In light of a Washington Post report which “ominously tells us that the World Health Organization warns that we are on the verge of a global pandemic”, Guyanese blogger Imran Khan is heartened by the call of a local journalist for “his colleagues in the media to pay greater attention to the swine flu situation”, but still wonders about the government's pro-activeness:

I have seen reports from Minister of Health Dr. Leslie Ramsammy saying that the government is monitoring the flu virus but this is a quickly developing and changing threat and I have seen no updates since. I noted that he had warned that anyone who begins to feel ill should quickly head to the nearest medical post. Good advice I suppose but what PRECAUTIONS should people take?

I am uneasy (and I am sure thousands of others are as well) but we are not getting clear, consistent, regularly updated messages from the Ministry of Health. We are effectively fending for ourselves.

Jamaican blogger Mark Lee, blogging at Abeng News Magazine, is also paying attention to the WHO's warning, as are the folks at Barbados Free Press:

We at Barbados Free Press are willing to bet that in two months time this new crisis in the travel industry will be ending. Our leaders should not only be thinking about what is to be immediately done to protect everyone, they should be planning for the recovery of our tourist industry after this swine flu passes.

BFP's compatriot Barbados Underground adds:

The medical authorities in the USA are being very negative in their forecast on how this pandemic will spread. This is not good news for the Barbados authorities, North America is a top three tourist market for Barbados.

At this point we can only hope that the Barbados government is able to galvanize all the stakeholders to treat with this matter with the seriousness it deserves.

…while Pull! Push! learns from a local mainstream media report that:

‘Barbados has been placed on a swine flu virus alert' and ‘two local samples had been sent off to the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre (CAREC) in Trinidad and Tobago to be tested for the virus.'

As if to put Barbadians' minds at ease, Keltruth Corp. posts a link to a website that is tracking existing cases of the virus on a world map:

So far, Florida, the West Indies, Africa and Asia are in the clear.

This has not stopped Belizean bloggers from being concerned. Lee Vanderwalker, an artist/blogger who divides her time between her house in Belize and her studio in Mexico, is right in the thick of things:

I'm not high risk since I hardly ever leave the house anyway and I promised myself when I moved to Mexico to not stick my fingers in my mouth. I am most concerned with Belize closing its border with Mexico, that would really mess things up.

So I´m making preparations for a long quarantine, stocking up on food and medicine and hunkering down. My gut feeling is that as usual the media overblows everything and that its not as bad a they make it seem, but on the other hand…

Belizean reports that the country's government “reacted to the threat posed by the Swine Flu Virus and has today ordered the closure of major public events including the National Agricultural and Trade Show which was to have started tomorrow 1st May”, adding:

The closure of the National Agricultural and Trade Show (NATS) is unprecedented. The postponement of the annual general meeting of the Holy Redeemer Credit Union and several other weekend events planned for a long Labour Day weekend have flummoxed most Belizeans.

Over in Cuba, Generation Y questions the decision to continue with planned May 1st celebrations:

My experience with colds and flu-like illnesses tells me that a huge mass of people is the scenario most conducive to their spread. The announced measures should include, for the minimum protection, the postponement or cancellation of the festivities for International Workers’ Day. I don’t want to create unnecessary alarm. I don’t know anyone who is infected and an official statement has been released saying that there are no recorded cases of this disease, but remember they told us the same thing for a long time about AIDS, before finally confessing that it had entered Cuba, not to mention keeping secret the number of dengue fever cases each year.

With all humility, I ask the Cuban government to re-think the idea of bringing together thousands of people at this time. Please, show less concern about the spectacle and more protection for the citizenry.

Letters from Grenada, meanwhile, cannot help but notice that:

Fewer than 200 people have contracted swine flu, and everyone gets mask-happy. Meanwhile, MILLIONS have died of AIDS, yet some people still don’t use condoms.

I’m not saying swine flu isn’t real.

But it is a fact that masks do not prevent transmission. I also believe that mass hysteria never ever helps. Example: Once upon a time, people believed in witches. So they hung/burned/drowned these alleged witches. Also, their cats. Then the rat and flea populations exploded. Hello, bubonic plague.

So, just in case, Cuban diaspora blogger Sunrise in Havana posts a list of handy tips to help avoid contracting the flu “without dangerous drugs or vaccinations”:

I have not caught a flu in over two decades, and you can avoid it too, without getting vaccinated, by following these simple guidelines, which will keep your immune system in optimal working order so that you're far less likely to acquire the infection to begin with.

Grenadian Blah Bloh Blog says:

Although I’m a good 150 miles overseas, I must admit to a great deal of personal excitement over the impending arrival of President Obama in Trinidad; we can only hope he might decide on a spur of the moment rest-stop in Greenz perhaps?

