Pinchers Talks About Being Shot

Two days after he was shot and injured Pinchers opens up about the incident in which two were killed.

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Pinchers Talks About Being Shot

Soldier deployed to West Africa found dead at Fort Hood; tests negative for Ebola - CDC chief: Why I have hope about 2015 Ebola fight

Hazmat teams and several ambulances responded Tuesday after a soldier’s body was found in front of a home at Fort Hood in Texas.

The soldier, who was not identified, had just returned from deployment in West Africa, KWTX.com reported.

According to medical officials, the soldier was tested for Ebola and initial results came back as negative. 

The soldier had returned from Liberia with a larger group earlier this month and was in the 21-day controlled monitoring at Fort Hood, a senior defense official said. He was given permission for an emergency leave due to a family issue and was told to self-monitor twice a day, the official said.

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Soldier deployed to West Africa found dead at Fort Hood; tests negative for Ebola - CDC chief: Why I have hope about 2015 Ebola fight

Tsarnaev lawyers ask judge to suspend jury selection over Paris attacks - Hernandez jurors asked about Pats games, tattoos

Jan. 5, 2015: In this file courtroom sketch, Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, left, is depicted beside U.S. District Judge George O’Toole Jr., right, as O’Toole addresses a pool of potential jurors in a jury assembly room at the federal courthouse, in Boston.(AP)

BOSTON –  Lawyers for Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev asked a judge on Tuesday to suspend jury selection in his trial for at least a month because the recent terrorist attacks in France have again placed the marathon bombings “at the center of a grim global drama.”

The lawyers said a delay would allow some time “for the extraordinary prejudice flowing from these events — and the comparison of those events to those at issue in this case — to diminish.”

They said potential jurors have been instructed to avoid media reports about Tsarnaev’s case, but were exposed to reports about the French attacks. Jury selection began last week.

“Almost immediately after the attacks, the press, politicians, and commentators drew parallels between the French attacks and the Boston Marathon bombing,” the lawyers wrote.

In the marathon case, authorities say Tsarnaev and his older brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, planned and carried out the attack as retaliation for U.S. wars in Muslim countries. Three people were killed and more than 260 were wounded when twin bombs exploded at the finish line April 15, 2013.

Tamerlan was killed in a shootout with police days after the bombings. Dzhokhar, 21, could face the death penalty if convicted.

In the Paris attacks, two gunmen, brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi burst into the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, killing 12 people. A total of 17 people were shot dead in the three-day terrorist killing spree, including four hostages. The Kouachi brothers and a third gunman were killed by police.

While “Boston Strong” became the slogan used to show unity following the marathon attacks, “Je suis Charlie” (“I am Charlie”) has become a popular slogan since the Paris attacks.

The Paris attacks began Jan. 7, which was the third day of jury selection in Tsarnaev’s trial in Boston. More than 1,350 prospective jurors have been called in to federal court to fill out lengthy juror questionnaires. The judge is scheduled to begin questioning individual jurors Thursday.

Tsarnaev’s lawyers have asked repeatedly to delay the trial and to move it outside Massachusetts, where almost everyone seems to know someone connected to the marathon or personally affected by the 2013 bombings. Federal Judge George O’Toole Jr. has rejected the defense requests.

“Even before the Paris attacks, there was no modern precedent of which we are aware for attempting to seat an impartial jury in a community that had been so recently, so grievously, and so widely affected by a single series of crimes,” the defense lawyers wrote Tuesday.

“Now, at the very moment this attempt is to be made, the Boston bombings are being newly placed at the center of a grim global drama. At a minimum, the court should pause long enough to let this latest storm subside,” they wrote.

Legal analysts said earlier Tuesday that the French terror attacks could provide new grounds for Tsarnaev’s lawyers to argue for a delay or for moving the trial outside Boston.

Jeffrey Abramson, a professor of law and government at the University of Texas at Austin, said that if he were one of Tsarnev’s lawyers, he would ask for a delay of three to six months “until the Paris comparison fades a bit.”

“Whatever scabbing or healing had begun to take place, the Boston wound is freshly ripped open by the events in Paris,” said Abramson, who has written extensively about the jury system in the United States.

