TIMES

Ria Ramnarine is
first Indo-Caribbean
world boxing
Indo-Caribbean It’s the real
thing: Temple
karate at the
champion Vedic Cultural
Page 11 Centre Page 15
416-289-3898 ictimes@rogers.com Vol 1. No 1 MARCH 2007

NEW GUYANA
STADIUM READY
FOR WORLD CUP
The eyes of the sporting
world will be fixed on that
green oval when the
Caribbean hosts its first
ever Cricket World Cup.
See SPORTS Page 21
I LOVE WINTER!
Celebrate the season is
this youngster’s message
at recent winter festivities
in Scabrorough.
See HEALTH AND
WELLNESS Page 16

INSIDE Who’s that dashing FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

These are the
horseman there?
It’s our own Akaash Maharaj, (Indo-Caribbean)
Indo-Caribbean web site goes on line P3
Don’t rush to retire back in Trinidad P4

Times of Our Lives

Sexual revenge motive seen in
kidnapping of TT Indian women
Don’t stop the Carnival. TT report
Rough treatment to criminals
stops Guyana kidnapping
Help your child succeed in school
Beware consumer manipulation
Record house sales in January
Holi melas everywhere
Nalini needs a kidney
Shilpa Shetty scores in Britain
Religion page: A Gita in every Home
Youth can fight global warming
Windies aim to win World Cup
Short story: Veiled mystery woman
Major All Fours league in action
Canada’s top tent pegger in the thou-
P4 sand year old military sport of using
P6 swords and lances to catch tent pegs
while at full gallop on a war horse.
P7 Akaash, who was born in Canada of
P9 Trinidad parents, has quietly risen to
P13 the top of the sport and is current
P14 Canadian chamption. He will be head-
P15 ing to Oman on March 2 to represent
P16 Canada against the top rated Indians,
P17 while promoting the United Nations
P18 Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and trying
P19 to raise awareness of suffering children
P21 throughout the world.
P20 It’s a surprising change for a man bet-
P22 ter known as Oxford academic and
Akaash is top athlete in ancient sport Liberal politician. (SEE PAGE 23)
Welcome to the first issue of Indo-
Caribbean Times, which we offer as a com-
munity newspaper dedicated
to the education, upliftment
and strengthening of the
200,000 strong Indo-
Caribbean community in
Ram Jagessar Canada. As we go about
building our lives and forming a vibrant
Indo-Caribbean community in this new
country, we should remember to enjoy it.
These are really the times of our lives, the
times we will remember ever after. We
want to help make sure those are good
times and record them. (SEE PAGE 2)

Kidnap horror: Lawyer reveals gang rape of Indian women, police involvement
Trinidad human rights lawyer Anand
Ramlogan has shocked the country and the
world with sensational newspaper columns
on the treatment of kidnap victims. The
country is stunned by the unbelievably vi-
cious and barbaric details, especially those
showing the sexual brutality shown to In-
dian women. Their lives have been de-
stroyed, their families broken.
These are Anand’s stories of two Indian
women who have gone through a kidnap-
ping (one a victim and the the other a
mother), first published in the Trinidad
Guardian.
KIDNAPPED FOR LIFE,
LIVING IN HELL
“I was stripped of all my dignity,” she said
quietly. Hands covering her face, she re-
counted the details of her kidnapping.
her about her experience:
Kidnapping is so organised. There are
several groups involved, with each one per-
forming a specific
duty.
Team A, the abduc-
tion team, snatched the
victim. Team A handed
her over to Team B
Ramlogan (the transportation
team) at an undisclosed location that was
only made known to it after a few calls
from someone who gave careful,specific di-
rections.
Team A did not know where Team B was
taking her, just in case the police managed
to arrest anyone from Team A.
Team B was responsible for transporting
the victim to the hiding spot and handing
her over to Team C (the guard team), which
was responsible for taking her to the place
where she would be imprisoned until
was actually taking her to detain her.
Team D separately contacted the family
to negotiate the ransom. Team E visited the
family in full religious wear to say that its
organisation could find her for a fee, and
that the police were a waste, because they
were probably in cahoots with team D.
Whom do you trust? Negotiation calls are
made to distant friends to evade tapped tele-
phone lines.
Whilst in captivity, one of her guards (X)
tried to reassure her that everything would
be all right; once the ransom was paid she
would be released unharmed.
She cried constantly and could not eat.
After three days, she became weak.
She decided to keep herself alive because
she was able to hear her husband’s voice on
the cellphone and he told her he was going
to pay the ransom.
Hope and tears mingled freely in her
bosom. Later that night, the guards changed
BRUTALIZED ALL NIGHT
She fell asleep, but was awakened by a
hand on her leg. She slapped it off and col-
lected a slap. Wide awake, she looked up
and saw all three of her guards, dressed in
their briefs alone, staring at her.
She struggled, but was overpowered, and
they took turns raping her. They had their
way all night, invading and brutalising her
while their fantasies “and her worst night-
mare” became a reality.
At some point, her body became numb
and lifeless, paralysed by the assault and
humiliation. The next morning she was
kicked and told to “wash off properly.”
She heard them discussing the possibil-
ity of testing for DNA with sperm and me-
chanically washed in front of them.
She could not cry anymore. She had
probably run out of tears.

DUCKY’S
She had come to see me, because she read negotiations for payment of a ransom were shift. A new set of men came. They played (CONTINUED ON PAGE 5)
my columns and felt that Iwould understand successfully concluded. cards and drank heavily.
and “feel” her pain. She wanted to tell me Team B did not know where Team C

ROTI AND CARIBBEAN FOOD

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and salt fish, Bigan Chokha
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pone Catering and Party orders
MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR
Times of Our Lives
From Page 1
People have asked what is the need
for another newspaper. I answer that
we need papers and other media not
as businesses but as helpers in soci-
ety building.
We Indo-Caribbeans in Canada are
repeating the task our ancestors took
up when they first came to the
Caribbean. They had to rebuild a
community of several different In-
dian groups, all of it in a strange
land, under strange rulers, and in an
unfriendly if not hostile environ-
ment.
We are trying to take Indians with
roots in Guyana, Trinidad, Jamaica
and several other Caribbean coun-
tries to make a strong Indo-
Caribbean society in Canada. We
don’t intend to disappear into main-
stream Canada and be just a mem-
ory in a few decades.
A newspaper can give help in edu-
cating and informing our people to
work towards our goal of a stable
Indo-Caribbean community. It can
Indo-Caribbean Times
be one of the cords that bring our
people together, that remind us to
pull together for the same goal.
That is how we offer the Indo-
Caribbean Times, as a community
newspaper for a young community
trying to grow up right.
Our focus is directly on Canada
where we live and work and dream,
and secondly on the Caribbean
countries we have left behind. We
don’t see ourselves as exiles or
refugees from our homelands.
Rather, we are like our jahaji ances-
tors who became immigrants in a
strange land to find better lives for
themselves and their children.
We aim to look at the lives of Indo-
Caribbeans in Canada, throughout
Canada and not just in places like
Toronto and Mississauga. We will
look at all aspects of those lives, cel-
ebrating the victories and warning of
the dangers as they arise. And we
will keep one eye pointed in the di-
rection of the Caribbean where so
many of our friends and relatives
M arch 2007
still live.
We want our pages to be full of the
thoughts and words and activities of
the ordinary Indo-Caribbean.
There is no greater goal for a com-
munity newspaper than seeing the
experiences and wisdom of those
who have been here for a long time
being passed on to newcomers and
the youth. That is society building
at its best, community development
at its highest.
In the weeks and months to come
we aim to carrywork on our goals
stated below, with your help and
support. We expect to encounter
good times, hard times, scary times,
wonderful times, all of them the
Indo-Caribbean Times of our lives.
Our Goals:
1.To publish an accurate report on
the lives and activities of Indo-
Caribbeans in Canada, the
Caribbean and elsewhere in the
world.
Page 2
2.To examine the lives of Indo-
Caribbeans, their achievements and
problems with a view to strength-
ening them as individuals and as a
community.
3.To provide a medium for the or-
dinary Indo-Caribbeans living in
the Caribbean and abroad to ex-
press their opinions and feelings.
4.To foster a spirit of unity and sol-
idarity among Indo-Caribbeans as
they create a community in
Canada.
5.To work to strengthen the con-
nections between Indo-Caribbeans
in Canada, between Indo-
Caribbeans, South Asians and other
Canadians, and between peoples in
the Caribbean.
6.To preserve the Indo-Caribbean
heritage and values and work to
pass them on to the coming genera-
tions.
COMMUNITY NEWS Indo-Caribbean Times M arch 2007 Page 3
TRINI SENIORS WANT COMPUTERS HINDU MUSEUM
Dozens of seniors from the Trinidad BRINGS A
FESTIVAL OF
and Tobago 50 Plus and Seniors Associ-
ation are gearing up to enter the com-

INDIA IN SUMMER
puter age and within weeks will be
hitting the keyboards and surfing the In-
ternet.
The computer literacy program, which
is financed by a $25,000 "New Hori-
zons for Seniors" grant, was launched
at the last meeting of the group in Janu-
ary by President Farouk Hydal and
computer trainer Anthony Mohammed. Farouk Hydal (left) and P.R.O. Rasheed
.It will run throughout 2007, and will in- Sultan Khan discuss computer training
clude developing a training manual, starting a website and online newsletter, and deliver-
ing a series of training workshops for interested seniors.
President Hydal explained that the program came out of a recent survey which asked
50 Plus members what they wanted most. Learning computers was at the top of the list, Get ready for a massive Festival of India
as the seniors said they did not want to be left out of the computer age. They want to con-
tact their friends and relatives by e-mail, read about Trinidad and the world on the inter-
on August 24-26 this summer, as the Cana- $799 FLIGHT TO TRINIDAD,
dian Museum of Hindu Civilization show-
net, and do things like banking, buying airplane tickets and shopping on the internet like $1109 TO GUYANA IN MARCH
cases the many attractions of India old and
so many other Canadians. new.
The program will see members teaching and mentoring each other in the use of com- The museum, which was opened in 2004, The new Caribbean Airlines (formerly
puters, as well as producing their newsletter and updating their website. They will become and remains the only one of its kind in BWIA) is offering fares of $799.04 Cana-
empowered to use computers to research health matters, and exchange information on art North America, expects 10,000 people per dian for a one week, five hour trip from
and culture of the Caribbean and Canada. Hydal said it was most important that seniors day to converge on the museum at 8640 Toronto to Trinidad in the first week of
be able to relate to children and grandchildren who are very involved with computers in Yonge Street, Richmond Hill for the event. March, which is better than Air Canada's
their school and home lives. “This festival will provide a place for peo- $936 for a similar trip. To head to Guyana
The computer literacy program will continue alongside the 50 Plus regular activities like ple of Ontario to embrace diversity, learn for one week at the same time will cost
monthly gatherings, bus trips, participation in events like Black History Month, Trinifest, more about people of India and their rich $1109.43 for a nine hour flight that includes
Indian Arrival Day, summer picnics and cultural programs. For information contact cultural heritage. It will bring awareness a stopover in Trinidad. Trips from the USA
Farouk Hydal at 905-608-0239 or Public Relations Officer Rasheed Sultan Khan at 416- about puppetry and folk dances that are at to the Caribbean are coming in at com-
281-5264 its verge of extinction,” said an official. petive prices as well.
Attractions include: This is good news for Caribbeans based
Ayurveda and Health Care in North America, who have been seeing
Yoga and meditation scary prices of as much as $1300 to
Morning Lecture series (spiritual Dis- Trinidad and $1500 recently. Several have
course) complained that air flights to the Caribbean
Evening Concerts (classical music and were more expensive than trips to India
Dance by Indian maestros more than four times as distant. Toronto
Bollywood Night with renowned playback travel agencies have offered flights to India
singer for as low as $1100.
Astrology & Palmistry Caribbean Airlines is the airline born out
Artist’s Village (sculptors and Painters) of the corpse of the old unprofitable BWIA,
Ethnic Food stalls (promoting Vegetarian- which was shut down on December 31 and
ism – the higher taste) all employees laid off. Check then out at
Kaleidoscopic Folk Dances and songs www.caribbean-airlines.com
Puppetry Giving good competition is the new
Fashion show (traditional Costumes of Guyana based airline Travel Span, which

