Archive for March, 2009
A Constitution for Everyman
(CNS): Anyone baffled by the language of the proposed constitution can now read a version of it written in layman’s terms. An electronic version of the Explanatory Guide – the ‘reader-friendly’ document that explains the new provisions of the new Draft Constitution – was released last Friday, 20 March, and is available online. Printed copies will be out next Friday, 3 April, as a special newspaper insert and will also be available at various outlets, including post offices, public libraries and supermarkets.
The 2009 Draft Constitution Explanatory Guide has been issued by the Constitutional Review Secretariat (CRS), with the aim of ensuring that all residents understand the differences between the 1972 Constitution and the proposed updated version, which will be the subject of the national referendum on 20 May.
Encouraging public use of this new tool, CRS Director Suzanne Bothwell, said, “This is an important aspect of our public awareness package. While some people will want to study the entire Draft Constitution, other people have expressed that they simply want a working knowledge of the process. This Explanatory Guide, which is written in layman’s language, should therefore be a useful public education tool.”
The CRS is conducting other public education initiatives in conjunction with Government Information Services and the local media. These include weekly radio appearances, newspaper ads, web updates and public service announcements.
“I encourage people to get a copy of the guide and prepare themselves for the ‘yes-or-no’ constitution vote in the May referendum,” Bothwell added.
For more information on the constitution review process, contact the Constitutional Review Secretariat in Elizabethan Square, or call -244-3605, or visit its website, www.constitution.gov.ky.
Rundown comes to the Brac
(CNS): Poking fun at the UCCI scandal, police issues, and everyday politics in the Cayman Islands, the annual comedic review Rundown will be performed on Cayman Brac on Saturday 28 March for one show only. Now in its 19th year, Rundown is written by Dave Martins and directed by Henry Muttoo and will be performed by 16 cast members at the Aston Rutty Civic Centre, starting at 2:00 pm, As usual there will be humorous songs in between the skits. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under and can be purchased in advance from Chevala Burke at District Administration or by calling the Cayman National Cultural Foundation on 949 5477.
The Brac showing of Rundown 2009 is being held in the afternoon this year is due to the lack of accommodation for the cast, who will travel to the Brac on Saturday and return to Grand Cayman on Saturday evening.
The showing is sponsored in part by Sister Islands MLA Moses Kirkconnell and Cayman Airways. “Right now our people need good entertainment – we need to laugh and Rundown will provide a therapy for all who survived hurricane Paloma," Kirkconnell said.
Sabrina’s body identified
(CNS): A post mortem of murder victim 21-year-old Sabrina Schirn by a forensic pathologist from Miami has revealed that she suffered multiple sharp force and chop injuries. Formal identification of the body, which was found in bush land in East End on Tuesday 17 March, took place over the weekend, though police cannot confirm the time of death at this time and enquiries into this continue. “This was clearly an act of extreme violence which resulted in the tragic death of young Sabrina,” said Detective Inspector Kim Evans. “Our condolences go out to her family and friends.”
A major incident room continues to operate from Bodden Town police station staffed with experienced detectives who are being supported by numerous officers from departments including Scenes of Crime, Family Support Unit and officers from the Financial Crime Unit.
“Our team is working exceptionally hard to find outwhat happened to Sabrina and bring her killer or killers to justice. We are comfortable with how the investigation is going so far and a number of positive lines of enquiry are being followed up,” said Evans. He noted, however, that it would be reckless to publicly go into detail about any of the leads that are being looked at, stressing that all avenues are being examined.
Detectives continue to appeal for sightings of Sabrina and the Honda Torneo that she was last known to be using. Evans also appealed for information from anyone who may have been in the High Rock Road area between the morning of Wednesday, 11 March, and Tuesday, 17 March.
““Were you in the area? Did you see anything that looked out of place or anyone acting suspiciously? Even the smallest piece of information could prove crucial to the enquiry,” he said.
Anyone who can assist is asked to contact the Major Incident Room at Bodden Town police station on 947-2220 or Crime Stoppers on 800-8477 (TIPS). All persons calling Crime Stoppers remain anonymous, and are eligible for a reward of up to $1000, should their information lead to an arrest or recovery of property/drugs.
Third violent incident
(CNS): Police have made arrests for a serious assault, one of three very violent incidents that occurred this weekend. This follows reports of a shooting Sunday morning and a stabbing in the early hours of Saturday. In the third incident, three men were arrested at the Owen Roberts International Airport on Sunday, 22 March, on suspicion of attempted murder by officers investigating the serious assault of a 23-year-old man who is currently in hospital with serious lacerations to his head, arms and legs.
Police said that at around 4:35 am Sunday morning, 22 March, the 911 Emergency Communications Centre received a call from a member of the public reporting that an incident was taking place at the Cay Courts Apartments area on Newport Road, George Town. Police responded to the scene and found a man with serious wounds.
Detectives from George Town Criminal Investigation Department started an investigation which led to the arrest of the three men, two aged 26 and one aged 24. All three remain in police custody at this time, the RCIPS stated, while the victim is said to be in a stable condition and remains under medical care.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact George Town CID on 949-4222 or Crime Stoppers on 800-8477 (TIPS). All persons calling Crime Stoppers remain anonymous, and are eligible for a reward of up to $1000, should their information lead to an arrest or recovery of property/drugs.
World Meteorological Day
Every year, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the international meteorological community celebrate World Meteorological Day; the theme in 2009 is “Weather, climate and the air we breathe”.
The theme is particularly appropriate at a time when communities around the globe, including the Cayman Islands are struggling to increase their effectiveness in preventing and mitigating natural disasters, of which 90 per cent are directly related to weather, climate and water hazards.