Abramson said it would be difficult for any jury pool not to see similarities between the two cases and be potentially influenced by them.

“It just cries out for comparison,” he said.

Veteran Boston defense attorney Jeffrey Denner said Tsarnaev’s defense could argue that the pall cast by the Paris attacks will make it difficult to find jurors who can be impartial in Tsarnaev’s case.

“Emotions are really running high now. The terrorist problem, while it’s always this 800-pound elephant sitting in the room, right now it’s the 800-pound elephant sitting right on the defendant,” Denner said. “It’s hard to ever view terrorist threats in an impartial way, but it’s almost impossible where the events are so fresh and poignant as last week.”

But Denner said suspending a trial after jury selection has begun would be highly unusual.

“On the other hand, the central issue still remains: Can any defendant get a fair trial given the circumstances and context of the case? The context has changed when the whole terror situation has been exacerbated dramatically over the past week,” he added.

Denner said he also thinks it’s unlikely the judge would reconsider moving the trial because of the Paris attacks.

“Right now, I think it would be hard to get a fair trial anywhere,” he said.

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Tsarnaev lawyers ask judge to suspend jury selection over Paris attacks - Hernandez jurors asked about Pats games, tattoos

Gully Bop Kissing His Girlfriend Also Talks About Finding True Love And Marriage

Gully Bop Kissing his Girlfriend also talks about finding true love &Marriage They say people come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. It turns out that Shauna Chin came into Gully Bop’s life at the right time. Chin, who was heading out of Jamaica when she met the artiste, dropped everything, including her

flight plans and made a 180. Gully Bop confirmed that Chin is not just his manager but she is the love of his life. “She is signed in my heart, “ said Gully Bop in an exclusive interview with Loop News, in which he affectionately kissed Chin. Who knows, the New Year may have wedding bells ringing.

Posted in: Breaking News, Dance-hall, Environment, International. Tags: Gully Bop Kissing His Girlfriend Also Talks About Finding True Love And Marriage.

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Gully Bop Kissing His Girlfriend Also Talks About Finding True Love And Marriage

North Korea’s Kim Jong-un’s absence fuels speculation about health, coup - VIDEO: Where is Kim Jong-un?

FILE 2013: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits a Mushroom Farm in Pyongyang. There is speculation about the young leader’s health because he has not made a public appearance in over a month. (REUTERS/KCNA)

North Korea’s mysterious leader Kim Jong-un has not been seen in public for 34 days and wasn’t on a list of dignitaries at a celebration of the anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party on Friday, sparking speculation that the head of one of the world’s most secretive countries is ailing or has been removed in a secret coup.

An official state media dispatch listed senior government, military and party officials who paid their respects at an event marking the party’s 69th anniversary, but not Kim. It said a flower basket with Kim’s name on it was placed before statues of his father and grandfather, both of whom also ruled North Korea.

State media earlier said that the might of the party “is growing stronger under the seasoned guidance of Marshal Kim Jong Un.”

While his absence is not in itself all that important or unusual — such anniversaries are generally given more weight when they are landmark years, though he attended the celebrations in the last two years.

Even so, because the young leader has not been shown in the North Korean media for the past month, his attendance at the event has taken on more meaning.

Kim, who was last seen in public attending a concert on Sept. 3., had been seen earlier walking with a limp.

Maybe it’s gout, unidentified sources tell South Korean reporters, or diabetes, or high blood pressure. A thinly sourced British report says the Swiss-educated dictator has been laid low by a massive cheese addiction. A headline in Seoul offers up the possibility of a common South Korean obsession: fried chicken and beer.

During a surprise visit to South Korea last week to attend the closing ceremonies of the Asian Games in Incheon, three senior North Korean leaders assured their South Korean counterparts that Kim was healthy, but that has done little to calm the rumors abroad that he was unwell.

Paul French wrote in a Reuters’ opinion, “to add to the current coup rumors, Hwang Pyong So, recently appointed director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army (the top political position in the powerful DPRK military), appeared in Incheon in South Korea sparking more speculation that Kim was gone and a coup had occurred.”

