ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 High of 86 Low of 75 Moderate with wave heights of 3 to 5 feet. EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 A NEW DAY FOR LE SOLEIL D’OR AND THE BRAC LOCAL | PAGE 8 STUDENTS FLOCK TO LIBRARY’S LITERACY COMPETITION SEVEN MILE BEACH WATERFRONT WALKERS ROAD TOWN CENTRE PLAZA RED BAY T E N D E R J U I CY C R I S P Y M A D E W I T H W H IT E M E A T C H I C K E N Governor seeks to restore ‘trust and confidence’ JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Amid turbulent times for the rela- tionship between the Cayman Islands and the U.K., Governor Martyn Roper sees himself as “the bridge” between the two countries. Parachuted into the role late last year on a temporary basis after the controversial and unexplained recall of his predecessor Anwar Choudhury, Mr. Roper was recently appointed to the job for a four-year term. With the Cayman Islands govern- ment claiming “betrayal” and calling for constitutional reform after a U.K. deci- sion to enforce public beneficial own- ership registers on its territories, Mr. Roper arrived at an interesting time. Four months into the job, the gov- ernor believes he has already done much to restore “trust and confidence.” “I hope I have demonstrated that I am here to do my best for the Cayman Islands,” Mr. Roper said in a broad-ranging interview with the Cayman Compass. He sees next month’s Royal visit from the heir to the British throne, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as a symbolic but important sign of mellowing tensions. Mr. Roper has developed a close- working relationship with Premier Alden McLaughlin and traveled with him to New York last month to pro- mote Cayman’s financial services in- dustry. He will be deeply involved with efforts to set up a new Min- istry of International Trade, including the establishment of a Cayman office in Hong Kong. “Since I have arrived, I have fo- cused on trying to rebuild the trust and confidence that was lost to some extent last year,” he added. “I don’t think we have got com- pletely back to where we would like to be but good progress is being made.” He accepts there will be times when the U.K.’s view differs from that of Cayman, but insists he is not bound to take the side of the mother country in all cases. “I see myself as the Governor of the Cayman Islands. I am here to promote and support the interests of the people on the Cayman Islands. “I am also a representative of the U.K. and there has to be balance but I also have the right to take a different view to London. I see my role as a bridge. It is about trying to help ensure “ I see myself as the Governor of the Cayman Islands. I am here to promote and support the interests of the people on the Cayman Islands.” GOVERNOR MARTYN ROPER Governor Martyn Roper Premier dismayed by report calling for British voting rights in OTs KEN SILVA ksilva@pinnaclemedialtd.com Last Thursday at the Chamber of Commerce legislative luncheon, Pre- mier Alden McLaughlin strongly de- nounced a United Kingdom Foreign Affairs Committee report issued the same day that calls for British citizens to be able to vote and run for office in the overseas territories. “The day the U.K. government seri- ously considers that persons who are not Caymanians can stand for office here, is the day I will lead the charge for independence,” he said in response to a question from Chamber CEO Wil Pineau. “Because that is akin to an at- tempt to take over the territory and to decide and impose their will on the di- rection the country should take.” The premier stressed that the report – which also calls for the U.K. Parlia- ment to set a date for British OTs to le- galize same-sex marriage and establish public beneficial ownership registries, and if the date is not met, legislate such measures through an Order in Council – was drafted by a committee of Parlia- ment and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.K. government. “The FCO committee is not a gov- ernment committee. It is a committee of the Parliament,” he said. “It’s views don’t necessarily represent the views of the government. They don’t have power to impose on territory; they make recommendations.” Mr. McLaughlin told the Cayman Compass that, in fact, Cayman has actually made “real progress” toward more autonomy in its constitutional reform discussions with the U.K. He “ This attitude that somehow we are British territories and so are required to follow British values is really scary stuff in 2019.” PREMIER ALDEN MCLAUGHLIN Premier Alden McLaughlin PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » Britain’s bond with Cayman2 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 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) HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD (PG) 1:30 I 4:05 3D I 6:40 I 9:15 3D HAPPY DEATH DAY 2U (PG13) 1:40 I 4:50 VIP I 7:00 I 10:10 VIP FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY (PG13) 1:45 I 10:00 ALITA BATTLE ANGEL (PG13) 2:00 VIP I 4:10 3D I 7:20 VIP I 9:30 TOTAL DHAMAAL (PG) 12:30 I 3:30 I 6:30 I 9:30 THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE SECOND PART (PG) 4:25 I 7:00 WHAT MEN WANT (R) 1:15 I 4:00 I 6:50 I 9:40 English test conspiracy, fraud trial nears end CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com A Grand Court trial now in its seventh week is nearing its end as Justice Philip St. John-Stevens was scheduled to continue summing up the matter on Monday. The trial involves five im- migration officers and two civilians charged with con- spiracy to commit fraud on the government. It is a criminal offense to commit fraud on the govern- ment, the judge pointed out. If two or more people agree to commit fraud, that agreement itself is a criminal offense. An agreement to commit a crime is called a conspiracy. All seven defendants are charged with entering into a conspiracy with the other de- fendants and/or with other individuals to commit fraud. The fraud alleged is that money was being paid to public officers so that cer- tain work permit applicants, referred to as candidates, would pass an English Lan- guage Test. The test was re- quired for people from coun- tries in which English is not the primary language. Specifi- cally mentioned were the Do- minican Republic, Cuba and Honduras. The amount of money was usually referred to as US$800 or CI$600. The alleged conspiracy was said to have taken place between August 2015, and June 2016. The seven defen- dants were arrested on var- ious dates in 2017 and they all pleaded not guilty in 2018. Because of the number of de- fense attorneys involved, no dates were clear for the trial until January 2019. Justice St. John Stevens emphasized that the jury will have to return separate ver- dicts for each defendant. He noted that the prose- cution did not have to prove that each defendant was in the conspiracy from begin- ning to end, because people could join or leave at dif- ferent times. The prosecution did have to prove, so that jurors were sure, several ingredients: that there was an agreed scheme to provide help to candidates to pass the English language test in exchange for payment; that a defendant joined the agreement with one or more other individuals; that the scheme would be carried out according to the agreement; that the defendant was aware he or she was joining a larger scheme – although the pros- ecution did not have to prove that the defendant had been in contact with all the other people in the conspiracy. When the defendants were arrested, their cellphones were seized and thousands of messages were obtained. The messages were screened using key words. Many of the messages were in Spanish. Jurors were given copies of the phone messages. Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Patrick Moran, who has led the Crown team in this case, called a Spanish language interpreter as an expert witness about the messages. Mirko Melise, who had translated the mes- sages for the Crown in the course of the investigation, gave evidence via video link about his work. Justice St. John Stevens told jurors that an expert wit- ness is entitled to express his or her opinion, but they could accept or reject all or part of what the expert said. Mr. Melise told the court that some of the Spanish messages were grammati- cally incorrect, or there were words misspelled or omitted, or there was no punctua- tion. These factors made in- terpretation difficult, he said. He agreed that the context of the message was important in helping him translate it. If messages were omitted or out of sequence, this could affect the accuracy of his transla- tion, he said. The judge also commented on the evidence of one woman who pleaded guilty to four charges of conspiracy to defraud the government. They relate to her participa- tion in a conspiracy involving arrangements for four people to pass the English language test in exchange for the pay- ment of money. Jurors were told that they needed to ask themselves whether she had tailored her evidence as it affected a defendant, or whether they could be sure that she told the truth. Defense attorneys had suggested that she had given her evidence in the hope of getting a reduced sentence for her own involvement. If jurors were sure she had told the truth, they could rely on that evidence as they considered it in relation to each defendant. When court adjourned on Friday, the judge was in the process of reviewing the evidence of each defen- dant and the witnesses they called. He reminded jurors that defendants’ evidence had to be judged by the same standard that applied to Crown witnesses. He suggested that pres- sure and stress could have affected the way defendants “came across” when they gave their evidence. The five immigration of- ficers are further charged with failing to report the solicitation of an advan- tage or reward. For legal reasons, the names of the defendants are not being published at this time. John Gray photo gets appropriate home A large black-and-white portrait of the Rev. John Gray and his wife, was loaned to John Gray High School, which has not had an image of the man for whom it was named. The photo is part of the National Archives, which organized the initiative. On hand to present the portrait was the Rev. Gray’s son, John Gray. From left: Charisse Morrison, senior archive and information officer, Principal Jon Clark, history teacher Georgia Harding and John Gray. KAABOO organizers say ticket fix under way KAABOO Cayman or- ganizers said too many people trying to buy tickets for next year’s festival over- loaded its online systems on Thursday. The situation is still being sorted out and the ticketing website will be down until it is fixed. “Due to an over- whelming amount of traffic to our website, we expe- rienced congestion issues which created connectivity interference to our pay- ment processor,” chief mar- keting and brand officer Jason Felts said in a state- ment on Friday. “As a result of the influx of transactions (5,000-plus) this also cre- ated an overload with local banks and triggered de- clines for their customers.” Customers complained that the system was telling them their purchases were not going through. Many made multiple at- tempts to buy tickets suc- cessfully, only to find out that each transaction had been recorded. Many said they ended up with more tickets than they intended to purchase and thousands of dollars in unexpected charges on their credit or debit cards. “Over the last 24 hours our team [has] been working tirelessly to re- solve and refund any du- plicate transactions,” Mr. Felts’s statement said. “Rest assured this is top priority for our partners and our team. We expect 2020 pass sales will resume once the issue of yesterday is re- solved. We will continue to message through email and social media.” The ticket website for KAABOO Cayman showed a message apologizing to pa- trons for the situation and promising that the issue would be resolved. A check of the KAABOO Cayman Twitter and Face- book accounts did not re- veal any official informa- tion on the problem. Fireworks light up the night at the recent KAABOO festival. - PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY BRAC MAN PLEADS TO CAUSING ROAD DEATH CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Paul Mannix Scott pleaded guilty in Grand Court on Friday to causing the death of Sharon Gayle-Clarke by driving dangerously on Feb. 27, 2018 near the intersection of Bight Road with Tibbetts Turn in Cayman Brac. When he was charged, police identified him as the driver of the Honda Accord that crashed with the RAV4 being driven by Mrs. Gayle- Clarke, 51. When the incident occurred, she had been driving to the Kirkconnell Community Care Centre, where she was a long-serving care worker. Mrs. Gayle-Clarke had been sched- uled that night for the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift. Mr. Scott, 38, was repre- sented by attorney Nicholas Dixey, who called the matter “a very tragic case.” He told Justice Marlene Carter it has caused the defendant dis- tress; he felt he had been un- able to express his remorse and sympathy to the vic- tim’s family. The attorney advised that one expert report had calcu- lated Mr. Scott’s speed at the time of the collision at 81 mph. A second report put it at 69 mph. The speedometer itself showed 50 mph. He asked for a social in- quiry report. The judge agreed and added that she would also order a victim im- pact report. At Mr. Dixey’s request, she disqualified Mr. Scott from driving for five years, as re- quired by law. Sentencing was set for Thursday, May 9. The islands’ most-trusted news source 3 CAYMAN COMPASS MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 The islands’ most-trusted news source 4 Cayman Brackers and the rest of us received welcome news last week with the announcement that the Dart organization is in the final stages of com- pleting the purchase of the luxury Le Soleil D’Or on the Sister Island. The move by Cayman’s most successful and ambi- tious developer should signal to other private investors the time may be right to tap that island’s long-too- latent potential. Despite a dearth of accommodations (exacer- bated by the 2014 closing of the 31-room Alexander Hotel and Soleil’s retrenchment in recent years), Brac tourism has been increasing. At last Thursday’s Chamber of Commerce luncheon, Dart Real Estate Business Development President Jackie Doak said that only one of the prop- erty’s nine villas have been open in recent years. It is Dart’s intention to bring the resort (which includes a spa, fitness center, organic farm and restaurant) back to full operations. The Brac’s conundrum, of course, has long been that many stayover visitors want a variety of things to do – a healthy mix of restaurants, excursions, activities and opportunities from which to choose – but busi- ness-minded investors have a difficult time justifying significant outlays unless they can be realize a realistic rate of return. Problematically, the Brac economy has meandered along, seemingly without any sense of urgency, in want of a business model that would stimulate the private sector and help reduce the island’s reliance on govern- ment largesse. Enter Dart – an enterprise as well-resourced as it is well respected. Adding Soleil D’Or to the Dart port- folio of hospitality hostings presents unique opportuni- ties for synergies with other Dart hospitality ventures. Further, a refreshed and revitalized luxury resort on the Brac could be a worthy anchor for dozens of smaller investors providing a variety of amenities, attractions and services for a growing visitor presence. After all, the Brac remains one of the Caribbean’s best-kept