Carib Scope

分类： society

  • Govt opens doors for 92 young interns

    Govt opens doors for 92 young interns

    Starting this Monday, 92 young Barbadians will step into the public sector to gain hands-on professional experience as participants in the annual Summer Internship Programme, a joint initiative led by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Information and the Office of the Attorney General. The programme was officially announced to incoming interns and stakeholders during a press briefing hosted at the Barbados Postal Service this past Friday.

    Minister of Home Affairs and Information Gregory Nicholls opened the briefing by noting that the initiative is a continuation of a programme launched by former Home Affairs Minister Wilfred Abrahams, who now serves as Attorney General. Nicholls explained that after taking office, Abrahams prioritized sustaining the programme across all 15 to 16 departments falling under the Ministry of Home Affairs, and cross-agency collaboration made the 2024 intake possible.

    Framing the internship as a strategic investment in Barbados’ most valuable resource – its youth – Nicholls emphasized that the programme goes far beyond filling temporary summer roles. Instead, it is designed to open professional doors, expand participants’ worldviews, and give young people a practical introduction to public sector work in the country. Interns will be placed across a wide range of government departments and agencies, including the Probation Department, Immigration Department, Barbados Postal Service, Government Printery, Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation, Government Information Service, National Council on Substance Abuse, Barbados Meteorological Services, Department of Emergency Management, Barbados Prison Service, Government Industrial Schools, and the Barbados Broadcasting Authority.

    Nicholls shared key guidance for the incoming cohort, urging interns to approach the programme as learners, explorers, and future leaders rather than temporary seasonal staff. He encouraged participants to bring curiosity to their roles, ask respectful questions, and seek to understand not just how tasks are completed, but why they matter. He noted that even the smallest assignments offer meaningful learning opportunities, and that growth often happens when people step outside their comfort zones. He highlighted three core attributes that will serve interns well: resilience when facing unfamiliar challenges or mistakes, robustness defined by strong character, discipline, professionalism, and reliability, and consistent respect for colleagues and supervisors. Nicholls closed his remarks by reminding participants that regardless of their eventual career paths, Barbados will rely on their energy, creativity, integrity, and vision to drive the nation forward.

    Attorney General Wilfred Abrahams expanded on the programme’s core mission, explaining that it fills critical gaps in soft skill development that are rarely taught in formal education. These gaps include workplace dress codes, professional etiquette, communication norms, and overall professional conduct. Abrahams added that the programme also serves as a talent pipeline for the public sector: a large number of past interns have gone on to secure full-time positions in the same departments where they completed their summer placements.

    As an example of the immersive, real-world learning the programme offers, Abrahams recalled interns placed with the Department of Emergency Management during Hurricane Beryl, who gained first-hand experience in disaster response, from managing emergency calls to coordinating community shutdowns. He stressed that the experience is not just a way to occupy summer break, but an opportunity to learn life and work skills that will serve participants for decades. Abrahams also encouraged parents to engage with their children about their experiences and challenges, to help them get the most out of the placement. He noted that the programme often drives transformative change, helping young people shift from a student mindset to a mature professional outlook, sharing that participants from his own constituency entered the programme raw and undisciplined, but left as focused, polished young professionals.

    Incoming interns expressed widespread enthusiasm for the opportunity to build practical skills and insight into professional work. Amiah Padmore, who plans to pursue a career in psychology, described the programme as a transformative opening step. “I feel very good. I feel like this is a great opportunity for me and I will definitely have experience doing things like this because I want to go into psychology. And I like to talk to people,” Padmore said. Though she has no preference for placement, she plans to make the most of whatever role she receives, noting that programmes like this fill a critical need: many young people enter the workforce with little understanding of how professional environments operate, and the internship gives them a low-stakes space to learn and practice.

    Seventeen-year-old Davidson Griffith, a participant in the Barbados National Youth Parliament and a former youth ambassador for students with disabilities after his own dyslexia diagnosis, echoed that enthusiasm. He said the programme gives young people a rare chance to build interpersonal skills while serving the Barbadian public and contributing to national development. “My interest in this internship is to serve. If it’s serving in whatever department that the internship offers, I just want to be there to serve the people of Barbados and to be an example for young people of Barbados, especially young men in Barbados, that the government is providing these opportunities and don’t take them for granted,” Griffith said, adding that he is prepared to serve in any department he is assigned to.

