Places with dark and disturbing histories exist throughout the world. Visiting scary places is all about going to locations where the spirits of the dead still roam the world. Even scarier are those places infested with other worldly spirits that are not human.

Here are some of the scariest legends:
The Screaming Tunnel, Warner Road

A local legend recounts that the tunnel is haunted by the ghost of a young girl, who after escaping a nearby burning farm building with her clothing ablaze, died within its walls. Several variants of the legend exist locally, one version has the girl set on fire by her enraged father after he loses custody of his children after a nasty divorce. Another tells of a young girl being raped inside the tunnel and her body burned to prevent any evidence from being found.  All variants involve a claim that a match struck within the tunnels recesses will produce the sound of the young girls dying screams, this purported phenomena is alleged to be the origin of the tunnels name.

Bessie Little Bridge,  Dayton

The ghost of a murdered girl named Bessie Little returns regularly to this bridge on Ridge Street. She was murdered there on August 27, 1896, by her boyfriend, Albert J. Frantz. Bessie was pregnant and Albert didnt want to have to marry her, so he shot her in the head and arranged the scene to suggest a suicide. For some reason, however, he shot her twice, so it was obvious that she hadnt done it to herself. On November 19, 1897, Albert J. Frantz #28896 was strapped into the electric chair at the Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus and put to death for first degree murder. Back in Montgomery County, Bessie Littles ghost continues to haunt the bridge.

Ohio University,  America

Wilson Hall, famous for a girl (a supposed witch)who killed herself moments after writing satanic and supernatural things on the wall in her own *lo**. The five cemetaries that form a pentagram that surrounds the campus, with the administrative building being in the center of the devils sign. Washington Hall, which is famous for housing a team of basketball players who all died in a terrible crashm their ghosts still haunt the hall, and you can sometimes hear them dribbling. The catacombs of Jefferson Hall, where numerous ghost sightings have occurred. And finally, for The Ridges, an abandoned insane asylum that was known for thousands of labotamies and electro shock treatments. Also, a patient who disappeared, and was found five weeks later, her body decomposed onto the floor and left a stain that outlines her body. This stain can still be seen today.

Kelly Road, Ohioville, Pennsylvania

A one-mile section of Kelly Road, Ohioville, Pennsylvania is an area that has had numerous reports of paranormal activity and bizarre happenings. Reports say that when animals have entered this haunted stretch of road they suddenly turn from peaceful and quiet to violent, going after other animals and even people. The road is surrounded by dark, thick and creepy forest where white apparitions and noises that cant be explained have been seen and heard. No one is quite sure why this short section of road is haunted but theories suggest that is could be somehow connected to cult activity that was once taking place in the area and curses that have been put on the land for some reason.

Alcatraz Prison, San Francisco

The island, believed to be an evil place by Native Americans, has seen centuries of death from accidents, murders, and suicides. With this dark history, its no wonder Alcatraz is said to be one of the most haunted places in the nation. If ghosts return to haunt the places where they suffered traumatic experiences when they were alive, then Alcatraz must be bursting at the seams with spirits. For years there have been reports of mysterious happenings on Alcatraz Island. These reports come from visitors, former guards, former prisoners, and national park service employees. From the original lighthouse reappearing on occasion to clanging, screaming, and sobbing, there are too many tales to put into this short article. It would definitely take a book to tell them all. Some of the strange occurences are recounted in the following paragraphs. The Lighthouse There have been several reports that on foggy nights the old lighthouse, built in 1854 and torn down after it was damaged in the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake, will suddenly appear, accompanied by an eerie whistling sound and a flashing green light that makes its way slowly around the island and then vanishes as suddenly as it appears.

Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland

This magnificent castle is typically medieval, perched atop a rocky crag, giving it an amazing vista of  Scottish hills. But inside the empty halls and narrow streets of Edinburgh, there are the echoes of the dead. At least, thats what has been reported. Hot spots for specters include the castles prison cells, the South Bridge vaults and Marys King Close, a disused street used to quarantine and eventually entomb victims of the plague. There are also reports of ghost dogs, a headless drummer, and the bodies of prisoners taken during the French seven-year war and the American War of Independence.

Five Womens Diseases Men Can Get, Too

Its hard to escape the flagrant gender labeling in our society. Dolls and the color pink are associated with girls, while guys are assigned GI Joes and the manly color blue. And the trend doesnt stop at childhood, either. Even the medical industry tends to ascribe certain diseases to men or women, even when both sexes run the risk of developing them. Recently, theres been a successful campaign push to educate women about the dangers of heart disease, a condition previously associated with men only. By the same token, there are quite a few health problems facing guys that warrant attention. Men may be less likely to get these diseases than women are, but that doesnt mean the dangerand the need for preventative measuresisnt there.

1. Osteoporosis
Look at any advertisement for calcium supplements or osteoporosis treatment, and its obvious whos being targetednamely, not men. While its true that women are more prone to weakened bones, the National Osteoporosis Foundation estimates that two million men have it currently, while twelve million more are at risk. Women have smaller frames, which give them less to work with as calcium depletion rises with age. But while women are often tested for bone density around menopause because their hormonal changes make bones more fragile, men arent until something major happens, like a fracture.

Men die more from hip fractures than women (31 percent, compared with 17 percent), partly because their fractures tend to happen later in life, and partly because the disease progresses unchecked so for long, severely damaging their frames. According to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, 6 percent of men will have hip fractures by age fifty. Age isnt the only trigger, though. Lifestyle habits like smoking, drinking too much alcohol, and getting little to no exercise, as well as certain medications (for example, those that contain steroids, like asthma medication), ethnicity, and family history, are all possible risk factors.

2. Breast Cancer
All of us are born with breast tissue. Women tend to have more of it, thanks to hormones, which is one reason why their breast cancer rates are higher. But men are at risk, too. In 2009, the American Cancer Society determined that 1,910 men would be diagnosed and 440 would die from invasive breast cancer. The potential causes are similar between men and womenexcessive alcohol consumption, obesity, high estrogen levels (in men, this could be the result of Klinefelters syndrome or cirrhosis), genetic predisposition, and so on. Breast cancer is most common among men aged sixty to seventy.

Doctors used to believe that men were less likely than women to survive breast cancer, but their survival rates are about the same. The National Cancer Institute thinks the mistaken belief was due to mens not being screened for the disease earlier in life (as women are with mammograms), which means their diagnoses often happen at later, and more terminal, cancer stages.

4. Thyroid Problems
Within our throats lie thyroid glands that produce hormones essential for normal metabolic and organ functions. As time goes on, nodules can grow on these glands and potentially affect hormone production, triggering either too little (hypothyroidism, the most common kind) or too much (hyperthyroidism); about 10 percent of them are cancerous. Only 5 percent of men in the United States experience these conditions, compared with 10 percent of women, but the consequencesweight gain, lethargy, and depression for hypothyroidism, versus rapid weight loss, rapid heartbeat, and increased anxiety for hyperthyroidismare equally scary.

If you have an autoimmune disorder, youre more likely to have thyroid problems. People over sixty, diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis sufferers, and those with a family history of these issues are also higher-risk.

5. Depression
As a whole, women are treated for depression more often than men are, but does that mean theyre more depressed, or that theyre more targeted for treatment? What we think of as common symptoms, like overwhelming sadness, arent always experienced across genders. Depressed men tend to show anger and frustration, get easily fatigued and discouraged, try to escape their problems (either by focusing too much on work or by developing dangerous drug and/or alcohol habits), and experience more physical pain than usual. Theyre less likely than women to seek help, perhaps because theres more social pressure on them to be stronger, both emotionally and physically.

