The Privy Council has upheld the final appeal brought by Jamaican Dancehall superstar Adidja ‘Vybz Kartel’ Palmer and three (3) men over their murder convictions. Five (5) Lord Laws of the United Kingdom-based Court gave the judgement earlier today (Thursday14th March, 2024). This outcome, however, does not mean that the popular artiste and his co-accused were freed.
While the appeal panel agreed to quash their convictions, it remitted the case back to Jamaica’s Court of Appeal to decide whether the group should face a retrial. The Privy Council’s ruling was said to be mainly based on how the assigned Judge in their case handled allegations of jury misconduct, which arose on the final day of the trial. It ruled that the Judge failed to consider that jurors may have wanted to overcompensate and convict the men after being offered a bribe to acquit them by a fellow juror. “The Judge took no account of this risk,” the board said.
In March 2014, Palmer, fellow dancehall artiste Shawn ‘Shawn Storm’ Campbell, Kahira Jones, and Andre St. John were convicted of murdering Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams after facing the longest trial in Jamaican history, which lasted sixty-four (64) days. Williams was alleged to have been killed at a house in Havendale, St. Andrew, after he failed to return two (2) unlicensed firearms which were reportedly given to him by Palmer for safekeeping. His body was never found. The men each received life sentences with Justice Lennox Campbell (no relation) setting varying minimum sentences they must serve, before being eligible for release on parole. Palmer was given a 35-year minimum sentence, while Campbell and Jones were each given a 25-year minimum term. St. John would be eligible after serving fifteen (15) years in prison. More on this as it becomes available. [Source: CNC3]
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The Prince and Princess of Wales were spotted heading out of Windsor Castle near London on Monday (11th March, 2024) amid a tense time for the royal family. Prince William later joined Queen Camilla and other members of the royal family at the 75th annual Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey. The Princess, however, did not attend the event.
Prince William and Kate Middleton were seen in a photo, sitting in the backseat of a chauffeured vehicle just hours after the Princess apologized for editing a family photo, which was shared on the royal social media accounts on Sunday (10th March, 2024) — Mother's Day in the United Kingdom — leading to widespread backlash and further conspiracy theories.
On Sunday, the Princess of Wales shared a photo with her seated and surrounded by her three (3) children — Prince George, Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte — to celebrate Mother's Day. The photograph was allegedly taken by Prince William, although it is not clear exactly when. “Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months,” the Princess wrote. “Wishing everyone a Happy Mother’s Day. C," she added. Middleton, however, apologized a day later, after admitting that the image shared online had been edited.
After the photo was released, eagle-eyed viewers soon noticed the image appeared to be distorted. Also controversial, was the fact that the 42-year-old was not seen wearing her wedding ring in the photo. Many theorized that the picture was AI-generated or edited. Some believe this means there is trouble in paradise for the beloved royal couple.
Someone commented on X (formerly Twitter), “No wedding ring. And the background is nowhere on the grounds of Kensington Palace and simply a random outdoor scene. They have just released an AI-generated image of Kate Middleton. This is horrifying.” Another person pondered, “A new photo of Kate Middleton after a two-month absence without a wedding ring? Knowing that she's obsessed with wearing it, what do you want to tell us, Kate?” Someone else questioned, “Why isn't Kate Middleton aka Princess of Wales wearing her wedding ring, though? Has she served divorce papers on Prince William?”
The Associated Press (AP) initially published the photo of the Princess of Wales, which was issued by Kensington Palace after weeks of speculation about her whereabouts. However, AP and other news agencies soon began pulling the image from their websites over concerns that it was “manipulated.”
Middleton took to social media to issue a statement following the uproar online: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.”
Middleton has remained out of the public eye since 25th December, 2023. She was admitted to Hospital for a planned abdominal surgery on 17th January, 2024, and has only been spotted once since her hospitalization. Conspiracy theories soon mounted about her surgery and whereabouts after not being seen publicly since December.