Much needed indocaribbeanheritage.com web
site for Indo-Caribbeans goes online
LOCATING information on Indo-
Caribbeans in Canada and our heritage has
always been an exercise in frustration. The
libraries and bookstores have little or noth-
ing. There is no Indo-Caribbean Historical
Society. The internet has scattered pieces of
varying quality and age.
That’s about to change with the launch of
a community web site aimed directly at the
200,000 strong Indo-Caribbean community
and all who want to know about it.
indocaribbeanheritage.com is the cre-
ation of a group of Indo-Caribbean activists
from Southern Ontario who decided last
year to do something about the lack of in-
formation on the community. Since South
Asian Heritage Indian Month last year,
they have been putting together a free
community web site to fill the need.
It offers information on three broad areas,
the history of our people in over 12
Caribbean countries, the Indo-Caribbean
heritage that was preserved and developed
over 160 years since 1838 when Indians
first landed in the area, and a section on
Indo-Caribbeans in Canada from 1908 to
the present.
The year 1908 was when the first known
Indo-Caribbean, Kenneth Mahabir from
Trinidad, arrived in Nova Scotia to study
medicine and stayed. Those who believe
Indo-Caribbean history in Canada begins in
the sixties will change their perspective
when the 100th anniversary of Mahabir’s
each state and its music) flies from Guyana and Trinidad to the
United States. They are offering flights
Outstanding Indian movies and Documen-
tary films (AV theatre of the campus) from JFK Airport in New York to Trinidad
Indian books for $553.41 Canadian , and $681.12 for
arrival is held next year. Indian God, Goddesses and Temple rituals flights from JFK to Guyana, also in the first
With 62 articles and over 160 photographs, Gift stalls (Accessories, Garments, sou- week of March. Travel Span doesn’t yet fly
including the best selection of pictures of venirs, Jewelry, incense and other para- directly to Canada and they are expected to
indentured Indians on the web, the site is phernalia) operate only during the winter tourist sea-
moving towards the goal of being “every- Sari wrapping Demonstration son.
thing you wanted to know about Indo- Children’s Theatre Canadian based travellers can get over the
Caribbeans” Handicrafts lack of direct flights by making a short
The group is looking for help in putting to- Exhibition on Various religions, Vedic flight to JFK from across the border in Buf-
gether a virtual library of documents, audio Science, History of Hinduism, Indian ar- falo, just two hours drive away. Jet Blue
and video on the Indo-Caribbean experi- chitecture etc will be in Museum. will cost you $91.07 Canadian to fly to JFK
ence, especially in Canada. When com- To offset the significant costs of the Fes- in the first week of March and $81.60 to fly
pleted, the site will offer articles and tival of India, the Museum is seeking cor- back from JFK to Buffalo one week later.
pictures on the early settlement of Indo- porate and community sponsors from the Add about $50 for the bus trip from
Caribbeans in Canada, where our commu- Canadian community. For further call Ms Toronto to Buffalo or slightly less for one
nity lives today, the names and activities of Betty Bharratt at (416) 825-5170 and help week’s parking at Buffalo Airport, and it
our religious, cultural, social and commu- bring off a once-in-a-lifetime Festival of comes close to the Caribbean Airlines di-
nity groups. They will be able to locate cul- India in Canada. rect trips to the Caribbean. Look up Travel
tural performers, professionals and business Span at www.travelspan.com.
people, and learn about our community
achievers and how we are handling the
problems of developing a community in
Canada.
There will also be a large section on the
cultural heritage that Indo-Caribbeans
worked so hard to preserve in the Caribbean
and have now transported to Canada. There
will also be room for articles and opinions
on the Indo-Caribbean experience, a calen-
dar of ongoing activities and feedback from
community members.
To reach the group, contact Ram Jagessar
at 416-290-9088 or e-mail at ram@eol.ca,
and of course keep looking up the site
indocaribbeanheritage.com.
COMMENTARY
Indo-Caribbean Times is pub-
lished monthly in Toronto by
Indo-Caribbean Times Ltd.
Editor/Publisher: Ram Jagessar
Editorial Committee:
Reynold Ramdial, Gulcharan Mo-
habir, Lloyd Harradan, Sandy
Kissoonsingh, Roop Misir, Deoraj
Narine, Jiantee Jagessar,Krishna
Nankissoor
Offi
ficce: 17 Gaiety Drive,
Toronto ON Canada M1H 1B9
Tel:: 416-289-3898
E-Mail: ictimes@rogers.com
Opinions given in this newspaper
are those of the authors and do
not necessarily reflect the views
of the Indo-Caribbean Times.
We welcome letters, e-mails and
comments on matters relevant to
Indo-Caribbeans. All content
must comply with the require-
ments of Canadian law
GUEST COMMENTARY
By Raymond Ramcharitar
raymondramcharitar@hotmail.com
A few years ago, I mentioned in passing to
a well-to-do young lady—award winning
journalist &c—that listening to calypso
(anywhere from Shorty’s 'Maharajin' to
Aloes’s odes to Oma Panday) the subli-
mated sexual element, the desire for sexual
revenge against Indian women was quite
evident to me.
Her reply surprised me: 'Well, why don’t
you go from here if it so bad? Leave the
country.' That it could be true did not seem
to offend her so much as my saying it. She
left the country some months later, and now
lives in Europe (EU passport) with her two
children. But this had been my experience
in the media generally: people who feign
‘objectivity’ but have sometimes very ob-
vious agendas which they ludicrously try to
hide, until they are threatened with expo-
sure.
My final stint at the Express was one long
battle (from 2002-2004) with sundry such
specimens. My offensives were looking at
theatre, calypso, and ‘national culture’ gen-
erally, and concluding often that they were
PNM populism, aimed at stirring racial ha-
tred and which would have dire conse-
quences in the near future. Theirs were
trying to get me fired and branded a ‘racist’.
They, of course, won.
The phenomena included plays that por-
trayed a very ethno-centred nationalism,
radio talk shows that called Indians ‘vomit’,
calypsos which told audiences that Indians
were not true Trinidadians but thieves and
drug dealers who were stealing the patri-
mony of ‘true’ Trinidadians, and to ‘Kidnap
Dem’, and ‘cultural icons’ and ‘masters’—
like Earl Lovelace and Leroy Clarke—who
said things like this openly (which I re-
ported).
But Iwas the only one, it seemed, who
noticed, or at least reported and commented
upon these things, & my sources told me
there were people at thetop, who could not
bear to see and read this kind of thing, and
in 2004, I was fired, no reason given.
Well, a few nights ago, listening to Anand
Ramlogan on the Islamic Broadcasting Net-
work (IBN) talking about the experiences
Indo-Caribbean Times
FRIENDLY
ADVICE
With Reynold
Ramdial
Dear Reynold,
I recently retired after 25 years of work
in Toronto, and my wife and I are thinking
of retiring back to Trinidad. But we are
worried about the reports of crime, kid-
napping and racism in Trinidad. The chil-
dren and grandchildren will not be coming
with us, because their life is here in Canada.
Do you think Trinidad is a safe and com-
fortable place for a couple of retired Indo-
Trinis to live out our final years?
Dear Rudy,
On your question about whether Trinidad
is a safe place to retire, I have to tell you
the truth. Trinidad is not as safe as Toronto
where you have been living these past 25
years. Trinidad is not as safe as it was when
you left many years ago.
There is more street crime, burglaries, car
thefts and gun crime than you are used to,
and in some cases recent arrivals from
Canada have been targeted because they are
believed to have foreign currency.
But you should know that in some areas
TT Kidnaps show sexual revenge vs Indian women
of kidnap victims (about 80-90 per cent of
whom are Indian, he said), the fruits of all
that cultural activism I reported on became
clear.
His column last Sunday (Jan 14) in the
Guardian told of a kidnap victim who had
been repeatedly raped for three days while
her husband paid the ransom, and became
pregnant as a result. On IBN he added some
material he omitted from the column: that
she was cursed and taunted with racial slurs
while she was being raped, and made to do
things that were even more dehumanizing
than being raped.
He did not go into details, except to say
that 'many' if not most kidnap victims faced
similar fates—including men. I don’t think
it’s unrelated that the ‘sex video’ featuring
school children making the rounds shows
an Indian girl being forced to have sex with
three black ‘schoolboys’. The Express’s
front-page report of this (Jan 19) neglected
to identify the ethnicities of the victims and
perpetrators (there’s a big surprise). But this
could be the start of a rite of passage for the
black criminal underclass.
And it’s not a small thing. There have
been hundreds (a thousand?) of reported
kidnappings over the last five years. And
many that were not reported. So how many
hundreds (?) of these victims have been put
through this?
It might be worthwhile to point out here
that at least some gangs are ethnically
mixed: looking at the photographs from the
Saada Singh kidnapping suspects last year,
this was evident. One gang which included
some policemen, who were all convicted a
few weeks ago, was all Indian.
This points to some deep resentments,
mainly among the lower castes/classes in
the Indian community, which are compara-
ble to the resentments between dark and
light-skinned AfroTrinidadians. That aside,
there is no way to know how ‘mixed’ the
gangs are, but the victims’ reports seem to
point to a preponderance of AfroTrinidadi-
ans as abductors.
In the absence of real journalists and so-
cial scientists collecting data, though, we
remain groping in the darkness of anecdotes
M arch 2007
Don’t rush to retire back to Trinidad
of Trinidad, especially in the quiet country
areas, you can be reasonably safe and free
from crime if you keep a low profile and
don’t advertise your Canadian connection.
Whether it will be a comfortable retire-
ment spot depends on what you are looking
for. You will be very disappointed if you ex-
pect to resume the life of Trinidad in the
eighties. That Trinidad is gone forever. The
people have changed too, as many have re-
tired, died, migrated or have moved on with
their lives. They may not have much time
for you and you may have to rebuild a life
all over again.
There’s still a lot of racism and discrim-
ination in Trinidad, but you may not be se-
riously affected if you are a non-working,
non-political retiree. You will have to see
quite a bit of blatant discrimination against
Indians around you.
Your children and grandchildren will re-
main in Canada because their life is here.
They don’t know Trinidad except as a
pleasant place to visit for a week or two.
Retirement in Trinidad will mean they
will be out of your life except for brief vis-
its to you or your brief visits to Canada. Be
warned that separation from the children,
grandkids and friends in Canada is often a
deal breaker for those thinking of retire-
and incompetent and mis-reporting.
Ramlogan also said that he was told dur-
ing the Felicity ‘riots’ late last year, an In-
dian woman was pulled out of her car and
her hair was cut off. This is an incredible
detail which was lost in the wide sweep of
the incident and threats of ‘for every one
African, ten Indian have to go’.
And no arrests.
But here is considerable evidence that
kidnapping, and crime generally, are not
just crimes of property: they are crimes of
hatred and revenge,and having ‘the enemy’
at their mercy allows these men to punish
these housewives and small business own-
ers, and children of (of course according to
the PNM savants on Power 102 and i95.5,
they’re all drug dealers and ‘corrupt’) for
the grievous harm they’ve suffered. And
this does not figure the other crimes of vio-
lence, like robbery, assault, and rape (with-
out kidnapping) which are not reported, and
not recorded, and which are racially moti-
vated.
Apropos of this, how much clearer does
this situation have to be? How much clearer
could it be? Apparently, still not clear
enough: one of the Express’s articles on Fe-
licity, written by Sheila Rampersad, used a
‘fairy tale’ ‘once upon a time’ type ap-
proach which told of villages, and spoiled
boys, and elders, and quarrels. A most ap-
propriate choice, since the mainstream ap-
proach to racial issues that paints black
Trinidadians as perpetrators rather than vic-
tims reeks of fecal fantasy.
Could there be any doubt that these inci-
dents are the (desired (?)) result of years of
hate peddling on radio, in the theatres, in
schools, calypso tents and in the pages of
the newspapers? The people who declared
this war were Selwyn Cudjoe (acting with
the complicity if not on the orders of
Patrick Manning) and facilitators (who
transmitted, popularized, and denied), let us
say ‘in the media’.
So a large part of the responsibility for
every person who is raped, murdered, and
dehumanized must fall on these hard heads.
They have hidden, lied, denied, and pro-
moted as something other than what it is,
Page 4
ment to Trinidad. Many of those who try to
return home to Trinidad are back in Canada
in a year or so.
Depending on you and your wife’s health,
you may have to evaluate the availability of
health care facilities, medication, profes-
sionals and services. Could you imagine
having to go to one of the major hospitals?
Based on your question, we have con-
ducted a mini poll of 35 Trinis of all stripes.
Only one person was willing to fully retire
there because he still has lots of family
there, owns property and is still in touch.
About the health situation, his response was
“I hope not to have to use it”. As for poli-
tics, there was nothing but disgust.
In spite of all the cautions, Trinidad is
still a warm, laid back place that can be
good for a retiree. You escape the Canadian
winters in comfort. Prices can be fright-
fully high, but your Canadian dollars mul-
tiply by at least five down there.
If you are serious about moving back to
Trinidad, give it a trial run. Don’t sell your
house and move your belongings right
away. Go down for a few months and see if
you like it after the first excitement has
worn off. Then you can make the jump, or
else come back to Canada without cost and
complications.
what the PNM has been doing for the last
six years with increasing openness and free-
dom from consequences. And that is, that
the PNM through its calypsonians, agents
in the media, and its sympathizers, have
openly encouraged this racial war, and keep
it going by the police service’s collapse, and
their embrace of criminals.
But there is another aspect to this: what
is the AfroTrinidadian response? This is not
the black underclass, who are the PNM’s
zombie troops. These are the people we
meet, become friends with, invite into our
homes, and are invited into theirs, inter-
marry with, procreate and are generally
each other’s friends and family, who hap-
pen to be Afro-descended.
Apart from Morgan Job and Lenny
Grant, it is clear that the black middle
class prefers to avert its collective eyes.
The average response seems to be embod-
ied in ‘reasonable’ inane babblings (see
Martin George in the Guardian) which are
patently pro-PNM, and serve the racial
agenda which keeps the PNM in power.
This agenda entails a childish ethnic sen-
sitivity and is almost lunatic in its delu-
sion, and leads to logic like:
Crime? Is the fault of government AND
opposition, and is the same all over the
world.
Corruption? The PNM and the UNC—
is the same thing. (Once the PNM in
power.)
Society decaying? That happening all
over the world.
Hate Radio? Well, is freedom of the
press.
Hate calypso? That is the art form, ca-
lypsonian could say anything, yes. (Ex-
cept when they say thing like Bro
Marvin.)
But ask why mostly Indians getting kid-
napped & you get dead silence.
Murmurs: Is drugs. Is family ting. They
owe money and ain’t want to pay. That is
how them Indian is.
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 12)
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO NEWS
Brutal kidnap shatters Indian family:marriage broken, husband “an unrecognizable drunk”
FROM PAGE 1 she was forced to submit herself to the following day in full at three different drop-
Later that evening, the shift changed grading and humiliating, but the worse was down because facing her family was more nap victims since 2005
worst forms of sexual abuse. It was de- off points. Now, she wishes she never broke
again. She was slapped and warned not to
say anything by the rapists before they left.
She was repeatedly raped by that second
shift when they returned the next week, and
she eventually confided in one of the guards
(X) from thefirst shift.
He was most upset and said that was ”not
part of the plan.” He promised to inform
the “bossman” about her plight. The shift
did not change that evening, so she was
not raped. Instead, X allowed her to speak
with her family members, who indicated
that they were going to drop off the money
the following morning.
She was blindfolded and released. She did
not tell anyone about the rapes. They were
all so relieved to have her back, she could-
n’t bear to tell them that the ransom money
was all in vain.
She wanted to scream and tell them they
had kidnapped her soul.
ABORTED RAPE BABY
Two weeks later, after much thinking, she
flew to a neighbouring Caribbean island
and paid a secret visit to a doctor.
Her worst fears were confirmed: she was
pregnant. She had an abortion and returned
home. Not wanting to tell her husband what
had happened or risk infecting him with
some unknown STD, she refused to be in-
timate with him.
“I was still kidnapped even after my re-
lease. They kidnapped part of me for life,”
she said.
She eventually confronted her demons and
went back for an HIV test. She did not in-
dicate what the result was, and I did not ask.
She said she was living against her own
will, because she did not want to disappoint
those who had sacrificed so much to have
her back.
No one has been arrested in connection
with her kidnapping to date.
******************
A MOTHER’S PAIN:
FAMILY SMASHED
TO PIECES BY KIDNAP
‘It took me ten years to have a child and
now I feel as if I have lost her,’ the mother
said. My mind darted back to the headline
“Kidnapped for life” a few weeks ago.
She had all but given up having children.
She would look in sadness as other people
loved theirs, praying and trying every kind
of fertility treatment, even local herbs.
Everything and anything. When she real-
ized she was pregnant, she couldn’t believe
it. Her husband was ecstatic; the unspoken,
emotional void was about to be filled.
Her daughter was kidnapped. She now re-
fuses to listen to music. Ransom negotia-
tions were not going well and people had
become frustrated. Hands tied behind her
back, with duct tape plastered over her
mouth and a pair of headphones over her
ears, she was raped by the three men who
stood guard over her during captivity. The
music was so loud in her ears that it dis-
tracted her from the pain. ‘I screamed in my
head because I couldn’t open my mouth,’
she said in a distracted, matter-of-fact kind
of way.
She eventually accepted her fate and de-
cided that she would try and concentrate on
the music instead of focusing on the inva-
sion and violation of her body but her pow-
ers of concentration were no match for the
brutality. The duct tape was yanked off and
Indo-Caribbean Times
yet to come. Her parents were trying to be
tough with the ransom negotiators. They
had so far refused to pay a ransom. This, on
the advice of the police and a private nego-
tiator her father had hired.
The kidnappers were playing for time,
knowing that the family will come round.
The father was also playing for time, think-
ing that once they eventually realized that
he was not going to pay up their resolve
would weaken and his precious daughter
would be freed. She paid the price for this
principled stance
As the negotiations intensified, she was al-
lowed to speak to her uncle on an old
school friend’s cell phone. He asked if she
was alright. More concerned about her fam-
ily and how they were coping, she put up a
brave front and said yes, they were treating
her fine. She didn’t want to add to the pres-
sure they were under but asked him to do
what they could to get her back.
The following day, she was dragged out of
her room and into the kitchen what seemed
like a run-down dirty apartment. It was the
first time that she had even left the room.
No head phones, this time. The men were
cursing, saying her father ‘set dem up’ and
‘took dem for (expletive) fools’. “All yuh
Indian feel all yuh too smart!’ he said. He
was supposed to drop off the money yes-
terday but appar-
ently changed his
mind. They had
another kidnap-
ping job to do and
were behind
schedule and
someone (the
boss) was not too
Vindra Naipaul..still happy. It seemed
missing, feared dead as if they were
working with a list. They blamed her for all
of this. She didn’t do as she was told. She
was supposed to cry and beg them to pay
the damn ransom.
They blamed her for failing to convince
the family to pay the ransom. They con-
cluded that she had things too easy. She too,
was ‘(expletive-ing) dem up’ because she
playing brave and didn’t show enough pain.
That was about to change. She was spread-
eagled on the floor naked, belly down and
anally raped by all three men. She couldn’t
resist as the other two actually stood on her
hands. She begged for the headphones she
hated so much to no avail. She could feel
something running down her legs and
thought it was semen. It was not. It was the
blood from her ruptured anus that didn’t
make any difference to her rapists. One man
used a condom because he didn’t trust the
other two ‘because all yuh always running
hoe (whores)’.
Battered and bruised, she thought of her
father. He was indeed wealthy. Why did he
not just pay the money? Did her mother not
tell him to pay it? Were the dreams about
them talking to her and lovingly coaxing
her to sleep each night during captivity not
real? She thought she was so close to her
father that he could read her mind. He knew
she was tough and always put up a brave
front
She remembered how he hugged her and
took her for ice cream when her best friend
chose someone else to speak at her birthday
party and she pretended not to care. The
precious, unforgettable unspoken under-
standing between father and daughter. Did
his money mean more to him?
That night, she cried and begged her uncle
for daddy to pay the ransom. It was paid the
M arch 2007 Page 5
32 known women kid-
difficult than that the suffering and assault
she had grown to accept and endure. She
was bitter, angry, hurt and totally discon-
nected. She keeps asking herself if it was
her brother that was kidnapped whether her
father wouldn’t have just paid the money
without waiting.
She went into a shell. She lived in her
room. Spoke and ate very little. One night,
she just woke up screaming. Her parents
rushed in and she pointed at her father and
said she hated him. She accused him of
making them rape
her and started
rampaging her
room. She was
stark raving mad.
She flung every-
thing from her
desk, pictures
from the wall and
broke the bed
Debbie Singh-Ali
lamp. She rum-
spoke out in public
maged through
her drawers and took a gold chain he had
brought her for her 16th birthday and ripped
it and pelted him with it. She wanted noth-
ing from him anymore she shouted, telling
him to take back his (expletive) land. (Her
father had given her a piece of land).
Her mother held her and tried to hug her.
She raised her hand to slap her but was
stopped by her brother. She struggled. The
phone started ringing – neighbours wanted
to know if everything was alright. Her
mother chased everyone out, cursing and
telling them to ‘leave her alone with her
chile’. Her mother listened in horror to
everything and in tears confessed that she
told the father to pay the ransom.
The kidnappers had spoken to her once at
her sister’s home. He told her that they
would not harm her daughter if the money
was paid. He gave her his word. He said the
police were involved and if the family told
them what was going on they would only
make things worse because they (the po-
lice) were very greedy.
She begged her husband to pay the money.
The police had set up shop in the house and
had advised him not to do that because the
kidnappers might think he paid it too easy
and ask for more. He must negotiate. He
had hired a special negotiator who had
helped another family whose child was kid-
napped. The men, she said took over.
She didn’t trust the police and spoke to
her husband but he did not listen to her. She
tried telling her that her father meant well
but the look she would never forget the look
from her daughter that pierced her eyes like
a well-sharpened dagger. She had to be
strong. No point reminding her about all her
father had done; all the years she’d spurned
her mother as a child in bed so that she
could go to her father’s side to hug him to
sleep while sucking her thumb.
She had failed the child that God had
blessed her with after ten long years of
painful infertility. She had thought about se-
cretly pawning her jewelry and borrowing
the money from her sister herself to secretly
pay the ransom without telling her husband
and the police but had no way of contact-
ing the kidnappers.
Women have been a popular target for kid-
nappers in Trinidad for the last five years,
with at least 32 reported by the media in the
last two years and five murdered by kid-
nappers. The true figure is probably much
greater, as many of the kidnappings are not
reported to the police, and an unknown
amout of reported kidnappings are not re-
ported to the media by Trinidad police. In
March 2006 the Anti Kidnapping Squad re-
vealed that 30 kidnappings had been re-
ported to the police during January to
February 2006 but were never revealed to
the public.
2005
Leela Roopnarine,Kyna Rampersad,Nadie
Harripersad, Pixie Surujdaye Lakhan (mur-
dered),Unnamed woman, Beulah Lopez,
Michelle Arvello, Neisha Seetaram, Linda
Ali,Mary Baldeo Waheed (jumped out of
kidnap vehicle and killed), Nurse unnamed,
Seeta Ragoonanan,Penal woman unnamed,
Candice Harragin,Vanessa Ramsahai,Tessa
Ramdath Mahara, Samdaye Rampersad
(beaten, back broken and buried while still
alive), Jade Solis, Unnamed Belmont
woman.
2006
Indira Seepaul, 9 year old daughter of In-
dira Seepau, Vindra Naipaul (missing),Deb-
bie Singh-Ali, Rehanna Ramlochan (raped
and murdered), Candice Beharry, Avalon
Strachan, Giselle Holder, 14 year old Yva
Alexander, 15 year old Diana Bedeau,
Reshma Boodoo (thrown out of kidnap car
and killed), 16 year old school girl kid-
napped on Henry St, Port of Spain and gang
raped.
2007
Annalee James
The home phone was tapped by the police
and it was her husband and the negotiator
who spoke when they called. Her son sided
with his father and told her to leave it alone
and she did.
She knows that her husband loved his
daughter more than life itself but her daugh-
ter’s pain was too great for her to think of
anyone else’s. She took her daughter and
moved out of the house. She misses her son
but has explained to him that he must take
care of his father while she looks after his
sister. Her husband has gone into a state of
irreversible and permanent depression. He
swallows pills and drinks himself to sleep
every day. The man who fathered her two
children was now an unrecognizable drunk.
She still has access to the bank account and
he makes sure that there is always enough
for them to live on.
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 12)
RINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Don’t stop the Carnival! 194 kidnaps last year not a problem!
THE WEST INDIAN is not exactly hostile
to change, but he's not much inclined to be-
lieve in it. Meantime in a fashion Amerigo
is getting Americanized. The inflow of cash
is making everyone more prosperous. Most
Kinjans go along cheerily with this explo-
sion of American energy in the Caribbean.
To them it seems like a new harmless and
apparently endless Carnival.
Inshan Ishmael, a businessman and social
activist, disturbed by the high crime rate in
Trinidad, called for a national shutdown on
the 25th and 26th of January, 2007.
What was the government's response?
Surely they must have noticed that crime
was on the increase, and it must have oc-
curred to them that they were responsible
for the safety of the citizens? If the citizens
wished to send a message to the govern-
ment on crime - or any issue - surely it is
the duty of the government to listen to that
message?
Not in Trinidad where it is always endless
Carnival. The government began by attack-
ing Mr Inshan's business. Mr. Ishmael im-
ports foreign used vehicles. The
Government has moved swiftly to impose
quotas for the importation of foreign used
vehicles.
Next came an order by the Telecommuni-
cations Authority for the removal of his two
programs from IBN Channel 8.
Then their was a statement by the Com-
missioner of Police who should be busy
fighting crime suggesting that the long arm
of the law would reach anyone who entices
or intimidates business people from open-
ing for business.
Although Mr Inshan applied for, and was
granted permission to hold an assembly in
the Aranguez Savannah, this permission
was withdrawn. The matter was taken to
court and the permission was regained. But
the Commissioner of Police did not give
permission to use a public address system.
Finally Mr. Ishmael was arrested. Mr Ish-
mael was supposed to be detained under the
Anti Terrorism Act. He was forced to strip
and was charged with distributing a flyer
without his name and address.
The shutdown was boycotted by the UNC.
the Syrians, French-Creoles and blacks. But
for two days Indians closed ranks, and since
they are the only ones who work I bet much
didn't happen in Trinidad on those two
days.
Is Kick For Them
A GASPARILLO businessman, Shiva Sie-
unarinesingh, skilled in martial arts, es-
caped a gang of potential kidnappers on
Monday in front of his mother’s business.
Shiva was securing the business at around
3.50 pm, when a man came up to him. The
man allegedly whipped out a gun and
shouted: “Bank man, you going with me.”
Police said the gunman attempted to drag
off Sieunarinesingh who kicked the gun-
man. The gun fell to the ground some dis-
tance away. What the Police did not say was
that Shiva broke the gunman's arm with that
one kick. Officers did not apprehend any of
the men, but we didn't really expect them
to, did we? Police are also not on the look-
out for a black man with a broken arm, who
has to get medical attention at some time.
If you can't shoot
bandits... shoot Babies
Trinidad police are probing the circum-
stances under which two babies were shot
while playing outside their home in Care-
nage as detectives of the Western Division
chased two suspects who were being sought
in connection with the killing of Clint
Indo-Caribbean Times
Latchman.
The incident triggered a bitter controversy
as relatives of the injured sisters Kaylan,
two, and Kyla, one, claimed the children
were shot by the police.
But investigators dismissed that claim,
saying they did not open fire although the
suspects had shot at them
So what did they do? Hide behind the ba-
bies?
...and Beat up students
POLICE denied allegations of brutality
after 70 University of the West Indies
(UWI) students claimed they were beaten
on Friday 9th February by officers at the
traditional Chutney fete on the St Augustine
campus.
At a press conference at the campus, how-
ever, students maintained their accusation
and said they were going to take legal ac-
tion against the police.
"The matter will be pursued at a national
level. Our students paid for police presence
at the fete, not to brutalise students,” said
Shazard Mohammad, chairman of the Na-
tional Affairs Committee at UWI.
There was no reason for that. Some of the
students asked what was going on and they
were brutalised,” he said.
Mohammed said the students sought med-
ical attention at various hospitals but no one
was seriously injured.
He said out of the 3,000 students at the
fete, 70 of them sought medical treatment
after being beaten by the police.
Mohammad and other students claimed
the police were allegedly drunk at the fete,
and campus security gave the officers per-
mission to attack the students.
Police officers said the fete was due to stop
at 2 am, when the bar licence expired.
It was then the students then became vio-
lent, they said.
Investigators said they were approached
by the promoters (students planning com-
mittee members) who said Crazy and other
entertainers did not perform. The officers
then permitted the fete to continue until 3
am.
The officers said after 3 am, when the fete
ended, the students were allegedly drunk
and they got annoyed and took the tassa
drums and flags outside on the road. The
students began to threaten and throw bot-
tles at the officers and their vehicles, and
one student had a cutlass, police said. Po-
lice said they did not use a gun to disperse
the students.
At approximately 3.15 am, requests for the
students to disperse and stop the tassa
drumming were made by the State police.
Following the request, some students
claimed they were assaulted by police in the
car park.
Calypso tents feel
Indian Backlash
"I note with some sadness," V M Cristo
from Arouca writes, "that calypso tents are
"seeing trouble''. Some have gone cap in
hand (a time honoured national pastime) to
the Government for funds to keep this once
proud national institution running. Maybe
it's time calypsonians do some introspection
and ponder on the cause or causes behind
this situation...
since Cro Cro sang , "Allyuh look for
that'', I have stopped going to calypso tents
and I have advised all my friends and fam-
ily to do same. That was 1996. Since then I
have also heard Cro Cro sing a song that en-
dorsed and promoted kidnapping as a form
of economic development. Calypso is now
a weapon to batter the Indian community
every February."
Manning Waffles over Smelter
GOVERNMENT is amenable to reversing
its December decision against the alu-
minium smelter in Chatham, following in-
formation that “drug elements” in that area
may be involved in smelter opposition,
Prime Minister Patrick Manning has an-
nounced.
After heavy resistance to the Chatham
smelter, Manning had announced at Christ-
mas that the smelter would be shifted from
that location to an offshore point at Ota-
heite.
Manning was told by COP leader Winston
Dookeran to produce the evidence or shut
up. Others have attacked Manning for mak-
ing this statement.
Surprisingly, the police said that Prime
Minister Patrick Manning was right when
he said there is drug dealing in Chatham,
but he is wrong to link the rape of a woman
by burglars to anti-smelter activism. He is
also wrong about the other claims he made.
Detectives have no evidence that groups
opposed to the aluminium smelter con-
struction were linked to the drug elements,
and detectives in Point Fortin have no re-
port that a villager who supports the build-
ing of the smelter in the village was
threatened and his dog poisoned.
And La Brea police officers are unaware
of reports that pro-smelter supporters were
threatened with physical violence and an
arson attack on a home.
Manning watchers would be aware that this
is only the latest in a long series of gaffes.
Just before this there was his mishandling
of the Maha Sabha application for a radio
licence. Manning seem to be unaware that
the PNM lost control of the airwaves in
1986, when the NAR came to power. So the
Maha Sabha celebrated its victory after a
seven year battle that had to be decided by
the Privy Council. Satnarayan Maharaj
went to India with a group of Pundits and
has been making daily reports to the faith-
ful. Manning flew to Africa where he issued
inane statements about smelters.
It is not clear who is giving Manning all
this bad advice. One shudders to think that
he is advising himself, remembering the
legal dictum, "He who advises himself is
advised by a fool."
End of sugar industry .. too dear
TRINIDAD’S sugar industry shuts down
finally this year, as government has decided
not to buy any more from cane farmers after
the 2007 crop. The 7,500 cane farmers (and
about 60,000 family members and cane
workers and their families) will have to find
something else to live on. Caroni Ltd. is al-
ready closed since 2003, workers laid off,
and only a sugar factory Sugar Manufac-
turing Company Limited (SMCL) remains
to handle sugar for local consumption
PM Manning told the farmers the sugar
industry had become a financial burden
Government could no longer bear. He
talked about the $47 million given to the
sugar industry team last year, and another
$61 million given to the research extension
support services. That’s $108 million.
However, Government seems to have no
trouble finding money for the make-work
CEPEP program, which has gobbled up
over $1 billion since 2002, or another bil-
lion for the Tarouba Sports Stadium that
nobody wanted or asked for.
M arch 2007 Page 6
TRINIDAD REPORT
By Lloyd Harradan
How many kidnaps last year?
A STORY in the Trinidad Express article
on January 2, 2007 said that between Jan-
uary to October last year there were 162
kidnappings, both with and without ran-
somdemands. That means an average 16
kidnaps per month (four every week!), and
an estimated total by December of 194
kidnappings. Remember these are just the
kidnappings police know about, which are
estimated to be around 10% of the total. So
if 194 kidnaps are 10% of all kidnaps, could
that mean Trinidad had 1,940 total kidnaps
last year? The National Security minister
says the kidnapping situation improved in
2006.
Trinidad not safe to live in
TWENTY TWO of the country's leading
private sector business groups have said
openly that Trinidad and Tobago is not a
safe place to live or do business. They are
demanding that the "authorities take swift
and decisive action to deal with the criminal
elements in the society".
Last month the business groups told Na-
tional Security Minister Martin Joseph they
didn't believe his claim that Trinidad is
making progress in the fight against crime.
Several important new laws have not been
passed, the witness protection program is
not effective, so that witnesses are afraid to
testify in court cases, and citizens are yet to
see any improvement in the level of service
delivered by the Police Service, say the
group.
Food prices gone crazy, inflation
rising 9% over last year
SOME recent food prices should qualify
for arrest under the Terrorism Act more than
Inshan Ishnael. Try little Cornish hens at
$45 dollars for one, regular chicken $5.15
per pound, a case of 20-ounce soft drinks
$78, powdered milk $12.99 per kilo-
gramme. Then there’s packaged sliced
bread for $6.25, a half-pound of coffee
$9.99, a dozen eggs $8.99 and a pound of
butter $12.99. A tin of corned beef set you
back $7.29, powdered detergent $16.99,
humble peewah ten dollars a pound ( Take
it or leave it!), fish $14 and $20 per pound,
pigeon peas $10 per pound, patchoi $4 to
$8, dasheen bush between $3 and $5, im-
ported grapes $18 per pound, and one. pom-
mecytere for $2.50, the same as an
imported apple. Trinidad will begin im-
porting chicken from Guyana’s Didco farm
this month.
Trinis heading for Vincy
Some wealthy Trinis are heading for
St Vincent and the Grenadines to es-
cape high crime rates at home.That's
the word from Dr Ralph Gonsalves
Prime Minister of St Vincent and the
Grenadines, who says he’s seen in the
last three years an increase in the num-
ber of people—business people, pro-
fessionals, retirees—from Trinidad (and
Jamaicq) who want to own a second
home in his country.
GUYANA NEWS Indo-Caribbean Times M arch 2007 Page 7
GUYANA UPDATE
family-based immigrant status must
now be filed only with United States
Citizenship and Immigration Service
Progess in the villages,
black kidnap criminals
(USCIS) in
the United States. All family-based

