Carib Scope

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  • UWI Researcher Among Experts in Landmark Global Study on Chronic Kidney Disease

    UWI Researcher Among Experts in Landmark Global Study on Chronic Kidney Disease

    Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has quietly emerged as one of the fastest-growing public health threats across the globe, and a new landmark research series published in *The Lancet* is sounding the alarm over the need for urgent, coordinated action. Among the leading international experts contributing to this pivotal work is Dr. Lori-Ann Fisher, a consultant nephrologist, intensivist and lecturer based at the Epidemiology Research Unit of the Caribbean Institute for Health Research (CAIHR) at The University of the West Indies (The UWI).

    Led by Dr. Jennifer Lees of the University of Glasgow, the multi-paper series frames CKD as a rapidly escalating global health crisis, and calls for sweeping improvements in three core areas: early diagnosis, preventive care, and accessible treatment. In her commentary on the research, Lees emphasized that CKD remains one of the most underaddressed, high-impact conditions affecting global populations today. “The overriding message from our series of research papers is that there remains a pressing need for attention and resources to be focused on this condition,” Lees noted.

    Current global health data underscores the scale of the problem: CKD is already the ninth leading cause of death worldwide, affecting an estimated 844 million people across all income regions. Projections from the study indicate that without targeted intervention, CKD will climb to become the fifth leading cause of global death by 2040. What makes this burden even more striking is the widespread gap in diagnosis: even as cases rise, CKD remains vastly underdetected, a gap that is particularly acute in low- and middle-income regions such as the Caribbean, where public awareness and routine screening infrastructure remain limited.

    For the Caribbean, the CKD burden carries uniquely severe consequences. Data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey shows that roughly 15% of Jamaicans are currently living with CKD, and a large share of those patients are already diagnosed at advanced or high-risk stages of the disease. For Fisher, who has spent years researching CKD epidemiology across the region, the path to better outcomes hinges entirely on earlier detection. In the Caribbean, access to life-saving interventions like kidney transplants and long-term dialysis is severely limited, making early intervention far more critical than in better-resourced regions. “We now have accessible medications that treat kidney disease and reduce progression to kidney failure,” Fisher explained. “In the Caribbean, where access to transplant and dialysis is limited, detecting kidney disease early is crucial to improve outcomes. Investment in strengthening healthcare systems to detect and treat kidney disease is paramount for the health of our nations.”

    One of the core barriers to early detection that the study highlights is CKD’s asymptomatic progression. In early and moderate stages, most patients experience no obvious symptoms, leading to delayed testing and treatment that often only begins once the disease has reached its most severe stages, when organ replacement therapy is already the only viable option. The research confirms that simple, low-cost urine and blood tests can effectively diagnose CKD in its early stages, but routine implementation of these screenings remains inconsistent across most national healthcare systems.

    Fisher’s participation in this landmark global publication is far from an isolated contribution; it reflects The UWI’s decades-long commitment to addressing pressing regional and global health challenges through rigorous research and evidence-based policy advocacy. As a specialist with deep expertise in CKD epidemiology, sickle cell nephropathy, and lupus nephritis in the Caribbean context, Fisher has built a career advancing understanding of CKD prevalence and associated risk factors across Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. She currently also serves as Chair of the International Society of Nephrology (ISN) North America and Caribbean Regional Board, working to amplify the region’s voice in global kidney health priority-setting.

    Now in its 76th year of operation, The UWI has grown from its 1948 founding as a small London-affiliated university college in Jamaica with just 33 medical students into a world-class, globally recognized institution serving nearly 50,000 students across five physical campuses and a global online network. Today, the university’s campuses include Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda, and its fully online Global Campus, with additional research and academic partnerships with leading institutions across North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

