THE traditional lighting up of the City of Castries popularly known as the Festival of Lights will be observed Monday night with the theme “Celebrate Light, Celebrate Jesus”. This is the time of year when the Castries Constituency Council, in collaboration with other partners, decorate the commercial center of the capital with Christmas lights and themes signifying the birth of Jesus Christ.
IN the continued vein of community development and the creation of sustainable employment, the Soufriere Regional Development Foundation (SRDF), officially opened and endorsed an entrance to the Gros Piton Nature Tail through the AnseL’Ivorgne Beach on Thursday. The new hiking experience encapsulates a unique adventure in which visitors are now graced with an option through which to experience the allure of the world renowned Gros Piton climb from sea level, in addition to experiencing an adventurous sea excursion and a pristine beach with therapeutic surroundings.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC -The police force has announced plans to increase stop-and-search operations during the festive season. Head of the Corporate Communications Unit (CCU) of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), Superintendent Stephanie Lindsay, said there will be a surge in the number of police on the ground during the festive season to counter the increase in robberies and the large migration of criminals at this time of year.
HAVANA, Cuba, CMC – The Cuban government has given two of the world’s largest cruise lines – Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd, permission to begin sailing to the island. On Wednesday, Norwegian said the Marina, part of its Oceania Cruise lines, will sale from Miami on March 7, 2017.
ONE of the elements of the Festival of Lights is the lantern competition and this year the effort has been boosted with a $5,000 donation and 100 traditional Taiwanese unicorn lanterns to the Castries Constituency Council from the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan).
A blunder of national magnitude was displayed for all to see in front of the GreahamLouisy Building along the Castries Waterfront on Thursday morning, after the national flag was seen hoisted up on a flagpole upside down. The blunder was spotted by the President of the Media Association of St. Lucia, Miguel Fevriere as he drove to work on the cloudy morning.
![Hilaire [Photo: Stan Bishop]](https://thevoiceslu.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Hilaire-mid-600x400.jpg)
THE St. Lucia government says it had no choice but to follow other Eastern Caribbean States in launching a Citizenship by Investment (CIP) programme here. “It means that a person can get a passport from Dominica for EC$100,000 or get a passport from Grenada, St Kitts or Antigua and have the full rights of being here. They got OECS citizenship,” Prime Minister Allen Chastanet said, noting that some of the Chinese nationals who came here to open restaurants, received their passports through Dominica.
THE National Television Network (NTN) is rebroadcasting the documentary series the OECS: The Founders. The six part series on the early history of the OECS premiered on NTN on Monday, 24th October 2016 and has received very positive reviews.
CASTRIES Mayor Peterson Francis has vowed to make the city safer by establishing a 50-strong constabulary force. The current 12 member constabulary will get an injection of 18 more into members by year end, said to Francis Thursday at a press conference. The move by the Council to beef up its security force comes as a result of two shooting incidents within the city’s borders earlier this week, one of which resulted in the death of 27 year old Shane Emmanuel of City Gate.
MASSY United Insurance has made a donation to the Sir John Compton Memorial Foundation. Traditionally, at Christmas time, Massy United would express their appreciation for the support and patronage of their clientele with a token gift of thanks. This year, however, the decision was made to celebrate the spirit of the season of giving by sharing with those less fortunate in the community they serve.
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, Dec 7, CMC – Grenada police have raided a number of business places here confiscating military type clothing and warning against its importation as well as “explosive” fireworks during the Christmas Season. Head of the Community Relations of the Police Force, Sylvan McIntyre, said that as part of the operations, “all things’ illegal will be seized.
KIDNEY disease is very prevalent in St. Lucia and according to official records, nearly 120 persons are now undergoing dialysis treatment at the three main medical institutions on the island including Tapion Hospital. This is startling for a country with a population of just over 170,000 where resources are scarce and most importantly, there are nearly an equal number of persons waiting for an opportunity to receive treatment from just 17 dialysis machines at Victoria and St. Jude Hospitals .
A recent traffic accident at Banse, Laborie, where a truck driver lost control of his vehicle which veered off the road and plunged down a precipice, has renewed calls by residents for the Ministry of Infrastructure to make the road safer for users. Over the years, there have been several accidents at a particular bend along the road where people have narrowly escaped death. The situation is of grave concern to residents of the area, especially those living near the bend.
THE National Housing Corporation (NHC) is looking at the development of house lots in Forestiere as the vehicle through which it will dig itself out of the financial mess it presently is in. The Corporation is in a position where it cannot pay its bills due to several matters before the courts arising from deals and agreements with contractors and companies that either did not materialize or fell through leaving the Corporation to deal with the expenses generated.
A Vieux Fort man is in critical condition at St Jude Hospital after suffering severe burns in a domestic incident. Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident which resulted in 68 year old male resident of St. Jude’s Highway, being admitted to the St. Jude Hospital for treatment with severe burns about his body.
The Grenada Airports Authority (GAA) officially opened an Aviation Training Centre at the Maurice Bishop International Airport on November 29th, …
In a true demonstration of regional partnership, two CARICOM institutions have taken an important step to formalize their relationship towards …
The Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) donated $5,000 and 100 traditional Taiwanese unicorn lanterns to the Castries Constituency …
A COLLECTIONtaken at the recent funeral ceremony of a dementia patient is to go towards financing training for care-givers of the newly-formed St. Lucia Alzheimer’s & Dementia Association (SLADA). The collection was taken up during the funeral service of the late Leotha St Jour held at Our Lady of Fatima Church in La Clery.
A warm Saint Lucian welcome has officially been extended to the sailors who have braved the high seas and successfully finished the 2700 nautical mile trans-oceanic ARC race from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria via the Cape Verde Islands to the IGY Rodney Bay Marina. On Sunday evening, steel pan music to the tune of well-known Christmas hits by local artistes filled the marina air entertaining over forty ARC+ yachts and ARC crews who are already on island. The event would not be complete without a kick of locally made rum punch and delectable treats packed with a generous dose of St Lucian flavour.