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No Easter Travel for Palestinian Christians in Gaza

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There are around 1,100 Palestinian Christians in Gaza, many of whom are descended from the earliest Christians in Palestine (where Christianity originated). For the first time, Israeli authorities denied all travel permits to Palestinian Christians from Gaza to celebrate Easter as they do each year, by processing from Bethlehem to Jerusalem to follow the path of Jesus in the Resurrection.


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Can such a restriction be justified by security needs only?

Human right watchers say, Israel’s decision to outright deny movement between Gaza and the West Bank this Easter constitutes a further violation of Palestinians’ fundamental rights to freedom of movement, religious freedom, and family life. The increased restriction on the movement of Palestinian Christians points to further implementation of Israel’s ‘separation policy’: a policy restricting movement between Gaza and the West Bank which deepens the split between the two parts of the occupied Palestinian territory.

The number of permits issued has diminished each year, and have included blanket bans on anyone under age 55 – but this is the first year that the Israeli military allowed no  Palestinian Christians from Gaza to travel to Jerusalem for Easter.

While some practice the Latin faith and mark Easter on the 21st of April this year, many others are Eastern Orthodox and celebrate Easter on the 28th. Their traditional ceremonies involve a commemoration of Palm Sunday in Bethlehem, then a procession from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, where Christians believe Jesus was resurrected after death.

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According to the Israeli human rights organization Gisha, “The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) published the quotas set by Israel for holiday permits to be granted to for Christian Palestinians living under Israel’s control. The quota allocated by COGAT for holiday permits for Gaza residents this Easter is limited to only 200 people over the age of 55, and only for travel abroad; the quotas for West Bank residents are limited to 400 permits for travel abroad, and visits in Israel. This means that Palestinian families separated between Gaza, Israel and the West Bank will not be able to mark the Easter holiday together. It also means that all Christians in Gaza are being denied access to family and to the holy sites in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

The ban on Gaza Christians comes after Israeli military authorities announced the full closure of the West Bank and Gaza for Palestinian residents during the week of Passover, from April 19th to 27th. Israeli military authorities, which control all aspects of life for the occupied Palestinians living under their rule in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, frequently closing all Palestinian areas and preventing Palestinians from moving between Palestinian towns during periods of Jewish holidays.

In 2016 at least 850 Christian Palestinians from the Gaza City Strip traveled to celebrate Easter in Bethlehem and occupied East Jerusalem after Israeli authorities agreed to grant them permits.

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Tourism stakeholders presented with Destination 2023

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Following the consultative process to review and update the Tourism Master Plan 2012-2020 in May 2018, it was seen necessary that a concrete action plan to guide the Tourism sector be developed. Last Friday, at the STC Conference Room, the Minister for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine, Mr. Didier Dogley launched the validation workshop for Destination 2023, a tourism strategy which will guide the tourism sector for the next 5 years.

The aim of the validation workshop was to discuss, validate findings and present recommendations as well as provide clarifications, prior to finalising the strategy document. This strategy has been drafted following meetings conducted with more than 300 persons across both private and the public sector, including but not limited to, tour operators, hoteliers, restaurant owners, as well as boat and yacht charter operators during  a period of 1 and  a half year.

The workshop was also attended by the Principal Secretary for Tourism, Anne Lafortune, Principal Sectary for Finance, Damien Thesee, the Attorney General and representatives from both Public and private sector.

In his opening remarks, Minister Dogley said: “Destination 2023, is the strategic tool elaborated to galvanise our efforts towards a common national vision and strategic goals and provide us with clear and specific steps necessary to achieve our set objectives and targets. It is the blue print for our tourism industry for the next 5 years.”

The consultants commissioned for the Tourism Master Plan, Mrs. Daniella Larue of Valsen Consulting and Mr. Guy Morel presented the 8 priority areas that should be collectively achieved by 2023. This include Driving brand development, Investing in market penetration and development, Improving product diversification, Addressing Seychelles competitiveness as a Tourism Destination, Investing in local talent development and management, Increasing Investment in Sustainable Tourism Practices, Delivering key enabling factors and Increasing Capacity of Government Agencies to facilitate tourism.

