ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 High of 89 Low of 78 Slight with wave heights of 1 to 3 feet. LOCAL | PAGE 6 NEARLY 13% OF PORT PETITION NAMES VERIFIED SO FAR SPORTS | PAGE 17 CAYMAN’S ATHLETES GET DOWN TO BUSINESS AT ISLAND GAMES SEVEN MILE BEACH WATERFRONT WALKERS ROAD TOWN CENTRE PLAZA RED BAY 2017 POLICE SHOOTING WOMAN SENTENCED FOR HARBOURING DEPORTEE SPENCER FORDIN sfordin@pinnaclemedialtd.com Marsha Marilyn Kelly was sentenced to 11 months in prison on Thursday for har- bouring a deportee, theft and damage to prop- erty in relation to a case from 2017. Kelly spent eight months on curfew and was given half credit for that, reducing her sentence of imprisonment to seven months. Kelly, a 37-year-old mother of two, had pleaded guilty to allowing Jamaican national Norval Maconia Barrett to stay at her home even though she knew that he had illegally Top spot left vacant at human rights body JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Cayman Islands Human Rights Commission is currently a leaderless ship after lawyer James Austin-Smith stepped down from the chairman’s role. Austin-Smith had criticised government’s decision to ap- peal a historic court judgment granting equal marriage rights to same-sex couples calling it “ill-considered” and a waste of public funds. Speaker McKeeva Bush took objection to those remarks and called for Austin-Smith to be dismissed in a speech to the Legislative Assembly in April. Bush, whose comments drew support from other legislators, also criticised Austin-Smith for being an atheist. Austin-Smith’s tenure as chairman expired on 31 May and has not been renewed. The gov- ernor, through the Commission’s Secretariat, is advertising for a replacement. Though his departure is not being officially linked to the same-sex marriage dis- pute, Austin-Smith had agreed to multiple previous exten- sions to his chairmanship since his three-year term ran out in January 2018. The Constitution requires the commission to have at least “two experienced lawyers” as mem- bers and Austin-Smith, a senior associate at Campbells, has PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » Magnificent Sevens The fast-paced action of Rugby Sevens took over the national stadium this weekend as teams from around the region descended on Grand Cayman to compete for a position in the Tokyo Olympics. Joel Clark led Cayman to a victory over Guyana on Saturday, but the team ultimately missed out on a semi-final place. See story on page 18. – PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY2 REGIONAL NEWS MONDAY, 8 JULY 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 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) SPIDER-MAN FAR (PG13) FROM HOME 12:40 VIP | 1:00 3D | 3:40 VIP | 4:00 | 6:40 VIP | 7:00 3D | 9:40 VIP | 10:00 TOY STORY 4 (G) 1:30 | 4:00 | 6:30 | 9:00 SPRINTER (R) 1:50 | 7:15 MEN IN BLACK (PG13) INTERNATIONAL 1:35 | 4:20 | 7:05 | 9:50 SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2 (PG) 2:15 | 4:30 | 6:45 | 9:00 ANNABELLE COMES HOME (R) 4:40 | 10:00 FEDS SEEK $12.6 BILLION IN DRUG MONEY FROM ‘EL CHAPO’ NEW YORK (AP) – Federal prosecutors want to re- cover $12.6 billion in drug money they say was gener- ated by the Mexican drug lord known as El Chapo. The US Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn asked a judge Friday to order Joaquin Guzman to forfeit that massive sum. They called the amount a “conservative” estimate of the cash Guzman’s Sinaloa Cartel earned distributing cocaine, heroin and mari- juana in the United States. Prosecutors pointed to weeks of testimony from drug suppliers who de- scribed the lucrative nar- cotics enterprise during Guzman’s trial. They said the laundered proceeds covered payroll and the purchase of planes, subma- rines and other vehicles. Guzman was convicted in February of murder conspiracy and drug traf- ficking. He faces life in prison. An email seeking comment was sent to his attorney. Team recovers helicopter that crashed in Bahamas HAVANA (AP) – Accident in- vestigators in the Bahamas say they have recovered the helicopter that crashed after taking off from a remote pri- vate island on 4 July, killing coal billionaire Chris Cline and six other Americans, as well as a British citizen. The Bahamas Air Acci- dent Investigation Depart- ment said on its website that a Florida-based contractor pulled the Agusta AW139 hel- icopter from the ocean late Saturday night. The helicopter was ex- pected to be taken to Fort Lauderdale and then to an accident investigation facility in Fort Pierce, Florida. Authorities have said it is too early to draw conclusions about the cause of the crash. They do not believe a distress call was made, and they only began searching after po- lice received a report from Florida that the craft had failed to arrive in Fort Laud- erdale as expected. Those killed included Cline’s 22-year-old daughter, Kameron, and three of her close friends: Brittney Layne Searson, Jillian Clark, and Delaney Wykle. Searson, Clark and Kameron Cline were re- cent graduates of Louisiana State University. Wykle had recently graduated from West Virginia University. Brad Ullman, executive director of the West Virginia Golf Association, confirmed that David Jude also was killed in the crash. Bahamas Police Supt. Shanta Knowles said Sat- urday that Geoffrey Painter of Barnstaple in the United Kingdom also was killed, and she confirmed the other vic- tims’ identities to The Asso- ciated Press. Cline began toiling in the mines of southern West Vir- ginia at a young age, rising through the ranks of his fa- ther’s company quickly be- fore forming his own en- ergy development business, the Cline Group, which grew into one of the country’s top coal producers. He went on to amass a fortune and became a major Republican donor. Paula Wykle, Delaney’s mother, said her daughter had just passed her nursing boards and when one of the vacationing party got sick and needed to be transported back to the mainland, De- laney Wykle wanted to be there to help. “She got to practice nursing for one day,” Wykle said, calling her daughter “smart, loving, and one of the best friends anyone could ever ask for”. The accident investiga- tion department also said it was interviewing witnesses on Big Grand Cay, the island owned by Cline. The department has said the National Transporta- tion Safety Board, the Fed- eral Aviation Administration, the Safety Board of Italy and the manufacturer of the air- craft and engine would all provide assistance with the investigation. Venezuelan envoy rejects ‘biased’ report at UN human rights body GENEVA (AP) – A top Ven- ezuelan diplomat on Friday blasted what he called the “biased vision” of a report by the UN human rights chief chronicling torture, sexual abuse and extrajudicial kill- ings in the country, and de- manded it be “corrected”. Deputy Foreign Minister William Castillo insisted the report from High Commis- sioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet “does not reflect the reality in our country”. He said Venezuela would heed “constructive” recommendations. “We demand that its con- tents be corrected, and we urge you to act in a balanced and respectful way,” Castillo told the UN-backed Human Rights Council through a translator. “The content of this report is incomprehensible, domi- nated by a selective and bi- ased vision,” Castillo said. “It’s a text lacking in scien- tific rigor, with serious errors in methodology and which seems like a carbon copy of previous reports.” Bachelet, after pre- senting the report published Thursday to