TIMES

I ndo- Caribb ean

MORTGAGE SPECIALIST

Rita 416-743-1826
Wedding Cards/ Accessories/ Richard Aziz
Bangles and Jewellery Vol 2. No 5 May 2008 Tel: 416-289-3898 ictimes@rogers.com 416-832-7293

V.C.C. issues stamp to mark Centenary Year

Huge celebration of 100 years of Indo-Caribbean Arrival in Canada on May 31

I f you want to get your hands on a unique,
once in a lifetime commemorative stamp
marking the 100th anniversary of Indo-
Caribbean Arrival in Canada, the place to
be is the Vedic Cultural Centre on May 31.
The VCC will be selling keepsake sheets
of the stamps to those attending their major
celebration of the Centenary in Canada and
the 170th anniversary of the arrival of Indi-
ans in the West. The coming of the ships
Hesperus and Whitby to Demerara on May
5, 1838 is the starting point for Indians in
the West. It is also celebrated as South
Asian Arrival Day in Canada, as part of
South Asian Heritage Month each May.
This year the VCC will be bringing out
the best of the last ten years in it annual ex-
hibition and cultural program. Plays, dis-
plays, dances and exhibits that were well
received in the past will be shown again.
Among the items sure to catch the eye are
a display of several dozen photographs of
the Indian indentured immigrants in the
Caribbean in the nineteenth century, a dis-
and the Caribbean that was first shown at
the Museum of Hindu Civilization last year.
The program will also recognize the ear-
liest known pioneer settler from the
Caribbean to Canada, Dr Kenneth Mahabir
of Trinidad, who began the settlement in
Canada when he arrived here in 1908 to
study medicine.
Canadian researcher who went to India re-
cently to help set up a system for Indo-
Caribbeans to trace their long lost relatives
in India. Nalini is doing here research on
the Resurgence, the last ship that returned
Indian immigrants to India in the year 1955.
Mr. Michael Chan, Ontario Minister of
Immigration and Citizenship, is one of the
This is definitely one to mark off on your
calendar for South Asian Heritage Month.
Several other functions marking the Indo-
Caribbean Centenary are also scheduled for
the next few weeks. On May 25 the Fifty
Plus and Seniors Association will be mark-
ing Indian Arrival Day at their meeting at
the Birkdale Community Centre, 1299
Ellesmere Road, Scarborough from 1.30 A
p.m. d
On Sunday June 1 the Indo-Caribbean
Times and indocaribbeanheritage.com web
site are collecting and revealing Indo-
Caribbean arrival stories as they mark the
Centenary at BJ’s Family Restaurant, 1747
Albopn Road, Etobicoke, from 4 pm.
Several other Hindu temples, community
groups, churches, and seniors groups in
Ontario, Manitoba and as far as British Co-
lumbia are holding events to mark the Indo-
Caribbean Centenary. It’s a good time to
remind ourselves that our community has a
long history in this country, and is growing
at a brisk pace as we move towards a sec-
ond century in Canada our new home.

Daughter of
play of Indo-Caribbean achievers in Canada Guest speaker is Nalini Mohabir, the guest speakers at the May 31 function.

Daughter of Professor Kenny the latest victim Burning of Jagdeo effigy, but no

Kidnappings on the rise again in TT the jahajis from

riots, beatings, fires ..yet
PNCR begins street

T
F our kidnappings in the last month have
raised fears that the kidnapping epi-
demic is one the rise again. The last two
lion dollar ransom de-
manded. Talma is the
daughter of Professor
protests in Guyana
he opposition PNCR has beguna se-
Guadeloupe
kidnaps of businessman Amar Bachan and Julien Kenny , retired lec- ries of street protests against rising
businesswomen Phillipa Talma were multi- turer from the University prices, the suspension of the license
million dollar high profile cases where the of the West Indies and of C.N. Sharma and other problems in the
kidnappers successfully extracted large well known environmen- society. The actions have raised fears in the
sums of money from relatives and escaped talist. Talma was released Indian population that they could lead to a
capture. Philippa Talma nine days later after a ran- repeat of the street riots, beatings, and
After a quiet start to the year, kidnappers som of f $53,000 was paid burning of commercial buildings that have
went on overdrive in April, starting withto the kidnappers. characterized many similar street protests
the April 14 kidnapping of Dr Murrie On May 14 , a 14 year old schoolgirl Am- in the past.
Mosodeen in front her Cocoyea apartment. rika Ramdial, was snatched by two men For the moment the PNCR has been con-
She was robbed of her Toyota Corolla mo- outside Holy Faith Convent in Couva, and tent to let marchers in its fairly small
torcar, valued at $150,000, and left tied up
a $1m US ransom demanded. Other kid- protests burn effigies of President Jagdeo,
in an abandoned house in Penal Rock road.naps this year include: and call for the removal of the government.
She untied herself and escaped. La Horquetta businessman Dave See- Security forces have been monitoring the
Then on April 22, Central businessman baran, taken from his home in early protestests very carefully, looking for any
Amar Bachan was snatched outside a Ch- April,with $100,000 ransom demanded. He sign of rowdy behaviour that were typical
aguanas restaurant by bandits driving a was released the next day. of the “slow fyah” and “mo fyah” cam-
BMW motor car. A five million dollar ran- Shannon Bedasie, a 13 year old girl paigns of previous PNC protests that were
som was asked for Bachan, who owns a snatched from her Couva home on Febru- openly aimed at bringing down the govern-
transport and equipment rental company. ary 12 and released near the Queen’s Park ment.
He was released after the payment of an un-
Savannah, Port-of-Spain two days later. Overseas Guyanese in particular have This beautiful young girl at prayer reminds
specified ransom. Zalina Mohammed, Central business- been following the events cautiously and us that many jahajis went to Guadeloupe
On May 2 boutique owner Philippa woman, kidnapped in February, and re- quietly urging the Jagdeo government to and have retained much of their Indian cul-
Talma was snatched in Maraval and a mil- leased after part of $1m ransom paid. stand firm and put down any violence. ture and heritage. Picture by J.S. Sahai.

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CANADA & COMMUNITY NEWS Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 3
TT seniors graduate from 1 year Canada to apologise
computer course with honours to Indo-Canadians
for Komagata Maru
tragedy of 1914
Finally, Canada will formally apologise
to the Indians for the Komagata Maru
tragedy of 1914 and acknowledge the hurt
caused to the community.
The Komagata Maru ship brought 376
Indians to Canada in 1914 in violation of
the racist immigration laws of that time. But
it was into allowed to anchor here and
forcibly sent back to India after two
months. On its return to India, many pas-

Canadians giving
sengers were shot dead by British India po-
lice in Calcutta.

great help to Guyana

Visiting Islamic scholar Shaikh Moeen
Shirley Russell (centre) receives her certificate from Farouk Hydal (right) President of ul Haq (above) has said that Caribbean peo-
the Trinidad and Tobago 50 Plus & Seniors Association of Canada at a recent graduation ple resident in Canada have been contribut-
ceremony, with enthusiastic support from Indra Mohammed (left) and Aliceson McLeth- ing hugely towards the charitable work of
cie (right). They were all part of the 30 strong seniors group from the association who the Central Islamic Organization of Guyana
graduated from the year long course at Seneca College, which was funded by New Hori- (CIOG).
zons for Seniors. President Hydal and association founder Rasheed Sultan-Khan also took Speaking recently at a fundraising din-
the program. There was tremendous support for the course, which brought many of the sen- Komagata Maru, guarded by the warship ner at the International Muslim Organiza-
iors into the computer world for the first time. They have begun to research health issues Rainbow Cruiser and police boats, leaving tion (IMO) in Rexdale, Haq said that since
on the internet, use e-mail and common computer programs, catch up on the news from Vancouver harbour. its formation in 1979 the CIOG had been
the Caribbean, and relate to their children and grandchildren. Some of the seniors reported helping thousands in Guyana, where last
that criticism from younger family members about their computer ignorance pushed them Making this commitment to the Indo- year its budget was $136 million Guyana
into taking the course. Several have acquired their own computers and are using them to Canadian community at a gathering in Sur- dollars. Distributed $156,000 Canadian to

Richard &
reduce their previous isolation and connect with family and friends across the world. rey, B.C., Jason Kenney, secretary of state 1,080 recipients, supported 120 masjids,
for multiculturalism and Canadian identity, given medical and dental assistance, helped
said the government would soon tender a

Prabha
flood victims and survivors of the recent
formal apology on the issue in the nation's massacres.
parliament. The CIOG is running five schools, em-

launch
The government has already apologised ploying 21 teachers for Islamic education.
to Chinese Canadians for the so-called head Over 100 underpriveleged children are
tax that was imposed on them (from 1890 to being helped through school by Canadian

Caribbean
1925) to deter their immigration to Canada. sponsors. Other Canadians have been send-
Kenney said the federal government would ing barrels of clothing, utensils, spectacle
also make funds available to the Indian

Showtime
frames and foodstuff that are dearly needed
community for building a Komagata me- in Guyana.
morial. The local arrangements were made by

Popular radio host and cultural entrepre-
neur Richard Aziz has stepped up into tele-
vision broadcasting with a half hour
Television
He also hinted that his government will Fazil Yusuff , Chair of CIOG Canadian
work with provincial (state) governments to Support Group and a number of other Mus-
have a Komagata chapter in school text- lim Leaders. To give support Call Fazil
books. Yusuff at 416-917-4689; email: fazil@sym-
”It is the biggest step for the Indian com-
emanating from the Caribbean, with partic- patico.ca .
munity in Canada. I never expected this to
Jamaica sends seafood
ular attention to artistes of Caribbean origin
happen when I raised this issue first in 1997
working in Canada. It will include talent,

program “Caribbean Showtime”, airing on
cable every Saturday from 9.00 – 9.30 a.m.,
as well as on Bell Expressview 219 and Star
Choice 346.
Richard and his partner Prabha Jerryban-
dan have put together a package of news,
interviews, entertainment and features with
a strong Caribbean flavour aimed squarely
at the huge Caribbean population in
Canada. Indo-Caribbean and Afro-
Caribbean culture are major parts of the
programming.
Caribbean Showtime is designed to
showcase an array of the diverse culture
packers to Canada
and later introduced a petition in parliament
entertainment, news and issues which are
in 2002,” said former MP Gurmant Gre-
instrumental in fostering an awareness of
wal.
Caribbean people and culture as well as a
Speaking at a local Ghadar Mela in Au-
forum to represent the vibrant Caribbean The seafood industry in Canada is open-
gust 2006, Prime Minister Stephen Harper
community which is an integral part of ing its doors to female Jamaican workers,
promised to study the Komagata issue.
Canadian life. and already 19 workers have come to to
”Like any country, our country is not per-
Richard, who has roots in Trinidad, began start the process. Another 18 female work-
fect. We haven't always lived up to our own
his journey in Canadian media began al- ers are geting ready to head for New
high ideals. I (also) want you to know that
most ten years ago on Chin Radio AM Brunswick to package seafood in Canada.
the government of Canada acknowledges
1540. The radio program Shabnam Radio The women, who range in age from 21
the Komagata Maru incident and we will
has grown to include his own internet radio to 39. The workers will be employed at
soon undertake consultations with the Indo-
production shabnamradio.com, which Cape Bald Packers Limited in the province
Canadian community on how best to recog-
broadcasts the radio program world wide of New Brunswick. They will be packaging
nise this sad moment in our history,” the
via the internet. seafood for domestic and export purposes.
prime minister had said.

