Dear Editor,
The long-anticipated CARICOM Travel Bubble is now in operation! It went into effect on Friday, September
18, in keeping with a decision made at a Special Emergency CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting one week previously.
The defining feature of a COVID-19 Travel Bubble is that persons, entitled to participate in the Travel Bubble, are not required to take a COVID-19 test nor undergo a period of quarantine in order to travel to countries that are within the Bubble.
Our CARICOM Heads of Government took a major step towards resuscitating the COVID-19 challenged travel and tourism sectors, with their agreement to institute a Travel Bubble among CARICOM Member States and Associate Members, which meet the agreed criteria from Friday, September 18.
The Heads took the decision at a Special Emergency Session on Friday, September 11, at which they acknowledged that the past six months have been a very challenging period globally and regionally, as countries have struggled to cope with the effects of the novel coronavirus. They noted that for CARICOM, it has been particularly difficult, given the high dependence in most of the economies on the travel and tourism sectors.
In agreeing to establish the Bubble, the Heads were guided by a comprehensive report from the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) which provided recommendations on how the Bubble would operate, and laid out the eligibility criteria for countries to participate.
The recommendations included that countries would be categorised ranging from those with no cases to those which had low, medium, high and very high risk with respect to the rate of positive cases over a 14-day period; the level of risk would be determined by the number of positive cases per 100,000 of the population within a
14-day period; only those countries with no cases and those in the low-risk category would be allowed to participate in the Bubble. CARPHA will assess relevant data to advise on participation in the Bubble.
Heads of government agreed that travellers from countries within the Bubble would be allowed entry without being subjected to PCR testing prior to arrival and would also not have to undergo quarantine restrictions. Travellers may have to be subjected to screening on arrival. Such travellers should, however, have been resident in a Bubble country (or should not have travelled to a country outside of the Bubble) at least 14 days prior to the date of travel!
It is agreed that initially, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines will be in the Bubble as they presently meet the criteria. Other Member States and Associate Members will be allowed to participate when they meet the criteria.
It has been definitively confirmed that as of Tuesday, September 22, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda, and Barbados have all put their arrangements in place and have commenced operating the Travel Bubble.
David Comissiong
Barbados’ Ambassador to CARICOM
Dear Editor,
I understand now why St.Maarten, Aruba, Curaçao keep failing in negotiating with Holland. The approach is wrong from the beginning.
A wise negotiator establishes the relationship before proceeding further. You are best positioned to negotiate when the other party respects you, not only as a businessperson but as a human being.
Trust, which is gained through that respect, is the key to successful negotiation. We of the Dutch Caribbean approach negotiating with Holland telling ourselves, “Don’t trust the Dutch.”
In every negotiating act, there must be some trust. If there is no trust then do not start. But in St.Maarten and Aruba and Curaçao’s manner, I believe they are afraid to fail or they have an inferiority complex. Enter a negotiation without proper preparation and you’ve already lost. Pay attention to timing. Leave behind your ego. Listen well. Ask what is possible, and expect to compromise. You must offer and expect commitment.
Don’t absorb their problems. Both parties in a negotiation must trust that the other side will keep up with promises and agreements. A negotiator must have the skills to implement his promises after bargaining ends. The conclusion is to make sure from both sides that the objective and the time of fulfillment are set and will not change.
Emotion, luck, and magic have no place in a successful negotiation. I quote now from a professional negotiator: “It takes an iron gut, homework, street smarts, and unblinking discipline. These keys will unlock your ability to get the best deal possible under any circumstances. Preparation is key.
“Know about the party you’re negotiating with so you can capitalize on your strengths and the party’s weaknesses. If the other party is very experienced, that means he or she also has a history that could contain useful information. If possible, talk to business associates who have dealt with this person before. Many negotiators develop patterns and certain styles that you may be able to use to your advantage.”
St. Maarten, when negotiating you must know your strengths and what you can offer or not, and be honest with it. Never lie in negotiating. People can forgive, but trust is always difficult to regain.
Stop believing every Dutch person is bad and has no good intentions, that is your emotions acting without the benefit of your intellect. If the major superpowers like the USA, China, Europe can negotiate weapons of mass destruction deals, why can we not negotiate financial deals?
If you cannot or are not willing to deal with Holland why do you want to be in government? This present situation of major challenges is the best opportunity to show St. Maarten people you are the people or person best to lead St.Maarten. If you are afraid, you are not ready for prime time. The people in St. Maarten want to see leaders who are not afraid of a challenge and are willing to instill hope through positive action. If you want to be independent you must learn to negotiate.
Choices have consequences, choose wisely.
The Patriot Miguel Arrindell
Dear Editor,
The Dolphinarium is an enterprise that's doomed to fail. Dolphin poop would spread on our fragile coastline, turning the gold coast into the poop coast.
In an era where agriculture is animal torture, people are shellshocked and don't want to see them in captivity. The Madame Estate zoo closed. The Oyster Pond iguana pens closed.
