ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 High of 89 Low of 76 Seas: Moderate to rough with wave heights of 4 to 6 feet. Small craft should exercise caution over open waters. EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 PREVENTING CRIME: WE ALREADY HAVE THE ROAD MAP LOCAL | PAGE 7 DIVEMASTER PETER MILBURN TAKES HOME LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Premier Health The world is smaller when you have a bigger health plan! 24/7 worldwide assistance and your I.D. card is accepted by 1.1million US providers, including pharmacy benefits. Wherever you touch down, with Premier Health you are only a phone call away from your health plan. British Caymanian Insurance Agencies Limited acts solely as an agent on behalf of Colonial Medical Insurance Company Limited and it does not act as an insurance broker on behalf of its customers. Call 949-8699 www.britcay.ky cgigrp BRITISH CAYMANIAN INSURANCE AGENCIES LIMITED BritCay House, 236 Eastern Avenue, George Town, P.O. Box 74, KY1-1102 Tel. 949-8699 www.britcay.ky A member of Colonial Group International Ltd. : insurance, health, pensions, life ACCOUNTANCY FIRMS CONTEST DOUBLE CHARGE JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Government’s attempts to collect two sets of business licensing fees from accountancy firms amounts to unfair double taxation that is not supported by the wording of the legis- lation, lawyers for five major firms argued in Grand Court Wednesday. BDO Cayman, Deloitte and Touche, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PwC are seeking a Ju- dicial Review of government’s decision to dismiss their appeals that a $2,000 fee for every accountant on staff should not be ap- plied to them. They argue that they already pay a “per firm” fee based on the number of accountants in the business and should not have been charged the second per-accountant fee. The dispute relates to more than a decade’s worth of fees potentially payable by the firms up to the point when the Trade and Business Law was changed in 2016 to explicitly require that both fees be paid. Before then, the firms say, the wording of the law did not indicate that more than one fee should be paid. The outcome of the case could impact mil- lions of dollars in government revenue. Mac Imrie, representing the five firms, said before 2001 the Trade and Business Li- censing Law had included a schedule of “per professional” fees highlighting the busi- ness licensing fee for various professions, in- cluding accountants. In 2001, an additional category was added for “accountancy firms” with a sliding scale of fees ranging from zero charge for firms with less than five accountants and rising to $400,000 for firms with more than 50 accountants. He said the firms believed this was now the appropriate category for them and from that point they were no longer required to pay the per-employee fee. “This is the crux of the case,” Mr. Imrie said. “It is as simple as saying the new cate- gory for accountancy firms brought with it a new fee based on banded head count. That’s the fee set out on the schedule.” He said if the government wished to im- pose two sets of fees on accountancy firms, it should have said so in clear and un- equivocal words. “The base position is that one fee is pay- able and multiple fees would require ex- press wording.” The law was changed again in 2014 THREE SUSPECTS IN HOME INVASION RELEASED ON BAIL BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Three suspects who were arrested over the weekend in connection with a terrifying early morning break-in and attack on a Patrick’s Is- land family’s home have been released on po- lice bail with orders to report back to authori- ties periodically. The three, a 22-year-old man arrested shortly after the home invasion, a 39-year- old man arrested early Sunday and a juvenile male arrested Saturday, are all still under sus- picion in the crime, Royal Cayman Islands Po- lice officials confirmed Wednesday. No charges had been filed against any of the three as of press time Wednesday. Cayman Islands Police Law does not allow officers to detain any suspect longer than 48 hours, or 72 hours with the permission of a court, absent charges for some offense. “Police … are appealing to members of the public to come forward with any information they may have,” an RCIPS statement read. The 4:30 a.m. attack involved the victims being bound with duct tape by armed men, one of whom struck the male resident of the home with a hammer, police said. According to police, a female resident of the home was threatened by men demanding valuables. Cash and jewelry were taken by the suspects. RCIPS officers only became aware of the incident when one of the residents managed to free themselves from the duct tape and call 911 to report the break-in. According to a police statement released shortly after the crime, RCIPS officers were able to trace and recover some of the items taken from the Patrick’s Island home to a loca- tion in George Town. The 22-year-old suspect was arrested first on suspicion of “aiding and abetting” the com- mission of a crime. Later on Saturday morning, police ar- rested the juvenile after a car crash on School Road. “During a search of the vehicle, he was driving, certain items were found that led to his arrest,” police said. The 39-year-old suspect was arrested around 1 a.m. Sunday. Crime concerns Following a recent uptick in serious crimes, including robberies and burglaries, the RCIPS responded over the weekend with the ar- rests of 26 people, including the home inva- sion suspects. Kipling Douglas passes away at 86 CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Kipling Ernest Douglas, author and longtime judge and magistrate in the Cayman Islands, passed away in Jamaica Sunday at the age of 86. Mr. Douglas had served in courts in Jamaica, Turks and Caicos, and the Cayman Islands. He was also known for his tennis playing, rally car driving and writing about his career and travels around the world. On Wednesday morning, judges, magis- trates, attorneys and court staff gathered to pay tribute to Mr. Douglas, who served as magistrate and then senior magistrate in the Summary Courts of the Cayman Islands from 1983 to 1993. He subse- quently acted as a judge of the Grand Court until 2004. Chief Justice Anthony Smellie pre- sented a tribute to the life and career of Mr. Douglas, noting his service as Chief Justice of Turks and Caicos from 1993 until his retirement in 1996, and the nick- name he earned as a magistrate in Ha- nover, Jamaica – “Clip-Wing Douglas” for the “short, firm but appropriate sen- tences he imposed.” A Cayman Compass reporter recalls the Kipling Douglas, 1930-2017 PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 »2 LOCAL NEWS THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Daily Matinees Every Day $8.00 Seniors, Mon-Fri Before 6pm Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 CARS 3 3D (G) 1:15 2D VIP I 1:25 I 3:15 I 4:40 2D 7:00 2D VIP ROUGH NIGHT (R) 3:20 I 5:30 I 8:00 I 10:10 THE MUMMY 3D (PG13) 3:55 I 6:35 2D I 10:00 2D VIP ALL EYEZ ON ME (R) 1:00 I 4:00 VIP I 7:30 WONDER WOMAN 3D (PG13) 12:50 I 5:20 2D I 8:30 2D I 9:15 PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES (PG13) 12:25 I 4:00 I 7:00 I 9:50 - THURSDAY - 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. *Additional charges will apply per 3D ticket requested. 