Archive for December, 2009
North retains Challenge Cup
(CNS): A truly bitter battle between the Northern and Southern Hemisphere rugby nations ended with a close 1 point win to the North and an overall draw in the Challenge Cup series, meaning that the North retains the Challenge Cup for 2010. The much fancied South team arrived at the game unchanged, having beaten their Northern counterparts by a convincing 10 points the previous Saturday, whilst the North chose to field a new younger team. With many young Caymanian players returning home for the holidays, there would be a boost of speed to contain the Southern back line which had time and time again plagued the North in the second test.
According to a release from the Cayman Rugby Football Union (CRFU), the North had the chance to open the scoring early on, but a missed penalty kick was shortly followed by South African fly half Josh Brown, who ran in under the posts virtually unscathed. Brown followed up his try and conversion only moments later with a 30 yard penalty kick to extend the lead to 10-0 to the South.
The North, who were slowly getting into their stride, were able to chip away at the South’s lead by kicking for points when given the opportunity, and by half time the South were clinging to a 1 point lead, having been unable to find the try line again after the opening exchanges.
The first half gave hints of where the game was heading, having seen 2 penalties for high tackles and 1 for a dangerous tackle, when Fijian Venassio Tokotokovanua escaped the sin bin for not using his arms when putting in a fierce tackle on his opposite number, Bryan Little of Canada.
The second half was marred with more penalties from the South and resulted in the eventual sending off for South African blind side flanker, Shaun Gerrard, for what was to be the last of 4 high tackles in the game. But regardless of the infringements around the pitch, the North kept plugging away and fighting for the lead in the game. The lead finally changed hands when Scotty Forrest, the north scrum half, who had come close to the line on numerous occasions in the game, finally broke free to score under the posts for a converted try to take the score line to 16-10.
Not to be outdone, the South responded with Vanassio Tokotokovanua finding a gap in the North defence to take the South to within 1 point but the missed conversion was to prove to be the South’s undoing, as the clock ticked down and tempers flared into scuffles forcing the referee to call time on the game with only 60 seconds remaining on the clock. The North, happy with the result, were only let down in terms of points on the board with 2 missed penalty kicks a missed drop goal and a disallowed try, which would have put the game well out of reach for the South.
The rugby continues at the South Sound Rugby pitch on Boxing Day with the annualPresidents vs. Captains select sides kicking off at 3pm. The Boxing Day game is an annual event which should prove to be a much more social game than the bitterly contested Challenge Cup.
CAL expands reservations and ticket office hours
CNS): Cayman Airways has extended the business hours for its Reservations Call Center and Ticket Office in George Town as part of its commitment to expanding and improving service to customers. Effective immediately, the Call Center for Cayman Airways Reservations is open from 7am-9pm daily, and the new hours for the Ticket Office on Owen Roberts Drive will be 8am-6pm Monday through Friday, and 8:30am to 4:30pm on Saturdays.
Eliminating the varied hours for weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays, customers can now reach a Cayman Airways reservations agent via telephone from 7am to 9pm every day of the week, according to a release from CAL. Additionally, the new Reservations Call Center hours adds an extra hour in the mornings and 3-4 hours in the evenings for customers to book flights or make changes to their existing reservations.
Similarly, the new ticket office hours gives customers an additional half hour in the morningsand an extra hour in the evenings on weekdays for walk-in ticket service. On Saturdays customers can now see ticket agents 30 minutes earlier in the mornings and 30 minutes later in the evenings. The ticket office will still be closed on Sundays and public holidays.
Cayman Airways Acting CEO Fabian Whorms said, “Cayman Airways is currently focused on improving all aspects of service delivery, and we are so very excited about these expanded hours of service which provide our customers more time and flexibility to make their travel arrangements.”
For more information or to book your next Cayman Airways flight, call Cayman Airways Reservations on 949-2311, visit www.caymanairways.com, or contact your travel agent.
The Grand Cayman and Sister Islands cargo operations will be open until 12pm on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve to coincide with the Customs Warehouse hours, and will be closed from 25 to 28 December. The Grand Cayman ticket office is closed on all public holidays.
