UK requests extradition of Misick
The United Kingdom has made a request for the extradition of former Turks and Caicos Premier Michael Misick who is being held in a Brazilian jail following after his December arrest in the South American nation on an international warrant.
Under an agreement with Brazil the British authorities have 60 days from the date of arrest to formally request his extradition the Turks and Caicos Islands’ (TCI) Attorney General’s office said in a statement Wednesday.
"Michael Misick is the subject of an extradition request made lawfully and properly, in accordance with the relevant Treaty in place between the UK and Brazil, as extended to the Turks and Caicos Islands,” the Attorney General said.
“As such, he is currently being held in accordance with the terms of this Treaty, under a provisional warrant of arrest.”
“It is intended that this request be submitted in January 2013,” the statement said. “Following this Mr Misick will have the opportunity to consider whether he wishes to contest his extradition.”
US spent billions on Caribbean immigration enforcement
A new study has found that last year the Obama administration spent more on immigration enforcement affecting the Caribbean and other countries than on all the other major federal law enforcement agencies.
The Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research group, in its 182-report said the US government spent nearly US$18 billion on immigration enforcement.
It pointed out that immigration control has become “the federal government’s highest criminal law enforcement priority,” based on the vast resources devoted to monitoring illegal Caribbean and other immigrants and to detaining and deporting them.
“The ‘enforcement first’ policy that has been advocated by many in Congress and the public as a precondition for considering broader immigration reform has de facto become the nation’s singular immigration policy.
” The report also said the two main immigration enforcement agencies under the US Department of Homeland Security have referred more cases to the courts for prosecution than all of the Justice Department’s law enforcement agencies combined.
These include the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The report said total spending on those agencies was US$14 billion, compared to US$18 billion on immigration enforcement.
It was also revealed that deportations have “increased dramatically” as a result of massive increases in spending, with more Caribbean and other immigrants removed in expedited proceedings that do not involve any formal proceeding before an immigration judge.
The budget for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has increased by 87 per cent since 2005, to nearly US$6 billion, and the number of illegal immigrants that ICE detains annually increased to 429,247 in 2011.
Last month, ICE said it deported 410,000 immigrants in 2012, giving President Barack Obama the record for the highest number of deportations.
US seize Gold Bars in Puerto Rico
U.S. authorities in Puerto Rico have confiscated 11 gold bars sent by mail from Curacao, officials said Tuesday. Investigators are now probing whether the seized gold is from a recent heist on the Dutch Caribbean Island.
The gold bars were found in several courier packages at an airport in the Puerto Rican town of Aguadilla, said Jeffrey Quinones, a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The bars weighed nearly 77 pounds and have an estimated value of US$1.7 million, said a report in the Miami Herald.
Inspectors noted that the packages that arrived in mid-December were “unusually heavy,” and flagged them for inspection before confiscating the bars as suspected contraband, Quinones said in a statement.
According to a local source, the gold is part of the stolen shipment in Curacao.
The source said that investigators are now learning that some of the gold had been shipped to Puerto Rico earlier.
The success of this shipment led to the shipping by FedEx of the larger shipment that was intercepted in the United States.
Curacao police spokesman Reginald Huggins said authorities there have six suspects in custody in the theft and have recovered some of the gold, though he declined to say how much. He said he was unaware of the seizure in Puerto Rico.
Mother hacks 11 month old baby to death
A mother chopped her 11-month-old son to death yesterday then turned herself over to the police in a bizarre case of infanticide that shocked the country.
Police did not name the mother, who is now in custody pending further investigations. However, they identified the baby as Lindon Madison.
The macabre incident occurred at the woman's home on Fort George Road, near Annotto Bay Primary School at about 6:30 am.
The woman lived with the child's father.
Police report that she arrived at the station about 7:30 am and told them that she had killed her baby. The police accompanied her to the house where the baby was found with multiple chop wounds. His head was almost severed.
The baby, who would have had his first birthday next week, was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Source:Observer
PNP says much achieved in first year
THE People's National Party (PNP)-led Government yesterday released what it described as a Year One Report Card detailing its achievements in the first 12 months of the administration.
