By Guillermo Barreto

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Nov. 18, 2025: This year marks the 222nd anniversary of the Battle of Vertières. It took place on November 18 south of Le Cap, in what was then known as Saint Domingue. In that battle, which lasted five hours, Napoleon Bonaparte’s elite troops were defeated by battalions of former slaves led by Jean Jacques Dessalines, who consolidated the independence of what would henceforth be called Ayti or Haiti.

An infographic titled “1,247 killed in Haiti between July and September” created in Ankara, Turkiye on November 12, 2025. The United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) published its quarterly report on the Caribbean island nation, documenting 1,247 murders and 710 injuries between July and September. (Photo by Elif Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Haiti is always mentioned in the media in connection with misfortune. The poorest nation in the hemisphere, famine, cholera, violence. What is not mentioned is the cause of poverty or famine or the cholera epidemic or violence, consequences of centuries of colonial and neocolonial domination. At this moment, the situation is particularly serious, especially in the capital Port-au-Prince and in the Artibonite Department. In fact, a series of heavily armed gangs have taken control of large areas, unleashing unprecedented violence that has claimed more than 5,000 lives this year and caused the internal displacement of more than 1.3 million Haitians to safer areas of the country. The situation of children is particularly alarming. According to reports from UNICEF, 680,000 children have been displaced from their homes, 300,000 have interrupted their studies, either because schools have been destroyed or are being used as shelters, and 288,544 children under the age of 5 are at risk of malnutrition. It is important to note that displacement places children in a vulnerable situation, including health risks due to poor hygiene in shelters, malnutrition, and even forced recruitment by armed gangs. A recent report by Catherine Russell, Executive Director of UNICEF, estimated that 30 to 50 percent of gang members were minors, who are used as messengers, kitchen workers, sex slaves, and even forced to participate in acts of armed violence.

It is important to note that these gangs have destroyed vital infrastructure, including 38 hospitals, six universities, and libraries, and have forced more than 1,000 schools to close. All of this, and the resulting demobilization of the population that this violence entails, calls into question the idea that these are simply conflicts between criminal gangs. These gangs regularly receive weapons and ammunition from the United States, and this action indicates a project that seeks to make the functioning of a nation unviable. But this attack on the Haitian nation is not recent. Haiti has been under siege by imperial powers since its independence.

The island of Haiti was invaded by Christopher Columbus on his first voyage in 1492, establishing the first European settlement in Our America. The entire island became a colony of the Castilian, then Spanish, empire. In 1697, the Treaty of Ryswick between France and Spain granted the western part of the island to France, henceforth to be called Saint Domingue. The island was rich in resources, and Europeans, in need of labor, brought in millions of Africans who were kidnapped and enslaved to work in mines, plantations, and estates. It would not be an exaggeration to say that it was this wealth that provided the economic basis for the development of imperial France. In 1789, the year of the Storming of the Bastille in Paris, the colony had 793 sugar plantations, 3,150 indigo plantations, 3,117 coffee plantations, 789 cotton-producing units, and 182 rum distilleries. With a population of 40,000 whites and 28,000 free mulattoes, production was sustained by the slave labor of 452,000 Africans and their descendants, who made up 86% of the total population.

Control of the colony was characterized by unimaginable cruelty. Rebellions took place from the very beginning of the conquest of the territory. I highlight here the ceremony of Boïs Caiman in 1791, when Dutty Boukman and the voodoo priestess Cecile Fatima managed to gather 200 slaves and, in a ceremonial cry, swore to fight for their freedom. That same year, a massive uprising began with the burning of plantations and the killing of settlers. It was Tousant L’Overture who managed to organize an army and defeat the occupiers, declaring freedom for all. L’Overture trusted revolutionary France with its ideals of Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, but that same revolution betrayed him, and he ended up dying in a cold prison in eastern France.

France decided to send an expeditionary force of 84 ships with 25,000 soldiers to regain control of its most precious colony and placed a sinister character in command: Donatien Marie Joseph de Vimeur, Count of Rochambeau. In his novel Estela, Emeric Bergeaud describes him as follows: “his small stature, his angular features, his haughty gaze, which complement the approximate portrait of his moral ugliness.” Rochambeau committed atrocities from the moment he landed in Saint Domingue, including the use of dogs trained to hunt and kill. In a letter to his commander Ramel dated May 6, 1803, he writes: “I am sending you, my dear commander, a detachment of 50 men from the Cape National Guard, commanded by M. Bari; they are bringing 28 mastiffs. These reinforcements will also enable you to complete your operations. I will not let you ignore that you will not be paid any rations or expenses for feeding these dogs. You must give them blacks to eat.”

Rochambeau did not count on the determination of a people fighting for their freedom. L’Overture did not die in vain, and the flags he waved were taken up by Jean Jacques Dessalines, who led the resistance and heroically defeated the most powerful army in Europe at Vertières 222 years ago.

