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JULY 1 - ALL EYES ON US NUMBERS Infection rates and mass protests raise reopening concern By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest has acknowledged concerns that ongoing protests and other factors in the United States may lead to an increase in COVID-19 cases there and have an impact on the country’s July 1 date for resuming commercial travel. “Unfortunately as you all know a lot of the recovery is dependent upon the US and what’s happening with the travel leisure market there and there is concern that

the virus may be returning, particularly with all of the protests that are going on in the US,”, Mr Turnquest said outside Cabinet. “There’s concerns that there may be an increased spread and that will show up in the next couple of weeks and so that will have a lot of impact upon our reopening on July 1. “Even as we will have to reconsider what that may mean for that July 1 start date, but as it stands we anticipate reopening the border on July 1 and we are

SOME parents have reacted with fury at news that the national high school exams will take place next month after weeks of uncertainty, fearing the irregularity caused by the COVID-19 crisis will doom the performances of their children. For some parents on Grand Cay, the impending exams are worrying because Hurricane Dorian left them

SEE PAGE FIVE

SEE PAGE EIGHT

‘TIME TO BIN COLUMBUS MEMORIAL’

SEE PAGE TWO

DPP WANTS NEW TRIAL FOR VASYLI

SEE PAGE FIVE

without pivotal educational resources like access to the internet. Hurricane Dorian damaged the island’s telecommunications infrastructure in 2019 and meaningful repairs did not take place until mid-April of this year. Although many students left the cay after the hurricane last year, some returned there when schools closed on March 14 because of COVID-19. For more than a month they

PLEASE STOP TREATING US WITH CONTEMPT

A PETITION to remove the Christopher Columbus statue at Government House has garnered nearly 8,000 signatures. The online petition, hosted on Change.org, says the statue should be removed due to Columbus’ “torture and dismemberment while serving as governor of a Spanish colony in The Bahamas/ Caribbean earned him a reputation for shocking sadism”.

FAMILY ISLAND PARENTS QUESTION EXAM RULING By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

ALICIA WALLACE

CAUGHT ON CAMERA

TWO masked thieves who held up a Rubis service station on West Bay Street yesterday were caught on security cameras Full story - Page 7

‘URUGUAY DEAL WON’T DIVERT US’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

AN OIL explorer yesterday pledged its Uruguay licence success “will not distract” from efforts to drill in Bahamian waters as it remains “absolutely 100 percent focused” on its well obligations to this nation. Simon Potter, the Bahamas Petroleum Company’s chief executive, reassured that the company will not

CHIEF EXEC: Simon Potter be “diverted” from plans to spud a first exploratory well in Bahamian waters in late

2020-early 2021 after it won an initial four-year licence to conduct similar activities in waters off the South American nation’s coast. Arguing that BPC’s efforts in The Bahamas “undoubtedly” aided its Uruguay bid, Mr Potter described its new exploration opportunity as “complementary” rather than competition for its oil search in this nation’s waters.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions will petition the Court of Appeal to retry Donna Vasyli for the murder of her husband. Director of Public Prosecutions Garvin Gaskin told The Tribune his office will pursue a new hearing to consider her guilt or innocence. Vasyli’s hopes for walking free were raised when the Court of Appeal SEE PAGE THREE

TECHNOLOGY

THE NEW ERA OF PRIVATE ASTRONAUTS

SEE PAGE NINE

PAGE 2, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff

Mother hopes son’s death will highlight road dangers By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

‘TIME TO BIN COLUMBUS MEMORIAL’ from page one

Many Bahamians also took to social media to voice support for the statue’s removal, while some appeared ambivalent about the issues and said more pressing matters should be addressed like hunger or poverty. “I knew from grade 10 Columbus wasn’t worthy to be honoured and I graduated high school over 29 years ago. Even though the history books said he was some sort of hero; anyone who read more than just their junior high history textbook knew Columbus

was a problematic historical figure,” one person wrote. “Remove the statue, it’s overdue and put Sir Lynden Pindling or Dr Myles Munroe in place of it please,” another person suggested. The calls to remove the statue came after protests erupted in the United States over the killing of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, by a white police officer in Minneapolis. Several confederate statues, which may see as a symbol of racism, have come down across the US in the wake of his killing. Columbus is credited with “discovering” the new world when he landed

on San Salvador in 1492. A statue was erected in his honour in 1830 and it stands at the front of Government House, the official residence of the governor general. Some see the controversial figure not as a discoverer, but an invader who met indigenous people when he arrived in the Americas and led to their brutal oppression and decimation. A holiday commemorating Columbus, known as Discovery Day, was changed to National Heroes Day several years ago to celebrate Bahamian icons. Editorial View - Page 6

AN Abaco mother hopes her son’s tragic death will bring urgent attention to the “dangerous” conditions at the S C Bootle Highway in the Fox Town settlement of Abaco. Edith Clarke - whose 16-year-old son Zion Clarke was killed on Sunday night while walking - says the road is “dangerous” and something must be done to make it safer for both pedestrians and motorists in that small community. She complained there are no streetlights on the road, which is very dark at night. Another issue, she said is the lack of speed bumps in the school zone area where her son was struck and killed by a motorist. Ms Clarke does not want her son’s death to be vain and is speaking out so that no other mother loses their child that way. Zion was walking home around 10pm after playing basketball with friends when he was struck by a silver Honda Accord. His body was thrown some eight feet from impact in bushes. He died on the scene. Officers and bystanders were searching in the area for a while looking for Zion. Ms Clarke claims that the lack of lighting in the area made it difficult to find her son in the dark. “We were in the dark calling out to my son, and he was right there in front of me but I could not see him,” she said. She believed that if lights and speed dumps were in the area, her son might still be alive today. Ms Clarke said the road has been an ongoing issue and noted that there is no protective barrier along the road at the seaside. “If your brakes fail you, you either going to end up in bushes on one side or into the sea on the other side,” she said. Ms Clarke also claimed that access to the emergency numbers 911 and 919 is not available to residents on Abaco. She complained that Abaco is being neglected. “Island people life matters,” she stressed. Michelle McIntosh, the chairperson of the Little Abaco Township, said that all settlements have signs

ZION Clarke was killed on Sunday night while out walking letting motorists know security are there to advise when they are entering a motorists to slow down,” said. settlement. The local government She noted that while the S C Bootle Highway councillor indicated that has working streetlights in roadside barriers are somesome areas, that portion of thing that the Ministry the road where the accident of Works would have to address. “We live (near) the occurred has none. “That area normally does water and persons would not have a light where the know that area, but that accident would have taken would be something the place, and the highway Ministry of Works would is dark in that area when have to deal with, and I can entering that settlement,” talk to them about that,” she said. she said. When asked about access Ms McIntosh also noted that some of the streetlights to emergency numbers damaged during Hurri- 911 and 919, Ms McIntosh cane Dorian have not been noted that getting through restored yet by BPL due to on those numbers has been difficult, but said there are the COVID-19 pandemic. As for speed bumps, on-call numbers for emershe explained that despite gencies that are available public agitation, it is a to residents. “We have onhighway. “Because it is a call numbers to the nurse highway, we cannot put for all settlements and each speed bumps on that road. number is posted on the Speed bumps do not go clinic doors, and so there is on highways. But there is access to on-call numbers a pedestrian crossing at if you have an emergency,” the school and police and she said.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 3

DPP wants to retry Vasyli for murder of her husband from page one

quashed her conviction in 2017, though two appellate judges had ordered a retrial in the case. She appealed the matter before the country’s highest court, however in March, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London ruled that she has a case to answer for the 2015 killing of her husband, Australian podiatrist Phillip Vasyli. However, the decision on whether a retrial will be ordered was passed back to Bahamas’ Court of Appeal to decide. The DPP has now moved to ask that this happens. The Vasylis were married for 34 years. They lived in the exclusive gated community of Old Fort Bay. Vasyli’s lawyer gave four reasons to the Privy Council for why there was no case for a jury to convict on, all of which the committee rejected. The prosecution and defence agreed that Mr Vasyli had an alcohol abuse problem. They agreed that on March 23, 2015, Mr Vasyli fell down the stairs while drunk, cutting his back on glass from picture frames as he fell. Later that afternoon the couple entertained three people: Myles Pritchard, Jody Pritchard and Mitchell Matthew. The Vasylis were left alone for about 45 minutes when the guests left. However, Vasyli left her home and went to her daughter’s house. Early the next morning a gardener found Mr Vasyli on the floor of the kitchen at the Vasylis’ residence, dead with a stab wound to his neck. The kitchen gave way to a covered patio behind some patio doors. The gardener arrived by way of the patio where he found blood and a bloody

DONNA Vasyli after being found guilty of killing her husband in 2015. Below: Australian Phillip Vasyli. kitchen knife. He opened the locked patio doors with his emergency key to get to the kitchen where he found Mr Vasyli. Sir Nicholas Hamblen wrote in the Privy Council judgment that “none of the doors to the house showed any sign of having been damaged or tampered with. Although there were many valuables in the house, nothing had been stolen. Mr Vasyli’s body bore no defensive injuries.” The first officer on the scene found Vasyli in bed, shaking and crying. She allegedly told him she and

her husband fought the night before. Small amounts of Mr Vasyli’s blood were found on the groin area of the blue dress his wife was wearing when police encountered her and blood traces were also found on the front, right sleeve cap of a multicoloured dress found in the room where she spent the night. The prosecution argued Vasyli murdered her husband when their guests left and before she went to her daughter’s home. Their case, based on circumstantial evidence,

BANNISTER: RECENT OUTAGES NOT DUE TO POWER ISSUES By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net WORKS Minister Desmond Bannister stressed that recent Bahamas Power and Light electricity outages are not due to power generation issues. On Monday, there were reports of a power outage in western New Providence before 9pm. The Tribune understands that it was caused by a trip on one of the circuits resulting in portions of two separate substations coming offline. Mr Bannister admitted yesterday that BPL does have distribution and transmission challenges, which the company is working on. “….The outages that BPL (have) had have not been related to generation. Last year June this time, we were having major outages everywhere. We’ve not seen those outages. I don’t anticipate we’re going to have generation outages. If we have outages they may be the same kinds of challenges that we’ve had recently,” he told reporters outside of Cabinet. Although he was not able to give a reason for the electricity going off this week, he offered explanations for other incidents. “There was a challenge a little over a week ago where BPL was energizing a new substation on the Gladstone Road area and employees of BPL made

WORKS Minister Desmond Bannister a mistake and I’m so glad Bannister said workers that they’re alive today from the region should be because they made mistake in the country soon to augthat could’ve cost them ment Bahamian workers their live and so that chal- who have been experienclenge cause some outages ing “fatigue” from working in the West and in Sky Line on the devastated island. “BPL had Bahamian (Drive),” he said. “And then shortly after workers down there and that a contractor who was many of them had mental actually working out in fatigue working in that that area who was doing environment. They had to some work, some road continually come back to works impacted a cable – a New Providence to their BPL cable. That contractor families and also to regendidn’t work for BPL. That erate, but they’re still doing contractor was doing pri- the best that they can,” he vate work and that has said. “. . .As soon as we open caused some outages.” In reference to repair up, we intend to bring in work in Abaco after some more workers from Hurricane Dorian, Mr around the Caribbean.”

emphasized how the pair were left alone the evening of the incident, that the knife which appeared to inflict the wound was one of a set of knives kept in the kitchen, that the Vasylis had an abusive relationship, that there was no evidence of an intruder or disturbance within the house and that Vasyli was serving a 20 year sentence before her conviction was overturned. In the Court of Appeal’s 71-page judgment, thenPresident Justice Dame Anita Allen said she was of the view the jury was

possibly left with the impression, as suggested by counsel for the prosecution in its closing address, that the appellant lied about her clothing and the functionality of security cameras to conceal the murder of her husband. This, she said, resulted in a clear danger that the jury might regard the lies of the appellant as probative of her guilt and warranted the judge to give a direction on the significance of lies.

