Archive for July 29th, 2010
Accident fatal ce matin à Argy, Flacq
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Jeudi, 29 juillet 2010. La série noire se poursuit. La route a fait une nouvelle victime ce matin. Un jeune homme de 26 ans est mort après qu’il a perdu le contrôle de sa fourgonnette qui a terminé sa course contre un mur à Argy, Flacq. Il s’agit du quatrième accident fatal en l’espace de quatre jours.
New Island Clothing licencie 115 employés cet après-midi
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Jeudi, 29 juillet 2010. C’est décidé ! New Island Clothing de Rose-Hill licenciera 115 ouvriers, dont 70 Mauriciens, cet après-midi. Le directeur de cette usine, Elvis Cateaux, qui intervenait dans l’émission «Xplik ou Cas» sur les ondes de Radio Plus ce matin, a évoqué une «baisse de commande» pour justifier cette décision. Il a donné la garantie que les licenciés seront «indemnisés dans le respect total des lois». Il affirme qu’il espère pouvoir redéployer les licenciés dans d’autres usines du groupe CIEL.
Cehl Meeah : «En tant que chef religieux, j’avais le droit de me retrouver seul avec Shenaz…»
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Jeudi, 29 juillet 2010. Le député Cehl Meeah nie avoir détourné une mineure ? Dans un entretien accordé à Le Défi Quotidien de ce matin, il s’explique sur son arrestation survenue mardi dans le cadre de l’enquête policière sur l’affaire de mœurs l’impliquant de même qu’une adolescente de 16 ans. Tout en clamant son innocence, le leader du FSM affirme qu’il ne s’est jamais retrouvé seul avec Shenaz, l’adolescente de 16 ans, dans une chambre d’hôtel alors qu’il aurait bien pu le faire en tant que chef religieux. «En tant que chef religieux, j’aurais pu me retrouver seul avec Shenaz pour écouter sa doléance. Mais, à aucun moment, je n’étais seul avec elle», soutient-il.
Un vieillard arrêté pour attouchements sur une fillette
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Jeudi, 29 juillet 2010. Un homme de 66 ans est sous les verrous. Il a été arrêté mardi pour attouchements sexuels sur une fillette de 12 ans. Celle-ci avait fugué de chez elle le 8 juin dernier. Elle allègue qu’elle a rencontré le sexagénaire qui l’a emmenée de force au bazar de Vacoas où elle a passé la nuit sur du carton installé au sol par le vieillard. Il se serait, par la suite, livré à des attouchements sur la fillette.
A L’Escalier : un bébé de 4 ans gravement brûlé
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Jeudi, 29 juillet 2010. La petite Cloé Chuttooa, âgée de 4 ans, se trouve à l’hôpital Jawaharlall Nehru. Elle y a été admise mardi après-midi après que de l’eau bouillante s’est accidentellement renversée chez elle à L’Escalier. Sa mère Shirley raconte qu’elle avait déposé un récipient contenant de l’eau bouillante sur la table de la cuisine. Sa fille, dit-elle, a couru et s’est cognée contre la table, renversant le récipient d’eau bouillante sur elle. Elle a subi de graves brûlures sur son ventre et ses jambes.
Aapravasi Ghat : un musée de Rs 60 M en 2011
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Jeudi, 29 juillet 2010. Un musée au coût de Rs 60 millions sera construit à côté de l’Aapravasi Ghat. C’est ce qu’a annoncé hier Raju Mohit, officier en charge du site patrimonial, lors d’une cérémonie marquant le 4e anniversaire de l’inscription de l’Appravasi Ghat sur la liste des patrimoines mondiaux.
Raju Mohit a demandé au ministre des Arts et de la Culture, Mukeshwar Choonee, de veiller à ce qu’il y ait davantage de patrouilles policières aux alentours du site. «Cette semaine, des malfaiteurs ont endommagé une main courante datant de la période des travailleurs engagés», déplore-t-il.
Raju Mohit a demandé au ministre des Arts et de la Culture, Mukeshwar Choonee, de veiller à ce qu’il y ait davantage de patrouilles policières aux alentours du site. «Cette semaine, des malfaiteurs ont endommagé une main courante datant de la période des travailleurs engagés», déplore-t-il.
