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00:00:00 [Music]
00:00:29 Good morning, I am Ansel Gives with a news update. Police have held a man who
00:00:35 they believe is responsible for the deaths of an eight-year-old boy and his
00:00:41 mother in Marabella. Investigators say there was a stabbing incident on Tuesday
00:00:47 morning at an apartment on Batu Street. Police say the boy, Noel Thomas, was found
00:00:53 dead in a bedroom with a stab wound to his neck. His 40-year-old mother, Hollis
00:00:59 Thomas, was also found in the bedroom area with a stab wound to her neck. She
00:01:05 was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where she died. The Soka World
00:01:11 has lost one of its sons. As Soka star Ricardo Drew died on Tuesday in the land
00:01:17 of his birth, Antigua and Barbuda. Reports out of Antigua say Drew was found
00:01:23 unresponsive and he was taken to a local hospital where he reportedly died around
00:01:29 noon. And in the weather forecast, a few cloudy patches at times accompanied by
00:01:35 scattered showers will interrupt mostly fair conditions. There's also a low
00:01:41 chance of one or two heavier showers, particularly during the afternoon period.
00:01:46 Meanwhile, beachgoers must exercise extreme caution when going to the beach
00:01:52 and small craft operators, along with other marine interests, are asked to
00:01:58 monitor sea conditions before venturing offshore.
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00:04:06 [Music]
00:04:25 And a very special good morning Trinidad and Tobago and the rest of the world. I'm
00:04:28 Marlon Hopkinson and welcome to the morning edition. The voice there of the late
00:04:33 Ricardo Drew. All right so we do have a lot on the program this morning. Thank you
00:04:38 very much for joining us but let's let's get right into it. So the entertainment
00:04:44 industry is in mourning today following the death of soca star Ricardo Drew.
00:04:47 Reports say the entertainer was found unresponsive at his home in Antigua
00:04:51 yesterday. He was rushed to hospital and was eventually pronounced dead. Since
00:04:55 then tributes have been pouring in both here and abroad. On the line this morning
00:04:59 is Minister of Festivals in Antigua and Barbuda, Darrell Matthews. Minister good
00:05:03 morning. Morning and good morning to your listening audience. Yes and Minister
00:05:08 thank you very much for joining us this morning. Well Antigua and Barbuda has
00:05:13 lost one of its most prominent and sons if I can put it that way. What has been
00:05:20 the reaction like? Well you know there's been total shock involving the nation
00:05:27 since the news of Ricardo's untimely passing surfaced. You know he was one of
00:05:32 those persons in Antigua and Barbuda who was well loved and you call him a son of
00:05:37 the star which we do but I'm also aware that we share him with Trinidad and
00:05:41 Tobago. Of course. And so you know when we accepted him as one of our own many
00:05:48 many years ago he really stood out as a person of class, a committed individual.
00:05:55 In fact because he still carries somewhat of a Trinidadian accent it took a while
00:06:00 for the Antigua and Barbuda public to warm up to him. But I'll say that this
00:06:04 year was certainly his most successful year. He was a road match winner this
00:06:09 year. He had some excellent events this year and this year was his real
00:06:14 breakthrough here in Antigua and Barbuda notwithstanding the successes that he's
00:06:18 faced and he's had over the past few years. I believe this carnival in July
00:06:24 August was really the year when Antiguans and Barbudans really embraced him as one
00:06:30 of their own and to see the tragic events of yesterday unfold was really
00:06:35 heartbreaking. Yeah and I think Minister it would be it would be correct to say
00:06:40 that we have also been looking at his improvement over the years. Of course I
00:06:45 remember when he first came to Trinidad to promote his music and so on but many
00:06:52 people may not remember that he was involved in R&B music and then he went
00:06:57 over to Soka in a in a sort of full-blown way. So we as we looked at him
00:07:04 we did see him going from strength to strength. Absolutely. Yeah and I'm sure
00:07:11 that it would have come as a surprise to many both here and in Antigua and Barbuda.
00:07:18 Oh yeah absolutely correct. You know his repertoire of music is quite large but in
00:07:25 the Antiguan and Barbudan government a few years ago I think it might have been
00:07:28 as far back as four or five years ago, Ricardo and a few others were appointed
00:07:33 cultural ambassadors where they actually receive a stipend from the government on
00:07:38 a monthly basis in order to help them advance their careers and I will say
00:07:44 that Ricardo, full disclosure Ricardo is a personal friend of mine, Ricardo is one
00:07:50 of those persons who using their platform as a cultural ambassador really
00:07:55 spread the name of Antigua and Barbuda everywhere around the world that he
00:07:59 traveled and he did so with pride, with class, with grace and you know the entire
00:08:06 cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda along with the general public stunned at his
00:08:12 untimely passing but he was a committed person who was committed to his craft
00:08:16 and as you mentioned earlier you could see the progression in his development
00:08:20 year over year over year and there were times when he faced tremendous adversity
00:08:26 but he never gave up, he stuck to it, he continued to push his message of
00:08:31 positivity and you know the results really manifested themselves during this
00:08:38 year which like I said earlier is easily his most successful year as a soca
00:08:42 artist. Yeah let's talk a little bit minister about Ricardo Drew, the man, the
00:08:49 father, let's speak about him in that way now because a lot of us just know him as
00:08:54 the soca artist but just tell us because of your relationship with him the type
00:08:59 of person he was. No he was a great gentleman, he was a person who you know I
00:09:07 struggle to recall any instance where I've seen him angry, I've seen him upset,
00:09:14 I've seen him annoyed, I've seen him frustrated but I can't recall not even a
00:09:19 single instance where I've seen him angry. He always has this trademark and