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COMMENTARY
Indo-Caribbean Times is
published monthly in Toronto
by Indo-Caribbean Times Ltd.
Editor/Publisher: Ram Jagessar
Editorial Committee:
Reynold Ramdial, Gulcharan Mo-
habir, Lloyd Harradan, Sandy
Kissoonsingh, Roop Misir, Deoraj
Narine, Krishna Nankissoor,
Rudy Lochan
Offi
ficce: 17 Gaiety Drive,
Toronto ON Canada M1H 1B9
Tel: 416-289-3898
E-Mail: ictimes@rogers.com
Opinions given in this newspaper
are those of the authors and do
not necessarily reflect the views
of the Indo-Caribbean Times.
We welcome letters, e-mails and
comments on matters relevant to
Indo-Caribbeans in Canada and
abroad, and also those at home in
the Caribbean. All content must
comply with the requirements of
Canadian law.
A copy of this newspaper is
posted on the internet in as a pdf
file immediately after publication,
and the entire contents can be
read online by anyone with a
computer and an internet con-
nection.
Past and current issues of the IC-
Times can be found at
http://www.esnips.com/web/Indo
-CaribbeanTimes
Readers are also invited to look at
the website
www.indocaribbeanheritage.com
which contains abundant infor-
mation on Indo-Caribbeans in
Canada and our Caribbean her-
itage and history.
COMMENTARY
Blog on African marginaliza-
tion by T. King
"A ploy to stir up racial feelings."
"Produce evidence, not arbitrary examples
of marginalization. "
"A case can be made for marginalization
without the use of statistics."
Those are just some of the headlines writ-
ten by some letter writers on the subject of
African Guyanese Marginalization. Every-
one, including African Guyanese and their
leaders know there is no such thing in
Guyana as "African Guyanese Marginal-
ization."
Like I said before and will say it again.
We will always hear the cries ofAfrican
Guyanese Marginalization in Guyana. It
will never stop as longas the President of
Guyana is not an African Guyanese. His
name is Bharrat Jagdeo and is of East In-
Indo-Caribbean Times
My story of arrival in Canada -1989
From the editor’s desk
T he Indo-Caribbean
Times and www.indo-
caribbeanheritage.com are
collecting arrival stories of
Indo-Caribbeans at our June
1 celebration of 100 Years
of Indo-Caribbean Arrival in
Ram Jagessar Canada from the year 1908.
There must be over 150,000 such stories
among the 225,000 plus Indo-Caribbeans in
Canada who have come here to live, and we
want them as a collective picture of our
people’s coming to this new land. This is
mine.
I always say my family made a 30-30
switch when we arrived in Canada in De-
cember 1989 with our shiny new visas and
hopes of a new life. We had left Curepe in
North Trinidad where the temperature was
a steaming 30 degrees Celsius, and were
headed for Sudbury in Northern Ontario
where we discovered it was a frigid minus
30 at my sister’s home. No more extreme
switch could be imagined.
I had visited Canada before, once on a
family vacation in 1985 and by myself in
1988 preparing for migration to Sudbury .
But that was in summer when it was warm
and bright, and the people so friendly. We
had a good life in Trinidad , with good jobs,
the house, the cars, savings in the bank,
friends everywhere. But when we looked at
the future for our two young sons the pic-
ture was not so promising. We had gotten
tired of the racism and discrimination
against Indians, tired of our position as sec-
ond class citizens, tired of being ruled by
incompetent and racist black people.
So it was off to Canada , selling house,
car, liquidating our assets and leaving be-
hind hundreds of family and friends and a
guaranteed future.
My brother in law met us at Pearson Air-
port , and I laughed when he handed out the
winter outfits. There was a thick pair of
gloves like a wicketkeeper gloves, a coat
like a small mattress, thick hat and scarf
like a beach towel. He said we didn’t know
how cold it was in Sudbury.
On the way up Highway 400 we stopped
at a McDonalds and saw our first snow
coming down. My son Arvind was so ex-
cited he ran about in the parking lot catch-
ing snowflakes on his tongue and we
African marginalization just nonsense
laughed ourselves silly.
dian descent and he is the current elected
President of Guyana for all Guyanese. It
does not matter even if every other African
Guyanese are employed. It does not matter
evenif every other African Guyanese owned
their own homes. It does not mattereven if
every other African Guyanese are better off
today than they were prior to 1992.
As long as an African Guyanese is not the
ruler of Guyana the drum beat will roll and
we will never stop hearing the cries of
African Marginalization.
Under Burnham and Hoyte's illegal rule,
African Guyanese and the majorityof
Guyanese were worse off than they are
today.Yet we never heard their cries of
African Marginalization and or Guyanese-
Marginalization.
I bet you, let an African Guyanese espe-
cially from the PNC side rule Guyana
again. There will be no more cries of
African Guyanese Marginalization. So to
all those who are crying African Marginal-
ization. To those who are saying bring the
proof and those who are saying there is
Coming into Sudbury later that evening
was like entering a new world. Snow was
piled three feet or more in the yards, and the
streets were empty. You wouldn’t know
people lived there except for the lights in
the windows and the smoke in the chim-
neys. The fresh snow in my sister’s yard
was frozen stiff and it crunched like pop-
corn when you walked on it. That night I lit
a deya as usual and put it under the pine
tree, as there was no mango tree available.
In half an hour the oil had frozen solid and
the light went out. This was Canada in prac-
tice.
The family soon discovered that we were
like babies, “born again” in a new country.
We knew nothing and nobody, and our pre-
vious experience was useless. I had to learn
everything fresh, such as how to walk on
snow and ice, how to dress (starting with
thermal underwear , something totally new
to us), how to talk, how to drive an auto-
matic car after getting my driver’s permit
again, where to find the grocery, doctor and
barber, how and where to find a job.
I still remember those stupid job applica-
tions I sent out in handwriting, “ I beg to
submit my application for the position of
…….” Nobody replied, and I found that all
my Trinidad experience meant nothing.
Canada was in a recession. Jobs were al-
most impossible to find in Sudbury even for
those who lived there. Recent immigrants
were at the bottom of the ladder. The first
job I found two months later was a one day
task of sweeping up gravel in front of the
senior’s home. My wife could not find a job
as a science teacher, not even in supply
teaching, and her first job was in the kitchen
of a Red Lobster restaurant.
In the blink of a five hour plane flight and
four hour drive we had become ignorant,
helpless immigrants with no contacts, no in-
fluence, no idea what to do, and not a lot of
money to do it with. There were just a cou-
ple dozen Indo-Caribbeans in Sudbury , one
Hindu temple with mostly Hindus from
India, and no West Indian grocery. It was
very strange living in a place where you
could go around the whole day and not see
a single face that you knew. For a long time
I didn’t look at people’s faces. What was
the point when you didn’t recognize any-
body?
We stayed in Sudbury for six years, get-
noAfrican Guyanese Marginalization, You
now know why the cries of African-
Guyanese will continue. Save your time
and breath. Most Guyanese are too clever
and too smart to figure this out and not let-
them rape Guyana ever again.
They will cry and protest the suspension
of Sharma TV station, VAT, foodprices, gas,
housing, water and electricity, pot holes in
roads, rainfall in the guise of fighting for
the people.
Guyanese are too smart to see what they
are really crying and fighting for.They are
fighting to rule Guyana and Guyanese once
again the way they did from 1964 to 1992.It
is that simple.
T. King
Papers leaked, CAPE
exam cancelled
Disgraceful! That was how former edu-
cation minister Clive Pantin described the
leak in Caribbean Advanced Proficiency
APRIL 2008 Page 4
ting occasional jobs but nothing like what
we wanted, making a few friends and get-
ting to know the city a little. But while we
had come to Canada we did not feel we had
“arrived”. We were still uneasy brown out-
siders in a sea of contented white Sudburi-
ans.
I decided to make a break with Sudbury
and came down to Toronto to look for a job.
Here I found myself again a stranger with
few contacts and no knowledge of how
things ran. Other than one friend from
Trinidad and my wife’s relatives, it was al-
most like Sudbury again. But this time it
was different.
An Indo- Trinidadian woman helped me
to get a good job as coordinator at the
Council of Agencies Serving South Asians
(CASSA), and one of the directors, Clive
Ramdeen, was an Indo-Trinidadian too.
Not long after Clive asked to use the board
room for some Trinidadians to hold a meet-
ing and of course I agreed, and decided to
attend myself.
I will never forget that day when seven-
teen Trinidadians trooped into our board-
room at CASSA. I had not seen so many
Trinis in all the time I had been in Toronto
. They had come to form an Indo-Trinida-
dian Canadian Association. Reynold Ram-
dial was elected the president and they
made me the secretary although I was not
even part of the original group.
That was arrival in Canada for me. We
started organizing the group and I met
dozens and hundreds of other Indo-Trinida-
dians, and later Indo-Guyanese and others.
I realized there were tens of thousands of
Indo-Caribbeans very much like me in
Toronto and Canada . My wife and chil-
dren came down from Sudbury and we got
the better jobs, bought the house and made
Canada our home. My Indo-Caribbean Ar-
rival in Canada was at that CASSA board-
room in 1996, when I made a real
connection with people I could recognize
and like.
(If you have an arrival story you would like
to share, send it over to us at
ictimes@rogers.com, or mail to 17 Gaiety
Drive, Toronto ON M1H 1B9 or bring it
over to the June 1 celebration at BJ’s Fam-
ily Restaurant, 1747 Albion Road, Toronto,
from 4.00 pm. We will post it on the web-
site, use in the ICTimes or at the function.)
Examination (CAPE) papers and the subse-
quent cancellation of the examinations.
The former NAR minister said: "The leak
of the examination papers has put a blemish
on our character as mature citizens. The
world is looking at us and we have been
placed at a low level because they would
think that our society is corrupt."
He said when he was Minister of Educa-
tion, "we made sure of the strict confiden-
tiality of these papers. Only the Permanent
Secretary and I had copies to the keys
where the papers were kept. We were ex-
tremely cautious about those papers for fear
of leaks."
Zena Ramatali, president of the National
Parent Teachers Association, cried shame
on those who leaked the papers and the par-
ents who allegedly forked out $5,000 to buy
the papers. She opposed calls by parents to
ban the CAPE and return to the GCE ex-
aminations.
"I cannot make such statements until we
meet and discuss the issue at a general
council meeting. But I feel that values and
morals must be taught in schools to ensure
our youths know about honesty.
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO NEWS Indo-Caribbean Times
Caroni workers told: TT group wants a
Plant land
monument to chutney
icon Sundar Popo
or lose it!
F
ormer workers of Caroni (1975) Lim-
ited who fail to cultivate the two-acre
plots distributed by Government as part of
their Voluntary Separation of Employment
Programme (VSEP), will lose the land.
Agriculture Minister Arnold Piggott said
the leases were given with an understand-
ing that agricultural production would
begin within a specified time-frame and at
all times, 75 per cent of the land must be
used for agricultural purposes.
"Failure to comply with these require-
ments can result in the land reverting to the
State," he said. Leases for 7,800 two-acre
parcels would be distributed within the next
few weeks. He handed over 88 leases to
begin the process of distributing legal pa-
perwork on the promised land.
Gov't looks to
Guyana for food
High food prices and shortages of basic
foods such as rice and flour has sent the TT
government looking to Guyana and other
Suth and Central American neighbours for
cheaper food supplies. Guyana is being ac-
tively targeted for food crops such as dried
coconuts, peeled coconuts, eddoes, ginger,
pineapples, green plantain, pumpkin, rice,
rice bran, bora bean (bodi), limes and sweet
potato.
Government has also expressed interest
in importing goods from El Salvador,
Nicaragua, Panama, Guatemala and Hon-
duras. This would be an extension of the ex-
isting Caricom-Costa Rica free trade
agreement which is geared towards en-
hancing the importation of cheaper and
high quality food products.
Ease in passport
application crisis
There is no need to line up at dawn to
apply for a passport any more, now that a
passport appointment system has been
started.
With the new system applicants can call
in and make an appointment, instead of
lining up before 7 am when the offices
open.
Since the start, some 19,974 appoint-
ments are already scheduled for citizens
seeking to apply for or renew their pass-
ports. Citizens of T&T can make appoint-
ments via telephone on 669-4677 to visit
any of the passport office locations in
Trinidad or Tobago.
MAY 2008 Page 5
Flour Mills tries Hard times has
special sale of
them eating “dog
The late Sundar Popo in his red convertible
A monument to Trinidad ’s pioneer chut-
ney singer the late Sundar Popo may soon
be going up next to this home, if the Sun-
dar Popo Monument Committee finds
enough support for the project.
Gowtam Maharaj, chairman of the Sun-
dar Popo Monument Comitteee, is calling
for help in construction of a life-sized mon-
ument of the late chutney-soca artiste and
national icon at the corner of Lalbeharry
Trace and Papourie Road , Barrackpore (a
stone's throw away from Sundar Popo's res-
idence).
Sculptor Prabhu Sawh, whose works in-
clude the renowned Siewdass Sadhu Statue
at the Temple in Sea Car Park, Waterloo ,
has been contracted to start work on the
Sundar Popo monument from this month.
He will start work on Sundar Popo's monu-
ment from May 2008.
Bullets
The group is trying to get possession of
a 50 square feet parcel of land, as well as
funding of $145,000 TT to complete the
project.
Committee members include the Hindu
Seva Sangh which built the Sewdass Sadhu
Monument at Waterloo, the Meridesh
Committee Chaguanas, Achievers' Women
Group of Barrackpore, Barrackpore Hindu
Sabha, a grouping of ten temples, and the
Blue Birds Sports and Cultural Organiza-
tion.
Organizations and individuals in Trinidad
and abroad who are interested in support-
ing the monument project and preserving
the work of Sundar Popo can contact Gau-
tam at 868-318-0596, Mrs. Keyso Popo at
868-654-0350 or mail the committee at 36
Ramsabad Trace, Penal.
Oma Panday survives
bypass surgery
Oma Panday, wife of former prime min-
ister Basdeo Panday, has come through two
hours of open heart surgery and is recover-
ing well.
Mrs Panday was out of the Intensive Care
Unit within 24 hours of the operation, her
husband said.
Mr Panday confirmed the situation after
his wife underwent surgery for blocked ar-
teries at a north London hospital.
cheap food rice” in Trinidad
S
With an acute shortage of rice (both par-
boiled and white), several grocers have re-
tung by complaints of rising food ported an increase in the sale of ‘‘dog-rice’’
prices, government and the National (coarse rice). It’s believed people are eating
Flour Mills have started special “cheap the pet rice out of necessity.
food” sales at the NFM's warehouse on An ex-Caroni worker who bought sev-
Wrightson Road, Port of Spain. eral packet of the rice at a supermarket said
Consumers purchased specially dis- he he had resorted to pet rice because he
counted six-packs of milk, juice, corn could not afford the regular rice since the
flakes and even got sardines for as low as shortage had sent rice prices to as much as
$3 per tin. $19 for a two kilo pack.
The Valu Foods brand of assorted juices Pet shops as well as supermarkets own-
put buyers out of pocket by $20 for each ers revealed yesterday that there had been
four-pack of the one litre cartoons they pur- a massive increase in the purchase of pet
chased, while the Valu Foods Cereals were rice. At Mc Bean Feed Depot, Southern
on sale at a discounted price of $48 for Main Road, Couva, an employee said a cro-
every four-pack of the 510g box that was cus bag of pet rice, weighing 100 pounds,
bought. This means the buyer paid $12 for sold at $307 and was sold out. A customer
every box. said if a person carefully picks through the
One customer from Woodbrook said she rice, removing pebbles, grain sheaf and
was impressed with the prices. She said, other trash, what remains could be consid-
"You know how long I haven't seen six tins ered edible rice.
of condensed milk for $30." Pet rice consists of coarse rice grains split in
She said she longed for the times, not two and which are discoloured because they
too long ago, when $5 could get a mother a are not polished like normal rice.
tin of milk to send "the children off to
$40 lunches at UWI
school".
has students reeling
As part of their joint venture food import
programme, Government and NFM have
been aiming to bulk buy and re-sell cheaper
Students at the University of the West In-
food to citizens, despite the rising cost of
food internationally. dies at St Augustine are being hit hard by
NFM is planning to set up more ware- rising food prices, with many having to
house food sales in several areas of the fork out an average of $40 for lunch each
country including South Trinidad and day on campus.
Carlsen Field. Some of the 16,000 plus students bring
Last year the company imported and sold their own lunches, but they are in the mi-
several types of meat at specially low nority.
prices. Others who spend the entire day on cam-
It explains that cheaper prices were pos- pus have no option but to buy food, some-
sible since import deals entered into in- times three times a day, said the Students
cluded the importation of bulk quantities of Guild National Affairs committee chairper-
goods with smaller margin payments. son Shinel Granger.
Indo-Caribbean Times &
IndoCaribbeanHeritage.com
Invite you to celebrate
100 years of Indo-Caribbean
Arrival in Canada
Sunday June 1, from 4.00 p.m.
BJ's Family Restaurant
1747 Albion Road, Toronto
(South side of Albion, at Highway 27)
It has been a full century since the young medical student Kenneth Mahabir
from Trinidad and the Demerara (Guyana) immigrant M.N. Santoo came to
Novia Scotia in 1908 to signal the presence of Indo-Caribbeans in Canada.
Today Indo-Caribbeans number over 225,000 across Canada and are building
a strong community in this new land. Join us in celebrating our history, our
culture and heritage during South Asian Heritage Month 2008. Bring along
your arrival story in Canada to share.
Program includes:
* Musical entertainment with Randy & Racquel Mahadeo
* Indo-Caribbean experiences in Canada many years ago: Stories from Memory
Lane of some of those who have helped preserve our culture in Canada.
* Photographs and stories from the indocaribbeanheritage.com web site
* Free Admission
* Buffet dinner available $10
For info: Call 416-289-3898,416-540-0192, 905-796-1683
E-mail: ictimes@rogers.com, lharradan@hotmail.com
Security crisis in TT
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
P TT tops common-
resident of the Downtown Owners and
Merchants Association (Doma) Gre-
gory Aboud says human safety in T&T has
reached crisis proportion.
Aboud said while we might or might not
have a food shortage in T&T, we however,
had a security crisis.
“We have a crisis in effectiveness, im-
plementation, acknowledgement and a very
serious crisis reaching panic proportions
now in human safety.”
Aboud made the comment at a security
and safety consultation at Crowne Plaza,
Port-of-Spain. She said people were now
looking up to the heavens as a result of the
challenges T&T has been facing.
The Doma head said the value of human
life had reached the lowest and that in some
societies animals and plants had a higher
degree of safety than humans did in T&T.
“No greater threat exists than the current
monumental task facing us in security. I
have great concerns about economic policy,
planning and the need for agriculture...but
we cannot get to one of those single issues
if we can’t be guaranteed that when we
leave for work in the morning we would be
able to return at night.”
Attorney General Bridgid Annisette-
George said the private security industry
was a million-dollar business with 50,000
employees—two thirds of whom worked
Khemraj dies
for unregistered companies.
saving his family
Princes Town burger joint owner Khemraj
Chatoor paid the ultimate price when he
tried to save his family from bandits who
came to rob but stayed to kill.When masked
men broke into his home and began firing
chops wildly, Khemraj Chatoor used his
body as a shield to protect his family.
One Saturday night recently Khemraj and
his wife Seeta closed the burger stall around
11.30 p.m. on Saturday and went to their
home at Pancham Street, Borde Narve Vil-
lage, near Princes Town.
"We went to bed and around 3am I heard
my husband saying to run. I grabbed the
children and started running and screaming.
My parents were in another room but they
could not come out because a man was
holding at gun by them. My husband
wanted to save us from being killed and
now he get killed. He was a loving man
who cared for his family," she said.
Seeta, and three children dashed through
a window and hid in some bushes.
Seeta said minutes after they escaped she
heard her husband scream out for help. "He
just bawl out one time and that was it. The
men then run up the hill and we came out of
the bushes. I saw my husband's feet when I
looked through the door and I knew he was
dead," she said.
The couple's son, 15-year-old Rene, was
chopped on his foot while running from the
men. "I was running to go through the win-
dow and the men were chopping my father
and I get hit with the cutlass on my foot," he
said.
Investigators said they believed the mo-
tive for the killing was robbery. But Cha-
toor said the men did not ask for anything.
"I didn't hear anything. They just started
chopping. And my husband started fighting
back. I had money from sales on the table
and we have other things in the house. But
the men just wanted to kill. They disfigured
my husband's face and almost severed his
head. I could not recognise him," she said.
Indo-Caribbean Times
wealth in Privy
Council appeals
Trinidad and Tobago sent 98 appeals to
the London based Privy Council in the the
last five years, more than any other Com-
monwealth country. The figures prompted
Vice President of the Law Association,
Hendrickson Seunath SC, to note that
Trinidad and Tobago has become a “liti-
gious society.” Second in the appeal list was
Jamaica, which had 70, while Mauritius had
44. The latest statistics show that this coun-
try entered 27 appeals to the London-based
Judicial Committee in the year 2007, repre-
senting 28 percent of all appeals entered
from all of the countries under the jurisdic-
tion of the court. The amount represents a
spike in appeals entered, which numbered
19 for 2006, and just seven for 2005. Of the
2007 appeals, six were dismissed, five were
allowed and 19 were left pending for 2008
Now it's (water
truck) hijacking!
With cutlasses at their necks, truck driv-
ers are being hijacked by desperate vil-
lagers to deliver water to certain parts of the
country. The latest incident took place last
Friday in Biche and Plum Mitan, on the
outskirts of Rio Claro, when villagers des-
perate for water jumped up on the water
truck and told the driver where to deliver
water". With sharp cutlasses at his neck, he
had no choice but to comply.
A local county council official said "There
are areas that (water) lines have been laid,
but don't have a supply and there was never
a supply in these lines."
He added that 60 per cent of residents of
the Rio Claro/Mayaro region did not have a
pipeborne water supply and the other 40 per
cent who had "yard taps do not receive a
regular supply".
He said: "People do not care about who is
responsible, whether it's WASA, or burst
mains, but they tell me, 'You are the chair-
man, you are the local representative. I
want water. You want me to bring my chil-
dren by you or what.' But they don't know
that I myself don't have water."
Panday says murder
conviction rate 1 in 1000
Opposition leader Basdeo Panday says
the 76 per cent increase in homicides re-
ported over the last weekend is the result of
government's failure and refusal to address
the problems plaguing the justice system.
"Citizens continue to fall victims to crime
and criminals because of the state of the
justice system. Criminals know that the sys-
tem has collapsed and that is why they con-
tinue to terrorize the population without
fear.
Criminals know that the police do not
have vehicles and modern resources to
catch them and that even if they are caught
the system is so dysfunctional and ineffi-
cient that they will escape punishment.
It is a statistical fact that of every 1,000
murders, 999 killers walk free. The convic-
tion rate is one in every 1,000.
Two state witnesses killed in one week
Iseven
Ishmael Drayton was the second State
Ramesh completes
march to bring
witness to be silenced in a week when
bullets were pumped into his body
down government
on last Thursday at Seventh Avenue,
Barataria.
He was one of two men who were killed
that night, taking the murder toll to 158.
Last year's comparable murder toll stood at
91.
Drayton was riding his bicycle along
Seventh Avenue when a man ran up to him
and shot him seven times. He was killed in-
stantly.
Police said Drayton was assisting the
police with their investigation into the mur-
ders of two teenagers, Dexter Williams, 19,
and Keston Andrews, 16, who were shot
dead at Third Avenue, Barataria, in late
April 2007.
The day before, another State witness
who refused to be part of a witness protec-
tion programme was killed and dumped at
Carlsen Field, Chaguanas.
Police said that Daniel Roberts was
scheduled to testify in the Arima Magis-
trates' Court on Thursday against Chad
Eastman, Chidi Simmons and Kirk John-
son. The men are charged with the murder
of Anthony Figaro, who was killed on Oc-
tober 17, 2005. Roberts, of Bon Air,
Arouca, was the State's star witness.
Killed for $500 Birth certificate
wait is agony
and beers
RIO Claro bar owner Kumar Simboonath
had planned a massive chutney show last
month at his businessplace the Triangle Too
Amphitheatre and Sports Club, to celebrate
his 51st birthday.
Kumar never made it to 51, as he was
killed by a single bullet to the head at his
bar.
His son Shiva, 21, said three men ran out
of the bushes surrounding the building and
shot his father once in his right temple. The
bandits escaped with $500 and beers
Shiva said he awoke to a loud explosion
around 10.30 a.m. and found his father
lying at the entrance of the bar, bleeding
from his head.
Villagers believed that the three bandits
who had a gun and a cutlass hid in the
nearby bushes to stake out Simboonath's
movements. After killing the businessman,
the men escaped on foot.
Cop accused of
raping woman in
Arouca station
A veteran police officer with 15 years ex-
perience has been accused of raping an
American citizen in the Arouca police sta-
tion when the woman went to inquire about
her boyfriend. According to reports, the
woman was inquiring about her boyfried
who had been detained for assault of a rel-
ative. The officer took the woman up-
stairs the station, where he allegedly had
sex with her. He was positively identified
at an identification parade by the woman, a
nursing assistant, and charged.
MAY 2008 Page 6
With the aid of a walking stick, Member
of Parliament for Tabaquite Ramesh
Lawrence Maharaj yesterday completed his
three day march to bring down the govern-
ment.
Maharaj sprained his left ankle during the
first day of his walk from Tabaquite to Port
of Spain on last Saturday.
But he insisted that the injury would not
affect his mission in any way. "I suffered a
torn ligament but I am determined to com-
plete my walk. This would not affect me in
any way," he said.
He walked from Carry Junction,
Tabaquite to Poonah Village, Williamsville
on the first day, and ended his second day at
Gasparillo Junction.
Maharaj was flanked by Chaguanas West
MP, Jack Warner, Caroni East MP, Tim
Gopeesingh, and Opposition Senator, Wade
Mark.
Children bearing flags and placards
which read "We want a safe place to play"
and "Give us a play park" led the march.
Following closely behind were hundreds of
supporters who held up placards with
"Food prices too high" and "Get rid of the
PNM".
At the start of the march Maharaj said the
time had come to put pressure on the gov-
ernment so that Prime Minister Patrick
Manning would pack up and leave office.
They have done something about the tor-
turous process for getting passports in
Trinidad, but the ordeal to get a birth cer-
tificate remains unchanged.
Long queues outside of Registration
House on South Quay, Port of Spain, from
as early as 6 a.m. have become a regular
sight, as people wait to be issued numbers
to apply for the computer generated birth
certificates.
This system has led to the frustration of
many citizens, who leave their homes in
south and central Trinidad from as early as
4 and 5 a.m. to apply for the birth certifi-
cate, only to be told when they get to Reg-
istration House-that they are late, there are
no more numbers and they need to return
the following day.
Foreign based Trinidadians who try to get
their certificates during visits home have
been specially angered by the system.
Registrar General Karen Bridgewater ex-
plained they have been opening their doors
at 6 a.m. to accommodate 300 applicants
daily, the same number since the advent of
computer generated birth certificates.
"Besides the Port of Spain office, there
is the San Fernando office, the mailing-in
system and we have also started a new ini-
tiative called TT Connect. This is an initia-
tive between the Ministry of Public
Administration and the Registrar General's
office and is a step toward decentralising
the service."
TT Connect, she said, allows persons to
apply for the computer-generated certifi-
cates at the Nalis buildings in Princes Town
and St James. But soon other areas, includ-
ing Chaguanas will have the service, as we
as several other places in the country.
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Manning fires
senior minister
Keith Rowley
P olitical reaction is still continuing after
Prime Minister Patrick Manning dis-
missed Diego Martin West MP Keith Row-
ley, one of his few senior front-line
Ministers, as Trade and Industry Minister.
Rowley has fol-
lowed in the
“footsteps” of his
Trade predecessor
Ken Valley, the
former Diego
Martin Central
MP, who was
axed for the November election. Valley
later accused Manning of having “dictator-
ial tendencies.”
After his dismissal Rowley said he felt he
could not voice his views on certain under-
takings of the Urban Development Com-
pany of T&T (Udecott). He was replaced
after objecting to “certain things” Udecott
was doing with project construction at the
Princes Building grounds where the Per-
forming Arts Building is being built.
Opposition Chief Whip Ramesh
Lawrence Maharaj says the UNC is stand-
ing firm on its position that a Commission
of Enquiry is the only acceptable mecha-
nism for investigating UDeCOTT.
Government has proposed a Joint Select
Committee of Parliament, comprising
three government ministers, to investigate.
But the opposition UNC has dismissed this
as a "a political, partisan enquiry” and de-
manded a fair, independent and impartial
Commission of Enquiry. Rowley is sup-
porting the call for a Commission of En-
quiry.
Indo-Caribbean Times
Can’t buy a TT Get ready for
house even with eggs at $11.31
$120,000 salary a dozen
A monthly income of $10,000 to
$12,000 ($120,000-$144,000 a year)
is not enough to afford a home along the
East-West Corridor.
It was impossible on that income, real es-
tate agent Kerwin Ramsumair said in a re-
cent interview.
"When couples come to me seeking
homes along the East-West Corridor with
that salary I refer them to the HDC (State-
run Housing Development Corporation) be-
cause they can't afford property outside of
the HDC with that income."
Ramsumair said the increase in real estate
prices along the Corridor was influenced by
several factors, including the limited avail-
ability of land in that area, but there were
several other less obvious ones.
"The migration of people from the West
with higher incomes than those who live in
the East and Central, to these areas allow
them to be able to pay more for the prop-
erty there. Although they may not have
been able to afford the $2 million property
in the West they are able to afford $1.2 mil-
lion. "
He gave the example of Arouca, once
considered a rural area but now had an ask-
ing price of $50 a square foot for property.
In upper middle class areas like Maracas
Valley, property is being sold at about $60
to $70 a square foot.
"In places like Valsayn, the land is now
$200 per square foot and residential areas
in the west like Westmoorings and Colum-
bus Circle you can pay up to $500 a square
foot," Ramsumair said.
Be prepared to pay $11.31 a dozen for
jumbo table eggs and up to $9.81 for
medium sized eggs in Trinidad.
It’s the second egg price hike in two
months, with an increase of 96 cents per
dozen only last November.
Egg producers have blamed the price rise
on continuously increasing chicken feed
prices in the last few months.
Chicken meat has been stable at between
$5.25 to $5.50 per pound since last Decem-
ber.
Australia to supply
six Coast Guard ships
Australian company Austral Ships PTY
has confirmed it has secured a contract to
supply six all-aluminium vessels to the
Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard.
The company announced on its website
yesterday that it had secured a contract
from the Government of Trinidad and To-
bago to build six vessels to bolster the
Coast Guard's patrol fleet in surveillance of
local waters and the interception of illegal
drugs.
The boats, powered by two MTU 16V
engines, will have a top speed of 40 knots,
will be armed with three general purpose
machine guns and a 20mm Cannon.
The boats, which measure 30 metres in
length, are to be manned by a 12-member
crew.
The boats are expected to be delivered by
2010, the company said.
MAY 2008 Page 7
Ban alcohol ads,
says professor
The President of the Global Organisation
of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO)
Trinidad & Tobago Deosaran Bisnath,
right, presents Ajeet Praimsingh, with the
GOPIO award for distinguished and meri-
torious service in culture, religion, business
and social and community activism in T&T
U
at the Indian Arrival seminar.
niversity of the West Indies lecturer Dr
Jerome Teelucksingh has called for a
total ban on alcohol advertising saying al-
cohol abuse is destroying T&T.
Speaking at Indian Arrival Day celebra-
tions hosted by the Global Organisation for
People of Indian Origin, Teelucksingh said
that much of T&T’s road carnage is linked
to alcohol consumption.
He said that the T&T National Council on
Alcohol found that 68 per cent of car
crashes are because of alcohol use. He also
called for more counsellors to be hired to
treat people for alcoholism.
“In our primary and secondary schools,
some children bring alcohol in soft drink
bottles. Often during lunchtime or after
school some teachers might visit bars and
rum shops. Every school should have a
counsellor to help children and teachers
who might be developing problems,” he
urged.
GUYANA NEWS
Oil drilling not likely soon
Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 8
Team to probe Can’t pay $50 m garbage bill

