High of 88 Low of 77 Slight to moderate with wave height 2 to 4 feet. EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 COURT RECORDS: MORE ELUSIVE (AND EXPENSIVE) LOCAL | PAGE 6 CHAMPIONS OF THE SEA HONORED AT GALA ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 CAJUN TURKEY STYLE A WHOLE, COOKED, DELICIOUS CAJUN STYLE TURKEY - JUST REHEAT AND SERVE! MAKE IT A COMPLETE MEAL, ADD TO YOUR TURKEY LARGE MASH POTATOES AND GRAVY, LARGE COLESLAW, LARGE MAC & CHEESE, LARGE GREEN BEANS AND 6 BISCUITS $ 3999 $ 5999 Christmas tree shortage expected this year KEN SILVA ksilva@pinnaclemedialtd.com Citing difficulties in dealing with regula- tory requirements, most of the vendors that usually provide Christmas trees have said they will not be doing so this year. Vigoro Nursery, Cost-U-Less, and Tree- s4Life have all stated that they will not be im- porting real trees this year. Businesses that are still aiming to import include Hurley’s and Every Bloomin’ Thing. Scot Kristal, who works in marketing for Hurley’s and is heading up the importation ef- forts, estimated that the number of providers who dropped out of the Christmas tree market will cut the territory’s supply from about 3,000 in 2017 to 1,500 this year. Hurley’s, for its part, is planning to import about 1,000. Many providers are hesitant to import trees this season due to a shifting regulatory landscape, which comes after Department of Agriculture inspectors discovered “live pests” in several shipments last year. The depart- ment eventually allowed the trees to come in to Cayman after the pests were killed, but the shipments were held up for re-inspections be- fore they were released. After last year’s near-fiasco, the Department of Agriculture told importers they should have growers in Canada apply fumigation spray to their trees before shipping them here, ac- cording to Mr. Kristal. However, the spray the department wanted to be used was banned in Canada, he said. The department and the importers eventu- ally came with a workable solution, where the grower in Canada will use a pre-treatment so- lution on the trees. The solution involves put- ting pesticide in the ground, where it will be absorbed by the trees while they grow, Mr. Kristal explained. The process of getting to this point was a hassle, but Hurley’s manager Mike Miller said it was worth it to make sure the store’s cus- tomers have a happy holiday. For other providers, however, the red tape was too much to navigate. “Vigoro is not able to get our beautiful Fraser Fir trees this year,” the nursery ex- plained in a released statement on Friday. “We TRIATHLON DRAWS 170 COMPETITORS MARK MUCKENFUSS muckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com Smiles of joy. Grimaces of pain. Arms raised in triumph. Hands grasping knees as runners doubled over gasping for breath. It was all part of the finish-line scene Sunday at the Cayman Islands Triathlon, as 170 athletes swam, cycled and ran their way through a gru- eling course that began and finished at Seven Mile Public Beach. But the biggest reaction may have been confusion. Problems with recorded times had some ath- letes dashing back out onto the running course to ensure they’d passed the required spots where electronic sensors recorded their prog- ress, while others found themselves displaced by incomplete times. All three of the top women’s finishers were disqualified after the event was finished. Derek Lerner is with Race Caribbean, the official timekeeper for the event. He said such problems can occur when athletes are unclear about the exact points they have to hit in a race, but he could not recall an event where all three top finishers were displaced. Other athletes had trouble as well. Kent Burgess, 31, who won the sprint divi- sion of the race – a 750 meter swim, a 20K bike ride and a 5K run – took advantage of a problem with front-runner Marius Acker’s time recording, only to nearly lose first place on a technicality of his own. Acker, who won the sprint division last year and was the favorite to win the sprint, had actu- ally hit the finish line minutes before Burgess. But Acker was told he had miscounted his run- ning laps and had to return to the course for another mile. 200 students graduate from UCCI MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com About 200 graduates of the University College of the Cayman Islands received their diplomas last Thursday night amid cheers and accolades. Dressed in gold, blue, black or white robes and mortar boards – depending upon the degree they were receiving – the hon- orees were encouraged to pursue their pas- sions, give back to their communities and continue learning. UCCI President Roy Bodden, who is re- tiring at the end of December, told the grad- uates to keep being students. “This is not the end, but the beginning,” Mr. Bodden said. “Commit yourselves to lifelong learning.” Mr. Bodden was part of a slate of speakers that included Premier Alden McLaughlin, MLA Barbara Conolly and UCCI Board of Governors Chairman An- thony Ritch. Belle S. Wheelan, president of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, gave the commencement address. Ms. Wheelan also encouraged the stu- dents to continue accomplishing their goals through determination and hard work. “Don’t lose that spirit,” she said. Ms. Wheelan shared stories of her own struggle with racial discrimination as a student in 1964. She said being confident helped propel her forward in her career. “Get involved,” she said, after urging the graduates to give back to their communities by being tutors and role models. “You see these wonderful leaders?” she added, mo- tioning to those sitting on the dais. “They used to sit where you are. You are no dif- ferent. Make a difference out there.” Mr. McLaughlin shared his own story of being in the same place as the graduates. PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » These students were among the 200 UCCI graduates honored Nov. 1. - PHOTO: MARK MUCKENFUSS PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 »2 LOCAL&REGIONAL MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS • Matinees Daily (matinee price before 6pm) • Seniors $8.00, Mon-Fri Before 6pm • Additional charges apply per 3D/VIP tickets Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 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. - MONDAY - 640-FILM (640-3456) BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY (PG13) 1:35 I 4:00 VIP I 7:00 VIP I 9:35 THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS (PG) 1:20 I 3:45 I 6:40 I 9:10 