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Quotes:
"'Airlift is a critical component of the [tourism] industry. Travel is a major part of the experience and getting to the destination is very important', she said".
Minister of Tourism Menissa Rambally (The Voice, 21st July).
"Some of her work is uselessly gorgeous and some has deep and far reaching social and economic messages that will one day revolutionize the world and lead to global equality despite the too quick tide of western technology and materialism".
Press release on exhibition by Indian artist Annu Ratta at the Alliance Francaise (The Mirror and Voice, 20th/21st July).
"His 2001 season got off to a slow start with ... the Tent Pinez who continued to label him as a Jazz singer with two unflattering placards reading 'Luther Dandruff' and 'Jazz on the Square' during his performance".
The Mirror on TC Brown's lead-up to the Calypso Crown (20th July).
"The carrot of a diplomatic passport is an affront; these businessmen and women have attained the heights of success by going through immigration and customs the ordinary way".
The Voice editorial on government's decision to appoint three businessmen as 'good-will ambassadors' to promote foreign investment in St Lucia. They will all be issued with diplomatic passports (21st July).
"Personally, I would drop my children off at Ms Rambally's house and let her feed them (after all she is employed) while I look for a new job and while she works on her new tourism marketing strategy".
Caroline Popovic on minister of Tourism Menissa Rambally's response to the sudden dismissal of 300 hotel workers (The Star, 21st July).
"This is not the first time I have been shot by police in that same leg", he continued. "But I am tired of the brutality that mental patients suffer at the hands of the police. Nobody ever even came to me to ask what happened. They just left that alone as though I am not a person. I am a mental patient, but I was also a school teacher, a food quality manager, an agricultural extension officer. I have made contributions to society. I am a human being too. I have a mental disorder, but guns are not the cure for what I have."
Mitchum Black of La Clery who alleges that he was shot in the leg last March while waiting for an ambulance to take him to Golden Hope Hospital (The Mirror, 20th July).
"Forget the ifs, let's talk about those butts. You saw them here, you saw them there, yes, you saw them everywhere. Huge, imposing, inescapable, in your face. Targetted and barely covered, daring you to turn away".
Midweek Star on what it deems the strong focus on "the bottom line", this carnival season (19th July).
"When he asked him if he understood the charge [X] cursed [Y] on his mother insulting him in the process. [X] was again charged and cautioned for insulting an officer".
Thursday Voice (19th July).
"Now new dialysis machines are being sourced according to the Press Secretary. He must tell the public where the machines are being sourced, the cost, and will the machines be made available to kidney patients before the next general elections".
Romanus Lansiquot commenting on Earl Bousquet's claim, two weeks ago, that the St Lucian healthcare system functions better than that of the United Kingdom (Thursday Voice, 19th July).
"In the final analysis, the Director of Tourism says, 'there is no marketing strategy that can sustain a bad product'. So convinced is he about this notion, Modeste maintains that, if anything, St Lucia's marketing efforts are more likely to fail over the medium to long term, as a result of poor quality of our product rather than as a result of our limited marketing budget".
Column by St Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (The Voice, 21st July).
"We are not going to attack the small fishermen, but if St Lucia builds a whale processing plant for the Japanese or if the Japanese bring in their trawlers to begin killing whales in St Lucian waters we will come back and that ship will be on the bottom of the sea".
Captain Paul Watson of the Sea Sherpherd Conservation Society whose ship the Ocean Warrior has sunk nine whaling vessels since 1979. The ship is currently anchored in Castries Harbour, where only last Thursday it witnessed a pilot whale being brought in by a local fishermen, in front of hundreds of cruise ship tourists aboard the Monarch of the Seas (The Star, 21st July).
"The telephone will have to go. I guess I'll have to buy candles because they will cut the electricity. I can get water from the pipe on the road, so that's okay. As far as food is concerned the kids won't be getting any so-called luxuries, juice or snacks. I don't know what we're going to eat".
Former food and beverage employee at Royal/Papillon hotel who was unexpectedly dismissed along with 300 others until tourism business picks up again in December (The Star, 21st July).
"XS Energy's portrayal of 'Extreme Weather' left many wondering where the rest of the costume was. ... Adrian Augier's performance would have been perfect had he not collapsed under the weight of his costume, leaving the field open for Norman Francis to walk away with the King of the Bands title".
The Star on the King and Queen of the Bands competition (21st July).
"Those who headed down to the city circuit expecting the normal J'Ouvert were in for an even bigger surprise when no bands showed up except North Steel Band leaving some to describe the activity as a Jour Bawé".
The Star on the late start of Carnival on Monday morning (21st July).
