Prince William says people in ex-colonies must decide monarchy's role

MSN – AFP, 27 March 2022 

© CHANDAN KHANNA Prince William has said that the Caribbean's former British
colonies must decide whether to scrap the monarchy's role in their countries

Prince William ended a turbulent tour of the Caribbean by starkly admitting this weekend that the region's former British colonies must decide whether to scrap the monarchy's role in their countries. 

The 39-year-old Duke of Cambridge also hinted that a British royal may in future no longer head the club of 54 Commonwealth countries as the political association of ex-colonies evolves. 

The unusually candid comments, which were splashed on the front of several British newspapers Sunday, followed a rocky three-country Caribbean tour over the last week which drew both protests and criticism. 

William and his wife Catherine, 40, faced calls to apologise for the slave trade that helped make past British royals' fortunes, and accusations of appearing "tone deaf" over elements of the visit. 

They were also forced to confront the issue of former colonies considering whether to follow Barbados' lead and ditch the queen as their head of state. 

Barbados formally declared itself a republic in November. 

Belize, Jamaica and The Bahamas -- all stops on the royal tour -- are each said to be mulling such a move. 

Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness pointedly told William in front of television cameras that the nation was "moving on" as an independent country. 

"I know that this tour has brought into even sharper focus questions about the past and the future," the Duke of Cambridge said in an end-of-tour statement Saturday. 

"In Belize, Jamaica and The Bahamas, that future is for the people to decide upon."   

William added he and his wife "are committed to service" and that meant "not telling people what to do" but instead "serving and supporting them". 

'On my mind' 

The Commonwealth, a grouping of 54 mainly former British colonies, is headed by Queen Elizabeth II. 

In 2018, its leaders formally announced that her son and heir Prince Charles would inherit the role when he becomes king. 

But William, second-in-line to the throne, said that "who the Commonwealth chooses to lead its family in the future isn't what is on my mind". 

"What matters to us is the potential the Commonwealth family has to create a better future for the people who form it, and our commitment to serve and support as best we can," he added. 

The couple's Caribbean trip was intended to help Commonwealth countries where his 95-year-old grandmother is also head of state celebrate her record-breaking 70 years on the throne. 

But what were designed to be carefully choreographed photocalls and public appearances for Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee did not go entirely to plan. 

In Belize, they angered some locals after failing to consult on parts of their itinerary, while they then prompted placard-bearing protests in Jamaica. 

Demonstrators demanded the monarchy pay reparations and apologize for its role in the slave trade that brought hundreds of thousands of Africans to the island to toil under inhumane conditions. 

Meanwhile, some of the optics of the tour drew criticism for evoking colonial rule, including the couple greeting kids through metal chain-link fences and William parading in an open-topped jeep in military uniform.

Amid fears of far higher Dorian death toll, islanders scramble to leave

Yahoo – AFP, Cyril JULIEN, September 7, 2019

Hurricane Dorian refugees arrive in the capital Nassau (AFP Photo/
Brendan Smialowski)

Marsh Harbour (Bahamas) (AFP) - Bahamians who lost everything in the devastating passage of Hurricane Dorian were scrambling Saturday to escape the worst-hit islands by sea or by air, after the powerful storm left at least 43 people dead with officials fearing a "significantly" higher toll.

A loosely coordinated armada of passenger planes, helicopters and both private and government boats and ships -- including redirected cruise liners -- was converging on the horribly battered Abaco Islands to help with evacuations, both to Nassau and to the US mainland.

But Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said that "Nassau cannot possibly accommodate" all the Abaco victims. He said plans were being hammered out for constructing tents and other temporary accommodations, the Nassau Guardian reported Saturday.

For now, he said, supplies of food and water were adequate, though several witnesses from Abaco contested that.

A cruise ship carrying 1,400 evacuees arrived Saturday in Riviera Beach, Florida, CNN reported.

More than 260 Abacos residents arrived Friday in Nassau on a government-chartered ferry. Another, carrying 200, was set to leave on Saturday.

The US Coast Guard and private organizations have been evacuating residents 

of Abaco and other islands to Nassau (AFP Photo/Hunter Medley)

Residents said conditions on the islands were brutal. They said the smell of unrecovered bodies, along with mounting piles of garbage, was oppressive and unsanitary.

Hundreds or even thousands of people were still missing, officials said, as search-and-rescue teams continued their grim search. Morticians with body bags were beginning to arrive.

Minnis said the death toll -- 35 so far in the Abacos and eight in Grand Bahama -- was likely to climb "significantly."

