No DNA match, police say

www.today.sc
Saturday 16 January 2016
Newsline
n News
n Sports
n Business
n The Health min-
School supplies: Last minute
shopping before
classes resume
Fishing: Race
for million rupee
marlin is on
(page 3)
n Life
n
n
istry should not fear
complaints
SR 10/-
(page 4)
(page 7)
Bel Ombre skull
No DNA match,
police say
The only information the police has after seven months is that the skull has been “out
there definitely for more than a year”, that the skull belonged to a male between 35 and 40
years old at the time of death and that there was “no facture of any sort” on the skull...
T
The news will come as a blow to many who needed closure.
he long wait of the four families that sent
their DNA samples to be tested against that
of the skull unearthed on the premises of H
Hotel in Bel Ombre in May 2015 has once again
gone unrewarded. Indeed, the police announced
yesterday in a short press release entitled SKULL
FINAL that “experts from the laboratory have concluded that none of their profile [the DNA of the
four families] matched that of the DNA generated
from the skull”. In fact, it appears that the tests and
analyses conducted by “a highly accredited scientific laboratory” in Mauritius will leave all those
hoping for a resolution to this painful chapter in
the country’s history none the wiser.
The only thing that has been confirmed is that
the skull belonged to “a male aged between 35 and
40 years old at the time of his death”. Bafflingly, the
“report also said that no fracture of any sort has
been identified on the above-mentioned subject”,
a statement which is sure to raise even more questions, given that the skull was found to next to several bullet casings. The police said that the families
that who came forward following the discovery of
the skull have “been formally informed about this
latest development”. Whether this now means that
this highly sensitive case will be closed or whether the police will pursue its investigation into the
matter is unknown.
As to the “age” of the skull itself, the police say
that “the report did not specifically point out as for
how long the skull could have been out there but
said that definitely for more than one year”.
Press interview in Mauritius
Alain St Ange: “Hats
off to Patrick Pillay!
In an interview that appeared on the front page of Mauritian daily l’express yesterday,
Tourism Minister Alain St Ange praised Patrick Pillay’s participation in the 2015 Presidential election, saying it represented the arrival of a third force on the political scene.
Commenting on the election, he also made clear that he is not a member of Parti Lepep.
In addition, Alain St Ange spoke of his conviction that he will retain his portfolio in a
Cabinet reshuffle set to take place “in two weeks”.
“
I am not a member of the ruling party. I was a
member of the opposition and then I decided to
take a step back. I am a nominated Minister, not
an elected one and this means that I always retain a
certain independence”. This is what Tourism Minis-
ter Alain St Ange told l’express when asked to comment on the results of the 2015 Presidential election.
Mr St Ange was in Mauritius to attend a meeting of
the Vanilla Islands organisation on Wednesday.
Continued on page 2
This interview will be the talk of the town in Seychelles this
weekend...
12.85
13.40
12.80
13.30
13.80
14.50
13.85
14.50
18.50
19.55
18.45
19.50
p2
Saturday 16 January 2016
Saint Elizabeth convent
Carer pours boiling water on disabled resident
The gravity of the problem was underestimated and the victim was only taken to hospital some 10 hours after the act. No action has been taken against the carer yet.
C
indy Hoareau has been
resident of a convent
for 40 years now, having
been brought to the nuns when
she was only three years-old.
On New Year’s Eve, Ms
Hoareau, who is disabled, was
scalded when the carer who
was bathing her “accidently”
threw boiling water over her.
Speaking to TODAY, the administrator of the Saint Elizabeth convent, Gaetanne Soupramanien, together with the
Mother superior, Sister Aimée,
and the convent supervisor,
Sister Juliette, confirmed the
regrettable incident, saying it
was an accident.
Mrs
Soupramanien
explained that the carer was
“distracted by a phone call”
while she was giving a bath to
the disabled lady. “Her phone
rang and she completely forgot that the water was boiling
and so after the phone call,
she just threw the boiling wa-
ter on the lady who was seated
in a wheelchair”, she told TODAY.
The incident is said to have
happened at around 7.45am
but the administrator of the
convent said that she was only
made aware of the incident
some five hours later, at noon
on 31 December while she was
making a routine inspection.
“At that time, the carer
was outside of the foyer and
I didn’t take it seriously as I
couldn’t see signs of the burns”
Mrs Soupramanien told TODAY. But she added that she
started taking the incident seriously when the night carer
contacted her in the evening.
“I was on my way home when
I was asked to come back to
the foyer. When I arrived at
6.30pm, I was shown the burns
on Cindy Hoareau’s body. She
was burnt on the lower part of
her belly, on her legs and the
middle of her legs”, the administrator said. It was only then,
some ten hours later that the
hospital was contacted.
The police was also contacted and a statement has been
taken from the carer as well
as the sisters. This newspaper
was told that “the carer has
admitted her negligence and
has asked the victim for forgiveness”. Sister Aimée, for her
part, said that the foyer will
accept the outcome of the investigation and take measures
“so that such an incident is not
repeated”.
Contacted, the principal secretary (PS) for Social Affairs,
Linda William-Melanie, explained that her department
is very concerned about the
incident and is awaiting the
conclusions of the police investigation. She added that “we
taking the matter very seriously as is the Agency for Social
Protection (ASP)”.
Asked what measures the
ministry intends to take, PS
Melanie said that it cannot
intervene and that it is up to
the foyer itself to make recommendations to the ASP, which
is the state agency that subsidizes the convent, paying the
salaries of the carers.
The foyer, for its part, said
that it cannot take any action
against the carer as it doesn’t
have the mandate to do so.
Not the first time
This is not the first time the Saint Elizabeth convent has made
headlines for the wrong reasons. In 2014, several allegations of
abuse towards the elderly residents of the convent were made on
social media. Among the many complaints this newspaper received were allegations of malnutrition, theft from the elderly as
well as allegations of physical abuse.
While this was denied by Mrs Soupramanien, she did say that
the convent had had several cases of carers abusing the patients
and that “we terminated the employment of the abusers”. She
added then severe actions would be taken if necessary.
The home was opened in 1943 by Father Maurice Roh and has
the capacity to house 25 people. All the residents are women. The
home welcomes old people who cannot take care of themselves
and who have no home or family.
The Saint Elizabeth Convent is a private institution belonging
to the Catholic Mission and operates through donations and subsidies from government for the hiring of carers. Some residents’
pensions are also paid to the convent.
Alain St Ange: “Hats off to Patrick Pillay!
Continued from page 1
Adding that he has been asked
“to do a job and that’s tourism”,
Mr St Ange, for some reason
omitted to mention that he actively campaigned for Mr Michel during the second round
of the election, going as far as
to warn people against what he
called the unreliability of his former leader, Wavel Ramkalawan.
Instead he said: “The people
have spoken during the election and have said to the State:
‘you mustn’t take us for granted
again’”.
Referring to the Parti Lepep
government as the “state”, Mr St
Ange explained that there was
currently an audit in the country to identify the weaknesses
of the state before the National
Assembly elections that will take
place in September at the latest. “The third force launched by
Patrick Pillay also gave a shock
to the system. 14% of the votes
in his first participation in the
Presidential election, I say hats
off! This shows that the country
needed a third force”.
The interview made the front
page of the daily yesterday with
the headline: “Seychelles regrets
what happened to lawyer Bhuckory”.
Asked to comment on the
deportation of lawyer Sanjay
Bhuckory, an incident which the
interviewer said had “shocked
Mauritians”, Mr St Ange described the episode as “regrettable”, adding however that the
lawyer is not alone in this situation with 20 to 25 people deported from Seychelles every
month.
Asked whether the deportation had political connotations,
the Tourism Minister said he’d
rather “stay neutral”, pointing to
several contradictions in the lawyer’s version as reported by the
Immigration authorities. “The
State will have to make a statement on what Sanjay Bhuckory
actually stated on that day to the
Immigration authorities. Everything was caught on cameras located at the airport”.
On the issue of whether one
needs a letter of invitation to
enter Seychelles, Mr St Ange
spoke instead of the need for
hotel vouchers. “I was the one
who made it a requirement that
tourists have a voucher on hand
to put an end to illegal accommodations that don’t help the
economy”. He added that if a foreigner is staying with a Seychellois, that person would need a
letter of invitation...
The Tourism Minister noted
however that Mr Bhukhory “who
had money could have said ‘I will
pay for my accommodation’”,
instead of sleeping on a bench,
adding, “I don’t know why he
didn’t do it”.
The Minister also spoke of his
plans to join the World Tourism Organisation as its secretary
general, saying that if it does
indeed happen, “it would be a
great achievement for the Indian
Ocean”. But this will not happen
until the current office bearer
retires in around 18 months. In
the meantime, Mr St Ange said
that he is rather positive he will
keep the tourism portfolio after
“a cabinet reshuffle” which could
take place in two weeks.
Alain St Ange also told the
Mauritian newspaper that he
had completed the audit of his
ministry as requested by James
Michel.
p3
Saturday 16 January 2016
Letter to the Editor
Disclaimer
The views and comments expressed are those of the writer and not necessarily those of this newspaper
The Health ministry should not fear complaints
Dear Editor,
I am not in the position to comment on this particular case but the public and the
NHS managers may find some of the following ideas useful to improve the service.
• Greater patient participation, a welcoming attitude for positive and negative
feedbacks.
• A review of the complaints procedure, so the public will know what to expect
when they make a complaint
• Investigation of any preventable delay in diagnosis of serious conditions, mismanagement, and any preventable death, so lessons can be learnt to reduce the risk
of it ever happening again. Prompt and full investigation of preventable deaths must
happen even when no complaint has been received.
Your rights as patients
As a patient, you must know your rights but also your responsibilities. You have
the right:
• To receive health care on the basis of your clinical need, not on who you are or
who you know, you job or status, or where you live. No one should jump the queue or
go directly to a hospital specialist because of his or her status.
• To see a doctor within a reasonable time, and to know the maximum waiting
times for various services.
• To get emergency treatment at any time, including nights, public holidays and
weekends, through your CHC doctor, the emergency ambulance service and hospital
accident and emergency departments (A&E, Casualty) but not to abuse night and
weekend services
• To be referred to a consultant or other specialist, when you and your doctor think
it is necessary; you should know the waiting time to see the specialist.