A Spokesperson for Middleton previously commented on the rumors, telling Fox News Digital at the end of February, “Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the Princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates. The guidance in January stands that the Princess would be recuperating at home in Windsor.” More on this as it becomes available. This is a developing story - refresh this page for updates. [Source: Fox News] Pictured Above: Miss World T&T Aché Abrahams, 24. Following Miss World Trinidad and Tobago, Aché Abrahams, becoming the new Miss World Americas and the Caribbean, after reaching the top four (4) at the 71st Miss World Pageant in India on Saturday (9th March, 2024), both Prime Minister Keith Rowley and Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar have paid their tributes. In a brief statement via the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) on Sunday (10th March, 2024), Prime Minister Rowley said, “Thank you for representing Trinidad and Tobago with such class and poise!” Also on Sunday, Mrs. Persad-Bissessar said, “Aché, your achievement is one of the best things to happen to Trinidad and Tobago in a long while, we celebrate you and thank you for inspiring all of us, especially the young people of our country to be a voice, an advocate, and an example for others to follow!” She added, “You uplifted our nation and brought immense national pride at a critical and difficult time in our nation's history. Keep being that beacon of hope and the light that dispels the darkness.” The 71st Miss World Pageant was held on Saturday at the Jio World Convention Center in Mumbai, India. Abrahams, 24, brought Trinidad and Tobago to the closest it has been to the Miss World crown in years.
Abrahams worked her way through the top forty (40) contestants, top twelve (12) and top eight (8) before she beat Miss Brazil to come out on top of the Americas and the Caribbean region. Abrahams, Lesego Chombo of Botswana, Krystyna Pyszkova of Czech Republic and Yasmina Zaytoun of Lebanon, were the top four (4) contestants. Pyszkova was crowned Miss World while Zaytoun was first runner-up. Pictured Above: Miss World T&T Aché Abrahams, 24. Miss World Trinidad and Tobago, Aché Abrahams, is the new Miss World Americas and the Caribbean after reaching the top four (4) at the 71st Miss World Pageant, held earlier today (Saturday 9th March, 2024) at the Jio World Convention Center in Mumbai, India. Abrahams, 24, brought Trinidad and Tobago to the closest it has been to the Miss World crown in years. Abrahams worked her way through the top forty (40) contestants, top twelve (12) and top eight (8) before she beat Miss Brazil to come out on top of the Americas and the Caribbean region. Abrahams, Lesego Chombo of Botswana, Krystyna Pyszkova of Czech Republic and Yasmina Zaytoun of Lebanon, were the top four (4) contestants. Pyszkova was crowned Miss World while Zaytoun was first runner-up. Abrahams faced two (2) question-and-answer segments. She was first asked, “According to you, what is the most pressing issue that most working women face, and why?” She replied, “I have to say it’s not a lack of talent or skills, it’s a lack of opportunities. So I’m grateful for Miss World for giving me this platform because you’re allowing me to follow my dreams.” She sent a message to the girls and boys from the country, saying, “Your voice is just as powerful as everyone else’s.” In her second question, she was asked to “pitch” to the Shark Tank India Judges as to why she should win the competition. To which she replied, “In sweet T&T we say may every creed and race find an equal place. I live my life every day with that motto, with that mantra. I believe Miss World has a similar mantra. I believe when you have compassion and understanding for differences, you can really make a difference in the world and work hand in hand to create a bright future. For me I am so honoured to be here and to share the mindset of T&T because we can truly make a difference. In Trinidad and Tobago, we acknowledge our similarities but more importantly, we celebrate our differences. We see the beauty in diversity and we promote inclusion.” The only Trinidadian to win the Miss World Pageant was Giselle Jeanne-Marie Laronde-West in 1986. Michelle Khan and Gabrielle Walcott both placed third at the 45th and 58th editions of the Miss World contest in 1995 and 2008, respectively.
[Source: CNC3]
UPDATE (1:30 PM): All previously-affected services are functioning now.
UPDATE (12:25 PM): Logging back into Facebook and Messenger seems to be working now. No luck as yet with Instagram and Threads.
UPDATE (11:52 AM): “We’re aware people are having trouble accessing our services,” Meta Spokesperson Andy Stone said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). “We are working on this now.”