secrets, possessing many of the charms revered by Grand Cayman’s many visitors: White sands, azure seas, first-world infrastructure and safety and security. As more people become acquainted with Cayman Brac, we would expect the good word will to spread and demand will follow. The time is right, with government having made significant investments in infrastructure on the island and with hundreds more day visitors expected as the 450-passenger luxury cruise ship Seabourn Sojourn joins the MS Star Flyer in calling on the Brac. There are currently serious explorations of a possible cruise dock which would boost tourism and stimulate the economy. That modest but significant uptick in cruise ship passengers will familiarize discerning travelers with the Brac’s natural beauty and unique island charm. As mentioned, for an island of the small size and minuscule population as the Brac, it already has in place a first-class airport, reliable electricity, potable water, telecom and internet communications, and a warm inviting people. Importantly, it also has a quintessential ambas- sador by the name of the Moses Kirkconnell, who also holds these titles: Member of the Legislative Assembly, Deputy Premier and Minister of Tourism. On the private sector side, Mr. Kirkconnell is also the island’s premier developer, investor, as well as an all-around cheerleader for “all things Cayman Brac.” Indeed, things may finally be beginning to look bullish on Cayman Brac ... – EDITORIAL – A new day for Le Soleil D’Or and the Brac 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 find their own way” MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 CAYMAN COMPASS Court can undo confusion about this WWI memorial WASHINGTON – For decades the Supreme Court has entan- gled itself in Establishment Clause decisions that have been, in the words of Alice in Wonderland, curiouser and curiouser. On Wednesday, it can leaven with clarity the confusion it has sown. The First Amendment’s first words say, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” The court conducts its busi- ness after a chant that in- cludes “God save the United States and this honorable court” and both houses of Congress have taxpayer-paid chaplains who pray for di- vine guidance. The court has, however, held that any policy or practice by a public entity that touches religion, how- ever marginally, violates the Establishment Clause unless (a) it has a secular purpose and (b) its primary effect nei- ther advances nor inhibits religion and (c) it does not foster excessive govern- ment entanglement with reli- gion. In 1983, the court held, rudely but prudently, that Nebraska’s Legislature could continue being prayed over by its paid chaplain, thereby implying that the chaplain negligibly advanced religion. (The First Congress hired a chaplain, but James Mad- ison, principle progenitor of the First Amendment, later said tersely that this “was not with my approbation.”) The court has refereed controversies involving, among many other things, the permissible quantity of reli- gious symbols in Christmas displays on public property, where and what kind of dis- plays of the Ten Command- ments are constitutional, and what cannot be said to “sol- emnize” a high school foot- ball game in Texas, where football hardly needs solem- nity infusions. The court has held that books but not maps can be provided by public funds to parochial schools, causing the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan to wonder: What about atlases, which are books of maps? Come Wednesday, the court will worry about a war memorial 4.8 miles away in Bladensburg, Maryland. In 1925, the Peace Cross, pri- vately built on land given by the town to an American Le- gion post, was dedicated to 49 local men killed in World War I, when crosses marked most overseas graves of U.S. dead, regardless of their re- ligious affiliations. Time passed, the population grew, a local government commis- sion acquired the land, which is now in a traffic round- about. A commemoration event occurs there each Vet- erans Day. There is no record that a religious event has ever been held at the cross in 94 years. But a few cranky, per- snickety, hairsplitting sec- ularists say, with religious zeal, that the cross is now on public land so the Estab- lishment Clause is violated. A district court affirmed the obvious: Honoring the war dead is a secular purpose. But a divided three-judge circuit court panel reversed. Engaging in something akin to Jesuitical casuistry, two judges said a cross must ev- erywhere and always be a primarily symbol of Jesus’ death, and because govern- ment provides maintenance for the plot in the round- about, this cross exces- sively entangles government with religion. In 1984, the court added an “endorsement” consider- ation: Would a commonsen- sical observer of a govern- ment display that includes a symbol with religious over- tones – an observer knowing how the display came about – think the government is using it to “endorse” religion? In 1989 the court sidled even closer to wisdom, with a “co- ercion” criterion. Rather than ignite tens of thousands of skirmishes aimed at scrub- bing all visual religious ref- erences to religion from this nation’s public spaces (in- cluding the names of Corpus Christi, Texas, and Las Cruces, New Mexico), let’s say this: Religion is not “es- tablished” when a passive monument on government property in no way coerces reasonable, informed pass- ersby to believe, practice or support religion. It was for reasons of traffic safety that the govern- ment in 1961 acquired the ground on which the Blad- ensburg cross sits. If, 58 years later, a few people in this age of hair-trigger rage choose to be offended by a long-standing monument re- flecting the nation’s culture and traditions, those people, not the First Amendment, need help. The court should so rule when, sometime be- fore this term ends in June, it announces its decision in this case, as the nine justices sit beneath a frieze that includes a symbol of religion: Moses with the Ten Commandments. Bladensburg last had the nation’s attention because of the shambolic events of Aug. 24, 1814. President James Madison fled from there, where feeble American re- sistance enabled British sol- diers to proceed to torch the president’s house and the Capitol. At Wednesday’s oral argument, the court, sitting across the street from the Capitol, can begin to tidy up its Establishment Clause ju- risprudence that Justice Clar- ence Thomas correctly says is “in shambles.” George Will’s email address is georgewill@washpost.com. © 2019, Washington Post Writers Group GEORGE F. WILL E The First Amendment’s first words say, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 SPECIALIZED CARE WITHIN REACH. Connect with a local representative at +1.242.557.3915 floridaGPS@ccf.org clevelandclinic.org/caribbean WITH CLEVELAND CLINIC JUST A SHORT FLIGHT AWAY, YOU’RE CLOSE TO WHAT’S BEST FOR YOUR HEALTH. Why? Because you’re close to the best healthcare providers and state-of-the-art medical technology. You’re close to the best facilities and quality of services. And you’re close to the healthcare you deserve. After all, what’s more important than your health? Every life deserves world-class care. Man found guilty of rape; sentencing set for April 12 Court says sex offense victims react differently CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Court experience shows that individuals may act dif- ferently to the trauma of sexual assault, Justice Mar- lene Carter said last week when she handed down a guilty verdict after a trial for rape. Victims of rape do not al- ways have injuries to show for it and there is no classic reaction to a demand for un- wanted sexual activity, the judge said, regarding a case involving a man and woman who had been friends before the assault. She