UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 KINGSTON 000418
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
STATE PLEASE PASS FOR WHA/PDA (DETTER)
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC, EAIR, ECON, PREL, PTER, JM
SUBJECT: CRICKET WORLD CUP 2007: URGENCY REQUIRED, BUT
INTERNATIONAL CRICKET COUNCIL NOT WORRIED (YET)
REF: KINGSTON 00198
This message is sensitive but unclassified. Please handle
accordingly.
1. (SBU) Summary. Seeking to assess the state of Jamaica's
preparations to host the opening ceremony and some
competitive matches for the 2007 International Cricket
Council (ICC) World Cup, Ambassador and Econoff met
seperately with three top organizing officials: Chris
Dehring, Managing Director and CEO of Cricket World Cup,
Incorporated (CWC); Chris Tetley (strictly protect), the
International Cricket Council,s (ICC) liaison to the CWC,
which is managing the Cricket World Cup, to be held in nine
CARICOM nations around the Caribbean in March-April 2007; and
Robert Bryan, Chairman and CEO of Jamaica's Local Organizing
Committee (LOC) for the event. Tetley explained the
organizational structure of the event, and disputed the
notion that the ICC was displeased with the level of progress
made, given that the Opening Ceremony (which is to be held in
Jamaica on March 11, 2007) is just over one year away. He
also addressed problems of geographical complexity,
infrastructure, security, and urgency that various
stakeholders have raised in conversations with emboffs. End
summary.
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Background
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2. (U) The nations of the West Indies will host the 2007
International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup, to be held
from March 11 to April 28. Although cricket's profile in the
U.S. is a limited one beyond some immigrant communities, the
sport is the most popular in Jamaica, and is widely
considered to be one of the most important "unifiers" among
the disparate and far-flung English-speaking CARICOM states.
In hosting the 2007 Cricket World Cup, Jamaica joins Trinidad
and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana,
St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the
Grenadines. Given the participation in the tournament of
national teams representing the West Indies (which famously
fields a regional, rather than a national team), England,
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, South Africa, Australia and
other nations, and visiting contingents of fans from
participating countries, the event will focus international
attention on Jamaica and the region early in 2007.
3. (SBU) The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the
governing body for cricket, responsible for promoting the
game worldwide. It is the ICC that is the "owner" of the
2007 Cricket World Cup. However, in keeping with the
organizational structure of the 2003 World Cup that was held
in South Africa, the ICC contracted the West Indies Cricket
Board (WICB) to run the actual event. The WICB, in turn,
established Cricket World Cup, Incorporated (CWC) as the
management company. At the same time, each of the
participating governments set up a Local Organizing Committee
(LOC), and these agencies contract with CWC to coordinate the
matches and activities in their specific countries.
4. (SBU) The event represents a massive organizational,
logistical and infrastructural undertaking which, if well
executed, presents an opportunity for Jamaica to burnish its
image to potential tourists and investors. The potential
downside, of course, is that a poorly organized event would
embarrass the GOJ and could scare away tourists and
investors. Just over a year before the event begins, the GOJ
faces considerable challenges in preparing for the event
thanks to resource constraints, poor infrastructure and a
high rate of violent crime. The Ambassador and Econoff met
recently and separately with three senior officials
organizing the event to sound them out about the state of
Jamaica's preparations: Chris Dehring, Managing Director and
CEO of Cricket World Cup, Incorporated (CWC); Chris Tetley
(strictly protect), the International Cricket Council,s
(ICC) liaison to the CWC, which is managing the Cricket World
Cup, to be held in nine nations around the Caribbean; and
Robert Bryan, Chairman and CEO of Jamaica's Local Organizing
Committee (LOC) for the event.
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Geography
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5. (U) The unifying theme of the difficulties of hosting this
event is geography. In a December meeting with the
Ambassador, Chris Dehring, the Managing Director and CEO of
CWC, related an anecdote about the 2002 Soccer World Cup
which was hosted jointly by Japan and South Korea. After
that event, said Dehring, soccer,s international governing
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body, FIFA, announced that it would no longer hold the
quadrennial competition across national boundaries, due to
the logistical hurdles that organizers had to surmount. "Now
multiply that by nine," said Dehring, referring to the
CARICOM host nations.
