White House 'Disappointed' N. Korea Withdraws Invitation
The United States says it is "deeply disappointed" by North Korea's decision to rescind an invitation for an American envoy to visit and discuss the release of an imprisoned U.S. citizen.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said Monday that the United States remains prepared to send Robert King, a State Department expert on North Korean human rights issues.
King was planning to visit North Korea to discuss the release of imprisoned U.S. missionary Kenneth Bae.
The State Department said it also supports efforts by U.S. civil rights leader Jesse Jackson to help win Bae's release. It said Jackson has offered to travel to North Korea at the request of Bae's family.
It still is not clear what prompted the latest North Korean action. U.S. officials say it might be related to upcoming military exercises between the United States and South Korea.
Carney said the exercises should not be linked to Bae's case.
"We remind the DPRK that the U.S.-ROK military exercises are transparent, regularly scheduled and defense-oriented. These exercises are in no way linked to Mr. Bae's case, and we believe they know that."
South Korea announced Monday that military drills with the United States will begin later this month.
Also Monday, North Korea received a different American delegation.
A group led by Donald Gregg, a former U.S. ambassador to Seoul, arrived in Pyongyang Monday at the invitation of the North Korean Foreign Ministry. Lynn Turk, another former U.S. diplomat, who held talks in Pyongyang in the 1990s, said they were there "to build bridges" between their countries. Neither Turk nor Gregg mentioned Bae.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visits South Korea later this week with issues concerning Pyongyang likely to dominate the talks.
On Friday, the U.S. State Department said the 45-year-old Bae has been transferred from a hospital to a labor camp.
North Korea arrested Bae in late 2012 and later sentenced him to 15 years of hard labor on charges of trying to overthrow the government.
Calls for his release on humanitarian grounds have gone unanswered.
Bae was born in South Korea and emigrated to the United States with his parents and sister in 1985. He was living in China as a Christian missionary for about seven years before his arrest.
Within the last few years, he began leading small tour groups, mostly of American and Canadian citizens, into a "special economic zone" designed to encourage commerce in northeastern North Korea.
Source-VOA
Car Bomb Instructor Accidentally Blows Up Iraqi Pupils
A group of militants attending a suicide bombing training class north of Baghdad died when their instructor unwittingly set off an explosives belt during a a demonstration.
At least 21 militants were killed in the huge blast Monday that alerted authorities to the existence of the rural training camp. Nearly two dozen people were arrested, including wounded insurgents trying to hobble away from the scene.
The militants belonged to a network now known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, an extremist group that recently was disavowed by al-Qaida for not following orders.
The ISIL also has been known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.
The militants are battling for control of mainly Sunni areas of western Iraq, in a key test of the Shiite-led government's ability to maintain security more than two years after the withdrawal of U.S. troops.
British Flood Crisis Swells on River Thames
Waterlogged British towns on the River Thames prepared Monday for days of new flooding, with officials issuing 14 more warnings as the fabled river burst its banks about 30 kilometers upstream of London.
The new alerts were issued as Prime Minister David Cameron toured parts of the devastated region for a second time in three days. Forecasters say new rains this week are expected to put thousands more homes at risk, with water levels surpassing record flooding in 2003 in much of the region.
Storms and tidal surges have battered Britain since December, inundating entire communities, destroying roads and infrastructure, and cutting rail connections between the southwestern city of Plymouth and the rest of England. Forecasters are calling the British winter the wettest in nearly 250 years.
Television footage Monday showed British troops and civilians piling sandbags to protect real estate in the village of Datchet, before the river breached its banks and left much of the community submerged.
There are no flood alerts in London itself, where river banks are protected by a series of giant metal gates known as the Thames Barrier. The gates can be closed against tidal surges, creating more space for excess water to pool upriver.
The flooding has sparked a political firestorm, with locals accusing Cameron's government of failing to dredge rivers and implement other flood prevention measures. The prime minister told reporters Monday his only interest is ensuring maximum government efforts to curb the impact of the disaster.
On Sunday, Communities Minister Eric Pickles acknowledged that the government made a "mistake" in not dredging area rivers. But he said the decision was based on the advice of the Environment Agency, a government body.
Pickles, a member of Prime Minister Cameron's Conservative Party, apologized for taking the advice, telling the BBC "we made a mistake."
Jamaicans Killed In Cayman Murder-Suicide
The media in the Cayman Islands are reporting an alleged murder-suicide yesterday morning involving two Jamaicans.
According to the Cayman News Service, the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service identified the deceased as 21-year-old Nichelle Anna-Kay Thomas and 39-year-old Devon Roy Campbell.