Basmattie’s Georgetown is
D Flour prices
death at hospital broke again
espite the euphoria prompted by a

favourable tribunal ruling last year in
the marine dispute with Suriname, it is un-
likely that drilling for oil in Guyana’s wa-
ters will begin soon.
And the ever-climbing prices for petro-
leum may not necessarily spell windfall for
Guyana should CGX Energy Inc, Repsol
YPF and Exxon among other projects find
oil, since the cost of production has also
risen considerably.
The three companies, which have pro-
duction sharing agreements that guarantee
at least half of oil revenues goes to the
Guyana government coffers, are still work-
ing out fine details in preparation for
drilling.
One oil company representative said that
regardless what the United States Geologi-
cal Survey (USGS) says, no one will know
for sure whether there is oil until drilling
starts. The USGS had in 2000 concluded
that the Guyana-Suriname sedimentary
basin contains 15 billion barrels of undis-
covered oil.
to jump 25%
The price for flour is set to rise by 25%
in light of the high price of wheat interna-
tionally, the National Milling Company
(NAMILCO) says.
In a press release, the flour company said
that it has been forced to increase tariffs by
approximately 25% to cushion the high
prices paid for the last and next shipment of
the wheat. The company asserted that since
January last year to date, wheat prices have
increased by over 120% but the price for
flour charged by Namilco has increased by
only 60%.
“This has caused us to suffer losses as
other factors constrained us from further in-
creasing flour prices”, the company de-
clared adding that other Caribbean
countries increased prices at the beginning
of April.
City Hall is in the throes of yet another
A committee has been set up to investi-
gate the death of 28-year-old Basmattie
Balkarran, who died at the Georgetown
Public Hospital two Saturdays ago after al-
legedly being left there for hours without
receiving any medical attention.
A press release from the Georgetown Pub-
lic Hospital Corporation (GPHC) said that
it views with “deep concern”, the article
headlined ‘Patient dies at Georgetown Hos-
pital after left unattended for hours’, in the
Sunday Stabroek.
The article had reported on the death of
Balkarran, who had been deemed an emer-
gency case and rushed to the GPHC from
the Leonora Cottage Hospital earlier in the
day but passed away after she allegedly did
not receive medical attention from the staff
on duty.
“The GPHC is fully committed to finding
out exactly what happened when the patient
crisis. It has racked up a $50 million solid
waste management bill, which it is unable
to honour and has asked that citizens store
garbage in bags sprinkled liberally with
strong disinfectant.
Expressing no surprise that the financial
crisis has occurred, Georgetown Mayor
Hamilton Green said at a recent press con-
ference that the fact was that the city had
inadequate revenue to provide its compul-
sory services.
The two major private contractors re-
sponsible for garbage disposal in the city –
Cevons Waste Management Incorporated
and Puran Brothers Disposal Services –
have again refused to continue their duties
until the municipality has paid them monies
owed.
According to the Solid Waste Depart-
ment, for the first three months of this year,
the municipality has a bill amounting to $50

Buddy’s hotel
According to the release, the company was brought to the Accident and Emer- million for solid waste management.
has heard that this year’s wheat crop in gency Unit and has set up a committee At its press conference, the council ad-

sold to Turkish
Canada and the US are good and this news comprising the Sister in charge of the Acci- vised citizens to store their garbage in large
would result in reduced wheat prices “but dent and Emergency unit and the Assistant garbage bags and sprinkle them liberally
we would not benefit from this until Sep- Director of Nursing, among others to fully with a strong solution of disinfectant.

group Princess
The landmark Buddy’s International
Hotel has been sold to Turkish hotel group
‘Princess’, to the surprise of many
Guyanese.
It has been developed in time for World
Cup Cricket last year at a total cost of
US$12M, and was widely viewed as a sign
of revived fortunes for the hotel industry.
CEO of the hotel Omprakash ‘Buddy’
Shivraj did not comment when questioned
by a local newspaper. The hotel was built
with funding that included five mortgages
from the Guyana Bank of Trade and Indus-
try (GBTI) and the $165.7M advance on the
sale of rooms to the Government of
tember”.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Marketing Cor-
poration (GMC) has begun selling packet
flour under a government initiative to cush-
ion the effects of rising food prices.
In a press release GMC said flour will be
made available daily at the Guyana Shop
located at Robb and Alexander Streets at re-
duced prices. Also, mobile units will be vis-
iting a number of locations to sell the
commodity. On Thursday a mobile unit was
stationed behind the Bourda Mall at Cum-
mings Street from 2pm to 3.30pm. It later
moved to D’Urban Street and Mandela Av-
enue from 4pm-6pm. The one kilogramme
packet of Thunderbolt flour, usually sold at
prices ranging from $195-$220, was sold
for $150.
investigate the matter”, the release asserted.
Relatives had said that Balkarran had
been rushed to Georgetown and arrived at
the GPHC at 10 am, but had not been at-
tended to until they started complaining and
pleading with the nurses to take her into the
emergency room some time after 4 pm. The
woman died around 6 pm the same day.
When contacted for comment on the in-
cident on Saturday, GPHC CEO Michael
Khan said he visited the emergency room
that afternoon and heard the complaints by
the woman’s relatives and had instructed a
nurse to take the woman into the emergency
room. However, Khan said, by the time the
doctor went to look at the patient he found
her gasping and she subsequently died.
Those persons so inclined, it said, can
take their garbage to Le Repentir disposal
site between 7 am and 4 pm.
The mayor said sanitation releases would
be issued to the public shortly in order to
avoid a health crisis, which is possible in
situations as these.
The mayor said that the council is in con-
stant dialogue with the contractors and has
found them to be “reasonable and under-
standing,” and he is sure that a reasonable
compromise will be made in the near fu-
ture.
In the meantime, Green called on busi-
nesses to put a halt to paying “junkies” to
get rid of their garbage.