• To have any proposed treatment, including any risks involved in that treatment
and any alternatives, clearly explained to you before you decide whether to agree to it
• To be sent for overseas treatment but only if your specialist and the “Overseas
Treatment Board” think it is appropriate, not because of your status or who you know,
or how vocal you are. No one, no matter who you are, should go for overseas treatment at government expense unless the Board has given prior permission.
• To have access to your health records, have photocopies of your medical records
from both public and from private practitioners within a week, and to know that everyone working in healthcare is under a legal duty to keep your records confidential
• To receive detailed information on local health services. This includes information on how to access any service, how to make appointments, what you should do if
you have to cancel the appointment, opening times, the standards of service you can
expect, and the waiting times.
• To be offered appropriate screening tests, a health check when you are 40 years
old, and at least every 3 years after that.
• To know the management plan for your condition
• To have any necessary blood tests, CT, MRI and other investigation within a
reasonable time, as indicated by your medical condition
• To be contacted by a doctor if any test is abnormal and need further action
• To know the arrangements for giving you the results of any medical tests – the
right to know the results of investigation
• To the same quality of service and access, if you have a physical or mental disability
• To know how to make a complaint and how your complaint will be dealt with;
to have any complaint about the NHS services investigated quickly, and to get a full
written reply from the relevant complaints manager or doctor within a month. To
know you are doing a service to the NHS by giving feedback.
Patient participation - a patient centred-NHS
The Minister and her managerial staff, doctors and nurses, should not fear greater
patient participation. To improve the quality of the NHS, it is essential to ensure that
people’s views are heard, that the public is involved in decision making processes
about healthcare policy and care services, and that patients have greater involvement
in their own care.
Every Community Health Centre (CHC) should have an open Saturday morning
at least twice a year, for patient participation activities, for patient education, and for
screening such as cervical smears, hypertension, diabetes, etc..
Every CHC should invite patients to meetings to:
• Inform patients about CHC services, and new or proposed developments; significant changes in service provision should be discussed before implementation.
• To seek patients’ opinion on the services it provides
• To obtain feedback and views from patients about CHC’s services
• To win support from users
• To discuss patients’ annual surveys, anonymised complaints and investigation of
significant events
• To discuss local healthcare issues
Patients are invited to CHC meetings by posters in the waiting room, by distribution of leaflets, statements in the press and social media, and by announcements on
radios and television.
Patient satisfaction
• Patient satisfaction surveys to be carried out at least once a year in every CHC
• Health workers must know the factors affecting patient satisfaction
Patient satisfaction surveys
Once a year, a survey of patient satisfaction should be carried out using an appropriate patient satisfaction questionnaire, on a large enough sample of patients, selected at random, in every CHC and in every ward or other departments.
The purpose of the annual survey is to use the findings to improve the range and
quality of healthcare services. The aim is to make local services especially CHCs,
specialist out-patient services and A&E (casualty, emergency departments) more responsive to patients’ needs.
The findings of the annual survey should be widely publicized in the local press,
radios and television.
Core topics will be surveyed include:
• Patient satisfaction with reception – front line staff
• Patient satisfaction with doctors and other healthcare professionals
• Patient satisfaction with overall care.
• How easy is it to see a doctor
• Getting through on the phone
• Ease of making an appointment for: (a) Urgent cases (b) 48 hour appointment
(c) Advance booking e.g. 2 weeks before.
Use of social media by patients
Patients should be encouraged to give positive and negative feedbacks on the NHS
on a special NHS website, on Facebook, etc. They should not name names except
when praise is deserved. The aim is not to name and shame, but to improve the services.
Factors that may affect patient satisfaction
Factors that may affect patient satisfaction include:
• The availability to see a Seychelles born doctor of the appropriate sex, or a foreign
born doctor who can communicate effectively in creole, or a language that the patient
is fluent in
• How easy to see a doctor of their choice; continuity of care is important as personal continuous care is linked with higher patient satisfaction
• Listening skills: Any patient has to be given enough time to describe his problems
in his own way with minimal interruption, so that he feels the doctor has understood
his problems.
• Communication skills of the doctor. Does the doctor take time to explain things?
Time to discuss the patient’s problems? Discuss the differential diagnosis? Explain
the plan for investigation (reasons for tests)? Discuss the management options? Involve the patient in his own care? Explains medication? Explains arrangements for
follow-up visits? Some doctors are better at communication than others, but all doctors must never forget if they do not explain things to patients, they will not be satisfied with the service..
• Pleasantness of the doctor? – Does he greet the patient warmly, by name? Voice/
tones? Smiles?
• Doctor’s race: some patients are biased against doctors from certain countries;
Seychellois born doctors are not necessarily better doctors than foreign born doctors
but they have the advantage of knowing more about local customs and false beliefs.
• Doctor’s sex: some patients have a preference for the sex of their doctor
• Doctor’s confidence. Doctors who are hesitant and not good at reassuring the
patient are less likely to satisfy the patient.
• Time with the doctor: on the whole, satisfaction tend to increase with longer
consultations
• Examination: Patients like to be examined? To be touched? For example, even if
obvious that he has osteoarthritis of the right knee, it is advisable for the doctor to feel
the right knee. Consideration and gentleness during examination. Explanation before
and during examination. Consent must be obtained for certain procedures, and chaperones as set out by the Seychelles Dental and medical Council.
• Premises: new purpose built premises with spacious pleasant uncrowded waiting rooms is a factor for patient satisfaction. Les Mammelles and Mont Fleuri CHCs
have to be ungraded or closed, replaced by one similar to Beau Vallon CHC. There is
no need for both Les Mammelle and Mont Fleuri CHC; better to have one larger and
better CHC. Maintenance of premises is not good enough.
• Reception service: Frontline staff needs training in customer care; their attitude
is vital to patient satisfaction. Anonymous surveys of staff attitude are essential.
• Time spent in the waiting room: Waiting beyond appointment time contributes
to patient dissatisfaction. If a patient is kept waiting for more than 30 minutes beyond
the appointment time, a full explanation and apology is needed.
• How easy to get an appointment for same day? For next day? For 2 weeks time?
• How easy is it to see a doctor on the same day when the patient feels he has an
urgent or serious condition?
• Range of services: what services should be available in each CHC – basic list of
equipment in each CHC.
Complaints from users and the public
The ministry must not fear complaints. Complaints should be welcome, as they
help to improve the NHS. Something is seriously wrong if we receive hardly any complaints, if users do not make formal written complaints; it means they have accepted
poor services, bad experiences, and have lost faith that their complaints will be taken
seriously. They will then complain among themselves, and then the stories are exaggerated, giving the NHS a bad name.
Any modern NHS should invite feedbacks and complaints from patients, by posters in waiting rooms, adverts in the newspapers, on radio and television.
The complaints procedure should be widely publicised.
Patients have the right to know how to make a complaint, and the details of the way
complaints and suggestions are handled within the NHS.
A leaflet in each waiting room should be available, setting out the complaints procedure.
The waiting room posters should have the telephone number or email for patients
to feedback, preferably to a named person. Every feedback and complaint must be
logged in a special book.
An annual report of feedbacks and complaints should be published.
The need for a clear complaints procedure
The Ministry of Health should inform the public of the name of the national health
service “Complaints Manager”, the email and telephone number for making contact.
Why do patients complain?
Reasons for complaints include:
• Failure of doctors, nurses and other staff to listen, to allow them enough time to
describe their problems, with minimum interruptions.
• Failure to examine properly
• Misdiagnosis/delayed diagnosis
• Inadequate management
• Failure to refer
• Failure to explain diagnosis, the management plan, to admit the diagnosis is not
known but what investigations is necessary to clarify the problem
• Poor staff attitude – lack of empathy, even rudeness
• Medication errors
• Difficulty in making appointments: cancelled appointments
• Long waits to be seen by family doctors, by specialists, to have tests, to have surgery, etc.
• Others reasons
Need for the HCA board to review the existing complaints procedures in Seychelles
The aim is to make the complaints procedures less adversarial and to resolve them
quickly, to learn lessons and to improve services.
• Patients have the right to complain directly to the “Complaints manager” by
whatever means they think is appropriate
• All the medical records should immediately be obtained, photocopies made, and
the original records locked up in a secure place.
• If a complaint is made orally, by telephone or in writing, we should try to deal
with it and resolve it within 5 working days of receiving it, to the satisfaction of the
complainant. Whenever possible, the complaint should be dealt within 48 hours.
• Inform the complainant if any investigation is to be made, how the complaint will
be managed, and when a response will be forthcoming, including a timescale
• Participants may be accompanied by a friend or other adviser when attending a
complaint meeting.
• The doctor too may bring a colleague or even by a defence legal adviser if the case
is serious enough to warrant it.
• After the hearing, the panel will send a report to the complainant, the doctor, the
CEO and the HCA Board
• Complainants should have 12 months to make a complaint, unless the complainant did not know about the incident or had appropriate reasons for complaining after
that time - which may even be years later.
• Patients should be offered assistance to complain if he or she needs assistance.
• Each CHC or hospital department must keep good records of every complaint,
dates, actions taken, the outcome, reports, any lessons learnt, the timing of any report
sent to complainants and how lessons are disseminated to relevant healthcare professionals and others..
• At the end of the year, the Complaints Manager must write the annual complaints
report for the HCA Board and for the public.
• The annual complaints report should be sent to the Minister of Health, the HCA
Board, the CEO, the PS, etc. After review, a final report is made, and this should be
available to the public.
Need for a Complaints manager and clear procedures for dealing with a complaint in detail
The Seychelles NHS should encourage suggestions, comments and complaints
from patients, staff, managers, etc. to improve the service.
Every patient has an automatic right to address a complaint to the health ministry’s
Complaints Manager. On receiving the complaint, the Complaints Manager should
acknowledge it within 3 working days.
The Complaints Manager has the following options on receiving the complaint:
• Refer the complaint to the appropriate department, doctor or nurse, to deal with
it, and to write a report
• On receiving the report, the Complaints Manager may decide that no further
action is necessary, if she is satisfied that all possible actions have been taken by the
doctor, nurse, etc.
• Or she may decide that further action/investigation is necessary, and by whom.
