Today! Ity & Fancy in May Pen for Eat Jamaican!

Honours For Dr Carol Jacobs - CBMP Chair

Chair of the Caribbean Broadcast Media Partnership on HIV/AIDS (CBMP), Dr. Carol Jacobs was recognised and honoured as a "national treasure, regional stalwart and international icon" by the Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP). The PANCAP Award of Excellence was presented at their historic 10th Anniversary Annual General Meeting recently under the theme: 'Reflection and Renewal'.

The ceremony's attendees included Caribbean Heads of Government; Mr. Kofi Annan, former United Nations Secretary-General; Dr. Michel Sidibeⅴ, Executive Director, UNAIDS; high-level government officials; regional and international donor agencies of the partnership; and media.

Dr. Jacobs was one of six Caribbean citizens recognised for their outstanding contribution to stem the region's HIV pandemic.

Dr Jacobs is the daughter of the co-founders of the Jamaica Family Planning Association Dr Lenworth and Mrs Beth Jacobs. It was the Jacobs' initiative that resulted in Jamaica's successful Population Policy.
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Thank you Denis O'Brien - Happy 10th Anniversary Digicel!

Makonnen Blake-Hannah makes the first official Digicel call at the Launch held at the Jamaica Pegasus as then Deputy PM Seymour Mullings, Jodi-Ann Maxwell and Digicel Founder Denis O'Brien look on.

Today is ten years to the day that Jodi-Ann Maxwell and Makonnen Blake-Hannah switched on the Digicel service in Jamaica. Maxi Priest and river/reggae dancers wowed the awestruck guests whose complimentary phones lit up at midnight while laser lights glowed over New Kingston.

What made the company different from the outset were the unprecedented opportunities it offered not only for employment, but also for Jamaican entrepreneurs. One such is the CEO of Fimi Wireless, Bernard Henry, who had initially been hired as Marketing Director of Digicel. When Henry crunched the numbers and saw the dealership dollar signs, he promptly resigned his job and with the assistance of his former employer, joined with partners to launch a chain of islandwide dealerships. Henry then formed alliances throughout the region and is now doing business in several Caribbean countries.

Denis O’Brien has also lauded the Facey group, who came on board to supply handsets and flex cards and is now also a multinational force in the supply of telecoms equipment not only for Digicel networks, but in several other countries.

Digicel now employs some of the brightest young people I have ever seen in one place. We know about the company’s customer care, but their best kept secret is probably the care of their internal customers, their staff members. Denis O’Brien believes in mentoring and succession planning, establishing a tailored EMBA course for the staff which has seen the emergence of bright young managers.

The Digicel Foundation was launched with one of the largest single corporate donations in Jamaica’s history, $200 million for post-Ivan reconstruction in 2004. Since then the Digicel Foundation, headed by the excellent Major General Robert Neish, has completed 186 projects throughout Jamaica and many more in Haiti and the rest of the Caribbean. “Wherever we invest,” declares Denis O’Brien, “we are committed to giving back a percentage of our sales to the people.”

After the devastating earthquake in Haiti last January, Digicel was the first major corporate donor, pumping US$5 million into emergency relief efforts. The brilliant Colm Delves, Group CEO of Digicel, commented: “We are deeply upset and concerned at the news of the earthquake in Haiti and want to do whatever we can to support the desperately needed relief efforts...The people of Haiti welcomed us and made us their own when we launched there in 2007 and we are determined to be there for them in their time of need.”

Denis O’Brien is proud of Digicel’s Jamaican roots, telling journalist Cliff Hughes that “Digicel is a Jamaican multi-national – we want to spread the Jamaican DNA throughout the Digicel network.” Having worked with such stalwarts Bob Neish, Harry Smith, Lisa Lewis, Lesline Chisholm, Paddy King and Ken Mason you can understand Denis’ pride in his team.

No wonder then that a few months ago, Denis broke ground with Prime Minister Bruce Golding for the building of their stunning regional headquarters on the Kingston waterfront. Already, real estate experts say that downtown Kingston properties have been regaining their value since the announcement of the project, which is a stone’s throw way from the beautifully renovated Coronation Market. O’Brien had just committed personal funds to the rebuilding of Haiti’s historic Iron Market, when he was introduced to the Coronation Market. He immediately committed to its rebuilding and vendors and visitors alike are now enjoying an orderly, picturesque market.

The promising young Digicel employees feel fortunate that Denis O’Brien chose Jamaica and grew his business to not only employ them, but also train and promote them. In a country where 80% of our university graduates migrate in search of greener fields, you cannot help but be moved by the testimony of these youngsters, bright, confident and motivated.

When Bob Marley died intestate ...

In his 100-year history of the law firm Livingston Alexander & Levy, Ken Jones' writes of one of their most interesting projects: the Bob Marley estate

From the Sunday Gleaner - 16 April 2011
By Ken Jones

(click link at end of excerpt for full article)

Bob Marley died intestate, leaving no will providing for beneficiaries including his children. It was understood that Rastafarians do not make wills. Administrators had to be appointed for the estate. They were Mutual Security Trust Company Ltd, George Desnoes and Rita Marley.

Some time after the appointment of the administrators, it was ascertained that Rita Marley was not qualified and an application had to be made to the court dealing with that. It was at this stage that the administrator Mutual Security Trust Company retained Livingston, Alexander and Levy to make the application concerning the disqualification. Thereafter, there were several cases which the firm had to deal with; one being to determine who the beneficiaries were. Bob had left a wife, Rita, and four children. However, there were several other women with children in different parts of the globe, who all made claims on the estate. Fortunately for them, the law in Jamaica had been changed to provide that children born out of wedlock are included as beneficiaries in the administration of an intestate estate.