The consultants were commended by the Trade and the Principal Secretary for Tourism in her closing remarks for presenting a clear guiding strategy that will act as a roadmap for the sector’s sustainable growth. Following its validation by the Trade, the Destination 2023 strategy will be submitted to the Government for final approval.Once approved, the Department of Tourism will develop detailed action plans with monitoring measures and ensure its implementation to meet the set goals and objectives of the strategy.

MEDIA CONTACT: STB News Bureau, Tel: +248 4 671 354 / +248 4 671 313, stbnews@seychelles.travel  www.seychelles.travel

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Jamaica’s Tourism Minister: Use art for community renewal

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Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, has challenged the local art community to take art out of the educational institutions and art galleries and into Jamaica’s inner city communities as a vehicle of social and economic renewal.

“We need to consider new and innovative approaches to bring art out of Edna Manley into the wider community and bring art out of the Nation Gallery into Trench Town and into Barret Town and Granville and some of the harsher inner city areas,” Minister Bartlett said.

He was speaking at the closing ceremony for internationally acclaimed Jamaican artist Bryan McFarlane’s “New Beginnings” exhibition and the official launch of the Gene Pearson Gallery at The R Hotel, New Kingston, on the weekend.

Internationally acclaimed Jamaican artist Professor Bryan McFarlane (2nd left) discusses his abstract “Like The Weather When It’s Gray” with (l-r) Canada’s High Commissioner to Jamaica, Her Excellency Laurie Peters; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Jennifer Griffith; R Hotel owner Evan Williams; and Head of Chancery, Nigerian High Commission in Jamaica, Mrs. Anthonia Akunne. The occasion was the closing ceremony for Professor Bryan’s “New Beginnings” exhibition and the opening of the Gene Pearson Gallery at The R Hotel, New Kingston, on Saturday, April 13.

Reiterating a commitment given earlier this month to disburse J$300 million to 63 communities across the country to boost Community Tourism, Minister Bartlett encouraged Jamaica’s artists to use some of the money to develop creative placements in these communities.

Expanding on the idea, he said, “The concept of creative placement might be something that we can borrow. The United States does it quite well by utilizing relic buildings, underused and abandoned playing fields and almost every facility that seems lacking in its asset value within communities to become creative placement centers. It gives a sense of pride and creates a feeling of cultural connection.”

Minister Bartlett said he would like to see the transforming effect that art and culture has on the lives of people demonstrated. “While we reflect on the beauty of this exhibition and the aesthetics that will fill our hearts as we move around, I want us to use this opportunity to think beyond the art. Let us think development, let us think transformation, let us think innovation and see if there is another remedy for the social disruptions that we are having in our communities across Jamaica,” he concluded.

Paraphrasing French poet Gaston Bachelard, Professor Bryan McFarlane said there is immensity in minuteness and “Jamaica, the place where I have most been inspired throughout my life, is immense.”

He encouraged patrons to look at his art and see the “immense kind of spaces and ideas and metaphors and images that are there and try to read them with your heart and institution.”

Professor McFarlane teaches at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth in the United States. He has exhibited his work at numerous museums and lectured as a visiting artist at universities throughout the United States, Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and has won numerous awards.

The 14 pieces exhibited, constituting watercolors and oil on linen, were from McFarlane’s collections and touched on themes when he lived in China, Turkey and Africa.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

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Vista Global to acquire JetSmarter

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Vista Global, a world leader in business flight solutions, announces that it has entered into an agreement to acquire JetSmarter, creating the global On Demand digital marketplace.

JetSmarter’s innovative marketplace technology will fulfil Vista Global’s digitization strategy, providing all customers with an unmatched end-to-end service and seamless booking experience. The acquisition will enhance Vista Global’s formidable position offering the largest suite of services and advanced technologies to every private aviation customer.

Following JetSmarter’s successful digital partnership with XOJET, it will now bring its digital capabilities to the entire Vista Global group. JetSmarter’s industry-disrupting platform will therefore be integrated into the back-end technology of Vista Global’s brands VistaJet, Vista Lease and XOJET. The integration will significantly improve the ease and speed of the booking process for the 150,000 passengers traveling with any of the Vista Global companies each year, building upon its impressive track record of offering customers the most technologically advanced solutions in the private aviation industry.