640-FILM (640-3456) LESF GYM AND SAUNA IS FOR YOU! INFOLIFEEXT@GMAIL.COM You can do it and you know it. Men and women unite for a good cause VICKI WHEATON vwheaton@pinnaclemedialtd.com Two organizations that usually separate their meet- ings according to gender – 100 Men Who Give a Damn and 100 Women Who Care – decided to join forces last Thursday. The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman hosted the nearly 300 attendees for the event that clocked in at just over the standard one-hour meeting time. Before repre- sentatives from three chari- ties made their five-minute presentations in the hope of being granted the funds col- lected that night, two recipi- ents of grants from previous meetings took to the podium. Beulah McField from Meals On Wheels Cayman thanked 100 Women Who Care for the money her organization had been given, stating that it had provided 3,000 meals for the people they serve. Ania Milanowska from the Cayman Crisis Centre expressed her gratitude for the funds her charity was awarded by 100 Men Who Give a Damn. It had enabled them to increase and update the security measures at the center, which were of par- amount importance to the safety and comfort of those resident there. The three charity repre- sentatives who made presen- tations afterward were Mar- garet Lue from the Pines Retirement Home, Caro- line Ferreira from the Red Cross and Ben Hart from the Cayman Heart Fund. Mem- bers voted for their choice and in the end, Ben Hart of the Hart for Hearts branch of Cayman Heart Fund was presented with a check for $30,000. Hart for Hearts raises awareness of the prob- lems families face when their baby is born with a congenital heart defect and raises money to assist them with expenses associated with urgent pedi- atric cardiology healthcare. An update at the end of the evening revealed that from eight meetings in the past two years, 100 Men Who Give a Damn has raised more than $160,000 and 100 Women Who Care has raised over $200,000. “This is the first time that 100 Men and 100 Women have come together for the same meeting,” said Kim Walker Gardiner, head of 100 Women Who Care. “It was a great success and we sin- cerely hope that after seeing what these organizations have achieved, others will be compelled to join us.” The next meetings are scheduled for October. For more information on either organization, visit www.100men.ky and www.100womencayman.com. Conyers articled clerk called to Bar Conyers Dill & Pearman’s Jordan McErlean, who was called to Bar of the Cayman Islands last month, has been appointed an associate in the law firm’s Litigation and Re- structuring department. Mr. McErlean joined Conyers as a summer intern in 2011 and 2012 and later, due to his strong academic performance, became the re- cipient of the Conyers’ Legal Education Award. The firm sponsored his Legal Prac- tice Course in the 2014 aca- demic year, the firm said in a press release. After completing the course, he was offered ar- ticles of clerkship and after being admitted on May 19, he assumed his associate role. Conyers’ partner Fraser Hughes, who was Jordan’s principal for the duration of his articleship, said “in addi- tion to his academic achieve- ments, Jordan has shown a strength of character that we value as a future member of the team and officer of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.” The Cayman Compass incorrectly identified a company that transferred US$250,000 to a Georgia Bank account held by Jeffrey Webb in 2011 in a story Wednesday entitled “Webb to sell US home, seeks travel permission.” The com- pany that transferred the cash was Advanced Integrated Systems Cayman Ltd. CORRECTION Big cocaine find on Bodden Town beach A local resident found 23 kilograms (50.7 lbs) of cocaine along the waterline at a Bodden Town beach Sunday morning. The large package was wrapped in black plastic and contained 20 separate smaller packages inside with a substance that ap- peared to be cocaine. Police weighed and de- stroyed the packages Tuesday. Royal Cayman Islands Police Service officials de- clined to identify the beach the cocaine washed up on due to concerns that it might not be the last of the illegal substance from what was apparently a dis- rupted shipment. “We have carried out a foot and air search of the area, but we cannot be cer- tain that nothing else will show up,” said police media officer Jodi-Ann Powery. Attendees show their support for the winner of the $30,000 raised that night, Ben Hart from Hart for Hearts. - PHOTO: BLUE DOT STUDIOS The 23 kiograms of cocaine that washed ashore in Bodden Town Sunday was found by a resident. From left, Conyers partner Paul Smith, new associate Jordan McErlean, Justice Ingrid Mangatal and Conyers partner Fraser Hughes. Members voted for their choice and in the end, Ben Hart of the Hart for Hearts branch of Cayman Heart Fund was presented with a check for $30,000.3 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 Ombudsman office ramps up hiring for Oct. 1 start BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Cayman Islands gov- ernment is hiring for four po- sitions to staff the new Om- budsman Office, due to start operations later this year. The office will oversee the areas of open records and maladministration com- plaints against government that were previously han- dled by the Information Com- missioner’s Office and the Office of the Complaints Commissioner. In addition, the new of- fice will have responsibility for data protection, man- agement of whistleblower reports and public com- plaints against police offi- cers. Lawmakers approved legislation this spring com- bining the functions of the two former independent of- fices under the direction of the ombudsman. The gov- ernor is in the process of appointing the ombudsman to the new post for a seven- year contract term. There will be two deputy ombudsmen, one of whom is expected to be current Acting Information Commis- sioner Jan Liebaers – who will administer freedom of information matters as well as the territory’s data protection law when it comes into effect. The second deputy om- budsman will be hired to fill a role that has been va- cant for more than two years. That post, with an annual salary of $91,000- $115,000, will have responsi- bility for complaints against government, against police, and whistleblower reports [suspected wrongdoing by the government or private sector entities]. The office is also seeking to hire two investigators to review public complaints against police. Internal police complaints will still be dealt with by the Royal Cayman Is- lands Police Service Profes- sional Standards Unit. The independent police complaints function is a new venture for the Cayman Is- lands government, and it is estimated that hundreds of public complaints against the RCIPS which have been filed since 2010 will have to be reviewed by the new ombudsman, since no one has been legally allowed to hear those cases. The issue involves the failure of the government to follow amendments to the Po- lice Law in 2010, which called for the appointment of the territory’s first police public complaints commission. The commission was never appointed, largely due to funding and staffing dif- ficulties. The RCIPS could still hear internal complaints filed by its own officers, but the police Professional Stan- dards Unit no longer had any legal power to hear public complaints once the Police Law was changed. Whistleblowing Similarly, various laws that were passed to allow for and promote reporting of wrongdoing in the territory’s public and private sectors have been enacted in the past decade but rarely used. The Whistleblower Pro- tection