00:09:24 marquee smile, he spoke about the love of his children in recent years you know
00:09:30 his love of his fiancee Patrice to whom I extend condolences. In fact the night
00:09:36 when he proposed to Patrice on stage here in Antigua and Barbuda about an hour
00:09:42 or so before that event happened you know he I was backstage and he said to
00:09:46 me you know minister make sure you're paying attention just pay attention and
00:09:51 you know I found it so entertaining and you know enlightening the way how he
00:10:00 proposed on stage and I said to him afterwards you know you've made us all
00:10:03 men look very bad because you go on stage in the middle of a set and propose
00:10:07 to your girlfriend at the time you've raised the bar for all of us but he was
00:10:12 truly in love with her he loved his children he loved his family his mother
00:10:17 you know I was with her yesterday at the hospital and you could just see he was a
00:10:22 family guy and he did not allow himself to get distracted with the fame and
00:10:27 fortune that comes along with stardom. He remained a very humble man and he'll be
00:10:34 deeply missed. Yeah and minister he told you to pay attention and boy did we also
00:10:40 pay attention to him. Minister I know it's very early days still and I'm sure
00:10:46 that his death is is really being digested at this time and people are
00:10:53 trying to come to terms with it and trying to understand what has happened
00:10:58 but do you think that the Antigua and Barbuda government they they may plan
00:11:06 something special for him? Well you know it's quite strange that you ask that
00:11:12 because one of the things that we were going to do we meaning the festival's
00:11:17 office we're gonna do tomorrow Thursday was to drop his flyer for a concert that
00:11:23 takes place in January every year it's called the One Nation concert and every
00:11:28 few days we release a new artist and his flyer was due to drop tomorrow and
00:11:34 obviously what transpired what happened has happened but we are having a cabinet
00:11:39 meeting today Wednesday and I'm certain that that will occupy a part of the
00:11:43 cabinet's attention when we meet but I can say publicly here and I've said so
00:11:48 yesterday that we in the government will find a way to appropriately recognize
00:11:52 him for the work that he has done in his career and for the representation the
00:11:57 sterling representation that he has made on behalf of Antigua and Barbuda and so
00:12:03 the short answer is yes I'm not in a position to say exactly what that would
00:12:08 be but I can in fact say that it will be an appropriate recognition of all of his
00:12:14 life's work. Yeah, Minister anything else you'd like to tell us before you leave
00:12:18 us this morning? You know I'm still in a state of shock I was with him for Miami
00:12:24 Carnival and one of the last conversations we had recently you know he
00:12:29 said to me that he is so grateful for where he is in his career today he is
00:12:34 happy about his progression his development he has some exciting work to
00:12:39 do in 2024 one of his arch rivals in Antigua and Barbuda in the Soka arena
00:12:45 they had been nothing they had not been on speaking terms for a few years they
00:12:50 reconciled the same did a major face-off show and I think he came he was at a
00:12:56 place where he was at peace with his trajectory his career his life and he
00:13:01 was very thankful for it and then this happened and the message that I have
00:13:07 gotten from all of that is that we should always be thankful for who we are
00:13:10 we should never lose an opportunity to really appreciate life and all that life
00:13:15 has given us and every moment that we have use it wisely because procrastination
00:13:20 is a thief of time and tomorrow is not promised so let us all recognize
00:13:26 whenever these things happen let us all recognize our mortality and ensure that
00:13:31 we wake up every day if we have the opportunity to do so and live it in the
00:13:36 most positive enlightening way that we can. Yeah Minister Daryl Matthews thank
00:13:40 you very much for your profound words this morning condolences to you because
00:13:44 I know that Ricardo was your your personal friend so condolences to you
00:13:49 the people of Antigua Barbuda and also his relatives thank you very much
00:13:53 Minister. Thank you very much for having me. Okay bye for now so let's check out
00:14:00 to see what's happening in the Daily Express today now all right so husband
00:14:04 makes gruesome discovery in bedroom of Maribela apartment mom son eight stabbed
00:14:10 to death brutally murdered Hollis Thomas 40 and her eight-year-old son Noel were
00:14:16 found stabbed to death at their home on Batu Street Maribela yesterday and dark
00:14:23 days ahead after Thomas Felix removed and soka star Ricardo Drew dies at the
00:14:29 age of 38. On the back page now to some sport off to a flyer fist bump fist bump
00:14:37 yeah England's Phil Salt knocks gloves with
00:14:40 captain Josh Butler during the first t20 match against West Indies at
00:14:45 Kensington Oval in Bridgetown Barbados last evening the hosts won they toss and
00:14:50 inserted the visitors to bat first salt made 40 and Butler 39 as the pair put
00:14:56 put on an opening stand of 77 from six overs before being eventually bowled out
00:15:02 for 171 in 19.3 overs the match continued after press time and CPL calm
00:15:11 on Guyana going ahead with plans to host 2024 Tony despite border dispute
00:15:18 Caribbean Premier League CEO Pete Russell is optimistic that the
00:15:22 territorial dispute between Guyana and Venezuela will not affect the hosting of
00:15:27 the 2024 tournament final in Guyana now Guyana was selected by CPL to host the
00:15:33 final of the franchise tournament from 2022 to 2024 so some of the stories
00:15:41 making the Daily Express today all right so we do have a lot for you on the
00:15:47 program today you have your coffee and your tea and something to eat yeah
00:15:51 because they the show is just beginning yeah I can tell you that so we do have a
00:15:55 lot of good information for you and you know we like to give you a lot of
00:16:00 educational information - all right so we are going to a very short break we
00:16:04 are coming back
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00:18:21 you
00:18:44 be on the tape weekdays at 5:30 p.m.