the council, in- sisted that she heard from victims on both govern- ment and opposition sides, and defended the method- ology. Since taking office last year, Bachelet said, she has emphasised that staffers need to get the facts right to show balance. Also Friday, Bachelet an- nounced that Venezuela has freed 22 people the opposi- tion considers political pris- oners under international pressure. That brings the re- lease of political prisoners in recent weeks to 84. Bachelet’s announcement came as embattled President Nicolás Maduro appeared in a military celebration on Venezuela’s Independence Day, while opposition leader Juan Guaidó was expected to lead a march against the so- cialist leader. The rights chief said her teams had been working on the report, which covers a period from January 2018 nearly to the present, for a long time. She insisted upon the validity of the reporting, based on hundreds of in- terviews and meetings with government officials, Ma- duro’s opponents, as well as victims, their relatives, rights defenders and many others. She also expressed hope that the report could help pave the way towards im- provements in the rights situ- ation in Venezuela, and noted that her office now has an of- fice in Venezuela – access not granted for many years. She summarised her team’s findings about a “pat- tern of torture” under Ma- duro’s government, citing violations like arbitrary de- tention, extrajudicial killings, sexual violence and enforced disappearances. MEXICO ISSUES ARREST WARRANTS FOR EX-PEMEX BOSS, RELATIVES MEXICO CITY (AP) – Mexi- co’s attorney general’s of- fice said Friday that new arrest warrants have been issued for the former head of the state oil company and several of his relatives. In a statement, prose- cutors said that the war- rants for Emilio Lozoya and others are related to their investigation into wrongdoing by the Bra- zilian construction behe- moth Odebrecht. The targets were only identified by their first names, but an official in the attorney general’s of- fice who was not author- ised to speak publicly, con- firmed that it was Lozoya. Attorney Javier Coello told Milenio TV that the warrant for his client was not surprising, but it was a shock that Lozoya’s wife, mother and sister were also included. “What does Mr. Lo- zoya’s wife have to do with this? What does his mom have to do with this?” Coello said, adding that he believed Lozoya was in Mexico. The attorney gener- al’s office said that In- terpol had also been no- tified of the warrants. It said sufficient evidence was presented to a judge to allow advancement in “a case that for a long time was frozen in a rep- rehensible way”.A recovery team stands by at the wreckage site Friday where a helicopter carrying four women and three men, including billionaire coal entrepreneur Chris Cline and his daughter, crashed outside a string of islands Cline owned in the Bahamas. – PHOTO: AP William Castillo, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela, talks about the situation of human rights in Venezuela, during the 41th session of the Human Rights Council, Friday at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. – PHOTO: AP3 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 Please be advised that the Cayman Compass Office will be closed on Friday, July 12 th , 2019 for a Staff Function. We will re-open for regular business hours on Monday, July 15 th 8:30am to 5:00pm We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. TELEPHONE: (345) 949-5111 EMAIL: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com PLEASE NOTE OUR NEW OFFICE HOURS Monday thru Friday 8:30am to 5:00pm Please also note that on July 9th Our office will not open until 10.30am. OFFICE CLOSURE PUBLICATION DEADLINES: EDITION BOOKING DEADLINES Wednesday July 17 ..................Thursday, July 11 Women divers to make world record attempt KAYLA YOUNG kyoung@pinnaclemedialtd.com The only thing better than breaking a world record is breaking the same world re- cord, again. That is what Divetech hopes to do on International Women’s Dive Day on Sat- urday, 20 July. Last year 86 women came together at Divetech’s shore diving site at Lighthouse Point in West Bay, creating the longest recorded female underwater human chain. The previous record had been set in May 2018 by 48 women from Girls That Scuba, who formed an un- derwater human pyramid in Indonesia. This year, Divetech hopes to bring together 100 women at its West Bay dive site and break its own record set in July 2018. Like last year, pro- ceeds from the event will benefit the Breast Cancer Foundation. Divetech owner Joanna Mikutowicz is appealing for women to sign up for this year’s event early, so organ- isers can start coordinating the details. “We are trying to get … 100 women this year and also as much assistance as pos- sible from other dive shops and organisations that want to support the event,” Miku- towicz said. Signing up early will allow the dive company to reserve tanks and equip- ment and plan for enough safety divers. It will also allow participants to ensure their spot – a maximum of 100 women will be able to participate. “Everyone participating in the dive needs to be at least an Open Water cer- tified diver and have been diving in the past year. If they have not been diving in the past year, we do offer half day refreshers to get them back to feeling safe and comfortable in the water so they can safely participate in the big event,” Mikutowicz said. “Anyone who is not a certified diver is welcome to come join the event and stay on shore cheering eve- ryone on, participating in our raffle and just joining in on the fun.” Women’s Dive Day is an international celebration that encourages women to share their love for the water, Mi- kutowicz explained, adding that women play an im- portant role in Cayman’s dive community. “Women have a very strong presence in the Cayman diving commu- nity, from women who run/ manage dive shops to the instructors that work there, to the diving women of the DOT [Department of Tourism] and CCMI [Central Caribbean Marine Institute], the underwater photogra- phers who are ambassadors for Cayman and the environ- ment on a global scale and, of course, all of the women who dive in their free time to enjoy all the beauty Cayman has to offer under- water,” she said. The day will also benefit women through its support of the Breast Cancer Foun- dation. Mikutowicz said she would like to continue sup- porting the foundation be- cause of the important fi- nancial assistance it offers women and men battling the disease. “Facing a disease like cancer takes all of you physically and mentally to overcome, and any assis- tance that we can provide to lighten the burden of the financial responsibility is what our aim is,” Miku- towicz said. For more information on Women’s Dive Day, visit www.divetech.com/wdd2019. Divers line up for 2018’s record-breaking effort. Organisers hope 100 women will attend this year. - PHOTOS: DIVETECH Proceeds from the event will again benefit the Breast Cancer Foundation.The 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, 8 JULY 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS LETTER TO THE EDITOR Equating LGBT rights to colonialism is ‘rubbish’ I have to say that the overseas territories meeting last week was rather disappointing, the idea that LGBTI equality is colonialism is rubbish and rather insulting. Same-sex marriage, re- grettably, is the tip of the iceberg in the Cayman Islands and the other OTs in the region; there is, in particular, an en- trenched homophobic