Buddy’s International Hotel in Georgetown is the grandest of a new group of hotels
being built to accomodate the Cricket World Cup and other events in Guyana.
GOVT. HELP FOR 103 YR.
OLD JAHAJI KOWSILLA
The Ministry of Human Services says it
will be providing assistance to 103-year-old
Gaitree Kowsilla.
According to a Government Information
Agency (GINA) press release on Thursday
human services minister Priya Manickc-
hand visited the woman at President Bhar-
rat Jagdeo's request after her daughter and
caretaker Sookia Ramdass penned a re-
quest.
Kowsilla, of 272 Good Hope Housing
Scheme, East Coast Demerara, came to
Guyana on October 10, 1912 as an inden-
tured labourer. She is now bedridden and
Ramdass, her youngest daughter cares for
her. Ramdass said her mother is very jovial
and that she likes to talk about her experi-
ence working on the sugar plantations dur-
ing indentureship.
Manickchand said government would pro-
vide public assistance and other support for
Ramdass as she is unable to work. Former
Minister of Human Services Bibi Shadick
had given a wheelchair to the family early
last year.
RECOVERING FROM EAST eases a number of people contracted lep-
COAST DEMERARA FLOODS tospirosis which proved to be fatal in some
Two years after the East Coast Demerara, drowned.
Georgetown and other parts of coastal
Guyana were devastated by flooding, resi- NO MORE US IMMIGRANT
dents are still recovering and rebuilding VISA
their livelihoods. Raging floodwaters
surged over the East Coast Demerara in
2005, destroying crops and forcing people
out of their homes.
Down the East Coast Demerara at Lot 1,
Good Hope Bibi Shameena and her family
were cooking their dinner, while at the
same time carrying out other chores like
feeding the ducks and making pepper
sauce.
In 2005 the Stabroek News had found Bibi
Shameena and her brother feeding the
ducks from their veranda because the flood-
water was about four feet high in the yard
and the kitchen on the ground floor was
completely flooded out. Their meat and lay-
ing birds had all died and their once thriv-
ing garden was completely covered. They
lost two calves, a cow and some goats dur-
ing the floods and one cow died shortly
after the water receded.
Bibi Shameena said she cried for her cows of specific criminal offences against a
because they were like her children. All she minor.
had to do was yell "Yo! Yo!" and they Consular officers at embassies and con-
would come for their feed, she said. She sulates overseas are not law enforcement
buried one of the cows near by the home officers and do not have access to this in-
when the water had receded and the other formation. Thus, all I- 130 petitions for
immigrant visa petitions which were
approved at the U.S. Embassy in
Georgetown after July 27, 2006 and
are pending visa issuance must also
be returned to the USCIS for contin-
ued processing in the United States”,
the embassy said.
American citizens and legal perma-
nent residents, it said, can obtain
information on how to file an I-130
with USCIS in the United States on
the USCIS website, www.uscis.gov,
or by contacting the U.S. Embassy in
Georgetown.
The embassy said it deeply regrets
the inconvenience this change causes
both petitioners and beneficiaries but
added that the law is clear.
by the seawall. She no longer has any cows “Please contact the visa inquiries
or goats. unit (email visageorge@state.gov or
Since the floods Bibi Shameena said she call 225-7965 between 8 am- 12 pm
has not reared any fowls and the ducks her and 1 pm- 4 pm Monday through Fri-
brother was feeding in a pond under an ar- day) if you have questions about the
bour was the first set of "English ducks" she new regulations”, it said.
had reared since the 2005 floods. They have
replanted some of the crops on the land sur- MAHAICONY HOSPITAL
rounding their home but the land adjacent TO OPEN BY MARCH
to the home has not been planted since the
floods. She said they would have to build
The new Mahaicony Hospital com-
up the land because it had sunk.
plex is expected to be finished by the
At first, when they had started replanting,
end of February, turning it into a
she said, the callaloo was spotted and the
much needed regional hospital.
boulanger leaf, rusty. The boulanger was
The original Mahaicony Cottage
hardly ever bought by anyone even though
Hospital which was under utilised is
they were edible. "We are coping alright,"
being transformed it into a state-of-
she and other family members agreed. They
the-art Comprehensive Diagnostic
now have thriving plots of squash, ochroes,
and Treatment Centre.
boulanger, pepper, broad leaf thyme and
A team from the Ministry of Health
carilla.
led by Minister within the Ministry
She said they had some assistance from
of Health, Dr. Bheri S. Ramsaran,
former minister of Human Services and So-
visited the hospital recently and
cial Security Bibi Shadick who had visited
Chief Planning Officer (CPO) of the
the area. Bibi Shameena also received the
Ministry of Finance Clyde Roopc-
$10,000 that government had provided.
hand, was very direct, demanding
Bibi Shameena is just one of about
and aggressive in ensuring that the
200,000 or more people who were affected
government gets value for dollar.
by the floods that lasted for periods ranging
There are three other such centres
from two weeks to six weeks in some areas.
being constructed at Diamond, East
While there was no major outbreak of dis-
Bank Demerara; Leonora, West
Coast Demerara; and Suddie, Esse-
quibo Coast . They should all be
cases and a number of persons had also
completed this year. The four state-
of-the-art health centres are being
constructed as a result of a joint ini-
tiative between the Guyana Govern-
PETITIONS FROM ment and Cuba .
GEORGETOWN High quality health services will be
rendered from these centres that will
THE United States Embassy has an- be staffed by Cuban specialists with
nounced that due to provisions in the re- support of qualified local medical
cently passed Adam Walsh Child Protection personnel. They would accommo-
and Safety Act, U.S. embassies overseas date modern equipment. The Ma-
can no longer accept family-based immi- haicony Regional Hospital will be
grant visa petitions (I-130s). under Cuban administration. The
Although this change will inconvenience team is due in Guyana soon and liv-
some families, the U.S. Embassy must ing quarters have been renovated to
comply with the law. Consular officers will cater for 28 Cuban doctors.
work with affected petitioners and benefi- Health Minister, Dr. Leslie Ram-
ciaries to ensure they have the information sammy, has identified the National
they need on the steps they need to take to Psychiatric Hospital at New Amster-
complete processing of their cases ,“ the day , Berbice, as a priority facility for
embassy said in a press release. reconstruction. “The Government of
It explained that as a result of the Adam Guyana is engaged in mobilising
Walsh Act, all family-based immigrant visa funds for the reconstruction of the
petitions (I-130s) must be screened to en- hospital,” Ramsammy stated, ex-
sure the petitioner has not been convicted plaining that for many years, the hos-
pital was neglected and had become
a national disgrace by 1990.
The hospital currently facilitates
155 persons, of whom, 100 have
been determined as persons who
could live at home. It is considered
to be seriously understaffed..
on the defensive
On a recent trip to Guyana I realized that there
was an undercurrent in the country that was not
reflected in the media.
I hadn’t visited in 5 years and there were some
immediate visible changes. For example: the
roads. I was really impressed with progress on the
roads around the entire country, not to mention
Georgetown. In and out of Georgetown there are
4 lane highways that are well lit. I am wondering,
“is this Guyana or Toronto?” Housing is another
area that struck me. The government has in the last
few years given out affordable house lots to the
ordinary people to build. And it is visible that
there are significant improvements in this area.
With respect to “black outs”: I did not experience
a single one in the 10 days that I was there. Black
outs used to be the norm in Guyana.
I noticed that when I entered a home there was a
phone there, even in the villages. This was a sur-
prise also. Even water availability was noticeably
improved.
Driving around Georgetown I observed dozens
of hotels under construction. I learnt that these
were being built for the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
I also learnt that the hoteliers are given a 10 year
tax holiday as incentive to build these hotels. But
who are the owners of these hotels? Well, inter-
estingly, it appears that the owners are mainly the
drug boys. You see, Guyana has emerged as a key
drug centre. Because of the strict anti laundering
laws in North America, the drug money is stuck
in Guyana. So the money is now appearing as ho-
tels. One of the big debates in Guyana was the
casino issue. It appears that this is another form
the money can be laundered.
Noticeably absent were the high profile crimes
like kidnapping and businessmen murders. These
are invariably against Indians. After asking
around I found out that the businessmen/drug boys
took the situation in their own hands: they went
on their own campaign to clean out the elements
in Buxton who were responsible for these crimes,
including Wadell the racist, who called himself the
African freedom fighter who publicly expressed
his anti Indian hatred.
There was an uneasy calm in Guyana. It was the
first time I was there and I was not having “loose
bowels” when I passed Buxton. What I heard was
that the criminals in Buxton were at a loss as to
deal with the vengeance from the drug boys. Co-
incidentally, the drug boys are mostly Indians and
the kidnappers blacks. This has put a pause on
the race crimes in Guyana. What this is saying is
that if the anti Indian crimes are answered with
quick and vicious response that they will stop.
This has happened in Guyana just by coincidence
because it affected the drugs boys who happened
to be Indians. Because of the calm and non- ob-
struction for the PNC racist elements, the govern-
ment is able to move ahead with their
development program at a normal pace. This is
benefiting Guyana …..for now. Who knows how
long this calm will last? It will last as long as the
Indians will not tolerate the nonsense from the
racist destructive elements from the black popu-
lace.
In this instance we are lucky that the blacks
struck the raw nerve of the drug boys who hap-
pened to be Indians and are bold enough to fight
back. Let’s keep this up and live out the dreams
of out forefathers to inherit a great land across
“kala pani”. Our responsibility is not to run to
Canada but to stick it out and fight for what is
rightfully ours: a free Guyana where we can pros-
per and enjoy!
Ganpat Singh
Hurting Guyanese longing to return home.
GUYANA NEWS Indo-Caribbean Times
Guyana looks at threat Kidnaps gone but not ‘Dead' woman
of global warming all crimes vs Indians delivers baby in tomb estates says Minister
AS the effects of global warming become
increasingly evident, Government has made
a commitment to continue working with re-
sponsive Governments and international
bodies and agencies in a spirit of advocacy.
Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon said
at press briefing that since Guyana is below
sea level and could suffer from severe
weather conditions and loss of freshwater
stores every effort will be made by the ad-
ministration to join forces with like-minded
Governments and those committed to en-
suring that the effects of global warming is
reversed.
Cabine reviewed a report dealing with cli-
mate change, it was revealed that global
warming persists mainly as a result of
human activities.The use of fossil fuel and
the changes in land use were the main con-
tributory factors to this situation.
But local efforts are being made, accord-
ing to the Cabinet Secretary, to address this
situation through the Natural Resources
Sector and the Hydromet Department.
They are to work on the adaptation of
measures to deal with the impact of climate
changes. It is believed limate change will
significant impact on Guyana, especially
since rising sea levels coupled with an in-
crease in destructive storms will threaten
the existence of small island-states and low
lying coastal communities.
Over 90 percent of Guyana 's population
and a vast majority of its agricultural and
economic activities are located on the
coastal plain which is below current sea
level.
Alarm as youth
commit more suicide:
Indians top with 68%
AN increase in suicide in Santa Rosa,
Moruca in the last two months has
prompted the relevant authorities to explore
ways of curbing this disturbing new trend.
Three adults have taken their lives between
last December to present, and another 10
persons have attempted to do the same.
With the exception of one, the persons
who took their lives as well as those that at-
tempted, were all men. What was surpris-
ing is that all of the men were young,
between the ages of 21-30, gainfully em-
ployed and respectable members of the
community.
Suicide has become a major public health
challenge in Guyana and is among the 10
leading causes of death, locally.
Worldwide, one million people die as a re-
sult of suicide each year and it ranked as the
3rd leading cause of death among juvenile
and young adults. Globally, death due to
suicide has increased by 60% in the last 4-
5 years. The highest incidence has shifted
from the elderly towards younger persons
of productive age.
Autopsies- 950 in total- conducted at the
Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation in
1999 revealed that suicide was responsible
for 10% of the deaths. Surveys have re-
vealed that suicide is responsible for 20%
of all deaths of persons between 15-24 yrs.
67% of the persons who commit suicide
in Guyana each year are males, while 32%
of them are persons between the ages of 15-
24 years. Persons of East Indian descent
rank highest among suicide victims with
68%.Suicide by poison is ranked highest in
Guyana with 59%.
Page 8
No plan to close sugar
Some recent incidents in Guyana show
that crimes against Indians continue to be a
problem. These are just a few examples.
$20 MILLION ROBBERY
Linman Sookdeo, a 54-year-old cambio
dealer, was robbed at gunpoint outside his
home at Lot 93 Collingsworth Avenue,
Nandy Park . Three men with handguns
stole $20M in foreign and local currency
from a bag in his car.
Berbice robbery victims Raywattie, Lak-
eram Baburam and Reshma Ramoutar
GUNMEN WITH AK-47s
SIX masked gunmen stormed a home at
Number Two Village, West Coast Berbice
and carted off nearly $300,000 worth of
gold jewellery, $15,000, sneakers valued at
$7,000 and a landline telephone.
Lakeram Baburam, 32, said it was around
11.05 pm a few nights ago while he was
preparing to accompany an overseas-based
uncle to the airport that he was confronted
by the men.
Two of the men carried long guns which
he thought were AK-47s, while another
bandit was armed with a cutlass. Baburam
recalled that he was sitting on a chair in the
lower flat of the building eating. He had left
the top half of the door open and the bandits
seized the opportunity to enter the house.
ARMED MASKED BANDITS
A Non Pareil businessman and his family
were beaten and terrorised when three
armed, masked bandits invaded their home
at Lot 78 First Street Non Pareil and es-
caped with an undisclosed sum of cash and
other valuables. Ramotar Ramsaroop, 49,
his reputed wife Nazmoon Allie, 46, and
their daughter Indira, 17, were beaten in
their heads with a gun and as a result sus-
tained lacerations.
GOLDSMITH SHOT
Bandits shot a Non Pareil goldsmith in a
robbery attempt. Kemraj, called ‘Suga', was
taken to the Intensive Care Unit of the
Georgetown Public Hospital in an uncon-
scious state.
MAN AND DOG SHOT
Farouk Azeez, 28, of Lot 55 Stanleytown
and his dog are recuperating after being
shot by two bandits during a robbery at a
New Amsterdam grocery.
The men, who posed as customers, entered
the shop and grabbed Farouk when he went
to sell them kerosene.
When his mother screamed and distracted
the bandits Farouk tried to flee but one of
the robbers followed him and shot him on
the leg. The dog was shot when the bandits
escaped through the back door to avoid an
angry crowd coming down the street.
IN a truly bizarre incident, a 38 year old
North West District woman who was buried
while she was eight months' pregnant was
found to have delivered her baby in the
grave.
The child and his mother, Florence Carol
John, were both found dead in the coffin,
when the body was exhumed for a post
mortem examination.
Florence John,of Kariabo River, was pro-
nounced dead, on January 26, at the
Mabaruma Hospital, hours before she was
scheduled to be air-dashed to the city fol-
lowing complications with her pregnancy.
She had fallen at the family farm and in-
jured herself.
Before she could be airlifted to the the city,
she collapsed and was pronounced dead by
an attending nurse.
John was buried on Sunday, January 28,
at Wauna, some five miles fromMabaruma.
Three days later, Police informed the
woman's husband, and her father that they
should make themselves available at the
place of burial for an exhumation of the
body.
When the coffin containing John's remains
was opened, all present were horrified to
discover a newborn baby boy. The family
is convinced that the woman was prema-
turely buried and that she was not really
dead when the nurse pronounced on her
condition.
“As far as I am concerned, a dead woman
cannot deliver a baby. She neck, nothing,
wasn't stiff when dey bury she,” John's sis-
ter Genevieve Joseph reasoned.
Relatives are not satisfied that John re-
ceived the best treatment, and are planning
to go directly to President Jagdeo if noth-
ing is done. They feel the hospital was neg-
ligent in releasing the body for burial
without conducting the post mortem that is
a normal practice for deaths in hospitals.
A medical doctor said that it would be im-
possible for a woman to deliver a baby after
death. After death, the contractions to stim-
ulate delivery would be nonexistent, he ex-
plained.
Health Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy
said the incident sounded strange and con-
firmed he that he would launch an investi-
gation.
BUSINESS DROPS
DUE TO 16% VAT
Some Georgetown businesses have com-
plained of a drop in business sales because
of the Value Added Tax (VAT) which has
tacked on 16% to prices in the majority of
cases.
Cousumers who listened to the Guyana
Revenue Authority's (GRA) media cam-
paign expected VAT to bring decreased
prices. Instead many items that were not
taxed before showed higher price tags.
"A lot of customers complaining," said su-
pervisor Natasha Arjun of Singh's Elec-
tronic World and Variety Store at 136
Regent Street.
"Business is very, very slow," she said,
putting sales at a 90% decline in compari-
son to last January.
The normal slowdown in January has been
worsened by VAT, and there’s no evidence
yet of the normal February recovery.
It appears that many customers and busi-
ness people are confused by the VAT sys-
tem or have unrealistic expectations of how
it should affect prices.They have closed
their wallets until the situation is clearer.
SPECULATION about the dissolution of
the Demerara sugar estates has been cate-
gorically dispelled by Agriculture Minister,
Robert Persaud, when he met with sugar
workers at the Uitvlugt Estate, West Coast
Demerara.
According to the Minister, there has been
incessant murmuring about Government's
intention to close down the estates, but he
noted that this can only be regarded as
“empty rumours”.
Persaud stressed that Government, against
all recommendations from the World Bank
and other relevant groups, made a decision
not to close down any estate, despite nu-
merous challenges.
The Minister noted that Government's ob-
jective is to make the estates more viable by
transforming them into profit units.
This, according to Persaud, will see efforts
being made to increase sugar production to
some 450,000 tonnes annually while bring-
ing down its cost to US$11 per pound. And
in order to see the industry thrive, the Min-
ister revealed that Government has invested
billions of dollars in Guysuco to ensure that
plans and proposed works critical to the
economy and workers can be activated.
As efforts are heightened to guarantee the
sugar industry's survival, Minister Persaud
asserted that there is the ever-increasing
need to look towards diversification.
He outlined the ability to produce biogas
and ethanol as sources of energy, as well as
the establishment of a refinery to produce
white sugar, as some of the ways the sector
can be expanded profitably.
He noted, however, that Government's
plans to establish a distillery, also using the
by-products of cane, were met with oppos-
ing court action from a local entity.
Minister Persaud gave assurances that
Government will not deny the sugar indus-
try a chance at survival, and is committed
to doing everything possible to see that it
remains profitable.
Though Government has already injected
substantial funds into the sugar industry,
Persaud emphasised that it has also abol-
ished the sugar levy from Guysuco, which
has served to improve the well-being of
workers.
This, he explained, now allows some 52
per cent of Guysuco's total earnings to be
channelled back into sugar workers' wages.
The Minister admitted that though Gov-
ernment only has the best intentions for the
sugar industry, there are some delicate is-
sues which must be addressed in order to
achieve the desired results. These he noted
would be tackled at the managerial level.
HINDU SCHOOL GRADS EXCEL
TWENTY eight graduands of the Saraswati
Vidya Niketan School on the West Coast
Demerara, who excelled at the recent
Caribbean Secondary Examinations Coun-
cil (CSEC) exams, were yesterday encour-
aged by President Bharrat Jagdeo to make
learning a lifelong pursuit.
At the graduation ceremony, Mr. Jagdeo
said, “I hope that you heed the lessons that
were taught here to make learning a lifelong
pursuit.”.
He said, “You’re going to have tough
choices to make in your lives; this is just the
beginning of a journey.”
Kamini Singh, Best Graduating Student,
who achieved eight grade ones at the CSEC
exams, was presented with the President’s
Award of Excellence by Mr. Jagdeo.

EDUCATION
HOW INDIAN ARRIVAL
AND SOUTH ASIAN
HERITAGE MONTH
BEGAN IN CANADA
Indo-Caribbeans first came to Canada as
far back as 1908, but the first celebrations
of our presence did not start until the eight-
ies as Indo-Caribbean Heritage Day.
The earliest celebrations of the Indian
presence in Canada started with the Toronto
group called OSSICC (Ontario Society for
Services to Indo-Caribbean Canadians) in
1988, when they marked the 150th an-
niversary of the coming of Indians to the
new world (on May 5, 1838 in Guyana)
with a series of events. For many years later
OSSICC carried on an annual event called
Indo Caribbean Heritage Day. This cele-
bration was limited to the Indo Caribbean
community.
In April 1997 the Indo Trinidad Canadian
Association was formed and immediately
started Indian Arrival Day celebrations that
year. In that year too , community activist
Asha Maharaj organized a display of Indian
artifacts, the Trinidad and Tobago Associa-
tion of Ottawa held its first celebration, and
an Indian radio host organized a small In-
dian Arrival celebration.
By 1998 ITCA had decided to celebrate
the event as Indian Arrival and Heritage
Day, and held a huge show/display/dance at
the Etobicoke Olympium. It was never an
Indo-Caribbean for ITCA but always In-
dian, meaning all people with roots in the
Indian subcontinent.
By 1999 ITCA had moved to celebrate the
month of May as IndianArrival and Her-
itage Month. At this stage only ITCA, OS-
SICC and the Trinidad and Tobaog
Association of Ottawa were organizing
events but the number would expand
greatly in later years.
From the year 2000 a Council for Indian
Arrival and Heritage Month was set up,
composed of people from ITCA, OSSICC,
the Guyanese group GEAC, the Hamilton
group CICA and several individuals. The
catch line from the letterhead for the Coun-
cil in 2000 was "Commemorating the
162nd anniversary of the arrival in the
Americas of the people and heritage of the
Indian subcontinent".
The groups was marking the arrival of In-
dians in the West as 1838 when the first
landed in Guyana, and 1897 as the year the
first Indians (Punjabi Sikhs actually) ar-
rived in Canada.By that time the number of
events for Indian Arrival and Heritage
Month had gone up to 11, and the council
had support from the over 20 groups.
It must be said that since 1997 ITCA and
later the Councilfor Indian Arrival and Her-
itage Month had decided not to make this
an Indo Caribbean event. There were prob-
lems attracting support from non-Caribbean
Indians.
So when the Council held their 2001
launch in Toronto and the onlySouth Asian
member of parliament Raminder Gill said
he would introduce a bill in parliament to
legitimise the event, they were happy.
When he told us that the legislature would
not accept Indian Arrival and Heritage
Month because it would cause confusion
with the Indian Act and other laws relating
to native Indians, the Council had no great
problems with South Asian Heritage
Month.
There was never any intention of making it
the Indo Caribbean Heritage Month festi-
val. Some people from the group were un-
happy about the South Asian tag and at least
one left the group, but the majority were
supportive.
Help your child be successful
Indo-Caribbean Times
in high school …and be proud.
By Joe Singh
NEW statistics from the Ministry of Ed-
ucation show that over 30 percent of our
student population in Ontario are dropping
out of school before graduation. Many of
them are of West Indian backgrounds and
are our children. What can you do as a West
Indian Parent to excite your child/children
about school and to take advantage of the
opportunities available to them at school?
There are no statistics to go on for West
Indian students of Indian background
clearly showing the drop out rates. The
school boards do not collect this data and if
they did it is not an easy thing to get (Pri-
vacy Act).
What I can tell you is that many of the
Indo Caribbean students I know and deal
with are having problems in schools. And
if you talk to some of our community
lawyers they would also tell you our chil-
dren are in the courts everyday for one rea-
son or the other. Why is this happening?
TOO FEW MINORITY STAFF
First of all there are too few Administra-
tive Staff (Principal, Vice-Principals, Guid-
ance Councellors) of visible minority
background that they can identify with and
consequently form a bond like a role model
or a mentor. If there are some administra-
tive staff they are too few and far between
to make a difference. As a result, parents
must advocate for the hiring of more visible
minority leaders in the school system. Talk
to your MP and your MPP and school
Board Trustees.Tell them that our school
needs teaching staff and administrative staff
of your child's heritage so that the children
can bond with and act as a role model for
them.
If you were to look at the student popu-
lations in your child's school you would get
a good idea of the diversity of the school.
When you look at the staff of the school do
you see the same diversity?
If you do, you are a very lucky person so
give yourself a pat on the back. If you do
not, well you have some homework to do.
Do not get me wrong, I am not saying that
visible minority teachers are better than
other teachers, but what I am saying is that
one has to educate the whole child and seek
out all the opportunities for learning in the
school.
One of the many options available is to
have a few visible minority teachers and ad-
ministrators at your child's school so that
The Council told the Indo Caribbean
groups that they could continue to celebrate
Indian Arrival Day, as part of South Asian
Heritage Month, and some like the Satya
Jyoti Cultural Sabha still do so.
Once it became South Asian Heritage
Month, the other groups have picked up the
event big time. It's gone like a rocket, and
now there are events in parliament, in uni-
versities, in business places, in schools,
events organized by the Sri Lankans, Pak-
istanis, Indians, and all over.
There could be as much as 100 South
Asian Heritage Month events in Ontario
alone.
It's true that some of the non Indo
Caribbeans don't acknowledge the Indo
Caribbean contribution, and some of them
don't know about it.
M arch 2007
they too can feel valued. They will see ed-
ucation as being important and that they too
can aspire to be educated and be teachers.
You may say well it is not the adminis-
tration's fault that our children are not grad-
uating from high school. Our children have
it better that us. We went to school bare-
footed, and got hand me down books and
school uniforms. And look, we did not turn
out too bad. I am a mechanic, and my wife
is a caregiver for elderly people and we
both make good money. But how about
them? What are they going to do? No
matter how much money the government
puts into education they still will not be
graduating with a diploma. They choose to
drop out of school, instead. Is it the friends
they are hanging out with? Is it the bad
company they are keeping?
DID WE FAIL THEM?
Why do they drop out? Did we do some-
thing wrong, as parents? Where did we fail
them? We gave them everything them
wanted. We provided for them a roof over
their heads. We dropped them off at school
every day, even got to work late because of
them. They were doing good until grade 7
or grade 8, then they entered high school
and something happened. What happened?
Well, your guess is as good as mine.
This is why the Ontario Ministry of Ed-
ucation is piloting this 6 WAYS TO HELP
your child graduate from HIGH SCHOOL
program. Every student is an individual.
Each has unique interests, goals, and
strengths. And each should be given the
same opportunity to succeed in high school.
HELPING THEM GRADUATE
One such way is to find out as much as
possible about the new Government of On-
tario program: 6 WAYS TO HELP your
child graduate from HIGH SCHOOL.
These six innovative new programs are at
the heart of our Student Success initiative.
They give Ontario high school students
more ways to accumulate credits to gradu-
ate, while improving the quality of a high
school education in this province.
Students can customize their high school
experience around learning that’s relevant
to them. And that can make all the differ-
ence to their individual success.
Here are some of the highlights of the ini-
tiative:
But the Council didn’t want that, because
shoving ownership of the event in their
faces is the surest way to kill their interest.
For the Council for Indian Arrival and
Heritage Month, later renamed Council for
South Asian Canadians, it's enough that
South Asians celebrate their month in
Canada. They think it's foolish and
self defeating to tie them down to the "In-
dian" tag, which they see as nationality and
not ethnicity.
They are content to call themselves Indo-
Caribbeans, one segment of the South
Asian community in Canada.
Changing the name has enhanced the
event tremendously, and the Council has
have hopes that in time South Asian Her-
itage Month will become an accepted event
for the 33 million Canadians and not just
Page 9
SIX WAYS TO HELP
STUDENTS GRADUATE
Student Success Teams
Every high school student now has access
to a dedicated team that provides extra at-
tention and support when needed. The team
is made up of a principal, a Student Success
Teacher and a guidance counselor. This
team helps identify and support students
who need extra help, provides options for
learning and monitors the student progress.
Expanded Co-op Credit
Students can now earn two compulsory
high school credits towards their core 18
through hands-on work experience. They
can earn credits for their diploma while
they are learning life long skills at busi-
nesses in the community. Many times the
employers may keep the student on as a part
time employee or have them back as a sum-
mer employee.
Specialist High Skills Major
This new program lets students “bundle”
courses to prepare for specific academic or
skilled careers. The students can then focus
on a career path that matches individual
skills and interests. Majors include con-
struction, hospitality and tourism, manu-
facturing, primary industries and arts and
culture
Dual Credit Program
Students can earn credits and put them
towards both their high school diploma and
their postsecondary diploma, degree, or ap-
prenticeship certification.
Lighthouse Projects
Innovative local programs help students
stay in school by providing guidance, sup-
port, and alternative learning environments.
They also encourage youth to return to
school and graduate with a diploma. Eng-
lish as a Second Language training, college
connections, special needs programs, and
more.
Grade 8–9 Transition
This high school transition plan was
launched in June 2006 to help over 20,000
struggling Grade 8 and 9 students. These
students have difficulty transitioning from
elementary school to high school will get
the help they need. The Ministry have put
in place more teachers, intensive profes-
sional development, and improved tracking
of students to help make the transition eas-
ier for them.
To learn more about these programs, visit
the website: www.ontario.ca/6ways
the 12 million in Ontario at present.
The renaming has not destroyed any Indo
Caribbean celebrations. Some organizations
have gone dormant, and one or two have
just stopped doing Indian Arrival events for
internal organizational reasons.
Caribbean based groups still doing events
include Satya Jyoti Cultural Sabha,
Trinidad and Tobago 50 Plus and Seniors
Association, West Indians United Televi-
sion, Canadian Indo Caribbean Association,
Guyanese Association of Manitoba,
Trinidad and Tobago Association of
Ottawa, Toronto Arya Samaj (at the Vedic
Cultural Centre) and a few others. Some
groups in the United States and Britain have
started holding Indian Arrival Day celebra-
tions, but not South Asian Heritage Month
events.
PICTURE GALLERY Indo-Caribbean Times M arch 2007 Page 10
Colour photographs of Caribbean Indians in the indureship period (1838-1917)