He called the loss of life "catastrophic and devastating."

The final death toll "will be staggering," Health Minister Duane Sands said earlier.

A UN World Food Program team estimated that 90 percent of buildings in Marsh Harbour were damaged.

UN relief officials said more than 70,000 people on Grand Bahama and Abaco were in need of assistance. The WFP was sending food and supplies.

The US Coast Guard, Britain's Royal Navy and private organizations have been helping evacuate island residents to Nassau, hampered by damaged piers and airport runways.

Hurricane Dorian left a deadly trail of destruction on Great Abaco Island (AFP

Photo/Adam DelGiudice)

The Coast Guard said Saturday, however, that all Bahamian ports had now reopened. It said it had deployed nine cutters to the islands and that six of its MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters had so far rescued 290 people.

'It's not right'

Chamika Durosier was waiting early Saturday at the Abaco airport. The island, she said, was unsafe.

"The home that we were in fell on us," she said. "We had to crawl -- got out crawling. By the grace of God we are alive."

She described the increasingly desperate plight of those left behind.

"People have no food. People have no water, and it's not right. They should have been gone.

"Dead bodies are still around and it's not sanitary."

At Marsh Harbour's commercial port, Miralda Smith, a Haitian national, had arrived overnight on foot and was waiting in sweltering heat with dozens of other evacuees for passage to Nassau.

"We have no water, no electricity -- we're dying," she said. "It's really catastrophic."

Waves crash on Rodanthe Pier as Hurricane Dorian hits Cape Hatteras in 

North Carolina on September 6 (AFP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Many evacuees were Haitian workers who had seen their makeshift homes in a shantytown known as The Mudd completely flattened.

Those who have made it to safety awaited news of loved ones.

Diane Forbes was desperately searching for her two sons among some 200 evacuees at a shelter in Nassau.

On Tuesday, when last she heard from them, her sons told her that "they were hungry, and the scent of the bodies, the dead, was really getting to them."

Dorian, a monstrous Category 5 hurricane when it raked through the Bahamas, was buffeting southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada, on Saturday with tropical storm-force winds, the National Hurricane Center said at 11:00 am (1500 GMT).

The Canadian Hurricane Centre predicted a landfall near Halifax and issued hurricane warnings for parts of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.

Earlier, Dorian brought flooding and power outages but no major damage to the coastal Carolinas and Virginia.

In the Bahamas, the scene was very different, as the newly homeless were growing frustrated at the slow speed of relief and evacuation efforts.

A shop floods in Rodanthe Sound as Hurricane Dorian hits Cape Hatteras 

(AFP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

"There's no gas station, no food stores, my job is gone," said Melanie Lowe of Marsh Harbour. She survived the storm packed in a two-bedroom apartment with 16 other people.

Hazmat suits and body bags

Arrangements were being made Saturday to care for the dead and account for the missing.

Mortuary workers in white hazmat suits, blue gloves and masks could be seen in Marsh Harbour carrying corpses in green body bags and loading them onto flatbed trucks.

President Donald Trump offered US support, adding in a video statement that "any cruise ship companies willing to act as stationary housing, etc., I am sure would be appreciated!"

At the Abaco airport on Saturday, Tanya McDermott was waiting with her husband and young son for a plane to Nassau.

With the injured given priority on outbound flights, they waited.

"We are going to wait around all day if we have to," Tanya McDermott said.

"We are going to hope for the best."

Cruise companies pledge aid after Dorian wreaks havoc on Bahamas

Yahoo – AFP, Virginie MONTET, September 5, 2019

The Royal Caribbean ship Allure of the Seas (L) and Carnival Cruise ships Liberty
and Elation are seen in Nassau, Bahamas in April 2019 (AFP Photo/Daniel SLIM)

Washington (AFP) - For the Atlantic's major cruise operators, deadly Hurricane Dorian has meant nothing but trouble in paradise as ships have been diverted from the Bahamas.

But as the widespread devastation becomes more apparent on the ravaged archipelago, a bread-and-butter staple of the tourist industry, the companies are pledging to help fund major relief.

At least 20 deaths have already been attributed to Dorian in the Bahamas in what Prime Minister Hubert Minnis called "one of the greatest national crises in our country's history."

Royal Caribbean, which has shuttled thousands of tourists every year to the Bahamas for more than half a century, said it is "rolling up our sleeves to help our friends" in the Bahamas by committing $1 million to Dorian disaster relief.

