Local News

Caribbean Juris Chambers, one of the leading law firms in Anguilla, celebrated its 21st Anniversary on Friday September 24, with a lavish party for staff, friends, colleaques and members of the general public.

The people of Anguilla and other islands served by the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court are to see a re-structuring of the Magistrates’ Courts, according to Acting Chief Justice, Adrian Saunders.

Chief Minister Osbourne Fleming and Minister of Finance Victor Banks attended the Sixth Overseas Territories Consultative Council (OTCC) held in London on September 21 and 22. The meeting was hosted by Bill Rammel the Overseas Territories Minister and attended by Chief Ministers and senior politicians from the British Overseas Territories, including the Premier of Bermuda and Councillors from St Helena and the Falkland Islands. The only territory not represented was the Cayman Islands, due to the recent hurricane disaster.

Representatives from Anguilla were among a number of persons from various parts of the world at the Ryder Cup Golf Tournament in Michigan this week.

The passing of Crispin Fahie, a well-respected and beloved Anguillian, was received on the island with much sadness on Tuesday, September 14. The 58-year-old former Public Servant was found dead at his residence in Brown Hill, Nevis.

The Ministry of Social Development in Anguilla is making arrangements for the island to be represented at a two-day Regional Health Journalism Workshop at the Jolly Beach Hotel in Antigua.

The National Bank of Anguilla has dispatched a quantity of supplies to Grenada to assist in the relief and recovery efforts there following the passage of Hurricane Ivan.

FirstCaribbean International Bank in Anguilla has come to the assistance of a family in Blowing Point who lost all of their belongings in a fire that completely destroyed their home on August 2.

Cable & Wireless’ Business Unit in Anguilla has donated EC$5,000 and 500 exercise books to the Education Department for the schools on the island. The donation was made as part of the company’s philanthropic objectives under its new Foundation recently announced in St. Lucia.

In a historic signing ceremony at the Ministry of Infrastructure Communications and Public Utilities, the Public Utilities Commissiontoday issued Weblinks Limited the first telecommunications license inAnguilla’s recently liberalized telecommunications market. Weblinks, alocally owned telecommunications company since 1999, won the competitive bid for the license in December 2003, beating out DigiCel. A second license was won by Wireless Ventures (Anguilla) Ltd. in April 2004.

The Anguilla Government and the private sector have joined the rest of the region in contributing to the relief and recovery efforts being made to assist the people of Grenada following the devastation by Hurricane Ivan. The Spice Island took a severe pounding from the hurricane which left a trail of destruction and death in its wake.

The recently-implemented security system at Blowing Point Port, where hundreds of people pass through daily between Anguilla and St. Martin, is going relatively smoothly with the cooperation of all persons. The only exception is that some times a shortage of staff has made it difficult to man all the areas of work.

Cap Juluca Hotel in Anguilla has won the special destination wedding competition hosted by NBC, one of America’s leading television networks. The local resort emerged winner after one week of voting, via the internet, for four finalists selected from among some 100 competing properties in the United States and Canada. The three other finalists were Le Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City, Canada; Lake Placid in New York State and Biltmore Estate in Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina.

Members of the flight crew and local staff of the American Eagle stood outside the last of the ATR-42 aircraft to fly into Wallblake Airport in Anguilla on Tuesday, September 7, in a gesture of farewell, as tourists and other passengers boarded the plane for San Juan, Puerto Rico. While it taxied down the shoulder of the runway for take-off two fire trucks, positioned on either side, showered an arc of water overhead in salute to the airline for its service to Anguilla which began in November 1986.

On its popular Today Show, NBC, one of America’s leading television networks, is hosting a special destination wedding in which Anguilla and Cap Juluca Hotel are among the four finalists selected from some 100 competitors. The other destinations that won selection are Le Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City, Canada; Lake Placid in New York State; and Biltmore Estate in Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina.

The Anguilla Government is joining in a regional effort to fight cervical cancer, more vigorously, to save the lives of the older women-folk who are increasingly coming down with, and dying of, the disease.

A top official in the Ministry of Education says that Anguilla is not immune from the problems associated with literacy and the Government is taking steps to do something about it.

Anguilla, which has a thriving up-market tourism industry, is itself providing some tourist dollars to other destinations being visited by its nationals. On Monday, September 6, 40 Anguillians left here for the popular cruise to Alaska, all excited about the trip to what is described as “God’s country” because of its exquisite and unimaginable beauty.

The Senior Choir at St. George’s Anglican Church in Basseterre, St. Kitts, spent last weekend in Anguilla and gave two performances. The 22 choristers, led by their Director, Ian Hodge, were house guests of the parishioners of the three Anglican Churches – St. Mary’s, The Valley; St. Augustine’s, East End; and St. Andrew’s, Island Harbour.

Four top former Government workers and a leading member of the community have been appointed as the five new members of the Anguilla Public Service Commission.
They are Allister Richardson and Elvet Hughes who served as Permanent Secretaries in the Chief Minister’s Office and held other senior positions in the service; Marie Horsford, a former Assistant Secretary in the Department of Public Administration and Loma Mussington who served as Clerk to the Executive Council. The other member is Murielle Owen, a past President of the Soroptimist Club.