Trinidad and Tobago’s First Female President Sworn Into Office

President Paula-Mae Weekes, the first woman to hold the office in
Trinidad and Tobago.                                                                        

On Monday, Paula-Mae Weekes became Trinidad and Tobago’s sixth and its first female president.

Weekes, who previously worked in the country’s Director of Public Prosecutions office of the as an attorney, took her oath of office in front of a large crowd that included members of the Trinidadian Parliament and Government of Ministers.

During her speech to the citizens of the twin-island nation, the new head of state spoke about issues that have been plaguing the country, according to Caribbean360.

“[Trinidad and Tobago] is perilously close to the point of no return”, with crime, corruption, racism, abysmal public services and an ineffective judicial system, among other problems, so thick on the ground that all hope is lost, and the country had two choices: “Option 1 – We can lament, blame, criticise and allow a miasma of despair to overwhelm us or Option 2 we can consciously and intentionally choose the alternative,” Weekes said.

Facebook’s global chief diversity officer, Maxine Williams, who’s from the country, congratulated Weekes.

“Congratulations to President Paula-Mae Weekes, the first woman to hold the office in Trinidad and Tobago,” said Williams. “The thing about ‘firsts’ is that they are bitter sweet.”

ICE To Deport COVID-Positive Immigrants To Haiti

Isabel Macdonald

HuffPostMay 11, 2020, 8:07 AM EDT

The U.S. plans to deport Haitians on Monday who say they have tested positive for COVID-19 ― a move that would put both fellow airline passengers and people in their homeland at risk. 

A manifest for the scheduled deportation flight, obtained by HuffPost, shows 100 passengers. Two of those listed, Stephane Etienne and Mackendy Calice, confirmed to HuffPost that they have tested positive for the coronavirus, and three others listed on the manifest also have tested positive, according to U.S.-based human rights group the Institute for Justice and Democracy In Haiti. The Miami Herald reported on the case on Friday.

These removals of COVID-positive detainees would align with the Trump administration’s deportation priorities, but not with pleas from foreign governments to stop deporting people with the virus during the pandemic. In the past, some Haitian deportees have tested positive once they’ve been returned to the country. A Haitian official told HuffPost in April that further removals was “putting an additional burden on all of our fragile systems.”

The latest planned removals show that Immigration and Customs Enforcement may be deporting people it knows for certain are COVID-19-positive ― a move that can spread the virus and strain the health care system in other countries. 

ICE did not respond to a request for comment on the removals. 

Etienne and Calice, the two Haitian men who said they tested positive for COVID-19, were in “total lockdown” inside Pine Prairie Immigration and Customs Enforcement Processing Center in Louisiana, Calice said. They’re isolated from the detainee general population in a special area for those who test positive for the virus. Etienne’s coronavirus tests have twice come back positive, he said. Calice, who said he hasn’t been allowed to go outside in more than a month, tested positive on April 26. 

They said they were surprised to learn that they, along with three dormmates who also tested positive, were scheduled to be deported to Haiti on Monday.

Retired Republican Senator Jeff Flake will vote for Biden over Trump and says GOP needs 'a sound defeat' in 2020 election

Griffin Connolly

April 28, 2020, 3:12 PM EDT

Jeff Flake has emerged as one of the most vocal Republican critics of Donald Trump: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Retired Republican Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona will not be voting for Donald Trump this November. No, he'll be voting for a Democrat for president for the first time in his life.

"This won’t be the first time I’ve voted for a Democrat — though not for president [before]. Last time I voted for a third-party candidate. ... But I will not vote for Donald Trump," Mr Flake said in an interview with The Washington Post.

Mr Flake insisted that he is "not trying to burn the place down or anything else," but that he's trying to get back what he feels is the lost soul of the Republican party.

The best thing for the future of the Republican party would be "a sound defeat" for Mr Trump in November, Mr Flake said. "No doubt. Long term for the Republican Party, you bet. And for conservatism as well."

By the end of his first and only term as senator from 2013 to 2019, Mr Flake had the worst relationship with Mr Trump of any Senate Republican, as he openly and consistently denounced many of the president's controversial remarks and opposed a handful of his political and judicial appointments.

The men's relationship was never strong. Mr Flake called on Mr Trump to withdraw from the 2016 presidential race after the emergence of the Access Hollywood tape where Mr Trump openly brags about sexually assaulting women. Mr Trump was so enraged with Mr Flake that his White House was recruiting GOP primary challengers against the senator in the summer of 2017.

While many Republican senators who were critical of Mr Trump early in the 2016 campaign, such as South Carolina's Lindsey Graham, eventually fell in line with the president and have become some of his closest political allies, Mr Flake remained defiantly on the periphery. When he announced his retirement from the Senate in the fall of 2018 amid politically untenable approval ratings, he delivered a scathing speech against the state of politics in Washington that spared no one, not least of all his Republican colleagues nor Mr Trump.

