ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 SEVEN MILE BEACH WATERFRONT WALKERS ROAD TOWN CENTRE PLAZA RED BAY New air arrival record set in month of May MICHAEL KLEIN mklein@pinnaclemedialtd.com Cayman’s tourism sector saw another record in May with 40,591 air arrivals for the month. It was the first time Cayman exceeded 40,000 pas- sengers in May. It was also the sixth con- secutive month of exceeding that threshold. Rosa Harris, director at the Department of Tourism, con- cedes that the growth trajec- tory might not be sustainable. Speaking at the Chamber of Commerce Economic Forum last week, Harris released the latest statistics with a caveat. “We are not saying we will keep that mo- mentum. But we will ride the wave while we have it.” The growth in air arrivals is predominantly coming from North America. This includes 500 more passengers in May from the Denver area, where Cayman Airways launched a new route in March, and 600 more passen- gers from the Southwest region of the US, namely out of Houston and Dallas. Harris said, “Overall, we believe that aviation stimu- lates travel.” Southwest Airlines started servicing out of Houston and American Airlines added more frequent flights from Dallas, in addition to the new Cayman Air- ways route from Denver. In June, Cayman welcomed the first flight out of Baltimore on Southwest Airlines. “We expect to see movement in the Baltimore local area and potentially feeder cities coming through Baltimore,” the DOT di- rector said. Source regions The US and Canada were also the main regions driving stay- over tourism growth in 2018. The US market remained by far the largest source market for Cayman tourism with 385,000 visitors, an increase of 13%. And 27,000 Canadian stayover tour- ists meant an increase of 7.5%, a reversal from a previous lull. “Canada is making a very nice comeback,” Harris said. “We know from our partners that when the dollar does not per- form well, they don’t travel. And that has stabilised and we see Canadians return to the Cayman Islands. The airlines as well WestJet and Air Canada have also committed more air ca- pacity into the destination.” Europe represents about 5% of the total volume of stayover tourists. UK and Ireland are the main markets within the Euro- pean region, but the Department of Tourism is planning to attract GOV’T: CIVIC CENTRE IS ‘SHORT-TERM SOLUTION’ FOR MIGRANT HOUSING Immigration Detention Centre costs reach $1.4 million in five months KAYLA YOUNG kyoung@pinnaclemedialtd.com Nearly seven weeks after opening the East End Civic Centre for migrant detentions, government has provided details about its housing plan for the Gun Bay facility. Fourteen Cuban asylum applicants are cur- rently living in the facility under a supervised release programme, created as an alternative to migrant detention by the Prison Service. Twenty-three migrants in total are under the care of Customs and Border Control and the Prison Service. Twenty-one of those are on community release and living in approved housing, including rental properties and the civic centre. George Town IDC reopens to migrants Two men who arrived by boat outside Wyndham Reef Resort on 6 June are being housed at the Prison Service’s Immigration Detention Centre in George Town. “The move to house some migrants outside [the Immigration Detention Centre] was in keeping with international guidelines to pro- vide alternatives to the detention of migrants EXTENDED HOURS FOR ELECTIONS OFFICE The Cayman Islands Elections Office is ex- tending its office hours so people can verify their signatures on the cruise port petition. According to a statement, starting Monday, office hours will run from 8:30am to 6:30pm Monday to Thursday, and 8:30am to 5pm Friday. On Saturday, 29 June, the office at Smith Road Centre will also be open from 10am to 3pm. Officials encouraged people who signed the petition, and who will be travelling between now and early August, to come into the Elec- tions Office and verify their signatures. Dates for in-person district verifications will be announced this week. Additionally, the deadline for voter regis- tration for the 1 Oct. 2019 Official Register of Electors has been extended until 8pm on Tuesday, 2 July 2019, to accommodate the public holiday on 1 July. People seeking to reg- ister as electors may do so at Grand Cayman’s Elections Office. For more information, Grand Cayman residents can call 949‑8047. Sister Islands residents can contact Registering Officer Ellen Lazzari at 948‑1707. PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 7 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 7 » Olympic Day 5K draws crowds of runners Laura Hicks and Gavin Kuhlenbeck ran away with first place in the female and male divisions of the Olympic Day 5K competition held Saturday morning at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex. Hicks is a Cayman Islands resident, and Kuhlenbeck is an American visitor. For more on this story, see page 6. – PHOTO: JEWEL LEVY2 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 CAYMAN COMPASS BREAKTHROUGH (PG) 1:25 I 4:10 I 7:15 I 10:00 SUN: 4:10 I 7:15 I 10:00 KALANK (PG) 3:10 I 9:00 (SAT ONLY) I 9:30 (NO SAT) SUN: 3:10 I 9:20 LITTLE (PG13) 12:30 I 3:25 (SAT ONLY) I 3:50 (NO SAT) 6:50 I 9:45 SUN: 3:50 I 6:50 I 9:35 DUMBO(PG) 10:30 (SAT ONLY) I 4:35 I 7:15 (NO SAT) SUN: 4:35 I 7:15 CAPTAIN MARVEL(PG13) 1:40 I 10:00 (NO SAT) SUN: 6:30 I 10:00 THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA (R) 1:10 VIP I 4:35 I 7:00 VIP I 10:15 HELLBOY (R) 12:35 (SAT ONLY) I 1:00 I 6:10 (SAT ONLY) I 6:45 SHAZAM! (PG13) 1:30 I 3:40 VIP I 7:15 I 9:30 VIP SUN: 3:40 VIP I 4:40 I 6:40 VIP 8:00 I 9:40 VIP KIDS CLUB: OVER THE HEDGE(PG) 10:00 (SAT ONLY) CULTURE AT THE CINEMA: THE TRAGEDY OF KIND RICHARD THE SECOND(R18) SAT ONLY: 8:00 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) ALADDIN (PG) 4:10 I 10:10 CHILD’S PLAY (R) 1:00 VIP | 4:00 | 6:40 VIP | 7:20 | 10:00 MEN IN BLACK (PG-13) INTERNATIONAL 1:40 | 3:50 VIP | 4:45 I 7:30 | 9:50 TOY STORY 4 (G) 12:30 | 5:00 | 7:30 ANNA (R) 12:50 | 4:10 | 7:00 | 9:30 VIP | 10:00 X-MEN: DARK PHOENIX (PG-13) 1:15 | 10:15 SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2 (PG) 1:25 | 7:35 Governor’s Conservation Awards winners announced The winners of the 2019 Governor’s Conservation Awards were announced Thursday night at a ceremony at Government House. In this photo, Governor Martyn Roper, centre, and National Trust Executive Director Nadia Hardie, left, stand with representatives of the winners, who are: Hurley’s Marketplace (Corporate Conservation Award), Ann Stafford (Heritage Preservation Award), Dwayne Frederick (Conservationist of the Year Award), Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ambassadors of the Environment (Tourism Industry Conservation Award) and Protect Our Future (Lois Blumenthal Youth Conservation Award). Joint UK/Cayman hurricane exercise Simulating a response to a major hurricane strike on Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, teams from the Governor’s Office, Hazard Management Cayman Is- lands, the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, 911 and the Government Com- munications Service took part this week in a joint training exercise with coun- terparts from the UK and the British High Commis- sion in Kingston. According to a state- ment from the Governor’s Office, the exercise was de- signed to test new proce- dures and equipment in- troduced after the 2017 hurricanes that affected the Eastern Caribbean. This in- cluded a new computer system that allows emer- gency services in Cayman to share and coordinate data on missing and affected per- sons with the UK authori- ties through the FCO’s Crisis Centre in London. New satellite communi- cations systems that were introduced to the Gover- nor’s Office at the end of last year to provide op- tions for speaking to govern- ment agencies in the UK, in- cluding the British military, were also used during the simulation. Media training for key officers was also de- livered by specialist trainers from the UK. In London, the FCO’s Crisis Centre was activated for the exercise with more than 60 personnel involved in the simulation. Governor Martyn Roper, who played a full role in the exercise, said in a statement, “It is vital that we develop a close working relationship with the FCO’s Crisis Team and regional Posts to ensure that should a disaster strike the Cayman Islands, we can effectively coordinate the lo- gistical, policy, security and military support that can be provided to assist us.” He added that it was also important that Cayman can “communicate effectively with foreign governments, through the Foreign Office, who may have their own na- tionals caught up in any crisis, and may also be able to provide support”. “We learnt a number of lessons from the storms in 2017 and I am pleased to see that some of the procedures being trialled in