Drug abuse control commission to discuss Regional Trade
The region’s leading drug control officials will meet here this week to examine the impact of the illicit drug trade in the region and how to respond more efficiently to threats.
The Organisation of America States (OAS) said the 52nd Regular Session of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) takes place from November 28 to 30.
Costa Rican President, Laura Chinchilla Miranda, will offer opening remarks, as that country assumes the presidency of CICAD for the period 2012-2013.
During the meeting, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza will report to the Commissioners on the ongoing development of the report on the drug problem in the Americas, which was mandated by the heads of state at the Summit of the Americas in Cartagena in April 2012.
The Commission will review a new set of evaluation procedures, standards and criteria for the Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM), the OAS’s instrument for assessing the efforts of Member States in dealing comprehensively with the global drug problem.
The OAS said the new instrument recasts the process within the framework of the Hemispheric Drug Strategy, approved by the General Assembly in June 2010, and its Plan of Action, 2011-2015, adopted a year later.
The Commission will also take a “hard look” at the increasing toll of organized crime on public security, the rule of law, the economy and civil society, as well as the latest trends in the production and trafficking of illicit drugs, money laundering and corruption, the OAS said.
“To offset the drug trade’s damage, the Commission will examine how a social integration policy can create channels for former drug users to rejoin their communities as productive members; how drug treatment courts can be adapted to deal with drug dependent offenders as an alternative for incarceration; and how the public health system can address the new priorities introduced by rising substance use,” the statement said.
Part of the three-day meeting will focus on CICAD’s future operations, as well as reports from Executive Secretary Paul Simons and CICAD’s expert groups.
CICAD is the Western Hemisphere’s policy forum for dealing with the drug problem.
Farrakhan calls for new education system in Grenada and the region
Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Chicago-based Nation of Islam (NOI), wants Grenada and other Caribbean countries to pay greater attention to youth, including the type of education young people are receiving at school.
He has pointed to the danger of restlessness among youth in many countries, including Greece, Spain and Egypt, that has led to street protests.
“Young people are revolting,” Farrakhan said on Saturday at a public lecture in St George’s.
It was his first visit to Grenada and forms part of a Caribbean tour that has now taken him to Barbados.
While in Grenada, Farrakhan met Governor General Sir Carlyle Glean; Prime Minister Tillman Thomas and his deputy Nazim Burke; and opposition leader Dr Keith Mitchell.
He also visited a secondary school and several agricultural projects, including the Nutmeg Receiving Station at Gouyave, St John.
Farrakhan, 79, described Grenada as “a very beautiful island.”
However, one of his concerns is the relationship between youth and older citizens.
“Disconnect is going on right here in Grenada” between the two groups,” Farrakhan said.
He called for the establishment of a “new education system.”
“You have to build an education system that teaches your children the value of who they are,” he advised. “The black contribution to civilization must be taught in schools.”
During his presentation at the Grenada Trade Centre, Farrakhan condemned the mistreatment and abuse of women; championed the need for greater black economic empowerment; and appealed for deeper Caribbean integration.
The former colonized countries of the Caribbean and Africa, which are now independent nations, have flags and anthems, which are “symbols without substance,” Farrakhan charged.
“Economic power is not in your hands,” he said, cautioning that indebtedness to the “blood suckers” at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund is “another form of slavery”.
In the case of Grenada, he urged more investment in nutmeg and other agricultural products.
“All kinds of industry can come from nutmeg,” said Farrakhan, who also underscored the commonalities of the various religions, including Christianity, Islam and Judaism.
All religions, he said, “are trying to do a great work for God,” but confusion among them is “orchestrated by Satan.”
Farrakhan also preached the importance of forgiveness, with special reference to the Grenada events of 1983 that resulted in death of former Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and other Grenadians.
He said the events left a “gaping wound.”
But arriving in Grenada to an airport named after Maurice Bishop is an indication that “a healing is beginning to take place,” said Farrakhan.
He said the NOI also is in a healing process over the 1965 assassination of its former member, Malcolm X.
Malcolm’s assassins, Farrakhan said, were black but the hands behind the killing were white.
He admitted to a fallout with Malcolm X when disagreement arose with the late NOI founder, Elijah Muhammad.
But Farrakhan said Malcolm X, whose mother was Grenadian Louise Norton Little, was his mentor and teacher.
“Malcolm X inspired me greatly,” said Farrakhan, who was born 1933 in the United States to Caribbean parents
Caribbean ports prepare for added demand from expanded Panama Canal
Ports in the Caribbean are reportedly rushing to prepare for potential spin-offs from the expansion of the Panama Canal.