This year the celebration falls on March 23rd.
In 2008 the Cayman Islands were impacted by Hurricane Paloma, the second strongest November hurricane on record.
The year before in August 2007, the Cayman Islands narrowly missed the full impact of Hurricane Dean. Hurricane Dean was the seventh most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. In 2005 the most intense hurricane on record, Hurricane Wilma formed 220 miles East South East of Grand Cayman and passed to the South of the Cayman Islands. And of course in 2004, the 9th most intense hurricane recorded, Hurricane Ivan, raked the southern coast of Grand Cayman and caused large scale property damage.
The recent pattern seems to indicate we are in period of more intense and more frequent hurricanes in our area, and whether this increased activity is linked to the El-Nino-Southern Oscillation, or the possible effects of global warming, it emphasizes the need for preparedness and planning.
The Cayman Islands Government recognized this need when they formed Hazard Management Cayman Islands, a dedicated agency with responsibilities for preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery. Hazard Management Cayman Islands deals with all hazards including natural events such as hurricanes but also man made disasters and threats. They also have responsibility for maintaining National Hazard Management plans.
In recent years improvements havebeen made in storm surge modeling and flood maps have been produced for the Cayman Islands.
These are important steps because the information helps to better inform both the general population and decision makers. It is also relevant with the increasing world wide acceptance of the threat posed by global warming, particularly for low-lying islands which flood such as the Cayman Islands.
The vast majority of scientists now regard global warming as a reality. Multidisciplinary research from the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2008 provides new evidence of the widespread effects of global warming in the Polar Regions. Snow and ice are declining in both Polar Regions.
The WMO/UNEP Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns of increases in the frequency and intensity of floods, droughts, heatwaves and other meteorological hazards that directly impact agriculture, coral reefs and fisheries. Higher global temperatures will also put crops and fish stocks at increased risk of disease and pests.
Key sectors such as agriculture, energy, tourism and health will be among those most affected by the impact of climate change on water resources, for example, reduced water availability, a deterioration in water quality, increased runoff and an increase in the salinisation of groundwater are all expected as a result of sea-level rise.
There are steps the Cayman Islands can take to proactively reduce the threats and the possible impacts we face. The National Weather Service in the Cayman Islands has access to state of the art equipment that helps us to predict and forecast the timing and intensity of severe weather events. Businesses, families and individuals can take the time to put together their own hurricane plans. We can prepare.
Strict building codes and proactive enforcement makes the Cayman Islands more resilient than many of our neighbours to extreme weather events, but on World Meteorological day perhaps it is a good time to start our preparations for the beginning of hurricane season in June.
For more information please contact Simon Boxall, Hazard Management Cayman Islands at 916-3766 or Simon.Boxall@gov.ky
Man charged for murder after deathbed confession
(BBC): A US man who thought he was dying and confessed to having killed a neighbour in 1977 has been charged with murder after making a recovery, US media say. James Brewer could now face the death penalty over the unsolved killing in Tennessee 32 years ago, reports say. Convinced he was dying after a stroke, Mr Brewer reportedly admitted to police he shot dead 20-year-old Jimmy Carroll. The 58-year-old, who had fled Tennessee after the killing, was arrested after his condition improved, reports say.
Signet braced for fallout from Weavering collapse
(Times Online): Signet, the fund manager, emerged today as a potential victim of the collapse of Weavering Capital, the hedge fund manager. Weavering Capital was placed into voluntary administration last Friday after its flagship fund, the Cayman Islands-registered Weavering Macro Fixed Income Fund, was put into liquidation. The fund, which had been valued at $506million (£350million), was forced to call in accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers after being hit by a wave of redemptions which it was unable to satisfy. A subsequent investigation by PwC revealed that the fund’s only major asset was a $637million interest rate swap with a company registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), controlled by Magnus Peterson, Weavering’s chief executive.
Bracker headed to CARIFTA
(CNS): On Saturday night in front of a crowd of his fellow Brackers, Andrew Frederick learned that he had been chosen to represent the Cayman Islands at the CARIFTA games in St. Lucia over the Easter week. As he accepted theaward at the Sports Asociation of the Sister Islands Annual Banquet for the Track and Field Athlete of the Year, T&F Brac Coach Flynn Bush announced that 15-year-old Frederick would be competing in the Under-17 Discus and Shot Put events, and will be the first thrower and third track athlete from Cayman Brac to be entered into CARIFTA.
UK synthetic blood project
(The Independent): A major research project is to be announced this week that will culminate in three years with the first transfusions into human volunteers of "synthetic" blood made from the stem cells of spare IVF embryos. It could help to save the lives of anyone from victims of traffic accidents to soldiers on a battlefield by revolutionising the vital blood transfusion services, which have to rely on a network of human donors to provide a constant supply of fresh blood. The multimillion-pound deal involving NHS Blood and Transplant, the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service and the Wellcome Trust, the world’s biggest medical research charity, means Britain will take centre stage in the global race to develop blood made from embryonic stem cells.
Brown plans global scrutiny of tax havens
(The Guardian): Tax havens will be forced to submit themselves to international scrutiny under plans to tackle their culture of secrecy being proposed by Gordon Brown. Despite a rearguard action by tax havens, the prime minister intends next week’s G20 summit to discuss plans for a multilateral exchange of information on "offshore" accounts. Brown will also propose using the International Monetary Fund and World Bank to boost the world economy as he seeks to focus on greater international cooperation, rather than divisions between the US and European governments over whether the financial system needs more fiscal stimulus or more regulation.