Articles - News

   St. Lucia is receiving international assistance in fighting crime from the governments of Taiwan and Britain, according to a report from the St. Lucian Ministry of Home Affairs and National Security.

   St Lucians in New York will kick off a weekend of activities, under the auspices of Lucian Power, to mark the island’s thirty-first Independence Anniversary this weekend. The activities will begin with a panel discussion on the island’s future and culminate with a gala, red carpet independence dance and celebration of music, culture and people at Lucian Paradise in Brooklyn New York.

The weekend of activities will begin on Friday February 19 and ends on February 21.

The panel discussions slated for Friday, February 19, will feature a number of economists and political scientists and members of the St Lucian Diaspora who are interested in the future of St Lucia.

The panel will discuss the way in which the pressures of economic globalization have affected the country as a sovereign nation and the need to reexamine what sovereignty and independence means as a small developing Caribbean state in light of these changes.

One of the problems panelists believe that adversely affects the St. Lucian economy is the taste and preference for imported foods over locally grown products which puts us at the mercy of importers, wholesalers and retailers.

The independence dance will take place on Saturday, February 20 at the St Lucian Paradise in Brooklyn, New York.

   As the issue of crime continues to occupy the minds of citizens, the minister responsible for national security has indicated that corporal punishment or hanging can be handed down by the judiciary in casting judgement in criminal matters.



In an exclusive interview with the GIS, Senator Mayers made it clear that hanging is still on the law books of Saint Lucia.



He says the use of the gallows can serve as a deterrent to increasing violent crimes.



“There has been a perception that government has abandoned corporal punishment and that hanging is no longer permitted in Saint Lucia but that is not the case. I have said on several occasions that we have nobody on death row at the moment but hanging is still an option open to the government, whenever there is somebody to execute.”



Senator Mayers says although he respects the independence of the judiciary, there is need for a review of the justice system to ensure that there is a time frame on how long a convicted criminal can remain on death row.



He says according to a Privy Council ruling, Saint Lucia's law, limits time on death row to five years after which the sentence is commuted to life in prison.



“We want to ensure that when, and if someone is sentenced to death through the High Court, that they are allowed to pursue all the options for appeal within a stipulated time and after they have exhausted all their appeals, we move swiftly to carry out the sentence. If that is done I think that will send a strong message to all the criminals that the government means business.”



The last hanging in Saint Lucia took place in October, 1995.

   Traveling to St Lucia, a visit to Pigeon Island is a must. Apart from being the home of the popular St Lucia Jazz Festival where the main events are staged, Pigeon Island is a national landmark and is the most historically diverse property as well as a part of the island’s National Trust. It is also the site of the National Trust head office. This national landmark is a scenic wonder set against a backdrop of blue seas, lush lawns and historic ruins which is opened for tours.

Pigeon Island is an island of 44 acres of land, It was once a separate island, joined to the main land by a man made causeway in the early 1970s and was once home to Amerindians and pirates. It was an 18th century naval garrison for French and British fleets and a hideout for revolutionary freedom fighters. In the 1900s, Pigeon Island was leased by a Vincentian whaling company, a British opera singer, and during the Second World War, by the United States Armed Forces.

Today, apart from being the home of St Lucia Jazz, it’s a major tourist attraction joined to the mainland by a regular road, flanked by the sea and the beach with its high-end hotel strip. Guided tours are held daily and they include a tour of the main building which houses an interactive museum, a walk through the old barracks and a trek up to the top of the fortress which offer spectacular views of St Lucia’s coastline of white sand beaches and luxurious resorts.

Pigeon Island is also the venue for a lot of weddings. The National Trust’s do arrange the necessary co-ordination which includes a minister or Registrar and transfers to a local lawyer for marriage licence formalities. They can also arrange photographers, musicians, flowers and receptions as well.

NATIONAL TRUST The Saint Lucia National Trust is a non-profit, non-governmental organization founded in 1975 to preserve buildings and objects of historical and architectural interest and areas of natural beauty along with their animal and plant life. The Trust manages 24 parks, nature reserves and other sites that are either owned by or vested in it. The Trust provides recreational and educational opportunities within these areas.