Indian girl, Martinique East Indian hut Harvesting cane, Trinidad

Group of Indians, Trinidad Indian sadhu, Trinidad Suriname Paramaribo girl Suriname Indian couple

St Lucia native hut Guyana punts with cane Jamaica Indians at worship Carting cane in Trinidad
ACHIEVERS
Meet Ria Ramnarine, first Indo-Caribbean Boxing Champion of the World
Little giant battles the odds, government indifference to become Trinidad’s women boxing hero and kickboxing title contender
WITH an indomitable spirit and the heart
of a lion, Ria Ramnarine has been able to
achieve success against all odds. Born on
12 October 1978 in a very humble home,
Ria was the last of four children to Narad
and Dulcie. Nowadays Ria looks back on a
childhood that was very difficult but one
she isn’t ashamed of. “Things were really
hard and my family had to work together to
make a living” says Ria . The long days
toiling in the garden or selling fruits and
vegetables by the roadside built her re-
silience. The hours trekking through the
mosquito-infested mangroves in search of
oysters made her strong, mentally and
studying under the flickering flames of a
kerosene lamp or a flambeau made her de-
termined. Determined to excel in school,
get a good job and be successful, successful
enough to give back something to her par-
ents.
In 1995, Ria graduated from Holy Faith
Convent with eight passes in the field of
science, which included three distinctions.
Enrolling in a private school, in 1998 she
copped two more distinctions in Business
and in 2000 earned her Process Plant Oper-
ations diploma from the John Donaldson
Technical Institute and was immediately re-
cruited as an “On The Job Trainee” by Na-
tional Flour Mills Ltd. She worked her way
up to Plant Operator 1 after two and a half
years.
But during that time, Ria had her sights set
on other goals too. August 1995 she joined
Fine Line Fight Club, paying her first fees
with one dollar bills and coins. To avoid her
father’s fury, she didn’t tell her parents
about the gym. Weight-lifting was her main
objective but she soon started aerobics and
karate as well. With classes going later and
later, Ria was forced to tell her parents and
as expected she met with a wall of disap-
proval. “Mom almost freaked out and Dad
ranted and raved” she recalls. Of course she
refused to stop, disregarding the continuous
arguments and threats from her father.
By that time she’d graded for her yellow
belt and was successfully competing in
karate tournaments. But now her heart was
set on something else, she wanted to kick-
box. The full contact scenario of kickbox-
ing beckoned strongly but it took two years
before her father agreed with some persua-
sion from Sensei Bharrath Ramoutar, owner
and instructor of the gym. Today, Mr. Ra-
moutar continues to be Ria’s coach, man-
ager and promoter.
Being the only female in the class wasn’t
a problem. “Actually I think that worked for
me because I had to train as hard as the
guys, or even harder to be able to keep up
with them. Soon enough I was neck to neck
with them and even left a few behind in the
physical workouts, that way I learned to
train hard and smart from the beginning”.
Ramnarine made her kickboxing debut in
1998 and did not lose heart when the fight
which most thought she’d won, was ruled
as a draw. Instead she trained harder and in
her next outing to the ring, knocked out her
opponent. Some months later with just two
fights under her belt, she journeyed to Cal-
gary, Canada and weighed in thirteen
pounds less than the World Champion,
Vanessa Bellegarde. Standing toe to toe
with the champ, Ria lost the fight, but won
the admiration and more importantly the re-
spect of the pro-Vanessa crowd.
Less than two weeks later, Coach Ra-
moutar signed Ria on for her pro boxing
debut, which she won by third round knock
out. She went straight to the professional
ranks without the benefit of any amateur
Indo-Caribbean Times
experience “Since then there’s been no in to the spotlight and “Ria Ramnarine” was
looking back. I’m glad that I have a good starting to become a household name. She
coach who allows me to explore my options also broke into the top ten rankings in the
in the different fields of Martial Arts”, men- world in both boxing and kick-boxing.
tions Ramnarine. Despite their intentions not to accept mis-
matches, Ria and her coach journeyed once
more to Calgary. This time in November
2003 to match fist and feet with World
Muay Thai Champion, Erin Linley. “At
least, we were the same weight,” Ria
quipped. Fighting Muay Thai for the first
time was not an easy task against a world
champ and although Linley won the bout,
Ria again won the hearts of the people for
her courageous performance.
In 2004, Ria changed jobs again. Although
she had no accounting experience she was
offered a job as an Accounts Clerk and al-
ways one to explore new territory, she ac-
cepted the offer. Within a few days she
demonstrated her capability and was an im-
mediate success in the company. After an-
other cancelled bout because of a lack of
sponsorship, Ria and her manager desper-
But there have been moments and days ately sent out more packages in hope of
when it would have been easy to give up.
Having to train, study and work was drain- “Don’t ever be ashamed of
ing her energy. Ria admits, “I would be so your ancestry and cultural
tired sometimes that I’d fall asleep in taxis background. Do not be afraid
or lie behind the gym counter for a ten to step into areas where peo-
minute nap before training started”.
ple think Indians have no right
Then there was the problem of sponsor-
ship. Ria and her manager prepared several to step into. . And most impor-
packages which were sent to different com- tantly, believe in yourself and
panies but these would go unanswered until the strenght and greatness of
2004. Because of the lack of funding, she your people”. Ria’s advice
was faced with the problem of inadequate
fights. To compensate for this, Ria accepted finding a sponsor. Ma Pau Members Club,
several fights where she was mismatched a private gaming establishment, came to the
either by weight or experience or in most rescue and exclusively sponsored Ramnar-
cases, both. ine’s next bout against the gritty Japanese-
One particular fight that stood out was American Deidre Hamaguchi.
against world featherweight champion The Women’s International Boxing Asso-
Leona Brown in 2001. Ria looked almost ciation (WIBA) Mini-Flyweight Iberian-
tiny to the big and brawny New York na- American title was at stake and according
tive. After four rounds the referee stopped to reports the two women fought like
the contest in favor of Brown. She (Ria) Roman Gladiators, throwing everything
was fortunate to come out of the fight un- they had at each other. In the end, the
scathed. That was something of a turning Trinidadian’s clean combinations and solid
point. Was it really worth fighting girls who defense won her a unanimous decision and
were so much bigger and experienced? the title. Later on that year, when her origi-
Thereafter Ria tried to stay at least within nal Puerto Rican opponent had problems
her own weight class. with her boxing license, Ria stepped into
In 2001, Ramoutar accepted a new boxing the ring with an opponent who was thirty
coach, Darren Vidale, into his gym. With pounds heavier and emerged victorious.
both coaches in her corner, Ria scaled an- Holding the number three spot in the
other level and went on to knock out an- WIBA rankings, Ria was eligible to contest
other kickboxing opponent and then for a world title. Ironically the opponent
outpoint Guyanese Shondell Thomas in mandated by the WIBA was none other
Guyana. However 2002 proved a slow year than southpaw American Yvonne Caples, a
as there was only one fight, a rematch with former world champion who had a solid
Thomas that ended in a no-contest. amateur background and seventeen pro
March 2003 saw Ria resigning from her fights, six of which were world title bouts.
job at National Flour Mills. Not only was Ria had never encountered a southpaw nor
she a female in a male dominated industry, had she ever gone ten rounds in any of her
she was the only female in her department, ten fights. Hardly one to be fazed, Ramnar-
and a very successful one as well. Instead ine handled the tough training regime
of being proud of their co-worker, they de- meted out to her. “I am thankful for the way
spised Ria for her ability to learn and adapt Sensei (Ramoutar) trained me, both men-
quickly to the demands of the job; she had tally and physically. Although my other
mastered both operations of the plant in less coach, Mr. Vidale was no longer at Fine
than three months. The mental stress com- Line, Sensei assured I was totally prepared
bined with the night shifts and exhausting and with all the long, hard hours I trained I
work began to take its toll, hence her resig- felt quietly confident. “
nation. On May 28th 2005, Mr. Ramoutar pro-
Through his kindness, Mr. Ramoutar al- moted the first ever female world title bout
lowed Ria to manage the gym. To supple- in Trinidad and Tobago and Ria became the
ment her income, she offered private tuition queen of the mini-flyweights when she out-
to schoolchildren. Though it turned out to pointed the slick and crafty Caples to win
be a hectic schedule, Ria had enough time the WIBA Mni-Flyweight World Title.
to train and in July 2003, she unanimously Being first female Trinidadian to win a
out-pointed a game Vicki Boodram to win world boxing title, Ria reveled in the mo-
their six round contest. Her classic boxing ment. But her joy was tainted with the on-
display that night somewhat propelled her slaught of uninformed criticism.
M arch 2007 Page 11
Professional jealousy reared its ugly head
and those who couldn’t bear the thought of
the petite, 105lb Ramnarine being the first
women in the country to win such a title
wagged their tongues mercilessly, referring
to the victory as a ‘very controversial deci-
sion’. Needless to say, Ria handled the sit-
uation with the savvy and aplomb of a true
world champion.
“I know I won the fight without a doubt
but certain entities couldn’t handle the truth
of me being a world champion. They had
come expecting me to lose and I ‘d disap-
pointed them. I never ask for favors from
anyone, in or out the ring. And certainly not
from judges or referees, in fact, as far as I
have observed I am given a harder time
from certain officials in my own country. I
was also to learn that a certain notorious
matchmaker had put out a hit on me, just to
prevent me from creating that piece of his-
tory.
Despite the efforts to discredit her, Ram-
narine was honoured by the President of the
Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Profes-
sor George Maxwell Richards, at the 2005
National Independence Day Awards.
She now has HBM attatched to her name
to represent the Humming Bird Medal that
she received. Additionally she has been
recognised and awarded for her achieve-
ments and contribution towards sports by
various organisations that include, the
Global Organisation of People of Indian
Origin (GOPIO) Trinidad Ltd, the National
Youth Action Committee, the Couva Cham-
ber Sugar and Energy Festival Committee,
the Hindi Nidhi Foundation and the T&T
Kick Boxing Federation.
She emerged as one of the First Citizens
Sports Foundation top ten sports personal-
ties for 2005, although many sporting affe-
cionados thought that Ria’s
accomplishments was more than enough to
win her the coveted Sportswoman of the
Year award. For her first world title de-
fence, the opponent ‘ran away’ mere min-
utes before the fight. Many were confused
as to why Marianne Chubirka opted not to
fight since she was seven pounds heavier
than Ria!
Nothing was enough to distract the deter-
mined Ramnarine and she religiously con-
tinued her training. 2006 was to be a
whirlwind year for Ria. Travelling to Hun-
gary in April to face another world cham-
pion, Ria and her coach were stranded in
England due to the lack of proper travel
arrangements made by the promotion team
in Hungary. ‘That really hurt because I’d
prepared so hard for the fight. I knew
Kristina Belinzsky would have been a good
test and I cried my eyes out in the airport
when we got stranded”.
The next stop was her title defence in July,
which she won by unanimous decision,
again creating history by being the first
Trinidadian, male or female, to make a suc-
cessful world title defence in boxing. Then
in September she was given the opportunity
of a lifetime to fight Europe’s boxing
queen, the legendary Regina Halmich. A
German with a record of fifty wins, fifteen
knockouts, one loss and one draw who
fought at 112lbs. (Ria had less fights than
Regina had knockouts).
“The purse was the highest ever offered to
me and with no other fight in immediate
sight, I accepted the offer. Besides, Regina
was someone I admired and saw as a great
ambassador for women’s boxing since the
beginning of my career. To step into the
ring with her was almost unreal”.
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 21)
INTERNATIONAL
Roti Festival a
hit in Jamaica
A woman makes roti at
2006 Roti Festival
They’re expecting huge crowds when the
National Council for Indian Culture in Ja-
maica hosts its second Roti Festival this
weekend. The festival will be held at the
Club India, Lady Musgrave Road, St. An-
drew, on Sunday.
Eager crowed can expect to sample eight
different rotis, curried goat, curried mango,
curried potatoes, dhal, curried chicken,
ackee and saltfish, aloo choka (mashed po-
tato), as well as authentic North Indian
dishes that will be showcased at the Food
Festival.
The organisers have promised that this
year's festival will be better organised and
that there will be ample helpings of roti.
"Last year we ran out of food but this year
we are better prepared. There will be at
least eight to 10 persons making rotis, on
spot, against the two who were present last
year," says Vishu Tolan, chairman of
the Roti Festival and vice-chairman of the
NCICJ. The organisers are hoping to pro-
vide approximately 5,000 rotis by noon.
Food stalls with a variety of Indian dishes
for sale will also be a new addition at this
year's staging. Other activities planned for
the festival are roti-making demonstrations,
roti-eating contests and entertainment such
as henna painting..
Indo-Caribbean Times
The annual Rath Yatra will be
held in Leicester,UK in August
INDO SURINAMESE
HONORED IN HOLLAND
TV personality Reshma Roopram, musi-
calstar Anil Jagdewsing, dance guru Sand-
hya Manniesingh, singer Oemar Wagid
Hosain, newsreporter Perdiep Ramesar,
taekwondo champion Soebhaash Dihal, Dj
Prako and businessman Virindra Kalika are
chosen to be the “Hindustanis of the year”
in Holland.
This was the choice of more than 6000 vis-
itors who voted on the website of Sanoja
Entertainment Magazine. There were 40
nominees divided over 8 categories. Main
goal of the election was to enlarge the per-
ceptible of the Hindustanis in the media, to
stimulate new talent and to force acknowl-
edgement of Dutch Surinamese community.
The organization decided to cancel this
year’s event. At the end of 2007 there will
be a new election in The Hague, the presi-
dential capital of the Netherlands where the
largest group Dutch Indians are residential:
approximately 65,000. According to the or-
ganizers, “Dutch Indians”, especially the
new generation are suffering of a mentality
crisis that goes deep down to their roots in
India and Surinam.
“Most of them are fans of amateur actors
somewhere in India, then of stars and icons
from the country where they live in. This
has to be changed,” said Shashi Bharos,
CEO of Sanoja Networks.
The community of Hindustanis are based
in Surinam and the Netherlands with their
roots in South Asia. They came in 1873
from British India to live and work in Suri-
name.
When Suriname became independent, a lot
of Hindustanis came to the Netherlands.
This project also supports the Dutch Vrin-
davan foundation. At the moment the foun-
dation tries to build a shelter for young
women and girls in Vrindavan.
HILLARY NAMES INDIAN
AMERICAN POLICY ADVISOR
Indian-American Neera Tanden has been
asked to head 2008 Presidential frontrunner
Hillary Clinton's think tank as campaign
policy director. Tanden has worked with the
Clintons on and off for nearly a decade and
for the Democratic Party much before that.
After graduating from Yale in 1996, she
worked on the Clinton- Gore presidential
campaign in California. The 37-year-old
woman has been a top aide to Hillary Clin-
ton for nearly 15years. She worked with the
Clintons during the presidential campaign
of Bill Clinton and as Hillary Clinton's leg-
islative aide in Washington. Tanden has
been the senior vice-president, academic af-
fairs, at the Centre for Responsive Politics,
a Democratic think tank in Washington. She
worked on Hillary's 'Listening tour' before
she ran for the Senate seat from New York
State, and was in charge of all of Clinton's
briefings and talking points.
Neera Tanden grew up with a divorced
mother who was on welfare for two years
and received food stamps before she
worked her way through school and gradu-
ated from Yale law school.
M arch 2007 Page 12
A MOTHER’S PAIN
(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5)
One day her son got into a fight at a
nightclub and the protagonist told him ‘Yuh
sista geh kidnap and doh worry, you next in
(expletive) line’. His father sent him abroad
immediately. Her daughter cut off the beau-
tiful hair which her father loved so much
and now sports a ‘boy cut’. She is supposed
to go for counseling but always has an ex-
cuse.
She no longer prays and hates the gospel
music she once loved. She wants no bible in
her room and wants no priest to come and
pray for her. She has turned vegetarian and
has a robotic existence with predictable rit-
ualistic routines. Rhyme, rhythm and rea-
son have disappeared from her life.
As a mother, she is collapsing inside. She
feels as if her insides are being ripped apart
‘with pliers’. Her family has been fractured
and destroyed by these kidnappers. A per-
fect marriage had come to naught. She saw
her daughter eavesdropping while she
spoke with her husband on the phone once
with a frown and speaks with him in secret
now. She has stopped him from calling her
as he often did so when he was drunk to ask
about his ‘baby girl’. In total isolation,
mother clings to the shadow that is left of
her daughter nursing the memories of hap-
pier times.
She wanted the world to know her story
because she has heard many people say that
the families should not pay the ransom. If
she had it her way, she would have gladly
given them a little extra, she said.
(Anand Ramlogan has written several other
hard hitting exposes on the kidnapping
being perpetrated on Indians in Trinidad,
which have blown the cover of secrecy that
kidnappers enjoyed for several years. The
head of the Anti Kidnapping Squad was re-
cently removed from his position.)
SEXUAL REVENGE AGAINST IN-
DIAN WOMEN (CONTINUED FROM
PAGE 4)
In his book, Hitler’s Willing Execution-
ers, Daniel Goldhagen argues that what
made Hitler’s programme possible were the
many ordinary people became fascinated by
Hitler, snared by his propaganda, and en
masse, became his willing accomplices.
(The same was true in Serbia and Bosnia).
These were sometimes people who had in-
termarried with the Jews, had Jewish
friends, and associates, and all that won-
derful stuff. Who were convinced in a very
few years to put them on trains and send
them to be exterminated.
The near-dead silence of AfroTrinidad
about the war being perpetrated upon its In-
dian half is a disgrace. And this disgrace is
compounded by the fact that Selwyn Ryan
argued, to get the PNM back in power, that
Indians should be ‘ashamed’ at the UNC
and vote PNM to ‘rehabilitate’ their image.
Well, how do Ryan et co feel now?
Ashamed? Disgusted? Sick to their stom-
achs? Or was it just another craven lie to get
the PNM back in power? And disguise
racial appeals in the cloak of mindless civic
arsed-ness? AfroTrinidad is involved in
this. Doing nothing, saying nothing, and
looking away make all who live in it ac-
complices.
There is another, equally likely possibil-
ity: the suffering of the IndoTrinidadian
community is actually a form of entertain-
ment for the black under and middle
classes, and especially the brown elites who
comprise the core of the PNM. I’ll continue
with this in another installment.
CONSUMER WATCH
CONSUMER MANIPULATION
By Reynold Ramdial
We’ve all heard the phrase “the customer is
always right”! As consumers, how many of
us can say that they have experienced this
to any degree? I can’t remember the last
time I felt that my business was valued. If
anything, I feel underappreciated and ma-
nipulated and the impression I get is that
everyone thinks that they are doing us con-
sumer a big favor.
This attitude is found everywhere from
banks and big box stores to car dealerships
and specialty stores. We are their lifeblood
and their very existence depends on the
consumer yet the proverbial king is being
treated as the pauper. The message needs to
be sent out clearly that we are indeed the
kings and demand to be treated as such.
Take banks and credit cards companies,
we entrust them with out most cherished
and guarded possession, our money, which
becomes there assets yet there is no greater
scorn for customers that form these institu-
tions.
I deal with 3 different banks and 2 credit
card companies ant there is absolutely no
difference in the way that any one deals
with and treats customers.
Tellers, I must admit, are the only pleasant
bank employees. Most others, whom you
come in contact with, will display the most
arrogant attitude that you are likely to en-
counter. Just so that this piece does not only
reflect my opinion, I have surveyed dozens
of individuals, and not one disagreed with
these opinions.
Buying on E-Bay can be risky
Internet Auction Cautions
A man was the winning bidder for a set of
golf clubs on an online auction site. He sent
the seller $600, but the clubs never arrived.
The seller said that he had shipped them,
but, suspiciously, he couldn't produce a re-
ceipt or tracking number.
Several auction bidders paid high prices
for what they believed was an out-of-print
movie soundtrack. What they received was
a brand-new reissue CD, worth only $15.
When they complained, the seller claimed
he never said it was the original issue, just
"the real thing."
Online auctions can be a way to find bar-
gains and unusual items from all over the
country. However, some buyers never re-
ceive the items they paid for, or receive
items that are not as they were represented.
To avoid problems buying through an on-
line auction, you should take these precau-
tions:
Understand the risks of dealing with indi-
viduals in cyberspace. In one kind of online
auction, the auction site sells merchandise
and accepts payments from buyers. Many
of the most popular online auctions, how-
ever, simply provide a place where individ-
uals or other companies list items they want
to sell. The auction doesn't verify that the
merchandise actually exists or is described
accurately, and your transaction will be
with the individual seller, not the auction.
Agreeing to buy something from another
individual, about whom you know nothing
but an e-mail address, is riskier than pur-
chasing from an established company.
Many consumer protection laws don't cover
private sales between individuals.
Check out the seller. Most auction sites
offer feedback sections on sellers. If a seller
has many or serious negative comments,
don't do business with that seller.
Indo-Caribbean Times
Companies should be working to get the
trust of consumers instead I find that this is
not the case. Take banks and credit card
companies for example, can we say that we
trust them or that we feel appreciated by
them? This is he subject for a lot of future
discussions, which I am sure we will have.
How about the housing industry and mar-
ket, do we feel that the present state of the
housing market is justified? Are we and the
market not manipulated by those in that in-
dustry who has manipulated the public and
market to create the conditions that now ex-
ists? Add to this the criteria for finances that
our governments have approved to enable
ownership or a sense of ownership adds to
that manipulation.
What about the price of gas, cable TV and
telephones, are they fair or even reason-
able?
At every level, the consumer is on the re-
ceiving end of the proverbial stick. Is there
any recourse? Should we expect businesses
to be fair to us? Can we expect govern-
ments to do anything for us? There are con-
sumer agencies but can we engage the
many profit, non-profit and funded agen-
cies into acting on our behalf?
What is for sure is that we cannot stay
silent and expect things to get better. Let us
find the mechanism for getting our com-
plaints heard. Send your thoughts and con-
cerns to the Indo Caribbean Times at
ictimes@rogers.com.
Get the seller's telephone number and
physical street address if possible. Test
the number to confirm that you'll have some
way other than by e-mail to reach the seller
if you have a problem.
Know what you are buying. Shop around
to be sure you know what a good price for
an item is. Read the item description care-
fully. When buying electronic items, look
out for words such as "refurbished," "dis-
continued" or "off-brand." Is something
"brand new" or "like new"? Is the item an
"original" or an "original reproduction?"
Be careful when considering an expensive
collectible, since you can't physically in-
spect the item or have it appraised before
buying. The same caution applies to other
items you would normally test yourself,
such as a car, a mattress, or a musical in-
strument.
Ask the seller about returns, warranty or
service. If you buy items such as electronic
equipment at a retail store, you usually can
go back to the store if the item doesn't work
properly. It is less likely that an online auc-
tion seller will offer returns, warranty or
service, but ask.
Pay the safest way. Paying by check or
money order may make it impossible to re-
cover your money if the seller doesn't de-
liver the item as promised. Pay by credit
card if you can, because you have the right
to seek a credit from your card issuer for
merchandise that is not delivered or was
misrepresented.
Find out what protection the auction of-
fers buyers. Many online auctions offer a
limited amount of "fraud protection" insur-
ance to reimburse buyers who didn't receive
what they purchased. Report problems to
the auction, who will ban cheaters.
Credit Card Offers: What’s the Catch?
“ I applied for a credit card with a 5.9%
interest rate. A few months later, the credit
card company changed the rate to 21%!
