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THIS WEEK”S SUMMARY
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SIMPSON-MILLER APPEALS FOR HAITI AID—01/16/10

Portia Simpson Miller, leader of the Opposition, has appealed for help for the women, elderly, disabled, and youth of Haiti. After seeing the “vast number” of people who are sitting in the rubble of Haiti’s capital, Simpson Miller returned to Jamaica to make her special plea.

JAMAICANS SUPPORT HAITI WITH CASH, SERVICES—01/17/10

Jamaica’s citizens continue to support Haiti after the devastating earthquake left thousands there injured and homeless. The RJR Communications Group has established a Haiti Crisis Fund, which collected more than $6 million in cash in three days. The fund began with $250,000 and received large and small deposits from Jamaicans. Jamaicans are also helping aid agencies with hands-on efforts.

GAY GERMAN GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVE OPPOSES JAMAICAN MUSIC—01/17/10

Clyde McKenzie, German representative, joined with other is discussing the lessening popularity of Jamaican musical acts overseas. There was a panel discussion sponsored by Kesselhaus, which will be broadcast February 23, 2010 in Berlin with various representatives from the political and artist arenas. A performance by Sizzla was cancelled in Kesselhaus in November 2009 in protest of the music.

VIVIAN JACKSON, MUSIC PRODUCER AND ARTIST, DIES—01/18/10

Vivian Jackson, one of the forces behind reggae music in the 1970s, has died at the age of 63. The producer and recording artist was known by the name Yabby You when he was influential in the Kingston music scene. He formed the Prophets group in 1971. Jackson died after suffering an aneurysm on January 12, 2010. 

JIMMY CLIFF DONATES ARTIFACTS TO HALL OF FAME—01/19/10

Jamaican singer Jimmy Cliff has donated memorabilia to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ahead of his induction scheduled for March 15, 2010. He will be the second Jamaican to be represented in the prestigious hall. Bob Marley was inducted in 1994.

P.J. PATTERSON TO HELP WITH HAITI RECOVERY—01/20/10

P.J. Patterson, former Prime Minister of Jamaica, will be the representative of the Caribbean Community on an international committee tasked with creating a recovery plan for Haiti in the wake of the devastating earthquake. Prime Minister Bruce Golding says Patterson has signed on to be a member of the Coordinating Committee, which was suggested at a donors’ meeting in Santo Domingo.

JAMAICA LOOKS FOR FUNDS TO HELP WITH HAITIAN REFUGEES—01/21/10

The Jamaican government expects a large number of people to travel to the island from earthquake-ravaged Haiti. Therefore, the government is seeking international donors to help provide the millions of dollars it will take to house and care for these individuals. The administration of Bruce Golding may receive considerable aid from the United States, which has indicated its willingness to help Jamaica with its relief efforts through Hillary Clinton, U.S. Secretary of State.

QUALITY LUMBER SCAM REVEALED—01/22/10

Police in Jamaica have discovered a plan to cut down Jamaica’s indigenous trees in one of the island’s forest preserves. The lumber from these trees is being sold to foreign high-end furniture manufacturers for millions of dollars. While no arrests have been made to date, police and the Forestry Department have seized illegal lumber valued at over $3 million. Much of the lumber goes to Bermuda, a lucrative market for the product.

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JAMAICAN DIASPORA NEWS
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KENYA WANTS RADICAL JAMAICAN CLERIC DEPORTED IMMEDIATELY—01/17/10

The government of Kenya wants Abdullah al-Faisal, a radical Muslin cleric who is on a global terror watch list, deported immediately. The cleric, who also served four years in Britain for inciting radical hatred, had been held in Kenya after authorities tried but failed to deport him. His presence in the country is the source of “terrible misunderstanding” that has led to property destruction and injury, according to George Saitoti, Kenya’s Interior Minister. Five people were killed in riots in which Muslim youths protested al-Faisal’s deportation and threw rocks at police.

GOVERNMENT HELPS JAMAICANS STRANDED IN HAITI—01/19/10

Over 30 Jamaica citizens were stranded in Haiti after the earthquake, but made it home to the island after the Jamaican government airlifted them from Port-au-Prince. Information Minister Daryl Vaz confirmed that among those returning from Haiti were 23 employees of Digicel, four employees of the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority, and five others.

JAMAICAN MINOR SENTENCED IN COSTA RICA—01/20/10

A private trial held in Costa Rica has sentenced a Jamaican minor to 32 years for killing a government agent. Randall Lopez, an agent of the Organismo de Investigacion Judicial, was killed in a shootout with gang members in Escazu. The trial was private because the accused was a minor.

KERR QUALIFIES FOR WINTER OLYMPICS—01/21/10

Errol Kerr of Truckee, California, has officially qualified as a member of Jamaica’s Olympic ski team. Kerr, who has a Jamaica father, will be the first medal contender at the Winter Olympics for Jamaica. Kerr has long dreamed of representing Jamaica in the Winter games. 

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CARIBBEAN NEWS SUMMARY
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PREVAL SAYS HAITI IS LIKE “A WAR ZONE”—01/16/10

Haiti’s president Rene Preval says he is thankful for the aid pouring into his poor country after the 7.0 earthquake. Preval, 66, is living and working in the police station in Port-au-Prince after the Presidential Palace and his home were destroyed in the quake. Preval says the nation is “like a war zone” and that the damage is akin to what would have occurred if it had been bombed for 15 days. Preval also said that 75 percent of Port-au-Prince would have to be rebuilt.