• For example, the Complaints Manager may decide, in serious cases, to set up an
independent review panel consisting of an independent lay chairperson, an independent lay member and two clinical assessors (usually respected senior doctors).
• The report of this panel should be considered by the Complaints Manager and his
panel within a month.
• After that, the complainant and the doctor should be notified of its decision.
• If the complainant is still dissatisfied, a meeting should be held; the complainant
and the doctor may both bring a friend or other adviser.
• If the complaint cannot be resolved in spite of all efforts, the complainant remains
dissatisfied, the complainant may be informed of his right to make an appeal to the
Health Service Ombudsman
• If indicated, the Complaints Manager and his panel may decide if referral of the
doctor to the Seychelles General Medical Council is indicated.
• The national health “Complaints Manager” must make an annual report of complaints received, how they were dealt with, the outcome, what was learnt, how lessons
learnt were disseminated, for the Minister, PS and the HCA Board. By reading the
annual complaints report, doctors, nurses, and other staff members can learn a lot
about what is needed to improve the service.
• Each CHC must have a complaints manager (usually the CHC manager), and
keep a complaints ledger.
• Every hospital department should keep good records, including logging each
complaint in a “Complaint Log Book”. A satisfaction form should be given to every
patient on the day of discharge from the ward (preferably the day before discharge if
known)
• The Complaint Manager should try to assess what the patient wants. Make a list
of the points that the complainant has raised in his letter, as she has to address each
of them.
• The patient who has made a complaint may want on or more of the following:
1. Acknowledgement of their suffering
2. Explanation of what went wrong and why
3. Assurance that the same error will not affect other patients
4. Want an apology
5. Claim for damage
6. Punishment of the doctor, nurse or practice
• The complaint must be handled with empathy, flexibly and responsively, in consultation with the complainant. The complaint should be investigated and resolved as
speedily as possible, giving the complainant a full, clear explanation, and an apology if
one is needed, and with a look at what needs to be done to put things right
• We should move away from the idea of a personal attack to seeing a complaint as
a request for information, as to why things have happened in a particular way; patients
expect an honest clear detailed explanation; they may also want a reassurance that
steps will be taken to prevent a recurrence. If there is a need, we should not hesitate
to say “sorry”.
• If something goes wrong, patients are entitled to a prompt, sympathetic and
above all truthful account of what has happened, how it is intended to put it right in
the future and an apology may be required
• The complaint manager and her team should record any learning points arising
from the complaint, and ensure that all complaints are widely disseminated and used
to improve the health service
Need for a “Seychelles Health Service Ombudsman”
Membership of the ombudsman panel will be decided by the Cabinet of Ministers,
and may include:
• A legally qualified lay chairperson
• Three lay members (patients using the Seychelles NHS)
• Three doctors.
The Ombudsman system must be widely publicized, including how members of
the public can access it.
Address and telephone numbers should be available for the public.
If the complaint is not resolved to the satisfaction of the complainant, he/she has
the right to ask the Health Service Ombudsman to investigate it, or to take the case
to court.
The Health Service Ombudsman will decide whether there is a need to investigate
further.
After investigation, the ombudsman will provide a report for the HCA Board, the
complainant and the respondent doctor.
The decision of the Ombudsman is final.
The only option left for the complainant after the ombudsman’s decision is to decide whether to go to court.
If the doctor is dissatisfied e.g. with the conduct of the appeal’s proceedings, he too
may complain to the ombudsman.
Dr Guy Ah-Moye
Saturday 16 January 2016
p4
Fishing
Race for million
rupee marlin is on
SACOS will give one million rupees to the angler who catches a marlin over 1 000 pounds in an
SSFC competition.
By AH
T
he Seychelles Sports Fishing Club’s (SSFC) season will
start next weekend with the
Marlin Slam where the organizers
will be dishing out half a million
rupees in prize money to the winners. The team which catches the
biggest marlin will be rewarded
with a mouthwatering SCR400
000 rupees.
But this is only the start. Indeed
local insurance company SACOS is
offering a million rupees to the angler who catches a marlin weighing
over 1 000 pounds 454 kilos) during any one of the SSFC’s competitions during the year. “This prize is
called the SACOS Grander Challenge. We approached SACOS for
sponsorship and they agreed that
any angler who catches a 1 000
pound marlin in any of our tournaments in line with the GFA rules
from start to finish will be eligible
to win the one million rupees,” revealed the SSFC’s chairman, Tarak
Patel.
To date, no one has ever caught
such a huge marlin in an SSFC
tournament but according to Mr.
Patel there have been many stories
involving whopping specimens that
have been hooked before escaping.
“There are these big marlins in Seychelles waters and it is a matter of
altering our fishing style a bit. But
I do believe that a thousand pound
marlin can be caught because it is
out there,” he said.
The SSFC’s chairman believes
that such a big incentive will help
improve the level and allure of the
local fishing competitions and that
more anglers will want to participate in these events.
This year, the SSFC’s calendar
will again comprise of six main
tournaments and one for the kids.
They are the Marlin Slam in January, the National Fishing Tournament in April followed by the
Heineken Slam in June, then the
South East Monsoon sailfish tournament in September, the La Digue
Offshore tournament in November
and the Marine Charter Big Game
Classic tournament in December.
“We simply cannot add any other
tournaments because they are costly. Secondly, the calendar is already
full and I think the six tournaments
we have are enough to keep us busy
for the year,” Mr. Patel explained.
The SSFC has over 200 members and the club has said that it
is always looking to expand. “We
are always looking for new members both locally and overseas and
in fact this year we are trying to
promote sports fishing as a tourism activity. We want to get people
to come to Seychelles to fish and
take part in our tournaments. We
promote our tournaments in magazines and on sports fishing websites. But word of mouth and social
media sites such as Facebook also
play a role for people abroad to
know about our activities,” he explained. He stated that the fishing
tournaments in Seychelles are on a
par with the big game fishing tournaments organized in other parts
of the world.
Huge marlins weighing over 1000 pounds have been spotted in
Seychelles waters, and SACOS will fork out SCR 1 million for
such a marlin caught in any of the SSFC’s 2016 competitions.
Sports forum
Federations asked to step up in 2016
By AH
T
The NSC has called on associations to respect the procedures and protocols when managing their respective sports.
he National Sports Council
(NSC) organized the first
sports forum of 2016 on
Thursday evening for representatives of all the sports federations
and associations in order to inform them of the sport authorities’ major plans for the future.
The NSC also used this meeting
to call upon sports administrators
to respect the various procedures,
policies and rules in place, especially when it comes to funding
and international competitions.
The meeting was chaired by the
NSC’s CEO, Giovanna Rousseau,
together with the director for
sports management and development, Robert August. Also present was Sports Minister Vincent
Meriton and his Principal Secretary, Denis Rose.
Opening the session at the
Maison de Football auditorium,
Minister Meriton urged each federation and association to analyze their performance and that
of their respective sports. He told
them that although there is cause
for satisfaction, there is still a lot
of room for improvement. He also
asked the federations to refrain
from talking to the media when
there are controversial issues relating to sports management.
“There is a need to have a strong
bond and unity in sports between
the sports authorities and the federations and within the federations as well. There are too many
issues in the various federations,
so when there is a problem let us
please discuss about it, you can go
the NSC’s CEO, or the Principal
Secretary or even me as the Minister. This year let us solve our issues
internally and not go to TODAY,
Nation, Weekly or Independent,
because these papers promote
discord and make matters worse,
whereas we solve the problems,”
claimed Minister Meriton.
For her part, Giovanna Rousseau announced that three new
sports associations have been recognized by the sports authorities
meaning now they can enjoy all
the benefits that other associations and sports federations get,
such as an annual grant. They are
the Mixed Martial Arts, Jujitsu
and Yoga associations. They were
chosen from six new associations
that had been seeking recognition
from the NSC.
Together with Mr. August, she
explained the various rules and
procedures that sports federations
and associations need to adhere to
Representatives of sports federations and associations at Thursday’s sports forum were asked to
be more efficient in managing their respective sports.
when dealing with the NSC and
managing their respective sports.
They include the formulation of
annual plans, following the proper procedures to receive annual
grants from government and the
importance of having a proper
audit of their accounts. They also
talked about issues, such as overseas travel of athletes, the procedures for hosting international
events, the rules pertaining to
the importation of sports equipment, the way Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) works when
it comes to sponsorship from private companies, and the different
schemes for athletes and how they
work. At the moment there are
three main schemes: the youth
sports academy, high level athlete scheme and the elite athlete
scheme.
One very important topic raised
during the forum was the setting
up of ten regional sports centres,
eight on Mahé, one on Praslin and
one on La Digue. Miss Rousseau
also plans to expand the sports
complexes both on la Digue and
Praslin. Once completed, the La
Digue complex will comprise of
an indoor gym for volleyball and
basketball, a petanque court, a
football field with running track,
tennis court, 25-metre swimming
pool, fitness trail and hostel. The
La Digue regional centre will be
managed by Elsie Ernesta. She
called on businesses on La Digue
to contribute towards the construction of the facilities through
the CSR tax rebate system.
As for the Praslin complex, it
will be based on Eve Island where
the new 25-metre swimming pool
is located. It will also have a football field with running tracks, a
three-storey building for judo and
other combat sports, a dormitory, table tennis gym, a fitness
gym, courts for tennis, squash,
badminton and an indoor gymnasium a bit similar to the Palais des
Sports on Mahé, if a bit smaller
in terms of sitting capacity. The
detailed plans for these two complexes have already been drawn
up and approved. She explained
that these projects will be done in
phases and it will take some years
before they are completed.
After that, members of the various sports federations were able
to ask questions and voice their
concerns about the running of
sports in Seychelles.
The next sports forum has been
planned for May this year.
The Sports Minister Vincent Meriton did the opening speech while NSC’s CEO Giovanna
Rousseau and Robert August chaired the meeting.
p5
Saturday 16 January, 2016
Australian Open
Local Brief
Karting
The Seychelles Karting Association will hold its A.G.M on
Saturday 30th January from
2.00PM at the Sports Training
centre at the Stade Populair car
park.
All Members are required to attend, whilst minors under the age
of 18 years must be accompanied
by a parent or guarding.
