Obama Shortens Asia Trip Because of Shutdown
The U.S. government shutdown is forcing President Barack Obama to cancel two stops on his upcoming trip to Asia.
On the second day of the shutdown, the White House said Mr. Obama is cutting his planned visits to Malaysia and the Philippines, but expects to make his first two stops, in Indonesia and Brunei, to attend the APEC and East Asia Summits.
The shutdown went into effect early Tuesday after lawmakers missed a deadline to extend federal funding.
Republicans in the House of Representatives wanted to tie funding to a delay or defunding of President Obama's signature health care law, the Affordable Care Act.
Each attempt was turned back by the Democratic-controlled Senate, which must also agree to budget legislation.
Nearly one-million U.S. federal workers have been laid off and the shutdown is keeping national parks and many federal agencies shuttered.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday indicates 72 percent of American voters oppose the shutdown.
Implementation of the Affordable Care Act, nicknamed "Obamacare," went ahead as scheduled Tuesday. It is intended to provide health insurance coverage to millions of Americans who otherwise cannot afford or qualify for coverage.
Republican opponents of Obamacare say it forces people, including small businesses, to buy expensive insurance policies against their will, hurting the economy.
The current government shutdown is not affecting Voice of America broadcasts, but it has closed Smithsonian museums, as well as services such as federal tax offices, help for veterans, and some food aid for the poor.
Most civilian employees at the Pentagon must stay home, although the U.S. military remains on duty. The U.S. space agency, NASA, is almost entirely shut down, and U.S. military cemeteries overseas are closed.
Other federal workers are staying on the job with no guarantee when they will be paid.
Russia Charges 7 Greenpeace Activists With Piracy
Russian authorities have formally charged seven Greenpeace activists with piracy after they were seized during a protest against Arctic drilling.
The seven include a Russian, a Ukrainian, a Finn, two Britons, a Brazilian and a Swedish-American. Piracy charges can carry up to 15 years in jail in Russia.
The seven are among 30 Greenpeace activists arrested September 18 in the Russian Arctic and held in the city of Murmansk, after they approached and tried to scale an oil drilling platform owned by Russian state-controlled oil company Gazprom.
Greenpeace has spoken out against the charges, saying they are "an outrage." Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo male said the charges are meant to intimidate and silence the activists, but he vowed Greenpeace "will not be cowed."
Russian President Vladimir Putin last week said it is "obvious" the Greenpeace activists are not pirates, but defended the seizure of their ship, saying the activists had tried to capture the Russian oil platform.
The activists were detained in the Pechora Sea, near Russia’s only offshore oil production platform in the Arctic.
Russian Border Police seized the activists and towed their boat, the Arctic Sunrise, to Murmansk.
This news drew a protest petition, signed by more than 40 international environmental groups, asking President Putin to release the boat and its crew.
Last year, Greenpeace activists boarded the same rig and hoisted a protest banner.
US: Burma Must Do More to Stop Anti-Muslim Violence
The United States is condemning a fresh round of deadly attacks against minority Muslims in western Burma and urging authorities to do more to address the long-standing sectarian tension there.
The U.S. Embassy in Rangoon's statement on Wednesday followed several days of violence that has killed at least five Muslims, including a 94-year-old woman, in Rakhine State.
Residents said several Buddhist mobs armed with sticks and knives went on a rampage in the town of Thandwe earlier this week, burning down homes and attacking Muslim-owned establishments.
President Thein Sein toured strife-torn areas of Rakhine and met with local leaders for a second day Wednesday. It was his first trip to the troubled state since a wave of anti-Muslim violence broke out in June 2012, killing dozens and displacing tens of thousands.
In remarks carried in state media Wednesday, the president said "such instability based on religion and race harms and delays" Burma's recent democratic reforms and "tarnishes the national image."
Rights groups have accused Burmese police and military personnel of not doing enough to stop the violence. In some cases, witnesses have reported that authorities have joined in the attacks.
The U.S. Embassy statement strongly urged the Burmese government to "respond quickly and decisively" in protecting residents and holding accountable those responsible for the violence.
It also said Burma must "do more to ensure progress in security, rule of law, justice, humanitarian access, and reconciliation in Rakhine State.
Sectarian clashes have killed at least 240 people since they erupted in Rakhine in June 2012 and later spread to other parts of Burma. Most of the killings have happened in Rakhine, home to several Muslim minorities, including stateless Rohingyas.
T&T police investigate shooting death of two foreigners
Police are investigating the death of two foreigners whose bullet riddled bodies were found in the forest in Central Trinidad on Tuesday.
Police have identified the couple as Gladys Otiz and Vasquez Marcano, whose bodies were found lying on the roadway near an agricultural estate off Flanagin Road in Brasso, by an estate worker.