6. (SBU) Chris Tetley, the ICC's liaison to the CWC, told
Econoff that it is rumored within the ICC that this would be
the last time such a contracting arrangement would be set up
to run a World Cup. He noted that there is an inherent
tension in having the Cup being the "property" of the ICC,
while at the same time distancing itself from the day-to-day
operations by using a contractor. His role is to walk the
tightrope between assisting and advising CWC, while at the
same time monitoring and reporting back to the ICC on the
progress being made. What structure future Cup events might
take, however, he was unable to specify.
7. (SBU) Tetley was categorical that suggestions that the ICC
was displeased with the progress being made for the 2007
event were not/not true. He noted that any undertaking of
this magnitude, with just over a year remaining until the
Opening Ceremony, will have areas which are behind schedule,
and about which concerns will grow. "I cannot conceive," he
stated, "of a scenario regarding 'operational deliverables'
under which we would consider moving the World Cup" to an
entirely different venue. In this case, the back-up country
is South Africa. The worst case that he envisions would
involve a limited number of venues, owing (most likely) to a
natural disaster such as a hurricane. Nonetheless, Tetley
was candid about some of the hardships that remain.
8. (SBU) While many stakeholders had hoped that the World Cup
could be a catalyst for changes that would dovetail with the
needs of the newly emerging Caribbean Single Market and
Economy (CSME, see reftel), it appears that it is too late to
codify the necessary legislation. Visas illustrate this
point clearly. Originally, organizers had hoped to have a
&Smart Card8 issued to fans at their first port of entry,
containing biographic and biometric data which could be used
to track their movements during the competition. While this
card would expire after 60 days, and the legislation would
"sunset", many privately hoped that it could be a test run
for a wider system for CARICOM citizens, with the possibility
of extending the legislation indefinitely. The cost of this
technology, according to Derek Jones ) the Senior Legal
Counsel for CWC, with responsibility for developing draft
legislation ) was prohibitive. Jones said that a
"low-technology" solution, with cards that had only
biographic data, and no tracking capability, was likely. His
team was looking now towards regulations rather than
legislation. "There is simply not enough time," he said.
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Infrastructure
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9. (SBU) While concerns have been raised about the lack of
accommodation for the potentially massive influx of fans
wanting to see matches, Tetley believes the issue is
overblown. Press reports have placed the potential number of
visitors to the region at 80-100,000. The 2003 Cricket World
Cup in South Africa received 20,000, Tetley said. (Note:
Tetley worked in the same capacity at the 2003 event. End
note.) Even accounting for the relative ease of travel to
the Caribbean for cricket fans, he expressed his opinion that
30-40,000 was more likely.
10. (SBU) This is not to suggest that there are no obstacles,
however. Both to the press and to emboffs, Dehring has
raised the case of Guyana, where the CWC contingent (e.g.,
organizers, VIPs, sponsors, etc.) will require approximately
500 rooms, with only 200 available. Tetley concurred that
Guyana faces &a challenge8 in this regard, but also noted
that the LOC there had been working closely with the
Government and the CWC to add urgency to addressing this
problem. Econoff asked Tetley and Dehring about the
oft-mentioned possibility that cruise ships might be used at
some venues as "floating hotels," but both stated that they
had not heard of any definitive plans. While not ruling out
the possibility of private entrepreneurs exploring this
option, Tetley wondered if it was not already too late for
such a venture. Tellingly, both Dehring and Tetley made
reference to the fact that accomodation was not, strictly
speaking, within their purview.
11. (SBU) With regard to stadiums being constructed or
upgraded in the region, Tetley expressed concerns about the
actual playing surfaces, rather than the infrastructure.