Meanwhile all members are
reminded that their annual membership renewals are due and
payments can be made before the
A.G.M to Dane Decormarmond
or Dave Rene.
All drivers are also reminded
that they have to submit their
passport photo and blood group
for the new racing license.
Karate
The Seychelles Karate Federation (SKF) will be holding its
Annual General Meeting (AGM)
on Saturday 23 January at 2pm in
the training room on the ground
floor of Maison Du Peuple.
Mesut Ozil named
Germany Player of
the Year
A
rsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil
has been named Germany’s
Player of the Year for 2015.
The 27-year-old has been in sparkling form for the Gunners so far
this season, recording 16 assists in
20 Premier League matches to help
them to the top of the table.
He is now just four short of the
single-season Premier League record held by Thierry Henry, while
at international level he has also impressed to help Germany reach the
2016 European Championship. Ozil,
who won the World Cup with Die
Mannschaft in 2014, played in eight
of his country’s nine matches during
2015. More than 51,000 fans voted
for the award, with Ozil the clear
winner having garnered 45.9% of
the votes, compared to just 15.9% for
Bayern Munich’s Thomas Muller in
second place. Ozil also scooped the
award three years in a row between
2011 and 2013, but missed out to
Toni Kroos in 2014.
Pep Guardiola to wait
for job in England
P
ep Guardiola has claimed it
could be two years before he
manages a club in the Premier
League.
Guardiola revealed earlier this
year he would leave Bayern Munich
when his contract expires at the end
of the season because he wanted to
manage in England’s top flight.
His refusal to disclose his preferred destination fuelled speculation over whether he would replace
Manuel Pellegrini at Manchester
City, United’s Louis van Gaal, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger or
interim Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink.
Guardiola apologised earlier this
week for putting pressure on current
Premier League managers after he
was accused of lacking “etiquette”
by former England striker Alan
Shearer. However, in a further twist
to the guessing game over the Catalonian’s next job, Guardiola has now
admitted his move to England may
not happen for two years - or that it
might not happen at all.
“When I sign a contract I will announce it immediately,” said the former Barcelona boss.
“Maybe it will be two years until I
will coach a team in England. I am
very happy about my experience in
Munich. I am working until my last
second here.
“After that I will go home and wait
to see if it is possible to move to England or not. If it’s not, then I won’t.”
Guardiola previously took a year’s
break from football before moving to
the Bavarian capital from the Nou
Camp.
Djokovic, Williams prepared for
Australian Open defenses
Aussie draw puts Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova in same group
N
ovak Djokovic is in the
kind of form that has rivals
no less than Rafael Nadal
describing it as being close to perfection. Serena Williams has been
injured, has hardly played since
the U.S. Open and had to withdraw
from her only tune-up event ahead
of the Australian Open.
The preparations of the reigning
champions couldn’t be more contrasting in the week leading up to
the first Grand Slam tournament of
the year.
They have one thing in common,
though: they’re both favorites to win
again, having each won three of the
four majors in 2015. Serena Williams has won six Australian titles,
Djokovic has won five - neither player has lost a final at Melbourne Park.
At a ceremony preceding the
tournament draw on Friday, Williams and Djokovic posed for photos
with the Australian Open trophies
in front of Rod Laver Arena.
It was only when told they had to
hand back the trophies that Djokovic replied, half-jokingly, “What do
you mean they’re not ours?” His intentions are clear.
In some ways, Williams’ condition reflects the state of play in the
upper ranks of the women’s game.
Most players in the top 10 have
withdrawn from a tournament or
retired from a match in the first two
weeks of the season.
Williams played one set at the
Hopman Cup, where she was hampered by inflammation in her left
knee. No. 2 Simona Halep (Achilles
tendon) and Maria Sharapova (left
forearm) withdrew from the Brisbane International without playing
a match, and No. 3 Garbine Muguruza retired during her first match
with an injured foot.
Agnieszka Radwanska (leg) and
Petra Kvitova (illness) withdrew
from other warmup tournaments
and No. 9 Lucie Safarova announced early she wasn’t competing
in Australia because of a bacterial
infection. Angelique Kerber reached
the final in Brisbane, where she lost
Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic react on stage during the 2016
Australian Open official draw at Melbourne Park on Jan. 15, 2016 in
Melbourne.
NBA roundup
Toronto Raptors edge
past Orlando Magic at
O2 Arena
Spurs beat Cavaliers 99-95 for 32nd straight win
at home
Raptors 106, Magic 103 (overtime)
Point guard Kyle Lowry scored
24 points as the Toronto Raptors
posted a 106-103 overtime victory
over the Orlando Magic on Thursday at the O2 Arena in London.
The victory was the fourth straight
for Toronto.
Bulls 115, 76ers 111 (overtime)
Jimmy Butler scored a career-high 53 points and E’Twaun
Moore had seven of his 14 in overtime as the Chicago Bulls rallied
for a 115-111 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Butler, 15-for-30 from the floor
and 21-for-25 from the foul line,
added 10 rebounds and six assists
for the Bulls, who rested Pau Gasol
and were without Derrick Rose.
Grizzlies 103, Pistons 101
Mario Chalmers scored a gamehigh 25 points with eight assists
and hit the game-winning basket
as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated
the Detroit Pistons 103-101 at FedExForum.
Down 101-96 after Detroit rookie forward Stanley Johnson hit
his fifth three-pointer of the night
with 3:07 to play, Chalmers scored
the Grizzlies’ last seven points for
the victory.
His game-winning shot came
when he picked up a loose ball and
fired off-balance with 00.8 left on
the clock.
to resurgent two-time Australian
Open champion Victoria Azarenka,
before withdrawing from Sydney,
where Halep returned to action.
Williams and Sharapova have
been practicing at Melbourne Park,
showing few signs of injury. Williams had a break after her shocking
semifinal loss at the U.S. Open cost
her a calendar-year Grand Slam,
but said she’d started hitting again
in October “because I was really
missing it.”
She said at the Hopman Cup her
knee problem was a mere “bump” in
the road.
“Everything is actually really well.
Spurs 99, Cavaliers 95
Tony Parker scored 24 points
and Kawhi Leonard poured in 20
points, 16 after halftime, as the San
Antonio Spurs shrugged off a slow
start to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 99-95.
Eighteen of Parker’s points
came in the first half, when just
about every other San Antonio
player struggled. The second half
belonged to Leonard, the league’s
reigning defensive player of the
year, who held Cavaliers forward
LeBron James to seven points after halftime.
Kings 103, Jazz 101
Rudy Gay saved the day for
the Sacramento Kings, hitting a
game-winning jumper with less
than a second remaining for a 103101 win over the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz had worked out of a
10-point deficit in the final five
minutes and finally tied the game
with four seconds remaining on a
three-pointer by backup forward
Joe Ingles.
Warriors 116, Lakers 98
The Golden State Warriors beat
the Los Angeles Lakers 116-98
to record their 37th consecutive
home victory.
Stephen Curry bombed in 24
of his game-high 26 points on
three-pointers, helping the Warriors (37-3) record a seventh straight
home win over the Lakers (9-32).
Feeling really good. Excited about
it,” she added on Friday. “OK. I’m
ready now.”
She’d better be, after the draw
created a challenging path to another title.
Williams will open against Camila
Giorgi of Italy, who finished 2015 at
No. 34 and was the highest-ranked
player who was not seeded at Melbourne Park, on Monday. She could
also meet former No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki in the fourth round
and No. 5 Sharapova in the quarterfinals - a rematch of the 2015 final.
Sharapova, the 2008 champion,
said her restricted preparation was
purely precautionary.
“I think everyone sees the bigger
picture,” she said. “You want to do
what you can to be healthy and be
a part of the Grand Slam so sometimes that’s a decision you have to
make.”
The absences left the door ajar
for Azarenka to win her first title
since 2013, and demonstrate a renewed confidence after two injury-interrupted seasons. The former
No. 1-ranked Azarenka was seeded
No. 14 and ended up on the bottom
half of the draw with No. 2 Halep,
No. 3 Muguruza and No. 8 Venus
Williams, avoiding Serena Williams
and Sharapova.
While much was made of Serena
Williams’ near miss of the Grand
Slam, Djokovic was only one defeat
from a perfect Grand Slam season,
too. He lost French Open final to
Stan Wawrinka and finished 27-1 in
Grand Slam play and 82-6 overall
in 2015 - four of his six losses were
in finals. He opened 2016 with a
crushing 6-1, 6-2 over 14-time major winner Nadal in the Qatar Open
final.
“I played against a player who
did everything perfect,” Nadal said.
“I know nobody playing tennis like
this ever. Since I know this sport, I
never saw somebody playing at this
level.
“When I say perfect, it’s not one
thing in particular. It’s everything.”
Djokovic opens against Chung
Hyeon of South Korea, and could
meet 2014 U.S. Open finalist Kei
Nishikori in the quarterfinals and
four-time Australian champion
Roger Federer in the semis. No.
2 Andy Murray, who has lost four
Australian Open finals including
the 2015 edition, is on the bottom
half of the draw with Nadal and
Warwinka.
Federer, who lost five finals to
Djokovic in 2015, said the Qatar
Open final score emphasized the
difference between the No. 1-ranked
player and the rest.
“Yeah, it was a surprise. Between
two top guys ... you rarely see blowouts,” Federer said. “That Novak
wins maybe not so much because
he’s been on a roll for a while now.
“Of course he’s the favorite for the
Australian Open.”
Football
Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid
given FIFA transfer bans
Clubs breached Fifa regulations for players under age of 18
R
eal Madrid and Atletico Madrid have been given FIFA
transfer bans for breaches
relating to the international transfer
and registration of players under the
age of 18, the world governing body
said Thursday.
“The two clubs were found to have
violated several provisions concerning the international transfer and
first registration of minor players as
well as other relevant provisions with
regard to the registration and participation of certain players in competitions,” FIFA said in a statement.
The transfer bans are to last for
“the next two complete and consecutive registration periods” meaning
the clubs can sign players for the rest
of the current transfer window but
not between this season and next or
in January 2017.
Atletico were also fined 900,000
Swiss francs (898,000 dollars) and
Real were fined 360,000 francs.
Both clubs said they would appeal
the ruling.