Gang trouble in North Side
(CNS): The usual peace and tranquillity of the district of North Side has been disturbed over the last few weeks as a result of gang rivalries between groups living in the Hutland area and those living in Old Man Bay. The disputes between the two sides have been spilling over into the wider community, and on Sunday what appeared to have been a car chase between the gangs resulted in one vehicle overturning near to North Side Primary School after another car was reportedly vandalized outside a local bar.
Ezzard Miller, the district’s independent MLA, told CNS that he has contacted the RCIPS area commander for the eastern districts and asked him to get to the bottom of the issues, which are disrupting the normally peaceful community. Miller said he was unsure of the reasons which had caused what he called the “rattling of sabres" between young men from the two areas of his district, but he said he hoped the police would sort out whatever it was and ensure those up to no good were dealt with and allow the good people of North Side to return to their tranquil lifestyle.
Police have confirmed that a car overturned near North Side Primary on Sunday afternoon (20 December) but said no arrests were made. Two men were hospitalised with head injuries after the Toyota flipped over around 1 pm, but police said they knew nothing of any car chases, contrary to local reports.
In another accident early Sunday evening (20 December), a woman was hit by a car while she was crossing West Bay Road. Police say she was struck by an oncoming vehicle outside Decker’s restaurant just after 6 pm and suffered injuries to her arm.
LIME looks east to offer more customer service
(CNS): Customers living in the eastern districts looking for LIME residential services can now sign up at the firm’s store in Countryside Shopping Village in Savannah, Newlands. The new retail store offers all of the services and products that LIME has available in its George Town branches, such as Internet, mobile and BlackBerry services, as well as home services, payments and service changes. It also sells a full range of LIME mobile phones, including the latest ‘green’ Motorola phone made from recycled materials.
BlackBerry, Nokia, Samsung, Motorola and other manufacturers are on show, as well asthe latest mobile accessories, such as batteries, Bluetooth headsets for hands-free mobile use, car chargers and stylish mobile phone cases and skins are on hand for customers. Also present at the new store are netbook computers, sold with LIME Internet service.
“This store is the perfect addition to our other sites in Grand Cayman at Galleria Plaza and Anderson Square. We know how busy life can get and the Countryside location will provide added convenience and access to LIME’s services and products to customers living on the Eastern side of Grand Cayman,” Daniel Tathum, Head of Department – Retail Sales, said about the new store.
Just in time for a last minute Christmas gift, the store opening hours are: 10:00 am to 7:00pm, Monday to Saturday. LIME at Countryside will open late till 8:00 pm on Christmas Eve, Thursday 24 December.
Government works on challenge of data protection
(CNS): According to information released by officials on Monday, for the last two months a government working group has been examining and developing the framework for a data protection law. The aim, government said, is to develop legislation to regulate how personal information is collected and processed by all businesses and organisations. However, the jurisdiction’s controversial Confidential Relationships (Preservation) Law, will need to be amended or repealed before the data protection legislation can be enforced.
The Chairman David Archbold, from the Information and Communications Technology Authority (ICTA), said the group is presently reviewing laws from other jurisdictions that it feels may be relevant to the local situation and is developing a policy recommendations.
“The law will impose requirements on ‘data controllers’ to handle personal information fairly and lawfully,” said Archbold. “Personal data may only be collected, used, stored and accessed for specified purposes, and must always be adequately safeguarded. Data controllers will be accountable for complying with these principles and liable for breaches, such as unauthorised use or disclosure.”
In early 2010 the group will submit recommendations to the Cabinet Secretary and Attorney General on how the legislation can be introduced and how best to monitor and enforce compliance. It will also prepare a paper on key issues for public consultation.
Government said that a critical consideration is the need for the proposed law to be able to work alongside existing laws with privacy and access provisions, in a manner that supplements those existing protections.
The current Confidential Relationships (Preservation) Law criminalizes the unauthorized disclosure of confidential information and it has caused controversy in recent times as it is considered to be a secrecy law and one which has been at the heart of what are seen as the secrecy issues surrounding the islands’ financial services industry.