U.S. and South Korean officials told The New York Times that there is no immediate evidence that there has been a coup.

“The last time was when everyone was predicting that Kim Jong-un would be pushed aside by his more experienced uncle, and look what happened to him,” a senior official told the paper.

After surviving several earlier purges, Kim’s uncle, Jang Song Thaek, was publicly shamed and then executed on treason charges in December 2013.

Geoffery Cain wrote in The Global Post that some analysts believe the 31-year-old leader’s younger sister, Kim Yo Jong has been running the country in his absence.

“She is one of the only people in that we know has unfettered direct access to KJU. At the present time I would not be surprised if she is sole gatekeeper,” Michael Madden, who runs the North Korea Leadership Watch blog, told Cain.  

The article points out that little is known about the sister, believed to be born in the late 80s, but in March she appeared on state television as a senior official.

Kim, for his part, missed a meeting of the country’s parliament late last month, and was absent again from a gathering this week to mark his late father’s election as ruling party head.

Adding to the uncertainty, Kim has not been seen in North Korean media reports greeting the athletes who returned from the Asian Games — though they were given a lavish reception and heavy media coverage when they returned to the capital.

Kim is usually a near-constant one-man show in state media, but he has kept a low profile before. In 2012, he wasn’t seen publicly for about three weeks, South Korean officials say.

“Such vanishing acts would be most unusual in democracies, but in totalitarian North Korea, Kim is the state. He is free to come and go as he pleases,” Lee Sung-yoon, a North Korea expert at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, told The Times.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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North Korea’s Kim Jong-un’s absence fuels speculation about health, coup - VIDEO: Where is Kim Jong-un?

Kelly Brooks upset about leaked naked photos

File

Kelly Brooks

Nude photos of Kelly Brook have been leaked online.

The 26-year-old model – who recently split from her fianc?e David McIntosh – is the latest star to have intimate images of herself, which include her lying naked on a bed, posted online, and she is said to be “very upset” about the leak.

A friend of Kelly told The Sun newspaper: “She is naturally very upset. She may have profited from images of her body in the past, but these were private images pumped out to the world. She’s horrified.”

The brunette beauty was previously named in a list of celebrities whose private photos had been targeted by online hackers – which is also said to have included stars Jennifer Lawrence, Kim Kardashian and Kate Upton – but denied the existence of the stolen images.

She said at the time: “The only nude photos that you’ll ever see of me are the ones that I ‘leak’, and the ones that my head is superimposed on.”

Fellow victim Jennifer Lawrence – who was targeted for the second time last month when trolls released a further 55 x-rated images of the star on websites 4Chan and Reddit – has spoken out for the first time following the scandal and has defended her decision to take the nude shots.

She said: “Just because I’m an actress does not mean I asked for this. I was in a loving healthy relationship for four years. It was long distance and, either your boyfriend is going to look at porn or he’s going to look at you.”

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Kelly Brooks upset about leaked naked photos

Kelly Brooks upset about leaked naked photos

File

Kelly Brooks

Nude photos of Kelly Brook have been leaked online.

The 26-year-old model – who recently split from her fianc?e David McIntosh – is the latest star to have intimate images of herself, which include her lying naked on a bed, posted online, and she is said to be “very upset” about the leak.

A friend of Kelly told The Sun newspaper: “She is naturally very upset. She may have profited from images of her body in the past, but these were private images pumped out to the world. She’s horrified.”

The brunette beauty was previously named in a list of celebrities whose private photos had been targeted by online hackers – which is also said to have included stars Jennifer Lawrence, Kim Kardashian and Kate Upton – but denied the existence of the stolen images.

She said at the time: “The only nude photos that you’ll ever see of me are the ones that I ‘leak’, and the ones that my head is superimposed on.”

Fellow victim Jennifer Lawrence – who was targeted for the second time last month when trolls released a further 55 x-rated images of the star on websites 4Chan and Reddit – has spoken out for the first time following the scandal and has defended her decision to take the nude shots.

