As I See it

Sir Vassel Johnson, born in Jamaica of Indian parents, arrived in the Cayman Islands as a child, and rose to become Financial Secretary, making his adopted country a world financial centre. In this modest memoir he recounts battles won at the negotiating tables of the world as he stood up to the international commercial and governmental opposition to his ambitious ground-breaking schemes. He followed up his financial success with a 4-year spell in politics, as the Islands' Minister for Development and Natural Resources. That Cayman is today a stable, attractive and fantastically successful offshore financial centre - and a popular tourist destination - is largely because of Sir Vassel's vision and his long years of hard work. Sir Vassel has received many honours for his endeavours, culminating in his knighthood; but this 'gentle statesman' merely says, 'I was grateful because my adopted home has been good to me. At the same time I trust that I have been good for it.' The proof is all around him.