JULY 6 - AUGUST 2, 2023 | VOL 2046 FREE | PAGES: 12 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com SIGN UP FOR OUR EPAPER @ epaper.jamaica-gleaner.com/na TRANS-CONTINENTAL ECONOCARIBE 147-46 176 STREET, JAMAICA, NEW YORK 11434 TEL: 718-244-7447, 718-341-2900 • BARRELS • CRATES • CARTONS • FURNITURE • APPLIANCES • BUILDING SUPPLIES • MEDICAL SUPPLIES • CARS KINGSTON, MONTEGO BAY, PORT OF SPAIN - TRINIDAD, GUYANA & OTHER ISLANDS WE SHIP DIRECTLY TO: SPECIALIZING IN RETURNING RESIDENTS Maryland’s Governor Wes Moore greets Industry Commerce and Investment Minister Senator Aubyn Hill as he arrives at the Maryland State House to pay a courtesy call on the Governor. At right is Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States Audrey Marks. PHOTO BY DERRICK SCOTT Alexandra Davis, vice mayor of Miramar, with the soon-to-be unveiled statue of Usain Bolt. (Photo: Instagram@4alexandradavis) 4ALEXANDRADAVIS -Maryland Governor Wes Moore moots deeper business, educational ties with Jamaica >P3 P2: Bolt to be honoured with Florida statue P11: Shock as NY radio station WVIP 93.5 FM is sold P3: Mission success! ‘WE CANDO SPECIAL THINGS TOGETHER’ - Industry minister touts prospects of recent visit to business hubs FRE | PAGES: 12 | www.jamaica-gleaner.c SIGN UP FOR OUR EPAPER @ epaper.jamaica-gleaner.com/na JUNE 1 - JULY 5, 2023 | VOL 2045 TRANS-CONTINENTAL ECONOCARIBE 147-46 176 STREET, JAMAICA, NEW YORK 11434 • BARRELS • CRATES • CARTONS • FURNITURE • APPLIANCES • BUILDING SUPPLIES • MEDICAL SUPPLIES • CARS SPECIALIZING IN RETURNING RESIDENTS Patrons at Calabash International Literary Festival dance to the music on Sunday at Jakes, Treasure Beach, St Eliza PHOTO BY NATHANIEL STEWART ONE DANCE DID IT. Mr & Mrs Byfield share the ceremonial first dance during the reception. Big brother and respected reggae/jazz recording artiste Benji Myaz served as musical director. CONTRIBUTED P4: J’can academic economist Peter Blair Henry returns to Stanford University CALABASH’S RETURN ‘PHENOMENAL’ EVENTS HAVE become the number one priority for driving Jamaica’s tourism sector, says one of the most respected voices in the industry, Nicola Madden-Greig. Essentially, providing different kinds of tourism is critical to Jamaica’s future, the hotelier told The Gleaner last weekend, while Michael Bolton had the resort town of Ocho Rios under wraps; A-lister Angelina Jolie endorsing the South Coast’s Calabash Literary Festival; and Mocha Fest staking its claim in the ‘Capital of Casual’, Negril. – Events now a priority to drive tourism in Jamaica >P3 P9: Gospel artiste Joan Myers gets married P9: Comets Track Club to honour 35 at anniversary ceremony –HENZELL THE NORTH AMERICAN BRANDED CONTENT EDITION

THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 5, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 2 Lester Hinds/Gleaner Writer WORLD RECORD holding sprint legend Usain Bolt is to be honoured by the City of Miramar in Florida on July 15. A STATUE of Bolt will be unveiled as part of the city’s tribute. The statue was done by renowned Jamaican sculptor Basil Watson, out of Atlanta, Georgia. The cost of the statue is US$25,000, and it will be located at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, which now boasts a world-class track and which has seen a number of international track meets being held at the sports complex. The Vice Mayor of Miramar, Jamaican Alexandra Davis, who commissioned the statue and who has organised the event to honour Bolt, told The Gleaner that it is fitting that the city should recognise Bolt’s achievements. The statue to Bolt will represent the first monument erected in a public space under a new programme in which developers in the city have been asked to commission art pieces in public spaces in their development projects to benefit the city and the people of the city, Davis told The Gleaner. She said the funds for the statue were part of the arts and public spaces fund. Developers who are unable to provide art pieces in public spaces contribute to this fund along with the city itself. Bolt, who will arrive in Florida on July 14, will hold clinics for young prospective athletes as well as oversee a number of races among different groups. On July 15, a banquet will be held in his honour, with part proceeds from that function going to Bolt’s foundation and part going to Do The Right Thing Inc of City of Miramar. People Profile, an organization in South Florida, which honours outstanding people in various fields, headed by former Global Diaspora Council Member Dr Allan Cunningham, will also be presenting an award - The Legendary Iconic Award - to Bolt at the Saturday night function. Cunningham said the tribute to Bolt is also a tribute to the Jamaican community in South Florida and is recognition of the role Jamaicans have played in the development of the city economically, culturally, and otherwise. Jamaica’s Consul General to Miami Oliver Mair also welcomed the unveiling of the statue to Bolt saying that it is not only recognition of his achievement on the track, but a reflection of the high esteem in which Jamaicans are held in Miramar. “Jamaicans have contributed significantly to the city, and this tribute to Bolt is also an honour to the Jamaican community as a whole,” he said. The Ansin Sports Complex, where Bolt’s statue will stand, is a 24-acre state-of-the-art sports complex that features an FTX Mondo running track identical to the 2008 Olympic track in Beijing, along with a 9,000 square-foot community centre, fitness centre, and a 5,000 square-foot covered children’s boundless playground. The IAAF-certified running track is equipped with hurdles, high jump pads and standards, pole vault pads and standards, three long jump pits, one discus and shot cage, a 200mpractice track, which makes the complex a perfect host for local, regional, national, and international competition and meets. Bolt to be honoured with Florida statue The soon-to-be unveiled statue of Usain Bolt. (Photo: Instagram@4alexandradavis) 4ALEXANDRADAVIS Usain Bolt AP JAMAICA-BORN JAEVON Boxhill has been elected as a member of the Mount Vernon city council. Boxhill was successful in the democratic primary elections held on June 27, in his first foray into representational politics. His victory in the primary is tantamount to a win in the November general elections in the heavily democratic city. There will be no republican representative on the new five-member city council when it takes office in January next year. Boxhill was born in Mandeville, Manchester, but lived in May