President Jagdeo accuses the EU of bullying tactics

Guyanese President, Bharrat Jagdeo, has said his country may have to be pushed into signing the Economic Partnership Agreement the region has negotiated with the European Union.

He said Guyana will only sign the agreement if the EU moves to impose tariffs on Guyanese exports.

According to President Jagdeo, Guyana's refusal to sign the EPA is based on legal opinions from experts including University of Cambridge International Law Professor, Dr Lorand Bartels.

Dr Bartels has advised that African Caribbean Pacific countries are not obliged under treaty law or World Trade Organisation law to sign any interim or full EPA that they have initialled.

He said that an initialled text is sufficient for WTO negotiation.

Caribbean countries initialled the EPA last December to avoid the threat of Europe imposing higher tariffs on exports from the region.

President Jagdeo said he intends putting the legal advice given by Professor Bartels to the test.

Security forces defended

Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister, Patrick Manning, has rejected claims that soldiers and police officers are brutalising citizens and acting outside of the law.

The law association in Port of Spain has raised concerns about the legality of soldiers taking allegedly state of emergency type action in certain known crime sports in the city.

The soldiers have established a camp in the western town of Diego Martin, following the very visible murders of an army corporal and his friend.

Commenting on the situation, the law association has criticised the government for allowing the army to carry out state of emergency lockdowns without declaring an emergency.

Prime Minister Manning says the statements are regrettable.

Britain accused of colonialistic behaviour

Britain's refusal to allow Montserrat to join the Caricom Single Market and Economy is being criticised by regional academic, Professor Norman Girvan.

Britain has told Montserrat that it should focus instead on its own sustainable development plan and wait another two years before it can make another request.

But Professor Girvan has labelled that decision colonialistic.

He said London appears to be implying that Britain knows better than Montserrat, what is in that dependent territory's interest.

He told BBC Caribbean that he was of the view that that goes totally against the spirit of the relationship between an overseas territory and London.

NNP focusing on unemployment

The incumbent New National Party of Prime Minister, Keith Mitchell, has presented its plans for Grenada over the next five years, if it retains power in the July 8 election.

The NNP launched its manifesto on Wednesday evening.

Dr Mitchell's NNP is promising among other things continued economic growth, and four thousand jobs over the next five years.

He has described unemployment and tackling the rising cost of living in Grenada as key priorities for an NNP administration.

Health officials recommend testing

Health officials in Martinique want more than 2000 people to get tested for hepatitis B.

Officials in that French Caribbean island say these people had contact with an infected surgeon who worked at University Hospital Centre on the island.

The health officials said in a statement however, that it was highly unlikely that anyone became infected.

Hepatitis B is a virus that attacks the liver. It is transmitted through blood or body fluids.