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Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago not included in latest US visa policy for the Caribbean

Nationnews Desk
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Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago not included in latest US visa policy for the Caribbean

Some Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries appeared to be in the dark with regards to the latest announcement by the United States that at least 11 regional countries have been included among for 75 countries worldwide where Washington is suspending  the processing of immigrant visas.

Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, The Bahamas and St.  Vincent and the Grenadines, which were all named in the latest migration policy from the United States,  said they were still awaiting official confirmation of the measure.

Bahamas Foreign Affairs Minister, Fred Mitchell, speaking in Parliament on Wednesday said Nassau had taken note of a statement by the United States Embassy about immigrant visa entry into the United States.

“The ministry sought clarification on the matter, and is informed that the suspension will not apply to applicants seeking non immigrant visas or temporary student or business visas.”

Mitchell told legislators further the arrangement between the Bahamas and the United States for travel via police record remains in place.

“Bahamian should take note, the United States is not our country, and just as we set rules for entry into the Bahamas, they set rules for theirs. In the past, we have worked with the United States multiple issues, and the results have always been fair and rational, we expect that it will be no different going forward,”  he added.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, Investment and Diaspora Affairs Minister, Fitzgerald Bramble, said the new Goodwin Friday government has “not been officially informed by the US embassy in Barbados to the Eastern Caribbean nor any other US government official, for that matter.

“However, we are following the news item and we are following up. We have been contacting officials in the US embassy in Barbados and we have also been in contact with our embassy in Washington DC, the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Embassy to the United States to find out exactly what is happening in this regard.

“So, as of now. we don’t have any official information at all on this new article and as soon as more information, official information, comes to hand, I will inform the general public,” Bramble said.

In a statement, the Belize government said it is engaging with the Embassy of the United States of America in Belmopan to clarify the scope of the decision. It said it had also directed the Embassy of Belize in Washington, D.C., to do likewise with the Department of State.

“Preliminary information from U.S. counterparts indicates that the pause will affect immigrant visa applications only. Immigrant visas are usually family, employment, or diversity based.

“Only a very small number of U.S. immigrant visa applications are processed in Belmopan. There is no information at this time to indicate that the decision would affect applications for visitor or student visas,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade said, adding that it “will continue to liaise with the U.S. Embassy to confirm the scope of the decision and to ensure that Belizeans have access to accurate information regarding U.S. visas”.

Antigua and Barbuda Ambassador to the United States, Sir Ronald Sanders, in a statement said that he has been made aware of United States and regional media reports that the United States Department of State is contemplating a suspension of the visa processing

“Upon becoming aware of these reports, I made immediate inquiries with the United States Department of State. As of this moment, no formal announcement has been made, and no official communication has been issued to the Embassies of the countries reportedly affected.”

Sir Ronald said that he was advised by senior officials of the Department of State that this matter arises from a new requirement under direction of the White House.

“However, contrary to some media reports, the measure under consideration does not apply to all visa categories. It relates only to applications for immigrant visas (commonly referred to as “green cards”), which are subject to a temporary pause of up to sixty (60) days while vetting and screening procedures are reviewed.”

Sir Ronald said that he wanted to emphasise that “at this stage, no written notification has been provided to Embassies, and the information available to me is based on direct conversations with senior officials, rather than on any formal directive.

“It is also important to clarify that applications for immigration to the United States are matters exclusively between the individual applicant and the Government of the United States. The country of nationality or origin of an applicant has no legal or administrative role in decisions relating to the grant or refusal of immigrant status.”

The move by President Donald Trump is the latest move designed to prevent foreigners seeking to visit the North American country.

“The Trump administration is bringing an end to the abuse of America’s immigration system by those who would extract wealth from the American people,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.

He said that the immigrant visa processing from the 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassesses immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits.

The CARICOM countries named are Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, , Dominica, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia,  and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago are not included in the new policy.

White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt posted on X that the countries affected would include Somalia as well as Russia and Iran. (CMC)

Pundits differ

Colville Mounsey
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Pundits differ

As the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) moves to refresh its slate of candidates ahead of the next General Election, two political analysts are sharply divided on whether the changes reflect dominance or carry longer-term risks for the governing party’s hold on power.

Political scientist Peter Wickham said while late-stage candidate changes would normally weaken any governing party, the BLP was operating in an “abnormal” political environment that allowed it to take risks few administrations could survive.