"Getting to work the next morning was a non-starter. Spending most of my time at the refreshment stand had been a bad idea. I called in sick. But at about 1 pm the phone started ringing. 'Nicole where are you?' a friend asked. 'You have to come down. We are all waiting for you'. Carnival fever hit. I took two Ibuprofen and was off the bed in two seconds applying glitter to my body".
Star reporter Nicole McDonald on her carnival experiences (21st July). |
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Japanese vote-buying lands St Lucia in hot water
St Lucia is finding itself in hot water internationally now that Japan has openly admitted to buying pro-whaling votes from six Eastern Caribbean countries, including St Lucia, in exchange for financial assistance. From various quarters, environmentalists have begun to boycott St Lucia's tourism and banana exporting industries in retaliation for its pro-whaling stance. "Neither I nor any of my friends or associates will come to your country or purchase any of your products for as long as you continue to support the commercial hunting of whales and oppose their protection at the International Whaling Commission", a UK letter-writer states in The Star. An Australian national writing directly to St Lucia Online shared similar sentiments, saying: "I will not be visiting and spending my money in St Lucia. I believe your government accepts money and favours from Japan in exchange for St Lucia's vote in the International Whaling Commission. A government that sells its favours for money is a whore".
While St Lucia's prime minister Dr Kenny Anthony has always denied that his government votes alongside Japan in favour of whale hunting in exchange for receiving multi-million dollar fisheries complexes, prime minister Lester Bird of Antigua and Barbuda this week openly admitted that his administration supports whale hunting because of aid received from Japan.
The Star quotes PM Bird as saying to CANA: "Quite frankly I make no bones about it... if we are able to support the Japanese, and the quid pro quo is that they are going to give us some assistance, I am not going to be a hypocrite; that is part of why we do so". The Voice also reports on the whaling issue.
Lester Bird's remarks coupled with statements made earlier this week by Maseyuki Komatsu, the head of Japan's Fisheries Agency during an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation lay open to question the arguments forwarded by St Lucian ministers. Mr Komatsu is quoted in the UK Daily Telegraph as saying: "Japan does not have military powers. Our means are diplomatic communication and overseas development aid … to get appreciation of Japan's position it is natural we resort to those two major tools" - revealing that Japan consciously uses its overseas aid programme to gain support for its policies such as whale hunting.
Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Cassius Elias only last month claimed that there was no direct link between Japan's donation of a number of fisheries complexes to St. Lucia and the government's pro-whaling vote. "If Japan is assisting the region in any way whatsoever, I would like to say to you now ... [that] they are legitimate gifts to the Caribbean and they don't do so because we support whaling. Japan has never threatened to cut off aid to us if we do not vote with them".
Dr Anthony, in early June, defended his government's pro-whaling stance on the grounds of cultural and political sovereignty. Lashing out at regional and international environmental organisations such as Greenpeace, the PM said: "In St. Lucia, we keep on emphasising that we guard our sovereignty jealously. We don't like other countries constantly to be haranguing us and telling us what we must do and not do and there are a number of NGOs who are against whaling and who feel that they ought to dominate and terrorise these small countries and that's not the way to do it. ... We must be allowed to manage our politics without interference and we must be allowed to exercise our sovereignty".
This sovereignty argument is countered by captain Paul Watson of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, who instead speaks of the "Japanese colonisation" of islands like St Lucia. The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is a radical environmental organisation, this week in Castries harbour aboard the Ocean Warrior to draw attention to the whaling issue in the Caribbean. The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society suggests a pragmatic solution to the potentially financially devastating bind that St Lucia and its fellow Eastern Caribbean states find themselves in now that Japan has admitted to buying their votes. The Society proposes that the Caribbean nations lobby the United States government to 'outbid' Japan for the Caribbean votes. "If the US government wants to put its money where its mouth is", says Captain Paul Watson, "it will call a meeting with all six whaling commissioners who are in London for next week's meeting and tell them that Japan's current aid levels will be matched or surpassed by US aid if they vote for the whales at this meeting. ... If the US wants to take real action to save the whales, it knows exactly what to do and how to do it, and it has nothing to do with making position statements. It means sitting down at the table and trumping Japan's Caribbean ace-in-the-hole".
While The Voice this week reports a 15 percent decline in tourist arrivals for the first six months of this year compared with 2000, environmentalists warn of a further downturn in St Lucia's tourism industry. "What we can say", says Paul Watson in The Star, "is that any island associated with the overturning of the international moratorium [on whaling] will have a huge mark against their name. If that day happens it will be a very dark day for St Lucia and you can say goodbye to tourists and to investors". Already, Cyber Diver News Network [See links below] has put an alert on its website advising "dive travellers and tourists to support commercial and tourism boycotts of St Lucia and other countries that have sold their votes to defeat the international proposals to establish a whale sanctuary in the South Pacific".