Justice Jon Isaacs expressed concern that manslaughter by provocation was not left to the jury as an option while Justice Stella Crane-Scott dissented on the necessity of a retrial entirely given the inconclusive state of the circumstantial evidence. However, her colleagues believed a retrial was in the interest of justice. One week later, Vasyli was granted $250,000 bail.

PAGE 4, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

$2 million drop in loan balance By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Education Loan Authority’s outstanding balance decreased by nearly $2 million between June 2019 and March 2020, ELA chairman Miriam Emmanuel said yesterday during her budget communication. “As of June 2019’s budget communication, the Authority’s outstanding balance stood at $131,731,964. As of March 2020, that balance has decreased to $129,933,372,” she said. In November, the ELA published names of delinquent loan holders who could not be reached. Ms Emmanuel said as a result of that campaign to contact the loan holders, 68 new repayment agreements were signed. She said: “The loan programme was intended to be a revolving door so that as the borrowers pay the monies are re-lent to assist other qualified students. Unfortunately because of the high default rate the programme had to be suspended in August 2009. The Education Loan Authority Act 2002 was amended by the Education Loan Authority Act 2015 to basically give the authority more flexibility to pursue and collect default loans.

EDUCATION Loan Authority chair Miriam Emmanuel “There are hundreds of students that graduate every year and there are many who do not have the financial means to continue. The loan scheme has awarded more than 4000 loans and approximately $100m in funding. The loan scheme was dispersed to Bahamian students as follows: 3,938 loans worth $42.56 million were awarded in

New Providence; 669 loans worth $7.41 million were awarded in Grand Bahama; 126 worth $1.39 million were awarded in the Family Islands. “As of December, the Authority’s portion of the loan scheme portfolio stood at approximately $84,564,362 which represents 2,050 loans. As of the same date, the scholarship and

YOUNGSTERS GET SET TO BECOME MARINES AS the world accepts its new normal amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a new batch of young motivated Bahamians have accepted the call to become potential Defence Force marines. Joining on June 6, the group of 50 males and 10 females now make up New Entry 57 Woman Entry 26 and is already hard at work towards transforming both their bodies and minds. The transition from civilian to military culture is expected to last 12 weeks and upon successful completion, recruits are expected to have successfully passed all of the subjects covered in both the

militarization and maritime phases. Their journeys began on Saturday where family members said their goodbyes to loved ones as they were shuttled off to the Defence Force’s Coral Harbour base. Although prior to entry, recruits are expected to be physically healthy, they are still required to complete another physical assessment as official recruits. On their second day of training, they commenced their physical exercises at 4.0am. This segment included various fitness evolution including press ups, sit ups, pull ups and a quick 1.5 mile run as well as a 300m swim. The training

department of the RBDF is equipped with skilled, locally and internationally trained instructors. Also a part of the training team are two medics working closely with the RBDF sick bay who will be conducting regular temperature checks in addition to regular enforcement of the safety precautions prescribed by the Bahamas government (wearing of masks, regular hand washing, social distancing). The number of recruits taken in was also greatly reduced, and the current entry will be split into groups of three during training in lieu of COVID19 principles.

education loan division portfolio stands at $47,328,486 or 954 loans which represent the accumulation of interest and principle.” The ELA has a staff complement of eleven people, Ms Emmanuel said, including “the chairman, financial officer and nine persons in the loans support unit which include four compliance officers.” “This unit oversees the authority’s default loans files,” she said. “Our compliance officers are assigned an equal amount of the 2,726 delinquent loans. Each officer has the responsibility to contact, negotiate and follow up with loan holders, exhausting every avenue to locate loan holders including utilising social media. The authority today has 210 current files.” In February 2016, the Christie administration announced an incentive programme to address delinquency and to reward borrowers who wanted to honour their obligations. That programme, which ended in 2018, was restarted in March 2019, Ms Emmanuel said. She said as of December 2019, 620 borrowers paid off their loans through the incentive programme, which allows them to settle their balance by repaying 40 percent on their total balance, including principal and interest.

MP SENDS OUT 1M SEEDS TO ENCOURAGE FARMING LONG Island MP Adrian Gibson has sent more than one million seeds to his constituents in Long Island in an effort to encourage the resurgence of local farming on the island. “Though known for its farming and fishing prowess, we have seen a steady decline in farming in recent years,” a press release said. Mr Gibson hopes that this effort will lead to more economic and employment opportunities, the production of healthy and essential food crops and contribute to the nation’s food safety/security. “Though others will have an opportunity to attain packages, the initial distribution of seeds will target farmers,” the press release added. “The seeds are already bundled and packaged for each recipient. “Mr Gibson believes that this purchase and distribution will, in some part, contribute to the success and further development of the local agricultural sector. We believe that a stable agricultural sector lends to our national thrust towards greater food security. We also believe in locally made and produced items; when we buy local, we support their families while they support ours.”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 5

FAMILY ISLAND PARENTS QUESTION EXAM RULING from page one

lacked digital resources that may prove pivotal in helping students succeed in their national exams. “Ain’ a lot been going on,” said Craig Cephas, a fisherman and father worried about how his son will perform in national exams next month. “They haven’t had no internet access for

a long long time, there’s no school going on, the one teacher that teaches them, they started going by her home so she been giving them coursework at her house but I think it’s a bit late right now for them to be preparing for BGCSE because they didn’t have digital resources the whole time. It’s a disadvantage for the students on this island for sure. I don’t

think they would be prepared and I think they should give them more time.” July 13, he said, is a “couple days away.” “I could see them adjusting or making an exception for Grand Cay or Abaco altogether because the main part of Abaco didn’t have full connections for awhile either.” Even before Hurricane

Dorian, Grand Cay students were at a disadvantage compared to their counterparts in more populated islands, Mr Cephas said, noting that very few numbers of teachers taught all classes. After the storm, he said one teacher taught all classes for students in grades eight through 12. “I would think the government would put the

necessary things in place to make their lives easier,” he said of the few teachers on the cay. “Something needs to be done.” When students returned to Grand Cay in March, many congregated on Mr Cephas’ property to do their school work–– his was the only property on the cay with access to the internet. “It used to be a lot of children too that would

come,” he said. “Even before the pandemic took place, the whole grade, the one teacher that teaches the entire high school would bring them down here with their school tablets to do what they needed to do. They used to come down by me to access online features. There should have been a better way for them to do what they needed to do.”

US infection rates and protests put July 1 date in doubt from page one hoping that we will have a careful and slow and steady ramp up of the sector…” Last month Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis made the announcement that government officials were considering resuming commercial travel in the country on or before July 1. However, he warned the dates are not final and may change depending on the circumstance. According to US media, 22 states a are seeing an uptick in new cases. Among them is Florida, which reported an increase of 1,096 COVID-19 cases over a 24-hour period this week; it’s the sixth day in the past week that the state has confirmed over 1,000 new cases, according to Local 10 news. Overall, Florida has more than 60,000 cases with nearly 3,000 deaths from COVID-19. The US also has the most cases globally with 1,965,685 confirmed. Mr Turnquest also expressed the government’s optimism of ramping up the tourism sector to bring much needed economic relief and reduce the pressure experienced in the public system at the moment for income assistance and other social assistance programmes. With talks of diversifying the economy to decrease the reliance on tourism, Mr Turnquest said the government has put deliberate thought in this area and this will be seen over the next couple of days as the ministers roll out their contributions. Yet he acknowledged this process is “not a quick fix” and it will take some time. “It’s going to take some level of restructuring of the economy. It’s going to take investment by outsiders as well as domestic partners to get us going again and to broaden this economic pie and diversify as we all talk about this economy away from the very sensitive tourism/leisure market. “…We are vested fully in the tourism and leisure market. We’re not going to walk away from that. It has been very productive for us over the years. We believe that once there is a vaccine

ABOVE: Yesterday’s dashboard from Florida and, right, The Bahamas’ dashboard

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest or some treatment. . .people will start to travel again as they gain confidence and so we have to be ready for that. “We have to invest in that and we have to change the model a little bit I believe to more boutique and smaller resorts thereby reducing the risks of widespread transmission if we do have to live with the virus for some time but I don’t believe we can abandon, at this time, that sector,” Mr Turnquest said. Meanwhile, as more local sectors reopen, Works Minister Desmond Bannister

cited the “huge challenge” of implementing social distancing at the Nassau Straw Market. “We have over 400 vendors in a very small space and so the chairman of the Straw Market Authority is going to meet with the vendors and their leaders and try to get some accommodation. Some ideas from them as to where we go and what we do, so that we can keep them safe and. . .(keep) visitors to this country safe.” Editorial View - Page 6

FINED $250 FOR VISITING TERMINALLY ILL GRAN By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A MAN who claimed he violated the weekend lockdown because he was heading home after visiting his terminally ill grandmother was fined $250 yesterday. He was one of several people who were charged with curfew and lockdown infractions in the Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, including two men who denied violating the emergency orders and had their

cases adjourned for trial. Garnette Sweeting, 39, appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence RolleDavis after officers found him on University Drive around 10pm on June 5. He pleaded guilty, but said that he had only left home to visit his grandmother who was dying from cancer. He said he really wanted to see her because his dad died from the same disease two years earlier. When asked why he chose to leave his house so late that night, Sweeting

told the magistrate that he had made a “foolish mistake.” He was subsequently fined $250 or 10 days at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. Meanwhile, Jamal Armbrister was charged after officers found him near Coconut Grove around 1.55pm on June 7. Prosecutor Lakesia Moss told the court that day, officers observed a grey Honda Accord that had its interior obscured by dark tints. They beckoned for the vehicle to stop and

questioned the driver, Jamal Armbrister, who told them he had borrowed his cousin’s bolt cutter and was on his way to give it back to him. Still, Inspector Moss said when Armbrister was interviewed at a nearby station, he told officers he had left his house to get some gas from his cousin’s boat. He pleaded guilty and was fined $500 or 15 days in prison. Garfferinalie Saunders, 42, was accused of violating the lockdown after officers found him on Palmetto

Avenue around 9am on June 7. He denied the allegation and had his matter adjourned to September 9 for trial. In the interim, he was released on $500 bail. Likewise, Sonny Rolle was accused of violating the curfew after officers found him on Dean Street around 10am on June 6. He also denied the charge and was granted $500 bail. Rolle returns to court on September 9 for trial. Officers found Sidney Joseph on West Street around 9.45pm on June 7.

