SPORTS | Page 16 CRUZ DROPS CIGS TO GET MORE PUFF Sloth to marathon runner in one year High of 91 Low of 81 Smooth to slight with wave heights less than 2 feet. ediTORial | Page 4 ‘NaTION BUIlDING’ aUDIT: Why IS ThE aG DElayING ITS RElEaSE? ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – TUESDay aUGUST 11, 2015 178210_PRINT-Compass-6colx1*5.pdPage 1 12/8/14 11:20:19 AM New party eyes 2017 run BRENT FUllER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Although the 2017 general election is still nearly two years away, behind-the-scenes ef- forts to form a third political party or group have been taking place for most of this summer, the Cayman Compass has learned. Whether this new third political entity will take off in time for the May 2017 election re- mains in question, but candidate recruiting at- tempts have been under way since at least May. Email notices for the group, seen by the Cayman Compass, listed potential candi- dates for recruitment in George Town dis- trict as local businessmen Garth Arch, Stefan Baraud, Johann Moxam and Walling Whittaker, among others. Additional poten- tial candidates identified by operatives of the group noted that former MLA Mike Adam and former political candidate Kenneth Bryan would also be approached. Of the candidates contacted by the Compass, Mr. Arch and Mr. Moxam indicated they would consider a po- tential run for office at some stage, while Mr. Bryan has stated his intention to seek office again in 2017 in the district of George Town. The others either did not return Compass calls or were noncommittal. Majority of public submissions oppose cruise pier construction JaMES WhITTakER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com An overwhelming majority of those who responded during a public consultation on the proposed cruise berthing project op- pose the $150 million plan for new piers in George Town harbor. Of the 473 public comments received by the Department of Environment, 347 ob- jected to the project, 111 expressed support, and 15 were either neutral or undecided. The supporting votes appear to be heavily skewed by a mass response from the employees of Kirk Freeport, who ac- counted for 85 of the “yes” votes. Many of the anti-port responses come from dive industry workers, though the only other “block vote” appears to have come from pu- pils at Montessori by the Sea school, where 13 youngsters wrote to object to the port. The consultation exercise, though it brought out strong emotions on both sides, was not intended as a referendum on the pier project. Wendy Williams, environmental as- sessment officer with the Department of Environment, said the main point was to get public feedback on the environmental impact assessment and ensure all concerns had been adequately addressed and explained. She said more general feedback and views on the project would still be included with the envi- ronmental statement to assist Cabinet in the decision-making process. An analysis of the public responses, compiled by consultants Baird and Associates, concludes that the issue has “polarized the community.” The public responses, printed in full in a 1,000-page document released Monday, PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 7 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » The majority of respondents to a Department of Environment survey about the proposal to develop cruise ship piers in George Town oppose the measure. – PHOTO: CHRIS COURT Third CAL employee arrested in human smuggling case MLAs’ secretary arrested in home invasion case BRENT FUllER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com A third Cayman Airways employee was arrested Monday in connection with what Cayman Islands authorities allege was a human smuggling operation that ran between Grand Cayman and the United States. According to a statement from the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service issued late Monday: “Police arrested a woman, age 30, from George Town, on suspicion of human smug- gling. The woman is now in police custody. “The woman is an employee of Cayman Airways and this arrest is in connec- tion with the arrests of two other Cayman Airways’ personnel.” RCIPS officers arrested two of the air- lines’ employees Friday on suspicion of human Second suspect also taken into custody ChaRlES DUNCaN cduncan@pinnaclemedialtd.com The secretary for two George Town MLAs and a man were arrested last week in con- nection with a June 26 home invasion and robbery in which a baby sitter and a 5-year- old girl were held at gunpoint, while a boy, 9, hid in his bedroom closet, police con- firmed Monday. Officers arrested Christine Rae Smith on Thursday and a 38-year-old man on Friday, on suspicion of the home inva- sion on Raleigh Quay and a robbery at the Elegant Nails Spa on Godfrey Nixon Way on July 10, according to police spokeswoman Jacqueline Carpenter. Smith is the personal assistant for Coalition for Cayman MLAs Roy McTaggart and Winston Connolly in their Shedden Road office. Both suspects remained in police custody Monday afternoon after a court extended the PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 »2 LOCAL&REGIONAL Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 • Cayman Compass www. REGmovies.com SATURDAY NIGHT: For your viewing pleasure, minors under the age of 18 will not be admitted to any lm starting after 6pm, unless accompanied by their parent. *Additional charges will apply per 3D ticket requested. - TUESDAY - $8.00 FANTASTIC FOUR (PG13) 1:15 | 3:45 | 7:00 | 10:00 MISSION IMPOSSIBLE (PG13) 12:55 | 3:50 | 6:50 | 9:45 VACATION (R) 1:30 | 4:20 | 7:20 | 9:40 RICKI & THE FLASH (PG13) 12:50 | 3:30 | 7:15 | 9:50 ANT-MAN 3D (PG13) 12:45 | 3:40 2D | 6:45 | 9:30 2D MINIONS 3D (PG) 12:30 | 3:15 2D | 7:30 | 9:55 2D KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) – The picture-perfect beaches and turquoise waters that people expect on their visits to the Caribbean are increasingly being fouled by mats of de- caying seaweed that attract biting sand fleas and smell like rotten eggs. Clumps of the brownish seaweed known as sar- gassum have long washed up on Caribbean coastlines, but researchers say the algae blooms have exploded in ex- tent and frequency in recent years. The 2015 seaweed inva- sion appears to be a bumper crop, with a number of shore- lines so severely hit that some tourists have canceled summer trips and lawmakers on Tobago have termed it a “natural disaster.” From the Dominican Republic in the north, to Barbados in the east, and Mexico’s Caribbean resorts to the west, officials are au- thorizing emergency money to fund cleanup efforts and clear stinking mounds of seaweed that in some cases have piled up nearly 10 feet high on beaches, choked scenic coves and cut off moored boats. With the start of the re- gion’s high tourism season a few months away, some offi- cials are calling for an emer- gency meeting of the 15-na- tion Caribbean Community, worried that the worsening seaweed influx could be- come a chronic dilemma for the globe’s most tourism-de- pendent region. “This has been the worst year we’ve seen so far. We re- ally need to have a regional effort on this because this unsightly seaweed could end up affecting the image of the Caribbean,” said Christopher James, chairman of the Tobago Hotel and Tourism Association. There are various theo- ries about what is causing the seaweed boom that sci- entists say started in 2011, including warming ocean temperatures and changes in the ocean currents due to climate change. Some re- searchers believe it is pri- marily due to increased land-based nutrients and pollutants washing into the water, including nitrogen- heavy fertilizers and sewage waste that fuel the blooms. Brian Lapointe, a sar- gassum expert at Florida Atlantic University, says that while the sargassum washing up in normal amounts has long been good for the Caribbean, se- vere influxes like those seen lately are “harmful algal blooms” because they can cause fish kills, beach fouling, tourism losses and even coastal dead zones. “Considering that these events have been happening since 2011, this could be the ‘new normal.’ Time will tell,” Lapointe said by email. The mats of drifting sar- gassum covered with berry- like sacs have become so numerous in the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean they are even drifting as far away as West Africa, where they’ve been piling up fast in Sierra Leone and Ghana. Sargassum, which gets its name from the Portuguese word for grape, is a floating brownish algae that gener- ally blooms in the Sargasso Sea, a 2 million-square- mile body of warm water in the North Atlantic that is a major habitat and nursery for numerous marine spe- cies. Like coral reefs, the algae mats are critical hab- itats and mahi-mahi, tuna, billfish, eels, shrimp, crabs and sea turtles all use the algae to spawn, feed or hide from predators. But some scientists be- lieve the sargassum be- sieging a growing number of beaches may actually be due to blooms in the Atlantic’s equatorial region, perhaps because of a high flow of nu- trients from South America’s Amazon and Orinoco Rivers mixing with warmer ocean temperatures. “We think this is an on- going equatorial regional event and our research has found no direct connection with the Sargasso Sea,” said Jim Franks, senior research scientist at the University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory. Whatever the reason, the massive sargassum flow is becoming a major challenge for tourism-dependent coun- tries. In large doses, the algae harms coastal environments, even causing the deaths of endangered sea turtle hatch- lings after they wriggle out of the sand where their eggs were buried. Cleanup ef- forts by work crews may also worsen beach erosion. “We have heard reports of recently hatched sea tur- tles getting caught in the sea- weed. If removal of seaweed involves large machinery that will also obviously cause im- pacts to the beaches and the ecosystems there,” said Faith Bulger, program officer at the Washington-based