ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 SPORTS | PAGE 19 LOCAL TEAMS UNDEFEATED ON OPENING DAY OF CAL U-14 CUP High of 89 Low of 77 Seas: Rough with wave heights of 4 to 6 feet. Small craft should exercise caution over open water. EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 IGUANA HUNTERS BATTLE CAYMAN’S ‘GREEN HORDE’ Cayman Turtle Farm: Island Wildlife Encounter Discover the adventure at the Join us with our resident rates CI $10 Adults CI $ 4 Children 786 Northwest Point Road, West Bay, Grand Cayman info@turtle.ky | www.turtle.ky | +1 345 949 2894 +1 345 949 2894 / Cayman Turtle JUDGE ORDERS JURY TO FIND CATRON NOT GUILTY KELSEY JUKAM kjukam@pinnaclemedialtd.com A judge ordered the jury in the trial of Sandra Catron to find her not guilty Tuesday, after he determined there was a “fatal flaw” in the charges. She had been charged with uttering a false document, in relation to submitting comple- tion certificates to the Cayman Islands gov- ernment for an online paralegal course she was administering through her company Micro Matrix. In November 2011, then-Premier McKeeva Bush contracted with Ms. Catron to provide paralegal training to Caymanians. Sponsor- ships for the paralegal course, paid to Ms. Ca- tron, came from the Nation Building Fund. Justice Malcolm Swift directed the jury to find Ms. Catron not guilty on all eight counts of uttering a false document after hearing submissions Monday and Tuesday. “There’s a fatal flaw in these charges against this defendant which is in relation to whether these documents that she produced were at the time they were produced … false, and I’ve decided there is no evidence that CALLS FOR MORE CASH FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS Miller: Stop private school subsidy JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Government was urged to consider stop- ping funding for private schools or pulling cash from the budget surplus, Monday, as opposition legislators called for in- creased spending to plug the gaps in the ed- ucation system. Several legislators raised concerns that the marginal increase in the education budget was not enough to cover multiple weak- nesses identified in a series of damning in- spection reports. “When you see 80 percent of the primary schools failing, what are we doing these other things for?” said Bodden Town MLA Anthony Eden as he joined calls for money to be moved from another part of the budget to provide Few college degree-holders registered with NWDA BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Fewer than 100 Caymanians with university degrees who are unemployed are currently regis- tered with the National Workforce Development Agency, government officials confirmed Monday. Ministry of Employment deputy chief officer Tasha Ebanks Garcia said this does not necessarily represent all local degree-holding gradu- ates who are out of work since those individuals are not re- quired to register. However, Ms. Ebanks Garcia said the ministry will put a policy in place by September that will require all government schol- arship recipients to register with the NWDA – which operates as government’s employment agency – in order to track their progress when they come back to Cayman. Ms. Ebanks Garcia’s statements were made in re- sponse to North Side MLA Ez- zard Miller’s comment Monday that it was a “statistical fact” that many Caymanians who complete their education at uni- versity on government scholar- ships are now unemployed. Gov’t still paying electricity bill for vacant Glass House BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Cayman Islands government is spending $180,000 to $240,000 annually – at least in part – to supply electricity to an office building that has not been staffed in about five years. The total bill includes electricity for the empty Glass House, as well as for the neighboring George Town Police Station and Radio Cayman buildings. Planning Minister Kurt Tibbetts said the old government administration building, dubbed the Glass House because its exte- rior is made of glass, as well as the two other properties, are running Caribbean Utilities Company bills of between $15,000 and $20,000 per month. “It’s costing government between $15,000 and $20,000 per month for electricity be- cause you can’t turn the power off,” Mr. Tibbetts told the Legislative Assembly’s Fi- nance Committee on Tuesday. “The condition of that building, as it is, it is unsafe and to completely refurbish it is impractical.” The reason government cannot simply “turn the power off” to the Glass House is because its meter incorporates the police station and radio station power usage and both of those buildings are still operational. “There are plans to separate the ser- vices in the future,” government facilities manager Troy Whorms told the Cayman Compass. “The data to determine [the exact power bill for the Glass House] is not avail- able today and will require further mon- itoring to determine the actual usage of PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » The former Government Administration Building has been empty for about five years. – PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 »2 LOCAL&REGIONAL WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS x SATURDAY NIGHT: For your viewing pleasure, minors under the age of 18 will not be admitted to any film starting after 6pm, unless accompanied by their parent. y x *Additional charges will apply per 3D ticket requested. - WEDNESDAY - WARCRAFT 3D (PG13) 7:00 I 9:50 FINDING DORY 3D (PG) 12:30 I 1:20 2D I 3:00 I 3:45 2D 6:45 I 9:15 2D NOW YOU SEE ME 2 (PG13) 12:40 I 3:50 I 6:45 I 9:40 ME BEFORE YOU (PG13) 1:10 I 4:10 I 7:10 I 9:55 TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES OUT OF THE SHADOWS 3D (PG13) 1:20 I 4:00 2D I 6:50 I 9:40 2D CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE (PG13) 1:30 I 4:20 I 7:20 I 10:00 Daily Matinees Every Day $8.00 Seniors, Mon-Fri Before 6pm Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 640-FILM (640-3456) JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Several firms are under investigation on suspi- cion of failing to pay em- ployees the legal minimum wage, officials revealed this week. Under questioning in Finance Committee, Di- rector of the Department of Labor and Pensions Bennard Ebanks, said his inspectors were investi- gating complaints relating to several firms. He said these inquiries, including into unnamed security firms, were still in the in- vestigation