Arising from an earlier blog Down By The Riversidefellow blogger from the Living In Barbados Blog expressed the view that private enterprise must be allowed to manage to stay afloat and make money for shareholders (parsing). We have no problem with that position, the flip side however is that BU has the freedom to critique the genuineness of decisions taken as we perceive them. As a corporate citizen the public’s perception should be of value to the Nation Group of Companies.
We are aware that three hundred daily newspapers have gone out of business in the last 25 years in the United States. We are aware that the main reason from the drop in circulation has been because the younger readers have been tapping into Internet based sources like blogs, free online news sources etc.
Unfortunately we have to take the word of the OCM Group Chairman Sir Fred Gollop about the reason for sending home Adonijah and 20+ other media workers from the Nation Group of Companies last week. He mentioned about increase cost in newsprint blah blah blah. We have access to the OCM consolidated financial statement for 2008, what we don’t know is how the Barbados companies performed vis-a-vis others in the OCM Group. We have to guess.
Today Barbadians heard the sad news that the leading media house in Barbados, The Nation Group of Companies has taken the decision to lay-off 28 employees. It is interesting that only a few days after One Caribbean Media (OCM) declared unprecedented profits one of its subsidiaries would brazenly send home Barbadians. After a few years of gouging itself at the expense of Barbadians and others across the Caribbean the Board of OCM has decided that protecting its shareholders is paramount even if the prevailing economic conditions are unforgiving for those tossed out on the breadline. We will write more on this issue soon.
The female in the BU household has insisted that we raise the matter of Scharon Millington the former popular host of Voice of Barbados’ (VOB) Afternoon Delight program. We were surprised to learn a couple weeks ago in response to a caller to Getting Down To Brass Tacks the host Dennis Johnson indicated that Scharon Millington had parted ways with the company. We would have thought given the popularity of Millington the management of VOB would have felt obligated to use gentle public relations to inform her fans.
The BIG question we pose to big-muhguffy Vic Fernandes: Was Millington fired, persuaded to leave or did she resign?
Submitted by the Caribbean Institute for Democracy
Mr. Adam Harris
Editor
Kaieteur Newspaper
Georgetown, Guyana.
Dear Adam:
I must again take issue you Mr. Adam Harris, Editor of the Kaieteur Newspaper.
It has not been lost on me that Kaieteur News apparently deliberately edited my letter to the press, which you published in yesterday’s edition (Dec 8), to make it appear unintelligible as well as an attack on the PNC, as a party, as opposed to a rebuke of Robert Corbin’s undemocratic and vindictive politics. All of CGID’s correspondences are reviewed by a team of legal professionals. Hence, our correspondences, we think, are libel and slander proof. A reasonable conclusion therefore is that your edits were not for the latter purpose but merely political.
KN removed my criticism of President Jagdeo. You also removed my criticisms of Corbin and, like the following paragraph, inserted the name of the PNC instead, when clearly the intent of my contentions was condemnatory of Corbin himself. Example: You published that: “CGID believes that the recall of James McAllister provides a keen insight into the PNC’s domineering approach to governing and antipathy for democratic values. No party with such mentality must ever again be entrusted with governing Guyana.” (more…)
We have linked to the Keltruth Blog to update this story. If some of us felt that the Kingsland Estate trial ongoing in Canada is not news worthy enough for the traditional media, maybe it has now become so. If we understand Keltruth latest blog right, they have sent letters to all the world leaders attending the United Nations 63rd General Assembly in New York today (23 September 2008). (more…)
Censorship has reduced the Barbadian media to a spineless, wishy-washy affair where adverse comment about certain untouchables is banned from print and talk outlets. Ezra Alleyne has written (and I hope he doesn’t mind being quoted): “Speaking as an attorney-at-law who . . . advises on the law of defamation on a daily basis . . . I say that the ‘black letter’ Law on Defamation in Barbados is among the most modern to be found anywhere.”
Snip
Ezra feels that the Defamation Act 1996 “places Barbados almost on par with the USA” in certain aspects of public comment. If all this is so, it would appear that much of the cutting in newspapers and radio talk shows has more to do with the personal whims of faceless censors than with breaching the law. But as Jesus pointed out in Acts 9:5, it is hard to kick against the . . . authorities.
It is no secret that the BU household is addicted to the weekly column penned by the venerable and highly intelligent Lowdown Hoad. His masterly articulation on social and other issues that affect Barbados society are often cleverly delivered when he resorts to his uniquely satirical style. Again, we have to make the point that his column is a must read for all Barbadians who want to read an untarnished view.
