I am forwarding (below) a letter sent to the Commonwealth Secretariat concerning Cayman's new human-rights crisis (if crisis is not too strong a word)—the Cuban boat people. You will read of my worry that the FCO has delegated its authority both to deal with international refugees and (it is publicly claimed by our Deputy Chief Secretary) to negotiate treaties with foreign nations—or perhaps it is just Cuba. The big problem is—as your Committee will know from my past emails—that our local officials and Immigration and Police Officers are wholly unfamiliar with the concept of international human rights. Cayman's authorities are way, way out of their depth in this matter, and the delegation of powers is unfair in the extreme-both to the refugees and to local Officers who may be blithely breaking international law. The FCO is being irresponsible, to say the least.

  What I did not tell the Commonwealth people is that the Cuban-American media in Miami is sniffing around this story. Radio WQBA (not WYBA as reported in CaymanNetNews) is alleged to mentioned the treatment the boat-people are getting, in a news broadcast last week. Some day soon, the Cuban-American community's leaders—a pretty politically active bunch, by the way-are going to count the number of refugees who have arrived in Honduras, and the number who were let leave Cayman in leaky boats without food and water, and ask Britain to account for the difference. It won't need an Einstein to do the arithmetic.

  I would be grateful if you would pass this email to the members of the FAC. What I am looking for is advice on how to train our Immigration and Police Officers. Since the FCO is not doing anything to make good the deficiency in their education, we in Cayman must look around for someone who will. After the Commonwealth, your Committee seems the best bet, to me. I hope you can and will tell us what we can do in the way of educating people who may be committing crimes against international law. Our Immigration Officers especially are used to pushing Jamaicans around, here; if they are now carrying their same attitudes to the Cubans, it could become embarrassing.

Gordon Barlow

Member, Cayman Islands Human Rights Committee

24 February 2005