Law, passed in 2015, will not take effect until February 2018, but it will fall to the ombudsman’s of- fice to ultimately review and make recommendations on these complaints. Under the legislation, anyone working in govern- ment or the private sector can make a report or dis- closure of suspected wrong- doing to the ombudsman’s office or to a practicing at- torney. The legislation re- quires all such complaints be kept in strictest confidence. The ombudsman’s office will essentially be given the powers of a court to sub- poena witnesses while it is investigating reports of wrongdoing and monitoring compliance with the law. If evidence of wrongdoing is found, the ombudsman can refer the matter to the person responsible for in- ternal discipline (in admin- istrative cases), refer to the commissioner of police (if criminal wrongdoing has oc- curred) or to the governor (if the wrongdoing was com- mitted by a high-ranking gov- ernment official). FIVE FIREARM SENTENCES SCHEDULED FOR FRIDAY One man convicted after trial, others entered guilty pleas CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com The list for Grand Court this week shows that Jus- tice Michael Wood is sched- uled to sentence five men on Friday in separate cases of possession of unli- censed firearms. Andy Errol Barnes, 37, was found guilty by a jury earlier this month of pos- sessing an unlicensed .38 revolver and six rounds of ammunition at a George Town residence in March 2016. The jury returned verdicts of not guilty for his co-defendants, Yannick McLaughlin and Amber Patricia Yates. Jordon Bryson Powell, 24, pleaded guilty to having an unlicensed .45 Taurus semiautomatic pistol and 10 rounds of ammunition on Jan. 21, 2017. He was charged after the truck driven by his father crashed into a utility pole in George Town following a police pursuit. Torry Javier Powery- Monterrosso, 19, pleaded guilty to possession of a 9mm handgun and six rounds of ammuni- tion on March 25, 2016. He was arrested after police received a re- port that two men were driving around in a white van with a firearm in the area of School Road and Rock Hole. John Brandon Smith pleaded guilty on Friday to having a .25 caliber semi- automatic pistol and 12 rounds of .25 cartridges on or about May 2, 2017, at a South Sound address. Defense attorney Prathna Bodden said Smith, 24, was eager to be sentenced so that he could be treated as a serving prisoner instead of a re- mand prisoner. “The con- ditions are different,” she told Justice Charles Quin. She said Smith would forgo the usual social in- quiry report and she would mitigate for him if arrangements could be made in time; otherwise, the sentencing would have to be put off. Marvin Xavier Conolly Almandarez is the fifth person scheduled for sentence. 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. 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 findtheirownway” WASHINGTON – In 1859, when Manhattan still had many farms, near the Battery on the island’s southern tip The Great American Tea Com- pany was launched. It grew, and outgrew its name, be- coming in 1870 The Great At- lantic & Pacific Tea Company, which in 1912 begat the first A&P Economy Store, a semi- modern grocery store. By 1920, there were 4,500 such stores; by 1930, 15,000. In 1936, in Braddock, Penn- sylvania, A&P opened a “su- permarket.” By the 1950s, A&P was, briefly, what Walmart now is, the nation’s largest re- tailer, with a 75 percent share of America’s grocery business. A&P was, however, about to learn that Karl Marx was right. In “The Communist Mani- festo,” Marx testified to capi- talism’s transformative power: “All that is solid melts into air.” Sixty-eight years after he wrote that, in 1916, in Memphis, just as Henry Ford’s Model T was making personal mobility a universal aspiration, and that aspiration was making sub- urbs practical and alluring, the first Piggly Wiggly opened. This was the beginning of self-service grocery chains. Hitherto, shoppers handed their grocery lists to clerks, who plucked the goods from shelves. Soon shoppers were pushing carts along aisles lined with goods enticingly packaged to prompt im- pulse purchases. A&P flourished when people went downtown to shop. As new suburbs spread, A&P’s stores were old and dis- tant. A&P filed for bankruptcy in 2015. By Nov. 25, 2016, its last stores had closed. Last week, Kroger grocery chain’s lowered earnings fore- cast caused a 19 percent drop in share prices, which had al- ready declined 12 percent in 2017. This was before Amazon announced that it is buying the Whole Foods grocery chain – more than 460 stores in 42 states, Canada and Britain – for $13.7 billion, which is ap- proximately how much Am- azon’s market capitalization increased after the Whole Foods announcement. Whole Foods, like Kroger, had been experiencing diffi- culties from competitors and expanding consumer options. The Wall Street Journal re- ports: “Consumers are buying more of their groceries outside of traditional supermarkets. Online merchants, discounters and meal-kit delivery services are all grabbing market share.” Daniel Patrick Moyni- han’s Iron Law of Emula- tion – competitive branches of government adopt their ri- vals’ techniques – applies to the private sector, too. Neil Irwin of The New York Times writes of Amazon: “The on- line retailer is on a collision course with Walmart to try to be the predominant seller of pretty much everything you buy. Each one is trying to be- come more like the other – Walmart by investing heavily in technology, Amazon by opening physical bookstores and now buying physical su- permarkets.” Something sim- ilar, says Irwin, is happening in “nearly every major in- dustry,” benefiting “the biggest and best-run organizations, to the detriment of upstarts and second-fiddle players.” In the accelerated churning of today’s capitalism, changing tastes and expanding choices destroy some jobs and create others, with net gains in price and quality. But disruption is never restful, and America now faces a decision unique in its history: Is it tired – tired of the turmoil of creative destruc- tion? If so, it had better be ready to do without creativity. And ready to stop being what it has always been: restless. Americans just now are being plied with promises that the political class can, and is eager to, protect them from the need to make strenuous exer- tions to provide for themselves in an increasingly competi- tive world. If the nation really is ready to sag into a rocking chair, it can while away its days and ward off ennui by reading the poet Philip Larkin. “It seems, just now, To be happening so very fast.” Those lines are from Lar- kin’s 1972 poem “Going, Going,” his melancholy, ele- giac lament about the pace of what he considered despoiling change that was, he thought, erasing all that was familiar in his England. The first line of Larkin’s final stanza is: “Most things are never meant.” This is a profound truth: The interacting processes that propel the world produce out- comes that no one intends. The fatal conceit — fatal to the fe- cundity of spontaneous order -- is the belief that anyone, or any group of savants, is clever and farsighted enough to fore- cast the outcomes of complex systems. Who really wants to live in a society where out- comes are “meant,” meaning planned and unsurprising? In his poem, Larkin ex- plained why he wrote it: He was feeling “age, simply.” He was 49. Soon America will be 241. It is too young to flinch from the frictions – and the more than compensating blessings – of a fast-unfolding future. George Will’s email address is georgewill@washpost.com. © 2017, Washington Post Writers Group THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS An outbreak of a deadly virus must be fought on two equally important fronts: Treating those who have been infected and preventing the spread of pathogens to healthy people. Similarly, a two-pronged approach is necessary to fight the outbreak of criminal activity threatening our community: 1) Strong policing followed by swift execution of justice, and 2) Long-term, sustained efforts to inocu- late Cayman’s vulnerable youth (against negative and unhealthy influences). As police continue enhanced efforts to apprehend the thugs and thieves who prey on innocent victims, govern- ment must take steps to prevent Cayman’s future gen- erations from choosing lives of criminality. They should have no shortage of ideas – after all, as youth worker Michael Myles told the Compass this week, nearly a dozen reports on crime and its causes have been com- missioned by government since 2001. Time enough for a generation to come of age without the benefit of focused and meaningful effort to interrupt the cycle of antisocial behavior and crime. As Mr. Myles, who has worked with Cayman’s at-risk and delinquent youths for decades, told the Compass: “There is only so much we can do for the people who are already out there robbing gas stations and shooting up houses. There is a lot we can do for the next generation to prevent them going down the same path. We have been given a road map; we need someone to get on with it.” It’s no secret that government loves to commission studies and reports, but even the best report is close to worthless unless it is cause for action. Many of the reports regarding this matter offered similar recommen- dations for treating the root causes of crime – including poor parenting, lack of education, teen pregnancy and unemployment – but few of those recommendations have been implemented. Two years ago, Mr. Myles compiled a list of key recom- mendations from this mountain of reports. They included implementing youth diversion and early interventions, school-based mental health services and transitional housing, a community parenting program and information sharing between police, social services and educators. His 2015 memo, too, was allowed to languish. Since then, Mr. Myles has begun working with private partners to act on some recommendations in his current role with Hope Academy and the nonprofit Youth Anti-Crime Trust. Mr. Myles is doing more than his part; we must do ours. We talk about second chances for adults who have been convicted of crimes, but what of Cayman’s children who had no real first chance to become productive members of society? Pride and pro-social values are best instilled in the young and, presumably, more malleable. If parents neglect their duties, the task unfortunately devolves to the schools – controlled environments which should model our highest societal ideals. All students, we would add, need and deserve teachers and role models in their lives who are inspira- tional, aspirational and demanding of high performance. Schools themselves, often times aided and abetted by the education “establishment,” are guilty of exhib- iting “the soft bigotry of low expectations.” Without high expectations, schools not only fail to teach academics, they succeed in teaching a dangerous lesson about student worth, student capacity for prodigious learning, and, ultimately, student potential to take their rightful elevated place in their own society. The development of a criminal mindset does not form in an instant or single incident. Likewise, social and behavioral amelioration is a years-long process, not even remotely related to perishable 140 character “tweets” or even quadrennial electoral cycles. We have a lifetime of work ahead of us. We’d better get on with it … Preventing crime: We already have the road map ADDENDUM TO LETTER TO THE EDITOR Editor’s Note: On Tuesday, June 20, the Cayman Compass inadvertently omitted the last paragraph of a Letter to the Editor from local businessman Robert Hamaty. We are pleased to print it below: “Retail package liquor stores make up a Cayma- nian-owned industry em- ploying hundreds of people, having grown from a few shops in the ’70s to 75 li- quor stores serving all three islands. These stores are in- dividual standalone build- ings operating under li- cense with permitted hours of opening and closing Monday through Saturdays serving customers only 18 years of age and older. “What’s strange is that both governments from 2002 to present agreed with the prohibition. What has changed now to want to grant multinational-owned fuel companies liquor licenses?” Robert Hamaty Let us plunge toward our fast-unfolding future GEORGE F. WILL GEORGE 5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 Congratulations to our graduating class of 2017!!! Applications are being accepted for the 2017/2018 school year …. Spaces are limited PreK-4 to Grade 12 American-based Curriculum Programming options may include: • Individualized programs in academic areas • Online courses • Vocational courses/ Automotive Please email offi ce@hopecayman.com or call 769-4673 for more information. www.hopecayman.com Hope Academy RESIDENCE FOR THE RICH GETS MORE COSTLY BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Obtaining the right to remain in the Cayman Is- lands as a “person of in- dependent means” has just become more expensive. Regulations to the Im- migration Law approved last month set higher re- quirements for values of property wealthy residence applicants must hold in order to stay in Cayman. There are two types of residential certificates for persons of independent means. The first is a 25- year residency certificate that can be renewed once it is expired, as long as the person remains in good fi- nancial and physical health. The new regulations require those applicants to have invested at least $1 million in real estate on Grand Cayman. Pre- viously, the investment threshold required was $500,000. Those individ- uals also must have an an- nual income of $120,000 or have at least $400,000 held in a financial institution in the islands. For Cayman Brac resi- dents, the property owner- ship threshold is $500,000, up from the previous $250,000 requirement. The second type of resi- dence for wealthy individ- uals is called a certificate of permanent residence for persons of indepen- dent means. The finan- cial thresholds for those individuals have also been increased. Those individuals, who can remain in Cayman for the rest of their lives, must invest at least $2 million in “developed real estate” in the islands. The previous threshold was $1.6 million. If the person wishes to bring any dependents along to reside with them, an annual fee of $1,000 is due. Previously, the $1,000 charge was a one-time fee. Residence as a person of independent means is a separate legal status in Cayman from an individual who is granted permanent residence after residing in the islands continuously for a period of eight years. It is also separate from res- idency a non-Caymanian obtains following their marriage to a Caymanian, which is referred to as a residency and employment rights certificate. Residency cases from 2013 ready for hearings BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Cayman Islands resi- dents who applied to live in the British territory perma- nently nearly four years ago were advised this week that their applications