United States of America
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A Worsening Haitian Tragedy
The aid group Doctors Without Borders said last Tuesday that the cholera crisis in Haiti was getting worse, for the most unnecessary and appalling of reasons: a lack of money and basic medical supplies. The disease has killed 8,000 people and sickened 649,000 since October 2010. International efforts to defeat the epidemic include a 10-year, $2.2 billion plan for major…
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Protests in Caribbean district for third consecutive night
NEW YORK, CMC – Police here say that at least 18 people were arrested as fights between them and angry youth erupted for the third consecutive night in the predominantly Caribbean district of East Flatbush in Brooklyn over police shooting death of a Caribbean youth. On Thursday police reported that they struggled to control an irate crowd that broke away…
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Warning issued against abuse of solitary confinement
WASHINGTON, CMC – The United Nations expert on torture has called on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to investigate the practise of solitary confinement and its harmful effects in the Americas, including the Caribbean. Juan E. Méndez, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on torture, also called for stronger regulation on solitary confinement. “I am concerned about the general lack of…
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Standards and Poor’s downgrades Grenada
NEW YORK, CMC – The US-based Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has lowered its foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings on Grenada to 'SD' (selective default) from 'CCC+/C'. “The downgrade to 'SD' follows the government of Grenada's announcement that it will not pay the coupon due March 15, 2013, on its U.S. dollar and Eastern Caribbean dollar bonds due…
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Human Rights group says Chávez disregarded basic human rights
NEW YORK, CMC – Even as Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez was laid to rest on Friday a major human rights group in the United States claims that his presidency (1999-2013) was characterized by a “dramatic concentration of power and open disregard for basic human rights guarantees.” According to Human Rights Watch after enacting a new constitution with ample human rights…
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Over 100 ship passengers fall ill after Caribbean cruise
FORT LAUDERDALE, CMC – A major cruise line here says more than 100 passengers aboard an 11-day cruise to the Caribbean fell ill with a bad gastrointestinal virus. On Saturday, Royal Caribbean announced that at least 105 of the 2,000 guests as well as three crew members, fell victim to what was believed to be a norovirus, a common but…
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PM calls for unity in rebuilding efforts
NEW YORK, CMC – Newly-elected Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell has called for all hands on deck and unity in re-building the tri-island nation. During a town hall meeting at Brooklyn College, late Saturday,Mitchell, whose New National Party (NNP) swept the polls in the historic February 19 general elections, urged all nationals to come on board in addressing the country’s…
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Major US think tank queries future of ALBA, Petrocaribe without Chávez
WASHINGTON, CMC – With the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, a major think tank here is querying the future of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) and the Petrocaribe oil agreement with Caribbean countries. Chávez died last week after a long struggle with cancer. The Washington-based Council on Hemispheric Affairs (COHA) noted that the ALBA bloc is made…
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Budget cuts will affect travel to New York
NEW YORK, CMC – Secretary of the United States’ Homeland Security Department, Janet Napolitano, has warned passengers at John F. Kennedy International Airport to schedule extra hours for travel as the department faces a 5 percent cut in the US federal budget battle. Napolitano told reporters that while passengers at New York’s airports are yet feel the impact of spending…
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Challenging times with passing of Chávez
WASHINGTON, CMC – The United States on Wednesday joined the global community in expressing sadness over the passing of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. Chávez, the firebrand socialist and avowed enemy of the United States who transformed politics in his native country, died Tuesday at 58. He had struggled with cancer for almost two years. US President Barack Obama said it…
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