NEWS
1 in 5 women reports abuse before 18
Dr Gabrielle Hosein, director of the Institute of Gender and Development Studies, University of the West Indies, said statistics revealed,one in ten women in TT reports non-partner sexual violence. One in three women report sexual and physical violence and one in five report sexual abuse before age 18. And the perpetrators are well known to them, she said. She made the revelation at the launch of a campaign for the elimination of violence against women at the Hilton Trinidad, Port of Spain on Monday. The campaign was launched by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). Read more here
Patient shot dead on PoS Ward 3
Two gunmen dressed in a white suits resembling those worn by crime scene investigators (CSI) walked into Ward 3 of the Port-of-Spain General Hospital and pumped several bullets into a male patient as he lay in his hospital bed last night. The dead man has been identified by police as a 25-year-old Dejean Broker from Hillview, Laventille. The brazen killing, investigators told Guardian Media, occurred around 8.45 pm. Eyewitnesses said nurses and patients scampered for cover when the gunmen casually walked up to his victim and opened fire. One patient on the ward described the scene as chaotic: “I had to throw myself under the bed...there were about ten gunshots.” Read more here
POLITICS
Al-Rawi’s attorney: UNC election petitioner not fair-minded
San Fernando West voter Dr Shevanand Gopeesingh is not a fair-minded and informed observer and should not be treated as such, submitted Reginald Armour SC, attorney for MP for the constituency Faris Al-Rawi. Armour told Justices of Appeal Gregory Smith, Peter Rajkumar and Mark Mohammed, who are hearing Gopeesingh’s application to have the court set aside the appellate court’s ruling in its election petition challenge, that Gopeesingh, on deposition, said he was a UNC activist and held positions with the party. “He is a UNC member and he candidly tells you he is not a fair-minded observer,” Armour said. Read more here
Siparia to become a borough
The seat held by Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar is set to become a borough as soon as local government reform legislation is passed, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley announced on Tuesday night. He told supporters at a People’s National Movement (PNM) political meeting at the Siparia market that it was one of the most unkempt constituencies he has seen, with bushes growing on roadsides and in drains. Rowley said it was unacceptable for the corporation officials to say they did not get money from the central government to clean drains, collect garbage and upkeep cemeteries. “They want to tell you that the PNM didn’t give you money to cut grass. Then they will raise racial discrimination but it is really a lack of pride,” he said. Read more here
BUSINESS
T&T receives $7 million for climate change projects
The Ministry of Planning and Development has announced that T&T’s Government has received approximately TT$7 million from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) of the United Nations for the development of transformational projects to respond to issues related to climate change in T&T. The Ministry of Planning and Development will be the nationally designated authority for the funding and is the official focal point of the GCF. A media release from the Planning Ministry stated that the Green Climate Fund was established to limit or reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developing countries, and to help vulnerable societies adapt to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis said this funding will assist the climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts of the Government through the focus of two initiatives which primarily involve capacity building and data collection. Read more here
Khan: $725m profit for Heritage
The unaudited financials for fiscal year 2019 show that Heritage Petroleum earned revenues of $5.4 billion and made a net profit of $725 million. Read more here
REGIONAL
$13m Pink Slip - Former EGovJa CEO Gets Out-Of-Court Settlement; Williams Quizzed On Tablets-In-Schools Hold-Up
Taxpayers have had to fork out $12.5 million in an out-of-court settlement to former CEO of eGov Jamaica Limited (eGovJa), Herman Athias, after he was sacked by the company’s chairman, Professor Lloyd Waller. Athias had taken out a lawsuit for unjustifiable termination under a fixed-term contract of employment and unfair prejudice, as set out in Section 213A of the Companies Act, against eGovJa, which was the first defendant. Athias also sought redress against Waller, the second defendant, for “instigating a breach of contract”. Read more here
‘HIV gains appear tenuous’
A new report has found that across the Caribbean, progress has been made in reducing new infections and AIDS-related deaths, but these gains appear tenuous. The report, titled “Communities at the Centre-The response to HIV in the Caribbean”, has been released ahead of World AIDS Day 2019 on December 1 with the theme “Communities make the difference”. According to the study, national responses are highly dependent on donor funding, especially for programmes focused on key populations. The study noted that the financial resources available for HIV responses in the Caribbean have fluctuated over time, reaching the same level in 2018 as in 2010. In total, US$326 million was available for the Caribbean’s HIV programmes in 2018, considerably less than the US$600 million needed to achieve its Fast-Track Targets by 2020. The availability of domestic resources for the HIV response increased by 69 per cent during this eight-year period, reaching 27 per cent of the total resources for HIV in the region. International donors decreased their share from 84 per cent in 2010 to 73 per cent last year. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
What did Trump know and when did he know it?
The timeline has always been fishy. President Donald Trump's defenders have argued that nothing wrong happened since the aid to Ukraine was ultimately released. But a New York Times report Tuesday night suggests Trump was briefed on the existence of the whistleblower in late August. That makes it all the more important to take his actions in early September in context. For instance, when all these things happened, Trump already knew about the whistleblower. Read more here
Bangladesh Islamists sentenced to death for 2016 cafe attack
27th November 2019