Pen, Clarendon, before moving with his parents to the United States in 1991 at the age of seven, where they settled in the Bronx before moving to Mount Vernon. He is a product of Mount Vernon High School and later studied at the Albany School of Law. He worked as deputy controller of Mount Vernon and later became a senior financial analyst with the Board of Westchester County Legislature. Boxhill said that he was motivated to enter politics because he sees a need to improve the city’s prospects. “I believe that I can help move the city in the right direction,” he told The Gleaner in a telephone interview. The new city councilmember acknowledged that the city has urgent issues that need addressing, if the quality of life is to improve for residents. He acknowledged that with a budget of $140 million the city needs to find ways to increase income. “We need to expand the tax base of the city to bring in more revenue to provide better services to the citizens. We cannot raise taxes so we have to make a concerted effort to reopen businesses that have closed and to bring more properties onto the tax roll that are not currently on the tax roll because they are empty,” he said. “There are several services that are operating the way they should to benefit the city, but there are other services that have fallen off,” he said. Boxhill said that the city’s building department has been the target of several complaints. “We need to sit with them to find out how best the service can be improved,” he said, pointing out that the building department needs to operate at peak efficiency if the city is to attract new businesses and bring back houses on to the tax roll. He also sees a need to bring the various communities of Mount Vernon together to work for the benefit of the city as well as to get more young people involved in the affairs of the city. Boxhill noted that Mount Vernon has a gang and gun violence problem which the city is working hard to overcome. He also pointed out that the police department has lost a number of officers but he is hopeful that when the new police wage contract is completed the city will be able to attract new recruits. “The new city council will see a group of young vibrant professionals taking the rein and hopefully this will turn around the fortunes of the city as we will be able to bring new ideas and fiscal oversight to the city,” he said. -Lester Hinds Jamaica-born candidate wins Mount Vernon city council seat Boxhill CONTRIBUTED 3 the definition for having “lawful presence” in the US. Biden’s Department of Health and CULTURE moya.thomas@gleanerjm.com Moya Thomas Biden says he’s THE MONTHLY GLEANER | APRIL 17 - MAY 23, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS Anthony Smith – Deputy CEO – Print & Digital Services anthony.smith@rjrgleaner.com

THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 5, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 3 17 May, 2023 LOST TITLE APPLICATION NO.: 2463465 OFFICE OF TITLES NOTICE PURSUANT TO SECTION 82 OF THE REGISTRATION OF TITLES ACT (RTA) WHEREAS the applicant(s) in the above stated application has/have declared that the following duplicate Certificate of Title has been lost, I HEREBY GIVE NOTICE that I intend to cancel the said Certificate of Title and issue a new one in duplicate fourteen days after the last publication of this advertisement. NOTICE 1026 100 40 Part of Clinton Lodge St. Catherine Desmond Brown L. Dunbar Deputy Registrar of Titles Volume: Folio: Lot: Place: Parish: Registered proprietor(s): HOUSE FOR SALE Lot size 8064sqft, gated community. NEW HARBOUR VILLAGE, OLD HARBOUR, 24 hour security, recreation park with playground, jogging trail, solar water heater. SERIOUS INQUIRIES ONLY. Price USD$ 170,000. TEL: 876-783-3955. Condition Apply. MINISTER OF Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator Aubyn Hill, says a recent “mission” to several major business hubs in the United States (US) and Canada, exploring investment opportunities for the island, was largely successful. The tour, which included stops in Toronto, NewYork andWashington DC, and dubbed ‘Export and Investment Business Mission’, was done in coordination with Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), the trade and investment agency of the ministry, according to Hill. The delegation, he said, also included leading public and private-sector stakeholders, Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States, Audrey Marks, as well as top level US officials. Represented also were members of the diaspora, including Professor Donald Harris, father of the current Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris. “A key highlight of our itinerary was to visit Goudas Food, a leading establishment headquartered in Ontario, Canada, and renowned for the distribution of quality products in North America, and where I met with two of the senior directors. This was a ministerial mission to explore export and investment opportunities between Canada and the United States, and everybody was excited at the prospects, ”Minister Hill told JIS News. Hill said the mission also included a meeting with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Invest, James P. Scriven, which he described“as very fruitful”. Scriven is responsible for the private-sector institution of the IDB Group, with a portfolio of $13.1 billion in assets under management and 385 clients in 25 countries. STRATEGIC, FOCUSED EFFORT IDB Invest is a multilateral development bank that focuses on providing innovative financial solutions and advisory services for its clients, while achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB has been a reliable partner of Jamaica for decades, whichmight have prompted its top Caribbean executive, Tariq Ali, to declare recently that the bank is “championing the growth of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to drive the sustained economic growth of Jamaica”. “The Government of Jamaica is fully aware that supporting the MSMEs is crucial given the important role they play in creating jobs, strengthening communities, and increasing contribution to macroeconomic growth and sustainable development,” Hill said. “This strategic and focused effort at engaging with and strengthening the MSME sector through this MIC/IDB MSME Business Roadshow is critical to the country’s long-term economic growth. It comes against the background of the ministry’s development and ongoingmonitoring of the MSMEs and Entrepreneurship Policy and our recognition that many players within the sector face major challenges in their