The GOP's aggressive public embrace of the president's hard-nosed political style isn't a Washington-only phenomenon, Mr Flake lamented in his interview with the Post. Trumpism has ensnared Mr Flake's home state politicians, too, including many people to whom the former senator has long personal and political ties.

Arizona Republicans have been complicit in a "total capitulation of the party to Trumpism," Mr Flake vented in the Post interview.

In February, more than 14,000 people flocked to the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix for one of the president's notoriously lively and raucous campaign rallies. In years past, many Arizona lawmakers were reticent about appearing onstage with the Mr Trump. That's no longer the case.

"The other night it was painful to watch the rally in Arizona: the president onstage with virtually all of my Republican colleagues from Arizona — the governor on down, some of whom had been reluctant previously to be on a campaign stage with the president. But who have just completely and utterly thrown in," Mr Flake said.

It is not all gloom and doom for his party, though, Mr Flake suggested. In private conversations, many Republicans acknowledge they've submitted to a "trade-off" in which they publicly tolerate Mr Trump's bombast and anti-institutionalism in exchange for his signature on conservative policies, his nomination of conservative judges and his enactment of tax and regulatory reform. That trade-off is not intended to last forever.

Mr Flake expressed confidence that the GOP can veer back towards a vision that is more inclusive and not fuelled, in his own words, by "anger and resentment."

"I don’t know anyone who thinks that this is the future of the party. This is a demographic cul-de-sac we’re in, if nothing else. Anger and resentment only go so far; you have to have a governing philosophy. I don’t know of any of my colleagues who really believe this is it."

Haitian soccer president accused of sexually abusing young players

Dr Yves Jean-Bart, the president of the Haitian national soccer
team has been accused of sexually abusing multiple young players

The longtime president of the Haitian national soccer team’s governing body has been accused of sexually abusing multiple young players at the country’s training complex.

Yves Jean-Bart, the head of the Haitian Football Federation for the past two decades, allegedly used the threat of expulsion from the training center against fearful young females to commit numerous criminal acts within the past five years, multiple sources told The Guardian. Jean-Bart, widely known as “Dadou,” denied the charges.

“There is a lady who works there who puts pressure on the girls to have sex with Dadou,” an alleged victim told the Guardian. “He will see a nice girl who is attractive and he sends the lady to tell her that she is going to be thrown out of the centre. She starts crying and then the lady says: ‘The only way to resolve this is to speak to Dadou.’ At that moment, the young girl has no choice but to put up with the sexual abuse.”

Another alleged victim was reportedly impregnated by Jean-Bart and had an abortion at the age of 17.

“She was put under pressure not to talk,” a former player said. “Another of our best young players lost her virginity to Dadou when she was 17 in 2018 and also had to abort. These girls who live at the FIFA center … it’s such a shame because they want to play for the country but if they speak about this situation they will be fired. They are hostages.”

In February, Jean-Bart was elected for the sixth time as president of the federation. He claims the accusations are “clearly a maneuver to destabilize the FHF, the character of the president and his family.”

“[There has] never been any complaint against the federation, nor against the staff engaged in our academy, nor against my person,” Jean-Bart said. “This kind of practice of sexual abuse is almost impossible in our camp center given the physical structures, the principles of education and continuous awareness that we have put in place.

“I would not encourage such practices in Haitian football, much less in the center which is under my responsibility. If there were such cases, I would encourage the victims to file a complaint with the federation and the judicial authorities of the country. We are ready, at the level of the federation, to support them.

“To date, in women’s football in Haiti, where there are generations of players who are now 50 or 60 years old, there has never been, to my knowledge, even suspicions of this kind. Personally I am and I have been a non-violent man. I don’t understand how someone can make me look like an executioner to the point where families would feel intimidated by me.”

Players often move to the training center as teenagers, often from impoverished backgrounds. The complex was funded by FIFA and opened in 2001.

The alleged victims stayed silent due to Jean-Bart’s influence.

“I’m so afraid. Dadou Jean-Bart is a very dangerous person,” another alleged victim said. “There are a lot of people who want to talk but they’re so afraid, especially for the parents who are still in Haiti.”

One of Jean-Bart’s friends has also been accused of attempting to rape a Haitian star, while she was living at the suburban complex, outside of Port-au-Prince.

“She managed to get away from him and her parents know the situation,” said another source who is close to the player’s family. “But Dadou has tried everything to keep it quiet.”

The Haitian football federation also is facing scrutiny for misuse of up to $6 million in funds from FIFA. Several sources said the training center hasn’t been maintained and is falling apart.

