By Ashley Anthony As a young woman just having finished CAPE, the first question off the tip of the tongue of every person I encounter is the same; “So, what’s next?” This is a deceptively simple question. It seems as though, by the age of 18, we are expected to know what we want to do for the rest of our lives. I think the truest tragedy that we face as young people is ignorance. There is a great pressure for us to know what our next step is without…
Read MoreMonth: August 2017
African Proverbs
Proverbs are an integral part of African culture, notes the BBC. Passed on from generation to generation for centuries, they are still in wide use today and are very much part of everyday speech. Proverbs are used to illustrate ideas, reinforce arguments and deliver messages of inspiration, consolation, celebration and advice. The great Nigerian author Chinua Achebe once wrote: “Proverbs are the palm oil with which words are eaten.” Here are a few proverbs to ponder on: “Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable” – (Kenya) “Wood already touched by fire…
Read MoreEmancipation
By Anu Dev… No slavery can be abolished without a double emancipation, and the master will benefit by freedom more than the freed-man – Thomas Huxley On August 1st, we celebrated Emancipation Day! Slavery was abolished 183 years ago. 183 years! But yet, oftentimes, I wonder what has happened to the promise of that seminal event. Studying Caribbean History back at Queen’s, we spent a lot of time learning about conditions on the sugar plantations during slavery and after Emancipation. It was a descent into horror. It was an…
Read MoreHonouring an African Country: Democratic Republic of Congo
The African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA) honours an African country annually in celebration of Emancipation Day. This is done because most Guyanese of African descent cannot trace their ancestral roots to a particular African nation. In choosing a particular African country to highlight every year, ACDA seeks to educate young and old about African countries and to remind them that Africa has 54 countries and is not a single country like China or India or the United States. Traditionally, ACDA honours an African country every Emancipation Festival by building…
Read MoreThe threat of NCDs
By Jainarine Deonauth The issue of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and the impact they are having on countries, particularly those in the Caribbean region, recently took the spotlight once again when a leading health expert, Dr Alafia Samuels, disclosed that, based on a recent study, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago were found to have the highest mortality for premature cardiovascular disease and diabetes in the Americas. For Guyana, in particular, this is indeed quite worrisome, and must serve as a wake-up call for the authorities here to take the issue of…
Read MoreJilted T&T man to hang for murdering ex-wife, lover
A jilted husband and his friend were sentenced to death by hanging on Monday, for soliciting and contracting a hitman to murder the man’s ex-wife and her lover for $30,000 some 11 years ago. Basdeo “Bas” Ramlochan and Siewkumar “Bobby” Chankapersad remained stone faced when Justice Malcolm Holdip twice sentenced them to death, but their relatives broke down in tears in the San Fernando First Assizes. Their sobs, however, escalated into piercing screams as they stepped out of the courtroom. It took the 12-member jury less than an hour to…
Read MoreBerbice youth cricketer Umrao receives sponsorship from US-based Guyanese
Gifted Albion Cricket Club, Berbice and National U-17 left arm spinner and lower order batsman Kelvin Umrao is the latest young Berbice cricketer to receive sponsorship from Guyanese living in New York. The career of Umrao, like other young promising cricketers from Berbice, is being closely followed by a group of Guyanese living in the State of New York, USA and in response to his rapid progress and discipline; he was presented with a bag of cricket gears to assist with his further development. The gears consist of one cricket…
Read MoreWarriors’ Khan plans to cause nightmare for opponents
By Akeem Greene Since his introduction on the international scene for Afghanistan, Rashid Khan has been touted as the teenage leg-spinning sensation who bamboozles batsmen with cutting edge accuracy and guile. Now suiting up for the Guyana Amazon Warriors for the fifth edition of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), which begins on August 4, Khan is planning on causing more nightmares for opposition batsmen. Khan’s career has been on the upswing since making his T20 International debut in October 2015. He boasts figures of 5 runs for 3 wickets…
Read MoreWarriors ready for battle
Guyana Amazon Warriors showed that they are well prepared in final practice match with convincing win over a Select XI on Tuesday at the National Stadium. The Warriors recorded their highest score of 160-5 in 20 overs then returned to restrict their counterparts to 88-7 in 20 overs to claim their only success in three practice matches before they departed for Florida on Wednesday. Opener Martin Guptill led the way for the Warriors with 47 from 25 balls inclusive of two sixes and six fours while receiving support from Jason…
Read More12-yr-old wins trip to Spain to train with FC Barcelona
…courtesy of Nestle Milo Twelve-year-old Martin King has won the chance of a lifetime — to train with Futbol Club Barcelona in Spain. It is a chance most adults only dream about. King, coincidentally, was the last child to register for the Nestle Milo-sponsored Skills Tournament for children in the Caribbean. The children were made to go through three skill sets: dribbling, short passing and control. As they went through the drills, they were judged based on skill and accuracy, and were awarded points based on their performances. Called “Messi”…
Read More