1 Protester Killed as Cambodian Political Crisis Escalates
Violence erupted in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, on Sunday, as thousands of opposition activists protested the government's victory in a disputed election. Human rights activists said one protester was killed by a gunshot to the head during a street battle with police.
The violence marked an escalation of a political crisis that has gripped Cambodia since official results from July's election gave a victory to the party of longtime Prime Minister Hun Sen, albeit with a reduced parliamentary majority. The main opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party rejected those results alleging widespread fraud.
Sunday's protests began peacefully with about 20,000 opposition activists gathering in Phnom Penh's Freedom Park for a rally addressed by CNRP leader Sam Rainsy. The protesters complained that their votes were stolen and demanded an independent investigation of the disputed election.
Clashes began later, as protesters marched in other parts of the capital and tried to remove street barricades set up by police, who responded by firing tear gas, smoke grenades and water cannons.
Chan Soveth of Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) told VOA that a male demonstrator was fatally shot in the head during a confrontation on an overpass leading to Freedom Park.
"There was a clash that caused people to be injured and killed but we did not know how many were killed. We know that a young man died and we took a photo. Another injured person was shot in his stomach because armed authorities used guns to shoot, and many were arrested."
The French news agency quotes military police spokesman Kheng Tito who denied that security forces used live rounds against the protesters. Another violent clash happened at a police barricade near Phnom Penh's Royal Palace. Several demonstrators were hurt.
Hundreds of Cambodian opposition activists camped in Freedom Park into the night Sunday, vowing to remain for at least several days.
Opposition leader Sam Rainsy was due to hold more talks with Prime Minister Hun Sen Monday to try to resolve the crisis. Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni brought the two rivals together on Saturday for a rare meeting that ended without a breakthrough.
Cambodia's election commission certified Mr. Hun Sen's party as the winner of the July election with 68 seats in the national assembly, ahead of Sam Rainsy's CNRP with 55 seats. The certification has left Sam Rainsy with few legal options to challenge the result.
Mr. Hun Sen has led Cambodia for 28 years and is seen by critics as an authoritarian ruler despite overseeing a period of prolonged economic growth.
Tropical storm disorganised, heads to Puerto Rico
Tropical Storm Gabrielle, which formed South of Puerto Rico late last night, poses no threat to the Cayman Islands, weather officials have said, but the storm and other weather systems are being closely monitored. At 8am Thursday morning the centre of the storm was about 65 miles WSW of Ponce, Puerto Rico, moving northwest at near 8mph. Forecasters said a turn toward the north-northwest is expected on Friday, with a slight decrease in forward speed. On the forecast track the centre should pass near or over the southwestern portion of Puerto Rico this morning and across the Mona Passage later today. Gabrielle should then move east of the Turks And Caicos Islands on Friday.
With maximum sustained winds near 40 mph and higher gusts, weather experts described squalls to the northeast of the centre, in what they said was a poorly organized storm with little change in strength expected today, though some slight strengthening is possible tonight and Friday. Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 45 miles from the centre.
Meanwhile, Cayman was expecting another showery day in association with the interaction between a slow moving tropical wave and a upper level low over our area. Radar images show widely scattered showers, mainly east of Cayman Brac and southeast of Grand Cayman moving west to northwest.
FATCA could affect 6,000 people living in Cayman
A seminar focusing on how the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) will impact individuals has been set for early next month, and everyone who was born in the US, holds a US passport or a green card, or who has a US address is encouraged to attend and find out more about what they need to do to prepare themselves for compliance. The event will be co-hosted by Cayman Finance and the Financial Services Ministry, which both stress the serious impact the new legislation is anticipated to have on individuals, as well as businesses, in the Cayman Islands. Financial Services Minister Wayne Panton said that while Cayman’s financial services industry has been working diligently to prepare for FATCA, local residents also need to take careful note.
“This may be an American law, but it has impact and consequences in the Cayman Islands as well. Everyone with a close US connection will likely be affected by FATCA to some degree,” he warned.
Panton said he was delighted his Ministry is again teaming up with Cayman Finance to ensure this important information reaches as broad an audience as possible. “We have continued to strengthen our relationship with Cayman Finance, and we are very happy to be able to reinforce our message by joining forces with the private sector in this way,” he said.