stages and the evidence would ultimately be referred to the Depart- ment for Public Prosecu- tions to decide if an of- fence had been committed. The $6-an-hour min- imum wage was intro- duced March 1. East End legislator Arden McLean said he continued to see news- paper adverts for jobs below that threshold and questioned what was being done about it. Mr. Ebanks said his de- partment had several in- vestigations in the works but none that had led to prosecution, as yet. Asked specifically if any security firms had been investigated, Mr. Ebanks said there were ongoing investiga- tions in that sector. He said the process was time consuming and involved analysis of docu- ments from the companies before a referral was made to the DPP for a decision. “There are instances where the analysis is com- plete and at the point where we forward it to the DPP, but we want legal advice before we say that is capable of being prosecuted.” Mr. McLean said he found it hard to believe that there was full com- pliance, given the oppo- sition from some in the business community to a minimum wage. “All the hullabaloo was for nothing then? [People saying] we can’t sustain a minimum wage was for nothing? They are all com- plying? A couple of in- vestigations but it has been in place now for three months and no- body has been dragged off to court to say they are not complying?” Christen Suckoo, chief officer in the Ministry of Employment, Education and Gender Affairs, said the immigration depart- ment was not approving work permits for jobs below the minimum wage. The $6-an-hour minimum wage was introduced March 1. East End legislator Arden McLean said he continued to see newspaper adverts for jobs below that threshold. VIOLATORS OF MINIMUM WAGE LAW INVESTIGATED CHARLES DUNCAN cduncan@pinnaclemedialtd.com A new report recommends a 42-bed long-term residen- tial mental health facility be built in the eastern dis- tricts to serve local and over- seas patients with severe mental illnesses. The outline business case for the mental health facility, prepared by consultants with KPMG and released Tuesday, recommends government build a $16 million facility on 15 acres somewhere in the eastern districts. If approved, construction could begin as early as July 2017 and a facility could be open by January 2019. “The current system re- sults in local patients being separated from their families,” the consultants stated in the report. “Community resources and the primary care hospital are under stress from those local patients who are unable to seek care abroad.” Dr. Marc Lockhart, head of the Mental Health Commis- sion and who worked with the KPMG consultants on the report, said in an interview Tuesday, “The report clearly highlights the need for this type of facility.” He said the facility “will make not just a social difference, but a finan- cial difference.” “I am delighted that we are now able to proceed with this much-needed facility to treat our mental health patients in a proper and fitting manner,” Premier Alden McLaughlin, who is also min- ister for health, said in a written statement. “This has been a long time coming, but my administra- tion is determined to ensure that we achieve this important milestone in the healthcare we provide for our people. Those who require treatment, often the most vulnerable in our society, will no longer have to be sent overseas and separated from loved ones to get the care they need. “Importantly, instead of patients being locked up, or on the street, we will have the appropriate accommoda- tion to help those who need it most,” the premier said in a press statement. The solution selected as the best option in the KPMG report is to build a long- term mental health facility on Grand Cayman to treat local and overseas patients, using the mental health facility as an extension of the push to- ward medical tourism to help cover the operating costs. The report recommends an initial 42-bed facility to be built on 15 acres on the eastern side of Grand Cayman. The report out- lines an eventual expansion to 54 beds. Based on cur- rent need, the consultants said, the facility would likely have 12 beds available for overseas patients and 42 for local patients. Overseas patients could be accepted in the facility, Dr. Lockhart said, “once we make sure we attend to those who need it here first.” Financial estimates in the report put the cost to build the facility at about $16.2 mil- lion. Government’s budget currently under debate in the Legislative Assembly includes $2.5 million for the facility over the next 18 months. Funding for construction will have to come from gov- ernment’s capital projects budget, with the bulk of the cost, $10 million, needed be- tween July 2017 and June 2018 for construction. Annual operating costs, ex- pected to average less than $4 million a year over the next 30 years, will likely be offset by savings in the cost of the current system of treating pa- tients overseas, in the Cayman Islands Hospital and at Northward Prison. The consultants recom- mend a campus with a main building and nine cottages for patients, including one that would be handicapped acces- sible. Each cottage would ac- commodate six patients. The initial facility, the re- port recommends, should have seven cottages and 42 beds for patients. The consul- tants recommend a modular design that would give the fa- cility the flexibility to expand if demand for long-term resi- dential treatment grows. The current mental health system in Cayman, the re- port states, is “not equipped to deal with growing numbers of local patients suffering from mental illness.” The consultants noted that the lack of resources in Cayman makes it hard for pa- tients to transition back into the community. The report pointed out that there are 14 patients from Cayman receiving long- term care in Jamaica and the United States, costing govern- ment an estimated $630,000 a year. The consultants note that there are 12 to 15 pa- tients either being cared for at home with family or with regular visits to the acute care mental health unit in the Cayman Islands Hospital. The report also notes that there are six to 12 poten- tial patients in Northward Prison. The consultants noted, “Northward Prison is housing offenders with serious mental health issues in an environ- ment that is not suitable for these offenders, placing sig- nificant pressure on prison staff whose training does not prepare them to work with of- fenders with serious mental health issues.” The