Prosecutor Samantha Miah said at the time of his arrest, Joseph told officers that his mother had sent him to his aunt to get water for a young child who was “in need of water.” At the time, Joseph told the officers that he did not contact the COVID-19 hotline before he left home. He pleaded guilty as he stood before Chief Magistrate Joyann Ferguson-Pratt yesterday, and was fined $400 or eight weeks in prison.

PAGE 6, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

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US epidemic is the elephant in the room AS The Bahamas busily prepares to reopen to tourists, there is an elephant in the room that we are struggling to address – the ongoing number of cases of COVID-19 in the United States. Yesterday, there were 19,056 new cases in the US. The day before, there were 19,044, the day before that 18,905. Coronavirus doesn’t just go away because anyone declares it has – and the combination of protests across the US plus the reopening in different states gives the virus more targets to latch onto. As of yesterday, there were 1,142,539 active cases in the United States. In fact, yesterday the United States had nearly double the number of deaths from the day before – 1,093 compared to 586. By comparison, The Bahamas presently has 25 active cases and thankfully hasn’t had a death in many weeks. Florida alone has now had 66,000 cases and still has more than 50,000 of those active. The proposed July 1 reopening date is ticking closer and closer and COVID-19 is not going away in the US – so what do we do? It’s a worry on the mind of Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest – who yesterday admitted that there are concerns of an increased spread of the virus in the US, and said “that will have a lot of impact upon our reopening on July 1”. We shouldn’t be afraid to say no. As a country, we can decide when we open our borders and who we open them to. We did this when we imposed restrictions on arrivals from China earlier in the outbreak – and we can be selective in how we lift our restrictions too. Canada, for example, has had a fraction of the cases that the US has

experienced – while there are countries around the world that have begun to emerge from COVID-19 and are reopening their borders. Norway and Denmark, for example, have reopened their borders to one another, while New Zealand has had no new cases of COVID-19 for more than two weeks. So perhaps we should implement a threshold that countries have to attain before we lift the individual restriction. That’s hardest of course for the US – the biggest share by far of our tourism market – but this is the world of tough choices we live in. In the meantime, let’s restart our tourism sector. Earlier this year, we wrote in this column about offering up The Bahamas to Bahamians – giving our own people the chance to visit places they might not have been and enjoy the tourism facilities we champion as among the best in the world. Offer a discount to encourage local people to start getting back into tourism facilities – and show the world what it’s missing. Celebrate our nation, by letting our nation’s citizens embrace the beauty and the joy there is to offer. And consider this – when a flight from Qatar touched down in Greece, 12 passengers tested positive on arrival. Greece quarantined all 91 passengers. Imagine that with each plane coming from Florida. Which is worse for The Bahamas – keeping the door closed, or quarantining hundreds, perhaps thousands, of tourists? There is no easy decision here – and we urge the utmost caution from our decision makers.

Time to remove Columbus? COLUMBUS is a divisive figure. Perhaps there should be more agreement on his failings, but he remains celebrated by many. This is a man who played his part in nearly driving the Taino to extinction, noted in his own logs his enslavement of indigenous people, handed out punishments of torture and mutilation – even cutting off the ears and nose of a man who stole corn before selling him into slavery – and presided over a rule of tyranny and brutality. Even the King and Queen of Spain had him removed from power when accusations of his brutality reached their ears. These stories are told less often than his achievements as an explorer – but it’s the same man. What, then, to do with the statue honouring him at Government House? Looking to the east and west, the appetite for taking down statues is AFTER the Ministry of Education remained firm on the July date for national exams, readers posted their responses on tribune242.com. Birdiestrachan had this to say: “The former Deacon is the man. If he says so it is so. The Bahamian people voted for him in large numbers. So why complain now?? Lloyd is large and in charge. You go, Mr Lloyd, you just go.” Hrysippus posted this comment: “How refreshing to have a cabinet minister who simply speaks the truth. Congratulations Hon. Jeff Lloyd, you told everyone what was going to happen long time and now it is actually happening. There is the usual whining from the usual people. Stay the course please.” TigerB said: “Perhaps

growing. In the UK, protesters took matters into their own hands, ripping down a statue of slave trader Edward Colston and tossing it in the river. And in the US last night, protesters in Virginia threw a statue of Christopher Columbus into a lake. We’ve already tossed Discovery Day into history as a nation – replacing it with National Heroes Day – so what do we gain by keeping a statue of a torturer and sadist because of his fame as an explorer? Nearly 8,000 people have signed a petition calling for the statue to be removed – which brings the conversation to the forefront. It’s good to have that conversation – and we look forward to seeing the government address it. We’d also love to hear what our readers think – what do we do with monuments that honour those with a controversial history?

with these smaller number taking the exams the D average might be higher.” Dr Johnathan Rodgers told Tribune Business that Bahamians must abandon their “xenophobic and schizophrenic” attitude towards foreign investors if the economy is to survive the devastation inflicted by COVID-19. That prompted 242wedo to say: “This man makes eminent good sense. The tide has gone out and we are left swimming naked. Liberalising this economy and opening up to foreign investment without the ridiculous hurdles, red tape

and waiting games that scare good capital away would benefit every tier of this country, and it would cost us nothing. It was the obvious answer years ago, now it’s the only one. We will either sink or swim depending on decisions being made now.” And there was this from Economist: “Very good Dr Rodgers. Agree completely. It is time that we, as a people, grew up and joined the rest of the world. It is much more difficult to do business in The Bahamas compared to other countries. We are scared of change. The rest of the world is leaving us behind. Instead of following the Cayman Islands to success and low unemployment, we are following Haiti, to failure and high unemployment.”

Many great memories of Edna Lowe EDITOR, The Tribune THE passing of Edna Lenora Lowe (according to Death Notice published May 21, 2020) at age 94 years marks the end of an era in the history of the Registrar General’s Department, where she was the last survivor of what was referred to in the old days as “the Lily White Registry”. The deceased recounted coming from her native settlement of Gray’s, Long Island in the 1940’s to the metropolis of Nassau on “The Frolic” mail-boat, landing her first job as a Sales Clerk in Mr. D. A. Nottage’s Dry Goods Store on Bay Street named “Arties”. She recalled one day meeting Mr. Edmund Stuart, an Auditor in the Audit Department and a member of the Public Service Commission and enquiring of him if there were any vacancies in the Civil Service. He confirmed that there was a suitable position in the Registrar General’s Office for a female to transcribe deeds and documents lodged for recording by the public. After providing a specimen of her handwriting and passing all other requisite tests, she was hired. Mrs Lowe remained in the Recording Office (as it was then popularly called) for 50 years, with a hiatus of about three years when she accompanied her husband, Cherokee Sound, Abaco native James Wheelock Lowe to Andros where he was gainfully employed as the Manager of a resort there. On her initial entry into the public service in 1945, she worked under Registrars Mervyn Johnson, Arthur Byrnes, Walter S. Chaney, Patrick D. Fleming, Leonard J. Knowles, James Liddell and, of course, Newton Clyde Roberts, the highly revered and extremely competent first non-lawyer to be appointed Registrar General by a

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net Special Resolution of the House of Assembly. Other Registrars under whom she worked in later years were Mr. Prescott, Sylvia Bonaby, Nathaniel Dean, Emily Rodgers, Sterling Quant and lastly Mrs. Kelphine Cunningham. Her co-workers of the 40’s and 50’s were Hilda Prudden and Geraldine Murdoch (Actg Asst. Registrars), Marie Kemp, Nellie Maura, Winifred Maura, Pauline Curry, Jennie Key, Doris Pinder, Bridget Higgs, Dorothy Albury, Kathleen Roberts, Audrey Saunders, Yolanda Roberts and sister Edwina Malone, Mizpah Pearce and Queenie Stuart, (Mrs. Edmund Stuart). The first non-white (coloured person) to be employed in the Registrar General’s Office was Fred Phillips from Barbados, who was seconded from the Police Force in 1960. In reminiscing about the good-old-days, she always remarked how employees then were truly civil servants, i.e. civil in their attitude toward their work and servants to the public, who took pride in their job. Efficiency and accuracy were the mantra for the staff. When the system was upgraded from handwriting Deeds in Books to microfilming, she was put in charge of the new microfilm section, which she operated in a dark-room with the new technological machine. She was featured in the local newspapers explaining the new recording process in 1956. Today, Deeds are scanned in the digital age. Her ante-meridien schedule was to microfilm the Deeds after they were inspected and approved by the Examiners. Her post-prandial assignment was to type Satisfactions for Mortgages on an old manual typewriter. I can see her now, sitting at the window on the 6th floor

of the General Post Office building on East Hill Street with the spectacular view of the ships in Nassau Harbour and Paradise Island to the North. Mrs. Lowe used to type quite adroitly by using a method that we call “the Columbus System”, i.e. you look for the keys, find them and land on them. She was an expert at it. Her very legible handwriting can still be seen in the permanent records of the Registry in the following Books – Y.16, Z,16, K.17, V.17, Y.17, B.21, L.21, O.21 and in Wills Book M. 19 pages 139 to 219. Her penmanship can also be seen in the indices of volume 593 to volume 822. Her calligraphy is etched perpetually in the General Index for years 1957-58 comprising 758 pages; in the general index for the year 1961 aggregating 3,597 pages and in the General Index for the year 1962 totalling 3,635 pages. Mrs. Lowe’s place in the history of the Registrar General’s Department is “well-founded”. Lowe by name, but not low by nature as the saying goes, she was very kind and thoughtful. Many can attest to her thoughtfulness. She remembered birthdays and anniversaries and, of course, Christmas holidays, never failing to telephone and wish you a happy birthday and a Merry Christmas. I could always look forward to a call on my B-day and receiving a Christmas card from her. Edna Lenora Lowe was a decent, respectable white Bahamian, as well as a dedicated, conscientious and diligent civil servant and that is how I shall forever remember her. To her daughter, Mrs. Sandra Key whom I know and to the entire Lowe family, I proffer my sincere condolences. GEORGE L L HEASTIE Nassau, June 3, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 7

THREE BOYS ACCUSED OF TWO ON DRUG CHARGES BREAKING INTO A HOUSE IN SEPARATE INCIDENTS By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

THREE boys were brought to court yesterday, to face charges of breaking into a house to steal a gaming system. The boys, ages 12,13, and 14, appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis after they were accused of breaking into Phillip Hanna’s residence in Pinewood Gardens on June 7 and stealing a PlayStation console and controller which were valued at $610. Prosecutor Lakesia Moss said Mr Hanna told the police that he left his residence to go to work around 7.30am that day and left his aunt and her daughter in his home. He said when he returned home around 9.10pm that night, he discovered that one of his back bedrooms, which was the room closest to a derelict house next door, appeared to be broken into. Mr Hanna told officers the window blinds in the room

were broken and a piece of sheetrock covering a hole in the wall for the air-conditioner was out of place. He also said his PlayStation had gone missing. Mr Hanna said when he inquired around the neighbourhood about who had broken into his house, a woman informed him that she had seen two young boys with a green bag. She said that the boys had approached her son and asked him to hold the bag for them, but he told them no. She also told Mr Hanna that the boys called her son a punk and left. Further investigations led to the arrest of the three defendants who were interviewed by police in the presence of their parents. During the interview, the 13-year-old said that he was with the other boys at the 14-year-old boy’s house. He said he watched the 12-year-old boost the 14-year-old over a fence so that he could go into the complainant’s house and

steal the PlayStation and controller. In his interview, the 14-year-old told officers that the boys boosted him over the fence to his neighbour’s house and he poked his head in the house to steal the gaming system. The 12-year-old boy also stated that he and the 13-year-old were in the front of the house when the 14-year-old went over the fence to his neighbour’s house and broke into it to steal the game console. He also admitted to helping the 14-year-old get over the fence. During the hearing, all of the defendants pleaded guilty. After accepting their pleas, Magistrate Rolle-Davis adjourned the matter to June 23 for trial in the Juvenile Court. He also ordered that the stolen game system be returned to its rightful owner as soon as possible. The juveniles were remanded to the Simpson Penn Centre for Boys in the interim.

