iNews Briefs
Political sabotage
Ezzard Miller, Winston Connolly and now the People’s Progressive Party Movement (PPM) have all suffered political sabotage.
Miller’s poster on Frank Sound Road was defaced and Winston Connolly’s banner was stolen from Linford Pierson Highway. However, the PPM banner is the more serious as their banner, in the area of Watler’s Road, George Town, was slashed right across the throats of all the George Town candidates’ photos.
Whilst some persons have described the slashed poster as a prank, by the deliberate positioning of the cut, others have voiced their concerns.
Red Bay Church hand back their NBF cheque
The Red Bay Church of God that was given $100,000 from the Nation Building Fund (NBF) by Premier, Juliana O’Connor-Connolly, who attends the church, has given the money back.
This was amidst much public outcry and a backlash against the premier accusing her of vote buying.
Explaining her decision to approve the donation, O’Connor-Connolly said the decision had been made several months previously by the former premier, McKeeva Bush.
Despite the claim made by Bush that all funds from the NBF to benefactors were made by a committee, no one has ever come forward saying they were a member of it, and Tourism Minister, Cline Glidden, confirmed to CNS that it appeared all the decisions were made directly by Bush.
This is the second church that has returned the money from the Fund. Last week, Hillside Chapel, on O’Connor-Connolly’s own district, Cayman Brac, another beneficiary, gave back their donation of $50,000 because of the public outcry.
Both churches have blamed the media and political opponents of O’Connor-Connolly.
Prisoner gets landmark judgment to claim compensation
The Grand Court on Wednesday 17th April 2013 granted a prisoner permission to claim compensation and costs from the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service after being detained unlawfully before being brought before the court.
This was the first case where the Court has given a judgment that had been argued that a statutory provision contravenes the protections in the Bill of Rights.
The issue was the length of time that a person can be kept in custody under arrest before being brought before the court.
The judgment states (para. 43) that the initial 72 day period provided for by section 65(3) of the Police Law 2010 complies with obligations under the Bill of Rights (section 5) to “promptly” bring a person before a court who is arrested or detained but not released.
The judgment also finds (para. 44) that the power under section 65(4) that permits a police officer of the rank of Chief Inspector or above to authorise a further 24 hours detention before the person is brought before a court does not comply with the Bill of Rights.
See iNews Cayman article published on Thursday April 18th 2013 “Police power to detain arrested persons over 72 days does not comply with Bill of Rights” at:
CITA calls for gambling referendum
The Cayman Islands Tourism Association (CITA) wants a referendum on gaming.
The CITA wants to know how people feel about the subject, what would be the effects of gaming, casinos, lotteries here both from a tourism side to make dollars, the government side where money flows into the coffers, and the socially-responsible side. What happens to addicts and how do you manage people who are spending their last penny on gambling instead of buying milk for the family?
CITA Executive Director, Jane van der Bol said the association had conducted a poll of its membership in order to get ‘a pulse’ – a ‘snapshot indicator of mood’.
The poll found 71.7 per cent responses were in agreement to some sort of gambling and 87.4 per cent of responses said yes to a lottery.
Cayman’s first tissue transplant
The Cayman Islands very first tissue transplant was carried out on Erbin Tibbetts, from Cayman Brac, on Wednesday, 3 April, 2013, to repair ligaments in his right knee that were damaged in an old football injury.
The surgery was executed at the Cayman Islands George Town Hospital by Orthopedic surgeon Rick Ogilvie from Cayman Orthopedic Clinic.
The Cayman Islands does not have an organ and tissue donor registration system therefore the tissue for the transplant came from an overseas donor. The ligament was flown to Cayman for the operation and arrived only just in time.
A new law legalizing tissue transplant surgery was passed recently in the Legislative Assembly.
Woman from Guyana charged with drug importation
Tracy Accalia Bourne appeared in Cayman’s Summary Court on Tuesday (17) charged with the importation and possession of approximately one pound of cocaine with the intent to supply.
Bourne, whose home address is in Georgetown, Guyana, travelled from Suriname through Trinidad and then to Jamaica before arriving in Grand Cayman.
She was arrested at Owen Roberts International Airport on Friday, 12 April.
Magistrate, Valdis Foldats, remanded Bourne in custody until the next mention date.