would soon be reviewed. Notices were sent out from the Immigration Depart- ment this week to those ap- plicants who applied for per- manent residence following the change in the Immigra- tion Law in October 2013. The emails advised all of those in- dividuals to provide updated information they “deem to be crucial to [the] application.” “Please indicate whether (a) you intend to provide updated information or (b) whether you wish the application to be considered as it stands cur- rently,” the email read. The Immigration Depart- ment previously announced that all applicants for per- manent residence, or their legal or business representa- tives, would be contacted to provide an “update” to those records before the applica- tions are heard by the board. Once that update is provided, the department indicated, the board would do its best to hear their application within the next 30 days. Immigration advisers noted last week that it is im- portant for people to make application information as current as possible, particu- larly if individuals have not done so since their applica- tions were filed. Applicants from late 2013 who recently filed updates could have their cases heard by next week, the board indicated. Residence applications will be heard in the order in which they were received, so appli- cants who filed in October 2013 would be first, followed by November 2013 and so on. The Immigration Depart- ment advised applicants who are updating their permanent residence documents to wait until they are contacted by government representatives. If the updates are filed too early, the information may be out of date by the time the application is considered by the board, officials said. HSM Chambers law firm partner Nicolas Joseph said he viewed the receipt of the notice by some of his clients from the Immigration Depart- ment as an “extremely positive development” that long-dor- mant residence applications were now being considered. “We … are encouraged by the 15-day response time re- quested, as it is indicative of a desire to press forward with all possible and appropriate haste.” Mr. Joseph wrote to the firm’s clients on Tuesday. Mr. Joseph said the law firm asked about the status of applications filed during 2014 and beyond, but immigration officials indicated they could provide no timeline regarding those later cases. “Nevertheless, it is clear that significant time, re- sources and attention is being given to the issue,” he said. Between 900 and 1,000 ap- plications for permanent res- idence have been filed since late October 2013 and most have not been heard due to protracted legal and technical difficulties. Premier Alden McLaughlin announced that hearings on the applications will begin this week. The government was under pressure from at least one local law firm representing a number of permanent resi- dence-seekers, as it sought to organize a class action claim against government on be- half of a number of applicants who’ve been waiting years for their cases to be heard. Thus far, the only two long-time Cayman residents to have been granted PR under the current law have filed legal ac- tions against the government. Residence applications will be heard in the order in which they were received, so applicants who filed in October 2013 would be first, followed by November 2013 and so on.DISTRICT DAYS 6 District Days Bodden Town THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Students at Bodden Town Primary learn traditional arts JEWEL LEVY jlevy@pinnaclemedialtd.com More than 40 students in Bodden Town Primary Year 6 class are in engaged in learning traditional arts. On Wednesday, the stu- dents were taught the tradi- tional handcrafting skills of gig making, basketmaking, cooking and marble playing on the school’s playing field. The program is organized by the Ministry of Education and taught by Cayman Tra- ditional Arts director Chis Christian, along with com- munity seniors who have ex- perience in Cayman customs and traditions. In the traditional art classes, students partake in cultural activities and re- ceive instruction in art forms that have deep cul- tural roots in their commu- nity. This is all made possible through classes, demonstra- tions, participation, enter- tainment and the sampling of native cuisine. While the program runs mainly in public schools in Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac, Cayman Traditional Arts also assists with heri- tage day events in some of the private schools and also does work at the Sunrise Adult Training Centre and the Lighthouse School. Primary school youngsters receive awards JEWEL LEVY jlevy@pinnaclemedialtd.com Bodden Town Primary School held an awards cer- emony Wednesday for stu- dents moving on to higher classes in September. In the school’s assembly hall, teachers awarded stu- dents from Years 2 and 3 with certificates for their work in various subjects, such as mathematics, reading and writing, as well as for ex- emplary conduct, attendance, sports and music. Year 3 student Camille Ferol made the principal’s honor roll for her above-av- erage work, completing a high level of assignments, consistently completing homework, participating well in class, and for being a co- operative learner. The event also featured students taking part in the welcoming introduction. Zachary Hydes, Nickoy Ed- wards and Jesaiah Ebanks performed the national song. The government school term finishes on June 30 and the new term be- gins on Aug. 24. Students, teachers and parents gather in assembly for the Years 2 and 3 awards ceremony. – PHOTOS: JEWEL LEVY Daniella Watson drops rolled dough into hot oil. – PHOTOS: JEWEL LEVY Students enjoy a game of marbles. Learning gig stringing was a task for students Courden Thomas and Alma Smith.Alyssa Bush shows off a traditional Caymanian thatch basket. Amelia McGowan blows a conch shell. Jayden Moore receives his award from teacher Kendriah Whyte.7 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 Plaza Venezia, North Sound Road, GT LUNCH SPECIAL EVERYDAY MON-SAT: 11:30-4PM DIM SUM SUNDAY 11AM-3PM OPEN FOR DINNER Delivery After 5PM MON THUR: 5pm - 9:30pm • FRI SUN: 5pm - 10pm 945-3490 chinavillage@candw.ky Divemaster Peter Milburn takes home lifetime achievement award KAYLA YOUNG kyoung@pinnaclemedialtd.com Accepting a lifetime achievement award for 52 years of tourism service, di- vemaster Peter Milburn de- livered a message of environ- mental conservation at the Cayman Stingray Tourism Awards Wednesday evening. Mr. Milburn began his diving career in 1968 and began working shortly there- after with dive legend Bob Soto, who he described as a friend, boss and mentor. As part of the group that worked to repair Soto’s Reef from cruise ship damage in 1996, Mr. Milburn has been a long- time advocate for Cayman’s natural environment. “The main thing I would like to point out is the fact that everyone in this room here tonight in one way, shape or form are all here as caretakers of the very fragile and natural environ- ment that Cayman is so fa- mous for,” Mr. Milburn said from the Kimpton Seafire Re- sort ballroom. “This is something that is very important, very vital for the continued success of the Cayman Islands and the tourism business.” Mr. Milburn is recognized as a pioneer in Cayman’s tourism sector. He has run his own dive business in Cayman since 1978. In 1976, he became the first Caymanian to repre- sent the islands in the Olym- pics as a sailing competitor. He is also a founding member of the Cayman Is- lands Watersports Opera- tors