set sentencing for April 12 after finding John Michael Soriano guilty of rape after an incident in Sep- tember 2018. Mr. Soriano was on a work permit at the time. The judge allowed him to remain on bail pending a pre- sentence report, with condi- tions that include residing with his father and reporting to police daily. A stop notice at all air and seaports was left in place. The evidence of the com- plainant was that she had gone to visit a friend at the friend’s workplace. After a while, she asked to go to the friend’s apartment because she had a headache. She went to the apartment and Mr. Soriano was there; he appeared to be cooking. She went into the friend’s bed- room and lay down on the bed, playing with her phone. The defendant came into the room and sat on the floor. Then he sat on the bed close to her. She moved away. He then began to stroke her body and lean over her. She said she told him to stop, saying “No” and “Get off.” He did not stop and had his arms over hers. She kept telling him to stop and do not do it, but he kept trying to touch her ev- erywhere. She was starting to get tired. “I didn’t scream. I couldn’t scream because a lot was going through my mind,” she told the court. The defendant was able to get her clothes off and he put his genitals into her private parts, as she described the act. Afterward, she sat on the bed crying. Maybe five minutes later, her friend came home and asked what happened. The complainant told her every- thing – that she had been raped by Mr. Soriano. She left the apartment with her friend and then called her pastor’s wife, who came and spoke with her. Justice Carter said de- fense counsel Crister Brady asked many probing ques- tions, seeking to discredit the complainant. She was consistent and not shaken in cross-examination. She main- tained she had tried to get the defendant to move off of her and she was continually telling him “no” and “stop.” The judge agreed there was a lack of evidence as to screaming or her biting or scratching the defendant in an effort to prevent him from what he was doing, but this did not cause her to doubt the complainant’s account. There was also the evi- dence of the complainant’s friend and the pastor’s wife, which, as evidence of recent complaint, supported the consistency of her account. Mr. Soriano, when inter- viewed after the incident, claimed he was drunk and could not remember the inci- dent at all. During his trial, he said he remembered the correct ver- sion of what happened and he had consensual sex. He explained that he was not drunk at the time of the inci- dent, but found himself con- fused at the interview and he could not explain himself. (Mr. Soriano was assisted by an interpreter for his trial.) Justice Carter said she had the benefit of hearing the re- corded interview. Mr. Soriano had spoken to an attorney be- forehand and one of the offi- cers was able to speak to him in is native language. There did not appear to be any point at which he did not understand what was being said to him and he never complained, but an- swered freely. “I am not persuaded that he was confused,” the judge said. She noted that many de- tails he gave were never put to the complainant, which caused her to doubt his ver- sion of events. But, she re- minded herself, she could not convict him simply because she did not believe him – she had to go back to the prose- cution’s case. The complainant was clear in her words and by her actions that she did not con- sent, the judge said. “I be- lieve her …. I am satisfied so that I am sure that she did not consent. I am satisfied so that I am sure that the defen- dant knew she was not con- senting or that he was reck- less as to whether she was consenting or not. I am satis- fied he is guilty.” The courthouse in George Town where John Michael Soriano was found guilty of rape.6 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 CAYMAN COMPASS Youth mental health takes center stage Mental health facility remains in limbo MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com Delays in the construc- tion of a new mental health facility for the Cayman Is- lands continue and Min- istry of Health officials have declined to say when the project might actually get off the ground. The $1 million project, planned on 15 acres in East End, is supposed to have nine cottages, each of which can house six patients, and a cen- tral building for administra- tion, dining and activities. An orchard and vegetable garden were also part of the original plan. When the project was ap- proved in March 2018, of- ficials said groundbreaking on the project would take place in the summer. That did not happen. In October, officials said they hoped for a construc- tion start shortly after the first of the year. But as yet, there has been no activity. Repeated requests for updates on the situation from the ministry have failed to produce a response. Dr. Marc Lockhart, chairman of the Cayman Is- lands Mental Health Commis- sion, is close to the project. He said the delays are a re- sult of a labor shortage and increased construction costs. “Because of increased construction on the island, [contracting] firms are very busy,” Dr. Lockhart said. “So the fees and costs have in- creased, not to mention the costs of the products.” He said he was told a firm had been chosen through the bidding process, but be- cause of increased costs, ne- gotiations on the initial con- tract were necessary. “It seems the discus- sions were not fruitful,” he said. “It’s very frustrating for me,” Dr. Lockhart added. “But much more frustrating for the patients. People are asking about this on a daily basis: ‘Where are they with this facility? We heard about it a year ago.’” Mental health capacity has reached a critical point for Cayman patients, he said. The mental health ward at the Cayman Islands Hospital, the only such unit on the is- land, has just eight beds. “Our beds are full this week,” Dr. Lockhart said. “We have 10 patients.” Overflow patients have to be housed in other areas of the hospital, he said, or sent off island. So far this year, he said, 13 patients have been sent to Jamaica. “That doesn’t include the ones we send to the States, who have private insur- ance,” he said. Despite the lack of ac- tual construction, he said, he believes ministry offi- cials are committed to the new facility. “The powers that be are very concerned with getting this back on track as fast as possible,” he said. SPENCER FORDIN sfordin@pinnaclemedialtd.com The state of mental health in the Cayman Is- lands came under close scru- tiny on Saturday, when con- cerned adults from all walks of life met at the Marriott for the second annual Mental Health Symposium. The event, hosted by the Alex Panton Foundation, was designed to discuss the latest developments in the area of youth mental health ser- vices in Cayman. The theme – Addressing Our Past, Sup- porting Our Future – aimed to take stock of the current conditions in Cayman and find ways to improve them. Jane Panton, the chair- person of the Alex Panton Foundation, issued welcome remarks Saturday, and she was followed by Governor Marytn Roper and Minister of Health Dwayne Seymour. Dr. Erica Lam, the clin- ical consultant for the Alex Panton Foundation, and Brenda Watson and Luisa McLaughlin of the National Drugs Council, gave a pre- sentation on the past of mental health treatment in the Cayman Islands. Later, Kevin Ashworth, an inspector with the Royal Cayman Is- lands Police Service Family Support Unit, spoke about the connection between de- linquency and mental illness. After lunch, the sympo- sium featured a panel dis- cussion that incorporated the views of several local experts. Dr. Marc Lock- hart, the chairman of the Mental Health Commission, spoke first, and he said that Cayman has met many chal- lenges but still has to face many more in