“Under normal circumstances, when you change a candidate, it does mean that the incoming candidate is set back somewhat because the person basically has to build familiarity and so on,” he said recently. “So, under normal circumstances, the expected outcome would be that the candidate would be set back and certainly making changes this close to the election would normally be a waste.”

However, he was quick to add that those rules no longer apply.

“The difference is that in this scenario, it’s clear that the Prime Minister obviously doesn’t see a problem,” Wickham said, suggesting that the Prime Minister had access to political intelligence that gave her confidence the party could “win notwithstanding”.

His comments come ahead of nomination meetings for St Michael Central and The City of Bridgetown yesterday and Saturday, respectively, following earlier selections in St Joseph and St Thomas, signalling that the BLP was finalising its electoral line-up.

In St Michael Central, Speaker of the House of Assembly Arthur Holder will not be returning to elective politics. This development has heightened interest in whether the constituency could become vulnerable without an incumbent candidate.


Political Scientist Dr George Belle. FILE

Wickham dismissed that concern, arguing that the Opposition Democratic Labour Party (DLP) lacked the strength to capitalise.

“If you look at the alternative in St Michael Central, the individual (DLP’s Senator Andre Worrell) has never run before in that constituency,” he said. “He ran before in St John and it was easily one of the worst performances in the Democratic Labour Party’s history there. So, generally speaking, I don’t know that the alternative option is any better than what is currently there in terms of familiarity with the constituency or having a long-standing basis.”

He added that only in marginal constituencies would such changes meaningfully affect outcomes.

“If that were to be done in a place like St Philip North, I would say it might make a slight difference, or maybe in St John perhaps, but none of the changes that are being anticipated are like that.”

However, Dr George Belle has taken a more cautionary view, warning that dominance could breed overconfidence, and that internal changes should not be assessed solely through the lens of opposition weakness.

The retired University of the West Indies lecturer said while the BLP’s margins currently appeared secure, repeated candidate turnover risked weakening long-term constituency bonds.

“When voters grow accustomed to seeing familiar faces removed or replaced, it can dilute accountability and emotional attachment over time,” Belle said in previous commentary, cautioning that electoral politics was not only about numbers but also trust and continuity.

Wickham pushed back strongly against that line of reasoning, insisting that the historical record supported the BLP’s confidence.

“If there were a Democratic Labour Party swing, The City would be vulnerable, but I think it’s painfully obvious that that’s not happening,” he said.

He noted that the BLP only lost The City during major national upheavals.

“The Barbados Labour Party lost The City in the swing of 1986 and then again in the swing of 2008,” Wickham said. “If you’re talking about that kind of
political moment, then yes, you worry, but the conventional wisdom doesn’t apply here because
the circumstances simply don’t exist.”

However, Belle told the MIDWEEK NATION that relying too heavily on opposition weakness can distort strategic judgement.

“Political dominance is not permanent,” he warned. “Strong parties fall when they stop interrogating their own decisions and assume voters have nowhere else to go.”

The decision by Member of Parliament for The City Corey Lane to step aside after a single term was described by Wickham as principled rather than politically damaging.

“He determined less than a year in that it wasn’t going to be something that he could continue doing. He felt that if he could give 110 per cent, he would stay. I fully respect that.”

He rejected any suggestion that constituents would see Lane’s exit as suspicious.

“I don’t think that there’s a person in Bridgetown that could have a problem with that. He’s being honest and fair and saying, ‘No, I can’t help you in a way that I believe you should’.”

Wickham also highlighted the personal cost of the decision.

“He’s stepping aside at a point where he is not pensionable and would not have done enough to benefit from a pension. That must be a difficult decision to make. He’s making it notwithstanding and I do respect that.”

Belle, while acknowledging the integrity of Lane’s choice, argued that frequent exits by relatively new MPs could create perceptions of instability if repeated too often.

“Renewal is healthy, but when renewal becomes routine, voters begin to ask deeper questions about political sustainability,” he added.

House moves to correct land vesting error

Gercine Carter
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House moves to correct land vesting error

The House of Assembly has moved to correct an error made in the vesting of land at Sargeant’s Village, Christ Church, on which a Government  low-income housing project  is nearing completion.