Similarly, the Disney Cruise Line has pledged, through its parent the Walt Disney Company, to give more than $1 million in cash and in-kind support to those who found themselves in the storm's path.

On Wednesday, the hurricane was advancing northward off the US Coast as a strong Category 2 storm, threatening the eastern states of Georgia and South and North Carolina.

"To make sure our donations go where they can do the most good, we are collaborating with the Bahamian government and our non-profit partner, the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF), and a network of Bahamian charities and organizations," Royal Caribbean said.

Port Everglades, Florida, where several major cruise lines are docked, was 

closed due to Hurricane Dorian (AFP Photo/Michele Eve Sandberg)

Rerouted, canceled cruises

The company urged guest and employee contributions as well by promising to match every dollar donated.

It also said it had loaded generators, water, cleaning supplies, clean sheets, towels and other items onto its ships for delivery to the Bahamas.

The company's Mexican partner ITM, with which it has formed the Holistica joint venture that is developing a resort in Freeport, is donating an additional $100,000, Royal Caribbean added.

The 700 islands that constitute the Bahamas archipelago are located just 50 miles (80 kilometers) off the coast of Florida and are the home port to multiple cruise ships.

But for three days, the cruises were forced to avoid the region, with several prolonging their voyages so as to avoid the storm.

Norwegian Cruise Line temporarily substituted New Orleans as its terminus rather than Port Canaveral or Miami in Florida, and Royal Caribbean extended several routes, forcing cruise-goers to spend a few additional nights at sea.

Carnival Cruise Line, meanwhile, canceled several trips and reimbursed the would-be voyagers.

A spokeswoman for the company said cruise ships loaded with humanitarian and economic assistance would head to several Bahamas ports, including Nassau and Freeport, as soon as possible.

It added that it was evaluating how best to help the Grand Bahama shipyard and its employees, as well as tour operators.

Scolari charged with tax fraud in Portugal

Yahoo – AFP, 14 may 2014

The coach of the Brazilian national football team, Luiz Felipe Scolari speaks

 during the announcement of his 23-men squad for the upcoming FIFA World

Cup Brazil 2014, during a presss conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on May 7,

 2014 (AFP Photo/Vanderlei Almeida)

Lisbon (AFP) - Portuguese authorities have charged Brazil's national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari with tax fraud, less than a month before the World Cup starts, a prosecution spokesman told AFP on Wednesday.

Investigators said they have asked the United States, Britain, the Netherlands and Brazil for assistance in the case.

Scolari is accused of hiding about seven million euros ($9.6 million) in income when he was Portugal's coach between 2003 and 2008, according to media reports.

He has denied any wrongdoing. But the inquiry threatens to taint Brazil's preparations to host the World Cup, which starts on June 12.

Scolari coached Brazil to their World Cup triumph in 2002 and has returned to the national side for the campaign on home territory which they are favourites to win.

Portugal reached the final of Euro 2004 as hosts and the World Cup semi-finals in 2006 when Scolari was in charge.

The Portuguese inquiry is being carried out by the Central Department for Criminal Investigations and Penal Action (DCIAP).

The department, an arm of the Prosecutor General's office, confirmed in a statement that "Luiz Felipe Scolari stands accused in an investigation."

"This probe is investigating happenings dating back to the period between 2003 and 2008 and is related to eventual fiscal infractions," it added.

"In the course of these investigations, international assistance was requested from the Netherlands, Britain, Brazil and the United States. The request to the USA is still to be answered."

The statement did not give a figure for the alleged fraud and said "investigations are ongoing."

Scolari, 65, has made a personal fortune from his work with Brazil and Portugal but also as a club manager with teams such as Chelsea.

Scolari has also worked as a coach in Japan, Kuwait and Uzbekistan.

Dutch newspaper Financieele Dagblad said Scolari received money from two Netherlands-based companies, Chaterella Investors Limited and Flamboyants Sports.

Portugal has asked US authorities for assistance in the inquiry as the money was believed to have been transferred to the United States, the Dutch daily added.

Financieele Dagblad said that Scolari transferred money through companies based in the Bahamas and other tax havens.

"I made all my income tax declarations correctly," Scolari said in a statement in reaction to the press reports.

"I always declared my earnings in all the countries I worked in," he insisted.

"I am absolutely convinced of the correctness of my declarations.

"If there is something wrong it is not of my doing," said Scolari, who invited the authorities to look into "all the facts."

The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) have yet to comment on the case, which has been given widespread attention in Brazil.

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Is the Bermuda Triangle Really Dangerous?

