West Indies beat New Zealand by 24 runs
West Indies beat New Zealand by 24 runs in their fourth one-day international at Warner Park in St Kitts today.
Scores: West Indies 264 all out from 49.5 overs (Kieron Pollard 56, Marlon Samuels 46; Jacob Oram 3-42, Tim Southee 3-53); New Zealand 240 all out from 49.3 overs (Ross Taylor 110; Tino Best 4-46)
West Indies lead the five-match series 3-1.
Mobs beat and Burn 3 Suspected Thieves in Haiti
Police in Haiti say they are still investigating the circumstances which led to the killing of three young, suspected thieves.
The three were killed last weekend by groups of angry people who hung one and burned two in burning tires.
Two bodies were found charred and limbs tied in the district of San, in La Plaine (north of Port-au-Prince). A third body was found in roughly the same condition on Route National 2 (south of the capital).
"Regarding the incident in Santo, there were three motorcycle thieves that were chased by an angry mob. We caught one, but two others were beaten with stones and iron bars by a crowd that then began to burn the bodies," said a police officer contacted by phone by the AFP.
Police could not provide an explanation about the third person found dead with hands tied and the body hung on Route National 2.
Four Barbadian nationals in custody in St.Vincent
Four Barbadian nationals are in custody in St.Vincent and the Grenadines, after they were arrestedd by Law Enforcement officials in that country.
The arrests after an operation at sea which was led by the Royal Barbados Poilce Force Drug Squad, the Barbados Coast Guard, an element of the RSS, with the assistance of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ Coast Guard.
The operation resulted in the seizure of 24 bales of cannabis weighing 1706 lbs, in the territorial waters of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
A Barbados registered fishing boat was also seized.
Senate passes VAT Act, sticks to October 1 date
Despite reservations among lawmakers about business readiness, operational costs and timing, the St. Lucia Senate has passed the Value Added Tax (VAT) Act, keeping the legislation on course for the revised October 1 implementation date.
With the law’s assent by Governor General Dame Pearlette Louisy, St Lucia will become the last member state in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) single market but Montserrat to introduce the sales tax that is intended to replace a raft of taxes and duties. St Lucia’s VAT is to be levied at 15 per cent on goods and services and at eight per cent in hotels.
There were calls from two independent senators – a doctor and a hotelier – for a further delay in VAT, and government Senator Debra Tobierre, a business owner in the south, admitted that all of her questions on the indirect tax were yet to be answered.
But she supported the bill while at the same time making a call for more public information during the transition to the tax.
The independent senators, Dr. Stephen King and Berthia Parle, said they would have preferred to see a delay in the full implementation of VAT to give businesses more time to prepare.
Dr King, a former chief medical officer, suggested a “testing period ” of up to three months and a “forgiving period” of at least one month “before going live”.
But he argued for the use of VAT revenue to avert “a major crisis” in the country’s health services and to encourage better nutrition among St Lucians.
He said that operation of the new hospital to be completed by year end and a reconstructed St. Judes Hospital in the south would require an additional 50 million EC dollars (18.5 million US dollars).
Senator Parle, a veteran hotel executive, acknowledged that no member of the formal business community was opposed to the VAT.
“We understand the imposition of VAT but there are serious concerns,” she said.
Leader of Government Business and Minister of Home Affairs Senator Phillip La Corbiniere presented the bill from the lower house with the admission that VAT in any country would lead to both price rises and cuts for consumers.
But he informed members that most food items had been placed in a “VAT-exempt food basket.”
In response to concerns about the fate of prescription medicines in the VAT legislation, Senator La Corbiniere said Castries had applied to the CARICOM Secretariat for the removal of all import duties on medicines.
The minister said his eight-month-old administration came to office facing “a very challenging economic period which made it even more difficult to raise revenue which is going to be needed to sustain employment and support economic growth.”
He said it is with that kind of challenge in mind that government has had to face the “inevitable implementation” of the Value Added Tax.
That prompted opposition senator and former agriculture minister Ezekiel Joseph to claim that the governing St. Lucia Labour Party had changed its position on VAT, claiming that Prime Minister Kenny Anthony once referred to it “as an oppressive tax” which his party never considered it as the wisest choice for St. Lucia.