HALLOWEEN (2018) (R) 1:00 VIP I 4:35 I 7:05 I 10:00 VIP VENOM (PG13) 1:10 I 7:10 NOBODY’S FOOL (R) 1:50 I 4:50 I 7:25 I 10:00 A STAR IS BORN (R) 12:30 I 8:00 HUNTER KILLER (R) 4:10 I 9:45 JOHNNY ENGLISH STRIKES AGAIN (PG) 3:35 I 5:45 PUERTO RICO AIMS TO IMPROVE FATALITY REPORTING POST-MARIA SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – Puerto Rico’s government announced Friday that it has created a committee to improve how the U.S. ter- ritory counts deaths fol- lowing sharp criticism of how it handled fatalities linked to Hurricane Maria. The announcement comes two months after experts at George Wash- ington University estimated that 2,975 people died after the hurricane. Many criti- cized the administration of Gov. Ricardo Rossello for severely undercounting the number of deaths in- directly linked to the Cate- gory 4 storm. Officials said the 19-member committee will create and revise death cer- tification protocols and im- prove management of infor- mation for future disasters. Members include Puerto Rico government officials and U.S. public health ex- perts. It will be co-chaired by the director of Puerto Rico’s Federal Affairs Ad- ministration and the di- rector of the National Di- saster and Preparedness Response Center at Co- lumbia University. Rossello had pledged in August to create the com- mittee, which is called 9/20 given that Maria hit on Sept. 20, 2017. A joint investigation published in September by The Associated Press, the Puerto Rico-based Center for Investigative Jour- nalism and Quartz revealed how Puerto Ricans died without medical care after Maria struck. It offered a detailed portrait of the ago- nizing final days of victims of the storm, interviewing 204 families of the dead and reviewing accounts of 283 more to tell the sto- ries of heretofore anony- mous victims. Director says CIS expansion on track MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com Officials at Cayman In- ternational School expect to have a new preschool ready in August 2019, fol- lowed by a new high school building in 2020. On Thursday evening, school director Jeremy Moore gave a group of about 30 people a glimpse of what to expect when the new build- ings, now under construc- tion, are completed. Much of the discussion outlined the thinking that went into de- signing the $42 million ex- pansion project. “School design matters to learning,” Mr. Moore told the group. While it is hard to quantify its impact, he said, “You don’t hear people say, ‘That’s not important.’” He walked the group through the consulting pro- cess that took place with the global architect firm Perkins+Will and showed ex- amples of new concepts in learning environments. “Education in general has experienced a fundamental shift,” Mr. Moore said, refer- ring to the age of digital infor- mation. “There’s been a whole shift in what schools do and how they operate. How do we look at facilities and change them to match that?” Part of the answer, he said, is in flexible learning spaces. The new classrooms in both the preschool and high school will have an open-plan design, much like that of Clifton Hunter High School. But they will also have movable walls to allow individual classrooms to be closed off, depending upon the situation. “We’re building flexibility into the building itself,” Mr. Moore said. And because stu- dents are learning not only academically but socially, the environment will account for that, he said. “A lot of learning takes place in organic spaces, caf- eterias and hallways,” he said. “There’s tons of nooks in the design of our new high school,” places where stu- dents can sequester them- selves or sit in small groups. Minerva Drive, which cur- rently runs along the front of the school, will become an open quadrangle, with lawns and walkways. The preschool and high school will sit be- tween that space and Es- terley Tibbetts Highway. Katia Dahan, who has three children at the school, seemed jealous of the facilities they will be able to use. “I want to go back to school,” she said, eliciting laughter from the crowd. She continued on in a se- rious vein, asking if the new classrooms might lend them- selves to adult learning in the evening. “We’re definitely open to how to really use this facility [in a way] that helps not just our kids at our school,” Mr. Moore said. “Us adding more seats becomes a benefit to the island as a whole.” Other parents were con- cerned about how much the cost of tuition might rise in order to pay for the construction. “We’re not going to bump up tuitions a huge amount,” Mr. Moore said, while ac- knowledging there would be incremental increases. “We’re going to pay more rent,” he said, referring to Dart, which owns the land, “but we’re going to have more kids.” Currently, the school has 655 students. Its ca- pacity will be 1,100 when the buildings are completed. A chart that was part of Mr. Moore’s presentation showed an anticipated enrollment of 1,077 by 2025. Three accused of posing as NRA workers Men allegedly obtained $672 for painting parking lot Three men were arrested and charged after allegedly presenting themselves as workers with the National Roads Authority and offering to paint the parking lot of a business premises on North Church Street. They are charged with “personating public officers” and with obtaining $672 with intent to permanently de- prive the owner. The men are David Gam- mell, 20, a British national; Patrick Sheridan, 21, and John Quilligan, 22, both Irish nationals. They were visitors who had been staying at a hotel on West Bay Road. They have since moved to a dif- ferent hotel. The men appeared in Summary Court on Wednesday, Oct. 31, when Magistrate Kirsty-Ann Gunn heard that they had ap- proached Cash Wiz on North Church Street and offered to paint the business’s parking lot for a fee, stating that they were employed by the NRA. The business owner later as- certained they did not work for the NRA and reported the incident to police on Sat- urday, Oct. 27. Following an investiga- tion, the three men were lo- cated and taken into custody. Defense attorney James Stenning appeared in court on their behalf and ap- plied for bail. The magistrate granted bail on condition that they not leave the island or go within 100 yards of any sea- port or airport. The defen- dants had to surrender their passports and must report to the George Town Police Station Mondays, Wednes- days and Fridays between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. The matter was set for mention again on Tuesday, Nov. 6. The case file in- cludes a note