Dessalines assumed power as emperor, as Napoleon Bonaparte would do that same year. But unlike Napoleon, Dessalines promoted a constitution for a nation of free men and women. Slavery was abolished forever, freedom of worship was established, and divorce was permitted. Likewise, respect for the self-determination of peoples was established, without this preventing Dessalines from supporting revolutionaries such as Francisco de Miranda or, later, Alexandre Pétion and Simón Bolívar. The latter not only obtained ships, weapons, ammunition, and combatants. Bolívar obtained a political project from the Haitian revolution, and from there the Liberation Army would become a popular army that would end Spanish colonial rule from the Caribbean coast to the Andean highlands. Haiti was a beacon of light on the continent.

Today, when US imperial arrogance threatens the entire continent with its military power, we must remember that powerful imperial armies have been defeated time and again by the Caribbean peoples. The Battle of Vertières is a historical milestone that has been rendered invisible by hegemonic historiography. The Haitian feat must be studied, discussed, and understood. Haiti was a beacon of light that today succumbs to the interests of the Global North but carries within it the seed of rebellion, just as the Caribbean peoples who inherited that seed. Today, in the face of the military threat from the United States in the Caribbean, we remember the Battle of Vertières and what peoples are capable of when they are determined to decide their own destiny.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was produced by Globetrotter. Guillermo R Barreto is Venezuelan and holds a PhD in Science (Oxford University). Retired professor at Simón Bolívar University (Venezuela). He was Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, president of the National Science and Technology Fund, and Minister of Ecosocialism and Water (Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela). He is currently a researcher at the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research and a visiting collaborator at the Center for the Study of Social Transformations-IVIC.

By Dr. Isaac Newton & Olivia Lindsay

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Mon. Nov. 24, 2205: Leadership is less a rank and more a moral architecture, a set of habits, priorities, and choices that shape institutions, cultures, and lives. Whether you are stepping into your first formal leadership role or have decades of stewardship behind you, the same essentials govern influence that endures. These ten keys are ordered not by novelty but by the values that sustain effectiveness and the performance that follows. They blend timeless wisdom with practical lessons drawn from advising governments, leading enterprises, and cultivating human potential across diverse contexts.

Use this list as a compass. Let it correct your course when tides rise and keep you steady when applause fades.

1. The Power of Asking
Great leaders move the world by opening mouths as often as they open doors. Asking is an act of agency and humility. It mobilizes resources, secures partnerships, and signals confidence in others. Ask strategically for help, for bold commitments, for the impossible. When you lean on this principle, opportunities stop being distant and begin to assemble around you.

2. The Strength of the Circle
Leadership is never a solo sport. Your inner circle is your operating system: loyal, wise, candid, and discreet. Invest in people who correct you, celebrate you, and expand your reach. Where strategy meets synergy, execution becomes inevitable.

3. The Impact of Integrity
Trust is the currency of lasting influence. Integrity is not a tactic; it is the soil in which reputation grows. Make truth your default posture, especially when silence or spin would be easier. The leader who pays this price earns loyalty that outlasts titles and withstands storms.

4. The Courage to Decide
Decisions create direction. The paralysis of over analysis steals momentum and morale. Weigh wisely, seek counsel, then decide with resolve. Even imperfect decisions are preferable to indecision, for they invite correction, learning, and forward motion.

5. The Duty of Leverage
Every platform, meeting, and acquaintance is a seedbed for mutual uplift. Leverage is not exploitation; it is stewardship, using your access to create returns for your people and multiply impact. Treat each opportunity like an investment in collective destiny.

6. The Balance of Reward
Discipline and delayed gratification are virtues, but joy fuels persistence. Reward your teams and yourself in ways that sustain morale today and secure the future tomorrow. A leader who neglects both risks burnout and the erosion of loyalty.

7. The Joy of Mentorship
Mentorship is leadership’s force multiplier. Teaching others to lead multiplies your influence and ensures continuity. Build apprenticeship into your culture. Your legacy will be measured less by what you build than by who you raise.

8. The Art of Common Ground
Progress is made where bridges are built, not where walls are fortified. Seek the overlap between competing visions and translate difference into shared purpose. Leaders who find common ground win the long negotiations that change systems.

9. The Strength of Struggle
Adversity is the crucible of character. The leader who avoids struggle often evades growth. Reframe hardship: it is not punishment but refinement. Let trials teach endurance, clarity, and humility.

10. The Value of Family
All leadership is ultimately relational. Family, whether biological, chosen, or communal, is the anchor that steadies vocation. Protect it, prioritize it, and let it remind you that the worthiest measures of success are human and not merely institutional.