This week we have detected a ‘cold biting’ to his writing which is a departure from his norm. The confidence which he has to attack the media, obviously his criticism is pointed at the Nation Newspaper as well is interesting and refreshing. It tells us volumes about the man. He is very secure in who he is and is willing to defend a position he believes in. It also speaks to the point that the Nation Newspaper editors do not dare to apply their editorial license in the same way they have done to Peter Wickham and others when reviewing Hoad’s column.
The ACM Executive, 2007-09: Standing – Guy Delva, Peter Richards, Michael Bascombe, Canute James; Sitting – Nita Ramcharan, Wesley Gibbings & Anika Kentish.
We find it interesting, in fact amusing, that there is an association called ‘Association of Caribbean Media Workers (ACM) and media houses or a cadre of journalists from Barbados have not assumed a meaningful role in that association in recent times. The association recently held its Fourth Biennial General Assembly and to our surprise Barbados was reported to have been absence. It is worthwhile to note that the inaugural meeting of the ACM was held in Barbados six years ago.
Barbados has historically prided itself as playing a leading role in many of the regional agencies. We therefore have to ask media practitioners in Barbados to explain their glaring absence from the ACM Executive in recent times. BU should not be surprise at this current state of affairs because we have been asking the question over and over in our previous articles: why is it that the Barbados Association of Journalist (BAJ) have disregarded the need to organize themselves under an umbrella body that would enable them to more effectively mobilize the cause of the venerable Fourth Estate which they represent. Do they not appreciate their key role in disseminating accurate news on behalf of the PEOPLE?
The last time we checked the BAJ was still involved in a deep slumber.
In the coming weeks and months, BU will be highlighting what we believe to be deficiencies in the Barbados media. We have written extensively on the role of the Fourth Estate and its importance to commit to report on the news accurately. What is equally important is for the journalists to present the news after applying the basics of What, When, Where, How, and Why. The two quotes below adequately illustrate the glaring inadequacy of our leading daily newspaper.
The two articles highlight the performance of RBTT a leading regional bank. The first article published by the Trinidad Express gives a detailed analysis of the banks performance which any idiot should be able to follow. The second article published by our own Nation newspaper published a public relations release obviously issued by the bank. We would have thought given the fact that RBTT operates a bank in Barbados, the Nation newspaper would have felt obligated to provide the public with voluminous analysis of the banks’ performance. This is in light of a pending acquisition by Royal Bank of Canada.
Flat financial results were the order of the day for RBTT Financial Holdings Limited (RBTT). For the nine months ended December 31, 2007 the Group reported an EPS of $1.95, a 1.5 per cent decrease over the previous financial year’s nine month EPS of $1.98.
Net Income of the Bank underwent a marginal 6.6 per cent increase from $2.21B to $2.36B. The sole contributor to this increase was Net Interest Income which increased 12.5 per cent. However, the Other Income component endured a 2.8 per cent reduction. Operating Expenses for the nine months increased 8.5 per cent year on year to $1.46B, while the Bank recorded an Impairment Expense of $6.4M compared to $20.1M last year.
RBTT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS LTD has reported US$145 million in pre-tax earnings for the nine-month period ended December 31, 2007, a five per cent increase over the corresponding 2006 period. Group chairman Peter July said the profit attributable to shareholders, US$107 million, was affected by a higher effective group tax rate that moved from 21 per cent to 25 per cent mainly due to changes “to tax legislation in one jurisdiction, increased provision for tax assessments, and higher taxable income generated by our retail banking entities”.
As a result, the banker reported diluted earnings per share, US$0.31 vis-a-vis US$0.32 for the same nine-month span last year.
…But what else does the report show us? A need for some education at the local papers, I suggest. In the same article the paper talks about there not being any “KNIGHT” of long knives, meaning no recriminations. Now, I’m sorry, there is no excuse for misuse of phrases. The correct phrase should be “NIGHT of the long knives”, and refers to a purge that took place in Nazi Germany during June 30-July 2, 1934 when Adolf Hitler’s regime executed at least 85 people for political reasons (see Wikipedia). This is a schoolchild type of mistake (like “Gladly, the cross-eyed bear”) . If it were a deliberate malapropism or some other play on words (”Sir David, knight of the long knives”, he who wields the sword?) then I would say “how witty”, but I suspect that it’s just sloppy journalism. Tsk! If the editorial staff do not know what is right there is a problem. If they do know what is right and don’t catch these errors then their system needs to be reviewed.