Urging anyone with a US connection to understand how high a priority FATCA should be for them, Gonzalo Jalles, CEO of Cayman Finance, said that any US person, as defined by the IRS, living or working in the Cayman Islands, must understand the effect that FATCA regulations may have on their particular situation.
“The way taxes are levied in the US means, for example, all Caymanians born in the US (even if they never lived there nor have a US passport) are liable to pay taxes and file tax returns yearly,” he explained. “FATCA will expose those persons who have not been complying with the US tax law, including some Caymanians. It is therefore vital people are fully aware of how the legislation can impact them.”
The Seminar, which is sponsored by Dillon Eustace and KPMG, will be held at the Westin Grand Cayman on Thursday, 3 October, from 4:00 – 6:00pm.
Confirmed speakers include Councillor Roy McTaggart with the Ministry for Financial Services; Steven L. Cantor, Cantor & Webb P.A.; and Doug Harrell of KPMG.
Crofty-bomb injures Academy-student
A student at the St. Maarten Academy PSVE sustained injuries yesterday morning from a homemade plastic bottle bomb, commonly known as a Crofty-bomb. According to a police report, a fellow student probably threw the bomb. The victim suffered superficial wounds to his face and body. Paramedics treated him on the scene, and police notified the victim’s parents.
Officers located the remains of the plastic bottle bomb and confiscated them for further investigation. No one has been arrested as a suspect yet.
The police noted that it is possible to make these bombs with chemicals that are available at any supermarket.
Surplus $18M short of goal
Although the UK appears to have fewer concerns about the current budget situation in the Cayman Islands than last year, the government has wound up around $18.7 million short of the predicted target. Finance Minister Marco Archer confirmed this week, as he went through the supplementary appropriations, that the unaudited results for the 2012/13 fiscal year saw government end the year with a surplus of $63.3 million. While this was the biggest surplus for many years, it was still short of the projected budget surplus of $82 million, which the former premier and minister of finance, McKeeva Bush, had presented last year after a protracted battle with the UK and a flurry of new fees and increases.
Although austerity measures across the civil service resulted in a fall in the operating budget of a welcome $10 million, government collected around $30 million less than anticipated.
The fall in predicted revenue was because the relevant legislation was passed too late to generate new fees or not passed at all and because predicted sources of revenue missing thier targets. For example, the special economic zone, Cayman Enterprise City, was expected to generate millions of dollars but the revenue collected was less than $200,000.
Although the new PPM government has not yet presented its full budget for the 2013/14 year, because of the need for an interim budget it has already cleared the broad outline with the UK after the FCO confirmed that it had accepted the government’s new four year fiscal plan and the route back to compliance with the Public Management and Finance Law.
Presenting a report on the first 99 days in office on Thursday, Premier Alden McLaughlin said that government had managed to tighten its belt recently and by not using its overdraft facility over the last quarter, it had saved government those fees as well.
“Government negotiated an increased overdraft of up to $46 million for more flexibility with cash flow, with the stipulation that government could not spend more than $30 million before 31 October. One of the positive effects of achieving expenditure restraint is the fact that government has not incurred an overdraft balance during the three-month period from 1 June to 31 August, 2013. Consequently, overdraft interest has been completely avoided,” McLaughlin told legislators.
Government is expected to deliver the full budget for 2013/14 during the week starting 23 September, more than a month ahead of the expiration of the emergency budget, which the finance minister and premier have said will give MLAs time to properly scrutinize the spending plans and question civil servants without sitting in the early hours of the morning in last minute marathon sessions, as has been common over the last four years.
--CNS
TCIG Economists Forecast 3.4 Percent Economic Growth for 2013
TCIG Department of Strategic Policy and Planning (SPPD) is forecasting a 3.4 percent growth for the TCI economy in 2013. This growth is underpinned by a recovery in the tourism and construction sectors with spillovers into the wholesale and retail sectors. The Department cautions, however that actual growth will depend on the strength of the recovery in the US and the success of the government of the Turks and Caicos Islands in finding ways of diversifying the economy.
The Hotel and Restaurants which accounts for the largest portion of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is expected to grow by 2 percent in 2013. This just about makes up for the 3.5 per cent decline in the tourism sector in 2012.
