NEW YORK, CMC – Even as Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez was laid to rest on Friday a major human rights group in the United States claims that his presidency (1999-2013) was characterized by a “dramatic concentration of power and open disregard for basic human rights guarantees."...

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles on Sunday launched what many consider a doomed candidacy to replace Hugo Chavez with a no-holds-barred attack against a government he accused of coldly betraying Venezuelans' trust. Chavez's political heirs have toyed with...

FORT LAUDERDALE, CMC – A major cruise line here says more than 100 passengers aboard an 11-day cruise to the Caribbean fell ill with a bad gastrointestinal virus. On Saturday, Royal Caribbean announced that at least 105 of the 2,000 guests as well as three crew members, fell victim to what wa...

CARACAS -- Just months after losing his race for the presidency, Miranda Gov. Henrique Capriles, may get a second shot at the top-spot and take on the anointed successor of the late Hugo Chávez. The country will hold new presidential elections April 14, the National Election Council said Sat...

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC - The Jamaica Teachers Association, (JTA) has become the latest public sector union to sign a wage restraint agreement with the Portia Simpson Miller led administration. Previously, the teachers’ union had stated that it could not make such an agreement and as a result ...

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton has arrived in Haiti to promote investment in the agriculture sector in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country. Clinton, who is also the United Nations' special envoy to Haiti, is heading a delegation on a two-da...

KINGSTON, Jamaica - THERE is an intriguing story in yesterday's Sunday Observer about a push by The Bahamas to make sports a major engine of growth for its huge tourism industry. Those who haven't read it, should. Much has been said in Jamaica about sports and its potential as a money spinn...

NASSAU, Bahamas, CMC – The Bahamas government has indicated that it will most probably hold a referendum on oil development during the latter part of 2015, if present exploration efforts prove that there is sufficient oil to economically transform the country “for many generations to com...

NEW YORK, CMC – Newly-elected Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell has called for all hands on deck and unity in re-building the tri-island nation. During a town hall meeting at Brooklyn College, late Saturday,Mitchell, whose New National Party (NNP)  swept the polls in the historic Februar...

KINGSTON, Jamaica - A senior economist with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is warning member countries of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) that they face similar challenges now confronting the Eurozone countries. Alfred Schipke, formerly of the IMF Western Hemisphere Division, sai...