“We will appeal against this sanction at all levels of sporting jurisdiction, because we consider it to be absolutely unfair,” Real said.
Atletico said: “We are not in agreement with this sanction and we will
study all the relevant documents,
with the intention of appealing.”
According to Television Espanola,
Valencia and Villarreal might also
be sanctioned by FIFA for the same
offence.
In 2014 Barcelona were also found
guilty of the same offence by FIFA
and banned from signing players in
the two transfer windows in 2015.
They unsuccessfully appealed against
the sanction both to FIFA and to the
Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Two players signed by Barca last
summer, Aleix Vidal and Arda Turan,
had to wait for six months until last
week before making their debuts,
due to the FIFA ban.
The Spanish media have been
hard at work speculating about the
possible consequences.
Radio Marca spoke of “a serious
blow to both Madrid clubs, but it
comes as no surprise at all.
“Everybody knew that FIFA was
rigorously inspecting top Spanish
clubs, after what happened at Barcelona ... The blame for this is obviously
with the clubs since the rules have
been clear for many years.”
Cadena COPE said the ban would
damage Real more than the 2014
champions Atletico.
“Real have historically been the
big spenders of Spanish and European football, so this ban will hit them
very hard. In contrast, Atletico have
always spent less and, right now, they
have a fairly complete squad,” it said.
However, Cadena SER suggested
that the ban might cause coach Diego
Simeone - whose team are currently
top of La Liga - to consider leaving
Atletico in the summer for a big European club where he can make new
signings.
Television channel Cuatro hinted
that both Madrid clubs will try to sign
players in the next two-and-a-half
weeks, before the end of the January
transfer window.
“The next 18 days or so could turn
out to be very eventful and interesting.”
According to AS, Real are already
cosidering taking back eight young
players who are on loan at different
clubs, while Atletico are pondering
the same with some of the 11 youngsters that they have farmed out.
Meanwhile, the media reaction up
in Catalonia has generally been one
of satisfaction, in the light of the ban
that FIFA hit Barca with.
“Justice has now been done,” Catalan language radio RAC1 said.
“It was only fair that the Madrid
clubs should finally be punished the
same way as Barca were ... Barca have
been at a disadvantage for the past
year, now things have been evened
up.”
Both Madrid teams have been barred from signing players until the
2017 summer transfer window.
Saturday 16 January, 2016
p6
Saturday 16 January, 2016
p7
School supplies
Last minute shopping before classes resume
With public schools resuming classes on Monday, parents across the island have to scramble to purchase their children’s school stationary. TODAY looks at which stores sell
stationary, and what the shopping trends are before classes resume.
By Sasha-Lee
T
Parents tend to buy their children school stationary the weekend before classes resume.
he 2 Office and School
Stationary located at
the Espace building is
prepped for the wave of parents and students shopping
for stationary. They sell quality products at an affordable
price that are imported from
South Africa and Dubai. In
addition, the store is the main
distributor of South African
produced BIC pens for Sey-
last minute”, she said laughing, adding that “they come
rushing to the stores the
weekend before school resumes.” For her part, she does
not have to stress about school
supplies anymore as her son is
now studying abroad. “I have
passed this stage now”, she
joked.
But not all parents have to
go through the trouble of sta-
which are brought in from
abroad.
Students attending other
private and public schools
however have to buy their own
notebooks and other stationary items. One mother whose
son attends the Independent
School of Seychelles told TODAY that while children’s textbooks are provided, all activity
books they use to write in have
Two stores, Office Direct and 2 Office and School Stationary, offer a wide range of supplies including school
bags, water bottles, and calculators for students.
chelles. Other products on the
shelf include a range of school
bags, water bottles, and some
art supplies.
Anne Marie Pillay, the owner
of the store, told TODAY that
as her shop has been offering
these types of services for two
years now, they therefore have
some experience with the new
school year craze.
“Most parents wait until the
tionary shopping . One parent whose daughter attends
the Ecole Française des Seychelles, told TODAY that the
school takes care of all supplies for their primary students, be it notebooks, pens,
or textbooks. Once they reach
secondary school however, an
additional charge is added
to the tuition fee to pay for
school supplies and textbooks
to be purchased together with
other stationary.
“We don’t really wait until the last minute to buy the
stationary, even if the school
doesn’t open until January 25.
I’ve noticed that the stock of
stationary items tends to deplete if I wait until the last
minute. I’m not necessarily
talking about pens and pencils but other things like paint,
aprons, and crayons tend to
run out”, she said.
She also noticed that one
thing that’s lacking is some
form of communication between the schools and shops
so that the items needed at
school are in supply at the
shops. “Shops could place
their ads on the school premises, or have special outlets
for school items that students
need and that can be purchased during the holiday period. That would ensure more
continuity of products on the
shelves”, she explained.
Another stationary outlet, Office Direct, a shop located in
Victoria, is the official distributor for Schneider, the German
ballpoint pen brand, in Seychelles. In light of the upcoming school year, Office Direct is
currently hosting promotions
on different stationary items to
facilitate shopping for parents
and their children.
Edelle, the store’s Operations
manager, told TODAY that the
promotion is on basic school
supplies such as notebooks and
pens, which students need in
large quantities. “For instance,
if you buy one pack which contains ten notebooks, you get
five for free”, she explained.
The promotion is also on
brown paper notebooks, which
are considerably better for the
environment as it uses recycled
paper.
When discussing prices, she
said that they all depend on the
product and brand. The store
sells a number of Europeanmade stationary such as Giotto,
an Italian brand which produces non toxic pencils and paint
supplies for children. Prices for
regular pencils start as low as
SCR5, and SCR10 for pens.
As for notebooks, a regular
sized one costs as low as SCR
3, but can go up to SCR 60
for those designed with plastic
covers, and that includes more
pages. For those in secondary
school, the store also sells a
range of calculators.
Saturday 16 January, 2016
p8
Emirates special offer
Just a couple of days left!
Where will 2016 take you? Say Hello to new destinations with Emirates’ global offers.
R
inging in new adventures for the New Year,
Emirates has launched
its much-awaited global sale
to inspire and encourage travelers to explore new destinations and revisit their favourite cities.
For a limited time, globalistas can say “hello” to new
adventures in Emirates’ expanding global network with
special offers on Business and
Economy class fares. Book-
Emirates cuisine economy class.
ings have to be made between
5 and Monday 18 January
2016, for travel between 13
January and 15 June 2016.
All inclusive Business Class
fares from Seychelles start at
SCR 34,441 to Europe, SCR
32,405 to the Far East and
SCR 30,139 to India; with
Economy Class fares starting
at SCR 10,461 to Europe, SCR
10,021 to the Far East and
SCR 6,366 to India.
“We know that many people
have begun thinking about
their travel plans and aspirations for 2016, and we are
pleased to add a little more
inspiration and incentive to
help turn those plans and
dreams into reality,” said Thierry Antinori, Emirates’ Executive Vice President and
chief commercial officer.
“Our global destination network across six continents
offers something for every
traveler, and we are now
combining that wide range
of travel choices with special rates to offer would-be
travelers with an even more
appealing value proposition.
Aside from choice, connectivity, and value, the Emirates
experience also means customers can look forward to
industry-leading comforts on
board our modern jets, and
award-winning service from
our friendly cabin crew.”
Emirates flies to over 140
cities in 80 countries. Adventurous globetrotters can
explore the airline’s newest destinations launched in
2015: Bali, Multan, Orlando,
Mashhad and Bologna. Emirates will commence flights to
Panama City on 1st February
2016, opening the airline’s
first gateway destination in
Central America. The airline
will also expand its services in
mainland China with flights
to Yinchuan and Zhengzhou
from 3rd May 2016. Emirates offers excellent
on board service from an international cabin crew who
come from 130 nationalities
and speak over 60 languages. With lie-flat beds in Business Class, the largest in-seat
screens in the world in Economy class at 13.3 inches and
more than 2,000 channels of
on-demand entertainment on
the award-winning inflight
entertainment system, ice
Digital Widescreen, Emirates
provides quality products and
value for money. Those travelling with children can take
advantage of the extensive
family offering from priority
boarding across all airports to
special kid’s meals, dedicated
children’s entertainment on
ice and exclusive toys and
Lonely Planet Kids activity
bags on board.
The airline’s young and environmentally friendly fleet
comprise entirely of widebody aircraft - largely the
popular Boeing 777 and 71
iconic Airbus A380 aircraft
currently in service.
For more information on
Emirates, including how to
book flights and a complete
list of terms and conditions,
contact your travel agent or
visit www.emirates.com
A380 onboard entertainment.
Saturday 16 January, 2016
p9
The Sinking of “Ero”
Through the eyes of a rescuer, 41 years later
“Ann I was so brave and I had faith, so much faith, I don’t even know where I had those reserves. During the whole ordeal, it never crossed my mind that my mother would drown”.
Excerpts of a letter written by Terri Voss (nee Therese Berlouis), sent to her friend Ann Kirby on January 17 1976, exactly forty years ago this week.
T
erri Voss was referring to the
fateful day, when on 12 August 1975, “Ero”, a wooden
passenger schooner capsized and
sank with 22 passengers onboard.
Among them was her mother Mrs
Harry Berlouis of Anse La Farine,
Praslin, one of the four women
onboard the “Ero” on that fateful
morning.
The ferry, using motor and sail,
was the main mode of transport to
transfer passengers and goods between the two islands, Mahe and
Praslin. The routine trips would be
uneventful until August 12 1975,
when during rough seas, heightened
by the south-east monsoon, the boat
would suffer damages to its side and
would slowly start taking in waters.
By then it had reached the environs
of Mamelles islands and it was some
three hours into the trip which then
took between five and six hours, depending on the weather.
If it wasn’t for Luc Grandcourt’s
quick action and sheer bravery,
things would have taken a turn for
the worse. According to various
documented reports by the passengers and crew of “Ero”, it took
about half an hour to one hour for
the boat to start tilting over, which
gave the crew enough time to build
makeshift rafts made out of wooden
planks from the sinking ferry and
A painting depicting the sinking of the Ero by Raymond Dubuisson.
tied to barrels that were on board;
this was done under the watchful eyes and command of Captain
Grandcourt, who was also ensuring
that his passengers remain calm as
he handed out life jackets in anticipation for the worse.
