Governor recruiting officers for Cayman Regiment
(CNS): The next step towards the development of the Cayman Islands’ own armed defence force has begun with the launch of the recruitment process for the commanding and junior officers, according to a release Friday from the Governor’s Office. The successful candidates for the six junior officer posts for the new Cayman Regiment will receive officer training at the Royal Military Academy in the UK. Once the officer posts have been filled, 50 reserve volunteers will be recruited but this number will eventually rise to 150, the release stated.
The formation of the Cayman Regiment was announced in October, though it is said to have been in discussions since early 2019. Its purpose will be to improve security and to provide humanitarian aid and relief support following disasters here in Cayman and in the region.
A spokesperson for the Governor’s Office said the National Security Council had given the green light to form an initial force of seven officers and 50 reserve volunteers, who will be put through initial training and equipped before summer 2020 in tie for the peak Hurricane Season.
All candidates for officer positions must be legally resident in Cayman and be a British Overseas Territories Citizen, British Citizen or Irish Citizen, though other Commonwealth applicants may be considered on a case by case basis, the release stated. They must also pass medical and fitness tests.
Describing the hunt for a suitable commanding officer, Governor Martyn Roper said, “We’re now looking for a dynamic leader with UK military experience to take this exciting project forward. They will need to have a wide variety of skills, including project management, and will need to be adaptable, resilient and able to deal with the day-to-day challenges a programme like this will inevitably have.”
The role of commanding officer will be part-time with a per diem allowance. However, Roper said there would be “opportunities to refresh, re-hone and improve existing skills and talents with further training with some of the best military teams in the world”.
The candidate must be between 23 and 50, have at least five years experience as an officer in the British Armed Forces as well as a bachelor’s degree, and must be able to start work immediately.
The governor said they would like to employ the six junior officers on one-year, full-time, fixed-term contracts, during which they “will receive basic training overseas and will also attend officer training at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in the UK”.
But after that they “might become part-time reservists to enable them to continue their civilian careers, although there will also be some full-time positions created in future”.
The junior officers will help the commanding officer set up the regiment and recruit the first 50 reservists. Eventually this number will rise to 150, Roper noted.
Junior officers must be available to start in February 2020. Candidates must be aged between 18 and 50, and have two A levels at Grade C or above, two years study at UCCI or equivalent level of education. No minimum experience required but previous service in the Cayman Islands Cadet Corps or other military experience is preferred.
The requirements for candidates draw on policy from UK Reserve Regiments, the release said.
See specific requirements for candidates here
Expressions of interest should be emailed to staffoff@candw.ky by 1 January 2020
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Category: Local News
Hi Everyone,
I have read all your posts and from my side, I can see to three clear messages, no communication prior to the agreed formation to the citizens of the Cayman Islands, Mistrust of the government and possibly not great communication on what the future role will be, ie merely responsive for disaster relief on these great islands / Caribbean or if they will actually be armed at some point and what kind of weapons.
I agree with a number of points from both sides, but if this is a none aggressive unit, could anyone actually say we dont need a future supporting unit which could help in a major disaster or that could be used to help others similar to what happened in Bermuda or here with Hurricane Ivan.
I also believe that the upcoming recruitment process may actually bring more Caymanian volunteers than expected, then its up to the training team to ensure these great individuals that they are trained & equipped properly and hopefully with the main supplier of equipment coming from the UK hopefully the latter wont be the case.
Unnecessary and a huge mistake!
Dad’s Army springs to mind, right Pickering?!
Stupid boy !
Seems to me that the political strategists in the UK (not Cayman) are correctly seeing that the Cayman public is growing in its maturity and awareness of political issues, the port referendum is one such case of the maturing political awareness. The UK is just putting in place an armed force for when such maturity turns into activism. Be forewarned.
In another publication: “The primary role of the Regiment will be to provide Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief support following disasters,” Roper said in the statement.
Ok, then don’t call it a regiment, military or army. Armed forces are first and foremost for imposing the will of a government through violence or the threat of violence.
If we need some kind of turbocharged paramedic rescue and security force then let’s build that—and not call it an army. Having a bunch of mostly expats running around playing soldier here will at best be a waste of money, and at worst something our politicians will abuse sooner or later.
They will be trained as assault pioneers: basically military engineers who in a combat setting would go ahead of the rest of the troops, clear obstacles or make them able to be traversed, etc. So CUC will be able to put the power back on much faster once this regiment is up and running when we have another Ivan. Read more here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_pioneer
Waste of money!!!
Why are we doing this? Cayman didn’t devolve into the purge post Ivan, if you want to create a more robust law enforcement system then adding another under staffed, under trained and underfunded agency isn’t going to help that.