Cayman this week will result in an im- proved response,” he said. The governor also an- nounced that the British Na- vy’s RFA Mounts Bay ship will return to the Cayman Islands at the end of this month “which will be a fur- ther chance to practice our joint response to a poten- tial disaster with the UK armed forces”. FREE HIV TESTS THIS WEEK Cayman Islands health- care officials are offering free HIV tests this week to mark HIV Testing Week, and in support of National Testing Day and Regional HIV Testing Day which are ob- served on Thursday, 27 June. Organisations involved are the Health Services Au- thority, Cayman AIDS Foun- dation and Cayman Is- lands Red Cross. “The purpose of these an- nual observances is to en- sure people get tested for HIV in order to know their status, get linked to the care and treatment services they need should they be diag- nosed with the infection,” said the HSA’s HIV and STI Programme Coordinator Laura Elniski. Testing centres are avail- able across all three islands. Persons who are seeking testing or counselling may indicate to the registration clerks that they would like to register for free HIV testing, according to the HSA news release. The procedure in- volves a quick blood test. No appointment is necessary during the specified times on the HIV schedule and wait times will be short. “There is a need for people in the Cayman Is- lands to better under- stand how HIV is and isn’t transmitted, and to be re- minded of the importance of testing. Testing may lead to treatment and treat- ment stops transmission,” Elniski said. According to global or- ganisation UNAIDS, research shows that HIV treatment is so highly effective in re- ducing the transmission of HIV that people living with HIV with an undetectable viral load due to treatment cannot transmit HIV sexu- ally. This has prompted UN- AIDS to launch its ‘Unde- tectable = Untransmittable’ campaign, according to the HSA statement. “This has incredible im- pact on the lives of people living with HIV and is a powerful message to ad - dress HIV-related stigma, discrimination and social ex- clusion, which threatens to undermine global efforts to address the diagnosis of HIV, and treatment and care of people living with the virus,” Elniski said. HIV test results will be available within three working days or less and will be given to the pa- tient in person only, at the clinic where they took the test. This is to protect the confidentiality of the indi- vidual and to offer post-test counselling, according to the statement. If you are unable to at- tend the scheduled walk-in clinic for free HIV testing, you can make an appoint- ment for confidential testing at: ■■ Public Health Clinic, 244-2648 ■■ George Town Gen- eral Practice Clinic, Cayman Islands Hos- pital, 244-2800/244-2507 ■■ Faith Hospital (Cayman Brac), 948-2243 ■■ HSA District Health Centres ■■ Cayman Islands Red Cross, Cayman Cor- porate Centre ■■ A private doctor. For more information about HIV, call HIV and STI Programme Coordinator Laura Elniski at 244-2507 or consult your doctor. Governor Martyn Roper attends a ‘semi-live crisis exercise’ on Thursday.3 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 St. Ignatius breaks ground on $5 million sports hall MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com Father Suresh Rajaian said he began working on bringing a gymnasium to St. Ignatius almost as soon as he came to the Cayman Islands to lead the parish and school six years ago. On Friday, a ceremonial groundbreaking marked the start of construction on the $5 million multipurpose sports hall. Rajaian will not see the building go up. He is re- turning to Detroit, Mich- igan, the headquarters of the Roman Catholic diocese to which St. Ignatius belongs, in a week’s time. “That’s how life is,” he said. “They take you at any time. It’s good we have put everything in place.” All that remains is to raise the final half mil- lion dollars needed for the project. Officials began a drive to raise the final $1 mil- lion in February. St. Igna- tius School Advisory Board Chairman Anthony Partridge said the school is about halfway to that goal. Jeremy Rice, who served as master of ceremonies for the event, urged students to keep the ball rolling. “Go home and ask your moms and dads if they’ve done their part,” he told the students who were gathered for the groundbreaking. The event also drew a few parents along with public of- ficials such as Legislative As- sembly members Barbara Co- nolly, David Wight and Roy McTaggart. The Rev. Arturo Cepeda, bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit, appeared in his vest- ments and blessed the site with holy water before the shovels turned the earth. The two-storey, 23,000-square-foot sports complex, which will sit at the front entrance to the school, will be the largest project ever undertaken by St. Ignatius and will include a basketball court, which can also be used for other sports and community ac- tivities, as well as 10 class- rooms on its second floor, one of which will be used for drama classes. Partridge said the com- plex “represents so many wonderful opportunities for all of our students here at St. Ignatius, not only in sports, but also in the arts, enter- tainment and drama”. The building will also serve as a hurricane shelter and should be able to hold about 300 people during such a disaster. “I also see it being used for community events,” Par- tridge said. “We might be able to rent it out.” Construction on the building is expected to be completed by Sep- tember 2020. Rajaian said he expects he will be able to return to see it open. “I’ll be in touch,” he said. “This is part of my life.” He said he was pleased to have the building be his final accomplishment in Cayman. “It means a great achieve- ment,” he said. “We are taking things to another level in our growth.” Exhibit features student artwork ‘Imaginarium’, an ex- hibit of 150 pieces of art- work by 80 students, is on display at the National Gallery of the Cayman Is- lands for this year’s an- nual show of work pro- duced by students in the Walkers Art Club pro- gramme. The pieces were produced during the 2018- 2019 school year. The Walkers pro- gramme, now in its 14th year, supports five after school art clubs with a total of 75 students, ages 5-17, in both Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac. Nine- teen schools are involved in the clubs. Classes combine hands- on instruction and indi- vidual experimentation with art foundation prin- ciples. Through in-studio education and visits to Na- tional Gallery exhibitions, students learn technique, art history, self-confidence and how to form and ar- ticulate opinions about the work they are creating. This year’s exhibit in- cludes printmaking, fashion sketching, silk painting, ceramics, collage, origami, weaving and recy- cled art. Students also have the opportunity this year to participate directly in the curatorial process, by se- lecting some of their fea- tured works and writing their own artist statement for their piece. The exhibition runs until 6 July 2018. Admission to the exhibition is free of charge. For more information about the Walkers Art Clubs, contact the National Gallery at 945‑8111 or email education@nationalgallery.org.ky. Registration for the 2019/2020 programme will open in September. Visit www.nationalgallery.org.ky for further details. Library readies for Summer Reading Challenge Registration forms are now online for the Summer Reading Challenge at the Cayman Islands Public Li- brary. The challenge is de- signed to develop life- long readers. Students, ages 6-17, will be encouraged to read a set list of books the li- brary staff has selected for summer reading. The theme of this year’s challenge is ‘Extraordinary Characters’. Marvel comic characters, Peter Pan and Frodo Baggins are some of the characters featured in the selected material. The programme works like this: ■■ Visit any library branch in the Cayman Is- lands between 1 July and 29 Aug. 2019; ■■ Register to com- pete in the Summer Reading Challenge; ■■ Collect a Summer Reading Challenge Activity Book; ■■ Read, as per recommendations; ■■ Write a brief summary of a favourite book; ■■ Complete bonus activi- ties such as a cross- word puzzle, refer-a- friend, etc., to earn awards and win prizes; ■■ Submit the Activity Book for judging by 1pm, 31 Aug.; ■■ Wait for an invita- tion to the Summer Reading Challenge awards ceremony; ■■ Attend the Summer Reading Challenge awards ceremony in the George Town Library on 21 Sept. All participants that appear in a costume representing an extraor- dinary character will be entered into the compe- tition for best costume. To register, visit www.cipl.gov.ky and click on ‘Programmes and Events’. Students, ages 6-17, will be encouraged to read a set list of books the library staff has selected for summer reading. The Rev. Arturo