iNews Briefs, More & Community Events
Cayman Islands Community Events
FRI JUNE 5
Estella Scott Roberts Foundation Gala
In support of the Estella Scott Roberts Foundation grant program, the foundation will be hosting its annual fundraising event at the George Town Yacht Club on Friday June 5th 2015 at 8:00pm under the theme ‘Soul Train’. Tickets can be purchased at Papermans in Mid Town plaza or any ESRF member.
Rundown heads to Cayman Brac
Rundown heads to Cayman Brac on Friday (5 Jun) at the Aston Rutty Center at 7pm. Tickets can be purchased at the door.
SAT JUNE 6
Cayman Outreach Association Summer Fayre Brac
The Cayman Outreach Association Summer Fayre in Cayman Brac is Saturday (6 Jun) from 12pm until 5pm at the Aston Rutty Civic Center.
Rotary’s Casino Night Fundraiser
The Rotary’s Casino Night Fundraiser is Saturday (6 Jun) at 7pm, The Arts and Recreation Centre
Summer Saturdays
Celebrate summer every Saturday on The Crescent at Camana Bay with fun activities for kids of all ages. Little tykes can chase bubbles as they float by while bigger kids build fortresses with Imagination Playground and teens challenge their friends to Jumbo Lawn Games including limbo, connect four, corn hole and more. The event is Saturday from 10am until 7pm.
Little League Fundraiser
On Saturday (6 Jun) the CI Little League Annual fundraiser is Saturday (6 Jun) at the Field of Dreams. Call 916.5643 for more information.
Family Fun Day
The Cayman Islands Flag Football Association Co-Ed Football Tournament 4-on-4 Beach Bash Family Fun Day is Saturday (6 Jun) from 9 — 3pm at Seven Mile Public Beach.
KPMG Glow Run 5K
The KPMG Glow Run 5K in aid of the National Trust is Saturday (6 Jun) at 6pm in the Camana Bay town center.
SUN JUNE 7
Elite Sports Club 5K Run and Walk Fun
5K Run & Walk Fun
Sunday, June 7th 2015
Exercise and support a worthy cause!
In aid of boys and girls one week overseas soccer camp in Florida
Please mark your activity:
Seven Mile Public Beach to the Royal Palms and back 5K Run (7:00am):
Seven Mile Public Beach to the Royal Palms and back 5K Walk (6:30am):
Seven Mile Public Beach Kids Fun Run parking lot (8:00am):
Participation Fees: Adults $10.00 / Under 15 years $5.00 / Under 10 years 3.00$ / Under 5 years Free
Registration at the Seven Mile Public Beach, Sunday, June 7th, 5:30am
Free refreshments at the end of the event and all participants will have a chance to win prizes
An Elite Sports Club Production for Youths
Contact us at cel. 916 1394 or 916 6526 or by email to [email protected]
Elite welcomes you! Come out and lend your support to a worthy cause whilst keeping fit.
TUE JUNE 9
Moonlight and Movies Summer Series
The Moonlight and Movies Summer Series is Tuesday (9 Jun) at 7pm in Gardenia Court. The feature film will be Penguins of Madagascar.
Sister Islands Community Underwater Clean Up
Join the GREEN Team with the Sustainable Sister Islands Community Underwater Clean Up on Tuesday (9 Jun) at 11am. Call Nina on 928.0507 for locations.
WED JUNE 10
National Workforce Development Agency in North Side
The National Workforce Development Agency will be at the North Side Library on Wednesday (10 Jun) from 2 — 5pm.
Bookends Club
Join The Bookends Club when they meet to review their latest pick, The Children Act by Ian McEwan on Wednesday (10 Jun) from 7-8:30pm at Books & Books.
National Workforce Development Agency in West Bay
10 June , 2015
The National Workforce Development Agency will be at the West Bay Library on Wednesday (10 Jun) from 10am until 1pm.
Basic food hygiene course
Certification courses in basic food hygiene are being offered by the Department of Environmental Health. The next meeting is Wednesday (10 Jun) from 9am until 4pm. For more information, call the DEH at 949-6696.
Cayman Islands Football: Premier McLaughlin won’t rush to judgement on Webb
From Digicel Sportmax
Cayman Premier Alden McLaughlin has urged caution in judgement of suspended CONCACAF president Jeffrey Webb, but has confirmed that the government is fully cooperating with the authorities.