Read More – Click On Image
Public comments, including Doctor Don Marshall and a recent editorial suggest that our democracy is safe if our traditional media houses, with their well trained and zealous workforce is allowed to do their job without the intimidation of politicians in high places. Let us not forget the stricture of our unforgiving Defamation Laws.
In the aftermath of a short and intense political campaign which ended Tuesday, 15 January 2008, with victory for David Thompson and his Democratic Labour Party (DLP), we continue to worry about the perennial problem of an ineffective media in Barbados – read Barbados Free Press. The willingness of our media practitioners to sway and buckle to political and other pressures should be of concern to defenders of our democracy. It is not acceptable that as a country we should pride ourselves on a high standard of education, yet our media practitioners continue to demonstrate that they are devoid of any courage by demonstrating their spineless disposition. We have written extensively about the importance of the role of the Fourth of Estate – enter keywords ‘fourth estate’ in our search area on the top of the page.
The time has come for media houses in Barbados to stop failing the people and to awake from their slumber.
There is a saying that people get what they deserve – well, something like that anyway – and in very much the same way that we are able to send a clear message every five years to the political directorate, so too we need to send a message to the owners of the Fourth Estate in Barbados. The only way we can expect balance reporting from our media houses is to speak-out against the inequities when they occur, embarrass them with our public comment, let them suffer by our lack of financial support, let us write to stakeholders such as the unions, and to their important clients and international watchdog agencies to help agitate for justice. The actions we can take as civic minded Barbadians are limitless.
There is the popular saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. To those of you who are a bit slow this Monday afternoon we have highlighted four areas on the image. Can you connect the dots?
Regrettably I have to confirm that for the first time since my Grandfather Clennell Wickham started writing People and Things in the 1940s, this article has been unilaterally suspended by the Newspaper that agreed to host it. Clearly, my perspective on this occasion is very different to that which I offered during the 1999 and 2003 elections. I am therefore grateful to BU and BFPfor carrying this review of the politics of inclusion which is yet to see the light of day.
Peter Wickham – BA, MSc, MPhil (UWI)
The Sunday Sun of January 3rd 1999 presented an article entitled “The New Politics of Inclusion” which sought to critique an apparent “programme” of the Arthur administration which was apparently intended to allow for greater participation in the governance of our country. This article took the position that the politics of inclusion represented a development that was not only good but absolutely necessary for the proper development of a country like Barbados which is both small and resource deficient. This perspective was, however, a theoretical argument which assumed much about this programme of inclusion which this author presumed would take democracy beyond the right to vote in elections and allow Barbadians the opportunity to play a role in a government that is open, accountable and participatory.
The BLP fought and won the 1999 election and created history in the process. The bumper harvest of seats in that election was no-doubt assisted considerably by this programme of inclusion, which can now be reviewed against objectives which were both political and developmental. This review is concerned more with the delivery of developmental objectives, however, since the 1999 article is used as a base and it concluded that:
“The politics of inclusion is worthy of consideration, so long as it can be identified as a derivation of “participatory democracy”. The nature of participatory democracy is such that is can easily be confused with a programme of overtly political patronage and the use of public funds to advance a political cause. A fine line separates the two; hence it is essential that either party adopting such a programme give it the fullest possible expression so that the objectives of the programme are clearly a contribution to national development”.
My fear of a DICTATORSHIP is a very serious aspect of my reason for change. This admistration has clearly shown its willingness to take us down the road of a DICTATORSHIP. Let us address the withdrawal of PETER WICKHAM from writing articles for the Nation and the risk of the halting of CALL IN SHOWS, and from what I have been reading and what I have heard that this gov’t has undertaken illegal means to tap into private citizens telephone calls, text messages and Internet activity such as the interception of emails etc, this was facility was first introduced with the CWC and has since been put into active use to control and monitor the actions of those not favourable to the DICTATOR.
Commenter~Wishing in Vain
Frequent contributor to the blogs under the moniker Wishing in Vain hinted yesterday that certain actions behind the scenes were unfolding which can be interpreted as restricting freedom of expression among Barbadians. Today, Peter Wickham confirmed on national radio that the Nation newspaper has withdrawn his articles because he has been deemed to be a biased contributor.
We should try to have some more discussion on this matter.