The Cayman News Service says the two were found dead at an address in Lookout Gardens in Bodden Town on the island yesterday morning.
It is alleged that the woman was killed in a machete attack while the man hanged himself following the suspected murder.
A police spokesperson reportedly said the incident seemed to be a domestic tragedy.
Source- The Gleaner
Hundreds of workers picket offices in Dominican Republic
Hundreds of workers protested Monday morning in front of the headquarters of the country’s major business organization (CONEP), against an announced amendment to the labor code.
The workers grouped in the national unions CENUS, CASC and the CNTD also demand the preservation of the Dominican Social Insurance Institute (IDSS).
Chanting “respect for the labor code” the protesters called for a meeting of the National Wage Committee for June.
The CONEP has been urging an amendment to the Labor Code, especially the elimination of the Severance Pay, which business leaders say hurts competitiveness.
Source-Dominican Today
The Cuban embargo emerges as a political issue in Florida
Florida Gov. Rick Scott took issue Monday with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist’s view that the U.S. embargo has outlived its usefulness, saying keeping it in place is “standing up” for the Cuban people.
Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera was even more forceful in his rejection of Crist’s assertion last Friday on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher that the time has come to lift the embargo.
“Charlie Crist’s comments just show his ignorance on the issue of what is going on in Cuba. As a Cuban-American I was insulted by it. He should get a little smarter on what’s actually happening,’’ said Lopez-Cantera.
The politicians’ remarks come at a time when attitudes toward Cuba are evolving as more liberal travel policies by both the United States and Cuba increasing put Cubans on the island and those in Florida in more frequent contact with each other.
And even though a Florida governor has no authority to lift the embargo — that is an issue for the U.S. Congress — with Crist’s and Scott’s comments, the question of Cuba has emerged as a campaign issue.
Appearing at an event at a Lighthouse Point car dealership Monday, Scott and Lopez-Cantera wanted to talk up a Scott proposal to cut $500 million in fees — mostly by reducing charges for auto registration.
But during a press conference that followed, Cuba was front and center.
“America is built on freedom and democracy. Cuba is not free or Democratic. The embargo that’s in place is part of standing up for the Cuban individuals, Cuban families’ freedom,” Scott said. “So we need to continue the embargo.”
Asked if he thought the Cuban-American population in Florida still supports the embargo, Scott responded, “Absolutely.”
A new poll to be released by the Atlantic Council Tuesday may provide some clarity on the issue. The national poll examines attitudes toward U.S.-Cuba relations, including the embargo.
Crist — who in 2010, when he was governor, said he supported the embargo — now contends that lifting it could help the Florida economy, creating more jobs in the state and allowing Florida businesses to sell goods and services to an island that has been largely closed to most commerce with the United States for more than 50 years.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio characterized Crist’s new views on Cuba as just one more of the former governor’s mercurial positions.
“It’s just the latest in a series of flip-flops that he’s undertaken on public policy,” Rubio said Monday after a speech on higher education at Miami Dade College.
Crist, who is now running as a Democrat against Scott, lost the U.S. Senate race to Rubio in 2010 after leaving the Republican Party and running as an independent.
To lift the embargo would require congressional action. But the president can make certain adjustments such as increasing the categories of Americans allowed to visit the island as Barack Obama did in 2011.
Despite limited economic reform in Cuba, and recent talks between the two countries on migration issues and on the resumption of direct mail service, administration officials have said they want to see more from Cuba.
Among current obstacles to a thaw in U.S.-Cuba relations are the continued imprisonment of U.S. government subcontractor Alan Gross and Cuba’s human rights record.
Marie Harf, a State Department spokeswoman, Monday called Cuba an “outlier in the Western Hemisphere with its lack of respect for these rights.
“We are deeply concerned about the recent increase in arbitrary detentions, physical violence, and other abusive actions carried out by the Cuban government against peaceful human and civil rights advocates,’’ she said.
Source-Miami Herald
Herald Staff Writer David Smiley contributed to this report.
U.S. warns Americans not to fly from Guyana
The U.S. Embassy in Guyana is warning American citizens against flying out of the country on Caribbean Airlines flights bound for the United States for the next two days.
The embassy said it received unconfirmed threat information about such Caribbean Airlines flights — but did not offer specifics.
“Out of an abundance of caution, the Embassy advises all U.S. Citizens in Guyana traveling on Caribbean Airlines (CAL) to the United States from Monday, February 10, through Wednesday, February 12, 2014, to make alternate travel arrangements,” the embassy said in a statement.