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00:19:29 all right so welcome back everyone so as I said to you earlier we do have a
00:19:33 lot for you in the program today but let's look at some of the stories making
00:19:37 the news in the Daily Express earlier let's make TNT safer let us resolve to
00:19:43 make Trinidad and Tobago become a safer place so said police commissioner earlier
00:19:48 Christopher yesterday she was delivering remarks at the Christmas on
00:19:51 the hill annual Children's Street in collaboration with the Trinidad and
00:19:54 Tobago Police Services hearts and minds program and project grace at Sugren
00:20:00 trees in Laventille and we told you about the front page story on the Daily
00:20:06 Express today boy ate mom murdered in their bedroom stabbed to death
00:20:11 eight-year-old Noel Thomas and his 40 year old mother Hollis Thomas were
00:20:16 murdered in the bedroom of their Marabella home yesterday morning both
00:20:20 were stabbed in the neck with a knife Noel died on a bed while his mother was
00:20:24 also found in the bedroom gasping gasping for breath and bleeding
00:20:28 profusely from a stab wound Thomas a security officer was taken to a San
00:20:33 Fernando General Hospital where she died all right so some of these stories
00:20:39 making the news in the Daily Express today and as we go through the program
00:20:44 we'll try to touch on some other informative stories right so get a copy
00:20:48 today all right so let's move into the other item on the agenda this morning so
00:20:55 taxi drivers have described the condition of the temporary Manzanilla
00:20:59 bypass road as dilapidated and are calling for the intervention of Works
00:21:03 and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan joining us now is MP for Mayaro
00:21:08 Rushton Parry mr. Parry good morning yeah mr. Parry as always thank you very much
00:21:17 for joining us please tell us about what is happening because some taxi drivers
00:21:22 have called the road a pothole ridden nightmare is this accurate so I can tell
00:21:30 you that the frustration levels of the motor in public is high indeed there's
00:21:35 no two ways about it they have been having to traverse this bypass road for
00:21:42 almost one year you would recall it was last year around the same time that the
00:21:47 road had collapsed and there was effort by the Ministry of Works to get a
00:21:52 bypass going and there was a commitment by the minister at that time to have a
00:21:58 new road in place before the rainy season the September October period
00:22:04 this year so the status at this time is that there is active work going on on
00:22:11 the rebuilding of a new piece of road there is two or three pieces that are
00:22:16 actively under construction I do not believe that they will be able to finish
00:22:21 in time for the close of this year but I am confident from what I'm seeing that
00:22:26 a new roadway should be completed somewhere within the first quarter of
00:22:31 next year but the bypass road rail is some challenge so what happens the
00:22:37 Ministry of Works the pure division they are constantly having to grade the
00:22:43 roadway after rainfall after the deterioration of the top surface because
00:22:49 when they built the bypass road there was the feeling or the explanation given
00:22:55 to all of us that they did not want to use asphalt or any bitumen based
00:23:01 substance as a covering layer of the road so what you have was pure material
00:23:09 what you call the mill roadway that was used they would grade it and they would
00:23:13 roll it but what happened as soon as the rain came down the top layer would wash
00:23:20 away so what you found happening since June of this year when the rainy season
00:23:25 kicked in every time the rain fall the top layer deteriorates and we went back
00:23:32 to a crater like look and feel of the road and there are some times that you may
00:23:39 have had to take almost 20 minutes crawling through this and I mean you
00:23:44 have taxi drivers you have people with vehicles and I mean by time you finish I
00:23:49 mean your body hurts we would respond we would call the ministry I every time I
00:23:55 pass because I traverse that road every day back and forth the port of Spain as
00:23:59 long as I have Paloma and if I go through the road and it's in a state I
00:24:03 would message the minister I would message the primary persons at PO and
00:24:08 say look guys look I've now driven through this place it's in a mess and
00:24:12 you start to grade it so they will do the grading they will fix it and as the
00:24:16 rain comes down it washes away so it really leads the type of frustration
00:24:22 that the taxi drivers are speaking of right at this time. Mr. Parry what has
00:24:27 the impact on the community been because I'm I'm looking at the video that we are
00:24:32 showing it it's making me kind of dizzy so I'm just I'm just thinking about the
00:24:37 impact you mentioned that the pains that that people suffer by traveling on the
00:24:45 roadway but but let's look at the overall impact now. Well besides the
00:24:51 wear and tear on your vehicle which is a costly item combined with all the other
00:24:57 things that citizens have to face in terms of rising prices all around it has
00:25:03 it has an economic impact on my arrow now this Manzanilla Road it is our
00:25:12 gateway to consumers or users of our tourism facilities from North Trinidad
00:25:21 and since the road we got into the condition that it is right today we have
00:25:29 seen a dramatic reduction in our visitors from North Trinidad you can feel
00:25:36 it in the in the hotel rooms in the guest houses and the supermarkets would
00:25:41 even tell you that as well. There has been a considerable reduction on that
00:25:46 client that comes from North Trinidad. Now you do have the Naperima My Arrow Road on the
00:25:52 other side which is the other artery into my arrow but that road to Marlon if
00:25:57 you I can tell you taxi taxi driver was on that leg they would cry the same cry
00:26:03 having go through the same type of pain using the roadway from San Fernando to
00:26:07 my arrow so my arrow is a community it is really disadvantaged because of these
00:26:13 two arteries that are not that are not making it very let's put it with the
00:26:21 driving experience is not one that most visitors want to have to entertain so
00:26:26 our visitors would normally come to my arrow and they choose to go Maracas go
00:26:30 to Tobago for a weekend rather than take that journey so it has an economic
00:26:35 impact on us here in Manila. Mr. Parry what's the what's the next step by by you the