How These Keys Fit Together

Values such as integrity, family, and mentorship form the foundation. Effectiveness expressed through asking, building circles, and leveraging opportunity is the engine. Performance revealed in decisions, rewards, struggles, and finding common ground is the outcome. The three exist in a living cycle: values shape effectiveness, effectiveness drives performance, and performance tests values. Make this cycle intentional and watch influence convert into lasting transformation.

A Short Practical Regimen
        1.      Ask for one bold meeting or resource this week.
        2.      Check in with your inner circle through one direct, honest conversation.
        3.      Make one decision you have been deferring.
        4.      Mentor or be mentored for thirty minutes.
        5.      Give one immediate, meaningful reward to someone on your team.

Five small acts, compounded over time, can change entire organizations.

A Leader’s Charge

Whether young in experience or seasoned in leadership, remember this. Leadership is both a gift and a stewardship. You will be measured by the causes you champion and the people you empower. Choose the long road of integrity over the short road of convenience. Ask boldly. Build faithfully. Decide with courage. Love your people and return to them the dignity leadership borrows.

History rewards those who pair vision with humility and strategy with conscience. If you carry these keys into your daily work, you will not only lead institutions but also transform lives. Let wisdom be your wealth, and let service be your signature.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Dr. Isaac Newton is a strategist and scholar trained at Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia. He advises governments and international institutions on governance, transformation, and global justice, helping nations and organizations turn vision into sustainable progress.

Olivia Lindsay is an entrepreneur and leadership strategist with over fifteen years of experience in marketing, business development, and strategic planning. She is the founder of 876 On the Go, a technology-driven logistics company, and a Justice of the Peace. Olivia holds degrees in Management Studies and Strategic Planning and is completing her Ph.D. in Business Administration.

Together, they champion a model of leadership where integrity meets innovation and influence serves the greater good.

By Ron Cheong

News Americas, TORONTO, Canada, Fri. Nov. 28, 2025: The 2025 Guyana elections were peaceful, professionally executed, and despite heated rhetoric – remarkably smooth. But the debate that followed has been anything but. A jarring divergence emerged between the EU Observer Mission’s report and the assessments of other credible bodies, most notably the UNDP-backed evaluations.  This exposed a bigger problem than election flaws – it exposed flawed narratives.

EU Observers release the report during a press conference at the Pegasus Suites and Corporate Centre in Kingston, Georgetown

When observers of equal stature view the same election and reach drastically different conclusions, the issue is no longer merely technical. It becomes a question of narrative, framing, and responsibility.

This piece is necessary precisely because of lingering dissonance from that gap. The European Union is held in high regard in Guyana. Its voice carries weight. When such a respected institution fields an observer team whose findings appear unbalanced, selectively sourced, or not fully reflective of the on-the-ground realities, it does a disservice – not only to Guyana, but to the EU’s own reputation as a neutral democratic partner.

A Country With Hard -Won Electoral Stability

To understand the gravity of this, one must recall that Guyana’s democracy is young and was severely tested just five years ago. The 2020 elections saw an unprecedented attempt by the incumbent to overturn the results. It took five months of diplomatic pressure – from the US, EU, CARICOM, the Commonwealth, and others – to ensure that voters’ will was respected and that the rightful government was sworn in.

That experience shaped both domestic expectations and international sensitivities for 2025. Guyanese citizens, political actors, and observers alike were determined that such a crisis should never repeat.

GECOM’s Improved Performance: A Rare Institutional Success

Against this backdrop, GECOM’s performance in 2025 stands out as a quiet institutional success. UNDP-supported capacity building, new monitoring mechanisms, stronger training for presiding officers, and clearer chain-of-custody procedures all contributed to an election that many experienced observers judged to be the most professionally administered in recent memory.

Polling stations opened on time, security forces remained neutral and restrained, tabulation procedures were transparent, and the count proceeded without credible interference. These are fundamental pillars of electoral integrity, and Guyana delivered on each of them.

The EU’s Report: Valid Recommendations Undermined by Questionable Framing

The EU report did contain useful recommendations – many relating to administrative efficiency and long-term institutional strengthening. But these were overshadowed by assessments that seemed out of step with observable realities.

A notable example was the claim that the “dominance of state media and politicised private media reduces voters’ ability to access pluralistic and balanced information.”
This assertion collapses under scrutiny.

Guyana’s media is not dominated by the state; it is dominated by polarisation.  Stabroek News and Kaieteur News often adopt openly adversarial stances against the government.  Guyana Times, in contrast, leans in the direction of the governing party, and the state-owned Chronicle typically reflects the views of whichever party is in power at the time. This environment can indeed confuse voters – but not because of a lack of pluralism.  The problem is an excess of partisanship, not its absence.

When the EU report implies state dominance, it fundamentally mischaracterizes the landscape and, by extension, misdiagnoses the problem.