of “immigration charges to come.” Details of the “person- ating public officers” charge are that the men falsely rep- resented themselves to be persons in the public ser- vice (National Roads Au- thority) and assumed to do an act (the painting of car park lines) by virtue of such employment. Cayman’s Penal Code states that any person who commits such an offense is liable to imprisonment for up to four years. This image shows the layout of the CIS expansion. The high school is in the upper center. The preschool is on the right. - IMAGES: ARCHITECT’S RENDERINGS The library in the new CIS preschool will incorporate lots of open space. ARMED ROBBERY AT KFC A masked gunman held up the KFC restau- rant on Shedden Road in downtown George Town Friday night. Police said the holdup happened around 9 p.m. when a man, wearing a cloth over his face, entered the fast food restaurant, brandishing a firearm. He stole a quantity of cash. During the robbery, several employees and cus- tomers were present, po- lice said, but no one was injured and no shots were fired. The robber fled the lo- cation with the cash before police arrived. Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call the George Town Police Station at 949-4222. The islands’ most-trusted news source 3 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 ENJOY BACARDI RUM RESPONSIBLY. ©BACARDI, ITS TRADE DRESS AND THE BAT DEVICE ARE TRADEMARKS OF BACARDI & COMPANY LIMITED. PIRATES WEEK RUM EVENTS: West Indies Wine Company Rum Tasting Wednesday, November 7th Join brand ambassador Carlos Maestracci tasting through the new aged rums from Bacardi. Chef Dylan Benoit will be supplying tempting bites. $35 + service fee per person with very limited availability. Call West Indies Wine Company 640-9492 to book your seats. Bacardi Signature Pop Up Bar at Royal Palms Thursday, November 8th Pirates Week is here! Indulge yourself at the opening party by enjoying a selection of crafted cocktails at the Bacardi Mojito pop up bar at Royal Palms. doors open at 4:00pm for happy hour, signature cocktail and Mojito bar open from 6pm until 10pm. George Town Sound Invasion Friday, November 9th & Saturday, November 10th Try all of the True Aged Rums at the Pirates Week bars all weekend long as the of cial rum of Pirates Week. UNA EMPRESA DE FAMILIA BACARDIThe 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. Part of the routine work of journalism is keeping a newsroom calendar. On it are scribbled upcoming deadlines, anniversaries and events that might warrant coverage, or at the very least a couple of phone calls to check in on how things have progressed. Glamorous? No. But the practice provides a useful record if a government deadline keeps being pushed farther out into the indefinite future, say, the imple- mentation of digital court records, as the Compass reported last week. Back in 2017, officials said digital records would be available to the public in September of that same year. Since then, they have kept stringing out the timeline. Details are few and updates seldom, coming only by – sometimes, repeated – requests. In fact, it is likely because the Compass keeps asking that we now know not to expect the digital records until sometime next year – that is, unless officials again demur. Since the turn of the millennium, digital court records have been adopted around the world to make courts more transparent and accountable. They were promised in Cayman after our onerous court records policies made international headlines in the spring of 2017. At that time, court administrator Suzanne Bothwell announced that a plan was under way “to make avail- able online, on the Judicial Website, free of cost, the inspection of all public registers, including unreported judgments. This is aimed at expanding the public’s access to court records.” That access has not materialized, nor have offi- cials offered meaningful updates – failing even to be transparent about transparency. In the meantime, if anything, the courts have increased their control of the public’s information by charging fees for records, such as autopsy reports, that formerly were available without cost. Open and transparent courts are a cornerstone of any democratic society. Public access to our judiciary must be more than theoretical; it must be practical and affordable. Yet Cayman’s courts have instituted policies and fees that make it difficult and costly for the many to access and secure copies of important rulings and other documents. We editorialized last summer about this issue, offering a particularly egregious (if not unusual) example – wherein our company was charged $116.50 for copies of two public records totaling 33 pages on cases of significant public interest, including the legal challenge to Cayman’s same-sex marriage ban. Few everyday citizens would – or could – pay so much to access this public information, nor should they have to. The rationale for allowing government officials to charge for records is that the fees offset the costs. Frankly, we find that unpersuasive. Public revenues have already paid for the services in the first place. It makes no sense that when the public actually uses those services, they are charged again. It is the public, not the Compass, that suffers when government charges fees for records, or resists making them easier to access. To be clear, this news- paper will continue paying fees to access public docu- ments; reporters will continue to monitor the promised implementation of digital records. Last week, when a Compass reporter contacted Clerk of Courts Shiona Allenger for an update, here was her answer: “We are in the process of installing our Court Search platform; however, we are not in a position to provide a launch date until all internal processes have been tested and are functioning for public use. We do hope to have this suite available to the public in 2019.” And so, the dance continues. The new “target date” is scribbled in the newsroom calendar. Same song, another verse. Court records: More elusive (and expensive) MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS LETTER TO THE EDITOR A tourist’s view of the great iguana cull In the last few days I’ve seen an increase of armed men on the roadside, on roundabouts, among the bushes and, in some cases, in the middle of the road, armed with an assortment of what can only be described as “iguana guns” – ranging from a 6-foot tree branch with a loop of fishing twine attached to the end to a fe- rocious-looking 20-foot gaff. These men, of course, are the newly licensed iguana