Webb was one of seven officials arrested in Zurich, Switzerland last week, and is currently facing extradition to the United States on charges of bribery, fraud and racketeering.
The government had so far remained silent on the issue.
“Justice requires that investigations into allegations of criminal offending, and any subsequent prosecutions, are conducted with scrupulous care. We are confident that justice will, in the end, be served,” McLaughlin said.
“We can confirm that local law enforcement agencies are cooperating with international investigating authorities but it would not be appropriate for the Government of the Cayman Islands to pass comment on the on-going investigations in this jurisdiction or elsewhere. Those are matters for the relevant investigating authorities and, ultimately, the courts,” he added.
Webb, who was suspended as CONCACAF president in the wake of the allegations, was also replaced as president of the Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA).
The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) is also looking into allegations of financial impropriety, as the US indictment alleged that several local banks were involved in the activities, which spanned over 20 years.
Asset Protection: Is it worth going offshore?
From Dedon on Estate Planning
Asset Protection continues to be a major concern for professionals, board members, business owners and others in this litigious society. Professionals, such as doctors, lawyers, and architects, should be concerned about asset protection. In recent years, a proliferation of lawsuits against directors and officers also has caused concern. Business owners are worried creditors will “pierce the corporate veil” and sue them personally. These threats to assets are as concerning as a 50% income tax liability or a 40% estate tax liability.
For some, traditional asset protection tools, such as holding property tenants by the entirety, self-settled trusts in jurisdiction such as Delaware, Alaska or Nevada, and charging order protection under LLCs, is not enough. They have looked to more favorable asset protection jurisdictions outside of the United States, such as the laws of the Cayman Islands, Cook Islands, or Nevis. The question, however, is whether going offshore, particularly in today’s environment of increased tax scrutiny and compliance, is worth the perceived benefit? Moreover, is there even a benefit?
In several cases, U.S. courts have held that the U.S. taxpayer was in contempt of court for relying on laws of foreign jurisdictions. In such contempt of court cases, taxpayers have been jailed for failing to comply with a U.S. judge’s order.
The leading case is a 1999 Ninth Circuit case, FTC v. Affordable Media, LLC (the “Anderson” case). Other cases also illustrate a court’s contempt powers. E.g., U.S. v. Bilzerian a 1991 Second Circuit case, and In re Lawrence, a 2000 Florida bankruptcy case. However, those utilizing foreign trusts and foreign asset protection strategies argue contempt is only a concern if the protective measures are taken on the eve of a court order. See Barry Engle’s Asset Protection Planning Guide, published in 2013.
My experience is that, for virtually all clients concerned with asset protection, domestic asset protection strategies are effective and far less costly and complicated than relying on offshore planning. And for those clients who would be vulnerable to fraudulent conveyance claims in the U.S., the same clients would be vulnerable relying on offshore asset protection planning (not to mention contempt of court).
Harneys’ articled clerk programme graduate admitted to Cayman Islands Bar
Harneys has announced the admission of new Caymanian attorney Shelley do Vale, the first to graduate from the firm’s articled clerk programme. Her admission as an attorney and member of the Cayman Islands Bar was moved by David Butler, Harneys litigation partner, on 27 May 2015 before Grand Court Justice Richard Williams. Shelley has accepted a permanent position with Harneys.
“We congratulate Shelley on the completion of her legal training and are delighted for her on the occasion of her admission to the Cayman Islands Bar, the final step in her qualification process. We have been extremely impressed with Shelley’s work throughout her training and are very pleased that she has decided to remain with us after qualification. Shelley will be a valuable addition to the firm.” said Andrew Morehouse, investment funds partner and principal to Shelley during her articles.
“We are very proud of our articled clerk programme and are delighted to offer aspiring Caymanian lawyers the opportunity to train and qualify with us,” said Marco Martins, Managing Partner of Harneys’ Cayman office. “We have recently funded a scholarship that has sent a talented young Caymanian to complete her legal studies in England, have a second trainee in our office who we expect to promote to admission early next year, and look forward to continuing to work with talented Caymanians in many years to come. A strong Caymanian Bar is a vital element of the Islands’ financial services offering, and an important aspect of the wider society and economy, and we are proud to do our part in supporting Cayman.”