“The last time I set foot there, I wanted to vomit,” said a former coach at the center. “It is despicable. Ten kids sleep in every room, there are no sheets, no clean toilets. It’s unimaginable. Where did the money go? The federation received millions, and they didn’t even buy sheets.

“This center. is a nightmare. FIFA’s inspectors came, we thought they were going to say something, but it didn’t happen. It’s impossible. How can they say nothing? The young people have no medical monitoring, they eat the same thing every day – rice, pasta, bananas, chicken – drink water that you wouldn’t ever drink and in the meantime the FA officials have their own doctor and organize banquets. It is obscene.”

The federation denied the facility is in a dilapidated state.

“These are modern and more than decent facilities and all our foreign visitors come out amazed by the beauty of the place and the efforts made by our young people and our managers to keep it very correct,” the federation said. “We are making a lot of effort to increase the self-esteem of our young people and their supervisors, otherwise they would not have been able to achieve such beautiful feats in the face of the countries of America and the Caribbean, clothing and other needs all year round.”

Source : New York Post

Haiti receives more deportees from U.S. despite coronavirus fears

Haitian migrants ride on a bus after arriving on a deportation flight from the
United States in Port-au-Prince, Haiti  on April 23, 2020 / Reuters Photo      

Haiti received a deportation flight on Thursday from the United States of 129 Haitians, including minors, days after three deportees who arrived on the previous flight tested positive for the new coronavirus.

A growing trend of contagion among deportees from the United States to Latin America has fostered criticism that it is exporting the virus to poorer countries that have fewer confirmed cases and would be devastated by a major outbreak.

Haiti Foreign Ministry senior official Israel Jacky Cantave told Reuters Haiti had asked for all deportees to be tested but the U.S. government had only agreed to test those with symptoms - a problem given many carriers are asymptomatic.

The poorest country in the Americas, which has limited testing capacity is placing all deportees in a quarantine facility for two weeks upon arrival.

But security at such facilities has proven to be weak, with one of the three deportees from a flight two weeks ago to have tested positive for the virus last weekend having escaped.

Critics of the Haitian government blame it for not standing up to the administration of President Donald Trump which has backed President Jovenel Moise throughout the violent protests that have rocked his term in office.

Haitian Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe has said repeatedly the deportees have the right to come home although his government has issued requirements for other Haitians to return so onerous they would be hard to fulfill.

According to the new rules, made public this week, they must present proof of a negative coronavirus test and pay to be quarantined for 14 days at one of two Port-au-Prince hotels designated by the government.

The new virus has spread slowly in Haiti, which has confirmed 72 cases and 5 deaths so far. But the U.S. deportations and return of thousands of Haitian workers from the Dominican Republic, which is one of the worst affected countries in the region, could soon change that.

Doctors warn a major outbreak would be devastating as the healthcare system is already collapsing - Haiti has just 100 ventilators for 11 million residents. The supply of water and sanitation infrastructure is poor and the country is densely populated.

Moreover, with two-thirds of Haitians living under the poverty level, most cannot afford to self isolate and continue to go about their daily lives. Vendors in the capital protested on Thursday against a decision by authorities to limit market days to three times a week.

Andre Paultre  Reuters

Coronavirus: les enterrements en fosses communes se multiplient à New York

New York enterre ses victimes dans des fosses communes

Située au nord-est du Bronx, quartier populaire au nord de Manhattan, Hart Island est utilisée comme fosse commune de New York depuis 1869. Plus d'un million de personnes non identifiées, non réclamées ou pour qui des proches n'ont pu payer des funérailles y sont déjà enterrées. «Nous allons continuer à utiliser l'île à cette fin durant la crise et il est probable que des gens morts des suites du Covid-19 qui relèvent de l'un de ces cas seront enterrés là dans les jours à venir», a indiqué un porte-parole de la ville de New York.

Des images filmées cette semaine par drone pour le New York Post montrent des dizaines de cercueils sommaires en train d'être enterrés sur Hart Island.

Hart Island, île des pleurs...

Cité par plusieurs médias, un porte-parole des services pénitentiaires de la ville, qui gèrent le lieu, a indiqué qu'environ 24 personnes étaient enterrées chaque jour actuellement, contre 25 en moyenne par semaine avant la pandémie. Vendredi, le maire de New York a reconnu de manière implicite que des corps de personnes décédés des suites du coronavirus étaient enterrés à Hart Island.

L'État de New York reste le plus touché par la pandémie aux États-Unis, avec 777 nouveaux décès lors des dernières 24 heures et 7.844 morts au total depuis l'arrivée du coronavirus dans la région.