If you noticed you were suddenly signed out of Facebook and Messenger this morning (Tuesday 5th March, 2024), you are not alone. The platform is facing a serious outage that has logged out users in many countries. Due to this outage, re-entering your password will be rejected — but your password is not wrong. There is no need to change your password (yet). You are not being phished. This is all due to a Meta service disruption.
The outage, which started around 11:00 AM, is also affecting Messenger, Instagram and Threads — all owned by Meta. Some users found they had been logged out of their Facebook accounts this morning while others got notifications on Instagram that “something went wrong” and their feeds could not be loaded. Threads, Meta’s competitor to Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter), also went down and showed users a popup that said “Something went wrong, please try again later” in place of their feed. More than 500,000 reports have hit Down Detector and X (formerly Twitter) is flooded with reports as well. While major platform outages happen relatively infrequently, they are typically the result of something benign, such as an issue with a software update. Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp went down during a massive worldwide outage in 2021, which lasted for six (6) hours. At the time, the company said the outage was caused by “configuration changes on backbone routers.” Meta has yet to acknowledge today’s ongoing issues. More on this as it becomes available. This is a developing story - refresh this page for updates. [Source: 9to5Mac]
The Ministry of Health, via its Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division, is advising of a voluntary recall notice for several types of Merba cookies. A food alert notification was issued by the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) after small metal pieces were found in the products, produced during the period of 7th December, 2023 to 15th December, 2023.
The metal particles vary in size and consist of thin and long pieces. According to the manufacturer, MERBA B.V., the contamination was due to a broken agitator in a bakery fat storage tank. The tank was taken out of production. The consumption of these contaminated products poses a serious risk to one's health.
The Ministry is advising that the products have been imported and are sold locally. Therefore, the Ministry is urging persons who may be in possession of these recalled products to discontinue use immediately and to return the products to the place of purchase where possible.
Additional Information can be obtained by contacting the Office of the Director of the Chemistry, Food and Drug Division via email at [email protected] or phone at 217-4664, ext. 13101. The Ministry said it will continue to monitor the situation and advise the population as necessary. The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts is clarifying statements circulating in the media as it relates to the taxation of artistes that perform abroad.
In a Media Release today (Thursday 22nd February, 2024), the Ministry said the matter was raised by Opposition Member of Parliament (MP), Mr. Rodney Charles, at yesterday's Joint Select Committee (JSC) on Foreign Affairs, wherein the MP suggested that consideration should be given to collecting revenue through taxation from artistes that perform abroad. The Ministry is advising that currently, “no such measure is under consideration by the Ministry nor the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Such a measure can have restrictive implications and negatively impact the industry. Additionally, all cultural practitioners, including artistes working both locally and abroad, are presently subject to the tax provisions of the country, as are all other citizens.” The Ministry said it continues to encourage the export of Trinidad and Tobago's cultural products and “remains committed to developing the industry through working with all of its stakeholders to redound to the benefit of all citizens.” In accordance with the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (NOSCP), the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries (MEEI) said it continues to collaborate with the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) and the Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA), to progress oil spill response operations off the Southern coast of Cove, Tobago. To aid in the ongoing on-water oil recovery, survey, and plans to conduct cargo lightering and wreck removal, an international partnership comprised of T&T Salvage LLC and QT Environmental Inc., both subject matter experts and licenced Oil Spill Removal Organizations (OSROs), has been engaged by the MEEI. In a Media Release today (Tuesday 20th February, 2024), the Ministry said the mobilization of the international team includes a Salvage Master who will be overseeing the hydrographic survey, while their commercial dive crew will be utilized to assess and plug leaks, utilizing surface-supplied air. Based on the findings of the initial survey, the salvage team will co-ordinate with other local and international organizations and stakeholders on the ground in Tobago, to install a layered surface oil recovery programme. The international experts will also utilize underwater, non-floating oil detection systems to ensure all oil is identified and to maximize oil recovery. With respect to the hydrocarbons which have escaped the wreck, the Ministry said emergency response logistical support for the effective recovery of such hydrocarbons will be implemented. “This aspect of the response efforts will include Best Available Technology known as The NOFI Current Buster System, which has been utilized globally in extremely demanding environmental conditions, including high currents. The Current Buster Technology is a proven resource and will aid in a more efficient recovery of hydrocarbons on the surface,” the Ministry said. Additionally, the MEEl is advising that it has engaged the services of a Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) Contractor, Subsea Specialist Ltd., to conduct ROV works around the vessel. The personnel and equipment of Subsea Specialist Ltd., T&T Salvage, LLC and QT Environmental, Inc., are en-route and expected to arrive in Tobago today (Tuesday 20th February, 2024) and continue through Friday (23rd February, 2024). The MEEl said it “continues to aggressively progress strategies to stop the flow of hydrocarbons from the overturned vessel and focus on containment.” T&T Salvage LLC and QT Environmental Inc. are two (2) privately-held companies with a strong working partnership with many successful case studies and worldwide experience. The partnership includes OSRO in various countries. The two (2) parent companies are able to provide Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 support on an international scale.