They told me that even though I’ve never
missed a payment to them, they changed
my rate because I was one day late paying
another company.”
“I’m trying to pay down my credit card
debt. I got an offer to transfer my balances
to another card at zero percent interest. I
thought that was great until I got my first
statement. There was $178 in fees. They
charged a“balance transfer fee” of $90, an
annual fee of $59, and on top of that a $29
fee for exceeding the credit limit–which
happened because the first two fees put me
over the limit.”
The offers fill your mailbox: pre-approved
credit cards, low interest rates, 0% interest
balance transfer offers, frequent flier miles
or rebates, and more. They sound good, but
many consumers apply for new credit cards
only to find that the low interest rate does-
n’t last or that the card comes with unex-
pected fees.
READ THE FINE PRINT
To protect yourself: Read the details of the
credit card offer before you apply for the
card, and make sure you fully understand
the terms being offered. The details are usu-
ally in small print. You might be surprised
at what you find.
Below are some things to consider when
reviewing a credit card offer:
Low interest rate? Many cards offer a low
Annual Percentage Rate–but only for a
short time. The introductory rate might only
last a few months and then jump to an ex-
tremely high rate. If you want to use a new,
low-interest rate card to consolidate and
pay off your higher interest rate debt, find
the card with the longest time period for the
low-interest offer. Credit card companies
should disclose how long the low-interest
offer will last and what the interest rate will
be once the low rate ends.
Also, check the offer to see if the low rate
will be revoked for any reason. Many cards
specify that the interest rate will rise if you
make a late payment, if you make a late
payment to any other creditor, or if your
balance ever exceeds the credit limit. The
credit card company will monitor your
credit report to see if you miss making a
payment to other creditors.
Balance transfer fee: Some cards, even if
they offer zero-percent interest on balance
transfers, charge a fee to transfer the bal-
ance from one credit card to another. For
example, a 4% balance transfer fee on a
$2,000 transfer would cost you $80. And be
careful–if you transfer the maximum
amount allowed on the new card, and there
is a balance transfer fee, you will then be
over the credit limit and will probably be
charged an over-the-limit fee.
You’re pre-approved: Don't count on it.
Credit card companies get your name from
credit reporting agencies by paying the
agencies for lists of consumers that meet
certain criteria. Once you call to accept the
offer or send in the form, the credit card
company will seek your full credit report
and determine if you qualify. You might
not. The company might decline to issue
you a card, or send you a card with a lower
credit limit or a higher interest rate than ad-
vertised.
M arch 2007 Page 13
Credit line: The amount of credit offered
may not be available to you. If you look
closely, you'll probably see the words "up
to" before the number. Depending on your
credit history, you might receive a card with
a lower credit limit than you were expect-
ing.
Cash advance fees and rates: Many cards
charge a fee for cash advances, or the inter-
est rate for cash advances is much higher
than for credit purchases. If you're likely to
use the card to get cash advances, be sure
you know what it will cost you.
No annual fee? Many promotions promise
you won’t have to pay an annual fee. But
some cards are free only for the first year.
User bonuses: Some cards offer perks such
as frequent flier miles or cash back for
using the card. Often, these cards charge an-
nual fees or have a higher interest rate than
other cards. If you carry a balance, you
might be better off choosing a lower-inter-
est-rate card even if it offers no bonuses.
Over-the-limit fee: Some consumers as-
sume that if they make a charge that would
put them over their credit limit, the card
would simply refuse the charge. Instead, the
credit card company will often allow the
transaction to go through but charge the
consumer a fee, as much as $39, for ex-
ceeding the credit limit.
Card guaranteed in exchange for a fee:
Never pay a fee in advance for a card. This
is a scam. Many people have paid up to
$200 for a “major credit card” only to re-
ceive nothing, or they received a merchan-
dise catalog and a card that was only good
for purchases from that catalog.
When You Receive Your New Card
Once you receive a new credit card, read
the accompanying credit card agreement to
be sure you understand and accept the
terms. If you receive a card that was not
what you wanted–for example, it has a
lower credit limit or a higher interest rate–
you should notify the company that you de-
cline the card. You should read the
accompanying card agreement or ask the
company for any specific directions on how
to refuse the card.
Even if you plan to keep the card, read the
agreement carefully. Note what it says
about your interest rate and what events
might trigger a rate increase; how long the
grace period is before interest is charged;
when a late charge will be applied and how
much the late fee is; and what happens if a
charge causes your balance to exceed the
credit limit.
Watch Out for Changes in Terms
Even if you shopped carefully for a credit
card and are happy with the one you chose,
there is no guarantee its terms will stay the
same. Most credit cards reserve the right to
change their terms, including the interest
rate, at any time as long as they give their
customers notice. Your credit card company
might send you the notice of the change in
terms as a separate notice, or with (or on)
your monthly statement. Therefore, it’s a
good idea to look carefully at your state-
ment each month and any inserts that might
come with it.
 BUSINESS AND FINANCE
Check taxes on
Guyana
property before
any action
By Gulcharan Mohabir C.G.A.
Question: When I left Guyana to come to
Canada I left behind our large family home
and a fair amount of cash in the bank,
which I use when I go visiting. I also own
several lots of land suitable for house build-
ing. Everything remains as it was ten years
ago, and one of my relatives is occupying
the house rent free with my permission. I
am wondering if I am doing the right thing
in leaving my valuables in Guyana? What
would you advise?
K. Singh, Toronto
Gulcharan’s advice:
Before you look at what to do with your
property left in Guyana, you have to check
on your Canadian tax liabilities. Canadian
tax laws say that every Canadian resident
must report his or her world income for
each tax year. Also, if you own foreign
property, say in Guyana,valued at over
$100,000 Canadian you must make that
declaration every year.
If you are earning income abroad from
rental of houses or land, interest from bank
accounts, stocks and shares, then you have
to declare that on your tax returns. If
Canada has a tax treaty with the country
where you earn this income, you can get a
tax credit for any taxes paid there.
If you sell any houses, land or other prop-
erty abroad for more than you paid for it,
then you probably have a capital gain. You
must declare that on your income tax return
in Canada. You can get in serious trouble
for failing to declare income from overseas.
The best way to manage your overseas as-
sets depends on your short term and long
term goals. If your short term plan is to es-
tablish yourself quickly in Canada where
you now live, then it makes sense to sell
your property in Guyana and bring the
money here to help you with things like
buying a house, investing or opening a busi-
ness.
If you have a long term goal of building
wealth in Canada and then resettling back
in the old country, then it makes sense to
keep the properties abroad. You should note
that although nearly all of us come to
Canada with the intention of returning to
the old country, most change their minds
after a few years.
Some estate planning
now can save a lot
of fighting later
By Donna Green
When my grandfather died last year, his
will left everything he owned to his daugh-
ters. For his two sons, the hurt was swift
and deep. My grandfather had never dis-
cussed his estate plan with his male off-
spring and they are still trying to figure out
what the family patriarch meant by cutting
them out of their inheritance.
Did he think his sons wouldn't need his
money because they're wealthy while his
daughters are not? Or was he signaling that
he valued his daughters more than his sons?
It's a mystery that can never be solved and
it has left behind a bitter residue.
Indo-Caribbean Times
Only a very small number actually return
to live in the old country, in this case
Guyana.
Your money in bank accounts in Guyana
or elsewhere is usually safe and easy to
transfer to Canada when you need to do so.
Bank accounts abroad usually earn inter-
est at higher rates than in Canada, so your
foreign based cash is making money for
you. But if that country’s currency is con-
tinually losing strength against the Cana-
dian dollar, then you have to consider your
cash deposits abroad may really be a de-
clining asset in spite of earning bank inter-
est. In such a case it would make sense to
move that money to Canada rather than
leave it abroad.
Houses and land are a tricky proposition
that tends to be hard to manage from thou-
sands of miles away. If you leave relatives
to live in your house rent free they will take
care of the property for you. But be warned.
Sometimes they feel after a few years that
the house is theirs and will resent you trying
to take it back or sell it. They may try to
claim it under squatting legislation. I know
a lot of people who have serious legal prob-
lems with relatives living in their houses
abroad. Of course you can charge your rel-
atives a small rent, and then squatting no
longer applies.
You can rent out your house to strangers,
but then you have the big problem of being
a landlord six thousand miles away. It does-
n’t work unless you have a reliable relative
or friend back home to deal with tenant is-
sues.
You can sell the house, but note that so
many Guyanese have migrated that there is
a surplus of housing property on the mar-
ket. You may not get much for it, and some
people have found they got not offers at all.
Finally, you can leave the house empty. In
that condition it will decay rapidly. Squat-
ters may come and live in it, and claim it
for their own. It’s hard to get them out when
you are living in Canada.
Land doesn’t deteriorate, but empty land
attracts squatters as much as empty houses.
There are no easy answers when it comes
to property abroad, and you might find it
useful to talk to somebody with expert
knowledge and experience of the Guyana
situation.
Readers with specific problems related to
property are advised to seek advice from a
tax accountant who will take a detailed
look at their special circumstances.
Gulcharan Mohabir is a tax specialist based
in Toronto, Ontario.
Compared to what occurs in many similar
situations, my family has actually been
quite civilized. "I hear the word 'hate' a lot,"
says Les Kotzer, a Toronto lawyer and au-
thor specializing in wills and estate plan-
ning. "Brothers spitting on brothers. Sisters
who never speak to each other again. All
because of wills that were never done or
that were incomplete."
It doesn't take much to set off a family
feud. Badly worded clauses, incompletely
expressed intentions, or out-of-date provi-
sions can ignite brawls that last for decades.
Sometimes the argument is about which son
gets his father's war medals.
Sometimes it's because the daughter who
spent years caring for an elderly parent
thinks she's not getting enough money —
or she's getting too much, in the opinion of
the other siblings. Whatever the specifics,
the problem always comes back to the pow-
erful emotions that are vented when a loved
M arch 2007 Page 14
RECORD JANUARY HOUSE SALES
Sales of houses in Toronto this January beat all the records, as 5,173
homes changed hands in the first month of winter. This figure was 13%
higher than January 2002, which was the previous record for the month,
according to Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) president Dorothy
Mason.
Not surprisingly, the western side of the GTA had the highest sales of
1,975 homes in 28 West districts, with home prices averaging $335,116.
The Mississauga area alone recorded 667 sales, 10 per cent over the 2006
January total, with the average prices of $335,252 also being 10 per cent
over last January. Included in the list were sales of 219 detached houses,
which averaged $478,889 in price.
East Toronto also did well, recording 1,238 sales in 21 East districts, at
an average cost of $280,178. The North registered 1,082 sales in 23 N
orth districts, at an average price of $383,806. Central Toronto had the
fewest sales, with 878 in its 14 Central districts, but home prices were the
highest, at an average of $462,211.
“While one shouldn’t read too much into a single month’s result,” the
President said. “January’s record breaking performance is an encouraging
sign for the year ahead.”
RISE IN HOUSE PRICES
TO EASE UP IN 2007
By Peter Seepersad
HOME buyers across the country willl breathe a sigh of relief in 2007, thanks to a na-
tionwide influx of new listings that is expected to slow price appreciation in major Cana-
dian centres.
The RE/MAX Housing Market Outlook 2007 found that while a number of homes listed
for sale is set to climb, demand will remain strong in the 17 markets surveyed, including
Toronto,Ottawa, Montreal, Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg
and several others. With few exceptions, projections for sales voumes in 2007 match or fall
short of peak performance reported in 2005 and 2006, with more balanced conditions ex-
pected to emerge. These conditions should include healthy inventories of houses and
apartments, and less urgency in the market.
Nationally, about 462,000 properties are forecast to change hands in 2007, making it the
third best year on record. Average house prices are predicted to climb by a modest five
percent this year to $290,000 by December 2007.
Strong economic fundamentals continue to fuel healthy residential real estate activity in
markets across the country, despiten what is happening in the United Sates. The country
is heading into another year of economic growth. Consumer confidence levels are strong.
Unemployment levels are forecast to remain low. Oil prices are expeced to hover at $60
per barrel. The Canadian dollar continues to climbl The Bank of Canada is holding the line
on interest rate hikes.
Affordability is one of the more serious issues facing today’s real estate consumer, yet
purchasers remain steadfast. Buyers are simply getting more creative in their approach to
homeownership, considering alternatives to single-detached homes such as semi and row
housing, town houses, and condominium apartments. They’re also looking at peripheral
areas located close to the city centre that provide a better bang for the buck. New mort-
gage products that extend the traditional 25-year mortgage amortization period to 30 and
35 years may also help them realize their goal of owning a home sooner than later.
Peter Seepersad is a realtor attached to RE/MAX Rouge RiverRealty Brokerage,tele-
phone 416-286-3993
one dies. "Canadians are hung up on saving you if you're incapacitated by illness. The
a few bucks in probate fees or taxes," says final piece of paper is an insurance policy.
Kotzer. "The far more important and poi- This isn't required, but it is a good idea if
sonous issue is the hurt feelings that can be you're leaving behind young children or a
left behind." substantial tax bill.
Most of the pain can easily be avoided. If What should unite all of these documents
you're willing to spend eight to 12 hours is an understanding of your family's feel-
preparing a plan, you can take a giant step ings. Experts can advise you on tax and
toward ensuring that you leave behind a legal matters, but no one knows your loved
loving, united family rather than a squab- ones better than you do. A small amount of
bling clan at odds with one another. time spent communicating your intentions
Apply a little bit of expert advice and you now can avoid leaving your kin with an
can simultaneously save your heirs a bundle eternity of questions. Just ask my family.
of money and enjoy the peace of mind that
comes with knowing you're doing the best
for the people you value the most.
On paper, an estate plan consists of four (From the article “Estate planning made
documents. The first is a will that details easy” by Donna Green
how your property will be divided. The next From the February/March 2003 issue of
two documents are powers of attorney — MoneySense magazine)
one for property, one for personal care —
that spell out who can make decisions for
COMMUNITY
ANNOUNCEMENTS
THE TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 50
Plus and Seniors Association celebrate
Black History Month and the 11th an-
niversary of the group at their monthly
meeting Sunday February 25 at 1.30
p.m. at the Birkdale Community Centre,
1299 Ellesmere Road, Scarborough. The
group was founded 11 years ago on Feb
11, 1996 by Rasheed Sultan Khan and
other TT seniors. There will be a guest
speaker for Black History Month, which
is celebrated every February in Canada.
For info contact Public Rellations Officer
Rasheed Sultan Khan at 416-281-5264.
HOLI CELEBRATIONS
DEVI MANDIR celebrates Holi with a
Holi Mela on Saturday March 3 at 7.00
p.m. at the mandir on 4590 Brock Road,
Pickering. Holi is also known as Phagwa
in the Caribbean.. The event will feature
chowtal singing, bhangra dancing,, film
songs and other entertainment. Admis-
sion is $10. For info call 905-686-8534.
RAM MANDIR at 270 Export Blvd,
Mississauga holds its Holi Puja on
March 3 at 6.00 p.m.
On Sunday March 4 there is a Holi Mela
from 1.00 p.m at the Versailled Banquet
Hall, 6721 Edwards Boulevard, Missis-
sauga. The mela features rangoli,
karaoke singing, a cultural program and
reading the results of an essay competi-
tion. Admission is $5 per person. For
info on both events call the mandir at
905-696-0384.
CANADIAN INDO CARIBBEAN
ASSOCIATION CICA) of Hamilton
has an old fashioned Phagwa on Sunday
March 4 at the Old Ancaster Town Hall,
Wilson Road, Ancaster from 2.p.m. The
local chowtaal group will be performing,
along with other singers and musicians.
VISHNU MANDIR of Richmond Hill
marks Holi with a Holika Dahan on Sat-
urday March 3 at 6.30 p.m and a Holi
Mela on Sunday March from 1.00 p.m. at
the temple at 8640 Yonge Street, Rich-
mond Hill. For info call 905-886-1724.
TORONTO ARYA SAMAJ holds its
Annual Concert In Celebration of Phag-
wah (Holi, on Saturday 10th March, 2007
at 7:00 PM at the The Vedic Cul-
tural Centre(VCC), #4345 14th Avenue.
Markham, Ontario. Sur Sangeet Band led
by Bibi Rupchand and talented artistes
will entertain. Admission: adults $10,
children 6-12 $5.For further information
please contactn 416-494-3864 or 416-
663-4037
EID CELEBRATIONS
CICA celebrates Eid Ul Fitr on March 17,
upstairs Fortinos at Mall Road, Hamilton
from 2.30 p.m Mr Amar Hamnoudi will
talk on the teachings of Islam and on the
Sunni and Shiite sects in Islam. For info
call Mahendra Deonarie at 905-662-
9719.
Indo-Caribbean Times
It’s the real thing- karate in the Vedic temple in Markham
Many martial arts clubs talk about temple
kung-fu or Shaolin style of fighting that
started in a Buddhist temple.
But the Shorin Ryu Dhyaan Karate Dojo is
probably the only one that actually prac-
tices in a genuine functioning temple.
Every Monday and Thursday members of
the dojo gather in the Hindu temple run by
the Vedic Cultural Centre on Kennedy and
14th Avenue in Markham, to work out with
Sensei Harry Persaud.
Harry, who holds a third degree black belt
in the Matsubayashi style of Shorin Ryu
along with a PhD, has been training stu-
dents for the last five years, and is coming
close to graduating his first black belts from
the dojo.
Shades of Brown conference looks
He says it’s a particular pleasure to prac-
at South Asians in Education
A major conference on South Asians and
the education system is coming up fast as
York University prepares to host “Shades
of Brown:Challenges,Myths and Promises”
educational conference on July 8-12.
Sponsors include the South Asian Teach-
ers Organization, All Indian Teachers for
Educational Research, York University,
Peel Multicultural Council, Council of
Agencies Serving South Asians, Simon
Fraser University, Toronto, Peel and York
Region school boards, and the Ontario Sec-
ondary School Teachers Federation and
B.C. Teachers Federation.
The conference deals with South Asian is-
sues with a focus on education and will fea-
ture experts in many disciplines as well as
community organizations taking a hard
look at how the million strong South Asian
community in Canada is making out in the
educatipn system.
“This conference would begin to fill the gap
and develop a sound understanding of the
challenges and myths around the lived re-
alities of the South Asian diaspora locally
and internationally.
“The growth of the South Asian populations
around the world has dramatically in-
creased, yet there is little reflection on who
the South Asians are, where they are from
and what their experiences are.
“The South Asian contributions in educa-
tion have not been acknowledged across the
curriculum.
“In an attempt to integrate the South Asian
experience across the curriculum this con-
ference will pull human resources, role
models, research, images, visual resources,
books and experiences. It will provide edu-
tice in a temple, as his style of karate em-
phasizes spirituality and mental develop-
ment in the martial arts.
A temple is an appropriate place to work
out because karate was started in the
Shaolin Buddhist monastery in China by
the Indian Buddhist monk Bodhidharma.
Several of the karate students are Hindus
who belong to the Vedic temple, among
them the president of the Toronto Arya
Samaj, Adit Kumar. Practice starts with
meditation, sometimes in front of the altar.
It’s been going very well, according to
Harry. There is a stable core of students
who come out regularly and learn this style
of karate that focuses on knowledge and
spiritual strength.
Harry says the point of the karate is not
cators, youth and the community with
strategies to integrate these resources and
experiences into the curriculum, class-
rooms, policies, administration and leader-
ship challenges.
Issues facing South Asian Youth include:
Gangs/violence: Identified recent SA vio-
lence in media
Racism: from teachers and administration
Disconnect from families: Families as un-
familiar or intimidated by educational sys-
tem
Identity conflict: Students leaving their
SA ontologies/epistemologies and taking on
the mainstreams’ persona.
Depression: Parents/admin/teachers not
being able to identify or handle it in SA stu-
dents.
Systemic Barriers: i.e. Lack of access to
schools by non English speaking parents.
Institutional Racism: Lack of support for
SA students- i.e. mentoring, counseling,
workshops.
Science Careers outside of having to at-
tend university/ Non-Traditional Careers
Among the issues facing South Asian Ad-
ministrators and Teachers:
Access to information: i.e. numbers of
South Asian students and teachers in Peel-
How can we help these populations if we
do not even know the representation of
them?
Covert Racism: Hiring/mentor circles
Racism/discrimination: hiring policies; ac-
cess to information.
Human rights: difficulties of making com-
plaints, the intimidation and treatment suf-
fered by teachers lodging complaints.
M arch 2007 Page 15
fighting but on developing inner strength
and character that will discourage attackers
and allow a smaller person to deal with the
often larger bully.
Almost half the class is female, two of
whom are brown belts, the rank just below
black. One of Harry’s teachers is a female
black belt. Several of the men are in their
fifties or older, and there is a large group of
teens and pre-teens.
The message is that anybody can practice
karate. It is a system for the weaker or
smaller person to overcome challenges
from larger and stronger people using min-
imal force and strength.
Harry is hoping to see more temples and
religions groups embrace karate as part of
the development of their members.
The power dynamics between South
Asians and the mainstream’
Hardship faced by those entering teaching
and wanting mobility.
South Asians as a powerful group: success
in every area of society (business/ educa-
tion/ government / social services etc.) and
need the support of all these groups to rec-
tify the hurdles our students and educa-
tional practitioners are facing
Workshops and papers will examine issues
like Discipline and Behaviour, the Role of
S.A. fathers in their child’s education, Iden-
tifying the gap in the S.A. community, The
South Asian Experiences, Advocating for
your child in the Canadian Education
Sysytem, Overcoming Language Barriers,
and Managing your teen
Sessions will look at ESL resources for
South Asian students, Strategies to in-
volvement new students in schools,Eras-
ing Prejudice, Curriculum Education
For Parents,Identifying behaviours: Pre-
venting a criminal teen, Drug Use, South
Asian gangs, and Parenting Skills to help
curb failure and nurture success.
Statistics shown that half of Canada's
South Asians are living in Toronto, with
30% Sikhs, 28% Hindu, 23% Muslim and
8% Catholic. English and Punjabi are the
most common languages.
The conference is looking forward to rich
community participation, and welcomes
volunteers, conference papers, workshop
presentations and appropriate artwork.
Contact them at www.shadesofbrown.org
or through any of the sponsoring organiza-
tions.
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Ayurveda heals the whole body
Basic Principles of Ayurveda
By Dr Rakesh Modi
Everything in this universe is composed
of five elements. The human body is also
made up of the five elements and the soul.
These five elements are:
1. Prithvi or earth
2. Apa or water
3. Tejas or fire
4. Vayu or air
5. Akash or space
What does it mean? The body is a muddy
pond with a fire in the middle, with clouds
on top and a wind blowing across! No, it
doesn't mean that. It means that these five
elements are the basic constituents and
everything can be explained in terms of
these five elements. For example, the bulky
and solid part is earth, the digestive en-
zymes which are responsible for cooking or
digesting is fire, the hollow, empty parts
and the big beer belly is space.
These five elements in their biological