  • Police Officers Renew Push for Risk Allowance After Years of Unanswered Calls

    Police Officers Renew Push for Risk Allowance After Years of Unanswered Calls

    After seven years of unmet appeals, the Police Welfare Association has reissued its call for national policymakers to enact a dedicated risk allowance for active-duty police officers, arguing that the daily life-threatening hazards of law enforcement work continue to be overlooked by the country’s governing bodies.

    Association Chairperson Virlica Chatham outlined the long history of the campaign in an interview with Observer Media, explaining that the push for targeted hazard compensation launched all the way back in 2017. To date, no separate payment structure has been established to acknowledge the unique dangers officers face on every shift. While officers currently receive a general duty stipend to cover overtime work, Chatham emphasized that this compensation does not address the persistent risk of bodily harm or death that comes with policing.

    The push for the allowance has grown far more urgent in recent months, Chatham noted, following a string of violent attacks that have left multiple officers injured. Over the past 12 months alone, three different officers were hit by gunfire during the course of their duties. One of those officers required an amputation to save their life after being shot, while the others suffered lasting injuries from the attack.

    Chatham also highlighted a more recent high-profile incident to underscore her point: the July 3 injury of Senior Sergeant Jeffery Benjamin, who was struck by a moving truck while on duty along Valley Road. The incident, which occurred in a public, high-traffic area, serves as just one more example of the unplanned, life-altering risks officers encounter that are not currently recognized in their compensation packages.

    Beyond the push for financial compensation, Chatham also drew attention to structural gaps in how rank-and-file officer concerns are addressed within the current system. She explained that on-the-job hazard concerns raised by frontline officers must typically be routed through two layers of leadership—the Commissioner of Police and the Attorney General—before they can even be brought before the Police Service Commission, the body that oversees personnel and compensation matters. This indirect routing, she argued, contributes to the lack of progress on the long-running demand.

    Despite years of setbacks, Chatham confirmed that the Police Welfare Association remains fully committed to securing the dedicated risk allowance. She reiterated that the men and women who put their lives on the line to uphold public safety deserve compensation that properly reflects the inherent dangers of their profession.

  • Daytime crop thefts rise as farmers report growing fear

    Daytime crop thefts rise as farmers report growing fear

    Across Barbados, agricultural producers are grappling with a dangerous evolution of farm theft, with criminals increasingly brazenly carrying out their illegal activities in broad daylight. This shift has sparked heightened anxiety among farm workers and pushed government agencies and law enforcement to overhaul existing strategies for combating the pervasive crime known as praedial larceny.

    The disturbing new pattern of theft came to light during an overnight crop patrol that included Barbados’ Minister of Agriculture Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight, officers from the Barbados Police Service, and ministry staff. During on-site conversations with farmers along the patrol route, producers shared that thieves now target cultivated fields at every hour of day and night, ending the long-held assumption that farm crime only occurs under cover of darkness.

    Paul Lucas, Chief Agricultural Officer, emphasized that the daytime theft trend marks a critical turning point in the crisis. “That puts a whole new dimension to things because usually you would expect that thieves would hit at night, but because of how the situation has changed, we recognise that it has to be a very coordinated operation,” Lucas explained. He argued that effectively addressing the theft of crops and livestock will only be possible through far stronger collaboration between farming communities, law enforcement, the Ministry of Agriculture, and other relevant stakeholders. Echoing the organized tactics that thieves have adopted, Lucas said: “In the same way in which the thieves are coordinating themselves, I believe it’s important for us now to step up and create those important linkages where we could actually address this issue.”

    For Ron Hope, manager of Valley Island Farm, the shifting tactics of praedial larceny have created damage that extends far beyond the direct financial loss of stolen produce. “Praedial larceny has been a bugbear, eye sore, finger sore, every kind of sore for this farm,” Hope said. He detailed how the crime has hit farm profitability, disrupted daily life for his family and staff, and created a climate of fear that makes workers hesitant to report for duty after daytime theft incidents. “It affects my profitability. It affects my general living on the farm as it relates to my family, workers being scared to come to work, because we had praedial larceny during the day as well. It’s terrible, terrible… I can’t say how terrible it is as it relates to how the farm is run and how everything operates around here,” he added.