The value added tax or general consumption tax is now common across CARICOM.
In early July, CARICOM associate member Turks and Caicos announced it will introduce VAT at eight per cent – the second-lowest rate in CARICOM, with Haiti’s rate at ten per cent, Suriname’s dual tax rate of ten per cent on goods and eight per cent on services, and just ahead of Belize at 12.5 per cent.
The rates elsewhere in the region are: Antigua and Barbuda 15 per cent; Barbados 17.5 per cent; Dominica 15 per cent; Grenada 15 per cent; Guyana 16 per cent; Jamaica 16.5 per cent; St. Kitts and Nevis 17 per cent; St Vincent and the Grenadines 15 per cent; and Trinidad and Tobago 15 per cent.
The Bahamas, which is not a member of CARICOM’s customs union or any of its economic arrangements, including the single market, is contemplating the introduction of the tax.
Washington confirms use of drones to track Caribbean narco-trafficking
US officials have confirmed they are flying unmanned aircraft, or drones, above the Caribbean Basin in search of narcotics cargo.
Department of Homeland Security officials said other surveillance technology, including radar-equipped P-3 aircraft, last up to only 10 hours – not long enough to pinpoint drug runners on the high seas. They said the drones can loiter in the skies twice as long.
They said part-submarine vessels travelling great distances without surfacing to refuel are emerging as a key vehicle for ferrying drugs through the Caribbean Sea.
And cocaine-laden speedboats often sail at night to evade capture, the US officials added.
“The goal is to be on station long enough to detect and track targets making their way through the transit zone and bring in units for the intercept [that] can track a variety of smuggling vessels, including semisubmersibles and go-fast vessels,” said Lothar Eckardt, executive director of DHS Customs and Border Protection national air security operations.
“It doesn't matter what the target is; it matters that we are able to stay out and look for it,” he added.
Eckardt said the Guardian, a maritime version of Homeland Security’s other Predator drones, is mounted with search radar and an electro-optical/infrared sensor.
Since 2011, US officials said the Miami-based Joint Interagency Task Force South, a command with staff from DHS and the intelligence community, as well as the US Defence and Justice departments, has disrupted five semisubmersibles, each escorting more than 6.5 tonnes of cocaine.
Of the 214 reported incidents, the stealth vessels evaded authorities 79 per cent of the time, the Department said.
No new cholera deaths in Cuba
Cuba's Health Ministry yesterday reported 158 cases of cholera, nearly three times as many as previously disclosed, but said there were no new deaths and the outbreak appears to have been contained and on the wane.
The ministry said intensive efforts to quarantine those infected, hand out chlorine tablets and educate the population has meant a drop in cases transmitted by water, and there is no evidence of the disease spreading through the food supply.
Virtually all of the cases have come from the city of Manzanillo, in eastern Granma province some 430 miles (700 kilometres) east of the capital, or from people who recently travelled from the area.
"We have diagnosed isolated cases in other regions of people that were infected in Manzanillo, all of whom were treated and studied quickly," the ministry said. "There has been no spread of the outbreak."
Cuba announced July 3 that three elderly people had died from the tropical disease and 53 people sickened in the first incidence of cholera on the island in decades. Until Saturday's report, authorities had said little more, prompting rumours of more deaths and a wider problem. Still, even in the infected area, hotel workers and residents said there was no panic.
Cuba has a well-organized civil defence system capable of rapidly mobilizing government agencies and citizens groups, as it does for tropical storms and hurricanes. Brigades of workers go door to door, eliminating standing water where mosquitoes bearing another tropical disease, dengue, could breed.
The country also has thousands of well-trained doctors and nurses, many of whom played a key role in fighting a much deadlier cholera outbreak in nearby Haiti after that country's devastating earthquake.
A rise in cases of diarrhoea and tropical diseases are normal in Cuba in the summer, due to the intense heat and heavy rains. In its communiqué on Saturday, the Health Ministry urged people to wash their hands, boil water and pay better attention to their personal hygiene.
Rapper Fabolous for ATI parties
AMERICAN Rapper Fabolous is the main international act for Appleton Temptation Isle's original Independence Weekend party series.
