FLASHBACK March 10, 1999-2003

Peaceful end to prison siege[/B]

A group of inmates assaulted a guard, ransacked a security locker and held police at bay with pistol shots in the first-ever prison standoff to hit Saipan yesterday dawn. The 14-hour siege at the male detention center of the Division of Corrections ended after the 14 inmates, led by William Sablan, surrendered following a dialogue with their families. A Smith and Wesson 9-millimeter gun, which the prisoners took after they ransacked the security locker, was thrown out of the detention center to signify that they were giving up the fight. Department of Public Safety Commissioner Charles Ingram said the 14 inmates surrendered at 3:26 p.m. Aside from Sablan, the other prisoners were Vicente Aldan Jr., Jeffrey Celis, Ryan Babauta, Edwin Blas, Arcel Busto, Roland Kapileo, Sheldon Yano, Saddy Charteron, Chi Chong Wen, Wang Ting Hua, Zhu Zhe We, Wang Jun and Cui Xing Hao.

Bank loans rose 9.6 percent to $304.71 million in the last quarter of 1998 compared to the same period the previous year, according to statistics from the Department of Commerce. But officials did not say whether the increase could be attributed to growing demand for cash in light of worsening economic condition or cutback in interest rates that has encouraged people to borrow money. Real estate loans soared 66 percent to $54.7 million during the same period from $32.9 million logged in 1997, indicating a massive refinancing of loans by property owners, hardest hit by a plunge in the tourism economy. A big number of commercial and residential spaces have been abandoned by occupants as a result of the business slowdown.

Consumer prices up[/B]

The regional economic upheavals, which pushed many businesses to the edge, have affected the retail industry in the CNMI as the commerce department recorded a significant increase in the overall consumer price index during the last quarter of 1999, compared with the same period in 1998. A weighted consumer price survey released by the Central Statistics Division of the Department of Commerce for the 4th quarter of 1999 revealed a 3.4 index increase in the five commodity sectors to 269.6 from the previous year’s 266.2. The 4th quarter of 1999 tally registered a slight increase for the five commodity groups—food, housing, transportation, apparel & upkeep, and health & recreation—at 1.1 index points when compared with the previous quarter’s 268.5 points.

A Senate proposal will require health insurance providers on the island to include people with diabetes in their coverage in order to avoid complications and bring down medical care costs. The legislation, offered by Senate President Paul A. Manglona, is expected to be tackled at today’s session of the upper house to be held on Rota. The Diabetes Health Maintenance Act of 2000 will ensure accessibility by diabetic patients in the CNMI to necessary supplies and equipment as well as health care for their treatment.

CNMI anticipates fewer visitors this March[/B]

After posting an all-time high visitor arrival in January, the Commonwealth is projecting a diminishing number of visitors this month, as the CNMI’s premier tourism market-Japan-projects a downtrend in outbound travel due to the threat of war and the crisis brought on by the revival of North Korea’s nuclear program. Reduction in Japanese outbound travel is expected to impact on various tourism destinations in the world, as the trend veers away from the strong performance of Japanese outbound travel market in the last quarter of 2002. Last year, the number of traveling Japanese reached some 16.514 million. Based on projections by the Marianas Visitors Authority, however, visitor arrivals to the Commonwealth would still increase to 39,897 by the end of this month, up by 5.36 percent compared to that of the same period last year. This projection, though, pales in comparison to January’s percentage growth at 38.56. Visitors in January reached 53,625, the highest monthly figure since 1997.