Several other persons made claims. A man who called himself John was very persistent in stating that he knew that his mother had an affair with Marley. Eventually he was requested to submit a copy of his birth certificate. He did so and it clearly showed that he was older than Bob Marley. Another gentleman called Danny Simms claimed that he had a contract which entitled him to royalties and payment for works produced by Bob. He said he had discovered that Marley had produced songs and lyrics and had deprived him of his entitlement by registering them in the names of other persons. He brought an action in New York against the estate.

In investigating the matter, it turned out that there was a period when the songs Marley wrote were not put in his name. A classical example is the famous No woman, No cry. The record label purports the song to be written by Vincent Ford who, it was later learnt, was a disabled person from Trench Town. During the hearing in New York, it was shown that Simms was apparently aware of this alleged irregularity long before Marley's death and therefore his claim had been statute barred.

In selling the assets of the estate some of the persons whose names Marley had used in registering songs had to be paid. Vincent Ford received some compensation to assign the copyright in the song so that it could be sold. After many years, there are still some dissatisfied beneficiaries in the United States, endeavouring to reopen aspects of the estate and have gone to the Courts to get access to documents.

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20110417/arts/arts1.html
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Bob Marley shirt in a Florida Surf Store

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DIGICEL SERIES 2011 LAUNCHES IN KINGSTON, JAMAICA

(From left to right) Digicel Group CEO, Colm Delves and his wife Paula, former West Indies Captain, Chris Gayle and Digicel Jamaica CEO, Mark Linehan

Red Carpet Event Hosts World Premiere of ‘Fire in Babylon’

Monday, April 11th 2011 – Kingston, Jamaica: Digicel, proud sponsor of West Indies Cricket, on Saturday night officially launched the Digicel Series 2011 with a gala event held in Kingston, Jamaica.

This glitzy red carpet affair, which also incorporated the World Premiere of “Fire in Babylon”, saw more than 400 guests in attendance, including representatives from the West Indies Cricket Board, past and present cricket legends, the Caribbean business community and Caribbean Government officials.

From award-winning producers Charles Steel and John Battsek, “Fire in Babylon” tells the remarkable and compelling story of how the West Indies cricket team triumphed over its colonial masters through the achievements of one of the most gifted teams in sporting history during the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Digicel Group Head of Sponsorship, Karl Donnelly, said; “Our mission at Digicel – as proud sponsor of West Indies cricket since 2004 – is to find new and exciting ways to bring the full experience and excitement of the game to everyone and to provide the necessary resources to help grow West Indies cricket to its true potential so that players and fans alike can enjoy its benefits.

“I wish the West Indies team all the best as they face the best of the best in India and Pakistan in the Digicel Series 2011. Of course, we will also be running a number of exciting promotions and competitions – like “Cricket’s Biggest Fan” and “Crack the Cricket Code” throughout the Digicel Series – and our dedicated cricket website www.digicelcricket.com will feature lots of exclusive content, updates and interactions – so that fans can get the most out of the cricket action,” continued Donnelly.

Digicel also unveiled its brand new cricket campaign, “WI All In”, for the first time. “WI All In” is a full, through the line campaign which puts cricket fans at the centre of the action – making them the heroes of the game.

“It shows how cricket is deeply ingrained in the culture of the Caribbean; how important the fans are to the game of cricket; how their enthusiasm and support can fire up a team to achieve new heights of success; and of course how important the fans and their passions are to us at Digicel,” said Donnelly.

Following on from Saturday night’s World Premiere in Jamaica, each of the eight Digicel Series host countries – St. Lucia, St. Kitts & Nevis, Barbados, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Antigua & Barbuda, Jamaica and Dominica – will host a screening of ‘Fire in Babylon’ as their pre-match corporate event.


ABOUT THE DIGICEL SERIES 2011

The Digicel Series 2011 kicks off on Thursday April 21st when the West Indies Cricket team take on Pakistan in the Beausejour Cricket Grounds in St. Lucia. The Pakistan tour will then visit Barbados and Guyana before finishing up in Dominica on May 24th.

The West Indies v India tour begins on June 4th in Trinidad & Tobago’s Queen’s Park Royal. The teams will then play in Antigua & Barbuda, Jamaica and Barbados before finishing in Dominica on July 10th.

ABOUT FIRE IN BABYLON

In a turbulent era of apartheid in South Africa; race-riots in England and civil unrest in the Caribbean, the West Indian cricketers struck a wonderfully defiant blow at the forces of white prejudice world-wide. Told from a West Indian perspective, in their own words, “Fire in Babylon” celebrates the emancipation of a people through sport, whilst painting a fascinating picture of this extraordinary era of sporting dominance and its roots in politics, pride, anti-colonial fury and music.

With Caribbean flair, fearless spirit and a thumping reggae beat, they hijacked the genteel game of the privileged elite and replayed it on their own terms.

Directed by Stevan Riley (Blue Blood), produced by Charles Steel (the BAFTA-winning The Last King of Scotland), and John Battsek (the Oscar-winning “One Day In September”), with Ben Goldsmith and Ben Elliot as executive producers, “Fire In Babylon” boasts dynamic archive and classic music by the likes of Bob Marley and the Wailers, Gregory Issacs and Burning Spear.

ABOUT DIGICEL GROUP

After ten years of operation, Digicel Group Limited has 11.5 million customers across its 32 markets in the Caribbean, Central America and the Pacific. The company is renowned for delivering best value, best service and best network.