Update:
According to frequent commenter Adrian Hinds, he believes that the genesis of Peter Wickham’s censure by the Nation newspaper maybe traced in the following video:
November 1, 2007 is significant for Mr. Roy Morris, a man Barbados has grown to love and hate, especially the mini-busmen. He is expected to return to court to have his matter heard. If his case is handled based on how efficient we know our Magistrates Courts to be, this matter will be adjourned for sure. Wow, so many cases in our courts which are suspended in a perpetual state of going no where! Anyway we have been promised by the Chief Justice David Simmons that Night Court will be coming and the appropriate legislation to respond to lawyers who frustrate the efficient running of our courts has been introduced by our Attorney General.
Back to our friend Roy Morris who has dropped off the radar!
For what it is worth Roy, we are prepared to offer you the opportunity to publish on Barbados Underground your unedited views to the world using your name or a moniker of your choice – pleasecontact us at barbadosunderground@gmail.comif you are interested. Unfortunately our job as guardians of free speech and defenders of our democracy goes unpaid, but sometimes arm in the knowledge of fighting for a just cause is often reward enough for some of us. We have had our say on your situation and we hope whatever happens its takes a turn for the better. We are all human and any transgressions which occurred in Fontebelle should present an opportunity for you and your former colleagues to learn from. Your ‘roll-up the sleeves’ approach to reporting has been sorely missed.
Chief Justice Simmons it is time that we see some improvement in our court processing. When the Judicial Centre is finished we will be holding you to your promise.
It looks like Mascoll is the appointed fall guy on the 3S project. What else can we think given his incoherent pronouncements on the contentious issue so far? If we did not know better, we would have thought that all the other Ministers in the cabinet refused to speak on the 3S matter, in the absence of the convalescing Gline Clarke; or that the Prime Minister Owen Arthur has deemed that Mascoll is expendable.
What do you think? Could it be that Mascoll is being groomed to succeed Owen Arthur?
Today, we listened to an interesting exchange on the call-in program hosted by Dennis Johnson. The caller questioned the role of the media in Barbados and asked Dennis Johnson for an explanation of the role of the media. Dennis Johnson responded by saying that the media should be charged with “informing, educating and entertaining the public” and he lamented the prevailing impression that the media was more concerned with public relations (This is a precis of what we thought we heard). Thank you Dennis Johnson for making the point which BU have been trying to make for so long, and for logging your support for the “agitators” who operate outside the Fourth Estate (Media). One thing we can say about Dennis is that he speaks passionately about what he believes. Others should try to do the same.
It is the eighth day since we broke the story about the Jonathan Danos, 3s Barbados SRL, Barbados government affair and still not a murmur from the media houses in Barbados. We have heard reports of news from countries around the region and the world but the one story which is pertinent to Barbados, the media have taken a collective decision to refuse to carry the story. History, we believe will record this moment as one of the darkest periods of news coverage in Barbados. Our sources at a leading radio station tell us that most of the moderators on the call-in programs are aware of this story; they too remain silent.
BURNT-OUT. The extensively damaged room that once held the two reception classes at the Lawrence T. Gay Memorial Primary School in Spooners Hill, St Michael, suspected to have been caused by arson. The room no longer has windows and because it is not boarded up, there are fears it will be difficult to keep the children out of this section, especially during lunchtime. (AM)
by SANKA PRICE and DONNA SEALY
POLICE ARE INVESTIGATING a fire at the Lawrence T. Gay Memorial Primary School that extensively damaged two classrooms of the Matilda Deane Block. The fire in the room used for the two reception classes occurred on August 20. It was the second at the Spooners Hill, St Michael school in three weeks.
This morning Barbadians hear about yet another news report of a building damaged by fire. It seems to BU that the reports have become all too frequent. Have you the public ever wondered why we never hear of the authorities telling us the cause of the fires after their long investigations? Is it unreasonable to ask why many of the fires which occur under suspicious circumstances never seem to produce a culprit? The biggest question which we should consider is whether our Media Houses is doing a good job to keep serious issues at the forefront of the public. Are Barbadians so pure in their reputations that buildings which have been burned to rubble or extensively damaged should never yield a culprit?
We should blame many but at the top of the pile we hold the Media Houses in Barbados accountable.
A check of Wikipedia defines the role of the press as “its explicit capacity of advocacy and in its implicit ability to frame political issues. The term goes back at least to Thomas Carlyle in the first half of the 19th century.” We think Barbadians in recent months have become resigned to the fact that our media practitioners in Barbados operate with the fear of reprisals if they advocate on any issues which will confront officialdom. Their comfort level is to passively report on the “harmless” events which will usually offend no one.