However, by giving in to societal expectations, countless seriously depressed men are going undiagnosed. The Mayo Clinics Web site states that women attempt suicide more, but more men die from suicide attempts overall.

While women stand a greater chance of being diagnosed with these diseases, men need to be just as vigilant when it comes to prevention. As is the case with all health matters, education is key. Know your family history, what lifestyle changes you can make to reduce risk, and what to ask doctors to look out for during routine visits. Even if your chances of falling victim to one of these illnesses are low, theres no reason to avoid reducing them further, any way you can.

Five Happiness Boosters That Do More Harm Than Good

Amidst the frenzy of World Cup anticipation Lawless Events has decided to bring some of the excitement closer to home with Football Extravaganza.

The event, originally scheduled for May 29, will now be held on Saturday, June 5, at the UWI Mona Bowl and will see promoters, artistes, producers, disc jocks, entertainment websites and even dancers facing off in this one-day football tournament.

"It's not like your regular 90-minute football game. It's basically gonna be six matches, each lasting 35 minutes (15 minutes per half)" commented Lawless Events PR executive Sherilla Gordon.

"What we are aiming to create is a fun-filled party atmosphere while the matches are being played. We are gonna have Chromatic, DJ Mario and DJ Shine on the turntables throughout the course of the day and in between matches," added CEO Marvin Lawrence.

twist

There is a further twist to the event as each team is allowed a minimum of five substitutions and there has to be at least one woman from each team on the field at all times. The teams will be playing for a trophy as well as a cash prize of $100,000 to be donated to a charity of their choice.

The event will be hosted by Kruddy from Renaissance Disco and attracts an admission cost of $800 at the gate and $500 for FAME Frat members and college students with valid IDs. Gates open at 11 a.m. with the first match kicking off at noon.

Awkward! Why We Have Sex Dreams About Random People

Connections of all kinds, even the nonsexual ones, can be symbolized through sexual relationships in the dream world. In her book, Holloway also goes into sex dreams about relatives, and the possible reasons behind them. While you might worry it has something to do with Freuds wish fulfillment theory, whats likelier is one of two things: either youre involved with someone who reminds you of your relative in some way, or you might be having emotional-boundary issues with that relative.

I have a (sex) dream and so does everyone else.
It might not make that next-day encounter with your sleep-sex partner any less awkward, but theres some comfort in knowing that these dreams arent always about sex. They might be about some intangible quality you wish you had, or about a connection thats strictly emotional or professional. They could represent aspects of ourselves that weve been ignoring or neglecting. Or they might just stem from the fact that we havent had sex in a while and our libidos are giving us a nighttime reminder.

Regardless, were not alone in our nighttime escapades and subsequent morning embar****ment. Everyone we know, from the barista who fills our travel mugs to our coworkers to our next-door neighbors, has sex dreams. They can vary by age and gender (men experience them at a higher frequency in their twenties, whereas women peak around their forties), but we all get them at some point. If you want to figure out why you have these kinds of dreams about the random people in your life, you need to view them without the disgust and discomfort of reality that can cloud your analysis. Because until you learn whatever lesson that dreams trying to teach you, youre bound to keep seeing Jim from Accounting (or your second cousin Sue, or whoevers invading your sleep fantasies) in ways your waking self would rather not know about.

IF the Opposition People's National Party (PNP) believes that it is any saint, it is only fooling itself. Its waste-of-time no-confidence motion Tuesday only managed to divert attention from the urgent national security task at hand.

The PNP can forget about salivating at the prospect of a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) demolition at the next polls, on the basis that the ruling party is damaged beyond repair by the Tivoli Gardens explosion. Mrs Portia Simpson Miller's PNP should not sit by and hope that the JLP alone will soak up the blame for decades of political nurturing of gunmen and thugs.

We don't believe there is any right-thinking adult Jamaican who is unaware that the PNP has garrisons, where people vote for the other party at their own peril. Neither do we believe that there is any right-thinking adult Jamaican who is unaware that there are criminals with links to the PNP, the Klansman gang being only the most organised of them.

Both the JLP and PNP have a well-known history of links with criminals, some of whom served as enforcers and 'protectors' inside and outside the garrisons. The PNP is -- to borrow from Miss Olivia 'Babsie' Grange in her characterisation of Mr Bruce Golding on the 1997 campaign trail -- six months pregnant. There might be an argument about who is more pregnant, but that too would be a grand waste of time.

As the nation looks to grasp this opportunity to renew itself, there has to be a paradigm shift. It is no longer useful to swop one political party for the next, on the basis of the usual manifesto with nice-sounding platitudes that are forgotten the day after the elections.

We hope that, if the PNP is genuine about its support for the security forces' offensive starting in Tivoli, it would by now have handed to the commissioner of police a list of names of the criminals who are hiding under its cloak. The party also needs to come out and say for all to hear that henceforth it will have nothing to do with criminals.

Political types have often described Jamaica as 'PNP country', going by the number of general elections won by the two major parties since Universal Adult Suffrage in 1944. If this is PNP country, the leadership of the party must share the Jamaican hope for a country where crime is down to tolerable levels, giving rise to unprecedented development.

What is needed of the PNP now is its well-known intellectual energy and the will to be part of the change which, by the way, has been forced not by pressure from the parties but from the people. Dr Peter Phillips has been articulating a way forward, but he seems too alone in the wilderness.

There is good reason for the absence of a groundswell of support for elections to remove the JLP, despite the widespread disaffection with the prime minister. Our people instinctively understand that nothing should distract us from consolidating the gains made by the security forces, at so great a sacrifice, might we add.

The next party that Jamaicans vote into office should be the one that has formulated and articulated the best policies and programmes to take us forward from this period.

We'll see now how relevant the PNP is and whether it has anything to offer a nation that is so pregnant with possibilities.

Prime Minister Bruce Golding yesterday made his first visit to Tivoli Gardens in West Kingston since *lo**y clashes between security forces and gunmen supporting former strongman Christopher 'Dudus' Coke.

But the visit was marred by a ban on the media enforced by soldiers shortly before Golding arrived with a large entourage including Kingston mayor, Desmond McKenzie.

Golding has been member of parliament for West Kingston since he succeeded former prime minister, Edward Seaga who stepped aside in 2005, and McKenzie has been councillor for the Tivoli Division in the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation for decades.

No explanation was given for the decision to bar the media who were in West Kingston to report on the exercise of relatives identifying photographs of those killed. That took place at the Tivoli Gardens community centre and the Denham Town police station.

Golding, his face a mask of concern, as he toured the battle-scarred community, got a mixed reception from residents.

Speaking with journalists afterward, McKenzie admitted that not all of Golding's constituents welcomed him with open arms.

"Some people were glad to see him, as usual we wouldn't expect everybody to be happy. But the fact that he was there and he has heard the concerns of the people this is now just the start to deal with the situation," said McKenzie.

Some people of Tivoli Gardens, McKenzie said, openly chided Golding for not giving them more support during the *lo**y incidents. They said that Golding, who gave the authority for the declaration of an ongoing state of emergency, had let them down.

A team of social workers and representatives from the Jamaica Public Service and the National Water Commission, also visited the area yesterday in an effort to provide improved services to the people.