Fail lie detector

Guyana.
The Ministry of Culture Youth and Sport

test and lose job

has since paid over to the Ministry of Fi-
nance the sum of US$598,000 – approxi-
mately $119.6M – of the $165.7M that the
government had advanced to the hotel. The
remainder of the sum of $46.1M was said to
have been recovered through room nights
at the hotel.
Staff of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit
(CANU) who fail the polygraph test will
have their services terminated says Presi-
dent Bharrat Jagdeo.
Earlier last week Jagdeo revealed that the

Guyana’s first
staff had undergone tests administered by a
member of a US firm in a bid to ensure their

kidney transplant
integrity, which is critical to the country’s
drug fight.

coming soon
Guyana hopes to do its first kidney trans-
plant by June this year, says Minister of
Health Dr. Leslie Ramsammy. The country
recently saw open-heart surgery being done
at home. The minister said that in the past
many persons had to leave the country to
access health services, often at great cost
and inconvenience. Government aims to
continue expanding the boundaries of its
health services, so that Guyanese would
have less reason to leave the country to pro-
tect their health.
He had said that there would be changes
based on the results of the tests. At an in-
formal briefing with reporters at State
House on Saturday, Jagdeo again did not re-
veal the name of the US firm but said that
details would be released this week.
Commonly known as the lie detector test,
polygraph testing utilizes an instrument
which simultaneously records changes in
physiological processes such as heartbeat,
blood pressure, respiration and electrical re-
sistance (galvanic skin response or GSR).
There have been protests that lie detectors
evidence is not admissible in court, and that
dismissal based on the detectors was ille-

It pays to
gal. It is likely that the lie detectors will face
court challenge by the trade union repre-

advertise in the
senting CANU.
Lie detectors are widely used in the USA

Indo-Caribbean
for screening purposes but because of the
unreliability of evidence collected, they are

Times
not used in legal proceedings.
Police: We are not afraid of bandits!
GUYANA NEWS Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 9

T he Guyana Police Force (GPF) says it year-old Parishwar Seepersaud, and Jeffrey
A new daily Where’s the
newspaper for $100 m given
is not afraid of the bandits and has in- Keith, 37, both of Fyrish Village, were re-
tensified its operations with a number of in- turning from from a Suriname trip, when

Guyana is coming
telligence-based raids. the gunmen robbed them of 220 pounds of

to PNCR?
A release from the force said these were fish glue, a 48hpYamaha outboard engine,
conducted in Georgetown and on the East one drum of gasoline and a mobile phone.

Bandits use
Bank and East Coast Demerara along with
patrols, roadblocks and searches.
Staff are being being interviewed and

smoke to trick
Stating that the force supports the view The PNCR has rejected charges by the
expressed by Minister of Home Affairs, hired for a new daily newspaper that’s com-
ing very soon. It’s part of the US$30 mil- government that it could not account for
Clement Rohee that the lawmen must be

aggressive and carry the fight to those in-
volved in terrorism and banditry, the GPF
in a statement, asserted that “the police are
not afraid of the bandits and are going after
them relentlessly, using the intelligence and
other resources available. How-ever, at the
same time we must apply common sense.”
The police have been criticized for erect-
ing barricades outside several of their in-
stallations including Police Headquarters,
Eve Leary.
The statement said that the measures
taken are not intended to be defensive but
are part of a strategy in support of their law
enforcement posture.
“Barriers are in place to reduce the possi-
bility of certain strategic locations being
targeted and to provide a degree of comfort
and security for our ranks.
The measures being used are temporary and
have been used as requisite from time to
time”, the statement said. "
Corentyne family
Armed bandits used a fake fire in the liv-
ing room to get a Number 79 Village, Cor-
riverton family to come out of their locked
bedrooms, only to be terrorised and robbed.
The three bandits broke into the home but
could get no further than the living room,
as the bedroom area was sealed off. They
tried setting a floor mat and curtains alight,
and this brought out owner Vernon Vishnu
to investigate.
Vishnu and his wife Shanta were beaten
and a gun was pointed to the head of their
15 year old son to force them to give up
cash and jewelry.
In the ordeal, which lasted one hour, the
bandits also fired a shot in the two chil-
dren’s bedroom and bound everyone with
tape before escaping with the valuables and
lion investment being undertaken by
Queens Atlantic Invest-ment Inc (QAII),
Industrial Site Ruim-veldt, where Sanata
Textiles used to be.
Chairman and Managing Director of New
GPC Inc, Dr Ranjisinghi Ramroop, of
which QAII is the parent company, has dis-
closed that while there is no date for the
launch, staff are being hired, including
graphic artists, press persons and others
needed for the venture. Editorial staff –
both local and overseas — have been inter-
viewed, and the board is looking at the for-
mat and content of the new paper. Dr
Ramroop said the publication should be
somewhat different from the current news-
papers being printed in Guyana and de-
clared that the quality will be very high. He
would not give the name of the paper.
QAII has imported a state-of-the-art off-
set press with web attachments and it is ca-
pable of printing all books, brochures,
$100M intended to pay its scrutineers.
In a press release, the Government Infor-
mation Agency (GINA) reported that Head
of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger
Luncheon was concerned that the $100 mil-
lion, which it said the PNCR received as a
result of the Guyana Elections Commis-
sion (Gecom) registration exercise to pay
scrutineers had not been accounted for.
According to GINA, Luncheon also said
that there was information available to gov-
ernment that the opposition scrutineers
were being used to agitate against the gov-
ernment to protest.
Further to this, Luncheon at a post-cabi-
net media briefing yesterday accused
Gecom of “apparently” devolving its re-
sponsibility for accounting for public funds
to the PNCR. He noted that it was the Min-
istry of Finance that made money available
to the scrutineers.
Luncheon told reporters that the admin-

Kidnapped
istration would investigate the purported

Chaos reported
important documents including passports. magazines, news-letters and newspapers.
The complex will also have a flexographic misuse of funds by the PNCR.
printing press for the printing of any kind Opposition Leader Robert Corbin dis-

businessman at gold mines

of label for food, in any material, and it's missed the allegations as as government’s
expected to manufacture packages for food intention to divert attention from the real

found dead
The head of missing businessman
Farouk Kalamadeen has been found in a
trench just a short distance away from his
Jiffy Lubes store in Light Street, George-
town. His headless body had been found in
Cowan Street, Kingston three days before.
Kalamadeen disappeared on April 2, while
he was engaged in his usual morning jog-
ging exercise on the Houston Public Road.
He had obviously been kept alive for sev-
eral weeks following his abduction. The
kidnapping of Kalamadeen and the discov-
ery of his body generated a lot of interest
both locally and in the Guyana diaspora,
causing many to wonder if kidnapping was
beginning to resume in Guyana.
and beverages. issues which relate to the rising cost of
This will bring Guyana up to threer daily living in the country. Corbin said he knew
Conditions of lawlessness and chaos are nothing of the government’s claim, adding
newspapers, including the Stabroek News,
reportedly prevailing at a section of the for- that the matter might be one for Gecom.
and the Guyana Chronicle..
mer Omai Gold Mines Ltd (OMGL) min-
ing site in the Essequibo river where
‘raiders’ have commandeered an area and
are pursuing illegal gold mining activities
with the knowledge of the authorities.
More than a dozen private large scale
mining enterprises currently operating at
the site are dumping around fifteen times
more than the allowable limit of toxic tail-
ings from their operations into the Esse-
quibo. The raiders, having occupied the
mining site illegally are even now seeking
to prevent other gold mining outfits from
joining them in their illegal and environ-
mentally hostile pursuits.
The Executive Secretary of the Guyana
Gold and Diamond Miners Association

Pirates strike
(GGDMA) Edward Shields said that while
mining officers from the Guyana Geology

again in Berbice
The much fearer water pirates have struck
again in Berbice, with three gunmen rav-
aging two separate fishing boats.
The first attack occurred just about 300
and Mines Commission (GGMC) are
“monitoring” the activities of the miners
occupying the area they appear powerless
to do anything to curb their worst excesses.
It is believed that some of the rogue min-
ers have further expanded their illegal ac-
tivity to other Omai property on the
opposite bank of the Essequibo River and 4 cylinder

yards Whim foreshore, when a white ves-

sel pulled up alongside the boat operated
by 21-year-old Vishwanauth Singh of Port
Mourant Compound, and his crew mem-
bers, 32-year-old Deonarine Boodhoo and
33-year-old Seenarine Boodhoo, both of
Friendship, Corentyne, and Suraj Persaud,
16, of Race Course Dam, Port Mourant.
Three masked armed men made off with
120 pounds of fish glue, one and a half
drums of gasoline, a battery, a cellular tele-
phone .
The same day another crew was attacked
by the same gang at Eversham. Captain,
Michael Sookram, 42, of Fyrish Village,
and his crew: Terry Henry, 20, and Roop-
narine Harrinarine, 30, both of Kilcoy; 28-
vehicles
that the GGMC had been forced to inter-
vene some time ago to forestall attempts by Some conditions apply
these miners to build a dam in an effort to
divert the river.
According to Shields the GGDMA “can-
not support a gold-mining activity that was
unlawful, environmentally unfriendly and
dangerous to human health. He confirmed
that in view of the congested nature of the
mining area and the absence of some basic
infrastructure including toilet facilities the
risk of disease in the area was high.
Hig prices for gold on the world market
have caused a kind of gold rush in tradi-
tional mining areas of Guyana, with the au-
thorities struggling to keep pace.
BUSINESS
Canada’s housing boom is
over, but no bust expected
C
anada's real estate market is cooling
down slowly to a more balanced
market, but we are not likely to see
a housing collapse like that still taking place
in the U.S. following the subprime mort-
gage crisis. That's the view of Scotiabank
economist Adrienne Warren.
"We have been anticipating lower sales
this year and more modest price increases,"
said Warren, senior economist at Scotia
Economics, after the bank forecast overall
sales 15 per cent below last year's record
levels, with home prices increasing on av-
erage about five per cent.
"We're finally seeing that slowdown ac-
tually appear in the housing data - housing
starts, home sales and price increases."
The Canadian Real Estate Association has
released a survey showing that during April
new listings rose by more than sales activ-
ity, meaning that more houses were put on
the market than those being sold. It became
more of a buyer's market than in any other
month in the past nine years
Calgary and Edmonton are clearly buy-
ers' markets, but other cities throughout
Canada are not there yet.
It's moving away from annual increases
of 10 percent in housing to more like five
percent. But for now most of Canada is still
a seller's market.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
forecast that new home construction in
Canada will slow to 214,650 units this year,
from last year's 228,343, with seven out of
10 provinces registering declines. As well,
the national housing agency says the num-
ber of existing homes sold is expected to
fall by 8.5 per cent.
The downward trend will continue in
2009, CMHC said, with housing starts dip-
ping to 199,900 and existing home sales
crumbling another 2.3 per cent to 465,000
units.
CMHC chief economist Bob Dugan says
"cracks are appearing on the new home
front as well," as demand for new residen-
tial building permits has fallen sharply and
price increases are moderating.
But nobody is predicting a U.S.-style
meltdown. Warren said,"First, home prices
in Canada are not substantially overval-
ued," she pointed out. "Second, there is still
little evidence of widespread speculative
home buying that often accompanies the
late stages of a housing boom."
The CMHC forecast sees average home
prices rising 5.1 per cent this year and 3.3
per cent in 2009, after average annual in-
creases of about 10 per cent from 2002 to
2007. CMHC says prices of existing houses
will rise this year by 9.3 per cent in B.C.,
3.6 per cent in Alberta, 26.1 per cent in
Saskatchewan, 13.5 per cent in Manitoba,
3.5 per cent in Ontario, 4.7 per cent in Que-
bec, four per cent in New Brunswick, five
per cent in Nova Scotia, three per cent in
ELECTRICIAN
Prince Edward Island and 10.5 per cent in
30 years experience
All work according to code
Panel changes: fuses to breakers
Renovations and new jobs
CALL ROY 416-754-2382
Indo-Caribbean Times
IMMIGRATION FORUM
Newfoundland and Labrador.
On the interest rate front, Warren said,
"we do expect that the Bank of Canada is
probably going to lower interest rates a lit-
tle bit more over the next couple of
months." That should also help support the
housing market
Semi going for $249,000
All is not lost in the housing market, says
realtor Mani Singh. There are still some
reasonable deals, like this semi going for
How low
less than $250,000 right now, and lots of
condominiums under $150,000. .
can interest
rates go?
Consumers are starting to see savings on
loans after bold moves by the Bank of
Canada to stimulate a flagging
economy.Loan charges that vary with
changes in the prime lending rate, such as
mortgages and personal lines of credit with
variable rates, have started to fall and are
down about 1.5 percentage points from last
summer.
How low can they go?Economists at TD
Bank Financial Group are predicting the
steepest cuts: half a percentage point in
June and another half in July, with no in-
creases until late next year.
A further reduction to a mere 2 per cent
would leave the bank's key rate little higher
than the recent average annual increases in
consumer prices. But, in contrast to the
United States, our strong dollar has helped
contain the inflation pressures.
If TD economists are correct, and if banks
continued to match the central bank's re-
ductions, the prime business lending rate
would fall from 4.75 per cent to 3.75 per
cent by summer. That would be the cheap-
est prime rate since 2004 and 2002, follow-
ing the terrorist attacks in New York and
Washington.
ING had been charging 4.65 per cent for a
five-year variable rate mortgage, or 0.6 of a
percentage point less than other banks'
prime lending rates. A half-point reduction
would take ING's variable mortgage rate to
4.15 per cent, the lowest in four years.
MAY 2008 Page 10
Fewer Caribbean nationals
will be admitted to Canada
under the skilled workers class. These two
countries along with Jamaica produced the
most immigrants to Canada under the
skilled workers class.
Already the Port of Spain’s office is be-
ginning to discriminate against skilled
workers applicants just to maintain the
By Balwant Persaud
T
quota allotted to it. I know of many cases
where Guyanese nationals are not given any
he Canadian Government has budgeted
points for English although their mother
to admit 215,475 new immigrants in
tongue is English. They are being told by
the Skilled Workers category for the year
the Immigration office in Trinidad to write
2008. This figure is for the whole world.
the IELTS English test.
The budgeted figure for the Port of
Now this IELTS English Test was in-
Spain’s embassy which controls Guyana,
cluded in the Immigration Regulations for
Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname,
persons whose mother tongue was not Eng-
St. Lucia and many of the small islands im-
migration to Canada is 900 to 1,030 skilled lish or English was their second language.
Now the Minister of Immigration, Diane
workers, which in local parlance is “self
Finley is being given wide powers where
sponsorship”. There is no term as “self
she can say who must enter Canada and
sponsorship” in Canadian Immigration
who must not based on their skills and the
Law, as that term is only known to be used
demand for those skills. She can direct im-
in the Caribbean.
migration officers to return applications to
The 900 to 1,030 skilled workers to be
those who she thinks that their skills are not
admitted as Permanent Residents in 2008
needed in Canada. The government of
for the Port of Spain’s embassy includes
Canada is using the large backlogs of ap-
Trinidad, Guyana, Barbados, Suriname and
plications to discriminate against future
almost all the small islands. That means
fewer Caribbean nationals will be admitted skilled workers applications.
as immigrants under the skilled workers
Too much power in the hands of one
category in 2008.
person is wrong in a democracy
The wait time for new immigrants has
also increased by more than 50%.
Since the government and businesses are
Caribbean nationals will now have to wait
saying that there is a labour shortage and
three to four years for their applications to
small population growth, it is simple, just
be completed.
increase the quota of immigrants per
Jim Karygiannis, Liberal MP for Scar-
annum. At the moment the quota for new
borough-Agincourt , said that the “wait
immigrants is about 250,000 per annum.or
time” vary depending on where the immi-
her.
grant is coming from, which is where he
claims the discrimination lies.
Balwant Persaud is a Certified Immigration
“Why are we not looking at people as
Consultant and a Member of The Canadian
people? The wait times should be the same,
Society of Immigration Consultants. For
no matter where you are applying from, “
answers to your problems on this forum,
Karygiannis posits.
send all enquiries to:
This is bad news for skilled Caribbean
balwantpersaud@yahoo.ca or call at
people especially those from Trinidad and
416-431-8845 and in Guyana: 225-1540
Guyana who wish to migrate to Canada
This prize winning photo by Hindustan Times journalist Himanchu Vyas is of a
Jodhpur mother feeding an abandoned fawn along with her baby.
Maurizio’s Detailing
Make your car spotless clean for spring
Complete Mobile Service for total interior
Shampoo and exterior polishing
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Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 11
 Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 12

Manshad still going strong Martiniquan Indian dancer Consuelo Marlin strikes a
Veteran cultural writer and artiste Manshad Mohammed shows he still has something in classical pose in a recent performance.
the takj as he belts out a song at the birthday celebration for Ram Maiahaj.