    Despite the severity of the crisis, Hope framed the agriculture minister’s decision to join the overnight patrol as a promising step forward. “This is the best approach. Who feels it knows it, and the fact that the minister and others have come out and tried to really understand how praedial larceny is affecting the farmer, it will also go a long way in finding a better solution against praedial larceny,” he said.

    Senior Constable Kirk Straker, a member of the four-month-old Crop Patrol Unit, noted that building open, trusted relationships with farmers has been the foundation of the unit’s early work. “You would have heard the farmers interact with me and my team, and the farmers would call me directly, even sometimes before they even called the police, because of the interest we have in farming,” Straker explained. “As long as the farmers plug into the police on the crop patrol and let them know where their crops are when they are reaping, we can do a great job.”

    Straker reported early progress in some districts, noting that reported theft incidents have declined this year, one suspect has already been formally charged, and investigators are closing in on another case tied to recent thefts. He emphasized that proactive intelligence gathering remains the core of the unit’s work, especially as criminals continuously adjust their tactics to exploit gaps in oversight.

    To cut off the black market for stolen produce, police have ramped up scrutiny of the official certificates that verify legal crop purchases. “We already have something in place relative to the consumers buying stolen produce,” Straker said. “But we have to even watch that because a person… could use a certificate from last week and steal something and use it for this week.” Officers’ on-the-ground knowledge of different crop varieties also helps them spot inconsistencies during investigations: “If you said that you bought this type of potato when I know that the farmer is missing another type of potato, I would know how to operate because I have an idea of different varieties of potatoes… cucumbers… melons. So you have to show interest.”

    As criminals continue to adapt their methods to avoid detection, Lucas confirmed that Barbadian authorities will also adjust their approach, prioritizing expanded cross-agency coordination and information sharing to protect farmers and secure the country’s domestic food supply.

  • LETTER: The Gruesome Truth of Being Disabled: When Justice Is Delayed, the Poor Pay the Price

    LETTER: The Gruesome Truth of Being Disabled: When Justice Is Delayed, the Poor Pay the Price

    For more than five years, Joshuanette Francis weathered constant uncertainty, endless legal back-and-forth, repeated medical assessments, stalled negotiations, crippling emotional fatigue, and devastating financial strain before headlines announced her legal win at the Industrial Court of Antigua and Barbuda. While most observers saw the ruling as the end of her grueling employment dispute, Francis sees it as the opening of a new battle. Her experience stretches far beyond a single workplace conflict: it exposes the hidden barriers facing low-income, disabled workers fighting to enforce their rights, and the heavy human toll of delayed, exclusionary justice.

    Francis was far from an underperforming employee. Records from her former employer’s own Human Resources team confirmed she was a skilled, dedicated worker, who climbed the ranks from part-time entry-level staff to a full-time Junior Supervisor through consistent effort. Like many young working people in Antigua and Barbuda, Francis held multiple jobs, made constant personal sacrifices, and clung to the belief that hard work would deliver long-term financial stability. There were even nights she slept under the deck at her workplace because commuting home was not logistically or financially possible, all to build a more secure future for herself and her family.

    The case also spotlights systemic flaws in how medical information is handled for disabled workers. Court documents show that additional medical tests were recommended to assess Francis’ condition, but key evaluations were never completed before the company made the decision to terminate her employment. Francis also questions how sensitive details of her medical care were shared with her employer before she herself received the results. For disability rights advocates, these concerns are not unique to one case: they point to broader failures to uphold patient autonomy, and a persistent pattern of sidelining disabled people in decisions that shape their own health and livelihoods.

    The intersection of pregnancy, new motherhood, disability, and legal battle made Francis’ experience exponentially harder. She spent years navigating depression, chronic uncertainty, and emotional exhaustion while balancing the demands of pregnancy, early parenthood, and disability alongside her unresolved legal fight. Mental health experts have long documented that prolonged unemployment, financial instability, and extended legal uncertainty cause severe, long-lasting damage to emotional well-being, and Francis says the unique struggles of women managing overlapping crises deserve far more public attention and support.

    The financial damage of her unfair dismissal extended far beyond the immediate loss of a paycheck. After years of saving, working multiple shifts, and cutting personal expenses, Francis had twice been approved for a mortgage and saved the full EC$12,000 deposit required to purchase her first home. Losing her job meant losing that opportunity forever. While the Industrial Court ultimately awarded her compensation, Francis says no payout can make up for the lost chance at homeownership and the stable future she had hoped to build for her son. “The court award cannot replace the house I never got,” she emphasized.