Cepeda, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit, uses an aspergillum to sprinkle holy water on the site of a new sports complex at St. Ignatius School prior to groundbreaking. - PHOTO: MARK MUCKENFUSS POLICE NAB WANTED MAN Daniel Wallace Rankine, wanted in connection to burglaries in Bodden Town on 8 and 14 April, was taken into custody on Thursday, according to the Royal Cayman Islands Po- lice Service. RCIPS made public ap- peals in April and May to locate Rankine and circu- lated his photograph.Daniel Wallace RankineThe islands’ most-trusted news source 4 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. MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS Tourism industries must deliver greater benefits to all DAVID JESSOP Tourism now dominates most Caribbean economies, drawing huge numbers of visitors and wealth into the region. Despite this, many of those who work in or with the sector have yet to benefit fully from its success. A few days ago, in the less than likely location of Baku in Azerbaijan, Jamaica’s Tourism Minister, asked a question that few Caribbean governments seem to want to address. That is whether an industry worth US$62 billion to the region in 2018 is deliv- ering benefits in an equitable manner and if its workers and dependent enterprises are receiving a fair share of the wealth it generates? The Minister, Edmund Bartlett, whose name has become something of a by- word internationally for new thinking about tourism, said that if the sector is to be truly sustainable it must de- liver a more equitable distri- bution of earnings and pro- vide greater equality among stakeholders. Speaking at an Executive Council meeting of the United Nations World Tourism Or- ganization (UNWTO) he asked whether an industry which generated US$1.7 trillion glob- ally in 2018 and created one in 11 jobs, is delivering all that it should, particularly in the world’s most tourism de- pendent regions. The indus- try’s growth he said, “begs the question of the distribution of this enormous wealth and the impact that it is having.” He went on to ask why na- tions in the Caribbean where the industry averages 40% of GDP and is the most tourism dependent in the world, should also be characterised by high unemployment, a high debt to GDP ratio, seem- ingly intractable social con- cerns and high levels of in- come inequality. Quoting UNWTO statis- tics he also made the point that while 80% of global tourism was provided by owners of small and medium sized tourism enterprises, they received less than 20% of the returns. “This is hugely disturbing and creates asymmetry and imbalance, and that pic- ture doesn’t look so good,” Jamaica’s tourism minister said, indicating that the in- dustry globally as well as in the Caribbean needed to con- sider how its impact could be more positive, equitable and inclusive. Tourism, he said, should become not just a re- ceiver of visitors and taxes, but a driver of more equi- table growth. The Minister is right to try to start an interna- tional debate about who owns tourism, an industry in which the most vital in- puts are provided by the host country in the form of beaches, cities, seas and of course its citizens. Tourism is an industry that makes use of often fragile environments in econ- omies and locations that re- quire holistic rather than gated development, requiring big minds that recognise the sector has the ability to bring great sustainable benefits to the citizens and governments of any country willing to share their nation and envi- ronment with others. For a sector increasingly dominated by global brands and a desire to exploit the value of beautiful or inter- esting locations to the prin- cipal benefit of corporations and shareholders, this may seem revolutionary, even dan- gerous. However, if they value commercial continuity, such thinking is little more than common sense. Nevertheless, there ap- pears to have been little de- tailed economic research ex- ploring the link between tourism growth and persis- tent social problems of the kind mentioned by the min- ister, let alone any policy re- sponse. This appears to be because most governments and the industry after the freewheeling experience of the 1970s have come to see investment, ever-increasing visitor numbers, profit and taxation as the over- riding objective. There are however a small number of interesting ac- ademic and governmental studies that suggest that ever-increasing visitor arrival numbers may actually drive down wages as nations and hoteliers seek to profit from mass tourism. Tellingly, re- cent industry led research by the Federal German Tourism Association (BTW) in relation to 89 developing countries and emerging economies has concluded that while increases in international tourism cause income ine- quality to initially decrease, it then increases making long term inequality permanent. Unsurprisingly, perhaps, most commentary on how to capture the tourism dollar in ways that ensure greater eq- uity, principally comes from NGOs such as Tourism Watch which has been exploring with others how to relate the industry to the globally agreed 2015 UN. Sustainable Development Goals. The group says that to achieve the UN targets by 2030, the trend to inequality that tourism has created must be reversed. It also ob- serves that the popular as- sumption that growth in tourism automatically leads to development and dimin- ishes inequalities is neither supported by the facts nor is realistic. It argues that sustain- able tourism should not be a goal in itself as it will not bring change. Sustainability in tourism, the NGO says, needs to be measured against the ways in which tourism contributes to reducing inequalities. The problem with this is that while inequality be- tween nations has been de- clining in recent years in- country inequality according to the World Bank has been accelerating globally. In the case of almost all of the Caribbean, and de- spite its middle- or high-in- come economic status, most nations have seen income inequality accelerate. Put bluntly, the incomes of the poor relative to the rich have not increased as a result of surging tourist arrivals. The challenge this poses to government and the in- dustry as a whole is that it requires both the public and private sectors to substan- tially revise the view that all tourism, accelerating ar- rival numbers and perpetual growth are good for all, and that the taxation and eco- nomic inputs that foreign visitors and investors pro- vide will always have a pos- itive economic outcome for society as a whole. Minister Bartlett’s words suggest that that at least one person in a position of influ- ence has understood the need to realign the industry’s ob- jectives with those of citi- zens, that the value of Car- ibbean tourism as presently structured will peak and may soon reach a turning point, and that the industry in the national interest requires new thinking. Tourism has moved on from being perceived as an industry involving servi- tude to one largely accepted as being central to the re- gion’s economic future, as- suming agriculture, fish- eries and manufacturing can be better integrated. What is now needed is a broad-based debate that upends asks how the region and its people might benefit more from tourism’s success. David Jessop is a consultant to the Caribbean Council and can be contacted at david.jessop@Caribbean-council.org. © 2019, David Jessop. In the case of almost all of the Caribbean, and despite its middle- or high-income economic status, most nations have seen income inequality accelerate. Put bluntly, the incomes of the poor relative to the rich have not increased as a result of surging tourist arrivals. 