consultants exam- ined five options for what to do with patients in Cayman requiring long-term mental health treatment in a resi- dential facility. Those options ranged from continuing the current combination of over- seas hospitals, the prison and the acute care unit at the hos- pital, to hiring an outside company to build and run a facility on the island. Report calls for 42-bed mental health facility The long-term residential mental health facility steering group committee members who worked alongside KPMG consultants. BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) – The killing of three foreigners the past two weeks in Medellin is causing alarm in Colombia’s second-largest city as it strug- gles to leave behind its repu- tation as the one-time murder capital of the world. Danish tourist Tomas Wil- lemoes was shot and killed last week at close range in a popular plaza in the city’s most upscale neighborhood. His murder came just days after an Israeli and Mexican, both of whom apparently were living in Medellin, were also killed. Authorities are at a loss to explain the three killings, which came as the city was showcasing security gains to hundreds of business ex- ecutives attending the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Latin America. But at least one victim, the Israeli, appears to have been con- nected to a criminal ring that promoted sex tourism with prostitutes, prompting an en- ergetic defense from the city’s new mayor. “Any homicide is regretful, regardless of the reasons,” Mayor Federico Gutierrez told journalists on Monday. “But it’s very important to say that Medellin can’t be a place for sex or drug tourism.” Medellin’s murder rate has fallen sharply since the 1980s, when the city was under siege by Pablo Escobar’s army of killers. But it’s ticking up again this year and authori- ties worry that it could spoil a nascent tourism boom. Colombia city alarmed at slaying of 3 foreignersThe islands’ most-trusted news source 3 CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 You can’t rewind time But you can rewind TV discoverfl ow.ky/tv Conditions apply. ©2016 HBO Ole Partners. All rights reserved. With Flow TV you can go right back to the start of a show, even if you haven’t been watching it or recording it. 50% o Flow TV with HBO/Max Right now get for 3 months. With Flow TV you can go right back to the start of a show, even if you haven’t been watching it or recording it. 50% o Flow TV with HBO/Max Right now get for 3 months.The 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. WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS Norberg Kelvin Thompson Sr. was born in George Town, Grand Cayman, to Capt. and Mrs. Eugene Thompson on March 28, 1925, and grew up in this same district. He was united in marriage to Mary Virginia Merren, who was born in George Town on Nov. 16, 1931, to George and Rose (Arch) Merren whose families were also developers of the Cayman Islands. Norberg was a seaman for many years but decided he wanted to spend the rest of his life in the country where he was born and raised. In 1954, he built Wholesome Bakery which is now where the commercial Waterfront Centre building is located. This property was given to him by his father, so, it has been in the hands of the same family for almost a century. As soon as Norberg be- came successful as a busi- nessman with Wholesome Bakery, he went into other projects such as building many apartments to house both tourists and expats who would need accommodations. In addition to being one of the founders of Cayman Na- tional Bank and WestStar TV, which brought television to Cayman, he also developed two shopping centers, several office buildings, redeveloped the Clarion Grand Pavilion hotel (which later became Grand Pavilion Commercial Centre) and developed the Wyndham Reef Resort. Nor- berg and I were joint owners of all our properties and once my husband passed away, I became the sole proprietor. While we welcome expa- triates from all countries to Cayman (some of which have become what we call “paper Caymanians”) and have lived very peacefully together, there are some who have come to conclude they have priority over born Caymanians. Mr. Chris Johnson is making a disturbance be- cause of a building that we are legally erecting on our long held property, which when completed, will be another benefit to tourism. While my husband and I are born Caymanians and are some of the largest Cayma- nian developers, it appears that Mr. Johnson is not sat- isfied by the decision granted by a board comprised of Cay- manians (the Cayman Islands Central Planning Authority), and now seeks to have pri- ority and impose his will over born Caymanians, who have done much to develop our country which has af- forded many expats like him the opportunity to gain work and the right to live here in Cayman today. We welcome everyone with open arms, but we expect due respect when Caymanians choose to legally develop their own land in their country. Thanking all expats who have contributed to this country, but please bear in mind that we Caymanians are the reason why you are here among us enjoying our lifestyle and the friendliness of our people and we would kindly ask that you respect us, too. Mary Thompson The green iguana is rapidly becoming the most successful land-dwelling species in the history of the Cayman Islands. (Emphasis on the word “rapidly.”) As we reported in Tuesday’s Compass, the Depart- ment of Environment estimates Grand Cayman is now home to about 500,000 “common” green iguanas. That number is, shall we say, growing. Actually, exploding — exponentially. “Their population looks to be doubling every 1.5 years,” DoE Research Officer Jane Haakensson said. As anyone in the banking industry will tell you, the concept of “compound interest” is one of the most powerful forces in the known universe. Over the past few decades, it’s worked wonders in our financial services sector. It’s resulting in similar miracles of multiplication in the green iguana pop- ulation. But, apparently, it’s dire news for Grand Cayman’s foliage (which is iguana food) and animals (which are iguana competitors). Fred Burton, of Blue Iguana Recovery Programme fame and now with the DoE, said the results of the department’s green iguana survey were “shocking” and “terrifying.” We don’t know if we’re scared, exactly, by the numbers. But we are rather impressed. Consider, Mr. Burton’s blue iguana program was started within the National Trust for the Cayman