    In May 2026, the Industrial Court issued a ruling in Francis’ favor, calling her dismissal “harsh, oppressive and wholly contrary to good industrial relations practice” and confirming she had been denied “basic dignity.” While this marked a formal legal victory, it did not bring the closure Francis had spent five years waiting for. Instead, it uncovered a little-discussed flaw in the justice system that leaves many working-class winners with no way to collect on court judgments.

    Contrary to common public assumption, a favorable court ruling does not automatically trigger payment from the losing party. When the employer failed to pay the awarded compensation by the court’s deadline, Francis was told she would have to file a new enforcement application with the Industrial Court, demanding action over the employer’s non-compliance. This new application comes with an additional filing fee of roughly EC$1,500, and will require scheduling a new hearing that could be delayed for months or longer due to overloaded court calendars.

    Even if the court finds the employer in contempt of the original ruling, payment is still not guaranteed. Further enforcement steps, including applications to the High Court, may be required, and every additional step adds new legal costs, more months of waiting, and further emotional drain. Francis argues this gap in the justice system is one of its most damaging weaknesses: a worker who has already spent years proving their case is forced to spend even more money just to enforce a ruling that already confirms their rights.

    Her experience opens a critical public policy question: who can actually afford justice in Antigua and Barbuda today? Large corporations have dedicated legal teams, deep financial reserves, and the capacity to outlast prolonged litigation. Ordinary working people rarely have that privilege. Many have already lost their primary income, are raising children alone, or are already burdened with medical debt related to their disabilities. Every extra filing fee, every lawyer consultation, every additional court appearance adds another insurmountable barrier between working people and the justice the court has already awarded them.

    For disabled workers, these barriers are even steeper. The disability itself is often the smallest part of the struggle; the greatest burden comes from the systemic barriers that surround disabled people. It is the uncertainty of whether employers will value your ability before focusing on your diagnosis. It is the anxiety of wondering if medical decisions will be made with you, rather than about you. It is the impossible task of paying for medical assessments, transportation, and legal fees after losing your job. It is the constant need to prove that a disability does not reduce your value, your intelligence, or your ability to contribute to your community.

    Francis says her case makes clear that disability rights cannot be reduced to physical accessibility accommodations like ramps, accessible restrooms, or reserved parking spots. True disability rights also require equal access to employment, fair treatment in the workplace, patient-centered medical processes, and meaningful access to justice for disabled people who experience discrimination. She notes that while Antigua and Barbuda passed landmark disability legislation in 2017, many of the key protective mechanisms outlined in that law have still not been implemented years later. Stronger institutional protections, she argues, are needed to ensure disabled people receive fair treatment before disputes escalate into years-long legal battles.

    Ultimately, Francis says her fight is no longer just for herself. It is for every working person who cannot afford to keep pushing for justice. For every parent fighting to protect their family’s future. For every disabled person who lives in fear that a diagnosis will derail their dreams. It forces a reckoning over whether justice should depend on a person’s bank account, and whether a court judgment has any real meaning if it remains out of reach for ordinary citizens. Her greatest hope is that by sharing her story, future generations — especially young disabled people — will inherit a society where dignity is guaranteed, justice is accessible to all, and no one is forced to spend years fighting just to have their basic rights recognized.

  • COMMENTARY: You call it gwiyav…I call it guava!

    COMMENTARY: You call it gwiyav…I call it guava!

    Across the Caribbean island of Dominica, the common guava (scientific name *Psidium guajava*) is far more than just a beloved local fruit—it is woven into the fabric of the island’s cultural traditions, ecological systems, culinary practices, and childhood memories, holding a unique place in Dominican life that few other native plants can claim.

    Guava trees exhibit natural diversity in their produce: fruits grow in three distinct shapes—round, oval, and the pear-like “long-necked” form that is a popular hybrid variety. Interestingly, trees that once produced pink-fleshed guavas can spontaneously shift to bearing white-fleshed fruits over time. Grafted commercial varieties grow to roughly the size of a small grapefruit, while the pre-Hurricane Maria Botanic Gardens long hosted a thriving stand of the distinctive long-necked cultivar that was a local landmark.

    Ecologically, guava trees support Dominica’s native wildlife in critical ways. When the trees bloom, honeybees and butterflies flock to their flowers to collect nutrient-rich nectar, while ripe fruits become a vital food source for frugivorous bats and a wide range of native small birds, forming a key link in the island’s tropical food web.