All Barbadians know that Adrian Loveridge who is a Barbadian citizen has been one never afraid to speak-out. It is something that all Barbadians should take note of if our democracy is to be protected.
The EDITOR
The Daily Nation
The Barbados Advocate
CBC TV News
On the 11th May 2007 in the Royal Courts of Justice (London), Jonathan Laszlo DANOS, President of 3S (Barbados) SRL, the company currently engaged by the Government of Barbados to widen the ABC Highway and build overpasses was charged with fraud and conspiracy by his former employers, Mabey and Johnson Ltd.
3S (Barbados) SRL, contention was that they had gained valuable experience while constructing Flyovers in Panama. According to Robert Capurro, Director of Sales-Latin America & Caribbean-Mabey and Johnson Ltd., “Mabey & Johnson has supplied a number of steel flyovers to Panama since 1997. As far as we are aware, no other company has supplied or completed such steel flyovers in that country.”
Bearing in mind the Project Manager of 3S (Barbados) SRL, George Siddall, recently announced that the estimated cost of the work undertaken was expected to rise from US$60 million to US$180 million, it is difficult to understand why your publication/station has not carried this story.
The hot story in Bridgetown in recent days has been the fall from grace of a veteran journalist who over the years has shown a penchant for using two heads. For many people with their ears to the ground the exploits of Mr. Roy Morris is nothing new. There was the incident of the girl from St. Lucy; then there is the young lady who worked in the media who is currently overseas studying. BU suppose she must have been happy with her $30,000.00. The question being asked on the corridors and the rum shops__what has the gentleman done to deserve being asked to resign by the company? We could spread the sordid details on the Internet but we have taken a decision not to do so to respect other players involved. Suffice it to say that employees are asked to resign in organizations everyday for one reason or the other. When that time occurs the employee in question will make a judgment call, whether to resign or not. In this matter our source confirms that Mr. Morris has admitted to …
Minister Gline “wuk fuh wuk” Clarke, the battled hardened Minister and Owen Arthur loyalist has boldly stated that:-
“We do not envisage an increase in bus fares either” he added, “because it is this Government’s belief that public transportation is important; it is this Government’s belief that there is no need to increase fares, and we believe that the Government should provide a subsidy since transport is one of the leading sectors in order to keep the country viable.”
Over the years the Barbados Labour Party has sent mixed signals on whether there is a plan to increase bus fares in the face of increasing petroleum prices. Barbadians remember when the then Minister of Transport Anthony “Too Silent” Wood indicated in a bold pronouncement that he would propose that bus fares be increased. Little did he know that he was being set-up by his boss, Prime Minister Arthur, to test “the waters”. The hue and cry which ensued put paid to that proposal and prompted this response from Democratic Labour Party strategist Hartley Henry in his recent Nation Newspaper piece: “Anthony Wood’s “moment in time” was the stillbirth he gave to an increase in bus fares”.
As you would expect Barbadians love to read and discuss when prominent people in our society fall from their pinnacle. To write about the Roy Morris story was very difficult because of what he represented, however at BU we try to write about what we know to be factual. Our observation over the short life of BU confirms the view that people are drawn to stories which involve sex, injustice, violence or “tieffing”. Our top post for July smashed the previous record of visits and views by a single topic by over 300% and achieved top post ranking on WordPress which hosts over 1.2 million blogs.
To think that July 2007 is not finished yet!
People have been reading the story from all over the world. We have said before that people who continue to underestimate the power of the blogosphere and the Internet, as an alternative medium by which to move information will get a rude awaking very soon.
A worthy mention is the piece which recorded second most popular on BU for July 2007. It highlighted the unprofessional way in which Chefette Restaurant treated a young Barbadian when she found a worm in her purchase.
BU was heartened today to hear David Ellis of STARCOM Network speak-out against the recent attack on the Press which occurred at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. As Barbados leading journalist he has had to suffer a battering in recent times; especially at the hands of the Barbados Labour Party politicians with a general on the horizon. Much of what he said suggested to us that he reads the Blogs-that being the case he needs to go that step closer and mention that we too are playing a part to protect freedom of expression in Barbados.
So Mr. Ellis we congratulate you on the bold decision to speak-out on a matter which we recognize is before the court. Regrettably it appears that you maybe alone and you should therefore prepare yourself for the onslaught which is sure to come.