In highlighting the five main pillars of the report, the party's general secretary, Peter Bunting, said the document not only linked the administration's work to the promises made in the party's 2011 manifesto and the progressive agenda, but also the efforts of the various ministries and the direction the Government was taking the country.
The PNP general secretary, who was addressing a press conference at the party's Old Hope Road headquarters in Kingston yesterday to present the report, said there will be a subsequent document which would summarise the manifesto's promises as well as other significant transformational initiatives being planned.
"While this First Year Report Card focuses on the status of manifesto's 2011 promises kept and in-train, we know there is much work to be done to complete the five-year plan which will take us to the end of our first term," Bunting said.
The self-evaluation report, Bunting explained, was done with the help of a committee of the party's executive, along with ministers' reports of their performance.
But while not willing to point to any failures of the administration, Bunting said what could have been done better is the ability to move more quickly on everything.
"Speaking for myself as a first-time Cabinet minister it is frustrating the pace at which things can move through the bureaucracy, having said that I think we have achieved a lot," he said, adding that a sound platform has been established in the first year.
The first plank of the report focused on the creation of a social net to ease the burden for the most vulnerable Jamaicans while re-establishing economic stability.
This covers the Jamaica Emergency Employment Programme (JEEP), phases one and two; removal of General Consumption Tax on electricity bills; tax and pension reforms, debt management and a right-sized, more cost-efficient Government.
"It is in this section that the majority of matters that would need to be addressed to allow for the successful completion of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreement are addressed; the same critical matters that we have to get right as a country whether a deal is completed in the short term or not," Bunting said.
The second plank examines the repositioning of the economy to create a clear path to growth and development.
"The second plank is critical and will be one of the main focus areas of our Cabinet retreat," Bunting said.
Pointing to the four industries highlighted in the party's manifesto — ICT, manufacturing, agriculture and tourism — Bunting said the first year was spent laying the foundation with an important element being the government's efforts to establish Jamaica as a major logistics hub in the Americas.
This, he said, will facilitate not only trans-shipment but ICT and manufacturing companies to set up operations here.
The third plank addresses the creation of a framework that facilitates genuine participation for better governance while the fourth looks at the development of social infrastructure to support sustained growth.
Noting that no growth can take place without people, Bunting said for an individual to contribute to the growth of their country they must be educated, feel safe, be healthy and have a sense of identity. As such, Bunting said the administration has begun to make Jamaica a safer place and have started to address the issues of violence against children and a reduction in crime.
The fifth plank is continued physical infrastructural developments to support an environment of growth. This entails the continued construction of Highway 2000, expansion of the ports to take advantage of significant trans-shipment trade opportunities, increased affordable housing opportunities for Jamaicans and improved water supply.
Deputy General Secretary Julian Robinson, who noted that this is the first ever such report card from a governing party or a government in Jamaica's history, said the party intends to make this an annual event.
"This is a new annual tradition for us in keeping with our commitment to participation, accountability and responsibility, what we call PAR in our Progressive Agenda," he said.
Party Chairman Robert Pickersgill, meanwhile, said the party intends to honour the mantra established by Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller that the party and Government are consultative, inclusive and will maintain a constant and open dialogue with the people of Jamaica.
"With 12 months of the maximum 60 for the first term of the current administration having passed, and as the prime minister objectively expressed, it has not been a perfect year, yet we believe it prudent and important to engage in this self-assessment and to make the results of that assessment public," he said.
Source: Jamaica Observer
Premier Ewing and Fortis TCI Team meet
Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands, Dr. The Hon. Rufus W. Ewing on Tuesday January 8, 2013, met with the management team of Fortis TCI to make acquaintances and to discuss matters relating to the energy sector and in particular the high cost of electricity.
The Premier, along with Minister of Finance, Hon. Washington Misick and Minister of Government Support Services (GSS) Hon. George Lightbourne, met with the Fortis team headed by President and CEO Mr. Stan Marshall, and Messers Edington Powell and Allan Robinson.