A news release from the Office of the prime Minister (OPM) said Golding spoke with several residents, some of whom had lost family members in the confrontation between the security forces and gunmen supporting Coke. Some complained that their homes had been completely gutted or badly damaged.

"All the residents who spoke with Mr Golding relived for him the horror of the events which they said had left many residents traumatised. The prime minister advised them to give reports of their experience to the Public Defender, who has opened a special office in Tivoli Gardens for that purpose," the OPM said.

"Several of the residents who spoke to the prime minister expressed their relief that he had come to see them and to hear firsthand accounts of their experience," the release added.

West Kingston has for decades been the seat of power for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), but several residents expressed disaffectiion with Golding and the party, following the intervention of the security forces, leaving a question mark over the future of the area's political allegiance.

But McKenzie, when questioned by reporters, said those concerns were secondary, at least for now.

"We can't talk about politics right now, that is one of the reasons why the country is in the state it is," he said.

"Anytime something happens we put the political line into it. We are talking about the lives of people in West Kingston. That is what we must first and foremost focus on," he said.

McKenzie said that residents of West Kingston were hurt and had lost confidence in their leaders. It is this confidence that the JLP will be attempting to rebuild, he said.

After months of fighting an extradition request by the United States for Coke, Golding two weeks ago announced that the Government would allow the process to continue.

His decision infuriated Coke's supporters, who mounted roadblocks in and around the Tivoli Gardens community, and attacked members of the security forces who attempted to enter the area.

Apart from the multiple deaths, more than 40 illegal firearms, as well as over 10,000 rounds of assorted ammunition were seized.

Coke has still not been caught.

POLICE are investigating this morning's murder of three men at Rodney Road in Maxfield Park, St Andrew.

The men have not yet been identified and scene of the crime detectives are now scouring the scene for clues.

Police say they were summoned to the area about 2:00 am after residents heard explosions.

When the cops arrived they found the bodies of the men in the area.

Rodney Road is an impoverished community which lies between Maxfield Avenue and another community known as 'Zimbabwe' in Arnett Gardens. It is known to be the stomping ground of the Stinger gang, who police suspect of involvement in more than a dozen murders.

THE effort to prevent the extradition of fugitive Christopher 'Dudus' Coke to the United States was for a second time this week delayed in the Supreme Court.

The court was yesterday scheduled to hear an application by Coke's legal team for Judicial Review of the decision by Justice Minister Dorothy Lightbourne to commence extradition proceeding against him, following a nine-month delay, but the matter was postponed for today.

Coke's attorney Don Foote told the Observer that the delay could not be avoided.

"It was put off because of unforeseen circumstances, but I can't say much more than that," Foote said after leaving the in-chambers hearing before Chief Justice Zaila McCalla.

The application was supposed to be heard last Monday but was rescheduled for yesterday, to allow Coke's lawyer time to prepare a response to an affidavit filed last week Friday by the justice minister.

In the affidavit, Lightbourne denied that Prime Minister Bruce Golding forced her into giving the authority to commence extradition proceedings against Coke.

Lightbourne also stated why she finally gave the green light following her nine-month delay on the request that was sent last year August.

Coke, the former Tivoli Gardens strongman, who was routed from his West Kingston fiefdom during a joint police/military operation last week and has been on the run since then, is wanted in the US on drugs- and gun-running charges.

The signing of the warrant for his arrest two weeks ago sparked attacks by gunmen on security forces, plunging a section of the capital Kingston into chaos, and resulted in the imposition of a limited State of Emergency on Kingston and St Andrew.

The case before the Supreme Court does not prevent the police from executing the arrest warrant against Coke, who has managed to elude several attempts by the security forces to arrest him.

RELATIVES of persons who were killed during last week's operation by the security forces in West Kingston had an opportunity to identify their loved ones yesterday.

The relatives visited the Denham Town Police Station and the Tivoli Gardens Community Centre, where pictures of the deceased persons were placed on display.

The media were not allowed on the grounds of the community centre but grief was etched on the faces of persons who visited the police station.

Two women, after viewing pictures of the decomposing remains of a man they identified as 'Bassa', broke down in tears inside the Criminal Investigation Branch at the station.

They said that they were his cousins.

"Look pon him, Bassa gone, him gone," cried one of the women, hugging her relative for comfort.

It was a tedious task for a man who identified himself only as Mr Wilson. After repeatedly searching the album with the graphic images, he was still unable to identify the remains of his son.

"I know that he is dead. Many of us went to look at his body at the May Pen Cemetery. But I don't see him in the album," said the man, who left the police station with a pall of gloom hanging over his face.

Wilson later told the Observer that he had an opportunity to recognise his son on a computer at the Tivoli Gardens Community Centre.

Yesterday, Public Defender Earl Witter said that the procedure gave concerned residents the opportunity to know for certain whether or not their missing loved ones were among those killed.

However, he said that the process was just the start of the identification drive, and that further identification would have to be conducted at the morgues as some relatives could not readily recognise their loved ones on photographs due to their advanced state of decomposition.

That process, he said, should facilitate the smooth flow of post-mortem examinations. Witter said that he could not tell the number of bodies that were identified yesterday, as he did not know.

In the meantime, Witter blasted the security forces for preventing members of the media from observing the identification process in Tivoli Gardens.

He said that he was investigating complaints by at least one reporter, who claimed that he was assaulted by the security forces while he tried to enter the community.

Prime Minister Bruce Golding today visited the Tivoli Gardens community in his West Kingston constituency, his first tour since seventy three persons were killed after the security forces attempted to carry out an arrest warrant on wanted fugitive Christopher Dudus Coke last week.

Members of the media were barred from entering the meeting, but according to Desmond McKenzie, Mayor of Kingston and councillor for the Tivoli Gardens division, not all of Goldings constituents welcomed him with opened arms

Some people were glad to see him, as usual we wouldnt expect everybody to be happy. But the fact that he is there and he has heard the concerns of the people this is now just the start to deal with the situation, said McKenzie.

McKenzie said social workers, as well as representatives from the Jamaica Public Service and the National Water Commissioner also visited the area yesterday in an effort to restore normalcy to residents lives.

West Kingston has for decades been the seat of power for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) however many Jamaicans, since last weeks operation, have began to question the future of the areas political allegiance.

Let Peace Reign: Busy Signal (Juke Box Records) - Song asking for peace and urges mankind to look into themselves because of the inevitable destruction war and violence causes. The alternative vibe of this song makes it fresh and Busy's vocals being backed mainly by guitar and keyboard keeps the listener interested.

Miss Me: Drake and Lil Wayne: (Young Money Records) - This is much different from Drake's last release which had a more R&B vibe. This track has a Hip Hop flavour where Drake flows the way he is supposed to and what his fans know him for. This tune has a really fresh vibe.

Nuh Kill Out Nuh Artiste: Capleton (Bless Youths Production) - Capleton cries to not make the situation with Oneil and Cobra a trend and threaten the entertainment industry

One Woman: Vybz Kartel (Adijaheim/Notnice Production) - Kartel is being plain, blatant and authentic suggesting that one woman cannot satisfy him. He contends that his love cannot rest in one woman's soul. This song is fresh because for Kartel this is real talk

Hold Me: Mavado (Chimney Records) - This is another song that Mavado delivers like he is used to doing especially when singing about the ladies. This is fresh as it compares to his previous hits and is sure to connect with the girls.

Come And Get It: Sean Paul (Big Ship) - Sean Paul teases the girls to come and get his love because it is all theirs. The artiste delivers an up-tempo, bright, party song that will definitely work for the summer and appeal to the ladies. Definitely a fresh tune to listen out for this summer.