form in the living body are of three differ-
ent kinds. These are three primary life
forces or three biological humors. The
Ayurvedic term for these forces is Dosha.
As they are three in number they are called
as Tridosha (Tri means Three). In Sanskrit
they are known as : Vata, Pitta and Kapha.
As these are specific terms or names of the
three types of humors in the body it is not
possible to translate them into English.
They can be understood, experienced or felt
only from their qualities, behavior and
actions in the body. The nearest translation,
meaning or comparative of these terms de-
pending upon their qualities, actions and
behavior are:
Vata is compared to air, Pitta is compared
to fire and Kapha is compared to mucus and
water.
This was amazing! You never knew the
construction of the body is so natural. The
next part will make you friendlier with your
body.
ITS OFFICIAL: TURMERIC
IS GOOD FOR ARTHRITIS
Extract of turmeric commonly used in
curry could help prevent rheumatoid arthri-
tis and osteoporosis, according to US re-
searchers.
Turmeric has been used for centuries in
Asian medicine to treat inflammatory dis-
orders and its extract can be found in west-
ern dietary supplements.Now lab work by
University of Arizona researchers, in
Arthritis & Rheumatism, shows just how
the spice's curcuminoid extracts have a
therapeutic effect.
Earlier work by the University of Arizona
team showed turmeric could prevent joint
inflammation in rats.A version of turmeric
extract that was free of essential oils was
found to most closely match the composi-
tion of the commercial supplements.And it
was this extract, containing curcumin, that
was most effective at blocking the onset of
rheumatoid arthritis in the rats.
The extract appears to work by preventing
a protein that controls when genes are
switched on or off from being activated in
the joint.Once the protein known as NF-KB
is activated, it binds to genes and increases
the production of inflammatory proteins,
which attack the joints. The team believes
turmeric extract could treat other inflam-
matory disorders, including asthma, multi-
ple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel and
Indo-Caribbean Times
Dhatus - These are the basic tissues which
maintain and nourish
the body. They are
seven in number,
namely - chyle,
blood, muscles, fatty
tissues, bone, mar-
row and semen.
Proper amount of
each dhatu and its
balanced function is Rakesh Modi
very important for good health.
Mala - These are the waste materials pro-
duced as a result of various metabolic ac-
tivities in the body. They are mainly urine,
feces, sweat, etc. Proper elimination of the
malas is equally important for good health.
Accumulation of malas cause many dis-
eases in the body.
Srotas - These are different types of chan-
nels which are responsible for transporta-
tion of food, dhatus, malas and doshas.
Proper function of srotas cause many dis-
eases.
Agni - These are different types of enzymes
responsible for digestion and transforming
one material to other.
All these factors need to function in a
proper balance for good health. They are
inter-related and are directly or indirectly
responsible for maintaining equilibrium of
the TRIDOSHA.
_____________________________
RAKESH R. MODI, B.A.M.S., D.Ac.,
Dr.Ac., M.Ac., M.Ac.F., C.A.H.P., is an
Ayurvedic Physician & Lecturer, Certified
Holistic Practitioner, and PanchaKarma
Specialist. He is , Director of Research &
Development and Event Management for
International Council of Ayurvedic Physi-
cians (ICAP) Inc., and Director of Interna-
tional Institute of Ayurveda &
Complimentary Medicines (IIACM) Inc.
www.AyurvedToronto.com
416-778-9341
osteoporisis. Professor Robert Moots, pro-
fessor of rheumatology at Liverpool Uni-
versity and spokesman for the Arthritis
Research Campaign, said people with
arthritis will have to wait to see if the study
results in new treatments.
"It will come as no surprise if naturally oc-
curring compounds have a drug-like ef-
fect," he said."I do not think there is any
evidence that countries that eat a lot of
turmeric have a lower frequency of rheuma-
toid arthritis. So simply eating more spices
is not likely to be effective clinically."
Meditation: Good for
the Arteries
Learning to relax and reduce stress
through the practice of Transcendental
Meditation (TM) may reduce atherosclero-
sis — and risk of heart attack and stroke —
according to findings published in the
March 2000 issue of the American Heart
Association journal STROKE.
This is the first controlled study to suggest
that stress reduction by itself can reduce
atherosclerosis without changes in diet and
exercise, according to a team of researchers
from UCLA, Charles R. Drew University
of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles,
and Maharishi University of Management
College of Maharishi Vedic Medicine in
LIVING NEAR A MAIN
HIGHWAY CAN HURT
CHILDREN’S LUNGS
LIVING within 500 metres of a major
highway can damages children's lungs, ac-
cording to a new eight-year study of more
than 3,600 children in Los Angeles. Ten-
year olds growing to adulthood within 500
meters of a freeway were far more likely to
have stunted lung development than others
living an additional 1000 meters distant, a
team of American researchers led by W.
James Gauderman of the University of
Southern California.
The children near the highways showed
much greater risk of lung disease ranging
from increased rates of asthma to more se-
rious, potentially fatal illnesses. And it was-
n't only children with frail lungs who were
affected.
Otherwise-healthy children who were non-
asthmatic and non-smokers also showed a
marked decrease in lung function from traf-
fic pollution.
The study was based on the yearly testing
of 3,677 children, from 12 Los Angeles
communities, over an eight-year period be-
ginning from the age of ten. Lung function
was measured by seeing how much air each
child could exhale -- and how quickly --
after taking a deep breath, along with
other tests.
The children were divided into three
groups depending on how close they lived
to a major highway (or freeway as they are
called in California), less than 500 meters,
between 500 and 1000 meters, and between
1000 and 1500 meters.
Several elements in vehicle exhaust can
damage lung tissue, but the most harmful
are nanoparticles with organic hydrocarbon
components on the surface, present in far
higher concentrations near freeways.
The study suggests that there may be
something in particular about primary emis-
sions -- fresh emissions -- that are particu-
larly dangerous" as compared to settled
pollution. Also of special interest is the
study's conclusion that diesel fuel is espe-
cially hazardous because of its high con-
centration of particulate-matter.
Fairfield, Iowa.
“This finding that the disease process in
the arteries can be reduced through the TM
program may have vast implications for the
current management of cardiovascular dis-
ease and health care costs,” says Amparo
Castillo-Richmond, M.D., lead author of
the study and assistant professor of medi-
cine at the College of Maharishi Vedic
Medicine.
In the study, hypertensive African-Ameri-
cans who were at risk for cardiovascular
disease were randomly assigned to either
the TM program or to a health education
control group. Sixty men and women vol-
unteers completed pretests and post-tests
over an average intervention period of
about seven months. Subjects practicing the
TM program showed an approximate 11
percent decrease in risk of heart attack and
a 7-15 percent reduction in risk of stroke.
Robert Schneider, M.D., another author of
the study and director of the NIH-sponsored
Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention
at the College of Maharishi Vedic Medi-
cine, says, “Cardiovascular disease is asso-
ciated with psychological stress. Previous
research has found that the TM program de-
creases coronary heart disease risk factors,
including hypertension, oxidized lipids,
stress hormones and psychological stress,
and is associated with reduced cardiovas-
cular disease and death in African-Ameri-
cans and the general population.”
M arch 2007 Page16
NALINI
NEEDS
A KIDNEY
NALINI Maharaj really, really needs a
kidney sometime soon if she is to survive
to see her two children grow up. She’s hop-
ing that somewhere out there is that super
generous person who will give her one.
The 36 year old Mississauga woman is
running out of time. Her own kidneys
began failing ten years ago and stopped
working completely in 2003. She now goes
to the hospital three times weekly for four
hour dialysis sessions that clean her blood
of toxins and impurities. But she is still sick
much of the time and finding it difficult to
work or to maintain the home with husband
Puran and 16 year old son Amit and 20 year
old daughte Gaitri.
Normally, people like Nalini would find
donors within the family. Her relatives in
her home country Trinidad share a family
history of high blood pressure and kidney
disease that eliminates them as donors. Her
husband Puran offered to donate a kidney
but he was ruled out because of high blood
pressure. She has no close relatives in
Canada.
She has two options- getting an organ do-
nation from someone who has died after
signing a donor card, or getting a kidney
from a living donor.
Nalini is urging Canadians to become
more aware of the organ donation program
and to sign the card. It can be obtained from
any doctor or from the Ministry of Trans-
portation. Organ donation allows a person
to give a gift of life after he or she has gone.
Nalini is high on the waiting list for kidney
donations but there is no certainty if or
when she can get a donated kidney.
Secondly, she wants to ask any persons
willing to help her to come forward to be
tested for compatibility. “I believe thare are
people out there who are willing to give a
kidney to a perfect stranger. I am that
stranger and I need it,” she said.
Nalini is blood type AB, which means she
is a universal donor/receiver, so anyone can
donate a kidney once there is a close
match between her and the donor.
All the person has to do is contact St.
Michael’s Hospital Transplant Office (416-
867-3665) and say they are interested in
helping Nalini Maharaj. Mary Anne at the
Hospital (416-867-7460 ext. 8179) will
take care of the rest.
There is minimal risk to the donor, who
must be healthy and free from high blood
pressure or diabetes. of the kidneys. Doc-
tors make a very small incision usingnbv
keyhole surgery to remove the kidney, and
recovery time is usually two to three
weeks.
For more information you can contact
Nalini or her husband Puran at 905-568-
4699.
WOMEN
Dealing with wife abuse:
Recognizing the cycle of violence
By J. Jagessar
If you are in an abusive relationship and
your spouse is abusive towards you, there
are ways to see the violence coming that
would allow you to take steps to protect
yourself.
People have studied the behaviour of vi-
olence and have observed what they call a
“cycle of violence”. It starts with your
spouse beginning to find fault with every-
thing you do around the house. Example:
He complains the food is not tasty, supper is
not ready on time, the house is a mess, the
laundry is not done etc.
He gets angrier and starts raising his voice,
pointing his finger, brushing the food aside.
He may start picking on the children as
well. All this could happen after he had had
a few drinks.
The logical thing to do at this time to de-
fend yourself, argue with him- big mistake!
What you should do is to recognize the rise
in temper and move out of his way. Do not
start an argument or get pulled into an ar-
gument that he wants to make with you. If
necessary, go to a relative's home for a day
or two until he calms down. If you have
children, get them out of his way as well.
Remember that the abuse starts with an
emotional outburst and ends with physical
violence.
In our culture we deny things and feel we
are socially and religiously dependent on
Indian women in Guyana after
indenture and independence
From a paper “Indian Women of Guyana” by Janet Naidu
POST-INDENTURE AND
POST-INDEPENDENCE
In the early part of the twentieth century,
women on the whole were relegated to the
home, apart from those who were out work-
ing to help their families. The majority of
Indian women worked and resided in the
rural areas and often were the primary or-
ganizers of social customs.
Undoubtedly, the retention of Indian cul-
ture was owed “much to these industrious,
resilient women on the plantations and in
the villages while at the same time exerting
much energy on their many children.”
Because of their direct involvement in
preparations religious and social functions
such as pujas, jhandis, weddings, Eid, Di-
wali and other social customs, they formed
a strong foundation for their cultural reten-
tion. Mothers not only organized elaborate
functions, but their daughters also were
completely involved in the arrangements
for social activities.
Many of these women were not part of an
established organization with leadership
opportunities, but they formed the pulse of
the nation’s cultural development and pro-
gression. Further, not only was it a social
taboo for Indian women to join social or-
ganizations and carry the banners but also
they received little or no respect.
However, a small group of middle-class
Indian women in the urban areas were be-
ginning to participate in public circles. In
fact, after indentureship, in the 1920s they
were contributing to the “visible Hindu and
Muslim culture festival” especially in
Georgetown and New Amsterdam where
they provided forms of entertainment, but
Indo-Caribbean Times
our spouses. We may even feel that we are
economically dependent on our husbands
and we have to make sacrifices for our fam-
ily and children. We think there is some
deep tie with our spouses that is so sacred,
that we deny the violence. We tend to ac-
cept it submissively and even try to hide it
from our relatives and friends.
If your partner does get out of control and
hurts you physically in any way, then call
911 immediately. Within recent years the
police have changed their attitudes and ap-
proaches to violence in the home. Gone are
the days when the police took a hands-off
attitude towards violence against women.
They no longer take the approach this is a
privaet matter between husband and wife.
Nowadays, the law has been changed so if
a spouse is violent towards his partner and
she has reported it, the police would arrest
the violent partner without any questions
asked.
Many women have been known to flee
their homes due to spousal abuse and what
they have discovered is that had lost all fi-
nancial and legal benefits and privileges.
By recognizing the cycle of violence and
getting out in the early stages of anger and
complaints before the violence could hap-
pen, you can save your marriage, seek help
and counselling and get the financial ad-
vantages that are due to you.
primarily associated with religious func-
tions.
One of the first known women to demon-
strate resistance against the injustices of
colonialism was Esther Saywack Mahadeo
(born in 1872) who was widowed at the age
of 28 with 4 children.
Having inherited a small shop, she refused
her parents’ offer to return home. Instead,
she became one of the leading merchants in
New Amsterdam.
As a young girl, she learned business skills
while her father went to work selling oil on
a donkey cart. With determination, she
looked after her children and never remar-
ried.
She became very involved in the business
and community, and became the first
woman President of the Berbice Chamber
of Commerce. Recognizing the injustices
against plantation workers, she took a peti-
tion, signed by hundreds, to the Governor
in Georgetown, protesting the shooting of
innocent workers who participated in a riot
at Plantation Rosehall, Canje where Indians
were shot and some killed in 1913.
At this time, it was unthinkable for a
woman to have done this, especially an In-
dian woman and a widow. She died in 1948,
leaving a legacy of an Indian woman’s early
voice against oppression. She took part in
social work and was the first woman Pres-
ident of the Berbice Turf Club.
To have achieved this singular position in
this time in a colonial environment showed
a tremendous clout, resilience and courage.
(Janet Naidu’s full paper can be found on
the Guyana Journal website at
http://www.guyanajournal.com/women_gy.
html)
M arch 2007
Shilpa Shetty scores big in Britain
Millions in job offers, marriage proposals, meeting with PM, Queen
SHE was already a well known Bolly-
wood film star when she came to Britain
last year to take part in the reality show
Celebrity Big Brother. But since she won
the show and outlasting the racism of some
of the English contestants, Shilpa Shetty
has become one of the best known and ad-
mired Indians in Britian, and according to
the Bombay Times, was the "most recog-
nised Indian face in the world".
She could soon be one of the richest as
well. Shilpa has received more than 200 of-
fers of work - commercials, modelling, pre-
senting, book deals, film roles, even a part
in Andrew Lloyd Webber's revival of West
End musical Bombay Dreams - totalling
£10 million or $22 million Canadian.
Shilpa was the only Indian celebrity in the
Big Brother show, living under constant tel-
evision surveillance with other British
“celebrities”.
The barely hidden racism of some of the
British celebrities was soon visible to mil-
lions who watched the show. Shilpa was
was called "Shilpa Poppadom" and the "In-
dian" in the Big Brother house. One of
them, Jane Goody, deliberately mispro-
nounced her name Shetty. She was often re-
duced to tears by rude and hostile remarks,
but but did not respond in kind. By the time
she emerged, Jade Goody had become a
pariah, pop star Jo O'Meara was on suicide
watch, model Danielle Lloyd had been
ditched by her soccer star boyfriend. She
won the contest because of huge support
and sympathy from the voting public, and
came out to find herself more famous than
when she went in.
Shilpa caused a sensation when she vis-
ited the House of Commons and had a pri-
vate audience with Prime Minister Tony
Blair. Invitations to appear on television
talk shows poured in. Now she has an invi-
tation to celebrate Commonwealth Day
with Her Majesty the Queen.
A service at Westminster Abbey will be fol-
lowed by a reception for select dignitaries
(of which the 31-year-old actress is one).
Her one-month stint and an out-of-the-blue
win in the reality TV show opened up more
vistas for Shilpa Shetty with international
film offers and endorsements, than her ten
years in Bollywood ever did.
"Shilpa has certainly hit a jackpot. She
participated in the Celebrity Big Brother at
a time when there was a lull in her career.
Now she has mega deals, endorsement
brands and even a possible Hollywood ca-
reer lying at her feet," said trade analysts.
While Shilpa's last release in India was
Shaadi Kar Ke Phas Gaya Yaar , the actress
has not had any major hits since the 2000
romance flick Dhadkan to her credit.
However her stint in "Celebrity Big
Brother", which catapulted her to UK's na-
tional consciousness after being allegedly
subjected to racist comments by fellow
housemate Jane Goody, has now placed
Shilpa on the threshold of an international
career that even she may not have contem-
plated otherwise.
"She is now on the verge of a booming ca-
reer internationally. She does not need to
concentrate on Bollywood as of now. She
is getting much bigger exposure," says
trade analyst Taran Adarsh.
Most analysts feel the actress will now
focus on getting her foot in the door into
Hollywood and cash in on endorsement
deals and other offers that have come her
way, rather than look at resurrecting her ca-
reer in Bollywood.
Page 17
"Shilpa currently has two films on the
floor, Anurag Basu 's Metro , produced by
UTV, and Anil Sharma 's Apne , both of
which are set to release this year."
While she will complete her two remain-
ing projects, she may not have much time
or the inclination to do any more films as
of now."Bollywood will, however, be
watching very closely her progress in the
Western world, because it can show what
Indian stars can do," Adarsh added.
Shilpa entered the Hindi film industry as
the long-legged beauty in a film that also
marked the stardom of Shah Rukh Khan -
'Baazigar', in 1993. Since then, she has
worked on close to 50 films but except for
a few stray hits has not been able to hit the
top.Last year, she also tried her hand at tel-
evision, appearing as a judge on the dance
show ‘Jhalak Dikhla Jaa’.
Meanwhile, Shilpa has been approached
to front a cricketing version of Pop Idol that
its producers say could unearth new young
talent and boost interest in cricket in the
UK.Simon Hughes, the former Channel 4
cricket analyst, said he was in discussions
with four mainstream broadcasters to bring
'Cricket Star' series to the UK.
Huges said he was in talks with well-
known former cricketers to take on the
judging roles filled in India by Kapil Dev
and Sanjay Manjrekar. Darren Gough, Phil
Tuffnel and Ian Botham were among the
possible candidates.
Shetty could not be more different from the
way the toxic trio in the Big Brother house
have painted her. Jackiey Budden, Jade
Goody's mother, asked her if she lives in a
house or a shack. Neither. She lives on the
entire seventh floor of an apartment build-
ing in one of Bombay's most exclusive
neighbourhoods. And before Budden
protests that's only in India, rents in expen-
sive parts of Bombay are as high as they are
in London.
She was born into a wealthy family, her
father runs a successful chemical business.
She lives a life of luxury that is beyond
even the millions Goody has made off her
Big Brother stints. She is also a black belt in
karate.
To be rich in India is never to have to lift
a finger. Shetty is constantly attended by a
retinue of servants, including a full-time
hairdresser. If that seems excessive, it's
worth pointing out she cannot so much as
set foot outside her home without being
mobbed. Budden may snipily call her
"Princess" but the truth is Bollywood stars
are royalty in India.She was educated at
prestigious schools: St Anthony's Girls'
High School in Chembur, and Podar Col-
lege. She was famous in India first as a
model - she got her break from Limca, a
soft drink company. To this day she is
known as "the best body in Bollywood",
and is considered a style icon for the clothes
she wears.
RELIGION
THEIR GOAL IS A GITA IN EVERY HOME
Their aim is to educate Canadian and
Caribbean people about Hinduism, their in-
strument is an education program based on
the Holy Bhagwad Gita, and they want your
help to do it.
Toronto lawyer and Hindu activist Ram
Sahadeo represents a group of Caribbbean
Hindus who want to expand an ambitious
program to educate Canadian Hindus and
other Canadians about the Hindu faith, and
to do the same for Hindus and others in the
Caribbean. They are currently out of copies
of the book and would welcome donors
who would contribute funds for buying
more Gitas to carry on the program.
In an interview with the Indo-Caribbean
Times, Sahadeo explained that the " A
BHAGAVAD GITA FOR EACH HOME"
project had the simple aim of distributing
a simple English pocket sized version of the
Gita so that this universal knowledge can
be made available to all, particularly the
young who have not yet been introduced to
the philosophy.
"The
Bhagwad
Gita is
our inher-
itance and
our con-
tribution
to world
philoso-
phy. It is
our duty
to learn
about it
Gita is a dialogue between
and share
Lord Krishna and Arjuna
it with the
rest of mankind. We cannot be proud that
so few have so little knowledge of the Gita
which is over 5000 years old, and which
have been the guiding light for so many in-
ternational personalities like Mahatma
Gandhi, Henry David Thoreau, and Swami
Vivekananda," he said.
"We learnt from our ancestors who could
not read nor write and who inhabited places
like Guyana and Trinidad since May 5,
1838 why can’t we continue to teach our
children in the same manner? We now live
in very fast technological societies all over
the world and many of our professionals,
community and political leaders still have
little or no knowledge of the wisdom of the
Gita.
"Even in our native countries the villages
and plantations are no longer the moral
training grounds they used to be. In addi-
tion we have lost the generation who taught
and lived by example therefore we must
make a concerted effort to teach this knowl-
edge about the universal text that enabled
our fore parents to survive and flourish de-
spite deplorable conditions of living," Sa-
hadeo noted.
HINDU IDOL OR ICON?
By Dr Anantand Rambachan
Among the many problems faced by Hin-
dus is finding appropriate English termi-
nology for Sanskrit terms. This is important
for those who seek to understand, practice
and transmit their tradition outside of India.
This is not always an easy matter, and ap-
propriate substitutes are often difficult to
find. Sometimes one has to be content with
selecting from a number of imperfect alter-
natives, and careful thought has to be exer-
cised when all the choices are inadequate.
Some English terms are more advantageous
than others. They become the means by
which our beliefs are represented to people
outside our tradition as well as to a new
generation of English-speaking Hindus.
The term murti is familiar to all Hindus
Indo-Caribbean Times
The Gita program started when Sahadeo
and other Canada based Hindus helped
Swami Aksharananda of Guyana in con-
structing a the Saraswati Vidya Niketan sec-
ondary Hindu school in Guyana, and he
travelled through Guyana, " This experi-
ence opened my eyes to the fact that Hindus
know very little about their own religion
and their energies over the years seemed to
have been usurped by other activities in-
consistent with their own interests. There
was little or no leadership and very little
teaching about one of the greatest and ear-
liest philosophy on earth. This must have
contributed to the moral decay, general il-
literacy, alcohol and spousal abuse, and
even the spread of aids virus , prevalent
among Hindus."
He learned about the India based Inter-
national Gita Society and with some friends
started a small scale program of buying
copies of the Gita at $1 each, and distribut-
ing in Canada and the Caribbean. The
Hindu Seva Sangh in Toronto and its pres-
ident Omesh Sharma have picked up ship-
ping costs so far. Believing that there are
many who would share and participate in
the vision, the group has set up a system
whereby the books can be available in bulk
for any person or organization anywhere.
"We ask Hindus in particular to examine
their lifestyles and pledge that our homes