Association. Cayman Islands Tourism Association President Theresa Leacock-Broderick echoed Mr. Milburn’s call for conservation. She described the environment and the people as the islands’ pillars of success. “It is fitting to recognize that, yes, our environment is still a pillar to our success, as [are] our people,” she said. “We need to finish our air- port, finish our roads. But we must continue to keep our en- vironment clean and allow our people to shine.” Other awards categories Diver, hotelier and mar- keter Keith Sahm of Sunset House received the Dia- mond Award, which cele- brates tourism professionals with more than 15 years of experience. Mr. Sahm moved to Cayman in 1998 and has since made his mark on the dive industry. Most recently, he helped found Force Blue, a diving initiative to rehabili- tate elite special force opera- tors, many dealing with post- traumatic stress. Cayman Turtle Centre’s India Narcisse-Elliott took home the Rising Star Tourism Award. Mistress of ceremo- nies and former Miss Cayman Monyque Brooks called Ms. Narcisse-Elliott extremely de- serving of the award and said she has personally witnessed her commitment to excep- tional service. The evening honored a re- cord number of tourism pro- fessionals, with 64 individ- uals nominated for 10 awards categories. The winners were chosen based on their long- term commitment to excellent service on the islands. Minister of Commerce Joey Hew said this commit- ment is what drives Cayman’s tourism industry. “There are hundreds of places with beach, water and sand. What we have to offer is exceptional service,” Mr. Hew said, speaking in the absence of Premier Alden McLaughlin. “It is because of out- standing service that visitors choose to stay longer, tell their friends about their Cayman- kind experience and come back to visit us time and time again.” He highlighted several pending hospitality projects, including a boutique hotel planned near Kirk Market and a five-star luxury resort slated for the southern tip of Seven Mile Beach. He also applauded the growth in hotel room avail- ability. Rosa Harris of the Department of Tourism said there are now 6,002 available rooms in Cayman. The first four months of the year have already at- tracted 850,000 visitors to the islands, Mr. Hew said. In that time, 150,000 visitors ar- rived by plane and 700,000 by cruise ship. Minister of Commerce Joey Hew, left, presents a lifetime achievement award to divemaster Peter Milburn.Ceremony masters Monyque Brooks and Gaetan Babin introduce award winners at the Cayman Stingray Tourism Awards. - PHOTOS: KAYLA YOUNG India Narcisse-Elliott, right, accepts the Rising Star Tourism Award from Rosa Harris. Marc Langevin, Ritz-Carlton general manager and CITA board member, and Danielle Wolfe, CITA accommodations director, present Sunshine Suites Resort employee Vergene Senior, center, with the Accomodations Employee of the Year award. CAYMAN STINGRAY TOURISM AWARD WINNERS Accommodations Employee of the YearVergene Senior, Sunshine Suites Resort Accommodations Manager of the YearJennifer Mills, Southern Cross Club Allied/Attraction/Transportation Employee of the YearJagdeo “Vijay” Narayan, Qualscape Ltd. Allied/Attraction/Transportation Manager of the YearGeddes Hislop, Cayman Turtle Centre Restaurant Employee of the YearAmba Lamb, The Ritz-Carlton Restaurant Manager of the YearSteve Griffon, Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort Watersports Employee of the YearOrland Thomas, Red Sail Sports Watersports Manager of the YearPenny Williams, Red Sail Sports Rising Star Tourism AwardIndia Narcisse-Elliott, Cayman Turtle Centre Diamond Award, 20 years of experienceKeith Sahm, Sunset House/Sunset Divers Lifetime Achievement AwardPeter MilburnThe islands’ most-trusted news source 8 THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Tributes pour in for Justice Douglas SPENCER FORDIN sfordin@pinnaclemedialtd.com Friends and peers from the legal community paid tribute this week to the late Kipling Douglas. Celebrated attorney Ramon Alberga, who knew Mr. Douglas since their shared tenure at Wolmers Boys School in Kingston, Ja- maica, remembered his long- time friend as personable and kind. Mr. Alberga, two years senior to 86-year-old Mr. Douglas, said they shared the same house during their time at Wolmers. “I got on quite well with him,” said Mr. Alberga of his initial impressions of Mr. Douglas. “We started a friend- ship that lasted the rest of time until he died. We had a nice relationship, and I think as a judge, he was quite a strong judge. He made some good decisions and he was quite respected by the bar.” The two men took quite different paths after school, with Mr. Douglas embarking on a career in journalism be- fore later entering the field of law. Mr. Alberga said they did not really practice at the same time in Jamaica before renewing their old friend- ship as legal professionals in Cayman courts. Mr. Alberga went on to appear before Mr. Douglas several times in his capacity as a magistrate, and he said that his former classmate was wise and fair with his rulings and with his control of the court. “He let you know how he was thinking and he some- times telegraphed what his decision was going to be very early in a case. That’s what I remember,” he said. “The fact that I knew him and was at school with him didn’t af- fect him in any way. He was a judge who was very indepen- dent and very forthright.” Casey Gill, a prominent local attorney and a former President of the Cayman Is- lands Chamber of Commerce, said he would remember Mr. Douglas as a kind man with many varied interests. “He was a very widely read man as well as a very widely traveled man,” said Mr. Gill. “He was vibrant and enthusiastic in all his under- takings. He was always calm and soft-spoken. He enjoyed sitting on the bench and liked to put counsel on the spot with a twinkle in his eyes. “I’ve known Kipling since he first came to the island in 1983 and we were also very good friends. I remember fondly the dinner parties which his wife Leslie held. He relished talking about their travels. Apart from his dis- tinguished judicial career, he worked in financial services and he was proud of his membership in the Execu- tive Council of the Common- wealth Magistrates. He was just a very, very well liked man and always gentle.” Mr. Douglas wrote about his extensive travels in the Cayman Compass and its sister paper, The Sunday Observer, and he chronicled memorable tales of his judi- cial career across three juris- dictions – Jamaica, Cayman and Turks and Caicos – in the 2013 book “The Courtroom, the Poor Man’s Theatre.” Margaret Ramsay-Hale, the chief justice of the Turks and Caicos Islands, served alongside Mr. Douglas as a magistrate in Cayman and said that he was already a “larger than life” figure at that time. Mr. Douglas, she said, was a friend of her fa- ther and already very well known to the legal commu- nity and beyond. “Throughout the years I lived and worked in Cayman, he readily shared with me the knowledge and wisdom he had gained on and off the Bench with the generosity and wit for which he was renowned,” she said. “I will always be grateful. I don’t know that I have ever met an- other person who took such unbounded joy in his family and friends, in his work – which he memorialized in his book – and in the pursuit of new experiences in different places across the globe, trav- elling widely in his leisure time and memorializing some of those experiences in travel- ogues which were published in