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Dominican Republic.
9.5 tonnes of cocaine in a shipment of bananas
A record cocaine seizure was made on Friday December 6 by anti-drug agency units in Caucedo, Santo Domingo's busiest port. Nearly 9.5 tons of drugs were discovered on board a cargo ship carrying bananas from Guatemala to Belgium. The value of the "booty" was estimated at around $250 million. Carlos Devers, spokesman for the Dominican Republic's Anti-Drug Agency, announced that ten suspects linked to the shipment had been arrested. This year, authorities in the Dominican Republic have seized almost 47 tons of drugs. The latest seizure surpasses the previous record, which dates back to 2006, when authorities found more than 2.5 kilos of cocaine. Still in the port of Caucedo. The Dominican Republic remains a Caribbean hub for drug trafficking. The port of Caucedo is an ideal location for trafficking, since the cargo ships and freighters passing through it are bound for Europe, North America and other regions. Despite the seizures made each year, this port remains a preferred transit point for South American traffickers.
Saint-Martin.
Housing and development agreements
The beginning of the week saw the signing of two major agreements for the Collectivité de Saint-Martin. The first is a framework agreement concerning regional planning and support from Cerema (Centre d'études et d'expertise sur les risques, l'environnement, la mobilité et l'aménagement), signed on Monday December 9 by President Louis Mussington and Cerema Director Pascal Berteaud. "This partnership will give our local authority access to the expertise it needs to implement a coherent and sustainable territorial planning policy", said Louis Mussington. As a reminder, the collectivity of Saint-Martin has a ten-year Multiannual Investment Plan which groups together a large number of projects at a total cost of 700 million euros.
The following day, Tuesday December 10, another agreement was signed, this time between the Collectivité, the Etattat (through the delegate prefect for the Northern Islands, Vincent Berton) and the Agence nationale de l'habitat (Anah). "The signing of this agreement is a cause for rejoicing and satisfaction for the people of Saint Martin, who legitimately expect the public authorities to respond to their difficulties, as housing remains a basic need in everyone's life. ". Last October, the Collectivité drew up its Programme Local de l'Habitat (Local Housing Program), and the partnership with Anah should thus enable theThe partnership with Anah will enable the local authority to benefit from assistance and engineering support to improve the region's private housing stock.
Haiti.
Massacre in Cité Soleil
At least 184 people were coldly executed in Port-au-Prince, in the port district of Wharf Jeremie in Cité Soleil, last weekend, claimed the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, on Monday December 9. The massacre was allegedly orchestrated by a powerful gang leader, Micanor Altès, who for the past four years has exercised bloody authority in this underprivileged area, often described as Haiti's largest shantytown. An area in which the police no longer venture. Several Haitian human rights organizations, contacted by RFI and the New York Times, cite revenge as the motive for the massacre. According to various sources, after his very young child fell ill and was unable to be cared for, Micanor Altès became convinced that the elderly people of Cité Soleil had cast a spell on him and that it was his duty to put an end to their day. Roundups, summary executions, burnt corpses, "all the white hairs are decimated", reports a Cité Soleil regular to RFI. In the leading Haitian daily Le Nouvelliste, the son of a 76-year-old man recounts how three armed men came to collect his father from his home at around ten o'clock in the evening, stabbed him and burned his remains. "This witness claims to know of at least thirty other Wharf Jeremie residents who suffered the same fate," adds RFI. According to Volker Türk, these murders "bring the death toll in Haiti this year to a staggering 5,000 people".
Bahamas.
Parliament heats up
A session of the Bahamian Parliament descended into chaos last Wednesday when Shanendon Cartwright, deputy leader of the opposition Free National Movement, threw the ceremonial parliamentary mace out of a window. The incident occurred during a heated argument over allegations of police corruption related to drug trafficking, reports Caribbean National Weekly. Cartwright, who represents St. Cartwright, who represents St. Barnabas, seized the Mace, a symbol of parliamentary authority, after Speaker Patricia Deveaux refused a request from Opposition Leader Michael Pintard to respond to allegations contained in an act of parliament.allegations contained in a U.S. indictment that members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force facilitated drug trafficking operations. In protest, Cartwright shouted: "Let the people speak! "Then he walked over to the president's table, struggled to open a window and threw the parliamentary mace outside. President Deveaux immediately ordered his expulsion. Opposition legislators linked hands to try to prevent Cartwright's expulsion, but were eventually forced out by police. "This is a dark day in this political arena we call politics," said Patricia Deveaux. For the first time in my life, when I was sworn in, I felt challenged and afraid for my life. "Shanendon Cartwright's act evoked memories of 1965's 'Black Tuesday', CNW explains, when Bahamian opposition leader Lynden Pindling had éThe Bahamian opposition leader Lynden Pindling also threw the mace through the parliamentary window in protest against colonial rule and economic inequality. Last Wednesday, after a fifteen-minute recess, Parliament resumed sitting without the opposition members.