hunters recently set up by the government to reduce the numbers of green invaders – yes, “aliens.” The non-native green iguana population has ex- ploded in numbers, giving the ever-opportunistic Cay- manian a chance to make a small fortune! Apparently, a good iguana hunter can cap- ture a hundred a day and, at $5 per head, it seems like a great way to make some easy money. Last week, I had the chance to join in with the cap- ture of a few “tree chickens.” I can tell you, it’s not as easy as it looks! The iguanas are intelligent and learn fast. Scampering up the nearest tree with sur- prising speed, they crawl into the topmost palm fronds and seemingly disappear. If or when the hunter manages to knock one from the tree without gaffing, snaring or spearing it, then it’s a full-on sprint to catch the lightning-fast lizard be- fore it retreats once again up a tree. Long grass is an ad- vantage to the iguana and it was quite a sight watching full-grown men run around in circles bashing at the grass with improvised iguana clubs, narrowly missing each other, shouting, cursing and blaming one another for the loss of the $5. Stopping in the road Friday morning to let a hunter wielding a 20-foot-long catch pole cross, we watched as he snared a very large iguana. A battle ensued that can only be akin to trying to land a 40-pound mahi mahi out of a tree. We cheered the hunter on and shouted encourage- ment as he wrestled with the mini-Godzilla. This time, the iguana won the battle, snap- ping the twine and escaping. Dejected but very happy with the job he’s doing, the hunter just laughed and moved on to the next patch of undisturbed bush. I can see that the first couple of weeks of the iguana cull will produce the most numbers but as the easy ones are picked off, the real work will begin. I just hope that hunters do not clash over prime iguana pro- ducing territory! Giuseppe Rossi 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” Giuseppe Rossi, left, joins iguana cullers on the hunt near Savannah last Thursday. - PHOTO : JEWEL LEVY5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 SECURE YOUR PROPERTY WITH THE BEST DEALS IN SURVEILLANCE CAMERA SYSTEMS AVAILABLE ANYWHERE ON ISLAND. The Security Centre has three exceptional CCTV deals that just can’t be matched. 3 The Gold Standard: a complete digital, four camera IP system – 4 meg precision viewing at just $1799 The Security Centre guarantees that we will beat any price on a comparable system. Call the Security Centre for your demo today at 949-0004 or visit us online at security.ky 2 The Eagle Eye Special: a high-definition system perfect for the home and small businesses - $1549 All systems offer mobile device access - so you can check on your property remotely. bring an existing security camera system into high-definition – using existing cabling - at just $999 1 The Phoenix HD Upgrade: Change in aid rules could help disaster relief Governor, premier welcome tweak to development aid formula JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com British Overseas Territo- ries that suffer serious eco- nomic decline after a nat- ural disaster could qualify for official development as- sistance under new interna- tional aid rules. Governor Martyn Roper and Premier Alden McLaughlin welcomed the change last week, saying it would provide additional se- curity for the Cayman Is- lands in the event of a hurri- cane that severely impacted the islands. Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands and the Turks and Ca- icos Islands were devastated by successive hurricanes last year. However, they were un- able to qualify for support from the U.K.’s $13 billion for- eign development aid budget because they were deemed “too rich” under a formula set by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The formula defines which type of assistance qualifies as development aid and counts toward the U.K.’s commit- ment to spend 0.7 percent of gross national income on de- velopment aid – the United Nation’s target for all devel- oped countries. Ultimately, the U.K. found funding from sources other than the approved aid budget to provide a reported 57 mil- lion pounds sterling (US$74 million) in disaster relief. Since then, it has been cam- paigning for changes to the formula in an effort to free up more funds to support its territories in the aftermath of devastating hurricanes. Under the new rules, agreed at a meeting of the OECD’s Development Assis- tance Committee in Paris last week, wealthy countries that face economic catastrophe in the aftermath of a natural disaster can re-qualify for aid. For that to happen, the per capita income must fall below the World Bank’s high- income threshold of $12,055 for one year. The U.K. declared the rule change as a major victory and Cayman Islands Governor Martyn Roper and Premier Alden McLaughlin both wel- comed the move. “Overnight, you may have seen that the OECD has changed its rules on using the Overseas Development Aid budget to help territo- ries going through natural di- sasters,” Mr. Roper said at a press conference last week. “Last year, in serious hur- ricanes the U.K. wasn’t able to use its ODA budget to help territories. The U.K. has per- suaded the OECD and other countries to change its rules so in future it will be able to use ODA budgets in di- saster relief, including in the Cayman Islands.” Premier McLaughlin also welcomed the change, saying in a Facebook post, “This is good news for all British Overseas Territories, espe- cially if we continue to see an increase in severity in our re- gion of natural disasters.” The U.K. government pre- sented the change as a “major victory” in a press release that was carried by the BBC and other major news organiza- tions last week. The new “reverse-gradua- tion” mechanism means that British Overseas Territories and other Caribbean islands badly damaged by hurricanes could re-qualify for aid in the future if their economy is suf- ficiently badly affected, ac- cording to the release. “The rule change could benefit the U.K. when it as- sists with the economic re- covery and reconstruction of nations hit by natural disas- ters,” the release noted. It adds, “The U.K. gov- ernment has always been clear that in times of crisis, nothing will hold us back from helping the British terri- tories. The ODA rules have not and will not hamper the U.K.’s response to humanitarian crises. The new mechanism could help protect a coun- try’s hard-fought development gains and prevent it from slip- ping into long-term economic decline due to severe