Archive for October, 2008

Budget reduction passes scrutiny

(CNS): Members of the Legislative Assembly’s Finance Committee have examined, voted on and approved the government’s proposal to reduce the approved overall budget for the 2007/2008 financial year by about $2 million. Once  a financial year has ended it is normal practice for government to reduce the initial budget to reflect the actual spending in real terms during that year.

Financial Secretary, Kenneth Jefferson said the reductions usually occur in two areas – capital expenditures, and operating expenditures. This is because projects often do not start as originally planned or operating expenditures end up being less than had been budgeted. During this last Finance Committee sitting Jefferson said government ended the year with a $10.6 million surplus. He added that the debt-servicing ratio for the year stood at 5.6 percent, which is under the 10 percent limit as required by the Public Management and Finance Law (PMFL), the legislation which governs how government manages the books.

In this supplementary budget which was the third ne for the year ended 30 June 2008, 199 changes were made 122 were for decreases in appropriations, totalling $43.3 million and 77 were for increases, which amounted to $41.3 million resulting in the 2 million reduction.
As government literally moved the money around with some projects going up and some coming down there were 43 appropriations in capital expenditure which resulted in a decrease of $13.6 million – $17,976,107 budgeted funds were not used on some projects while there was an increase in spending of $4,443,036 in others.

Overall, operating expenses rose by $11.6 million, based on 72 requests for increases totalling $36.9 million and although there were 84 items on which government under-spent as that only amounted to $25.3 million Jefferson said the increases were not offset. Total operating revenue for core government rose from a budgeted sum of $523.3 million to $528.5 million for the last financial year, he said and total operating expenditure also rose, from $489.3 million to $504.7 million. The bulk of this increase went to increased personnel costs, which rose from $205 million to $212 million.

Surplus from operating activities was budgeted to be $34 million. The actual unaudited surplus from operating activities for the year to 30 June 2008 was $24 million.

Financing of government’s borrowings reduced marginally to $10 million, he said. There was no change in the $3 million for government’s payments to the National Recovery Fund used for repairs to homes, budgeted under extraordinary items.

The budgeted net surplus, which takes all expenditures and revenues into account,was $20.8. The actual unaudited net surplus for the year was $11 million, approximately. Government’s total assets after liabilities stood at $509 million at end of June this year, from a budgeted figure of $519 million.

To comply with a key requirement of the PMFL, government had to maintain in 07/08 cash reserves of not less than 75 days’ of estimated executive expenses. At the end of the 07/08 fiscal year, government’s cash reserves stood at 102 days’ of expenses, Jefferson said which was better than the budgeted 91.1 days and complying with the law’s requirement.

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Violence policy under review

(CNS): The government is forming a special panel to review policy and legislation as it relates to domestic and gender violence and abuse. Minister for Health Anthony Eden has said the group of experts will havethirty days to examine existing lawsand policies and then recommend what Cayman needs to do to seriously address this type of violence in the community.

Speaking at the Silent Witness March on Saturday, 18 October, the minister announced the intention to take a closer look at how the issue is currently dealt with and what is required to put a stop to domestic and gender violence. He said that the community must continue the work of Estella Scott-Roberts, a staunch advocate against such violence who was murdered on 10 October.

He said that the real challenge was to address the need for a cultural and behavioral switch in the community to spread the message that relationships based on power and control are flawed. “Violence against women is a male issue,” he said. “We need to redefine masculinity away from aggression and control.”

Paying tribute to Scott-Roberts and her work he said her message would not be ignored and that more must be done to stop the continued violence. He also said that in recognition of her efforts to form and for several years manage the Cayman Islands Crisis Centre he would speak to the Board of Directors about renaming it in her honour.

Above all he emphasized the need to continue speaking out against domestic and gender violence as Scott-Roberts had done. “We will not be silenced,” he added.

Eden said that something must be done to address the gender violence that is so common in the Caribbean region as a whole, and in Cayman he said it was a cause for everyone.

Cayman has made significant strides in recent years to address the issue of domestic violence. However, a number of local advocacy groups all state there is more to be done, and the Business and Professional Women’s Club has been seeking to have legislation passed to make stalking and sexual harassment against the law.

According to the Women’s Resource Centre, violence occurs in 21% of relationships, and 95% of that abuse is perpetrated by men. 70% of men who batter their wives, sexually or physically, abuse their children, and violent juvenile delinquents are 4 times more likely than other youth to come from homes in which their fathers beat their mothers. Children who witness domestic violence are 5 times more likely to become batterers or victims in their adulthood. Worldwide, one in 4 women experience domestic abuse at some point in their lives, and victims of domestic abuse will have suffered at least 35 beatings before making any formal report.

Anyone who needs help regarding these issues can contact the Women’s Resource Centre at 949-0006, the Crisis Centre 949-0366 or the RCIPS Family Support Unit 946-9185.