will have as many gitas as we have shoes
or clothing. This may be a good starting
point. We must recognize that knowledge is
superior to materialism and follow Arjuna’s
choice to have the wisdom of Lord Krishna
on the battlefield of daily life.
"Many of us have friends and neighbors
who would like to know more about us and
we can help them understand our heritage
by donating the Gita to every guest or
neighbour. Those who join in celebrating
our birthdays, anniversaries, and weddings
should likewise be rewarded.
“Wakes and Funerals which are often at-
tended by people of every race, religion or
nationality is an ideal time for friends or rel-
atives of the deceased to give something to
those who come to sympathise and pay
their respects. The inside front page of the
Gitas is intentionally left blank so that they
can even be endorsed to commemorate a
special event or individual.
“Every mandir can have someone pay for
and distribute the book every time there is
a religious service. In fact we have to start
the practice of taking our Gita to the tem-
ple and read it every week. The officiating
priest should not be the only one with a
book," Sahadeo suggested.
He notes that since a donation of $1.00
can finance one book even the poorest per-
son can afford about 20. Those attached to
their village/district either through birth,
work or otherwise and would like to see a
and is used to indicate the various repre-
sentations of God in our temples and
homes. Perhaps the most widely used Eng-
lish term to translate murti is idol. I often
shudder when I hear a Hindu guide, giving
a temple tour to a visitor, describing the
murtis on the altar or in the sanctum as
idols. The problem is that this term is com-
monly used today to indicate something
which is false and untrue. In the West, still
deeply influenced by the views of the
Judeo-Christian tradition, the term has a
specific religious connotation. An idol is a
false God, and idolatry is a term of rebuke
and moral disapproval. We cannot ignore
that Hindus have been and continue to be
condemned by many for so-called "idola-
trous practices." How strange it is for us to
appropriate a term to describe ourselves
which others use to condemn us! Perhaps
M arch 2007
copy of the Gita in each home can purchase
in bulk and distribute it free of cost to each
home. $500 may be enough to cover most
villages.
If a village is too large for one person or
family then several families can cooperate
to finance books for the area. Every village
or district have some prominent Hindu fam-
ilies whose contribution ought to be im-
mortalized and there is no better way to
Students at Saraswati Vidya Niketan
honor them to distribute Gitas in their
names.
Sahadeo is certain that in Canada, USA,
or England, there are many persons who
left the Caribbean with a few dollars but
who can now finance Gitas for every single
home in the country. He feels it is prefer-
able for many individuals to play a role and
assist their own area. "When we send bar-
rels or gifts back home we should ensure
that a few hundred Gitas are enclosed be-
cause knowledge is the best gift and it out-
lasts all the other material gifts," Sahadeo
insisted.
The long term objective is to have Gita
Societies established so that youths and oth-
ers can discuss and debate Gita principles
and apply them daily. This has already
started in Guyana with Saraswati Vidya
Niketanschool, and the group is making
arrangements for distribution to secondary
school students in Trindad. In Canada dis-
tribution of Gitas has started and they are
in the process of registering a charitable or-
ganization with the objective of fostering
similar knowledge, and are hoping that
knowledgeable volunteers, particularly re-
tired or semi-retired individuals, can act as
instructors or facilitators.
To reach the project please contact Ram
Sahadeo at 905 671 9233, (ramji-
hindu@rogers.com), R.S. Omesh Sharma
at 905 678 7997 (Omesh@flexomark.com),
Omo Persaud C/o Vishnu Mandir
(Omo@globalspectruminc.com), or
Kishori at 905 794 4952
(kishoriee@yahoo.ca). Those out of
Province can obtain Gitas from Ajodhya
Mahadeo in Winnipegat 204-661 643 or
Arvind Singh in Vancouver at
arvind.email@gmail.com
there should be a serious and concerted ef-
fort to avoid its use.
The word statue is also frequently used to
refer to a murti, but this has its own draw-
backs. It describes a sculptured, cast or
molded figure, human being or an animal.
Usually it approximates to the original size
of the person or animal it represents.The
term image is also used in place of murti
and is an accurate indication of the form
which it represents. Murtis are meant to
focus our minds on God. Unlike the word
image, the viewer is not asked to believe
that the murti is actually how God ap-
pears.The search for a suitable English ren-
dering of murti, however, is not fruitless. I
recommend the adoption of the term icon.
While there is some broad usage, it is em-
ployed primarily to denote a religious rep-
Page 18
MUSLIMS CELEBRATE
EID UL-FITR IN MARCH
This March will see end of the month
long fast during the holy month of Ra-
madan and the beginning of Shawwal -- the
tenth month of the Islamic calendar. It is on
the first day of Shawwal that Muslims cel-
ebrate Eid, which means “festivity” in Ara-
bic. Eid is celebrated after the sighting of
the new crescent on the previous evening. It
is on this day that the world’s 1.2 billion
Muslims celebrate the joyous holiday called
Eid ul-Fitr, “the Festival of Fast Breaking”.
On this day Muslims celebrate a month-
long achievement which was performed for
the sole purpose of pleasing and serving
Allah.
For one month, during the time between
sunrise and sunset, Muslims do not eat or
drink, and abstain from sensual pleasure.
The practice is designed to teach self-con-
trol, and renew a Muslim's spiritual life.
For a Muslim, Eid is a day of thanksgiv-
ing. On the day of Eid, fasting is forbidden
since this day marks the end of the month-
long fast. In the morning of Eid, Muslims
are encouraged to enjoy a sweet snack such
as dates. Other practices on this special day
include bathing and adorning oneself in
new or one’s best clothes. Muslims cele-
brate Eid by expressing thanks to Allah by
means of distributing alms among the poor
and needy and offering special prayers. On
this day, gifts are also given to children and
loved ones
Eid Ul-Fitr is confirmed by the appearance
of the new crescent moon. The holiday lasts
three days.
The Statistics Canada Census 2001 re-
ported Canadian Muslims at 579,640 (2 %
of Canadian Population, increasing by
128.9% since 1999. Ontario Muslims more
than doubled to 352,500, and Muslims in
Quebec went up by 141.8%
The unofficial estimate for today is about
600,000 Muslims; about 300,000 of whom
live in Southwestern Ontario. There are
more than 80 mosques in Canada, four of
which are located in Ottawa. In addition to
mosques there are numerous locations in
most major cities where space (known as
musallah) is set aside for prayer purposes.
The Muslim community in Canada has its
foundation in the West, where Al-Rashid,
the first mosque in North America was built
in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1938.
The earliest record of Muslim presence in
Canada dates back to 1871, when the Cana-
dian census recorded 13 Muslim residents.
According to the 1981 census there were
98,165 Muslims, accounting for less than
half of one per cent of all Canadians.
resentation or figure. Icons are treated with
respect because they represent that which is
sacred. In the popular culture of the West,
the term does not resonate negatively. From
icon is derived the term iconography, which
literally means "writing with icons."
Iconography describes one of the central
purposes of murtis in the Hindu tradition.
Each murti is a nonverbal statement about
the nature of God. Like a scripture con-
sistingof words, a murti communicates
knowledge about the Divine, and the
viewer must be equipped with the necessary
skills to "read" the meaning of the murti.
For example, the symbolic gestures of the
murti, among others, are a visual text or
theology.
It is necessary to be spiritually creative in
finding new words and symbols to express
ourselves confidently in order to transmit
our tradition to new generations.
(Anant is a Professor of Religion at Saint
Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota)
How I can help
YOUTH
with global warming
EVERYBODYis talking about global
warming these days. We are all looking for
ways to reduce the amount of energy we
use and carbon we put into the air. But it is
not only big factories and motor car com-
panies that have to take action. All of us
have to do our part.
These are 20 things we can all do, no mat-
ter how old we are.
1.Turn off the bedroom lights when I am
not using them.
2.Turn off the television set when I leave
the room.
3.Do not keep the refrigerator door open for
a long time while I look around for some-
thing to eat. This wastes energy as the re-
frigerator tries harder to keep cool with an
open door.
4.Do not keep the refrigerator door open
when I am making a sandwich and getting
the butter out, then the mayo etc. I should
get everything out and make the sandwich
and return everything at the same time
when I am finished.
5.Do not wash dishes with the dishwasher
half full. It takes the same energy to wash a
full load as a half full load. Wait until the
dishwasher is full and then wash at night
when the demand for power is lower.
6.Do the laundry at night, for the same rea-
son.
7.Pull the drapes shut in the summer to keep
the house cool and raise the temperature by
1 degree higher than last year.
8.Have the house sealed up properly so that
cool air does not escape in summer when
you use the air conditioner. A sealed off
house will also prevent cold air getting in
during winter , overworking the furnace
and wasting energy.
9.Get somebody capable to program the
thermostat so that you are not heating up or
cooling down the house at times when no-
body is at home. It is not good to waste en-
ergy on an empty house.
10.Find more ways to reduce, re-use and re-
cycle things like cardboard, cans, glass,
wrappings and food waste. It costs money
and puts more carbon in the air when trucks
have to take garbage to the dump.
11.Try not to waste food. It takes energy to
grow it and bring it to where you live.
12.Turn off the computer monitor when
when I am done using the computer.
13.Do not watch more than one hour of tel-
evision a day.
14.Do not sit and play video games for
three hours or more. Video games and mon-
itors use a lot of electricity. Get physically
active and work out more often.
15.Plant more things in the garden in the
summer. Leaves and grass absorb energy
and help cut down warming of the earth.
Indo-Caribbean Times M arch 2007 Page 19
Indians in Guadeloupe celebrate
Indian Arrival Day Dec 24, 1854
MANY people do not know that Indians
went to the French colonies in the
16.Cut down on using plastic bags and Caribbean, while others went to places like
wrap and metal packaging like aluminium Guyana, Trinidad and Jamaica.
foil. They take energy to prepare, and re- Descendants of those who went to Guade-
main for centuries in the garbage dumps loupe are still there, and they have started
when they are thrown out. to celebrate Indian Arrival Day. Three years
ago the people of Guadeloupe in the French
17.Use more fresh foods which give bio-de- West Indies had a whole year of commem-
gradeable waste. oration of the 150th anniversary of the ar-
rival of the first indentured Indian workers
18.If possible, travel by a bus that takes in 1854.
many people rather than driving in a car They also put up a First Day monument in
that takes a few. the business capital, Pointe-a-Pitre, near the
sea-side spot where the indentured Indians
alighted between 1854 and 1889. Guadeloupe monument to Indians
19.Consider eating more vegetarian food
and less or no meat. It takes much more en- The plaque on the monument reads: and its population is incalculable.
ergy, water, chemicals and land to produce "On December 24, 1854, the sailing ship Today Indians in Guadeloupe are to be
meat than to produce vegetables. "Aurelie", after a dreadful three-month pas- found in all sectors of society, from agri-
sage, disembarked on this spot 314 East In- culture to politics. Their painful integration,
20.If you have to use a car, try getting an dians, requested by the Colony to cope with in spite of all the hardships and persecu-
energy efficient vehicle rather than a big the loss of labour resulting from the aboli- tions, is considered today a success. This is
gas guzzler. tion of slavery in 1848. due to their non-violent attitudes and deter-
Thus began a long period of transplanta- mination in the work place, since the time
GLOBAL WARMING
tion that brought 42,326 East Indians to of the sugarcane fields.
Guadeloupe, of which 24,891 were to per- Their integration was achieved at great ex-
OPENS DOORS FOR
ish, particularly because of the ill-treatment pense - the almost total loss of their original
TROPICAL PROBLEMS they received, and 9,460 returned to India. languages from South and North India, re-
In memory and homage to the contribu- placed by French and Creole, the forced
tion of those from India who founded the abandonment of their religion to Catholi-
Canadian winters can be an effective de-
multicultural Guadeloupe of yesterday and cism, and the transformation of their cus-
fence against the spread of tropical diseases
today, the Regional Council, the General toms and culture to becoming
and pests, but experts say that could
Council, the City of Pointe-a-Pitre, in ac- Europeanized. However, in the crucible of
change with global warming.
cord with the Bharat Gua Federation, have change, they have managed to do much
"Either the geographical distribution can
erected this First Day monument, on the more than just influence the local cuisine,
become more extensive for diseases ... or
occasion of the 150th anniversary of the ar- costume and folklore.
the duration of the season of risk can in-
crease," said Dr. Neil Rau, an infectious dis-
eases expert.
"Or even more unusually, someone can
import a new disease, the way West Nile
came to North America."
Mosquitoes carry West Nile to humans
after consuming the blood of infected birds,
and warmer winters mean more mosquitoes
carrying the disease.
"That dramatically increases the chance
that a human will be bitten by one of those
infected mosquitoes towards the end of the
summer," said Dr. Brian Ward, a tropical
diseases expert at the University of McGill.
Another concern is ticks that carry lyme
disease. They're usually found only in the
Indo-Guadeloupe girls at the 150th anniversary event
warmest parts of Canada, like southern
rival of the first Indians in Guadeloupe."
B.C. and the shoreline of Ontario's Lake
The more than 600-kilogram bronze mon- Many cultural associations, under the fed-
Erie.
ument by Indrajeet Sahadev, an Indian-born erative banner of Bharat-Gua ("From India
"But much of Canada is appropriate tick
sculptor residing in France, is a combina- to Guadeloupe") are reawakening the In-
habitat, and so if there were to be global
tion of symbolic representations of the long dian awareness. Rituals secretly kept across
warming it seems very reasonable that we
Kalapani journey, a boat with Lord Gane- time are being revived, scholars are re-
might see the ticks extend their range into a
sha's figure at the prow, masts with Lord searching and documenting the past. Inter-
much larger part of Canada," said Ward.
Siva's trident and damaru engraved in gold estingly enough, people of all cultural
Lyme disease is already the fastest-grow-
obliquely sectioned at the top to form a heritage, Indian or mixed ethnic back-
ing infectious disease in the U.S., and ap-
golden OM. grounds, are attracted and are participating
peared in Nova Scotia for the first time just
in these activities. People of all origins also
two years ago. It can be very painful and
The art piece stands on a circular lotus man- took part in the year long commemoration
difficult to treat.
dala base, the whole monument resting on a events.
"It is going to be very important that not
marble yantra. On the four sides of the rec- Originally scheduled for December 23rd,
only the public is made aware of this, but
tangular base block are figures of a conch, 2004, the inauguration of the monument
that the medical profession knows what to
a golden sun with the date 1854 in the mid- took place on January 23rd, 2005, due to an
look for," said Dr. Paul Sockett of Canada's
dle, and sugar cane shoots - the bitter reason earthquake in Guadeloupe in December
Public Health Agency.
that brought the Indians to the island. The 2004. After the official discourses and the
CTV's David Akin reported that there are
auspicious Indian symbol for water also unveiling of the monument at the sound of
several other ways that global warming
turns out to be the letter G, representing the the "tapu" (a flat Indian tambourine drum),
could contribute to the spread of disease.
Universal Master, the initial of Lord Gane- flower petals were thrown by Guadelou-
"When there are extreme weather events
sha, and that of Guadeloupe. Guadeloupe peans of mixed ancestral heritage, onto the
like flooding, researchers are finding new
was called Kalaoukera, meaning "island of nearby sea.
strains of E. coli," he said. "And with soils
beautiful waters" by the original, now dec- This homage was accompanied by mov-
warming up on the west coast, researchers
imated, Amerindian inhabitants. ing prayers that the offering may reach an-
have found some funguses that are carrying
cient ancestors, across the sea of time.
diseases."
As Dr. Henry Bangou, Mayor of Pointe- -
Pitre and a renowned historian, and all the (Information courtesy Jean. S.Sahai, a
official speakers said, the contributions of prominent researcher on Indo-Caribbean
the Indians to the evolution of Guadeloupe life in Guadeloupe and Martinique.)
ARTS AND LITERATURE Indo-Caribbean Times
Maharaj writes a masterpiece
Mystery Woman Behind the Veil
A Short Story by Roop Misir IF you haven’t sat down with a good book
from the Caribbean lately, the masterpiece
“A Perfect Pledge” from Trinidadian Ra-
Some years ago, I visited what was then billed the Annual “South Asian” bindranath Maharaj may be the medicine
Fair in Markham, just north of Ontario, Canada. As it turned out, this fair you need.
was mainly a Pakistani affair, showcasing a Muslim version of South Asian The book is described as a “Best Book” in
culture. There were only smatterings of Indian (Bollywood) and Indo- Canada for the year 2005 by the Globe and
Caribbean pop culture. Interaction at this fair was an obvious reflection of Mail, a masterpiece by the Toronto Sun,
the increasing respect and harmony of Pakistani Canadians with other mem- while the Winnipeg Free Press praises Ma-
bers of the South Asian immigrants living in Toronto. I was heartened to note haraj as a writer at the height of his powers
with a strong and sure hand.
that a group of Indo-Caribbean performers was an instant hit.
A reviewer for the Toronto Star says, “The
Not bad, I thought. It was refreshing to find our people intermingling and
only truly serious and successful Canadian
enjoying themselves, as we of the Indian Diaspora could showcase aspects of novel I have read so far this year is set en-
our common culture with other members of the Canadian family. tirely on the island of Trinidad and has not
In mid-afternoon, I went the fashion show pavilion. I was anxious to learn a single Canadian character.”
of the latest in men's and women's fashion to be modelled. But imagine my It does have Narpat, a figure in the mould
surprise when I received a tap on my right shoulder from a figure clad in a of V.S. Naipaul’s Mr Biswas, battling the
black veil? Clearly startled, I gazed in bewilderment at the unseen woman elements and the world in the tiny village
whose sparkling blue green eyes peered penetratingly through the meshed of Lengua.
screen. Almost instantly, I was taken aback some quarter of a century back! Trinidad in 1961 is a country inching to-
ward independence, bur village life is hard,
"Are you one of the models here?" I asked.
and Narpat, a sugarcane farmer, is sickened
“No. I like to speak to you. Could you follow me?” said the veiled voice.
by the corruption he sees all around him. He
We wended our way to a less crowded area. Then she lifted the veil to re- scorns his neighbours as greedy, shiftless
veal a strangely familiar face. and enslaved to the rumshop, and sets out to
“Do you remember me now”? improve life for his family and contempo-
After some hesitation, I answered in a perplexed manner: “Are you Mee-- raries, much to their dismay. It’s up to his
Meena-kshi” ? adoring son Jeeves, to save Narpat from his
“Yes”, was the reply in her once convivial voice. ever wilder “futurist” plans.
“Well Meena, there was no way anyone could recognize ever you behind Toronto reviewer Ron Charles says, ”This
this black burqa.” is a rich, expansive tale about a poor, com-
pressed place that Maharaj loves enough to
For a few brief moments, we exchanged pleasantries.
Family is everything
Then I reminisced: “Don’t you remember how you were such an outgoing
girl during our days at Indian Trust College? And how you went later on to
win the Miss Swimsuit Queen contest? ” By Ram Jagessar
Yes, vividly. Quite vividly,” she muttered.
“When have you come to Canada from Guyana? And since when have you Harry say the family phone back home
Not working right
started covering up?”
“In 1975. I came without the necessary immigration papers here. With all The phone only calling him
when they want money
that racial discrimination that was going on in Guyana, who in their right
when they want advice
mind wouldn’t want to get away? I didn’t want to be another call girl of the when they want something.
Kabaka! Remember dem daze, Professor?” Sometimes they calling collect
“So?”, I nodded. just to collect serious change
“Shortly thereafter, I got married in Toronto. Not that I was particularly in from Harry.
love with the guy. But in this game of survival that is life, you gotta do wha Send it right away Harry
you gotta do”. Western Union
Then she protested: Don’t forget now.
Where the devil were you all these years? I looked for you all over in Toronto
Boysie need false teeth
for you. Then one day, our friend Toby mentioned that you were living some-
they calling Harry
where in Winnipeg. But where? But really, I had no clue about your where-
to pay the dentist.
abouts! I had lost touch with you.” Car get in accident
Gazing at me from head to shoe, she resisted the urge to give me a hug. Call Harry to help out
Then Meena revealed: the situation
“Things were OK at first, but increasingly, my husband claimed he saw a Children want copy book and pencil
vision of some kind. Gradually, he became more and more of a devout Mus- Harry will send from Canada
lim man. A few years ago, he insisted that I observe a strict Arabian dress What they think,
code”. Waddya think? Harry have a gold mine
or a money tree up here?
“This sort of outfit even in cosmopolitan…secular…Canada, eh?” I re-
sponded involuntarily.
And they always singing this song
“He tells me that secularism and decadent moral values in Canada are fer-
When you coming down Harry?
tile ground for propagation of the religion of peace. He is obsessed with pray- Coming for Christmas?
ing and reading.” she declared unabashedly. Coming for Divali?
Hmmm.... Coming for Carnival?
For fear of upsetting her, I refrained from the temptation of asking her if Coming for your vacation?
she was the favourite wife. Bring down something nice for we
But baffled by this chance meeting, I inquired: “Where is your husband When you coming.
now?” Ah go send you a list.
“Somewhere in the crowd”, she replied.
Then Meenakshi insisted, “I must be going, Professor”, as she hurriedly If anything will kill Harry
is that list
concealed her face behind the veil, and melted mysteriously into the swelling
They want IPod and DVD
crowd and the sweltering summer heat. designer jeans
Harry can’t buy for heself
Was I daydreaming? Or are times really changing?
Hundred dollar basketball shoe
Fancy sari from Gerrard Street
Maybe a nice digital camera
Not less than 5 megapixels
Gifts for about fifty people
90 year old aji
M arch 2007 Page 20
celebrate but knows well enough to recreate
in all its stifling corruption and ignorance. It
begins with the birth of the fourth child and
only son of Narpat, an eccentric sugar-cane
farmer in 1955
For the 400 people of
this isolated village,
Narpat is impossible
to ignore; for us, he's
impossible to forget.
A man of unflappable
conviction, he knows
exactly what's wrong
with the way everybody else eats, prays,
works and gardens. Poor Jeeves must sleep
on a mattress of twigs (improves circula-
tion) and subsist on his father's barely di-
gestible diet, which leaves him feeling
nauseated and flatulent much of the time.
Complaints only call down long harangues
about their neighbors' foolish taste for
sweets and alcohol. "Toxins," Narpat in-
sists. "Look at how much bloat-up people
it have in this crowd. Diabetes and stroke
just waiting to happen." His wife endures
unending labor in their decrepit house, but
Narpat thunders away every night about the
danger of sloth and ease. "What is the point
of this electricity nonsense," he harasses his
bored children, "when you could get the
brightest light from any gas lamp? No out-
age, no blackout, no monthly bill."
What more can one say? Read it.
and Mohan five nephew
Harry never see before.
And they waiting in the airport
with mini van to pick up
all them box Harry have to pay
overweight for.
Harry don’t get no vacation
when he go back home
Every little problem
waiting since last year
drop in Harry lap
Big brother from Canada will fix it.
Harry paying for everything too
He have to treat the family
When you have you must spend
Not so?
Harry say he need a family break
A break from the family
When the phone ring
use the call display
Let the machine take a message
Don’t answer for a week
Was out of town you know.
Let Boysie buy he own false teeth
or else enjoy some serious porridge.
Next vacation Harry
Heading for Cayo Largo, Cuba
Second honeymoon in the sun
Come back relaxed
Feeling good.
Them Spanish people really
appreciate your hard currency.
Now Harry have nothing against family
Family is everything
He might call them from Cuba to say so
But the phone system not so good
in Cayo Largo.
(From an upcoming collection of
30 poems on Indo-Caribbean Life)
SPORTS Indo-Caribbean Times M arch 2007 Page 21
CANADA A LONG SHOT TO RIA RAMNARINE As far as boxing goes, she waits on word

