New Cayman Islands Constitution
The Cayman Islands adopted a new Constitution on Nov. 6, the first in almost 40 years, which gives more autonomy to the local government, more power over the police, names the leader of Government business a Premier, and generally empowers the local government. Cayman Islands is still an overseas territory of the UK, with more say in affairs that were in the past, and vested in Britain.
The modernization of the constitution was backed by voters in a May referendum and approved by U.K. officials in June. Most of the changes contained in Cayman’s first completely revamped governing arrangement with the United Kingdom since 1972 went into effect last Friday. Three prominent Caymanians will ascend to positions that had not previously existed in the Islands; those of the premier, deputy premier, and deputy governor.
As explained by CayCompass, the new constitution contains:
1. Significant Changes: The Cayman Islands Constitution Order, 2009, retains Cayman’s status as a British Overseas Territory with a governor appointed by Her Majesty, the Queen of England.
A number of changes have been made in the delegation of the governor’s current authority, essentially shifting more power to the elected government.
Unlike the current Constitution, this agreement allows the Premier (formerly the Leader of Government Business) to place items before Cabinet for consideration. The governor may also continue to bring items before Cabinet.
Another major change is that the United Kingdom will have to consult with Cayman’s elected lawmakers before international treaties that affect the Islands are finalised. A similar rule was put in place for orders^in^council issued by the UK.
A number of appointed councils, most visibly the National Security Council and the Judicial and Legal Services Commission will serve to dilute some of the governor’s power with regard to choosing judges and making strategic decisions for the police service.
Other new appointed bodies created under the Constitution include: the Human Rights Commission ^ which monitors and safeguards human rights, the Commission for Standards in Public Life ^ which is aimed at policing and preventing public corruption and the Constitutional Commission ^ which monitors legal and policy issues in Cayman’s governing document.
Under the new Constitution, the governor is generally obliged to follow the advice given by Cabinet unless he or she believes doing so would threaten the UK’s interests.
There will also be significant changes to the makeup of the Legislative Assembly. The Legislative Assembly will be the supreme law of the land under the new Constitution. The courts are not allowed to strike down laws if a judge rules a particular government action to be unconstitutional.
For the first time, people^initiated referendums are allowed under the Constitution. The laws governing such votes will make public petitions difficult to achieve, but they will be binding on the government if they are passed.
2. Bill of Rights: The Constitution identifies 19 separate individual human rights that will be observed in Cayman. These include the right to life, personal liberty, the right not to be tortured or enslaved, the right to a fair trial, of conscience and religion, free assembly, movement, the right of men and woman to marry, the right to property and the right not to be discriminated against. The Cayman Islands’ Bill of Rights will go into effect in November 2012.
3. New Premier: The longest^serving current member of the Cayman Islands Legislative Assembly ^ often called the “Father of the House” - William McKeeva Bush. He will oversee government business in the 50,000 territory of 50,000 residents, one of the world’s major tax havens.
“This post is not one of absolute power,” Bush said in a statement. “In contrast, it equates to being an engineer first, one selected from amongst equals.” deputy premier.
The London-appointed governor, Stuart Jack, said Friday’s commencement of the new constitution was the “highlight of my four years in the Cayman Islands.”