Mrs Harry Berlouis and other passengers, which also included Bishop
French Chang-Him, eventually had
to abandon ship and for hours they
battled the stormy south-east monsoon sea and strong winds as they
held on to dear life and bracing the
hot sun while awaiting help.
Nearly four months after the
grueling incident, Terri related the
chain of events to her friend Ann
Kirby, in a six-page letter. Terri, a
registered nurse, was one of the
rescuers who went out at sea to
help save the passengers. Ann kept
the letter and had forgotten about
it until she came across it a couple
of years ago while clearing out one
of her drawers. She quickly shared
this with Captain Luc Grandcourt’s
brother, Robert Grandcourt and
together they decided to work towards having the letter documented
in the British Maritime Museum for
posterity. She thinks that the letter
depicts true heroism and bravery by
Captain Luc Grandcourt to keep his
passengers and crew alive whilst the
odds were against him.
Terri’s letter contained a detailed
account of the rescue operation
from the time the call for help was
sent until the survivors were taken
to safety.
Contacted by TODAY in a bid to
get further insight into her account
of events, Terri recalled that the call
came at around 12.45pm, after “Ero”
had been spotted by a small plane
and she quickly sprung into action.
She sought the assistance of Ray
Hitchcock, the owner of a speedboat who was having midday drinks
with his crew at the Yatch club and
who gladly accepted to help. “The
approximately 34ft speedboat,
equipped with twin engines, was
moored at the Yatch club small jetty
and we left from there”, recalled
Terri, who presently lives in Hawaii.
Terri said that they remained at
seas for hours, before she spotted
the rescue boat arriving at around
3.30pm.
In the letter sent to her friend Ann
Kirby, Terri remembered how bad
the weather was on that day; “the
captain (Ray Hitchcock) had to stay
at the wheel (of the speedboat) just
to keep the boat from capsizing , no
way we could anchor. The sea was
raging mad! The waves covered us
at all times. It’s a wonder we were
not thrown over so many times”.
Through the giant waves and fog,
Terri would finally spot her mother,
“I called to her, thinking she was
dead. She looked blue, they all did,
black and white alike. She turned
around and I would see her say
‘Therese’, but a wave covered her
again”, she wrote.
Terri’s mother and other passengers of “Ero” would eventually be
rescued after 4pm, after spending
over seven hours in the sea. Terri
recalled that because the speedboat
was much lower in the water compared to the rescue boat, “it was
easier for us to get the survivors on
board. Once everyone was accounted for, we got the sign to return to
land”, Terri told TODAY.
Going back to her letter she sent to
her friend Ann, she recalled how the
passengers were in a state of shock
after being rescued; “Those poor
people who had capsized, you ought
to have heard the questions they
asked, ‘manmzel’, one said, ‘have
you seen my purse?’. There was one
young man, he looked so pale and
dazed all the time, so I finally asked
him whether he felt ok.
(Continued on Page 10)
Saturday 16 January, 2016
(Continued From Page 9)
He says, ‘I think so but I’ve lost 15
cases of tomatoes madame and all
my money’”.
Terri said that the incident was
an emotionally charged event, the
more so since her mother was involved. “I, as a registered nurse
trained for catastrophic events and
circumstance, was challenged in
three major areas, mental, physical
and emotional”, she recalled.
However, in her letter to Ann,
Terri wrote how they had to stay
brave despite the fact that she was
mentally exhausted and ready to
p10
give up; “we had to put up a front all
the time, so we laughed most of the
time although at one time I fell really like bawling like a baby. I must
have fainted two or three times but
no one noticed”.
Terri said the incident haunted her
(Continued on Page 12)
Correspondence: an extract of Terri’s letter to Ann.
p11
Saturday 16 January, 2016
Clint Maximus
“I’d invite Donald Trump for dinner so I can slap him in the face!”
From his beginnings on Paradise FM, this DJ has gone on to bigger things and is now a Grammy nominee for his musical collaboration with Jes and Shant. But he is more than that.
The well-read, self-professed lover of cats and dogs wants to enlist Freddy Mercury and Bruce Campbell to gang up on Donald Trump at his dream dinner!
(Laughs...)
Which living person do you
most admire, and why?
Bruce Campbell, because he
is like the coolest person alive
and he is the original star of
Evil Dead... Long live ASH!!
(Laughs...)
Do you have any hobbies?
Mostly books, movies and video games... When I get the time
these days.
What annoys you the most
about people?
Fakers or liars... Can’t stand
them!
What is the trait you most
deplore in yourself ?
Two things come to mind: lack
of self confidence and trusting
people too quickly, I learn the
hard way usually.
What’s your favourite TV series?
Ash Vs Evil Dead & The Simpsons
Do you have children?
(Laughs really hard...) NO!
What’s your favourite song?
Too many to enumerate. It
would take up pages and pages.
Clint Maximus says that everyone who knows him knows of his sense of
humor.
What’s your ideal holiday
destination?
Hmmmm… I love going to
Amsterdam! It has nice people – very friendly and it has
such a cool nightlife as well...
Yes Amsterdam.
What’s the last book you
read?
I watched the movie The
Maze Runner, loved it so
much that I had to go out and
buy the books.(Laughs..). The
Death Cure was the last book
I read.
How do you unwind?
All honesty. I fall asleep on
the couch.
Can you cook?
Hell yes, everything and anything... Italian, Indian, Chinese
you name it I can cook it.
Which words or phrases do
you most overuse?
Hooker and f *** way too
The Grammy-nominated DJ at working.
much!
What did you dream of becoming when you were growing up?
I wanted to be an astronaut...
Hey, I’ve still got time!
In the film of your life, who
would you choose to play you?
I was going to say Bruce
Campbell.... Eerrhhhh, let’s go
with Nicholas Hoult (because
he was amazing in Mad Max
Fury Road).
What era would you like to
have lived in?
I would say the 70’s because
it was the birth of DISCO!! YYAAAYY!
What is the worst job you’ve
done?
Pot-Wash. I had to clean all
the dishes in the restaurant I
once worked at.... I still have
nightmares about it!.
If your house was on fire,
what’s the one possession you
would save?
My hard-drive. There’s too
much work on it and I would
have to start all over again.
If you could invite three people, dead or alive, to dinner,
who would they be?
Bruce Campbell. (Laughs...)
Donald Trump (so I can slap
him in the face) and Freddie
Mercury because he’s awesome and I am sure he would
slap Trump with me... so would
Bruce!
How would you like to be remembered?
Just as a kind, nice person...
nothing more nothing less.
What would you say are your
main qualities?
I have one that I think everyone
who knows me will agree... sense
of humour.
Are you more of a cat or a dog
person?
Both, I love both cats and
dogs... I have both living with
me, in perfect harmony.
What’s your favourite place in
Seychelles?
Easy, my mum’s house.
Me asleep in car.
He loves cats and dogs but it’s obvious who gets in on the DJ-ing
business.
Hanging out with friends.
p12
Saturday 16 January, 2016
Lifeline
Alan Rickman, Harry
Potter and Die Hard actor,
dies aged 69
Celebrity Profile:
on the key part of Professor Severus
Snape in the Harry Potter movies.
Author J.K. Rowling specifically
wanted Rickman for the role, briefing him on unpublished backstory
about the character to help him prepare for the role. “I said to Jo Rowling, ‘Look, I can’t play him unless I
know him,’” the actor recalled. “She
then gave me this elliptical piece
of information that I didn’t really
understand at first. It was information she hadn’t told anyone else, not
even her sister, but it gave me what I
needed to take on Snape.” Rickman
went on to play the role in all eight
Harry Potter films.
Alan Rickman (1946–2016)
Alan Rickman is best known for portraying memorable
villains in films like ‘Die Hard’ and the ‘Harry Potter’ film
series.
Source: Biography.com
Actor Alan Rickman, known
for films including Harry Potter, Die Hard and Robin Hood:
Prince of Thieves, has died at the
age of 69, his family has said.
The star had been suffering
from cancer, a statement said.
He became one of Britain’s
best-loved acting stars thanks to
roles including Professor Snape
in the Harry Potter films and
Hans Gruber in Die Hard.
Harry Potter author JK Rowling led the tributes, describing
him as “a magnificent actor and
a wonderful man”. She wrote on
Twitter: “There are no words to
express how shocked and devastated I am to hear of Alan Rickman’s death.”
Brit Awards 2016: Adele,
James Bay and Years &
Years lead nominations
Early Life
Actor Alan Sydney Patrick Rickman was born on February 21, 1946,
in West London, England. He was
the second of four children born to
Bernard Rickman, an Irish Catholic factory worker, and Margaret
Doreen Rose Rickman, a Welsh
Methodist housewife. Rickman later
recalled his early years as impoverished but very happy, until his father
died of lung cancer when young
Alan was just 8 years old.
After showing an early predilection for art, Rickman won a scholarship to Latymer Upper School in
London, where he appeared in several school plays, and then studied
graphic design at Chelsea College
of Art and Design and the Royal
College of Art. After graduating, he
started a graphic design company,
Graphiti, with some friends. He met
his lifetime partner Rima Horton in
1965 while in the amateur Group
Court Drama Club.
At age 26, Rickman decided to
apply to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. “There was an inevitability about my being an actor since
about the age of 7, but there were
other roads that had to be traveled
first,” he later said. “A voice in the
head saying, ‘It’s time to do it. No excuses.’” Rickman supported himself
through his two years at the RADA
by taking freelance design jobs and
by working as a set dresser.
Early Career
In 1978, Rickman joined the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company, appearing in The Tempest
and Love’s Labour’s Lost, among
others, although he disliked the experience: “It’s a factory,” he said. “It
has to be. It’s all about product endlessly churned out—not sufficiently
about process. They don’t look after
the young actors. ... People are dropping like flies, doing too many shows
at once. There ought to be someone
who helps them develop.” Moving
on from the RSC, Rickman spent
much of the rest of the 1980s acting in BBC serials, radio dramas and
repertory theater.
Breakthrough Role
The turning point in Rickman’s
career came in 1985 with the starring role of Le Vicomte de Valmont
in Les Liaisons Dangereuses, a part
that playwright Christopher Hampton (who adapted the script from
an 18th century French novel) developed with the actor specifically
in mind. “Alan was able to transfix
not only the viewer,” Hampton said,
“but he also seemed to have a kind of
hypnotic effect on the people he was
playing his scenes with.”
