Stories about Trinidad & Tobago from January, 2012
Trinidad & Tobago: Abuse of Trust
The TnT River says of an incident in which a teacher allegedly stuck a student's head in a toilet bowl: “This is another case of child abuse which comes in a different form and from an institution entrusted with the education and all-round development of this child.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Reviving Capital Punishment?
Plain Talk comments on the issue of capital punishment: “The sad reality is that this pantomime only continues because the people are starved for choice, so every now and then these tired discussions are pulled out, dusted off and begun again in ernest to no benefit to anybody.”
Trinidad & Tobago: The Value of Seniors
kid5rivers takes the Port of Spain mayor to task for his disagreement with a proposal to offer offer free utilities and transport to senior citizens, asking, tongue firmly in cheek: “Perhaps His Worship confused SCs who are worth their weight in silk with SCs who are waited upon because they...
Trinidad & Tobago: Child Abuse
Guanaguanare hopes that the story of Josiah Governor, the child who was beaten to death, will “motivate us to be more humane in the way we treat our children”, while TnT River blogs about Everton Vasquez, a minor who “hanged himself after receiving a beating from his grandmother.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Indigenous Portrayal in History
Review of the Indigenous Caribbean republishes a paper on “the dominant, almost doctrinal assertions made about the history of Trinidad and Tobago–with some attention paid to the ways historiographers diminished and extinguished the Indigenous presence.”
Caribbean: TEDx Shows “Ideas Worth Spreading”
“Ideas worth spreading.” With this simple slogan, TED.com, which began in 1984 as an annual conference devoted to technology, entertainment and design, has infiltrated the Internet and empowered people in various countries to spark discussions in local, self-organised TED-branded events, dubbed TEDx. This sharing of ideas has found its way to the Caribbean - in 2011, five TEDx events were held: two in Jamaica, two in Trinidad and one in Puerto Rico. Here's a look back on the events that helped change the region...
Trinidad & Tobago: Sympathy for Manning
Trinidad and Tobago News Blog posts a round-up of stories about the former Prime Minister's stroke, while Guanaguanare wishes Mr. Manning “peace and love as [he] recover[s].”
Trinidad & Tobago: Manning Has Stroke
Trinidad and Tobago News Blog reports that the former Prime Minister, Patrick Manning, has suffered a stroke.
Trinidad & Tobago: Hopeless to Combat Crime?
Jumbie's Watch says that when it comes to crime, “the hopelessness and anguish are all too real”; Plain Talk adds: “The escalating murder toll is once again bringing the government's inability to bring crime under control into sharp focus”, while The Eternal Pantomime, who has been monitoring the crime situation...
Trinidad & Tobago: “Disturbing” Laws
Globewriter points out some “strange and disturbing laws” that are still on the books in Trinidad and Tobago, saying: “Yes, T&T can’t deal with LGBT rights but it is so on the ball for child marriage rights.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Sidestepping Motherhood
Suszanna.com explains why she thinks kids may be overrated.
Caribbean: Thank You, Dr. King
Today, the United States marks Martin Luther King Jr. Day - a floating holiday which celebrates the birthday of the late civil right leader. The occasion resonates with Caribbean bloggers, both at home and throughout the diaspora and a few of them share their thoughts…
Trinidad & Tobago: Joy in the Ordinary
West Indian Mother is combating indifference with a sense of wonder.
Trinidad & Tobago: Myomectomy, Explained
“Make a child and the cramps could get better. Could. If that was the sort of reason people were having children for then no wonder the country’s in such a state of hot messiness”: Suszanna.com shares her reasons for choosing to have a myomectomy.
Trinidad & Tobago: Drum Culture
In a guest post at Trinidad and Tobago News Blog, rapso artiste Brother Resistance remembers one of the country's “musical pioneers”, percussionist Ja Jah Oga Onilu, who recently passed away.
Trinidad & Tobago: Raymond Questions Media Integrity
Afra Raymond finally confirms this story on his blog: ” My commentary column on the former Minister of Finance, Karen Nunez-Tesheira, was sent to her for comment by the Guardian’s Acting Editor-in-Chief, Anthony Wilson. That is a completely improper action, which is a breach of basic media ethics. When I...
Trinidad & Tobago: The Silk Situation
Plain Talk gives his take on “the public brouhaha that erupted over the controversial awarding of ‘Silk’ to the Chief Justice and fellow Justice Wendell Kangaloo among others…”
Trinidad & Tobago: Culture of Corruption
Upon hearing news that the country may be about to embark upon a massive public sector investment program, aka_lol says: “I don’t expect the Government to be able to spend 24 billion in 2012 unless the wheels of the economy are greased with corruption. That is how things work in...
Trinidad & Tobago: Oath of Office
Afra Raymond reports that “the former Minister of Finance…is once again in the news, due to her dispute with the Integrity Commission as well as her expected testimony at the next session of the Colman Commission.”
Caribbean: Looking Back on 2011
The regional blogosphere in 2011 saw a few territories, most notably Cuba, taking front and centre - especially when it came to digital activism. The rest of the Caribbean meanwhile, grappled with everything from homophobia to states of emergency, weathered hurricanes and questioned the boundaries of online privacy.