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 KATHLEEN CAPETTA EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will find their own way” LETTER TO THE EDITOR Take your recycling home I have been visiting George Town for approximately 20 years. In the beginning, re- cycling was not an option. It always felt odd to throw so many items in the garbage. Cayman has come a long way in this field. Given only plastics types one and two are the only ones accepted in the recycling programme, my cousins and I decided to take all other plastics we had accumulated back home to Canada. It was so easy and we felt much better than tossing them in the landfill. I encourage other tourists to take their plastics home for recycling. I also encourage those who live in Cayman re- ceiving visitors suggest they take home plastics. The island cannot grow geographically but the land- fill can increase in size. Let’s all help and take some responsibility. Donna McTaggart5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 EXPERT CANCER CAREFOR CAYMAN ISLANDS PATIENTS © 2019 IPB CAYMAN ISLANDS PATIENTS Pamela R. Breast Cancer Patient At Cancer Treatment Centers of America © (CTCA), we guide you and your family every step of the way, starting with a 3-5 day initial evaluation to develop your personalized cancer treatment plan. A team of clinicians will work together to provide treatments combined with supportive care therapies designed to help manage side effects, boost your energy and keep you strong during treatment. Police issue warning about unsafe driving The Royal Cayman Is- lands Police Service has is- sued a reminder to the public of the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and driving without due care and attention, after recording 23 motor vehicle collisions between Sunday, 16 June, and Thursday, 20 June. Three people were arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. On Tuesday, 18 June, a 21-year-old woman was ar- rested on suspicion of driving while under the in- fluence of alcohol, posses- sion of ganja, consumption of ganja, dangerous driving, driving without being li- censed, driving without in- surance and other traffic-re- lated offences, according to a RCIPS news release. The arrest took place sometime after 7:30pm, when an officer saw what ap- peared to be an illegal mo- torbike – a bike being ridden without lights or license plates – on the Esterley Tib- betts Highway heading into West Bay. The rider lost con- trol and fell off the mo- torcycle in the vicinity of Peninsula Drive and was sub- sequently arrested and taken into custody. The woman refused to provide a breath test and was further arrested for re- fusing to provide a breath/ urine/blood sample without reasonable cause. She has been bailed while investiga- tions continue. On Thursday, 20 June, a 38-year-old man was ar- rested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol after officers re- sponded to a single-vehicle collision at the Yacht Drive roundabout. Officers sus- pected that the man had consumed alcohol. He was taken into custody where a breath test was adminis- tered with a result of a 0.226 blood-alcohol content, more than double the legal limit of 0.100. He was bailed while investigations continue. “The level of inebria- tion we sometimes en- counter when conducting enforcement operations or responding to accidents con- tinues to be a concern,” said Robert Graham, superin- tendent of uniform opera- tions. “Drunk driving is a danger for all of us. If you see someone getting behind the wheel who shouldn’t be driving, alert someone or call the police. We all have a part to play to reduce dangers on our roads.” VISITOR DIES IN WATER-RELATED INCIDENT ON SEVEN MILE BEACH A 77-year-old man died in a water-related incident along Seven Mile Beach on Friday afternoon. The man was visiting the Cayman Islands from Mas- sachusetts, USA, according to a news release from the Royal Cayman Islands Po- lice Service. Police said that just after 3:30pm, they and other emer- gency services personnel re- ceived a 911 report of “a possible drowning incident at a resort along the Seven Mile Beach”. Responders rendered first aid to the victim on the scene, and he was trans- ported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police are investigating the incident. Trial involving rape of minor begins SPENCER FORDIN sfordin@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Grand Court trial of a George Town man ac- cused of raping his step- sister multiple times when she was between the ages of five and 15 began Friday with a summation of the facts by crown counsel Darlene Oko. The trial is being conducted by judge alone in the courtroom of Justice Roger Chapple. Oko said that the com- plainant, now 20 years old, alleged numerous oc- casions of physical and sexual assault that began shortly before her sixth birthday. The complainant and defendant were living under the same roof at the time of the incidents brought before the court. The court heard Friday that the complainant did not tell anyone about the incidents until a decade after the assaults began, but she believed that her father was aware of what was happening. Before the case officially opened, defence counsel Alex Davies told the court that the case hinges on a “sole witness of fact” and that her credibility, honesty, accuracy and reliability would be tested. Oko said the first inci- dent occurred just before the complainant’s sixth birthday, and the defendant allegedly called her into his room and threw her onto the bed before abusing her. The complainant al- leges that the defendant taped her mouth shut and threatened to kill her if she told anyone. The second incident oc- curred a few years later, and the defendant allegedly showed the complainant what appeared to be a gun and orchestrated her sexual assault by three uni- dentified men. The men, all believed to be at least 20 years old at the time, each filed into the bedroom in turn and raped her, and the de- fendant allegedly said he would kill her if she did not comply. The third incident oc- curred when the com- plainant was 11 years old, and the defendant alleg- edly opened her bedroom door in the middle of the night and raped her. Oko said the fourth incident occurred when the com- plainant was 15 years old, just before she was re- moved from the home. The complainant con- fided in a school counsellor that she was being abused by her stepbrother in May of 2014, and she was re- moved from the home shortly thereafter. The com- plainant said in police in- terviews that the trauma associated with the assault caused her to act out due to distress. The complainant took part in four recorded po- lice interviews between September of 2016 and December of 2017, and the defendant was arrested in January of 2017. The first of those recorded inter- views was played Friday, and the rest are expected to be played next week. During her first police interview, the complainant said she was six years old when the first incident happened, and she said she had trusted her stepbrother at the time. “I didn’t know any Eng- lish because I came from Honduras. I didn’t have my own room at the time,” she said. “As a six-year- old, I didn’t expect a step- brother to do such things to a sister.” The complainant also recounted the incident with the three assailants, and she said that they were Caymanians of dark com- plexion who were around 20 years old at the time. At the end of the first interview, the complainant said she had not seen her stepbrother since she was 12 years old. The com- plainant, pregnant at the time of the police interview, was asked what she would like to see done. “I would like to press charges if it can happen. I would like to get this off my chest,” she said. “I’m seven months pregnant [ … ] I wouldn’t want any- thing like this to happen to my child.” The defendant’s name is being withheld because media is restricted from publishing any information that could lead to the com- plainant’s identity. Police and emergency services personnel attend to the scene of an accident Friday afternoon on North Sound Road, where a black Subaru flipped over into the Kirk Office parking lot. The two-vehicle accident also involved a white BMW, according to the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service. The driver of each car was taken to the hospital with what police described as ‘non-life threatening injuries’. There were no passengers in ether car. – PHOTO: ALVARO SEREY MAN CHARGED WITH BURGLARY, OTHER CRIMES Royal Cayman Is- lands Police Service detec- tives arrested a 32-year- old George Town Man on Wednesday, following an investigation into recov- ered jewellery. A subsequent search of the man’s address also led to the discovery of 25 ganja plants, according to a po- lice statement. The man has been charged with seven of- fences: burglary, theft, handling stolen goods, damage to property, cul- tivating ganja, posses- sion of ganja with intent to supply, and refusing to provide a sample of urine, according to police. He was set to appear in court Friday, 21 June.The islands’ most-trusted news source 6 JEWEL LEVY jlevy@pinnaclemedialtd.com About 250 people turned out early Saturday morning to the Truman Bodden Sports Complex to support the Olympic Day 5K Run/Walk. Gavin Kuhlenbeck, a 17-year-old student from Sussex Hamilton High School in Wisconsin, USA, won first place in the male division with a time of 16 minutes, 56 seconds. Kuhlenbeck was in Grand Cayman visiting with his family. Victor Magalhaes took second place in 17:11 and Esmond Brown third with a time of 17:24. In the female division, Laura Hicks won first place with a time of 20:04. Ava Hider won second with 21:12 and in third place was Mitchell McCullough with a time of 23:16. “It was fun running here … I wasn’t used to the in- tense heat, but I had a great time,” Kuhlenbeck said. Not that familiar with Cayman streets, Kuhlen- beck said his race strategy was to hang out with the frontrunners. “I didn’t know what road I was on and had no clue where I was going … I just sat behind one leader and as soon as I knew where I was, I