natural disasters in the future.” The current rules for offi- cial development assistance prohibit the use of Over- seas Development Aid to sup- port countries above a cer- tain gross national income. Though there is no penalty for violating the OECD’s rules, the U.K. is committed by its own law to spending the rec- ommended benchmark of 0.7 percent of gross national in- come on such aid, as deter- mined by the OECD’s Develop- ment Assistance Committee. International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said the U.K. was pushing for further reforms to increase flexibility in how it uses its development aid budget. “This is a major victory for the U.K., which has led the charge in securing this change. We will continue to press for further reforms to these important rules to ensure we are able to use the aid budget in the most sensible way.” SHEDDEN ROAD INCIDENT GOES TO GRAND COURT CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com An incident that closed Shedden Road last Tuesday night resulted in charges against two men, who were granted bail after appearing in Summary Court on Friday af- ternoon. The matter was trans- mitted to Grand Court, where the defendants will next appear on Friday, Nov. 23. Ernie Emanuel Ramoon, 46, was charged with causing grievous bodily harm to a named male on Oct. 30 at Shedden Road, with intent to cause such serious harm. Marvin Mathew Watson, 39, was charged with using threat- ening, abusive or insulting words or behavior with intent to cause the same named man to believe that violence would be used against him. The date and location were the same as for Mr. Ramoon. No details of the incident were mentioned during the brief transmittal hearing. Police reports of the in- cident indicated that emer- gency services were called to the scene on Shedden Road, in the vicinity of Martin Drive, about 9:45 p.m. to respond to an altercation involving several men, one of whom reportedly had a machete. The complainant/victim sustained a head wound and fled the scene, only to be struck by a car, which did not stop. The area was closed to traffic on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning as police conducted their investigations. Officers said the injured man was in critical condi- tion on Wednesday, but he was listed as stable on Thursday. Magistrate Grace Donalds granted bail, the conditions of which included a requirement that each man reside at his George Town address, observe a curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. and not contact directly or indi- rectly the complainant/victim.6 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS Champions of the sea honored at gala Cayman’s ocean warriors were out in force Saturday night at the annual Fes- tival of Seas gala, hosted by the Central Caribbean Ma- rine Institute. This year, organizers added an awards element to the event, recognizing people who have played a vital role in keeping the oceans healthier over the past year. The gala also marked an- other milestone for CCMI. which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Among the winners on Saturday were Aaron Hunt, who received an award for being a Community Coral Champion, for his work in organizing dive groups to help grow and restore coral on local reefs and to educate people on the importance of a healthy reef. Janice Blumenthal, who works with the Depart- ment of Environment, was named Change Maker of the Year for her work on turtle- friendly lighting planning, while Johanna Kohler, who also works with the DoE, was given an award for Sci- ence and Research Project of the Year for her shark re- search efforts. The Tourism Advocate of the Year award went to Royal Palms Beach Club for its “Don’t Suck” paper straw initiative, while the Marine Conservation Company of the Year was won by Butter- field for its Seabins project. Claire Hughes, of Plastic- Free Cayman, won the People’s Choice Award for her efforts in orga- nizing beach cleanups and other initiatives to help cut down on plastic waste found on island. According to CCMI, the awards recognized “in- spired leaders, bold innova- tors, creative thinkers and those who give generously and tirelessly of their time and talents. This network of committed individuals and organizations pushes us to think bigger, reach further and strive for greater solu- tions in an effort to realize our vision of a world with vibrant oceans and healthy coral reefs.” The judges were Katie Alpers, Nadia Hardie, Nat- alie Urquhart, Catherine Childs and Nicoela McCoy. The keynote speaker at the gala, which was held at Grand Old House, was Al- exandra Cousteau, grand- daughter of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, and a noted film- maker, explorer, and advo- cate on water issues. At the gala, CCMI high- lighted its “Call to Action,” which includes a pledge to strengthen regional coral restoration by maintaining two major restoration sites and growing 1,000 corals in its nurseries; engaging hun- dreds of local children in two major coral restoration activities on Grand Cayman; creating a documentary to show how restoration can bolster wild coral popula- tions on local reefs; and sup- porting three guest speakers at the CCMI Coral Reef Dis- covery Series on Grand Cayman next year, which will be broadcast live. To learn more, visit https:// reefresearch.org. Aaron Hunt receives the Community Coral Champion award from CCMI’s Carrie Manfrino, left, and keynote speaker Alexandra Cousteau, at Saturday night’s Festival of Seas gala. - PHOTOS: MAGGIE JACKSON Carrie Manfrino and Alexandra Cousteau present Plastic-Free Cayman’s Claire Hughes, center, with the People’s Choice Award. Cassandra McDowell was the recipient of the Rising Star Award at the awards ceremony at Grand Old House on Saturday night. Johanna Kohler receives the Science and Research Project of the Year award for her work on shark research in the Cayman Islands. From left, Carrie Manfrino of CCMI, guest speaker Alexandra Cousteau, Governor Martyn Roper, Elisabeth Roper, CCMI director Chris Humphries and Nancy Binz. Governor Martyn Roper speaks at Saturday’s gala.7 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 Happy Anniversar� Bug! You are my compass; my direction, where you go I will follow. Love always, Graham. You are my compass; my direction, where you go I will follow. You are my compass; my direction, You are my compass; my direction, where you go I will follow. Beautician’s client paid $4,000 to fix skin damage CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Trial