    Culturally, the guava has been immortalized in Dominican folk music. In the early 1970s, renowned local songwriter Jean Lawrence referenced the fruit’s iconic sweet aroma in the popular folk track *Tout Sa Andan’y* performed by Siffleur Montagne, with lyrics comparing the scent of ripe guava and pineapple to life’s simple pleasures.

    In Dominican kitchens, guava is a staple ingredient that shines in countless beloved recipes. For generations, families have turned ripe guavas into refreshing, ice-cold juice enjoyed with breakfast or lunch, and transformed the sweet, tangy fruit into rich guava cheese, silky jelly, thick jam, and flaky guava tarts. Guava-flavored ice cream also remains a perennial favorite treat for locals and visitors alike.

    Beyond the kitchen, guava plays a longstanding role in Dominican traditional herbal medicine. An herbal tea brewed from young guava leaves is a widely used home remedy for diarrhea, valued for its ability to calm upset stomachs and soothe irritated intestinal tracts.

    For generations of Dominican children, guavas were more than food—they were raw materials for endless imaginative play. Unripe small green guavas served as homemade marbles, while half-ripe fruits were carved into rubber tires for hand-built toy cars, which were often framed from empty cocoa pods or repurposed plastic bottles. Ripe guavas were hollowed out and shaped into tiny play baskets, bowls, and calabash containers that children could snack on after finishing their games. Older boys even mimicked adult men by rolling large guava leaves into tight, sun-dried “pretend cigarettes” to smoke during play. Dense guava wood was also carved into spinning tops for traditional top games, while mature guava branches and stems were processed by adults into high-quality cooking charcoal. Even the tree itself offers a valuable community benefit: with its broad, umbrella-shaped canopy, a mature guava provides cool, welcome shade on hot, sunny days. A fruiting guava tree at the Dominica Botanic Gardens still acts as a popular informal gathering spot, offering free snacks and a cool rest stop for visitors.

    Guava also contributed to traditional body care practices before modern personal care products became widespread on the island. Dominican grandmothers recall that fine ground guava charcoal and soft guava twigs were used as a homemade tooth-cleaning tool: one end of a small twig was pounded with a stone to soften it, then used to scrub teeth and clean between teeth, just as a modern toothbrush does.

    The fruit’s cultural significance is even reflected in local business: for decades, one of Roseau’s most popular downtown dining spots was named Guiyave Restaurant, after the local word for guava. Patrons could enjoy a filling local meal on the restaurant’s veranda while watching street life unfold below.

    Dominica is also home to a second guava species, *Psidium cattleyanum*, commonly known as cherry guava. Though many locals mistakenly call it “guava cherry” due to its small, cherry-like appearance, it is a true guava rather than a member of the cherry family. Two cherry guava varieties grow on the island: the widespread red cherry guava and the less common yellow variety. Visitors curious to try something new can seek out cold bottles of sweet cherry guava juice from local street vendors, for a uniquely Dominican taste experience.

  • Guyanese man admits to firebombing houses of worship in Queens, New York

    Guyanese man admits to firebombing houses of worship in Queens, New York

    A 36-year-old Guyanese national residing in the U.S. has pleaded responsible to orchestrating a coordinated series of Molotov cocktail attacks that targeted religious sites and commercial businesses across New York City, court documents and law enforcement officials confirm. The suspect, Yogesh Sayrange, already had an open arrest warrant for an unrelated prior charge of threatening to behead another person at the time of his capture, local outlet ABC7 New York first reported.

    Sayrange made his first formal appearance before a federal court Thursday, where he was arraigned in connection with the June 25 firebombing of a Brooklyn smoke shop located on Fulton Street. Federal prosecutors have laid out that Sayrange has been living in the United States unlawfully after immigration protections granted to him when he entered the country as a minor expired. He told investigators he currently has a pending application to renew his status under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the program that offers temporary protection from deportation for eligible people who arrived in the U.S. as children.

    During questioning, Sayrange openly confessed to carrying out the targeted attacks, explicitly stating to law enforcement: “Yes, I f-ing firebombed them. They’re Muslims, scum and terrorists.” This admission has confirmed authorities’ working theory that the attacks were driven by religious bigotry.