"Fabolous is very talented, energetic, and the ladies love him," said ATI Managing Director Alex Chin. "He is a perfect fit for ATI and Stages and he will be a great addition to the weekend!"
The Grammy Award Nominee and BET Hip Hop Award Winner will host and perform at the party that started it all, Stages "the Legend" on August 5.
Stages will be the "Officially Jamaica 50 Celebration" for the ATI weekend. This all-inclusive event will also feature an air-conditioned club within the venue, the official Independence Punch made with Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum -- and a special show that will light up the night sky.
The weekend also boasts international deejays DJ Envy from New York, DJ Dutty Dex from Miami and the 2012 World Champion Miami Heat's very own DJ Irie.
Appleton Temptation Isle is set for August 3 to 6. The four days will see a seven party line-up which includes: Naked, Wild Sides, Colours Jokers Wild 'Lingerie J'Ouvert', the Official and Original Water Party, Stages 'The Legend', Officially Diagnosed 'Bikini Masquerade', and Full Moon Party 'Mariposa'.
Source-Ja.Obsever
All set for SUMFEST
ORGANISERS of Reggae Sumfest are pleased with the way things have progressed for this year's staging of the popular festival.
According to the festival's chairman Robert Russell, plans for the July 15-21 event are more advanced than they have ever been in its 20-year history.
"We have had no real challenges this year. All our vending stalls have been taken, the grounds are being prepared, stage, lighting and sound are ready and all the artistes have been booked," Russell told Splash.
He further noted that organisers are also comfortable with the line-up.
Russell refuted the suggestion that the roster of artistes is weak, citing that dancehall night, on July 19, will feature what he described as the "who's who of the local dancehall scene" .
Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, Mavado, Cham, Konshens and Romain Virgo are among the artistes confirmed.
"Every year there is a challenge. When we are not hampered by the touring schedules of the artistes it is the expensive fees being requested by the artistes," Russell explained.
"We did pretty well this year. Shabba Ranks seems to be a big hit, R Kelly is definitely gathering momentum, Trey Songz is there for the younger patrons and, of course, Damian Marley is doing well, thanks to his two current hit songs," he added.
Reggae Sumfest was first staged in 1993 following the departure of Reggae Sunsplash from the resort city of Montego Bay.
Since its inception, Sumfest has showcased a number of high-profile pop acts.
Among them Lionel Richie, Kanye West, Rihanna, Missy Elliot and Destiny's Child. Last year, hip hop's current poster girl, Nikki Minaj, was the feature act.
Russell described Reggae Sumfest as Montego Bay's greatest event, noting that the city is abuzz with just two days before it starts with the traditional pipe-opener at Aquasol Beach Park.
"Flights are already coming in, the hotels are filling up and the vibe is already building," said Russell.
Source: jamaica observer
Mary J. Blige Fires Back at Charity Lawsuit with Interesting Strategy
Mary J. Blige just came out and said the bank that’s suing her charity organization knew the group was penniless.
She said it was a bad business decision the loaner made. So it’s the bank’s fault for making a bad investment and they won’t get the money back.
The Mary J. Blige and Steve Stoute Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now was sued by TD Bank after taking out a $250,000 loan in June 2011. But the org only paid back $400 by the December deadline.
According to the organization, the woman who signed for the loan had no authority to do so in the first place.
Eddie Griffin Involved in Drink Throwing Fight
You know your comedy act isn’t going well when a woman in the audience throws a drink at you.
That’s what happened to Eddie Griffin. But he threw one back at the woman then got really aggressive with her. It was caught on camera and of course TMZ has got it and so do we … below.
Police in Peasanton, CA tell TMZ they were called to Tommy T’s Comedy Club on Friday night after a fight broke out when a woman became so offended at Griffin’s act … she threw a drink at him while he was on stage.
The video obtained by TMZ begins after the woman threw the drink and Griffin can be seen retaliating, pouring his bottle of water on her and then tossing it at her.
Security had the woman removed from the venue and the club closed down for the night after the fracas.
The club did not want anyone arrested and the woman was gone by the time police got there.