Late Sunday night, the government of Guyana announced that it had activated emergency security plans and raised the terror threat level at the country’s main international airport in wake of threats to Caribbean Airlines flights.
Caribbean Airlines has added additional security measures and is cooperating with authorities, the company said in a statement Monday. It said all flights are operating as scheduled.
By Gordon Moseley for CNN
Talks between Hispaniola governments to double poultry exports
The Agriculture Ministry’s Livestock Dept. on Sunday said it expects the first two or three farms to be certified to resume eggs and chicken exports to Haiti within 60 days, while producers eye doubled sales with formalized trade on Hispaniola.
Livestock director Bolivar Toribio also notes that although some 100 major farms can export to Haiti, they need to review their long term modification process. "That is a process that takes time, because if you go to a farm that has no bathrooms for employees, they have to build them, together with a septic and a drain field."
He said International organizations approve the standards which govern the certification process, which in his view will benefit the country’s poultry production that will have the quality needed to enter any global market.
Haiti, Dominican pact on trade
The pact Haitian and Dominican officials signed Thursday on compliance with sanitary protocol and subsequent certification means a boost for exporters, according to egg producers association (ASOHUEVO) president Manuel Escaño, who estimated that exports could already jump from 30 to 60 million units monthly
Before Port-au-Prince banned imports of Dominican poultry around 30 million eggs (RD$120 million) and some 700,000 chickens (RD$70 million) were exported per month.
FortisTCI Recounts All Island Power Failure
On Sunday, February 9, 2014 at approximately 12 noon, the FortisTCI power plant on Leeward Highway experienced technical difficulties following an explosion and electrical fire in one of the plants main switchgear rooms. It was the courageous efforts by staff working on the plant yesterday who rushed to the scene of the explosion in attempt to extinguish the fire, avoiding what could have been a disastrous situation.
Shortly thereafter, during the troubleshooting phase to determine the cause of the explosion, a major fault was located on one of the main cables leading to the plant’s 12Kv substation and electrical bus bar. The combination of both these incidents resulted in a complete shutdown at approximately 1:38 p.m. Engineers immediately began working to repair and restore power to customers. Given the magnitude of the damages, significant repair time was required. Work on all faults and damages that occurred earlier in the day were completed at approximately 9:00 p.m. Unfortunately, challenges occurred as the engineering team attempted to begin restoration efforts leading to further delays.
Power was restored at approximately 1:42 a.m. today (Monday) to the first group of customers, followed by another group of customers restored at 2:42 a.m. FortisTCI President and CEO Eddinton Powell said in an afternoon press briefing, “No power plant in the world is free and clear of technical problems. These are very complex systems. This is an incident that occurred in the oldest section of our plant for reasons at this time we are unaware of. Our focus right now is to fully restore power to all of our customers in Providenciales. We understand the importance of having electricity in your homes and businesses and I assure you that we are working around the clock to resolve this unfortunate series of events.”
As of 4:35 p.m. today crews are working to restore power to parts of Grace Bay, Leeward, Leeward Palms, and Blue Hills.
Updates will continue to be provided to customers as the restoration efforts progress. FortisTCI apologizes to customers for the inconvenience caused and thank you for your understanding and patience during this challenging time.
TCI Prison Service Extends Rehabilitation Initiatives with New Course
The Ministry of Environment and Home Affairs and Her Majesty’s Prison on Friday 7th February 2014 announced the completion of yet another phase of the Prison Rehabilitation Strategy when members of the staff completed victim empathy training.
Officers of Her Majesty’s Prison along with the Gender Affairs coordinator completed an eight day training course to qualify officers to deliver VEP ‘Victim Empathy Program’ Training to offenders. The course was delivered by UKHMPS Offending Behaviour Delivery Manager, Mr. Simon Drysdale and ran from 29th January 2014 to the 7th February 2014.
The VEP course is designed to structure offence analysis together with group work and covers the impact on victims of the offence while placing the offender in the position of empathy and understanding towards the victim’s position and the wider implications of such actions.
The training enables officers to deliver Empathy Courses alongside the current Offending behavior programs Anger Management and the Cognitive skills course, ‘Just Think’.
Prison Superintendent Mr. Ian Sargent commented: “The introduction of this course to run as part of the sentence management planning is a clear sign of the support from the Ministry in developing accredited programs for Offenders. For TCI to gain Staff accreditation in VEP is a major step in the rehabilitation strategy and cannot be underestimated in terms of offender interventions.
Certificates were presented by Permanent Secretary of Environment and Home Affairs, Mrs. Susan Malcolm.