Although the CRPL legislates gateways through which information may be obtained by law enforcement and government’s who have signed treaties with the CIG, anyone else is prohibited from asking for information from any private entity in Cayman.
According to some local experts the Cayman Islands government will have to, at the very least change if not entirely repeal the CPRL before introducing any kind of data protection law.
With the introduction of the FOI Law in January 2009 which allows individuals to access their own personal data held by public authorities (but not private entities) the law also requires government departments and agencies to maintain accurate and up to date information. The intention now is to bring those provisions under the Data Protection Law and have them extend beyond government to any entity holding personal information.
Members of the working group include representatives from the Attorney General’s Chambers; the
Others are drawn from civil society and professional organisations such as the Chamber of Commerce, Law Society, Banker’s Association and Caymanian Bar Association.
Momentous win for girl’s U17 football team
(CNS): Minister of Sport Mark Scotland has congratulated the U17 Women’s Football Team on their momentous win last weekend (Saturday, 12 December). “By becoming the first-ever national football team to make it to the second round of the World Cup qualifiers, they have firmly played their way into the history books,” he said. The Caymanian team will now go on to their first final of the CONCACAF (the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) Under-17 Women’s Championship, scheduled for San Jose, Costa Rica from 9 to 20 March.
Minister Scotland said, “It was a nail-biting match, but their hard work, dedication and perseverance certainly paid off. I applaud Coach Bobby McLaren and the Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA) Women’s Technical Director Thiago Cunha for standing by their team through thick and thin, and for teaching the players to compete with enthusiasm and win with grace. “I also commend the CIFA for always demonstrating an unwavering belief in our young football players.
“Above all, the weekend’s win proves once again that Cayman’s athletes have the talent and resolve to make their mark on the sports arena, both locally and further afield. I wish the team the best of luck in all their future games as they are heading to the CONCACAF Under 17 Women’s Championships next March in Costa Rica. Let us all support them as they prepare with this event, especially as they will be up against the defending champions, the United States, hosts Costa Rica, and Haiti.”
Coach Bobby McLaren from Jamaica and technical director of the National women’s programme, Brazilian Thiago Cunha, worked together in bringing the Under-17s to a level proficiency that has brought them this far, the Jamaica Observer reports. Not only have they stressed that girls do well on the field of play, but have ensured that they concentrated on their academics.
"I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity by CIFA (Cayman Islands Football Association) to coach these players. They truly are an amazing team," McLaren told the Observer.
International expert to feature at funds conference
(CNS): The new highlight at The International Funds Conference 2K10 to be held on the 14th January at the Ritz-Carlton, will be the inaugral William Walker Memorial Lecture to be delivered by Dr. Andrew Bacevich, Professor of International Relations and History at Boston University.The late William Walker was a pioneer and one of the founding fathers of Cayman’s offshore financial services industry as well as founder of conference hosts and local law firm, Stuarts. The conference, now in its third year, will focus on the challenges surrounding global transparency.
Dr. Bacevich is a former fellow of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. He will speak on the subject of US imperialism and its impact on international affairs and relations.
Anthony Akiwumi, Head of Litigation at Stuarts, commented “By honouring the remarkable career of William Walker we hope to renew a sense of pride in the islands and inspire a new generation of leaders to carry the Cayman banner to even greater heights.”
Stuarts’ Managing Director Andrew Hersant, says “The International Funds Conference, sponsored by Stuarts, has built a strong name for itself within the industry because we ensure that attendees are provided with first-rate information from high profile speakers. The William Walker Memorial Lecture continues that tradition.”
The International Funds Conference 2K10 is being supported by insolvency specialists, Krys & Associates, with an evening reception immediately following the conference being sponsored by RBC Wealth Management and Cayman Finance. Cayman Financial Review is the conference media sponsor. Opening remarks with be delivred by Cayman Islands Monetary Authority Chairman, George McCarthy.
Seating is limited for this event and last year’s conference sold out in advance of the date. For more information about the conference please visit: www.caymanfundsconference.ky
Ireland takes on Cayman for hedge fund business
(CNS): The Irish government has passed legislation that will make it easier for funds in offshore locations such as the Cayman Islands to move to Dublin. Ireland currently administers more than 10,000 funds, with around half of those domiciled in the jurisdiction. The move has come as some hedge funds and other types of alternative investments have begun to change their domiciles in response to recent G20 government crackdowns on the use of so-called “tax havens” following theglobal economic downturn.
