Ex-cons should be allowed to stand for Parliament, election observers say

An international group of election observers has recommended that ex-prisoners who have served sentences of more than a year or been convicted of dishonesty should no longer be barred from standing as MPs.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association team said that time in jail affected the ability to contest elections as well as voting rights, and that other restrictions around the democratic process were also “quite onerous”.

The final report prepared by the association added, “The Criminal Records (Spent Convictions) Law (2018 revision) provides for the expungement of criminal records after a subsequent crime-free period, but contains a specific exclusion preserving criminal records for disqualification from election.

“A review of this legislation is to be undertaken by the Law Reform Commission, which offers an opportunity to consider extension of expungement to individuals who may wish to contest elections, enhancing the choice of candidates available to voters.”

The right to stand for election is restricted to Caymanian citizens ages 21 or over.

Caymanians born in the islands must have lived in the jurisdiction for at least seven years before nomination day.

People born elsewhere must have lived in Cayman for at least 15 of the previous 20 years.

The observer report added, “No candidate may have been abroad for more than 400 days in the seven years immediately before nomination.

“These are, arguably, unreasonable restrictions on the right to stand for election.”

The nine-strong team of Commonwealth parliamentarians and election experts also said that people who had been convicted of an election-related offence and those “certified to be insane or otherwise adjudged to be of unsound mind” were banned from voting.

It added, “People are also deprived of their right to vote when sentenced to a term in prison of 12 months or more.”

The report explained anyone sentenced to a year or more behind bars was removed from the register at the next quarterly revision and had to reapply to be added after release.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association team added that the right to vote in Cayman was restricted to citizens but that qualification for citizenship could mean long delays.

It said, “The consequence of this is that, of a total population of around 90,000 people, only approximately 45 per cent are Caymanian, with the other 55 per cent unable to participate in elections, despite some of the non-Caymanians having long-term residence in the jurisdiction.”

The report highlighted that changes on rules governing the right to vote had been recommended by the 2018 Constitutional Commission.

It said, “The commission proposed changes to the disqualification of voters who are currently disenfranchised due to serving prison terms in excess of 12 months as well as a change in the residency requirements for voting. These recommendations have not yet been acted upon.”

The report also singled out discrimination against people who held more than one passport.

It said that “allegiance to a foreign state” barred people from sitting in the Cayman Parliament.

The observer report added that holding public office or being bankrupt also disqualifies someone from election.