Treasure Islands – Mapping the Geography of Corruption
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
When is a tax haven not a tax haven? When Mauritius' Vice Prime Minister Ramakrishna Sithanen says so. 'We are a not a tax haven,' stated Sithanen, who is also the country's minister of finance. Ironically, Sithanen would go on to reveal that ring-fenced financial services (FS) - the legal and financial secrecy vehicles facilitating corporate mispricing and corruption marketed to foreign clients, especially India - accounts for 12.5 per cent of GDP.
Raffick Goolfee?s role in the Cehl-Noorah affair
Thursday, July 29th, 2010Background The fragmented background of the story is that 16 year old Bibi Noorah Careem (initially referred to as ?Shenaz? in the press), daughter of Mr & Mrs Haysan Abdool Careem, attempted to commit suicide on two occasions after her boyfriend left her and that her parents could not control her because she was allegedly [...]
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Raffick Goolfee?s role in the Cehl-Noorah affair
Thursday, July 29th, 2010Raffick Goolfee?s role in the Cehl-Noorah affair
Background
The fragmented background of the story is that 16 year old Bibi Noorah Careem (initially referred to as ?Shenaz? in the press), daughter of Mr & Mrs Haysan Abdool Careem, attempted to commit suicide on two occasions after her boyfriend left her and that her parents could not control her because she was allegedly rebellious and having late nights out. 52 year old married man and Member of the Mauritian Parliament Muhammad Cehl Fakeemeeah, aka Cehl Meeah, is also known as a Social Worker with several centres to his credit. Miss Noorah allegedly approached one centre for help, of which her parents were aware and apparently raised no objection at the time, with Mr Meeah liaising with the future in-laws and the ?boyfriend? of Miss Noorah.
Miss Noorah told her parents that she was going to Rodrigues with five other ladies and she was given money for the trip. In so doing, the parents relinquished control over her, although she was still under their responsibility. Are the parents, who have allowed the minor to venture out, not deemed to have consented that she could, in their absence, ask for help from anyone, meet any other person, known or unknown to them, and even change destination at her leisure? Why are the parents so revolted if someone paid a luxury hotel for their daughter who they know has suicidal tendencies? Did they believe she was sexually abused? Or, is it something personal against Mr Meeah who openly booked the hotel for Miss Noorah when the latter was allowed to stay out? It is also very strange why the parents have not lodged a complaint against Miss Noorah?s ex-boyfriend who allegedly sexually abused her.
It was Raffick Goolfee, arch political enemy of Cehl Meeah, who informed Mr & Mrs Careem about their daughter?s whereabouts, upon which they revoked their permission for their daughter to stay out when they all turned up at Room 216 at the hotel to force out Miss Noorah, with Mr Goolfee and his gang leading the operation. Following the intervention of Raffick Goolfee, the parents filed affidavits against Mr Meeah in securing an injunction to ?protect? Miss Noorah (from what?). But the same day they also called the Police to take their daughter away because she allegedly threatened them with a knife after she became aware of their machinations towards Mr Meeah.
A minor
The difficult thing about this case is that it concerns a minor who has a whole life in front of her. The Hon Mrs Sheilabai Bappoo, Minister of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare is rightly concerned and the courts had no choice other than fulfil the wishes of the parents. But Miss Noorah is clearly a confused child whose relationship with her boyfriend came to an end, and, as it later transpired, she was hoping for another relationship with Mr Meeah on the rebound and openly proclaimed her love for him. But her own Father said that she lied to him about going to Rodrigues when, in fact, she went to VictoriaHotel. According to Mr Meeah, she also lied about her age, her name, about nikkah (religious marriage) with him and more. As leader of the FSM and lawmaker, Cehl Meeah should be more careful in dealing in certain matters, especially concerning a female adolescent whose hormones are kicking, and given he is aware that she is suicidal. Many suicides are believed to be murders and vice versa.
During police investigations, Cehl Meeah admitted that he did take Miss Noorah to Hotel Victoria in Balaclava and paid for a room for her for two days between 15 and 17 July 2010 allegedly to allow her to cool down and overcome her suicidal thoughts. As her parents denied that they gave any permission in whatever shape or form, the Police felt that there was a prima facie case against Mr Meeah and that it was appropriate to charge him with « Child abduction » under the Act, which they did on 27th July 2010 before releasing him on bail.