Although the Turks and Caicos economy experienced a slight decline of 2.1 percent in 2012, evidence shows that the economy is stable and though fragile, has recovered from the disastrous 19.6 percent decline in 2009, which was partly reflective of the state of the world economy at that time.
Adjusting for indirect taxes and subsidies, GDP in constant market prices was estimated to have decreased by 2.1 percent to $540.6 million in 2012, but is expected to grow by 3.4 percent to $558.9 million in 2013.
Projections beyond 2013 show a continuous positive growth rate, as people adjust to new standards of living and become more comfortable with their purchasing power; the further strengthening of the industrial sectors and the emergence of new industries to take the lead in contributing to the growth of the TCI economy.
Given the importance of the tourism sector which accounted for 42.8 percent of GDP, it is not surprising that the overall economy recorded a slight decline of 2.1 percent in 2012. Sluggish performance in agriculture and fishing; manufacturing, construction and public administration and defense also contributed to the unfortunate results. A poor fishing season resulted in a decline of 32.9 percent in the Agriculture and Fishing in sector in 2012 as the fishing sector experienced a poor season.
Construction output, which is closely linked to capital investment in the tourism sector, also fell by 9.2 percent in 2012. This is also reflected in a decline in the importation of building materials relative to the previous year. Underlying these economic developments was also the political uncertainty related to the November 2012 parliamentary elections which may have been a contributor to delays in investment projects.
Construction activity is projected to increase in the last quarter of 2013 and is expected to surge in 2014, as a result of foreign direct investment in large-scale tourism related projects. These include the JW Marriot, the West Caicos Project and the Third Turtle Club, as well as the revitalisation of stalled projects and other proposed private sector projects. These will be complemented by significant public sector spending on capital works, which is expected to include a number of road works throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands; the continued expansion of the airport and the building of various classroom blocks around the islands among other government projects.
Overall mortgage commitments indicate that the challenges facing domestic private construction are expected to last into the medium term. As a result domestic private construction remains weak due to the relatively high unemployment rate but is expected to improve come 2014. Projects such as those outlined above and others will likely boost employment levels and local income. However, the modest US recovery (major source of TCI tourist arrivals) will continue to temper the rebound in the TCI. This underscores the need for greater diversification by the government and the TCI becoming less reliant on tourism as the major contributor to GDP.
SPPD wishes to thank the business community, public corporations, government agencies, and everyone, who has contributed, in one way or another, for the cooperation received in the provision of the necessary data. The department wishes to advise the businesses community that outstanding questionnaires to be submitted as they remain integral to the updating the estimates. The Department also thanks the public for their patience as we try to make the necessary data available.
Global Economy & Marketing TCI By Zhavargo Jolly
This week the International Monetary Fund changed its estimated predictions for 2013, stating that countries like China, Brazil, India & Mexico, a group that accounted for a significant portion of last year’s 3.1% growth in the world economy have slowed considerably.
It was projected the global economic growth would increase to 3.3% in 2013, but new figures suggest that the numbers will be the same as last year. In developing nations like India and Brazil, this decrease in growth is mostly due to the inability of these countries’ leaders to enact difficult economic and political reforms, which would help to continue foster good relationships with foreign investors. To the surprise of many, the only major country that is doing better than previously thought is Japan; the Prime Minister and his government have been trying to revive the economy through aggressive enactment of monetary and fiscal policies. The IMF now believes Japan will grow 2 percent this year, up from its April prediction of 1.5 percent. Last year, Japan’s economy grew 1.9 percent.
So what does this have to do with the Turks & Caicos Islands? A lot, Turks & Caicos Islands has been declared “Open for Business”. Well, I can rent a 2,500 sq. ft. space put some inventory in it and declare my store open for business but, if I don’t research the current sales trends to determine the right type and amount of inventory to purchase and sell, employ highly trained personable staff and aggressively market my store through the right forms of media tools, am I truly open for business? The plain answer is no. It is our responsibility to take all the necessary steps to place ourselves in a position to compete for inward investment due to the high level of competition in the world today. And this means extensive policy changes, removing considerable amounts of red tape, political reform to promote governmental stability and streamlining certain bureaucratic processes.