Sargasso Sea Commission. Mexican authorities re- cently said they will spend about $9.1 million and hire 4,600 temporary workers to clean up seaweed mounds ac- cumulating along that coun- try’s Caribbean coast. Part of the money will be used to test whether the sargassum can be collected at sea before it reaches shore. Some tourists in hard- hit areas are trying to pre- vent their summer vacations from being ruined by the stinking algae. “The smell of seaweed is terrible, but I’m enjoying the sun,” German tourist Oliver Pahlke said during a visit to Cancun, Mexico. Sitting at a picnic table on the south coast of Barbados, Canadian vacationer Anne Alma said reports of the rot- ting seaweed mounds she’d heard from friends did not dissuade her from visiting the Eastern Caribbean island. “I just wonder where the seaweed is going to go,” the Toronto resident said one recent morning, watching more of mats drift to shore even after crews had already trucked away big piles to use as mulch and fertilizers. Piles of decaying seaweed mar Caribbean resort beaches MEXICO CITY (AP) – Three people were slain in the once- tranquil resort city of La Paz and two others were killed in the nearby beach town of Cabo San Lucas in Mexico’s Baja California Sur state over the weekend. The state prosecutors’ of- fice said a man was shot to death Sunday in his SUV in La Paz, and another passenger was seriously wounded. Investigators found two pistols in the vehicle. On Saturday, two men were killed by gunfire out- side a home in La Paz where a party had been held, police reported. A third person was wounded, though his life was not in danger. Two other people were found dead at a home in Cabo San Lucas, south of La Paz, earlier that day. Both vic- tims, a man and a woman, had been shot in the head. The area is believed to be plagued by turf battles be- tween factions of the Sinaloa drug cartel. Mexico: 5 slain in La Paz, Cabo San Lucas NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) – Police in the Bahamas are investigating the death of a Finnish man who was de- clared dead at a hospital after crashing a golf cart into a wall. Investigators say two men were traveling in a golf cart outside an apartment com- plex in Bimini before dawn Sunday when the vehicle slammed into a wall. Police said a 45-year-old man from Finland died of his injuries, while the other man was airlifted to the capital of Nassau for med- ical treatment. Citing an on- going investigation, they de- clined to release his name or any information about the injured man. Bimini is a tiny cluster of islands in the archi- pelago of the Bahamas, lo- cated just 50 miles off the coast of Florida. Bahamas police proBe deadly golf cart crash that killed finn Tourists walk past large quantities of seaweed piling up on the beach in the Mexican resort city of Cancun, Mexico. – photo: ap CORRECTION In a story that ran on page 2 of Monday’s Cayman Compass titled “Caymanian pageant girls impress in Dallas,” the age range of the contestants was incorrect. The age range of the pageant con- testants from Cayman was 4 months to 60 years of age. The Cayman Compass strives for accuracy and is committed to correcting errors that appear in the newspaper. Those interested in contacting the paper for that purpose can email the editor at newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com.3 LOCAL NEWS Charles DunCan cduncan@pinnaclemedialtd.com Caledonian Bank Ltd.’s liquidators are calling for patience as depositors ask where their money is more than a week after payments began to filter out, according to a letter sent to depositors. Caledonian had almost 1,300 depositors in early February when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accused the bank and its sister com- pany, Caledonian Securities, and three broker-dealers of selling unregistered se- curities as part of a sham stock offering and a penny stock pump-and-dump scheme, according to court documents. The bank filed for bank- ruptcy in February, saying an SEC freeze on many of its assets caused a run on its deposits. It was placed in the hands of joint liq- uidators Keiran Hutchison and Claire Lobell of Ernst & Young to dis- mantle the bank and its associated companies. In last week’s letter to creditors, Mr. Hutchison wrote, “We are addressing all information and enqui- ries but in this regard do ask for depositors to remain pa- tient as both the Caledonian employees and the liquida- tors team now have a signif- icant volume of information to process. As previously ad- vised going forward, as de- positors become KYC [Know Your Customer] and wire compliant, I intend to con- tinue remitting dividends on a rolling, weekly basis. “I commenced dividend distributions on 30 July 2015. As was referenced in my cir- cular of July 29, this was the commencement of the pro- cess but did not mean that all depositors would receive pay- ment immediately as at that point in time a large number of depositors had not pro- vided KYC information and a majority of depositors had not provided payment remit- tance information.” The first payments went out on July 30 to depositors who had less than $20,000 with the bank. Those depos- itors will get their money back in full. Other depositors are waiting for a first interim payment. Those larger depos- itors can expect to receive 75 cents on the dollar in the first payment, according to the July 29 letter from the liqui- dators to depositors. A Grand Court ruling last month by Chief Justice Anthony Smellie sided with creditors in a dispute with the liquidators, interpreting a section of the Companies Law to ensure that deposi- tors with less than $20,000 are paid in full, as part of the priority payments. The bank owes $20,000 or less to 675 depositors. On Feb. 6, the SEC alleged that shares in four shell com- panies were subject to bogus registration statements that purported the stock had been sold to public share- holders in Serbia, Mexico, Ireland, Norway, Panama and Jamaica. The SEC court filings say Caledonian and its co-defen- dants allegedly netted more than US$75 million in the scheme. The U.S. regulator also accused them of using offshore shareholders to conceal the true ownership of the securities. The SEC filed a law- suit in New York against Caledonian Bank Ltd., Caledonian Securities Ltd., Clear Water Securities Inc., Legacy Global Markets S.A. and Verdmont Capital S.A. on Feb. 6. CarOl WInKer cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Three men charged in the Dec. 17, 2014 robbery of Blackbeard’s Liquor Store in Grand Harbour are scheduled for trial starting Tuesday. Andrew Lopez, Bron Webb and Randy Connor are ac- cused of robbing a cashier and a customer, involving amounts of CI$4,604.42 and US$582. They are also charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm. The robbery of the cus- tomer involved stealing a purse containing cash, a driv- er’s license, a credit card and personal items. Trial judge Francis Belle agreed to an application by defense attorneys that the matter be heard by a jury of 12 instead of seven on the basis that the matter is complex. The Judicature Law allows the judge to use his discretion. By 12:30 p.m. Monday, 12 jurors were chosen and the defendants were put in their charge. However, two of the jurors subsequently raised concerns. Justice Belle ques- tioned them and invited opinions from counsel. The two jurors were subsequently excused. The judge instructed the court clerk to arrange for other members of the jury pool to attend on Tuesday morning along with the 10 remaining jurors. Lopez is represented by Bernard Tetlow and Amelia Fosuhene; Webb by Brendan Kelly and Alice Carver; Connor by John Furniss and Crister Brady. Director of Public Prosecutions Cheryll Richards is presenting the case for the prosecution, assisted by Senior Crown counsel Tanya Lobban. The trial has been set for three weeks. Cayman Compass • Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 Liquor store robbery trial set Grand Court jurors who are in the July 1 to Oct. 6 session who were given a return date in court on Monday, Aug. 10, to re- turn on Monday, Aug. 17, at 9:45 a.m. are now to re- port on Tuesday, Aug. 11, at 9:45 a.m. Call the Jury Information line at 945- 5072 for the most up-to- date information. Jury notice some Caledonian depositors still waiting for bank payoutThe islands’ most-trusted news source 4 – EDITORIAL – Opinion&Letters The Cayman Compass welcomes comments, opinions and viewpoints from readers. Letters to the editor can be emailed to editor@pinnaclemedialtd.com, submitted via www.caymancompass.com, sent by post or hand-delivered to the Compass office. Printed and Published by: Caymanian Compass Limited (a subsidiary of Pinnacle Media Ltd) Compass Centre Shedden Road, George Town send us yOur VieWs Or neWs: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman KY1-1108, Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com adVertise With us: Telephone: (345) 949-5111 Email: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Website: www.caymancompass.com PUBLISHERS daVid r. legge and Vicki l. legge EdITOR-In-CHIEf daVid r. legge A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will findtheirownway” “Absolutely, unequivocally, I believe that the money that was given to those churches amounts to nothing more than corruption.” – Marco Archer, February 2013, on the Nation Building Fund The above statement, spoken by Progressives candidate Mr. Archer before he was elected to office, ranks among the strongest utterances of the 2013 political campaign in the Cayman Islands. Fellow candidate Roy McTaggart, running under the Coalition for Cayman flag, voiced a similar sentiment during the same forum: “Smells like vote-buying to me, one way or another.” The program to which they refer, the Nation Building Fund, consisted of the allocation of some $9.5 million under Premier McKeeva Bush’s administration from December 2009 to June 2012, with $4.6 million going to churches or religious groups, $3 million in grants to other