    Offering more than 1,000 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs across fields ranging from creative arts and engineering to law, medical sciences, and social policy, The UWI stands as the Caribbean’s leading academic institution, home to the region’s largest concentration of research expertise focused on solving the most critical challenges facing Caribbean and global communities. Since 2018, The UWI has held a consistent place in *Times Higher Education* (THE) annual global university rankings, and it remains the only English-speaking Caribbean institution to be featured across four of THE’s most prestigious ranking categories: the World University Rankings, which evaluate more than 2,000 leading research-focused universities globally; the Golden Age University Rankings for institutions founded between 50 and 80 years ago; the Latin America and Caribbean Rankings; and the Impact Rankings, which assess universities based on their contributions to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This global recognition has also supported the launch of the university’s International School for Development Justice (ISDJ), a global online graduate business school focused on training the next generation of leaders to advance equitable sustainable development. As an SDG-engaged university consistently ranked among the world’s top institutions for impact, The UWI continues to center pressing public health challenges like CKD at the core of its research mission.

  • Two Antiguan Chefs Featured on BBC MasterChef UK Finals Week

    Two Antiguan Chefs Featured on BBC MasterChef UK Finals Week

    Two standout culinary professionals from Antigua and Barbuda have earned widespread acclaim from the islands’ leading hospitality industry body after bringing local food culture to one of the United Kingdom’s most-watched cooking competition shows. The Antigua and Barbuda Hotels and Tourism Association (ABHTA) has issued official congratulations to Eustace Cabral Jr., head chef at the luxury Jumby Bay Island Resort, and Maurine Bowers of Moon Gate Antigua, following their feature appearance during the high-profile Finals Week of BBC MasterChef UK.

    The landmark episode premiered June 3 on mainstream UK network BBC One, with additional streaming access available on the BBC iPlayer platform, bringing the vibrant flavors and rich culinary heritage of Antigua and Barbuda directly to millions of viewers across the UK and international audiences tuning in from around the globe. The production took the competition on-location to the islands, giving the MasterChef finalists an immersive hands-on experience with Antiguan and Barbudan cooking traditions.

    During their segments, Bowers led the competing finalists through the step-by-step preparation of iconic, generations-old Antiguan dishes against the scenic backdrop of Nelson’s Dockyard, a UNESCO World Heritage site and major tourist draw. For his challenge, Cabral tasked the contestants with replicating his signature modern cuisine, which draws deep inspiration from classic Caribbean flavor profiles, at the elegant Jumby Bay Estate House.

    Beyond their high-profile television appearance, ABHTA highlighted the longstanding contributions both chefs have made to growing the nation’s tourism sector and nurturing the next generation of culinary talent. Both professionals have served as trusted mentors and judges for the Taste of Wadadli Junior Chef Competition, an initiative designed to cultivate young local cooking skill, and they also represent Antigua and Barbuda as active members of the country’s national culinary team.

    The industry association also extended praise to the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority for its work in securing the game-changing opportunity to showcase the islands’ food culture, natural beauty, and homegrown culinary expertise to a global audience on such a respected international platform. ABHTA framed the chefs’ MasterChef feature as both a remarkable personal career milestone for the two culinary leaders and a transformative promotional chance to position Antigua and Barbuda as a world-class must-visit culinary tourism destination.

  • World Environment Day highlights growing environmental threats and impact on women

    World Environment Day highlights growing environmental threats and impact on women

    On June 5, 2026, as nations and advocacy groups across the globe mark World Environment Day, senior United Nations officials are amplifying urgent calls for collective climate action, while drawing a sharp focus on the unequal burdens of environmental breakdown that fall on the world’s most vulnerable populations – particularly women and girls.

    In his official address for the annual observance, UN Secretary-General António Guterres opened with a stark warning about the accelerating pace of the global climate crisis, pointing to an 11-year streak of record-breaking high temperatures that confirms the planet is warming far faster than incremental mitigation efforts have addressed. Guterres emphasized that the damage of inaction extends well beyond elevated mercury readings: widespread air pollution, widespread soil degradation, collapsing ocean and terrestrial ecosystems, and accelerating biodiversity loss are already upending daily life for communities across the globe.

    “Environmental harm damages public health, destroys homes, and deepens food insecurity,” Guterres said. “Current trajectories put the world on course to temporarily exceed the 1.5 degrees Celsius warming threshold set by the Paris Agreement. Every incremental tenth of a degree of warming amplifies harm – and the worst impacts fall disproportionately on the world’s most vulnerable nations, including Small Island Developing States.”