Digicel is the lead sponsor of Caribbean, Central American and Pacific sports teams, including the Special Olympics teams throughout these regions. Digicel sponsors the West Indies cricket team and is also the title sponsor of the Digicel Caribbean Cup. In the Pacific, Digicel is the proud sponsor of several national rugby teams and also sponsors the Vanuatu cricket team.

Digicel also runs a host of community-based initiatives across its markets and has set up Digicel Foundations in Jamaica, Haiti and Papua New Guinea which focus on educational, cultural and social development programmes.

In 2004, Digicel developed Digicel Rising Stars – an annual talent show to support aspiring young music artists in the Caribbean. The show has spanned the Eastern Caribbean, Haiti, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago ranking as one of the top-rated shows.

Digicel is incorporated in Bermuda and its markets comprise: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Curacao, Dominica, El Salvador, Fiji, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Nauru, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, St Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos and Vanuatu. Digicel also has coverage in St. Martin and St. Barts in the Caribbean.


Visit www.digicelgroup.com for more information.

EAT JA ROAD SHOD SHOW FOR 'PORTIE' THIS FRIDAY!

 

Eat Jamaican Show for Port Antonio Friday

 

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

11 APRIL 2011

 

 'EAT JAMAICAN' ROAD SHOW IN PORT ANTONIO THIS FRIDAY

 

Kingston, Jamaica: The 'Eat Jamaican' Road Show makes its next stop in the Port Antonio Town Square this Friday April 15 at 3 pm , with the popular comedy duo Ity & Fancy Cat. Promoting its message "Grow what we eat - Eat what we grow", the national "Eat Jamaican" campaign aims at increasing local production and encouraging consumers to make healthy choices by eating local produce, fruits and vegetables.

The campaign is a project of Agriculture and Fisheries Ministry, funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.

 

"Hunger and food insecurity are stomping all over countries of the world and our response must rise to the level of the challenges caused by this crisis," commented Agriculture Minister Dr Christopher Tufton.  "Population growth, changing diets, urbanization and unsustainable methods of farming and production are blamed for this current crisis. But whatever the reason, one thing is sure – our response to this global phenomenon has got to be local. It is imperative that we find a sustainable solution.

 

"As we take this concrete step to achieve food security in our country, we are extremely grateful that the European Union and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations have partnered with us in funding this campaign."

 

Visitors to the Portland show will enjoy displays and samples by Jamaica Broilers, Trade Winds, Wisynco and GraceKennedy, as well as giveaways from National Bakery and Island Grill.  The campaign mascot "Doctor Bird" will be giving great tips on nutrition.

 

RADA (Rural Agricultural Development Agency)  representatives will also be on hand to encourage Jamaicans to 'Plant Up Yuh Backyard', and will be distributing brochures with helpful tips for backyard gardening.

 

In the past two weeks, Manchester and St Ann residents enjoyed the show at Bronx Taxi Park in Mandeville and Buckfield in Ocho Rios. The Best Dressed Chicken danced up a storm with Doctor Bird and residents enjoyed eating and recipe contests. Ity & Fancy Cat have proved themselves to be the perfect spokespersons for the competition, riveting their audience with their humour while strongly driving home the "Eat Jamaican" and "Plant up yuh backyard" messages.

 

The Eat Jamaican campaign has also been supporting the farmers' markets throughout Jamaica, which have enjoyed significantly increase sales since the start of the project.

 

Six of Jamaica's top Olympians have endorsed the campaign.  They are Melaine Walker, Brigitte Foster-Hylton, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Asafa Powell, Nesta Carter and Michael Frater. 

 

   
Contact:

 

Cecil Thoms

Director, Communication & Public Relations

Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries

T- 927-1872; E – cethoms@moa.gov.jm

 

Akhter Hamid

Project Manager

Tel: +1 876 978 2352

Mob: +1 876 322 7284

Email: akhter.hamid@fao.org

 

Staci Smith & Cleo Walker
PROComm
T 876-926-6740 | M 876-455-1166

M 876-375-9438

Something right about St Ann

Healthcare mogul Jennifer Kerr who has invested in St Ann tourism

Observer column | Mon 11 April 11 | Jean Lowrie-Chin

I fell in love with the garden parish of St Ann on regular trips to board meetings of the Jamaica Family Planning Association. Regardless of how many times I went, I was always left breathless by the lush green fields, enchanting Fern Gully and the sparkling Ocho Rios coastline.

The legendary Beth Jacobs would introduce us to some of the most gracious Jamaicans, steadfast members of the Association which she had co-founded many years before with her husband Dr Lenworth Jacobs. These were educated individuals who would hold forth on population issues at annual meetings and support the various fundraisers.

At events like the Appleton-Ting 10K in the 80s, St Ann volunteers would show up in their numbers to assist with hospitality and logistics. When someone remarked on a very different experience in another parish where every request was answered with a price tag, a gentleman replied, “If the event is being held in St Ann, you are our guests and it is up to us to help make it a success.”

Well, you may say, those were the good old days – things are different now. I am happy to report that I had yet another wonderful St Ann experience last week. The “Eat Jamaican” road show team was faced with the challenge of getting electricity at the Buckfield playground. Ms Lecia Mignott of the St Ann Parish Council offered to pay a visit to the JPS office and ensured that the power was switched on.

Then we discovered that an electrician was needed to make a proper connection. We were given the name of Courtney Hamilton, who arrived within 15 minutes and rushed to make the connection, good-humouredly reassuring us that all would be well. With obvious professionalism, he checked every single connection along the various lengths of cable and the voltage levels before switching on the sound equipment. Voilà - the show came alive with music and jokes from the inimitable Ity & Fancy Cat.