With ecotourism and nature heritage tourism having been focal points of the government's tourism policy over the past four years and with a growing local whale and dolphin watching industry (reportedly earning some EC$800,000 in 2000), St Lucia's pro-whaling stance at the International Whaling Commission has been a thorn in the side of the St. Lucia National Trust, and other local organisations and enterpreneurs involved in ecotourism. The Trust urged the government last month to reconsider its pro-whaling stance and asked that itself and other stakeholders be consulted before such policy decisions and statements are made - "statements that quite likely cast doubt on the reputation of St. Lucia in the international arena", as the Trust claimed correctly at the time. The Trust added that, after all, "It is organizations like the Trust that will have to defend St. Lucia's conservation image in the international arena", and that "The Trust is of the opinion that to support whaling without the evidence for sustainable use, contradicts St. Lucia's policy on Nature Heritage tourism".
To make matters worse, The Star reports how earlier this week, a St Lucian fishing canoe arrived at the Fisheries Complex in Castries harbour, right next to the cruise ship Monarch of the Seas, carrying "the slashed carcass of a young pilot whale", "in front of hundreds of tourists and in the full glare of US and Dutch film crews making programmes about the Sea Shepherd Society which will be screened around the world". An astounded Paul Watson commented to The Star: "The killing of this whale is illegal. St Lucia is signatory to international conventions which ban the killing of all cetaceans. It is our belief that this kind of unreported slaughter is going on in St Lucia all the time with the full knowledge of the authorities and with the endorsement of the Japanese".
Related Links:
Cyber Diver News - St Lucia Alert
Cyber Diver News - St. Lucia Report
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Carnival been and gone but Morgie quarrel continues
In traditionally somewhat disorganized but nevertheless relatively calm carnival celebrations, thousands of St Lucians took to the streets early on Monday morning, only to return home late on Tuesday evening - worn-out and tired but in good cheer after another successful forty-odd hours of jumping up and getting down low. All newspapers carry articles and colourful photographs of Carnival 2001, during which some sixty persons were arrested for public drunkenness and carrying dangerous weapons. Apart from some small-scale street brawls, no major incidents were reported.
XS Energy won the Band of the Year 2001 title with its portrayal of 'Dreams - the Future Reality', and also came first in 'Mas on the Move'. The Most Colourful Band title went to Royalites with Aqua Zone, which also captured the Best Design award. The Road March award for 2001 went to Soca Monarch Invader with 'Belelesh', while Dicky Pa Ka Tan by Mahandra was a good first runner-up. Lord Believe Me's Bow Wow Wow came in third. Adrian Augier of St Lucian Spirits got the first prize for 'Best Male costume', and Sophia Charles of De Originals won 'Best Female' with her costume depicting 'White Magic'. Ole Mas was won by Roland Cox with 'Morella-in-Compi-Tent'. Second came Wiggins Melius with 'Mad tin nuts ka sou toute moun'.
Meanwhile, the debate over the winner of the Calypso Crown continues, with an apparent majority of the country feeling that Morgie should have been crowned king instead of TC Brown. The Mirror and midweek Star report that after the judge's decision was announced, last week Saturday, disappointed Morgie fans broke into TC Brown's car and destroyed his winner's trophy. Also, neither Morgie nor second runner-up Lady Spice bothered to come on stage to receive their trophies.
In an interview with the midweek Star, a disappointed and bitter Morgie claims he was "robbed" of his title. A much-spouted allegation is that Morgie was penalised because his lyrics were "too political", and too much anti-government. In a contradictory statement, Morgie told the midweek Star that he will not return to the calypso podium next year, saying that he believes that "the calypso scene itself has become too political and I will not fight the politics of St Lucia alone. I need the support of the people and I have it. Who knows, next year I might change my mind but for now I don't think I will be back".
Meanwhile, Calypso king TC Brown says that the strong public outcry in favour of Morgie has not put a damper on his victory. "I love calypso. Whether I had gotten first place, fourth, fifth, sixth or I did not place at all, you would still see me on the calypso stage, trying to do things the way I believe they should be done. It is just a love for it. I am a musician. I love being on stage. ... All I know is that the crown is on my head, there are 360 odd days to deal with it and I am going to carry it the best that I can. And I am sure next year when I walk on that stage those who did not like me will fall in love with me".
David Vitalis in The Mirror, commenting on the losing calypsonians' reactions, condemns their "lack of game-spirit" and writes: "It was a reflection of the kind of bad spirit in which our calypsonians practised their art. Competition is elevated to personal dislike and disregard for each other and the calypso public. But the despicable lack of game-spirit displayed by the calypsonians at the end of the show encapsulated a year of dull competition".