FRESH TO DEATH RIDDIMS:

Water Cycle - Adijaheim/Not Nice Records

Basic Instinct - Froggy Music (Young Producer; First Project)

Sex Appeal - Chimney Records

Story Time rhythm - Mice Music (Young Producer; First Project)

STILL FRESH

Touch A Button - Vybz Kartel

Street Grooves rhythm - Head Concussion Records

Cardiac Bass rhythm - Cro3 Production (ZJ Chrome) (Reggae Rhythm)

Major rhythm - Don Corleon

Billboard rhythm - Payday

FRESH TALK:

'JUST REMAIN CALM' used in the streets and pioneered by Frank White ironically in a period where many are panicking because of the recent upsurge in violence. It is used in especially tense but not so serious moments to bring about a sense of humour!

Fresh spot to catch ZJ LIQUID:

1. IKANDI - This and every Tuesday night at Club Privilege

2. Quad Wednesdays - Wednesday June 2 at Quad

3. Inches - June 5 in Portmore

FRESH UPDATES

ZJ Liquid will not be on air today (Wednesday, June 2) but listen out for these fresh hits throughout the rest of the week!

ZJ Liquid would like to apologise to the patrons of Bikini Fetish for his absence as the new rescheduled dates conflicted with dates that were already confirmed.

There's no truth to the rumours that the officers asked Portmore Empire's rising young star Popcaan the question 'a weh yu get da new spliff de dawdie?' right before they arrested him for smoking ganja on May 9th. What we here at one876 can confirm is that he will return to court on July 7th to face those charges.

The artiste, whose real name is Andre Sutherland, was arrested and charged on May 9th after he was reportedly caught in the act by the police. The entertainer who is represented by attorney-at-law Alando Terrelonge, has pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The allegations are that on the day in question, policemen were in patrol on Mannings Hill Road at about 8 p.m. when they spotted a motor car with four men aboard. The car was stopped and the entertainer, who was driving the car, was seen with a ganja spliff in his mouth. He was taken to the Constant Spring police station where he was arrested and charged, then later released on $5,000 bail.

The deejay is known for the smash hit, Clarks, with Portmore Empire leader Vybz Kartel and stablemate Gaza Slim. He recently shot a video
for his latest hit, Gangsta City, which is in excellent rotation on local cable channels.

Singer Céline Dion is reportedly pregnant with twins after her sixth attempt at in-vitro fertilisation.

The 42-year-old Canadian star's dream of expanding her family has come true, her spokesman has told US media. Dion, who is married to her manager René Angelil, 68, is already mother to nine-year-old René-Charles. And after undergoing her sixth in-vitro fertilisation attempt and turning to acupuncture to improve her chances of conceiving, her spokesman Kim Jakwerth confirmed the happy news to People.com.

Dion is said to be 14 weeks pregnant and will find out the babies' genders next month. "We're ecstatic," her husband told the website. "Céline is just hoping for a healthy pregnancy. She was hoping for one baby and the news that we are having two is a double blessing." It was reported Céline was pregnant last August, but her spokeperson confirmed in November 2009 that the pregnancy had failed. The My Heart Will Go On singer has never made a secret of her desire to extend her family, and was always planning to get pregnant following her run of shows in Las Vegas last year.

She said: "We'll give it a try after my tour. Hopefully we will be parents again. If not, that's fine. We have our miracle baby." Céline became pregnant with René-Charles after having IVF treatment following six years of attempting to conceive. When asked last December about her plans to get pregnant for a second time, she confirmed she and her husband had "a frozen embryo" waiting. Last year, René said: "We are living the reality of the majority of couples who have to use [IVF]. The process can be long and arduous. But we are full of confidence. Céline is more determined than ever."

Source: Gleaner/Power 106 New


Jamaica Observer

POLICE this morning raided the home of Kingston Mayor, Desmond McKenzie.

A police source said the cops were interested in a sports utility vehicle which was suspected to have been featured in suspicious activity in Tivoli Gardens. However the cops discovered that the vehicle they were interested in was not the one at McKenzie's residence.

"The police went there asked some questions and left," the source said.

McKenzie, who is the councillor for the Tivoli Gardens division, grew up in the community and is a protege of former Member of Parliament fo West Kingston and Prime Minister Edward Seaga.

He now resides in the upscale community of Waterworks in upper St Andrew.

Police are intensifying their search for wanted fugitive Christopher 'Dudus' Coke who has been on the run since the security forces launched a major offensive against his former stronghold last week Monday.

Coke's brother Laighton 'Levity' Coke whose name was included on a police most wanted list a week ago turned himself in to the police yesterday.

Levity joins his brother's business partner, Justin O'Gilvie in custody.

Police are also looking for Harry Mcleod, also called 'Harry Dog'; Prince Bucket, also called 'Tugman'; and Paul KirkPatrick, otherwise called 'Teddy Paul' who are believed to be members of the Shower posse.

LAS CRUCES, N.M. A California woman shot and killed herself while driving in southern New Mexico after her 9-year-old daughter refused her mother's request to kill her, authorities said.

The girl told investigators that her mother began to breathe heavily possibly from an asthma or emphysema attack and handed over a 9 mm handgun.

"She told her to shoot her. And she wouldn't," State police Lt. Roman Jimenez said. "The daughter said she has had these kinds of attacks before, but she'd never been suicidal."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/28/mother-kills-herself-whil_n_594107.html

REVEREND Al Miller says Christopher 'Dudus' Coke maintains he is misunderstood by those who failed to see the many initiatives implemented by him in West Kingston to make the crime rate in that police division the lowest.

Miller, who last met with Coke now a fugitive two days before the security forces took control of his Tivoli Gardens stronghold, said Coke spoke openly about, among other things, the role he played in helping the elderly and providing a start to many youth who would otherwise have turned to a life of crime.

Miller said Coke spoke of the perception that the public had of him which caused them to view him differently from who he really is.

"He voiced his concern that his side of the story was not being told," Miller told the Observer on Monday.

Miller said Coke insisted that were it not for his input, violence would be a constant feature of Downtown Kingston. Instead, he said that he tried to do the positives which no one spoke about.

"He felt he took the initiative and called together the men from other communities and encouraged the peace and unity for those areas as well," Miller said.

According to the pastor, Coke not only maintained that crime was the lowest in that police division but he was able to quote exact statistics.

Coke attributed this to his influence in West Kingston.

"He asked why people thought he is trying to create mayhem and war when he has done everything to ensure peace," Miller told the Observer in an interview Monday night.

Coke, Miller said, also spoke of encouraging other communities to examine the development model being used for Tivoli Gardens where many persons were encouraged to start their own small businesses and to stay away from crime and violence.

"He said he tried to get into the heads of youths the need to develop themselves and work and to cease from their violent ways," said Miller, adding that Coke also spoke of helping the elderly, organising after-school programmes within West Kingston while insisting that young children must attend school and be off the streets by a certain time nightly.

According to Miller, he took the initiative to visit Coke in his Presidential Click office in Tivoli Gardens on Wednesday, May 19 and Saturday, May 22, to arrive at a peaceful solution to the stand-off between the community and the security forces.

Residents and gunmen loyal to Coke had barricaded the community in an effort to prevent the police from executing an arrest warrant on Coke who is wanted by the US Government on drug- and arms-trafficking charges.

On Thursday, May 20, hundreds of Tivoli residents, mostly women, staged a peaceful street protest and march in support of Coke, urging the authorities to leave him alone.