The matter was the subject of contentious debate between Opposition Leader Ralph Thorne and Government MPs at a recent sitting. This followed Minister of Housing, Lands and Maintenance Christopher Gibbs piloting a resolution to rescind a 2022 House resolution approving the vesting of the two parcels of land in the NHC, replacing it with an amended resolution.

In his opening remarks, Gibbs told the House: “Today, I rise to correct our records; provide legal clarity and advance our housing agenda. We are asking this honourable House to rescind Resolution No. 17, 2022, and second, to approve an amended resolution to vest two parcels of land totalling 7 021 square metres situated at Sargeant’s Village, Christ Church, in the NHC for the purpose of a housing development.”

He said that under the 2022 resolution, the then privately-owned lands were acquired and “vested in the State, confirming public ownership for the purpose of housing”.

“This has always been the strategy of this government, this Parliament and the Ministry of Housing – to identify appropriate State lands to be vested in the NHC for the purpose of housing previously by the NHC actively participating in development,” Gibbs said.

“In recent times, the Cabinet has directed the Ministry of Housing, through the NHC, to engage in joint partnerships, to employ a more industrial approach to the building of housing . . . . By employing this strategy, we will ensure that Barbadians can own a piece of the rock and that we can accelerate our programmes.” 

 The Minister of Housing regretted that after official publication of the details of the first land acquisition resolution, “errors were detected”.

“Mr Speaker, I am certainly not ashamed to come to this House to admit that the NHC was inadvertently omitted as the vesting entity. 

“And I say so because we have the opportunity to empower Barbadians with housing at the end of this month in Sargeant’s Village. And if I have to come to this House to correct a wrong, I will do so, because this is the honourable thing to do to deliver housing solutions to Barbadians.” 

Eight duplexes are being built on the Sargeant’s Village site, with plans for the construction of another four single units. 

Gibbs also updated the House on the progress of 20 housing units under construction at Bullens, St James, which he projected would be ready by the end of this month. In addition, he shared his plans for repairs and upgrades of the Government housing estates.

MISSING: McDonald Archer

Sherrylyn Clarke
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MISSING: McDonald Archer

Police are seeking the assistance of the public in locating missing man McDonald Archer, 61 years, of Sion Hill, St James, who was last seen around 7:10 a.m., on Saturday, January 10, 2026.

Archer is about five feet eight inches (5’ 8”) in height, with a dark complexion and medium build. He has a large forehead, brown eyes, large nose, thick lips, short dreadlocks and a black and grey goatee.

He walks with a limp as a result of a leg injury and uses a cane. He was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, khaki ¾ pants and a pair of grey slippers.

Anyone knowing the whereabouts of McDonald Archer is asked to contact the Holetown Police Station at 419-1700 or 419-1701, Police Emergency 211, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIPS (8477), or any police station.  (PR/SAT)

Motorcyclist injured in accident at Lowlands

Sherrylyn Clarke
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Motorcyclist injured in accident at Lowlands

A motorcyclist was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for treatment tonight after a collision along the ABC Highway at the Lowlands, Christ Church junction.

The accident involved a motorcycle and a car, which burst into flames.

Emergency personnel, including police and the fire service, were on the scene.

Michael Lashley seeking BLP nomination for City of Bridgetown

Sherrylyn Clarke
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Michael Lashley seeking BLP nomination for City of Bridgetown

Attorney Michael Lashley KC has confirmed he will be seeking nomination as the candidate for the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) in the City of Bridgetown.

Lashley, a former longtime member of the Democratic Labour Party was spotted today walking through some City districts days before the official nomination process on Saturday.

“As you know I worked all my life in Town. I have a passion for representing people in the courts and also in Parliament and that passion will continue, regardless of what constituency I represent.”

Lashley told The Nation the feedback has been good and he would “provide robust representation” and deal with issues frontally. Incumbent Corey Lane recently confirmed he would not be returning.

The former Attorney General in a DLP administration, Lashley announced earlier this year he had left the party and switched to the BLP. He is the former Member of Parliament for St Philip North. (SAT)

Title deeds for residents of Six Men’s

Shawn Cumberbatch
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Title deeds for residents of Six Men’s

After being in limbo for more than 50 years, residents of Six Men’s, St Peter, are on the way to owning the land they have lived on for multiple generations.