T&T Salvage LLC (Teichman Group), established in 1957, provides salvage, wreck removal and spill response services worldwide from its offices located across the globe. T&T Salvage LLC has been involved in some of the largest wreck and oil spill removal projects undertaken internationally. These projects were conducted in environmentally demanding areas globally in accordance with international standards. QT Environmental, Inc., established in 1967, is a leading environmental emergency response service provider committed to providing both innovative and sustainable solutions for a wide range of environmental challenges. QT has been involved in the largest spill responses in the world and is also a worldwide distributor for spill response equipment. The Media Release concluded by saying, “T&T Salvage LLC and QT Environmental Inc. will provide a proven team as well as logistical and operational support to assist the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to safely and effectively restore the areas affected by the hydrocarbon discharge.” The Ministry of Health, via its Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division, is advising of a voluntary recall notice of an undetermined amount of Ready-To-Eat (RTE) meat products containing Coppa, that may be under-processed and may have resulted in possible contamination with food-borne pathogens.
According to the Ministry, food-borne pathogens such as Salmonella or Listeria can cause symptoms including diarrhoea, abdominal cramps, and fever within six (6) hours to six (6) days after eating the contaminated product. The recall was issued by Fratelli Beretta USA, Incorporated. The products subject to recall display the establishment number “EST. M47967 or M7543B” inside the USDA mark of inspection or in inkjet print on the front of the package. The Ministry is advising that the products have been imported and are sold locally. The local distributor, All Italian, has been contacted to immediately remove the items from all points of sale. The Ministry is further urging persons who may be in possession of these recalled products to discontinue use immediately and to return the product to the place of purchase, where possible. Additional Information can be obtained by contacting the Office of the Director of the Chemistry, Food and Drug Division via email at [email protected] or phone at 217-4664, ext. 13101. The Ministry said it will continue to monitor the situation and advise the population as necessary. Please be guided accordingly.
Pictured Above: Phylicia Rashad at Bamboo Cathedral, Chaguaramas. Photo Credit: Tourism Trinidad.
UPDATE (10/02/24): Rashad says her visit to Trinidad has opened her eyes. Just before her departure today (Saturday 10th February, 2024), she vowed to take a piece of this country with her.
American actress, Phylicia Rashad, most-famously known for her role as Clair Huxtable in ‘The Cosby Show,’ is currently in Trinidad on vacation, just in time for Carnival 2024.
Tourism Trinidad facilitated a short cultural tour for Rashad earlier today (Wednesday 7th February, 2024) to Chaguaramas, where she stopped at U-Pick Farm, the Golf Course, and the Bamboo Cathedral. Rashad experienced her first taste of local corn soup and also attended a performance from Hadco Phase II Pan Groove on Tuesday. Accompanying Rashad on her tour is Simone Fredericks, wife of Prof. Wayne Fredericks, former Principal of Howard University, where Rashad is Dean of the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts.
Rashad first gained fame for her work in the television series ‘The Cosby Show’ (1984–92) and later became the first African American woman to win (2004) a Tony Award for best actress; she won the honour for her performance in the play ‘A Raisin in the Sun.’
[Source: Newsday]
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