the Cayman Compass.” Karen Myren, the senior court reporter in the Cayman Islands, worked with Mr. Douglas briefly during his latter days on the bench in Cayman and remembered him for his kind disposition. “He was just a pleasure to sit in court with,” she said. “He was always very fair and very kind but stern as well. He had such a good sense of humor that he could lighten things up. He was very quick witted. “I just remember always enjoying sitting in court with him, and I’d also see him in a different court. He liked to play tennis. I played at the tennis club and I would often on Saturdays see him there playing tennis. Even if he wasn’t playing, he was watching his friends on Sat- urday afternoons. He was just so nice. I would say hi to him at the tennis club and he was just a really lovely, kind man.” name bestowed in Cayman – “Crippling Douglas,” also for his firm sentences. Justice Douglas once pre- sided over a Grand Court ses- sion in which people dissat- isfied with the outcome of their Summary Court matter appealed to the higher court. One man, who had received a term of imprisonment, presented his case. Jus- tice Douglas looked at him and said words to the effect, “You want me to reduce your sentence? I’m wondering if I should increase it.” The man in the dock turned and quickly made his way down the stairs to the safety of the courthouse cells. Justice Douglas indicated he was marking that file, “Ap- peal withdrawn.” Mr. Smellie detailed what he called Mr. Douglas’s “long and admirably fruitful and productive life.” Mr. Douglas, who was born in Jamaica in 1930 and attended the prestigious Wolmers Boys School in Kingston, started his profes- sional life as a civil servant in Jamaica, where he worked for three years before going to England in 1951 to study journalism. He returned to Jamaica in 1954 and worked with the Daily Gleaner until 1956. He next served as editor of the West Indian Law Mag- azine and as assistant news editor at Radio Jamaica. Mr. Douglas returned to England in 1957 and worked at the London City Council. He registered at Middle Temple to study law and was called to the bar in 1963. “He had by that time been married to his wife, Leslie, for some four years and they and their first child, Mark, re- turned to Jamaica in 1964, where lawyer Douglas en- tered private practice,” Mr. Smellie said. Over the next 20 years Mr. Douglas practiced law in Ja- maica and was resident mag- istrate in a number of par- ishes. On May 1, 1983, he was appointed magistrate of the Cayman Islands Sum- mary Court, and in 1988 as senior magistrate. While in that post, he was appointed from time to time to act as a judge of the Grand Court and on occasion served as acting chief justice in the ab- sence of the Chief Justice, Sir John Summerfield. He was appointed Chief Justice of Turks and Caicos in 1993 and served there until he retired in 1996. “But as a consummate lawyer and judge, he was not given to full retirement, and so from time to time accepted appointments as acting judge of the Grand Court until 2004, when he finally left ju- dicial life to accept an ap- pointment as legal advisor to the newly established Fi- nancial Reporting Authority within the Attorney General’s Office,” Mr. Smellie said. “As a final crowning achievement of a long and distinguished career, a legal report carried this caption about Justice Douglas in June 2011: ‘Legal Heavyweight Leads New Cayman Firm,” Mr. Smellie quoted. He was referring to the retired judge’s appointment, with attorney Janet Francis, to head Smeet- sLaw (Cayman), a member of the GCA Smeets Law net- work of independently run firms in the Caribbean, Latin America and Europe. Mr. Douglas himself ap- parently considered that his crowning achievement within the legal fraternity was his election to the Executive Council of the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges As- sociation in 1985, where he served until 2016. He served this organization as regional vice president and then pres- ident from 1994-97, when he was made an honorary life vice president. Combining his early ca- reer as journalist with his ju- dicial life, Justice Douglas wrote “The Courtroom, the Poor Man’s Theatre,” in which he shared a collection of an- ecdotes from his 37 years in the courtroom. Many remember Mr. Douglas for his travel arti- cles published in local media [including the Compass and its sister publication The Sunday Observer]. Mr. Smellie said Jus- tice Douglas would be re- membered most fondly “for his insightfulness, his won- derful wit and sense of humor and all in all, as a very fine gentleman.” Attorney General Samuel Bulgin said he had many fond memories of Mr. Douglas as a legal adviser. Having ap- peared before him in Magis- trate’s Court, Mr. Bulgin could attest to his ability to mix common sense with the stan- dards of the law, calling him “street smart.” Attorney Neil Timms, an officer of the Caymanian Bar Association, said Cayman will miss “a gentleman of elegance and courtesy.” In many ways, Mr. Timms said, Mr. Douglas was “the incor- ruptible judge.” Mr. Douglas, who would have observed his 87th birthday on June 24, is sur- vived by wife Leslie, son Mark, daughter Elizabeth, and granddaughter Alhena, as well as brothers and sister. Funeral services will be held at St. Andrew Parish Church in Kingston, Jamaica, on June 28 at 12:30 p.m. Kipling Douglas passes away at 86 Combining his early career as journalist with his judicial life, Justice Douglas wrote “The Courtroom, the Poor Man’s Theatre,” in which he shared a collection of anecdotes from his 37 years in the courtroom. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Justice Kipling Douglas in earlier years. “He was vibrant and enthusiastic in all his undertakings. He was always calm and soft-spoken. He enjoyed sitting on the bench and liked to put counsel on the spot with a twinkle in his eyes.” CASEY GILL, recalling Mr. Douglas’s days on the judge’s benchThe islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY JUNE 22, 2017 (though not brought into force till 2016) to include an express requirement that both sets of fees were payable. Mr. Imrie said this was evidence that the original version of the law did not clearly mandate the payment of both fees. Citing Hansard tran- scripts from the Legis- lative Assembly, when the accountancy firms fees were introduced, he said government mem- bers Rolston Anglin and Cline Glidden had made reference to the fact that the new per-firm fee meant that small firms of five employees or less would not pay any trade license fees. “This demonstrates the legislative intent was to introduce a banded system which meant small firms were ex- empt from any fee and that firms could move be- tween bands and add ac- countants without in- creasing fees,” Mr. Imrie. “The plan and ordinary meaning of the law is supported by the Han- sard. It is really clear what was intended and what the words mean.” The case was con- tinuing Thursday in front of Justice In- grid Mangatal. Other suspects ar- rested over the weekend included three assault suspects, two suspects in sexual offenses, one for possession of a firearm, two drugs offenses and an immigration offense. Several arrests over the weekend were also made in connection with burglaries, attempted burglaries and thefts, which RCIPS Superin- tendent Pete Lansdown said were a particular focus of officers’ inves- tigation. Mr. Lansdown said continued anti-bur- glary efforts had led to just two break-ins over the past week in Bodden Town district. “However, two