    Investigators now link Sayrange to a total of seven separate arson incidents dating back to late June, with the vast majority of the attacks targeting houses of worship representing multiple faiths, alongside a small number of commercial properties. The final trio of attacks unfolded late Wednesday night in Queens, just hours before Sayrange’s arrest.

    According to police accounts, at approximately 11:35 p.m., Sayrange allegedly threw a homemade Molotov cocktail at the main entrance of Iglesia Bautista El Mesias, a Baptist church located on 75th Street in the Ozone Park neighborhood. Surveillance footage obtained by investigators captures Sayrange speaking with a group of men standing outside the church moments before he ignited and threw the incendiary device. Prosecutors say that prior to launching the attack, Sayrange asked the assembled men: “Do you want this institution to be turned into a mosque?”

    The homemade incendiary bounced off the solid wood church door before detonating on the adjacent pavement, leaving the church building completely undamaged. No people inside or outside the church were harmed in the attempt.

    Immediately after the first attack, investigators say Sayrange traveled less than a mile to a Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses on 78th Street in Woodhaven, where he threw a second Molotov cocktail at the building. Similar to the first attack, this device also bounced off the exterior wall and exploded on the ground, causing no structural damage or injuries.

    A third attack was reported shortly after at a nearby ambulette company located on Rockaway Boulevard in Cypress Hills. Late-shift mechanics working at the facility told police they saw a firebomb land in the company’s parking lot. One mechanic who witnessed the event recounted, “We heard like a little bang. I go outside. The floor was on fire.”

    Remarkably, none of the seven linked attacks resulted in any injuries to civilians, law enforcement or bystanders. Law enforcement apprehended Sayrange within minutes of the final Queens attack, and officers recovered two unused, fully assembled Molotov cocktails from his personal bag when he was taken into custody. When prosecutors asked about the unused devices following his arrest, Sayrange again openly admitted his plans, responding: “I had two more in my bag. I was going to finish the job.”

  • Fourth time’s a charm: Pollster Wickham toasts aunt’s 100th birthday

    Fourth time’s a charm: Pollster Wickham toasts aunt’s 100th birthday

    Surrounded by close family and lifelong friends, Sylvia Ometa Maxwell — known to all who love her as “Aunt Sylvia” — rang in her 100th birthday on July 9 in a celebration full of warm laughter, shared stories, and cherished moments together. This joyful centenary marks far more than a personal milestone: it adds another entry to the Maxwell family’s extraordinary legacy of longevity, becoming the fourth time a member of the extended family has lived to reach 100 years of age. For her nephew, noted regional pollster and political scientist Peter Wickham, it is also the second 100th birthday he has celebrated with a family member this year alone.

    Wickham shared the full story of his family’s unique record of long life, detailing that this birthday marks the fourth centenarian in their extended lineage. “On Sylvia’s side, she had a sister who lived to 102. On my father’s side, we had an aunt who lived to 107, and most recently another aunt who reached 100,” he explained. “So this is the fourth.” As he paid tribute to his aunt, Wickham highlighted her calm, laid-back temperament that has defined her entire life, crediting it as a core part of her long, healthy life. “Of the four aunts that helped to raise us, she was always the one that was less concerned about everything. If you ever got into trouble, she was the one you preferred to find you because she didn’t worry about a lot. She lived a relatively stress-free life, and we’re grateful to have her with us still.”

    Born in 1926 as the youngest of five children to James A. and Caroline Maxwell, Sylvia has faced hardship from the earliest days of her life: her mother passed away unexpectedly just one year after she was born, leaving her to be raised by her maternal grandmother Golda and her older sister Elaine. Today, she is the only one of her five siblings still alive.

    Sylvia cut her teeth academically at Maude Haynes Private School, before moving on to Queen’s College in 1937, where she quickly stood out as a talented athlete, with netball standing as her particular strength. After completing her education, she built a respected, decades-long career at the West Indies Cane Breeding Station, which operated under the Sugar Association of the Caribbean. She worked her way up through the organization to the senior role of Administrative Assistant, before retiring from her professional duties in 1987.