The Companies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, approved by the upper house of the Irish parliament on Friday,18 December, will enable investment funds to re-domicile to Ireland “simply and efficiently”, the IFIA noted.
Currently, the Cayman Islands is home to the largest percentage of offshore-domiciled hedge funds, with an estimated 67% market share. And just as the Cayman Islands is making efforts to atttract adminstrators of funds to move to the jurisdiction where their fund are domiciled, the Irish are attempting toattract adminstrators to domicile what they adminster to Ireland.
The move has been welcomed by the Irish Funds Industry Association, and IFIA Chief executive Gary Palmer said that, although legislation already was in place to facilitate fund re-domiciling in Ireland, specific modern legislation was needed.
“Achieving the stated objective of providing a clear and simple framework for the re-domiciliation of investment funds will add further efficiencies for the benefit of both investors and industry alike,” he added.
In recent months, say industry commentators, European investors have become increasingly focused on regulatory security for hedge funds. “What was a whisper has become a shout,” said Palmer.
A forthcoming European Union directive on alternative investment funds has proposed banning the marketing of funds not domiciled in a member state, providing further impetus for fund managers to consider moving onshore
According to the IFIA, the new legislation had been drafted specifically to allow a fund structured as a corporate entity in another domicile to re-register in Ireland with its original corporate identity retained, ensuring continuity of activity and continuation of arrangements. The organisation stated that the new law simplifies certain elements involved in re-domiciling, including the ability to re-domicile a fund following a single meeting of shareholders in the jurisdiction from which the fund is seeking to move.
“The simplified process should thus reduce the burden and cost of re-domiciling by eliminating unnecessary shareholder meetings, notary declarations, certificates and reports,” the IFIA noted.
AG vows speed on legal aid
(CNS): If the auditor general’s report on the situation regarding legal aid is to add value to the review process, Dan Duguay said his office needs to complete it as quickly as possible. Duguay confirmed last week that he would be conducting an audit to give a better understanding of the financial situation of the current system so that, if changes were made, they would have something to compare them to. However, Duguay will be conducting his audit against a background of controversy following concerns raised by the legal profession about the government’s review, which have been dismissed by the premier.
No audit has ever been conducted of the legal aid system, a point observed by McKeeva Bush in the Legislative Assembly during the last meeting of Finance Committee for the 2009/10 budget, when he made his controversial announcement that he was going to fundamentally alter the legal aid system. Bush announced at the time that he had made the decision to cut the budget and transfer the remaining sums to a line item in his own ministry to establish a legal aid clinic.
Duguay told CNS that he and Chief Justice Anthony Smellie have established the criteria for his audit and he hopes to be able to submit draft findings at the beginning of the New Year to the Legal Aid Review Committee, which was formed recently to examine the government’s proposal to establish a specialized office, run by Steve McField and Theresa Pitcairn, to replace the current system managed by the courts.
“We are not going to decide whether the current system or the proposed legal aid clinic will be better. My office is asking if the current system works and is it fair and equitable.” He explained that if the new committee is to examine the proposal to change the system, then it needed to have a better understanding of the financial implications of how the system presently operates.
The chief justice had originally written to the premier and the governor regarding the proposals by Bush and suggested the audit. Duguay said his office agreed with the need for that and emphasised that he would be focusing on fairness and clarity. “We are looking at how those who are receiving legal aid are meeting the criteria, so we will look at how to recoup or how the decisions are made on eligibility criteria, such as how clear the policy is to interpret.”
Duguay said the othermain points of his audit would be to ensure that all local lawyers who wish to take legal aid work are being given the opportunity to do so and, again, that the system is fair and equitable.
The AG will be conducting the audit against a background of controversy which has raged since Bush made the announcement that he was changing the system and moving the legal aid system from the CJ’s office and allowing McField and Pitcairn to set up an independent office.