As the head of the National Transformation Programme (NTP), which falls under the Office of the Prime Minister, Miller maintained he did not go in there wearing that hat and neither was he sent.

"I decided I would take the bull by the horns and so I just went there by myself," he said.

While not outlining how he made contact with Coke, Miller said he had met with him for several hours in January as the NTP and Peace Management Initiative (PMI) teams journeyed around Kingston and St Andrew, St Catherine and sections of Montego Bay to meet with area leaders and dons to bring the message of a fresh start for Jamaica.

As such, Miller said he did his homework and made connection with Coke.

When he arrived at Tivoli he was immediately granted access to the community and taken to Coke.

Anxiety, he explained, was evident among some residents, fearful that

the police would be barging in with brute force.

Miller said he questioned Coke and those around him on the reasons for the barricades and was told they were mounted because of fear of excessive force from the security forces.

On that day, Miller said there was no talk by anyone of leaving Tivoli, as although there was a stillness to the perimeters of the community, life was abuzz beyond the barricades.

Adults, he said, went to and from work.

The pastor said he and Coke spoke for close to three hours.

"He was very open and he talked about the situation, his concerns and what were his options," Miller said.

"He asked why he should be treated any differently from another citizen as the police would not come with such brute force for somebody else," Miller told the Observer.

Miller said Coke's big issue was the approach of the security forces as he repeatedly voiced concerns about the manner in which they would carry out their duties.

The pastor said that although Coke contemplated the idea of turning himself in, he expressed grave reservations about being extradited to the United States.

"He did not like that option because of its implication," Miller said. He, however, declined to disclose to the Observer what were some of the reservations Coke had.

"He had some reasons which I understood and appreciated but he was prepared to go through the Jamaican court system," Miller recalled.

But Coke did not want to be held in custody as he feared a similar fate to that of his father, who was burnt to death in his cell at the then General Penitentiary, shortly before he was to be extradited to the US.

"That memory was very strong in his mind," Miller said. "So we talked about how to allay that fear and to build his confidence in the system which I told him was different from what it was then."

But Miller said while Coke was contemplating his options for surrender from as early as Wednesday (May 19) Coke wanted more time to be better briefed on the court process by his lawyers and to explore the best option.

When the talks ended on Wednesday, Miller said Coke promised to think about the option of turning himself in. "He gave me his word that he would think about it," Miller said.

The pastor said he informed Coke that if he was serious about turning himself in, he would speak with the police high command, which he later did.

Miller said he later spoke with Coke via telephone, and informed him that the police, too, were interested in an amicable solution and an arrangement was made for the talks to continue on Saturday, May 22.

On Saturday when he returned to Tivoli Gardens, Miller said there was a visible tension hovering throughout the community, although life appeared normal beyond the barricades.

"There was still no restriction of movement as people went to work," Miller said.

Asked if there was an unusually high number of men seen in the community then, Miller said there was nothing unusual about those he saw.

Coke was said to be maintaining his same "cool" composure.

Miller said he informed him then that the police were not interested in using brute force but needed an early resolution to the situation.

But, according to Miller, the "media hype", as he described it, was only heightening the tension and resulted in even greater reinforcement of the barricades.

"I told him that it didn't look good to be increasing the barricade when we are talking to the police, that the matter could soon be resolved and he agreed but the fear was there because of what the media was saying," Miller said.

"Imagine at that time the media begins to recount how his father died and that

was killing the dialogue," Miller said.

"Here I was telling him the police were not going to barge in but they are hearing all these things through the media and so I told him to trust the word of the police," he said.

At the end of Saturday's meeting, Miller said he and Coke reached an agreement to remove the barricades on Labour Day. Coke also arranged to speak with his lawyers in Tuesday to get their views on the options proposed by Miller, and which he would not disclose and for the final decision to be made on Wednesday.

Miller said he communicated this to the police high command and the decision was taken then to hold off entering Tivoli Gardens.

"He spoke with his lawyers after I left and we were making excellent strides," he said.

On Sunday when thugs launched an attack against the security forces, Miller said he still maintained a dialogue with Coke who was disappointed about the turn of events.

As the mayhem intensified into Monday, Miller again contacted Coke.

"I was told (by him) to come now and deal with it and I was heading there when my intelligence indicated the security forces operation had begun," he said.

Unable to locate the relevant police authority to inform them that he was going in, Miller said he was forced to abandon the mission.

Miller said he is still willing to help Coke surrender to the police. "I understand the fear, but I would appeal to him to go in to the police and allow the courts to deal with the matter," Miller said.

SINCE Sunday, when the army led the mission to Tivoli Gardens, reporters have had limited access to the area.

Information has been scant and soldiers have blocked off every entrance to this area of West Kingston. Corroborating reports of atrocities has therefore been impossible, until now.

Four days later, the press was finally allowed in, but under strict rules: limited numbers and for only one hour.

The tour started at 9:00 am. This article has images captured by our reporter who participated in the tour.Our full report will be published later. You can also follow live updates on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jamaicaobserver

One Chinese dad can forget about getting a Father's Day card after chaining his 8-year-old son to a pole and trying to auction him to strangers on the street in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.

Yong Tsui tried to peddle Yong Fai, touting the boy's strong work ethic.

Police did nothing until passersby grew irate and assaulted the dad after people expressing interest in Fai asked how much they would need to spend on the boy.

"He has no job, no home and no money," one sympathetic officer said of the dad, the Daily Mail reports. "He says he wasn't interested in the money, just finding a home for the boy."

The scared boy told police his father said he could no longer afford to raise him.

Yong Tsui said he chained his son after learning about a similar situation in China where a chained-up 2-year-old boy got free day care after generous strangers learned of his plight.

For now, the boy remains in the custody of the police.

OCHO RIOS, St Ann President of the St Ann Chamber of Commerce Horace Wildes, has said that the four-day civil unrest in sections of the Corporate Area and St Catherine last week was felt 50 miles away here in this North Coast town and other parts of the parish, resulting in a slowdown of business.

Wildes said that some businesses are yet to pick up and that many remain in what he called a "watch-and -see-mode" as there was still uncertainty surrounding the full operation of the business community in Kingston, where many enterprises and head offices are located.

"Most head offices are based in Kingston and, for example with banking, I know quite a number of institutions operated on reduced hours and there were functions that we had planned for different issues that had to be postponed," Wildes said, adding that new resources will now have to be found to reschedule several of these events.

"At the Chamber we should have had a meeting to discuss the ideal cruise shipping industry and that had to be postponed because some of the ministers and stakeholders who would normally be at these functions were not able to make it."

He said that goods and services, which are usually transported from Kingston and St Catherine daily to different businesses across the parish, were also put on hold as some operators were fearful that the violence would have escalated and resulted in theft, damage to property or loss of lives.

"Historically, when things like this happen, persons recognise that there are usually robberies, and I guess from those lessons persons would prefer not to put out their motor vehicles because they would be in danger of theft or vandalism. Most businesses prefer to lose a week's sale rather than their capital output," Wildes said.

He said that the civil unrest, which has so far claimed 76 lives, had also impacted negatively on the tourism industry.

Wildes said that several visitors who had scheduled arrivals to the island last week could not fulfil those commitments because of the unrest and the publicity that the events received in the international media.

"I know quite a number of persons who could have come from overseas had to cancel their flights, so the hotels that would benefit didn't benefit, because of what was happening."