bur- glaries are still too many,” Mr. Lansdown said. The weekend arrests follow a busy period for the RCIPS last week, in which 65 people were taken into custody, mostly for traffic and court no- show offenses, according to Acting Police Commis- sioner Anthony Ennis. Former Haiti rebel gets 9 years in prison in US drug case MIAMI (AP) – A former Hai- tian rebel leader and re- cently elected member of the Senate in the Carib- bean country was sen- tenced to nearly a decade in prison Wednesday after accepting a plea deal that spared him a life sentence for drug trafficking. Guy Philippe declined to speak as he was sen- tenced to nine years by U.S. District Judge Cecilia Altonaga for money laun- dering and ordered to for- feit $1.5 million. His law- yers portrayed the sentence as a good compromise for their client, who had faced a potential life sentence for drug trafficking. “The government com- promised their position by dismissing the more serious charges,” said defense at- torney Alan Ross. “We com- promised our position by giving up our pretrial mo- tions by pleading guilty and by not going to trial.” Defense attorney Zeljka Bozanic said the agreement did not require Philippe to cooperate in any investi- gation of other Haitian of- ficials as some in Haiti have speculated. “I know there are people in Haiti who like to spin things and that there are politicians in Haiti who like to spin things,” Bozanic said. “However, I can tell all those politicians that Mr. Phillippe is not cooperating. He’s not snitching on any- body. He’s not a snitch.” Philippe, 49, admitted in court in April that as a police commander in the city of Cap-Haitien he ac- cepted between $1.5 mil- lion and $3.5 million from drug smugglers from 1999 to 2003. Prosecutors say Philippe and other police officers took the money in exchange for ensuring safe passage for cocaine ship- ments from Colombia and other countries that went through Haiti on their way to Miami and other U.S. destinations. In 2004, Philippe led an uprising that ousted then- President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. He was indicted along with several others on U.S. drug charges in 2005, but managed to elude cap- ture for more than a decade, including at least 10 at- tempts to arrest him in Haiti that involved a military op- eration and a foot chase through the countryside. Philippe was elected to the Haitian Senate in No- vember. He was arrested by Haitian police while giving a live radio interview in the capital of Port-au-Prince in January and whisked immediately to the U.S., prompting angry protests in his stronghold in south- western Haiti. Altonaga rejected his claim of immunity as an elected Haitian official. The judge noted even if immunity applied, Philippe had not yet been officially sworn in. A small group of pro- testers, holding photos fea- turing a photo of Philippe with current Haiti Presi- dent Jovenel Moise at a campaign rally, were out- side the court in downtown Miami, hoping for a longer sentence. “He should get life in prison,” said Toto Kom- pere, leader of a commu- nity group that supports the party of Aristide. “So many families are crying because of him. Former Haitian rebel leader and recently elected member of the Senate, Guy Philippe – PHOTO: AP Three suspects in home invasion released on bail CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Accountancy firms contest double charge CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 2 Dutch journalists remain in captivity in Colombia BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) – Two Dutch journalists believed to have been kidnapped by leftist rebels in a volatile region of northeastern Co- lombia remained in cap- tivity Wednesday as au- thorities vowed to secure their safe return. In a Facebook post, the show the journalists work for identified them as Eu- genio Follender and Derk Bolt. Bolt hosts the tele- vision show called Spoor- loos (Without a Trace), which attempts to help people find their long-lost blood relatives. The journalists were reporting in El Tarra on Monday when they were captured by members of the National Liberation Army, or ELN, according to the Colombian military. ELN leaders, who have been ne- gotiating a peace accord with the government since earlier this year, tweeted that they were looking into the report and hoped to “help clarify” the situation. By late Tuesday, the rebel group said it had still been unable to verify whether any of its mem- bers were among those responsible for the kid- napping. The ELN added nonetheless that in a re- gion so deeply afflicted by Colombia’s armed conflict that unfamiliar people are sometimes temporarily de- tained as a precautionary safety measure and that it would be “natural for any insurgent force.” Meanwhile, officials and advocates called for their immediate release. “Colombian authorities should do their utmost to locate the journalists and bring them to safety,” said Carlos Lauria, Americas’ director of the Committee to Protect Journalists. “All sides in the Colom- bian conflict must respect the internationally recog- nized status of journalists as civilians.” A humanitarian com- mission traveled to the town of nearly 11,000 near the border with Venezuela where the journalists were last seen. Richar Claro, a local official who is part of the commission, told W Radio that the journalists were “fine for the moment.” “One of the journalists needs medicine that we are getting,” he said, while not disclosing how he had ob- tained the information. Dutch Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Daphne Ker- remans said “the case has our highest priority.” The Spoorloos show said in a message on Facebook that its staff would not be making any further com- ments in order to ensure the journalists’ safety. Four days before going missing, Bolt shared his im- pressions about reporting in Colombia in a blog post. He described filming in Co- lombia’s vast tropical flat- lands known as Los Llanos and breaking out with what appeared to be a rash after going for a swim. He said he went to a doctor and was diagnosed with having an allergic re- action to a tick bite. By the end of filming, he said the bumps had dried up. “My skin is as soft as a peach again, but as I write it over, I get itching again,” he wrote. “Maybe I’m al- lergic to my own memories.” The journalists were reporting in El Tarra on Monday when they were captured by members of the National Liberation Army, or ELN, according to the Colombian military. Fernandez launches new party in Argentina BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – Former President Cristina Fernandez has returned to Argentina’s political stage, launching a new party and promising to fight the eco- nomic policies of her conser- vative successor. The woman who gov- erned Argentina from 2007 to 2015 told a rally in Buenos Aires Tuesday that the party would be called Citizens Unity and would compete in October’s mid- term elections. Current President Mau- ricio Macri was elected vowing to clean up cor- ruption and regenerate the economy with a pro-business government that would re- verse some of the policies of the left-leaning Fernandez. Fernandez, who has been critical of Macri’s budget cuts, did not say if she would run for a senate seat, as has been speculated. “We need to put a limit on this government to stop the [economic] adjust- ment,” she told thousands of supporters. The party would be called Citizens Unity and will compete in October’s midterm elections.Next >