Antigua
A 57-year-old Japanese woman who kicked a police officer in the groin and refused to be searched on arrival at the V.C International Airport in Antigua recently was jailed for 14 days on a charge of assault and disorderly conduct.
It is alleged that Masayo Goto, who arrived on a Caribbean Airline flight from Jamaica, got involved in a fight with Customs officers and refused to be searched during a routine check at the airport.
Narcotics and K-9 officers, who were also on duty, went to the assistance of the Customs officers, as a result of the kicking, screaming, and disorderly behavior of the Japanese national.
A search was eventually carried out on her bags but nothing was found.
She was taken into custody and charged with assaulting a police officer among other offenses. She was destined to travel to St. Vincent.
Goto pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 14 days in prison by Magistrate Ngaio Emmanuel.
Bahamas
The pilot of a six-seater aircraft that crashed in waters near Mastic point, Andros, Bahamas killing all six people on board recently was not licensed to operate commercial flights nor did he have the required ratings to operate the Piper aircraft in visually impairing weather conditions.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Registry, the pilot of the ill-fated flight, Darren Clarke, held a private pilot license.
The United States registered aircraft departed San Andes Airport around 8 am and crashed into waters approximately four miles off Mastic point.
All seven passengers, including the pilot, were aboard the flight which was intended to land at New Providence.
A private pilot is not supposed to carry paying customers.
Jamaica
The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) recently announced that the 37th edition of the Caribbean Travel Marketplace will be held at the Montego Bay Convention, Jamaica from Jan. 29 to 31, 2019.
The event will be held in collaboration with the Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, the Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association and the Jamaica Tourism Board.
The CHTA, Caribbean Travel Marketplace will bring together hotel and destination representatives; wholesalers and tour operators; online travel agencies; meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibition and members of the media for serval days of business meetings, including a busy program of thousands of pre-scheduled appointments.
This year’s Caribbean Travel marketplace, which was produced by the CHTA, was held in Puerto Rico.
Haiti
The impoverished country of Haiti has been ranked as the worst country for the most overcrowded prisons in the world, according to information released by World Prison Brief (WPB).
According to the London-based publication, at the end of January the French-speaking Caribbean Community (Caricom) country topped the 205 countries surveyed for the most overcrowded prisons in the world, followed by the Philippines and El Salvador.
In June 2016, the 17 Haitian prisons in the country, had an average occupancy rate of 454 percent and the space per detainee was a little less than 0.05 m2, far off the international standard which is 4.5 m2.
The prison population in Haiti was estimated at 10,500 prisoners or 96 out of 100,000 inhabitants.
WPB said the result of overcrowding causes many human violations, important health problems, spread of diseases, malnutrition and violence.
It noted that 72 percent of the prisoners were in pre-trial detention without having been tried.
St. Kitts
St. Kitts Ministry of Tourism recently received an award for Excellence in Sustainable Tourism from the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO).
The award was given at an awards ceremony of the Climate Smart Sustainable Tourism Forum, which was recently held in St. Kitts.
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Carlene Henry-Morton said the Ministry of Tourism’s Sustainable Destination Management Plan provides a powerful case study in destination-driven sustainable tourism development, demonstrating a mode of excellence that can be applied to other destinations in the Caribbean and beyond.
She said the St. Kitts Ministry of Tourism recognized the sustainability risks associated with tourism development and immediately began pursuing a deliberate Sustainable Destination Management Program (SDMP), which has grown to include a range of innovative initiatives that address all pillars of sustainability.
The Climate Smart Sustainable Tourism Forum was held under the theme “Good for Us, Better for All,” bringing together local, regional and international tourism stakeholders and development agencies.
Organizing partners include the CTO, the St. Kitts Ministry of Tourism, the St. Kitts Sustainable Destination Council and Sustainable Travel International.
St. Lucia
St. Lucia’s new luxury hotel Harbor Club recently opened its door under the new ownership of well-respected Canadian entrepreneur and businessman Wes Hall.
Harbor Club is an ultra-modern hotel featuring 115 tropical cabin-style rooms and suites and is poised to set new luxury standards and is designed to welcome travelers.
Aimbridge Hospitality LLC Company will manage the Club.
Aimbridge Hospitality is the largest independent hotel management and investment firm in the United States, and is recognized hospitality management leader throughout the Caribbean.
Trinidad
More than 1,100 police officers are needed in the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service. This is in addition to the more than 7,000 police officers already employed.
The figure was given by acting Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) Deodath Dulalchan at the weekly police news briefing recently.
He said at present the police service is short of 1,100 officers and if “we can get that number through recruitment, we would be able to make that dent in the crime situation through policing standards.”
Dulalchan added: “The TTPS will be fully operational and will provide a highly visible presence in terms of foot and other forms of patrols, including canine and mounted patrols.”
– Compiled by Azad Ali