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Lawyers say search unlawful

(CNS): On the first day of the Judicial Review regarding the arrest of Justice Alex Henderson and subsequent search of his home and office, his legal team from local law firm Campbells presented the case that the searches and seizure of his possessions, including his computers and cell phones, were all unlawful, since full and frank disclosure was not given to Carson Ebanks, the Justice of the Peace who signed the warrants.

According to a number of people present at the hearing, things did not go well for the special investigation team, led by Senior Investigating Officer Martin Bridger, which had sought the warrants and was described as being poorly prepared during the review.

The case  surrounds an alleged illegal entry into the offices of Cayman Net News in September 2007 by two of its emloyees.

A source connected to Henderson’s legal team said there were a number of fundamental legal problems relating to the search of Henderson’s home and office, given the refusal of Chief Justice Anthony Smellie to sign a warrant for searches regarding other people but in connection to the same case. This fact was not disclosed to Ebanks, it was said. 

“This was a clear case of judge shopping,” another source close to Henderson told CNS, explaining that the special investigation team had sought out a specific person to sign the warrant hoping he would have little knowledge of the case or any rulings previously made by the Chief Justice.

In a March 2008 ruling by the Chief Justice that was recently revealed to the media, he stated that the special investigators had not produced any evidence that Police Commissioner Stuart Kernohan and Chief Superintendent John Jones had committed any crimes and refused Bridger a search warrant for the two men’s homes.

Henderson’s legal team said at the hearing on Friday 17 October that Ebanks was entirely unaware of the fact that Smellie had previously refused to give the special investigators these  warrants in relation to this particular investigation and had described their request as a fishing expedition. The lawyers questioned exactly what evidence had been shown to Ebanks to make him sign the warrant.

Ebanks, the Chief Officer in the Ministry for Public Works, is one of well over one hundred and fifty JPs in the Cayman Islands, many of whom are politicians or members of the civil service.  During the hearing, Sir Peter Cresswell, a retired UK Judge brought to Cayman especially to hear the review, said the special investigating team had to disclose what evidence they had presented to Ebanks to justify the search warrant by 4:00 pm Monday 20 October.

The hearing will resume on Tuesday morning, 21 October, but Henderson’s legal team said it was confident that the review would find the warrants unlawful. Henderson was awarded the review based on a number of points relating to Ebanks’ signature on the warrant.

The Justice’s legal team claims that Ebanks had no information, or insufficient information,  upon which he could be satisfied that there were reasonable grounds to suspect the judge of the offence of ‘misconduct in public office’. Ebanks was not informed of the decision "In the Matter of Operation Tempura” — Smellie’s decision regarding earlier warrants — and therefore  failed to take into account important matters that would have been relevant to his decision. The legal team also claim that Ebanks is not a competent Court of the Cayman Islands. Accordingly, the warrants do not comply with the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (2006 Revision).

In a recent statement to the media, however, Bridger claimed that he was entirely satisfied that the warrants were properly obtained. “An application for a search warrant is an application to the court, or a Justice of the Peace, to seek the use of an investigative power.  The purpose of that power is to search for evidence.  By its very nature, such an application is made without the need for the totality of the case being put before that court or Justice of the Peace,” he said.

He said the purpose of the warrant was to investigate and gather evidence and that no court can hope to make a meaningful evaluation of guilt or innocence, or the strength or otherwise, of a case at the time of such an application. “It should be borne in mind that the threshold for granting a search warrant is reasonable suspicion, not a prima facie case, or a realistic prospect of conviction,” he said. Bridger made no mention in his official statement whether or not Ebanks had been informed of Smellie’s earlier refusals. 

Throughout the investigation, Bridger has said he has consulted with and taken advice from independent legal advisors. However, the local legal community is now raising concerns that one of these advisors, a barrister from the UK has not been sworn to the Cayman Bar, and without a work permit has visited Cayman to work with Bridger and his team on at least three occasions.

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Thousands march against violence

(CNS): Over 2000 people were estimated to have joined the Silent Witness March on Saturday, held on both Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac, which was dedicated to Estella Scott-Roberts who was murdered on 10 October. As a tireless advocate against gender violence and abuse, literally thousands of people from the Cayman community came together to show their support for the same causes to remember her and pay tribute to her commitment and voice their opposition to violence.

The annual event was organized by the Business and Professional Women’s Club (BPWC), but this was the biggest ever showing on Grand Cayman and an emotional day for many. Starting from the Glass House on Elgin Avenue, the throng of people eventually settled outside the Legislative Assembly to hear tributes to Scott-Roberts and her work and the continued need to address violence in the community.

Women, men , girls boys, the elderly and babies rubbed shoulders as representatives from the Human Rights Committee, the Crisis Centre, The Women’s Resource Centre, the BPW Club and government expressed the need for the community to pull together to stop violence against women.

Len Layman who was one of the founding members of the Cayman Crisis Centre along side Scott-Roberts and the Chairperson of the Board of Directors pleaded for her work not to have been in vain and said every person in the community had a duty to help stop the violence in the islands. He said despite all that has been done, gender and domestic violence still takes place in Cayman and collectively we are not doing enough to stop it. He added that it was up to the Cayman community to come together and finish the work that Scott-Roberts had started.

