I am a writer and media producer based in Trinidad and Tobago. Follow me on Twitter @JanineMFranco.
Latest posts by Janine Mendes-Franco from December, 2006
Jamaica: Citrus under Attack
According to Jamaican Blogger, the island's citrus industry is under attack by a new species of butterfly.
Chile: Pinochet & Jara
Justin Delacour posts an article written by Alexander Billet, which examines Pinochet's legacy as it relates to “radicals” like Victor Jara, “a songwriter and poet; a deadly combination to any iron-fisted regime…”
Trinidad & Tobago: 2006 Murder Rate
Trinidad and Tobago's Minister of National Security has predicted that the 2006 murder rate will not surpass last year's: Manicou shares his thoughts on such daring forecasts.
Bermuda: Premier's Dudley Eve Cup
The Bermuda Football Association's decision to have the Government sponsor a well-loved annual tournament, has apparently gone hand in hand with renaming it in honour of the island's Premier – a purely egotistical move, according to Christian S. Dunleavy at Politics.bm.
Aruba: Thank you, Time Magazine!
On being nominated Time Magazine's Person of the Year, Arubagirl writes: “Blogging isn't going to replace mainstream media anytime soon. What it is doing right now, and that is hugely important, is keeping it honest. In check. Technology has caused great, great evil in the world. But this? Computers /...
Puerto Rico: Critical Mass
“What do We call the moment in which an active mass becomes inert because its size is no longer enough to sustain action/reaction?” Gil the Jenius explores the concept of critical mass in sociological terms.
Haiti: Millennium Development Goals
Haiti Justice Blog refers to an article from the New York Times, which examines the ways in which the comfort of rich, developed countries “is, to a large extent the result of unfair extraction of wealth from poor countries; but more important, that wealthy countries could eliminate the worst forms...
Trinidad & Tobago: Christmas Cuisine
The Caribbean Beat blog celebrates the diverse tastes of a West Indian Christmas!
Belize: Jack and Jill
Nurse Melly tells the near-tragic tale of two young puppies, Jack and Jill – and she's relieved to report that, “like all good human stories, the good guys won.”
Bahamas: Disclosure of Assets
Since the Bahamas’ Public Disclosure Act deems that Parliamentarians (along with other “persons in public life”) must report their income, assets and liabilities to the Public Disclosure Commission by December 31 each year, Rick Lowe is concerned that the latest published disclosures were almost six years ago.
Cuba: New Book, “Khrushchev’s Cold War”
A new book has captured Luis M. Garcia's attention: Khrushchev’s Cold War attributes the decision to place nuclear missiles on Cuban soil at the height of the Cold War to do more with the Soviet Union wanting to be taken seriously by the U.S. and less to do with Khrushchev...
Jamaica: Kingston on Malaria Alert
“Everybody who knows me, know that mosquitoes don't bite me,” says Kara – until now – just when Jamaica's capital city is facing a Malaria outbreak.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Stacy Wilson
In the wake of 21-year-old Stacy Wilson's gruesome murder, Abeni is both angered and saddened: “We are a nation reeling in horror with too many of us having seen the unimaginable. It just cannot be business as usual with our collective psyche so badly damaged. We need to unite, share...
Barbados: BLP and Stem Cell Clinic?
The Barbados Labour Party may or may not have received donations from the Institute of Reproductive Medicine – a clinic “embroiled in what appear to be credible accusations that its stem cell supply chain involves kidnapping and murdering healthy newborn infants in Ukraine”. Barbados Free Press wants full disclosure.
Bahamas: Bicentenary of Abolition of Slave Trade
Why should the 2007 bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade by Great Britain be commemorated? According to Nicolette Bethel, “the short answer is that it marks the beginning of a process of emancipation that involved all parties — the slaveowners as well as the slaves. The long answer...
Barbados: Fair Trade Bananas for Sainsbury
Sainsbury, the popular UK supermarket chain, has made a decision to stock Fair Trade bananas only. Gallimaufry applauds the move, saying, “Small-scale banana farmers in Latin America and the Caribbean are expected to benefit substantially.”
Bahamas: Personal Responsibility
Rick Lowe, writing at WeblogBahamas.com, quotes several sources to prove his theory that people should stop waiting for governments to do something and instead, take personal responsibility.
Trinidad & Tobago: Paime
TriniGourmet discovers that Paime, a Trinbagonian Christmas favourite, is also enjoyed by West Indians in other islands, albeit by different names. She also posts appetizing photos along with a recipe.
Trinidad & Tobago: CARIBwhale
There's a new association dedicated to conserving cetaceans and their habitat, while promoting responsible whale and dolphin watching in the Caribbean. The Caribbean Beat blog reports that the effort will “enhance education, training and research…help standardize the collection of data on marine life as well as the social and economic...
Bermuda: Christmas Trading Rules & Church
Bermuda's Finance Minister Paula Cox has announced that the island's Sunday trading rules “will not be waived in the run-up to Christmas, because of a conflict with the time that many people attend church”: A Limey in Bermuda wonders if there can't be a compromise.
Barbados, Guyana: Stadia Behind Schedule?
Despite Guyana Providence Stadium‘s Christmas Wish, it seems like Guyana is not the only Caribbean territory behind schedule for the ICC Cricket World Cup: Barbados Free Press quotes their Local Organizing Committee's Chief Executive Stephen Alleyne, who says that “Kensington is still a construction site.”