cul- ture in certain ranks of the Cayman Islands. The immigration au- thority refuses to allow Caymanians the right to reside in the Cayman Is- lands with their same-sex spouse causing an unequiv- ocal and intentional dis- crimination against their own people. More recently, the Min- ister of Education Juliana O’Connor-Connolly incited sexual hatred and vio- lence against LGBTI people when she called publicly to gate-crash a same-sex cou- ple’s marriage. If good governance has any meaning at all, it surely must mean that the enforcement of the law has to be fair and equal rather than full of illegalities driven by homophobic pol- iticians and civil servants. I understand that the Cayman Islands govern- ment is unable to reach a consensus to comply with the rule of law and the Constitution of the Cayman Islands in these areas; it is therefore the constitu- tional duty of the governor, pursuant sections 81 and 55, to stop these illegali- ties given the international legal obligations pursuant to the European Court of Human Rights’ decision in Taddeucci v Italy (in rela- tion to immigration) and Oliari v Italy (in relation to legal framework for same- sex couples). While I praise (and thank) the decision of the governor to withdraw from the same-sex marriage case, I do believe that this is not enough. A fortiori there can never be colonialism in cir- cumstances where one is complying with the duties imposed by the constitution of the country. Leonardo J. Raznovich Cuba: overcoming the inertia of the tired DAVID JESSOP Just over a week ago, Cuba’s President, Miguel Díaz-Canel, said that starting this month all state employed workers will receive the first of what will likely be several salary increases. His widely reported announcement responded to shared concern among Cubans that their salaries have become inadequate in relation to the cost of living. Far more significantly, however, and barely mentioned outside of Cuba, the decision was just one of several potentially far-reaching economic reforms. In his remarks – subsequently published under the headline ‘Update of the Cuban So- cialist Model’ – Cuba’s President told partici- pants at a meeting in the city of Pinar del Rio, that Cuba is about to embark on what might best be described as an unconventional pro- cess of economic reform, and the long overdue process of breathing new life into the coun- try’s struggling economy is about to begin. What emerged is a picture of a new and peculiarly Cuban economic model that mixes incentives, market forces, expert advice, cur- rency reform, and decentralised and manage- rially led decision making, with exhortation, social commitment, accounting and central- ised planning. Taken together the new approach appears to break decisively with the concept of a top- down centrally directed socialist economy in favour of one that is still socially oriented but managed within a plan derived from bottom- up inputs and decentralised and more liberal decision making. While the ideas still have to be formally considered by the country’s National As- sembly and its commissions when they meet later this month, President Díaz-Canel made clear that what is being proposed has been “systematically debated” for months by a working group that included academic econo- mists and other experts. Space does not permit more than an out- line of some of the new measures, but the pro- posed increase in salaries is closely related to reforms to pricing which are intended to- gether, to quote Cuba’s President, to bring about “monetary and exchange unification and the elimination of subsidies”. At present Cuba has two currencies that operate in parallel resulting in very low na- tional peso (CUP) prices for the basic goods and services that Cuba’s system guarantees, while most other items considered less es- sential are valued in convertible pesos (CUC), creating distortions that damage the coun- try’s ability to develop. Since currency unifi- cation is likely to be inflationary and make CUP-earning Cubans poorer, gradual but sig- nificant increases in state salaries, along with subsidy reform and encouraging savings are the essential precursors to change. For this reason, the decision to address both wage and prices marks the start of what will be a complex and potentially socially dis- ruptive process leading to a single currency. As such it represents a major change of policy designed to make the management of Cuba’s socially oriented economy and stimulating growth more orthodox. The new measures go further, breaking with the past by seeking to incentivise initia- tive and success. For example, in future state enterprises will be allowed to retain any sur- plus beyond what is due to the state and to decide themselves whether such sums can be reinvested or used for co-investment with foreign companies or non-state enterprises. By encouraging state companies to take their own decisions as to how to increase efficiency and productivity and allowing them to incen- tivise workers within more generous guide- lines, Cuba’s Council of Minister hope that do- mestic self-sufficiency will increase. President Díaz-Canel also said that a de- velopment bank is to be established that will be able to finance projects separately from existing state allocations given to enterprise, and that other measures yet to be announced will aim to encourage agricultural production and municipal self-sufficiency. Essential to all of this, Cuba’s President said, will be the strengthening of accounting, accountability and “overcoming the inertia of the tired”. He also signalled that the measures proposed, which are inter-related, may have to be adapted, and if successful could lead to further reforms. All of this may seem timid in relation to the measures taken to stimulate growth in the free market economies of the rest of the region. However, in a Cuban context they rep- resent a significant step towards freeing the market by devolving decision making to man- agers, enterprises and collectives in ways that enable both the state and all state workers to benefit from success. Put another way, the system being pro- posed incentivises those in the state economy to take decisions, take responsibility for their actions and benefit from them within certain limits, rather than just trying to meet unambi- tious or over ambitious targets determined by bureaucrats. How well Cubans adapt to this, if the country can overcome its initiative-stifling bu- reaucracy and dated structures, and whether influential conservatives within the higher reaches of the Cuban Government and Com- munist Party allow such changes to become irreversible, remains to be seen. Paradoxically however, US policy may unintentionally be on the side of the eco- nomic reformers. So swingeing has been the effect of Wash- ington’s new sanctions and so extreme the re- marks of individuals such as the US National Security Adviser, John Bolton, that senior fig- ures in Cuba’s Communist Party and govern- ment appear to have accepted that to survive, Cuba’s idling socialist system has little op- tion other than to undergo rapid reform, adopt new thinking, become more internally self-suf- ficient, appeal to the young, and increase effi- ciency and productivity. Just as surprisingly, the extraterritorial effect of US sanctions and the appalling internal situation in Venezuela may also be helping Cuba. For the first time, Washington’s close al- lies have become publicly critical of its Cuba policy, making clear their concern that iso- lating the island at a time of generational change is