Listen to DAVID ELLIS as he defended the Press on the popular VOB 92.9 call-in program, Down to Brasstacks.
The Barbados opposition has accused the Government of neglecting the needs of Barbadian businesses that worked throughout the Cricket World Cup. Opposition Leader David Thompson highlighted the plight of School Meals staff who have not yet been paid for work done during CWC.
“They don’t factor the CWC horror stories of ordinary Barbadians into their analyses. The Democratic Labour Party is insisting that the true experiences of Barbadians from all walks of life should be factored into the analysis and not just the profits of those for whom the fatted calf was killed,” said Thompson.
The story quoted is about Leader of the Opposition of Barbados David Thompson lamenting the fact that the school meals workers who worked around the clock to ensure the “who is who” that attended the CWC 2007 were fed, HAVE NOT BEEN PAID! BU will not even bother to flog a dead horse on this issue except to say that the longer it persists it signifies a callousness on the part of the persons responsible to remedy the matter.
What we want to highlight is the fact that this negative story has been featured in The Voice newspaper which is a newspaper targeted to the black community in the United Kingdom. I suspect our many black family and friends who live in the UK, and who scour the newspapers for good news to derive comfort in a “foreign land” must be very disappointed at the bad press CWC 2007 continues to generate. Hopefully despite what the head of the local organizing committee for Barbados has hinted, that the final report for CWC may not be made public, at BU we fully expect that on the election trail the government will be hard pressed to suppress this information.
If we thought that the school meals workers not being paid was an isolated one, BU understands that workers at the half way house which provides support services to the Psychiatric Hospital of Barbados have not been paid for the past three months. Increasingly we are hearing stories of so many government workers not being paid for months. In a country which no one can deny as a high cost of living; BU fears the societal tensions which must be brewing given the bureaucratic bottlenecking which continues to prevent ordinary Barbadians from being timely paid. This is the same government which has admitted to paying out hundreds of thousands of dollars in mobilization fees to bogus contractors.
A CARIBBEAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION (CBC) CAMERAMAN was arrested and charged, while two NATIONmedia personnel were manhandled by police officers at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) on Friday night. The incident occurred when the media converged outside the QEH’s Accident & Emergency (A&E) Department to report on casualties arriving from a Transport Board bus accident at Bath, St John.Jimmy Gittens, a contract photographer with CBC, appeared before Magistrate Deborah Holder in the District “A” Bridgetown Court yesterday charged with trespassing on the QEH’s compound.
The Nation Newspaper has reported this morning that members of the media were arrested and charged yesterday (27 May 2007). The transgression is reported to be that the cameraman was deemed to be trespassing on the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) compound. Let BU add its voice to those in recent times which have shown concern at the way the media is being manhandled in Barbados. BU has written exhaustively in its short existence about the ramifications of an ineffective media in Barbados. This recent attack on the Barbados media has come days after Amnesty International released its Report for 2007 outlining concerns that governments around the world are using the threat of terror in the aftermath of 911 to infringe on the rights of citizens and media alike. By the way is this the same Royal Barbados Police Force which allowed themselves to be searched like “looppy dogs” at the just concluded CWC 2007?
We applaud the effort of the QEH to crack down on security, but if the Press after showing credentials is not permitted to do the work of informing the country, we have a problem. A simple solution to this matter would have been for the PR personnel at the QEH to “arrange” the photos which would have been acceptable to all present and avoid creating a public incident. BU applaud the members of the Press involved who for the first time that we can remember in recent times have stood-up for a principle. BU is surprise that the senior reporter present, Timothy Slinger appeared to have been given the same lack of respect meted out to his more junior colleagues.
BU waits to see the fallout from this incident and how the media in Barbados will mobilize at the obvious threat to treat them as “ordinary citizens”. A timely intervention from the Barbados Association of Journalists and the Media Houses is required, NOW!
It appears to us here at BU the lack of recognition of National Heroes Day tomorrow because of the hosting of CWC 2007 is a true reflection on the current state of Barbados. We can aptly describe our mirror image of that of “hypocrite”.
National Hero’s day is April 28th. We celebrate the 10 Patriots who have made a mark on Barbados. A slave rebellion leader, a woman preaching equality in the church, a skilled writer and orator, a political activist, populist leader, public educator, a trade union leader, the complete athlete,the Father of Independence and the founder of our Democracy. Celebrations take place in Hero’s Square, where their pictures have been painted by the best Barbadian artists.