But it did not stop there. Young Desmond Stephenson was booked the day before to arrive at 2 pm to clean up during and after the show. He arrived before time and did not wait to be told to get busy. In fact, he outdid the other members of the clean-up crew, as he worked tirelessly and cheerfully. We are not sure if it is the scenery or sea breeze, but there is something definitely right about St Ann.

We were delighted to see tourism investor Jennifer Kerr, that gutsy self-made mogul, well respected in Detroit where she owns a large healthcare business. Jennifer chose to repatriate a good chunk of her hard-earned fortune by purchasing the Liberty Hill Great House. She is a keen supporter of the “Eat Jamaican” message, having established a mini-farm on her estate to ensure that her guests get the finest Jamaican fruits, vegetables and ground provisions.

Jennifer has had some tough challenges with the local bureaucracy but is enthusiastic about the renovations she has made to the exquisite Liberty Hill property. I should pause here to mention an unfortunate experience that Jennifer had with an employee at the Jamaica Tourist Board. She had called the Kingston office to see if they could support her in getting telephone land lines for her establishment. She said the woman on the line announced to her colleagues, that Jennifer had enough already and should not be asking for anything else. I tell you, ‘badmind’ and bureaucracy can be a toxic mix! Lucky for Jamaica, Jennifer will allow no one to rain on her parade.

St Ann residents are not braggers, but you couldn’t blame them if they were. This parish is the birthplace of two of the most famous Jamaicans – Marcus Mosiah Garvey and Robert Nesta Marley. Many people do not know that these famous lines sung by Marley were actually written by Garvey: “Emancipate yourself from mental slavery/ None but ourselves can free our minds.”

St Ann boasts Discovery Bay where Columbus landed in 1494. It was the St Ann vista he surveyed when he declared Jamaica “the fairest isle” he had ever seen.

The residents of St Ann who streamed onto the field for the show were disciplined. We saw no shoving as they waited for refreshments, and heard lots of good humour. My friends who have opted to relocate in St Ann have expressed no interest in returning to Kingston. Of course the parish has its challenges, especially with inadequate housing for tourism workers and a few violent incidents. Generally speaking though, the people of this parish have somehow preserved an atmosphere of order and friendliness. Well done, St Ann.

MLK - 43 YEARS LATER - THE DREAM PREVAILS!

Martin Luther King's Assassination: Watch the Original News Broadcasts

(From Huffington Post)

From the standpoint of history, April 4, 1968 has gone down as one of the most infamous dates of the 20th century. It was on that evening, 43 years ago today, that Martin Luther King was cut down by an assassin's bullet at a Memphis motel.

King had come to the city to support striking garbage workers and was just days away from going to Washington to launch what he called his "Poor People's Campaign." Instead, as he prepared to go to dinner at a fellow civil rights leader's home, he was murdered. Almost immediately news reports went out alerting the nation of King's death.

(More on TIME.com: Hear audio interviews with King's last living aides to witness his murder)

Click on headline above to hear the devastating newscasts of that dark day in history.

National Baking supports Eat Jamaican

Sonia Linton with Ity, Fancy Cat, 'Doctor Bird' and friends after the unveiling of the National Baking Truck bearing the Eat Jamaican logo. Occasion was today's Eat Jamaican Road Show at Bronx Taxi Park in Mandeville.
- Staci Smith photo

Eat Ja fun!

Doctor Bird and Best Dressed Chicken in a dance contest!
Bronx Taxi Park - Mandeville
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Eat Jamaica's Doctor Bird is groooovy!

'Doctor Bird' promotes healthy Jamaican eating and struts his/her stuff with Agriculture Minister Dr Chris Tufton at the Coronation Market where the 'Eat Jamaican' campaign was recently launched.

Jamaica and the Irish

Message from 'Backyard Labrish'

St. Patrick's Day is upon us and as the world  celebrates, Jamaicans will join in the celebration, 
and not just because we love a good party, we do. 
We will be celebrating the Irish and their contribution 
To Jamaica's History and diverse culture. 

As we learn from  Jamaica's 'Pieces of the Past'
by Dr. Rebecca Tortello, in the mid 1600's the first 
group of Irish Indentured Servants arrived on the 
Island. Many came directly from Ireland and others 
from Barbados, the then British Colony.
 
Join us this week as we continue to unravel 
Jamaica's Motto "Out of Many One People" 
with a look at the interesting details of the Irish and their many contributions. 
 
Backyards continues to: Celebrate, Enlighten & Preserve the rich diverse culture of Jamaica: Land We Love! 

To Join the Labrish and share your stories call

718-766-4558
Wednesday 3/16/11 at 8:00PM EST or
Listen in By clicking the link Below:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Backyard-Labrish-.

To set a reminder: GO NOW to this link & click on the Remind Me button Join the labrish!
Marshall Marshall
Producer & Host
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WOMEN'S DAY by Michael Abrahams

- Bryan Cummings photo

Message and Poem by Dr Michael Abrahams
To: Sunday Herald Managing Director R. Christene King:

Christene,
These assaults on our journalists and the misogynistic behaviour of our leaders have to be addressed. They need to be held accountable for their actions.
I wrote this poem in response to Warmington's crass behaviour. Feel free to distribute it among your colleagues and to publish it in your newspaper if you desire.

I support you all 100%.