    Guterres stressed that the global community still has the power to limit how far, how long, and how damaging this temperature overshoot will be, but only through immediate, decisive systemic action. Key priorities he outlined include deep, rapid cuts to global greenhouse gas emissions, an accelerated just transition from fossil fuels to scalable renewable energy, aggressive reductions in methane pollution, and expanded protection for intact forests, critical land habitats, and marine ecosystems. He also called for expanded investment in adaptive measures to help vulnerable communities cope with existing climate impacts, and reiterated a longstanding demand that wealthy developed nations honor their outstanding climate finance commitments to low-income and developing countries that have contributed the least to the crisis but face the worst consequences.

    “This is the moment to act—for our environment and for our future,” Guterres added.

    Parallel to the Secretary-General’s call, UN Women used the World Environment Day observance to center gender disparities in climate impact, outlining how ongoing environmental breakdown, biodiversity loss, and land degradation hit women and girls disproportionately hard across every region. The organization noted that for women and girls living in low-income and vulnerable communities, environmental threats compound existing risks to food security, livelihoods, physical health, and personal safety. When climate disasters such as droughts, severe floods, crop failures, and freshwater shortages strike, women and girls bear the majority of the resulting social and economic burden, UN Women reported.

    The organization’s analysis links climate shocks to measurable increases in harmful gendered outcomes: rising rates of child marriage in communities facing climate-driven poverty, and higher risks of premature birth and stillbirth linked to sustained high temperatures. Indigenous women and rural women, especially those residing in Small Island Developing States and arid regions impacted by desertification, face the most acute risk – even as these same groups are at the forefront of community-led conservation, climate resilience building, and food security work around the world.

    With a series of high-stakes global summits on climate change, biodiversity protection, and land restoration scheduled for 2026, UN Women is calling on national governments and all global stakeholders to ensure that international climate and environmental commitments translate to tangible, targeted benefits for women and girls. The organization stressed that meaningful climate action cannot be separated from the fight for gender equality: climate crises consistently exacerbate gender-based violence and widen pre-existing economic and social inequalities. To build effective, long-lasting solutions, women’s leadership, rights, and full participation must be centered in all environmental and climate decision-making, backed by targeted financing and transparent accountability mechanisms, UN Women concluded.

  • Wereldmilieudag 2026: Caricom pleit voor rechtvaardige transitie

    Wereldmilieudag 2026: Caricom pleit voor rechtvaardige transitie

    On June 5, 2026, World Environment Day, global conversations around climate action center on the 2026 theme “Now For Climate – Accelerating the Transition to a Sustainable Future”, with a sharp focus on the disproportionate climate vulnerability facing small island nations, particularly the Caribbean region. In a compelling official statement marking the annual global observance, Carla Barnett, Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), emphasized that the region’s climate transition must be rooted in principles of justice, inclusivity, and long-term resilience.

    Barnett outlined a clear vision for the region’s future: “The future we envision is not just greener, but also more just and more resilient. It is a future where economic development does not come at the expense of our ecosystems, where our communities are protected, and where future generations inherit a vibrant and safe region.”

    Unlike major global carbon emitters, the Caribbean, along with other small island developing states and low-lying coastal nations, contributes a negligible share of total global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet the region faces some of the most severe and immediate climate impacts, including increasingly powerful hurricanes, extended drought cycles, accelerating coastal erosion, widespread coral bleaching, frequent coastal flooding, and growing food insecurity. These cascading threats undermine critical local infrastructure, cripple core economic sectors such as tourism and agriculture, erode unique regional biodiversity, and put the well-being and physical safety of local populations at constant risk.

    To address these systemic challenges, Barnett stressed that resilience-building and innovative local solutions must lead regional climate strategy. Investments in renewable energy sources including wind, solar, hydropower, and geothermal energy do not only strengthen the Caribbean’s energy security, she noted, they also open new, inclusive economic pathways for regional communities. Additional priority actions include scaling climate-adaptive agricultural practices, advancing sustainable fishing frameworks, expanding water conservation initiatives, and deepening regional collaboration on food production systems – all core measures to cut the region’s overall climate vulnerability.