Islands in 1990. Its benchmark for success was to grow the blue iguana population until there were at least 1,000 of the native reptiles living in the wild. At the green iguanas’ current rate of multiplication, there are approximately 1,000 green iguanas born in Grand Cayman every single day. By the end of 2017, the DoE projects there will be 1 million green iguanas in Grand Cayman, in the absence of massive culling efforts. One million green iguanas certainly sounds like a lot. But how many is it exactly? Let us attempt to put the size of Cayman’s green iguana population, and the government’s new efforts to eradicate them, into perspective: • Three experienced hunters, armed with air rifles and leading teams, managed to kill 4,000 green iguanas in two weeks. At that rate, it would take nearly 10 years to eradicate 1 million green iguanas • The carcasses of those 4,000 green iguanas weighed a combined 2 tons. The bodies of 1 million green iguanas would, then, weigh 500 tons (or 1 million pounds). That’s the equivalent of 75 African bush elephants. Imagine all that being tossed into the George Town Landfill. It probably won’t help the smell • The government has earmarked $200,000 from the Environmental Protection Fund toward devel- oping the green iguana eradication program. With a bounty of $5 per “head,” that’s enough funding to cull 40,000 iguanas, which is 4 percent of 1 million — or six weeks’ worth of reproduction. The ongoing weeklong “culling trial,” involving 18 approved iguana hunters (and whatever deputies they can round up to assist), is intended to help the gov- ernment develop a comprehensive plan to attack the reptiles on a large scale. In order to dispose of the green iguanas, each “reg- istered culler,” and his posse, has an assortment of techniques and tools to consider for implementation: including air rifles, nooses and the up-close-and-per- sonal “hand capture.” It is unclear whether the $5-per-iguana bounty applies to roadkill scraped off our streets, or if that will be frowned upon as “counterfeit culling.” One thing is clear, though, about this death struggle between hunters and the hordes of green iguanas: With guns, nooses, traps and machetes in play, and plenty of it playing out in residential areas — this isn’t going to be pretty. Iguana hunters battle Cayman’s ‘green horde’ LETTER TO THE EDITOR Answering complaints about waterfront development The new North Church Street building, which will have restrooms and a tour ticket sales location, has provoked a dispute between the developer of the property and a neighboring landowner. – PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY While we welcome expatriates from all countries to Cayman […], there are some who have come to conclude they have priority over born Caymanians. 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 EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will find their own way”The islands’ most-trusted news source 5 CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 Oxitec and our Cayman Government agency, MRCU, admit that they are partnering in a project to release over 22,000,000 genetically- modi ed (by genes from herpes, jelly sh, e-coli bacteria) on what could be an imminent basis. The FDA, of course, has no jurisdiction over Cayman. It, however, has not issued its approval for a trial “controlled” GMO modi ed release of mosquitoes into the wild in a speci c region of the U.S. The FDA’s decision will only be released after its consideration of the outcome of public consultation. Fair public consultation has, so far, been sadly lacking in Grand Cayman. The consequences of Oxitec-MRCU’s partnership efforts could be grave. While the FDA is serious about consulting the public, Cayman’s policy seems to spread the Oxitec-MRCU’s, pro-GMO mosquito release messages while they suppress arguments and information that balance the issue. The World Health Organization only supports limited eld trials of the Oxitec GMO mosquitoes in a non-Cayman environment on the basis of strict, rigorous supervision. Oxitec claims that the government agency, MRCU, its admitted partner in the project, will provide the “strict supervision” of the proposed project. This claim seems to defy common-sense, transparency, freedom from biases and objectivity. On May 16, 2016, the FDA published the following: “The public comment period for the draft Environmental Assessment and preliminary Finding of No Signi cant Impact concerning investigational use of Oxitec OX513A mosquitoes closed on May 13, 2016. The FDA is thoroughly reviewing all public comments and information submitted before determining its next steps. Oxitec will not conduct the eld trial of its OX513A mosquito until the FDA has had the opportunity to review public comments on the draft EA and determined whether it will nalize the EA and FONSI or prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.” This public commentary was only with respect to a sample, limited area, distant from Cayman. One area’s suitability for a limited test does not automatically mean that another place unrelated to Cayman will be suitable. Nevertheless, the Cayman Premier made the unsatisfactory, dogmatic but low informational-content announcement on May 5, 2016: “The control programme will begin inWest Baybefore being expanded throughout the island, subject to the appropriate approvals and funding. As part of public education about this important project, staff from MRCU and Oxitec will have an information booth at West Bay dock from now until Saturday, as well as an information desk at a location in West Bay to be announced. Staff will also conduct house-to-house visits in West Bay to inform residents about what is happening. Updated information will be available to residents in the coming weeks.” A comprehensive Risk Assessment must be undertaken for the public to be informed. We know very little about the effects of releasing transgenic mosquitoes into the wild. Donald Rumsfeld, famously, observed that risk assessments involve understanding: 1. What we know; 2. What we don’t know; 3. What we don’t know we don’t know. As matters now stand, the mass of information concerning items 2 and 3 above greatly outnumber the information that we know. Carefully-designed scienti c assessments need to be conducted and fairly explained, yet the Cayman population has been mostly exposed to the Oxitec-MRCU partnership- generated promotions directed at money- making, fear mongering with “misspoken” incomplete “scienti c” data. Money, not public safety, information and strict compulsory controls dominate the miniscule exposure that Caymanians have to the possible world- changing programs proposed by the Oxitec- MRCU partnership. One of the risks that the scienti c community appears not to have considered relates to the wise guidance of our forefathers and spiritual leaders. We urge you to consider the words of Romans 1:22-23: Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and creeping things. PLANNED MUTANT GMO MOSQUITO RELEASE CAYMAN GOVERNMENT PARTNERS CAN’T INDEPENDENTLY SUPERVISE PARTNERS. SPONSORED BY SEVERAL CONCERNED CLIENTS OF THE LAW FIRM OF FLAK PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION 27 PRINCE ARTHUR AVENUE, TORONTO, ON. M5R 1B2 We urge you to add your name and voice through telephone calls to your Premier at (345) 244-2455 and by signing the petition found at: https://www.change.org/p/ premier-and-cabinet-of-the- cayman-islands-government- suspend-oxitec-s-gm-mosquitoes- project-in-the-cayman-islands. Over 600 of your neighbours signed the petition already. Please join your neighbours to seek a pause in the pro t-driven Oxitec manufacture of life forms unknown to nature. WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS 6 DISTRICT DAYS In the June 22, 1966 edition of the Cay- manian Weekly, a precursor of the Cayman Compass, Cayman Brac correspondent Lilian Ritch wrote: “An inter-schools spelling bee competi- tion will be held at the West End School on Friday, June 24, the three primary schools competing. The competition is arranged to give practice to those students who will compete in Grand Cayman for the Cayman Islands championship. Five prizes are being awarded. “Due to the visit of Mr. H.M. McCoy, di- rector of establishments, welfare and com- munity development, this week, the date of the men’s meeting is changed from the 22nd to the 25th at 7:30 p.m. All men are asked to be in attendance. This is a very special meeting when a number of the is- land’s men will give brief addresses. The elected committee are: E.K. (Dickie) Hurl- stone, President, A. Selbourne Lazzari, Vice President, Ronald Wright, Treasurer and Ernest Foster, Secretary. “Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Ebanks, of the Point, became the happy parents of a son on Friday 17, at Nurse Petrona’s home. “Lighting struck a coconut tree on the bay side of Mrs. Harry Hill’s house on Sunday evening the 12th at about 7 p.m., searing the trunk and setting a quick blaze when the leaves caught fire. There were heavy flashes of lightning that evening. “On Thursday evening last, the acting head teacher of the West End Primary School, Mr. R.M. Walters, the staff and offi- cers of the P.T.A. met together. Among mat- ters discussed were an open day and prize giving for the school towards the end of term. It was resolved to renew efforts to improve the function of the association. Mr. Walters reported on discipline and the chil- dren’s attitudes to work and study and the officers expressed satisfaction and their willingness to cooperate fully for the bet- terment of the school and the community.” 50 years ago: Spelling bee creates a buzz Sister Islands seabird study kicks off A new project collecting data on the seabirds of the Sister Is- lands is already yielding some interesting results. Last month, the Cayman Islands Department of Environment began work on the Sister Islands to gather comprehensive data on regionally and globally important seabird populations in the Cayman Islands. This project is primarily funded by the Darwin Initiative, a U.K. gov- ernment grant scheme aimed at helping to protect biodiversity and the natural environment within the U.K. Overseas Territories. Over the next two years, the DoE will work in partnership with the National Trust of the Cayman Islands and seabird experts from the Universities of Liverpool and Exeter, U.K., to collect urgently needed information on the move- ments, ecology and status of resi- dent seabird populations. It is hoped that the knowledge gained through this work will con- tribute to conservation manage- ment around the Cayman Islands. The project will focus largely on red-footed boobies (Sula sula) on Little Cayman and brown boo- bies (Sula leucogaster) on Cayman Brac. While these species breed in colonies on the Cayman Islands that are recognized as globally and regionally important, they remain poorly understood throughout much of their foraging range. “At the moment, we have more data on the activities of these birds on shore regarding breeding activi- ties, but we don’t have as much in- formation on what they are doing at sea,” said researcher Rhiannon Meier, who began working on the project in April. “How are they using the ma- rine environment? Where do they go when they fly out to sea? These are the types of questions we are looking to answer,” said Ms. Meier. A combination of electronic tags and biogeochemical markers are being used to provide insights into the habitat use, foraging strategies and dietary habits of the birds. Breeding adults at the Booby Pond Nature Reserve (red-footed boobies), and at multiple sites on Cayman Brac (brown boobies), have been fitted with miniatur- ized GPS loggers that trace their movements as they travel over the ocean to find food. The data collected from these devices should help to reveal the strategies that these animals use to exploit their surrounding environ- ment, and will enable the DoE to identify appropriate conservation measures on land as well as at sea. “We have already noted that it looks like the brown boo- bies stay closer to home, while the red-footed boobies go out to sea sometimes for up to five days, at night sleeping on the water,” she said. She said the GPS loggers stay on the birds for about two weeks, and while all efforts are made to recover the loggers from the tagged birds, they will fall off on their own at about the two-week mark. “Some birds are quite skittish, but overall we have not found it too difficult to approach them and attach the loggers,” said Ms. Meier. The data from about 20 of the birds which were fitted with trackers is now being analyzed, providing researchers with some valuable baseline information. Using visual survey methods, information on breeding behavior and population biology is also being collected at seabird colo- nies. This information, in combina- tion with previous data recorded by volunteers, will allow scientists to assess the status of populations, as