Section 13C « Abducting child » of the Child Protection Act states that :
(1) Any person who, by force or fraud, without the consent of the legal custodian -
(a) takes away or causes to be taken away a child [..]
shall commit the offence of abduction, and shall, on conviction, be liable to penal servitude for a term not exceeding 12 years.
But subsection (3) further states : « In the case specified in subsection (1), where the abduction is committed without fraud or violence, the Offender shall be liable to penal servitude for a term not exceeding 8 years. »
Having regard to the circumstances of the case, whether or not Miss Noorah told the Secretary at Mr Meeah?s Centre that she was 19 years old and registered under a false name and Mr Meeah believed her, and whether or not this is acceptable in law if proven, remains to be seen. But it is clear that the prosecution is not going for force or fraud. They are relying on the absence of consent of the parents of Miss Noorah. But consent can be either express or implied through the behaviour of the minor?s parents. By allowing their daughter to live out, it goes without saying that consent was given until it was revoked when the parents decided to force her out of the hotel. The burden is therefore on the parents to prove that they did not give their consent for their minor daughter to stay out.
The press
The press seems more concerned with Mr Meeah rather than with the ?traumatised and suicidal? minor! For 10 years, Mr Meeah has been subjected to character assassination by a section of the press simply because he founded the Hizbullah Party (Party of God) based on Islamic principles. Even though he is the leader of the Front Solidarité Mauricien (FSM) under which he was duly elected, he is consistently referred to as ex-leader of the Hizbullah. In such case, that press should always refer to President Anerood Jugnauth as ex-member of the Hindu Congress and to Priest Jocelyn Grégoire as the believed Christian Messiah of Catholic Creoles. Certain journalists are clearly trying to discredit Mr Meeah and poison the minds of Mauritians as the jury is still out. Under the title « L?Inquiétant Monsieur Meeah », l?Express Dimanche of 25 July 2010 devoted whole sections to Mr Meeah as ?ex-leader of the Hizbullah? in a totally unfavourable light but not very much is said and analysed on the 16 year old Bibi Noorah Careem and on the role of her parents and Raffick Goolfee in this sordid affair. In the article « Un député mêlé à une affaire de moeurs », l?Express 19 July 2010, Vinesen Abel effectively accused Mr Meeah and the minor Miss Noorah of « entretenir une relation » (amoureuse) at the hotel where the « tourtereaux » (lovers) had rented a room. The term « affaire de moeurs » connotes sex and prostitution, hence « Police de moeurs ». Mr Abel seems to take Miss Noorah for Monica Lewinsky and is not a bit concerned with the minor?s alleged sexual relationship with the ex-boyfriend and whether the Police should investigate the matter. It appears that Mr Meeah has already been tried for « kidnapping », « child abduction » and for sexually abusing a minor like he was previously tried by the press for giving instructions to murder Labour Party activists at Rue Gorah Issac in 1996 when he was innocent and all charges subsequently dropped.
Conclusion
The fact that MP Mr Meeah rented a hotel room for a girl or woman other than his wife is likely to cause people to be inquisitive and even cause consternation to many especially if the girl turns out to be a minor. In the excellent article « Remède quatre-étoiles », le Défi 20 July 2010, Mr Subash Gobine concludes the following « Sans aucun doute, Cehl Meeah ne manquera pas de monter une opération semblable pour sauver un jeune homme suicidaire. » There are also several legitimate questions asked about the alleged « ulterior motives » of Cehl Meeah for taking, or accepting to take, Miss Noorah, to a hotel instead of to a treatment centre. The answers to those questions would have been relevant if the Police had taken the view that there was some form of manipulation and fraud on the part of Mr Meeah. But the charge which faces Mr Meeah only concerns the alleged lack of consent of the parents of Miss Noorah when he checked in the 16 year old at Victoria Hotel. The courts will certainly ignore any press campaign against the lawmaker in arriving at their conclusions. Other elected politicians have done the right thing in keeping out of this controversy and letting the law follow its course.
M Rafic Soormally
London
29 July 2010