Now it’s very easy to criticize, but that’s not my goal. I see an opportunity to market the Turks & Caicos Islands in a very unique fashion. It is impossible to add to a Rembrandt or to augment a Van Gogh, I dare you to improve on da Vinci’s Mona Lisa or enhance Michelangelo’s painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel; it just can’t be done. And that’s fine, because in my opinion there is nothing more truly amazing than the potential represented by a blank canvas. It represents many opportunities and possibilities; it can be made into something far greater than anything Van Gogh, da Vinci or Rembrandt ever made, it really all depends on the painter or painters. This is how I see my Turks & Caicos Islands, with the need for policy changes and many of our governmental processes still being in an evolving embryotic phase, this gives us the distinct advantage of the blank canvas.
This is how we market our country to large scale global investors, look out your window and see the green shrubbery, clear white sand and turquoise water, so much of which is still untouched. Show these groups the true potential and opportunities of the Turks & Caicos Islands which is still considerably in its early developmental stage and allow them to be a part of the creation process. We have had many individual investors in the past that saw the potential with their own eyes only one time and that was all the convincing needed, so much so that they not only became contributors to our economic growth, they made Turks & Caicos Islands their home.
Persons like Stan Hartling, Mark Durliat and Harold Charles, just to name a few, all contributors to Turks & Caicos Islands economic growth and all Turks and Caicos Islanders. The truth is any individual or group that has the opportunity to lay eyes on what we have to offer here in the Turks & Caicos Islands are always captivated by the natural beauty and the potential it represents, it’s time to complete the work of art! “Turks & Caicos Islands: Endless Opportunities through Endless Potential”
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN OUR EDITORIALS ARE NOT THOSE OF THE MANAGEMENT & STAFF OF RADIO TURKS & CAICOS.
PREMIER’S MINISTERIAL STATEMENT AT THE 8TH SITTING OF THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
Mr. Speaker, members of this Honorable House, my fellow Turks and Caicos Islanders, a pleasant good morning. I would like to thank my almighty God for his goodness and mercies and the strength to carry on, for he is my light and my salvation.
I wish to take this opportunity to extend birthday wishes to both the Hon. Leader of the Opposition and the Hon. Deputy Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I woke up this morning with a heart burdened with questions as to whether or not I should carry on. Mr. Speaker, as per the usual, I asked my Lord for strength, guidance, wisdom and determination, and because of those I am here standing before you in this honorable House this morning.
Mr. Speaker, the past few weeks of duty in the Office of Premier of this country have been a reality check. You see Mr. Speaker, I was taught all my life to be honest, to be law abiding, to play by the rules as these are the best of policies to which one should adhere to safely see oneself through life. Mr. Speaker, to some extent these guiding principles are true, but in the current socioeconomic and political context of our beloved Turks and Caicos Islands, these qualities do indeed at times appear to be pointless and are the constant root causes of frustration as the rules are not in our favor. Mr. Speaker the rules that I am referring to are the constitutional rules of this country which give the Governor the uncensored power to do whatsoever he pleases. Mr. Speaker, if these powers were consistently used in the interest of Turks and Caicos Islanders to better their lives we may not have a problem. The difficulty, Mr. Speaker, is if government plays by these current rules, it would be to our detriment as we would not be serving the best interest of our people. What is unfair is, if Turks and Caicos Islanders attempted to challenge the status quo, it would also be to their detriment, so essentially we can't win for losing. However Mr. Speaker I am a fighter. I am a leader and if I am going to die I would prefer to die trying and challenging the status quo.
Mr. Speaker, we came to government, elected by the people to improve their lives and well-being, not just economically and socially but also, more importantly, to improve their lives democratically. Mr. Speaker, the people of these islands elected us to make decisions in their best interest, to represent them, but the government of the people is having some of the most difficult times, being bound by chains and whipped when we try to break free in the interest of the people.