She said: “Just because I’m an actress does not mean I asked for this. I was in a loving healthy relationship for four years. It was long distance and, either your boyfriend is going to look at porn or he’s going to look at you.”

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Kelly Brooks upset about leaked naked photos

Jamaicans need to change misconception about crime solution—security minister

Monday, September 29, 2014 | 1:26 PM    

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica — National Security Minister Peter Bunting has said that Jamaicans need to change their thinking that the solution to crime and violence rests with law enforcement.

“Law enforcement has an important role to play, but if we think it is only law enforcement that is going to fix our crime problem, then we are seriously mistaken. The truth of the matter is…when you look at the root causes of crime, it starts with the family,” the minister said.

Bunting emphasised that there needs to be a deepened understanding among Jamaicans of the causes of crime and violence affecting the island.

Addressing the launch of a Unite for Change forum and First Responders and Violence Interrupters training at the Ocho Rios High School in St Ann, on September 28, the Minister said the understanding is needed in order to identify and put in place strategies aimed at fighting the scourge.

He said it is hoped that through the Unite for Change programme, the quest for a better understanding of the issues surrounding crime and violence will be achieved and a number of misconceptions will be removed from the thinking of Jamaicans.

“A part of the Unite for Change initiative is really working to deepen our understanding of the causes of violence, because if you don’t understand what is causing it…you will end up just treating the symptoms and not curing the disease,” the Minister argued.

Meanwhile, Bunting said one of the strategies being employed by his Ministry in curbing crime and violence is the use of “softer policing”, where members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) are dressed in a more civilian-friendly manner, instead of looking as if they are on a mission to confront.

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Jamaicans need to change misconception about crime solution—security minister

Alcoa optimistic about aluminium price

Alcoa, which is moving to sell its stake in Jamalco, is depending on an aluminum deficit to help its stock price continue the nearly 50-percent increase it’s seen so far this year.

Prices for the metal have risen about 10 per cent in 2014, and analysts predict a global aluminum deficit will correct years of  market saturation.

Aluminum’s good fortune has come as the automobile market has turned its attention to utilizing the light metal for producing cars.

Alcoa, which accounts for 7% of  the world’s aluminum output, has placed an emphasis on cutting production to help offset the surplus.

News came in June that Alcoa will pull out of  Jamaica within two years and sell its mining interests to Noble Group.

Alcoa has a 55 per cent stake in Jamalco, with the remaining 45 per cent held by the Government through its holding company Clarendon Alumina Production.

The plant is managed by Alcoa.

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Alcoa optimistic about aluminium price

Alcoa optimistic about aluminium price

Alcoa, which is moving to sell its stake in Jamalco, is depending on an aluminum deficit to help its stock price continue the nearly 50-percent increase it’s seen so far this year.

Prices for the metal have risen about 10 per cent in 2014, and analysts predict a global aluminum deficit will correct years of  market saturation.

Aluminum’s good fortune has come as the automobile market has turned its attention to utilizing the light metal for producing cars.

Alcoa, which accounts for 7% of  the world’s aluminum output, has placed an emphasis on cutting production to help offset the surplus.

News came in June that Alcoa will pull out of  Jamaica within two years and sell its mining interests to Noble Group.

Alcoa has a 55 per cent stake in Jamalco, with the remaining 45 per cent held by the Government through its holding company Clarendon Alumina Production.

The plant is managed by Alcoa.

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Alcoa optimistic about aluminium price

NCB warns customers about scams

National Commercial Bank, has issued a warning about phishing and internet scams.
The bank did not say whether its customers have been duped by the scam recently.
But NCB says it has never sent emails asking for updates or confirmation of account details.
The bank said, customers being asked to follow a link to its website or being asked to supply private banking information through an email, should ignore the message and contact it immediately.
Phishing and internet scams have recently been used to deceive persons into providing banking information.

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NCB warns customers about scams

Joe optimistic about Downsound"s future

Joe Bogdanovich

Downsound Records has been a major player in the Jamaican music industry for more than a decade.

Since setting up shop locally in the 1990s, the company, which is owned and operated by American businessman Joe Bogdanovich, has become the driving force in the local music industry.