    Barnett also called for broad multi-stakeholder collaboration that goes beyond national government action. She argued that meaningful progress requires active engagement from the private sector, global financial institutions, civil society organizations, and academic research communities. These cross-sector partnerships are critical to unlocking green investment, accelerating climate innovation, and advancing locally tailored solutions that address the specific climate challenges the Caribbean faces.

    Regional integration remains an indispensable foundation for advancing collective climate progress, from scaling renewable energy access and improving disaster risk management to developing sustainable transportation systems, growing the blue economy, and expanding regional climate data and early warning systems. Barnett also highlighted that young people are the core driving force behind climate action and will be the key builders of the region’s sustainable future.

    Globally, CARICOM has been a leading advocate for upholding the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. For the Caribbean, this is not merely an international policy target – it is a matter of collective survival.

    Barnett’s call for action comes as the global climate crisis grows more urgent by the year, making the need for coordinated international cooperation and local action clearer than ever. She closed her statement by urging all stakeholders to join in a collective, urgent, and targeted push to accelerate the transition to a sustainable future that leaves the Caribbean just, resilient, and secure for generations to come.

  • Column: Het rechtmatige onding dat WIPA heet

    Column: Het rechtmatige onding dat WIPA heet

    After hours of heated debate, repeated suspensions, closed-door negotiations, faction caucuses and high-stakes political calculations, Suriname’s National Assembly has formally approved a motion to indict three former ministers — Riad Nurmohamed, Gillmore Hoefdraad and Bronto Somohardjo — clearing the path for full criminal prosecution to move forward.

    While supporters of the decision frame it as a victory for the rule of law, critics have already raised allegations that political motivations drove the outcome. The entire drawn-out process has also thrown a sharp spotlight on the quirky and contradictory structure of Suriname’s Law on the Indictment of Political Office Holders (known locally by its Dutch acronym WIPA), a piece of legislation long debated for its unusual place in the country’s legal order.

    Far from being unconstitutional, the WIPA is explicitly rooted in Article 140 of Suriname’s constitution. Under the terms of the law, the National Assembly (abbreviated DNA in Dutch) is not permitted to rule on the guilt or innocence of the accused officials. Nor is it allowed to weigh in on whether sufficient evidence exists to prove a criminal offense was committed — that responsibility is reserved exclusively for the Public Prosecution Service and ultimately the national courts.

    The DNA’s role under the law is intentionally narrow: parliament is only tasked with determining whether moving forward with prosecution of a sitting or former political officeholder serves the broader public interest. NDP parliamentarian Ebu Jones emphasized during debate that the DNA must also examine whether the proceeding amounts to political retaliation, reminding colleagues that the national legislature is not a court. It cannot determine guilt or judge the strength of evidence, Jones argued — those duties fall squarely to prosecutors and the High Court of Justice.

    Yet that very clarification lays bare the core structural weakness of the WIPA framework. If parliament is barred from assessing guilt or evidence, why is it granted the power to greenlight a criminal case in the first place?

    The explanatory memorandum accompanying the legislation amplifies this inherent tension. It notes that the special carve-out for ministers and senior political officials has nothing to do with the actions the accused are alleged to have committed, and everything to do with the “dignity of the office” they hold. Their unique position in the state structure, the memorandum argues, justifies an extra layer of political consideration before prosecution can proceed.

    At the same time, the same document stresses that the DNA cannot rule on evidence, guilt or whether an act meets the definition of a crime. Parliament’s only job is to assess whether moving forward with prosecution would cause administrative collapse or widespread social unrest.

    This structure effectively builds a political screening process into the pre-trial phase of criminal cases against political officials, even as it explicitly bars political actors from interfering with the substantive legal merits of a case. What was meant to be a purely legal proceeding, in the end, became a high-stakes test of political strength.