Following what are understood to be significant representation from the CJ, not to mention concerns from all of the legal bodies and the Human Rights Committee, the Governor’s Office intervened and told the premier that he needed to undertake a review of the system and the proposal before making the change.
Following that, a review committee chaired by Cheryl Nesblit, with Steve McField, MLA Elio Solomon, Valdis Foldats and Delene Cacho from the courts, along with Steve Moore from the Governor’s Office, was set up and told to undertake a review.
This again drew considerable controversy, since not only was there a serious conflict of interest with McField, who was set to gain from the proposals serving on the committee, there was no representation from any lawyer currently undertaking legal aid work, no one from the criminal defence bar association, and no one from the Human Rights Committee. The Law Society again wrote to the governor raising its concerns and nominating two possible candidates from the legal profession – Sara Collins and Lloyd Sampson to serve on the committee, which was roundly rejected by Bush.
In an e-mail sent to the Law Society from Bush, who said he had seen the letter, the premier told the organisation that, while he had “great respect” for the authors (James Bergstrom and Charles Jennings), he was not going to be pushed anymore on the issue. He said that any one on the committee would have as “much conflict”, if any existed, as McField.
“I think that the committee now needs to proceed with its work to come up with the best solution for a new system to administer legal aid,” Bush wrote. “Please gentlemen, we need to get on with the work.” He also told the Law Society that government had to have an elected representative on the committee as it was government which had to come up with the money to fund the legal aid system.
Senior cop admits slips
(CNS): The senior investigating officer of the enquiry into the murder of Sabrina Schirn admitted, when he took the stand in Grand Court on Friday, that there were slips in the investigation . The last crown witness to give evidence in the murder trial of Randy Martin, Detective Inspector Kim Evans (left) admitted that his officers did not follow through on various investigations relating to another suspect. Evans admitted that, although Lance Myles’ car was searched, it was not processed for forensic evidence and revealed that nothing had been done regarding the threats by Myles and his girlfriend to Schirn or the inconsistencies thrown up by their phone records.
When cross examined by defence counsel David Evans QC, Kim Evans confirmed that, although the phone records for Lance Myles had been requested, he could not say if they had been analysed and what had happened. He told the court he was not aware of the gaps in Myles’ phone record at the time when Schirn was believed to have been murdered, which he conceded would have been of interest to the enquiry team at the time. As SIO he said that all of the information would come to him as head of the major incident room, but he could not say if any analysis of the patterns of calls between Schirn, Myles and Martin in the days before her death were ever lookedat.
He said he did not follow through on the phone records and did not know how the inconsistencies in the statements given by Myles and his girlfriend were ever ironed out. He confirmed that he knew there were some messages left on Schirn’s voice mail which he might have remembered, but he was not sure of the content or that they were threats but described them as “boisterous” and said he had not identified the callers and did not recall if he knew they were from Myles or his girlfriend. When the threatening and aggressive messages were then played to him, he said he was still not sure what they said and he didn’t remember if he had ever seen a transcript.
Evans also said he was not aware of reports that a police officer raised in a briefing that Myles had been seen in the East End area on the day of Schirn’s killing. He did, however, state that he believed there had been some instructions issued for a scene of crime officer to examine Lance Myles’ car, but for some reason it wasn’t done.
“That seems to be something that might have slipped us,” Evans told the court during cross examination.
Prior to Evans taking the stand, Acting Detective Inspector Lauriston Burton had also given evidence regarding the details of the investigation and also noted that certain avenues of the investigation had not necessarily been followed to their ultimate end. He admitted that with every investigation it would be nice to have all the information but it doesn’t happen that way.
Burton said that Myles had been eliminated from the enquiry because there was no evidence that he had been involved, so there was no choice. He explained that Myles, along with others who were connected to Sabrina, were all traced and question in the investigation and eliminated.
In redirection by the crown, Burton said he was satisfied that the work was done to eliminate Myles and he had no evidence that he was in the area at the time of the murder. “He was not identified as a suspect as we couldn’t prove anything,” Burton stated.
The crown officially closed its case on Friday afternoon and the trial was adjourned until the New Year, when the defence will open its case on Monday 11 January.