“We’ve been here for a while now and we’ve worked with a lot of people in various areas of the business. We’ve built up a good reputation as a successful, management, music production and events company,” Bogdanovich said.

The Downsound boss is extremely optimistic about the future of his company. “So far, we have done a lot and we have accomplished great results, but I believe the best is yet to come. Right now, I am working with a great stable of artistes,” he said.

Ninja Man, Harry Toddler, Nature, Don Husky and Naazir are just some of the artistes signed to the company.

Bogdanovich also said the success of his company and its artistes is not based on luck, but dedication to hard work.

“Downsound is a professional organisation, we don’t believe in luck, we believe in hard work. I have a great team of people working with the artistes daily to ensure that we get the right results. All the artistes are constantly rehearsing, writing and recording songs. If you come to our offices, you will see that we don’t play around, we mean business,” added the businessman.

‘Downsound is a professional organisation, we don’t believe in luck, we believe in hard work.’

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Joe optimistic about Downsound"s future

Aidonia excited about Cayman performance

Astounding dancehall artiste Aidonia, the headliner for HEAT F?TE in Cayman today, is excited to perform for his Cayman fans at Jaques Scott Lot.

The lyricist last performance in Cayman in 2008.

“Yes, I can’t wait to see my Cayman fans. They have been reaching out on the social media. They want to see the don, so its only right that we forward and give them a performance they will never figet, cause, yuh done know how wi ting set up, straight shellings,” Aidonia said.

Cayman artiste Neptune, also booked for the show, said: “Aidonia has a very huge fan base in Cayman. the girls them go crazy when they hear his songs, so Friday night they gonna go wild”.

Aidonia will head back to Jamaica to finish recording new projects and rehearse for his Sumfest performance, Thursday, July 17. He recently released new summer songs, namely Bring It Come, produced by Ajan Records; Zadaga, featuring Karamel, produced by Ancient Records, and One Heart, produced by JOP/Magnum Sound.

The deejay recently performed at MVP Friday and Marco Polo where he left patrons begging for more.

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Aidonia excited about Cayman performance

Aidonia excited about Cayman performance

Astounding dancehall artiste Aidonia, the headliner for HEAT F?TE in Cayman today, is excited to perform for his Cayman fans at Jaques Scott Lot.

The lyricist last performance in Cayman in 2008.

“Yes, I can’t wait to see my Cayman fans. They have been reaching out on the social media. They want to see the don, so its only right that we forward and give them a performance they will never figet, cause, yuh done know how wi ting set up, straight shellings,” Aidonia said.

Cayman artiste Neptune, also booked for the show, said: “Aidonia has a very huge fan base in Cayman. the girls them go crazy when they hear his songs, so Friday night they gonna go wild”.

Aidonia will head back to Jamaica to finish recording new projects and rehearse for his Sumfest performance, Thursday, July 17. He recently released new summer songs, namely Bring It Come, produced by Ajan Records; Zadaga, featuring Karamel, produced by Ancient Records, and One Heart, produced by JOP/Magnum Sound.

The deejay recently performed at MVP Friday and Marco Polo where he left patrons begging for more.

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Aidonia excited about Cayman performance

Police Commissioner promises to answer questions raised about his departure

Word has come that Commissioner of  Police, Owen Ellington, will address questions swirling in the public domain about his impending departure from the post and related issues surrounding his tenure. He has made this known through his spokesman, Howard Mitchell. 

Mr Ellington triggered a wave of  questions this week following the surprise announcement on Monday that he was retiring. The reasons offered by the National Security Ministry has not been accepted in some quarters, and speculation has increased significantly about the matter. 

There have been claims that he was forced out, and questions have arisen about his United States visa.
Mr Mitchell told RJR News that all will be revealed at the appropriate time.

“At this time, Mr. Ellington is not at liberty speak to any of these issues that have been raised. In due course, he will,” Mr. Mitchell, an attorney at law, said in response to our query.

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Police Commissioner promises to answer questions raised about his departure

JOA President clears the air about team selection for Youth Olympics

President of the Jamaica Olympic Association, Mike Fennell, has sought to clear the air regarding selection of Jamaica’s team to the Youth Olympic Games this summer in China, noting the process is being done through qualification.