They said a vehicle was found abandoned less than a quarter mile away, with a suitcase in the trunk and investigators suspect the couple had been taken to the area by their killers for execution.
The police said the woman was shot three times and the man received six bullets and the authorities believe that they may have entered the country from Margarita on September 29.
Source-CMC
Mother of St Lucia Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony has died
The 93-year-old mother of St Lucia Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony has died after ailing for a short period.
Press Secretary Jadia Jn Pierre-Emmanuel confirmed that Andrazine Anthony passed away at the Tapion Hospital, on the outskirts of the capital on Tuesday.
The ruling St Lucia Labour Party (SLP) said “Andraz”, as she was affectionately known, had “always been a tower of strength for her children.
“No one can grieve as a child can; no one other than a child can know the hurt of losing a mother, but the prime minister can derive some tiny grain of comfort in knowing that his friends and colleagues within the Saint Labour Party share his sorrow and that of his family. He can also take comfort in knowing that his mother is in a better place. That after her long 93-year earthly journey, she is now free from pain and worry,” the party said in a statement.
Former Prime mMinister Stephenson Kin, whose mother died four months ago, said in a condolence message that while it is a difficult time for Prime Minister Anthony “I am confident, if you call on the Lord, He will provide you with strength and guide you through this most painful period.
“Having lost my own beloved mother, only a few months ago, I can truly understand your pain and grief at this time.”
Leader of the main opposition United Workers Party (UWP), Allen Chastanet said “as much as we would like to avoid loss and the unpleasantness in our lives, sometimes it is inescapable.
“Although no words can really help to ease the loss you bear, just know that you are in our thoughts and prayers,” he said, while the minority opposition Lucian Peoples Movement (LPM) said “while we do not fully understand death, and may never in this life time, our supportive role as members of the St. Lucian family remains very clear.
“It is therefore in the spirit of national unity that we comfort our prime minister and offer him the reassurance that he will not grieve alone. The LPM is united with you in your personal loss and in this moment of anguish.”
Eight alleged lottery scammers for court
The eight alleged lotto scammers held in simultaneous operations by the Major Organised Crime and Anti-corruption taskforce (MOCA) and US law enforcement agencies in western Jamaica last week are to appear in court to answer charges against them later this month.
Investigations also led detectives to arrest another alleged scammer in Trelawny following the operations on Wednesday, but that person is yet to be charged.
The eight arrested have been charged with breaches of the Law Reform (Fraudulent Transactions) (Special Provision) Act. They are:
• 21-year-old Tawayne Foster, otherwise called Street Man, of an Irwin address in St James;
• 27-year-old Simone Motta of Paradise in Norwood St James;
• 28-year-old Troy Jones, otherwise called Shaun, of Grange Pen district, Lilliput in St James;
• 23-year-old Shawnavon Wray, otherwise called Shawn Wray, of Duncans, Trelawny and Runaway Bay, St Ann;
• 53-year-old Carl Gooden, otherwise called Stamma;
• 25-year-old Carrick Gooden;
• 22-year-old Calvin Donaldson, otherwise called Mesh; and
• 18-year-old Oshane Tyrell, otherwise called Mice, all of Carey Park district, Duncans in Trelawny.
Gooden, Foster and Motta have been charged with breaches of the Dangerous Drugs Act, while Foster and Motta face additional charges for breaches of the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Several electronic devices which are believed to contain paraphernalia of the lottery scam, three Toyota Corolla motor cars and a quantity of marijuana were also seized in the operation.
All eight were granted bail. Gooden is to appear in the Duncans Resident Magistrate’s Court on Friday, October 11; Gooden, Wray, Donaldson and Tyrell will appear before the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, October 22 while Foster, Motta and Jones will appear on Thursday, October 31.
Source-JA.Observer
Haiti pulls envoy over Dominican Republic court decision
The Haitian Government said Tuesday that it is recalling its ambassador in the Dominican Republic's capital over a court ruling that strips Dominican citizenship from the children of Haitian migrants.
The decision by Haiti's foreign affairs ministry came almost a week after a ruling by the Dominican Republic's Constitutional Court. It decided to block citizenship for thousands of people born to Haitian migrant workers since 1929. This could affect some 210,000 Dominican-born people of Haitian descent and around 34,000 born to parents of other nationalities.
"The Chancellery is very concerned about this decision," the Haitian foreign affairs ministry said in a statement announcing the ambassador's recall.
Dominican officials have promised to create a path to legal residency for those whose birth certificates are voided, but have provided no details on how this might work.
The court ruling is certain to aggravate already uneasy relations between the two countries, which share the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. Tension has grown between the neighbours after the Haitian Government this summer imposed a ban on Dominican chicken and eggs, citing an erroneous report of avian flu in the Dominican Republic.
Haitian officials acknowledged the error but kept the ban in place, without explaining why.