daily operations, thus impacting their profitability and sustainability,” he added. For his part, Senior Adviser and Strategist in the Ministry of Tourism and JAMPRO Board member, Delano Seiveright, who was also a part of the delegation, told JIS News that the trip reaffirmed “what has been widely known” that brand Jamaica remains a force and“with a climate that is investor friendly”. Mission success! - Industry minister touts prospects of recent visit to business hubs Senator Aubyn Hill, Minister of Industry, Investments and Commerce. IAN ALLEN BALTIMORE, MARYLAND: Maryland Governor Wes Moore has welcomed the opportunity to enter into greater business and educational partnerships with Jamaica. Speaking during a courtesy call paid on him by Minister of Industry Investment and Commerce Senator Aubyn Hill and Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States Audrey Marks, last Friday, Governor Moore said he was excited and proud about the potential partnership between Maryland and Jamaica. “I am ready to take it to new heights. I want for us to be true partners in every sense of the word, in education and business partnership. We have a very strong and proud Jamaica diaspora population here in the state of Maryland,” he said. Governor Moore said he was not just the first black governor of the state of Maryland, but rather “someone who proudly comes from Jamaican roots. “This is a moment right here that we can do special things together,” he declared. Moore, whose mother hails from Westmoreland, pointed to some of the areas in which Jamaica and the state of Maryland could forge partnerships. “I think about some of the great assets of Maryland ..., including a very strong cyber platform. We are strong in terms of tourism and trade and with the utilisation of the ports in Baltimore - which are the largest in the United States - I think that we are able to be in partnership with Jamaica,”Moore said. “We know that there are very strong economic bonds between Maryland and Jamaica and these are things we plan to work very hard on, with the leadership of Ambassador Marks to be able to make sure those bonds are strengthened and built out,”he added. Elaborating on the visit, Minister Hill noted, “We explored the possibility of student exchanges, cooperation between universities and to have the city of Kingston twinned with the city of Baltimore. We also looked at developing Jamaica into a cybersecurity producer of experts, and producer of Jamaican young men who can take Jamaica to a much higher level in the digital service business by focusing on cybersecurity service.” “Governor Moore was very clear that he would be committed to help Jamaica to build this area of our service industry and to make sure that the intellectual exchange and business would be beneficial to both Jamaica and the state of Maryland. The industry, commerce and investment minister along with Ambassador Marks paid a courtesy call on the Maryland governor at the Maryland state house in Annapolis on Friday, June 30. Also present at the meeting with the governor were Secretary of State for Maryland Susan Lee, and Secretary of Commerce for Maryland Kevin Anderson. ‘We can do special things together’ Maryland’s Governor Wes Moore greets Industry Commerce and Investment Minister Senator Aubyn Hill as he arrives at the Maryland State House to pay a courtesy call on the Governor. At right is Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States Audrey Marks. DERRICK SCOTT Wes Moore AP Maryland Governor Wes Moore moots deeper business, educational ties with Jamaica

THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 2, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 4 CHARLOTTE, NC: T HESE DAYS, you can self-entertain from the palm of your hand, thanks to the growth in the entertainment industry and the new order, as a result of the COVID19 pandemic. THAT ’ S WHERE Andre Porter is hoping to make his mark as a pur veyor of Afro-Caribbean culture. Bor n and r a i s e d i n Jamaica’s capital, Kingston, in the mid-70s, Porter, now an accomplished author and storyteller, has his vision set on Hollywood, the world’s best-known address for art and entertainment. And, he’s working his way there. Here’s how! In the late 1980s, a young Porter migrated to Camden, NJ, to finish law school. Without the proper financial backing, his dream was short-circuited and he opted to start writing. After self-publishing his first book, titled The Rise and Fall of a Jamaican Don, a fictional story based on a Jamaican mafia in 2002, he went on to ghostwrite and publish over 30 titles. With time and talent under his belt, life would take a dramatic and unfortunate turn for the worse. First, he was incarcerated for nine months before the case against him could be heard, and which was eventually thrown out. He was found not guilty before going to trial. A year later his mother died. Devastated and emotionally drained, he used his pain to fuel his passion, composing a compelling screenplay, Myal Uprising, now streaming on demand on a number of platforms, such as Tubi, Reveel, Discovered, Amazon Prime Video, and more. “Without giving away too much, the lead character must kill his enemy’s daughter or be killed, all for the noble cause of uniting the Caribbean community. So, the Emperor starts a secret organisation. First, he must eliminate anyone hindering progress, and by any means necessary,” offered Porter. Filmed in Philadelphia during the recent pandemic, Myal Uprising is directed by Porter, with RolandWilliams as cinematographer. The biopic stars Black Dinero, Shaelia Dawkins, Gawaine Michelin as Black Jesus, and Porter. Luann Jones also stars as Cleopatra, portrayed by Patricia Jones. Presented by Ghetto Pot Empire, LLC, Myal Uprising is executive produced by Dr Karren Dunkley, the immediate past representative of the Global Jamaica Diaspora Council, and Luann Jones, owner of Covenant Funeral Homes in Canada. Porter already has another movie in pre-production titled Tears From My Pen, a psychological thriller based on his second book. He believes that the Caribbean has intricate stories that must be told in film, and he’s on a mission to visually document its culture and global contributions. You can follow Porter now on Instagram @ AndrePorter 7. Jamaican strikes major film distribution deal! ANDRE PORTER From left: Andre Porter, director; Luann ‘Cleopatra’ Jones, and Gawaine ‘Black Jesus’ Mitchelin face off during a recent screening of the Indy pic ‘Myal Uprising’, now available on major streaming/sm platforms. CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS ADVERTORIAL

THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 2, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 5 Sashana Small/Staff Reporter THE UNITED States’(US) lead diplomat in Jamaica has lauded the progress made by the two countries as they continue to collaborate in the fight against crime. IN DOING so, US Ambassador to Jamaica Nick Perry last Friday night outlined the extradition of more than two dozen individuals wanted in the North American nation and the millions of US dollars being pumped into programmes to combat gunrunning, scamming, and drug and human trafficking. Addressing the US Embassy in Kingston’s celebration of that nation’s 247th anniversary of the declaration of independence on Friday, Perry hailed Jamaica for being a consistent US ally. “Today, we not only celebrate America’s independence, we also reaffirm the enduring bilateral relationship that unites our two nations,”Perry declared at the event, held days before US Independence Day, which will be officially recognised tomorrow. The US ambassador noted that the mutually beneficial partnership between the two countries has yielded much progress in crime-fighting efforts. “Together, we collaborate to stop the rise of crime in the region - murders, scamming, smuggling guns, trafficking in drugs and even including children,” he said. Perry shared that 29 criminals were extradited to the US from Jamaica to face justice in American courts. Additionally, he said that the security of theWestern Hemisphere was at the forefront of the Caribbean Nations Security Conference whichwas recently convened in Jamaica. UNITED AND COMMITTED He also pointed to the US law enforcement’s assistance in the seizure of 81 illegal firearms at the Montego Bay wharf in February. “Together we are united and committed to ultimately make every day brighter and better for this region – this neighbourhood that is America’s front yard,” he said. Meanwhile, Perry highlighted the US$6.7-million investment in the US-Jamaica Child Protection Compact to combat child trafficking and enhance victim services and the US$40-million effort of the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) to curb youth crime and violence. Further, he emphasised the US$100 million in new assistance that US Vice President Kamala Harris announced during a recent visit to the Caribbean. Perry also disclosed that almost 10,000 visas have been issued this year under the H-2B visa programme, which provides seasonal job opportunities to Jamaicans and which he said also benefits the American economy. “Our economic partnership is as solid as ever. We will continue to help promote US exports and investment in Jamaica through business matchmaking, leading Jamaican delegations to trade shows, and supporting trade missions to both Jamaica and the United States,” he stated. Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade, extolled the numerous US agencies, which, she said, have played an integral role in Jamaica’s development. Stating that the matter of national security remained a prime concern for the Jamaican Government, Johnson Smith expressed her desire for a“deepening” of that partnership. “Over the years and in various programmes, we’ve worked together to strengthen our capabilities, and this matter remains a priority for the Jamaican Government, and so we look forward to deepening our partnership in this regard,” she said. “The renewed and continued attention from the Biden-Harris administration is a confirmation of the importance that we both attach to our very special friendship.” sashana.small@gleanerjm.com THE 81 students at the Falmouth Infant School in Trelawny who will be transitioning to the primary level in September will receive financial assistance to purchase school supplies. A $250,000 cheque, donated by Friends of Falmouth, a NewYork-based non-profit organisation, was handed over to the school’s acting principal Patrice Beharie, during a ceremony at the institution on Tuesday. Local members of the group, Florence Logan and Patrice Simpson, made the presentation. Logan said that the funds will be disbursed in the form of vouchers to the beneficiary students for the purchase of books and other items. Seventy-nine students will receive vouchers for $3,000, while the top-two students, identified by the teachers, will each receive $5,000. The vouchers are redeemable at Trelawny Pharmacy & Book Supplies in Falmouth. Logan said Friends of Falmouth recognises the important role that Falmouth Infant School has played in the formative years of several generations of children from the Trelawny capital. “It [the school] has helped to shape [our] lives to achieve higher education and we are now playing our various roles in different areas of society,” she noted. “We feel that it is important to give back to where we came from, so that students who are attending [the school] now and those to come will have an opportunity to excel,” she added. The acting principal welcomed the support. “We are appreciative of this new partnership that we are forging with Friends of Falmouth. I just want to say thank you. We are looking forward to working with the organisation,” she said. “It is always good to know that we have someone on board to lend support to the school,” she added, noting that Falmouth Infant School has faithfully served the community of Falmouth and its surroundings. The donation came from the proceeds of a series of fundraising events staged by Friends of Falmouth in New York during the month of May. The group, which has adopted the institution, will be spearheading projects to improve the school, which opened its doors in 1962 – the year of Jamaica’s Independence. Diaspora group makes $250,000 donation to Falmouth Infant School Acting Principal of Falmouth Infant School, Patrice Beharie (right), receives a symbolic cheque for $250,000 from local member of Friends of Falmouth, Patrice Simpson. CONTRIBUTED US-Jamaica ties ‘solid as ever’ Ambassador hails successful collaboration in fight against crime Nick Perry, United States ambassador to Jamaica, doing the Electric Slide during Marcia Griffiths performance at the celebration of the 247th Anniversary of the Independence of the United States inside the US Embassy in Kingston last Friday. IAN ALLEN Happy 4th of July! Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Kamina JohnsonSmith and US Ambassador to Jamaica, Nick Perry makes a toast to the 247th anniversary of the America’s independence. IAN ALLEN

THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 2, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 6 Neil Armstrong/Gleaner Writer TORONTO: B USINESS OPERATORS Suzette Beacher and Natalie Liburd are singing the praise of a recently launched programme designed to help small businesses navigate the world of commerce. The programme is administered by the Festival Management Committee (FMC), producers of the annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival, and George Brown College, and pulls on their knowledge of, and good rapport with, the communities. For years, the FMC has been providing support, guidance and opportunities for small businesses. Recently, the organisers saw the opportunity to formalise a business advisory and education service through the government of Canada’s Black Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Fund. As a successful recipient, the FMC established the Building Black Entrepreneurial Program (BBEP) – designed to support community members in and around the carnival or festival ecosystem in Ontario by providing business management education, including financial literacy. Participants receive a certificate of completion awarded in partnership with George Brown College of Applied Arts and Technology. The programme’s mandate is to build the capacity of black entrepreneurs in the arts, cultural, entertainment, and tourism-related industries to allow them to compete in the broader marketplace. The curriculum-based training, which is tailored to the unique needs of the festival supplier base, is designed to address specific gaps, including digital adoption and information technology – IT practices, vendor management, business plan development, and client relationship management. In so doing, the programme also helps businesses transition from the niche festival market to sustainable year-round viable businesses. CAPSTONE PROJECT Beacher, a Jamaican and co-owner of Essence of Flavour, a family-owned business based in Brampton, Ontario, was valedictorian at the BBEP graduation ceremony in late 2022. Her venture, Essence of Flavour, specialises in hot sauces and marinades that are a blend of fresh, natural ingredients with no additives or preservatives. “It is an amazing programme. I would encourage anybody and everybody to participate in it. If you have a business idea, if you’re in business, if you’ve been doing business forever, there’s something that you can learn, some way you can network, some way you can build,” she gushed. Having started her business three years ago, she says BBEP helped to develop her confidence in her skills and ability to partner with several persons. She says working withMichelle Lochan, managing director of the programme, and George Brown College allowed her to elevate her business. Through the programme she was able to meet Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Official Opposition of Canada, and discuss her product. She has also met with representatives of Canadian supermarket chain Loblaws. She says a capstone project which involvedmaking a pitch, similar to that done on the television show Dragons’ Den, was very useful. Now she pitches her product to various companies, knows her numbers, and is able to represent her own business. “It essentially started during the pandemic. My mother said tome,’You know what, it’s about time you stop giving it away for free; you should start selling it,’” said Beacher. Inspired, she then went to Walmart to purchase bottles and printed the labels in her office. She placed her products in the back of her car and went to a Jamaican restaurant and sat outside in the parking lot selling it. She says the business slowly began to build as she learnt what was required from the city and the province – things the BBEP also helped her to understand. NEW VENTURE Natalie Liburd owns The Wreath and Willow, a nursery located west of Hamilton, and is thankful for the support of the programme. Speaking at the media launch of the Toronto Caribbean Carnival at the Ontario Science Centre in June, Liburd said it was the first time that she was attending an event where she had made a presentation regarding her business. She is convinced that she inherited her green thumb from her Jamaican grandfather, Fitzgerald Richards, who migrated to Canada in the 1970s after responding to an article in the newspaper encouraging Jamaicans to apply in a contest for the opportunity to get a scholarship at the University of Toronto. He was the grand prize winner and migrated on a horticultural scholarship. “And that is what started the journey of my grandfather, my grandmother, and then my aunts and my mom, of course, coming to Canada. Without that history, I actually would not be here,”said Liburd. She says the love for all things gardening is a trait that her family shares, so much so that their grounds and property at home are as aesthetically pleasing as possible. She shares the business’ operational duties with her mother, who is an accountant and very structured. Describing herself as very free-spirited, Liburd said her mother keeps her focused. “She’s helping me get to that end goal which I so appreciate, because this is a completely new venture. Previously, my experience was municipal administration, so I kind of have that background which will help me on the business side of things; but truly, my blood pumps with agricultural, horticultural [efforts], greenery, all of that, so my mom is a huge help,”said Liburd. Black entrepreneurs welcome business advisory service Natalie Liburd CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS Suzette Beacher - Carnival organisers launch programme for small businesses Lester Hinds/Gleaner Writer FIVE-YEAR-OLD JERMAINE Taylor successfully underwent an operation on Wednesday to have a new pacemaker implanted, following an appeal that galvanised the Jamaican diaspora around him to get the much-needed surgery. JERMAINE’S PLIGHT had been highlighted by The Gleaner, setting off a chain of events that culminated in Wednesday’s successful outcome. “I want to thank everyone who reached out to assist. A heavy weight has been lifted, and I want everyone to know how thankful we the family are for the assistance rendered,”his mother, Lorraine Hayes, told The Gleaner. The operation was done at the Bustamante Hospital for Children, with the procedure being performed by Dr Sherard Little. Hayes said the doctors have advised that he should be released from the hospital in the following five days. She thanked the doctors, nurses, and everyone involved in ensuring the successful outcome of her son’s