well as develop longer-term sea- bird monitoring programs. “We are trying to gain an under- standing of the general ecology of these birds’ habitat and their diet,” said Ms. Meier. “We do this by analyzing blood samples from the birds. The bio- geochemicals can tell us what they are eating, and where they go, by comparing them to samples of fish in the region.” Ms. Meier said the researchers are also looking at the population statuses of red boobies, magnifi- cent frigate birds and tropic birds. During the study period, the re- searchers are hoping they will be able to build on the work already done to develop robust population monitoring programs and test out a few possible methods. The outputs of this project will feed directly into the devel- opment of Species Conservation Plans that are required under the National Conservation Law of the Cayman Islands. For more information, contact the DoE by phone at 949-8469 or by email at doe@gov.ky or caymanseabirds@gmail.com. Data collected from these devices should help to reveal the strategies that these animals use to exploit their surrounding environment, and will enable the DoE to identify appropriate conservation measures. A brown booby feeds its chick on the Bluff. A brown booby roosts. District Days Sister IslandsCAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 7 DISTRICT DAYS District Days Sister Islands Queen’s Birthday tea nets funds for land Brackers were out in force last week to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday in Cayman Brac. The Cayman Brac com- mittee for the National Trust held the event on the public holiday, Monday, June 13, at the Brac Heritage House. “The local committee of National Trust spon- sors this combined effort of ticket sellers, food and tea fixers, raffle helpers, art- ists, set up, kitchen help, clean up, dishwashers and, of course, our guests,” said event coordinator Kath- leen Bodden-Harris, noting the event brought out a community spirit. “Each helped make this a spectacular event. Even non- members stepped in to lend a hand where needed. This offers a true feel for the sense of community the Na- tional Trust evokes.” The event raised more than $1,600 toward the Trust’s Lands Acquisition Fund. “Our team of raffle ticket sellers did a marvellous job, bringing the Split-the- Cash pot to $1,200,” said Ms. Bodden-Harris. She noted Minnie Branch won the split and graciously do- nated an additional half to- ward the Lands Acquisi- tion Fund. Assorted articles such as a welcome basket, suitcases and jewelry were also raffled individually. Guests enjoyed min- gling as savory and sweet treats were served in the el- egant setting of the Heritage House garden grounds on decorated tables. Attendees sipped exotic and local teas from delicate tea cups and glasses, while soothing clas- sical music filled the air. Inside the Heritage House, a display of artwork showcased the diverse talents of local artists and artisans. “This was the fourth such annual celebration, that is greatly anticipated by the public,” said Ms. Bodden-Harris. “Though an English tra- dition, it affords an oppor- tunity to celebrate our na- tionality while blending our tropical heritage [and is] the perfect scenario for na- tives and visitors to mingle each year as schools close and islanders begin to dis- perse for their holidays from the heat.” The raffle sales went toward the Land Reserves Programme.Guests enjoyed a selecton of exotic teas. Youngsters have smashing time Sister Islands primary school- children have been enjoying free tennis lessons thanks to a local law firm. Supported by sponsorship from Walkers, the coaching, which takes place during the school year, is coordinated by the Tennis Federation of the Cayman Islands, a nonprofit organization. “Continued funding is re- ally important for programs like these,” said Simon Gunn, presi- dent of the Tennis Federation. “We are really grateful to Walkers for supporting the Cayman Brac program for a fourth year.” Coach Noel Watkins of Cayman Tennis Academy flies over to the Brac twice a month to teach around 80 children from the island’s two primary schools. The youngsters practice hand- eye coordination exercises, as well as learning the correct way to hold a racket and the basic strokes used in playing tennis. “Seeing the smiles and enthu- siasm on the children’s faces is fantastic,” said Mr. Gunn. “Hopefully, some of them will continue to play the game as they grow and compete professionally.” Dorothy Scott, a partner at Walkers and member of Walkers’ Charity Committee, said, “We are pleased to be able to offer school- children in Cayman Brac access to this wonderful program.” She added, “It is really re- warding to watch keen young tennis players develop their skills, whilst learning all about this fast-paced international sport, thanks to the dedication of the Tennis Federation.” Astronomers getting a boost An upcoming visit from the Cayman Islands Astronomy So- ciety will give young stargazers on the Brac a welcome new instru- ment to scan the heavens. On Tuesday, June 28, Society president Chris Cooke will be paying a visit to the Layman E. Scott High School to present a brand new Galileoscope telescope. The telescope is part of a larger donation of telescopes to schools across the Cayman Islands, which were originally donated to the Astronomical Association of Ja- maica by the Astronomy Without Borders organization. Twelve of the telescopes have been donated with the purpose of seeding and supporting science clubs and promoting STEM (sci- ence, technology, engineering and math) subjects. “I am looking forward to meeting the science department, and addressing the assembly which is being moved to the after- noon, after which we can do some solar observing through the tele- scope,” said Mr. Cooke. He said he also recently learned that the school has an old telescope which he is hopeful he will be able to restore. The National Trust and the As- tronomical Society will hold a joint stargazing event on the Bluff starting at 7:30 p.m. on June 28, weather permitting. “There are going to be flyers distributed over the island and the schools will also be invited,” said Mr. Cooke, noting it is going to be a free event open to the public. Mr. Cooke’s air ticket and some accom- modation costs were sponsored by Ministry of District Administra- tion, Tourism and Transport. Twelve telescopes have been donated with the purpose of seeding and supporting science clubs and promoting STEM subjects. Plans