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

TWO men were charged with drug possession in two separate incidents in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday. Spencer Thompson, 24, appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence RolleDavis after officers seized 1.10 ounces of Indian hemp from him on June 6. He pleaded guilty and was fined $500 or six months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. Prosecutor Lakesia Moss told the court around 2.50pm that day, officers on static duty on Robinson Road observed a red Nissan March with three male occupants approaching a checkpoint. She said the officers beckoned for the vehicle to stop and informed the passengers that they would be searched in reference to dangerous drugs and firearms. During the search, officers found a tyre inflator

canister that weighed more than the label on the can indicated. Upon inspecting the canister, officers discovered a screw at the bottom and opened the container. They then discovered a quantity of suspected marijuana inside the canister. The suspects were then arrested and taken to a nearby police station. There, Thompson told the officers that the drugs were his and insisted that the other two persons were not aware that the item was in the car. He was subsequently charged with the offence. According to the prosecution, the drugs had an estimated street value of $30. When given an opportunity to speak, Thompson told the magistrate that he bought the drugs for his personal use. He also said that he was “honestly trying to get his life back on track.” Meanwhile, Edward Ferguson, 35, was also charged after officers found three grams of Indian Hemp in his car on June 4. He also

pleaded guilty to simple possession and was fined $500 or one month at BDCS. Prosecutor Moss said around 8.45pm that night, officers on duty on Market Street and School Lane observed a dark coloured vehicle that attempted to turn a corner right before the checkpoint. Inspector Moss said this aroused the officers’ suspicion, so they beckoned for the vehicle to stop. While searching the vehicle, the officers discovered three silver foil wraps in a compartment under the steering wheel. As a result, Ferguson was arrested. During interview, he said he bought the drugs for $15 and had it for his personal use. During the hearing, Ferguson said that he had been smoking marijuana since he was 19 because the drug helped to keep him calm. He also said he suffered from bad asthma as a child, but never had the respiratory condition again after he started smoking.

Caught on camera VIDEO grabs of the armed robbery at a Rubis service station on West Bay Street yesterday

POLICE are looking for two brazen thieves who robbed a Rubis service station on West Bay Street yesterday. The robbery occurred about two hours before two masked thieves robbed and shot a business owner. Police have not said if the incidents are related. The Rubis robbery was captioned on the station’s security cameras and store owners have published videos and photos on social media to help lead to the suspects’ arrest.

Police said the robbery occurred shortly before 11am. Two men, one of whom was armed with a handgun, entered the West Bay Street service station and robbed the cashier of an undetermined amount of cash. Video of the robbery shows a man in a red shirt walking up to the cashier with a man in a dark shirt close behind him. Both thieves also wore hats and cloth face masks. The man in the dark shirt pulls out a gun on one employee while the man in the red shirt holds a

plastic bag for the cashier to deposit money from the register in. The thieves escaped the service station’s store about a minute later. Two masked men also robbed a business on Joe Farrington Road before 2pm yesterday. One of the men had a handgun and robbed the business owner of an undetermined amount of cash and shot the proprietor, police said. Both suspects escaped in an unknown direction. The victim was transported to hospital.

PAIR ARRESTED AFTER POLICE RAID By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

ABACO police discovered a “substantial” quantity of dangerous drugs, illegal firearms, and ammunition at a house that resulted in the arrest of two men on Monday evening. A third man was arrested for drug possession in a separate incident, police reported. The first arrest was made

shortly after 6pm when officers, acting on information, executed a search warrant at a residence on Don McKay Boulevard. According to police reports, officers found a substantial amount of suspected marijuana, as well as 52 marijuana seedlings about one inch in height. They also recovered a Smith and Wesson pistol with 11 rounds of ammunition, a black unlicensed shotgun, and suspected stolen items.

Officers also discovered some $1,708 cash in mixed currency. Two men were taken into custody. In a second incident, shortly after 7pm, officers on duty at S C Bootle Highway arrested a man who was allegedly found in possession of a quantity of suspected marijuana. The three men are expected to be formally charged in the Magistrate’s Court this week on that island.

Private Funeral Service for Doral Louise Sturrup, 86 of #6 Jasmine Gardens and formerly of Farmers Cay, Exuma, will be held on Thursday, June 11th, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. at St Agnes Cemetery, Nassau Street. Officiating will be Rev. Heuter B. Rolle. Left to cherish her memories are her daughters: Joan Deveaux, Carmay, Kim and Dawne Sturrup; Son: Anthone Sturrup; Son-in-law: Charles Deveaux; Daughter-in-law: Stacy Sturrup; Grandchildren: Alexis Sturrup, Eldeces Kelly, Chelsea Deveaux, Leroy Sturrup III, (Philicia), Gyles Neymour, Brea Nairn, Shaun and Ashton Sturrup; Great-grandchildren: Denario, Cacinique, Denajh, King, Kristain, Ashton, Faith, Peyton, La’niya and La’Najae; Sisters: Ethelyn Gibson, Lilymae Lockhart and Ruth Turner; Brothers: Stanley (Ruby) and Dencil Major (Lilymae); Sisters-in-law: Virginia Major and Bloneva Pickstock; Nieces and Nephews: Rudolph Young, Perry Dacosta, George Kerr, Keith, Ricardo, Don, Colin, Craig, Jason, Owen, Mario, Robert, Randy and Joker Major, Priscilla Rollins, Judy Linder, Ena Cooper, Debbie, Sharon, and Antoinette Gibson, Stephine Weir, Carolyn, Julie, April and Stanlyn Major and Cindy Sawyer, Ken Sturrup, Rose, Robert, Monica, Hancel, Picky and Clarabella Pickstock, Maude and Harry Lockhart, Enique Farrington, Endrenise Babb, Eldira Backford, Juan Mario Backford (Sherrine). Numerous family members and friends including: Nellie McPhee, Wendell Albury, Annie, Donald, Spurgeon, and Kingsley Brown, South Long Island, including the Cartwright’s, Knowles, Masons, Majors and the Martinboroughs, The Brown, Smith, Rolle, and Barr Families, Farmers Cay Community and Sturrup Family including Carmay, Stephanie and Rita Sturrup, April Dean Robinson, Community Nurses Robinson and Morris, Emerald Sands and Family, Ingrid Strachan and Family, Rev. Heuter B. Rolle and Salem Union Baptist Church Family including Rev. Edris Bowe, Carolyn Ferguson and other family members and friends too numerous to mention. Viewing will be held in the Celestial Suite at Restview Memorial Mortuary and Crematorium Ltd., Robinson and Soldier Roads on Wednesday (TODAY) from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

PAGE 8, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

STAY PROTECTED - COVID-19 IS STILL A DANGER

AS things return to some version of normal, it is important to remember COVID-19 has not gone away. Restrictions are being lifted and, while many of us are ready to return to our regular activities, the new situation does not make much sense. There is no denying it is risky to let people enter the country without being tested for COVID-19. Why have we endured months of curfew and lockdown

only to expose ourselves to people from places that did not implement the same or better measures? We have flattened the curve. We have successfully made The Bahamas a relatively safe destination for tourists and we are opening to them. It remains to be seen how tourism will be made safe for Bahamians, especially those working on the frontline in the industry. Maybe the government

has decided that the rate of infections is low enough now for the health system to handle the cases it knows will emerge once the borders are open. Maybe it has determined there will be more waves of infections and it is worthwhile to allow U.S. dollars to come until then, even if it contributes to the next wave of cases. There must be metrics. We just have not seen them.

Wear your mask whenever you leave your property or someone enters your property. Ensure that it covers your nose and mouth. Do not touch it except to remove it when you return home. Every time you touch your mask, you are potentially touching the COVID-19 particles it is meant to trap and this is one of the reasons you should keep the mask on even when in the car by yourself.

Wash your hands. Use hand sanitiser when you are not able to wash your hands, but not as a substitute. Behave as though the virus is on everything. The return to work and opening of the borders does not mean the threat is gone. It means we accepted the risk and need to take responsibility for our own health and that of the people with whom we come into contact.

PRIME Minister Hubert Minnis, left, and former Minister of Health Duane Sands. Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

We won’t go away and the questions won’t stop just because you treat us with contempt THE resignation of Dr. Duane Sands as Minister of Health has come up again. We all still had questions about what happened to lead to that action. We heard there was a breach of protocol, but never a description of the breach. How did Sands overstep and who else was responsible for what took place? Prime Minister Hubert Minnis had not held a press conference for more than a month, giving the media no opportunity to ask questions about the issue. Two reporters asked specific questions about Sands’ resignation. The second reporter made it clear she was repeating the question because it was not answered. Minnis took great exception to being asked to answer the question many Bahamians have been asking for weeks. “Allow me to repeat. That matter was discussed ad infinitum in the press, so that matter is finished, okay? We are moving on, trying to get our economy running, trying to deal with this pandemic, trying to get people out, functioning, working, and have food[…] That is our priority today.” Minnis’ rudeness and obvious resentment toward members of the press is not new. It is clear he

The

Alicia Wallace column regards them as enemies when he is his own enemy. He is given opportunities to provide information, demonstrate competence, correct missteps and give the impression he is interested in governance that sees the people and welcomes them to participate. In most cases, he chooses to do the opposite. There were 46 days between press conferences. Not only did he not hold press conferences as the Prime Minister and “competent authority,” but he refused to participate in Ministry of Health press conferences when he has appointed himself the Acting Minister of Health. It was obviously a deliberate move to distance himself from us by keeping the press from accessing him, quite possibly because he did not want to answer the question everyone has had for weeks — What was the breach? We have a Prime Minister who does whatever he wants, speaks to people

as he likes and compelled the Minister of Health to resign during a pandemic. He is easily threatened, afraid of being challenged and strangely unabashed in his cowardly behaviour. He finds it easy, however, to speak gruffly with the press. “That matter is finished, okay?” No, it is not okay and it is not finished. The series of events took place, but it was not “finished” just because he wanted it to be. We still, at that point, did not know the precise reason for the resignation. As the person holding the information and controlling anyone else privy to it, he had the ability to shut the conversation down before it even started. He decided not to talk about it and to not only state he was not going to discuss it, but suggest the rest of us need to get with it, because it’s over. “Moving on,” they say He has decided that we are “moving on” which is familiar phrasing. Minister of Tourism and Aviation