Sada roti and baigan chokha on their mind Parashakti Mandir celebrates Gopee’s birthday
There’s not much doubt what these men have on their minds. It’s sada roti and baigan Devotional singer Lelawattie (Moonie) Phakera (centre) and musician Sonny Moonilal
chokha, being offered at the 170 annivesary Indian Arrival celebrations at Guyana Na- perform a bhajan at the birthday celebration of Hindu activist Ramnanan Gopeesingh (at
tional Stadium earlier this month. left) next to his uncle Premchand Mahabirsingh.
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 Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 13

Young Arjun turns one year Ram celebrates his 75th with tassa and dancing
Young Arjun (right) tries his best to blow out his candle, with assistance from mother Ram Maharaj reached the milestone 75 years recently and celebrated it with music,
Della, sister Alyssa and dad Pt. Sham Rampersad, at a Hindu puja held in Brampton to dancing, massive amounts of food and dancing. Wife Ruby is seen (centre in pink),
celebrate his first birthday. dancing the night away with friends to sweet sounds from Sylvan Bharath Tass a Group

Indo-Caribbeans at Hamilton South

Asian Heritage Month celebration
Tenny marks birthday 54 with Ramayan Yagna Indo-Caribbeans from the Canadian Indo-Caribbean Association (CICA, the Gita in
Every Home project and elsewhere in the GTA were most present when the Indo-Cana-
For his 54th birthday Hindu activist Clinton “Tenny” Ramkissoon and wife Chandra
dian Networking Council of Hamilton and Surroundings held their Gala Dinner and
wanted nothing better than a Ramayana Yagna as in the old days, conducted by Ram-
Concert of Indian Music & Dance in celebration of South Asian Heritage Month on May
nanan Gopeesingh (extreme left). In the picture Tenny (centre) and Chandra make their
3 at the Hamilton Convention Centre. In the picture above, holding Bhagavad Gitas in
offerings before the sacred fire and the Holy Ramayana. Later this year Tenny will be
hand, are from left, Jane Narine, Basdeo Maulkhan, Mobeen Husain, Ram Sahadeo,
again co-hosting a Ganga Puja in the Mississauga area.
James, and Indra Parma. Gitas were donated by Ganesh Parma. The Networking Coun-
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cil is composed of several South Asian community, cultural and religions groups.

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COMMUNITY NEWS
VEDIC CULTURAL CENTRE cele-
brates 170 Years of Indo-Caribbean Arrival
in the West and 100 Years of Indo-
Caribbean Arrival in Canada at their 10th
annual South Asian Heritage Month pro-
gram on Saturday May 31 starting at 5 p.m.
It features an exhibition focusing on the
100th anniversary of the arrival of Indo-
Caribbeans in Canada. and a cultural/stage
program celebrating the Indo-Caribbean
culture and heriage. Admission is free.
Venus is the Vedic Cultural Centre at
#4345 * 14th Avenue. Markham, (at
Kennedy Road, Markham). For info contact
Dave at 416-663-4037 or 905-475-5778.
THE NORTH AMERICAN MUSLIM
FOUNDATION holds it annual walkathon
raising money for global children May 17,
at Scarborough Civic Centre from 9.00 am
and ends at 4140 Finch Ave E, Scarbor-
ough, at 12 noon. Each participant is re-
quired to raise a minimum of $20.00, and
proceeds go towards sponsoring orphans in
many poor countries. For info contact
Habeeb Alli at416-823-1738 Email:
hab2u@hotmail. Com or see the website
www.namf.ca.
NAPARIMA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
OF CANADA celebrates its 30th an-
niversary with a Dinner and Dance at the
Holiday Inn Select, Brampton on May 24.
Tickets at $60 for members and $65 for non
members are available from Merle at 905-
844-1254 or Norma at 416-283-0675. A
special hotel room rate of $95 is available
for persons attending the function. The As-
sociation holds its Annual General Meeting
on Saturday May 31, at 1.30 pm at the
Montessori Teacher Training Centre, 1050
McNicoll Avenue, Scarborough.
Indo-Caribbean Times
Canada celebrates the Centenary of Indo-
Caribbean Arrival in Canadan at theird their
monthly meeting at Birkdale Community
Center on Sunday 25 May at 1.30 pm.Guest
speaker is Ram Jagessar, editor of the Indo-
Caribbean Times. For more information
please call 416-281-5264.
INDO CARIBBEAN TIMES and
W W W. I N D O C A R I B B E A N H E R -
ITAGE.COM invite you to celebrate 100
years of Indo-Caribbean Arrival in
Canada on Sunday June 1, from starting at
4.00 p.m., at BJ's Family Restaurant, 1747
Albion Road, Toronto (South side of Al-
bion, at Highway 27). Bring along your ar-
rival story to share.
Program includes musical entertainment
with Randy & Racquel Mahadeo, Indo-
Caribbean experiences in Canada many
years ago ( Stories from Memory Lane of
some of those who have helped preserve
our culture in Canada), phhotographs and
stories from the indocaribbeanheritage.com
web site. Admission is free and a buffet din-
ner is available at $10. For info: Call 416-
289-3898,416-540-0192, 905-796-1683 or
E-mail: ictimes@rogers.com, lhar-
radan@hotmail.com.
THE TARIC ISLAMIC CENTRE in its
continued effort of putting on various
events for the Muslim community, is seek-
ing volunteers who can assist with various
projects and events.
If you are interested in volunteering some
of your time in the path of Islam, please
reply to this email with the following info-
mation:
Name:
City you Live:
Telephone Number:
Cell Number:
and reply to rahamutree@rogers.com.
Rukminee makes wedding song CD
Cultural activist, author and singer Rukmi-
nee Beepath recently presented her latest
work, Vivaaha Geet to the National Library
in Chaguanas recently. Due to the numer-
ous requests from secondary school stu-
dents and UWI, Beepath has been
distributing her book to schools and li-
braries across the country.The book con-
tains 108 traditional Hindu wedding songs
and the corresponding meanings.
“The Hindu wedding contains the most
fascinating rituals. It calls on the presence
of the various devis and devtas (gods and
goddesses) associated with Hinduism to
give blessings to the couple who is prepared
to take this step in life,” Beepath explained.
She said the belief is that couples were
connected in another life. As a result, when
they join union in this life they call on the
gods to remove all their bad karmas and
bless them with prosperity.
Beepath’s daughter, Reshma Beepath
Umrau, who is also active in the cultural
field, explained that the rituals associated
with a Hindu wedding takes three days to
complete.
“There is a song for every step taken by
the bride and by the groom in their respec-
tive homes,” she said.
On the third day the couple comes to-
gether at the bride’s home to complete the
ceremonies, then return to the home of the
groom to start their new life.
The book, which is available at local
bookstores is also available in the United
States and the United Kingdom.
Beepath has also released a compilation
of the wedding songs in a CD by the same
name. This compilation contains 20 songs
which are sung as part of the Hindu wed-
ding ceremony.
“Young Hindu boys and girls may be in-
trigued by the amount of rites and rituals as-
MAY 2008 Page 15
complex. However, customs and traditions
are a beautiful aspect of life which has been
handed down to us from generation to gen-
eration,” she said.
“It is essential therefore that Hindus em-
brace, accept and understand the relevance
and significance of these customs, tradi-
tions, rites, and rituals, that are prevalent in
the Hindu wedding.”
Beepath is the eldest of six children of
the popular Holass family of Chatham in
Cedros and has been singing since child-
hood. To complete the book and CD, she
spent long hours with her parents, Samdaye
and Harry Holass, writing songs in Hindi
with the appropriate English translation.
“After providing me with the songs for
this book, my father had one final request
— that I revive this tradition by teaching it
to others,” she explained. The publication
of Vivaaha Geet was a step in fulfilling the
promise made to her father. She is ex-
tremely happy she was able to record the
songs.
“The younger people can now get the
book and follow along on the CD to learn
these very important songs.”
Beepath admits that the tradition of
singing songs to accompany the various rit-
uals in a Hindu wedding is dying. She said
Hindus now prefer to play a song from
India instead of singing the appropriate
song.
“Now I begin to wonder how many tradi-
tions are being lost through neglect?” she
asks. The CD contains such songs as
‘Shraddha se Karte Naman’, ‘Kaykaray
Duwaaray’, ‘Dheeray Dheeray’, ‘Tiki Leho
Tiki Leho’, ‘ and ‘Maito Dharti puje Aili’
and is available in music shops

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Adult Golf Shirts $5.00
Ladies Leggings and Capri Pants $3.00
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Adult Tee-Shirts in a variety of sizes and colours - $2.00
Wide range of Winter Clothing on Sale
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Wide variety of transfers/screen prints – Babies, Children, Humour, Christmas, topical,

geographical/Souvenir from 50 cents.