counterproductive, destabilising, undermines free and frank discussion on re- form, and creates significant new openings for Russia and China. They have also recognised that Cuba may have a unique role in helping resolve the internal political and humani- tarian crisis in Venezuela. In his remarks President Díaz-Canel said that Cuba now has greater potentialities, is more prepared, has developed a concept of re- sistance over sixty years and has learned from the experience of surviving the period of ex- treme austerity which followed the collapse of the former Soviet Union. For the sake of the Cuban people and re- gional stability it is to be hoped that this new and unconventional approach works, and that Cuba’s liberal reform-minded economists can successfully deliver a basis for further socially oriented economic change. David Jessop is a consultant to the Caribbean Council and can be contacted at david.jessop@Caribbean-council.org. Put another way, the system being proposed incentivises those in the state economy to take decisions, take responsibility for their actions and benefit from them within certain limits, rather than just trying to meet unambitious or over ambitious targets determined by bureaucrats.5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 Over 25 years experience in the Cayman Islands Call/Email: 943-2525 • 925-4918 • 623-2525 / info@anglinlewis.ky O ce Hours: Monday – Thursday 9:00am-5:00pm, Friday 9:00am-4:00pm and Saturday 10:00am-2:00pm. Looking for US Immigration advice for living, working or Investing in the United States? Family Petition EB-5 Immigration Investor Visa (Green Card) E-2 treaty investors for eligible countries citizens L-1 Managers and Executives for Businesses U.S. Real Estate Investments Then call us today for an appointment to see our US IMMIGRATION CONSULTANT who will be on Island between July 13-17 Stable puts summer campers in the saddle MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com Philippa ‘Pippa’ Dixey, 6, is ready to get started. “Is it time to groom?” she asks Clare Meloy, director of Cowboy Town Stables summer camp. Dwarfed by the surround- ings of the open-beamed barn and the heads of the horses protruding from their stalls, Pippa stands with her head back looking up at Meloy, her shoulder-length blonde hair held in check by a straw hat with silk flowers in the band. When she gets the nod, she dashes to the open door and shouts to her fellow campers, producing an impressive volume given her size. “It’s grooming time!” she tells them. Moments later, she has a plastic curry brush in her hand and is making circular motions on the belly of Whiz, a dappled white horse that is one of seven currently used by the stables in its pro- grammes. Other campers are doing the same work on other horses. During the school year, the stables offers horse therapy for those with learning dis- orders as well as mental and physical conditions. But for two weeks after school is out, it holds a summer camp in the mornings. The children attending are a mix of those who have special needs, as well as those who do not. “We have a couple of kids who have autism,” said Meloy. “We have [children with] sensory processing dis- orders and ADHD. We have a child coming next week with cerebral palsy.” One of her top priorities with the camp is inclusive- ness, she said. She wants the special needs children to be able to make friends outside their normal social circles. “In their everyday lives, they don’t get to mix with other kids that much,” Meloy said. She also wants the campers to have fun and to learn about horses and how to be safe around the large animals. Pippa is clearly appreci- ating the fun aspects. “My most fun was riding and grooming and washing [horses],” she said. “Today, we’re going to paint the horses and their legs and then we’re going to wash them off. It’s fun, we’re going to get all soaked.” Meloy said the campers will learn the anatomy of a horse’s leg and then paint that on their hooves and hide with poster paint mixed with shampoo. There is also a planned water balloon fight completing the theme of a late wet morning. After grooming, the horses are saddled and the campers take a short 10-minute trail ride, where volunteers walk along with the horses. For Anya Harrison, 10, it’s less exciting than for some of the younger campers. She comes to the stables regu- larly and has progressed to where she can ride a horse on her own at a lope. She said she has helped some of the younger campers during the week. “I taught them what to do and what not to do,” she said. She enjoys the feeling of being around horses. “It’s quite comforting,” Anya said, noting that her fa- vourite horse is one named Khaleesy. “She has a nice colour. She’s the youngest and she likes me. Whenever I come around her stall, she pops her head up and wants to be petted.” Anya said she hopes to have her own horse some day. The camp programme is largely run by volunteers, including Meloy, who do- nates her time to the stables’ programmes. Petra Macakova works at the front desk in a hotel during the week, but has been volunteering at the sta- bles on her days off for the past three to four months, usually grooming and feeding the horses. She said she is enjoying the chance to work with the kids during the camp, and remembers how much her early encounters with horses affected her. “I remember myself as a kid, I loved it,” Macakova said. “It’s a really big thing to experience.” The impact is often greater than the experience itself, she said, especially with small children. “They’ll brush the horse three times and think they’ve done the job,” she said. “They’re like, ‘I brushed the horse!’” Si- mone Baker-Palmer, 14, has been volunteering for six years at the stables. She came for a ride on her birthday and “just kept coming”. The camp, she said, al- lows kids to engage with an animal most are not fa- miliar with. “They get a better un- derstanding of horses,” she said, “so they’re not just giant scary creatures.” Following the trail ride, the kids engage in a craft session. After all, it would not be summer camp without beads and glue and paint. On this day, they are painting and decorating wooden horseshoes that will serve as frames for photos taken ear- lier in the week. “We try to send something home with them every day,” said Meloy. Undoubtedly most would be happy to take one of the horses with them. Pippa is already planning to own a horse. “I was trying to get enough money so I can buy one when I get older,” she said. “I made a big piggy bank, and when it’s full I can make another. I already have a lot of pennies.” Pippa Dixey brushes a horse named Whiz during grooming at the Cowboy Town Stables as part of summer camp. Holly Beckett strains with a clasp while attaching reins to a harness during summer camp at Cowboy Town Stables.Nina Bell rides with other campers from the Cowboy Town Stables. - PHOTOS: MARK MUCKENFUSS6 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS Nearly 13% of port petition names verified so far Sniffer dogs have a nose for trouble Paw patrols help sniff out cash Detection dogs have sniffed out more than $400,000 in cash since they were first deployed to help protect Cayman’s borders. The Customs and Border Control Service has been using sniffer dogs to target the movement of large quantities of undeclared cash since February 2018. Recent seizures have in- cluded $135,000 concealed beneath the floor panels of a private plane, $10,000 in cash strapped to the body of a woman travel- ling through the airport and $250,000 