Vista Global’s Founder and Chairman Thomas Flohr said: “Today’s acquisition is an important milestone for Vista Global – accelerating and executing our vision of digitizing the entire private aviation offering. Customers today want speed, reliability and value, which in today’s world is only possible with technology. Vista Global’s reach and infrastructure will take JetSmarter to the global stage to fully realize its potential. JetSmarter’s technology will digitalize Vista Global’s market-leading customer offering to Program Members and On Demand customers.”

Since its founding in 2012, JetSmarter has become the preeminent provider of technology-enabled service to the business aviation market with two million downloads to date. Today, JetSmarter’s digital platform allows both Members and On Demand customers to book private or shared trips instantly.

Following the acquisition, JetSmarter’s customers will benefit from the reach, resources and operational expertise of Vista Global group. Its growing customer base will have access to a wider fleet, wherever they are in the world, and enjoy the highest standards in private aviation as they join the Vista Global family. They will significantly benefit from the group’s unparalleled customer service and an unmatched in-flight experience.

Steven Langman, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Rhône Capital added: “Vista Global is marking a new major milestone in its development. The acquisition of JetSmarter is fully in-line with the company’s mission: to transform the nature of the business aviation sector and offer its growing customer base a fast and seamless access to its services through digital innovation.”

Behdad Eghbali, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Clearlake Capital Group stated: “Vista Global is the undisputed market leader with unmatched vision to consolidate and digitally transform this fragmented industry. Vista Global’s worldwide fleet access, unmatched end-to-end service experience, and world-class management team will combine with JetSmarter’s digital technology leadership including digital bookings and On Demand crowdsourcing to further expand Vista Global’s leadership. We are thrilled to partner with Thomas Flohr and the talented management team at Vista Global and believe that, combined with Vista Global, JetSmarter will flourish and revolutionize the industry’s digital transformation.”

The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter, subject to customary closing conditions, including the expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act. As part of the transaction, all JetSmarter investors, inclusive of Clearlake Capital and Jefferies Financial Group, will become investors in Vista Global, supporting its future growth. Jefferies LLC acted as financial advisor to JetSmarter.

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WTTC Global Summit: Next stop San Juan

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Discover Puerto Rico, the Island’s first-ever and new Destination Marketing Organization, today announced that island will serve as the host for the World Travel & Tourism Council 2020 Global Summit, following the formal announcement made by WTTC at today’s closing ceremony of the 2019 Summit in Seville, Spain. Representing the global private sector of travel & tourism, the Global Summit is regarded as the most important worldwide event in the sector, and gathers significant global business leaders, yearly.

“We’re honored to have been chosen as host destination for the upcoming World Travel and Tourism Council 2020 Global Summit. Puerto Rico is a place where rich culture and natural wonders lay the foundation for an immense bounty of one-of-a-kind experiences. We’re thriving as a destination of global importance and hosting this Summit will elevate even further our tourism offering, positively impacting the local economy. We look forward to welcoming the global tourism industry next year to discover all that Puerto Rico offers,” said Brad Dean, Chief Executive Officer of Discover Puerto Rico.

In Puerto Rico, the travel industry employs roughly 77,000 people, contributes 6.5% to the Island’s GDP and impacts a noteworthy 17 additional sectors of the economy. This, on the rise given the Island’s increasing popularity as a must-visit destination on a global scale, and validated given the selection by the WTTC, as the first U.S. Island territory to host the respected event.

“We are delighted to bring next year’s Global Summit to the beautiful tropical Caribbean island of Puerto Rico, a welcoming and diverse destination that is attracting travelers from all over the world,” said Gloria Guevara Manzo, President and CEO of WTTC. “We’re particularly excited because the destination provides ease in traveling and doing business since Puerto Rico is a US territory yet has the allure of the Caribbean.”

The WTTC Global Summit will be held from April 21-23, 2020 at the District San Juan, a five-acre hospitality and entertainment district opening later this year. The complex is currently being designed and poised to be the most vibrant and popular setting for events, conventions and performances in the Caribbean.

Puerto Rico’s unique history and offerings set it apart as a global destination, including a fusion of Taino Indian, Spanish and African cultures, seen vividly in the food, music and architecture. Found on the Island is El Yunque, the only tropical rainforest in the U.S. forest system; three of the world’s five bioluminescence bays; and El Monstruo, the longest zip line in the Americas. Visit DiscoverPuertoRico.com for more information on the destination and its variety of offerings and lodging options.

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