WOMEN'S DAY by Michael Abrahams

On International Women's Day
A politician did handle a woman a way

It did tek place near the beginning of the nightly 8 o'clock news
Me did tune in to hear wha a gwaan and to listen to people's views
When over dual citizenship this minister give up him seat
And the male anchor ask if it was unethical fi tek so long fi dweet

But the word "unethical" upset the man and rub him bad the wrong way
And him mek up noise and cuss an' ting and create the most ray ray
Then the female anchor ask what word she should use, in a gentle tone
But the man go bawl out "Go to Hell" and then hang up the phone

Me seh, me frighten when me hear the man go bawl out "Go to Hell"
What a bootu, what a cruff, what a big skettel
For me hear interview with bad man like Ninja and Kartel
But me never hear them raise them voice and diss woman and yell

If our leader them tan so vulgar, so nasty, crass and crude
Who are they to reprimand our youths when they are being rude?
And if them deal with our women in ways that are so misogynistic
Is expecting any better from our young men really being realistic?

On International Women's Day
A politician did handle a woman a way

BLACK GERMAN HOLOCAUST VICTIMS

Received this in an email from Neville Hoo

So much of our history is lost to us because we often do not write the history books, do not film the documentaries, or do not pass the accounts down from generation to generation.

One documentary now touring the film festival circuit, telling us to "Always Remember" is "Black Survivors of the Holocaust" (1997).

Outside the U.S., the film is entitled "Hitler's Forgotten Victims" (Afro-Wisdom Productions). It codifies another dimension to the "Never Forget" Holocaust story - our dimension.

Did you know that in the 1920's, there were 24,000 Blacks living in Germany? Neither did I. Here's how it happened, and how many of them were eventually caught unawares by the events of the Holocaust.

Like most West European nations, Germany established colonies in Africa in the late 1800's in what later became Togo, Cameroon, Namibia , and Tanzania. German genetic experiments began there, most notably involving prisoners taken from the 1904 Heroro Massacre that left 60,000 Africans dead, following a 4-year revolt against German colonization. After the shellacking Germany received in World War I, it was stripped of its African colonies in 1918.

As a spoil of war, the French were allowed to occupy Germany in the Rhineland - a bitter piece of real estate that has gone back and forth between the two nations for centuries. The French willfully deployed their own colonized African soldiers as the occupying force. Germans viewed this as the final insult of World War I, and, soon thereafter, 92% of them voted in the Nazi party.

Hundreds of the African Rhineland-based soldiers intermarried with German women and raised their children as Black Germans. In Mein Kampf, Hitler wrote about his plans for these "Rhineland Bastards". When he came to power, one of his first directive was aimed at these mixed-race children. Underscoring Hitler's obsession with racial purity, by 1937, every identified mixed-race child in the Rhineland had been forcibly sterilized, in order to prevent further "race polluting" as Hitler termed it.

Hans Hauck, a Black Holocaust survivor and a victim of Hitler's mandatory sterilization programme, explained in the film "Hitler's Forgotten Victims" that, when he was forced to undergo sterilization as a teenager, he was given no anesthetic. Once he received his sterilization certificate, he was "free to go" so long as he agreed to have no sexual relations whatsoever with Germans.

Although most Black Germans attempted to escape their fatherland, heading for France where people like Josephine Baker were steadily aiding and supporting the French Underground, many still encountered problems elsewhere. Nations shut their doors to Germans, including the Black ones.

Some Black Germans were able to eke out a living during Hitler's reign of terror by performing in Vaudeville shows; but many Blacks, steadfast in their belief that they were German first, Black second, opted to remain in Germany. Some fought with the Nazis (a few even became Lut Waffe pilots!) Unfortunately, many Black Germans were arrested, charged with treason, and shipped in cattle cars to concentration camps. Often these trains were so packed with people and (equipped with no bathroom facilities or food), that, after the four-day journey, box car doors were opened to piles of the dead and dying.

Once inside the concentration camps, Blacks were given the worst jobs conceivable. Some Black American soldiers, who were captured and held as
prisoners of war, recounted that, while they were being starved and forced into dangerous labor (violating the Geneva Convention), they were still better off than Black German concentration camp detainees, who were forced to do the unthinkable--man the crematoriums and work in labs where genetic experiments were being conducted. As a final sacrifice, these Blacks were killed every three months so that they would never be able to reveal the inner workings of the "Final Solution".

In every story of Black oppression, no matter how we were enslaved, shackled, or beaten, we always found a way to survive and to rescue others. As a case in
point; consider Johnny Voste, a Belgian resistance fighter who was arrested in
1942 for alleged sabotage and then shipped to Dachau. One of his jobs was stacking vitamin crates. Risking his own life, he distributed hundreds of vitamins to camp detainees, which saved the lives of many who were starving, weak, and ill--conditions exacerbated by extreme vitamin deficiencies. His motto was "No, you can't have my life; I will fight for it".

According to Essex University's Delroy Constantine-Simms, there were Black Germans who resisted Nazi Germany, such as Lari Gilges, who founded the Northwest Rann --an organization of entertainers that fought the Nazis in his home town of Dusseldorf--and who was murdered by the SS in 1933, the year that Hitler came into power.

Little information remains about the numbers of Black Germans held in the camps or killed under the Nazi regime. Some victims of the Nazi sterilization project and Black survivors of the Holocaust are still alive and telling their story in films such as "Black Survivors of the Nazi Holocaust", but they must also speak out for justice, not just history.

Unlike Jews (in Israel and in Germany ), Black Germans receive no war reparations because their German citizenship was revoked (even though they were German-born). The only pension they get is from those of us who are willing to tell the world their stories and continue their battle for recognition and compensation.

After the war, scores of Blacks who had somehow managed to survive the Nazi regime, were rounded up and tried as war criminals. Talk about the final insult!