Mr. Speaker, the economy of the Turks and Caicos Islands has shown many positive signs of growth, as evidenced by our GDP which has grown by 3.4%, there are also major investments such as the Shore Club and the West Caicos development that were stalled and are now well on their way towards initiating activity. Very soon other developments like Dellis and Ambergris Cay will come along, and with new interested investors engaged, I am very optimistic that this economy will rebound completely. However, Mr. Speaker this growth must be to the betterment of the lives of our people who must be able to capitalize on the opportunities that would be presented to them. Mr. Speaker, the only way we can guarantee this in an environment of unfair competition is by strengthening our Belonger preference policies as we grow and diversify our economy and as we streamline and make more efficient, our business and labour policies. Mr. Speaker, we are about leveling the playing field not making it uneven. Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell my Turks and Caicos Islanders that we are mandated to empower them through protection of reserved categories of business and capital and investment facilitation and that we shall do. I can let the EU know now, that if the EDF grant of 15 million which is intended to improve and streamline business practices, has as its goal the removal of Belonger reserve categories as a trade off, then they can keep their money as this will not happen under my watch at this time in our current economic state.
Mr. Speaker, Tourism is our main industry and it has served us and continues to serve us well even during to downturn in the economy. However, we are vulnerable to economic shocks and unless we diversify our economy we would always remain vulnerable and at high risk of not being able to withstand economic downturns. Mr. Speaker that is why we have begun the process of facilitating other industries, such a manufacturing and processing, and identifying trading partners for the importation of raw materials to serve these industries. Mr. Speaker our neighbours of the Dominican Republic, Haiti, the Bahamas and other Caricom countries in close proximity may serve well as trading partners and allies, so too do other first world countries like the US and Canada. Mr. Speaker the diversification of our economies into the manufacturing and processing industry will, in addition to boosting the economy, create jobs and promote Turks and Caicos internationally with goods labeled " Made in the Turks and Caicos", these results all having an overall impact of lowering the cost of goods and cost of living.
Mr. Speaker, we are continuing to venture internationally to promote these islands to investors in an effort to encourage more new investments and major infrastructural developments. Mr. Speaker on September 22nd, I will be one of the key note speakers at the KPMG Miami Infrastructure conference where I will be presenting three key major infrastructure investment opportunities, namely the Phase 2 Providenciales Airport expansion with new international arrival and departure areas, the East Caicos Mega Port and Resort Facility and the Caicos Causeway. These projects we see as life changing projects for these islands that will bring economic prosperity and sustainability and diversify our bread basket.
Mr. Speaker, as a government, in addition to expanding this economy and providing jobs, a task that we are feverishly doing, we are also obligated to providing educational opportunities and adequate an educational environment for our people. Therefore Mr. Speaker, I would love to take this opportunity to welcome all of the school children back to school and congratulate them on their achievements that brought them to this level in their educational endeavours. Likewise, I would like to congratulate and thank those deserving parents, and teachers, for their hard work and support of all of those students whose academic achievements were outstanding. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank the Ministry of Education and the Education Department for the provision of scholarships and educational opportunities for our students. Mr. Speaker, there were also a number of organizations such and the Seventh Day Adventist Church, The Baptist Union, The Rock of Jesus Ministries and others who made provisions for school supplies, scholarships and financial support, I thank these organizations and individuals and encourage them to continue to give back to their community as we raise this nation.
Mr. Speaker, the return to school in terms of readiness has been challenging and we as a government stepped up to the plate to address those challenges and for this I thank my Minister of Education and her team, however, there were challenges that we were unable to solve but not for lack of trying. Mr. Speaker, the matter of the over-crowding of the Clement Howell High School is still of grave concern for our government. We have tried to secure both capital and recurrent expenditure funding so as to split the Clement Howell High School as a short term measure to relieve the over-crowding, whilst we prepare for the building of a new high school facility in the medium to long term. But Mr. Speaker this did not come to fruition. Mr. Speaker the British Government's focus is on using our surplus to pay down loans whilst our people suffer and are deprived of educational opportunities. Mr. Speaker, as a Government we are motivated to find solutions to our financial challenges to meet the basic needs of our people. But whilst we are forced to raise taxes to meet loan obligations and provide educational and social services for our people, the British government continues to drain our purse with unchecked expenditure being incurred by the Civil Recovery Team and SIPT. Mr. Speaker, this situation is unbearable and just unacceptable. Mr. Speaker, I am hereby holding the AG and the Governor accountable for these actions and am calling on them to give account and justification for funds that we could be using on our children, sending them to school in proper and healthy environment. And Mr. Speaker whilst on the topic of health, likewise the hospitals which are another possible source of concealed internal hemorrhage, will be put in check, also providing funds that can be used more effectively either in healthcare or elsewhere. Mr. Speaker, our Cabinet yesterday had a presentation of the Interim Hospital Audit and an action plan has been devised to address the issues being highlighted in the interim audit. This healthcare situation will be fixed.