    Beyond her career, Sylvia built a reputation among loved ones for her wide range of vibrant passions, from travel and cooking experimentation to a lifelong love of fashion that continues to this day. Wickham recalled with fond amusement her legendary endurance when it came to shopping trips, a hobby that required him to tag along as her bag carrier for hours on end. “She was a shopper. That was not of very much interest to me because I would always carry the bags, but she had a significant intestinal fortitude when it comes to shopping. She walked for hours and hours. She loved fashion, and that was her thing. Her wardrobe was quite extensive back in the day.” She was also a dedicated regular viewer of CNN’s iconic weekly fashion program *Style with Elsa Klensch*, and enjoyed testing new recipes in her kitchen for decades.

    What makes Sylvia’s milestone even more remarkable is that she has reached 100 years of age with no diagnosed non-communicable diseases, a healthy outcome that Wickham attributes to both her low-stress approach to life and her consistent commitment to moderation in all things. “She has always had a little bit of pressure, but I often felt it had more to do with diet than with stress, because she didn’t really take on stress. Relatively healthy lifestyle, avoiding excess in many things, and moderation—but she would have a glass of Bailey’s every once in a while. Nothing too excessive.”

    A devout lifelong member of James Street Methodist Church, Sylvia was christened at the congregation the same year she was born, and sat in the same family pew for decades. She currently resides in Wanstead, where she lives with her caregiver Tresha.

  • 10 Killed in Bahamas Plane Crash as Flamingo Air Flights Suspended

    10 Killed in Bahamas Plane Crash as Flamingo Air Flights Suspended

    On a day meant for national celebration, The Bahamas was plunged into grief on Friday when a small passenger aircraft crashed in North Andros, claiming the lives of all 10 people on board. What should have been a joyous observance of the country’s 53rd Independence Day quickly turned into an official national day of mourning after the crash.

    The aircraft involved in the accident was a Bahamian-registered Cessna 402, operated by domestic carrier Flamingo Air. The plane was mid-route between the capital city of Nassau and the island destination of San Andros when it went down. Emergency response teams were dispatched to the crash site immediately, and official investigations into the exact cause of the tragedy are now underway.

    In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis initially told reporters that one person had managed to survive the impact. However, that update was later corrected, with Davis confirming that the injured individual had ultimately succumbed to their wounds, bringing the final confirmed death toll to 10. As of the latest official update, the identities of the victims have not been released to the public, pending notification of all next of kin.

    Speaking at an official press conference shortly after the crash, Davis acknowledged the nation’s collective shock and sadness. “We gather beneath a cloud of great sorrow,” he said. “It has become a day of mourning.” The prime minister extended the country’s deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of those killed, noting, “To every family that has received the devastating news that someone they love will not be coming home, we offer our deepest condolences.”

    Davis emphasized that investigators are still working to piece together the sequence of events that led to the crash. “At this stage, the facts are still being established, and the relevant authorities are working to determine exactly what occurred,” he stated. “The families affected deserve compassion, privacy, and support as the investigation proceeds.”

    In a precautionary move that came shortly after the fatal crash, the Bahamian Ministry of Energy, Utilities and Aviation announced it had suspended Flamingo Air’s Air Operator Certificate, halting all of the airline’s operations while investigators examine the full context of the crash. The suspension was not issued solely in response to the North Andros crash: the ministry confirmed that two separate aviation safety incidents involving Flamingo Air occurred on the same day.

    Earlier Friday, before the fatal crash, another Flamingo Air plane headed for the island of Mayaguana was forced to turn back to Nassau after the pilot reported a mechanical issue of concern. All passengers on that flight got off the plane safely, but the aircraft subsequently caught fire. No injuries were reported in that second incident. To date, officials have not confirmed whether the two separate incidents are linked, and active investigations are continuing for both events.

  • Para-social workers being trained in hinterland communities

    Para-social workers being trained in hinterland communities

    On Friday, Guyana’s Ministry of Human Services and Social Security officially launched a groundbreaking free training initiative to cultivate paraprofessional social workers, a response to the decades-long shortage of fully qualified social work professionals in the country’s remote interior, or hinterland, communities.

    The Certificate in Paraprofessional Social Services (CPSS) program, launched in Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), aims to close a critical service gap that has left marginalized interior communities underserved for years. Speaking at the launch, Human Services and Social Security Minister Dr. Vindhya Persaud framed the program’s first cohort of trainees as pioneers trailblazing a new model of accessible social care for Guyana’s most remote regions.

