing funds and reducing access to capital markets, not only for PPC, but for all TCI businesses. Such an outcome will lead to higher electric rates and lower overall economic growth, hardly a recipe for economic recovery.
We understand the dire straits Government has gotten itself into financially. However, this Tax is not the way to solve Government’s financial difficulties. We hope to work with the Interim Government and persuade them to this effect.”
TCI Connolly Motors in Chile
Mrs. Josephine Connolly, managing director of Connolly Kia Motors, will be in Chile this week attending the Latin American and Caribbean Unveiling of the all-new fuel-efficient Kia Picanto and Kia Rio.
“The new compact Kia Picanto and Kia Rio are the kind of reliable and fuel efficient cars that we need for the kind of city driving that we do here in Providenciales and in Grand Turk,” said Mrs. Connolly.
She added that Connolly Motors over the past year has made a great impact in the local new car/truck market and is confident that Kia is fast becoming the most popular automobile on the TCI highways.
“We continue to show the power to surprise by leading the way with these dependable Kia vehicles that come direct from the manufacturer in South Korea,” said Mrs. Connolly. “The unveiling of the new Picanto and Rio in Chile this week is a further commitment from Kia Motors that small cars are growing up to be sporty and stylish with all of the advanced features.”
“The new models are not about showing off and they are not about excess. They have powerful yet light weight engines than improve fuel efficiency and that is very important in the Turks and Caicos Islands today when gasoline prices are rising toward six dollars a gallon,” said Mrs. Connolly.
Locally produced Kia ads by Connolly Motors’ sister company Connolly Production Company to support and welcome the new Picanto and new Rio will soon begin airing on both local television networks and on radio 88.7 Jamz FM.
“We have already ordered them with all the extras and in different tropical colours,” said Mrs. Connolly before leaving for Chile.