Wildes said that he was concerned about the impact that the current situation and the continued state of emergency in sections of Kingston and St Andrew will have on the economy and businesses in the resort town.

He said that the present situation would create new challenges for businesses which he said were trying to recover from the recession. He said that if the situation in Kingston worsened, future employment may be threatened as the area was still not seeing a comfortable level of job creation resulting from the recession.

"The challenge is there, because these persons are now trying to relook at their alternative employment and, again, some of the resources which normally come from Kingston, in terms of helping to do business plans and for people who want to register their company, even though we can do it here in St Ann, but these are some factors that would more or less cause people to have things in a wait and see mode," Wildes told the Observer.

At the same time, small business operators as well as food establishments, including supermarkets and wholesales that get their goods directly from Kingston, were also affected. Several food items, mainly baked products supplied to outlets here from bakeries in Kingston, were missing from supermarket shelves for many days.

Merchandisers and sales representatives, while they could not speak officially for their suppliers or companies, said that they were severely hampered because delivery trucks were not dispatched from Kingston for several days.

However, probably the worst affected were operators of coaster and minibuses that transport hundreds of people daily, mainly from Ocho Rios and Brown's Town into Kingston. Some operators said that while they were willing to risk a trip or two into parts of Kingston, there were no passengers.

"We lost thousands a dollars, the passengers were scared, the buses came out and some of us were willing to take in passengers but with businesses closed for days, especially Monday and Thursday, wholesale days in town, we couldn't go in, we didn't have anybody to carry a town," one coaster bus operator told the Observer.

He said that vendors who travel to Ocho Rios, Brown's Town and other parts of the parish to sell dry goods, including clothing and food supplies, were not able to do so. He said that many of the vendors live in areas of Kingston which were affected by the unrest.

"We want this thing to be over soon; it's affecting too many people," he said.

Tight Pants Ban Takes Effect In Indonesia

POLICE Commissioner Owen Ellington wants Tivoli Gardens fugitive Christopher Dudus Coke captured alive. Speaking with Observer editors and reporters at the newspapers weekly Monday Exchange at his office on Old Hope Road in St Andrew yesterday, Ellington said the country would be better served if Coke is given his day in court.

It is very important for Jamaica and Coke and his sympathisers to know that I want him to be captured alive. I want him to face trial and if he is guilty, I want him to be punished so that he and his sympathisers will know, perhaps for the first time, that if they break the law they can be punished, Ellington said.

Its very important that he is captured. I dont want him killed in this operation.

Ellington also said that Coke should be afforded a fair trial if he is arrested.

If he is innocent, I want him and his sympathisers to know that the law protects the innocent, he said.

Coke has been on the run since last week when the security forces launched a major offensive against a militia which assembled in Tivoli Gardens. The gunmen sought to prevent any attempt by the security forces to enter the heavily barricaded area to serve an arrest warrant on Coke and restore order to the community.

Coke is wanted by the United States Government to answer charges related to drug trafficking and gun-running.

Calls by the police for him to turn himself in have fallen on deaf ears. Coke has also refused several pleas, including those from former prime minister Edward Seaga and clergymen Herro Blair and Al Miller, to give himself up.

Several police attempts to nab Coke have been unsuccessful.

Confidential informants have told the US authorities that the 41-year-old Coke had trafficked cocaine and hundreds of pounds of marijuana into the United States. They said that Coke used women to smuggle cocaine in body cavities while travelling to New York under the guise of purchasing clothing for their shops in Kingston.

The informants also confessed to sending guns packed in refrigerators.

Two weeks ago Coke was seen as an untouchable and was described by former minister of national security Peter Phillips as probably the most powerful man in Jamaica. According to Ellington, that was a myth that has been shattered by the decisive action taken by the security forces who have taken control of the garrison community which was run with an iron fist by Coke and his cronies.

Today, he is on the run. He is hiding like a rat which means that any constable anywhere with the knowledge that a warrant exists can put their hand in his waistband and bring him in, said Ellington. So the status quo has changed, and that is the more important victory for Jamaica. Never mind that we have not found him yet. He will be found at some stage and he will be brought to justice.

The commissioner also had a word of advice for persons who had ambitions of filling the breach that may be left if Coke is nabbed.

If you are aspiring for leadership the first duty is to adhere to the rule of law, he said.

POLICE Commissioner Owen Ellington Monday said 25 of the men the police asked to turn themselves in last week are now in custody and that the strategy to keep them off the streets has so far proven successful in terms of public safety.

However Ellington, who was speaking at the Observer's weekly Monday Exchange held at his office on Old Hope Road in Kingston, said none of the men have so far been charged

"We have some limited yet extraordinary powers under the State of Emergency which enables us to take into custody individuals who we consider to be a threat to public safety and peace," he said.

"By way of their actions and association we thought it prudent to have in our custody some of these individuals, and their absence from the streets has proven to be very helpful in some respects," he added.

The police, following last week's operation aimed at capturing West Kingston strongman Christopher 'Dudus' Coke and restoring stability to Tivoli Gardens, released the names 34 men, who they identified as persons of interest.

The measure was taken after the Government imposed a limited State of Public Emergency on Kingston and St Andrew in the wake of unprovoked attacks on police patrols and police stations across the city.

Among those who turned themselves in are:

* Michealous Phipps, also called 'Zeekie', the son of incarcerated Matthews Lane don, Donald 'Zeeks' Phipps. He reportedly took over the leadership of the Matthews Lane gang after the imprisonment of his father.

* Rohan Hope, brother of slain One Order don, Andrew 'Bun Man' Hope. He was handed over to Assistant Commissioner of Police Leon Rose at the Mobile Reserve by attorney Peter Champagnie.

* Mark Walters, also called Mark II, who is said to be a member of a gang based in Allman Town in Central Kingston. He was also handed over by Champagnie.

* Cleveland 'Cassie' Downer, the leader of a gang based in a community known as 'Common' off Red Hills Road.

* Kareem Allen, the son of slain South Side don, Franklyn 'Chubby Dread' Allen.

* Horace Ramsay, also called 'Pugu' of South Side.

* Kevin Myers, also called 'Forehead'.

* Kevin Elliott, otherwise called 'Killer' of Fletcher's Land.

* Andre Buchanan, also called 'Mills' of Anderson Road in Woodford Park.

Meanwhile, police said they were still seeking Harry Mcleod, also called 'Harry Dog'; Prince Bucket, also called 'Tugman'; Paul Kirkpatrick, otherwise called 'Teddy Paul'; three members of the notorious Spanish Town-based Klansman gang -- Jermaine Morrison also called 'Speedy', Nevardo Hodges and Michael Maragh.

They are also seeking Michael Pasley, also called 'Tony', and Calvin Harris, popularly known as 'Collie' from the Rat Bat gang.

ALLEGED drug and arms dealer Christopher Dudus Coke believes that the
best way of getting illegal guns off the streets is to dry up the
supply of bullets.

According to Reverend Al Miller, the former Tivoli Gardens strongman
made the suggestion during a meeting between both men inside the
heavily fortified community two days before the security forces entered
and crushed a militia assembled to prevent Cokes capture by the police.

Miller,who heads the National Transformation Programme, told Chat! on Monday
that he first met with Coke in January when he and members of the Peace
Management Initiative met with various area leaders and dons across the
Corporate Area, St Catherine and sections of Montego Bay.

According to Miller, he spoke with Coke at that time about the way
forward for many of these communities which have been stifled by
criminal activities and lack of developmental opportunities for young
people.