“Khuda Kay Liye” a must see film Non-Indian Consuelo Marlin is
ENTERTAINMENT
him to take up arms and join the jihad.
Unlike his brother, Mansoor (Shaan) re- a Martinique Indian dance star
iye
Khuda Ka L
Inaccurate interpretation of religious
books like the Quran, the trauma of liberal
Muslims in Pakistan and Muslim-bashing
post 9/11 forced Pakistani director Shoaib
Mansoor to take the bold step to make
"Khuda Kay Liye", which in many ways is
an eye opener. Centred around Islam, the
film from Pakistan has struck an instant
chord with audiences worldwide because it
touches upon issues that have given rise to
biases against Muslims, thanks to Islamic
fundamentalists. "Khuda Kay Liye" also
focuses on what being a modern Muslim re-
ally means in Pakistan. While it is a tad
lengthy, it works all the way thanks to Man-
soor's narrative skills. And the movie drives
home the point it wants to make without
being overtly melodramatic. "Khuda Kay
Liye" is the first Pakistani film to have a
commercial release in India in more than
four decades. It was released in Pakistan,
the US, Britain and UAE last year. The
narrative revolves around a well-educated
and affluent Pakistani family, whose mem-
bers are based in three continents, and
through them, the director connects inci-
dents that take place in different places.
Mansoor (Shaan) and Sarmad (Fawad Afzal
Khan) are brothers, both in love with music.
They lead an ideal life with their parents in
Pakistan. But Sarmad is influenced by a
fundamentalist group lead by Mullah Tahiri
(Rasheed Naaz). With his conformist views,
he brainwashes the young singer and forces
“Untouchables” clean up at Mastana show
The Untouchables Tassa Group, winners of Children of Mastana 2008 competition.
Four talented friends from Princes Town,
calling themselves the Untouchables Tassa
Group, lived up to their name when they
played their way to the $25,000 first prize
in the finals of the Children of Mastana
2008 competition in Trinidad..
The winning group—comprising Amrit
Roopnarine, 12, Matthew Ramkissoon,
eight, and brothers Amar and Akash
Sookdeo, aged eight and seven respectively,
performed renditions of cikora, chutney
hand, dingolay, and calypso.
The contest, which offered more than
$100,000 in prizes, was held before a large
crowd at the Gulf City Shopping Complex
in La Romaine.
Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 16
fuses to be taken in by the cleric's ideas and started learning various forms of Classical
moves to the US to pursue his music career, Indian dance under the guidance of pioneer
little knowing that he would become a vic- teacher Madame Suzy Manyri and
tim of racial abuse there. On the other hand, Pondicherry dancer extraordinaire Sri
their cousin Maryam, (Imaan Ali) who lives Raghunath Manet.
with her father in Britain, becomes the vic- Then she left for England to study Bharat
tim of her father's conservatism and ortho-
Natyam for three and a half years under her
dox nature. She is tricked into marrying Master Sri Prakash Yadagudde, at the
Sarmad, who locks her up in an unknown renowned Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Lon-
place near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. don, where she performed her Arangetram
The film's climax sees an argument be- in 2002.
tween Maulana Wali (Naseeruddin Shah) Later on, in 2004 Consuelo went to Chen-
and Mullah Tahiri. Through Naseer's char- nai, India for six months to get further train-
acter, the director has tried to show how ing under famous dance guru and
fundamentalists misinterpret the Quran and choreographer Smt.Chitra Visweswaran.
corrupt the mind of the youngsters, forcing Consuelo, who has been requested to per-
them to turn against women and music, art form at many an official event on her island
and culture. Focusing on the dilemma of and abroad, has now gained full-fledged
I
young, liberal Muslims, who don't have any recognition on her island as a French West
connection to terrorism, the film shows Indian Bharat Natyam specialist.
n March 2008, Consuelo Marlin was
how the lives of these youngsters were She is currently running Apsara, her own
busy supporting L'Union des Femmes
turned upside down when terrorists struck Yoga, Dance and Culture Institute, in Fort-
Martiniquaises, a feminist association pro-
the twin towers of the World Trade Center de-France.
viding support to the distressed on Mar-
in New York on Sep 11, 2001. It highlights Consuelo Marlin is also an active certi-
tinique island, the French West Indies.
how almost all Muslims were treated as ter- fied Hatha Yoga teacher.
Gracing the Municipal Theatre of Fort-
ror suspects post the attack. Mansoor's Interestingly, she is not of indian descent.
de-France with two consecutive evening
narrative is supported by strong perform- After her secondary studies, her now proud
performances on the theme In every woman
ances by the entire cast. Rasheed Naaz's parents had to accept her aspiration to be-
dwells the Goddess, Consuelo offered the
piercing eyes send a chill down your spine, come a professional Indian Dance étoile.
moneys collected to support UFM's social
while Shaan, who represents liberal mod- Consuelo Marlin has been instrumental in
work.
ern Muslims, wows audiences with his bringing the culture of India to the Martini-
The daughter of Monsieur Luc Marlin, a
emoting and brings tears to the eyes when can people who greatly appreciate her tal-
famous Martinican painter, and Madame
he is being tortured in prison. Naseer's ent.
Michelle Mondesir, a Culture officer at
Pan blooms in
stupendous performance enhances the film
SERMAC, Fort-de-France, Consuelo
Guyana bans reggae
storyline. Mansoor has an innate under-
standing of music, which is reflected well
U.S. colleges
singer Bounty Killa
in "Khuda Kay Liye". The film is a must
watch.
Khuda Kay Liye ( translation: In the
name of God, or : For God's Sake) has won The Guyana government has banned Ja-
Columbia University and New York Uni-
many awards, including the Award for Best maican reggae singers, Bounty Killa and
versity have had significant programs
Picture at 31st Cairo International Film Fes- Movada from entering the country, forcing
and/or courses that have featured the steel
tival, and became the highest grossing film cancellation of planned concerts. Home
orchestra and steelpan instrument as inte-
of Pakistan of all time. Iman Ali makes her Affairs Minister Clement Rohee said that
gral components within musical develop-
cinematic debut with this film, playing an Bounty Killa, whose real name is Rodney
ment and the performing arts. The
Anglo Pakistani. Price, is known for his lyrics glorifying
all-steelpan music show “Cool Steel” (usu-
ally heard on Fridays on www.PanOn- guns and bashing gays while Movado is a
TheNet.com) is a monster hit with the security risk.Bounty Killa, last performance
Caribbean college/university community in April ago ended in controversy with a
worldwide. faulty music system and sporadic gunfire.
Major educational institutions in almost
every state in America has had or has
scheduled a major steelband musical
forum, concert or function for 2008. It pays to
Massive cutting–edge steel orchestras of
100 to 125 players can be found in the advertise in the
urban setting of Brooklyn in the summer
months, attracting large audiences to their Indo-Caribbean
performances. Even Hollywood has tapped
into the growing popularity of the steelpan Times
instrument. Last summer hip–hop super-
star WyClef Jean produced a video shoot
that included New York’s Pantonic Steel
Orchestra.
Balwant Persaud
Certified Immigration Consultant
Second place honours and $15,000 Authorized by the Canadian Govt. to Represent
went to ten-year-old Ashley Reyan Clients in Accordance with IRPA Rules
Subah whose performance of a classical Member of the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants
song from the movie Umraw Jaan im-
pressed both judges and patrons.
Canadian Immigration Services
The energetic dance moves of Sitara Skilled Workers Business Class
Baal was enough to earn her the third Work Permits Students Visas
place prize of $12,000. Others in win- Visitor’s Visas Family Sponsorships
ner’s row were, 3rd: Sitara Baal, 4th: Refugees USA Visitor’s Visas
Reena Raykumar, 5th: Shabir and Appeals US Green Card Lottery
Shabira Mohammed, 6th: The Young
Deportation Humanitarian Cases
Achievers Dance Group, 7th: Vishala
Dowtal, 8th: Sharad Raghunath, 9th: Call: 416-431-8845 or 647-284-0375
Cristal Ruben, 10th: Sudesh Rampersad, Email: balwantpersaud@yahoo.ca
Guyana: 225-1540 or 622-8308
11th: Rohan Ramdeo, 12th: Brandon Ho-
sein, 13th: Shivani Bachan
RELIGION
Group aims to put a
NAVA-DURGA
Gita in each home
I nterview by Indo Caribbean Times news-
paper with Ramnarine Sahadeo, (RS) a
Guyanese of Hindu parentage and a lawyer
in Ontario since 1980. The object of this
novel project is to see A BHAGAVAD
GITA FOR EACH HOME
Q.What is the immediate objective?
RS. To distribute a simple English pocket
sized version of the gita so that this univer-
sal knowledge can be made available to all,
particularly the young who have not yet
been introduced to the philosophy.
Q. Why do you think this is a necessary or
useful exercise at this time?
RS .The Bhagwad Gita is our inheritance
and our contribution to world philosophy.
It is our duty to learn about it and share it
with the rest of mankind. We cannot be
proud that so few have so little knowledge
of principles thought to be over 5000 years
old, and which have been the guiding light
for so many international personalities like
Mahatma Gandhi, Henry David Thoreau,
Emerson, and Swami Vivekananda.
Q.We learnt from our ancestors who could
not read nor write and who inhabited places
like Guyana and Trinidad since May 5,
1838 why can’t we continue to teach our
children in the same manner?
RS We now live in very fast technological
societies all over the world and many of our
professionals, community and political
leaders still have little or no knowledge of
the wisdom of the gita. Even in our native
countries the villages and plantations are no
longer the moral training grounds they used
to be. In addition we have lost the genera-
tion who taught and lived by example there-
fore we must make a concerted effort to
teach this knowledge about the universal
text that enabled our fore parents to survive
and flourish despite deplorable conditions
of living.
Q. We know in the past that you were in-
volved with initiatives in asking Guyanese
to Adopt their schools and offer assistance
to the educational system there, how did
you get involved in Gita knowledge?
RS. A few years ago my good friend Swami
Aksharananda sought financial assistance
in constructing a Secondary Hindu School
in Guyana, (Saraswati Vidya Niketan) and
this necessitated my travels throughout
Guyana with him. This experience opened
my eyes to the fact that Hindus know very
little about their own religion and their en-
ergies over the years seemed to have been
usurped by other activities inconsistent with
their own interests. There was little or no
leadership and very little teaching about
one of the greatest and earliest philosophies
on earth. This must have contributed to the
moral decay, general illiteracy, alcohol and
spousal abuse, and even the spread of aids
virus prevalent among Hindus.
I learnt about the International Gita So-
ciety and I communicated with Dr. Prasad
and he asked me to assist in distribution of
the gita he authored. I added a preface of
two pages asking for community involve-
ment and we are now trying to get distribu-
Indo-Caribbean Times
tion centers globally. A few friends agreed
that this was necessary so we have joined
forces and hope that many mandirs, busi-
nesses, professionals, social groups and in-
dividuals will participate in this endeavour.
Q. Where do you get supplies?
RS Books are ordered by paying the In-
ternational Gita Society. Printing is done in
Bangalore, India and Hindu Seva Sangh
and its President Omesh Sharma have
picked up shipping costs thus far. I think
that there are many who would share and
participate in the vision so we have set up a
system whereby the books can be available
in bulk for any person or organization any-
where in North America and the Caribbean.
Q.What suggestions you have for those
who would like to participate in the proj-
ect?
RS. We ask Hindus in particular to exam-
ine their lifestyles and pledge that their
homes will have as many gitas as we have
shoes or clothing. This may be a good start-
ing point. We must recognize that knowl-
edge is superior to materialism and follow
Arjuna’s choice to have the wisdom of Lord
Krishna on the battlefield of daily life. The
numerous temples that have been con-
structed, and the public celebrations of our
religious festivals have attracted a lot of at-
tention and our friends and neighbors
would like to know more about values. We
can help them understand our basis of our
heritage by DONATING THE GITA TO
EVERY GUEST OR NEIGHBOUR.
Those who join in celebrating our birth-
days, anniversaries, and weddings should
likewise be rewarded. There is no better gift
for your child, grandchild no matter how
young they are. Sign or put your thumbprint
on a Gita and leave it for them as part of
their inheritance. It will serve them better
than the material possessions we care for
daily.
Wakes and Funerals, which are often at-
tended by people of every race, religion or
nationality, is an ideal time for friends or
relatives of the deceased to give something
to those who come to sympathize and pay
their respects. The inside front page of the
Gitas is intentionally left blank so that they
can even be endorsed to commemorate a
special event.Some have inserted photos of
loved ones.
Every mandir can have someone pay for
and distribute the book every time there is
a religious service. In fact we have to start
the practice of taking our Gita to the temple
and read it every week. The officiating
priest should not be the only one with a
book.
WANTED
FABRIC
CUTTER
For clothing factory
in Scarborough area
Call:
416-913-2379
OFFERINGS TO MOTHER DURGA
: These Hindu women gather at the foot of the mud volcano at Cedros Trinidad, as they
make offerings to Ma Durga, the Hindu deity said to reside in the earth.
Ramdath and Roopdai complete
68 years of Hindu marriage
I
f bells could chime 68 times for any oc-
casion they would ring to mark the 68th
wedding anniversary of Ramdath Ramlal,
82, and his wife Roopdai, 81, of Winston
Campbell Street in Fyzabad.
The couple got married on May 4, 1940,
according to Hindu rites, and Roopdai said
that like many Hindu brides, she never met
the man she would marry until her wed-
ding.
“In those days it was a night wedding. I
was 15 and Ramdath was 17 years old.
When we married I went to my mother-in-
law’ s house and it was there that I met
Ramdath for the first time,” Roopdai said
as she spoke of life with Ramlal in the mod-
est Fyzabad home they shared for 67 years.
Roopdai said that her husband’s parents,
Ramlal and Sumaria Mahato, were from
India.
Roopdai said she never objected to the
marriage between herself and Ramlal.
“We both trusted our own parents that
whomsoever they chose would be a good
person, and here I am, still married to Ram-
lal 68 years later,” Roopdai said quietly.
Ramlal was a bit shy at first and stayed
downstairs for half an hour before Roopdai
called him to take pictures with her, and
Roopdai explained that her husband had a
problem with his throat so he could not
speak clearly.
Nevertheless, Ramlal eventually came
and sat beside Roopdai in the family living
room filled with pictures and momentos
that marked a life of service to each other.
Roopdai said the key to having a long
marriage is to never leave your husband’s
house because of a little argument.
“If we had a quarrel, I would never run
away and go home to my parents. Even if
Ramlal told me something I did not like I
would not answer back. The longest time I
BHAGVAD GITA FOR EACH HOME
Bulk distribution centres.
The Gita can be available in bulk at the fol-
lowing contacts: Donations are expected to
fund further copies; any individual or or-
ganization wishing to assist in this project
can contact us.
CANADA
Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton
Ramnarine Sahadeo 905 671 9233 e-mail
ramjihindu@rogers.com, Omesh Sharma
Omesh@flexomark.com, Chandan
Persaud at 416-754-2382, Gulcharan at
416 481-5777 gmohabir@hotmail.com,
Ram Jagessar at 416 289 9088 or
ram@eol.ca
MAY 2008 Page 17
ever spent away from Ramlal was when I
got pregnant. After I delivered our first
child Vishnu, he told me to stay at my par-
ents for three months until I could cope,”
Roopdai said.
Ramlal worked at Premiere Consolidated
Oilfield (PCO) as a pump repairer, while
Roopdai settled herself as a homemaker
who never worked outside her home.
The couple eventually had five children,
four boys and one girl. Three of the Ramlal
males, Vishu, Vinod and Vijaye attended
Naparima Boys’ College and one son, Vick-
ram, attended Fyzabad Intermediate.
Their daughter, Latchmie, is a mother and
wife like Roopdai.
At present most of the Ramlal children are
approaching retirement, but they all held
positions in the oil industry or the Govern-
ment service.
Roopdai still cooks for her 11 grandchildren
and three great grandchildren who grew up
with her.
Roopdai said seven grandchildren have
completed tertiary education while three are
still pursuing degrees. One granddaughter,
Stacy Ramlal, won a President’s Medal for
teacher training in 2005.
Roopdai also said that religious beliefs have
changed over the years for her family, al-
though she and Ramlal still practise Hin-
duism.
“My children and grandchildren are all
Presbyterians and I have no problem with
that,” said Roopdai.
She reminisces that Trinidad has been good
to them and none of their children have said
they wanted to migrate.
RICHMOND HILL
Omo Persaud at omo@globalspectru-
minc.com 905-886-1724
Winnipeg:
Ajodhya Mahadeo 204-661-6643
British Columbia
Chameli Seegobin 604-945-9510, e-mail
address maylee34@hotmail.com, and
Naraine Mohabir at 604-274-8938
GUYANA: Saraswati Vidya Niketan ph.
2760013/14
WORLD NEWS
Davan Maharaj
One placed in Hindu temple
Bombs kill 60 in named editor of
L.A. Times
Jaipur, India
A series of bomb blasts have ripped
through crowded market areas in the In-
dian city of Jaipur Tuesday evening, killing
up to 60 people and injuring dozens more.
Breaking months of calm, the seven
bombs went off in close succession on
near a Hindu temple and a crowded bazaar
inside the walled enclave of the historic
pink city of Jaipur.. Authorities described it
as a terror attack.
The police said that the bombs all went
off within a radius of 50 feet and that they
may have been planted in the wheels of bi-
cycles, the mangled remains of which were
found near many of the blast sites.
One blast was set off near the temple,
dedicated to the Hindu monkey god, Hanu-
man, which is especially crowded on Tues-
day evenings, and six more went off within
minutes of each other in the crowded war-
rens of shops and monuments nearby, in-
cluding the popular 18th-century tourist
site, Hawa Mahal, and the Johri Bazaar,
lined with jewelers. Panic set in immedi-
ately, officials said.
Nobody has claimed responsibility for the
attack, which is typical of terror attacks in
India carried out by Muslim extremists
seeking independence for Kashmir.
Over 150,000 dead, 6
million made homeless
in the last two weeks
. At least 150,000 people have been killed
and over 6 million made homeless in the
first half of this month, making May the
deadliest month of the year for weather re-
lated disasters so far.
During May 2-3 the monster cyclone
Nargis devastated Burma, now called
Myanmar, killing 78,000 immediately, and
leaving 2.5 million without shelter, food,
medicine and clean drinking water. Over
50,000 people are missing and the final
death toll is expected to be over 100,000.
Aid has been slow to reach most of the af-
fected Burmans because of interference by
the military government.
In China the confirmed death toll from
the May 12 quake rose to 34,073 this week.
Another 9,500 remained buried in Sichuan
province where the quake was strongest and
more than 29,000 were missing. Officials
have said they expect final death toll to ex-
ceed 50,000, with more than 245,000 re-
ported as injured, and 4.5 million left
homeless. Quake-related losses to compa-