individ- uals and organizations, and $1.5 million to a “Young Nation Building Scholars” fund. Mr. Bush vociferously defends the administration of, the allocations from and the integrity of the fund. Step forward 1.5 years in time from remarks made on the campaign trail: Mr. Archer is now finance minister for the Progressives government, and Mr. McTaggart is the ministry’s councilor. On Monday (yesterday), Auditor General Alastair Swarbrick was expected to finally release to the public his long-awaited performance audit report on the “Manage- ment of the Nation Building Programme” – the initiative that our current finance minister and ministerial councilor have described as “corruption” and “vote-buying.” Accordingly, our interest was, so to speak, piqued. Yet, late Friday afternoon, the Compass and other media organizations received a brief email from the Office of the Auditor General, stating that Monday’s news conference had been “postponed to a yet to be determined date.” The expla- nation being that, “In this instance, we have decided to delay the issuance of this important report to give Members [of the Legislative Assembly] more time for their review before making the report public.” We understand this audit began more than a year ago, and the completed report has been available for lawmakers’ perusal for about a week and a half. We members of the press, laypeople though we may be, quite often have those reports in our possession for one day or less before we publish our analysis and commentary. We understand our lawmakers are busy people, but how much time, really, do they need in order to review a report on the government’s activities? The Office of the Auditor General is an indepen- dent oversight body, and the auditor general is appointed directly by Governor Helen Kilpatrick. The auditor general’s stated reason for delaying the report’s publication – to give legislators more time for review – implies that, somehow, there is an opportunity for legislators to have the report altered, amended or other- wise adjusted. We don’t think that is actually the case, but that is the appearance. One explanation for the delay might be that the House is to come into session Wednesday and is expected to meet only through Friday. Therefore, if the report has not yet been made public, it will not be possible for members, including Opposition Leader Bush, to debate or rebut the auditor general’s findings. The only valid explanation for the delay would be over concerns that there is something wrong with the auditor general’s report, an error or omission that can and should be rectified before publication. If that is the case, then they should just come out and say so. If that is not the case, then the report should have been published, as is, on schedule (yesterday), or as close as possible, meaning today. Lest we forget, these are documents whose ultimate intent is to benefit the public, not to be perused in private by those in authority. ‘Nation Building’ audit: Why is the AG delaying its release? Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 • Cayman COmpass From CAymANCompAss.Com “Two Cayman Airways employees arrested for human smuggling,” Aug. 10 The last time I was on a plane heading out of Cayman, there were some extra people on the flight, and they came and removed them. My thing about it is if the U.S. thinks that Cayman is putting their safety at risk, this could have consequences [more] farther-reaching than we know at this time, so please don’t look at this lightly and laugh it off. We need people to be more vigilant or the whole of Cayman could pay the price. Rod Bodden “Missing part of cruise pier report published,” Aug. 10 There is a heavy stench of mismanagement in parts of this project. [Department of Environment Director Gina Ebanks-Petrie] saying that this part was a draft is ba- loney to make it look like there is nothing being done to minimize the threats of this project. The whole Environmental Impact Assessment is techni- cally a “draft” (see the depart- ment’s website) until the end of consultation. Jonathan Barnes “The hidden costs of permanent residence applications,” Aug. 7 Caymanians constantly criticize expats for sending money home to support their families and saving their earnings for when they will be kicked to the curb. What I don’t under- stand is why this is not ex- pected with the way expats are viewed in Cayman even if they’re granted permanent residence or status. Maybe legislation should be passed that would force ex- pats to spend all of their hard- earned cash locally in lieu of being able to send it home. See how quickly the number of work permits changes from 22,000, and see if it works out for the best for Cayman. michael Davis This is the unfortunate side effect of having a small island. If we made living here free, we’d run out of space in no time. I’m not saying I agree with the fees since I’d never want to pay them, but for those who feel “wronged” by them, how else would you bottleneck an influx of people who’d want to remain on this small island? neil shaw “Eight recruits join police ranks,” Aug. 7 I am so very proud that this class of police officers are “all Caymanian or perma- nent resident ...” These clearly are men and women who love this country, and I’m confident that they will work hard to help return Cayman to its former level of safety and security. J.D. mosley-matchett “Banks cutting ties to remittance service providers,” Aug. 6 A number of banks in the Caribbean are being forced by their U.S. correspondent banks to close accounts of local money transfer, cur- rency exchange and other non-bank financial institu- tions; this is the reason why local banks are being forced to close accounts. The reason given is com- pliance worries, but it is more than that, including competi- tion, as stated in many news articles lately. This has prompted the re- action of local regulators to re- quire banks to notify and sup- port their decisions to close accounts, in view that most of these companies are licensed by the same entity that li- censes and supervises banks. Are local banks ques- tioning local regulators of the quality of their supervision by not banking other regu- lated entities? It is impor- tant to see how regulators re- spond to this challenge. Hugo Cuevas-mohr “Emergency services ignored protocol in road death, review says,” Aug. 5 While offering my sin- cerest condolences to the Quappe family, I simultane- ously applaud them for uti- lizing Zak’s unfortunate and tragic death to question, test and strengthen emer- gency services and public safety in Cayman. Best practices should always be the goal of emergency services and public safety, and errors can’t be fixed or improved upon if they are not raised and addressed. michelle moxam “Pensions law under public spotlight,” Aug. 5 Make participation in the pensions a voluntary ar- rangement, and employers can offer it as a perk to pro- spective employees – giving the employees the choice of who to work for. By providing the employers a choice to participate or not, you eliminate a great deal of mandatory enforcement which seems to be ineffective anyway, therefore freeing manpower within the government to allo- cate to other areas. pierre Lautischer “Reef recovery effort continues,” Aug. 4 The coral has not been left lying around on the ocean bottom for a year. It has been placed in a nursery environment and is thriving. Over 90 percent of the corals that have been reattached so far have survived. If nothing was done to the site and all the rubble left in place, then every time there is a storm the damage would spread and continue to kill even more coral. Mr. Ariza and myself have not only studied coral restoration but have also participated on other proj- ects such as the Maasdam grounding in 1996. The site is continu- ally monitored by the Department of Environment, and as far as the cruise ship docks go ... we will continue to work and save this reef for the residents of Grand Cayman until we are either finished the job or instructed to stop by the department. At this point in the game people should be looking at saving every piece of coral we can. Lois Hatcher “‘Magic’ act a class act: Time to take a bow,” Aug. 4 My fiancee and I di- verted our around-the- world, six-month dive trip to Grand Cayman specifi- cally to help with the reef recovery. As PADI rescue divers, we are suitably qualified, and with guid- ance from the local team we were able to help, albeit for the short time we were on the island. What happened is an ecological nightmare, and for a wonderful island that I only visit for the wondrous diving, I’m so pleased to be a part of such an effort. I truly wish that the story of this unfortunate accident could reach a wider audience, as divers the world around would come to help. Craig Hughes Garbage in Georgia: ‘out of sight, out of mind’ Macon Telegraph ediTorial Board When we talk about gar- bage and landfills, let’s be serious. Out of sight, out of mind. Once our trash has been picked up, we don’t re- ally care where it goes, we just don’t want to see – or smell it – again. Government leaders know this, too, so it’s hard for them to get the electorate fired up about spending millions of dollars to close, monitor and open a new landfill or pay to ship re- fuse somewhere else. The Macon Landfill has had various projections of remaining life almost from the day it opened in 1962. Due to changes in environ- mental standards, the un- lined landfill has been a thorn in the side of city leaders for decades. In 1993, many of Georgia’s 181 mu- nicipal solid waste land- fills were just big holes in the ground, according to Telegraph archives, that let liquid from poisonous gar- bage seep into the water supply. The federal govern- ment stepped in and almost half of the state’s landfills shut down. The new require- ments of plastic-lined land- fills and monitoring were beyond the financial where- withal of many areas. Thus was born the idea of re- gional landfills. Bibb County and the city of Macon were