Among the issues discussed then and again on May 22 when they met, was how the guns could be removed from the streets.

Miller said that Coke, who the United States is trying to have
extradited to that country to answer major gun- and drug-trafficking
charges, told him that this could not be done overnight.

He suggested that the first move would be to dry up the supply of
bullets because if there were no bullets then the guns would be
useless, Miller said.

The suggestion was made even as residents and gunmen loyal to Coke
erected barricades at the entrances to Tivoli in preparation for a
stand-off with the security forces.

Miller said Coke also maintained that he was pushing for more
education, training and employment for the youths while being adamant
that the incessant *lo**letting benefited no one.

The Four Paths police are probing the circumstances which caused a trailer to overturn and crush a five-year-old girl in a motor vehicle in Clarendon.

It is alleged that the 45-year-old truck driver from a Kingston 2 address responsible for crushing the child is to be charged with careless driving.

The dead girl is identified as Janae Sutherland.

THE STAR was informed by the police that on Wednesday at 12:20 p.m., the trailer and a RAV4, in which the child and her mother were travelling, were involved in an accident.

The vehicles had been travelling along the Swansea main road in Four Paths, when it is reported that the trailer, which was behind the RAV4, was overtaken by a taxi at the intersection of the Swansea and Bellplain main roads.

During the overtaking process, the RAV4 attempted to turn, but the trailer got into difficulties and the driver is reported to have lost control of the vehicle which fell on the RAV4.

PRIME Minister Bruce Golding says the government will launch a sustained assault on gangs that control poor communities across the island.

Prime Minister Bruce Golding says the *lo**y raid last week on the West Kingston stronghold of reputed drug lord Christopher 'Dudus' Coke was the beginning of a new effort to dismantle criminal networks.

He told Parliament today that he could not say when or where the operations will begin because of security concerns.

The raid by police and soldiers hunting for Coke triggered four days of street battles that killed 73 civilians and three security officers.

Coke is wanted by the United States to face weapons and drug trafficking charges. He remains at large.

JUSTIN O'Gilvie, the business partner of Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, is now behind bars.

He was taken into police custody on Saturday.

O'Gilvie, who is otherwise called 'Stinga', is one of 26 persons who have so far been taken into custody under powers granted to the police under the current limited State of Emergency.

"There are about 25 persons arrested so far because they are a threat to public safety," Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington told reporters and editors at the Observer's weekly Monday Exchange held at his office on Old Hope Road yesterday.

As tensions grew and violence rocked the city, Prime Minister Bruce Golding announced that a limited State of Public Emergency would be imposed on Kingston and St Andrew.

Under the law, the police have special powers to detain citizens for more than 72 hours during a State of Emergency.

O'Gilvie is a director of the Presidential Click and Incomparable Enterprises businesses and is one of three alleged Shower Posse members the police have targeted.

The others are Harry McLeod, also called 'Harry Dog'; Prince Bucket, also called 'Tugman'; and Paul KirkPatrick, otherwise called 'Teddy Paul'.

Coke is wanted by the United States Government on gun and drug-running charges.

He has so far managed to elude several attempts by the security forces to nab him.

THE identification of the bodies of persons killed during last week's joint police/military incursion in Tivoli Gardens, West Kingston, is to begin today.

In a statement yesterday, the Police High Command said that photographs of the deceased will be displayed at the Tivoli Gardens Community Centre where the Police Complaints Office is located, and at 14 Metcalfe Street (the former Remand Centre). Viewing will start at 10:30 am.

"In addition to photographs, the relatives and friends of deceased persons will be able to view images on computers provided by the constabulary," the police said, urging relatives to "travel with photographs of their deceased relatives and friends in order to facilitate the process of identification."

More than 70 persons died when police and soldiers stormed Tivoli Gardens, in their bid to serve an arrest warrant on former don Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, who is facing extradition to the United States to answer gun and drug-trafficking charges.

Two policemen and a soldier were also killed by brazen thugs, who traded bullets with the security forces.

Coke, however, managed to elude the lawmen and is still on the run.

GEORGE Phang, the reputed area leader of Arnett Gardens, yesterday turned himself over to the police -- a day after the constabulary named him among several alleged gang leaders who they wanted.

The list was headed by Tivoli Gardens don Christopher 'Dudus' Coke -- who is wanted by the United States to answer drug- and gun-running charges, and his brother Leighton, also called 'Livety'.

Acording to the police, Phang showed up at the Half-Way-Tree Police Station yesterday.

His action followed that of 12 alleged gang leaders who turned themselves over to the police Wednesday -- hours after the police listed them among the island's 23 most wanted men.

The list on Thursday also included Donovan Ainsworth, otherwise called 'Pepsi'; and Delano Walker, also called 'Fidel' of the Central Kingston community known as 'Tel Aviv'; Anthony Harding, also called 'Prince Pow' of the POW Crew; Earl Brown, also called 'Chun' of Top Road; Jermaine Layne, also called 'Cutter' of Bryden Street; Everton Douglas, also called 'Fuba'; Troy Ricketts, also called 'Okra', of Jacques Road; Michael Ewan, also called 'Mikey One Two', of Goodwich Lane; Michael Murray, also called 'Bizzy'; and Andrew Salmon, also called 'Alcapone', of Hypolite Road in Rockfort, East Kingston.

And in another release yesterday, the police advised Tesha Miller, Jermaine 'Speedy' Morrison, Nevardo Hodges, and Michael Maragh, whom they alleged belong to the Clansman gang in Spanish Town, to turn themselves in.

The police said they also wanted Justin Ogilvie, aka Stingy; Harry Mcleod, aka, Harry Dog; Prince Bucket, otherwise called Tugman, and Paul KirkPatrick, aka Teddy Paul -- all from West Kingston, as well as Michael Pasley, aka Tony; and Calvin Harris, also known as Collie who are from St Andrew South

Jamaicans can buy major currencies including the US dollar nearly seven per cent cheaper than three months prior following the influx of capital into the economy.

In a rare move, the local dollar appreciated by 4.3 per cent, 1.7 per cent and 1.26 per cent against the British pound, US dollar and Canadian dollar respectively. Over the same period, the dollar also revalued against select emerging power economies including Australian dollar, Brazil Real and Chinese Yuan by 6.7 per cent, 1.7 per cent and 1.4 per cent respectively. The British pound sold for an average $128.59 yesterday which was more than $5.78 cheaper than $134.37 on March 1; interestingly the pound was $7 dollars cheaper a day prior on Monday.

The powerful US dollar sold for an average $88.13 or $1.58 less than on March 1. In fact some cambios sold the greenback for as low as $82.50 yesterday which was 8.0 per cent cheaper than the average rate on March 1. The Canadian dollar sold for an average $84.27 yesterday, $1.08 cheaper than $85.35 on March 1.

The Jamaican dollar lost a quarter of its value against the greenback between September 2008 to February 2009 before stabilising around 89.50 in 2010. Additionally, over 12 months ending March 2010, the Jamaican dollar lost 41 per cent of its value against Australian dollar and 30.6 per cent against the Real. All movements were compiled utilising Bank of Jamaica data. The BOJ governor Brian Wynter last month stated in his quarterly press briefing that "most of appreciation" was "influenced by net private and official capital inflows and, to a lesser extent, tourism receipts".