Statistics are clear:
The following countries do not allow the display of cetaceans for
entertainment: Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Hungary. States,
provinces, counties, and municipalities have done the same, including Barcelona, Spain; Malibu County, California, United States; Maui County, Hawaii, United States; Mexico City, Mexico; Ontario, Canada (orcas only, achieved through a trade and breeding ban); and South Carolina in the United States.
In May 2017, France issued a “decree” that banned the acquisition of more cetaceans for public display, banned the breeding of captive cetaceans, prohibited swimming with captive dolphins and other forms of interaction.
In August 2017, Mexico City banned captive dolphin display, which covered a dolphinarium within the city limits.
Hungary currently prohibits the import of cetaceans for public display and indeed has no dolphinaria.
The government of Jordan had issued a permit to developers wishing to build a dolphinarium (the country currently has no dolphinaria), but in response to public pressure, including a letter from the animal protection coalition Dolphinaria-Free Europe (M. Dodds, letter to Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Lina Anab, 30 July 2018), the permit was revoked.
The government of Antigua and Barbuda, after issuing a permit to a foreign company to capture as many as 12 dolphins annually from local waters, rescinded this permission after activists filed a lawsuit arguing the quota was unsustainable and that it violated regional conservation agreements. These include the city of Vodnjan, Croatia; the city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States; and the city of Denver, Colorado, United States. The government of Panama, after two years of debate and controversy, decided not only against the building of a dolphinarium, but also against allowing the capture of dolphins from its waters.
The United Kingdom used to have as many as 30 dolphinaria and now has none. Italy bans swimming wit dolphins encounters and other human-dolphin interactions.
Marine mammals can host a number of pathogens that pose risks to humans. A study of bottlenose dolphins off Florida, Texas, and North Carolina in the United States found 1,871 bacteria and yeast strains and 85 different species of microorganisms in fecal and blowhole samples, several of which were of potential pathogenic significance to humans (Buck et al., 2006).
Black Sea bottlenose dolphins carry antibodies (meaning they have been exposed to the associated pathogens) to morbillivirus, Toxoplasma, and Brucella (Russia IC, 2008). Brucella is common in cetaceans and is zoonotic (Van Bressem et al., 2009; Guzmán-Verri et al., 2012). There have been several incidences of humans being infected by marine mammal strains of Brucella, a bacterium that can cause symptoms ranging from fatigue and depression to joint pain, fever, spontaneous abortion in pregnant females, inflammation of the gonads in males, and even death.
Taken from https://www.projectsforwildlife.com/uploads/1/0/9/5/109512543/cammic_5th_edition_final_08mar19__1_.pdf
Catherine Brown
Central in the ongoing stalemate regarding the third tranche loan negotiations is the assertion that the proposed Caribbean Reform Entity would infringe upon Curaçao's autonomy. But no one in the Curaçao government has offered a legitimate argument to support such a claim. Instead, political self-interest is blocking the path to the greater good – getting Curaçao's finances in order to further the wellbeing of the people and economy of Curaçao.
The Netherlands has no interest in recolonizing the island, as some have suggested. Rather, the CRE's financial oversight they insist upon is intended to ensure that Curaçao will not need yet more loans from the Netherlands after this third round of assistance. Keep in mind, Holland has its own infrastructure and society to maintain with its taxpayer funds.
Curaçao opted to distance itself from the Netherlands ten years ago, becoming an autonomous country. But now that the island is experiencing financial hardship, it wants Dutch aid unconditionally. The interest-free loans from the Netherlands are already a very generous response to the island's immediate need to weather a disruption of its commerce. Rarely does one receive something for nothing, and the current cabinet members should acknowledge as much and approve the loan terms.
The people of Curaçao understandably are keen to continue the nation's growth as an autonomous country within the Kingdom. But with autonomy comes responsibility, which can be severely tested in times of financial hardship. In these circumstances, individuals, businesses, and governments frequently seek outside assistance. There is no shame in asking for help. Indeed, it takes courage and strength to do so. Accepting this financial and administrative help does not jeopardize the island's freedom and autonomy whatsoever.
The CRE's central and critical purpose is to help Curaçao renovate its fiscal management to ensure the island's long-term financial independence and prosperity. Allowing the CRE to help in the long run actually moves Curaçao closer towards true autonomy rather than undermining it.
Gunsor Buther
Curaçao
Dear Editor,
Including in my daily prayers is a prayer for the youth.
Part of that prayer is may they grow in grace and in the power of Your Holy Spirit. Help them to develop their skills to Your honor and glory. May they follow wise council, good leadership, inspiring company and Godly discipline, so that they may take their place in life and be a blessing to the community in which they live.
I read the article of the President of Parliament award and that was rewarding to me. For there to be a winner there has to be more participants. So along with Erwin Romney I would like to congratulate all the nominees and may they continue to strive for excellence.
Russell A. Simmons
