PHILIPSBURG — Project developer Zebec intends to take St. Maarten Harbor Cruise Facilities (SMH Cruise) and others to court in an attempt to claim close to $100 million in damages it suffered after the port replaced Zebec with Ocean Drive Properties (ODP) as its preferred party for the development of a parcel of land within the port property. Attorney Jacob Cornegoor (Hoff Attorneys, based in Haarlem) wrote a blistering letter to SMH Cruise on December 17, 2021, that reveals the role of former Member of Parliament and founder of the United People’s party UP) Theo Heyliger in the “corrupt practices”…
Author: The Publisher
~ Op-Ed on Media Policy by Ralph Cantave ~ On Tuesday, May 3, the world celebrated International Press Freedom Day, which inspired this article along with the recent press developments on our island. It is an honor to serve in this noble profession and I look forward to contributing towards the profession’s value, impact and legacy. As a member of the St. Martin press and representative of my media house, I have noted with deep concern the need to ensure that freedom of the press, as enshrined in article 10 of the constitution, is never trampled upon. Having been critical…
PHILIPSBURG — Party for Progress MPs Melissa Gumbs and Raeyhon Peterson, as well as MP Sarah Wescot-Williams (United Democrats) have made their positions about the draft COHO-law clear ahead of the Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultation (Ipko) that is currently taking place in St. Maarten. While Wescot-Williams mainly points out her concerns about the draft law, the PFP-faction offers an alternative: the establishment of a new World Bank Trust Fund. “The COHO (Caribbean Organization for Reform and Development) is simply a way to push through a plethora of matters via a new type of higher supervision,” MP Wescot-Williams states in a press…
Lazy Affairs I am late with this column today as a direct result of the term ‘laissez-faire’. I once heard someone pronounced it as ‘lazy fairs’. So the term ‘lazy affairs’ got stuck in my head ever since. I looked it up online. Laissez-faire is a policy of minimum governmental interference in the economic affairs of individuals and society. The doctrine of laissez-faire is usually associated with the economists known as Physiocrats, who flourished in France from about 1756 to 1778. The term laissez-faire means, in French, “allow to do.” I keep saying St. Maarten is a wild wild west.…
PHILIPSBURG — It’s Time SXM Foundation is proud to have been a sponsor of the Blue Etoile Carnival Troup. Through the continued strong commitment, dedication and sound planning of troupe leader Nathalie Parotte-Van Heyningen and section leader Rena Richardson, the Troup Blue Etoile has won the best senior troupe for the third consecutive time. Mr. Cloyd Ohndhae Marlin of Its Time SXM Foundation: “In light of our foundation’s drive to be a part and contributor of activities that enhance the development of our people, weather it be in sports, education, and of course cultural arts, it was an easy…
By Hilbert Haar The media accreditation policy the Department of Communication announced recently has local journalists up in arms. Good. They demand a meeting with the Council of Ministers to discuss their concerns and in the meantime they will not sign any consent-form. See related article: Journalists demand postponement of accreditation policy That last point is interesting, because the government wants to have the policy go into effect per May 1. Journalists who have not signed a consent-form – meaning that they agree with the conditions set forth in the policy – will not get access to the live Council…
WILLEMSTAD — “The Parliament of Curacao finds the draft consensus kingdom law COHO in its current form unacceptable,” the website dossierkoninkrijksrelaties.nl reports. But the motion to which the site refers says no such thing. It states that “negotiations must result in a cooperation that guarantees Curacao’s autonomy.” The parliament approved a motion about the COHO (Caribbean Organization for Reform and Development) on April 26 with 20 votes to one. Only Rennox Calmes (TPK – Trabou pa Kórsou) voted against. The motion does not reject the establishment of the COHO outright but it lists ten concerns that require “urgent attention.” In…
FESTIVAL VILLAGE — Calypso is back with King Beau Beau as the 2022 Senior Calypso finals winner. We might as well call him Commander Beau Beau because with his rousing calypso song called “Tribute to St. Maarten” Beau Beau appeared on stage in full navy regalia and gave a commanding performance that had the crowd on its feet in no time. The people got a boost of positivity tonight when King Beau Beau confessed we in St. Maarten are truly blessed. The man was put to the test in this calypso contest and he was declared the best. With 899…
By Hilbert Haar I don’t want to cause any trouble but this statement from the International Labor Organization (ILO) is too good to keep from the good citizens of St. Maarten and in particular from all those who have been, or will be, affected by the Kingdom’s insistence that government-owned companies cut the labor conditions of their staff by 12.5 percent in exchange for liquidity support. What’s going on here? The Dutch state demanded that the national airline KLM cut the labor conditions of its staff by 20 percent in exchange for financial support. The seven labor unions that represent…
By Hilbert Haar Member of Parliament Grisha Heyliger-Marten is sending mixed and confusing messages through her most recent letter to Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs. So maybe it is time to clarify a couple of things. What I get from MP Heyliger-Marten’s latest letter is that she opposes the establishment of the COHO, the Caribbean Organization for Reform and Development. That much, at least, is clear. What I do not understand is why she would still be interested, as she is now requesting from the government, in “a written overview and plan of action.” With regard to which trajectory she wants…