The Bahamas has said that its port is among those in Jamaica and Cuba, which are either expanding, or have plans to expand.
Some Caribbean port managers say they hope to receive “post-Panamax” ships and become a transhipment hub that will supply smaller ports with feeder vessels.
CANA reports that others say they are simply bracing for increased feeder traffic. “Panamax” is the term for the size limit of ships going through the Panama Canal.
Caribbean slow to benefit from trade pacts
Despite the preferential trade agreements between the Caribbean and other countries over the years, the region is still slow to reap the benefits.
Furthermore, Minister of Industry, Small Business and Rural Development Denis Kellman said those agreements have not resulted in more exports for the region.
Adding that most Asian countries were successful in developing an export diversification strategy and decreasing their reliance on imports, Kellman suggested that Barbados adopt some of those countries’ best practices.
“The successful development of a country usually involves accelerated growth of new activities in sectors such as manufacturing and non-traditional agriculture, along with services,” he said.
“Despite trade preferences, and some might say because of them, the Caribbean’s integration into the world economy has been slow and compares poorly with some Asian countries with similar levels of integration, which they have created some 30 years ago,” said Kellman.
“In other words, while these unilateral preferential trading arrangements were established as developmental tools to stimulate and diversify Caribbean exports, anticipated results have not been forthcoming,” he added.
Kellman added that according to a recent report from the World Bank and Organization of American States (OAS) in collaboration with CARIFORUM governments, the Caribbean share of world trade was declining while countries such as Thailand’s and Malaysia’s were increasing.
“Weakness in access and poor infrastructure, together with poor labour productivity, has resulted in relatively high production cost compared to those of Asian countries.
“It nevertheless acknowledged that trade liberalization and enhanced market access have not been sufficient to expand trade in many low-income countries,” he said.
His comments came during the FINPYME Export Plus roundtable discussion on best practices for export at the University of the West Indies’ Cave Hill School of Business last Thursday.
Knicks Get Back on Track With Win
The Knicks gladly took what they got on Sunday, when they notched a 121-100 victory over the Detroit Pistons at Madison Square Garden.
"It was better," said center Tyson Chandler of the defense. "I thought we got back to our principles. We've still got to turn it up more, but it was a lot better than the last time."
Achieving "better" wasn't asking all that much. After all, the team was coming off a pair of unsightly losses in which it allowed 114 and 131 points to Dallas and Houston, respectively. The stretch—the Knicks' first two-game regular-season losing streak since before coach Mike Woodson took the reins in March—saw the team statistically fall into the bottom half of the league's defenses. Just a week before, they were the NBA's top-rated defensive unit.
Unlike in the past two losses, the Knicks' offense made up for the defensive flaws. They again got a spark from Carmelo Anthony (game-high 29 points), who tallied 15 in the opening period by hitting his first six shots. It marked the third time in four outings he'd scored at least that much to start a game.
The effort gave the Knicks (9-3) a 32-22 lead after one before the clubs played out an identical 32-22 second quarter to put the Knicks up 64-44 at half.
Their lead was never in serious jeopardy, but the Knicks came out of the break slow—which seems to be turning into a habit—and had to withstand a swift 13-3 Pistons run to open the third. A layup by Brandon Knight brought the Pistons within eight, 77-69, with three minutes left in the third period.
The Knicks finally began breaking away when they exploded from behind the arc. Steve Novak hit two of the team's 17 three pointers to close the quarter. "It had to be a game where they couldn't get to the three-point line, and they did," Pistons coach Lawrence Frank said.
The play that iced the game ended up being a dunk. Off a steal, J.R. Smith (15 points, 10 rebounds, five assists) drove the length of the floor before feeding a trailing Chandler, who threw down a thunderous slam to extend the Knicks' lead to 95-78 and awaken what had been a sold-out, yet sleepy-sounding Garden.
After winning, the Knicks turned their attention to their new next-borough neighbors: the Brooklyn Nets. The clubs were set to square off Monday for the first time, a makeup of what would've been each teams' season-opening contest had it not been for superstorm Sandy.
The Knicks acknowledged looking forward to the game but played down a sense of a rivalry. Raymond Felton, for example, has pointed out that he shares a birthday with Nets star Deron Williams and has played against his friend dating back to junior-high AAU days. Jason Kidd is so close with Williams that they discussed potentially signing with the same team in July during free agency. And that was before Williams won gold with Anthony and Chandler in the London Games. Ronnie Brewer has three close ex-teammates who play for Brooklyn.