took the lead,” Kuh- lenbeck said. Movers for Life’s Win- ston Sobers, who clocked a time of 21 minutes, said his group’s agenda for joining the Olympic race was to connect the commu- nity freely to these activi- ties to keep them motivated and fit. “What is missing is that motivational support that is need in the community … if we’re going to be successful we have to work together to achieve healthy outcomes,” Sobers said. Paul Williams, Wind of Hope founder, was OK with his time of 20 min- utes. Last year he did the run in 19 minutes. This year, he had fallen a little behind, but he said he knew it takes a lot more training. “It was hot but a good day for eve- ryone,” he said. West Bay MLA Bernie Bush, who is treasurer for the Cayman Islands Olympic Committee, said it was a good turnout from the var- ious nationalities on the is- land. After the race, there were demonstrations from athletes in a number of Olympic-sanctioned sports, including boxing, karate and taekwondo. MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS Runners participate in snack time after finishing the 5K walk/run. - PHOTO: JEWEL LEVY Music at the Library concert showcases young talent KAYLA YOUNG kyoung@pinnaclemedialtd.com A group of 12-year- old students from John Gray High School brought some serious soul to the George Town Public Library Thursday evening. The Cayman Arts Festival Soul Septet had the public swaying their hips and roaring with applause with heartfelt covers of ‘Mercy’ by Duffy and Steve Booker, ‘Take Me to the River’ by Al Green and ‘Dancing in the Moon- light’ by King Harvest. The group joined two other acts – the Cayman Arts Festival Jazz Ensemble and vocalist Jaedyn Hanna – on Thursday during the latest instalment of Music at the Library. The monthly series by Cayman Arts Festival has be- come a showcase of Cayman’s up-and-coming musicians, as well as a regular fundraiser to support music education. The soul septet – made up of Dylan Levy, Joshua Clarke, Dejean Sutherland, Rian Vivas, Jancarlos Hernandez, Tamara Bartley and Esther Cameron – began taking form in November 2018. The stu- dents had not performed as a group before then, but their passion for music brought them together, according to Cayman Arts Festival. A hit performance at the National Children’s Festival of the Arts helped the band gain some confidence. “Their performance of two songs at the festival took eve- ryone by surprise and eve- ryone had their toes tapping to the music,” a Cayman Arts Festival statement read. They were a hard act to follow, but the Cayman Arts Festival Jazz Ensemble stepped up to the chal- lenge. The group, composed of students from John Gray, Clifton Hunter and Univer- sity College of the Cayman Islands, took on the tunes of Thelonious Monk, Duke El- lington and Stevie Wonder, among others. The young musicians showed ease in riffing and freestyling to give the jazz classics their own style. They also per- formed an original song called ‘Charc’. The band includes Cam- eron Gilson, Hasani Hunt, Kabira Palmer, Chad Her- nandez, Antoine Rockett McLaughlin, Joel Taylor and Jordan Bennett. Next up was vocalist Jaedyn Hanna, who began singing with her church choir at age 4. “She describes singing as her first love, and [a] secret source of energy,” according to the Cayman Arts Festival. Music has helped her overcome shyness and build self-confidence. That was apparent Thursday as she belted out seven songs, in- cluding ‘Via Dolorosa’ by Billy Sprague and Niles Borop, and ‘Maybe This Time’ by John Kander and Fred Ebb. This autumn, she will attend Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachu- setts, where she will study musical theatre. For more information about Cayman Arts Festival, visit www.caymanartsfestival.com. The monthly series by Cayman Arts Festival has become a showcase of Cayman’s up-and- coming musicians, as well as a regular fundraiser to support music education. Olympic Day runners enjoy friendly competition “ I didn’t know what road I was on and had no clue where I was going … I just sat behind one leader and as soon as I knew where I was, I took the lead.” GAVIN KUHLENBECK, Olympic Day 5K winner The Cayman Arts Festival Jazz Ensemble performs for a packed library. - PHOTOS: ALVARO SEREY Vocalist Jaedyn Hanna will study muscial theatre this autumn in Boston. Vocalist Dylan Levy, left, impresses with his heartfelt style.The islands’ most-trusted news source 7 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 Please be advised there will be no newspaper on Monday, July 1st, Constitution Day (Public Holiday) Constitution Day PUBLIC HOLIDAY Monday, July 1st PUBLICATION DEADLINES: Celebrate (345) 949-5111 • sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com EDITION BOOKING DEADLINE Monday July 1 No Publication Tuesday July 2 Wednesday June 26 Wednesday July 3 Thursday June 27 Thursday July 4 Friday June 28 Friday July 5 Tuesday July 2 wherever possible,” a Govern- ment Information Services statement reads. Use of the civic centre is considered a less-costly option than the detention centre, where Prison Service employees earn overtime pay to guard the facility. In the 2018 budget year, government said it cost $1.6 million to operate the detention centre. Costs for 2019 were on track to greatly surpass that number, despite the reduction in migrants being housed at the facility. “By the end of May 2019, the year-to-date figure was already in excess of $1.4 mil- lion,” government states. Further details about the elevated costs were not provided. For a period of six weeks this year, the immigration de- tention area of the facility was closed, according to gov- ernment. Since February, however, the centre has also housed overflow, low-risk in- mates from Northward Prison. Fencing divides prisoners at the facility from migrants. The two migrants who ar- rived on 6 June are currently at the detention facility. They are reported to be in good condition. They told two tour- ists who encountered them on the beach after their ar- rival that they had been at sea for 21 days. “Upon arrival, the two mi- grants were met by [Customs and Border Control] officers and later processed. Both men appear to be in good physical condition and good spirits; and have access to weekly medical visits by doc- tors from the Health Services Authority, at [the Immigra- tion Detention Centre],” gov- ernment states. “They have been questioned by CBC of- ficers and a review of their status is being undertaken at this time.” Supervised release The civic centre in East End is only considered a short-term housing option, according to government. Mi- grants currently living there have been advised to seek out longer-term accommodations at rental properties. “The centres are a short term solution that is used as an alternative to deten- tion until more long term ar- rangements can be made for the migrants,” according to a joint statement from Cus- toms and the Prison Service. “Officials continue to work to not only provide adequate housing for those entrusted to their care, but also to en- sure such arrangements are appropriate and fair to all. In cases where children are in- volved, they, and if applicable their parents, are housed out- side of detention.” In the event of a hurricane or major disaster, govern- ment plans to move the mi- grants out of the civic centre to create space for commu- nity members. “We would work to en- sure that any occupied civic centres that act as certi- fied shelters for the commu- nity are immediately avail- able to serve them. The migrants would not occupy such a space during the time in which it’s needed. There are a number of consider- ations that have been dis- cussed regarding this, and solutions, such as the use of other public buildings, are in place if this should occur,” according to the statement. Asylum applicants under supervised release must ad- here to a number of condi- tions established by gov- ernment. Migrants who violate these conditions risk being returned to the deten- tion centre. Conditions of supervised release include: abiding by Cayman Islands laws, ob- serving curfew hours be- tween 9pm and 6am, wearing an electronic monitoring de- vice, and refraining from employment. “Migrants who do not abide by these conditions, may be returned to the [Im- migration Detention Centre] for a reasonable period of time or until the individual is repatriated or granted asylum as the case may be,” government states. One migrant, for ex- ample, was recently re- turned to the detention centre after he declined to sign a form agreeing to gov- ernment’s terms, stating that he did not fully understand the document. The man has since signed the form and been released to commu- nity housing. Government added that the civic centre is “a pub- licly owned property. Its fa- cilities, including space for beds, bathrooms, as well as areas for cooking and exer- cise, allow the