    For generations, key hinterland regions including Barima-Waini (Region One), Cuyuni-Mazaruni (Region Seven), Potaro-Siparuni (Region Eight) and Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo (Region Nine) have lacked consistent access to specialized social services, a gap that has harmed outcomes for vulnerable groups across these areas. The new initiative directly advances the Guyanese government’s public commitment to expanding qualified social care coverage across the entire country, where demand for these critical services remains highest in remote interior zones.

    Developed as a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, the Guyana Association of Professional Social Workers (GAPSW), and the accredited University of Guyana, the program delivers no-cost foundational social work training that carries formal academic accreditation. Unlike ad-hoc community outreach, the initiative is designed to create long-term, meaningful career pathways for local hinterland residents, while simultaneously strengthening the country’s overall social services infrastructure. Upon successful completion of the course, graduates will be prioritized for open social services roles across government agencies, including the Childcare and Protection Agency, the central Social Services Department, and the Survivor Advocate Programme.

    Minister Persaud emphasized that the program is far more than a short-term training course: it serves as a permanent launchpad for a lifelong career in social work, empowering local trainees to drive tangible, lasting change within their own communities. “This is more than free training. It is a launchpad into a career in Social Work. So, think about this as a lifelong path, where you will make a tangible impact on the future of the people of your community, your region, and your country,” she told participating trainees.

    The minister also outlined the critical, multifaceted role that social workers play in advancing community well-being, from addressing child protection and family welfare to supporting survivors of gender-based and domestic violence and expanding access to mental health support. Strengthening these frontline services, she noted, is a non-negotiable foundation for building safer, healthier, more cohesive communities across Guyana.

    She further stressed the importance of rigorous professional standards for the new cohort of paraprofessional social workers, including accurate case documentation, adherence to national standard operating procedures, and unwavering ethical conduct. Because social workers often serve as key stakeholders in the national justice system, contributing evidence and support during court proceedings and ongoing case management, upholding principles of integrity, transparency, and accountability is central to the role. “Justice must always be served, and as a social worker, you become part of that wheel of justice. So when you get into this profession, integrity, transparency and accountability is what will drive you further,” Persaud said.

    Framed as a aligned investment paired with Guyana’s ongoing rapid economic expansion, the program reflects the government’s strategy to grow human capital in lockstep with national development. As Guyana experiences unprecedented economic growth driven largely by new offshore oil discoveries, the administration has prioritized ensuring that all communities — including remote interior regions left behind in past development cycles — gain access to the professional services and opportunities they deserve. “This programme is an investment in the education of the people of Guyana. As our country develops, we must ensure our human capacity develops alongside it, so that every community has access to the support and professional services it deserves,” the minister added.

  • Woman charged with businessman’s murder

    Woman charged with businessman’s murder

    A fatal violent incident in Trinidad’s Woodford Gardens neighborhood has led to a formal murder charge for a 25-year-old local woman, following weeks of investigative work and legal review. Aaliyah Naipal, a resident of the Woodford Gardens area at the intersection of Oak Avenue and Coconut Drive, has been accused of killing Gregory Reece, a local Chaguanas businessman who died from multiple stab wounds on the night of June 28.

    Naipal made her first court appearance on Monday before a High Court Master, after Director of Public Prosecutions officials reviewed the case file and provided formal legal advice authorizing the murder charge. Following the brief hearing, the accused was remanded into state prison custody to await further legal proceedings in the capital case.

    Law enforcement investigators have outlined the timeline of the fatal incident: Reece traveled to the Woodford Gardens apartment the evening of June 28, and shortly after his arrival, he became involved in a verbal altercation with an individual at the property. During the confrontation, Reece was stabbed multiple times.

    Emergency Health Services first responders were dispatched immediately to the scene after emergency calls were placed. When they arrived, medics found Reece already unresponsive, and he was officially pronounced dead at the apartment by medical personnel. Naipal was taken into police custody at the scene directly after the stabbing, and has remained in detention throughout the ongoing investigation.

    Reece, a 50-something-year-old local businessman, was laid to rest in a public funeral service held this past Sunday. Court records also show Reece had a prior interaction with the Trinidad and Tobago justice system: in 2017, he was arrested and charged with two criminal offences – uttering forged valuable securities and obtaining funds by false pretences. Those charges stemmed from allegations that more than TT$1.4 million in fraudulent cheques, issued from an official account controlled by the Arima Borough Corporation, were illegally deposited into a commercial bank account linked to Reece. At the time of his death, that earlier 2017 case was still pending in the court system.