the future. “Many of us that have been here working for 18-20 years or longer realize that we have come a long way,” said Dr. Lockhart. “But we still have a long way to go.” Paulinda Mendoza-Wil- liams, director of the De- partment of Children and Family Services, spoke briefly about her agency’s mission in safe-guarding the chil- dren of Cayman. Child abuse, she said, is one of the largest local factors that causes children to suffer from mental abuse. “In statistics for 2018, we’ve seen over 400 refer- rals for various forms of child abuse in the Cayman Islands,” Ms. Mendoza-Wil- liams said. “The theme of to- day’s symposium is very crit- ical, because we want to look at what’s been happening, but more so what are we are doing as a community.” Shannon Seymour, di- rector of the Wellness Centre, said that her com- pany has recently expanded services and lodged its first full time staff member on Cayman Brac. The Wellness Centre is seeing an increased need in children and adoles- cents seeking services, she said, and also an increase in schools looking to col- laborate with mental health professionals. “When I think of my own path here in the Cayman Is- lands – 30 years ago arriving as a teenager, 22 years ago coming back as a profes- sional – progress has been made,” Ms. Seymour said. “The hard work that’s gone into today where we can fill a ballroom full of people that want to talk about youth mental health, that’s something that I think is worthy of recognition.” Terry Delaney, a private practice psychologist, drew a distinction between the brain and the mind. One is a physical organ, he said, and the other is a manifesta- tion of people’s emotions and experiences. Mr. Delaney asked ev- eryone at the symposium to close their eyes and imagine that there was no light. Then, he said, imagine trying to exit the room without being able to see anything. The panic that would ensue, he said, is a rough analogy for what it’s like to be an adoles- cent in an adult’s world. “In my analogy, expe- rience and knowledge are light. At that young an age, there’s very little experi- ence and very little knowl- edge,” he said. “I do this with you this afternoon because I think we need to get a better con- cept of what adolescence is about. It’s not always just angst. … We tend to be very judgmental when we get into this, and to develop any com- passion, we have to get that concept where they’re lost. “This isn’t being deroga- tory towards them; some of the most intelligent people I’ve ever known have been 17 years old. We need to ac- quire a balance in that, to re- spect what they bring to us and at the same time honor the fact that they’re going through the most intense change they will in life: Phys- ically, emotionally, spiritu- ally, sexually. In every way of life, they’re going through massive change.” “ Because of increased construction on the island, [contracting] firms are very busy …. So the fees and costs have increased, not to mention the costs of the products.” DR. MARC LOCKHART, chairman of the Cayman Islands Mental Health Commission This architect’s rendering of the planned long-term mental health facility shows the exterior forecourt of the site. - IMAGE: MONTGOMERY SISAM ARCHITECTS Lizzette Yearwood, a board member of the Alex Panton Foundation and the chief executive officer of the Health Services Authority, moderated a panel discussion with mental health professionals at Saturday’s symposium. – PHOTO: SPENCER FORDIN WHITTAKER NAMED TO POSITION AT WORC Katherine Whittaker, the former director of the Youth Services Unit, has been named the new head of La- bour Demands, Development and Training for Workforce Opportunities and Resi- dency Cayman. Ms. Whittaker, a civil ser- vant for 28 years, has also served as the deputy director of the Department of Youth and Sports and as an asso- ciate inspector with the Of- fice of Education Services. She also spent many years as a teacher at the former Cayman Islands Middle School and John Gray High School. Ms. Whittaker eventu- ally became the deputy Hhad of the English department at John Gray. Ms. Whittaker completed a secondment with the Port- folio of the Civil Service in 2017, and she spent her time there as a manager of lead- ership and learning, among other duties. During her 14- month post, she managed the Institute of Leadership Management Level 3 Certifi- cate course. Ms. Whittaker also was an officer with the Portfolio of the Civil Service’s Corpo- rate and Strategic Human Re- source Unit. “As the agency formally known as National Workforce Development Agency (NWDA) continues to transition to WORC,” said WORC Director Sharon Roulstone, “Ms. Whit- taker will play a crucial role in executing the vision of WORC, which is to lead the pursuit of full Caymanian employment and economic prosperity for all through service excellence.” In her new capacity, Ms. Whittaker will facilitate the collection of data by ana- lyzing present and future labor force demands in order to better prepare citizens to participate fully in the job market. “We are delighted to wel- come Ms. Whittaker to the WORC family,” Ms. Roul- stone said, “And look forward to supporting her efforts in leading the new vision and goals for WORC.” Katherine Whittaker7 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 Fire Service looks to groom new leadership The Cayman Islands Fire Service is looking for new leadership. The Ministry of Finan- cial Services and Home Af- fairs sent a notice late last month inviting Cayman Is- lands Fire Service personnel to participate in coaching for the positions of captain and lieutenant. That opportunity for coaching attracted 24 offi- cers, which is nearly double the response to a similar re- quest published in August 2018. Officers were vying for the position of deputy chief officer last August, and the program focused on assisting 14 participants with essen- tial leadership training. The ministry hopes to an- nounce the results of the deputy chief fire officer re- cruitment exercise at some point before the end of March. PricewaterhouseCoopers conducted an organizational review of the Cayman Islands Fire Service in June 2017, and in the wake of that review, the ministry has been targeting identified areas. One of those areas was the need for a talent strategy that exemplified the individual development of existing fire personnel while encouraging recruitment, succession planning and per- formance management. RESOLVE, a local com- pany, was chosen to admin- ister a coaching program by the CIFS following an open Request for Proposal process conducted in the early part of 2018. That program was de- signed to meet the individual needs of personnel and also to encourage a local culture of leadership development. RESOLVE relies on both individual and group work in its coaching program, and it has a one-on-one coaching aspect designed to assess the capacity of each individual to work in a more challenging role. RESOLVE emphasizes foundational principles of trust and competence in those individuals. “The goal of the coaching program and other training and development opportuni- ties that are being offered is to provide CIFS officers with the necessary skills and tools they need to succeed and ad- vance to positions of leader- ship within the new organi- zational structure,” said Dax Basdeo, chief officer of fi- nancial services in the Min- istry of Finance, Tourism and Development. The next round of coaching for the applicants for leadership positions will begin in April, and the RE- SOLVE team is working with frontline staff in groups of 10 to 15 people on issues and strategies that will give the CIFS a better chance of having a positive leader- ship culture. The ministry is also hoping to revise the orga- nizational chart and job de- scriptions of positions at the CIFS based on employee feedback taken from various