Dionisio D’Aguiular, when asked about the same series of events, said: “I think honestly that enough has been said about this[…] I’ve moved on. I think we should all do the same.” Moving on is encouraged when the government does not have answers it would like to share. It is a dangerous rhetoric that reveals an even more dangerous idea — that issues do not need to be resolved, the public does not need to have complete information and once enough time has passed, the government can pass off the refusal to answer questions as a reasonable response to an unreasonable circumstance. The government tries to paint the press as the unreasonable entity. Has there been a lot of discussion about the swabs, the alleged breach, the resignation of Sands and the unpopular acceptance of that resignation by the Prime Minister? Yes. Have the questions been answered? No. That is until Sands revealed details on the series of events earlier this week which were both illuminating and troubling. It is a confusing story that points to the unregulated power in the Office of the Prime Minister and its questionable practices which include preparing statements for

the Ministry of Health briefings as well as Sands’ own resignation. In addition to the concentration of power in one office, one of the biggest issues we have is our government — not only this administration, but it is certainly included — consistently tries to convince us, with some success, that it can only handle one issue at a time. It boldly states this as though it is acceptable. When we demand more, it chastises us for expecting so much of it. Political parties seem to be convinced of their own power only when campaigning. When they become the administration, they are suddenly weak, tired, overworked, underpaid and incapable of dealing with more than one issue at a time. This needs to be actively and strongly rejected. We do not have the luxury of addressing one issue at a time. In this moment, we are dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 crisis which, on its own, has several layers including public health, the economy and social wellbeing. Those are just the issues at front of mind, many others exists below the surface. As soon as a government complains that we expect it to do too much as related to dealing with real and pressing

issues, we must be aware that it is unprepared to do the job and determine next steps because that is not only unacceptable, but dangerous. We must know by now the representatives we elected do not respect us. We have have seen cabinet ministers follow the lead of the Prime Minister, refusing to engage the press respectfully. We know the Prime Minister stopped holding press conferences for 46 days in the midst of a crisis. They believe we are only deserving of the information they are willing to share at any given point in time. It is not a sign of strength that the Prime Minister refuses to answer questions and attempts to ridicule members of the press. We are an extension of the press as much as we are an extension of the government. It represents us. It asks questions for us. It distills information for us. It does not act for its own sake. When it is treated with disgust, so are we. Pay attention to the way government actors engage the press. Note the questions they do not answer. See the attitude. Determine whether or not these people are truly working for us. Sometimes it is hard to tell, but most of the time it is hard to miss.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 9

TECHTALK

PERSONAL MOBILITY MACHINE NEEDS NO HELP AT TOKYO AIRPORT By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — An autonomous mobility system that works like a wheelchair without anyone pushing it is scuttling around a Tokyo airport to help with social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic. The personal mobility machine seats one person and runs on its own without crashing, even when people jump out unexpectedly, for about 600 metres (660 yards) on a pre-programmed route at Haneda International Airport, WHILL, the company behind the technology, said Monday. WHILL Chief Executive Satoshi Sugie said robotics and autonomous driving technology that reduce the need for human labour are a good match for these times of “living with” the coronavirus. “We are rapidly developing our business in order to help restore a world where people can enjoy moving around with

peace of mind,” he told The Associated Press. The ride lasts just several minutes, traveling from security clearance to the boarding gate at a maximum speed of 3.5 kilometres (2 miles) per hour. But hopes are high that the technology, which uses sensors and cameras, can help in other places, such as hospitals, parks and shopping centres. Labour shortages are a problem in Japan, as well as other nations. Tests have been carried out at various airports since last year, including John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, and the company hopes to introduce it at airports around the world. The person on the machine can start or stop it through a tablet controller. It runs on lithium-ion batteries and returns automatically to where it started. Anyone needing help walking long distances can use it at Terminal One at Haneda, for what’s referred to as that “last-mile mobility,” according

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THE trial of WHILL’s Autonomous Drive System at Haneda Airport in Tokyo in November, last year. The autonomous mobility system, which works like a wheelchair without anyone pushing it, is scuttling around a Tokyo airport to help with social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic. (WHILL, Inc. via AP)

to WHILL, based in Yokohama, Japan. Although vacuum cleaners, machines

carrying things and talking robots are already moving about at airports and other

places, personal mobility that runs autonomously is still relatively rare in public places.

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SPACEX OPENS ERA OF PRIVATE ASTRONAUTS, COSMIC MOVIE SETS By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX’s debut astronaut launch is the biggest, most visible opening shot yet in NASA’s grand plan for commercialising Earth’s backyard. Amateur astronauts, private space stations, flying factories, out-of-thisworld movie sets — this is the future the space agency is striving to shape as it eases out of low-Earth orbit and aims for the moon and Mars. It doesn’t quite reach the fantasized heights of George Jetson and Iron Man, but still promises plenty of thrills. “I’m still waiting for my personal jetpack. But the future is incredibly exciting,” NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren said the day before SpaceX’s historic liftoff. NASA astronaut Nicole Mann, who will test drive Boeing’s space capsule next year, envisions scientists, doctors, poets and reporters lining up for rocket rides. “I see this as a real possibility,” she said. “You’re going to see low-Earth orbit open up.” The road to get there has never been so crowded, with Elon Musk’s SpaceX company leading the pack. A week ago, SpaceX became the first private company to send people into orbit, something accomplished by only three countries in nearly 60 years. The flight to the International Space Station returned astronaut launches to the U.S. after nine long years. “This is hopefully the first step on a journey toward a civilisation on Mars,” an emotional Musk told journalists following liftoff. Closer in time and space is SpaceX’s involvement in a plan to launch Tom Cruise to the space station to shoot a movie in another year or so. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine embraces the idea. He wants NASA to be just one of many customers in this new space-travelling era, where private companies own and fly their own spaceships and sell empty seats. “Kind of a changing of the guard in how we’re going to do human spaceflight in the future,” said Mike Suffredini, a former NASA station program manager who now leads Houston’s Axiom Space company. Axiom has partnered with SpaceX to launch three customers to the

AN artist’s rendering of SpaceX’s megarocket design on the Earth’s moon. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and Virgin Galactic’s Richard Branson favour going back to the moon before Mars. Musk also is rooting for the moon, although his heart’s on Mars. (SpaceX via AP, File)

VIRGIN Galactic’s SpaceshipTwo Unity.

BLUE Origin’s Blue Moon lunar lander.

space station in fall 2021. An experienced astronaut will accompany them, serving as the commanderslash-tour guide. Two private flights a year are planned, using completely automated capsules belonging to SpaceX or Boeing, NASA’s two commercial crew providers. The ticket price — which includes 15 weeks of training and more than a week at the space station — is about $55 million. Besides the three signed up, others have expressed serious interest, Suffredini said. Since last weekend’s successful launch, “everybody’s starting to wonder where their place in line is,” Suffredini told The Associated Press on Thursday. “That’s a really, really cool position to be in now.” Space Adventures Inc. of Vienna, Virginia, also has teamed up with SpaceX. Planned for late next year, this five-day-or-so mission would skip the space station and instead orbit two to three times higher for more sweeping views of Earth. The cost:

around $35 million. It’s also advertising rides to the space station via Boeing Starliner and Russian Soyuz capsules. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic are taking it slower and lower with tourist flights. These space-skimming, up-and-down flights will last minutes, not days, and cost a lot less. Hundreds already have reservations with Virgin Galactic. Branson is the only one of the three billionaires planning to launch himself before putting customers aboard at $250,000 a pop. His winged rocketship is designed to drop from a customised plane flying over New Mexico. Blue Origin’s customers will launch on rockets from West Texas; the capsules sport wall-to-ceiling windows, the largest ever built for a spacecraft. It’s not just rocket rides that have companies salivating. Beginning in 2024, Axiom plans to build its own addition to the

AN artist’s rendering of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. 260-mile-high (420-kilometre-high) outpost to accommodate its private astronauts. The segment would later be detached and turned into its own free-flying abode. Space Adventures is marketing flights to the moon — not to land, but buzz it in Russian spacecraft. The moon — considered the proving ground for the ultimate destination Mars — is where it’s at these days. NASA is pushing to get astronauts back on the lunar surface by 2024 and establish a permanent base there. Musk’s company recently won contracts to haul cargo to the moon and develop a lunar lander for astronauts. But the bigger draw for Musk is Mars. It’s why he founded SpaceX 18 years ago — and why he keeps pushing the space envelope. “I cannot emphasise this enough. This is the thing that we need to do. We must make life sustainably multi planetary. It’s not one planet to the

exclusion of another, but to extend life beyond Earth,” Musk said after last weekend’s launch. “I call upon the public to support this goal,” he added, beckoning to the NASA TV cameras. To fulfill that vision, SpaceX is using its own money to develop a massive, bullet-shaped steel spacecraft called Starship at the bottom of Texas. Prototypes repeatedly have ruptured and exploded on the test pad, most recently on the eve of the company’s astronaut flight from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. NASA’s Bridenstine said space is currently a $400 billion market, including satellites. Opening up spaceflight to paying customers, he said, could expand the market to $1 trillion. The goal is to drive down launch costs and ramp up innovation, drawing in more people and more business. By NASA’s count, 576 people have flown in space, with only the wealthy few footing their own bill. The world’s first space tourist, California businessman Dennis Tito, paid a reported $20 million to the Russians to fly to the space station in 2001 — against NASA’s wishes. The Canadian founder of Cirque du Soleil, Guy Laliberte, shelled out $35 million for a Russian ticket in 2009. Space Adventures arranged both deals. “It really is the billionaire boys’ club,” former space shuttle astronaut Leland Melvin said during last Saturday’s launch broadcast. Once prices drop, he’d consider returning to space, but not without his dogs. “They’re ready to go, need SpaceX suits for them,” he said. Once lunar bases are established, the next step will be Mars in the 2030s, according to Bridenstine. “Those are the kinds of things that inspire the next Elon Musk, the next Jeff Bezos, the next Sir Richard Branson. And that’s what we have to get back to as an agency,” he said. SpaceX still has to get NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken safely back to Earth this summer in its Dragon capsule. But the company already is looking ahead to the next astronaut crew. Crew mission director Benji Reed got a brief taste of this future as he wrapped up a chat with the astronauts Monday. “Thank you for flying SpaceX,” he chimed.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 11