    The final vote laid bare deep divisions within Suriname’s six-party ruling coalition, which failed to unite around a single collective position on the indictment. Ultimately, the decision was left to individual assembly members to vote their conscience. While allowing representatives to think and vote independently is not inherently problematic, it underscores just how difficult it is to separate legal decision-making from partisan political interests once politicians are given formal authority over the process.

    Most notably, the vote exposed critical fractures within the NDP, the coalition’s largest party holding 18 parliamentary seats. The party’s numerical advantage did not translate to political unity, with deep internal disagreements leading to a split vote. Even with all of its aligned members voting against the indictments, the NDP lacked the numbers to block the combined 17 votes from the VHP and other coalition members who backed the prosecutor-general’s request for prosecution. As a result, the NDP emerged as the clearest political loser of the vote. Its defeat was not just about the outcome of the indictments: the vote made visible that the party’s 18 seats do not add up to a reliable governing majority, offering unflattering new clarity into the actual balance of power within the ruling coalition that goes far beyond the fates of the three former ministers.

    The PL faction voted against moving forward with indictment for Riad Nurmohamed. For Bronto Somohardjo, one thing remains undeniable: unwavering consistency. From the moment the prosecutor-general first filed the request for indictment, Somohardjo has publicly stated he is fully prepared to answer the allegations against him in court. He did not request political protection, instead calling for a full legal assessment of the claims against him. He stuck to that position through the final vote: he voted in favor of his own indictment, while voting against the motion to indict Nurmohamed.

    This brings the debate back to its core question: why should a national legislature get to decide whether a court can carry out its constitutional duty to hear a case? There are defensible arguments for granting political officeholders a special formal status under the constitution, as Suriname’s founding document does. But the reality remains that ordinary citizens do not need approval from a parliamentary majority before a court can hear their criminal case.

    It is for this reason that the WIPA remains such a peculiar legal construction. It is a legally valid and constitutionally sound law. But it forces politics and law to converge in a space where they ought, by principle, to remain separate. That does not make the WIPA illegal. But it has cemented its decades-long reputation: a legally authorized anomaly in Suriname’s legal order.

  • Three die in Corentyne collision

    Three die in Corentyne collision

    Guyana police have confirmed three fatalities following a high-impact head-on collision between two passenger vehicles on Madia Farm Public Road in Corentyne, Berbice, that occurred on a Tuesday afternoon. Authorities released the official update on Thursday, June 4, 2026.

    All three victims were passengers and the driver of the first vehicle, registered under licence plate PLL 4312. They have been identified as 23-year-old Priyas Mursalin from Chesney Front, 16-year-old Porshatam Hoolasia from Port Mourant, and 19-year-old Ameer Khan from John Village – all communities located along the Corentyne coast.

    The second involved vehicle, carrying registration number PAL 9292, was operated by a 44-year-old male resident of Miss Phoebe, another Corentyne community. Preliminary investigative findings from police paint a clear picture of the chain of events that led to the crash.

    According to witness and initial evidence accounts, the PAL 9292 vehicle was traveling westbound in the southern traffic lane when the incident unfolded. Meanwhile, PLL 4312 was moving eastbound at an excessive speed, when its driver attempted to overtake a slower moving vehicle ahead. This maneuver pulled PLL 4312 directly into the oncoming path of PAL 9292, triggering a catastrophic head-on collision in the southern driving lane.

    The force of the crash propelled the PLL 4312 vehicle off the roadway, where it collided a second time with a concrete utility pole owned and operated by Guyana Power and Light (GPL), located along the southern shoulder of Madia Farm Public Road.

    First responders rushed all people inside PLL 4312 to the nearby Port Mourant Public Hospital for emergency care. However, on arrival, examining medical providers pronounced all three occupants dead from their injuries. The driver of the second vehicle sustained only minor injuries in the crash, received on-site treatment from medical staff, and was subsequently taken into police custody for procedural questioning.

    In a key update, law enforcement officials confirmed that a standard breathalyzer test administered to the PAL 9292 driver returned no traces of alcohol, ruling out impairment as a contributing factor from that side of the collision. Investigations remain ongoing as authorities work to finalize their full report on the crash.

