NEW YORK,  CMC – A prominent Caribbean American publication here has named Hurricanes Irma and Maria, described as “the two mega, Category 5 hurricanes of 2017,” as its “Person of the Year.”

The Brooklyn-based EVERYBODY’S Magazine, owned and published by Grenadian Herman Hall, said it is the first time the 40-year old publication “selected a phenomenon as its Person of the Year.”

“It can be said that the numerous and ferocious hurricanes of 2017, Usain Bolt failing to win his final track and field races, and Trinidad and Tobago knocking out the US from entering FIFA World Cup in 2018 were the major 2017 headlines in the Caribbean and within Caribbean communities overseas,” Hall said.

“Maria and Irma may well have affirmed Atilla the Hun’s classic calypso recorded in New York City in 1935, ‘Woman Is Not The Weaker Sex’ and Denise Plumber’s 1988 calypso ‘Woman is Boss’.,” he added. “Hurricane Maria and Hurricane Irma showed their male counterparts, Hurricanes Harvey, Lee, Jose and Bret, who is really the boss and the stronger sex.

“The handwriting is on the wall, in that Caribbean governments can no longer expect the US to eagerly and generously help them in time of natural disasters,” Hall continued.

In September, Hurricanes Irma and Maria ripped through the northern Caribbean, leaving a trail of destruction and ravaging 12 of 32 countries, according to reports.

Most of the islands affected included Barbuda, Dominica, Puerto Rico, St Kitts and Nevis, the Turks and Caicos, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic and Cuba.

Hall said previous EVERYBODY’S Magazine “Person of the Year” included St. Lucian Nobel Laureate Sir Arthur Lewis; the late Caribbean American Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, of Barbadian and Guyanese parentage; former Prime Ministers Patrick Manning, of Trinidad and Tobago, Dame Eugenia Charles, of Dominica, Tom Adams, of Barbados, and Baldwin Spencer, of Antigua and Barbuda.

Others were: The Mighty Sparrow, Jamaican-born Olympian and WNBA player Tina Charles; Grenadian Olympian Kirani James; and former West Indies cricket captain Guyanese Clive Lloyd.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Dec. 24, CMC – President David Granger, has pardoned five women who have completed part of their prison sentence for non-violent offenses.

According to the Ministry of Public Security, Granger has signed off and granted the Presidential pardon to Shabana Asgar, 34, Shellon David,24, Ronella Junor, 27 Maxine Baird Sampson,27 Reina Vargas, 54.

The Ministry says the prisoners “have each served a portion of their respective sentences for offences ranging from larceny, fraud and giving false oath.”

The pardons will take effect on Monday – Christmas day.

Since taking office in 2015, the President has been offering pardons to non-violent women and youths who find themselves behind bars.

Once freed, they will participate in programmes geared towards reintegrating them into society.

Gunmen kill three in early morning raid

by STAFF WRITER

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Dec 23, CMC – Police are searching for gunmen who killed three people but spared the lives of two children during an early home invasion on Saturday.

The police said that the incident occurred at Cunupia, a town in central Trinidad. The authorities said a woman was among those killed. They have identified the victims as Vinta James, Wellington Thomas and Tristan Guy.

Resident said that gunshots were heard at around 6.00 am (local time) and later saw a group of men fleeing the area.

Two of those killed were found on a bed while the third was found in a corridor to the home.

Two children, who were said to be in the house at the time were not harmed.

So far this year, more than 473 people have been murdered in Trinidad and Tobago. Last year, the death toll stood at 463.

Two killed in plane crash

by STAFF WRITER

PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands, Dec. 24, CMC – An investigation has been launched into a plane crash that killed two people here  on Saturday.

The police report that the small plane crashed shorting after take off.

The plane was enroute to The Bahamas.

According to the CEO of the Airport Authority here, John Smith, the aircraft was enguled in flames and thick smoke when it crashed on a road close to the airport.

The police have not released the idenities of those killed.

Two killed as vehicle ploughs into crowd

by STAFF WRITER

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, Dec 26, CMC – At least two people were killed and 18 others injured after a vehicle ploughed into a group of young people celebrating Christmas in the K-Soleil neighbourhood of , Gonaïves in northern Haiti, the authorities have said.

The driver of the vehicle is reported to have fled the scene of the accident that left 23-year-old Robenson Ulcera and 27 year-old Jean-Fito Marc dead.

The authorities said that 18 people including some as young as 13-years-old were also injured and taken to the hospital of La Providence.

They said that the causes of the accident remain unknown, but the Justice of the Peace, Blondel Petit-Frère, who was accompanied by members of the National Police of Haiti (PNH) , said he believes that the driver may have been under the influence of alcohol or that the brakes of the vehicle had malfunctioned.

Police seize nearly 150 pounds of cocaine

by STAFF WRITER

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Dec 26, CMC – A taxi driver is due to appear in court later this week after police said they found more than 145 pounds of cocaine in a cooking gas cylinder on Sunday.

The authorities said that they found the drugs after carrying out a search of the man’s vehicle at his home in the Boodhoo’s Housing Scheme, West Coast Demerara.

On cutting up the gas cylinder, the police said that they found the drugs and arrested the unidentified taxi driver.

The value of the drugs were not disclosed.

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, Mar. 16, CMC – A treaty to solidify negotiations with the Republic of France to define the maritime space between Antigua and Barbuda and neighbouring French territories, was signed by government officials on Wednesday.

The treaty establishes the outer limits of Antigua & Barbuda’s jurisdiction from where the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) ends, its use, and exploration and exploitation of the Atlantic Ocean in respect to Guadeloupe and Saint Barthelemy.

It also embraces the interests of local fishermen and seafarers who now have a clearer understanding of the delineation of boundaries, thereby enabling both governments to rectify the common issue.

“It is also the first step to manage the problems we may have between our fishermen; obviously, it is never easy to know if you are in French waters or Antiguan waters,” said Ambassador to the OECS Member States and Barbados, Phillipe Ardanaz, who signed the treaty.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Gaston Browne said his administration recognises the need for adopting a ‘Blue Economy’ approach to development and is currently looking at ways to develop the nation’s oceanic resources.

“That is a significant amount of resources for us to harness, in fact it is almost 200 times our land space. My understanding is that within the next 40 years, it will be very difficult to find sufficient land space in order to produce sufficient food to sustain the global population,” Browne said.

The prime minister added that possessing a large EEZ provides the opportunity to satisfy seafood demand and suggested the twin island is capable of harvesting in the region of 10,000 tonnes of fish and fish products each year.

“As it stands now, fresh fish and fish products are relatively outside the means of the ordinary Antiguan and Barbudan, but as we continue to invest more resources in the ‘Blue Economy’ in fisheries, we will see an increase in supply and therefore that should help to drive down the cost.”

The Prime Minister said this treaty delineates an essential area in the Atlantic waters that will ensure there are no disputes over maritime space with the country’s neighbours.

The signing of the agreement follows the Eastern Caribbean Ocean Policy (ECROP) declaration for OECS members to formalise maritime boundaries in securing rights protection and jurisdiction over marine areas.