discovered in a joint raid with police at a Cayman home. Some of those incidents have led to criminal prose- cutions or prompted wider investigations. It is legal to move cash in and out of the Cayman Islands, so long as the amounts are declared to Customs. In some cases undeclared cash movement has been linked to money laundering or drug traf- ficking activity. Jeff Jackson, deputy director of customs and border control, said the dogs were an effective tool to help tackle mul- tiple offences. “There’s no doubt that canines are a valuable asset to law enforcement, not only for detecting drugs, weapons and other illicit contraband, but a variety of other things including identifying illegal move- ment of money.” Customs and Border Control routinely conducts inspection operations on ar- riving and departing inter- national flights and inter- cepts narcotics, weapons, currency, and other illicit items at the country’s inter- national ports of entry. There is no limit to how much currency travellers can import or export, but the law requires amounts totalling CI$15,000 or more to be declared. Alberto Powery, assis- tant director in the unit’s fraud division, said, “Cus- toms and Border Con- trol hopes these detections and subsequent seizures will serve as a reminder to all travellers that being truthful with CBC officers is the best policy. The best way to hold onto one’s cur- rency is to truthfully and report the total amount to the authorities.” Almost a week after be- ginning door-to-door checks, Elections Office staff have verified more than 700 signa- tures on the cruise port refer- endum petition, 12.9% of the total 5,438 names. The Elections Office began its verification process last Friday, starting in North Side and East End, and as of Thursday, 702 names had been confirmed, the office stated in a press release. The petition was sub- mitted by members of Cruise Port Referendum Cayman to the Elections Of- fice in May. Supervisor of Elections Wesley Howell has stated that before the peti- tion can be handed to Cab- inet and before a people-in- itiated referendum can get under way, each signature needs to be verified. According to the Elections Office on Thursday, the name checking continued in both of those districts throughout this week, and was also car- ried out in Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. Officials said the door-to- door verification would start this weekend in Bodden Town West, Bodden Town East, Newlands, Savannah, West Bay North, West Bay Central, West Bay West and West Bay South. People can also visit the Elections Office head- quarters to verify their sig- natures on the petition. The office is open 8:30am to 6:30pm on Mondays to Thursdays; from 8:30am to 5pm on Fridays, and 10am to 3pm on Saturdays. Elections Office staff members will also man ver- ification booths this Sat- urday, 6 July, from 10am to 3pm at Foster’s Food Fair at Countryside Shopping Vil- lage in Savannah and Fos- ter’s Food Fair at the Re- publix Plaza in West Bay. Individuals who have signed the cruise port ref- erendum and are off is- land during this time can email office@elections.ky and they will be sent a ver- ification form and asked to send copies of certain of- ficial identification docu- ments, the Elections Office stated. “The district’s Reg- istering Officer may contact the individual by phone to help confirm the identity of the individuals,” the press release noted. Howell said, “I would like to thank Elections Office staff members for their as- sistance and petition signers for their support during this process. We really ap- preciate the kind coopera- tion our teams have been receiving from the persons whose signature need veri- fying, and we look forward to completing this process swiftly. The Elections Office will continue to inform the public on its progress as the process moves forward.” The Elections Office is located on the second floor of Smith Road Centre in George Town, and may be contacted at 949‑8047. Customs and Border Control Officer Anthony Echenique with sniffer dog Sjoerd, a Belgian Malinois. Police helicopter operations update During the last two weeks of June, the RCIPS Air Op- erations Unit conducted six medical evacuations to Grand Cayman from the Sister Is- lands using the new police helicopter. These included two on 17 June, and four during the following week of 24 to 30 June, according to a news release from the Royal Cayman Islands Po- lice Service. On Monday, 17 June, the helicopter transferred a heart patient from Cayman Brac to Health City Cayman Islands. Later that same evening, a woman in pre- mature labour was trans- ported from Faith Hospital in Cayman Brac to Grand Cayman, and then to the Cayman Islands Hospital via ambulance, after it was determined that the child would be in need of critical care once born. The following week, med- ical evacuations were con- ducted on Monday, 24 June; Tuesday, 25 June; Thursday, 27 June; and Saturday, 29 June. One of those evac- uations was from Little Cayman, while the others were from Cayman Brac. Two of the evacuations oc- curred following diving-re- lated incidents, and another followed a motor-vehicle col- lision, while the fourth was of a critically ill patient who had lost consciousness. Cruise ships line up outside the George Town Harbour in May. - PHOTO: STEPHEN CLARKE SHAMROCK ROAD PAVING The National Roads Authority and its subcon- tractor will be carrying out upgrades to the pave- ment along Shamrock Road’s eastbound lane. The work is scheduled for 11-12 and 15-16 July from 7am to 4pm daily. Drivers are asked to keep watch for traffic diversions and to drive with caution to ensure their safety and that of the work crews. Call 946‑7780 or email nra@nra.ky if you have any questions or comments regarding this project. The new police helicopter arrived in the Cayman Islands in March. - PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY7 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 TELEPHONE: (345) 949-5111 EMAIL: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Our OFFICE will open at 10:30am on Tuesday, July 9th due to a staff meeting. NOTICE We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Drugs, guns confiscated in ‘Operation Rip Tide’ Cayman’s Coast Guard assists in regional mission Officers from Cayman’s newly formed Coast Guard helped intercept smugglers running drugs and am- munition through the re- gion’s waters. Two boats were seized, 14 people were arrested and a firearm and 91 rounds of ammunition were confiscated during Operation Rip Tide, a joint mission with the Ja- maica Defence Force and the US Coast Guard. Border enforcement offi- cials also confiscated a total of US$9,000 and 5,280 pounds of marijuana with a street value of US$3.7 million during the operation. Cayman’s Coast Guard Lieutenant Commander Leo Anglin and Police Constable Adrian Clarke were deployed onboard the Jamaican De- fence Force Coast Guard’s offshore patrol vessels HMJS Cornwall and HMJS Mid- dlesex as well as the US Coast Guard’s Venturous. Anglin said, “This type of joint operation lets us lev- erage inter-agency partner- ships to target maritime smuggling organisations re- sponsible for the illicit traf- ficking of persons, drugs and weapons, within the region.” Cayman’s coast guard commander, Robert Scotland, said the mission had also served as learning opportu- nity for the new unit. “The experience that was gained and the exchange of professional knowledge will help us build a professional Coast Guard that is respected within the region. We look forward to