Officials respond to crime wave

In response to a string of serious crimes involving guns, top Cayman officials have held meetings including Governor Duncan Taylor, Royal Cayman Islands Police Service Commissioner David Baines and Premier McKeeva Bush.

Additional funding of $4.6 million was made available to police to fight crime, and Bush also provided an extra $100,000 to Cayman Crime Stoppers to be used as reward money for anonymous tipsters.

With the additional funds, police began recruiting about 50 new officers, including 20 armed police, 12 detectives for surveillance and investigation, and forensic officers for the crime scenes unit.

Furthermore, a new unit of police officers is being introduced who could be armed with nonlethal weapons such as tasers and larger batons.

Officials are also considering legislative changes to assist investigations, for example, examining the Firearms Law to determine if it needs to be altered to enable police to enter a premises without a search warrant if they have reasonable suspicion that there are illegal firearms on the property.

Gender Equality Bill passed

Cayman Islands legislators unanimously approved a Gender Equality bill in September that aims at ensuring equal pay and equal opportunity for men and women in the country, and for the first time creates an offence for sexual harassment.

The final legislation by Gender Affairs Minister Mike Adam incorporated amendments following protests from a number of local business groups after the bill was proposed in June.

The bill is scheduled to take effect 31 January, 2012.

The bill creates a five-person ‘Gender Equality Tribunal’ to hear cases brought by complainants, or with complainants’ approval, within six months of the alleged offence. The
Governor will determine remuneration and allowances for tribunal members.

The tribunal has authority to issue directions to stop the discrimination and order the offender to pay compensation not to exceed $20,000.

The bill also creates offences, carrying penalties of $5,000, for attempting to thwart or failure to comply with the tribunal’s activities. Parties have 28 days to appeal the tribunal’s decision to the grand court.

The bill contains exemptions for certain charitable activities and for religious bodies, specifically so as not to interfere with the ordination, selection or appointment of religious leaders or with doctrinal practices.

 Economic zone approved

After Government signed a definitive agreement with Cayman Enterprise City in late July, legislators passed legislation in late September enabling the establishment of the knowledge-based special economic zone, which will consist of five elements – Cayman Internet Park, Cayman Media Park, Cayman Biotech Park, Cayman Commodities Park and Cayman International Academic Park – in a 500,000 square-foot, low-rise campus in the eastern part of Grand Cayman.

The private investment to create the project is estimated at US$327 million over the next eight years. 

The project, which is based on similar special economic zones in the world, particularly Dubai, hopes to attract some of the world’s largest knowledge-based companies, offering no income tax, no corporate tax and no capital gains taxes.

Other concessions that will be offered to zone tenants include no restrictions on full foreign ownership of the companies, reduced, flat-rate work permit fees and expedited work permits and licensing. A new government authority will be established to deal with those applications.

The bill passed by legislators also creates special economic zone certificates that businesses in the zone can apply for in lieu of Trade and Business Licenses or Local Companies (Control) Licenses; and details concessions for the developer.

The Premier said other laws will also be amended as needed. Cayman Enterprise City plans to lease up to 100,000 square feet of existing office space in George Town to accommodate companies wishing to establish here while the first phase of the three-phase project is being built. Construction could commence as soon as the first quarter of 2012.


Immigration policy changed

In late September, lawmakers approved changes to the Immigration Law creating a new long-term work permit good for 10 years, and also implementing a two-year suspension of the current rollover policy for work permit holders after seven years, contingent on the Governor signing the bill.

Cabinet approved the rollover suspension 20 September. Officials say the bill enables businesses to apply for a suspension for workers, and each application will be considered on its own merits, rather than it being an automatic suspension for all workers whose terms are expiring.

According to the legislation, work permit holders who are granted a suspension will not be able to credit the two extra years toward applying for permanent residency.

Bush announced his intention to create the 10-year work permits 28 September while addressing an audience in attendance at the Chamber’s Legislative Luncheon.

The 10-year work permits will be available for individuals employed in high-level positions in certain industries to be designated in regulations to the law.

Those companies who receive 10-year work permits for foreign workers will be required to contribute to a ‘national training initiative’.

Officials have estimated that a number of workers – possibly as high as 6,000 – will meet their term limit within the next year or two.

They say a mass exodus of foreign workers could hurt the already depressed Cayman economy.