Shelley read law at the Truman Bodden Law School, University of Liverpool, having already had a successful business career. She completed the Professional Practice Course at the same law school and joined Harneys’ articled clerk programme after working as a paralegal at Maples and Calder. She also has a Bachelor’s Degree in International Business.
A tumultuous week ends as Blatter gets standing ovation
By Graham Dunbar, The Associated Press From Philadelphia PA
ZURICH (AP) – In one tumultuous week, world soccer’s governing body was plunged into a corruption scandal, top officials were arrested, new investigations were launched, and Sepp Blatter was re-elected as president, only to stun everyone by saying he was quitting.
On Wednesday, Blatter’s staff gave him a standing ovation.
As ripples of the scandal reverberated from Europe to Africa to the Middle East, the embattled president showed up for work at FIFA’s gleaming headquarters in Zurich, where FIFA spokeswoman Delia Fischer said he met with staff and received their applause.
On May 27, Swiss police raided a luxury Zurich hotel on the eve of FIFA’s annual conference and arrested seven soccer officials. They were among 14 current and former sports and marketing officials indicted by U.S. authorities on bribery, vote-rigging and other corruption charges.
In a separate investigation, Swiss authorities seized documents at FIFA headquarters in their probe into the bidding contests for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments.
The 79-year-old Blatter has not been officially implicated so far in either investigation, and he won re-election to a fifth, four-year term Friday during the FIFA congress. But just four days later, he announced that he would resign and call for a new election to find a successor in a process that could take up to a year.
New $2 Billion Caribbean Resort Project
From Caribbean Journal
There’s another new mega-project coming to the Caribbean, this time to the Eastern Caribbean island of Grenada.
The $2 billion USD project is called the Grenada Resort Complex Project, which officially launched in China.
The project plans to develop the Mt Hartman peninsula and Hog Island in Grenada; it would include high-end resorts, a wellness centre and other recreational and entertainment features, according to a statement from the Grenadian government.
It is being developed by a Chinese company called United Demi Group, spearheaded by Grenada’s commercial attache at its Beijing embassy, Charles Liu.
“Thank you for choosing Grenada. You have chosen to come to an island gem in the Caribbean with the most scenic spots and attractions, and with a people that exudes confidence, optimism and national pride accompanied by warmth and hospitality that you will never experience anywhere else,” Foreign Minister Clarice Modeste-Curwen told attendees at the launch ceremony.
“I invite all of you here today to make an investment in what will be a partnership that will undoubtedly bring resounding benefits to you -the investor- as well as the citizens of Grenada Carriacou and Petite Martinique,” she said.
The project would be the latest major Chinese tourism project in the Caribbean, following Nassau’s Baha Mar and a recently-launched project in Antigua and Barbuda.
For more: http://caribjournal.com/2015/06/03/a-new-2-billion-caribbean-project/#
Kenigsztein named Liberty Global LatAm, Caribbean head
From telecompaper
Wednesday 3 June 2015 | 09:25 CET | News Share on twitter Share on facebook Share on linkedin Share on google_plusone_share More Sharing Services
Cable group Liberty Global has announced that Betzalel Sergio Kenigsztein, currently Managing Director for Liberty’s CEE region, has been appointed to the role of President and Chief Operating Officer of the company’s Latin American and Caribbean Operations (the “LiLAC Group”). Argentina-born Kenigsztein has been at Liberty since 2004 as CTO of the company’s business in the Netherlands and MD of Hungary before taking over as MD for the entire CEE region. In his new role, effective 01 July, Kenigsztein will report directly to Liberty CEO Mike Fries and has been tasked with further developing strategic opportunities in the region.
For more: http://www.telecompaper.com/news/kenigsztein-named-liberty-global-latam-caribbean-head–1085345
Caribbean-US officials meet on security issues in the Bahamas
From Antigua Observer
WASHINGTON, Jun 3, CMC – Caribbean and United States officials are Wednesday meeting here to discuss emerging threats to citizens and their communities in the region.
The United States Department of State says top US officials will participate in the three-day United States-Caribbean High-Level Citizen Security Dialogue (HLCSD.
The State Department said that the US delegation comprises Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roberta S. Jacobson, Assistant Secretary for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) William R. Brownfield, and Acting Assistant Administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean Beth Hogan of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
It said the three-day event” strengthens the United States? citizen security partnership with the Caribbean, defines current and emerging threats to citizens and their communities and results in collaborative responses to address them”.