He is going to change the world

Funeral caps six days of mourning for George Floyd HOUSTON Associated Press GEORGE Floyd was yesterday remembered as “Big Floyd” — a father and brother, athlete and neighbourhood mentor, and now a catalyst for change — at a funeral for the black man whose death has sparked a global reckoning over police brutality and racial prejudice. More than 500 mourners wearing masks against the coronavirus packed a Houston church a little more than two weeks after Floyd was pinned to the pavement by a white Minneapolis police officer who put a knee on his neck for what prosecutors said was 8 minutes and 46 seconds. Cellphone video of the encounter, including Floyd’s pleas of “I can’t breathe,” ignited protests and scattered violence across the US and around the world, turning the 46-year-old Floyd — a man who in life was little known beyond the public housing project where he was raised in Houston’s Third Ward — into a worldwide symbol of injustice. “Third Ward, Cuney Homes, that’s where he was born at,” Floyd’s brother, Rodney, told mourners at the Fountain of Praise church. “But everybody is going to remember him around the world. He is going to change the world.” The funeral capped six days of mourning for Floyd in three cities: Raeford, North Carolina, near where he was born., Houston, where he grew up, and Minneapolis, where he died. The memorials have drawn the families of other black victims whose names have become familiar in the debate over race and justice — among them, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Ahmaud Arbery and Trayvon Martin. Following the service, Floyd’s golden casket was taken by hearse toward the

cemetery in the Houston suburb of Pearland where he was to be entombed next to his mother, for whom he cried out as he lay dying. A horse-drawn carriage was to carry his body the last mile to the graveyard. Hundreds of people lined the route in the mid-90s heat. “We’re out here for a purpose. That purpose is because first of all he’s our brother. Second, we want to see change,” said Marcus Brooks, 47, who set up a tent with other graduates of Jack Yates High School, Floyd’s alma mater. “I don’t want to see any black man, any man, but most definitely not a black man sitting on the ground in the hands of bad police.” In the past two weeks, amid the furor over Floyd’s death, sweeping and previously unthinkable things have taken place: Confederate statues have been toppled, and many cities are debating overhauling, dismantling or cutting funding for police departments. Authorities in some places have barred police from using chokeholds or are otherwise rethinking policies on the use of force. Dozens of Floyd’s family members, most dressed in white, took part in the four-hour service. Grammy-winning singer Ne-Yo was among those who sang during the ceremony. The mourners also included actors Jamie Foxx and Channing Tatum, J.J. Watt of the NFL’s Houston Texans, rapper Trae tha Truth, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who brought the crowd to its feet when he announced he will sign an executive order banning chokeholds in the city. “I know you have a lot of questions that no child should have to ask, questions that too many black children have had to ask for generations: Why? Why is Daddy gone?” former Vice President Joe Biden,

LATONYA Floyd speaks during the funeral of for her brother George Floyd in Houston yesterday the Democratic presidential candidate, said, addressing Floyd’s 6-year-old daughter in a video eulogy played at the service. “Now is the time for racial justice. That’s the answer we must give to our children when they ask why.” Biden made no mention of politics. But other speakers took swipes at President Donald Trump, who has ignored demands to address racial bias and has called on authorities to crack down hard on lawlessness. “The president talks about bringing in the military, but he did not say one word about 8 minutes and 46 seconds of police murder of George Floyd,” said Rev Al Sharpton, the civil rights activist. “He challenged China on human rights. But what about the human right of George Floyd?” Most of the pews were full, with relatively little space between people. “So much for social distancing today,” the Rev. Remus Wright told mourners, gently but firmly instructing those attending to wear face masks. While the church service was private, at least 50 people gathered outside to pay

their respects. “There’s a real big change going on, and everybody, especially black, right now should be a part of that,” said Kersey Biagase, who travelled more than three hours from Port Barre, Louisiana, with his girlfriend, Brandi Pickney. They wore T-shirts printed with Floyd’s name and “I Can’t Breathe.” Floyd served nearly five years in prison for robbery with a deadly weapon before becoming a mentor and a church outreach volunteer in Houston. He moved to Minnesota several years ago through a program that tried to change men’s lives by helping them find work in new settings. At the time of his death, Floyd was out of work as a bouncer at a Minneapolis club that had closed because of the coronavirus outbreak. He was seized by police after being accused of passing a counterfeit $20 bill at a convenience store. Four Minneapolis officers were arrested in his death: Derek Chauvin, 44, was charged with second-degree murder. J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao were charged with aiding and abetting. All four could get up to 40 years in jail.

IN POOR REGIONS, EASING VIRUS LOCKDOWNS BRINGS NEW RISKS SAN PAULO, Brazil Associated Press AS many countries gingerly start lifting their lockdown measures, experts worry that a further surge of the coronavirus in under-developed regions with shaky health systems could undermine efforts to halt the pandemic, and they say more realistic options are needed. Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, India and Pakistan are among countries easing tight restrictions, not only before their outbreaks have peaked but also before any detailed surveillance and testing system is in place to keep the virus

COVID-19 testing in Duque de Caxias, Brazil under control. That could ultimately have devastating consequences, health experts warn. “Politicians may be desperate to get their

economies going again, but that could be at the expense of having huge numbers of people die,” said Dr. Bharat Pankhania, an infectious diseases expert at the

University of Exeter in England. He said re-imposing recently lifted lockdown measures was equally dangerous. “Doing that is extremely worrying because then you will build up a highly resentful and angry population, and it’s unknown how they will react,” Pankhania said. And as nearly every developed country struggles with its own outbreak, there may be fewer resources to help those with long overstretched capacities. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, said the pandemic was “worsening” globally,

noting that countries on Sunday reported the biggest-ever one-day total: more than 136,000 cases. Among those, nearly 75% of the cases were from 10 countries in the Americas and South Asia. Wealthy countries in Europe and North America hit first by the pandemic are training armies of contact tracers to hunt down cases, designing tracking apps and planning virus-free air travel corridors. But in many poor regions where crowded slums and streets mean even basic measures like hand-washing and social distancing are difficult, the coronavirus is exploding now that

restrictions are being removed. Last week, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, India and Pakistan all saw one-day records of new infections or deaths as they reopened public spaces and businesses. Clare Wenham of the London School of Economics described the situation in Brazil as “terrifying.” . “We’ve seen problems with countries reporting data all over the world, but to not even report data at all is clearly a political decision,” she said. That could complicate efforts to understand how the virus is spreading in the region and how it’s affecting the Brazilian population, Wenham said.

SPORTS SECTION E

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10, 2020

Lashann signs with SIG to make next move in Europe By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

A

lthough she didn’t get to fulfill her dream of being the next Bahamian to become a member of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) fraternity, Lashann Higgs is not letting the disappointment get the best of her professional basketball career. Higgs, a 5-foot, 9-inch guard from Harbour Island, Eleuthera, graduated from the University of Texas last year, but returned for her senior season with the Longhorns women’s basketball team after coming back from a torn ACL in her left knee in November, 2018. She has signed a contract with Sports International Group, Inc. (SIG) to market her next move in Europe. No deal has been completed yet, but she is working vigorously between Austin and Houston, Texas with coach John Lucas and Mark Martinis in a group of professional and collegiate players. “I guess everyone’s path is different, but I am still trying to achieve every part of my goals and aspirations,” said Higgs, who is leaning more towards playing for a team in Spain. “I just have to take another path to get to the WNBA and see where it leads me. “If it’s the WNBA then great, but if it’s not, I still have to move on with my career. I just have to be appreciative of what I have. It could have been worse, but I’m still playing basketball.” The education major said as a youngster growing up in Harbour Island, she only envisioned getting the opportunity to pursue a basketball career. She achieved her goal by playing in 137 games with 52 as a starter. She left the University of Texas ranked as the seventh all-time in the Longhorns’ history for games played and 28th in career points scored with a total of 1,288. Higgs, who averaged 9.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game,

said since the NCAA was forced to shut down their season prior to the start of COVID-19 in March, she followed the guidelines for the state with curfews and social distancing. “They just opened up the state about two anda-half weeks ago with limitations and so I’ve been going to more gyms to train,” said Higgs, who also took advantage of training at home during the lockdowns. Now, the state is joining the rest of the country in mourning the death of George Floyd at the hands of the police, which has skyrocketed a nation-wide protest because of racism against blacks. Floyd was buried in Houston on Tuesday. The 24-year-old Higgs, who has seen some of the social unrest but has decided not to participate, said it’s time for the nation to heal. “Blacks will continue to fight for what is right and try to educate people about what they are going through,” she said. “I think we just need to show people that we are no different from any other people just by looking at the colour of our skin. “Being a black person, it does something to your soul, but we have to end this type of treatment of black people, regardless to where you are, in the Bahamas or in the United States. We just need to be more compassionate towards each other because it’s only causing hatred and discord amongst each other.” Coming off her red shirt senior year because of the injury, Higgs was in Kansas

SEE PAGE 14

LASHANN HIGGS, of Harbour Island, Eleuthera, did not get to fulfill her dream of being the next Bahamian to become a member of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) fraternity, but she is not letting the disappointment get the best of her pro basketball career. She has signed a contract with Sports International Group, Inc. to market her next move in Europe.

PAGE 15

TRACK AND FIELD NATIONALS IN LIMBO By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net EVEN with the economy starting to get back to normalcy in the wake of COVID-19, Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ President Drumeco Archer is still not sure whether or not their National Track and Field Championships will take place. The BAAA nationals are scheduled for the weekend of July 31 to August 1 at the Thomas A Robinson Stadium, but Archer said they are still in limbo because of the uncertainty of how many athletes will be prepared to compete once the Bahamas government allows large gatherings at sporting activities. “We know we have a large number of athletes who are training and we have a large number of athletes who are not training,” Archer said. “But we also know that many of the athletes have not had access to training facilities since the country was locked down.” At their next executive meeting, Archer said they will have a practical decision on the feasibility of putting on the nationals, which would include the junior and senior athletes, or they decide on putting on an All-Comers Meet where athletes can come out and compete in a less marketed meet. “We may not get the desired effect that we would get from a highly publicised nationals, but at least we can still provide an avenue for the athletes to come out and participate in a less pressured meet,” Archer pointed out. Apart from the World Athletics’ limited Diamond meets designed for the elite athletes around the world to compete in later this year, there are plans for the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC) to host a regional meet here in the Bahamas, but no date has been confirmed. “Our nationals were set to accommodate our athletes before they return to school and we wanted to give them an opportunity to compete if it is possible for them,” Archer said.

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UB MINGOES ATHLETICS IN FIRST OF 4-PHASE PLAN TO NORMALCY By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net MINGOES Athletic Director Kimberley Rolle is confident that with an additional $1.5 million allocated in the Bahamas government’s 2020/21 budget to the University of the Bahamas, they could continue to become a viable tertiary institution for Bahamian student athletes to attend. In putting in place the necessary protocols for the return of sporting activities on their campus on University Drive, Rolle said they are in the first of their fourphase plan to get back to normalcy. “Our athletic trainers have team training going on at home right now,” said Rolle, referring to certified trainers Sasha Ferguson and Shakeitha Henfield. “We commenced that on June 1 with all of the teams. Each team has a trainer

assigned to them to get them ready. “We will stay in that stage until we can receive students back on our campus. When we get back to school, we will move into phase three. I can’t say when that date is because the university is getting its cue from the government.” With the use of virtual training, Rolle said they are focusing on getting their student athletes in tip-top shape after being locked down for the past three months since the country was shut down in March as a result of COVID-19. “We want to avoid the risk of injuries to our athletes, so we’re using the next couple of weeks in this phase to get our athletes developing their strength and conditioning right now,” she said. “As we move into other phases, their muscles will be developed so that they can be ready for the upcoming

season whenever we get to that phase of normalcy with school reopening.” And with the United States of America going through a state of social unrest with protests and racism surfacing after the death of George Floyd, Rolle said they expect that there will be an influx of student athletes deciding to use UB as a viable option for their tertiary education. “The reality is that a lot of the US schools have indicated that their international numbers are down as a result of the uncertainty of COVID-19,” Rolle said. “So I don’t think it’s just the Bahamas that would be affected. “I think a lot of countries will see their numbers shrink as it relates to student athletes travelling abroad. I know the numbers in reference to the persons who are applying to our admissions office speaks for itself.”