levels of the organization. The ministry hopes to implement the new job de- scriptions – which reflect the United Kingdom’s Occupa- tional Standards – during the first quarter of 2019. “The Ministry is fully committed to supporting the CIFS on its journey to be- coming a world-class uni- formed service,” Mr. Basdeo said. “And we will continue to provide the necessary leader- ship development, coaching and support as it adapts to the needs of our society.” Businessman brought bullet Those who screen passengers deserve credit, magistrate says CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com A businessman on his first trip to Cayman ended up staying longer than he intended after a single round of ammunition was found in his knapsack on Wednesday, Feb. 20. In Sum- mary Court the next day, Crown counsel Kenneth Fer- guson said the man was at Owen Roberts Airport about to board a flight to Charlotte, North Carolina. His carry-on luggage was put through the X-ray screening and a single round of .22 ammunition was discovered. Defense attorney Prathna Bodden said the defendant, 58, had come to Cayman on a business trip and it was his first visit. He held a firearms li- cense in his home state and he thought the bullet must have got caught in the lining of the knapsack when he had used it on a re- cent outing. In addition to missing his flight, Ms. Bodden noted, her client had been obliged to stay on island the extra day. All the hotel rooms were full and he had to pay for a suite, at significant expense. He said the kindness ex- tended to him had been ex- ceptional and he hoped to return to the island. Ms. Bodden, therefore, asked that no conviction be recorded against him. The magistrate said that Cayman, unfortunately, has had more than a few of these cases lately. He sus- pected this might be be- cause of the increase in the number of visitors, many from the U.S., which has lib- eral gun laws. When a person has a gun, he or she has to make sure the luggage traveled with is isolated from the gun at home, he recommended. He accepted that this de- fendant’s offense had been committed inadvertently and a conviction would harm his ability to travel here for business in the future. The magistrate said Cay- man’s enforcement offi- cers were good ambassa- dors, treating people with dignity, as they should. The Flowers Group are the ones who screen passengers, he pointed out, and they were the ones who found the bullet even after the items had been through screening in the U.S. on the way here. He imposed what has be- come the norm – a cost order in the sum of CI$1,000. No conviction was recorded. The magistrate said that Cayman, unfortunately, has had more than a few of these cases lately. The Fire Service is seeking to improve training opportunities for existing staff while expanding recruitment efforts. BACKYARD MOSQUITO INSPECTIONS UNDER WAY Inspectors from the Mosquito Research and Control Unit recently began residential inspections to help eliminate breeding opportunities for the dis- ease carrying Aedes ae- gypti mosquito. Homeowners should be aware that the unit’s offi- cials drive clearly marked MRCU trucks, wear MRCU clothing and have govern- ment identification. They are looking for standing water in such things as buckets, tires, cisterns or even in natural structures such as bromeliads and tree holes. Such standing water can harbor the mos- quito and its larvae. Aedes aegypti transmits such dis- eases as zika, chikungunya and dengue fever. MRCU director Jim McNelly said inspectors will discuss prevention with residents in any yard they visit. “All measures are di- rected at the larval and pupal stages,” Mr. McNelly said. Residents are encour- aged to tip the water out of containers. If water cannot effectively be re- moved, a larvicide or pu- pacide should be ap- plied, depending upon the mosquitoes’ stage of development. Mr. McNelly said the agency is making a bigger push into the eastern districts than it has in the past. Inspectors will be using new equipment that allows them to electronically reg- ister information into the agency’s database and tie it directly to a residence by scanning barcodes on elec- tricity meters. Inspectors received training from the Carib- bean Public Health Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, both of which have been promoting the barcode system as a way to share regional data on Aedes aegypti. The MRCU has begun inspections to help its mosquito-control efforts.8 LOCAL®IONAL MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 CAYMAN COMPASS Local students flock to library’s literacy competition SPENCER FORDIN sfordin@pinnaclemedialtd.com The enthusiasm for reading among Cayman children is spreading like wildfire. The sixth annual Cayman Islands Information Profes- sionals Storyboard Com- petition was held this weekend at the George Town Public Library, and it at- tracted a huge groundswell of support. Eighty-five students from at least a half-dozen schools participated this year, and there were 55 storyboards depicting books that local children had read. Last year, there were 49 storyboards from 65 competitors. An es- timated 200 people filled the library for the event on Saturday. Paul Robinson, the acting director and chairman of the Public Library Service, said that the event is a result of a collaboration between the library service, CIIP and Rotary Club of Grand Cayman Sunrise. “These boards are a visual representation of information sharing,” he said. “The chil- dren read the book and dis- seminate information about the book. And they’re marked on the criteria.” Samruddhi Tagalpallewar, a 16-year-old student at St. Ignatius, said she had been a winner of the event in past years, and she was thrilled to be back and com- peting with her peers again. Ms. Tagalpallewar did a pre- sentation on the 2015 novel “Everything, Everything” by Nicola Yoon. “It means so much be- cause the books I read were so good and I wanted to in- spire others to also read,” she said. “Every single book explores so much and has so many characters and so many colors to it. I really wanted to spread the mes- sage about reading the books and the books that I’ve en- joyed to read.” WINNERS: Division A(individual – 5-8 years old)Tilly TammemagiBook: E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial by Melissa Mathison (screenplay) Division B(individual – 9-12 years old)Rachel BallsBook: I Survived The Eruption of Mount St. Helens 1980 by Lauren Tarshis Division C(individual- 13-18 years old)Alexander RhuleBook: Hatchet by Gary Paulsen Division D(small group – 5-8 years old)Aaron, Noah and Amaya Rajamohan Book: The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss Division E(small group – 9-12 years old)Camille Allard, Imogen Howe and Renee WambuguBook: Matilda by Roald Dahl Division F(small group – 13-18 years old)Justine Rhule, Sarah Harrison and Xoe BullingsBook: IT by Stephen King Justine Rhule (left), Sarah Harrison (middle) and Xoe Bullings (right) won in the small group category for ages 13-18 for their presentation on Stephen King’s ‘IT.’ – PHOTO: SPENCER FORDIN Ombudsman orders document release The ombudsman for the Cayman Islands government issued a ruling Thursday di- recting Workforce Opportuni- ties and Residency Cayman to publish relevant decision- making documents in a case regarding a permanent resi- dency inquiry. The decision by Om- budsman Sandy Hermiston applies to an applicant who made four separate requests to the Department of Immi- gration under the Freedom of Information Law seeking records relating to policies, procedures and guidelines on the handling of applications for permanent residency. No initial response was given to the applicant and no internal review was conducted. Various records were dis- closed during the appeal, in- cluding policies relating to applications for permanent residency, but the Depart- ment of Immigration ad- vised those policies were no longer in place. The applicant responded and asked whether there were any policies that are in use relating to applications for permanent residency, but did not receive a response. Ms. Hermiston found that the department failed to re- spond to requests within the time limit established by the FOI Law. The ombudsman also con- cluded that the department failed to indicate whether it held records requested by the applicant and failed to pub- lish “records used in making decisions.” As a result, the om- budsman directed the de- partment – which is now known as Workforce Op- portunities and Residency Cayman – to provide a full answer to the applicant. The department is also ordered to publish its guiding docu- ments related to the making of decisions. “This appeal is a good re- minder that the law must be adhered to,” said the om- budsman in an official state- ment, “Even when public au- thorities are occupied with other matters.” Brac residents urged to dispose of metal waste Cayman Brac residents are being urged by the De- partment of Environmental Health to transport derelict vehicles and other metal waste to the Cayman Brac Landfill by Feb. 26. The DEH is currently conducting a metal baling activity at the landfill, which began on Feb. 11. The baling will create ad- ditional space within the landfill, and it is the only scheduled opera- tion this year. The DEH has baled 75 vehicles and created 150 full metal bales since the operation began. Patricia Eke, environ- mental health officer as- signed to the Sister Is- lands, said it is important for Cayman Brac residents to make every possible ef- fort to get metal rubbish to the landfill. “Those who are genu- inely unable to afford to have derelict vehicles re- moved may contact me di- rectly to make arrange- ments for their removal,” Mrs. Eke said. Residents may contact Mrs. Eke by telephone on 916-4201. Cubans vote on updated constitution HAVANA (AP) – Cubans voted Sunday on a new con- stitution that expands rec- ognition of private prop- erty and updates a Soviet bloc-era charter for the so- cialist nation. The new document, which had been tweaked after a series of public consulta- tions, maintains control by the Communist Party, but adjusts the nation’s legal system to account for years of greater opening to small- scale private enterprise and closer ties to Cuban emi- grants abroad. Passage of the measure was assured, despite oppo- sition by some evangelical Christian leaders upset that the document opens the pos- sibility for eventual legaliza- tion of gay marriage. Lines stretched from schools used as polling places on Sunday following days of heavy official pro- motion for a “Yes” vote and less prominent opposi- tion sentiment expressed on social media sites re- cently opened to a broader range of Cubans. President Miguel Diaz- Canel took to Twitter to en- courage support, writing “CubaVotesYes” and saying the document “guatantees the rights of each and every citizen of the nation.” The previous constitu- tion was adopted in 1976 at a time when Cuba depended heavily on Soviet aid and trade and tightly restricted private enterprise. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union slammed Cu- ba’s economy in the early 1990s, the island has allowed hundreds of thousands of people to launch small pri- vate businesses, though their scale has been tightly restricted. The new constitution would allow some such businesses to legally hire a few workers. Islandwide consultations led to numerous changes in the document, notably omit- ting an article that would have legalized gay marriage. But evangelicals were alarmed that it seems to open the way for eventual legalization by omitting the definition of marriage as be- tween a man and a woman. Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel talks to the press after voting in a referendum to approve or reject the new constitution in Havana, Sunday. - PHOTO: AP PUERTO RICO GOV: TRUMP REFUSES HURRICANE TALK WASHINGTON (AP) – Pres- ident Donald Trump has refused to meet privately with Puerto Rican Gov. Ri- cardo Rossello, the gov- ernor said Friday, as he condemned the Trump ad- ministration for not pro- viding more disaster re- lief in the 17 months since Hurricane Maria devas- tated the U.S. territory and left thousands dead. The Democratic governor, who has been reluctant to lash out at the Trump ad- ministration at times, said the Republican president himself bears responsi- bility for the slow pace of di- saster relief. “Eventually the buck has to stop somewhere,” Rossello said Friday on the opening day of the National Gover- nors Association meeting in Washington. “It has to stop with the president.” While the governor’s team has been in regular contact with federal officials, Rossello said he made public and private requests in re- cent weeks to meet with the president. The White House denied the requests without giving a reason, he said. A White House offi- cial noted that instead of making Trump available, a meeting was arranged be- tween Rossello and Ben Carson, secretary of the De- partment of Housing and Urban Development, and Brock Long, who leads the Federal Emergency Man- agement Agency.The islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2019 Dr. Neeraj Prasad Consultant Cardiologist To book an appointment, please call: 949-4309/623-4309 Will be at Grand Harbour Medical from March 4th to March 8th, 2019 Governor seeks to restore ‘trust and confidence’ the views of Cayman are un- derstood in London and are pushed in London.” Getting to know Cayman Mr. Roper, who starts each day with a brisk run along Seven Mile Beach, has quickly grown to love the Cayman Islands. When he is not working or at- tending events in an official capacity, he enjoys paddle- boarding along the beach. He is proud of his strong social media presence and followers of his Twitter, In- stagram and Facebook ac- counts get regular insights into his life on the islands. He sees these updates as another way of expanding access to the governor and increasing awareness about his role. As he sees it, a lot of the work of the Governor’s Of- fice takes place behind the scenes. But he says signifi- cant contributions are being made in important areas. While there have been calls in some quarters for the U.K. to act with a heavier hand on certain human rights issues, in- cluding same-sex marriage and Cuban asylum issues, Mr. Roper believes more can be achieved through com- promise and partnership. He declined to com- ment specifically on same- sex marriage while the issue is being considered by the courts. But in general terms, he suggested his approach on a number of controver- sial issues would be to pro- vide guidance and support to help the Cayman Islands make positive changes. Human Rights issues The Human Rights Com- mission has highlighted con- cerns about the length of time Cuban migrants are de- tained in the Cayman Islands while their asylum applica- tions are processed. There are also ongoing is- sues over conditions at the prison. Crime, spanning the gamut from local concerns like rogue motorcyclists to international issues like money laundering and terror financing, also falls within the governor’s purview. In each of these areas, he suggested the U.K. was providing practical support rather than attempting to im- pose directives from London. The Governor’s Office has provided expert judges from the U.K.’s First Tier Tribunals to help set up a Cayman Refugee Protection Appeals Tribunal. The hope is that body will enable ap- plications to be processed swiftly, so when a boat lands in the jurisdiction, its passengers are either sent back to Cuba or given some legal status and protection within a short period. He says similar support has been provided to train a new independent monitoring board that will provide an extra check and balance on the prison. On crime, he has re-estab- lished the moribund National Security Committee, which brings politicians, police leaders and NGOs together to make key strategic decisions. The U.K.’s National Crime Agency is being seconded to compile a strategic assess- ment of the broad threats facing the territory. U.K.