The Premier spoke of the high cost of electricity to consumers and the need for the creation of policies that would result in the sustainable reduction of electricity cost to TCI consumers. Also discussed were the factors that contributed to the high cost of electricity. The meeting also analyzed possible solutions including reducing the cost of fuel importation, and improving energy efficiency in homes. The men discussed options that included consumers generating energy from alternative sources and selling back to the grid as well as the possibility of Fortis' commercial generation of alternative energy for sale to consumers.
Premier Ewing said: “It was very important to have met the President and CEO of Fortis parent company out of Canada, to outline first-hand the challenges faced by the consumers in the TCI and to hear the concerns of Fortis and foster a working relationship that is mutually beneficial that would result in a significant and sustainable reduction in the cost of electricity to our consumers”
In his contribution, Minister Lightbourne noted that some consumers have been forced to use their entire salaries to pay electricity bills. He urged the Fortis leadership to “hear the cries of the people”.
Minister Lightbourne and his team of Permanent Secretary Mr. Wesley Clerveaux and Electricity Commissioner Mr. Malike Cummings agreed to focus on the development of a new energy policy along the lines of the solutions that were discussed.
For their part, Fortis TCI welcomed the ideas and suggestion by the TCI Government officials noting that efforts are being made and that they are willing to work collaboratively with TCIG to address the concerns of all parties.
The meeting was held at the Premier’s Office inside the NJS Francis Building, Grand Turk. Also in attendance was Mr. Ronlee James, the Premier’s Head of Secretariat.
TCI Police wants to ensure you are not on a burglar’s to-do list
0
0
1
314
1793
Tripple M FM
14
4
2103
14.0
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
JA
X-NONE
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0cm;
mso-para-margin-right:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0cm;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
With the increase of petty instances, the Royal Turks & Caicos Islands Police, wants to protect you in 2012.
Do you have expensive items left outside? Does your home look unoccupied?
Burglars look for easy to access properties that will make it worth their while to break in to. Think about your home from a burglar’s point of view and look for the weak spots in your home security, taking a few crime prevention measures to make your house less likely to go on the burglars ‘to-do list’.
Although the Turks & Caicos is one of the safest countries in the world, we traditionally see an increase in burglaries during the festive time.
But you can make a huge difference and dramatically reduce the chances of being burgled by taking just a few simple measures:
✓ Never leave door or car keys, wallets or handbags within reach of a letterbox, door or window.
✓ Make your home look occupied when nobody is home by using an automatic timer to switch interior lights on and off.
✓ Set your burglar alarm whenever you leave your home. If you don’t have an alarm, we recommend you get one fitted.
✓ Dispose of empty packaging carefully. Empty boxes left outside can advertise to thieves what they can find inside.
✓ Going away soon? Ask a friend or family member to keep an eye on your home. Don’t post details of your holiday on social network sites.
✓ Mark your valuables with a property marking pen and place signs and stickers around your home, making it clear that your property is marked. Photograph your valuables and keep a description of them.
✓ Always secure your shed and garage and don’t leave ladders or other tools outside which could help a burglar gain access to your house.
Know any burglars?
Cash rewards are being offered by Crimestoppers in a bid to catch burglars in the Turks & Caicos.
If you know who is involved in burglary activity in the Turks & Caicos, but don’t want to talk to the Police, you can pass information to Crimestoppers without revealing your identity. Just call 1-800-8477. Tips can also be submitted anonymously in English, French or Spanish on either www.crimestoppers.tc or on Facebook as a fan of Crime Stoppers Turks & Caicos. Crime Stoppers tips are received in the USA.
Firearms Unit to renew firearms licence in TCI
0
0
1
183
1048
Tripple M FM
8
2
1229
14.0
96
800x600
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
JA
X-NONE
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Calibri;}
The Royal Turks & Caicos Islands Police is urging all persons with expired firearms licence to visit the Firearms Unit to renew their firearms licence. All firearms licence in the Turks & Caicos became expired as of December 31st, 2012. There are over two hundred expired firearms licence holders at present who are at risk of having their firearms licence suspended indefinitely for failing to renew their licence.
Firearms licences are generally valid for one year, and it is the licence holder’s responsibility to renew their licence in a timely manner. Renewing on time will help to avoid possible complications and consequences, including being charged with unauthorized possession of a firearm.