are for a telescope like this one to be set up at the viewing evening on the Brac. The social event raised over $1,600 toward the Trust’s Land Reserves Programme. Tennis lessons for Brac youngsters are led by Noel Watkins.The islands’ most-trusted news source 8 WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS According to workforce development agency statis- tics, as of last month, there are 11 Caymanians with master’s degrees unem- ployed and registered with the agency. There are 43 with bachelor’s [four-year] de- grees and 28 who have as- sociate degrees who are without work. Employment Minister Tara Rivers also pointed out during the discussion Monday in Legislative As- sembly’s Finance Committee that the NWDA had placed 239 people registered with the agency in jobs between July 2015 and last month. “There is progress as it relates to the National Workforce Development Agency assisting people,” Minister Rivers said. This progress is not translating to constituents in the George Town area, MLA Winston Connolly said. “I’m getting a number of people who are highly qual- ified … they’ve said that they’ve applied for more than 50 jobs in the last two months and have not yet even gotten a response,” Mr. Connolly said. He asked how government would address Caymanian job seekers who “feel that no one is looking out for them.” The workforce develop- ment agency has attempted to keep better track of the results of local job appli- cations since 2014, but as of now, local employers are not required to register their available positions with the NWDA. Many companies choose to voluntarily reg- ister their positions. If the employer does reg- ister with the agency, Ms. Ebanks Garcia said, Im- migration Department and workforce agency staff can see information regarding all individuals who have ap- plied for the position. Any decision to award a job to a particular person is up to the employer, she said. However, Cayman Islands Immigration Law requires any company to hire a suit- ably qualified Caymanian for an available position first. In cases where violations are reported, the NWDA regis- tration system would pro- vide more information re- garding specific cases, Ms. Ebanks Garcia said. “The system itself will not assess the suitability of a person for a post,” she added. Minister Rivers said the system gets rid of the “he said, she said” aspect of local job applications that now ex- ists when a Caymanian states he or she has applied for a position but not been hired. “Before, you heard about people applying for jobs and those applications falling into the file with no ability to see who has applied,” Minister Rivers said. A proposal to make regis- tering all private sector jobs with the NWDA mandatory will go before the Cabinet in the next four weeks, Ms. Ebanks Garcia said. It will be up to elected leaders to decide whether they accept those plans, she said. when they were made they were actually false docu- ments,” Justice Swift told the jury Tuesday. In June 2012, the Office of the Premier requested that Ms. Catron provide copies of certificates of course com- pletion so that there would be some documentation of how the money was being spent. She explained in an email exchange that the course did not end until the following month, but that the certificates were printed and she could provided cer- tificates of completion to the government dated Aug. 1. Later that year, the court heard, Judy Powery, who worked in the Office of the Premier, received a phone call from one of the paralegal course students, prompting further inquiry into the matter, according to the prosecution. It was discovered that several students did not complete the course, even though Ms. Catron had submitted certificates of comple- tion for those students to the government. The Crown accused Ms. Catron of knowingly and fraudulently uttering a false document with the in- tent to defraud the govern- ment, arguing that Ms. Ca- tron submitted completion certificates for students she knew would be unlikely to finish the course by the Aug. 1 completion date, in- cluding some students who never started the course after registering. Ms. Catron’s defense at- torney, Laura Larner of Samson and McGrath, sub- mitted to the judge during closed court Monday that no jury properly directed could find the defendant guilty, as the evidence was “so tenuous and vague,” and that there was “no evidence [Ms. Catron] was attempting to deceive the government” and that the documents she submitted were not false because they were not pur- porting to be something they were not. The Cayman Islands Penal Code says that a person makes a false doc- ument when that person “makes a document pur- porting to be what in fact it is not; alters a document without authority in such a manner that if the altera- tion had been authorised it would have altered the effect of the document; or signs a document” in someone else’s name. “In this case, we submit that the documents are exactly what they pur- port themselves to be,” Ms. Larner said, noting that they were created by a person au- thorized to complete them, and that they are the same documents that would have been given to a student upon completion of the course. “They are purporting to be a completion certificate that will be issued after the 1st of August if someone completes the course,” Ms. Larner said. Justice Swift said he was “satisfied” that the evi- dence that the certificates were uttered with the in- tent to defraud was not “ten- uous” and the real issue to consider was “the discussion of falsity.” The justice said there was “no evidence” that the cer- tificates of completion were produced at any time other than asserted by the defen- dant, and that they easily could have been predated. “I must not confuse fraud in their employment with fraud in their creation,” he said. In a statement issued Tuesday after the verdict was delivered, Ms. Catron said she was “very relieved” to be able to “finally put this ordeal” behind her. “It has been a harrowing two [plus] years of my life and this entire situation has negatively impacted me both personally and profession- ally,” she said. “The damage can never be repaired, but now I have to choose to move forward in a pos- itive manner.” She said that the case was a “contractual dispute taken too far by one party.” “There was absolutely no intention to deceive or de- fraud anyone and that was apparent by the explana- tory email sent when the certificates were initially re- quested,” Ms. Catron