1. Grantley Adams
2. Errol Walton Barrow
3. Sir Garfield Sobers
4. Sir Frank Leslie Walcott
5. Sir Hugh Springer
6. Clement Osbourne Payne
7. Charles Duncan O’Neal
8. Samuel Jackman Prescod
9. Sarah Ann Gill
10. Bussa By Amie Ferris-Rotman
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s slave trading past gets a human face on Friday as an ancestry-tracing Web site starts putting the personal histories of the victims online for the first time.
The Web site, posted 100,000 names of Barbados slaves registered in 1834 in the colony.
Submitted by Edward, Guyanese Family Member Today July 15 2009 Mark Benshcop, Lincoln Lewis and Norris Witter have been arrested by the Guyana Police for staging a three man protest in front of Police Headquarters Eveleary. They are currently being processed by the police as I write this. Their protest is intended to bring attention to [...]
Submitted by Yardbroom “The International Federation For Human Rights (FIDH) welcomed the Caribbean Court Of Justice first death penalty ruling given on Nov 8, 2006, which dismissed an appeal by the Barbados Government seeking to restore execution orders for two convicted murderers. The case was largely perceived as a test case of the new court […]
The West Indies cricket test team was beaten by the Bangladeshis today. The significance of this result of being beaten by a team ranked last in the ICC Rankings is yet to needle its way into the psyche of the depraved West Indian cricket fan. The West Cricket team represents one of the few regional entities [...]
The June 28, 2009 election for chairman of Guyana’s opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Georgetown District, has been sullied by credible allegations of fraud. The party said that Ms. Volda Lawrence, a party vice chairman and supporter of party leader, Robert Corbin, in the ongoing leadership crisis, allegedly beat then chairman, Aubrey Nort […]
Link submitted by Living in Barbados Blog The recently constructed Boardwalk on the South coast which stretches from Accra Beach for about half mile towards Bridgetown has been well received by locals and tourists alike. This week it was reported in the news that the Segway Scooters donated to the Royal Barbados Police Force have been [...]
Submitted by Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary [Bridgetown, BARBADOS] Low water levels caused by an inoperative government-owned sluice gate at Worthing Beach continue to cause mosquito infestations at Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary, according to Sanctuary officials. “The water either drains completely or is stopped up,” said Stuart Heaslet, representative for the […]
Two separate but yet related matters sparked my attention this past week. First, there was the predictable hue and cry from “professional opposers” to the increase in water rates. Second, there was Barrack Jagdeo swiping and getting clean bowled by his fellow countrymen. It is clear to me that if water rates had been increased by [...]
Submitted by Greame Hall Nature Sanctuary [Bridgetown, BARBADOS] According to officials at Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary, the emergency sewage pipe and outfall from the South Coast Sewerage Treatment Plant facility to the sea has been effectively abandoned and is not operational, threatening the biodiversity and operation of the Sanctuary and Graeme Hall we […]
Submitted as a comment by Ecoanalyst Let us stop making this a political football that aims at revising history and making the BLP blameless for the present situation…. It is not a question of political blame BLP vs. DLP, but rather the political parties reflecting the majority will of the people. We still have to decide [...]
Submitted by Ready-Done Sugar cane was king in Barbados from the beginning, however the preferential treatment sugar received is no longer a reality, but the industry’s infrastructure is still present, still no one with the authority seems to want to make a definitive decision as to how to progress the sugar cane industry. The value is [...]
Submitted by the Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy Heads of Government re-affirmed the goal of free movement of persons as expressed in Article 45 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas and that free movement is an essential element of the CSME, but given the current global economic and financial crisis, its full implementation at this point [...]
Oh Rihanna our once beautiful and unspoilt. How are you? Are you feeling fine? Is this what you want? If we were to jot your current circumstance as an equation would it reflect at the output, I am Happy? See the write-up on Rihanna’a most recent wardrobe malfunction. How are Barbadians feeling about Rihanna the [...]
Almost like a thief in the night the much discussed and contentious Constituency Councils (CCs) will be given life today at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre at 4.30PM. Recently when asked by a local reporter what are some of his government’s immediate objectives and priorities, Prime Minister Thompson listed the implementation of the CCs high [...]