If you acquired a firearms licence last year and have not renewed your firearms for 2013, then you must visit the Firearms Unit now with your firearm and all ammunition.
Individuals who possess firearms or handle them in the course of their work are required, under the Firearms Act, to have a valid firearms licence. A valid firearms licence is also necessary to acquire firearms or ammunition.
If anyone has any doubts, concerns or questions relating to firearms, please contact Sgt. Thomas of the Firearms Unit at 2316262.
Schools reopen in the TCI after Sanitization
All schools on Providenciales and North Caicos were deep-cleaned and sanitized for the New Year in keeping with a commitment by Government, through the Ministries of Health and Human Services, Education and Government Support Services.
During the Christmas break, crews cleaned all private and public schools on the two islands to prevent any threat of the norovirus among the school populations. This meant that all rooms, equipment, books, desks, chairs, tables and carpets etc. had to be cleaned and sanitized according to norovirus protocols. This labor-intensive process delayed the reopening of two public high schools namely the Raymond Gardiner High School on North Caicos and the Clement Howell High School.
The Norovirus Protocols require that once cleaned, all rooms had to be closed for a period of two days (48 hours) to ensure that the sanitization process was effective.
The Government is committed to taking whatever measures are necessary to safeguard the health and safety of the children and young people of the TCI. As an ongoing precaution, TCIG is urging the public to practice proper hand washing and personal hygiene as encouraged by the Ministry of Health and Human Services in previous news releases.
The Ministry of Education extends its thanks to all the parties including, Principals and staff of the private schools who took part in this exercise. Their cooperation ensured that the deep cleaning and sanitization process was completed, in most instances, to commence the Hilary Term on January 7, 2013.
Tourist Board completes visitor arrival data in TCI
The TCI Tourist Board announced today that it is in the final stages of completing visitor arrival information for 2012 which will be down on record-breaking 2011. The 2012 data will include passenger information collected from seaports, airports and via the Grand Turk Cruise Center. According to data obtained from the Grand Turk Cruise Center for the period January-December 2012 the total number of ship calls were 261 as against 270 in 2011. Passenger arrivals were six hundred and seventy-six thousand six hundred and forty-seven, an increase of 3.2 per cent over 2011. In that year, the country welcomed 354,223 land-based visitors, providing an aggregate total - cruise and land-based – of one million nine thousand seven hundred and twenty - eclipsing the one million mark for the first time.
As of November 2012 land based arrivals stood at 267,608 and while arrivals for December are still being tabulated, indicators - with the exception of January and February 2012 - show that arrivals were trending downward when compared to 2011. If this holds true, in December, we should expect a land-based visitor count of approximately 25,000 which would put our total land based arrivals at approximately 293,000. This, combined with cruise arrivals, comes to a total of approximately 970,000 visitors in 2012, just short of the one million mark. The Board will be providing exact visitor counts when the final numbers are in. In the future the Board says it will have the opportunity to provide more timely data on both a quantitative and qualitative basis with the introduction in 2012 of the CTO Mist system which allows for the refinement of information collected at ports of entry. While Providenciales remains the tourist hub, all indicators show that land-based tourists were on the increase throughout the family islands of North and Middle Caicos as well as Grand Turk and Salt Cay. South Caicos remains a challenge, but the Board says it is aware of the needs of South Caicos and is making every effort to provide greater exposure to the Island. Overall, while 2012 visitor counts fell short, the Board claims this can be attributed to various setbacks that caused a slight decrease in comparative numbers. In March, a two-day industrial action contributed to decreased air service, the summer saw an outbreak of the Noro-virus affecting arrivals in the short-term - and later in the year the passage of Hurricane Sandy contributed to a marked decrease in future bookings from the major source markets. It claims a 25 percent reduction in the Board’s overall budget also diminished its ability to market effectively in traditional and emerging markets. The Board however says it feels bullish about prospects for visitor arrivals even in light of sluggish economies in Europe and the US. It continues to see increased demand for information on the TCI. Director Ralph Higgs said that while the Board was disappointed that the TCI was unable to expand on the record breaking numbers achieved in 2011, he feels confident that the New Year will bring new vigor to tourism.