  • Duo wanted for AK-47 assault rifle probe surrender to police

    Duo wanted for AK-47 assault rifle probe surrender to police

    GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Updated 11:41 p.m. local time Thursday, June 4, 2026, by Denis Chabrol

    In a major development in an illegal firearms investigation that has gripped Guyana, two of three suspects wanted by the Guyana Police Force in connection with the seizure of 10 fully automatic AK-47 assault rifles have turned themselves in to law enforcement authorities. The third suspect remains at large more than a week after the weapons cache was discovered.

    The two suspects who surrendered are 33-year-old Antonio Alonzo “Lanzo” Lawrie, a businessman based at Lot 959 Farm in the New Housing Scheme on Demerara’s East Bank, and 21-year-old Gregory Anthony Persaud, a wash-bay attendant with addresses in Area ‘G’ Ogle and Farm, both on Demerara’s East Coast. Both men were taken into custody immediately after presenting themselves at the Criminal Investigation Department Headquarters on Vlissengen Road in Georgetown, accompanied by their legal representation, police confirmed.

    Authorities are still actively searching for the third wanted suspect, Ryan “Satan” Singh, who resides at Parika Outfall Seadam. No additional details on the ongoing manhunt for Singh were immediately released as of Thursday evening.

    The investigation traces back to a routine stop-and-search operation conducted overnight between 1 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. on May 28 along the access road leading to the Berbice River Bridge. During the checkpoint, officers attempted to pull over a black Toyota Corolla Fielder with registration number HC 9018. Instead of complying with the order to stop, the vehicle’s driver accelerated away from police, fleeing eastbound along the roadway, according to official police accounts.

    Acting on intelligence gathered following the escape, law enforcement teams launched a targeted search along the public road in No. 11 Village, where they uncovered the cache of 10 AK-47 rifles concealed in plastic wrapping and cloth. The discovery marked one of the largest illegal arms seizures in Guyana in recent months.

    Separately, in early proceedings connected to the case, 33-year-old Stephen Raja of Back Street, Goed Fortuin Village, was arraigned on charges of illegal possession of firearms on May 28. Bail was denied to Raja, and he was remanded into prison custody ahead of his next court appearance, scheduled for June 15.

  • Guyana joins regional cybersecurity alliance to strengthen digital protection

    Guyana joins regional cybersecurity alliance to strengthen digital protection

    In a landmark step to boost its digital defenses amid a rapidly expanding national digital transformation, Guyana has formally joined the Latin America and Caribbean Cyber Competence Centre (LAC4), an EU-backed regional cybersecurity initiative, the country’s Department of Public Information (DPI) confirmed in an official statement released Thursday.

    The accession agreement was signed during a ceremony held Thursday at the Office of the Prime Minister in Georgetown, marking Guyana’s transition from a collaborating partner to the 19th full participating nation of the organization. Funded by the European Union and launched in 2022, LAC4 operates as a regional cybersecurity hub based in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and is implemented by Estonia’s Information System Authority and CyberNet.

    Through full membership, Guyana will unlock unprecedented access to the centre’s cutting-edge cybersecurity infrastructure, including a hybrid training facility, a fully equipped digital forensic laboratory, and a dynamic cyber range that hosts hands-on simulations and practical exercises. These resources are designed to directly enhance the country’s ability to prepare for and respond to complex cyber threats.

    Beyond infrastructure access, the partnership will drive comprehensive capacity building across technical, policy, and strategic levels, equipping both Guyanese cybersecurity professionals and public institutions with the specialized skills needed to counter evolving digital risks. Guyana will also gain eligibility for cross-border research collaborations, coordinated cyber threat analysis, joint cybersecurity doctrine development, collective lessons-learned initiatives, and expanded access to additional European Union cybersecurity training programs.