There are thousands of Black Holocaust stories, from the triangle trade, to
slavery in America, and to the gas ovens in Germany. We often shy away from hearing about our historical past because so much of it is painful; however, we are in this struggle together for rights, dignity, and, yes, reparations for wrongs done to us through the centuries. We need to always remember so that we can take steps to ensure that these atrocities never happen again.

For further information, read: Destined to Witness: Growing Up Black in Nazi Germany, by Hans J. Massaquoi.

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Forbes: The Richest People in the World 2011

Click on title for full story

Mar 9th 2011 at 5:15PM

by Luisa Kroll and Kerry A. Dolan, Forbes.com

The 10 Richest People in the World

No. 1: Carlos Slim Helú & family
$74 billion | Telecom | Mexico

No. 2: Bill Gates
$56 billion | Microsoft | U.S.

No. 3: Warren Buffett
$50 billion | Berkshire Hathaway| U.S.

No. 4: Bernard Arnault
$41 billion | LVMH | France

No. 5: Larry Ellison
$39.5 billion | Oracle | U.S.

No. 6: Lakshmi Mittal
$31.1 billion | Steel | India

No. 7: Amancio Ortega
$31 billion | Zara | Spain

No. 8: Eike Batista
$30 billion | Mining, Oil | Brazil

No. 9: Mukesh Ambani
$27 billion | Petrochemicals | India

No. 10: Christy Walton & family
$26.5 billion | Wal-Mart | U.S.

Let's get creative - and be all right

Nesta Carter, Michael Frater and Asafa Powell show Gold Medal support for the Eat Jamaican Campaign as they commend Coronation Market vendor Angela Jarrett on her great Jamaican produce.

Jean Lowrie-Chin | Jamaica Observer column | Monday, March 07, 2011

At Coronation Market in downtown Kingston, our team could not stop exclaiming over the freshness of the produce, the warmth of the vendors, and the attractiveness of the layout.

Manager of the market Sandra Bullock is an organised lady who turned up at every planning meeting on time to help us implement a rousing launch at 'Curry' for a campaign urging Jamaicans to 'Grow what we eat and eat what we grow.'

After I posted the event on Facebook, my friend Tracy Fischer from Buffalo wrote, "Why would Jamaica import food? You have everything!" She had visited Jamaica for the first time four years ago and enjoyed the delightful difference in the flavours of our fruit and vegetables. I remember another overseas visitor sampling a chilled, creamy custard apple and exclaiming, "This tastes like vanilla ice cream -- only better!"

What better testimony to the benefits of our foods than our home-grown Olympic gold medallists who were on hand at Coronation to support the campaign? Melaine Walker, Nesta Carter, Michael Frater and Asafa Powell, as well as World Champion Brigitte Foster-Hylton made us proud as we saw the courtesy they extended to vendors and diplomats alike.

European Union Ambassador to Jamaica Marco Mazzocchi-Alemanni commended Digicel for rebuilding the market, dubbing the company the second biggest donor to Jamaica after the EU. He said that he and his wife were delighted to discover our foods, and asked why our tasty callaloo and naseberries could not be found in European supermarkets.

Eating Jamaican means eating healthy. The ambassador does well to choose callaloo, which is rich in iron, vitamin C, flavonoids, calcium and vitamin A. It has more than four times the calcium and more than twice the iron compared to broccoli and other vegetables.

Our flavours are a boon for agro-processors. Last Thursday, Mohan Jagnarine and Dennis Hawkins of Spur Tree Spices launched a spicy oxtail seasoning, masterfully blending Scotch bonnet, escallion, pimento and various herbs. We joined JMA executive members at their Duke Street headquarters for a memorable lunch made with this new product.

At the event, I gleaned some useful information from that treasure of a Jamaican, Paulette Rhoden. She said that we don't have to go as far as Europe or the US to export our wonderful foods, pointing out that there is a market of 35 million from Bermuda in the north to Suriname in the south, hankering for our excellent foods. "Antigua grows very little because their soil is mostly shale," she commented. "Barbados' soil is full of sand or clay. They don't grow much in the Turks & Caicos or in Cayman."

We have farmers with a glut of crops who are intimidated because they may not have the trailer loads or because of the stringent regulations of the larger markets. Paulette advised that our Caribbean neighbours are not as strict and a farmer can simply call such companies as Fedex, DHL or Laparkan to get assistance in shipping boxes, not necessarily large containers.

We have the benefits of strong leadership from Agriculture Minister Dr Christopher Tufton, generous support from the EU Food Facility and professional administration from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a respected UN body. If we can just tear ourselves away from our sofas long enough, we could even grow foods in flowerpots and old tyres to reduce our spend at the supermarket.

Jamaican people, the name of your country gives you one of the coolest brands in the world. Let us get creative to ensure that our food supply is safe and earning us valuable foreign exchange.

The truth about our 'Yute'

National Baking Company's Gary 'Butch' Hendrickson passed on a powerful speech given last Thursday at a Kingston Rotary Club Luncheon by Monsignor Gregory Ramkissoon.

The founder of Mustard Seed Communities has challenged our spirit-numbing status quo. He wants our bright MBAs to be less involved in pushing paper and more involved in productive activities that will create jobs. He would like them to tithe not just money but time in community outreach.

"At the moment, there are some 510,300 youths between the ages 14 and 24 years (circa 20 per cent of the population)," he said "Of these 26 per cent between the ages of 20 and 24 years are unemployed. And 38 per cent of all young adults living in the inner city are unemployed. The national unemployment rate stands at roughly 12 per cent. All told, 70 per cent of young adults are unemployable. Please note that 75 per cent of all crimes in Jamaica are committed by persons under the age of 30 years (taken from [PSOJ] YUTE survey - 2010)."