Source-AP
Jack not bothered by Ian’s ‘thou shalt not lie’
Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner yesterday did not seem too bothered by statements made on a People’s Partnership political rally on Monday night by Crime Watch host Ian Alleyne.
Warner described Alleyne’s appearance on the platform at Harris Promende San Fernando as “trumped up”.
On Monday night, Alleyne denied a claim by Warner that he had been approached by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Attorney General Anand Ramlogan to be Minister of National Security.
The television host also lampooned Warner’s platform style, alluding to the fact that Warner always claims to have bombshells on persons, but constantly defers revelation of these supposed bombshells by saying, “but not tonight”.
“Unlike certain people, I am not going to say, tonight is not the night,” Alleyne said. “I am not going to say, not tonight, next week...not tonight. I am going to say tonight is the night.”
Alleyne continued, “Tonight is the night I never spoke to the PM; I spoke only to the AG related to matters of crime. To Jack Warner remember this, ‘thou shalt not lie!”
Warner was yesterday reluctant to respond to these remarks.
“If Ian Alleyne said so, then fine,” Warner said. “I will talk on Thursday.”
On Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s statement that a vote for the ILP was a vote for the PNM given how third parties split the vote and hand an advantage to the PNM, Warner said, “I don’t have time to take on that. I am not going to speak to that. I am talking Thursday.”
However, National Security Minister Gary Griffith, speaking with the media at the airport last night following the departure of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to Panama, said that if Alleyne has access to information on crimes that can be used by law enforcement to arrest people, he would be willing to work with him.
Griffith noted that “anyone who wants to be part of the system for us to go after the criminal elements, and to try to weed them out, I am more than happy and willing and able to work with those individuals, whether they be...political opponents, NGOs, business organisations and especially Mr Ian Alleyne.”
He continued: “The one thing that Mr Alleyne has shown is...what we had lacking for the last few years, which is that access to proper information which can be turned to intelligence and the utilised for successful operations.”
“If it is that we can utilise Mr Ian Alleyne, and he is willing to work with us, I am more than willing. I am looking forward to it,” he added.
On the allegation by Independent Liberal Party interim political leader Warner that his portfolio was offered to Alleyne, Griffith responded that it was “really irrelevant” and he was focusing on the job he has to do.
Source-TNT Newsday
JLP Rules Out Public Debate In Holness-Shaw Contest
Only days after challenger Audley Shaw publicly challenged Andrew Holness to a public debate, the Electoral Commission, established by the Standing Committee of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) to monitor the conduct of campaign activities, has banned all forms of media face-offs.
In a letter to both Shaw and Holness yesterday, the three-member commission said it had decided that "any media face-to-face or face-off confrontation format between the Shaw team and the Holness team or their supporters is prohibited in this election campaign".
The commission stated that it took note of a television programme involving Gregory Mair and Derrick Smith, from the Shaw and Holness teams, respectively.
The letter further stated that with the media being inundated with commentaries and statements, some disrespectful, it was timely for every one to be reminded that the JLP was engaged in an internal election to elect its leader, a process that involves approximately 5,000 delegates.
Source: Ja.Gleaner
“IT’S NOT A GAME, IT IS SERIOUS BUSINESS”
Following discussions with himself and the Premier, Dr. Hon. Rufus Ewing, the Minister of Finance, Hon. Washington Misick will no longer have Lottery & Gaming as a part of his portfolio.
This decision comes following a request made by Hon. Misick for a transfer of responsibility for Lottery & Gaming to another Minister to avoid the possibility of perceived conflict of interest.
In April of this year, Cabinet imposed a one-year Moratorium on the issuance of new gaming licenses in an effort to address the concerns raised by the Ministry of Finance, and the 2008 Caribbean Financial Task Action Force report, which suggested that the Gaming Industry in the Turks & Caicos Islands was non-compliant to international standards. The moratorium, is intended to give Government the time needed to develop legislation and policies to regularize the industry,
“We as a Government have a job to do. We are taking a number of measures to show the world that we are not a rogue Government. We are making every effort in our financial sector to ensure that we are compliant to international standards and can be respected as a fair and transparent financial services center. Our Lottery & Gaming industry should not be an exception.”
“I take the job that the people have given me very seriously. It is not a game, it is serious business. While I have done my part in declaring my interests in this matter and have refrained from inclusion in decisions made with regards to Lottery and Gaming, I think that it is in the best interests of everyone for the responsibility to be transferred in order to avoid misconception and my integrity coming into question and that of our Government,” the Minister said.
Despite the imminent transfer, and as is the responsibility of all Cabinet members, Hon. Washington Misick will continue to enact his position of exclusion on decisions made relating to this Industry.
The responsibility for Lottery & Gaming will be transferred to Dr. Hon. Rufus Ewing, Premier and Minister of Tourism, effective October 1, 2013.