Government to temporarily provide for the basic needs of the migrants without having them remain in a detention setting”. Appeals process Cuban asylum appli- cants have expressed confu- sion about the status of their cases in recent months, as government reforms its ap- peals process. Migrants had previously appeared before the Immi- gration Appeals Tribunal to challenge rejected applica- tions. Government is now in the process, however, of es- tablishing a dedicated tri- bunal for asylum matters, called the Refugee Protection Appeals Tribunal. While some appel- lants have been told their cases will continue for- wards under the old system, others say they expect their cases to proceed under the new one. Under the new Customs and Border Control law, the date an appeal was made should dictate which body oversees the process. “The Refugee Protection Appeals Tribunal was ap- pointed by Cabinet, with ef- fect from 27 February 2019. Yet the Customs and Border Control Law, which em- powers the Refugee Protec- tion Appeals Tribunal, states that appeals filed before 1 February 2019 will be dealt with as if the Law is not in effect. As such those matters continue to be dealt with by the Immigration Appeals Tri- bunal,” according to a joint Customs and Prison Ser- vice statement. In a 10 May ruling, the Grand Court found the Im- migration Appeals Tribunal had not properly considered asylum cases and had com- mitted errors that amounted to miscarriages of justice. The seven men involved in that case have been told their appeals will now be heard by the Refugee Pro- tection Appeals Tribunal. Several applicants involved in the case have been in the Cayman Islands for more than three years. All of them made their appeals before 1 Feb. 2019. Government did not pro- vide an estimate on when the new tribunal will start seeing migrant cases. more visitors from Germany, where a tour operator will be electing soon to sell the Cayman Islands. Brazil, Argentina and Mexico on the other hand rep- resent only 2% of the volume, but visitors from these coun- tries travel at different times of the year, which might help stem the seasonal de- cline of North American visi- tors each September, October and November. On a recent trip to the In- ternational Luxury Travel Market in Shanghai, the de- partment found that the Cayman Islands “is very much top of mind but from a business perspective”, Harris said. The travel and real es- tate opportunities have to be communicated more. To attract more tourists from China, Cayman will have to first obtain the approved des- tination status from the Chi- nese government and for- mulate how to effectively penetrate the market, the DOT director noted. Capacity Cayman’s tourism sector has reached a total capacity of 6,888 rooms. While Grand Cayman has added the Kimpton Sea- fire, Locale and a refurbished Margaritaville in the hotel category, most additional ca- pacity has come from smaller properties. There are currently 351 li- censed listings under Airbnb in the Cayman Islands, bringing in tourism at a grassroots level and creating entrepreneurship. Harris said, “we have come full circle with the dis- truptor” after at first nobody understood what Airbnb was. Since the government has regulated the niche sector and struck an agreement with Airbnb, the department is now looking at marketing opportunities. In particular, the depart- ment aims to connect small and medium-sized busi- nesses in each district to provide Airbnb stayover tourists with an authentic, local experience that does not involve extensive travel on island. The DOT is plan- ning to host a summit for small businesses, like tour companies and caterers, to better market aspects like the Airbnb Experiences pro- gramme, which uses ambas- sadors to lets visitors expe- rience what locals typically like to do. “For the first time in our media plan we have bought into Airbnb adver- tising,” Harris said, “which is why the summit of bringing small- and medium-sized business together is so im- portant, because we have to have an offer, we have to rep- resent the destination.” Gov’t: Civic centre is ‘short-term solution’ for migrant housing CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 New air arrival record in May CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Fourteen Cuban asylum applicants are living in the East End Civic Centre. - PHOTO: ALVARO SEREY In the 2018 budget year, government said it cost $1.6 million to operate the detention centre. Costs for 2019 were on track to surpass that number, despite the reduction in migrants being housed at the facility.The islands’ most-trusted news source 8 MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS Police called to home of Boris Johnson British police were called to the London home of prime ministerial contender Boris Johnson after a neighbour reported hearing screaming, shouting and banging. Police said officers found that all occupants were ‘safe and well’ and no offences had been committed. Bolton warns Iran not to mistake US ‘prudence’ for weakness North Korea says Kim received ‘excellent’ letter from Trump SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – US President Donald Trump sent North Korean leader Kim Jong Un an “excellent” letter, the North’s state-run news agency reported Sunday, quoting Kim as saying he would “seriously contem- plate” the content. The White House press secretary, Sarah Sanders, said Trump sent a letter and “correspondence be- tween the two leaders has been ongoing”. Formal talks between the US and North Korea broke down after a failed summit between Kim and Trump in February in Vietnam. But earlier in June Trump told US reporters he received a “beautiful” letter from Kim, without revealing what was written. In an interview with TIME magazine last week, Trump said he also received a “birthday letter” from Kim that was delivered by hand a day before. The official stances re- main the same. The US is de- manding that North Korea abandon its nuclear weapons entirely before international sanctions are lifted. North Korea is seeking a step- by-step approach in which moves towards denuclearisa- tion are matched by conces- sions from the US, notably a relaxation of the sanctions. Pyongyang’s Korean Cen- tral News Agency’s report on the Trump letter said Kim “said with satisfaction that the letter is of excel- lent content”. “Appreciating the polit- ical judging faculty and ex- traordinary courage of Pres- ident Trump, Kim Jong Un said that he would seriously contemplate the interesting content,” the agency said, without elaborating. South Korea’s presiden- tial office said it sees the ex- change of letters between Kim and Trump as a positive development for keeping the momentum for dialogue alive. News of Trump’s letter came days after Kim’s summit with visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping, which experts say underscored Chi- na’s importance in the diplo- matic push to resolve the nu- clear standoff with the North. North Korean state media said Kim and Xi dis- cussed the political situa- tion surrounding the Ko- rean Peninsula and reached unspecified consensus on im- portant issues. Xi is expected to meet with Trump next week in Japan during the G-20 summit. Analysts say he could pass him a message from Kim about the nuclear negotiations. Kim said during his New Year’s speech said he would seek a “new way” if the United States persists with sanc- tions and pressure against North Korea. After the col- lapse of his meeting with Trump in Hanoi, Kim said Washington has until the end of the year to offer mutually acceptable terms for a deal to salvage the negotiations. Following a provoca- tive run in weapons tests, Kim initiated negotiations with Seoul and Washington in 2018, which led to three summits with South Ko- rea’s president and his first with Trump in Singapore on 12 June 2018. Kim and Trump issued a vague statement at that summit saying they would work towards a nu- clear-free Korean Peninsula without describing how. The lack of substance and fruitless working-level talks set up the breakdown of Kim’s second meeting with Trump, which the Americans blamed on excessive North Korean demands for sanc- tions relief in exchange for only a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities. Nuclear negotiations have been at a standstill since. Trump and Kim also ex- changed letters in 2018 after their first summit. Sanders said at the time that the let- ters addressed their com- mitment to work towards North Korea’s “complete denuclearization”. In September 2018, Trump told a cheering crowd at a campaign rally in West Vir- ginia that Kim “wrote me beautiful letters and they’re great letters. We fell in love”. Analysts say the gesture of sending letters is part of North Korean efforts to pre- sent Kim as a legitimate in- ternational statesman who is reasonable and capable of negotiating solutions