"It is no surprise then," he observed, "that a deadly combination of lewdness, bad manners, illiteracy, drugs and all the negative aspects of the so-called dancehall culture are threatening to overcome us."

Ramkissoon wants Government to look before they spend on inner-city projects as "unless there is proper prep work I am afraid that will be a bottomless pit for dumping the proverbial 'pork'. At least 20 per cent of all inner-city investments by the Government should be put into the social infrastructure - eg sanitation, play areas, caring for the aged and the disabled."

Here is a suggestion that should be taken onboard by the Social Development Commission: "No economic project should be put into place until all the players are given a three-month course in different aspects of 'life-skills development' — concerning the family, community, self-worth, discipline, ethics and volunteerism."

As Butch Hendrickson pointed out, Monsignor Ramkissoon is an authority on social development, having lived and worked in inner-city communities for over 25 years, serving the poorest of the poor. Father HoLung has also made a similar call for greater responsibility and compassion. The full script of the speech, which also challenges our clergy, is on my blog. Those who have ears, let them hear.

lowriechin@aim.com

www.lowrie-chin.blogspot.com

Nita's Otaheite Apple Tart

Eat Jamaican in style - Anita just made this from our neighbour's delicious otaheite apples - mmmm good!
Sent from my BlackBerry® device from Digicel

Stop griping and do something for the poor

Msgr GREGORY RAMKISSOON |Sunday, March 06, 2011 | Jamaica Observer

An address by the Very Rev Monsignor Gregory Ramkissoon on March 3, 2011 to the Rotary Club of Kingston.

FROM the start, let me say that I do not wish to stay too long on the negatives -- for we all know what they are -- (crime and violence, topmost on our minds), but to point us in a direction which may help us reflect on our own level of awareness about what surrounds us and what we, in our own little way can do to make a positive impact.

"The fish only knows that it lives in the water, after it is already on the riverbank. Without our awareness of another world out there, it would never occur to us to change."

At the moment, there are some 510,300 youths between the ages 14 and 24 years (circa 20 per cent of the population). Of these 26 per cent between the ages of 20-24 years are unemployed. And, 38 per cent of all young adults living in the inner-city are unemployed. The national unemployment rate stands at roughly 12 per cent. All told, 70 per cent of young adults are unemployable. Please note that 75 per cent of all crimes in Jamaica are committed by persons under the age of 30 yrs. (taken from YUTE survey - 2010). It is no surprise then, that a deadly combination of lewdness, bad manners, illiteracy, drugs and all the negative aspects of the so-called dancehall culture are threatening to overcome us.

Looking at some other stats; last year, and this has been a trend for some time now, almost 20 per cent of all babies born in Jamaica were born to teenage girls. Just last week a 10-year old girl was sent to one of our homes because she is in her eighth month of pregnancy. Of course, there are many more cases of neglect and abuse around us -- what to do!!! We cannot give up hope. We are too rich to be rendered impotent in the face of all the negative things around us.

"Intuitively, anecdotally, and empirically, we all know that a well-educated population and a stable, investment-friendly environment produce greater national wealth than is possible in undereducated and unstable societies. Thus, national policy discussions as well as appropriation debates focus on allocation of resources to achieve the desired well-educated populace and stable environment. But what tools are available to policy makers to buttress analysis of allocation of resources?

In this extremely intriguing study (produced in 2005 based on millennium year data), the researchers quantified the three major contributors to the total wealth of nations: natural, produced, and intangible capital.

Natural capital includes the sum of non-renewable resources (oil, gas, minerals, etc) and fertile land, forests, protected areas and aquifers. Produced capital includes factories, machines, equipment, products, industrial and urban infrastructure. Intangible capital includes all a nation's assets that are neither natural nor produced.

We learn after subtracting the total of all of the world's natural resources and all produced capital, that intangible capital is 80 per cent of the total wealth of rich countries and 60 per cent of the wealth of poor countries. The bottom line is not a surprise: the bank finds that "rich countries are largely rich because of the skills of their populations and the quality of the institutions supporting economic activity", ie, because of intangible capital.

So the intangible capital residual component of national wealth is worth understanding. The economists sub-divide intangible capital into two major categories: 'education' (consisting of human capital, including raw labour plus the sum of knowledge, skills and know how of the population); and 'social capital' (represented by beliefs, levels of trust, attitudes, behaviours and the quality of formal and informal institutional infrastructure -- including stability, transparency and other elements).

Social capital is measured by the "rule of law index -- a tool utilised to measure the quality of governance and institutions. Education (human capital) is measured through schooling years per capita.

Parsing the education component further, the study points to prior research, suggesting that investment in primary education in low-income countries produces the biggest bang for the buck. That is, in a low-income country $1 spent on primary school provides a higher return than $1 spent on higher education.

Rather dramatically, a one-year increase in the mean level of schooling in a low-income country increases that country's intangible capital by $838 per person. Returns on investment, the data show, decline with the level of schooling and per capita income.

In the end, the research fundamentally and quite convincingly demonstrates that it is years and quality of schooling, along with the quality of the nation's formal and informal institutions that are the determining factors in creating the wealth of nations. Policymakers can be reasonably confident that investments in education and efficient and responsible institutions are viable means of increasing the intangible capital residual of a nation's total wealth."

("Where is the Wealth of Nations? Measuring Capital for the 21st Century" may be viewed in its entirety at www.worldbank.org). The above taken from a speech by Ambassador Sue Cobb.

The Private Sector

We have fallen into a despairing position and are giving up too easily, while others are coming in and taking our rejects and making things happen. Let us stop griping and see things as they are and cut our appetites to suit our pockets. Business has a social responsibility and we have to see that we must participate in the fullest possible way in the evolution of the society. There has to be hope, otherwise we might as well pack up and commit hari-kari.