    Addressing attendees at the signing ceremony, Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips emphasized that the Guyanese government identifies cybersecurity as a foundational national priority that supports all areas of national development, effective governance, and the country’s ongoing digital transformation agenda. “As our nation continues to embrace technology and expand digital services, we recognise that this progress must be supported by strong cyber resilience and effective risk management,” Phillips said in the official DPI briefing.

    He added that full LAC4 membership represents a transformative opportunity to advance Guyana’s national cybersecurity goals while deepening collaborative ties with regional and international partners. “Today, we are pleased once again to formalise these cooperation arrangements by joining 18 other participating countries and institutions from across Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe in this important initiative,” Phillips noted, adding that Guyana is eager to contribute its own expertise, build its domestic capabilities, and work closely with member states to tackle emerging cybersecurity challenges.

    LAC4 head Leonardo Daniel Ortega Prudencio formally welcomed Guyana to the centre, framing the accession as a natural progression of a collaborative partnership that first launched in 2022. Prior to full membership, Ortega Prudencio explained, Guyana had already participated in more than 120 LAC4 activities, exercises, and seminars, working hand-in-hand with centre experts to advance key national cybersecurity projects including the drafting of Guyana’s National Cyber Emergency Response Plan and the completion of national cybersecurity risk assessments.

    “By stepping into LAC4 as a member today, Guyana gains a seat at the table of one of the biggest cybersecurity groups to shape governance and tailor our work plans to align directly with your national priorities,” Ortega Prudencio said.

    Christopher Deen, General Manager of Guyana’s National Data Management Authority (NDMA), noted that the country’s national cybersecurity strategy is focused on four core pillars: expanding public awareness, investing in modern defensive capabilities, strengthening national cyber defenses, and improving incident preparedness across all public sector agencies. Guyana’s full LAC4 membership, he confirmed, aligns directly with these national priorities and will strengthen the country’s entire cybersecurity ecosystem.

    European Union Ambassador to Guyana Luca Pierantoni also attended the signing ceremony to mark the new milestone in the partnership between Guyana, the European Union, and the regional cybersecurity centre.

  • Somohardjo na goedkeuring vordering: Ik ben op alles voorbereid

    Somohardjo na goedkeuring vordering: Ik ben op alles voorbereid

    On June 5, a key political and legal development unfolded in Suriname, where the country’s national legislature, De Nationale Assemblee (DNA), voted to greenlight prosecution requests from the nation’s prosecutor-general against three former cabinet ministers — a move that clears the way for formal criminal proceedings to move forward under the nation’s law for prosecuting political officeholders.

    Among those facing prosecution is Bronto Somohardjo, a former government minister who currently leads the Pertjajah Luhur (PL) political party. In an extraordinary turn of proceedings, Somohardjo cast his own vote in support of the prosecution request filed against him, a choice he says aligns with his long-held stance rejecting political immunity from legal process.

    In comments to local outlet Starnieuws following the vote, Somohardjo made clear he is fully prepared for the next phase of legal process. “I am ready for any outcome,” he stated. The party leader explained that his vote was a natural extension of his public commitment that he would never seek political protection from investigation or prosecution. “Let no one ever claim that Bronto Somohardjo sought protection or ran from this process. I have shown up, and I am ready to accept whatever consequences come,” he added.

    Somohardjo emphasized that parliamentary approval of the prosecution request does not mark the end of the matter for him. He argued that in a functioning democratic constitutional state, accountability must be required not only of individual politicians, but also of state institutions. He reaffirmed his commitment to continuing advocacy for equal legal protection, government transparency, equal treatment under the law, and universal accountability for all public actors.

    Alongside Somohardjo, DNA approved prosecution requests against two other former ministers: Riad Nurmohamed and Gillmore Hoefdraad. The parliamentary approval meets all requirements laid out in Suriname’s Wet In Staat van Beschuldigingstelling Politieke Ambtsdragers (WIPA), the law governing prosecution of sitting and former political officeholders, and now allows the Public Prosecution Service to move forward with formal criminal procedures.

    DNA Speaker Ashwin Adhin confirmed to Starnieuws that legislative staff are already preparing formal notification of the parliamentary approval to the Public Prosecution Service. Once that notification is received, the prosecution service can advance the process according to statutory guidelines.