Unfair Assumptions and Uneven Standards

Other parts of the EU report raised similar concerns. The suggestion that building schools, hospitals, and public infrastructure constituted an “incumbency advantage” borders on the absurd.  By that logic, any functional government that improves public services in an election year is unfairly influencing voters – an argument that would render many European governments equally suspect.

Similarly, criticizing the President for using a government helicopter—without contextualizing that a previous President used military helicopters more extensively, or that such travel is often a security necessity in a country with vast, remote regions – reveals a troubling lack of comparative perspective.

The Real Risks: Not Ballot Fraud, But Fragile Narratives

The 2025 elections show that Guyana’s most significant vulnerabilities do not lie in ballot integrity or election-day operations. They lie in political narratives – domestic and international – that can be shaped by incomplete evidence or preconceived expectations.

Observer missions carry immense influence. When their assessments diverge sharply, especially in ways that do not reflect the balance of evidence, they can fuel political distrust rather than reduce it.

Getting The Story Right

Guyana deserves scrutiny. But it also deserves accuracy. The 2025 elections were not perfect, yet they were peaceful, credible, and competently run. When an observer report magnifies weaknesses while overlooking strengths documented by others, it risks misrepresenting a country that has fought hard for democratic stability.

International community representatives seeking to help Guyana strengthen its democracy, must do the hard work of being thorough and balanced and follow basic democratic principles:

Highlight both positives and negatives – the multi-dimensional reality as it is rather than a narrowly focused narrative.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Ron Cheong, born in Guyana, is a community activist and dedicated volunteer with an extensive international background in banking. Now residing in Toronto, Canada, he is a fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Toronto. His comments are his own and does not reflect those of News Americas or its parent company, ICN.

By Dr. Isaac Newton

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Dec. 2, 2205: Dr. Godwin Friday’s sweeping victory on November 27, 2025, is much more than a political shift. It is a national rebellion. It signals that the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines are stepping into a new maturity where dignity is protected, accountability is expected, and shared purpose becomes the compass for public life. Small island states now stand at a global intersection. Economic pressures tighten. Climate threats intensify. Cultural bonds are strained.

Wars cast long shadows across continents. The United States has warned that Venezuelan airspace is too dangerous for civilian use, a sign that regional instability may be closer than comfort allows. In the midst of these tensions, Dr. Friday’s call to turn the corner rises like a steady light. It invites St. Vincent and the Grenadines to move forward with poise, clarity, and moral intelligence.

Friday’s New Democratic Party romped home to victory in the 2025 election by winning 14 of 15 seats. “The people have come out and said…’We want a better future for ourselves,’” Friday said as hundreds of people gathered in the capital, Kingstown, to support him, many blowing vuvuzelas in excitement.

Dr. Godwin Friday takes the oath as PM on Nov. 28, 2025.

RESONANCE

The resonance of the new prime minister’s message lies in its elegant simplicity. He must serve with the integrity that earned the nation’s trust. He must persuade doubters not by clever words but by consistent action. He must restore confidence in public leadership by improving the daily realities of citizens from Owia’s quiet shores to Canouan’s vibrant rhythms. His commitment to nurturing young thinkers, ethical dreamers, and future builders reflects a rare understanding of how small island states flourish.

Leadership renewal is not a luxury reserved for calmer seasons. It is the very architecture of national survival. With global institutions under strain and regional tensions rising, Dr. Friday’s attention to grooming new leaders reveals wisdom that sees beyond election cycles and into the long sweep of national destiny.

His leadership rises even higher through his humility. Dr. Friday does not cling to power. He recognizes that leadership is a trust, not a possession. He understands that a legacy is not crafted through long tenure but through the thoughtful preparation of others who will carry the nation forward with competence and conscience.

This approach resonates with the work of Dr. Isaac Newton whose global advisory efforts emphasize wisdom that listens, service that sacrifices, character that endures, and institution building that lives beyond the lifespan of any administration. When a leader invests in others, a nation becomes resilient. When a leader grips power tightly, a nation becomes brittle. Dr. Friday has chosen resilience.

This moment is therefore one of profound possibility for St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Turning the corner is not a catchy phrase. It is a call to collective elevation. It invites citizens to expect excellence and to join in the shared labor of national progress. It tells the Caribbean that amid global turbulence, a small nation guided by principled leadership can model justice, creativity, courage, and unity.

It reminds the world that humility paired with strategic clarity can carve out safe harbors even when the tides of history rise violently. If Dr. Friday continues with conviction shaped by compassion and purpose rooted in principle, the Vincentian story will not only advance. It will inspire. It will shine. It will set a new standard for what leadership in this era can mean.

Editor’s Note: Dr. Isaac Newton is a strategist and scholar trained at Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia. He advises governments and international institutions on governance, transformation, and global justice, helping nations and organizations turn vision into sustainable progress.

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