LiveScience, Michelle Bryner, Life's Little Mysteries Contributor, November 04, 2012

Pin It The Bermuda Triangle is no more dangerous than any other
area. Credit: doctorjools | dreamstime

It’s been called the Devil's Triangle, Limbo of the Lost, Twilight Zone, and most famously the Bermuda Triangle.

The semi-triangular area surrounded by Bermuda, Puerto Rico, and Florida is known for its voracious appetite for planes and boats. The legend began at 2:10 p.m. Dec. 5, 1945, when, reportedly, experienced aviators lifted off on a routine training mission, in supposedly  crystal clear weather. Upon becoming disoriented, the pilots of Flight 19 radioed for help and then disappeared.

Bizarre explanations for this and other vanishing acts include:  aliens hiding under the sea, a portal leading to another dimension, and ship-size methane gas bubbles.

There is a logical answer to the disappearances, however. The Triangle is heavily traveled, and proportionally sees no more accidents than other areas. The region is vulnerable to unpredictable storms. And, according to the Navy, the Gulf Stream there "is extremely swift and turbulent and can quickly erase any evidence of a disaster." Finally, the sea in that area is up to 30,000 feet deep.

As for Flight 19, the pilots were actually trainees, and the weather was far from crystal clear that day.

Related Articles:

How the Bermuda Triangle Works

Kryon Q&A

Question: My question is about the Bermuda Triangle. What is the significance of this part of the world? Has this anything to do with vortexes or portals? Why have so many ships and aircraft gone missing in this area? Is there a spiritual significance?

Question: Dear Kryon/Lee, what is in the Bermuda Triangle? Can knowledge about it be of any use to us now? Is there really anything there?

Answer: This area of the planet is a profound combination of anomalies in the earth’s magnetics, combined with attributes of interactions with the weather and water. There’s a process that has been seen, yet not understood. These are not ETs, and it’s not spiritual. Your science will eventually discover it, analyze it, and understand it. It’s about the earth.

Commonwealth puts on united front after summit rifts

Google – AFP, 17 November 2013

Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa listens during a press conference during

 the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo on November 16, 2013

(AFP, Ishara Kodikara)

Colombo — Commonwealth leaders signed agreements Sunday on issues such as poverty and development as they staged a show of unity after a summit in Sri Lanka dominated by a bitter dispute over war crimes.

After a three-day meeting in Colombo, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse announced a declaration had been signed by the Commonwealth's 53 member nations after a summit which he said had been characterised by "fruitful discussions".

But he was again forced on the defensive and warned his critics against pushing him "into a corner" by setting an ultimatum to address war crimes allegations by next March.

British Prime Minister David Cameron

 speaks during a news conference on the

 second day of the Commonwealth Heads

Of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in

Colombo on November 16, 2013 (AFP,

Ishara S. Kodikara)

"I am happy with the outcome we have reached at this CHOGM," said Rajapakse, who has spent much of the summit having to fend off allegations that his government's troops killed as many as 40,000 civilians at the end of the country's 37-year conflict.

Outlining the agreements inked by Commonwealth leaders, he said there had been widespread agreement on a series of issues -- particularly on ensuring that economic growth does not come at the expense of equality.

"Achieving growth with equity and inclusive development must be one of the priorities of the Commonwealth," said the Sri Lankan president.

"Issues covered in the communique include development, political values, global threats, challenges and Commonwealth cooperation."

While only 27 heads of government attended this year's meeting, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said the summit had helped strengthen the organisation of mainly English-speaking former British colonies.

"I sense there is a reaffirmation of the spirit and ideals of the Commonwealth ... the core values of the Commonwealth, namely democracy, the rule of law and human rights," Najib told reporters.

The Malaysian prime minister said there was a general recognition among leaders of "the fact that we are different but should not be divided".

"There was a reaffirmation of the spirit and willingness of wanting to stay together as a unique collection of nations."

The summit was dealt several body blows before it began, with the leaders of Canada, India and Mauritius deciding to stay away to protest at Colombo's rights record.

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron then stole the limelight on the opening day with a visit to the war-torn Jaffna region, where he met survivors of a conflict that killed more than 100,000 people.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who was handing over the chairmanship of the Commonwealth to Sri Lanka, acknowledged "more needed to be done" to address concerns about its rights record but said he wanted to be "good mates" with Colombo.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse (L) and Secretary General of the

 Commonwealth of Nations, Kamalesh Sharma (3L) chat at the final working

 session of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in

Colombo on November 17, 2013 (AFP, Manjunath Kiran)

According to the United Nations and rights groups, as many as 40,000 civilians may have died as troops loyal to the mainly Sinhalese government routed the Tamil Tiger rebel movement in its last stronghold in Jaffna in 2009.

