Stories about Caribbean from March, 2012
Cuba: Aggression Against Women
Pedazos de la Isla blogs about the wives of two dissidents who maintain that they suffered miscarriages as a result of “violent operations carried out against them by the Cuban political police.”
Barbados: Could Bus Accident have been Prevented?
“Why are we so cynical and critical when it comes to mass-casualty bus accidents? We’ve learned to be because there are never any satisfactory answers as to cause or remedial actions taken afterwards”: Barbados Free Press blogs about the country's latest road accident.
Jamaica: “Dudus” Sentencing
Jamaica Salt blogs about the sentencing of accused drug don Christopher “Dudus” Coke, saying: “There seems to be little change when it comes to seeking out political corruption in Jamaica and the alleged links between drugs, crime, police and politicians…it seems a shame…that there has been little good to come...
Dominica: Architectural Heritage
Dominica Weekly takes us on a virtual tour of the island's historic buildings.
Trinidad & Tobago: Political Fiction
The Eternal Pantomime says that it is becoming “very hard…to keep up with the many stories and angles to this new scandal with the PM’s travel assistant”, adding: “This govt is a fiction machine and churns them out faster than the Sweet Valley High series.”
Cuba: Antúnez Released
Uncommon Sense reports that “Cuban human rights activist Jorge Luis García Pérez Antúnez was released from jail Wednesday, three days after he was arrested.” Pedazos de la Isla supplies more details.
Barbados: Chattel House Garden
my rustic bajan garden discovers “a gem of a garden” belonging to the owner of a Barbadian chattel house.
Trinidad & Tobago: The Gender Card (and other political missteps)
The Eternal Pantomime is upset that the Prime Minister has played the gender card in her attempt to justify the state paying for travel expenses for her sister: “If you take what is fundamentally an issue of misuse of public funds and turn it into a plea for sympathy because...
Trinidad & Tobago: Constitutional Reform
Of “the Constitutional Reform Series being piloted by the Congress of the People”, Plain Talk says: “The [issue] that sticks in most people's craw is the inability of the people to fire non-performing or abusive public officials, especially members of Parliament and the Prime Minister.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Poverty of Spirit
As another gang leader is killed, B.C. Pires says: “The poverty he grew up in – poverty of education, opportunity, example, love, poverty of everything except prejudice and licks – prepared him fully for the final deprivation: 50 more years of life.”
Cuba: 50 Years of the “Libreta”
“Citizens are divided between those who fear that its disappearance will result in hunger among the poor and those who believe that it is cheaper to subsidize people than products”: The Cuban embargo isn't the only thing that recently turned 50 – so has the Cuban ration book. Havana Times...
Cuba: Preparing for the Pope
Havana Times says that “everything seems to be ready to welcome the Pope, who will visit Cuba from March 26 to 28″, while babalu cautions that “with the upcoming Papal visit to Cuba, it's important to remember who the real Catholics in Cuba are.”
Cuba: Dual Citizenship
“Lynden Pindling International Airport is the place of metamorphosis, the place to assert the dual nationality that is not recognized in their own country”: Generation Y blogs about an unlikely connection between Cuba and the Bahamas.
Barbados: Media Ownership
Veteran Caribbean journalist Julius Gittens touches on issues of media ownership and calls for reflections on the adequacy of the existing structures and for ideas to spawn new ones…he is also sceptical of the notion that technology has reduced the need for conventional journalism: “Already in the Caribbean…so-called social media have made traditional...
Trinidad & Tobago: Bagoo Raid Raises Question of Press Freedom
Just over a month ago, the offices of Newsday, one of Trinidad and Tobago's daily newspapers, were raided by the police. They were looking for information and sources related to an article written by journalist and blogger Andre Bagoo, whose home was also placed under surveillance and searched. While much of the online discussion was happening within the confines of Facebook, there was also a fair bit of blogger commentary on the issue.
Haiti: A Constitutional Issue
Haiti Chery comments on the amended Haitian Constitution, which “Martelly’s own commission has declared…to be a “fake.””
Cuba: Kept Away from Church
Pedazos de la Isla says that the closer the Pope's visit to Cuba gets, the more the authorities appear to be clamping down on citizens.
Barbados: The Internet & Global Dialogue
All a Roo's says of the Kony campaign: “It has pushed the world into a global dialogue about an international issue. Tell me that's not cool?”
Bermuda: Corporate Use of Social Media
After successfully tweeting for help with a service issue, Breezeblog says that it's “nice to see local companies finally starting to use social media effectively.”
Jamaica: Book Fair for 50th Independence
Nadine, Unscripted is excited about the week-long book festival in Kingston that will be part of the celebrations for the country's 50th year of independence.
Cuba: To the Women Bloggers
On the heels of International Women's Day yesterday, Reinaldo Escobar at Translating Cuba congratulates all the women bloggers.