Editorial: Tis the season… to be campaigning

The cruise berthing and port upgrade issue is one of the most important discussions the country has ever faced, a project that has the potential to impact the Cayman Islands like no other, positively or negatively, depending on opinion. Because of the magnitude of such a project it’s vital that every person in Cayman eligible and willing to vote in the upcoming referendum on this crucial issue (as well as those who aren’t) inform themselves as fully as possible before making their all-important mark on the ballot paper on 19th December.

A series of informative meetings from both the ‘for’ and ‘against’ perspectives have already taken place, with more on the agenda. Last week saw the launch of the CPR Cayman at the George Town Celebration Park under the banner ‘You deserve the whole truth’, with following meetings to be held (at the time of writing) on Monday 25th November in West Bay, Wednesday 27th November at the Bodden Town Civic Centre, Monday 9th December at Red Bay’s Seafarer’s Hall with a finale at Shamrock Road and Jayson Avenue in Savannah on Monday 16 December. The Office of the Opposition has also announced meetings from 2nd December across the island. The Support Our Tourism campaign has called further public meetings from 26th November (Bodden Town Civic Centre), at East End’s Civic Centre on 3rd December and North Side’s Civic Centre on 5th December.

We urge all voters (and non-voters) to avail themselves of as much as information as they can, to fully appreciate the impact (good or bad) that building and running a cruise berthing facility will have, not just on George Town, but on the entire island. With all the campaigning and information sharing as outlined above, readers may ask: can voters really make an informed decision while further analysis of the impacts of the project is needed, the results of which are not expected until next year? The National Trust said that further analysis needed to be carried out to “wholly assess the potential ramifications and determine what was truly at risk in the long term.” Most of the data collection for such analysis would not commence before March 2020, it said.

As a newspaper, we believe in the clear and straightforward dissemination of information and we believe that every voter needs to ensure that they have a full understanding of the situation before they take on the massive responsibility of voting and thereby directing government policy.