and making deals. Because of the weight of formality they pro- vide, Kim might see personal letters as an important way to communicate with leaders of countries the North never had close ties with, they say. JERUSALEM (AP) – US Na- tional Security Advisor John Bolton said Sunday that Iran should not “mistake US prudence and discretion for weakness”, after the US abruptly called off military strikes against Iran in re- sponse to the shooting down of an unmanned American surveillance drone. Bolton’s tough message seemed to be aimed not only at Tehran, but also at reas- suring key US allies that the White House remains com- mitted to maintaining pres- sure on Iran. Israel, along with Arab countries in the Gulf, considers Iran to be their greatest threat, and Trump’s last-minute about face appears to have raised questions about US willing- ness to use force against the Islamic Republic. The downing of the air- craft on Thursday marked a new high in the rising ten- sions between the United States and Iran in the Persian Gulf. The Trump administra- tion has vowed to combine a “maximum pressure” cam- paign of economic sanctions with a buildup of American forces in the region, following the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. On Sunday, Iranian Presi- dent Hassan Rouhani blamed the United States’ “interven- tionist military presence” for fanning the flames. He was quoted by the official IRNA news agency. “The region is very sen- sitive and security of the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman waterways is impor- tant to many countries. We expect international bodies to show proper reaction to the invasion move,” Rouhani said about the downing of the US drone. President Donald Trump says he backed away from the planned strikes after learning 150 people would be killed. But Bolton, a long- time Iran hawk, emphasised that the US reserved the right to attack at a later point. He also said a new set of sanc- tions on Iran are expected to be announced Monday. “No one has granted them a hunting license in the Middle East. As President Trump said on Friday our military is rebuilt, new and ready to go,” Bolton said in Jerusalem alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, himself a vocal critic of Iran over the years. “And as he made clear yes- terday, referring to his earlier remarks, the president said, ‘I just stopped the strike from going forward at this time,’” Bolton added. Bolton is visiting Israel for three-way talks with his Israeli and Russian coun- terparts that are expected to focus on Iranian involve- ment in conflicts across the region, including in neigh- bouring Syria. Israel’s prime minister has been a vocal critic of Iran over the years, accusing the Is- lamic Republic of sinister in- tentions at every opportunity. But Netanyahu, a long- time opponent of the nuclear deal, has remained uncharac- teristically quiet throughout the current crisis between the US and Iran. The Israeli leader appears to be wary of being seen as pushing the US into a new Middle Eastern military conflict. Standing alongside Bolton, Netanyahu sided with the Americans. He said Iranian involvement in con- flicts across the region had increased as a result of the nuclear deal, which gave the country a new cash in- fusion, and had nothing to do with the US exit from the agreement. “After the deal, but before recent events, Iran has been on a campaign of aggres- sion,” he said. “Those who describe the recent actions as somehow opening a hor- net’s nest are living on an- other planet.” Netanyahu made no mention of the called-off air strike and said he was “pleased” by US plans for in- creased economic pressure. But Israeli commentators said that Trump’s about-face was a cause for concern. “It further undermined the already limited con- fidence of other Western leaders in Trump’s judgment, it cast the US president as a paper tiger and provided a moment of triumph for the ayatollahs in Tehran and it raised new doubts about the rationale behind Netanya- hu’s drive to persuade Trump to abandon the 2015 nuclear deal,” wrote Haaretz col- umnist Chemi Shalev. Netanyahu has repeatedly accused Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons – a charge Tehran denies. Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister said Bolton was trying to force the US into a conflict with Iran. Javad Zarif tweeted that the presidential adviser was “moments away from trapping” Trump into a “war”, before the US pres- ident called off the strikes against Iran. A top Iranian military commander warned Sunday that any conflict with Iran would have uncontrollable consequences across the re- gion and endanger the lives of US forces. Maj. Gen. Ghola- mali Rashid’s remarks, pub- lished by the semi-official Fars news agency, were made while addressing Iran’s pow- erful Revolutionary Guards Corps during a field visit to a command centre for Ira- nian radars and missile sys- tems. The general oversees and coordinates joint mili- tary operations in the Iranian Armed Forces. US military cyber forces on Thursday launched a strike against Iranian mili- tary computer systems, ac- cording to US officials. The cyberattacks disabled Ira- nian Revolutionary Guard Corps computer systems that controlled its rocket and missile launchers, the of- ficials said. Throughout the recent crisis, Trump has wavered between bellicose language and actions towards Iran and a more accommodating tone. His administration is aiming to cripple Iran’s economy and force policy changes by re-im- posing sanctions, including on Iranian oil exports. However, Trump said Sat- urday he appreciated that Iran did not fire on a US spy plane with a crew of over 30 people that was flying Thursday over the same area as the drone that was shot down. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reads a letter from US President Donald Trump. – PHOTO: KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY/AP US National Security Advisor John Bolton gives statements to media in Jerusalem, Sunday. – PHOTO: AP9 WORLD®IONAL CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 24 JUNE 2019 White House unveils $50 billion Palestinian economic plan Trump postpones nationwide immigration enforcement sweep WASHINGTON (AP) – Presi- dent Donald Trump on Sat- urday delayed a nationwide immigration sweep to de- port people living the United States illegally, including families, saying he would give lawmakers two weeks to work out solutions for the southern border. The move came after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Trump on Friday asking him to call off the raids. But three administra- tion officials said scrapping the operation was not just about politics. They said Im- migration and Customs En- forcement leaders had ex- pressed serious concerns that officers’ safety would be in jeopardy because too many details about the raids had been made public. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to speak about private discussions. “At the request of Demo- crats, I have delayed the Il- legal Immigration Removal Process [Deportation] for two weeks to see if the Demo- crats and Republicans can get together and work out a solution to the Asylum and Loophole problems at the Southern Border,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “If not, De- portations start!” The operation, which sparked outrage and con- cern among immigrant ad- vocates, had been expected to begin Sunday and would target people with final or- ders of removal, including families whose immigra- tion cases had been fast- tracked by judges. The cancellation was an- other sign of the Trump ad- ministration’s difficulty managing the border crisis. The number of people crossing the US-Mexico border has risen dramati- cally under Trump, despite his tough rhetoric and hard- line policies. Balancing a White House eager to push major operational changes with the reality on the ground is a constant chal- lenge for the Department of Homeland Security. Trump gave the first public word of the planned sweep earlier this week, saying in a tweet that an op- eration was coming up and the agency would begin to remove “millions” of people who were in the United States illegally. Later, leaks to the media included sen- sitive law enforcement de- tails, such as the day it was to begin, Sunday, plus spe- cific cities and other opera- tional details. On Saturday, ICE spokes- woman Carol Danko criti- cised the leaks in context of their potential impact on ICE personnel, saying in a statement that “any leaks telegraphing sensitive law enforcement operations is egregious and puts our of- ficers’ safety in danger”. Pelosi called Trump on Friday night and the two spoke for about 12 minutes, according to a person fa- miliar with the situation and not authorised to discuss it publicly. She asked him to call off the raids and he said he would consider the re- quest, the