procedure. Hayes had previously told The Gleaner that two weeks after Jermaine was born, it was found that he had a heart defect. He was transferred from the Victoria Jubilee Hospital to Bustamante Children’s Hospital, where a pacemaker was placed in his heart. That pacemaker needed replacing as Jermaine’s heart function had become poor. His mother told The Gleaner that the pacemaker was in need of replacement and the family was unable to come up with the US$22,100 needed to purchase the new device. The device was sourced in the United States, and the doctors at the Bustamante Children’s Hospital said that they would perform the procedure to implant the device if and when it was purchased. The family had set up a GoFundMe to try and raise the necessary funds to purchase the device but it did not gain any traction. Contact was made with Dr Robert Clarke, head of the Jamaican Physicians Association, senior medical adviser to the Diaspora Northeast, and a family friend, who, in turn, reached out to The Gleaner for help. Jamaica’s Consul General in New York, AlsionWilson, who had also been informed of Jermaine’s plight, jumped on board and raised the necessary funds to purchase the pacemaker. She told The Gleaner that she was very happy at the successful outcome of his procedure. “I am happy that we were able to help Jermaine and revel in the successful outcome, but I am still concerned about the other children at Bustamante Hospital who are in need of similar devices,” she said. Wilson thanked the newspaper for bringing Jermaine’s need to her attention and also extended her thanks to Hartford Hospital in Connecticut for its assistance in securing the device. “I hope to meet Jermaine sometime in the near future. He has a bright future, and he can now do all the things a five-year-old does,” she said. HELP JAMAICA Clarke, who is also head of Help Jamaica Medical Mission and East Orange Medical Service in East Orange, New Jersey, said the plight of young Jermaine was brought to his attention by Sonia Samuels, aunt of Jermaine, and he reached out to the family to offer whatever help he could give. “I discussed his situation with the board of Help Jamaica Medical Mission, and it was decided that the organisation would spearhead the drive to help raise the funds for young Jermaine,” said Clarke. Medical Mission, which has been in existence since 2010, is a 501 C3 non-profit organisation that has undertaken a number of medical missions to Jamaica as well as other parts of the Caribbean and Africa. “We cannot take on all cases that come to our attention, but I believe that this was a special case,” he told The Gleaner. Clarke believes that some cases are very special and deserving of assistance and Jermaine’s was one such. “We in the diaspora can help, and I am extremely happy at the successful outcome of this case,” he said. Clarke had been in constant touch with the doctors in Jamaica who were treating Jermaine as he monitored the situation. 5-y-o Jermaine Taylor gets new pacemaker implant Five-year-old Jermaine Taylor. CONTRIBUTED

THE “ORDERED” release of an American man from police custody after he was accused of verbally abusing and threatening the safety of an immigration officer at the Sangster International Airport has sparked allegations of political interference from angry border protection officers in St James. Multiple Sunday Gleaner sources confirmed that the man, who is a relative of a former politician, arrived in the island on a United Airlines flight from Dallas, Texas, on Friday, June 23, around 10 p.m. He was denied entry when he arrived at the airport in the western end of the island because of an issue with the United States passport that he travelled on. The man is accused of behaving “boisterously”and raining blows on the plexiglass separating him and the immigration officer who had conducted the interview. According to reports, he was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, handcuffed and transferred to the Barnett Street police lock-up in the parish, where the incident was recorded in the station’s cell diary. But no sooner than he was placed in a cell, a call was made to have him released, shortly after 11 p.m., several official sources disclosed. On Friday, Minister of National Security Dr Horace Chang, who also has portfolio responsibility for immigration matters, admitted to The Sunday Gleaner that he gave instructions for the man to be released“on humanitarian grounds”. Chang said that the man came to Jamaica with his family to attend the funeral of his grandmother. The security minister said that his travel document “had some damage”, but was still functional. He said that the man was detained by immigration to be returned on the next available flight, which was the following day. Chang said that his family called and asked if he could be released on humanitarian grounds because he was scheduled to attend the funeral the next day then leave the island on Sunday. “This is not an unusual request or activity,” Chang told The Sunday Gleaner. The minister said he telephoned the chief executive officer of the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA), Andrew Wynter, “and he had the same request”. “He said it was quite feasible and legal for the minister [of national security] to request his release on such grounds because immigration does this from time to time,” Chang said, referring to Wynter. “Most times, it doesn’t even reach the minister,” he added. Chang, who is also the deputy prime minister, said it was only after the man was released that he learnt that he became “very boisterous” when immigration officers told him he would be refused entry into Jamaica. But the national security minister insisted that the man was never charged with any crime. “If he assaulted somebody and was charged, I could not release him. He would have to get a lawyer and go seek bail,” Chang said. However, Sunday Gleaner sources close to the matter insisted that the man was arrested and charged for disorderly conduct and said that a former high-ranking politician had also telephoned a senior official at PICA requesting the man’s release. “So [the PICA official] actually called the police station and say, ‘Let out the man’. That didn’t sit well with the [immigration] officers because what that is saying is that the very said entity that is supposed to be defending a principle, the said entity is perverting the course of justice,” one of several sources who spoke to The Sunday Gleaner on condition of anonymity claimed. “You cannot operate in a way where because