For the past week or so, as advance security measures have begun, Grenada’s Point Salines International Airport has become a hub for the U.S. Air Force. F15 jets and C5 transports occupy a section of the runway, with the F15s maintaining a steady rotation of recon/surveillance flights.

Here’s hoping to hear some good news out of the Summit.

Good news may have to wait, but Blah Bloh Blog certainly spread some confusing news in the form of photos (allegedly of the arrival of The Beast) at Piarco International Airport, although there is no confirmation as to whether the vehicle in question is actually the U.S. President's limousine - but that didn't stop her from commenting:

Lawd, I have to love mi Trini brudders and dem - yuh ent see dem posing wid de man vehicle!! (For what it’s worth, I understand these pictures were taken by T&T police officers, not civilians. I know we Caribbean people good, but we ent so good dat de Secret Service go let we jus’ be liming around de most secure car in de world).

Other bloggers, however, are focused on more controversial issues. From Trinidad and Tobago, Undisputed Truth has the financial impact of hosting the Summit on his mind:

The government of Trinidad and Tobago is spending between $1 billion to $2 billion TT dollars (US$161 million - US$323 million) of taxpayer money on the Summit. So far they are yet to publicly disclose the exact figure.

Trinidad’s GDP is only about US$15 billion. Trinidad is therefore spending about 13% of its GDP just to host the Summit. Prime Minister of Trinidad Patrick Manning has been mentioning his intentions to host the Summit for years. He has translated this into creating state agencies to quickly renovate and construct high-rise buildings in and around Port-of-Spain and the country each costing hundreds of millions of dollars. So the real cost of the Summit may be even scarier.

To put this into perspective, the G20 Summit hosted in London costed just £20 million or TT$180 million or US$29 million. So Trinidad is spending as much as 10 times the cost of the G20 Summit for the Summit of the Americas.

This is an absolute scandal and waste of money…

Barbadian blogger Cheese-on-bread! adds:

All eyes will be focused over the next few days on Trinidad, where President Barack Obama will be attending the 5th Summit of the Americas. I must admit now that although I would have been thrilled to get a glimpse of Mr. President, I don't think we could afford the expense that comes with hosting him. Reports suggest that T&T is spending TT$1.2 billion on the summit…thank God they have oil money. No bosie, it doesn't make sense putting ourselves in the poor house to put on a good show for the Americans.

Part of the President's surveillance has been set up here at the Grantley Adams International Airport, and I imagine all their satellites must be trained on Trinidad at this moment. All the criminals will probably be lying low this weekend…

Over in the French Caribbean, Carib Creole One [Fr] is carefully following Summit developments and ponders on issues of self-governance and inter-Caribbean relations. He also takes a look at the complex relationship between the U.S. and Cuba.

Live in Guyana talks about the “Great Wall“:

The residents of Beetham Gardens, a drab area of rundown government housing and relentless gang warfare, have been cut off from the rest of this sprawling Trinidadian capital.

The government has erected a wall along the neighborhood's frayed edges, blocking the view into a long troubled community that shares space with the murky waters of industrial waste, overgrown weeds and the constant stench of the nearby landfill.

The 5-foot-tall wall is simply a beautifying touch, say government officials, who have spent months prepping for the arrival this week of 33 leaders including President Barack Obama at the largest and most important gathering of hemispheric leaders.

But it seems that Guyana has some Summit controversy of its own. Caribbean American Forum notes that:

The New York Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID)…published a full page ad telling summit participants that ‘There is a crisis of governance in Guyana which has burgeoned from unparalleled corruption, bad and despotic governance and the abrogation of the rule of law. Guyana’s democracy is tenuous at best and the nation stands at the threshold of failed statehood.'

T&T-based Now is Wow Too finds the theme of the Summit (Securing Our Citizens' Future by Promoting Human Prosperity, Energy Security and Environmental Sustainability) incredibly ironic:

T&T GOVERNMENT: Citizens? What citizens? All we care about is hurriedly spending at least $500 million dollars to fix up the country so that it looks good for Obama … and the rest of the world.

Quick! He's flying in today! Forget about the global financial crisis. Let's dish out about $1 million US to rehabilitate the airport so we can accommodate the US Presidential aircrafts and the other jets that are bringing in our important guests!

Paint all the lines, roadsigns, lightpoles, tree trunks … in fact, paint every and anything on the road along the route from the airport to Port-of-Spain! We can't afford to let Obama see any of our infrastructure looking old and ratty! And never mind if the citizens are stuck for hours in traffic while we spruce up. They're used to it.

(… i.e. the traffic, not the sprucing up).

Pave the roads and fix any potholes in areas where Obama and other foreign Heads of State have to pass! Build a wall (… and call it a ‘berm') to hide the 'slums' in the Beetham so our important guests won't see the poverty!