"A rivalry comes through playoffs and hard-fought games—not a team moving and two teams being good the same year," Chandler said. "But it's a divisional matchup and an opportunity for us to get a full-game [standings] lead. The city's definitely going to get pumped."
Bolt ranks record IAAF Athlete of the Year Award above all
The world's fastest man, Usain Bolt, is in the history books. And in his own words, his latest accomplishment ranks among his most treasured.
A man of many records, Jamaican sprinting icon Bolt created another first yesterday afternoon when he became the only four-time winner of the IAAF World Male Athlete of the Year (AOY) Award, at the IAAF Awards ceremony inside the Pullman Skipper Hotel in Barcelona, Spain.
Multi-talented American sprinter Allyson Felix was named World Female Athlete of the year, an auspicious coincidence, nine years after herself and Bolt made their first trip to the IAAF Awards ceremony in Monaco as bright-eyed recipients of the Rising Star Award.
In a big night for Jamaican athletics, Bolt's coach, Glen Mills, also walked away with the Coaching Lifetime Achievement Award.
Bolt, the world-record holder over 100m and 200m, scorched the competition at the London Olympic Games to become the first man to successfully defend 100m and 200m Olympic titles, before leading Jamaica to a world-record blitz in the 4x100m relay.
Bolt also helped himself to the Samsung Diamond League 100m title as another spellbound season of 'Bolt-mania' came to a close.
Bolt told The Sunday Gleaner during a one-on-one interview shortly after the ceremony that this award is the one that really matters to him.
"This is the biggest one. The first one was great, but having defended my titles and doing so much this season is such a wonderful feeling and it ranks number one without a doubt," said Bolt, comparing his latest coup to the other three AOY awards.
"I definitely feel good to be awarded for the fourth time, especially coming from the IAAF because it's from the athletes and so on, so for me it's an honour and it's bigger than any other award you can get," Bolt said.
He noted that he never doubted topping the award, despite the seemingly tough decision between himself and Olympic champions and world record holders Aries Merritt (110m hurdles) and David Rudisha (800m).
"It was a tough field definitely, but I wasn't too surprised. I worked hard this season, did a lot and proved to the world that I am still the best, so I am not surprised," Bolt said, adding that he hopes to keep the streak going until he retires.
Extremely grateful
Felix was also elated, expressing gratitude for her first award, which follows a triple gold medal performance at the London Olympics (200m, 4x100m and 4x400m).
"I am extremely grateful, my heart is filled with gratitude and I'd like to thank you for this huge award," Felix said.
It was a Caribbean sweep in the World Rising Star Award category, with Olympic javelin champion Keshorn Walcott from Trinidad and Tobago and The Bahamas' Anthonique Strachan, the World Junior Championships double sprint champion, taking the male and female prizes, respectively.
Rudisha won the Male Performance of the Year award for his 1:40.97 world record run at the Olympics, while the world record-breaking USA women's 4x100m team won the female equivalent.
Merritt won the Inspirational Award, while Lyn Ventris and Robert Lida were the female and male World Masters Athletes of the Year awardees.
Rory McIlroy wins DP World Tour Championship in Dubai
World number one Rory McIlroy capped a sensational 2012 by birdieing the last five holes to win the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
The Northern Irishman won his fifth title of the year after a 66 took him to 23 under, two clear of Justin Rose.
Rose holed eight birdies and an eagle in a course record 10-under-par 62.
Fellow Englishman Luke Donald, who led overnight with McIlroy, shared third with Charl Schwartzel on 18 under after closing with a one-under 71.
"I couldn't have wished for the season to end any better," said 23-year-old McIlroy who won his second major at the US PGA Championship in 2012 and emulated Donald's feat from last year of winning the European and American money lists.
"Coming here with the [European Tour's] Race to Dubai wrapped up, I wanted to win the tournament trophy too and that's what I've done.
"It's a great way to finish a great season."
What had been expected to be a two-way shoot-out for the title between McIlroy and Donald was quickly turned into a three-way battle when Rose hit four birdies on the front nine to jump to 15 under.
McIlroy, who began on 17 under, bogeyed his opening hole, while Donald three-putted the third to record his first bogey of the tournament - and first in 103 holes on the Jumeirah Golf Estates course.
Rose meanwhile was holing a sixth birdie on the 13th before knocking in a five-foot eagle putt on the 14th to move one head of McIlroy on 19 under and two clear of Donald, both of who missed birdie chances on the 10th.
McIlroy levelled with a birdie on 11 but Rose inched ahead by matching that on the 15th and the world number seven unwittingly doubled his advantage by parring the 16th and 17th while McIlroy was bogeying the 13th.