further partici- pation in joint training exer- cises and operational deploy- ments of this kind as they will only serve to help with this objective.” Lieutenant Commander Gerard Wenk, the USCG Mili- tary Attaché in Jamaica, said cooperation between different countries was key to fighting drug trafficking in the region. “The United States is com- mitted to working with Ja- maica and the Cayman Is- lands to counter transnational criminal organisations that threaten the safety and sta- bility of Caribbean nations. The Cayman Islands have been key contributors in the fight against illicit activity in the maritime domain, and re- main more than willing to as- sist Jamaica and the United States in fighting illicit mari- time activity in the region.” Commodore Antonette Wemyss-Gorman, Officer in charge of the JDF’s Maritime, Aviation and Cyber Command added: “Collaborations like this go a long way towards strengthening the network of law enforcement agencies against nefarious actors in our maritime space. The JDF is fully committed to the fight and looks forward to future engagements of this type.” Governor visits MASH unit Governor Martyn Roper says he is impressed by the “commitment and dedication” of police and social workers fighting to protect children in the Cayman Islands. The Governor visited the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub, which brings together var- ious public agencies to handle sensitive abuse allegations. The unit’s remit encom- passes child safeguarding cases as well as investigating and prosecuting domestic vi- olence, including elder abuse. MASH employees who met with the governor included a child psychologist, police of- ficers and social workers. In a press release about the visit, Roper said, “It was great to visit the Multi-Agency Safe- guarding [Hub] to meet staff who do essential and chal- lenging work. Our multi-agency approach is leading the way re- gionally, but there are still sig- nificant issues to address. More success can be achieved by working cooperatively across agencies in order to protect the children of our islands. I was impressed by the commitment and dedication of the staff.” During the governor’s visit, Inspector Kevin Ashworth of the police Family Support Unit briefed the governor on some of the work being done by the unit. He said closer ties with other agencies help reduce the number of inappropriate re- ferrals and re-referrals, while providing a more consistent response to concerns about children and at-risk adults, ac- cording to the release. Paulinda Mendoza-Wil- liams, director of the Depart- ment of Children and Family Services, spoke about the need for increased community sup- port in safeguarding chil- dren, particularly during the summer holidays. Governor Martyn Roper, second from right, visits the MASH office, in the company of Department of Children and Family Services Deputy Director Rayle Roberts, DCFS Director Paulinda Mendoza-Williams, MASH Manager Tiffany Myles and Royal Cayman Islands Police Service Family Support Unit Inspector Kevin Ashworth. Offshore patrol vessels HMJS Cornwall and US Coast Guard’s Venturous. Lieutenant Commander Leo Anglin, centre left, and Police Constable Adrian Clarke, centre right, with members of the Jamaica Defense Force.The islands’ most-trusted news source 8 MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 • CAYMAN COMPASS filled one of those positions during his tenure. The commission cur- rently has only three members, including only one lawyer. Austin-Smith told the Compass in an email, “I was supposed to finish at the end of December 2017 but extended sev- eral times over the course of the next 18 months as no replacement had been identified. “My most recent ex- tension was on April 1 for two months to the end of May. It was always envis- aged that another person would be appointed and I would not extend further at that stage.” Matthew Forbes, the head of the governor’s of- fice, which has responsi- bility for identifying a suc- cessor, said the process was ongoing. “The work of the com- mission doesn’t stop. The other members are taking on issues and dis- cussing and dealing with them. There is a vacancy that needs to be filled and we hope to make an ap- pointment soon.” Despite those assur- ances, the commission’s current membership, does not meet the require- ments of the Constitution which states, “The Com- mission shall consist of a Chairman and four other members appointed by the Governor, acting after consultation with the Pre- mier and the Leader of the Opposition, at least two of whom shall be experi- enced lawyers.” The three current members are Reverend Yvette Noble-Bloomfield, Joni Kirkconnell, a health and safety manager at CUC and Walker’s lawyer Dorothy Scott. Deborah Bodden, man- ager of the Commis- sions Secretariat, said in an email to the Com- pass that the commis- sion was “functional with three members”. She said she was re- viewing expressions of in- terest for the two vacant slots, including the chair- man’s position, before presenting a shortlist to the Governor. “The appointment of members to this, and every other Commission, is of the utmost impor- tance and I am working diligently to ensure that the full complement is in place as quickly as pos- sible,” she said. “It is normal practice for membership of the Commissions to change over time, and during such transition the total number of members will vary. The Human Rights Commis- sion remains quorate and the Commissions Secre- tariat continues to pro- vide support and guid- ance to persons who wish to make contact with the Commission.” entered Cayman. Barrett, 34, was shot dead by police in January of 2017 when they tried to apprehend him at Kelly’s residence. Magistrate Kirsty-Ann Gunn said Thursday that a social inquiry report found Kelly to be “willing to sup- port crime when she views it to be a benefit to her- self”. Kelly, who actively participated in the theft of two boat motors valued at $19,000, was found to be a medium risk of re-offending. Barrett and Kelly began their relationship when Bar- rett was incarcerated at Northward Prison on a rob- bery charge, and he was de- ported from Cayman to Ja- maica in August of 2016. Kelly was on the plane with him that day, said Magis- trate Gunn, and knew he was a man known to the criminal justice system. “She went into this with eyes wide open,” said Mag- istrate Gunn. Barrett returned to Cayman illegally in December of 2016 and Kelly allowed him to stay at her home. Magistrate Gunn said that Kelly cooked for Barrett and was “intimate” with him, en- couraging him to stay despite the illegal nature of his ar- rival. Barrett stayed for just over a month, and Kelly was found guilty for aiding Bar- rett in stealing and damaging two outboard boat motors. Magistrate Gunn said Thursday that Kelly had sig- nificant culpability and that the risk of harm to the com- munity for aiding and abet- ting Barrett in crimes was “as high as one can imagine”. “I accept she loved him deeply but the court can have little sympathy,” said Mag- istrate Gunn. The maximum sentence for a first-time offence of har- bouring a deportee is one year. Kelly was sentenced to 33 weeks for that offense and given full credit for making an early guilty plea. That brought the sentence to 22 weeks, with one month served consecutively to the theft and damage charge. Kelly was found guilty of theft and damage to the outboard motors after a trial, and Magistrate Gunn imposed a sentence of 14 months for that charge with a four-month reduc- tion for being of previously good character. Magistrate Gunn said that 10 months would be imposed for the theft and damage charges and one month served con- secutively for harbouring a deportee, bringing the total to 11 months. The theft, said Magistrate Gunn, was “brazen” and re- quired planning. Kelly was given credit for four months of time served for the eight months she spent on proba- tion and curfew. In addition to her custo- dial sentence, Kelly was fined $660 for permitting a person to drive a vehicle with ex- pired license, $690 for use/ keep of a road vehicle re- quired to be licensed, $500 for making a false repre- sentation and $400 for em- ployment of a person out- side the conditions contained in a permit. She will have six months after her release from prison to make the requi- site payments. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 2017 police shooting: Woman sentenced for theft and harbouring a deportee CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Top spot left vacant at human rights body NSA leak mystery lingers as case winds up WASHINGTON (AP) – Fed- eral agents descended on the suburban Maryland house with the flash and bang of a stun grenade, blocked off the street and spent hours questioning the homeowner about a theft of government documents that prosecu- tors would later describe as “breathtaking” in its scale. The suspect, Harold Martin, was a contractor for the National Security Agency. His arrest followed news of a devastating disclosure of government hacking tools by a mysterious internet group calling itself the Shadow Brokers. It seemed to some that the United States might have found another Edward Snowden, who also had been a contractor for the agency. “You’re a bad man. There’s no way around that,” one law enforcement official con- ducting the raid told Martin, court papers say. “You’re a bad man.” Later this month, about three years after that raid, the case against Martin is scheduled to be resolved in Baltimore’s federal court. But the identity of the Shadow Brokers, and whoever was re- sponsible for a leak with ex- traordinary national secu- rity implications, will remain a public mystery even as the case concludes. Authorities have estab- lished that Martin walked off with thousands of pages of secret documents over a two- decade career in national se- curity, most recently with the NSA, whose headquarters is about 15 miles from his home in Glen Burnie, Mary- land. He pleaded guilty to a single count of willful reten- tion of national defence in- formation and faces a nine- year prison sentence under a plea deal. Investigators found in his home and car detailed description of computer in- frastructure and classi- fied technical operations in a raid that took place two weeks after the Shadow Brokers surfaced online to advertise the sale of some of the NSA’s closely guarded hacking tools. Yet author- ities have never publicly linked Martin or anyone else to the Shadow Brokers and the US has not announced whether it suspects gov- ernment insiders, Russian intelligence or someone else entirely. The question is impor- tant because the US believes North Korea and Russia re- lied on the stolen tools, which provide the means to exploit software vulnerabil- ities in critical infrastruc- ture, in unleashing punishing global cyberattacks on busi- nesses, hospitals and cities. The release, which occurred while the NSA was already under scrutiny because of Snowden’s 2013 disclosures, raised questions about the government’s ability to main- tain secrets. “It was extraordinarily damaging, probably more damaging than Snowden,” cybersecurity expert Bruce Schneier said of the Shadow Brokers leaks. “Those tools were a lot of money to design and create.” Yet none of that is likely to be mentioned at Mar- tin’s 17 July sentencing. The hearing instead will turn on dramatically different depic- tions of the enigmatic Martin, a Navy veteran, longtime gov- ernment contractor – most recently at Booz Allen Ham- ilton – and doctoral candi- date at the time of his arrest. Prosecutors allege Martin jeopardised national secu- rity by bringing home reams of classified information even as, they say, he once casti- gated colleagues as “clowns” for lax security measures. Soon after his arrest, they cast aspersions on his character and motives, citing a binge- drinking habit, his arsenal of unregistered weapons and on- line communication in Rus- sian and other languages. The agents who searched his house that August 2016 afternoon found a trove of documents in his car, home and a dusty, unlocked shed. The 50 terabytes of informa- tion from 1996 to 2016 in- cluded personal details of government employees and “Top Secret” email chains, handwritten notes describing the NSA’s classified computer infrastructure, and descrip- tions of classified technical operations. Defense lawyers paint him as a compulsive hoarder whose quirky tendencies may have led him astray but who never betrayed his country. “What began as an effort by Mr. Martin to be good at his job, to be better at his job, to be as good as he could be, to see the whole picture at his job, became some- thing more complicated than that,” public defender James Wyda said at a 2016 deten- tion hearing. “It became a compulsion. “This was not Spycraft be- havior,” he added. “This is not how a Russian spy or some- thing like that would ever conduct business.” AFGHANISTAN CAR BOMB KILLS 12, WOUNDS SCORES KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – The Taliban carried out a devastating sui- cide car bombing in cen- tral Afghanistan Sunday that killed 12 people and wounded over 150 others, said Afghan officials. The attack came as an all-Afghan peace confer- ence, which includes the Taliban, was under way Sunday in Doha in an ef- fort to end the country’s relentless wars. A provincial council member, Hasan Raza Yousafi, said the car bomb exploded nearby an intel- ligence department com- pound in Ghazni, the cap- ital of the province of the same name. The dead in- cluded eight security per- sonnel, he said. Many of the wounded were students of a nearby high school, said the pro- vincial health depart- ment chief, Zahir Shah Nekmal. He said most of the injured suffered cuts and abrasions from broken glass. Taliban spokesman Za- bihullah Mujahed claimed responsibility for the sui- cide attack saying the target was the intelligence ser- vice’s compound in Ghazni. He said the bombing killed tens of intelligence em- ployees. The Taliban often exaggerate such claims. Meanwhile in western Ghor province, a road- side mine killed Sat- urday seven children – the youngest was just 5 years old. Abdul Hai Khateby, a spokesman for the pro- vincial governor, said the Taliban planted the mine apparently to thwart a planned Afghan mili- tary offensive to retake nearby areas under the militants’ control. The children were local shep- herds who happened to be moving their herd along the road when the mine exploded, he said. A sign outside the National Security Administration campus in Fort Meade, Maryland. – PHOTO: APThe islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY, 8 JULY 2019 Electric Jaguars to be made in UK Jaguar Land Rover said Friday it will manufacture a range of electric cars in the UK. The decision comes during a time of great anxiety for the auto industry in the UK, which is struggling with uncertainties over Brexit as well as global issues buffeting the sector. The International Medical Group is pleased to announce that Dr Philip Buys, a qualified Family Physician Specialist, from South Africa, has recently joined Dr