00:26:41 the MP do you intend to contact the the Minister of Works and Transport the
00:26:46 Ministry of Works and Transport because I see that the taxi drivers are calling
00:26:51 for a meeting with him are you considering those options? I mean I'm I
00:26:56 don't think there's anybody else who reaches out to the Minister and the head of
00:27:01 your more than I every other day we've had several conversations I mean the
00:27:07 minister I think there was a meeting that was that that came off quite a few
00:27:13 months ago before the construction started on the new roadway I'm all for
00:27:19 meetings I know to the last month I think Minister Sinan was abroad in Saudi
00:27:26 Arabia with the Prime Minister but but absolutely I mean I we would keep
00:27:31 calling we write I whatsapp him every time I am communication with the head of
00:27:36 the Taxi Driver Association as well having a meeting with the minister will
00:27:41 will be good to satisfy you know the immediate cry but you know what is
00:27:46 alarming to me and it's a question that I've filed on the order paper in the
00:27:51 Parliament for a response I have asked the Ministry and the Minister to tell me
00:27:58 how much money we have spent in grading and resurfacing the bypass road and if it
00:28:06 was an issue of money 14 months ago 12 months ago when they were deciding to
00:28:12 make the bypass road putting that quarter inch or one inch of asphalt on
00:28:18 the road we could have avoided the amount of money we're spending to grade
00:28:23 every two days or every three days the inconvenience of the drivers the damage
00:28:30 and wear and tear for because I mean remember we have when we have to change
00:28:34 steering racks and shocks and so on we're draining the limited US currency
00:28:39 that we have to buy parts for vehicles so it seems that the government
00:28:45 continues to be penny wise and pound foolish as you people said so so but
00:28:50 we're far down into the game and I mean I will continue to call on the minister
00:28:54 to meet with anybody and everybody to really dictate the pace of what's
00:28:58 happening and I mean I will support the call of the taxi drivers on this side
00:29:01 yeah but what's your message to the residents of the area and also the taxi
00:29:07 drivers well my message is to keep the pressure on I think one one undesirable
00:29:17 trait in this country is that the actions of our government it seems like
00:29:23 they like to turn decent law-abiding people into terrorists only when people
00:29:30 block roads for water and burn tires the water comes only when you find citizens
00:29:36 in this country go down the route of protests of civil unrest then the
00:29:41 government acts that is something that I don't agree with those things are
00:29:46 illegal but you have to understand the pain of the average citizen in this
00:29:51 country and it is the taxi drivers are not only complaining about the roadway
00:29:55 but when they add this on the other 10,000 things that are coming on it and
00:30:02 I'm sure all of them received their property tax assessment as well so when
00:30:07 you pile all of that on top the average citizen you are really turning citizens
00:30:13 into this angry mob which is what you don't want so I mean I'm going to call
00:30:16 on the minister today to reach out to the taxi driver Association let's have
00:30:22 the meeting let us have the taxi drivers have their say express themselves in a
00:30:28 formal way rather than go down the other road where you create disobedience and
00:30:32 police and so on has to get involved that is something I do not want to see
00:30:36 with this country on any matter going forward.
00:30:38 Yeah minister I nearly said minister MP MP is there anything else you'd like to
00:30:47 add concerning this matter? Yes yes I mean good sense has to prevail we're
00:30:52 coming down to the Yuletide season we want to have a very wonderful Christmas
00:30:57 here in Mayaro I will continue to call on pure the pure division to keep the
00:31:03 roads as smooth as you can get the grading going I pray for good weather we
00:31:08 have about two or three weeks before the holiday weekend two weeks we want all
00:31:13 visitors to come to Mayaro we want all visitors to come and spend their money in Mayaro
00:31:18 that is important for our local economy and we will continue to do all that is
00:31:23 good and proper. I've met with the police the police as a wonderful exercise in
00:31:29 terms of keeping Mayaro safe for this upcoming season I've spoken to the
00:31:33 ERH everything is in place in terms of our medical and hospital facilities you
00:31:39 know I have spoken to the heads of WASA even the minister asking that you know
00:31:43 consideration be given you know to ramp up our water services water supply in
00:31:49 the area for the holiday season as well because we want to be a welcoming
00:31:53 community for this holiday so with that said Malan I want to wish our viewers
00:31:58 your listeners a wonderful a Merry Christmas and a very happy and bright
00:32:02 and prosperous 2024. And to you you also MP Rushton Parry as always sir thank you
00:32:09 very much for speaking with us this morning. My pleasure. Bye for now so we do
00:32:13 have a break for you we have this image captioned lovely what is that word
00:32:20 lovely irises irises irises scented but poisonous you see sometimes you need to
00:32:29 read your scripts before irises lovely irises scented but poisonous thank you
00:32:34 very much to the person who sent that to us this morning we're coming back
00:32:40 [Music]
00:32:44 'Twas the month before Christmas the season of chaos Donna was worried she
00:32:49 wasn't ready for Christmas but the everything plan she signed up for one
00:32:54 day marked the beginning of gig speeds and the season of giveaways home makeovers
00:33:00 groceries tech and cash galore for paying her bill and switching to more
00:33:04 what were the chances Donna thought with a blush through truly meant it when
00:33:10 they'd said Christmas is on us. Are you an Island Finance customer we've got
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00:33:40 [Music]
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00:35:35 Welcome back everyone so we are just one day away now from tomorrow's meeting
00:35:40 between the Guyanese president Irfan Ali and president of Venezuela Nicolas
00:35:44 Maduro concerning the border dispute between both Guyana and Venezuela of
00:35:48 course you would know that in recent days the Trinidad and Tobago government
00:35:51 has been criticized for not doing more to ease tensions between both countries