Toni Nicholas, also in The Mirror, interviews TC Brown. The Calypso King says he did not see what happened when Morgie fans destroyed his trophy, "but all I have is a little piece of the trophy. Morgie has called me to say 'doh dig nuthin' and he will pay for it", says TC Brown, adding however that he was disappointed with the overall response. "Could you imagine at the Olympics someone is called to receive a bronze medal and does not show up. Nah, we have to be more mature about losing".
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First-ever world championship medal for St Lucia
Seventeen-year-old high-jumper Laverne Spencer has brought home to St Lucia the country's first-ever world championship medal: a bronze plaque which she captured last week at the second IAAF/Westel World Youth Championships in Debrecen, Hungary. Laverne Spencer cleared the bar at 1.81m, after Britain's Aileen Wilson who jumped 1.87 m, and Australia's Petrina Price who also cleared 1.81m, but only needed two tries. Laverne cleared the bar at her third try. For the full story, see www.slucia.com/sports
The Mirror, Voice and Star all report on Laverne Spencer's success.
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State funeral for Edward 'Eddoes' Innocent
Edward 'Eddoes' Innocent, former junior minister from 1992 until 1997 and district representative for Soufriere, who died from a hyper-allergic reaction to seafood last week, was laid to rest last Friday at the Soufriere Public Cemetery. He was given a state funeral - a decision taken on the eve of his burial, when friends and relatives had already completed their funeral arrangements, according to The Voice. Innocent was stuyding international law in the United Kingdom and was on holidays in St Lucia when he consumed the - for him - lethal foodstuff. He managed to drive himself to the Soufriere hospital but collapsed in his car in the parking spot and could not be revived.
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New factory but foreign investments still low
With what is described in The Voice as "one of the largest investment initiatives in manufacturing in St Lucia for a considerable number of years", Harris Paints (St Lucia) Ltd. last Thursday opened the doors of its brand new paint factory at Bois d'Orange. The EC$3,000,000 plant, plus whatever investment is required for machinery and equipment, is reportedly partly the result of efforts by prime minister Dr Kenny Anthony who, according to The Voice, "had been very instrumental and persuasive in the process of encouraging and convincing the Harris organization to establish the plant in St Lucia".
Harris Paints (St Lucia) is managed by Keith Smith. The Voice, Mirror and midweek Star all devote several pages to Harris Paints. The Voice editorial, while applauding the advent of the new factory, is critical of what it deems to be the government's failure to attract foreign investors to the island. Moreover, the newspaper sees an admission of guilt on the government's behalf in its decision to appoint three leading businessmen as 'Goodwill Ambassadors', "in a move aimed at increasing the cooperation between the state and private sectors in attracting foreign investment to St Lucia". Malcolm Charles, Michael Chastanet and Costello Michel will all be given diplomatic passports for a period of one year, to assist them in attracting overseas funds to the local business scene. "This indeed speaks volumes for the staged confidence and the ability of former Ministers of Commerce who are paid, and whose job it is and was as Minister of Commerce, to sell St Lucia and the benefits it has to foreign investors", judges The Voice's editor. "Sadly enough, the Labour Government, in four years, has yet to attract any major investor to our shores, be it in the hotel, manufacturing, or retail sectors. With the exception of Harris Paints which opened the doors to its million dollar factory this week, and the locally owned and operated Helen IT systems which opened earlier this year the Labour Government has not demonstrated any ability in gaining the confidence of investors and effecting the transfer of their capital to our shores".
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Virgin Atlantic flies twice weekly from November
Virgin Atlantic will add another flight to St Lucia to its schedule as of November, bringing the total number of flights to and from Gatwick to two: one on Sundays and one on Tuesdays. All newspapers report this. Coupled with the rumoured return of Condor this November (flying direct to Frankfurt) and the addition of two direct flights by US Airways to Philadelphia as of December, St Lucian hoteliers are hoping that the current slump in arrivals will come to an end. One of the main reasons for the 15 percent drop in arrivals over the first six months of this year compared to last year, is thought to be the withdrawal of several airlines, including the British charters JMC and Air 2000, due to the weak pound (sterling). The St Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association reports this in its weekly column in The Voice.
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Lucian Kaiso 2001 publication out
The Folk Research Centre (FRC) has published its annual magazine on Calypso in St Lucia: Lucian Kaiso. The Voice reports this. At $10 per copy, carnival and calypso lovers get all the background and in-depth information on the state of the art of calypso they desire. Lucian Kaiso 2001 is available at Sunshine Bookshop, JQ Charles supermarkets at La Clery and Rodney Bay and Book Nook in Vieux Fort. Better yet, a Lucian Kaiso Special Pack has also been brought out this year, bringing together back issues of Lucian Kaiso from 1990 right through to 1999, as well as the current 2001 issue. These special sets can be ordered from the FRC - call 452-2279 to place an order.
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