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Major private-sector bodies form CARICOM working group

KINGSTON, Jamaica - On the heels of recent public commentary regarding Jamaica's trade agreements with CARICOM comes news that four of the country's major organisations have formed a broad-based Private Sector Working Group to examine CARICOM and other free trade agreements.
The Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC), Jamaica Exporters' Association (JEA), Jamaica Manufacturers' Association (JMA) and the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) have formed the committee based on feedback from their members.

Clash over CARICOM - Let’s fix it!

KINGSTON, Jamaica - Forty years is not a long time in the life of an organisation. However, it is sufficient time to make an assessment of its performance towards achieving its mission, vision and strategic goals. CARICOM, which was formed by former colonies in the British West Indies in their quest to promote regional integration, has come under serious scrutiny about its performance as a regional integration movement over the last four decades.

Opposition party warns against rush to judgement

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – The main opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Monday cautioned against a rush to judgment in the wake of reports that some of the country's athletes have tested positive for banned substances. “Jamaica is currently under the microscope globally, as our ascendancy in track and field means that we are being focused on. Our athletes will get special attention and therefore, the temptation to jump to negative conclusion without all the facts, could be very appealing to some,” said the party’s spokesman on Sports, Olivia “Babsy” Grange.

Five Jamaicans test positive for banned substance

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC - Two Olympic medalists are among five Jamaicans who have reportedly returned adverse analytical findings for banned performance enhancing drugs at the National Championships in June. According to highly placed track and field sources, four of the athletes are in the senior ranks, while the fifth is a junior. Two of those athletes are sprinters while the other three athletes compete in the field events.

Troubling days in the history of modern track and field

KINGSTON, Jamaica - EVEN as Jamaicans received word of the country's best-ever performance at the World Youth Athletics Championships, comes the staggering news that several Jamaican athletes, including Olympic medallists Mr Asafa Powell and Ms Sherone Simpson, have tested positive for banned substances. Details related to those adverse analytical results were only just emerging as this commentary was being written.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/In-Caribbean—push-to-create-no-take-reserves#ixzz2Z7X9hhJl

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC - The Pan–Afrikan Reparations Coalition of Europe (PARCOE) has voiced concern about the approach being taken by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in establishing National Reparations Committees. At the recently concluded CARICOM Heads of Government Conference in Trinidad, the leaders agreed to set up national reparations committees in each of the 15 member states as a first step toward tackling an issue that was previously ignored.

In Caribbean, push to create no-take reserves

BLUEFIELDS BAY, Jamaica - YOUNG fish leap in the wake of a warden’s patrol boat as it motors through waters off Jamaica’s southwest coast that are a brilliant palette of blues. Beneath the surface, reefs bristle with spiny lobsters, and rainbowcoloured parrotfish graze on algae and seaweed. After rampant destruction of local fish habitats over decades, marine life is gradually rebounding in Bluefields Bay now that every minnow and mullet, each sea urchin and snapper is protected from spear guns and nets.

Toward a New Venezuela-Caribbean relationship

KINGSTON, Jamaica - SINCE 2005 when the late president of Venezuela Hugo Chavez introduced the PetroCaribe initiative, several Caribbean governments have enjoyed a vital lifeline. But the time may have come to review the scope and expectations of the PetroCaribe relationship in the interest of the beneficiary Caribbean countries and Venezuela itself. Under PetroCaribe, the beneficiary countries have been allowed to pay for 40 per cent of oil shipments from Venezuela within 90 days (either in cash or in goods of equivalent value).

Clash over CARICOM - Let’s take a break!

KINGSTON, Jamaica - The following is an edited version of a speech delivered to the Lions Club of Kingston recently.
Many Jamaicans are still uncertain as to the net benefits of our membership of CARICOM. The primary concern has been our trading relations with Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) within this free-trade framework.

Jamaica passes legislation to tighten measures dealing with human trafficking

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – The Jamaica parliament has approved the legislation dealing with human trafficking less than a month after the United States placed the island on a Tier Two status for not fully complying with the minimum standards set by the U.S. Trafficking Victims Protection Act. National Security Minister Peter Bunting successfully piloted the Human Trafficking Bill that which will make provision for restitution to victims of human trafficking and lead to increased penalties for crimes classified as human trafficking.

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