This year, it’s an Election Day with a difference – voters won’t just be ticking a box next to a candidate’s name, they’ll also be asked to put an X in three other boxes, indicating their position on separate referendum questions.
Those questions are:
- Should the Cayman Islands develop cruise berthing infrastructure?
- Do you support the introduction of a national lottery in the Islands?
- Do you support the decriminalisation of the consumption and possession of small amounts of cannabis?
All three are government-initiated referendums and are non-binding, meaning they’re advisory in nature, to help determine the local electorate’s stance on those issues. Unlike in a binding referendum, the government will not be legally bound to take action on any of the three matters, regardless of the outcome.
The results will serve “as valuable input that helps the Government understand the will of the people and shape decisions accordingly,” according to the government’s webpage on the referendums.
It adds, “The results will be carefully reviewed by policymakers and may inform legislation, future consultations, or other forms of public decision-making. Think of it as a compass rather than a command. It points in the direction the public wants to go, but it does not set the destination in stone.”
Irrespective of the non-binding aspect of the referendums, because they were initiated by the government, rather than the people of Cayman, a straightforward majority will determine whether the answers are yes or no.
In a people-initiated referendum, it’s the percentage of the overall registered voters that counts, rather than the number of people who actually vote on the day. So, for example, 50.1% of the entire electorate would have to vote yes, for a referendum question to succeed.
The question regarding cruise ship berthing has had a long and complicated path to appearing in black and white on ballot paper. After years of controversy, discussion and debate, it looked like the issue was headed for a people-initiated referendum in December 2019, but was delayed because of legal action and then entirely fell off the government agenda during the COVID pandemic.
While not as hotly and publicly contested as the cruise berthing question, the decriminalisation of possessing or consuming small amounts of cannabis and the introduction of a national lottery have also been the subject of discussion in some form for quite some time.
The impetus for both these referendum questions come, in part, from concerns over the incarceration of individuals for what some consider to be relatively minor crimes – being caught with a joint or playing the illegal ‘numbers’ game.
The decriminalisation of small, as yet unspecified, quantities of ganja is not the same as legalisation of the drug. It would mean that anyone caught with illegal cannabis would still be penalised in some way, but would not get a criminal record.
In a similar vein, the introduction of a national lottery, according to the politicians who voted in favour of holding a referendum on the matter, does not aim to legalise gambling in Cayman, but is hoped to go some way towards tackling the unregulated lotteries that are relatively widespread on island.