Cindy Blekaitis in an emotional speech begged parents to talk to their children about healthy relationships and to positively promote equality as she said prevention was the key. She begged everyone to continue coming to the annual silent witness march every year to demonstrate that the community would no longer tolerate violence and abuse.

The Minister with responsibility for Gender Affairs, Anthony Eden, made an impassioned speech about Scott-Roberts’ work and the need to address the cultural issues that led to domestic and gender based violence and abuse. He also stated the government would be taking a close look at current policy and legislation to address an issue he said was everyone’s problem.

On Cayman Brac, the Silent Witness March was held for the first time and about 150 people walked from the District Administration Building to the Stake Bay Church and back. As well as honouring Estella in the speeches following the march, there were also tributes for past President and Secretary of the Brac branch of the BPWC, Claudette Upton-Keeley, who worked for many causes including the fight against domestic violence, andwho also died unexpectedly last weekend.

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Vigils for Estella

(CNS): As the country mourned after the murder of Estella Scott-Roberts on Friday night, 10 October, a candle-lit vigil was held a week later, on Friday evening, 17 October, on both Grand Cayman, where she lived and worked, and Cayman Brac, where she was raised. At both events, there were tears and tributes from friends and colleagues for someone who was never afraid to speak out, especially to combat violence against women. (Photo by Lennon Christian)

Around 300 people on Grand Cayman turned up at the Lions Centre, where some of the speakers reflected on their own personal stories of gender violence. On Cayman Brac, where many of the 150 or so people gathered outside the Cable and Wireless office at Stake Bay had known Estella all her life, there was an especial sense of the loss of “one of the Brac’s own”.

In a statement by Business and Professional Women’s Club (BPWC) President, Velma Powery-Hewitt, read by Dawn McLean-Sawney, she challenged all Brackers to make a firm commitment to resolve issues without violence and stand with the BPWC against domestic violence. Specifically, she challenged men to honour Estella and “take an active and vocal role in the Brac community to assist the young boys and men there.”

The statement read, “We must keep her light of hope alive, especially in the areas where she worked so tirelessly. We must be united so that her work can continue…One person can make a difference, and Estella gave us the perfect example of the ‘power of one’.”

(Photo: at the Lions Centre by Judy Singh)
 

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A new dawn for Caymanian academia

(CNS): The cream of Cayman’s intelligentsia gathered at UCCI last week to celebrate the publication of the second volume of the University College of the Cayman Islands’ academic journal, enticingly known as JUCCI. Marking a new era for intelligent debate and discourse in Cayman, it offers academics a place for peer review and recognition for their research. Guest speaker Mary Rodrigues, Chief Officer for the Portfolio of the Civil Service, dared people to be read.

Opening the evening’s discussisons, Rodrigues presented her own paper, "The importance of Research and Publication in the life of a University".She said the celebration of the life of the mind was in too short supply in Cayman, and because of that the publication itself was as symbolically important as anything inside it. She said the publication was an opportunity to advance our own fields in our own journal. “Often the writing may be frightening and shocking and provocative,” she added, and called on authors to be challenging as well as challenged as they reached out for the nobility of truth.

Drawing a diverse crowd, the launch at the Sir Vassal Johnson Hall on the UCCI campus was bitter sweet as the Journal’s editor, Claudette Upton, passed away on Saturday, 10 October. Her loss was deeply felt by the entire faculty and those involved with the production of this impressive publication. As Roy Bodden, former Education Minister, author and faculty member, paid tribute to her incredible talents, the quality of the Journal itself speaks volumes with regards to Upton’s contribution. Describing her as truly irreplaceable, he said she was very pleased with this journal. “She managed to dispense with arrogance of authors and made them better for it,” he added.

During the evening, four faculty members presented challenging and diverse presentations based on some of the papers in the Journal as well as future work. They were each challenged by a relevant discussant and faced questions from the audience. The topics were provocative and controversial, covering subjects such as the challenge of youth, Caymanian identities, the recruitment of teachers, and teaching evolution in a Christian community, which was presented by Acting President Dr Brian Chapell. Each presentation gave a taste of what’s to come in Cayman and elevated the current debate substantially on a number of very topical issues, from the problem of male violence and defining what it is to be Caymanian to the possibility of practicing Christians embracing human origins from Darwin’s perspective.

Bodden raised some challenging concepts when he discussed Chris Williams’ paper, which he said would add to the growing corpus of material exploring Caymanian identity. He said defining who is Caymanian becomes more difficult and problematic from the mere fact that Caymanian society is totally imported.

The Journal itself offers readers more food for thought encompassing the wider Caribbean. The theme for the second volume, The Caribbean: Issues, Challenges, Perspectives, brings together comprehensive and scholarly papers on a range of pressing contemporary problems for the region. Through, science, literature, history and even criminology studies, the volume articulates many of the societal issues faced by both Cayman and the wider Caribbean, all of which need to be examined and explored in order to create the possibility of solutions for the community as a whole.

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