PHILIPSBURG — State Secretary Drs. Raymond Knops (Kingdom Relations) is at the center of a controversy after the Dutch newspaper NRC reported that he used the services of civil servants to solve a private issue. Four members of parliament have asked Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Minister Kajsa Ollengren (Home Affairs) questions about this issue, wondering whether Knops can still function as “Mister Good Governance” towards the Kingdom’s Caribbean countries. In 2010 Knops bought a parcel of land in the municipality Horst aan de Maas in the province of Limburg. He paid for 750 square meters but when the Cadastre…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG — Saba and Statia have jointly selected Anguilla-based Blues and Blues as the preferred operator of a ferry connection between the two islands, St. Maarten and St. Kitts. The service could be operational as early as November 1, the two public entities announced in a press release. Parties are still working on the details of a Public Service Obligation (PSO)-agreement. As soon as this process is completed, the service is good to go. The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management subsidizes the first two years of the ferry-service with an amount of €2 million ($2.35 million). Blues and…
PHILIPSBURG — Banco di Caribe has been sold to the Curacao-based United Group Holdings for an undisclosed amount of cash, the Central Bank of Curacao and St. Maarten (CBCS) announced in a press release. The Central Bank of Aruba was quick to react with a press release of its own, claiming that obtaining a direct or indirect interest in Banco di Caribe Aruba requires the approval from the Central Bank of Aruba. Article 17 of the national ordinance supervision credit systems prohibits private citizens and legal entities to obtain a qualified participation in a credit institution without prior approval from…
THE HAGUE — Outgoing Minister of Foreign Affairs Sigrid Kaag stepped down in the night from Wednesday to Thursday after a majority of the Dutch parliament supported a motion of disapproval against her because of the messy evacuation of embassy staff and Afghans from Afghanistan. Kaag stays on as faction- and party-leader for D66. The motion obtained a majority because coalition-partner Christian Union (CU) voted in favor. In the negotiations about the formation of a new government, Kaag has steadfastly refused to take part in an administration with the CU. In June, she compared the CU to “a rusty car”,…
PHILIPSBURG — The Association of St. Maarten Penal Law Scholars has approached Minister of Justice Anna Richardson with questions about the deployment of Curacao-based prosecutors, judges, judges of instruction, registrars and police officers that are associate with the TBO (Team Bestrijding Ondermijning) – the anti-corruption task force. The association’s chairman Cor Merx, secretary Safira Ibrahim and treasurer A. Richardson wonder whether the minister and the parliament are aware of the organization and whether TBO-staff operates in St. Maarten with or without the minister’s permission. “It is every time a mystery which crimes fall under undermining criminality but you can be…
PHILIPSBURG — Close to 4,000 infections, 183 people hospitalized and 57 deaths. Governor Drs. Eugène Holiday thus summarized the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the community of St. Maarten during his speech at the opening of the new parliamentary year on Tuesday. Of the 57 citizens who passed away, 29 died since June of this year. The Governor’s address outlines the Government’s response to the crisis and its policy plans for the coming year. Combating the pandemic’s impact is obviously at the top of the list. Economic activity dropped by 24 percent in 2020, the Governor said. The result…
PHILIPSBURG — With recent media reports indicating that 25 persons have been granted long-lease land in the so-called Vineyard Heights area of Over The Bank, Party for Progress (PFP) Member of Parliament (MP) Raeyhon Peterson submitted questions to Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (VROMI) Egbert J. Doran on Wednesday to seek clarity about the developments. According to the reports, approximately 50 persons were awarded parcels of long-lease land in the area in 2016, and received draft Ministerial Decrees from the VROMI Ministry that advised them to approach the Kadaster’s Office for certificates of admeasurement. Now this…
WILLEMSTAD — By maintaining that marriage is only possible between a man and a woman is unlawful and in doing so, the government of Curacao violates article 3 of the constitution (the equality-principle), the Court in First Instance ruled on Monday. Two women who live in Willemstad and who want to solidify their 10-year long relationship with marriage initiated the lawsuit against the country, supported by the Curacao-based Human Rights Caribbean Foundation. Article 1:30 of the civil code states that marriage can only exist between a man and a woman. This is at odds with article 3 of the constitution:…
PHILIPSBURG — On Saturday, September 11th, 2021, a group of taxi drivers representing the Dutch St. Maarten Taxi Association, Airport Taxi Association and Down Town Taxi Association came out to help clean up the Harold Jack lookout point that is frequented by the island’s visitors and used as a stop on tours. Amongst the rubbish many face masks, plastic bags, glass bottles, napkins, foam food containers, cardboard boxes and some hurricane debris from Irma were removed. It took two dumpster loads and three trucks to haul away the amount of rubbish that the taxi drivers were able to collect. Unfortunately,…
GREAT BAY, Sint Maarten (DCOMM) – NV GEBE and their two (2) remaining members of the Supervisory Board of Directors lost both of the cases they filed against Country Sint Maarten on Friday, September 10th, 2021, the Cabinet of the Ministry of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Planning, and Infrastructure (Ministry of VROMI), said on Friday. The Shareholder will continue to address the current situation within NV GEBE. The first injunction case was deemed inadmissible because the plaintiffs did not take the right entity to court which should have been NV GEBE and not Country Sint Maarten. The claims in the…