members of the Piedmont Regional Solid Waste Commission, that studied the regional concept and whether it could make money. Yes, there’s gold in garbage. The regional idea never took hold here, partly because of factionalism and because no community wants to see itself as a regional dumping ground. Now the landfill is in the forefront yet again. It has failed Environmental Protection Division inspec- tions in April and June. Heads have rolled, new lead- ership and procedures have been put in place and it ap- pears that when the EPD re- turns this month, inspectors should be pleased with the progress. However, the fact remains the landfill needs to close. We know that. We’ve known that. The estimated cost is US$9.3 million. While it’s not on the average tax- payer’s mind now, it ought to be. Our elected leaders need to lead. This can has been kicked too many times. © 2015, macon (Georgia) Telegraph5 LOCAL&REGIONAL ACAPULCO, Mexico (AP) – Miguel Angel Jimenez, a po- litical activist who played a prominent early role in the search for 43 students and other missing people in southern Mexico, was slain over the weekend, an asso- ciate said Monday. The bullet-ridden body of Jimenez, a member of the Union of Towns and Organizations, or UPOEG for its initials in Spanish, was found in a car near a town where he had helped found a community police program. UPOEG leader Bruno Placido confirmed the death and said Jimenez had re- ceived threats related to his search efforts. Jimenez began orga- nizing searches for 43 teachers’ college students who went missing after they were detained by police last September in Guerrero state. Prosecutors say corrupt local police in the city of Iguala turned the students over to members of a drug cartel, the Guerreros Unidos, who killed the students and incinerated their bodies. But the searches Jimenez led into the mountains sur- rounding the city turned up clandestine graves filled with other bodies. Placido said the death threats may have come from Guerreros Unidos and Jimenez had returned to his hometown of Xaltianguis in Guerrero to be safer. Jimenez was found dead on the outskirts of Xaltianguis, and relatives buried him there Sunday. Jimenez played a key role in expanding the search ef- fort to include hundreds of other Iguala residents whose relatives disappeared during the cartel’s reign of kidnappings and killings. While he gradually re- linquished leadership of the search efforts after November, he continued to supply information and said he had new leads. “He was always looking for somebody to help,” said Xitlali Miranda, one of the activists in the Iguala searches. “He was one of the first people to say, ‘If these aren’t the students’ (bodies), then who are they?’” In July, Mexico’s attorney general’s office confirmed that at least 60 clandestine graves with 129 bodies have been found so far on the out- skirts of Iguala. Most of the bodies remain unidentified. Jimenez also organized community police efforts to fight kidnappings, killings and extortion by criminal gangs, and drives to docu- ment vote fraud in June’s midterm elections. In an April interview with Kara Andrade, a doc- toral student at American University, Jimenez said he had received death threats from “people who are in- volved in things and whose interests I have impacted.” “They’ve chased me, in my town [Xaltianguis] they’ve tailed and followed me from place to place,” Jimenez said. Cayman Compass • Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 CALL US TODAY! 623.1400 www.capitalrealty.com.ky CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF HELPING HOMEOWNERS FIND THEIR PERFECT HOME. TEN FULL TIME PROFESSIONAL CIREBA TRAINED REALTORS TO ASSIST Police: Liquor law ‘inadequate’ to deal with problem bars Brent Fuller bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com The law that regulates li- quor licensed premises on Grand Cayman is inade- quate in regard to a myriad of criminal offenses and “anti-social behaviors” that can occur in the vicinity around bars and night- clubs, a statement from the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service Monday indicates. The general response from the police came after the Cayman Compass asked about reports circulating the islands that prostitution was occurring at one George Town bar typically considered a “hot spot” by the RCIPS. The police service indi- cated it was looking into those reports, along with the Cayman Islands Immigration Department, but could not confirm whether any prosti- tution had happened inside the business. In June, the Liquor Licensing Board of Grand Cayman ended the probation period it had placed on two other local bars for more than a year due to problems at those locations. Police reports indicated things had calmed down at Archie’s on Shedden Road since a mid-morning po- lice raid in 2013 uncov- ered illegal gambling oper- ations there. Probation was also lifted during the same meeting for East End’s Pirates Cove bar. However, RCIPS Chief Inspector Claudia Brady said that three months prior to probation being lifted, the bar still had trouble “around its premises,” including an assault that sent one victim off island for medical treat- ment last month. Representatives of the bar told the liquor board that violent incidents were largely occurring in areas outside the premises, and that they could not control them, but Chief Inspector Brady said the bar was still considered a “hot spot” – or trouble spot – by police. “[Problem] businesses often have their licenses reinstated because the Liquor License Law restricts the premises of the establishment to mean the buildings of these busi- nesses themselves and not the parking lot or other con- tiguous area where the ma- jority of offenses occur,” Superintendent Angelique Howell said Monday. “We have attempted prosecution of li- quor licenses holders in the past, but these prosecutions were not successful due to this restrictive definition. “Until the law is amended, the holders of these liquor li- censes will most likely not be prosecuted for [any] offenses.” In the meantime, Superintendent Howell said police are dealing with clubs known to have problems by carrying out weekend raids and random nightly checks, particularly around closing time. In December, police were congratulated by Liquor Licensing Board members for their response to reports of criminal activity out- side clubs and other busi- nesses at the southern end of Seven Mile Beach. “The police should be commended for the job they’re doing out there,” said board member Bernice Richards. “The response is very good. You’re not having to wait like before.” Chief Inspector Brady told board members that police have focused more resources in the downtown and West Bay Road areas, particularly on routine foot patrols, since a series of business robberies occurred in October 2014. However, the department’s staffing and budget is not un- limited, she said. “How long we can sus- tain that is another ques- tion,” she said. Court lists wrong defendant Brent Fuller bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Cayman Islands court system listed the wrong name for a defendant in a criminal case due before the Summary Court on Monday. The incorrect name listed was that of former Cayman Islands attorney gen- eral, former Human Rights Commission chairman and ex-Cayman Finance chairman Richard Haylock Coles. Mr. Coles has not been charged with any crime in the Cayman Islands and was not the defendant in the insulting the modesty of a woman case before the court on Monday. “The Summary Court list for Magistrate [Kirsty Ann] Gunn’s court that was pub- lished on Friday incorrectly included the name of Richard Haylock Coles as a defen- dant,” a notice from Clerk of the Court Kevin McCormac stated Monday. “That was an error in the court system. The defendant is Richard T. Cole.” How the wrong name came to be listed on the court docket was not explained by the court system, but Mr. McCormac indicated officials were addressing the problem. “We are ensuring that the error is not repeated and I apologize to you all for any un- necessary work this may have caused,” Mr. McCormac said. The Cayman Islands Tourism Association and the National Workforce Development Agency will host a tourism networking session at the Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort on Friday, Aug. 14. The theme of the event, from 1-5 p.m., is “Educate, Engage, Involve.” According to organizers, it aims to educate the public on the wide range of occupations in the tourism industry and how to pre- pare for those careers. “Tourism is a criti- cally important industry to the Cayman economy,” Brian Holland, director of the National Workforce Development Agency, said in a press release. “NWDA is pleased to work with CITA to increase aware- ness of what tourism can offer Caymanians for a ful- filling career.” A panel of industry pro- fessionals will speak and answer questions from the audience. Panelists will in- clude tourism director Rosa Harris and 2015 Stingray Tourism Award re- cipients Sarah Hydes of the Grand Cayman Marriott and Joelle McCrae of the Cayman Turtle Farm. Anyone interested in learning more about the tourism industry is invited to attend. “We look forward to this opportunity to provide in- terested persons with valu- able information to en- hance their future growth,” tourism association presi- dent Ken Hydes said in the release. “We invite respec- tive stakeholders to take full advantage of this forum as we partner with the NWDA to increase aware- ness in the community.” For more information, contact the Cayman Islands Tourism Association at 949-8522 or the National Workforce Development Agency at 945-3114. Public invited to networking session for tourism jobs bahamas defense force detains 143 haitian migrants on Packed sailboat NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) – Authorities in the Bahamas have detained 143 migrants from Haiti on a crowded sailboat at the southern edge of the island chain. The Royal Bahamas Defense Force says a pa- trol boat stopped the vessel west of Ragged Island. Among the migrants were 23 women and three children. All were taken Monday to a military base in Nassau for fur- ther investigation. The Bahamas typically repatriates migrants who are detained at sea. A Defense Force state- ment says eight Cubans were also apprehended last Wednesday in a vessel off Grand Bahama. The force has detained nearly 1,000 migrants this year. It aims to educate the public on the wide range of occupations in the tourism industry and how to prepare for those careers. activist who searched for missing students killedTUESDAY, AUGUST 11 MOONLIGHT & MOVIES: Tonight’s free film at 7 p.m. is “Home” (PG). Families are invited to Gardenia Court in Camana Bay to set up a picnic on the grass, or just bring a blanket, relax and enjoy the show on the outdoor big screen. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12 NATIONAL PENSIONS: The public is invited to a discussion of the National Pensions (Amendment) Bill in West Bay at the Shirley Kidd Memorial Hall at Sir John A. Cumber Primary School, 7:30 p.m. THURSDAY, AUGUST 13 NATIONAL PENSIONS BILL: The public is invited to the final meeting to discuss the National Pensions (Amendment) Bill. It takes place in George Town at the Town Hall, 7:30 p.m. MONDAY, AUG. 17 BRAC POLICE: New area commander Inspector Wendy Parchment will hold an introductory meeting with the public at the Aston Rutty Centre between 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. TUESDAY, AUG. 18 MOONLIGHT & MOVIES: Tonight’s free film at 7 p.m. is “The Hundred- Foot Journey” (PG). Families are invited to Gardenia Court in Camana Bay to set up a picnic on the grass, or just bring a blanket, relax and enjoy the show on the outdoor big screen. THURSDAY, AUG. 20 BRAC COURT: Summary Court convenes in the Aston Rutty Civic Centre today at 10 a.m. and continues tomorrow. PUB QUIZ: At Fidel Murphy’s. $10 per person. Six people maximum per team. All proceeds to the Humane Society program for transferring dogs to new homes in the U.S. Call, 949-5189 to reserve a table, or email sarah.dyer.81@gmail.com. SUMMER CAMPS BRAC CAMP: Summer Culture Camp, continues through Friday, Aug. 14. 8:30 a.m. to noon. Heritage House, ages 5–13, Cost $50 per child per week, Contact simones@candw.ky or 917-7718 for more information. RUGBY CAMP: The CRFU hosts a summer rugby camp for children ages 8-14, Aug. 24-28, 8 a.m. to noon. Cost per child is $125 for the week and includes a rugby shirt. Coaching by members of the Cayman national rugby team. For more information or to register, contact Edward Westin, 927-1337 or cme_westin@hotmail.com. CAMP JAM: All youth ages 13 to 17 are invited to attend Camp JAM, a creative Christian Arts Camp at the Family Life Centre, 6-9 p.m., Aug. 10-14. Activities include singing, dancing, instruments, and drama. Call 949-9393 to register. Cost is $35. A team from Anderson University will work with the youth. NATIONAL GALLERY SESSIONS: Summer sessions of art-related activities for kids every Thursday till Aug. 20, 2-4 p.m. Free, but space is limited. Register at education@ nationalgallery.org or 945-8111. CREATIVE CAMPERS: In session through Aug. 28, for ages 3-13. Runs 7 a.m.-5 p.m. at Elmslie Memorial Church Hall. $80 per week includes camp fee, field trips, snacks and lunch. Activities include arts and crafts, sports, science, talent show, Bible study. Contact 324-8707 or creativecampers@live.com. ART AND CRAFT: Organized by the Visual Arts Society. Every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, until Aug. 12, from 8 a.m. to noon. $45 per session or $120 per week, or $485 for the month. Camp takes place on the grounds of Pedro Castle at the Watler House Art Studio. Visit visualartcayman@yahoo.com. CLUBS, ORGANIZATIONS ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS: Meets daily to help with drinking problems. For more information, call 926-9044 or visit www.caymanaa.org. NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS: Is available for substance abuse help. Call the info line at 929–NANA (6262). ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS: Meets daily to help with drinking problems. For more information, call 926-9044 or visit www. caymanaa.org. AL-ANON GROUP MEETING: Are you troubled by someone’s drinking? Al-Anon Family Groups can help. Call 928-8843 or email caymanalanon@gmail.com for meeting times. OVERCOMERS OUTREACH: A Christ- centered 12-Step Recovery Group addressing addictions and those affected by them, bridging the gap between 12-Step groups and churches. Meetings at CI Baptist Church, Pedro Castle Road, Mondays, 7 p.m. For details, contact Virginia Castillo at 946-2422, or visit www.overcomersoutreach.org. GRAND CAYMAN TOASTMASTERS CLUB: meets at George Town Public Library 6-7:15 p.m. every Thursday. This is a chapter of Toastmasters International, geared toward development of public speaking and leadership skills. Contact George R. Ebanks, 916-0687/ 322- 9369 or georger.ebanks@gmail.com for more information. ROTARACT CLUB OF GRAND CAYMAN: meets 7 a.m. every Thursday at Black Trumpet on the Paseo in Camana Bay. Contact rotaractky@gmail.com or visit www. rotaractky.org for more info. ROTARACT BLUE OF CAYMAN: Meets Wednesdays 6 p.m., at Full of Beans Cafe, Pasadora Place on Smith Road. Contact rotaractblue@gmail. com or check www.rotaractblue.org. LEO CLUB OF GRAND CAYMAN: Meets first and third Wednesdays of the month, 6:30 p.m. at the Lions Community Centre. For more information, contact Leo Secretary Letisha Allen 924-2819. THE LIONS CLUB OF GRAND CAYMAN: Meets every first and third Thursday 7:30 p.m. at the Lions Community Centre. For more information, email LionsClubGCM@hotmail.com. THE LIONS CLUB OF TROPICAL GARDENS: meets every first and third Tuesday of the month at the Lions Centre 7:30 p.m. Members of the public are invited to attend. ROTARY CLUB OF GRAND CAYMAN SUNRISE: Service club meetings 7 a.m. every Wednesday at George Town Yacht Club, 612 North Sound Road. For more information, check website at RotarySunrise.ky or contact info@RotarySunrise.ky. KIWANIS CLUB OF GRAND CAYMAN: Meets first and third Wednesdays of the month, 12:30 p.m., at Britannia Golf Course Restaurant. Projects include promoting well- being of children in the community and schools. For more information, email president@kiwanis.ky or view www.kiwanis.ky. OPTIMIST CLUB: Of George Town, Grand Cayman meets first and third Thursdays at the Hibiscus Conference Room, George Town Hospital at 6:30 p.m. Email optimistcayman@yahoo.com. THE MODEL AIRPLANE FLYING CLUB: Meets Sundays 2 p.m. at the J. Bodden Marlpit/Old Raceway. Call 916–2327 for more information. PARENT AND TODDLER PLAY GROUP: For children from 2 weeks to 4 years meets Mondays, 9:30- 11:30 a.m. in the South Sound Community Centre. Children must be accompanied by parent or helper. Toys, activities, light refreshments provided. $6 per session per family. For information, email sspg@foxwood.ky. HEARTS THROUGH HANDS: Meets Wednesdays 9:30 a.m. to noon at The Family Life Centre, Room 10, Academy Way. Women make crafts for charity and missions. For information, call 946–3067 or 947–1863. OUR ANGELS FOUNDATION: With the support of Cayman HospiceCare, welcomes all to the Conch Shell House Wednesdays 6 p.m. for Full Circle Grief Recovery group support meetings. This is a free service for everyone who has experienced loss. THE WOMEN’S HEALTH CENTRE: With the Breastfeeders Support Group is offering Breastfeeding Clinics every Thursday 10 a.m. to noon in the Women’s Health Centre. No appointments, no fees. Phone 244–2649. CAYMAN BRIDGE CLUB: Meets Tuesdays 7:15 p.m. at Comfort Suites, West Bay Road. For further information, contact Helen Haines at 947-3217 or Jane Bird at 947-1903. BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL WOMEN’S CLUB: Meets third Wednesday of every month, Governor’s Square Boardroom at 5:30 p.m. Visit www.facebook.com/ BPWGrandCayman. BREASTFEEDING SUPPORT GROUP: Holds MothertoMother meetings first Tuesday of every month, 3-4 p.m. outside Women’s Health Centre at the Cayman Islands Hospital. Children welcome. Contact Women’s Health Centre at 244-2649. LIFE UNDERWRITERS ASSOCIATION: Advises all members that the monthly meeting luncheon is held on the last Thursday of each month. YBPW: Meets every third Monday of each month at the Woman’s Resource Centre. GENERAL INTEREST NCVO SCHOOL YEAR: Miss Nadine’s Preschool and Jack and Jill Nursery are registering for the new school year, which starts Aug. 31. Both facilities are under the auspices of the National Council of Voluntary Organizations. Hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Contact Heather Lopez, Director, at 945-1078 or ncvopreschool@ncvo.org.ky. Cost includes breakfast, lunch and one snack daily. NCVO VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: Volunteers are needed for various activities within the National Council of Voluntary Organisations’ Children Services programs. Contact Alta Solomon at 949-2124 or ncvocoordinator@ncvo.org.ky. SUMMER BOOK SWAP: Every Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. until the end of August, at the Learning Tree, Cassia Court in Camana Bay. Book lovers can find titles for all ages and interests. Browse the selection, take your pick and replace it with one of your favorites to help spread the joy of reading. REEF RESTORATION: Certified divers are invited to work on the Cayman Magic Reef restoration in George Town. A schedule of work dates and times is posted on Facebook under Cayman Magic Reef Recovery. Dates, times and places are listed under Events, for volunteers to check and sign up. NATIONAL GALLERY: The gallery has extended hours for the summer: Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission to the exhibition halls is free and open to the public. Current exhibition is the gallery’s permanent collection. A 20-minute documentary film, “Caymanian Art – A New Frontier,” by Jacob Olde VI will be screened on a loop throughout the exhibition “All Access.” PUBLIC