KIMBERLEY ROLLE In the aftermath of COVID-19, Rolle said there is expected to be a decline in the number of student athletes who are expected to travel to the US for the upcoming school year. So if the numbers increase, she said they are hoping that there will be some student athletes in the mix. “As we expect an influx into the university, we expect that there will be

an increase in the interest of our student athletes for our programme,” she said. “Over the last few years, I think UB’s athletic programme spoke for itself. We have turned out some good athletes and our teams have performed very well. In sports, you can do a lot of talking, but you have to deliver. We want to deliver a programme that persons can say ‘I could see myself being a part of that’”. At present, the Mingoes have about 90 student athletes involved in about nine disciplines in men’s basketball, men’s soccer, men and women’s track and field, cross country, judo, golf, women’s volleyball and women’s softball. Through these disciplines, Rolle said they are trying to recruit the best athletes available in the Bahamas. “We want to ensure that our coaches, athletes and parents see that the university is making progress

each year and it’s producing student athletes who are excelling,” Rolle said. “At the end of the day, there are only a handful of student athletes who will become pro athletes, but there are much more who will become better professionals in the field of their studies. So high on our agenda is that our student athletes graduate and they move into the professional areas they have studied.” This is Rolle’s 12th year since accepting the job on December 1, 2008 as athletic director when she returned home in 2007 after graduating from Henderson State as one of their top Lady Reddie women’s basketball players. So far, the married mother of two boys, Deuce and Derrius, admitted that it has been a rewarding experience. “You’re never satisfied. You can ask Duke

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PAGE 14, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

FURY-WILDER III BY END OF THE YEAR, PROMOTER SAYS By The Associated Press THE US promoter of Tyson Fury is hoping to stage a third heavyweight fight between the British boxer and Deontay Wilder by the end of the year, potentially in the Chinese enclave of Macau. Bob Arum told The Associated Press that Fury “owes” Wilder a third fight after claiming the WBC belt off the American with a seventh-round stoppage in February. Only then would Fury turn his attention to an all-British fight with Anthony Joshua, the WBA, IBF and WBO titleholder, in early 2021. “We hope to do that fight in November or December,” Arum, the CEO of Top Rank, said of Fury-Wilder III. “Whether it’s for a full audience or a limited audience in the United States or put it on in Macau, which may be open for full arenas as

early as November... you know, we’re exploring all our options.” Joshua is also set to fight this year, against mandatory IBF challenger Kubrat Pulev. “Next year there’ll be this huge fight with Fury and Joshua, that’s the way the cards turn,” Arum said. “And I agree it will be a massive, massive fight wherever it takes place; US, UK or someplace elsewhere.” Fury has said he has been approached to take on Mike Tyson after the 53-year-old former undisputed world champion posted workout clips on social media last month, proclaiming “I’m back.” But Arum thinks they should only ever meet in a “joke” fight for charity. “If it’s anywhere near serious, I’m not going to be a participant in something that could be really deadly,” he told the AP. “Mike Tyson was a great fighter, he’s in

his 50s now. (He) doesn’t go and fight really seriously a guy who is at the top of his game in his 30s. “That’s not right and nobody should encourage it. If it’s a joke, they go and spar around, who cares? And particularly for charity, that’s great.” Fury-Wilder II was the last fight Arum promoted before the enforced shutdown of sport because of the coronavirus pandemic. Arum will use the same venue, the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, to launch live boxing’s comeback in the United States on Tuesday. A six-fight card, headlined by WBO featherweight world champion Shakur Stevenson, will kick off a series of twice-weekly events in a hotel ballroom across June and July which will all be staged without fans and media, with the fight announcers based remotely.

In the arena, the fight judges will be pushed back from their usual ringside position and adjudicate from a distance of eight feet. All boxers will have been tested for COVID-19 on arrival and then have their movement limited to a bubble of block-booked floors of the hotel and a separate room where they will train and eat. A dedicated lift will transport fighters between the two areas. They will then be tested again for the coronavirus after Monday’s weigh-in. “It is more than ethical,” Arum said of bringing boxing back during a pandemic. “It is something that is a contribution because people are battling this coronavirus, but they still have to lead their lives. “They still are entitled to enjoyment. Nothing gives people enjoyment like live sports, whether it’s boxing or football or something like that.”

LYDIA KO, of New Zealand, tees off on the first hole during the third round of the Evian Championship women’s golf tournament in Evian, eastern France September 17, 2016. The LPGA Tour has lost its first major because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour says the Evian Championship has been canceled this year because of travel and border restrictions in France. (AP)

LPGA LOSES A MAJOR AS EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP CANCELLED By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer THE LPGA Tour lost its first major because of the COVID-19 pandemic when it announced yesterday the Evian Championship in France has been cancelled this year. The LPGA Tour cited ongoing travel and border restrictions, along with government quarantine requirements for not holding the tournament on August 6-9. It will return to the schedule next year in Evian-les-Bains. The LPGA Tour is set to resume in Ohio with the Marathon

NATIONALS from PAGE 13

“All of these assumptions have us in limbo because of the uncertainty of the coronavirus that we still can’t get a handle of. So we’re still not sure what will happen until the economy is fully opened and things are back to some sense of normalcy in what will be a new norm with the social distancing and wearing of masks in large gatherings.” While there are a number of Bahamian athletes, who either attend high school, college and university or are training there in some of the professional clubs,

UB MINGOES from PAGE 13

University if they are satisfied and they will say, ‘there’s always a great deal of work ahead of you’”, reflected Rolle, whose husband Bacchus, a former versatile basketball/baseball player, serves as the head coach for the men’s basketball team. “But we’re so much further along than where we were 10 years ago. We couldn’t get student athletes to seriously look at our programme 10 years ago. But we’re now seriously competing for our top-tier athletes to stay here at home and compete for UB.” Last year, Rolle said they employed their first full-time coach in Ednal Rolle, who has attracted

Classic on July 23-26. For now, it has majors scheduled in August, September, October and December. “I have been incredibly impressed by the entire team at the Evian Championship. They worked so hard to host this global event despite the obvious challenges,” LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan said. “They know that high-pursed, career-changing events like the Evian are more important than ever, especially in an LPGA year that has been drastically reduced due to COVID-19. I know this was a tough decision for everyone involved, but it’s one that we had

to take given the restrictions we faced.” The Evian dates to 1994 when it began as a Ladies European Tour event, and it became part of the LPGA schedule in 2000 when it was the Evian Masters. With one of the higher purses in women’s golf, the LPGA designated it as a fifth major in 2013. It was moved from September to July in 2019 for better weather conditions. In the revised schedule brought on by the pandemic, it was to be the first of three European events, preceding the Ladies Scottish Open and the Women’s British Open. Those two events remain

on the schedule. The ANA Inspiration in California, originally scheduled for the first week in April, has been moved to September 10-13. The Women’s PGA Championship outside Philadelphia is scheduled for October 8-11. The US Women’s Open is December 10-13 in Houston, with the season concluding the following week at the CME Group Tour Championship in Florida. The PGA Tour will have only one major in its season, with the British Open having been cancelled, the US Open moving from June to September and the Masters going from April to November.

Archer said the social unrest with the protests that are currently underway, may as well as it may not have any effect on the movement of Bahamian athletes to and from the United States. “I look at it as two separate incidents. The US has its share of protests going on with its racial challenges, but we had a number of athletes who were performing well before the closure of our borders,” Archer said. “The problem is when you try to market them into the schools, you can’t tell that they were running 10.1 and now because of what we have been experiencing with the curfews and shutdowns that they are now running 10.7.

“So I think that has limited the marketing ability of our athletes, more than the social unrest because in my view, the schools’ structure is designed so that they can accommodate the student athletes based on crises such as this,” Archer added. The other issue, which could hinder their progress, is the US Immigration policy where the athletes could be denied student visas if the US is concerned about limiting the amount of persons they would allow into the country as a result of the spread of the coronavirus. “If you say COVID-19 is having an impact on the students’ resources because of financial

displacements, then it’s totally different from the social unrest,” Archer pointed out. “So I think there are some more pointed issues over the social unrest that we are now consumed about.” In the meantime, Archer said the BAAA will be willing to assist in any way that they can to help facilitate the process of getting more student-athletes into schools in the United States to further their education and at the same time develop their athletic prowess, which in turn will be more beneficial to the growth and development of the Bahamas’ national track and field programme.

some talented student athletes to the programme. “When I look at how our athletic programme has transpired over the years with two full-time athletic trainers, who are among the best that we have to offer in the country with masters degrees, I feel like we’re in good hands,” Rolle said. Ferguson, a former versatile basketball player, is now in her fifth year and Henfield is an Olympic 400 metre runner who is in her second year. They are being charged with formulating a programme to get their protocol in place for the return of their student athletes to their campus. “We’ve had a physical fitness trainer in place for the past five years. I believe that Sasha has done a yeoman’s job before she was joined by Shakeitha,” Rolle

said. “They are busy taking the athletes through their home-based training with their strength and conditioning. “They are also writing out the protocols that we will put in place for our student athletes when they return to the campus. They have been very instrumental in getting our programme up and running again. I like to tease them that they are more than just ice and bags, but the job that they do is tremendous and they do it without complaining.” With all these things in place, Rolle said UB is well on its way to becoming an affiliate of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), an organisation that caters to the small schools in the United States. “COVID-19 has put a monkey

wrench in our plans. A lot of what we are doing now is watching the US in particular, how they deal with their sports and how they manage social distancing and protocol as it relates to the participation of sports,” Rolle said. “There are still one or two things that the university has to do before we can make the application to the NAIA. We know there will be some new challenges as it relates to COVID-19, but we want to still make that application once we get back to normalcy and let the chips fall where they may.” Rolle, however, said with the programme that they have made over the years, especially competing against NAI teams, they have been able to hold their own, so she’s confident that they will be received with open arms.

MADRID PUSHING TO HOST CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL THIS SEASON MADRID (AP) — Madrid is eager to host the Champions League final this season amid the coronavirus pandemic, the mayor of the Spanish capital said yesterday. José Luis MartínezAlmeida said the city would be prepared to host the final for the second straight year, with UEFA looking for a new host after the game was moved from Istanbul. “I want to show that there is full support to bring the Champions League final to Madrid,” MartínezAlmeida told 13tv in an interview published yesterday. “The right security conditions are in place and we have the infrastructure and public services that would allow us to host it. It would be a message to the world that Madrid never gives up and that it has recovered after everything that we went through.” Spain was one of the hardest-hit countries by the pandemic but has been gradually lifting confinement restrictions as the number of cases and deaths subside. Nearly 28,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the southern European country. The Spanish league will restart on Thursday, almost three months after it was suspended because of the pandemic. The league has not ruled out allowing fans into stadiums this season, which could strengthen Madrid’s case. A UEFA executive committee meeting on June 17 is expected to decide the new location for the final that is likely to be played in August. It was originally scheduled to take place in Istanbul on May 30.