Minister of Labour, Social Security and Third Sector Colin Jordan, who is Member of Parliament for St Peter, gave the House of Assembly an update on what he called the “Six Men’s life improvement project” yesterday.

“The people of Six Men’s are tremendously happy with the progress that is being made by the Ministry of Housing and the National Housing Corporation,” he said during debate to rescind a resolution for the vesting of two parcels of land at Sargeant’s Village, Christ Church.

“These are people who, for over 50 years now, have been in limbo with respect to . . . owning the land that they’ve been on for multiple generations. I am happy to report . . . that the National Housing Corporation under the Ministry of Housing, has surveyed, I believe, at this point, close to half of the [house] spots in Six Men’s.”

Jordan added that Government had “made sure that we are in a position to start the process of transferring” ownership to residents.

“Up until about three weeks before Christmas, 37 residents received their letters indicating to them that they can come in. All of the surveys have been done. The price that they have to pay for lots that might be 3 000 square feet, I think it’s $1 400,” he said.

The minister recalled that there were Six Men’s residents “who were told by members of the Democratic Labour Party that they were all to be moved . . . . There was an attempt to mislead them”.

“But I’m happy to say that the Ministry of Housing and the National Housing Corporation have surveyed almost half. They have gone from south to north, so from the northern boundary of Port Ferdinand in what . . . we refer to [as] Six Men’s Village, and they’re going north,” he said.

“This government and the Ministry of Housing and the National Housing Corporation under Barbados Labour Party, ministers have never referred to the people of Six Men’s as squatters.

“There is a former member of parliament for St Lucy, who when he acted as Minister of Housing, dismissed the people of Six Men’s as squatters when they were asking, ‘How come Port Ferdinand can buy land and we can’t buy land.’”

Jordan added: “We have done a lot in terms of beautifying the community.

“We have a clean and green park on the northern side . . . . We have just, in the last two weeks, done a clean-up as well as a beautification, putting down some benches on the seaside, a place where people had dumped before,” he noted.

Improved garbage collection was also on the cards.

“Because of how the houses are, there are some places that are too small for a garbage truck to get to and . . . Sanitation Service Authority has indicated that they will be providing a smaller vehicle to be able to access those houses,” he said.

“We have said to the residents of Six Men’s that in the few cases . . . where we may need to rearrange a house so that they can be accessed by public service vehicles, we will do that on some of the lands that
we think are available in the area.

“Residents of Six Men’s will not have to leave Six Men’s to have their lives improved. This Six Men’s life improvement project is an illustration of the kind of work that this Barbados Labour Party . . . Government is doing on behalf of the ordinary working-class people of this country.” (SC)

‘HOPE meant to replace NHC’

Gercine Carter
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‘HOPE meant to replace NHC’

Opposition Leader Ralph Thorne has made a scathing attack on Government’s management and conduct of Barbados’ housing policy, alleging that the establishment of the HOPE (Home Ownership Providing Energy) project was designed to eliminate the National Housing Corporation (NHC) and shift housing development into private hands. 

During his near two-and-a-half-hour presentation on a land acquisition resolution debated in the House of Assembly yesterday, the Christ Church South Member of Parliament challenged the Government on its promise of delivering 10 000 housing solutions over the next few years. 

He also questioned how $60 million borrowed from the Housing Credit Fund and allocated to the Ministry of Housing was spent.

Thorne’s fiery presentation came after Minister of Housing Christopher Gibbs had admitted that the NHC was “inadvertently omitted” as the vesting entity in a 2022 land resolution in which 7 021 square metres of privately-owned land at Sargeant’s Village, Christ Church, was compulsorily acquired by Government for housing development.

Thorne seized on the omission, repeatedly pressing the Minister of Housing to name the
person in whom the land was vested.

“Whose name was inserted on the original document?” the Opposition Leader asked repeatedly.

In a presentation repeatedly challenged by Government MPs, including Deputy Prime Minister Santia Bradshaw, Attorney General Dale Marshall and MP for St Thomas, Cynthia Forde, Thorne raised the issue of “failed” housing projects, specifically calling attention to that at Pool Land, St John, and to the HOPE housing project at Vespera Gardens at Lancaster, St James.