FEEDBACK: The Ministry of Education, Employment and Gender Affairs and the Department of Labour and Pensions has released the Labour Relations Bill, 2015 and the National Pensions (Amendment) Bill, 2015 for public consultation. These bills can be accessed on the Ministry’s website, www.education.gov.ky/ labourpensions. In addition to participation at district meetings, the public can email their feedback on the bills to lpl@gov.ky. BETHESDA COUNSELING CENTER: At 68 Mary St. Caters to all who seek help. Call 946-6575. Open Monday to Friday 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Appointments available Saturdays and late evenings. Center is owned and operated by the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. ARTISANS MARKET: Camana Bay Artisans Market every Wednesday. Visual Arts Society has artists displaying arts, crafts, paintings, prints, hand-crafted jewelry and ceramics for sale between noon and 8 p.m. near KARoo. For more information about being a displaying artist, contact info@ visualartcayman.com. DEMENTIA/ALZHEIMER’S SUPPORT GROUP: This group meets on the last Wednesday of each month at the Catboat Club clubhouse, North Church Street. All are invited to attend. For more information, call 924-4170 or email info@ adacayman.com. SPECIAL OLYMPICS: Volunteers are needed on Tuesdays from 5:30- 6:45 p.m. to assist with training athletes in track and field, bocce and football. Truman Bodden Sports Complex. Contact Penny McDowall, 516-2578, soci@candw.ky or pjmcdowall@gmail.com. MUSEUM TOURS: The National Museum provides guided tours for students and school groups free of cost. Students will gain an understanding of Cayman’s geological formation, flora and fauna, seafaring and rope-making heritage, political history and more. Contact the museum to book a tour in advance at 949-8368 or email info@museum.ky. PINK LADIES: Coffee Shop at Cayman Islands Hospital is open Monday-Friday 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. for breakfast, lunch, drinks, snacks. Takeout orders welcome, call 244-2661. Funds are donated back to the community. Contact pinkladiescayman@gmail.com. For more Community Calendar events, visit www.compasscayman.com/ caycompass/portal/community-calendar. The islands’ most-trusted news source 6 Community Calendar ■ Community Calendar is published Tuesdays and Thursdays. It is available to charitable or nonprofit organizations. Items should be submitted at least three working days before publication. Information must include name of sender, signature and contact number. ■ Items may be faxed to 949-2662, brought to the Cayman Compass office on Shedden Rd. or emailed to cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com at least three days in advance of publication. Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 • Cayman Compass The islands’ most-trusted news source 7 BAGHDAD (AP) – Two bombs striking neighborhoods in Iraq’s eastern Diyala prov- ince killed at least 42 people Monday night, officials said, less than a month after it was the scene of one of the deadliest attacks to hit the country in recent years. The deadlier of Monday’s two attacks happened near the provincial capital, Baquba, which is 35 miles northeast of Baghdad. Police said a suicide car bomb tore through a marketplace, killing at least 35 people and wounding 72. The second took place in the village of Kanaan, where officials said a suicide bomber blew himself up in a residential area, killing seven people and wounding 15. Hospital officials cor- roborated the casualty fig- ures. All spoke on condi- tion of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to journalists. Residents in Diyala have been calling for greater pro- tection from security forces after the Islamic State group bombed a crowded market- place last month, killing 115 people, including women and children. The mostly Shiite victims were gathered to mark the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The government in Baghdad vowed to apprehend the culprits and better secure Diyala. But anger is rife in the volatile province, where a number of towns were cap- tured by the Islamic State group last year. Iraqi forces and Kurdish fighters since have retaken those areas, but clashes between the militants and security forces continue. The Sunni militant group has been behind several sim- ilar large-scale attacks on civilians or military check- points as it seeks to expand its territory. The group cur- rently controls about a third of Iraq and Syria in a self-de- clared “caliphate.” One of the key orga- nizers for the new group, former United Democratic Party Bodden Town district chairman Chris Saunders, said he was keen to recruit and put together a “strong group of like-minded individ- uals” to form a new govern- ment following the 2017 vote. Mr. Saunders said he “refused to stay” in the former UDP, now known as the Cayman Islands Democratic Party, after the 2013 vote in which he was an unsuccessful candidate. He said general dissatisfaction with Cayman’s two main political parties led him to collaborate on the current recruitment effort. “The parties are so interchangeable … they’re two sides of the same coin and [the coin] is losing its value,” Mr. Saunders said. One potential recruit for the new political group, potentially as its titular head, is former House Speaker and govern- ment minister Linford Pierson. Mr. Pierson, 74, has so far de- clined to speak publicly about his plans – if any – for 2017. However, Mr. Saunders said he was keen to recruit Mr. Pierson to the team as an elder statesman to lead a group of younger political office-seekers. The group, which has not officially selected its name, has not yet filed with the Cayman Islands Elections Office in order to form a new political party as is now re- quired by the constitution. Mr. Saunders said the group’s general political vision would be one for a unified Cayman Islands, rather than one of divisiveness, which he said has too often plagued the political landscape over the past two decades. “Caymanians today are of diverse backgrounds and nationalities and unless we can recognize and accept that, we’re going to fail as a people,” he said. Despite being keen on the recruiting effort, Mr. Saunders said he wanted to ensure there were enough strong candidates in the po- litical group ahead of 2017 to win and to form a govern- ment. He said he had no in- terest in the group members “sitting on the back-bench” or the opposition benches. “We won’t run a campaign unless we can put together a proper group,” he said. Cayman Compass • Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 To book your space call 949-5111 or email info@pinnaclemedialtd.com It’s Time for The 2nd LARGEST Shopping Season of the Year! Books Cell Phones Sports Equipment Tutoring After School Programs Health/Beauty Products & Services School Supplies Clothes Uniforms Shoes Backpacks Book Bags Lunch Boxes Computers Electronics Back-to-School Checklist Consumers spend an average of $428 just for back-to-school. 50% of consumers do back-to-school shopping in August. The lift-out feature will be inside the Cayman Compass and published on Tuesday, 18 August 2015. and published on Tuesday, 18 August 2015. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Mr. Saunders Suicide bombings in Diyala province, Iraq, kill at least 42 It was the scene of one of the deadliest attacks to hit the country in recent years. New party eyes 2017 run Hungary receives 110,000 asylum requests BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) – Hungary has received 110,000 asylum requests so far in 2015, more than double the total for all of last year, the head of the country’s im- migration office said Monday. Zsuzsanna Vegh said reg- istered asylum seekers were directed to one of Hungary’s refugee centers to await deci- sions over their requests, but that most leave the country before their cases are settled. “A significant number of those who we send (to the centers) never arrive at the institution,” Vegh said on state radio, adding that they were now sheltering some 4,500 refugees, double their normal capacity. Hungary received 42,777 ap- plications for asylum in 2014.The islands’ most-trusted news source 8 largely reflect the public de- bate over the proposal to build two new cruise piers in George Town harbor. The majority of those in opposition are connected to the marine and water sports industry or are tourists who cite concerns about damage to reefs and dive sites. Those supporting the project are largely from the local retail community, the consultants note. A breakdown of the re- sponses, solicited as part of the environmental impact assessment process, sug- gests the “no” vote resonated more strongly with tourists. Of the 347 respondents who objected to the project, 142 were residents and 205 were visitors. Of the 111 respondents in favor, 110 were residents and one was a visitor. Much of the opposition focused on the adverse im- pact on the reefs and wrecks in George Town harbor. Many of those in oppo- sition to the project sug- gest it will do irreparable damage to the primary at- traction that brings tourists to the Cayman Islands – its marine environment. Some raised concerns about the cost and feasi- bility of a proposal to relo- cate the coral and the his- toric Balboa shipwreck in an effort to offset the environ- mental damage. Of particular concern to tourists was the poten- tial impact on the Eden Rock, Devil’s Grotto and Cheeseburger Reef dive sites. Others raised concerns that the Cayman Islands’ in- frastructure would not be able to handle the influx of tourists anticipated by those pushing for cruise piers in the capital. Opponents of the pier also queried whether the economic impact would be worth the expense, sug- gesting most of the jobs associated with pier con- struction would go to work permit holders. The consul- tant’s conclusion that the project represented no threat to Seven Mile Beach was also questioned by some re- spondents in the consulta- tion process. Those in support of the project focused on the im- pact on the economy. Some respondents cast doubt on the amount of coral habitat likely to be af- fected by the project. Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 • Cayman Compass The consultation exercise, though it brought out strong emotions on either side, was not intended as a referendum on the pier project. Majority of public submissions oppose cruise pier construction CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Dock consultation: the responses The consultants received 473 responses on the port project from the public, including locals and tourists. Of those, 347 objected to the project, 111 expressed sup- port, and 15 were either neutral or undecided. Here’s a snapshot of what some of the respon- dents had to say: “I own a dive shop in the Turks and Caicos Islands and saw the devastation done to the reefs in grand Turk. Please do not make the same mis- take our government did in allowing the facility to be developed. Many of my divers have told me they will not come to grand Turk anymore if they built a cruise [dock]. They kept their word and did not come back. Think before you act.” – Debbie Been, dive operator “PadI implores the Cayman Islands government to cease plans to initiate this project, and seek al- ternative solutions to mitigate the situation and not destroy the priceless natural underwater assets belonging to grand Cayman Island. We would be pleased to help in any way you deem appropriate and stand ready to assist.” – Drew Richardson, president and CEO of Professional Association of Dive Instructors, Worldwide “The plans for the port call for some 1,600 [feet] on our coastline to be used for this project. If you put that against the 53 miles of coastline that we have, it is approximately 0.6 percent of our coast that will be impacted and I contend this is accept- able, bearing in mind the benefit to our Caymanian people and to our economy. Cruise tourism is some 20 percent of our economy, without considering the spin-off benefits of visitors returning as stay-over guests.” – Gene Thompson, developer “Cayman is the only significant cruise port in the Caribbean area without a berthing facility and it will run significant risks to its long-term cruise- related business if it doesn’t provide [a dock]. The lack of a dock facility means there is little oppor- tunity to manage the overall port experience, in- cluding disembarking the ship, managing ground transportation and access to shore excursion ex- periences. When compared to other destina- tions, Cayman offers a truly inferior guest expe- rience.” – Brynley Davies, Image Group, cruise photo concessionaire “The reason why we are standing up to this battle and pushing #savecayman is not for the self inter- ests, but for the same reason why our visitors come here to begin with – the crystal clear waters of the Cayman Islands, its beautiful reefs and gorgeous white sandy beaches.” – Keith Sahm, Sunset House “I work in the tourism industry and the proposed cruise berthing facility, I feel, would be a great asset to our business by allowing more and larger cruise ships to be received on island and in turn create more revenue for the island.” – Marques Riddick “dear Ms. governor, my name is aidan. I think we should not destroy the coral reef because lots of fish live there. If you kill all the fish, local fish- erman can’t sell fish to restaurants, then we have to import fish and it will cost more money. Thank [you] for reading my letter.” – Aidan, Grade 6, Montessori by the Sea MLAs’ secretary arrested in home invasion case Third CAL employee arrested in human smuggling case time they could be held. The home invasion star- tled the community and prompted a fundraiser to collect the largest Crime Stoppers reward in Cayman’s history, topping out at more than $110,000 for informa- tion leading to the arrest and prosecution of the robbers. In the home invasion, the children’s parents were out for the evening when three men, all armed and wearing masks, broke in a little before 9 p.m. The girl was walking through the main hall on her way for a drink of water or to the bathroom, when the men kicked in the door. One man guarded the baby sitter and the girl, while the other two, ac- cording to the family, went directly to the back bed- room where there was cash that had been raised in a Rotary Sunrise raffle. “Everybody believes this was a targeted situation,” the children’s father said in an interview a week after the crime. On Monday, in an in- terview with the Cayman Compass, the father said the police had been in touch regularly with updates and he was “encouraged by the recent news.” The Compass is not naming the family because of the young children involved. smuggling. Neither woman has been charged and both were released on bail, ac- cording to police. The scheme, as it has been described to the Cayman Compass by a number of sources, in- volved the suspects ac- cepting payment in ex- change for helping Cuban nationals reach the U.S. The Cubans involved were in Cayman legally, either as visitors or on work per- mits, sources said. Once they arrived in the U.S., as per long- standing U.S. immigration policy, they were given preferential treatment under the so-called “wet- foot, dry-foot” policy. The wet-foot, dry-foot policy means Cubans who reach U.S. territory automati- cally get a green card – permanent residency – after a year and a day. “This investigation in- volves foreign nationals who were legitimately here in Cayman and whose de- parture was facilitated with the use of false iden- tities,” an RCIPS statement released Friday said. Assistant Chief Immigration Officer Garfield “Gary” Wong said human smuggling cases are not something his de- partment deals with “on a regular basis.” Human smuggling is defined by the 2015 Immigration Law as facili- tating or helping with “the transportation, harbouring or movement into or out of the Islands,” of someone without permission to be here. If convicted, a human smuggling charge can re- sult in up to seven years in prison and a $50,000 fine. Cayman Airways, in a statement released Friday following the arrest of the two employees, said an internal investiga- tion launched by the air- line “resulted in CAL iden- tifying and reporting to the relevant authorities, certain passenger move- ments which appeared to have been contrary to Immigration regulations.” The statement con- tinued, “Since that time, CAL has been fully coop- erative and transparent with the relevant author- ities as they conducted their investigations. These investigations have so far resulted in the arrest of two Cayman Airways employees on suspicion of activities contrary to immigration law and these employees have been removed from active duty while the in- vestigations continue.” According to the airline, its operations “had not [been] affected in any way by this investigation and CAL is unable to comment further at this time given that the investigations are still in progress.” CAL did not immedi- ately comment on the ar- rest of its third employee. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 pakistan horrifieD by chilD sex abuse blackmail HUSSAIN KHAN WALA, Pakistan (AP) – In this dusty town near Pakistan’s border with India, families kept quiet for years about the blackmail gang that locals believe filmed some 270 children being sexually abused, fearful the videos could appear online or sold in markets for as little as 50 cents. Those living in Hussain Khan Wala say the gang forced children at gunpoint to be abused or drugged them into submission. It was only after one family spoke up that others rose against the gang, with police later ar- resting 11 suspects. But as Pakistan recoils in horror at the scope of the abuse, the case shows the dangers here facing poor chil- dren, many of whom work as domestic servants and face abuse at the hands of their employers. It also raises ques- tions about how such a gang could operate for years, with some questioning Pakistan’s police and political elite. “They destroyed me,” one victim said. “They de- stroyed my family. They just killed me” The Associated Press does not identify victims of sexual abuse. The gang likely began targeting its victims years earlier, Kasur district police chief Rai Babar Saeed told the AP. Saeed said police al- ready confiscated some 30 videos, nearly all of which included sexual abuse of children as young as 12. The gang then used the videos to extort money from fami- lies, threatening to release them publicly and shame their children and their rel- atives, Saeed said. If a family could not pay, there were some cases in which a victim would be forced to find another child to be filmed being abused, said Latif Sarra, a lawyer representing some victims. He, as well as other town residents interviewed by the AP, said the gang filmed at least 270 children being abused. Saeed said he did not know of that many chil- dren being involved. “It was a gang that has 15 to 21 members. These people have been … raping boys and girls under the age of 15 and then filming them since 2009,” Sarra said. “It is a case of extor- tion. It is their business.” Saeed said authorities began investigating the case in June after receiving a complaint, but many fam- ilies declined to press charges, even after officers drove through the town of Hussain Khan Wala, asking over loudspeakers for vic- tims to come forward. But on Aug. 4, Pakistani media reported that hundreds of protesters descended on a Kusar police station and briefly fought with officers, demanding investigators take action. On Monday, a court in Kasur ordered five suspects in the case held without bail. Six others also have been arrested in connection to the case. Haseem Amir, accused by police of being one of the ringleaders in the gang, shouted to journalists from lockup: “We have got nothing to do with it!” “We have been trapped!” Amir yelled. A lawyer for Amir and the others arrested could not be immediately reached. The allegations have dominated Pakistani