continued on Friday for Zunilda Anaya Baldovino, who has pleaded not guilty to two charges of doing reckless and negligent acts. The only wit- ness called by the Crown that day was a woman who said she had received injections from Ms. Baldovino, who had told her that the substance injected was vitamins. After experiencing redness, bruising and bumps which kept getting worse, the woman said she ended up spending around $4,000 for visits to doctors, med- ications and travel to Colombia for further treatment. The witness, who is referred to by the Cayman Compass as C to protect her privacy, was the second complainant/victim to give evidence. The first com- plainant gave her evidence when the trial started in August. Ms. Baldovino has pleaded not guilty to two charges of doing a reckless and negli- gent act – supplying or admin- istering “medicine or poison or dangerous matter” in a manner so rash or negligent as to en- danger human life or safety. Ms. Baldovino, from Colombia, had a permit to work in a beauty salon at the time of the alleged acts, November and December 2016. C said she first met Ms. Bal- dovino at a friend’s house and watched as Ms. Baldovino in- jected the friend “all over” her face with a needle. C asked what it was and Ms. Baldo- vino replied that it was vita- mins, brought from Colombia, to nourish the skin. C said she wanted the same treatment and she received it that same day, paying around $60. Nothing happened to her face at that time. Months later, she received the treatment again – one injection on each side of her eyes – from Ms. Baldovino. The next day she noticed red- ness at the injection sites and it got worse. Then she got a bruise under her left eye. C contacted Ms. Baldovino, who said it could be an allergy and told her to take Benadryl, which did not help. She started feeling pain where she had been injected. She texted Ms. Baldo- vino, who then met her in the parking lot outside her work- place and gave her pills and some white cream in a container with no name, which she said would prevent scarring. C again asked if Ms. Bal- dovino was sure that the sub- stance injected was vitamins and was told yes. C became worried that the substance might be silicone be- cause she knew about cases in Colombia. The bruise under her left eye started swelling and then spots appeared near the right eye. She consulted two doc- tors in Cayman and received an- tibiotics. In January 2017, she went to Colombia where a bi- opsy was done near her left eye; it has resulted in a scar. She re- ceived more antibiotics and pills for the swelling. The bumps became less and the swelling went down, Crown counsel Darlene Oko asked if C had ever requested money from Ms. Baldovino. C said she had no insurance, so she asked for money to pay for a doctor and medication. She said Ms. Baldovino never paid her anything. The witness was still being questioned when court adjourned. Magistrate Philippa McFarlane directed her to return for continuation of the trial on Thursday, Dec. 6. ANOTHER JAMAICAN CHALLENGING PERMANENT RESIDENCY DENIAL KEN SILVA ksilva@pinnaclemedialtd.com Jamaican national Rohan Anthony Seymour is challenging government’s decision to deny his bid for permanent residency, arguing that the Immigration Appeals Tribunal discriminated against his nationality when it considered his application. According to Mr. Seymour’s challenge, the Immigration Ap- peals Tribunal denied his ap- plication on July 6 after he did not reach the required minimum of 110 points on the permanent residency point system. The application was denied in part because the tribunal gave him a “0” on the “Demographic and Cultural Diversity” portion of the points system, which had a maximum score of 10. “The Immigration Appeals Tribunal conducted itself in a discriminatory manner when it failed to adequately con- sider or at all, the desirability of granting permanent residence to the Appellant, on the basis that he is a Jamaican,” argues Mr. Seymour in his challenge, which is posted on the financial ser- vices site OffshoreAlert. “And the Tribunal’s deci- sion to award ‘O’ points under the heading Demographic and Cultural Diversity, to the Ap- pellant, is unreasonable on the ground[s] that the Appellant would contribute to the ‘balance in the social and economic life of the country,’ with the Appel- lant having demonstrated that he is a productive, law abiding individual.” Points in the Demographic and Cultural Diversity portion of the points system are awarded based on how many people from the origin country live in Cayman. Applicants from coun- tries with fewer residents repre- sented receive more points than countries with higher degrees of representation. Mr. Seymour stated that the tribunal also failed to give him enough points for having a business and being involved in the community. Mr. Seymour was the second Jamaican to file for judicial re- view last month over govern- ment’s decision to deny per- manent residency. Earlier in October, businessman Clide Coley also filed for review, ar- guing that the Caymanian Status and Permanent Residency Board did not fully factor his invest- ment in a local business when making its decision. His application was denied because he scored a 93.5 on the permanent residency point system, falling short of the 110 points required. But govern- ment did not give him enough points for having an investment in a local company, Mr. Coley ar- gues in his challenge. Mr. Coley, an electrician with more than 20 years of experience, stated that he has a 40-percent ownership stake in C&W Electrical & Reno- vations Ltd., which he claims is worth $114,344,000. More than 200 applicants who were denied permanent residence since 2017 have filed challenges to those decisions, according to records obtained by a Cayman Compass Freedom of Information request ear- lier this year.The islands’ most-trusted news source 8 MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS After steaming across the finish line and expressing sur- prise at his win, Burgess was told he had cut short the last turn in the race. He ran back onto the course so that the elec- tronic sensor would record his passage. The mistake resulted in a dramatic finish as the second- place contender reached the sensor just after Burgess and the two sprinted back to the finish line with Burgess main- taining his slight lead. “That was good fun,” Bur- gess said after finishing in 1:17.09. Burgess, who was com- peting in a triathlon for the first time, placed third in last year’s Cayman Islands Marathon. He said he