And on that note, drive around and pick up all the vagrants so it will look like we don't have a problem with homelessness and madness. Some of these social outcasts are running away, but hopefully not in the direction of the Summit centre!

As if to address her concerns, public relations blog 5 am at Mango Media Caribbean interviews a spokesperson for the Summit Secretariat, who claims that “we are ready alright [for the Summit]; we have been ready for awhile” - this despite countless stories of a lack of preparedness in the local mainstream media.

In fact, Trinidad blogger B.C. Pires, who now lives in Barbados, is convinced that the best place to be for the Summit is anywhere outside of Port of Spain:

The Summit of the Americas starts tomorrow and the big shots start arriving today, with Barack Obama being the biggest shot of them all, of course. And you won’t be able to move a muscle in town until Barack and the Beast ride out again.

He's not far off - Caribbean Beat Blog, for instance, reports that:

Caribbean Airlines (CAL) has been informed by the relevant authorities that there will be limited disruptions to its scheduled operations during the Fifth Summit of the Americas…CAL is recommending that passengers depart for the airport much earlier than usual, in the event that any traffic pile-ups occur, in order to arrive at the airport three hours ahead of their scheduled flight departure time.

But there is a lighter side to the Summit as well - at least in the eyes of bloggers. As always, Trinidadian This Beach Called Life uses humour to focus on key issues, posting a fictitious diary entry from President Obama:

The trip to Mexico was eventful. We promised to use less illicit drugs and Mexico promised to export less gardeners. I am now on my way to sunny Trinidad and Tobago and can’t wait to see the Hyatt.

I can see a few tall buildings, the Great Beetham Wall and Hugo waving a red flag. Port of Spain looks good from this angle but there are wires hanging everywhere. I wonder if they managed to round up the homeless and hide them from the international press. This was so Third World, the cleaning up for the Summit but denying it wasn’t so. Only a Banana Government would act this foolish. I wonder if there is going to be any protest but I don’t think a semi-dictatorial leader would allow something as democratic as protests to take place during an international event. It would make them look even worse.

Culture is also playing a role - both officially and unofficially. Caribbean Free Radio's flickr photostream displays a photoset entitled “The People Must Be Herd”, along with the following explanation…

As final preparations are being made for the staging of the 5th Summit of the Americas in Trinidad, a group of artists will do a performance installation on the streets of Trinidad and Tobago's capital, Port of Spain.

The silent procession is part of a video installation being created by the band’s designers Ashraph Ramsaran and Shalini Seereeram.

T’in Cow Fat Cow debuted as an independent mas band in 2009, inspired by the song T'in Cow by 3 Canal.

…while Repeating Islands blog has the scoop on the cultural presentation for the official Summit opening later today:

For the opening ceremony, [carnival designer] MacFarlane has put together a 45-minute cultural presentation that traces the development of the Caribbean peoples from the indigenous inhabitants to the multi-ethnic citizenry of the region today.

What the Fifth Summit of the Americas will eventually achieve is still up for debate, but one thing is certain: the multi-ethnic citizenry of the blogosphere will monitor its progress every step of the way.

Adding insult to injury for most bloggers are rumours that the pair have not only reunited, but allegedly got married, prompting Cheese-on-bread!, a Barbadian blog that has long been an avid Rihanna supporter, to write a post highlighting “six reasons why Rihanna would marry Chris Brown”:

1) She wanted to see Chris Brown in a suit. Granted, it's the most mature I've seen him look, since he often looks as though he's dressed by a group of deranged Sesame Street muppets. That suit would look real nice with a pair of handcuffs though…
5) She's getting bad advice. Already proven.

The blogger goes on to say:

All last week the net was inundated with stories of her being back with Brown, married to Brown, pregnant for Brown, beating up Brown first and to be honest I'm over trying to figure out the truth from the lies.

I think the biggest problem with this drama is that both Rihanna and Chris Brown's publicists are spinning out of control. A lot of bs is being slung and I fear it's all for ‘operation save Chris Brown's career' and not for Rihanna's benefit.

Trinidadian blogger This Beach Called Life is of the opinion that Brown will likely hit Rihanna again:

This was obviously no simple beating. I am no expert but I think Mr Brown will hit again and he may hit harder and choke longer next time. The message Rihanna is sending to domestic violence victims is that it wasn’t so bad. The message she is sending to abusers like Chris Brown is give her your best shot.

There is palpable disappointment in the regional blogosphere over the pop star's apparent unwillingness - or inability - to be a spokesperson for domestic violence. Another Trinidad and Tobago-based blogger, Attillah Springer, writes a stirring letter to Rihanna:

I don’t know if my words will have any effect on you, but I feel like I have to say it. The scary thing is that we are so comfortable with violence that your fans can get over Chris Brown’s behaviour. They say, small ting. Everybody has to get licks some time.