Sri Lanka has refused to allow foreign investigators onto its soil, but Cameron warned Rajapakse he would lead a push for an international probe through UN bodies unless an internal inquiry produces credible results by March.

"Let me be very clear, if an investigation is not completed by March, then I will use our position on the UN Human Rights Council to work with the UN Human Rights Commission and call for a full, credible and independent international inquiry," said Cameron on Saturday.

But Rajapakse reiterated on Sunday that Sri Lanka would not bow to pressure and would complete its own inquiries in its own time.

"This is not something you can do overnight. You must also respect our own views without trying to push us into a corner, so please be fair," he said.

"We have suffered for 30 years, that's why they (the people of Sri Lanka) want a new life. That's why people elected me."

The largely pro-government press in Sri Lanka acknowledged that debate about Colombo's rights record had soured the summit.

Ceylon Today said Cameron's push for UN action had ensured "the festive mood at the Commonwealth parley turned sour", bemoaning how "media obsession over the host country's human rights record had overshadowed the official business".

Mauritius had been due to host the next summit in 2015 but it withdrew in protest against Sri Lanka's rights record.

Malta will now step in as hosts, the organisation's top official announced.

"The prime minister of Malta has invited the Commonwealth to hold CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting) 2015, with Malta as the venue," Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma said.

"It (the offer) was received by all members with acclamation."

Graphic map of the Commonwealth member nations (AFP)

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Bahamas celebrate Relay gold

The Bahamas stormed to gold in the men's 4 x 400m Relay final at the Olympic Stadium tonight.

London2012.com, 10 August 2012

Bahamas celebrate gold success. Chris Brown, Demetrius Pinder, Michael
Mathieu and Ramon Miller celebrate winning gold in the men's 4 x 400m
Relay final on Day 14 at London 2012.

The quartet of Chris Brown, Demetrius Pinder, Michael Mathieu and Ramon Miller clocked a winning time of 2:56.72.

The USA finished second to claim silver, with Trinidad and Tobago in third.

Miller said afterwards: 'The US guys know we've been just behind them or thereabouts for a long time, but it's amazing we are finally taking home the gold.

'This is for everyone back home. We can't wait to celebrate.'

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Shark fishing banned in the Bahamas

BBC News, 6 July 2011

Related Stories

• Body in shark 'belongs to sailor'
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The Bahamas has banned shark fishing in its waters and prohibited the sale, import and export of shark products.

Some 40 species of sharks inhabit the waters
of the Atlantic Ocean archipelago

The new law will effectively turn all 630,000 sq km (243,000 square miles) of the Caribbean nation's territorial waters into a shark sanctuary.

The ban was approved by Agriculture Minister Larry Cartwright in the capital, Nassau, on Tuesday.

The archipelago joins Honduras, the Maldives and Palau in outlawing shark fishing.

The government also increased shark-fishing fines from $3,000 (£1,900) to $5,000.

Sharks are considered at risk due to demand for their fins in Chinese cuisine - some 73 million of the sea predators are killed each year, environmentalists say.

Needing protection

In 1993 the Bahamas banned long-line fishing, which limited shark fishing and protected 40 species of sharks inhabiting its waters.

But shark fishing was not banned outright, and when a local seafood company announced last year that it planned to export shark meat and fins to Hong Kong, activists called for a new law to be introduced.

Environmentalists welcomed the ban. Neil McKinney, president of the Bahamas National Trust, which manages the country's resources, said sharks played an extremely important role in balancing the ecosystem.

"They desperately need protection if we're not going to drive them to extinction," AFP news agency quoted him as saying.

Tourism is a major industry in the Bahamas, and shark-diving earns it $80m a year in revenue, according to a recent survey.

The country's main island, New Providence, is home to Jaws Beach, where one of the Jaws films was shot. Last year, the remains of a boatman who had disappeared off the beach were found in the stomach of a tiger shark caught by an investment banker.

The US-based Pew Environment Group said each reef shark brought some $250,000 to the archipelago's economy.

Deputy Prime Minister Brent Symonette said he did not think the ban would affect relations with China, which has increased trade with the Bahamas in recent years.

"This is in keeping with the government's commitment to pursue conservation policies and strategies in order to safeguard the marine and terrestrial environment," the Associated Press quoted him as saying.

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