The meeting comes as the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) marks its fifth anniversary.
The meeting is closed to the press, but the State Department said Jacobson will lead a discussion on the CBSI and future opportunities for collaboration.
It said Brownfield will lead a discussion on countering narcotics trafficking in the Caribbean, and Hogan will lead a discussion on challenges impacting Caribbean youth.
During her visit to The Bahamas, Jacobson will also hold bilateral meetings with Prime Minister Perry Christie and Foreign Minister Frederick Mitchell.
She will also engage with senior government officials and leaders from the private, education, and civil society sectors, the State Department said.
The State Department said CBSI brings all members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Dominican Republic together to collaborate with the United States on efforts to reduce illicit trafficking, increase public safety and security, and address underlying causes of crime and insecurity throughout the Caribbean.
For more: http://antiguaobserver.com/caribbean-us-officials-meet-on-security-issues-in-the-bahamas/
JA to review policy with Caribbean Risk Insurance Fund
By Chevon Campbell, From MA National
Minister for Local Government, Noel Arscott, says the administration is currently reviewing its policy with the Caribbean Catastrophic Risk Insurance Fund, CRIFF, because the country has not benefited from it in 5 years.
Minister Arscott says the country has paid more than 30-million US dollars in the last five years, but hasn’t been allowed to draw down on it.
The CRIFF policy provides funds in the case of a major disaster affecting the island.
He says current discussions are geared towards getting more appropriate coverage.
He was speaking at the Launch of disaster preparedness month at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management on Tuesday
For more and audio: http://nationwideradiojm.com/ja-to-review-policy-with-caribbean-risk-insurance-fund/
Caribbean kicks-off in New York with top chefs
By Cuisine Noir
Caribbean Week is the largest most engaging, regional tourism activity in the New York area and typically attracts thousands of participants. Extensive media coverage of the various events reaches local, national and international audiences in the millions. This year, Caribbean Week in New York will take place June 1-7.
Caribbean Week in New York showcases the sights, sounds, color, culture and unique vacation experiences of the Caribbean. Caribbean tourism officials, the media, artists, performers, celebrity chefs, fashion designers, models, investors and other strategic partners converge on New York for a week that highlights the diversity and vibrancy of the authentic Caribbean and offers vacations at super special prices available only during Caribbean Week.
Organized by the Caribbean Tourism Organization, Caribbean Week in New York combines business sessions and consumer-oriented events with food, fashion, entertainment, sales and networking opportunities! It creates awareness of the Caribbean’s diverse product offerings and showcases its desirability through business development opportunities, consumer engagement and authentic cultural experiences.
For a preview of chefs participating all week long and for a schedule of events, go to link below.
For more: http://www.cuisinenoirmag.com/the-latest-scoop/caribbean-week-kicks-off-in-new-york-with-top-chefs-2
Kevin Pietersen leaves Surrey to focus on Twenty20 game in Caribbean
By Graham Hardcastle at The Oval From The Guardian UK
- Pietersen will now concentrate on crash, bang, wallop of Twenty20
Kevin Pietersen has played his last first-class match before heading to the Caribbean Premier League, and quite possibly the last of his career. The 34-year-old has opted not to play in Surrey’s next championship fixture against Leicestershire at Grace Road on Sunday, though he will play in a T20 Blast game against Sussex at Arundel a week later.
With chances of a Test recall gone, Pietersen will concentrate on the crash, bang, wallop of Twenty20 having played in this weather-affected draw against the Division Two leaders Lancashire, who would have been the happier of the two teams with the outcome. Pietersen will start his second spell with St Lucia Zouks on 21 June, six days before his 35th birthday, and will sit down with Surrey for talks in late July. It would be a shock to see him batting against a red ball again, however.
“Once he comes back, we will have more discussions,” said Alec Stewart, Surrey’s director of cricket. “I was surprised he played in this game because we’d spoken about what his England opportunities were. It’s not the end. I’m not saying: ‘That’s it, the door’s shut’. It’s always open here. At the same time, we’ll have discussions to see what fits for us and him.
“The arrangement was very much while Colin Graves – whether he did or he didn’t [mean it] – intimated that perhaps that door was open, that’s why we have seen him back playing county cricket. Then it was shut. We didn’t expect to see him again, but he wanted to play this game. We’ve had a good relationship with him, and he said ‘I’m available if you want me to play’. I said ‘we’ll have you’ straightaway.”