Your excellency the Governor I have read your requirements two points please do not use the baines bullshit excuse or policy of it must reflect the “diversity of the community” because all we got are criminals who have come here set up their own criminal networks some convicted of murder involved in terrible corruption burglarizing banks extorting female drivers for sex swindling people for land and property and allowing their fellow countrymen to get a free pass while they exact terrible bias “justice” & persecution against the local population. which we see everyday on our roads and streets this awful situation .Criminal & Psychological evaluations for all those handling and commanding personnel with weapons and Female recruits thus avoiding shootings or rapes or other nasty issues that no doubt will come. My final point we then need to put in place a small unit of Military Police or NCIS with required laws & powers to investigate military& coastguard related crimes or disciplinary matters lets not wait until something occurs as we commonly see with our government . This all sounds wonderful but administrative and command structure is a whole different monster as you know Mr Roper. Thank you for helping make the Cayman Islands a safer place to live.
Sounds like they have already picked the person they want and are just putting out the requirements for them to be confirmed.
Can an officer from another country serve in this CI army if he or she is in a legal gay marriage in the country of origin?
Can this person bring his or her spouse to Cayman to live?
Asking for a friend?
Will openly gay Caymanians and expats be allowed to serve in this army?
Let’s hear from Tony Eden and our other leaders on this before we get too far ahead of ourselves. Wouldn’t want any expensive law suits down the road.
I would guess they would, based upon the previously posted minimum qualifications of applicants: https://caymannewsservice.com/positions-open-for-cayman-regiment/
I think you give Mr. Eden too much potentiality in this or any other process. I think he believes in what he espouses, however I think his mindset is not conducive toward the Cayman Islands retaining their competitiveness and relevance in the global theatre.
Everything, everybody, every place, must grow or die. We hope to grow in a peaceful way that reveres our heritage and gentle way of life. We (or most of us) also hope to continue to promote tolerance for each others’ views. I am not only looking at Christians here, but all of us. We’re all in this together and work better as a team than a division of tribes. We had better if we want to survive.
John 13:34 reads, “I am giving you a new commandment, that you love one another; just as I have loved you,a you also love one another.”
Colossians 3:13 reads, ” Continue putting up with one another and forgiving one another freely, even if anyone has a cause for complaint against another. Just as Jehovah freely forgave you, you must also do the same.”
I bet that was more answer than you wanted. 😉
If only you Beaumont could talk some sense into our neighbours to the North who are pursuing an extremely divisive impeachment of a President who has the American economy flourishing.
what the…. why are people bringing trump into this. The united states is not Cayman, what they do with their president is none of anyone business but theirs.
If you want to vote for trump then move to the US and support him, We have our own political issues without importing them from other countries.
From the comments on this Topic we need that mental health facility now. Folks if you read this article and can’t comprehend that the Regiment is exactly what Cayman needs you need help.
The Bermuda regiment came to help cayman in 2004 after Hurricane Ivan. Hopefully by June 2020 we will have a similar regiment that can assist police and fire in the event of a hurricane.
Thank you Premier and Governor. Now hurry and get that Mental health facility open .
If we need more emergency medical aid and security after bad hurricanes, then train more EMTs and reserve police.
The idea of a country with a population of 60,000 needing an army is ridiculous.
But we need more than medical aid and security. We need the ability to quickly clear roads, reach remote communities, rescue survivors etc. – not skills taught to any EMTs or police units. These are jobs for military engineers, and that’s exactly what we will be getting. They are called assault pioneers. Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_pioneer
The requirements to jointhis regiment are a disgrace. Just another attempt to placate Caymanians.
Mr. Governor, please, please, no more from Caribbean countries. The UK have many QUALIFIED individuals. Of course, that’s if you can’t get Caymanians first.
But please, no more of the others.
If we can’t find enough Caymanians to fill the police force, how will we find enough to fill the ranks of an army? Oh, of course, I know the answer. We won’t. It will end up being an army of poorly trained Jamaican mercenaries on work permits.
Why?
If we need more medical aid and security after bad hurricanes, then train more EMTs and reserve police.
The idea of a country with a population of 60k having an army is ludicrous.
#lame
What is ludicrous is that we sitting down taking all this crap…
poorly trained Jamaican mercenaries on work permits *with guns.
So much hatred! Wow….God forbid the day that we ever get a bad storm and one of those same “Jamaican mercenaries ” rescues you or your family.
You keep repeating this nonsense so I am going to keep repeating myself too. Roper has said this small regiment will be trained as assault pioneers. They will be doing jobs neither EMTs nor police can do. READ MORE, and stop repeating your ill-informed statements: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_pioneer
Do you really believe what you are writing ? Open your eyes and your mind to the reality.
Great. Just what we need. Captain Mainwaring, Sergeant Wilson and Corporal Jones. All they need is a bunch of Private Pikes and they’ll have a khaki equivalent of the RCIPS.
Wur aw doooooommmed!!!!!
Clearly a step towards independence, whether Unity/PPM is pushing that or UK is requiring that. Can’t anyone see that?!
Is this what the majority wants? Perhaps a referendum on the “regiment”?
What a waste of money. Fix the schools, dump, infrastructure.
