NEWS
Kidnap victim released, cops hunt suspects
Four days after she was kidnapped from her El Dorado business place, doubles vendor Anisha Hosein has been released by her captors. A senior police officer told Newsday around 10.30 pm on May 22 that Hosein was found on the road near the Caroni Cremation site. Passersby took her to the St Joseph Police Station. There was no confirmation on whether a ransom was paid or whether she was harmed. Hosein, 27, was grabbed by three armed men on May 18 and forced into a silver Nissan B15 while setting up for work in El Dorado shortly before 6 am. Read more here
Family threatening legal action against WASA for damaged home
A San Francique family who was allegedly forced to leave their home, after it was significantly damaged by a water leak, is threatening to sue the Water and Sewerage Authority(WASA). Emma Narine-Mohammed, 55, her husband Cedric, 61, her parents Ramhit, 79, and Marilyn Narine, 80, sister Marlene Shadick, 49, and brother-in-law Fazil Hamid Shadick, 50, sent a pre-action letter through their attorney Raesa Mohammed, of Magnus Attorneys-at-Law, to WASA’s acting CEO Kelvin Romain. They want WASA to state whether it will admit liability for negligence and/or nuisance and/or statutory breach which caused damage to their home and their associated losses and whether it intends to compensate them. The family claims WASA’s failure to adequately repair and maintain its water mains, located on their property at Pluck Road, caused damage, loss of property and emotional distress. Read more here
POLITICS
Cox: New bill for people with disabilities being drafted
Minister of Social Development and Family Services Donna Cox says a bill to enhance the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities is nearing completion. She was speaking during a seminar on the sexual and reproductive health of women with disabilities. The seminar emphasised the significance of providing accessible sexual and reproductive health services to individuals with disabilities. Speaking at the seminar on May 22, Cox said the bill aligned with international standards outlined by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). Read more here
BUSINESS
'Home solar not competitive'
Some 80 per cent of Trinbagonians are interested in installing solar panels, according to a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) study. However, a lack of necessary legislation and high upfront costs are significant barriers to rooftop solar adoption, according to the Regulated Industries Commission (RIC). The Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries (MEEI) plans to implement a feed-in tariff regime to encourage small-scale renewable energy. Typically, feed-in tariffs work by providing renewable energy producers with a guaranteed payment rate for the electricity they produce and/or export to the grid. This mechanism aims to make solar investments more attractive by ensuring a stable and favourable return on investment for households. However, under the T&T Electricity Commission’s (T&TEC) current business model, households with solar panels cannot export electricity to the grid, making the implementation of a feed-in tariff regime impossible at this time. This is due to the absence of necessary provisions in both the RIC and T&TEC Acts. Read more here
Tobago Chamber supports Marriott Hotel project
The Tobago arm of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce has thrown its support behind the construction of the $500 million Marriott Hotel earmarked for Rocky Point, describing it as a “game changer.” The Chamber says it is in agreement with the project as private sector investment remains paramount. This was revealed during a media conference yesterday at the Chamber’s head office in Scarborough. Read more here
REGIONAL
Assessment for CARICOM ferry now in final stages
The evaluation of a regional ferry service, which involves the Governments of Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, is currently in its final stages, President Dr. Irfaan Ali said. During a conversation with reporters at a recent event, the Guyanese Head of State, who also serves as the current chairperson of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), stated that the assessment will be finalised within the next four to five days. “That assessment now is in the final stages, we are waiting now on the full assessment because there is an assessment now in Guyana, Trinidad and Barbados and then we will see the type of changes required at the port or whether there is change in the vessel that may be required.” President Ali made an announcement on Tuesday that the ferry service will be based in Parika, Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), an established port. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
France's divisive reckoning with MeToo: 'It's been brewing for years'
At this year's Cannes Film Festival, a new generation of young female film-makers is calling out sexual violence and sexism in the industry on screen. Breaking the silence surrounding the experience of sexual abuse has been a constant motto of the #MeToo movement. At the Cannes Film Festival in France, female actors and film-makers are doing it perhaps the best way they know how – on screen. Historically, #MeToo hadn't had the same cultural impact in France as in the US, although the French had their own pithy hashtag for it – #balancetonporc, or "call out your pig". Then, in 2018, as the movement was getting started, 100 female artists, including legendary French actress Catherine Deneuve, wrote an open letter to Le Monde newspaper expressing concerns about it, saying "the liberty to seduce and importune is essential to sexual freedom". Read more here
23rd May 2024