Turks and Caicos Islands / Bahamas.
Rejection of the "Trump plan" on deported migrants
The governments of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands have rejected a plan announced by the incoming Trump administration to relocate migrants rejected by their home countries back home, reports Caribbean National Weekly. Last Thursday, December 5, the two governments issued statements following the broadcast of an NBC News report. The latter detailed the administration's review of a list of potential host countries as part of President-elect Donald Trump's commitment to mass deportations. Under the proposed plan, migrants deported from the US could be relocated to countries such as Panama, Grenada, the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Arlington Musgrove, the Turks and Caicos Islands' Minister of Immigration and Border Services, rejected the idea. "Our government remains committed to maintaining strong diplomatic relations with the United States and our other international partners," he said. However, we are committed to protecting the interests of the Turks and Caicos Islands and maintaining the integrity of our immigration system. "The Turks and Caicos Islands, with a population of around 40,000, are grappling with escalating armed violence and an increase in irregular migration from neighboring Haiti. In 2023, more than 4,000 Haitian migrants were intercepted in 32 separate operations, according to the Royal Turks and Caicos Police.
Montserrat.
Recycling at a standstill for lack of funding
Just six years after its launch, Montserrat's first national program to recycle and reduce single-use plastic has stalled, says LoopNews. The project dubbed EcoMontserrat Island was launched in 2018 by Scuba Montserrat with the help of a grant from the Darwin Plus initiative. But it has come to an end following difficulties in securing the funding needed to keep it afloat. The Montserrat Governor's Office supported the program for the first three years, before it survived on donations. Recently, conservation, health and wellness nonprofit Island Solutions funded the initiative almost in its entirety, LoopNews points out. "Unfortunately, we are unable to continue funding the project ourselves," Island Solutions said in a press release. As part of the program, recycling collection bins were installed in more than 60 bars and restaurants. There were also six community bottle banks on the island. Thousands of reusable bags were supplied to residents, and plastic-free cups, containers, straws and eco-friendly utensils were distributed to hospitality establishments. The end of the project also marks the end of an initiative that has diverted millions of glass bottles from landfill and reduced the island's dependence on single-use bottles.
Marie-Galante.
Saint-Louis finds its financial equilibrium
"A case rare enough in the merciless world of municipal budgets to be worth noting: the accounts of the commune of Saint-Louis de Marie-Galante are in the black, writes La 1ère. The local authority has been able to return to a balanced position, at the end of the recovery plan to which it was subject. "According to the article published on Tuesday December 10, the 2023 administrative account for Saint-Louis shows a deficit of just 62,000 euros. The commune's 2024 budget was voted in balance," states the 1st newspaper, "following the corrections made by the Chambre régionale des comptes. In four years, the municipal team led by François Nevis and elected in 2020 has managed to keep operating costs under control, boost tax revenues and generate exceptional cash inflows. "It's a far cry from the situation of cessation of payments left by former mayor Jacques Cornano", notes the author of the article. The primitive 2024 budget shows a projected surplus of just under 1.74 million euros. This result corresponds to an operating surplus of 1.16 million euros and an investment surplus of 572,000 euros, concludes the 1st.
Puerto Rico.
Air passenger traffic on the rise
After a slight fall in the autumn, according to the latest data from Asur, which manages Luis Munoz Marin International Airport, traffic in the capital rose by 8.7% year-on-year. With total passenger traffic of 1,039 million, Asur claims in the columns of Caribbean Journal. In 2024, San Juan airport is now up 7.8%, with total passenger traffic approaching 12 million. By comparison, Cancun, Mexico's Caribbean mecca, continued to slow in November with a 9.5% drop in traffic, assures Asur (which also manages Cancun airport), part of a prolonged trend in the second half of this year.
Saint Kitts and Nevis.
Towards greater financial transparency?
In a speech reported by the Observer, Prime Minister Terrance Drew announced his intention to present two important resolutions to Parliament. These resolutions are aimed at preserving the financial integrity of the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis and the social security system, "by ensuring that the financial integrity of the St. Kitts and Nevis Development Bank and the social security system is preserved".system, "ensuring that the mismanagement of the past is never repeated", points out the Observer. "The first resolution will require that any decision to suspend external audits of the Development Bank be submitted to Parliament, and the second will require full parliamentary approval for any borrowing from Social Security, the Prime Minister explained. These measures are essential to protect the interests of our people and maintain public confidence in our financial institutions. "An announcement that follows revelations of financial mismanagement at the Development Bank, including the suspension of external audits from 2018 to 2019. "Negligence" that led to the accumulation of a debt estimated at $300 million.