news- papers and television sta- tions. Many compared it to the case of Javed Iqbal, a man in Punjab’s provin- cial capital, Lahore, who one day in 1999 confessed to kidnapping, sexually abusing and dissolving the bodies of some 100 children in acid. Families identified their children from scraps of clothing left behind or by the snapshots he took of each of them before their death. Later sentenced to death, Iqbal killed himself in prison in October 2001. The home invasion startled the community and prompted a fundraiser to collect the largest Crime Stoppers reward in Cayman’s history.The islands’ most-trusted news source 9 Two killed at Ikea store in Sweden An attacker stabbed two people to death and wounded another at an Ikea store in the central Swedish city of Vasteras on Monday afternoon, police and store officials said. Cayman Compass • Tuesday augusT 11, 2015 Her Majesty’s Cayman Islands Prison Service Announces the death of an Officer and Friend A Memorial Service for Officer Catron will be held at the Church of God Chapel, Walkers Road, George Town on Tuesday, 11-Aug-2015 at 5:30 pm. Let us all be encouraged as we remember and honor his legacy of commitment, dedication, and service. David Bronson Catron 9-Apr-1958 25-Jul-2015 Migrant crisis alarms Britain, but fears clash with facts LEYSDOWN-ON-SEA, England (AP) – This summer, Britain’s headlines have been domi- nated by one story – thou- sands of migrants massing in France, aiming to get to England through the Channel Tunnel. Britain’s jingoistic tabloids say it’s an inva- sion. Prime Minister David Cameron has called the Syrians, Afghans, Eritreans and others “a swarm” headed for British shores. They are not flocking to places like Leysdown-on-Sea, about 50 miles from the mi- grant camps at Calais. In fact, there are hardly any migrants to be seen in this faded seaside town, with its pubs, chip shops and amuse- ment arcades that seem scarcely to have changed since the 1970s. It’s a poor corner of England where good jobs are hard to come by even for the locals. But that does not stop many people here having strong opinions about the migrants, and an increasingly isolationist view of Britain’s place in the world. “Make England an island and get rid of that poxy tunnel,” said Eve Fitzgerald. “Brick it up,” said Lesley Mansfield, sit- ting outside a seafront pub. Her friend Jacqueline Prime had a more dramatic – if not wholly serious – idea: “Bomb it in the middle.” The fortress mentality is fueled by reports of nightly clashes as French police try to stop the travelers, many of whom have made perilous journeys across the Mediterranean before heading north across Europe. Several people have died as would-be stowaways tried to board trucks and freight trains through the tunnel. The reality, however, is that the vast majority of Calais mi- grants never set foot in this town on the marshy Isle of Sheppey, or in any of the towns and cities on the economi- cally battered coastal fringe of eastern England, where anti- immigrant and anti-European sentiments are on the rise. The right-wing U.K. Independence Party has gained support in the region among voters who feel immi- gration and European Union membership have brought economic adversity and un- wanted social change. There is no doubting that parts of Britain have been transformed over the past de- cade by migration, but it has mostly been by the arrival of hundreds of thousands of legal newcomers from eastern Europe, adding to previous waves of immigration. Many Britons embrace the country’s growing multiculturalism, which has made London one of the most diverse and dy- namic cities on Earth. And contrary to popular belief, there is little evidence that migrants are “stealing” British jobs: In March, Britain’s unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent – the lowest rate in seven years. And despite the dramatic scenes in Calais, the U.N. ref- ugee agency’s director for Europe noted on Friday that “most of the asylum seekers in the U.K. do not arrive through the Channel.” “Two-thirds of the asylum seekers in the U.K. have come legally to the U.K., with visas,” said Vincent Cochetel. “There is not a significant wave of people coming to the U.K. … I know the images on TV of those people trying to go through the Channel are quite amazing, but we should not think that this is an un- manageable situation.” Insular feeling on the Isle of Sheppey is at odds with census data that indicates the population is overwhelmingly U.K.-born. Not many of the migrants who make it across the Channel see any point staying in such an isolated, economically depressed area. “There are a few, but they disappear quick out of here,” said Stuart O’Brien, a 73-year-old re- tiree. “There’s nothing here for them – there’s nothing here for the locals.” But whether it’s based on fact or fiction, Britain’s rising anti-immigrant mood could make it harder for Cameron to persuade voters to remain in the 28-nation EU in a ref- erendum that will be held by the end of 2017. The scenes in Calais – and a perception that French authorities are doing little about the situa- tion – are fuel for those who want Britain to go it alone. Rob McNeil of the Migration Observatory, an Oxford University think tank, said the “very visible bot- tleneck” at Calais is feeding public perceptions that Britain faces a tide of migrants. But the U.K. is far from Europe’s top destination for refugees. The U.N. refugee agency says Britain received just over 31,000 asylum claims in 2014 – a fraction of the 173,000 refugees who went to Germany, and fewer than Sweden, Italy, France or Hungary. Cameron has vowed to curb welfare benefits for asylum-seekers in an effort to make Britain a less at- tractive destination for mi- grants. But two of the big- gest pull factors are Britain’s relatively vibrant economy and the global dominance of the English language – not things any government would want to change. “Politicians are in an ex- tremely difficult situation,” said McNeil. “There is much pressure from the press and the public for them to be seen to be resolving this situation. A view of holiday amusements in Leysdown-on-Sea in Kent, England, last week. While thousands of migrants mass in France in hopes of getting to England through the Channel Tunnel, they are not heading to places like Leysdown-on-Sea. - Photo: AP BERLIN (AP) – German fed- eral prosecutors on Monday dropped a much-criticized treason investigation of two journalists who had re- ported on secret plans to expand online surveillance in Germany. Prosecutors notified web- site Netzpolitik.org in July that its founder, Markus Beckedahl, and fellow jour- nalist Andre Meister were under investigation – prompting widespread criti- cism from free-speech advo- cates. The website specializes in covering online privacy and digital culture. Justice Minister Heiko Maas questioned the de- cision to open a treason probe, which is a rare move in Germany. Last week, he fired chief federal prosecutor Harald Range after the two clashed over public allega- tions by Range of political interference, which the min- ister denied. On Monday, the federal prosecutor’s office said it is closing the case because it believes the leaked docu- ments the website’s reports were based on were not a “state secret” and other con- ditions for treason charges also weren’t fulfilled. The probe, which was opened following a criminal complaint filed by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, also targeted the uniden- tified source of the leaked documents. Monday’s state- ment said that investigating the source or sources for vi- olating secrecy will now be a matter for lower-ranking local prosecutors. Beckedahl said the deci- sion to drop the probe was not enough. “We want to know pre- cisely whether we were sub- ject to surveillance measures during the almost three- month investigation,” he said in a statement. Beckedahl added that he hopes the case will motivate authorities to improve pro- tection for whistleblowers in Germany. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said the government wouldn’t comment on the prosecutors’ decision but stressed its commitment to press freedom. The head of the German Federation of Journalists, Michael Konken, said that “the attempt to criminalize the journalists concerned has failed spectacularly.” However, he said, the rules on treason cases should be changed to exempt journal- ists from prosecution. Justice Minister Heiko Maas questioned the decision to open a treason probe, which is a rare move in Germany. German prosecutors drop treason probe against journalists Argentine President’s Pick wins PrimAries BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – President Cristina Fernandez’s chosen successor easily won Argentina’s open pri- maries, but the re- sults Monday under- scored that October’s election is still up for grabs and voters remain deeply divided about who could best tackle the country’s myriad economic problems. With 93 percent of bal- lots counted, Daniel Scioli was leading with 38 per- cent of the vote. Mauricio Macri and others in his “Let’s Change” coalition topped opposition candi- dates with about 30 per- cent while Sergio Massa garnered 20 percent. All candidates com- peted on the same ballot, with the top finishers from each party quali- fying for the Oct. 25 gen- eral election. That meant Sunday’s primaries were essentially a giant na- tional poll. “No matter how you look at it, the only truth is the reality,” Scioli told supporters early Monday, paraphrasing famous words by former President Juan Domingo Peron, founder of the ruling political move- ment. “And the reality is that we have a big margin over our adversaries.” Still, Scioli’s margin would not be enough to win election in the first round, which would re- quire either 45 percent of the vote or 40 percent and a 10-point margin over the runner-up. A November runoff would likely benefit Macri, who might pick up the votes from Argentines who ini- tially supported other op- position candidates.Next >