00:35:56 we do have live in studio this morning Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Amory
00:36:00 Brown. Dr. Brown thank you for coming this morning. It's great to be here and I
00:36:06 believe we are discussing an issue of tremendous importance for the region
00:36:12 with great implications for current circumstances and for the future of
00:36:18 CARICOM as well. Yeah well Dr. Brown as I said earlier over the past week I think
00:36:25 that the government has come in for some criticism over this matter there is the
00:36:31 suggestion that the government should have tried to mediate this matter. Is it
00:36:38 such a simple case of the Foreign Affairs Minister the Prime Minister
00:36:44 calling the president of Venezuela to speak about this matter is it simple
00:36:49 just like that? No it isn't so some of that talk was really an over
00:36:54 simplification and an attempt let's be frank by the United National Congress to
00:37:01 insert their divisive ethos into a matter that is far beyond party politics
00:37:07 and far beyond even national politics. This issue has regional and international
00:37:14 implications and requires a different level of discourse a different level of
00:37:19 engagement and a far more mature interface. So what has happened is that
00:37:25 no member state of CARICOM has entered into this matter in a foray of its own
00:37:33 that kind of adventurism would be out of place. Everything that has taken place
00:37:39 has been done in the context of the Caribbean community. You would recall
00:37:44 there was an emergency meeting of CARICOM heads last week Friday. Yes. In
00:37:49 which our Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley participated fully and
00:37:55 constructively and it is out of that meeting that the current scenario has
00:38:01 emerged where another opportunity has been created on Thursday tomorrow for
00:38:08 the respective heads to sit in the same room. Now the parameters of this meeting
00:38:14 are very interesting because as is the sovereign policy of Guyana President Ali
00:38:20 is not going in there to talk about the border dispute or to engage in any form
00:38:26 of negotiation or to engage in any form of mediation. So that talk is irrelevant
00:38:32 to this process. What is happening is that there's an attempt via CARICOM and
00:38:38 via SALAC to achieve a cooling of the temperature. If that were to occur then
00:38:47 tomorrow's meeting would be an outstanding success and as Ralph
00:38:51 Gonzales himself has said and he's he would be present in his capacity of pro
00:38:57 temporary president of SALAC. SALAC is a larger grouping than CARICOM which
00:39:03 actually includes Venezuela and Brazil. Ralph Gonzales himself said that it is
00:39:13 better to talk than not to talk even though we may not be able to even speak
00:39:20 about or discuss the substantive matter that has caused this. Well on the weekend
00:39:27 the president of Guyana said it is just a conversation that we're having. It is
00:39:32 not any type of negotiation that we are going to have but also last week Prime
00:39:39 Minister Dr. Keith Rowley would have said that following talks with the with
00:39:47 Guyana with the president because he says he's in constant contact with the
00:39:52 president of Guyana and at that time which was last week Guyana mentioned
00:40:01 that at that time there was no need for mediation. Well that is still the Guyanese
00:40:08 position and that is still the CARICOM position. Yes. This is not a mediation as
00:40:14 you know is a very distinct application where first of all you must have an
00:40:21 agreement. Mediation is a voluntary process. Mediation has its role in life
00:40:27 even in community engagement even in the law but you must both sides must agree
00:40:33 to the process. That is not the case here at all. So there's no agreement for
00:40:38 mediation and then the mediator has to be impartial and unbiased. If you have
00:40:45 the mediator in solidarity as we are within CARICOM with a fellow member
00:40:53 state that is not the formula for mediation. So I don't want to spend too
00:40:56 much time. Yes. On what really was a red herring. What we are focused on at this
00:41:02 stage is the fruits of significant diplomatic activity involving Prime
00:41:09 Minister Rawley and all of the other CARICOM heads of government that have
00:41:15 been engaged in front of the scenes and also significantly behind the scenes
00:41:21 mature steady work aimed at reducing the prospect of overt hostility or military
00:41:31 engagement in this matter. That would be a worst case scenario for the region. Now
00:41:37 in recent times because I know that this has been boiling for a little while now
00:41:42 and there have been some concern over the past few months that it would have
00:41:50 been an opportune time for CARICOM to intervene at that time and we're seeing
00:41:56 that CARICOM really coming to the fore in the in the past few weeks. Do you think
00:42:04 that CARICOM intervened at the right time because as I said it has been bubbling
00:42:09 for a while now. Well this issue is not a new issue Marlon. This goes back to over
00:42:15 a century. So there has been a controversy. There have been mixed views about the
00:42:23 delineation of that particular border and there have been several processes
00:42:28 engaged over the years to attempt to achieve a consensus. We can go right back
00:42:37 to 1899. Yes. The year 1899 when when there was an arbitral process which Guyana
00:42:44 still stands by and then you can move forward to 1966 when there was a Geneva
00:42:50 process resulting in a Geneva agreement with a formula that if negotiations
00:42:55 should not succeed which they haven't the matter would go to the UN Secretary
00:43:01 General who then sent it to the International Court of Justice. So
00:43:06 there have been several attempts to achieve an end to the controversy. It has
00:43:13 not ended. If there's an expectation that CARICOM outside of Guyana's
00:43:21 involvement would engage in this that is not a realistic expectation. So CARICOM
00:43:27 all along has been guided by the Guyanese policy on this matter because Guyana is
00:43:34 one of us. It's a member of our regional family. So that has made the prospect of
00:43:42 CARICOM's intervention as an independent entity in this controversy a bit of a
00:43:51 challenge. The Organization of American States, the Commonwealth, SALAC and other
00:43:57 entities have gotten on board as well. The matter is now at the stage of the UN
00:44:03 Security Council. Yes. And I suspect will be at the UN General Assembly as well.