INTERNATIONAL HELP INTENSIFIES FOR HAITI RELIEF—01/17/10

The international community has rallied to increase the relief efforts aimed at helping Haiti recover from the 7.0 earthquake. A jumbo jet with 90 tons of emergency humanitarian supplies was sent from Beijing, while peacekeepers from the United Nations distributed bottles of water to the thousands of people living among the rubble. Some $1.9 million worth of tents, stretchers, food, medicine, clothing, and water purification equipment was sent from China.

CAYMAN ISLANDS ENDURES EARTHQUAKE—01/19/10

The Cayman Islands were shaken by a 5.8 magnitude earthquake, but no serious injuries or damage were reported. Small quakes are common in the area, but residents of the Cayman were on edge because of the 7.0 quake that recently hit Haiti. Buildings shook in the capital of the Caymans, George Town.

LEGISLATOR WANTS AMENSTY FOR HAITIANS—01/20/10

A Caribbean legislator has called for “total amnesty” for Haitians. Jamaican-born Nick Perry, who represents the 58th assembly district in Brooklyn, New York, said the temporary protected status granted to thousands of Haitians living illegally in the United States is not long enough. Perry thinks the best thing the U.S. can do to help Haitians is to grant total amnesty quickly. Perry’s district is predominately of Caribbean origin.

HAITIAN FOOTBALL TEAM IMPACTED BY EARTHQUAKE—01/21/10

Thirty individuals linked to the Haitian Football Federation and its national team have died in the earthquake, according to Dr. Jean Bart, the federation’s president. The FIFA and CONCACAF organized a fact-finding mission to determine the extent of the effect of the earthquake on Haiti’s football organizations. The 30 deaths have been confirmed, and many coaches, players, referees, and other officials are still missing in Port-au-Prince.

U.S. NOT TAKING OVER HAITI—01/22/10

United States President Barack Obama says that his country will not ignore problems in Haiti, but that it does not want to seem as if his government is “taking over” the Caribbean nation. The Haitian government has been “paralyzed” by the quake, but the U.S. only wants to help with the rebuilding efforts and has no plans to take over, says Obama.

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SPORTS
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WILMOT WINS SURFING EVENT—01/18/10

The first event of the 2010 National Open Series of the Jamaica Surfing Association represents a victory for Inilek Wilmot, who won the Lighthouse stage of the competition. Wilmot, a Jamaican and brother of 2009 National Open champion Icah Wilmot, took 1,000 points for the win and leads in the five-event series. 

JAMAICA WINS SECOND ROUND DESPITE MORTON—01/19/10

Runako Morton will return to the West Indies Cricket Team in its tour of Australia, and he made a valiant effort in the Regional 4-day competition at St. Kitts, but he could not stop Jamaica from taking the victory. Morton battled Jamaican bowlers Nikita Miller and Odean Brown and batted 108, but it was not enough to take the win from Jamaica.

JAMAICAN SPRINTER IN IAAF LIMBO—01/20/10

Sheri-Ann Brooks, Jamaican sprinter, is still unsure of her immediate future as she awaits a final determination from the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). Brooks remains “haunted” by a drug-testing controversy that stopped her from representing Jamaica in the World Championships in August 2009. Brooks, 26, will not compete until she gets official clearance from the association. Brooks has been cleared by Jamaica, but her fate remains uncertain.

JAMAICA TO HOST FIRST TRI-NATION POLO TOURNAMENT FOR WOMEN—01/21/10

Jamaica is scheduled to host the ICWI’s Tri-Nation Ladies Polo Tournament. The tournament dates from 1988 and is held every year. This tournament in Jamaica reflects a first-of-its-kind format in the region, however. Only Africa has hosted a tri-nation series. According to Paul Lalor, secretary of the Jamaica Polo Association and the Kingston Polo Club, the increasing number of polo players in Jamaica led to the change in format. 

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DEVOTIONAL
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More Than You Can Bear?

“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13, NIV)

In recent times, I have had reasons to wonder if in fact, God does give us more than we can bear. Whether in our personal lives or in that of others around us, misfortune and tragedy seem to often strike without discrimination. Jobs are lost, financial problems appear, families are broken up, loved ones become sick and in some cases they die, our spiritual lives hit the skids, and the devil seem to be the only one laughing. 

Because the word of God is infallible, we can take consolation in the fact that we are never given more than we can bear. In our reference text we read, “And God is faithful; [H]e will not let you be tempted (tested) beyond what you can bear.” No one had more reasons than Job, “the greatest man among all the people of the East” (Job 1:3b), to doubt the truth of this statement. In chapters 1 and 2 of the book bearing his name, we read of his devastating trials. He lost all he had; 10 children, 7000 sheep, 3000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 donkeys, and all but one of his servants. If that wasn’t enough, he was then afflicted with painful sores covering his entire body. Lest we think that he had sinned, in Ch 1:1 we read that he “was blameless and upright, he feared God and shunned evil”!

It is important to know that God gave Satan permission to test Job, but in granting such permission, He placed limits on how far Satan could go (Job 1:12, 2:6). For the child of God, this is of absolute importance. Regardless of our circumstances, God has the devil on a leash! As in the case of Job, He will only allow us to be tested to the extent that He trusts us to overcome. In Jude 24 we read, “To [H]im who is able to keep us from falling...” Sure it does seem like our trials and afflictions are more than we can bear, and indeed more than we deserve, but nevertheless, God is faithful in that He will provide a way for us to "stand up under it."

As children of God, we can rest assured that nothing will happen to us without our Heavenly Father’s permission. If He allows it, He will enable us to overcome. Are you in His care? Do you trust Him to take care of you? When the storms of life are raging, there is no better place to be than in the safe, and more than capable, arms of God. With Him, all things are possible and in Him, victory is guaranteed.

CEW

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CREDITS/SOURCES
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The weekly news is compilation of new articles from top Caribbean and Jamaican news sources.