nies totaled $9.5 billion US.
Another Canadian
killed in Mexico
Another Canadian vacationing in Mexico
vacationing CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico
– Mexican police say they are protecting
the Another Canadian vacationing in Mex-
ico has been killed. Last Thursday 29-year-
old Bouabal Bounthavorn was shot dead
after opening the door of his room at the
Hotel Riu in Mexico's Cabo San Lucas
beach resort. His girlfriend was wounded in
the ankle and treated at a local hospital.
Several deaths and injuries involving
Canadian tourists in Mexico recently have
caused worries for the many Canadians
who flock to Mexico for winter getaways..
The Los Angeles Times has promoted
Trinidadian Davan Maharaj to the post of
managing editor of the internationally pres-
tigious newspaper.
Maharaj, business editor since February
2007, assumes oversight of the Foreign,
National, Metro, Sports and Business de-
partments. He will be responsible for shap-
ing coverage, deploying people and
overseeing personnel decisions with guid-
ance from Editor Russ Stanton and Execu-
tive Editor John Arthur.
Maharaj, 45, has worked as a reporter for
The Times in Orange County, Los Angeles
and East Africa. His six-part series "Living
on Pennies," in collaboration with Times
photographer Francine Orr, won the 2005
Ernie Pyle Award for Human Interest Writ-
ing and inspired readers to donate tens of
thousands of dollars to aid agencies work-
ing in Africa.
Another Maharaj story, an investigative
report about a Leisure World attorney who
inherited millions of dollars in stock, land
and other "gifts" from his clients, led to
changes in California probate law.
Maharaj has been an assistant foreign ed-
itor and, in Business, served as a deputy ed-
itor before assuming leadership of the
department last year.
During Maharaj's tenure, the Business
section revamped its coverage to give
greater emphasis to consumer issues. It also
redesigned its Sunday section to focus on
personal finances.
A native of Trinidad, Maharaj holds a po-
litical science degree from the University
of Tennessee and a master's degree in law
Milk shortage-
from Yale University.
Jamaica to
import cows
Up to five years ago, some 5,000 litres of
fresh milk was being dumped daily. Today
there is a shortage of the calcium-rich liquid
and now the Ministry of Agriculture is pro-
posing to import cows in a bid to avert a nu-
tritional crisis.
This is among several proposals con-
tained in a draft document for submission
to Cabinet. The draft comes amid a notice-
able absence of milk from supermarket
shelves across the island. There have also
been reports of a shortage of milk powder
in the country.
Local production of fresh milk has been
on the decline since the early 1990s. Some
14 million litres of fresh milk were pro-
duced last year, significantly less than the
140 million litres consumed annually.
Indo-Caribbean Times
Crop insurance New solar cell
coming for will deliver
Jamaican farmers cheap power
E xperts from the World Bank and the
Inter-American Development Bank
have started talks with the Caribbean Ca-
tastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF)
and Government on providing insurance for
the agricultural sector in Jamaica.
Insurance has become important to the
agricultural sector because of the increased
risk for natural disasters as a result of in-
creased global temperatures.
Global climate change will affect rain-
fall, temperature and water availability for
agriculture in vulnerable areas, scientists
say, and in areas like Jamaica, both weather
extremes are already being felt.
The sector took a battering last year from
hurricane Dean as well as in 2005 and 2004
from hurricanes Dennis, Emily and Ivan,
with loss to the industry reaching several
billion dollars. Recently, excessive dry
conditions have become more frequent. The
latest day spell started late January and has
already caused several million dollars in
damage to crop and livestock in the last
three months. St Elizabeth - the country's
bread basket - and northern parishes - St
Ann and St Mary - were the worst hit.
800 Indian Christians
go back to Hinduism
As many as 800 Christians, mostly farm
labourers, returned to their original roots
i.e. Hinduism, at a ceremony organised by
Hindu Makkal Katchi (HMK) at Sangitha
Sabha, Tirunelveli, in Tamil Nadu recently.
According to reports, the dalit Christians
were facing discrimination at the hands of
upper class Christians in their respective
parishes. HMK leader Shri Arjun Sampath
said around 800 members from 185 fami-
lies, 500 men, 220 women and 80 children,
returned home.
These Christians, a mix of Protestants
and Roman Catholics were originally Hin-
dus and their forefathers had converted to
Christianity five generations back.
Barbados to celebrate
Indian centenary in 09
Next year 2009 Barbados will celebrate the
centenary of the arrival of East Indians to
this Island. No indentured Indians came
here only traders pawn boilers professionals
artisans and domestics. The island boasts of
having three muslim mosques and two
hindu temples
Barrie teen clocks 239
km, loses license, car
A Barrie-area teenager’s has had his li-
cense suspended and his car seized for a
week after OPP traffic police clocked him
driving 239 kilometres per hour in an 80-
kilometre zone. He was running 159 kilo-
metres an hour over the limit on Highway
26 north of Barrie. Cops who pulled his car
over found he had a Lincoln LLS, which
can be equipped with a V6 or V8 engine
and can reach up to 225 kilometres per
hour. The 17-year-old from Springwater
township is charged with street racing, care-
less driving and failure to surrender his li-
cense. Four other young people under 18
were in the car when it was stopped.
MAY 2008 Page 18
An American technology company from
Silicon Valley in California has developed a
new solar energy cell that can deliver solar
power at the same price as conventional
electricity plants.
SUNRGI's "concentrated photovoltaic"
system relies on lenses to magnify sunlight
2,000 times, letting it produce as much
electricity as standard panels with a far
smaller system.
Executives of the year-old company say
they'll start producing solar panels by mid-
2009 that will generate electricity for about
7 cents a kilowatt hour, including installa-
tion. That's roughly the price of cheap coal-
fired electricity. "We're bringing the cost of
solar electricity down to be competitive
with" fossil fuels, says Bob Block, a co-
founder of SUNRGI.
The company plans to start selling the
cells to power utilities and large industrial
and commercial customers at first, and then
to homes within three years.
At present solar power is hampered by
costs of 20 cents to 30 cents a kilowatt
hour, and solar makes up less than 1% of
U.S. power generation. The best that other
solar technology companies can promise is
10 to 18 cents a kilowatt hour by 2010.
SUNRGI panels magnify sunlight about
four times better than other makers, and
have a highly efficient semiconductor that
converts 37% of the sunlight to electricity,
more than double the industry average.
They are small enough to be made at ex-
isting electronics or PC factories, avoiding
British PM
the need to build new plants.
mauled in local
elections
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown
admitted that it had been a "disappointing"
night for Labour after the party suffered its
worst election results for four decades in
what was his first proper electoral test as
Prime Minister.
In local government elections around
England and Wales, Labour’s projected na-
tional vote share was put at just 24 per cent,
trailing 20 points behind David Cameron’s
Conservatives on 44 per cent, and even be-
hind the Liberal Democrats on 25 per cent.
The margin was similar to the drubbing
received by John Major in council elections
in 1995, two years before he was ejected
from Downing Street by Tony Blair.
Latest analysis suggests that the Tories
would enjoy a landslide Commons majority
of between 138 and 164 seats if the results
were repeated in a general election.
Brown enjoyed a brief spell of popular-
ity when he replaced the flambuoyant Tony
Blair, but this has declined sharply in recent
times. Blair won three straight elections in
his time as prime minister.
South Asian Heritage Month:
INDIANS IN THE CARIBBEAN
The Indo-Caribbean Connection (The Untold Story)
M
By Roop Misir, PhD
ay every year is South Asian Her-
itage Month. This name is given
to the month-long celebrations in
Ontario and parts of Canada. Asian Her-
itage Month is also celebrated in the month
of May. Events acknowledge and celebrate
the long and rich history plus the ongoing
contributions to our country of South Asian
Canadians and other Asian Canadians.
History of South Asian Heritage Month
This event became Law by the Ontario
Provincial Parliament on December 14
2001, with the passage of Bill 98. The gov-
ernment of Ontario thereby proclaimed
May as South Asian Heritage Month and
declared May 5 to be South Asian Arrival
Day; this date is the earliest recorded date
of the arrival of Indians in the western
hemisphere; in this case, Guyana, South
America.
In May 2002, the Government of Canada
also officially recognized May as Asian
Heritage Month.
Early South Asians in Canada
Over a century ago, South Asians began
arriving and settling in Canada. The first to
arrive were soldiers from the Indian Army.
In 1897, they passed through this country
on their way back home from London, Eng-
land after attending the Diamond Jubilee of
the reign of Queen Victoria. Some of these
soldiers later returned to live in Canada per-
manently.
The first known South Asian from the
Caribbean was Dr Kenneth Mahabir who
arrived in Halifax in 1908. He studied Med-
icine and then stayed on upon completion
of his studies. Passenger manifests in Hali-
fax also show that a young man named
M.N. Santoo from the colony of Demerara
(now Guyana) arrived in 1908 on the SS
Dahomey, on his way to Montreal as an
immigrant.
Records also showed that between 1909
and 1943 only 878 South Asians were al-
lowed into Canada. However, it wasn’t
some years later that amendment to Cana-
dian immigration law paved the way for the
influx of non-traditional European immi-
grants. Today, South Asians comprise
Canada's largest visible minority group,
with a population of nearly 1.3 million.
They make up over 7 per cent of Ontario's
population.
Indo-Caribbean Origins of Celebrations
Indo-Caribbean people are descendants
of the Indian pioneers who first arrived in
the West—in Guyana in 1838, and in
Trinidad in 1845, and who had made a sec-
ond migration to Canada in large numbers
since the 1960s. Although the year 2008
marks eighth year of official celebrations of
South Asian Heritage Month, Indo-
Caribbean peoples started to observe this
event long before.
In 1986, a Toronto-based group Ontario
Society for Services to Indo-Caribbean
Canadians (OSSICC) was formed. Its focus
was primarily to celebrate in 1988 the up-
coming 150th anniversary of the arrival of
Indians to Guyana. This organization con-
tinued to celebrate Indo-Caribbean Heritage
Day until 2000, with interest and support
coming mainly from members of the Indo-
Caribbean community.
Indian Arrival Day Celebrations
In April 1997 the Indo Trinidad Canadian
Association (ITCA) was formed, and im-
mediately began observing Indian Arrival
Day. In that year too community activist
Asha Maharaj organized a display of Indian
artifacts. The Trinidad and Tobago Associ-
ation of Ottawa held a celebration. As well,
the Caribbean East Indian Cultural Organi-
zation headed by radio host Richard Aziz
organized an Indian Arrival event in
Toronto.
Indian Arrival and Heritage Day
By 1998, ITCA celebrated the event as
Indian Arrival and Heritage Day, and held a
huge show/display/dance at the Etobicoke
Olympium. By then it realized that Indo
Caribbean people were only about 10 per
cent of the "Indian" population in metro-
Toronto. Therefore ITCA was determined
that the celebrations not be considered an
exclusive Indo-Caribbean event, but rather
one for all people with roots in the Indian
subcontinent.
Other Groups on Board
The next year, ITCA (and OSSICC) started
celebrating May as Indian Arrival and Her-
itage Month. In 2000, the Guyana East In-
dian Association of Canada (GEIAC) and
the Canadian Indo-Caribbean Association
(CICA) of Hamilton formed an expanded
umbrella group called the Council for In-
dian Arrival and Heritage Month (CIAHM).
On the Council’s letterhead were these
prophetic words: "Commemorating the
162nd anniversary of the arrival in the
Americas of the people and heritage of the
Indian subcontinent".
Thereafter, people from the various
groups became collectively satisfied to be
called South Asians. The view was that this
connotation would include Indians, Pak-
istanis, Sri Lankans and others who can
trace their origins in the Indian subconti-
nent. By then, the Council was marking the
arrival of Indians in the West—1838
(Guyana), and 1897 as the year the first In-
dians (from the Punjab) began arriving in
Canada.
By then, the number of events for Indian
Arrival and Heritage Month had gone up to
11; however, CIAHM had support from 25
South Asian cultural and social groups. And
for the first time, many actually held events
to observe South Asian Heritage Month.
Indo-Caribbean Times
Initial Problems
But even though CIAHM tried to attract
the support of the other groups, it didn’t al-
ways get a positive response. In the
Caribbean the word Indian includes every-
body who came from what was then united,
pre-partition India. However, in Canada the
use of the term “Indian” was different. It
refers to people who had come from an in-
dependent, modern India, or perhaps First
Nations “native Indians”. Some Punjabi
Sikhs did not related well to India because
of their political differences in India. Pak-
istanis did not respond to Indian Arrival and
Heritage Month or to Indian Arrival events.
Sri Lankans considered themselves Indians
and ignored Indian Arrival and Heritage
Month. Similar problems arose amongst
people from Bangladesh and Nepal. Thus,
Indian Arrival celebration was still to gain
popular appeal.
MPP Raminder Gill Piloted Bill 98
When CIAHM launched the Indian Ar-
rival and Heritage Month at the Scarbor-
ough Civic Centre in 2001, the keynote
speaker was Mr. Raminder Gill, then a
South Asian Member of the Ontario Parlia-
ment. He said he would introduce a private
members bill in the legislature to legitimize
the event, and he did so later that same year.
Gill was able to obtain multi-party support
for Bill 98. However, the legislature would
not accept Indian Arrival and Heritage
Month because it would cause confusion
with the Indian Act and other laws relating
to native Indians. Therefore, the name was
changed to South Asian Heritage Month,
and the bill received unanimous support
and was signed into law in December 2001.
South Asian Month Gains Acceptance
Since then, South Asian Heritage Month
has grown dramatically. Dozens of celebra-
tions take place each year, including events
at the Ontario Parliament, the Gerard Street
bazaar, numerous religious and community
groups and the media. It has been embraced
enthusiastically by the Sri Lankans, Pak-
istanis, and dozens of subgroups within the
South Asian community. In recent times,
celebrations are held throughout Ontario
and other provinces and territories in
Canada.
Various cultural groups now hold various
events, e.g., South Asian Music is featured
at the Small World Music Festival, Toronto,
Canada. (http://chordvine.com/dis-
patches/south-asian-music-heritage-month-
at-the-small-world-festival/. For the first
time ever, Toronto’s Canadian South Asian
Music Festival expands to Montreal and
Vancouver and other parts of the country.
And the activities attract prominent corpo-
rate sponsors like RBC and TELUS
(www.desifest.ca). Metro School Boards
(Peel, Toronto) have various programs to
promote cultural diversity.
Enriching Canadian Culture
There is no denying of the importance of
South Asians in the evolution of Canadian
culture. Like other groups, Asians are de-
fined by culture, traditions, their dedication
to hard work and innovation. In Canada,
MAY 2008 Page 19
they have managed to retain their distinc-
tive and elaborate cultures, and aspects of
religions, languages and heritage, while still
enjoying success in almost every career
path and profession, be it politics, law, med-
icine, or the media.
Culture Promotes Mutual Respect
The continent of Asia is home to most of
the world’s population. It is also the home
of the world’s longest surviving ancient civ-
ilizations, the origin of major religions, the
development of important linguistic groups,
and the cradle of creativity and scientific
thinking. Long considered the playground
of adventurers and plunderers, Asian coun-
tries have only recently been able to assert
their sovereignty and gain world respect.
Today emerging giants like India and China
are taking their rightful place on the world
stage. Canada’s recognition of Asian her-
itage Month and South Asian Heritage
Month though small are significant steps in
the ongoing process of humanity to achieve
harmony, mutual respect and peaceful co-
existence.
So come and let’s all celebrate. Whether
we go to see a South Asian movie, shopping
at a Bazaar, attending one of the many free
concerts and street parties, or just enjoying
sumptuous and spicy delicacies at a nearby
restaurant, there’s no shortage of events to
take in.
Thanks to Mr. Raminder Gill.
Thanks to those Indo-Caribbean and
other South Asian cultural pioneer with the
vision for the future. The cultural and eco-
nomic contributions of South Asian Cana-
dians are slowly being appreciated.
Let’s join in the fun, enjoy and celebrate
Happy Asian Heritage Month to all!
[Dr. Roop Misir is an Indo-Guyanese Cana-
dian Teacher with the Toronto District
School Board. He was a member of the
Committee of Indo-Caribbean cultural pio-
neers (headed by Ramdath Jagessar) who
lobbied for legislation to designate May
every year as South Asian Heritage Month,
and May 5th as South Asian Arrival Day.
An important reference: is
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Asian_
Heritage_Month]
WANTED
FABRIC
CUTTER
For clothing factory
in Scarborough area
Call:
416-913-2379
It pays to
advertise in the
Indo-Caribbean
Times
Case against the 36,000 Guyanese living
Brampton “terrorists” in Ciudad Guayana
slowly melting away G Indentured village
brought to life at
O
By Thomas Walkom
nce labelled Canada's first home-
grown, Islamist terror plot, the case
of the so-called Toronto 18 is qui-
etly melting away.
With the recents decision to stay charges
against four more of those that it had once
labelled dangerous terrorists, the federal
government is now admitting that it never
had a serious case against almost half of the
men and youths charged two years ago.
So far, the Crown has stayed charges
against seven of the 18 Toronto-area Mus-
lim males. While technically, that means it
could re-lay charges within a year, legal ex-
perts call such a move unlikely.
This does not necessarily mean the
Crown's case is entirely bogus. The gov-
ernment argues that some of the remaining
11 were involved in a scheme to obtain ex-
plosive material, while others participated
in a terror training camp.
Because of a judicial publication ban,
whatever evidence – if any – that the gov-
ernment has produced in court to bolster
these allegations cannot be reported.
But what is becoming clear from material
that can be revealed is that the alleged plot
was never quite as advertised.
Back in June 2006, the overriding senti-
ment in government and media was that a
dangerous attack had been narrowly
avoided. The allegations – that Canadian
Muslim extremists were planning to behead
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, seize MPs
and blow up the CBC – seemed unbeliev-
able. But in a post-9/11 world, the unbe-
lievable had, for many, a ring of truth.
"We are a target because of who we are
and how we live, our society, our diversity
and our values – values such as freedom,
democracy and the rule of law," Harper
said.
Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day
hinted darkly of more arrests to come. The
media asked how homegrown terrorism
Indo-Caribbean Times
could happen here, a not illegitimate ques-