Submitted by Yardbroom An article in the Nation News by Wade Gibbons published 6-29-2009 attributed the following comments to Mr Inniss: “Minister of Health Donvile Inniss disclosed that public health facilities were under mounting pressure as a result of having to deal with the high number of undocumented immigrants. However, he told the Daily Nation […]
Submitted by GoWEB Blog The recently concluded Junior Duelling Challenge is a matter on the lips of most these days. Queens College was a announced the winner in what is unanimously described as an unfair conclusion. Coming out of the semis, the two schools with the highest semifinal scores would go to the final. In the [...]
Submitted by Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID) BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: Guyana’s President, Bharrat Jagdeo, in his address to the 30th Meeting of Caricom Heads of Government, which began in Guyana yesterday, appealed for the rights of Guyanese to respected by Barbadian Immigration authorities. But Jagdeo himself is not getting a pass from the New York [...] […]
Submitted by Looking Glass Another deficit budget is hardly surprising. Given the economic structure and reliance on fickle tourism and construction more deficit budgets will likely continue. The net effect will be to expand the gap between happiness and misery. There is a correlation between public and private debt in a population whose mental set permits [ […]
Submitted by Yakubu While we must be a tolerant society, Bajans must understand that Hindu immigrants, with their high fertility rates, and their dislike of miscegenation with the Negro, have already destroyed the social cohesion of two Caribbean territories–Guyana and Trinidad. Now they are invading Barbados. We will have no-one but ourselves to blame […]
Sorry, but once again I shall defer dealing with the now contentious issue of immigration and more importantly migration, as it relates to the enunciated policies of this Democratic Labour Party administration. I suspect that when the dust has settled and all the facts have come to light, the person who will be credited for having [...]
I shall be happy if my letter can receive due prominence on your blog. I have read some of the comments on your blog, in response to statements attributed to me in a press release issued yesterday by CGID’s Director of Communications, Jevon Suralie. First let me remind all that I respect and will advocate [...]
Arising from an earlier blog Down By The Riverside fellow blogger from the Living In Barbados Blog expressed the view that private enterprise must be allowed to manage to stay afloat and make money for shareholders (parsing). We have no problem with that position, the flip side however is that BU has the freedom to critique the genuineness of decisions taken as we perceive them. As a corporate citizen the public’s perception should be of value to the Nation Group of Companies.
Mr. Adam Harris
The Sunday Sun of January 3rd 1999 presented an article entitled “The New Politics of Inclusion” which sought to critique an apparent “programme” of the Arthur administration which was apparently intended to allow for greater participation in the governance of our country. This article took the position that the politics of inclusion represented a development that was not only good but absolutely necessary for the proper development of a country like Barbados which is both small and resource deficient. This perspective was, however, a theoretical argument which assumed much about this programme of inclusion which this author presumed would take democracy beyond the right to vote in elections and allow Barbadians the opportunity to play a role in a government that is open, accountable and participatory.
Over the years the Barbados Labour Party has sent mixed signals on whether there is a plan to increase bus fares in the face of increasing petroleum prices. Barbadians remember when the then Minister of Transport Anthony “Too Silent” Wood indicated in a bold pronouncement that he would propose that bus fares be increased. Little did he know that he was being set-up by his boss, Prime Minister Arthur, to test “the waters”. The hue and cry which ensued put paid to that proposal and prompted this response from Democratic Labour Party strategist Hartley Henry in his recent Nation Newspaper piece: “Anthony Wood’s “moment in time” was the stillbirth he gave to an increase in bus fares”.
BU was heartened today to hear David Ellis of STARCOM Network speak-out against the recent attack on the Press which occurred at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. As Barbados leading journalist he has had to suffer a battering in recent times; especially at the hands of the Barbados Labour Party politicians with a general on the horizon. Much of what he said suggested to us that he reads the Blogs-that being the case he needs to go that step closer and mention that we too are playing a part to protect freedom of expression in Barbados.
The story quoted is about Leader of the Opposition of Barbados David Thompson lamenting the fact that the school meals workers who worked around the clock to ensure the “who is who” that attended the CWC 2007 were fed, HAVE NOT BEEN PAID! BU will not even bother to flog a dead horse on this issue except to say that the longer it persists it signifies a callousness on the part of the persons responsible to remedy the matter.
The Nation Newspaper has reported this morning that members of the media were arrested and charged yesterday (27 May 2007). The transgression is reported to be that the cameraman was deemed to be trespassing on the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) compound. Let BU add its voice to those in recent times which have shown concern at the way the media is being manhandled in Barbados. BU has written exhaustively in its short existence about the ramifications of an ineffective media in Barbados. This recent attack on the Barbados media has come days after Amnesty International released its 