person said. It’s unclear what else was said during the call. But in a statement Saturday be- fore the president’s decision was announced, Pelosi ap- pealed to the same compas- sion Trump expressed in de- clining to strike Iran because of the potential for lost lives. “The President spoke about the importance of avoiding the collateral damage of 150 lives in Iran. I would hope he would apply that same value to avoiding the collateral damage to tens of thousands of children who are frightened by his actions,” she said. She called the raids “heartless”. Pelosi responded to Trump’s announcement with her own tweet, saying: “Mr. President, delay is welcome. Time is needed for compre- hensive immigration reform. Families belong together.” Halting the flow of il- legal immigration has been Trump’s signature campaign issue, but Congress has been unable to push his proposals into law with resistance from both Democrats and Re- publicans. Bipartisan talks over the immigration system have started and stalled but are again under way among some in the Senate. Lawmakers are con- sidering whether to give $4.6 billion in emergency funding to help border agen- cies struggling to manage a growing number of migrants crossing the border. The measure passed a Senate committee on a 30-1 vote. But the House is considering its own measure. Funding is running out and Congress is trying to approve legislation before the House and Senate recess next week. Earlier Saturday, Trump hinted the operation was still on, saying the people ICE was looking for “have already been ordered to be deported”. “This means that they have run from the law and run from the courts,” Trump said. Coordinated enforcement operations take months to plan. Surprise is also an im- portant element. ICE officers do not have a search war- rant and are working from files with addresses and must go to people’s home and ask to be let inside. Immigrants are not required to open their doors, and increasingly they don’t. Officers generally capture about 30% to 40% of targets. The planned operation was heavily criticised by Democratic lawmakers as cruel, and many local mayors said they would refuse to co- operate with ICE. Immigrant advocates stepped up know- your-rights campaigns. Another complication is that ICE needs travel paper- work from a home country to deport someone, so im- migrants often end up de- tained at least temporarily waiting for a flight. ICE was reserving hotel rooms for families in the event the operation went off as planned Sunday. The adult population of detainees was 53,141 as of 8 June, though the agency is only budgeted for 45,000. There were 1,662 in family detention, also at capacity, and one of the family de- tention centres is currently housing single adults. WASHINGTON (AP) – The Trump administration on Saturday unveiled a $50 bil- lion Palestinian investment and infrastructure proposal intended to be the economic engine to power its much-an- ticipated but still unreleased “deal of the century” Middle East peace plan. The scheme, which calls for a mix of public and pri- vate financing and intends to create at least a million new jobs for Palestinians, was posted to the White House website ahead of a two-day conference in Bahrain that is being held amid heavy scep- ticism about its viability and outright opposition from the Palestinians. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday reiterated his re- jection of the proposal and the conference. The ‘Peace to Prosperity’ workshop on Tuesday and Wednesday will also take place amid heightened re- gional tensions over Iran that threaten to overshadow its goals. With no official partici- pation from the two main protagonists, Israel and the Palestinians, and scant en- thusiasm from others, con- tinued uncertainty and strong doubts over the plan’s political vision and the dis- traction of potential US-Iran conflict, expectations are de- cidedly low. President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner faces high hurdles in building support for the initiative. The 10-year plan calls for projects worth $27.5 billion in the West Bank and Gaza, and $9.1 billion, $7.4 billion and $6.3 billion for Palestin- ians in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon, respectively. Pro- jects envisioned include those in the healthcare, educa- tion, power, water, high-tech, tourism, and agriculture sec- tors. It calls for the creation of a “master fund” to admin- ister the finances and imple- mentation of the projects that is says are akin to the Mar- shall Plan that rebuilt Europe after World War II. The plan foresees more than doubling the Palestinian gross domestic product, re- ducing the Palestinian pov- erty rate by 50% and cutting the sky-high Palestinian un- employment rate to nearly single digits, according to the documents, which do not specify exactly how the pro- jects will be funded. It also calls for linking the West Bank and Gaza with a modern transportation net- work, including high-speed rail service. Such ideas have been floated in the past in previous peace proposals but have run into Israeli secu- rity concerns. “Generations of Palestin- ians have lived under adver- sity and loss, but the next chapter can be defined by freedom and dignity,” the White House said, calling the plan “the most ambitious in- ternational effort for the Pal- estinian people to date”. But an already tough sell that has vexed US adminis- trations for decades is made tougher not least because Trump and his aides have re- fused to endorse a two-state solution to the conflict that has long been seen as the only viable path to lasting peace. They have also sug- gested they are open to uni- lateral Israeli annexation of occupied territory in the West Bank. And, officials say there is no intention of discussing either issue or the most con- tentious parts of their pro- posal to end the long-run- ning conflict. Thus, the core political is- sues that are key to resolving the dispute, such as borders, the status of the holy city of Jerusalem, Israel’s security and the fate of Palestinian refugees, will not be raised. Such matters, US officials have said, may have to wait until the fall, after Israeli elections, leaving numerous questions that potential in- vestors almost certainly want answers to before making even tentative financial commitments. Palestinian leaders, an- gered by what they and their supporters see as bla- tant US bias towards Israel, want nothing to do with the workshop and will not par- ticipate. The Palestinians have called for mass dem- onstrations against the con- ference on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. “The plan cannot pass be- cause it ends the Palestinian cause,” Abbas said on Sat- urday. “We are not going to attend this workshop, the reason is that the economic situation should not be dis- cussed before a political sit- uation, so long as there is no political situation, we do not deal with any economic situation.” An economic adviser to Abbas said projects envis- aged in the US proposal could be considered, but only after the political ques- tion is agreed upon. “Yes, we need to build the infrastruc- ture, the investment, the tourism sector … but that cannot come before ending the Israeli occupation,” Mo- hammed Mustafa, head of Palestinian Investment Fund, told The Associated Press. In Gaza, the rival Hamas militant group has also con- demned the conference. “In one voice, we say no to the Manama workshop and the deal of the century,” Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said. He appealed to Bahrain’s king to “take a brave, strong, authentic Arab decision not to host this workshop” and called on Arab coun- tries to cancel their planned participation. Complicating the Bahrain meeting is the fact that it co- incides with a pledging con- ference in New York for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, a 70-year-old insti- tution that the Trump admin- istration has defunded and wants to eliminate entirely. The UN. Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, already provides health, education and other services to millions of Palestinians. Its supporters suspect the administration purposely scheduled the Bahrain con- ference to conflict with its event, noting that Kushner’s peace plan partner Jason Greenblatt has publicly called for UNRWA’s dissolu- tion. Greenblatt argued last month that the agency per- petuates Palestinian victim- hood, abets anti-Israel sen- timent and is an inefficient drain on funds that could be better directed. President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner faces high hurdles in building support for the initiative. Halting the flow of illegal immigration has been Trump’s signature campaign issue, but Congress has been unable to push his proposals into law with resistance from both Democrats and Republicans. White House adviser Jared KushnerNext >