If this is to be it in whites, then it ended with a whimper. He left the field 15 minutes before the end of Lancashire’s first innings in the latter stages of the morning before an unbeaten 186-run opening stand between the centurion Rory Burns and Zafar Ansari during the final two sessions of the match prevented him from adding to his two off three balls during Sunday’s first day.
For more: http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/jun/03/surrey-lancashire-county-championship-match-report
The Caribbean region is strengthening its relationship with India
From Caribbean Journal
The Caribbean and India are getting closer.
CARICOM and India held their first-ever joint commission on Tuesday in Guyana at CARICOM Headquarters.
The landmark meeting was led by Vice Minister and Special Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs of India R. Swaminathan and CARICOM Secretary General Ambassador Irwin LaRocque.
The CARICOM SG said India was an “important partner” to the region, with embassies and high commissions already set up in four CARICOM states: Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago, along with an accredited CARICOM ambassador.
India has “Well-established its presence in the region,” LaRocque said.
The joint commission is the latest between CARICOM and a large global partner, including recent commissions with the US, Chile, Turkey and China, among others.
India and CARICOM first established their joint commission in 2003, although it took 12 years for the first official meeting.
Washington removes Cuba from US list of terrorism sponsors
By Andrea Rodriguez and Matthew Lee From Caribbean Life
HAVANA (AP) _ The Obama administration formally removed Cuba from the U.S. terrorism blacklist Friday, a decision hailed in Cuba as the healing of a decades-old wound and an important step toward normalizing relations between the Cold War foes.
Secretary of State John Kerry signed off on rescinding Cuba’s “state sponsor of terrorism” designation exactly 45 days after the Obama administration informed Congress of its intent to do so on April 14. Lawmakers had that amount of time to weigh in and try to block the move, but did not do so.
“The 45-day congressional pre-notification period has expired, and the secretary of state has made the final decision to rescind Cuba’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, effective today, May 29, 2015,” the State Department said in a statement.
“While the United States has significant concerns and disagreements with a wide range of Cuba’s policies and actions, these fall outside the criteria relevant to the rescission of a state sponsor of terrorism designation,” the statement said.
For more: http://www.caribbeanlifenews.com/stories/2015/6/2015-06-01-ap-cuba-cl.html
Foreign direct Investment in Latin America and the Caribbean 2015
From Caribbean Eclac
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Latin America and the Caribbean fell by 16% in 2014 to US$ 158.803 billion. Outflows of FDI from the region were also down, by 8%. Both these trends were driven by the decline in prices of export commodities and the economic slowdown in the region. Nevertheless, FDI remains very important for the economies in the region, especially for smaller Caribbean economies.
Global FDI flows were down by 7% in 2014, but flows to developing and developed economies differed significantly. Flows to the developed economies fell by 14%, as FDI to North America plummeted by 54%, owing principally to a single divestment in the United States. The Russian Federation faced sanctions, among other economic challenges, which led to a 51% fall in inflows to the transition economies in 2014, while inflows to the developing economies rose by 5%. Decreased flows to both Latin America and the Caribbean (16%) and Africa (2%) were offset by a substantial increase to developing Asia (15%).
As a share of GDP, FDI inflows in Latin America and the Caribbean stood at 2.6%, which is somewhat lower than the region’s long-term average, although this proportion also varies significantly throughout the region. Smaller economies generally have high FDI-to-GDP ratios, with economies in the Caribbean regularly reaching levels as high as 10% of GDP. Larger economies typically have much lower ratios, for instance 1.5% of GDP in Brazil1 and 2.0% of GDP in Mexico.
Download at: http://repositorio.cepal.org/bitstream/handle/11362/38215/S1500145_en.pdf?sequence=1
For more: http://caribbean.eclac.org/content/foreign-direct-investment-latin-america-and-caribbean-2015
Greece still rejects some of creditors’ proposals: Tsipras
AFP From Business Insider
Brussels (AFP) – Greece still refuses to accept some of the reform plans put forward by its EU-IMF creditors despite “constructive” bailout talks in Brussels, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said Thursday.
“There are points that no one would consider as a base for discussion,” Tsipras told reporters after talks with European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker. “The talks will continue in the coming days.”