Ce sont ordinairement des détenus, extraits de la célèbre prison de Rikers Island toute proche, qui assurent les enterrements. Mais compte tenu des risques de contamination et des inquiétudes quant à la propagation du virus en détention, la tâche est actuellement assurée par des employés d'un sous-traitant, a indiqué un porte-parole de la ville de New York.

Les services pénitentiaires ont ouvert un registre qui recense toutes les personnes enterrées sur l'île depuis 1977 et dont l'identité est connue. La gestion de l'île a été régulièrement critiquée, les services pénitentiaires étant accusés de ne pas entretenir correctement le site. Début 2018, plusieurs médias locaux avaient montré des images d'ossements dispersés sur les rivages de l'île, provenant de squelettes découverts par l'érosion. Le conseil municipal a voté, fin 2019, le transfert de la gestion de Hart Island au service des parcs et jardins de la ville, prévu en 2021. Le changement de gestionnaire vise aussi à rendre le site plus accessible pour les proches de personnes enterrées sur l'île.

Hart Island, l'île des pleurs

Sources:CBS,New York Post , Figaro

Covid-19 : l'OMS mobilise le monde, sans les États-Unis, pour un accès universel aux vaccins

De nombreux pays se sont engagés vendredi à se mobiliser aux côtés de l'Organisation mondiale de la santé pour accélérer la production de vaccins, traitements et tests de diagnostic contre le nouveau coronavirus et en assurer un accès équitable. Ni les États-Unis ni la Chine ne se sont associés à cette mobilisation.

L'Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) a lancé vendredi 24 avril, avec l'appui des dirigeants de nombreux pays, une initiative visant à accélérer le développement de tests, de traitements et de vaccins pour lutter contre le nouveau coronavirus et à donner un accès généralisé à ces produits.

Le président français Emmanuel Macron, la présidente de la Commission européenne Ursula von der Leyen ou encore le secrétaire général des Nations unies Antonio Guterres ont notamment participé à cette visioconférence marquée par l'absence des États-Unis et de la Chine.

Le président américain Donald Trump a suspendu la semaine dernière la contribution américaine au budget de l'OMS en accusant l'agence onusienne d'avoir "failli à ses devoirs essentiels" dans la lutte contre l'épidémie de coronavirus, suscitant un concert de désapprobation à l'échelle internationale.

L'OMS mobilise le monde, sans les États-Unis....

Pour une répartition équitable

"Nous sommes confrontés à une menace commune que nous ne pourrons vaincre que par une approche commune", a plaidé le directeur général de l'OMS, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Il a également plaidé pour une répartition équitable à travers le monde des futurs tests, traitements du Covid-19 et vaccins contre ce virus. "L'expérience nous a appris que même lorsque les outils étaient disponibles, ils n'étaient pas accessibles équitablement pour tout le monde. Nous ne pouvons pas laisser ça arriver".

Un message également relayé par le secrétaire général de l'ONU Antonio Guterres, qui a estimé indispensable que l'accès à des outils de lutte contre le Covid-19 sûrs et efficaces soit équitable plutôt que de voir réserver "un vaccin ou des traitements pour un pays, une région, ou seulement la moitié du monde".

L'Afrique vulnérable

Le président sud-africain Cyril Ramaphosa, qui assure actuellement la présidence tournante de l'Union africaine, a en effet souligné que le continent africain était "extrêmement vulnérable face aux ravages de ce virus et avait besoin d'aide" pour faire face à sa progression.

L'Union européenne s'est déclarée prête à participer à cet effort, notamment via la conférence des donateurs qu'elle organise le 4 mai prochain en lien avec l'OMS pour financer la recherche contre ce nouveau coronavirus. L'objectif de cette réunion sera de lever 7,5 milliards d'euros, a précisé la présidente de l'exécutif européen Ursula von der Leyen, en soulignant qu'il ne s'agissait que d'"un premier pas".

Quant au président français Emmanuel Macron, il a également souligné la nécessité de présenter un front international uni face à cette crise sanitaire mondiale. "Nous allons maintenant continuer à mobiliser tous les pays du G7, du G20, pour qu'ils se mettent derrière cette initiative. J'espère qu'on arrivera à réconcilier autour de cette initiative commune et la Chine et les États-Unis d'Amérique", a-t-il souligné.

Malgré leur absence, les États-Unis ont assuré que leur détermination à "rester à la tête des initiatives internationales en matière de santé" ne faisait "aucun doute". "La suspension du financement américain de l'OMS ne limite ni ne redéfinit notre implication en faveur d'un engagement international fort et efficace", a déclaré un porte-parole de la délégation américaine à Genève.

Plus de 2,7 millions de personnes ont déjà été contaminées par le nouveau coronavirus à travers le monde et près de 190 000 décès sont imputés au Covid-19, selon un décompte effectué par Reuters.

Avec Reuters