LASHANN from PAGE 13

City, Missouri in the Big 12 Tournament when the Longhorns’ season was halted. When they returned to Austin, they were preparing for the NCAA Tournament, but that was also called off due to COVID-19, ending her collegiate career. “It was disappointing, but you just have to move on and work with what you have,” she said. I’m really grateful to be able to attend college and to live out my dream to play basketball,” said Higgs. “I had a pretty successful career, but with everything in life, you have your ups and downs, but it’s just what you do with it.” As she went through her final season, Higgs started in 10 of their 30 games, averaging 20.8 minutes per game. She led the Longhorns in field-goal percentage with a 45.1 per cent (110-of-224) clip and she scored in double figures on 14 occasions during the season. Higgs, who attended Cedar Ridge High School after leaving the Bahamas, lost her mother Romilly Higgs in 2013 due to cervical cancer. She has been adopted by George Henderson, an assistant coach with the Longhorns and his wife, Jackie Washington, who played at Abilene Christian and was inducted into the ACU Sports Hall of Fame in 2012. As she moves forward, Higgs said she just wants to play as long as she can and along the way try to be a mentor or trainer to the younger basketball players in the Bahamas and in the US. To the Bahamian people, including her father Michael Higgs and family members who are still on Harbour Island and Grand Bahama, as we go through the COVID-19 experience, Higgs offered these few words of encouragement. “Continue to trust in God, continue to stay safe and continue to fight. It will all get better in a matter of time,” Higgs said.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 15

Q&A: State of the Tokyo Olympics 2 1/2 months after postponement By STEPHEN WADE AP Sports Writer TOKYO (AP) — It’s been 2 1/2 months since the Tokyo Olympics were postponed until next year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. So where do the games stand? So far, many ideas about how the Olympic can take place are being floated by the International Olympic Committee, Japanese officials and politicians, and in unsourced Japanese newspaper articles coming from local organisers and politicians. The focus is on soaring costs, fans — or no fans — possible quarantines for athletes, and cutting back to only “the essentials.” No one blames the IOC for not knowing what conditions will be a year from now. And from the IOC perspective, there is no need yet to speak frankly and possibly alienate Japanese politicians and citizens, sponsors and TV broadcasters, and athletes. The IOC executive board meets today and will hear a brief presentation from Tokyo organisers on a remote hookup, explaining where things stand. Few surprises and few specifics are expected. The meeting is behind virtual closed doors, although IOC President Thomas Bach will speak afterward. — Q: Given the pandemic, will the Olympics really open on July 23, 2021? There are skeptics, particularly if no vaccine is available. A: The IOC says “yes,” although that was the stance just days before the 2020 games were postponed in late March. Japan and the IOC have agreed: the games cannot be postponed again. If they can’t

be held this time, they will be cancelled. IOC member John Coates, who oversees preparations for Tokyo, said a few weeks ago that the games face “real problems.” Much has to do with the massive scale: 11,000 Olympians, 4,400 Paralympians, 206 national Olympic Committees, dozens of summer sports federations, 42 venues and more than 5,000 apartments to secure in the Athletes Village, about 25 per cent of which are reported to have been sold. Pierre Ducrey, Olympic Games operations director, said last week that retaining the Olympic Village was “problem No. 1.” This is without even raising the question of fans. Q: So, will there be fans? Sports starting up around the world are doing it in empty venues. A: Bach has not ruled out competing in empty venues. “This is not what we want,” he said, in an interview with the BBC. But he has acknowledged there are questions about access to venues. All of this affects more than four million tickets already sold. Ticket sales are worth at least $800 million to the local organising committee. Organisers are unlikely to want to pay refunds. Tickets have a “force majeure” clause that might get organisers off the hook if the coronavirus is deemed beyond “Tokyo 2020’s reasonable control.” Not helping is that Japan, like many other countries, is heading into a recession due to the economic repercussions of the coronavirus shutdown. Q: What will the postponement cost? A: This is the best-kept secret. Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto undoubtedly has a very good idea.

PEOPLE wearing masks walk past the Olympic rings near the New National Stadium in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Jae C Hong) He’s a former deputy governor of the Back of Japan and a veteran of Japan’s finance ministry. But he has declined to offer any numbers. The estimates in Japan for the postponement range from $2 billion to 6 billion. The IOC has said it will chip in $650 million “as our part of the assessment” toward the added cost. Therefore, the vast majority of extra costs fall to Japanese taxpayers. Tokyo said the games would cost $7.3 billion when it won the bid in 2013. The official budget says the games will cost $12.6 billion, though a government audit says it’s twice that. All but $5.6 billion is public money. Ducrey, the Olympic Games operations director, said last week the IOC is in talks with insurers about some compensation for the postponed Olympics. The IOC has cancellation insurance but it’s unclear if that covers an unprecedented postponement. Q: How different might these Olympics look on TV? A: No matter where the Olympics are held, or in what city, most Olympic venues look much the same on television. The

venues are studios for a TV production. TV will have a year to adapt, watching how European soccer clubs, or the NBA, present their games. TV pays the Olympic bills, and the IOC cannot do without TV revenue. The IOC earns at least 73 per cent of its income — about $4 billion in a fouryear Olympic cycle — from selling broadcast rights. By any calculation, it’s difficult to see the games being cancelled and the IOC losing its major income source. And don’t forget, the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics open six months after Tokyo closes. Q: Is there any deadline for organisers and the IOC to firm up plans? A: Former Olympic minister Toshiaki Endo, a member of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ruling party, said last week that March was a possible deadline for deciding whether the postponed Tokyo Games can go ahead. Muto, the CEO of Tokyo 2020, has said few decisions will be made public before the fall about the shape of the Olympics. Everyone from Bach to Muto to Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike is preaching cuts. Bach, who has termed putting on the games next

year “an enormous task,” says old ways of running the Olympics have “to be questioned.” Muto has been open about slashing costs and “reducing service levels.” Koike has used the words “streamlined and simplified” but has offered nothing specific. Among the cuts could be having only one opening and closing ceremony, combined for both the Olympics and Paralympics. Q: Where do the athletes stand in all of this? A: Olympics athletes have no single voice. Most get only one chance at participating. The pandemic has financially crushed many Olympics-related bodies — sports federations and national Olympic committee — that help fund athletes. Bach earlier this year warned against using the Tokyo Olympics as a platform for highlighting political and social causes. That will certainly be challenged next year in the wake massive protests condemning the death of black Americans by law enforcement. American hammer thrower Gwen Berry wrote in a open letter this week that “the idea that sport and politics can be separated is absurd.”

OLYMPIC TENNIS SPOTS BASED ON POST-FRENCH RANKINGS IN 2021 LONDON (AP) — The tennis rankings that come out after the 2021 French Open will be used to determine who qualifies for the postponed Tokyo Olympics. The International Tennis Federation said yesterday that its eligibility rules will be the same as originally set up for Tokyo, with requirements related to minimum participation in Fed Cup or Davis Cup — and an appeals process for players who do not meet those standards. The cutoff for ATP and WTA rankings points for the 2020 Games originally had been Monday, the day after this year’s French Open was supposed to end. But because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Olympics were pushed back a year from next month to July 2021. The 2020 French Open also was postponed and is now scheduled to start in September. Next year’s French Open will end on June 6, so the WTA and ATP rankings of June 7 will be used to help determine who qualifies for the Olympics. For the Paralympic wheelchair tennis event, the ITF said that all athletes who would have been eligible in 2020 will remain eligible next year.

PAGE 16, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

AP SOURCES: MLB PLAYERS CUT TO 89 GAMES, WANT PRORATED MONEY FORMER EUROPEAN By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Baseball players moved toward teams but remained far apart economically in their latest proposal for starting the pandemic-delayed season, adamant they receive full prorated salaries while offering to cut the regular season to 89 games. The proposal by the players’ association, given to Major League Baseball electronically yesterday evening without a negotiating session, was detailed to The Associated Press by a pair of people familiar with the negotiations. They spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcements were authorised. MLB did not appear to view the proposal as productive but made no comment. MLB has said that absent an agreement it could go ahead with a shorter schedule of perhaps 50 games. Players made their move one day after management cut its proposed schedule from 82 games to 76. The union proposed the regular season start July 10 and end October 11 — the day before a possible Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

The union accepted MLB’s plan to expand the postseason from 10 teams to as many as 16. However, if management announces a schedule without an agreement, it would not be able to alter the established postseason format. The players’ plan would have the World Series end in mid-tolate November, and players said they would accept MLB’s proposal to have the ability to shift postseason games to neutral sites. Teams say they fear a second wave of the coronavirus and do not want to extend the World Series past October. Deputy Commissioner Dan Halem told the union a 76-game schedule could not be staged unless players agreed to a deal by today. Players continue to insist on full prorated salaries as specified in the March 26 agreement between the perpetually feuding sides. The deal gave players service time in the event no games are played this year along with a $170 million salary advance. MLB says that because the season likely would be played in empty ballparks without fans, the absence of gate-related revenue would lead to a loss of $640,000 for each additional game played,

a figure the union questions. MLB’s proposal would guarantee players 50 per cent of prorated salaries and another 20 per cent if the postseason is completed, and teams would fund a $50 million pool for players’ postseason shares even if no or few tickets or sold. MLB also would forgive 20 per cent of the salary advance. Players had been set to earn about $4 billion in salaries this year before opening day was pushed back from March 26 due to the new coronavirus, and the union’s initial economic proposal on May 31 called for a 114-game schedule running through October and salaries totaling $2.8 billion. The shorter schedule in the new plan lowered the amount to about $2.2 billion. MLB’s offer Monday was for just under $1.3 billion in salaries, but only about $1 billion would be guaranteed. The rest is contingent on the postseason’s completion. Mike Trout and Gerrit Cole, the highest-paid players with $36 million salaries, would get $19,777,778 each under the union’s plan. MLB’s offer would guarantee each $8,723,967 with the chance to increase to $12,190,633 apiece if the postseason is completed.

A player at the $563,500 minimum would earn $309,577 under the union plan and up to $244,492 from MLB’s offer. Those at $1 million — about half those on current active rosters — would get $549,383 under the union proposal and up to $389,496 in the MLB formula. A 50-game schedule with prorated salaries would total just over $1.2 billion and leave Cole and Trout at $11,111,111 each. Players proposed that $5 million from joint managementunion funds be marked toward supporting non-union minor leaguers and social causes. Players would agree to participate in events such as an offseason All-Star Game and/or Home Run Derby and to broadcast enhancements such as wearing microphones during games. The union did not accept management’s offer to suspend free-agent compensation this offseason, which would eliminate the qualifying offers that cause some teams to decline to pursue players. Players accepted MLB’s proposal that high-risk players could opt out of this season while receiving salary and service time, but that other players who opt out would not receive salary or service time.

HIGH JUMP CHAMP SHUSTOV BANNED FOR DOPING

MOSCOW (AP) — Former European high jump champion Alexander Shustov has been banned for four years for doping in the latest case from previous years to hit the Russian team, the Court of Arbitration for Sport said yesterday. CAS said in an emailed statement he was banned for the use or attempted use of a banned substance or method, without giving any further details. Shustov won the gold medal at the European championships in 2010. The Russian Athletics Federation said on Monday that Shustov’s ban was dated from June 5, and his results were disqualified for a period from 2013 to 2017. That means he keeps his European title but is retroactively disqualified from seventh place at the 2013 world championships in Moscow. The 35-year-old Shustov has not competed since 2016, according to World Athletics records. Shustov told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti he planned to file an appeal.