said. “The evidence was clear and supported what I’ve always stated from day one.” Judge orders jury to find Catron not guilty CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Few college degree-holders registered with NWDA CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Tasha Ebanks Garcia Sandra CatronThe islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • WEDNESDAY JUNE 22, 2016 each facility.” When the Glass House was still in use, gov- ernment’s electricity bill for the property was around $55,000 per month, Mr. Tib- betts said. Mr. Tibbetts said people have “all kinds of ideas” about what to use the 1970s- era building for, but he said the Progressives-led govern- ment is unlikely to agree to any use of the current struc- ture in a redevelopment plan. He said the building is “un- safe,” and central public sector operations moved down Elgin Avenue to the modern government adminis- tration building in early 2011. “Nothing … tells me that it is not better to knock that building down,” Mr. Tib- betts said. The minister indicated that government has received a pri- vate sector proposal to build a park on the site, which is in be- tween the new administration building and the George Town Police Station on the north side of Elgin Avenue. However, that plan is contingent on the building’s demolition, he said. Other plans submitted to government have included ideas to refurbish the interior and lease the building back to government, but Mr. Tibbetts said information from studies done years ago have made those proposals moot. In October 2015, Opposi- tion Leader McKeeva Bush asked whether the Glass House could be used for a new Royal Cayman Islands Police Service headquarters, since the George Town Police Station has been condemned by building inspectors and needs to be replaced. Mr. Tibbetts said the Glass House has a number of building code violations that would be costly to fix. The worst example, he said, is the placement of the building’s el- evators and staircases in the central core of the structure. Additional staircases would have to be built, reducing the available office space area, Mr. Tibbetts said. “Even with major renova- tion, it would not be able to match the energy efficiency and seismic and hurricane re- sistance of … the new [gov- ernment] administration building,” Mr. Tibbetts said. A decade ago, a quantity surveyor estimated it would cost nearly $10 million to ren- ovate the Glass House to an acceptable standard. In 2009, a further review put the reno- vation cost even higher – be- tween $13 million and $16 million. Mr. Bush, the former premier, had plans at one stage to turn the building into offices for his Ministry of Financial Services, but that never happened. “In light of the findings in the 2006 and 2009 reports … it is not considered practical or value for money to renovate the Glass House for any other use,” Mr. Tibbetts said in late 2015. As of December 2015, the Government Administration Building was occupied at 86 percent of capacity. As more agencies move into the building, the government is expected to save money on annual lease costs in other buildings, which are still costing millions each budget year, Mr. Tibbetts said. additional resources for pri- mary schools. North Side MLA said gov- ernment should reduce the $2.3 million allocation to pri- vate schools to zero and divert the funds to public schools. Opposition leader McKeeva Bush argued this would just push more children into the public school system, making it even more costly to run. He said funds could be pulled from the budget surplus. Legislators eventually voted, during Finance Com- mittee, to approve the orig- inal spending allocation after Finance Minister Marco Archer said government would look at the possibility of moving funds from another area once the budget is approved. He said it was clear that even the opposition legislators could not agree on how much extra money was needed and where it should come from, so further analysis would be required before any shuffling of funding. Concerns initially focused on the need for increased funding at Savannah Primary School where parents have raised a petition calling for more resources in the wake of the unfavorable inspection report. But legislators from across the island raised sim- ilar issues in relation to school resources in every district. Premier Alden McLaughlin said, “These things have to be dealt with equitably, we can’t give one school who has the best lobbyist one allocation at the cost of other schools.” He said government was doing the best it could with what resources it had. Overall standards at 10 of 15 government schools were deemed “unsatisfactory” in last year’s baseline inspection reports – the lowest option on the grading scale used by the inspection team. Only Layman E. Scott High School on Cayman Brac and Pros- pect Primary School got pos- itive reviews. Alva Suckoo, independent MLA for Bodden Town, ques- tioned whether the resources allocated in the budget were enough to change that picture. Christen Suckoo, the chief officer in the Ministry of Ed- ucation, said there were mul- tiple positions, including teaching assistants, educa- tion psychologists and occu- pational therapists, that had been identified as necessary, if funding was available. But he said additional re- sources had already been put in place to address some of the main weaknesses high- lighted in the reports. He said the first phase of improve- ments focused on the quality of teaching and learning, which would give the most “bang for the buck” in terms of improving schools. He added, “We have to be strategic in which areas of need we address first. What we chose to do was to deal with developing our prin- cipals so they can become more autonomous so they are stronger school leaders, and develop our teachers so the impact on teaching and learning is maximized. When you want to change your system, that is where you start. We will address every need, but if we take it all on at once we are going to drown.” He said the ministry had a strong improvement plan and an unprecedented level of cooperation between offi- cials, principals and teachers and urged legislators to be patient, saying “we are not going to see the fruit ripen for another 10 years.” Gov’t still paying electricity bill for vacant Glass House CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Calls for more cash for public schools CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1Next >