00:44:10 So there are a number of fora and facilities that have become engaged in this
00:44:16 matter. But let's bear in mind this escalation, this increase in temperature
00:44:22 largely as a result of actions being taken by the sovereign Republic of
00:44:28 Venezuela. Yes. In this matter. I don't think there's any dispute around that.
00:44:33 And therefore this engagement tomorrow in St. Vincent and the Grenadines
00:44:39 ideally would at least result in a freezing of those positions if not a
00:44:46 reversal of some of them. Yes. And a cooling of the situation. But those talks
00:44:52 tomorrow I suspect are going to be very interesting talks because if it is that
00:44:58 they are not going to be discussing the dispute then what is going to be
00:45:05 discussed? Is it a thawing of tensions? That is what is going to be discussed.
00:45:11 What is going to be discussed? Basically what can we do outside of the
00:45:16 substance of the controversy that would result in a reduction of tension. This
00:45:23 sense of ominous threat that citizens, civilians are experiencing in the
00:45:30 Essequibo area. What can we do as a collective, as a regional grouping to
00:45:37 achieve that? Let's not assume the worst. I also have great faith in the skill and
00:45:45 experience of the participants in the room. Our own Prime Minister, other
00:45:51 CARICOM heads of government, President Maduro is not a new kid on the block.
00:45:56 He's also very experienced, a multi-term leader and President Ali as well is very
00:46:02 savvy. It is our hope that with this climate that has been created and this
00:46:07 opportunity the respective parties will seize the chance to avoid the worst case
00:46:17 scenario. Should that not be the case I've already indicated there are several
00:46:22 other fora and possibilities that may be engaged in the very near future.
00:46:28 So I think it is safe to say by what you're saying is that there is a level of
00:46:34 optimism by the players who are going to participate in tomorrow's conversation as
00:46:42 the President of Guyana has said.
00:46:45 Well optimism is a strong word. What I would say is that a significant energy
00:46:51 and attention is being placed on tomorrow's event with a view to us as a
00:46:57 regional community doing our best to achieve a positive result. In this case a
00:47:04 positive result would be a change in this trend where week after week there's a
00:47:09 building of temperature and this ominous sense of threat. You would recall
00:47:16 Venezuela itself was the subject in a former administration to the north of
00:47:23 that ominous sense of threat of possible invasion etc. And CARICOM and Trinidad
00:47:29 and Tobago was part of the grouping that said this is not right. This is not in
00:47:37 keeping with international law. You cannot have a sovereign republic feeling this
00:47:42 sense of pressure etc. Now the circumstances are not the same but we would like to
00:47:48 achieve a similar change where that threat is eased and where matters can be dealt
00:47:55 with in accordance with international law as opposed to any sense that big is
00:48:01 great and might is right. That's not in keeping with our principles.
00:48:08 How does Trinidad and Tobago feel by what is happening? I want to put it in this
00:48:17 context. It is no secret that Trinidad and Tobago has had a long relationship with
00:48:23 Venezuela. We have had a great relationship with Guyana. We continue to do business
00:48:29 with Venezuela. Up to last week you had the Prime Minister saying well the
00:48:34 Dragon Gas Matter, that's a commercial arrangement. Of course I suspect there are
00:48:41 people in Trinidad and Tobago and maybe across the region who may feel well maybe
00:48:47 Trinidad and Tobago needs to step aside a little bit to see what is happening
00:48:52 because to engage further with Venezuela may be something that could come across
00:49:00 as morally wrong. What's your position in all of this?
00:49:06 Well we operate on the basis of the interests of Trinidad and Tobago, the
00:49:12 interests of our people, the interests of our development against the context of
00:49:17 some very clear principles for which we engage our foreign policy. So non-interference
00:49:26 in the internal affairs of other member states, respect for territorial integrity
00:49:34 and sovereignty, respect for international law and the application of the UN
00:49:39 Charter and the fact that all of us within the United Nations are equals.
00:49:46 It's against that basis. So Trinidad and Tobago as well as Grenada, as well as
00:49:54 Barbados, as well as Guyana itself are all engaged in commercial and economic
00:50:01 contacts with Venezuela and other states within the region. So sometimes we tend
00:50:07 to distill ourselves and our situation, that's how we are as a people, and make
00:50:13 it a little more dramatic or exclusive than is actually the case. So we're not
00:50:20 the only ones doing business with Venezuela, with Brazil, with Colombia, with
00:50:25 other states in the region. So I don't think there's a requirement for us to
00:50:30 isolate ourselves in contemplation to say well we should not have economic
00:50:36 contacts with Venezuela in this scenario. Now what I would want to acknowledge is
00:50:44 that there are implications for how we communicate, how we do business, how we
00:50:50 engage diplomacy and all of that is formulated into the current scenario.
00:50:56 We have made it our business to maintain various channels of communication with
00:51:02 all the players, all the stakeholders in this particular controversy. We see that
00:51:09 as the mature stuff.
00:51:11 But you don't feel that you're being pulled in any particular direction?
00:51:15 Not at all. It's something that was shared with me very early in my tenure as
00:51:21 Minister of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs by our Prime Minister. When you stand on
00:51:26 principle, your decisions will stand the test of time. Look at there were
00:51:32 stakeholders in this country, opposition stakeholders, that recognized a fake
00:51:38 president in the same Venezuela they want us to be mediating and so on with.
00:51:44 Where are those decisions today? They have not stood the test of time. Juan
00:51:50 Guaido is no longer a political factor. The government of Trinidad and Tobago
00:51:57 engaged and continues to engage on matters of clear principle and that has
00:52:04 steered us through turbulent times, many challenges, pressures, changes in
00:52:10 administration all around us and that has enabled us to maintain a steady,
00:52:17 progressive foreign policy that has achieved significant results.
00:52:24 Well you have reministered that because there may be people who may see this
00:52:30 matter as just a very simple matter. How serious a matter is this?