only started to his swim training in March of this year. Annalet Kruger, 29, was also competing in her first Cayman Islands Triathlon, al- though she did the Mercuryman event earlier this year. She was first to cross the finish line in the sprint women’s division, having initially planned to do the longer Olympic distance of a 1,500 meter swim, 40K bike ride and 10K run. But Kruger and the two other top-three finishers said they were misdirected on the cy- cling course by a volunteer. They failed to pass a key electronic sensor and were judged not to have completed the course. Trevor Murphy, president of the Cayman Islands Tri- athlon Association, said it is up to the athletes to make sure they follow the race course, even if a volunteer pro- vides incorrect information. He said there were posted signs showing the right way for riders to go. Only one other athlete had a similar problem, he said, adding that despite the resulting shortcut, the three women in ques- tion would probably have still been the top-three finishers. “It’s unfortunate,” Murphy said. “We’ve never had this before.” Maggie Tomlin was eventu- ally named the winner of the women’s sprint triathlon with a time of 1 hour, 29 minutes and 17 seconds. In the wom- en’s Olympic distance, Nadine Gray hit the finish at 2:32.56 for first place. More than 15 minutes ear- lier, Patrick Harfield took the men’s division for the second year in a row in 2:14.27 and was met with whistles and cheers from supporters. Harfield, who moved to Cayman last year, said his time was slower this year. “The distance on the bike was a little longer,” he said, comparing this race to last year’s. A headwind also slowed the riders down, he said. “It was hotter than last year on the run,” he said. “The run was tough.” Harfield said he was just coming off his first Ironman competition in Maryland. He likes the quality of the events in Cayman. “You have a lot of expats that are competitive,” he said. “The competition is usually pretty good.” It’s clearly a motivator for Harfield. Others may find moti- vation in other things. Jess Peacey, 37, said this was only her second triathlon. Her reason for entering, she said, was very basic. “I don’t want to get fat,” Peacey said. “Now, I can go to brunch and eat guilt free. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Triathlon draws 170 competitors Gabe Rabess, left, did the cycling portion of the triathlon for the team BAS 1 Generali.Kent Burgess, left, races head to head with Ian Ballard during the cycling leg. - PHOTOS: TANEOS RAMSAY Riders in the Cayman Islands Triathlon had to contend not only with the heat, but with traffic as well. Annalet Kruger (Meyer) hits the finish line in the women’s sprint triathlon division. Marylyn Camargo, right, and Ian Smith were among the 170 competitors at Saturday’s Cayman Islands Triathlon. Patrick Harfield passes the finish line as he wins the Olympic division at Sunday’s Cayman Island Triathlon. - PHOTO: MARK MUCKENFUSS Sprint winner Kent Burgess passes the finish line. Christopher Thomas was one of the younger participants in Sunday’s triathlon. Kevin Connolly streaks by the Kimpton Hotel during Sunday’s triathlon.The islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 5, 2018 have tried our best, but the past few years there have been continual import reg- ulation changes that have made it extremely tedious and risky, and yet again, there have been more changes this year.” Cost-U-Less made a similar statement. “It has been increasingly difficult and time con- suming every year for us to be in this business concur- rently during our busiest time of the year,” the com- pany stated. “We struggled last year to meet island re- quirements and this year is no different.” Trees4Life, which do- nates proceeds from tree sales to charity, also said that while the Department of Agriculture came up with a solution to allow impor- tations, that solution came “too late in the season.” “Due to the over- whelming difficulty expe- rienced last year with the importation process, we have decided to not bring in Christmas Trees for the 2018 season,” Trees4Life stated. “We worked hard to find a solution this year. Unfortunately, the solu- tion came too late in the season for us to provide the quality Christmas trees our customers have come to expect.” While Hurley’s and Every Bloomin’ Thing are able to meet the Depart- ment of Agriculture’s re- quirements to import the trees, there still may be some difficulties in bringing the trees to the shelves. Mr. Kristal ex- plained that once the trees get here, they will be in- spected by the department. If inspectors find pests, the trees will have to be fumigated and inspected again, he said. Nevertheless, Mr. Kristal and Every Bloomin’ Thing owner Ricky Handal are optimistic that the trees will be available by around Thanksgiving. Hurley’s is taking pre- orders now, while Every Bloomin’ Thing will sell the trees at its loca- tion on a first-come, first- served basis. Meanwhile, Cost-U-Less said it will offer artificial trees, and Vigoro said it will soon be offering an “envi- ronmentally friendly option … we will post soon.” “I was not a particularly good student,” he said. “The pursuit of happiness was more important to me. But the point came when the penny dropped and I discov- ered I had to work hard.” He found his calling in law, he said, and looked for- ward to working each day. He encouraged the graduates to find something that would similarly drive them. “If you can find that, you will have done the most im- portant thing for your- self,” he said. Mr. McLaughlin, as well as some of the other speakers, took time to laud Mr. Bodden for leading the campus since 2009. He revealed a special connection between himself and the UCCI president. “Tonight is the swan song of your president, J.A. Roy Bodden, who taught me Year 11 history 40 years ago,” he said, adding that Mr. Bod- den’s career “warrants na- tional recognition.” Mr. Bodden said his ac- complishments were only as good as those sur- rounding him. “The credit goes to my hardworking staff,” he said. His work for the univer- sity, he said, came from a sense of obligation from his own success. “I thought the least I could do was give something back and I hope I can continue to be an exemplar,” he said, while encouraging the graduates to do the same. “Go back to your neighborhood, your hamlet and give something back.” Among Thursday’s gradu- ates were those who received awards at a convocation cere- mony Oct. 27. Top award win- ners included: ■■ Garima Chawla – Highest