John Addleson, at Pasadora Place, on Smith Road. Dr Buys has extensive post-graduate training and is experienced in all aspects of Aviation, Diving, and Travel Medicine, as well as being a qualified Occupational Medical Practitioner. He has come to Grand Cayman after spending almost six years working as a Cruise Ship Physician with the Royal Caribbean Group of Companies. Prior to joining Royal Caribbean, Dr Buys practiced medicine in private practice in Pretoria, South Africa, for over twenty years. His primary focus of practice is Wellness Maintenance, Travel and Tourism Medicine, Visa Medical Examinations and Medicals for Pilots, aircrew, and divers. In addition, he has extensive experience in the management of the many conditions seen by General Practitioners as well as Emergency Medicine. Tens of thousands in Hong Kong take message to mainlanders UK Conservatives face ballot glitch in contest for new PM LONDON (AP) – Members of Britain’s Conservative Party have started receiving their postal ballots in the contest to choose the country’s next prime minister, but concerns emerged Saturday that some people have been sent more than one voting paper. About 160,000 mem- bers of the governing party are choosing Britain’s next leader, in a country of 64 mil- lion people. They are de- ciding between Foreign Sec- retary Jeremy Hunt and his predecessor in that job, Boris Johnson. The BBC reported that more than 1,000 people had received multiple voting forms. Most were registered with more than one local Conservative association or had changed their names. The party said in a state- ment that “the ballot holds clear instructions that mem- bers voting more than once will be expelled”. The winner of the postal vote is due to be announced 23 July and will replace The- resa May as party leader and prime minister the following day. May announced her res- ignation last month after her divorce deal with the Euro- pean Union was rejected three times by Britain’s Parliament. The Conservative Party members choosing her suc- cessor are, by and large, middle-aged, middle-class, white, male – and strongly pro-Brexit. Hunt and Johnson both vow they will ensure Britain completes its delayed departure from the EU, with or without a deal to smooth the way. Critics accuse the pair of making empty promises about getting a new Brexit deal – an idea already re- jected by the EU – that will send the UK crashing out of the 28-nation bloc and into economic turmoil. Bookies and opinion polls point to the flamboyant, pop- ulist Johnson as the strong favourite, but Hunt is urging Tories not to vote until they have watched the two men in televised debates next week. Hunt said his message to Conservatives was “try be- fore you buy”. HONG KONG (AP) – Tens of thousands of people, many wearing black shirts and some carrying British colonial-era flags, marched in Hong Kong on Sunday, targeting a main- land Chinese audience as a month-old protest movement showed no signs of abating. Chanting “Free Hong Kong” and words of encour- agement to their fellow cit- izens, wave after wave of demonstrators streamed by a shopping district popular with mainland visitors on a march to the high-speed railway station that connects the semi-autonomous Chi- nese territory to Guangdong and other mainland cities. Hong Kong has been riven by huge marches and some- times disruptive protests for the past month, sparked by proposed changes to extra- dition laws that would have allowed suspects to be sent to the mainland to face trial. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam suspended the bill and apolo- gised for how it was handled, but protesters want it to be formally withdrawn and for Lam to resign. Organisers said 230,000 people marched on Sunday, while police estimated the crowd at 56,000. “We want to show our peaceful, graceful protest to the mainland visitors be- cause the information is rather blocked in mainland,” march organiser Ventus Lau said. “We want to show them the true image and the mes- sage of Hong Kongers,” Chinese media have not covered the protests widely, focussing on clashes with police and damage to public property. As the crowd broke up Sunday night, a few hun- dred remained and taunted police who had retreated behind huge barriers set up outside the railway sta- tion, while others moved to Canton Road, a street lined with luxury boutique stores. The march was the first major action since two simul- taneous protests last Monday, the 22nd anniversary of the 1 July 1997, return of Hong Kong from Britain to China. One of those protests, a massive march through cen- tral Hong Kong, drew hun- dreds of thousands of people. It was overshadowed, how- ever, by an assault on the legislature building by a few hundred demonstrators who shattered thick glass walls to get in and then wreaked havoc for three hours, spray painting slogans on the walls, overturning furniture and damaging electronic voting and fire prevention systems. Sunday’s march was the first protest against the ex- tradition legislation to take place on the Kowloon side of Hong Kong harbour. The previous ones were on Hong Kong Island, the city’s busi- ness and government centre. Many of the marchers were young, wearing black shirts that have become the uniform of the protesters. The largely peaceful crowd also included older people car- rying hand-held fans in the muggy heat, as well as par- ents with children, including some in baby strollers. Many held placards, in- cluding one that read “Ex- tradite to China, disappear forever.” Some carried the British flag or the old Hong Kong flag from when it was a British colony. “This is our fourth march because we think this gov- ernment is not taking care of Hong Kong,” said Dan Lee, who joined with his wife and their three children. “We need to save Hong Kong and we need to come out for our fu- ture generations.” The extradition legislation has raised concerns about an erosion of freedoms and rights in Hong Kong, which was guaranteed its own legal system for 50 years after its return to China in 1997. Before the march, po- lice put up large barricades blocking a main entrance to the railway station to prevent any attempt to enter it. Only passengers with train reser- vations were allowed into the station, the mass transit au- thority said, and Hong Kong media reported that ticket sales had been suspended for afternoon trains. “The high-speed railway station is a connection be- tween Hong Kong and China and this is the nearest place we can spread our mes- sage to China,” said Lau, the march organiser. The station was a source of contention before it opened last September, because pas- sengers pass through Chi- nese immigration and cus- toms inside. Some opposition lawmakers said the fact that Chinese law applies in the immigration area violates the agreement giving Hong Kong its own legal system. Protesters also are de- manding an independent in- vestigation into a crackdown on 12 June demonstrations in which officers used tear gas and rubber bullets to dis- perse crowds blocking major streets. Police said the tac- tics, harsher than usual for Hong Kong, were justified after some protesters turned violent. Dozens were injured, both protesters and police. The protesters are also calling for the direct election of Hong Kong’s leader. Lam was chosen by an elite committee of mainly pro-Beijing electors. Protesters march Sunday with a flag calling for Hong Kong independence. – PHOTO: AP Conservative party leadership contender Boris Johnson Conservative party leadership contender Jeremy HuntNext >