Jamaica will be represented in four sporting disciplines at the games, track and field, beach volleyball, fencing and swimming.

Speaking with RJR Sports Online, Fennell explained that each athlete selected would have earned a place in the squad on merit.          

“Each International Federation for the sport set their own criteria as approved by the IOC for how you qualify”, Fennell commented.  “You will recall that last year we had the qualification of the two young beach volleyball players, the fencer qualified by competing in England, the track and field athletes qualified through the Junior Carifta Championships and the swimmers also”, Fennell further added.

Noting that plans have been going well for the Games with a youth ambassador also to be included on the team, Fennell says the athletes will be involved in more than just sports at the Games.

“The Youth Olympic Games has some special features,” Fennell said.  “It is not just a sports competition, but it also has a cultural and educational component which is compulsory for all participants”, Fennell highlighted. “So any athlete going to the Games, has to take part in the cultural and educational programme, because the IOC in its prescription for the Games are quite clear that they want this to be about the development of the whole person and no just your physical ability to win medals in a sport” the JOA head noted.  

Jamaica’s team to the second Youth Olympic Games set for August 16 to 28 in Nanjing China, will be announced next week.     

Sprinter Odean Skeen won Jamaica’s lone medal, at the inaugural Games in Singapore in 2010 taking gold in the boys 100 meters. 

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JOA President clears the air about team selection for Youth Olympics

Braeton producer optimistic about new rhythm

Barrington ‘Barry Cash’ Reynolds producer of the ‘Martha Stick’ rhythm. – Anthony Minott photos

Braeton producer, Barrington ‘Barry Cash’ Reynolds, is quite optimistic that his latest project ‘Martha Stick’ rhythm will create a buzz on the streets of Jamaica.

Reynolds, the CEO of Jafrican Music, said that he has been working on this particular project with a number of young artistes to put out a ‘decent production’ for the people.

Reynolds works from his Braeton Phase 3 home, where he expects lead artiste Wazzi and a supporting cast of dancehall artistes, such as Pesty, the son of veteran DJ, Rohan Irie, Red Starr and JR will bring success to this relatively new production house.

Wazzi’s song on the rhythm shows him expressing himself to the woman of his dreams. “True love the girl seh, this is a song about a girl who wants true love, and I’m the one she needs it from,” Wazzi said in a recent interview. He admitted that the music industry is quite competitive and artistes must come with their ‘A game’ all the time.

“I come to set the pace, it’s quite competitive on the streets, and I’m working towards being on top. You have to bring it 100 per cent. Music is everything to me,” he disclosed.

Also on the rhythm, Red Starr and JR, record about the type of girl they want, while Pesty hits out against men that boast about being a “gallis, but nah get nothing”.

Wazzi, who is obviously a versatile artiste, is also on Reynold’s three-track reggae CD compilation, which also features Reynolds himself, Junior X, Xyclone, and Meilo Smooth.

Reynolds is not new to music as he has worked with the likes of Fab 5 and Grammy award-winner Toots Hibbert.”It’s really exciting times for this production house, and we are waiting to see the feedback we get from the general public, as we are already getting a lot of support from the community,” Reynolds said.

Wazzi, the lead artiste on the Martha Stick rhythm.

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Braeton producer optimistic about new rhythm

Costa Rica complains to FIFA about excessive dope tests

Sunday, June 22, 2014 | 11:03 AM    

SANTOS, Brazil (AP) — Costa Rica’s football federation has sent a letter to FIFA demanding an explanation for why so many of its players were required to submit to anti-doping controls after a surprise victory over Italy.

Seven Costa Rica players were tested after Friday’s 1-0 win, angering team officials who say it could lead to people believing that football’s world governing body suspects Costa Ricans of doping.

The president of Costa Rica’s selection committee, Adrian Gutierrez, said: “We believe in, accept and trust doping controls that FIFA carries out, but we want an explanation as to why so many of the players were called in.” Gutierrez says it gives an “image of suspicion that Costa Rican players are doping.”