Rickman performed the unforgettably villainous role first in London
TODAY in History
Adele looks set to take the
limelight at this year’s Brit
Awards after being nominated
for four trophies.
Her multi-million-selling album 25 is up for best British
album, while she has also been
shortlisted for best British female, single and video.
Pop trio Years & Years and
singer-songwriter James Bay
have also been nominated for
four awards each.
Elsewhere, Eagles of Death
Metal are up for best international group two months after
an attack on their gig in Paris.
January 16th is the 16th day of the year
1945: Hitler’s last days
underground
Glastonbury Festival
admits human waste
pollution offence
The organisers of the Glastonbury Festival have admitted allowing human sewage to leak from a
tank and pollute a stream.
The leak happened at the Worthy
Farm site in Somerset in June 2014
and damaged water quality and
killed fish.
Founder Michael Eavis, who
was at Yeovil Magistrates’ Court,
said the sewage was in a £100,000
slurry tank.
The Glastonbury Festival is one
of the UK’s biggest music events,
with some 175,000 people attending each year.
During the hearing, the judge
was told that 42 fish were killed by
the sewage after a “large quantity”
of sewage filtered into Whitelake
River.
Sensors in the stream alerted the
Environment Agency to increased
ammonia levels.
On this day in 1945, Hitler
moved to an underground air
raid shelter - called the Führerbunker – where he would
spend his last days.
When Red Army spearheads
broke through Berlin defences
and began shelling the city, the
decision was taken to move the
Nazi regime to the safety of the
subterranean bunker.
With the German army either encircled or scattered by
the advancing Soviets, Hitler
had no way out of the stranglehold.
It was here were Hitler married Eva Braun in a short civil
ceremony in April 1945, shortly before they both committed
suicide.
Apart from one unsuccessful
attempt to blow up the bunker in 1959, the underground
complex more or less remained
undisturbed until the reunification of Germany, after which
many sections were destroyed.
2003: Space Shuttle
takes off on disastrous
mission
On this day in 2003, Space
Shuttle Columbia took off on
what would become its final
mission, codenamed STS-107.
It disintegrated on re-entry to
Earth 16 days later.
The 113th space shuttle mission by NASA, it was supposed
to conduct microgravity research experiments in space;
such as the reaction of zero
gravity on the web formation
of the Garden Orb Spider and
the behaviour of atmospheric
dust.
Although the mission went
smoothly, things would take a
turn for the worse on February
1, when the orbiter began to reenter the Earth’s atmosphere.
As millions watched the
event on TV, the aircraft began disintegrating over Texas,
eventually turning into a horrific fireball.
The cause of the accident
was determined to be a piece
of foam insulation, the size of
a briefcase, which had broken
off during the launch and had
compromised the left wing of
the aircraft. All seven crewmembers died.
and then on Broadway, earning a
Tony Award nomination. In 1988,
Les Liaisons Dangereuses made the
leap to the big screen, as Dangerous
Liaisons, with the actor John Malkovich taking over the iconic part of
Vicomte de Valmont.
Villainous Roles
Rickman was soon tapped for his
first Hollywood film role, as the impossibly evil terrorist Hans Gruber
(ultimately foiled by Bruce Willis’s
heroic cop John McClane) in Die
Hard (1988). “I got Die Hard,” Rickman later recalled, “because I came
cheap. They were paying Willis $7
million so they had to find people
they could pay nothing.”
After appearing alongside Tom
Selleck in Quigley Down Under
(1990), Rickman starred in three
successful features in 1991: Close
My Eyes; Truly, Madly, Deeply; and
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, in
which he played an unforgettably
arch Sheriff of Nottingham. This
(Continued From Page 10)
for a while and when confiding to
her friend Ann, wrote, “every time
anyone asks me about the whole incident, my only answer is ‘if you or
any of my relatives and friends ever
capsize in a boat, be assured that I
will not be in the rescue team unless
they have a proper lifeboat’”.
When asked how the incident affected her mother, Terri, replied
role, accentuating the first impression made in Die Hard, cemented
Rickman’s image as a “villain”
actor—a title Rickman disliked: “I
don’t see any of [my roles] as one
word. It doesn’t matter what I’m
playing: it’s not one word, and I
think any actor would say the same.”
‘Harry Potter’ Film Series
Rickman’s output slowed following his prolific year in 1991, although he made well-received appearances in Sense and Sensibility
(1995) and in the title role of Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny (1996),
for which he received Golden Globe
and Emmy Awards. He also cowrote and directed his first feature
film, The Winter Guest, in 1997,
featuring his Sense and Sensibility
co-star Emma Thompson and her
real-life mother, Phyllida Law. Rickman also made successful comedic
turns in 1999’s Dogma and Galaxy
Quest.
Rickman’s next high-profile role
came in the 2000s, when he took
that her mother’s last phone conversation to her after a major stroke
which eventually killed her, was still
echoing her experience on the “Ero”.
“She said ‘this time I’m buggered
and will not make it’”, she told TODAY.
The sinking of “Ero”, an incident
which could have turned into the
worst tragedy in Seychelles’ history,
remains till today, 40 years later, a sto-
Off Screen
Alan Rickman secretly married
Rima Horton in 2012. “It was great,
because no one was there. After the
ceremony in New York, we walked
across the Brooklyn Bridge and ate
lunch,” Rickman told the German
magazine Bild.
Rickman was the Honorary President of the International Performers Aid Trust (IPAT). The organization assists artists and performers
around the world who are challenged by poverty, helping them to
hone their craft for a brighter future.
He was also an active patron of the
charity Saving Faces.
Death
Rickman died from cancer on
January 14, 2016, in London. As
one of the most admired British actors of the past three decades, his
passing saddened his collaborators
and many fans.
“There are no words to express
how shocked and devastated I am
to hear of Alan Rickman’s death,”
tweeted Rowling. “He was a magnificent actor & a wonderful man.”
ry of strength and bravery of one man,
who despite being just 27 years old at
the time with 14 years experience as a
mariner, displayed true heroism as he
tried to keep his crew and passengers
alive. Hopefully through Ann Kirby’s
project with the help of Captain Luc’s
brother, 12 August 1975, will forever
remain in maritime history as one of
the greatest maritime rescues of all
time.
p13
Saturday 16 January, 2016
Showbiz
Céline Dion’s husband René Angélil dies
Source:USA TODAY
The couple celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary just last month. They have known each other for 36 years.
R
ené Angélil, the husband of
and mentor-manager who
helped make Canadian singer Céline Dion a mega star, has died
after a years-long battle with throat
cancer. He was 73.
The news was confirmed on Dion’s website on Thursday where a
statement announced Angélil died
at their home in Las Vegas “after a
long and courageous battle against
cancer. The family requests that
their privacy be respected at the moment; more details will be provided
at a later time.”
Dion, 47, told USA TODAY in August, after months of caring for her
dying husband, that she promised
him she’d be there until the end, to
support “the only boyfriend I’ve ever
had.”
Her husband’s death culminates a
remarkable openness by Dion about
Angélil’s struggles and her response
to living with and facing the inevitable end.
“And René says to me, ‘I want to
die in your arms.’ OK, fine, I’ll be
there, you’ll die in my arms,” she said
in an emotionally intense interview
just before returning to the Strip for
another extended run on her Vegas
residency.
Dion cancelled her shows at The
Colosseum this weekend but is
scheduled to be back as planned on
Feb 23, according to Caesar’s Palace.
“It is impossible to overstate the
years, Dion said in August. After a
series of procedures in Boston hospitals, he was back living at the family’s Las Vegas home.
After a year long hiatus to care
for her ailing husband René Angélil, Celine Dion says she’s returning
to center stage at Caesar’s Palace in
Las Vegas because “he wants me out
there.” USA TODAY
He suffered a heart attack in 1992
and was diagnosed with malignant
cancer, after finding a lump on his
neck, in 1998.
“We have asked (doctors) many
times, how long does he have, three
weeks, three months? René wants
to know,” she says. “But they say they
don’t know.”
Dion said she dutifully took notes
during talks in which Angélil spelled
out the details of his funeral service.
“Don’t forget, he’s been the leader
of the band all my life,” she says, having masterminded her career to the
tune of 220 million albums sold. “So
it (hacks) him off to not see me all
day and over here (at Caesar’s palace) working. But he wants me to do
this, do the show, do the interviews.
The loving couple at the Oscars.
impact René and of course Céline
have had on the history of entertainment in Las Vegas and at Caesars
Palace, with his audacious vision
regarding her residency, now 13
years and counting,” Gary Selesner,
president of Caesars Palace, said
in a statement. “René was truly an
amazing human being, showman
and businessman, and over these
many years became a loved and
cherished member of the Caesars
Palace family.”
Added John Nelson, senior vice
president of AEG Live, “(Rene)
and Céline were so devoted to each
other, their relationship has been a
model for us all.”
Dion met Angélil when she was 12,
and he later became her manager
and, in 1994, her husband. They
have three children: René-Charles,
14, and 5-year-old twins, Nelson
and Eddy.
Angélil also has three adult children from his two previous marriages: Patrick, Jean Pierre and
Anne Marie.
Angélil had been ill for years, and
on a feeding tube for the last two
René Angelil and Céline Dion back in the day.
But he freaks when I’m not home
with him, too.”
Born in Montreal of Syrian and
Lebanese descent, Angélil started
out as a pop singer in the 1960s in
French Canada’s largest city.
Later, he turned to artist management, and in 1980 discovered
Dion when her brother sent him
her demo tape. The two began
a relationship in 1987, when she
was 19 and he was 45. They got
engaged in 1991 and married in
Montreal’s Catholic basilica at the
end of 1994.
Whatever else Dion is remembered for — and her musical legacy is considerable — she’ll also be
remembered for her fortitude on
behalf of her husband, and her grace
in showing the world how it’s done.
“When you see someone who is
fighting so hard, it has a big impact
on you,” she told USA TODAY. “You
have two choices. You look at your
husband who’s very sick and you
can’t help, and it kills you. Or you
look at your husband that’s sick and
you say, ‘I got you. I got it. I’m here.