Donald's challenge had already faltered with a bogey on the 12th and although birdies on the 14th and 16th gave him hope of making a late surge, he found the greenside stream with his second to the par-five 18th.
Rose, needing a par on the the last hole to break the course record, went one better, expertly judging a tricky 100-foot putt down the slope from the back of the green to leave himself a six-inch tap-in birdie to set the clubhouse lead on 21 under.
On his putt, Rose said: "I was one roll away from looking like an idiot.
"As soon as the ball got to the top of the hill and started to roll down I started to get goosebumps because I thought it was going in."
However, Rose's lead was short-lived as McIlroy holed birdie putts from three and 20 feet on the 15th and 16th to draw level, before hitting a five iron to six feet on the par-three 17th to set up his fourth successive birdie.
He wrapped up the victory with a curling 10-foot putt on the last, and quickly set his sights on more success in 2013 when asked about his next target.
"To be focused on the majors, try to win more of those," he said. "I've won one in '11 and one in '12. It would be nice to keep that run going next year, to keep improving as a player.
"I can feel like I can improve in different areas of the game still. "
West Indies-Tino Best 'I wasn't bowling at full tilt'
Tino Best said his success on the tour of Bangladesh, where the pitch conditions have been challenging, was an indication of his maturity as a fast bowler.
Best grabbed three wickets to put West Indies on track for victory over the Bangladeshis in the final Test of their two-match series.
Best defied a stiff hamstring to grab 3-26 from eight overs, as the home team reached 226 for six in their second innings - still trailing by 35 runs - at the close on the fourth day at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium.
Sacrificing his pace for a consistent line and length, Best sliced through Bangladesh's top order, as the Windies chase a clean sweep in the series and a rare fourth straight Test win.
"I wasn't bowling at full tilt at all, I was concentrating more on keeping my wrist behind the ball and trying to get a bit of 'shape' (movement) on the ball, something which I have been working really hard for the last couple of months with Gibson (Ottis, coach)," he said.
"When I butt up on flatter pitches in the subcontinent, I don't have to try to bowl every delivery at 90 miles an hour, but try to get a bit of 'shape'; getting some inswing and outswing at my pace is going to help me on slow pitches."
hamstring injury
After aggravating a previous hamstring injury on the first day, Best said he decided to bowl in the second innings two days later.
"I have had this injury since 2010 when I played county cricket for Yorkshire," he said.
"It came back on me from the Dhaka Test where I really pushed my body. It was painful, but I came back and bowled well."
Best said he hoped his spell impressed Gibson and was glad to play his part in putting the visitors within sight of victory.
"Having Ottis Gibson around and to bowl that way would make him feel good as a coach," he said. "It shows that I am learning from all the advice he has passed on.
"With fast bowling, the older you get, the more mature you become and bowling in such tough conditions is a learning curve for me and shows that I am improving as a player."
He added: "When I made my first-class debut for Barbados years ago, my head coach Henderson Springer always said, 'Try to make sure as a fast bowler, if you are quick, to be quick on sand'. He told us to try and get the pitch out of our heads.
"When you come to the sub-continent, it is always easy to use the excuse that the pitch is so flat and you may be tempted not to give it your all, but if you can get the pitch mindset out of your head and run in and bowl, bowl quick, bowl within yourself and don't try to hurt yourself, bowl in the right areas, you are always likely to get wickets."
Best also held a crucial catch to dismiss top Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan for 97 off left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul in the final over of the day.
The Caribbean side had met resistance from Shakib and Nasir Hossain, unbeaten on 64, when they put on 144 for the sixth wicket, after Bangladesh wobbled to 82 for five.
"I think breaking that partnership before the close was vital," said Best. "I think Shakib played fantastic and he is a fantastic talent for Bangladesh cricket.
"It all came down again to shot selection, but he's young and he will improve. But I think his partnership with Nasir which we broke could be the turning point in the game."
Best now has nine wickets in this Test at 17.55 runs apiece and will be looking to add to his tally when West Indies seek to wrap up victory on Sunday's (last night) final day.