00:52:35 This matter is extremely serious. The possibilities and implications are quite
00:52:42 grave. The Caribbean, as we are very proud to say, has been maintained largely as a
00:52:49 zone of peace. The prospect of conflict or military engagement would very likely
00:52:56 spill over with involvement of others even from outside of the region. That is
00:53:03 in no one's interest, certainly not in CARICOM's interest, definitely not in
00:53:09 Venezuela's interest or Guyana's interest and therefore at least we can agree on
00:53:15 that and it is our hope that tomorrow in St. Vincent and the Grenadines that sense
00:53:22 of clarity can guide us all away from the worst case scenario. So I don't want
00:53:28 anyone in the national community to think this is a trite matter for party politics,
00:53:35 for the kind of divisive engagement that we've seen. Listen, there are opposition
00:53:40 parties in all of our member states. Somehow we are special in that we are the
00:53:47 only opposition in TNT that has seen it fit to try to insert itself into a matter
00:53:55 of regional diplomacy with international implications. There are steady hands at
00:54:01 work here. There is no need for that type of application and divisiveness. We are
00:54:08 working together as a regional community and one thing that none of us would like
00:54:14 to see sacrificed or affected is the strong sense of solidarity and unity that
00:54:24 has been engendered within the Caribbean community. We saw that during the 50th
00:54:31 anniversary right here in Port of Spain and that must not be sacrificed even as
00:54:38 we work on this. You feel minister because when things such as these happen,
00:54:45 there is a perception, there is a feeling in the Caribbean, well we are small
00:54:49 countries, you know. You feel that we do have the weight to deal with this and the
00:54:57 expertise and professionalism and maturity to deal with this matter effectively and
00:55:02 adequately. We do. We absolutely do. CARICOM is resilient. We have survived and
00:55:11 steered ourselves and others through periods of great difficulty, natural
00:55:16 disasters, threats from outside, threats from inside, a fracture, etc. We've
00:55:22 survived 50 years. This matter is serious with grave implications but I believe
00:55:30 CARICOM has the solidarity, the unity, the intellectual capacity and the wherewithal
00:55:38 to ensure that we make best effort to avoid a negative scenario for Guyana, for
00:55:49 Venezuela and for the rest of the region. I am very confident that everyone who is
00:55:58 coming to the process in St. Vincent and Grenadine would like that to be achieved.
00:56:04 You might say it's easier said than done but we are responsible for things within
00:56:10 our control. There are factors out there. There may be imperatives and factors that
00:56:18 we may not even be aware of that might be driving some of this recent escalation.
00:56:24 We have to do our best and CARICOM has been doing exactly that. This is not the
00:56:29 forum for any individual state or leader to go off on an adventure of their own.
00:56:37 We are approaching this together.
00:56:40 I want to, because we do just have a few minutes again, but I just want to, in your
00:56:48 mind or in the government's mind or in CARICOM's mind, what do you think would be
00:56:56 a successful meeting re-tomorrow?
00:57:01 A successful meeting would be one in which there is emergence of a consensus that no
00:57:09 further actions will be taken that would increase a sense of tension or threat or
00:57:20 of impending military or hostile action. That would be a successful engagement.
00:57:31 A recognition that continued discourse, dialogue, and diplomacy has its role even
00:57:39 though it may not be a negotiation specific to the location of a border between two
00:57:48 states. Ideally, a consensus as well on the international legal process at which
00:57:58 the controversy itself can be properly delineated. As far as Ghana and CARICOM
00:58:06 are concerned, that is in accordance with the same Geneva Agreement properly placed
00:58:12 at the ICJ. Venezuela has a different view. That's a sovereign republic.
00:58:17 They're entitled to their view. But what we don't want to occur is those different
00:58:22 positions resulting in hostility and the threat that many people who are our
00:58:32 brothers and sisters in Esequibo, in Georgetown, and other places are feeling at
00:58:37 this time. Those conditions have to change.
00:58:41 I also know that you will also be attending tomorrow's meeting, Minister.
00:58:46 I suspect it's going to be an interesting conversation as a president, and I keep on
00:58:51 saying conversation because that's how the president of Guyana has described
00:58:54 tomorrow's talks. Anything else you'd like to add, Minister, before you leave us this morning?
00:58:58 No. It's just to thank you for your engagement, the program's engagement on
00:59:03 this matter, and to underscore the reality that we are stronger together.
00:59:10 That is how we've approached this matter. That has seen us through other challenges,
00:59:16 and that sense of solidarity should not be discounted. It's great value in that,
00:59:22 and I'm hoping we reap the rewards in the near future.
00:59:26 All right, Minister. It was a pleasure having you here this morning, and thank you
00:59:30 really for giving us your perspective and government's perspective, and what has
00:59:36 been really happening with this matter. We do appreciate it.
00:59:39 Thank you very much.
00:59:40 All right. So it's time for another quick break. We do have this image for you.
00:59:43 It's from our director, Gerard Ferreira. He's working overtime, people.
00:59:47 Give him a raise. We're coming back.
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01:01:03 This year, we are taking over Christmas decorating duties.
01:01:08 Yes, Mom! Dad, you're my son to retrieve these colors from the nearest Kaleidoscope
01:01:13 color shop or hardware store.
01:01:16 What son?
01:01:17 Don't worry, Dad. Kaleidoscope can match any color.
01:01:20 And Mom, it's environmentally friendly, has low odor, and lasts the longest.
01:01:25 At our home, Christmas always begins with colors from Kaleidoscope.
01:01:30 Merry Christmas from all of us at Kaleidoscope.
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01:02:15 [Heavy breathing]
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01:02:32 Good morning. I am Ansel Gives with a news update.