All businesses should tithe, not just in money, but in time. Put aside at least 2.4 hours a day to give back to the poorest of the poor. Encourage your employees to do the same. You are needed more than the money you can give. We need role models and an interaction that will bring about understanding and growth among the well-to-do and the poor.

If we are asking the government to do more, we have to take on more responsibility for our own sake and for the sake of our children and our children's children. We cannot sit by and allow the politicians and others to do what they wish, while all we do is complain and gossip. Many of us contribute to the political parties and many of us should call them to 'book' to account for their stewardship. We have to have successful and responsible (pay taxes!) enterprises.

For businesses to be philanthropic, they have to make profits; to make profits they have to invest and run 'tight ships'. We all know that government has a part to play, but in many cases outsiders are investing here and we are sitting back.

Last year (Jan-Oct) we imported 15 per cent less capital goods into the country. What is that saying for our business community? Oil and food imports accounted for nearly 50 per cent of all imports. Should we roll up our sleeves and invest much more in the agri-business sector? Just a note -- the value of imported cars jumped by 11 per cent!

We also notice a lot of young, bright MBAs moving into the private sector -- rightfully so! But are they being more productive and are they really creating jobs? One gets the impression that they are finding many new ways of 'pushing paper', mainly in the financial sector.

We need to see more of their time and talent invested in our inner-city communities. Maybe it will be a good idea if some of the companies making billions in after-tax profits set aside at least five per cent (for starters) in real job-creation investment. That will put our money where our mouth is.

There has to be an engagement of our business and professional lives, not just in raising funds, but in interaction with others in the society who need to see disciplined and responsible people at work, at play, at worship, in good times and in bad.

Let me say that for us to have any hope in the future of the society here in Jamaica, we must be able to care for the marginalised and the abandoned among us. A society that does not care for the vulnerable does not care for itself in the end.

To start to become organised we must be concerned in a prioritised way about these members of our society. If peace is the daughter of justice, then the mother of justice is caring. We cannot have justice and peace without compassion.

The Government

I understand that the government is going to spend billions of dollars in the inner-city and that many in society are sure that if investment comes to the inner-city, all will be well... Look out... unless there is proper prep work I am afraid that will be a bottomless pit for dumping the proverbial 'pork'. At least 20 per cent of all inner-city investment by the government should be put into the social infrastructure, eg sanitation, play areas, caring for the aged and the disabled.

No economic project should be put into place until all the players are given a three-month course in different aspects of "life-skills development" concerning the family, community, self-worth, discipline, ethics and volunteerism. In these 'classes', which should be done in the nearby schools in the downtime, members of the local police unit should be present as either teacher or student or sometimes both.

The government should help all NGOs looking after the disabled and the very poor with at least 75 per cent of their budget. At present we are given approximately only about a quarter of the cost of maintaining the child at a reasonable level of existence. Also, there should be a special rate on utilities on all institutions looking after the needs of the very poor children and adults. In addition, statutory payments to employees should be borne by the government, for these institutions.

The Police

The police must also be part of the 'life-skills' programme with the community (as mentioned above). They should be evaluated frequently and made to understand that they have a responsibility to the community and not only to themselves. They should be promoted on how well they perform at the community level. The Police Youth Clubs are not enough to encourage a new breath of confidence in the police.

Sad to say, the social capital of the inner-city communities is steadily being eroded by the inaction of the police regarding the Noise Abatement Act. Night after night (and I have been living in the inner-city for the past 25 years) the sound systems go on until 5:00 am.

Whatever is banned on the air by the Broadcasting Commission has free run at these 'sessions'. In the wee hours of the morning parents and children have to listen (in a rough radius of half-a-mile) to all the details of the sexual act. Is that the road we wish to travel?

How can these adults go to work the next day or how can the children be truly productive and ready for school? No wonder then, that a recent survey tells us that almost 40 per cent of our population is experiencing some form of mental illness.

The Media

There should be some 'contract' with the society by the heads of the media houses that they will not give time, either in print or air -- any time that degrades women, incites violence (like some 'burn them' lyrics) or illegality in any way, form or fashion. The media have a responsibility not only to reflect what comes to it from society, but also in these times, especially to enlighten, educate and help in the shaping of the positive values of the society.

If this is not done, then we should not support the respective media house with ads or sponsorship. We cannot allow our entertainers who have no regard for decency and good taste to lull us into submission.

The Church

We have to be much more proactive as a body of people who aspire to the spiritual life. The Jamaica Council of Churches is like a guard at the gate who has fallen asleep -- a tiger without teeth. The same for the many evangelicals, etc who are all bark and no bite. The church collects money, resources, etc from here and abroad and should be made to account for the disposal of these resources.

We are long on verbiage and all sorts of pomposity and very short on being a voice to the voiceless and a defender of the poor and the marginalised against corruption and injustice. We are not effective as agents of change, even in our own schools and communities. We spend a lot of time in rituals and rites and hardly any time in counselling (both rich and poor) and educating: yet keep griping about the hard times and get lost in the insularity of our own shortsightedness. We need to wake up if we see ourselves as the 'guardians' of the people of Jamaica.

In short, we have let down the flock, they are like a people 'without a shepherd'. There is so much more we can do if only we would take seriously the mandate of the people to walk with them in the spirit of Anthony de Mello's cautionary words:

"These things will destroy the human race: politics without principle, progress without compassion, wealth without work, learning without silence, religion without fearlessness and worship without awareness. (Anthony de Mello)