Nevis Island News and Notes

Caribbean Islands Warned About HIV/AIDS

St. Kitts – Nevis PM At HIV/AIDS Confeence
Photo By Erasmus Williams

Basseterre, St. Kitts – Nevis
August 07, 2008 (CUOPM)

A warning from St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas at the 17th International AIDS Conference to Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries that it would not be business as usual in their efforts to achieve the goals associated with universal access.

Prime Minister Douglas is also chairman of the Pan Caribbean Partnership against HIV/AIDS (PANCAP), said while there were many success stories in the HIV/AIDS fight in the Caribbean, several challenges remained.

The Caribbean remains second only to sub-Saharan Africa that has two-thirds or 67 per cent of all people living with HIV worldwide.

UNAIDS says an estimated 20,000 persons in the Caribbean were infected last year with the disease and some 14,000 died of AIDS-related illnesses last year.

“Many successes have been achieved in individual Caribbean countries in areas such as care and treatment and prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV. However, as a region there is no certainty that we will achieve universal access goals if we continue to do business as usual,”

Oualie Beach Resort Hotel – Nevis Island

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
August 07, 2008 (CUOPM)

Small hotels in the Caribbean need to better prepare themselves to serve individual niche markets with a more personalized experience, says St. Kitts and Nevis‘ Minister of State for Tourism, Sen. the Hon. Ricky Skerritt.

Minister Skerritt made the remark ahead of the Caribbean Hotels Retreat to be held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort & Royal Beach Casino from Oct. 1-3, 2008.

“With the majority of hotel properties in St Kitts & Nevis falling within the small hotel category, it will be beneficial to our hoteliers that we host the small hotels conference this coming October. St. Kitts & Nevis offers a range of product from high-end Plantation Inns to more mid-market hotels and dive resorts in our small hotels product line,” said Sen. Skerritt.

He said that as a former Board member of a small hotel, “I appreciate the peculiar challenges that small hotels face in an increasingly competitive market, but I also believe that our small hotels need to better prepare and position themselves to serve individual niche markets with a more personalized experience.”

“Serving the needs of the small and independent hoteliers” is the theme for the small hoteliers to be held by the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA), in conjunction with the St. Kitts & Nevis Hotel & Tourism Association.

MSC Cruise Lines – Cruise Ship Orchestra

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
August 06 2008 (CUOPM)

More good news for cruise tourism in the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis.

It has been announced that MSC Cruises, the fastest growing cruise line with the youngest fleet, will have one of its two new ships calling at St. Kitts’ Port Zante during the 2009-2010 cruise ship season.

MSC Cruises’ newest ships will join the Caribbean lineup with a series of seven- and 10-night sailings throughout the region.

The MSC Poesia will arrive in Fort Lauderdale on Nov. 10, 2009, following a 17-night transatlantic crossing. The Poesia will depart North American waters on March 9, 2010, on an island-hopping return cruise before arriving in Venice on March 26.

The MSC Magnifica will be christened in Hamburg, Germany, on Dec. 5, 2009, and will depart two days later on a 19-night “Grand Passage to the New World” itinerary.

The Magnifica “Tropical Splendors, European Charm” — 10-night Southeast Caribbean departs Nov. 30, 2009, Jan. 8 and 28, 2010, calling at Puerto Rico, St. Kitts, Barbados, Martinique, St. Maarten and the Bahamas.

The Magnifica will leave the Caribbean on April 24, 2009, for a 19-night Atlantic crossing that will arrive in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Nevis Culturama Queen 2008 – Tanisha Hendrickson

Charlestown, Nevis
August 06, 2008

An official of Nevis‘ 34th annual cultural festival, Culturama 2008, described the just concluded summer event as successful.

Chairman Mr. Halsted “Sooty” Byron told the Department of Information on Monday August 06, 2008, that preliminary indications were that the event from July 25 to August 5, 2008, held under the theme “Participate make it great Culturama 2K8” and the patronage of multi folklorist Mr. Norman Liburd went well.

“I thought Culturama was very successful. Generally speaking beside a few skirmishes the event went well. We had a nice build up to Culturama with the street bashments leading up to the start of the festival. We had great support from the public who came to listen to the local bands.

“We were quite pleased with the high quality and content of all the shows. We were a little disappointed in the attendance at the Cultural Complex, the attendance was not as good as we expected but the Band Clash on August 01 and the Buju Banton Freedom Concert on August 04, were massive crowds in the Cultural Village,” he said.

Mr. Byron referred to the Festival’s Food Fair as “big and well organised” with a record 40 booths and an art and craft section.

With regard to the J’Ouvert jump up he said it was the biggest Nevis had seen in the history of the Festival.

“J’Ouvert Emancipation Jump Up, was probably one of the best and biggest we have had; so too was the Cultural Street Parade,” he said.

A Press Release issued by the Culturama Secretariat on July 06, 2008, indicated that the Bmobile Ms. Culture Swim Wear Contest Best One-Piece and Best Two-Piece were captured by Ms. Tanisha Hendrickson while Ms. Shanyra Richardson won Best Cultural Wear.

Commemoration Wreath For Christena Ferry Disaster

Charlestown, Nevis
August 5th,2008

The Premier of Nevis, the Hon. Joseph Parry, the Nevis Island Cabinet and a number of Nevisians observed the 38th Anniversary of the MV Christena Disaster with a memorial service onboard the MV Sea Hustler on Friday, August 1st, 2008.

“I feel a great sense of loss and heaviness of heart; because this event brings back such bad memories. Many of us lost friends and family members; but out of that great loss came great progress for Nevis,” said Premier Parry.

The Memorial Service not only observed the 236 persons who lost their lives on the M.V Christena on August 1st 1970, but it also recognized the ninety passengers who survived the ill fated trip.

Premier Parry noted during his remarks, that many Nevisians were traumatized and because of that pain a number of people left the island. “During those hard days, the population went from about 15,000 to about 8,000, simply because people could not stand to feel the pain, many people left the island. Of those who stayed around, many developed mental problems. There were no psychiatrists on the island and the pain became so much that they could not stand to be in Nevis anymore. However, with the strength and belief in God we survived.”

Following Parry’s speech, a moment of silence was observed; then the M.V Sea Hustler passed the site where a brightly decorated box with a wreath was laid beforehand by Captain of the M.V Sea Hustler, Mr. Winston “˜Sonny Boy’ Skeete, as he has done for the last few years since the Christena Disaster.

Caribbean Islands Warned About HIV/AIDS

St. Kitts – Nevis To Host Caribbean Hotelier Conference

MSC Orchestra Cruise Ship To Call On St. Kitts – Nevis

Nevis Culturama 2008 A Rocking Success

St. Kitts – Nevis Commemorates Christena Ferry Disaster