WIN CRICKET WORLD CUP

from the Ministry of Sports.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 It is too costly now for her and her man-
Barely making the minimum weight of 110 ager to finance the bouts. Her new job in a
pounds, Ria was at one of the worst disad- Metal Export Company as a Field Manager
CANADA is bravely sending down a Reyad Emrit vantages she’d ever been at in the ring. Yet takes up a lot of time, but she juggles it with
young team to the ICC Cricket World Cup Chris Gayle she was undisturbed and gallantly matched her training. “My job is paying my bills at
West Indies 2007 that begins in the Ryan Hinds gloves with the Box-Queen. the moment and though it can be difficult
Caribbean on March 11. But our chances Wavell Hinds Though Regina was stronger, Ria was giv- at times, I
are not very good against the cricketing gi- Sylvester Joseph ing a good account of herself when the ref- willingly
ants of the world. Rawl Lewis eree stopped the fight in the sixth round. make the
Thad includes the West Indies teamthat Dave Mohammed Ria was furious. The headbutt she had re- sacrifice. All
once ruled the cricket world, and is now Runako Morton ceived earlier caused a nosebleed but she the years
aiming to become the first host country to Daren Powell was fine and more than able to continue. “It into my
win the World Cup. Kieron Pollard was bizarre. I saw the tape and we won’t sport has
Nine countries are in the battle for the Cup Denesh Ramdin even in a clinch when the ref stopped it. Of paid off to
given to the best cricket team in the world. Darren Sammy course, they gave their own account and an extent but
The action starts with several warm up Marlon Samuels now it’s water under the bridge. But I must not to the fi-
matches from March 5-9 in several West In- say that like in all the other countries I nancial ex-
dian stadiums. After the opening ceremony fought, I gained respect. The fight fans sup- tent”! The
on March 11 the battles begin in ernest. ported their girl 200% but they also ap- athletic
In Group A the two top rated teams are plauded my efforts. It was certainly a Ramnarine
Australia and South Africa, followed by privilege to travel to Germany and fight the is an Hon-
Scotland and the Netherlands Boxing Goddess herself and I even got to orary Mem-
Group B has two powerhouses Sri Lanka Ramnaresh Sarwan meet my German penpal of over twelve ber of the
and India, plus Bangladesh and Bermuda Lendl Simmons years, Nina”. Sixth Trinidad Sea Scouts, Angel Fish Pa-
Group C has New Zealand and England as Devon Smith In October Ria retired from her job, citing trol and is a member of the KFC Angel and
the seeds, along with Kenya and Canada Dwayne Smith personal reasons. Hardly had she dealt with Saints Dragon Boat Racing Team. She goes
Group D has the powerful Pakistan team, Jerome Taylor this, when she gave up her world title on to the swimming pool whenever time per-
up and coming Zimbabwe, the West Indies Gavin Tonge November 7th. The glaring inequality in mits and has started participating in 5 Km
and Ireland treatment to the female boxers in Trinidad runs. (Though she jokingly admits she isn’t
MATCH SCHEDULE proved too much. The Sport Company of too much of a runner).
Canada’s Provisional Squad includes at T&T said she was not qualified for assis- Ria is often called upon to give motiva-
least one Indo-Caribbean player, Surendra Tue 13 Mar West Indies vs Pakistan tance; the same company that pumped over tional speeches at community events and
Seeraj, and several South Asians. The full a quarter million dollars into other womens’ particularly at Sports days. She received
squad is Wed 14 Mar Australia vs Scotland bouts. the Vocational Award from the Rotary Club
JM Davison (Captain) Kenya vs Canada The Ministry of Sports meted out very of Penal in 2006 and was nominated by the
IS Billcliff meagre amounts, ten to twelve thousand, WIBA for fighter of the year in 2006 as
DR Chumney Thu 15 Mar Sri Lanka vs Bermuda for her fights whereas they fully supported well.
Ashish Bagai Zimbabwe vs Ireland certain other womens’ bouts. Ria is still Because of her assertiveness and reliabil-
Austin Codrington awaiting (as of Feb 2007) a mere twelve ity, she is the Secretary of Fine Line Fight
O Henry Fri 16 Mar South Africa vs Netherlands thousand dollars from the Ministry of Cul- Club (where she trains) and is the Interim
GR Codrington England vs New Zealand ture and Gender Affairs that was promised Assistant Secretary for the Trinidad and To-
Sunil Dhaniram since December 2005. This is the very same bago Kick Boxing Federation. Additionally,
KT Sandher Sat 17 Mar India vs Bangladesh ministry that gave another female boxer Ria is trying to find the time to complete
DES Maxwell Pakistan vs Ireland sixty thousand dollars overnight after con- her course in Freelance Journalism, a dis-
PB Dassanayake tinuously supporting the very said boxer in tance learning option from The Writer’s Bu-
HS Dhillon Sun 18 Mar Australia vs The Netherlands all of her fights. (It is certain Ria is of the reau in England.
Umar Bhatti England vs Canada right gender, maybe she doesn’t have the Her dream is to win a kickboxing world
Geoffrey Barnett right culture). title, her only elusive goal. She believes she
Surendra Seeraj Mon 19 Mar India vs Bermuda Emphatically stating her fustrations, Ria has made her mark in boxing and is satis-
Steven Welsh West Indies vs Zimbabwe literally threw her world title belt in the fied with her black belt in Karate. As for a
Durand Soraine garbage can. Needless to say, it sparked husband and children, Ria doesn’t plan to
Brian Rajadurai Tue 20 Mar South Africa vs Scotland heavy controversy. For the next month, in- get married soon, if ever at all. “I don’t
Naresh Pratel New Zealand vs Kenya terviews through all media avenues were think I can get a guy to treat me the way my
Trevin Bistiampillai taking place. While some condemned her mother does, and no I am not spoilt, I just
Orson Thedore Wed 21 Mar Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh actions, most applauded it. She finally got earned the right to be pampered”, she smil-
Kendon Ottley Zimbabwe vs Pakistan to meet with the Minister of Sport, a year ingly quips. She loves kids but isn’t too in-
Gavin Bistiampilai and a half after winning her world title. It clined to have any of her own, not yet any
Jason Prataj Thu 22 Mar Scotland vs Netherlands took this sacrifice to get a hearing from the way.
Sandeep Jyoti New Zealand vs Canada Minister. After talks that were described as This young lady has certainly come a long
Qaiser Ali “fruitful” she is still awaiting answer on her way and has achieved what some others can
Abdool Samad Fri 23 Mar India vs Sri Lanka projections for 2007. only dream of. She is an intelligent person
Anderson Cummings West Indies vs Ireland Also taking place in 2006 was fulfillment whose outgoing yet quiet and humble de-
Ashif Mulla of a different kind. In the latter part of 2004 meanour makes her the people’s champion
Ashishkumar Pa Sat 24 Mar Australia vs South Africa and 2005, Ria was pooling her resources to- that she is. Her ethics and aptitude to face
England vs Kenya gether with her parents to build a new all challenges openly makes her a trainer’s
The West Indies Provisional Squad home. For the past fifteen years, they lived dream, a family’s idol and a people’s hero.
includes five Indo-Caribbeans, including Sun 25 Mar Bermuda vs Bangladesh in a wooden house without running water Her advice to Indian women and girls is
the ever dependable Chanderpaul, and electricity. Her siblings were now mar- simple. “Don’t ever be ashamed of your an-
After the first rounds two teams from each ried with families of their own so basically cestry and cultural background. Do not be
group advance to the Second Stage, the it was up to Ria to help her parents. afraid to step into areas where people think
Super Eight round. These will be placed in Taking a loan (which she and her father is Indians have no right to step into. Whatever
Antigua, Barbuda, Grenada, Guyana and still paying), she kickstarted plans for the you venture into, be it sports, music, aca-
Barbados from Tue 27 Mar -April 21. house. In January 2006, although it was in- demics or any other area, know that you
complete, Ria and her parents moved into have the right to do so. When you set your
Chanderpaul The Semi - Final Round goes on Tue 24 their new home. Whatever earnings she goals, pursue it wholeheartedly, without the
Apr with the playoffs between the second made, either from boxing or work, she put fear that others will condemn or criticise
The full squad is and third teams in the final four. it all into finishing the house. After the you. And most importantly, believe in your-
Brian Lara (Captain) Halmich bout, Ria was able to cover the self and the strenght and greatness of your
Omari Banks On Wed 25 Apr the last semifinal match cost of the electrical wiring, pay off the people.
Carlton Baugh takes place betwen the forst and fourth hardware bills and pay some money on the Generally, men respect Ria. Of course,
Ian Bradshaw teams. land. She had made good on her promise as there are those that heckle her about being
Dwayne Bravo a child. in a man’s sport. Indian men however are
Patrick Browne The Grand Final comes down in Barbados At present, the little giant is preparing for extremely proud of her, she has done what
Shivnarine Chanderpaul on Sat 28 April. a kickboxing world title bout that still has to no other Indian has been able to do in
Corey Collymore be confirmed. She prefers to be ready for a Trinidad and Tobago, take boxing to a next
Narsingh Deonarine fight that doesn’t take place rather than be level on an international stage and win a
Travis Dowlin unprepared for one which does take place. world title. She is their champion.
Fidel Edwards
SPORTS
SPORTS
Marker, All Fours by 100 in Scarborough!
OPEN the door of the Sugar Lounge any
Sunday after 1.00 pm and you are suddenly
no longer in cold Scarborough, Ontario.
You could be in Scarborough, Tobago, or
in any club in Chaguanas, Trinidad watch-
ing a hot All Fours tournament
A hundred familiar looking card players
(including up to 20 women) from the Metro
All Fours League are plunked down in dead
earnest around 25 tables . Most are from
Trinidad and Tobago but a few Guyanese,
Grenadians and St Lucians are in the
crowd. All Fours Caribbean style is alive
and well and kicking up its heels in
Toronto.
League president Mahadeo Sankar, known
as “Duce”to one and all, explains that All
Fours is an ideal game for Canada, where it
is played during the fall,winter and spring
each year. It’s full of competitive excite-
ment, requiring skill and intelligence rather
than just plain luck, and
provides plenty of social-
izing with friends from
the Caribbean. There’s no
better way to spend a Sun-
day afternoon than this,
not even Superbowl Sun-
day when the League
Sankar plays its championship
tournament with another All Fours league
from western Toronto.
The Metro All Fours League has come
through overwhelming odds and problems
to experience dramatic growth over the last
seven years. Sankar believes this is because
of their zero tolerance policy, high level of
discipline, working effectively together, im-
plementing the rules and their suspension
policy. The games are highly organized,
with strict rules, and no tolerance for swear-
ing and unsporstmanlike behaviour.
"We have done the foundation work to
make sure our league is a destination for
our members to play All Fours in a con-
genial and safe environment, and a destina-
tion for competing in elite championship
games. The best is yet to come."
Starting with four clubs, the Metro League
has expanded to the present 12 clubs, each
with around 15 players. It competes with
the slightly smaller Toronto All Fours As-
sociation (with eight clubs mostly in the
west of the city) in the Greater Toronto
Area for the Pride All Fours championship
of Toronto.
The League entered into that competition
starting in 2002 and held the title GTA All
Fours Champions for three years. Sankar
says one of its main tasks today is the de-
velopment of young players wishing to pro-
mote this Caribbean game in North
America.
There are All Fours players in Manitoba
and Alberta, and some years ago there was
talk of a western tour but it never material-
ized. For now, The Toronto leagues are con-
sidering fielding a team to tackle the best of
the Trinidad players. Guyanese do not play
much competitive All Fours, though there
is a similar game called “turupcharle”
For the future they are looking at owning
their own Club House, expanding their
web site www.metroallfours.com to be-
come an electronic communications centre,
and acquiring IT equipment to provide ef-
fective and efficient administrative work.
Metro also hosts an Annual Children's
Christmas Party, banquets, All-star Game,
and an Awards Presentation and Dance.
They usually take part in a tournemnt at the
annual Trinifest
The seven member executive headed by
Sankar is busy scouting out sponsors to
help expand the game to more Torontoni-
Indo-Caribbean Times M arch 2007 Page 22
Origin of All Fours
All Fours originated in England in the 17th
century and continues to be played in places
like Kent, and Lancashire. It was taken to
the USA by English settlers, and also to
Caribbean countries like Trinidad, the
Grenadines, and St Lucia where it was
picked up in the late 19th century. The is-
landers made some modification to the
game as the rule differs in each island. In
the early 20th century, the locals in Trinidad
developed a huge appetite for the game and
it spread through the island like wild fire.
Since then it has become the national card
game of Trinidad.
All Fours in Toronto
Caribbean students from Trinidad, St
Lucia, and Grenada who were attending the
University of Toronto introduced the game
to Toronto somewhere around 1960. As
time went by, the Caribbean population
grew and so did the game. A demand for
better organization and adequate facilities
became a priority, and gave rise to two
well-known Leagues, The Cutty”s All
Fours League and the Toronto All fours
Metro All Fours League players battle it out at the Sunday tournament League. In the late1980’s, the Ontario All
ans who are interested. The possibilities are If the dealer decides to keep the trumps as Fours league was formed, followed by the
great, since more than three quarters of the turned up, he says, "Take one"; the oppo- Metro All Fours League in 1994.
estimated 100,000 Trinis in Canada live in nents of the dealer receive one point and
tricks. The points are as follows:
or around the GTA. play begins. High 1 point, This point is won by the
To reach them contact Mahadeo Sankar at 1.If the dealer agrees to change the trump
647-299-3823 (cell) 416-298-9444 (work), suit, he sets aside the turned up card, deals
team of the player who had the highest
trump.
or Secretary Ramesh Chand at 416-473- three more cards to each player, and then
Low 1 point. This point is won by the
8730, by e-mail at metroallfours@hot- turns up the next card to determine the
team of the player who held the lowest
mail.com trump suit, scoring for it as above if it is an trump that was dealt. It does not matter who
ace, jack or six. wins the trick containing this trump - the
2.If this new turn up is of a different suit point is for the original holders.
than the first turn up, play begins with this Jack 1 or 3 points. If the jack of trumps
new suit as trumps. wins a trick, or is won in a trick by the part-
3.If the new turn up is the same suit as be- ner of the holder, the team with the jacks
fore, the dealer gives another three cards to scores 1 point. If the jack is captured in a
each player and turns up another card, scor-
THE RULES OF
trick won by the opponents of the holder,
ing again if it is an ace, jack or six. This the team capturing the jack scores 3 points
ALL FOURS
procedure is repeated until the turn up pro- for hang jack. If the jack of trumps was not
duces a new trump suit. dealt, then of course neither team scores for
4.If the deck is exhausted before a new it.
Players, cards and objective trump suit is found, the entire deck is Game 1 point. This point goes to the team
Normally there are four players, in two reshuffled and redealt. The dealer's team
that wins the more valuable cards in tricks.
fixed partnerships, partners sitting opposite nevertheless keeps any points they have
For this purpose only, the top five cards in
each other. A standard 52 card pack is used. scored for turned up cards.
each suit have the following values: ace = 4,
In each suit, the cards rank from high to Play king = 3, queen = 2, jack = 1, ten = 10;
low: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. The player on the dealer's right has the first other cards (2-9) have no value. Each team
The object of the game is to score points lead, and the winner of the trick leads to the
adds up the total value of the cards in their
by winning tricks with valuable cards in next trick. Any card can be led, but the
tricks, and whichever team has more scores
them. The player or team that takes more other players are subject to the following
the game point. If both teams have the same
valuable cards in tricks will score one point rules:
value of cards, no one gets the game point.
for "game". In addition, there are points for 5.If a trump is led, the other players must Each team keeps a cumulative total of
taking the jack of trumps in a trick, and for play a trump if they can; anyone who has
points they have won, and the first team to
the holders of the highest and lowest trumps no trumps left can play any card.
reach a total of 14 or more points over how-
dealt. It is also possible for the dealer's team 6.If a card of a non-trump suit is led, then ever many hands it takes wins the overall
to score points for the card turned up for any player who has a card of that suit must
game.
trumps during the deal. either follow suit, by playing a card of the When nearing the end of a game, the
Deal suit led, or play a trump. A player who has points are counted strictly in the order high,
Players cut for the deal, and whoever cuts no card of the suit led can play any card
low, jack, game to determine who has
the highest card becomes the first dealer. (there is no obligation to play a trump in
reached 14 first, so a tie is impossible. For
Deal and play are anticlockwise, and the this case).
example, suppose that at the start of a hand
turn to deal passes to the right after each 7.The trick is won by the highest trump both teams have 13 points, that no points
hand. Each player is dealt six cards. The card played to it; if no trumps are played it
are scored for the turned up trump, and the
dealer can choose whether to deal the cards is won by the highest card of the suit led.
trump suit is accepted. If team A has the
one at a time or in batches of three, but hav- Note that the effect of these rules is that is
highest trump, but team B win low, jack and
ing chosen must stick to the same method is always legal to play a trump. The only
game, then team A will win, because their
for the whole game. play that is prohibited is to throw a non- point for high takes them to 14 before the
When everyone has six cards, the dealer trump card of a different suit from the lead
other team can score.
turns the next card face up to indicate the when you could have followed suit. That
trump suit. If this turned up card is an ace, would be a revoke or renege, and is pe-
Irregularities
six or jack, the dealer's team immediately nalised as explained below.
Misdeal
scores for it as follows: Play continues until all players have If the dealer gives the wrong number of
Ace turned up 1 point, Six turned up 2 played all their cards. If the original trump
cards to the players, the opponents score
points, Jack turned up 3 points suit was accepted there will be six tricks, one point for a misdeal, and the cards
If the player on the dealer's right is happy but if a change of trump suit was begged for
must be thrown in and shuffled and dealt
with the trump suit that is shown by the turn and allowed, the players will have larger
again.
up, he says "Stand" and play begins. If the hands and there will be 9 or 12 tricks, or
Revoking - also called Reneging
player on the dealer's right would prefer a possibly even more in a two-player game.
This is playing a card of a non-trump
different trump suit, he says, "I beg". The Scoring
card of a different suit from the card that
dealer then has the option to change trumps At the end of the play, points are scored was led when you could have followed
or to keep the suit of the turned up card as for the cards that were dealt or taken in
suit.
trumps.
COMMENTARY
AKAASH MAHARAJ
FROM PAGE 1
Starting just two years ago, Akaash has
made it to the top tier of one of the world's
most obscure and challenging sports, ac-
cording to a story by Peter Cheney in the
Globe and Mail.
Although it sounds like a camping com-
petition, tent pegging is actually based on
the ancient military skill of skewering op-
ponents (both elephants and humans)
“I took up the sport in 2005 as a member
of the Governor General's Horse Guards. In
September 2006, two friends from the
Horse Guards and I recklessly entered the
US National Cavalry Competition in Ken-
tucky.
“Against all rationality, I took a red and a
blue ribbon in Mounted Sabre III and Mil-
itary Field Jumping II, respectively.
“Following results of the US games, I was
invited to represent Canada at the 2007 In-
ternational Tent Pegging Championships, to
be held in the Sultanate of Oman, 02-06
March.
“With tent pegging dominated by nations
with cavalry cultures, I will likely be the
only New World athlete at the champi-
onships, and I am conscious that I am a
novice in an ancient sport. Nevertheless, I
can imagine no higher athletic honour than
to carry the maple leaf in competition, and
I will embark for Oman parrying my deficit
of skill with a surplus of enthusiastic aban-
don, “ he says.
Best Wishes
and a Pledge of Support
to the Indo-Caribbean Times
Indo-Trinidad Canadian Association
Congratulations on the launch
of the
Indo-Caribbean Times
Gulcharan Mohabir, C.G.A.
Copies of the Bhagwad Gita may be ontained by calling 416-481-5777
Indo-Caribbean Times
Many believe tent pegging was invented in
the ancient Indian Empire, where war ele-
phants ruled the battlefield. Cavalry officers
came up with a bold tactic to neutralize the
elephants: By stabbing them in their sensi-
tive feet, the officers could make the ele-
phants fall, or rear up on their hind legs,
spilling off the humans from their backs.
How the art of precision stabbing became
known as "tent pegging" is a matter of de-
bate. Some believe it's because Indian cav-
aliers rode into enemy encampments at
night and collapsed the opposing army's
tents by slashing the support ropes.
Tent pegging has been practised at least
since the fourth century BC, but became a
competitive international sport only in the
20th century. Tent peggers compete on an
800-metre course, and must smite a series
of targets. There are three elements: Ground
Target, Suspended Target and Quintain
Charging, where competitors attack a bob-
bing mannequin. In Suspended Target, rid-
ers must skewer rings hanging at
approximately the height of a man's eye. In
Ground Target, they stab small foam bull's-
eyes set on the earth.
There are serious risks, as you might expect
with a sport that consists of riding a horse
while carrying deadly cutting instruments.
The swords and lances are razor-sharp:
"They're designed to inflict wounds that
don't heal," Mr. Maharaj notes.
The lance event presents its own fiendish
challenge. Stabbing a ground target with a
pointed steel rod nearly three metres long
calls for perfect control -- the slightest
bounce or miscalculation can result in the
lance jabbing into the earth and stopping
from the
M arch 2007
Akaash learned tent pegging while serving
with the Governor General’s Horse
Guards Cavalry Squadron
the rider dead as the horse gallops on, in a
catastrophe that looks like pole-vaulting
from horseback.
India is the world's reigning superpower of
tent pegging, with a cadre of professional
riders who dominate the international
scene. The Indian pros that Mr. Maharaj
will face next month in Oman enjoy bene-
fits that a Canadian tent pegger can only
dream of: They practise the sport full time,
as members of elite Indian Army cavalry
regiments. They also get corporate spon-
sorship -- many ride with the logos of firms
such as Rolex on banners attached to their
saddles.
Akaash pays for his own equipment and
Page 23
horses. Instead of sponsorships, he has
given the side of his horse over to UNICEF,
and serves as a spokesman in the agency's
fight against child labour.
He will have one special touch in the
championship. His equerry, or horse assis-
tant, will be Hal Jackman, former lieutenant
governor of Ontario.
He is not deterred by his lack of experi-
ence and sponsorship. "I don't have as many
resources," he says. "But that doesn't mean
I can't do well. I'm going to give it my very
best."
Military cavaliers have practiced tent peg-
ging for more than two-and-a-half millen-
nia, and it is one of only ten disciplines
officially recognised by the FEI, the global
governing body for Olympic and interna-
tional equestrianism. In March, I will rep-
resent Canada at the International Tent
Pegging Championships.
The most broadly accepted account of tent
pegging's birth is as battle drill in the Indian
Empire. The sport prepared horse cavaliers
to charge and fell war elephants through
finely placed lance strikes to the ponderous
beasts' vulnerable feet.
The mainstay of tent pegging remains
lancing ground targets. However, the sport
also includes: ring jousting (threading a
blade through suspended rings); lemon
sticking (slicing suspended targets); quin-
tain tilting (charging swivelling man-
nequins); Parthian (mounted) archery; and
cavalry revolver. All events are conducted
at a full gallop.
Akaash , has dedicated his team’s naming
rights to UNICEF . This is the first time a
Canadian is competing at this event. .

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