it is the relative of a friend or certain people then they are going to get off but the man who don’t know anybody going to have to go to court and face the tribunal. So the immigration officers are very peeved about that and they said they are not going to tolerate it.” ATTORNEYS REPRESENTING Leslie Campbell have said that the former government senator is perplexed by an Integrity Commission (IC) decision that he should face charges for alleged breaches of the IC Act and the Parliament (Integrity of Members) Act. IN A report to Parliament, the anti-corruption body’s director of corruption prosecution, Keisha Prince-Kameka, recommended that Campbell, a former state minister for foreign affairs and foreign trade, should be charged. Campbell, who tendered his resignation as government senator recently and lost his position as state minister, has requested an urgent review of the decision. Kevon Stephenson, director of investigations at the IC, issued an investigation report to Parliament last week detailing concerns that Campbell failed to provide information requested by the commission regarding his statutory declarations. The report was tabled during a sitting of the Senate on Friday. In his probe, Stephenson said the that commission has made 39 requests in writing between 2016 and 2020 for Campbell to provide information to the anti-corruption body, but the former lawmaker only partially complied with the requests. The IC said that Campbell provided a total of five responses over the period. But Campbell’s attorneys insisted that he had provided adequate responses to the agency. “Mr Campbell reported that the Integrity Commission continues to request the surrender value for an insurance policy, Guardian Life Care Plus, which has no surrender value,” the attorneys said. Campbell’s attorneys said their client awaits the Integrity Commission’s director of information and complaints to contact him for dialogue as stated in the IC’s report. THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 5, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 7 CAMPBELL STUNNED [NEWS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED] Leslie Campbell Dr Horace Chang Former lawmaker requests urgent review as IC recommends charges SEVENTEEN OF the 20 Qahal Yahweh members who were detained by the police last Friday morning have been charged with breaches of the Child Care and Protection Act. They were taken into custody during a joint special operation of the security forces at their Paradise Avenue religious compound in Montego Bay, St James. The charges come merely three weeks after the children of many of those now in custody were placed in state care. The religious sect’s leader was also taken into custody, but up to press time, it was not clear whether he was charged. The police confirmed that several exhibits, photographs, and other material of evidential value were removed from the compound by investigators. “This operation is part of our continued efforts to ensure the safety and well-being of all individuals associated with the compound, particularly the children, following our action on June 7, 2023,” said a statement from the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) Corporate Communications Unit. According to the JCF, it has been working closely with other government agencies and the families involved to ensure a thorough, fair, and considerate handling of the complex matter. Representatives from the Ministry of Health andWellness joined the law enforcement team in Friday’s operation, which was incident-free. The Qahal Yahweh compound, which is located two doors away from the late Kevin Smith’s Pathway International Kingdom Restoration Ministries, made headlines in 2019, when the property was raided by the authorities, who removed the children of one of the leaders. Those children have been reunited with their mother. 17 CHARGED IN LATEST QAHAL YAHWEH RAID GOV’T MINISTER ORDERS COPS TO FREE DETAINED AMERICAN

THE MONTHLY GLEANER | JULY 6 - AUGUST 2, 2023 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | NEWS 8 THE EDITOR, Madam: On behalf of the People’s National Party (PNP) and the people of Jamaica, I extend warmest congratulations to all member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) as we celebrate half a century of solidarity, cooperation, and progress. The establishment of CARICOM in 1973 marked a pivotal moment in the quest for regional integration and unity. Over the past five decades, CARICOM has played a vital role in fostering economic development, social cohesion, and cultural exchange among our nations. It has been a platform for multilateral cooperation and a strong voice on the global stage for issues affecting our shared interests. Jamaica, as a founding member of CARICOM, has played an active and significant role in the community’s growth and development. We have contributed to shaping the regional agenda on various fronts, including trade, health, education, climate change, and security. Together, we have faced challenges, celebrated triumphs, and worked collaboratively to build a thriving and inclusive Caribbean. The PNP firmly believes in the same principles of unity, equity, and social justice that underpin CARICOM’s objectives. As we reflect on the past 50 years, we also recognise that there is much work ahead. Our region continues to face economic disparities, environmental threats, and vulnerabilities exacerbated by global events. The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the urgency of strengthening our regional health systems and enhancing social safety nets to protect our citizens in times of crisis. UNIQUE CULTURAL HERITAGE As we move forward, the PNP remains committed to supporting initiatives that promote sustainable development, protect the environment, empower our people, and foster a resilient Caribbean. We must prioritise investments in education, healthcare, infrastructure, and technology to drive innovation and prepare our workforce for the challenges of the future. Additionally, we recognise the potential of regional partnerships to harness renewable energy sources, promote sustainable agriculture, and develop our blue economy. By working together, we can ensure that our natural resources are utilised responsibly and sustainably for the benefit of all. On this momentous occasion, let us recommit ourselves to the ideals of CARICOM and redouble our efforts to strengthen regional integration. We must embrace diversity and celebrate the unique cultural heritage that binds us together as Caribbean people. By