Mr. Speaker, I have made public my dissatisfaction with the recent actions by the outgoing Governor to make a strategic re-appointment of the Attorney General despite the objection of myself, my government, the Leader of the Opposition and the People of the Turks and Caicos Islands. I have taken the liberty of outlining my reasons for my stance on this issue and I am asking all Members of the House of Assembly to join together with one voice on this issue.
Mr. Speaker and Members of this Honorable House, may God continue to bless you and bless these Turks and Caicos Islands. I thank you.
More Opprotunities For Locals
During the eighth sitting of the House of Assembly today, the Government of the Turks & Caicos Islands, under the leadership of the Hon. Premier, Dr. Rufus Ewing, tabled for debate the Fractional Ownership Bill which promises to open scores of opportunities for both Turks & Caicos Islanders and the Country alike.
In what seems to be a host of new Policies and Bills proposed recently, within the last few months, all geared towards driving the growth of the economy and the empowerment of the people, this latest submission will offer both local and international investors the opportunity to pool resources and become joint owners of a single property.
Often mistaken for the more familiar Time Share concept which doesn’t offer the opportunity for purchase, persons entering the Fractional Ownership Scheme would have full ownership of their fraction of the property. This affords a number of unrelated parties the ability to share in and mitigate the risk of ownership of a high-valued piece of real estate. Once a property has been registered under the Fractional Ownership Scheme, the Bill makes provisions for a property to be split into a maximum of twelve fractions of equal value and thus allowing potential owners to purchase as many fractions as they desire.
With the Turks & Caicos Islands being marketed over the years as a high-end luxury destination, and the resulting development of five-star and six-star luxury resorts & condos, very few locals have benefitted previously through the ownership of Condo developments within the Islands as the price of luxury once excluded the common man from such ventures.
However, Belongers will now have a greater opportunity to participate in developments that have the Fractional Ownership Scheme, thus empowering them as property owners with equity and increased net-worth. With the power to borrow against a fraction and to sell, if so desired, Fractional Owners will have more financing options available to them and the ability to have access to two or more homes and to share the cost of maintaining the property.
The Hon. Premier commented, “The Fractional Ownership Bill was a vision of my government as a means of empowering our people, to drive development and to stimulate the economy. At a fraction of the cost, our people can become property owners and have increased equity that would allow them to have access to financing that, otherwise, they perhaps would not have had. This financing provides the ability to realize some of the dreams of Turks & Caicos Islanders who perhaps want to become the entrepreneurs that a growing economy needs for job creation and stability. Additionally, this Bill increases the likelihood that people would build condos, town homes or stand-alone vacation homes and this means work for our contractors, electricians, carpenters, masons, architects etc., thus re-energizing our construction industry and thereby sending a global message of a strengthening economy. I see this Fractional Ownership Bill as a win-win for our people and our country as this type of activity attracts investors to our shores while ensuring that Turks & Caicos Islanders are not left behind.”
Fractional Ownership Schemes, once reserved for luxury jet liners and boats have over the years been extended to include high-end real estate and are currently operating in countries internationally, like Europe, the United States and Canada, as well as in regional countries like Barbados, Antigua, Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
The Bill, which is expected to pass during the next sitting of the House, also provides for the formation of Fractional Management Companies, similar to that of Property Management, and persons can look forward to the prospects of employment in new job titles such as a Fractional Manager within these companies.
Governor Presents Queen's Birthday Honours
Three Turks and Caicos Island (TCI) public servants were invested with Birthday Honours by Governor Ric Todd on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, at his official residence, Waterloo, Grand Turk today, Thursday, 5 September 2013.
The British Empire Medal (BEM) was awarded each to Shirlen Albert Forbes for services to the development of statistics in the TCI and to Angela Musgrove for services to youth development in the TCI.
Desiree Downes who work in the Attorney General’s Chambers was awarded an Honorary MBE for services to legislative drafting in the TCI.
“I would like to publicly thank Angela, Shirlen and Desiree for their many years of outstanding public service,” said Governor Ric Todd.