This is a country where we make a lot of excuses for men’s violence against women. This is a country where little girls can be abducted, raped, killed and then you hear people call in to radio stations and condemn them for being too ‘fresh’.

This scares me, Rihanna. Especially since women like you are role models. The epitome of this bizarre construct called modern woman. You, the post feminist self-determined Barbie, who have money, a top career, men the world over who practically worship you and thighs to make the rest of us women die of jealousy. You who are all these things can’t possibly accept such behaviour from a man.

I fear that the news of your return to your abuser sets a bad precedent to all the Caribbean girls becoming women who admire you, your rise to fame, your spectacular claiming of Hollywood. You, a regular Bajan girl that could be any regular other girl from any regular other island.

She adds:

We have this way of thinking that doesn’t always take reason into consideration, because we think we’re in love. We would rather take the occasional licks than lonely nights or trying to find someone else to love us.

And I look around at my other sister friends who are agonizing in relationships with men who either don’t deserve them…and I wonder about love and power and sex and if we will ever figure out how to balance them all.

If women like you can negotiate around and past the problem of abuse and add your voices and your strength and your ideas to women who don’t have the resources or the confidence in their own voices to break themselves out of cycles of violence.

Rihanna's compatriot Cheese-on-bread! sums up the feeling of the Caribbean blogosphere in one pointed sentence:

All I know is that if she marries or for that matter reconciles with Brown, she's going to squander a lot of goodwill being sent her way.

From Grenada, Spicewriter's Blog posts a comprehensive account of Salandy's career highlights, but quite understandably, Trinidadian bloggers have had the most to say. Trinidad and Tobago News Blog calls her “T&T's most successful female boxer”, while Media Watch praises the quick response time of the mainstream media in updating their online news feeds to reflect the latest details of the accident.

Now is Wow Too republishes a letter she wrote to the editors of Trinidad and Tobago's three daily newspapers, in which she refers to this feature article on the young boxer, which states that “a degree in Child Psychology is on the agenda for Jizelle.” With that in mind, Now is Wow has a few suggestions about how best to honour the sportswoman's memory:

First of all condolences to the loved ones of Jizelle Salandy.

The day after her fatal car accident, a question in one of the daily newspapers asks: “How do you think champion boxer Jizelle Salandy should be remembered?”

I think she can be remembered through:
(a) the establishment of The Jizelle Salandy Home for Abandoned and Underprivileged Children
(b) the establishment of an ongoing Jizelle Salandy scholarship fund which enables young people to pursue degrees and training in Child Psychology.

Well trained, professional, accessible, open-minded and committed child psychologists and peer counselors are needed in today's society. Many young people are largely misguided, lack trust in elders and often have nowhere to turn. The 'shining light' that Jizelle Salandy wanted to be can, in part, be passed on as a torch to the hands of those who, through the scholarship, will strive to be great child psychologists and offer ongoing guidance to the youth. Investing money in initiatives like this will support and encourage a much needed culture of national healing.

Trinbagonian Heroes says that “With her death, not just the boxing sorority/fraternity, but Trinidad and Tobago and the entire world has lost a true champion” and goes on to address the issue of “the pillar”:

What is it about the Killa Pilla that makes it such a horror-inducing event every witless engagement or treating with it?

The Killa Pilla - like all similarly-disposed structures - has been and remains the undisputed Grim Victor in its every debacle with with all who run up against it mainly because that Ministry has never seen it fit to shroud the its base with shock-absorbent buffers, not even simple, but effective, ones, like used vehicle tyres. Negligence which, by any imaginary stretch, most amazing is and which borders on the criminal!

Caribbean Beat Blog, which has been following Jizelle's career for a long time, was saddened by the news:

Born Jizelle Joseph, Salandy was arguably the greatest female boxer the islands have ever produced, and seemed sure to continue shining as an international boxing star.

…while the words of Discover TnT Blog seem to reflect the sentiment of a nation:

There is no way we would have believed that early in this new year, the nation would be mourning the loss of this tremendously talented young woman.

The news has stunned and saddened both boxing fans and the Trinbagonian public at large, in a country beseiged by road fatalities and senseless crime, and in need of promising young people to carry the nation forward.

Giselle Salandy has done her nation proud, and we only wish she were still with us to achieve all she seemed so poised to. We will miss this shining example of what hard work, humility and determination can accomplish, and send our sincerest condolences to her family and loved ones. Rest in peace, Giselle.

Thumbnail illustration courtesy jaxpix, used under a Creative Commons license. Visit jaxpix's flickr photostream.