Achiever Post Graduate; ■■ Tracia Barrett-Ong – Overall Highest Achiever Bachelor’s Level; ■■ Neisha Miller – Overall Highest Achiever Associate; ■■ Althea Miller – Out- standing AS Student with STEM Specialism; ■■ Maria Pia Velas- quez – Highest GPA Gema Dominguez Mora shakes hands with UCCI President Roy Bodden after receiving her post-graduate certificate in primary education. - PHOTO: MARK MUCKENFUSS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 200 students graduate from UCCI CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Christmas tree shortage expected this year Russia and Cuba vow to expand their ‘strategic’ ties MOSCOW (AP) – The leaders of Russia and Cuba vowed Friday to ex- pand what they called their “strategic” ties and urged the United States to lift its blockade of Cuba. In a joint statement is- sued after their talks, Rus- sian President Vladimir Putin and Cuban counter- part Miguel Diaz-Canel de- nounced U.S. “interference into domestic affairs of sov- ereign nations” and spoke in support of closer integration between Russia and Latin American nations. Diaz-Canel, who replaced Raul Castro in April in a his- toric changing of the guard in Cuba, hailed the “broth- erly” ties between Russia and Cuba and invited Putin to visit next year. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union poured bil- lions of dollars in supplies and subsidies into Cuba, its staunchest Latin American ally. But ties withered after the 1991 Soviet collapse as Russia, hit by an economic meltdown, withdrew its eco- nomic aid to Cuba. Putin, who visited Cuba in 2000 and 2014, has sought to revive ties with the old Caribbean ally. Following the Kremlin talks, Putin and Diaz-Canel vowed to expand political, economic and military ties between Russia and Cuba. Cuba’s defense minister, Leopoldo Cintra Frias, is set to visit Moscow later this month to discuss specific plans for military-technical cooperation. Sergei Storchak, Russia’s deputy finance min- ister, said Russia could offer Cuba a 38 million-euro ($43 million) loan to help fund its military modernization. Soviet warships and mil- itary aircraft regularly used Cuban bases during the Cold War, and Cuba hosted a So- viet electronic spying outpost in Lourdes, near Havana. Putin closed the Lourdes intelligence facility in 2001 as he sought to establish warmer ties with the United States during his first presi- dential term. But U.S.-Rus- sian relations have steadily worsened, plunging to post- Cold War lows after Russia’s 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, and the Kremlin has sought to rebuild ties with Cuba. Migrant caravan splinters in Mexican state ISLA, Mexico (AP) – A 4,000-strong caravan of Cen- tral American migrants trav- eling through Mexico split up into several groups with one spending the night in a town in the coastal state of Veracruz and other migrants continuing toward the coun- try’s capital. The divisions came during a tense day in which tempers flared and some migrants ar- gued with caravan organizers and criticized Mexican offi- cials. They were upset that Veracruz Gov. Miguel Angel Yunes had reneged on an offer late Friday to provide buses on Saturday to leapfrog the migrants to Mexico City. The migrants trekked to the town of Isla, about 700 miles south of the U.S. border, where several thousand stopped to rest, eat and re- ceive medical attention. They planned to spend the night there before departing at 5 a.m. Sunday en route to the town of Cordoba. But other migrants, mainly men and the younger members of the group, kept on walking or hitching rides toward Puebla and Mexico City. They hunkered down for the night in Juan Rodriguez Clara or Tierra Blanca farther along the route. “We think that it is better to continue together with the caravan. We are going to stay with it and respect the organizers,” Luis Euseda, a 32-year-old from Tegucigalpa, Honduras who is traveling with his wife Jessica Fugon, said in Isla. “Others went ahead, maybe they have no goal, but we do have a goal and it is to arrive.” Caravan organizers have pleaded for buses in recent days after three weeks on the road, hitching rides and walking. With the group scat- tered, some have raised ques- tions about whether the car- avan would stick together. In a statement, the mi- grants lambasted Mexican officials for directing them northward through the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz, calling it the “route of death.” A trek via the sugar fields and fruit groves of Veracruz takes them through a state where hundreds of migrants have disappeared in recent years, falling prey to kidnappers looking for ransom payments. Authorities in Veracruz said in September they had discovered remains from at least 174 people buried in clandestine graves. Some se- curity experts have ques- tioned whether those bodies belonged to migrants. Gerardo Perez, a 20-year- old migrant, said he was tired. “They’re playing with our dignity. If you could have only seen the people’s hap- piness last night when they told us that we were going by bus and today we’re not,” he said. The caravan’s “strength in numbers” strategy has en- abled them to mobilize sup- port as they move through Mexico and has inspired sub- sequent migrants to try their luck via caravan. Mexico faces the unprec- edented situation of having three caravans stretched over 300 miles of highway in the states of Chiapas, Oaxaca and Veracruz, with a total of more than 6,000 migrants. On Friday, a caravan from El Salvador waded over the Suchiate River into Mexico, bringing 1,000 to 1,500 people who want to reach the U.S. border. That caravan initially tried to cross the bridge between Guatemala and Mexico, but Mexican author- ities told them they would have to show passports and visas and enter in groups of 50 for processing. Another caravan, also of about 1,000 to 1,500 people, entered Mexico earlier this week and is now in Chiapas. That group includes Hondu- rans, Salvadorans and some Guatemalans. Mexican officials appear conflicted over whether to help or hinder their journeys. Immigration agents and police have at times detained migrants in the smaller cara- vans. But several mayors have rolled out the welcome mat for migrants who reached their towns – arranging for food and camp sites. Mexico’s Interior Depart- ment says nearly 3,000 of the migrants in the first caravan have applied for refuge in Mexico and hundreds more have returned home. Central American migrants ride in the trunk of a taxi, in Acayucan, Veracruz state, Saturday. - PHOTO: APNext >