    An unusual procedural detail marked Thursday’s vote: the presiding role was not filled by Speaker Adhin, but by assembly member Ivanildo Plein, the first alternate deputy speaker. Adhin had previously announced he would abstain from the vote and leave the chamber ahead of voting. Since DNA rules require all participating members to cast either a yes or no vote with no option to abstain while retaining the chair, Adhin transferred presiding duties to Plein.

    Plein, who also served on the special parliamentary committee that reviewed the prosecution requests, chose to forgo his scheduled speaking slot before the vote. He explained this decision was necessary to keep the proceeding on schedule. If he had taken the floor to speak after Adhin left the chamber, he would have been unable to continue presiding, forcing a delay to the entire vote. Second alternate deputy speaker Rossellie Cotino was absent from the session, while ABOP party faction leader and current Deputy Speaker Ronnie Brunswijk delivered the faction’s address on behalf of his group instead.

    In a formal statement released after the vote, the Public Prosecution Service stressed that parliamentary approval of the prosecution request does not equate to a finding of guilt. Final judgment on the facts of each case and any determination of criminal liability remains the exclusive responsibility of the judiciary. Once ongoing investigations are completed, the cases will be submitted to the Court of Justice in accordance with all applicable legal procedures.

  • Breakthrough in Belmopan Doctor’s Murder: Two Charged in Bonilla Killing

    Breakthrough in Belmopan Doctor’s Murder: Two Charged in Bonilla Killing

    Six days after beloved Belmopan physician Naun Ulices Bonilla was gunned down in a public shooting that sent shockwaves through the Central American community, law enforcement officials have announced a landmark breakthrough in the investigation: two individuals have been arrested and formally charged with his murder.

    The accused are 26-year-old Hannah Rebekah Foreman, a trained laboratory scientist who once worked alongside Bonilla, and 37-year-old Edwin Albert Bethran Junior, a local electrician. Both face joint murder charges for the fatal shooting that took place on May 29, 2026, in Belmopan’s quiet Las Flores neighborhood.

    New court documents and law enforcement sources have painted a clearer picture of the alleged conflict that preceded the killing. Court records show Foreman and Bonilla built a professional partnership starting in November 2023, launching two joint medical ventures: Insights Medical Clinic and Belmopan Medical Laboratory Services. The 50-50 partnership was on track for major growth when the pair secured a lucrative, multi-year National Health Insurance laboratory services contract in January 2026. That success quickly turned bitter, as competing claims over control and financial mismanagement split the business partners.

    According to filings submitted before Bonilla’s death, Foreman alleged the doctor had effectively pushed her out of the company: he locked her out of the clinic facility, revoked her access to core administrative systems, and placed her on an unauthorized administrative suspension. For his part, Bonilla accused Foreman of severe financial misconduct, claiming she had diverted thousands in patient payments to her personal bank accounts, destroyed official company records, and attempted to transfer full ownership of the business to her name using a forged version of his signature. The dispute had already escalated to the country’s court system, with a full civil trial pending when Bonilla was killed.

    Sources close to the investigation have told reporters that less than 24 hours before the shooting, two unidentified men on motorcycles arrived at the company’s office asking specifically for Bonilla. The doctor was not on site at the time, but just hours later he was shot and killed in public. Law enforcement officials confirmed Wednesday that they took Foreman into custody shortly after the shooting, and have developed evidence suggesting she contracted Bethran to carry out the fatal attack. While investigators have not publicly revealed an official confirmed motive, multiple sources familiar with the case say the ongoing business dispute is the central line of inquiry.

    The killing of Bonilla, a well-respected local doctor, shook Belmopan, with community members calling for swift justice in the case from the earliest days of the investigation. Wednesday’s announcement of formal charges marks the most significant progress to date, but investigators emphasize that key questions remain unanswered. Law enforcement teams are still working to map the full sequence of events, confirm all potential connections to the crime, and build a complete case for prosecution. As the legal process moves forward, reporters will continue to track new developments and provide updates to the public.