Galmo Williams has fought a losing battle for elections

The Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands has restated his call for Britain to allow the territory to hold general elections.

The UK has said it would restore direct rule after a commission of inquiry said it had found clear evidence of widespread corruption among TCI officials.

A British foreign office official recently told islanders that the findings were worse than they had anticipated.

But Premier Galmo Williams said the people should be allowed to determine who will represent them through a free and fair election.

"Our position remains that we vehemently disagree with the suspension of our country's constitution in part or whole," Mr Williams said.

His position won support from Caricom leaders at their just-ended summit in Georgetown.

Clinton pleads for Haitian unity

Bill Clinton has said that a lack of coordination between Haitian politicians, aid groups and investors was hampering efforts to help millions of Haitians.

The former American president spoke from the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, as he wrapped up his first trip to Haiti as special UN envoy.

He promised to do all he can to collect the money Haiti needs to address some of its problems but urged Haitians to solve their internal differences.

WTO sees Guyana progress

In its latest review of Guyana's trade policies, the World Trade Organisation has said the country has shown improved performance over the past six years.

But the WTO said Guyana's per capita income remained low by regional standards and additional reforms are needed to promote investment and development.

The deputy US Trade representative, Peter Allgeier, backed that assessment.

He also raised concerns as to whether Guyana was applying its valued added tax and an environmental tax in a discriminatory fashion against imported goods.

DomRep minimum wage raised

Employers and the government in the Dominican Republic have agreed to raise the minimum wage by 15 percent.

That means that workers earning the lowest salary permitted - the equivalent of $127.12 cents a month will now get $146.20.

But Dominican union leaders are fuming, saying they were not part of the deal and want more.

The deal is effective 1 June - the unions had requested an April start but businesses said they couldn't afford any more concessions.

Cops accused in fatal carjacking

In Puerto Rico, three police officers are among a dozen people charged in a deadly carjacking.

In outlining the incident, prosecutors said thieves posed as federal agents and staged a fake traffic stop to steal cocaine from a driver.

They said the handcuffed driver was later shot to death while sitting in a car that belonged to one of the indicted police officers.

That same officer is accused of leading several co-defendants to a rural area where they disposed of the body.

Puerto Rico's police chief has said the three officers charged were not representative of his force.

But correspondents say the island has long struggled with corruption among police officers.

Four held in cruise ship drug case

Two men are due to appear in a British court on Tuesday after being charged in connection with a plot to import 12 kilos of cocaine on a cruise liner from the Caribbean.

Officials said the cocaine was of 100 percent purity and was valued at close to US$3 million.

The ship had returned from a 23-day cruise around the Caribbean, calling at islands including Antigua, St Lucia, Grenada and Barbados, when customs officers pounced on its return last October.

Officers stopped four passengers, three women and a man, with the cocaine taped to their bodies -- and each of them are now behind bars.

Investigations continued and it's alleged that the four newly charged men were planning to meet the drugs couriers.