fostering a sense of Caribbean identity, we can amplify our collective voice on the international stage and advocate for policies that protect our interests and address our challenges. Let us move forward with determination, unity, and a shared vision for a brighter and more glorious Caribbean for generations to come. Happy 50th anniversary, CARICOM! MARK GOLDING, MP President of the People’s National Party Happy 50th anniversary, CARICOM! THE CARIBBEAN Community (CARICOM) formally marked its 50th anniversary as a regional economic integration movement on Tuesday, July 4. This newspaper prefers to view the community as heading towards its 58th anniversary in December, relying on the date of the signing in 1965 of the Dickenson Bay Agreement among Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, that established the Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA), the forerunner to CARICOM. That indeed makes CARICOM, as its Secretary General Carla Barnett put it earlier this year, “the longest existing economic integration movement among developing countries”. CARIFTA was launched 17 months before the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. But whatever time frame is applied to CARICOM, using as its start date the Dickenson Bay or the Treaty of Chaguaramas, the prevailing perception among citizens of its 15 member states is of CARICOM as a failure. The reality is far more nuanced. CARICOM’s major failure is its lack of an economic breakthrough and the consistent inability of its leaders, at the national level, to follow through on agreements to enhance the community’s ability to achieve that breakthrough. It is what even the leaders themselves recognise – which Ralph Gonsalves of St Vincent and the Grenadines often acknowledges as their “implementation deficit”. So, 34 years after the signing of the Grand Anse Declaration, setting the process in motion, and 17 years after its launch, transitioning CARICOM to a single market and economy remains a work in (slow) progress. Nonetheless, this newspaper believes that the process should be persisted with. The potential value of CARICOM – more so in this increasingly hostile global environment – is greater than the sum of its individual parts. FUNCTIONAL COOPERATION Disappointments notwithstanding, there are areas of CARICOM, especially in what its technocrats call functional cooperation, that work well and the community has had significant achievements. The region’s cooperation against the COVID-19 pandemic and member states’ coordination in times of natural disaster are cases in point. And despite the oft-declared obstacles, intra-regional business activity has significantly advanced in recent decades, as has the integration of citizens. Up to the 1990s, citizens of, say, the Leeward Islands would not likely have directly known or been in regular contact with Jamaicans, unless they met outside the Caribbean. It is now claimed that nearly 10 per cent of the residents of Antigua and Barbuda are Jamaicans. Moreover, after years of deferring its obligation on the free movement of CARICOM citizens, Antigua and Barbuda had the unusual situation in its January elections of its two major political parties promising to outdo the other in fulfilling those responsibilities. Increasingly, too, Jamaican firms operate in the Eastern Caribbean and vice versa, utilising, though not always without difficulty, their right of establishment. But perhaps the greatest proof of concept for CARICOM is the Organisation of East Caribbean States (OECS), whose seven full members are also members of the community. They have accelerated their own integration, including a key element of a single market – the free movement of labour. They also share a central bank and a common currency. The pressures of domestic politics and presumed capacity weaknesses often underpin the reluctance of some members, especially some in the Eastern Caribbean (dubbed lesser developed on the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas), of wider embrace of an OECS-style leap into integration. But in the short term, CARICOM has mechanisms to help leverage itself out of the deeper parts of its single-market quagmire. AGREED POSITIONS Last year, its leaders agreed to allow like-minded members to implement agreed positions on which others are tentative, once a minimum threshold for participation is met and most other partners do not object. That arrangement should be fast-tracked. Perhaps, too, the OECS model of subsidiarity might be explored by CARICOM members in the North and Southern Caribbean. More critically, CARICOM needs internal mission leaders/drivers – on the one side political and intellectual, and on the other economic. France and Germany played that role for the European Union. This newspaper had previously argued that those jobs naturally belonged to Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, as the community’s political and economic leaders, respectively. Neither, especially in recent years, responded with sustained energy or sense of mission. Some of their reasons were complex, including geopolitical. However, a new window of opportunity has opened. The region’s political and intellectual leadership has shifted decidedly to Barbados and its prime minister, Mia Mottley, a dedicated regionalist who also appreciates CARICOM’s potential in helping to drive the agenda of the Global South. Ms Mottley’s advocacy for transforming the global financial and the toehold gained by her Bridgetown Initiative for financing the climate change adaptation and other development needs of developing countries is an example. It is still early days, but the signs are that economic leadership is transitioning to Guyana with the development of its oil industry and access to a plethora of other resources. But more importantly, this newspaper senses that President Mohamed Irfaan Ali grasps, and shares, the concept of shared regional development. If we are right, CARICOM might just reboot itself. CARICOM’s cup half-full Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government met in Trinidad and Tobago, 3-5 July 2023, for their 45th Regular Meeting and to launch a year of celebrations tomark the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the regional grouping. PHOTO BY CARICOM SECRETARIAT Dr. Carla Barnett, secretary-general of CARICOM addresses Monday’s opening ceremony of the 45th Regular Meeting of Heads being held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. CONTRIBUTED EDITORIAL

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