Temporary stands, he noted, can be erected at very short
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notice if construction has not progressed quickly enough. An
unplayable "wicket" ) the surface upon which the batsmen
stand ) is another matter entirely. Tetley again raised
Guyana as an example, as they have recently dug up their
wicket for replanting, which might not leave enough time for
grass to grow in properly. Don Lockerbie, a venue and
operations planner for CWC, stated separately to econoff that
"miracles are required every day," and that they might have
to "pull it off with smoke and mirrors," a reference to the
possible need for temporary stands for fans. (Note:
Lockerbie, a U.S. citizen, has extensive experience in the
field, having worked on the 1994 FIFA World Cup and on
stadium planning for the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. End
note.)
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Security
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12. (SBU) It is important to draw a distinction between event
security and national security. According to Dehring, there
is a draft "master plan" for the region, which will cover
areas relating to national security, as well as
event-specific plans. Both Dehring and Tetley claimed
ignorance of the details, and referred econoff to John
Collymore, the ICC Security Director. Collymore highlighted
the problems of geographical coordination, noting that there
were nine sovereign nations, with nine attorneys-general, and
nine sets of legislation. He also pointed to the lack of
high-technology equipment, and weak intelligence sharing
among the participating nations. He noted that his team knew
of "no specific and credible threats" at this time.
13. (SBU) Econoff asked about fan access, and whether he
anticipated any unrest from Jamaican fans who were accustomed
to simply showing up at Jamaican venues for international
matches hosted by the West Indies team. With tickets scarce,
and financially beyond the reach of many, some commentators
have worried that "the average Jamaican cricket fan" may
react harshly to an inability to attend the games. Collymore
stated that "it was too early to worry about that" on a
policy level, and further suggested that this would be a
"local security matter," best addressed by the Jamaica
Constabulary Force (JCF).
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Urgency
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14. (U) Dehring has long been of the view that the
governments of the region, and particularly the GOJ, do not
have the required urgency about preparations. In a
conversation with the Ambassador in December, he opined that
the GOJ,s successful hosting of the World Junior Track and
Field Championships in 2002 engendered overconfidence. He
believes that many - regional politicians, Ministers of
Tourism, and hotel operators and associations, to name those
that he specified - fully comprehend neither the scale and
scope of this undertaking, nor their stake in the outcome.
He reiterated this in a press release on February 14, in
which he stated that "LOCs require increasing support from
and access to government officials," and that "the importance
of such cooperation cannot be overestimated."
15. (SBU) Robert Bryan, Chairman and CEO of Jamaica Cricket
2007 Ltd, Jamaica,s LOC, succinctly expressed this fact.
"All of the Prime Ministers have been very enthusiastic," he
told econoff, "but they have various duties." He framed the
problem of urgency in terms of incentives. If all goes
wrong, the politicians can blame the ICC. The ICC has the
option to sue the WICB for breach of contract provisions, who
will turn to Dehring,s CWC. And Dehring, naturally, can
turn on the LOCs. He noted that the disgruntled fan is most
likely to blame the LOC, giving those higher up in the
organizational structure little reason to worry. The ICC,s
Tetley, however, disagreed. &Ultimately,8 he said, &a
poor World Cup reflects poorly on us all.8
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Comment
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16. (SBU) It is easy to be an alarmist with regard to the
2007 Cricket World Cup. In Jamaica, at least, the general
public nevertheless appears to be of the opinion that Dehring
will, as Lockerbie noted, "pull it off." What is certainly
true is that there will also have to be Lockerbie's "smoke
and mirrors." With just over a year to go, right now it is
difficult to believe that the CWC can address all the issues
to make sure that the event will be "done to world-class
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standards," as Dehring hoped in a January press release. Of
particular concern is the laissez-faire attitude expressed by
some of our interlocutors. Accommodation may not be in any
one organization's "portfolio," but the fact remains that a
chronic lack of it will engender problems across the event.
Likewise, stating that angry fans not being able to get
tickets is a "local police matter" is only acceptable if you
have a highly capable local police force, something the JCF
is not. Beyond the operational components that have been
explored in this cable, septel will report on the growing
concerns over the region,s debt burden in the aftermath of
the Cup, as well as the intellectual property rights issues
that many believe the Jamaican public, at least, does not
fully comprehend.
TIGHE