Referring to Gibbs’ remarks, Thorne said: “The Honourable Member said that this Government pursues joint ventures and that this strategy ensures ownership of land and acceleration of projects. I take philosophical opposition to that rationale. You don’t need a joint venture to ensure ownership. Ownership is just a matter of conveying land from the vendor to the purchaser, and it is what NHC has been doing for years in this country,” Thorne contended, adding the NHC had “built several houses in Barbados from the 1950s”.

“The NHC was fired by this Government in favour of something called HOPE,” Thorne contended. 

“There was no need for HOPE.”

Ex-NAB worker still unpaid after 12 years

Maria Bradshaw
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Ex-NAB worker still unpaid after 12 years

Six years after the Employment Rights Tribunal (ERT) determined that she was wrongfully dismissed by the National Assistance Board (NAB), 12 years ago, Sherada Walters is still waiting to be paid the $13 575.74 which she was awarded.

While the NAB has filed an appeal, Walters has been left in limbo. A hearing was conducted before the Court of Appeal in 2021 but since then two of the court’s judges who heard the case have retired and one has died.

Walters, 47, a former relief home helper at the NAB from 2007, was dismissed in 2014 after she refused to sign an employment contract which changed her work days from five to three, a period she had worked during five years of her tenure at the NAB.

She took the matter to the ERT in 2014, but it was never heard until 2019.

After the hearing then chairman Christopher Blackman, quoting Section 13 of the Employment Rights Act which provides that an employer shall give to an employee a written statement of the particulars of the employment, found that the NAB had failed to comply with the requirements of that section, adding that the government agency acted “as though it was totally oblivious of the Act.” 

The ERT then found that the dismissal was unfair.

A dismayed Walters said: “Presently, I am extremely disappointed and hurt at the length of time that it has taken for this matter to come to its final conclusion. This matter has been ongoing since my dismissal in 2014, and the final decision by the court was handed down July 25, 2019. There was a judgement order in place for me to be paid on or before December 31, 2019.

“I feel that it is wrong and unfair that after the court gave its decisions, up to now I have not received one single red cent from the National Assistance Board.”

She said the first appeal hearing was in 2021 before former Chief Justice Sir Patterson Cheltenham and Justice Rajendra Narine who both retired in 2024 and Justice Jefferson Cumberbatch who has since passed away.

The NAB appealed the Tribunal’s decision on the grounds that the Tribunal erred in law as it failed to properly interpret or apply Section 26 of the Employment Rights Act; that it acted in breach of the principles of natural justice in that it rendered a decision at the conclusion of the evidence without hearing the parties or their representative, among others.

The Board is seeking an order setting aside the decision of the ERT.

When contacted, Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Kirk Humphrey, who has responsibility for the NAB, said he was only made aware of the situation when contacted for a response. He later said, “I was advised this case is still very active before the Barbados Court of Appeal awaiting a decision and we will await the judgement. From the facts you have shared with me it seems the situation started in 2014, and I hope it can be resolved now, in the interests of the affected parties.”

Walters, who works part-time, said she has been in mental anguish over the years awaiting a conclusion to the matter.

“I feel disgusted by this. I worked hard for the NAB and I gave my best and I felt it was unfair the way they dismissed me. I am also disgusted because this is Government and Government set up the Employment Rights Tribunal to protect workers. So how is it that Government makes the law and does not abide by the law? I do not feel pleased about it.”

A legal official told the Nation the NAB could have paid Walters the money awarded but it was in their right to appeal the matter. However, he said if the Court of Appeal rules in Walters’ favour, the NAB might have to pay significantly more money in interest given the vintage nature of the case.

He also advised that despite the passing of one of the tripartite judges, the judgement could still be delivered by Sir Patterson.

US to suspend visa processing for 75 countries

Nationnews Desk
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US to suspend visa processing for 75 countries

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration is suspending all visa processing for applicants from 75 countries, a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday.

The spokesperson did not elaborate on the plan, first reported by Fox News, which cited a State Department memo.

The pause will begin on January 21, Fox News said.

Somalia, Russia, Iran, Afghanistan, Brazil, Nigeria, Thailand are among the affected countries, according to the report.

The memo directs US embassies to refuse visas under existing law while the department reassesses its procedures. No time frame was provided.

The reported pause comes amid the sweeping immigration crackdown pursued by Republican US President Donald Trump since taking office last January.

In November, Trump had vowed to “permanently pause” migration from all “Third World Countries” following a shooting near the White House by an Afghan national that killed a National Guard member. (Reuters)

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