It’s going to be just fine.’
“You can have your shaking knees
at the end, but when someone you
love falls and needs help, it’s not
time to cry,” she says. “Afterwards,
sure. But not yet.”
While his death was not a surprise,
fans, friends and admirers tweeted
mournfully.
Saturday 16 January, 2016
One ‘Lavenir’ fishing boat, four large deep
freezers, one ‘Saloup’. Price SR 750,000
(o.n.o). Contact 2542418.
Daihatsu Terios For Sale. With a manual gear box, engine capacity 1300cc,
in good working condition.
Tel: 2502754/2532562
Have you got a reclamation of land to
do for the year of 2016? Contact RMH
SERVICES for supplying of filling
materials. Call: 2710191
Hyundai Elantra GLS, 2011 Model,
Automatic, Full option, Price negotiable.
Call 2521474
New Kia Carens 2013 model. 2 ½ years
old. Very spacious and well maintained. If
interested contact owner on Tel: 2512037,
for viewing and price negotiable.
Honda Accord for sale. Full option. Leather
and electronic seats. 18” O Z racing wheel.
Asking for 350 thousand. Tel: 2520802
Kia Picanto Model 2012. 3 years old.
Lemon Grass Colour. Low milleague.
One Lady driver. Manual transmission.
Full option. Regularly serviced. Road
license Oct 2016. Tel: 2718329/ 2517449
Well maintained HONDA ACCORD
2000cc, 2004 model, Automatic Transmission, colour ‘Indigo Pearl’ (Dark
Blue). Full option, leather seats, 6 alpine speaker sound system with pioneer
DVD receiver, reverse camera, 17 inches
Alloy wheels, body kit, anti theft alarm.
Excellent condition. Tel: 2520179
At Anse La Blague Praslin, a 2-bedroom
house + a small building ideal for shop.
Price SR 3million.
One small tourist establishment which
comprises of one restaurant (32 seater)
and 3 bedrooms. Price: SR 8million
(o.n.o). Contact 2542418.
Must sell – owner leaving
Land at Mare Anglaise, 2168 sqm, with
fully furnished 3 bedroom house, beautiful sea view, large storage, all serious
offers considered. Call 2568484
At Anse La Mouche, large unfurnished
4-bed hose with spacious living room,
outside shower/toilet & veranda, car porch
on just under an acre of flat land. Rent
18000pm ono plus vat. Call: 2541942 or
2741760 before 8am to 6pm.
New private security firm is recruiting
serious and dynamic individuals for the
post of Security Officers.
Serious applicants should contact:
2833041
Deadline: Friday 29th January 2016
NOTICE OF DISSOL UTION
INTER I M ADV ISOR LTD.- I BC No.
I I 2930
Notice is hereby given that INTERIM
ADVISOR LTD. of I 03 Sham Peng Tong
Plaza, Victoria, Mahe, Seychelles is being
dissolved and the dissolution commenced
on the 1 3th day of January 20 1 6
Who has any claims against the company
must lodge thei r claims with the liquidator within 1 month hereof.
Mr. Avraam Kapiri of Ste liou Mavrommati, 57, Ag ios Dometios 2364, Nicosia,
Cyprus has been appointed as a liquidator
of the company.
Dated this 15th day of Janua ry 20 I 6
Mr. Avraam Kapiri
Liquidator
Anyone looking for quality sports outfit
please call or text 2747394 to see what’s
available or to order. Brand names include
USA PRO, NIKE, KARRIMOR,
ADIDAS, LONSDALE, and PUMA.
Center console Boat for sale.
Make: Conquest, Model: Sport Fishing
36Ft, Powered by twin Suzuki four stroke
250, the boat has been recently renovated
in 2013, removing all wood and placing
the two new engines.
23 July – 22 Aug
People in positions of power
will say good things about
you today but don’t think
you can rest on your laurels.
Yes, you have gone up in
their estimation, but now
you have reached that level
you must work even harder
to stay there.
20 Feb – 20 March
If you are told something of
a privileged nature you must
keep it to yourself. With Mercury, planet of communication, linked to Jupiter, planet
of excess, there is a danger you
will let slip information that
was not yours to divulge. You
won’t be confided in again!
23 Aug – 23 Sept
As Mercury, your ruler, is
linked to luck planet Jupiter today you will get away
with most things, but that
is not an excuse to behave
badly for the fun of it. People will respect you more if
you respect them, so don’t
go over the top.
21 March – 20 April
As Mercury, planet of communication, is going through
one of its retrograde phases
you would be wise to think
before you speak, especially
on the work front where colleagues and employers will
not take kindly to criticism.
Weigh your words carefully.
24Sept–23Oct
There is no reason to hold
back:Giveitallyou’vegotand
show the world what you are
capable of. If you have been
thinking about changing job
or location now is the time to
do something about it. Time
to awaken that Libra spirit of
adventure.
21 April – 21 May
You will get through chores,
at home and at work, in record quick time today – and
will make an excellent job of
them too. You will also reach
a decision about an offer
you have been in two minds
about taking. The decision is
. . . wait a while.
24 Oct – 22 Nov
The only danger now is that
in your hurry to get ahead
you will forget that other
people have feelings too. Be
especially careful what you
say to work colleagues today because if they feel you
are being unfair they will
soon turn against you.
22 May – 21 June
Be very careful what you
choose to believe today because the planets warn you
will be more open than usual
to negative propaganda. Anyone who tries to tell you that
you must follow their lead is
not to be trusted. Listen only
to your own inner voice.
23 Nov – 21 Dec
Anyone who disagrees with
you over the next 24 hours is
going to wish they had kept
their opinions to themselves.
Mercury, planet of communication, linked to Jupiter,
your ruler, means you won’t
hesitate to point out their
many faults and failings.
22June–22July
Your powers of persuasion are
usually very good but they may
fail you over the next 24 hours.
Chances are you are trying too
hard to convince others that you
knowwhatyouaretalkingabout,
andthatmakesthemsuspicious.
Aimtobealittlelessforceful.
22 Dec – 20 Jan
Don’t wait for approval, just
get on and do what has to
be done and worry about the
consequences later. When all
is said and done it is results
that count, so don’t worry if
your attitude upsets other
people – they’ll come round
in the end.
Down
1. Cincinnati’s baseball team
2. Sword
3. Shade
4. A long-handled curved blade
5. Clip or cut
6. Expect with desire
7. Not odd
8. Request
9. Image breaker
10. Valley
11. French for “State”
13. Woman’s clothes
14. Way in
20. Whip
21. Latin for “Will be”
25. An aromatic herb
26. Woodwind instruments
27. Lack of ease
28. Airborne
29. Sixty-three in Roman numerals
30. Detect
31. Peculiar
33. Sick
35. Until now
37. Tumbled
39. Demean
42. Harvest
44. Vexation
47. A synthetic fabric
49. Jargons
52. 365 days
53. Leaf of the talipot palm
55. Door-to-door cosmetic company
56. Memo
57. Rubber wheel
58. Ellipse
59. Fictional captain
60. Catch
62. Donkey
Yesterday’s solution
Across
1. Drenches
5. Definite article
8. Assistant
12. Heroic
13. Piloted a vehicle
15. A style of jazz singing
16. Declare untrue
17. Maturate
18. A Chadic language
19. Colonies
22. Mesh
23. Possesses
24. Attempt again
26. City in south central Ukraine
29. Words of a song
31. Sash
32. Spiral or coil
34. Lane
36. Remove (one’s hat)
38. Not liquid
40. Alley
41. Submit
43. Goes through the air
45. Super Sonic Transport
46. No sound
48. Set ablaze
50. Pottery is made of this
51. Dispose
52. Not me
54. Estates
61. Singer Fitzgerald
63. Egg-shaped
64. Baking appliance
65. Anagram of “Salt”
66. French for “Our”
67. Mother
68. Beams
69. Born
70. Walk heavily
1. What was originally called ‘wireless telegraphy’: Television; Video; Radio; or Telephone?
2. What internet mechanism is named from a popular US confection, thought
originated by Chinese Californians?
3. What’s the largest capital city without a river, and also the oldest capital of its continent?
4. The strongest known biological material was identified by scientists (2015) in the
teeth of a: Lion; Rat; Locust; or Limpet?
5. Titan is the project codename for Apple’s development: iCar; iWatch; iSpecs; or
iSexmachine?
6. The flags of China, Japan, Argentina, Uruguay, Greenland and Bangladesh share
what common feature?
7. Which country in 2001 became the first to decriminalize recreational drug use:
Mexico; Portugal; Netherlands; or China?
8. Who was Miss World 1976, and her iconic musician/peace activist boyfriend (two
answers required)?
9. What does the television acronym HDMI stand for?
10. Which dog breed was popularized in the Oscar winning 2012 silent film The Artist?
Quick Quiz Answers: 1. Radio 2. Cookie 3. Mexico City 4. Limpet 5. iCar 6. Sun 7. Portugal 8. Cindy Breakespeare and Bob Marley 9. High Definition Multimedia Interface
10. Jack Russell
21 Jan – 19 Feb
You can afford to be optimistic and you can afford
to take risks, so forget about
the past and think only of the
future. A money-making opportunity will come your way
today or over the weekend.
Don’t waste time thinking
about it – take action!
Published by TODAY Publishers (Seychelles)
Limited, P.O. Box 999, Victoria, Mahé, Seychelles
Printed by “The Print House (Pty) Ltd.”, Providence
Industrial Estate,
Mahé, Seychelles.
Tel: +248 4290 999/950/951
Fax: +248 4325999
[email protected]
Grand Anse, Praslin
Tel: +248 4237 441
Fax: +248 4237 442
Editor - Deepa Bhookhun
[email protected]
How To Play
The objective is to fill the blank squares with the correct numbers
•Every row of 9 must include all digits 1 to 9 in any order
•Every column of 9 must include all digits 1 to 9 in any order
•Every 3 x 3 sub-grid must include all digits 1 to 9 in any order
Fill the other empty cells with numbers between 1 and 9
A number should appear only once on each row, column and 3 x 3 region
Business Development Manager - Veronica Maria
[email protected]
ISSN: 1659-7265
Saturday 16 January, 2016
p15