SCOREBOARD
BANGLADESH 1st innings 387
WEST INDIES 1st innings
(overnight 564 for four)
| C Gayle c wkp Mushfiqur Rahim b | |
| Sohag Gazi | 25 |
| K Powell c Shakib Al Hasan b Rubel | |
| Hossain | 13 |
| D Bravo lbw b Sohag Gazi | 127 |
| M Samuels c sub (Elias Sunny) b | |
| Rubel Hossain | 260 |
| S Chanderpaul not out | 150 |
| +D Ramdin c wkp Mushfiqur Rahim b | |
| Shakib Al Hasan | 31 |
| D Sammy c Mahmudullah b Shakib Al Hasan | 0 |
| V Permaul c Sohag Gazi b Shakib Al Hasan | 13 |
| S Narine c Shahriar Nafees b Shakib Al Hasan | 0 |
| F Edwards c Shakib Al Hasan b Sohag Gazi | 2 |
| Extras (b10, lb7, w2, nb8) | 27 |
| TOTAL (9 wkts dec; 200.3 overs) | 648 |
Did not bat:T Best
Fall of wickets:1-37 (Powell), 2-43 (Gayle), 3-369 (Bravo), 4-546 (Samuels), 5-621 (Ramdin), 6-621 (Sammy), 7-639 (Permaul), 8-639 (Narine), 9-648 (Edwards).
Bowling: Sohag Gazi 57.3-4-167-3, Abul Hasan 24-0-113-0 (w1, nb4), Rubel Hossain 31-8-86-2 (nb3), Naeem Islam 14-1-43-0, Shakib Al Hasan 52-11-151-4, Mahmudullah 10-0-42-0, Nasir Hossain 12-1-29-0.
BANGLADESH 2nd innings
| Tamim Iqbal b Best | 28 |
| Nazimuddin lbw b Edwards | 0 |
| Shahriar Nafees c Sammy b Best | 21 |
| Naeem Islam b Best | 2 |
| Shakib Al Hasan c Best b Permaul | 97 |
| +Mushfiqur Rahim b Permaul | 10 |
| Nasir Hossain not out | 64 |
| Extras (lb2, w1, nb1) | 4 |
| TOTAL (6 wkts; 56.1 overs) | 226 |
To bat:Mahmudullah, Sohag Gazi, Abul Hasan, Rubel Hossain.
Fall of wickets:1-1 (Nazimuddin), 2-49 (Tamim Iqbal), 3-51 (Naeem Islam), 4-62 (Shahriar Nafees), 5-82 (Mushfiqur Rahim), 6-226 (Shakib Al Hasan).
Bowling: Edwards 11-0-65-1 (nb1), Narine 9-0-48-0, Permaul 16.1-2-51-2, Best 8-0-26-3 (w1), Gayle 4-0-15-0, Sammy 8-3-19-0.
Umpires: Richard Illingworth, Bruce Oxenford.
TV: Enamul Haque.
source-AP
Australia v South Africa: Hosts close in on Adelaide victory
Australia need six South Africa wickets on the final day to win the second Test in Adelaide and take a 1-0 series lead.
Set what would be a Test record 430 for victory, the Proteas slumped to 77-4 by the close of day four as Nathan Lyon claimed two wickets.
Earlier, Australia converted their overnight 111-5 into 267-8 declared thanks to Mike Hussey's 54.
Australia will replace South Africa at the top of the world Test rankings they win the three-match series.
Hussey and captain Michael Clarke played cautiously early on before upping the tempo with a driven boundary apiece off Rory Kleinveldt before the latter smashed 13 off one Imran Tahir over.
But Clarke (38) was out lbw to Dale Steyn in the next over and Hussey, who added a quick 33 with Matthew Wade, followed in the over before lunch, caught by Steyn when attempting a pull shot off Morne Morkel.
James Pattinson, who has been ruled out of the rest of the Test series with a rib injury, hit six boundaries in his 29 out out as he put on 47 with Ben Hilfenhaus (18 not out) before Australia declared.
South Africa's run chase got off to the worst possible start when captain Graeme Smith edged Hilfenhaus to Ricky Ponting at slip to depart for a duck in the first over.
Spinner Lyon then had Hashim Amla (17) caught by Clarke at slip and Jacques Rudolph (3) snapped up by Ed Cowan at short leg as the tourists stumbled to 45-3.
That became 45-4 when Peter Siddle bowled Peterson off his inside edge.
AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis scored just 10 runs in the final hour as they finished on 12 not out from 101 balls, and 19 from 74 respectively as South Africa crawled to 77-4.
Renesas shares up 5% on $2.2bn bailout report
Shares of Japanese chipmaker Renesas have risen 5% after a report said that shareholders have accepted a bailout from a government-backed fund.
The Nikkei Daily said the the fund will buy two-thirds of the struggling company for 180bn yen ($2.2bn; £1.4bn).
Renesas will also get an additional 1bn yen from major shareholders Hitachi and NEC Corp, the newspaper said.
Renesas, which makes chips for Apple and Nintendo, has seen demand decline in recent months