tion, but one that implicitly assumed the 18
were guilty.
Coming at a time when Parliament was
reviewing the 2002 anti-terror law, the ar-
rests bolstered the arguments of those who
wanted the more draconian aspects of that
legislation kept in place.
The arrests also stoked fears that Islamist
radicals were motivating impressionable
Muslim youths.
In some press accounts, the eldest person
arrested, a Mississauga bus driver named
Qayyum Abdul Jamal, then 43, was painted
as the Islamic firebrand behind the youth-
ful plotters.
This view was reinforced when then Lib-
eral MP Wajid Khan (he's now a Conserva-
tive) told reporters that he had once heard
Jamal at a mosque badmouthing Canada's
troops in Afghanistan.
Ironically, Jamal was one of the four who
had his charges stayed yesterday. He may
indeed be a critic of Canadian foreign pol-
icy. But it seems that he is not a terrorist
ideologue.
Other elements of the government's case
did not stand up well under scrutiny. The al-
leged terror training camp turned out to be
a hapless adventure in the rain, one where
participants spent much of their time in a
local doughnut shop and where the ammu-
nition for target practice was apparently
provided by one of two paid RCMP in-
formers.
As for the alleged plot to behead Harper,
it was apparently derailed because the plot-
ters didn't know how to get to Parliament
Hill.
Nor, it seems (according to material re-
leased by the Crown), were they exactly
sure who the Prime Minister was.
Still, we are sure to learn more about the
case against the rapidly shrinking Toronto
18 when the actual trials begin – if, by then,
the Crown still has anyone left it wants to
try.
uyana's Ambassador to Venezuela Dr.
Odeen Ishmael and a five-member
team from the Embassy has been meeting
with hundreds of Guyanese nationals resid-
ing in the Venezuelan industrial city of Ciu-
dad Guayana, located at the junction of the
Orinoco and the Caroni Rivers, 600 miles
south-east of Caracas.
Most of the Guyanese who migrated to
Venezuela reside in various parts of this
sprawling industrial city. At four different
centres in the city's large municipalities of
San Felix and Puerto Ordaz, the Ambassa-
dor and his team in the two-day period con-
centrated their efforts on assisting more
than 200 Guyanese in renewing their pass-
ports and another 200 to apply for new and
first-time passports.
Many of the Guyanese in this city are il-
legal residents and a sizeable proportion of
them do not even possess Guyanese pass-
ports or even copies of their birth certifi-
cates which form the essential requirement
for them to apply for passports.
A great proportion of them are also with-
out Guyanese identification documents,
even though have been living in Venezuela
for as long as twenty years. As a result, they
cannot apply for Venezuelan residency
which many of their compatriots with the
relevant documents have already acquired.
According to the city authorities of Ciu-
dad Guayana, more than 36,000 Guyanese
reside there, with the largest concentration
in the municipality of San Felix. While
some have found employment in the city's
iron, steel and aluminium industries, most
of the "illegals" are employed as labourers,
domestics and ice-cream vendors.
However, some others are self-employed
mainly in the transportation business and in
operating small farms, groceries and small
stores.
At a lengthy meeting in April with the
mayor of the city, Mr. Clemente Scotto,
Ambassador Ishmael discussed the prob-
lems of the Guyanese nationals and sought
the city government's assistance in helping
to more rapidly incorporate the Guyanese
community into the general Venezuelan so-
ciety.
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MAY 2008 Page 20
Arrival celebrations
On the first weekend in May the the
Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha (GHDS)
kicked off its two-day 170th Indian Arrival
anniversary celebration with a swirl of cre-
ativity, bringing to life an indentureship-pe-
riod village
A food booth that was operated by the
Better Hope Mandir. This particular one
was creatively designed and specialized in
dhal, rice and coconut choka among many
other Indian dishes.
The National Stadium featured a number
of imitation “logies” [small rectangular
houses made of clay and branches] com-
plete with kitchen, prayer room and sleep-
ing quarters. The kitchens were equipped
with “firesides” made of clay and an array
of traditional Indian cookware and eating
utensils.
The Dharmic Naujawan displayed beau-
tiful painted clay pots against the back-
ground of a colourful painting.
“That is what your grandmother used to
cook on,” a number of parents were heard
telling their children. The sights brought
back many memories for older Indo-
Guyanese and captured the interest of the
younger ones who were eager to see and ab-
sorb the rich culture surrounding them.
A meal of pigeon peas and rice being pre-
pared as it was done in the early 19th cen-
tury by Indian indentured immigrants.
Two models of the Whitby – which
brought some of the first immigrants - were
on display and those present were given an
opportunity to showcase their talents on
stage. A number of booths belonging to var-
ious businesses were scattered throughout
the compound. Various Indian dishes,
clothes, jewellery and crafts were on sale.
This collection of classical Indian musical
instruments was displayed by the Dharmic
Naujawan. A number of performances were
also staged by various Indian artistes and
dance groups, among them were Krishna
Mandata, Mohan Nandu and Suchitra Ram-
persaud.
Guyana celebrates 170th Indian Arrival Day
INDIAN ARRIVAL DAY
F
EELINGS of nostalgia swelled at the
National Stadium last week with the
opening of a two-day event that aptly
portrays ‘lang-time’ days of East Indian im-
migrants and their descendants. Ladies
were dressed in the traditional rumal (head-
wear); food was cooked from the ‘fireside’
with a ‘pukney’ handy to keep the fire
going; the kitchen was of ‘saphie’ hanging
and enamel cups and plates; a panchay at
(village court) was in session; tassa drums
blared as
m a n y
danced the
‘nagara’;
and ‘loud’
seven-
curry was
in abun-
dance.
The
event, or-
ganised by
t h e stone,
Guyana
H i n d u
Dharmic
Sabha,
continued
for two days.
This day event also celebrates the con-
tributions of the Indian immigrants and
their descendants’ efforts which spanned
many facets of Guyana’s development, de-
spite their numerous struggles.
For over three quarters of a century
(1838-1917), Indian indentured labourers
were imported from the sub-continent of
India to the West Indian colonies, ostensibly
to fill the void created as a result of the
mass exodus of ex-slaves from plantation
labour following the abolition of the despi-
cable system of slavery, and moreso, the
premature termination of the apprenticeship
scheme in 1838.
THE DESCENDANTS
Their descendants today comprise over
50 per cent of Guyana’s population of over
750,000. Overall, where the English speak-
ing Caribbean is concerned, substantial
numbers of indentured Indians were im-
ported. Based on statistical evidence,
Guyana was the recipient of 239,909 East
Indian immigrants until the termination of
the system in 1917; Trinidad 143,939; Ja-
maica 36,412; Grenada 3,033; St. Vincent
2,472; St. Lucia 4,354; and St. Kitts 337.
In addition, the non-English speaking
Caribbean imported Indian indentured
labourers during this period. Of the French
colonies (now French Overseas Depart-
ments) Martinique received 25,509; Guade-
lope 45,844 and French Guiana 19,276.
Neighbouring Suriname, while under Dutch
rule, imported a total of 35,501 immigrants.
Following the abolition of slavery in
1834 and the termination of the apprentice-
ship system in 1838, a state of fear, uncer-
tainty and gloom was uppermost in the
minds of the then British Guianese planters.
They were very conscious that a grave
labour shortage on the estates would cer-
tainly mean economic disaster to them-
selves and the sugar industry in general.
The mass exodus of ex-slaves from the
plantations during this crucial period of
‘crisis and change’ merely served to con-
firm planters’ fear and uneasiness. This
movement was not entirely surprising as
several decades of slavery had resulted in
the plantation being seen as the symbol of
dehumanisation, degradation and demoral-
isation, and the victims, quite naturally
Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 21
wanted to rid themselves of white planter Guyanese
class, social, cultural and political domina- national
tion, and to assert their economic inde- holidays,
pendence. With great enthusiasm and in the a testi-
face of tremendous odds, they started the mony to
village movement and peasantry. their sig-
The importation of indentured labourers nificance.
from the Indian sub-continent was part of Hin-
the continuing search for a reliable labour dus and
force to meet the needs of the powerful Muslims
plantocracy. In the case of Guyana, East In- regularly
dian perform
immi- their reli-
gration gious or
had its thanks-
origin IInside a typical mandir of the time, set up at the National Stadium giving
in the c e r e -
‘Glad- alects. monies. Evidence of this development
stone The Ramayan, the Bhagwat Gita and the among Hindus is reflected in the numerous
Exper- Holy Quran are prized holy books in many Jhandi and other flags and Murtis which are
iment’. households today. proudly displayed in devotees’ yards and
John A significant contribution is in the area of homes respectively.
Glad- dress. Traditional Indian wear such as the East Indian immigrants and their descen-
shalwar, sari, kurta and dhoti are popular dants were able to survive largely due to
father today. Some of these have taken on nation- their resilience, perseverance, custom, tra-
o f alistic flavour. The Indian ritual marriage dition and commitment to family which in-
British form and the extended family system have variably promotes thrift, industry and
states- continued over time with very few changes. self-esteem. They continue to make valu-
m a n Indian music, songs, films dance and other able contributions to the overall progress
William Gladstone, was the owner of the art forms have taken root in Guyanese so- and development of Guyana. Their strong
West Demerara plantations, Vreed-en-Hoop ciety. cultural ties are undoubtedly a motivating
and Vreed-en-Stein, at this juncture of the Indian foods like roti, puri, curry, dhal, factor, as they march forward into this new
country’s history. pholouri, bara, keer and vegetable dishes millennium of ours with a great sense of
are regularly consumed by every ethnic purpose and maturity.
INDO-GUYANESE CONTRIBUTION group in society. After all, Guyana relentlessly seeks to
Indian festivals are widely celebrated too. have greater economic benefits, socio-po-
East Indian indentured labourers and These include the colourful Phagwah, litical stability and national cohesiveness at
their descendants toiled, and continue to Deepavali (festival of lights), Ramnoumi, this juncture of its history. All its people are
toil, unceasingly to ensure the survival of Shiv-Ratri, Youman Nabi, Eid-ul-Fitr. Four faced with this ongoing struggle in the face
the sugar industry in the 19th , 20th and of these are today celebrated as truly of harsh global realities.
21st Centuries. The vast majority of the
workforce in the sugar industry are Indo-
Guyanese, and sugar remains one of the
most important foreign exchange earners in
the country in the face of grave global chal-
lenges.
Guyanese of Indian origin are largely re-
sponsible for the prominence of Guyana’s
rice industry. The Indian indentured labour-
ers in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries
began to cultivate rice on a large scale and
this was linked to the almost exclusive In-
dian village settlements which emerged at
the time. They are integrally involved in
cattle rearing, the selling of milk, and cash
crop farming.
Ever since the 1880s, Indian immigrants
have displayed a high occupational profile
in a number of off-plantation economic ac-
tivities including cab-drivers, barbers, tai-
lors, carpenters, boat-builders, charcoal
makers, sieve-makers, goldsmiths, porters,
small scale manufacturers and fishermen.
Today, Guyanese of Indian origin are found
in every sphere of activity including busi-
ness, the professional class, politics, reli-
gion and trade unions.
East Indian immigrants and their descen-
dants have ensured there is a rich cultural
heritage in this multi-cultural and pluralis-
tic society of ours. Indian customs, values
and traditions have survived over the years.
They brought with them their main reli-
gions, Hinduism and Islam.
CUSTOMS
Approximately 83 per cent of the immi-
grants were Hindus, while another 14 per
cent were Muslims. The remaining three
per cent were Christians. Mosques and tem-
ples began to dot our coastal landscape
from the late 19th Century. Related to this
were the introduction of languages -- Hindi
and Arabic and several other Indian di
SPORTS
CRICKETCricket:
Sarwan takes the helm vs Australia
Cheerleaders too spicy for wins Ontario
Indian Premier League
R
amnaresh Sarwan will step
in for the injured Chris
Gayle and lead West Indies
in the first Test against Australia at
Sabina Park on Thursday.
Gayle has succumbed to the groin
injury that kept him out of the Indian
Premier League and the home
team's leadership will revolve
around Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo,
the new deputy. Sarwan guided the
team in two Tests in England last
year and will face a tough assign-
ment against the world champions.
The opener Sewnarine Chatter-
goon, who made his debut against
Sri Lanka in April, has been ruled
out with a shoulder problem, leav-
ing a spot for Brenton Parchment.
Parchment is currently captaining a
Jamaica XI in the tour game against
the Australians and scored 25 on the
opening day.
Ryan Hinds and Runako Morton
were included in the outfit, which is
also without Marlon Samuels after
he was found guilty of dealing with
a bookmaker. The squad was named
following a pre-series camp in An-
tigua.
West Indies squad Brenton Parch-
ment, Runako Morton, Ryan Hinds,
Ramnaresh Sarwan (capt), Shivnar-
ine Chanderpaul, Devon Smith,
Dwayne Bravo, Denesh Ramdin
(wk), Jerome Taylor, Daren Powell,
Darren Sammy, Sulieman Benn,
Amit Jaggernauth, Fidel Edwards.
CHESS, DRAUGHT AND
DOMINO TOURNAMENTS
Players of all skill levels (beginners to advanced) are
invited to participate. Tournaments held every month
during the winter.
See schedule at www.horizoncricketclub.com or phone
905-794-5423. Also, adult and kids CHESS LESSONS
(beginners to advance). Learn to play the world’s best
board game.
Registration information at
www.horizoncricketclub.com
Casareno
Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 22
Bridge champ
Sharma wants
Recreational action in Toronto
Chess again
T he 2008 Ontario Recreational Chess
Championship was held in Brampton
on May 03, 2008. Eighteen top chess play-
ers competed in the Chess Master Section
for the prestigious title of 2008 Ontario
Recreational Chess Champion. The win-
ners for all of the previous tournaments Top rated Toronto bridge player Tulsiram
(Harold Chan, Devon Thomas and Erwin Sharma, (second from right in picture
Casareno) participated in this event. above) was was part of the successful
Erwin Casareno, winner of the last tour- Guyana Bridge Team that won the Inter
Guianas Bridge Tournament recently.
nament, was presented with congratulatory
Tulsie, who lives in North York and con-
letters from the Prime Minister and from a
ducts sessions for seniors at the Jane and
local MP recognizing his outstanding
achievements in chess. It was excitement Finch corridor, wants to bring more
all the way to the finish. Caribbean people to the world of high qual-
American style cheerleaders have proved ity bridge. He is ready to open a bridge
to be a little too much for some Indians at
At the end, Erwin Casareno emerged the
clinic for interested parties.
the Indian Premier League. Young ladies
winner (once again). The tournament was
He was one of the five member team
organized by Horizon Cricket Club and di-
waving pom poms and flashing lots of skin which won the 35th annual Inter-Guiana
rected by Fred Lall. All results are posted
are..just not cricket.
at www.horizoncricketclub.com team tournament held from March 22-25 in
One Indian cricket team has withdrawn Guyana. It was only the third victory by a
Special thanks go to Erwin Casareno
cheerleaders from matches while others are Guyana Bridge team in the 35-year history
being told to cover up, after protests that
who assisted with the pairing. He intro-
of the competition.
their dances and skimpy outfits were offen-
duced a unique pairing board system that
The Guyana team got past French Guiana
expedited the process. The tournament
sive to conservative Indians. and Suriname 18-12 and 20-10 respectively
(five 30-minute rounds, plus a break, plus
Cheerleaders, many imported from
the playoffs) was completed in approxi- in the final matches. The five players of the
abroad, were hired to liven up India's new Guyana team were Beepat, Ashraf Ali,
mately 4 hours.
$900 million domestic cricket league in Ramdat ‘Jackie Rampersaud, Tulsie
which eight teams play a shortened version
The next tournament (The 2008 World
Sharma and Andrew Kartick “I hope that
of the traditional game.
Recreational Chess Championship) is
this recent victory in this competition be-
scheduled for December 06, 2008. All
But while drum players, blaring music tween the three nations will serve to revi-
chess players are invited to compete for the
and the presence of Bollywood stars cheer-
grand title of 2008 World Recreational talize the game locally so that we may be
ing among spectators may have livened up able to see a formation of a few clubs as
Chess Champion. Registration information
stadiums, cheerleaders may be one specta- well the organizing of local tournaments,”
West Indies will put
will be posted at www.horizoncricket-
cle too far. said Guyana Sports Minister Dr. Frank An-
The sight of many foreign women and In-
club.com
thony.
dians dancing in high boots and skimpy
up a fight vs Australia
shorts sparked anger from both Hindu na-
tionalists, who opposed their open sexual-
ity, and some leftist parties who said it
crudely copied Western culture.
"The manner in which semi-clad girls
keep shaking their limbs is in bad taste,"
Uddhav Thackeray, head of the hardline
Hindu nationalist Shiv Sena party was
quoted as saying.
Police near Mumbai, where the Mumbai
Indians play, were looking out for “ inde-
cency both in the cheerleaders' dress and
dance routine” recently. But the cheerlead-
ers dropped the exposed cleavages, midriffs
and thighs in favour of skintight lycra. But
well-known cheerleaders from the Wash-
ington Redskins are still performing for the
Bangalore Royal Challengers, and have
not toned down their performances.
Omar Khan, West Indies' manager, with coach John Dyson
Omar Khan, West Indies' manager, is con- before claiming the three-match ODI series
fident that his team will stand up to be 2-0, with one match being abandoned due
counted when they take on the visiting Aus- to rain.
tralians in the first of three Tests starting on An 18-man West Indies squad is currently
May 22 in Kingston. engaged in a six-day training camp which
"What I have noticed about the players is began on May 12. "The players have been
that they are maturing and this gives me put under intense training," Khan said.
confidence going into such a tough series," "They have done a lot of physicals and are
Khan said. "We are cognisant of the fact now moving on to some nets work."
that we are coming up against the world "They understand that they need to be at
champions, Australia. We know our posi- their very best to compete against Australia
tion in the rankings and theirs, and the play- and have accepted that," he said. "The guys
ers know what is expected of them." have also been very interactive in the team-
West Indies go into the series on the back building sessions, and this is good for us.
of an impressive performance against Sri What we are trying to achieve is a strong,
Lanka - they drew the two-Test series 1-1 united bunch and we are well on our way to
 Indo-Caribbean Times MAY 2008 Page 23

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