-funded experts have also been closely involved with reforming the way al- legations of crimes against children are investigated, establishing a new Border Force for immigration and customs and setting up a new coast guard. Mr. Roper counts securing a new heli- copter for search and rescue in Cayman and disaster re- lief in the region as one of the early achievements of his tenure. “There is a lot happening and we are moving forward in a spirit of partnership to do our best for the people of Cayman Islands. “When I look back at the first four months, I am very pleased with how that is going on in terms of nurturing a stronger U.K.-Cayman rela- tionship,” he said. Committee report A report by a Foreign Af- fairs Committee of the House of Commons, published after this interview, will not have helped matters. The report raised the prospect of an Order in Council on same- sex marriage and raised the controversial prospect of al- lowing non-Caymanians to run for office. The Governor’s Office re- leased a statement Friday indicating it was aware of the report and that the U.K. government would respond in due course. On Saturday, the governor published on his Twitter, “I fully understand the con- cerns expressed about the UK Foreign Affairs Committee re- port on voting rights. It is im- portant to be clear that these are recommendations from a House of Commons Parlia- mentary Committee. They do not (not) reflect the govern- ment’s policy. “The government will reply in due course. I will ensure that the strong feel- ings this has aroused across our islands are fully ex- plained to the FCO.” Premier Alden McLaughlin appeared to accept that the report, while filled with con- cerning recommendations, was not the voice of the British government. “The FCO committee is not a government com- mittee. It is a committee of the Parliament,” he said at Thursday’s Chamber of Commerce legislative lun- cheon. “It’s views don’t nec- essarily represent the views of the government. They don’t have power to im- pose on territory; they make recommendations.” For his part, Mr. Roper seems to prefer partnership and compromise. Speaking before the pub- lication of that report, he said he expected the over- seas territories to become more important to the U.K. in a post-Brexit world. “There is a lot of noise and uncertainty at the mo- ment around Brexit, which is understandable, but let’s step back and once we have gone through all that, under global Britain, the overseas territories will be an even stronger part of that U.K. family and U.K. policy.” CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 said that process is close to its final stages and would likely have been completed by now if British lawmakers weren’t preoccupied with Brexit. The premier was tight- lipped about the details of what Cayman’s new relation- ship with the U.K. could be, but said the territory could have more autonomy in both its domestic and international affairs. One reform could be that the U.K. must consult with Cayman before imposing an Order in Council. But despite the fact that the current U.K. government has a mostly hands-off policy when it comes to its OTs, Mr. McLaughlin said he’s no- ticed a disturbing pattern of some in the British parlia- ment becoming increasingly willing to infringe on territo- rial autonomy. “What annoys me is that if the people behind the re- port were to get into power,” he said, referring to the re- port as a “shameless and shameful attempt to repro- duce neocolonialism.” “These are areas that have long been devolved to local administration – the ways we run our electoral and ministerial system is something we’ve had re- sponsibility for as long as I can remember,” he told the Compass. “This attitude that somehow we are British ter- ritories and so are required to follow British values is really scary stuff in 2019.” One of the most irri- tating aspects for the pre- mier of the Foreign Affairs Committee report is that the recommendation to have British people vote and run for office in the OTs was made without any consul- tation with Cayman or the other territories. This is de- spite that the report was produced after U.K. com- mittee members took more than 100 pieces of evi- dence from all the OTs, in- cluding testimony from Cayman’s representative in London, Eric Bush. “The other stuff about LGBT rights and beneficial ownership was predictable stuff, but this [British voting] proposal, that I’ve never seen before in my 19 years as an elected member,” he said. Governor Martyn Roper addressed Cayman’s concerns on Twitter, making similar assurances that the report does not reflect the current U.K. government’s views. He also said the local concerns will be conveyed to the For- eign and Commonwealth Of- fice, and that a response will be made in “due course.” Premier dismayed by report calling for British voting rights in OTs CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Mexico to help ‘El Chapo’ family seek US visas MEXICO CITY (AP) – Mex- ican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Friday that he has in- structed his government to assist the family of Joa- quin “El Chapo” Guzman in seeking humanitarian visas to visit the con- victed drug trafficker in the United States. During a visit last week to Guzman’s hometown of Badiraguato in Sinaloa state, a lawyer passed Lopez Obrador a letter from Guzman’s mother. “Like any mother asking me for sup- port for her son,” Lopez Obrador said. Later in the afternoon, the president published via Twitter Consuelo Loera’s letter in which she asks for his help in obtaining humanitarian visas for herself and two of her daughters. Lopez Obrador was in Sinaloa last week to announce a highway construction project in the area. In the letter dated Feb. 14, Loera described her- self as “suffering and des- perate” and wrote that she had not seen her son in more than five years. She called his extradi- tion illegal and asked that Guzman be brought back to Mexico. Lopez Obrador said legal questions would have to be dealt with by Mexico’s Interior Min- istry, Attorney General’s Office and judiciary. U.S. support for such a request would be ex- tremely unlikely consid- ering Guzman has es- caped from two prisons. But on the humani- tarian front, Lopez Ob- rador said: “I gave in- structions that they facilitate (soliciting the visas) and that the sisters be able to go to the United States and to help them according to the laws, reg- ulations that country has, so that they can visit him or have communication.” According to U.S. Citi- zenship and Immigration Services, such permis- sion, known as humani- tarian parole, is reserved for people with a com- pelling emergency, but anyone can apply. Those who could be considered eligible should have an “emergent humanitarian reason or significant public benefit” to tempo- rarily entering the U.S. Applications are con- sidered on a case-by- case basis. Guzman was convicted Feb. 12 in federal court in New York on multiple drug trafficking and con- spiracy charges and likely faces a life sentence. On Friday, his defense team said it wanted a new trial based on reports of jury misconduct. U.S. support for such a request would be extremely unlikely considering Guzman has escaped from two prisons. Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, center, arrives at Long Island MacArthur Airport in New York in January 2017. - PHOTO: UNITED STATES DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION VIA APNext >