Absolutely! Can anyone tell me why the government decided to remove teacher aids from the primary schools classrooms? How can our children get the proper attention to learn and excel? One teacher in a classroom of 21 kids is not enough. The teachers are stressed out and our children are losing.
If the children are losing, this has more to do with the teachers than the absence of aides. I wnet to a primary school with only two teachers, one for infants, one for ‘juniors’. There were 40 children in each of the two classes. The infants were ages 5 – 7, the juniors 8 – 11. The great advantage was that each teacher went through the entire infant or junior curriculum in one year. So, for example a child leaving the school at eleven years old had been through the complete ‘junior’ curriculum four times. Even the slowest child could assimilate the course.
Why? How much money is going to be wasted on this? What are we defending against? What equipment are we going to need? Do we plan to become a nuclear power?
Where I think its a great idea, BUT we can’t even fill the RCIPS with Caymanians, how are we going to create a military with Caymanians?
“What are we defending against?”
Civil unrest.
Answer: Idiots🤪
The mosquito apocalypse
Honestly if we don’t want the police to have guns why would you give them to a bunch of 18 year olds to play boy scouts in the bush. This Island needs defending from what exactly? If a country sent an invading force here the cost of that invasion would amount to more than they could get from here. We have no oil or metals. Honestly all we need is a police department that is properly managed with different tactics than British policing. We have great officers who can’t do the job because British style policing is not effective in Cayman.
If we train our police in public order that is very effective to keep the peace here. Any other gaps can be filled with Armed police and double them if nessessary or this new Coast Guard.
This will not end well. Who in their right mind thinks that a future Premier McKeeva Bush or Anthony Eden would have the intelligence and maturity to resist using this force in terrible ways?
#lame
Why Irish?
Now we have two police helicopters, is our army going to be equipped with tanks, anti aircraft guns, grenade launchers, and assault rifles?. It would be useful if, when not on active duty, they could also be trained in manning the pedestrian crossings in the capital when we are flooded with cruisesheep.
More hateful shit from “mother” country.
Yes, but these idiots are agreeing to everything they want to shove at us!
This is an honest question: are you all really dumb enough to actually think this regiment is being formed to quell future violent dissent? In a British Overseas Territory? The best answer to a question (why create this?) is usually the simplest and it is this, in this case: Cayman has made notable contributions to hurricane relief in other territories and former territories; Cayman has been itself spared for many years but its day will come again; and the UK has seen fit for both of those reasons to enhance our capabilities to respond to natural disasters. In line with that, after undergoing basic training, the members of the regiment will be specialising in disaster response, NOT WARFARE. The only reason the force will be armed is because that is the only way to control looting in the event of another Ivan. There is NO plot to create an army to subjugate the people. Not here, not now, not ever (unless we go independent, the U.S. allows a tiny oppressive, militant regime to exist and do shady deals with rogue states right on its doorstep, and the U.K. doesn’t mind either, NONE of which will happen in our lifetimes). Anyone who seriously thinks the purpose of this regiment is to be Alden’s Army needs their head examined overseas.
re “overseas” (your final word). I don’t get that bit. I get all the rest.
Higher quality specialists overseas – would be necessary to properly diagnose and treat anyone crazy enough to think the things I mentioned. Thanks for inviting me to clarify.
This regiment is being formed to keep the public from having an uprising because CIG knows turmoil is brewing due to the port and we’re now starting to stand up to different issues and say enough is enough.
They’re scared.
5:32, not just about the port! we are upset at everything this govt is doing! I think they asked the UK for independence unknown to the people, theyre right into self government already with this change they made without telling us. So they obviously have requested or shall we say applied to the UK for Independence! I hope Jesus is premier by the time it happens because if this set is still in charge, were on our way to hell.
Yep! This is one of the steps right to independence!
Its an anti-Cayman regiment…ofcourse why not ever before? Especially..when all that gun violence was in west bay one dead after the next like flies…someone rich is balling as usual…but this time its balling for protection!
Uh, with soooo much dissent and distrust exhibited by Caymanians towards our government these days, and with our government leaders completely ignoring the wishes of the people who elected them to office, isn’t it very worrying that NOW our government minders have decided to create a “military regiment”? Is anyone seeing what is happening in Hong Kong? Venezuela? France? Chile? Spain?
This “regiment” will allow our government to put down any type of protest from the citizens of these islands. And it should NOT be allowed to be formed.
Correction, the people did not voted for the current government. If I recall correctly, the people elected the opposition as its government and it was the opposition who handed the reins to the party politicians.
How many unemployed Caymanians between 23 and 50, have five years experience as an officer in the British Armed Forces, as well as a bachelor’s degree, and are dynamic leaders, who figure they’ll monetize their exotic dossier for a part-time role and per diem? Can’t be that many!
Exactly. When you want someone specific you develop a person spec accordingly.
yup this will end up just another under staffed, under trained, under equipped and under paid agency tasked with a nebulous goal that will be used as a scapegoat in times to come.
Not exactly opaque is the person specification is it?