Since February, the Jamaican economy had been infused with funds geared at increasing the stability of its currency and accounts. It secured a US$1.2 billion ($107.4 billion) stand-by arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and an additional US$800 million ($71.6 billion) worth of multilateral loans -- US$200 million from the World Bank US$200 million and US$600 million from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). A measure of the increased confidence was the stability of the dollar and the 330 basis point dip in the yield curve on Government of Jamaica Global Bonds so far in 2010.

In mid February, rating agency Fitch upgraded Jamaica's long-term foreign and local currency ratings to "B-" from "CCC" and "C" respectively, with a stable outlook. Rating agency, Standard & Poors followed a week later, hiking its long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit rating on Jamaica to "B-" from "SD" or "Selective Default" with a stable outlook. Then in March, rating agency Moody's upgraded Jamaica's local and foreign currency bond ratings to B3 from Caa1 on foreign currency and Caa2 on local currency, which it said reflected "diminished credit risks following the domestic debt exchange completed in February". Jamaica had executed a voluntary debt swap, reached as a conditionality of the IMF agreement. The debt swap registered a participation rate of more than 99 per cent and will result in Government saving some $40 billion on interest cost payments in its first year -- due to a reduction in interest rates and extension of debt maturities.

Over three months weeks ending June 1, 2010 the:

*Pound Sterling moved from $134.37 to $128.59 or 4.3 per cent;

*Canadian dollar moved from $85.35 to $84.27 or 1.26 per cent;

*US dollar moved from $89.71 to $88.13 or 1.7 per cent;

*Australian dollar moved from J$80.36 to $74.21 or 6.7 per cent;

*Brazilian Real moved from J$49.61 to $48.76 or 1.7 per cent; and

*Japanese Yen moved from J$1 to J$0.97 or 3.0 per cent.

NICE, France - China's investment in Africa has increased so much in recent years that some Africans fear a new form of colonialism.

Now, France, one of the continent's old colonial masters, is looking to Africa with outstretched hands, working to imitate China and step up its own investment there.

To send that message, French President Nicolas Sarkozy opened this week's 25th Africa-France summit for the first time to captains of industry as part of his bid to get "made in France" labels on bridges, roads and other infrastructure now made by China -- and to increase Europe's influence in Africa once again.

Africa "is not the only place where Europe's influence is on the wane, and we should accept it," Andris Piebalgs, the European Union's development minister told The Associated Press at the summit Tuesday. He said Europe needed "to learn from the positive Chinese experience."

The tables have turned on the French in Africa, once at the heart of its colonial empire.

Paris is now leading a European bid to complement hefty aid with increased trade by private companies in Africa where French and other European languages are still a second tongue in many countries -- but where one increasingly hears Chinese. The summit coincided with the 50th anniversary of independence for 14 former French colonies.

Hard figures on investment are difficult to come by. China does not issue reports on all its investments, nor do many African countries. But the dramatic increase in economic ties can be seen in trade figures.

Between 2006 and 2008, Chinese exports to Africa increased from US$26.7 billion to US$49.8 billion, according to a report to be released this week by Chatham House, a London-based policy group. And Chinese imports during the same period more than doubled, from US$28.8 billion to US$56.8 billion.

French trade during the same period increased, but not as dramatically -- exports rose from US$26.3 billion to US$38.5 billion, and imports rose from US$24.8 billion to US$38.8 billion.

What is indisputable is that Chinese investment on the continent is shooting up -- and as a result Europe's influence there is in decline.

No deals were announced as a result of the summit, which ended Tuesday; the occasion provided an opportunity for networking as much as for signing contracts.

But among the business people Sarkozy invited to this city on the Riviera were representatives of some of France's most prominent companies: Total SA, Alstom, the power generation and rail infrastructure company; Compagnie Generale des Etablissments Michelin, the tire-maker; Arianespace, which launches satellites; PSA Peugot Citroen SA, the car manufacturer; France Telecom and a host of others.

It's not just France that wants a share of the action. So do other European powers -- and that is in keeping with a rising theory that private investment is a more efficient engine for change than development aid. But the issue is complex.

Critics argue that no-strings investment -- like China's -- can enrich repressive regimes and subject African workers to difficult conditions. But proponents say that investment, rather than aid, fosters growth rather than dependence.

"The ball is very much in the African countries' court," said Matthews McDonald, a research analyst at the Centre for Chinese Studies at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. China, he said, "is not an external investor seeking to modernize Africa. But Africa has a chance to modernise."

Sarkozy is trying to have it both ways and has insisted that aid must not be abandoned in favor of free enterprise.

Businesses present at the summit laid out a charter of good behavior in a bid to safeguard against corruption, dispel memories of shady practices prevalent for decades after colonial rule -- and win over African hearts and minds. However, Reed Brody, a spokesman for Human Rights Watch, told the AP that voluntary codes of conduct have been shown not to work.

Adama Gaye, a Senegalese journalist who specializes in China-Africa relations, said from Paris that France must not abandon its ideals while private firms are taking part in a feeding frenzy in Africa.

"By dropping soft power and trying to compete with China on its own terms, France will not be able to keep up," he said. "China's colors are very clear: it is not a multiparty democracy. You have to take it as it is." Meanwhile, the Europeans "come to Africa with a flag of democracy. You have to be true to your flag."

China is not the only outsider interested in Africa. India, Turkey, Iran and South American countries are signing contracts.

That is precisely why more European investment in Africa is needed, said Thomas Cargill, the assistant head of the Africa Program at Chatham House.

"A lot of the time, that does come without any strings attached, without concern for democracy and rule of law," Cargill said by telephone. He said that western investment can be linked to respect for democracy.

And he argued that private investment -- because it is a transaction between equals, a willing buyer and a willing seller -- is more respectful of African dignity than aid.

Africa offers investors rich agricultural possibilities, one billion consumers -- and 40 perc ent of the world's mineral resources, he said.

China is challenging traditional Western dominance in oil -- investing, for example, in Nigeria's corruption-plagued oil industry. In May, Nigeria signed a US$23 billion agreement with China to construct three gasoline refineries. The deal is expected to add 750,000 barrels a day to Nigeria's refining capability, reducing the oil-rich nation's dependence on imports of refined fuel.

The EU development commissioner said that Europe is not about to cut back in aid to the developing world. He noted the commitment by rich nations to one of the UN millennium goals is for countries to contribute 0.7 per cent of GNP to development assistance by 2015.

But, "We need an additional driver," Piebalgs said, referring to free enterprise. "Until now, the driver was government-to-government relations."

A police post is to be established in Tivoli Gardens, west Kingston, as part of the State's efforts to entrench law and order in a community reputed to be the fiefdom of Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, an alleged drug baron.

Minister of National Security Dwight Nelson made the disclosure yesterday as he addressed a Gleaner Editors' Forum.

Nelson revealed that police posts would be set up in all communities upon which the Government would move to dismantle criminal gangs which thrive in so-called garrisons.

"Once we go into these communities, we are going to leave permanent police posts inside to continue to monitor, from a law-enforcement point of view, what takes place, so that you don't revert to what existed before as far as criminality is concerned," Nelson declared

West Kingston already has four police stations - at Denham Town, Fletcher's Land, Hannah Town and on Darling Street.

Nelson said the maintenance of law and order would be a key component to ensuring that gangsters not turn communities into untouchable criminal strongholds.

"There is an urgent need for us to address the dismantling of criminal gangs and the existence of high levels of criminality in the country," Nelson told the forum.

He said the State's crushing of flare-ups throughout the capital created an opportunity to make sweeping changes in reclaiming power from dons and nullifying their influence.