01:02:37 Police have held a man who they believe is responsible for the deaths of an 8-year-old boy
01:02:43 and his mother in Marabella.
01:02:46 Investigators say there was a stabbing incident on Tuesday morning at an apartment on Batu Street.
01:02:53 Police say the boy, Noel Thomas, was found dead in a bedroom with a stab wound to his neck.
01:03:00 His 40-year-old mother, Hollis Thomas, was also found in the bedroom area with a stab wound to her neck.
01:03:08 She was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where she died.
01:03:13 The soca world has lost one of its sons.
01:03:17 As soca star Ricardo Drew died on Tuesday in the land of his birth, Antigua and Barbuda.
01:03:24 Reports out of Antigua say Drew was found unresponsive
01:03:28 and he was taken to a local hospital where he reportedly died around noon.
01:03:34 And in the weather forecast, a few cloudy patches at times accompanied by scattered showers
01:03:40 will interrupt mostly fair conditions.
01:03:43 There's also a low chance of one or two heavier showers, particularly during the afternoon period.
01:03:50 Meanwhile, beachgoers must exercise extreme caution when going to the beach
01:03:56 and small craft operators along with other marine interests are asked to monitor sea conditions
01:04:03 before venturing offshore.
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01:51:59 >> Welcome back, everyone.
01:52:05 Break the hate is a 22-minute documentary film which follows a youth-led initiative in Edmonton called don't click, aimed at understanding where youth encounter hate speech online.
01:52:17 Our guest is Nauseneen Knight, a Canadian writer, director, producer of Caribbean and Middle Eastern descent.
01:52:27 >> Good morning.
01:52:29 Thank you for having me.
01:52:31 >> Of course.
01:52:33 Miss Knight, tell us a little bit about the film.
01:52:40 >> Well, break the hate came about actually in a partnership with a few powerful NGOs, including reach, the Edmonton police services volunteer division, and the organization for the prevention of violence.
01:52:58 And I started to work with a group of youth led by Henry Kirk who were gathering data about how youth encounter hate speech online.
01:53:10 And they reached out to me, and this was a fascinating story for me, to see how youth were agents of global change, and it's happening within our community.
01:53:22 And that was something that really excited me.
01:53:24 And I started to speak with Henry Kirk.
01:53:28 I realized this is a larger group than most people are aware of, and I have to follow this story.
01:53:34 So that's how it came about.
01:53:36 And I'm excited to say that the youth not only, you know, stuck in the academic sphere for gathering and collecting data, but they actually put that data into action.
01:53:56 And they started to take social action, giving presentations at other schools about how youth can deal with and combat hate speech online.
01:53:58 It was inspirational.
01:54:00 >> And what has the impact been following the completion of the film?
01:54:08 >> Following the completion of the film, the youth got to screen the movie at several schools across our province.
01:54:16 And additionally, we were able to screen it at the John Humphrey Center for Peace and Human Rights at the International Global Convention commemorating the United Nations Declaration for Human Rights.
01:54:32 And with wonderful, you know, outpouring of support from both youth and from adults who didn't realize that their children were encountering this amount of hate speech online.
01:54:46 So I felt like it was an eye-opening experience being able to share this film with the world.
01:54:52 >> Yeah.
01:54:54 Where can we and more so specifically in Trinidad and Tobago view the film?
01:55:00 Do we have the opportunity to do that?
01:55:02 >> That's a great question.
01:55:04 It is available in Canada on Telus Optic on demand and we're releasing it to the public on Vimeo.
01:55:12 So if you search for 1844 Studios, our company, on Vimeo, you'll be able to see the film as of next week.
01:55:22 >> Yeah.
01:55:24 Do you get the feeling that some of the same issues that children face in Trinidad and Tobago, they are the same issues that are being faced by children in Canada?
01:55:46 And also the film can be used to assist children in Trinidad and Tobago.
01:55:54 >> Absolutely.
01:55:56 When we're talking about hate speech online, this is a global phenomenon.
01:56:00 And, you know, several of our youth, their parents came from different countries or they were born in different countries.
01:56:08 And they speak about these phenomenon as being global.
01:56:14 And so the issues of trolling, online harassment, bullying that happens online, those are things that youth face in every country in the world.
01:56:26 It's not just in Canada and it's not isolated in Canada.
01:56:30 And even more, that the reach of those who, you know, engage in hate online is a lot further.
01:56:40 So someone in Trinidad and Tobago could be trolled by someone in the United States.
01:56:46 And that's an issue that's very alarming.
01:56:49 And it's an issue that's very difficult for local bodies to be able to address.
01:56:56 So this film, I feel like it could be a tool for youth in any country, including Trinidad and Tobago.
01:57:04 >> Yeah.
01:57:06 Now, Zanine, we just have maybe about 30 seconds again.
01:57:08 Is there anything else you'd like to tell us before you leave us this morning?
01:57:12 >> No, thank you so much for having me on the show this morning.
01:57:17 I would say if there's any youth in Trinidad and Tobago who are watching the show and would like to reach out to us about issues that they face online, that they can do that through 1844studios.com.
01:57:31 >> Yeah.
01:57:32 Now, Zanine Knight, thank you very much for speaking with us this morning.
01:57:35 We do appreciate it.
01:57:36 >> Thank you.
01:57:38 >> All right.
01:57:39 Bye for now.
01:57:40 >> Bye.
01:57:41 >> Yeah.
01:57:42 Okay.
01:57:43 That's going to do it for our program for today.
01:57:45 Thank you to all.
01:57:47 We have a break?
01:57:48 Are we going to a break?
01:57:50 We are done yet.
01:57:51 We're coming back.
01:57:52 [ Laughter ]
01:57:53 [ Music ]