   The St Lucia Labour Party is sending signals that it might want to turn over a new leaf in its contentious relationship with the Taiwanese Embassy. But according to their political leader, there is still one major obstacle—the ambassador himself.

Opposition leader Dr Kenny Anthony has requested the recall and replacement of Taiwanese ambassador Tom Chou. His comments came at the open session of the 2010 St Lucia Labour Party convention held last weekend in Vieux Fort.

“We cannot engage in any dialogue with Tom Chou,” the opposition leader of the Taiwanese ambassador, just two weeks after Chou was named the St Lucia STAR Person of the Year.

“He has disrespected our laws, our people and our party. We have written to the president of the ruling party in Taiwan to request his recall.”

The Labour party made Chou a target of constant criticism ever since he first arrived in St Lucia and repeatedly criticized the ruling party’s decision to switch allegiances from Beijing to Taipei. However, at the convention last Sunday, Anthony seemed to be tweaking Labour’s policy on Taiwan while keeping Chou in the political crosshairs.

“We do not and have never opposed development assistance and support from Taiwan,” he emphasized. “We have repeatedly said that we welcome Taiwan’s assistance to this country, once such assistance is channeled through the Consolidated Fund in accordance with our financial laws.”
While it seems that Labour might be adopting a kinder, gentler policy toward Taiwan’s phenomenally successful suite of developmental assistance projects with St Lucia, Anthony’s comments make clear that Tom Chou himself remains under the microscope and under fire.

According to Anthony, “The government of Taiwan has now directed its ambassadors in the Eastern Caribbean to do precisely that. We will be watching Tom Chou closely to ensure that he implements the decision of his government.”

The Opposition Leader admitted that his own supporters have been questioning Labour’s somewhat militant dedication to the One China policy, saying “Some of you continue to ask about our refusal to engage the Taiwanese. The reason is simple.”

Labour says they can work with Taiwan but not with current ambassador Tom Chou.

Labour says they can work with Taiwan but not with current ambassador Tom Chou.
He explained that when Labour formalized relations with the mainland Chinese in 1997, they indicated to the outgoing Taiwanese Embassy officials that they were free to stay in St Lucia, although without official diplomatic recognition and status.

“They decided to withdraw,” he said.
Fast forward to 2007 when the new UWP government switched back to Taiwan: “That decision was the source of a bitter internal struggle in the cabinet of the United Workers Party,” Anthony said, adding quite ominously, “It precipitated the death of Sir John.”

Anthony accused the Taiwanese ambassador of ignoring all diplomatic courtesies and protocols upon his arrival in St Lucia and embarking on a course of action that deliberately interfered in local politics. The accusations ranged from the serious (the red envelopes affair, the disbursement of millions of dollars directly to UWP parliamentarians) to the forgivable (not calling on the opposition leader as he did with the prime minister, the Governor General and other local office holders) to the downright laughable (“behaving as the public relations officer of the UWP” and inviting the opposition to the opening of the Wellness Center instead of allowing the government to do it.)

“It is normal for all accredited diplomats to request a meeting with the leader of the opposition,” Anthony complained. “Tom Chou never did so.”

But would Anthony, a devout acolyte of the One China policy, have met with Chou, even if the ambassador had requested a meeting?

“It is irrelevant whether I would have agreed to meet him,” Anthony replied, anticipating the question. “Diplomatic courtesy commands him to ask for a meeting.”

The opposition leader characterized the Taiwanese ambassador’s actions as disrespectful and disdainful, singling him out as the problem that Labour has with Taiwan.

“The dangers of giving the likes of Tom Chou absolute freedom to do as they please can be seen from here,” he said, pointing to a recent Taiwanese assistance project near the Vieux Fort Primary School. “They financed this wall around the Vieux Fort field named by Vieux Fortians “the great wall of Taipei.” They dealt directly with Mr Chi—Michael Chitolie, the chairman of the Vieux Fort Town Council. The great wall of Taipei is unfinished. Sixty thousand dollars have mysteriously disappeared.

“Tom Chou is the principal hindrance to establishing a relationship of mutual respect with the representatives of the Taiwan government,” he added. “Once Tom Chou is recalled, the St Lucia Labour Party can consider a new beginning in our relationship with Taiwan.”