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Costa Rica complains to FIFA about excessive dope tests

Correctional services worried about attempted suicides

BY ALICIA DUNKLEY Senior staff reporter dunkleya@jamaicaobserver.com

Wednesday, January 22, 2014    

THE Department of Corrections has admitted that it is challenged by incidents of attempted suicide in both adult and juvenile institutions under its watch.

According to a report presented to a meeting of the Internal and External Affairs Committee of Parliament yesterday, the department said that in recent months three adults (two females and one male) and 14 wards (three females and 11 males) attempted suicide.

The department, whose team was headed by Major General Stewart Saunders, permanent secretary in the Ministry of National Security, said it, however, “recognises the need to build capacity to manage the psycho-social needs of inmates and wards”.

It said suicide or self-harm was included in the training programme for the last two intakes of correctional officers, and also reported that presently mental health services are provided by three sessional psychiatrists and psychological services by one sessional and two full- time psychologists.

The issue of suicide behind bars took front and centre for weeks following the November 21, 2012 suicide of teenager Vanessa Wint at the Horizon Adult Remand Centre in Kingston. Also in January of last year, some four underage girls from the same institution were hospitalised after overdosing on antidepressant tablets.

In the meantime, the department has admitted that although it tries to meet the needs of mentally ill inmates it does not have adequately trained staff, appropriate infrastructure and an environment conducive to effectively treat and rehabilitate them. It said those who are “unfit to plea are particularly vulnerable”.

The department said since there is no determinate sentence they must remain until they are deemed fit and brought back before the court.

There are some 264 mentally ill inmates of the total inmate population of 3,281 as at January 10 this year. Some 80 are unfit to plea.

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Correctional services worried about attempted suicides

Caricom secretary general optimistic about region"s future

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC) — Caribbean Community (Caricom) Secretary General Irwin La Rocque says 2014 promises new directions for the 15-member regional integration movement as it seeks to deliver more immediate and tangible benefits to the people of the Caribbean.

In his end-of-year message, the Dominican-born LaRocque said 2013, which marked the 40th anniversary of Caricom, underscored the determination and commitment of the region to forge a common destiny as small unified states in this unique corner of the world called the Caribbean.He said the anniversary theme of “Celebration and Renewal” remained relevant “as we bask in our Caribbean-ness, rekindle the spirit of community and continue our integration quest with an outlook that is shaped by new thinking and different approaches”.He said that outlook would be influenced by the necessity for appropriate responses to the current global environment which has placed member states in dire straits, stymieing growth and development and denying the Caribbean the wherewithal to create a better standard of living for the people of the region.“Indeed, the vulnerability of our member states and their capacity for resilience came into stark relief last week in St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia and Dominica, when severe weather visited death and destruction and caused a setback to development efforts there,” said the secretary general.The weather system has also been blamed for the deaths of 15 people so far and governments of these three Caribbean countries say they would require hundreds of millions of dollars in the rehabilitation exercise.La Rocque said that the new outlook would also be shaped by the review and reform of the integration movement being undertaken at the request of regional governments, adding “we are on schedule to achieve early in the new year one of our key milestones — the completion of the draft Five-Year Strategic Plan”.The plan was crafted following consultations with stakeholders across the region and sets out a common vision, identities priority areas of focus over the period and also addresses issues of implementability including the roles and responsibilities of all participants in the community’s architecture.“Unsurprisingly, sustainable economic growth and development emerged as one of the primary areas of concern for stakeholders across the spectrum with whom the Change Team interacted over the past year, and it is our intention, through the efforts of the recently established Caricom Commission on the Economy, to explore possible avenues to put us on a sustainable path,” La Rocque said.He said the commission would provide advice on implementable solutions based particularly on the priority areas set out in the Caricom growth agenda.“For the Caribbean Community, therefore, 2014 dawns with the promise of new directions, prioritisation on the critical areas that will deliver more immediate and tangible benefits to our peoples, more strategic approaches and the continued emphasis on our youth and empowerment of our citizens,” he added.

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Caricom secretary general optimistic about region"s future