By Tom Clifford It should be a matter of plain sailing. Cruise ships are in port. Shops are offering their wares to the passengers along Front Street in Philipsburg. But the cash tills, or their equivalent in the electronic age, are not jingling. “The November shopping season is just beginning,’’ says Miguel from La Casa del Habano, a cigar shop located on Cyrus Wathey Square between Boardwalk and Front Street. After an admittedly slow start he is confident ‘’it will get better.’’ The shop, with two shifts, is open from 10am to 11pm. ‘’It’s generally tourists in the day and…
Author: The Publisher
Philipsburg, St. Maarten — November 6, 2026 StMaartenNews.com is proud to announce the addition of seasoned international journalist Tom Clifford to its editorial team as reporter, writer, and columnist. With over four decades of experience covering some of the most defining events in modern history, Clifford brings a world-class perspective to St. Maarten’s leading online news platform. Tom Clifford’s distinguished career has taken him across continents and through historic turning points. He has reported on the fall of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, the Gulf War, post-apartheid South Africa, the Hong Kong handover, the US invasion of Iraq, and the…
By Terrance Rey – Publisher, StMaartenNews.com In today’s digital economy, the most valuable property you can own might not be measured in square meters, but in characters. Domain names — those short, memorable web addresses that form the backbone of the internet — have become the modern equivalent of beachfront real estate. Just as land was once the foundation of wealth and influence, digital land — in the form of domain names — is now the foundation of online authority, visibility, and economic opportunity. The Rise of the Digital Land Rush When the internet first opened to the public, visionary…
Den Haag – De nieuwe fractie van D66 heeft Heera Dijk gekozen tot woordvoerder Koninkrijksrelaties. “Een verjaardagscadeau”, want ze viert vandaag haar 46ste verjaardag. Volgens het nieuwsbericht op Koninkrijkrelaties.nl. Dijk haalde het Kamerlidmaatschap vorige week woensdag als de nummer 18 op de kandidatenlijst van D66 ruimschoots binnen. Haar partij kwam als de grote winnaar – met 26 zetels – uit de bus. Ook op Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, Sint Maarten en Saba kregen de democraten de meeste stemmen. Bij haar gesprekken deze zomer met de selectiecommissie heeft ze meteen kenbaar gemaakt graag de portefeuille Koninkrijksrelaties te willen. “Ik ben heel blij…
By Tom Clifford Walking from Nettle Bay to Marigot requires a dexterity of step, more associated with a disco dancer than a rambler, to avoid a sting or two from lurking nettles. Those feisty plants have, at first glance, an almost down-at-heel appearance. Drooping leaves and not much of a sheen evoke an almost apologetic countenance. The grass verge, where they reside to catch the unwary by surprise, also requires a sense of balance to prevent stumbles that would elicit a much more serious consequence onto the busy road. It is not unusual to see cement mixers or large trucks…
By Tom Clifford Some wizened sage said, or should have said, centuries ago that if a man ever doubted his contribution to society he should take heart from the humble mosquito. That a creature so small could have such an impact is something to both admire and feel annoyed by. That thought came to mind after I applied the anti-scratch ointment for the umpteenth time one recent morning. My leg is beginning to look like a pin cushion. As I write, I am looking out at a view that would inspire artists. The waves lap, as they should, the sand…
By Hilbert Haar Democracy does not magically appear; you have to work for it, or, as the saying goes, if everybody plays by the rules, democracy works. Unfortunately, democracy is under pressure, not only in the United States but elsewhere in the world as well. The alternative is right around the corner: fascism. Fascists ignore the constitution; they ridicule science and the independence of the judicial system, and they smother journalism and freedom of expression. Fair trials? Forget it. Though I have not cast a vote in more than thirty years, I am a democrat at heart, even though I…
PHILIPSBURG — If the government implements and enforces rules, the government should also stick to the rules, the Law Enforcement Council states in its fourth report in six years about the management of St. Maarten’s Crime Fund. That is not happening: the government and the responsible ministry of justice have been dragging their feet for years when it comes to executing five recommendations from the Council. It is therefore not surprising that the Council is threatening with measures. If the structural non-compliance with its recommendations continues it will inform the Dutch Representative of the Kingdom in St. Maarten and the…
WILLEMSTAD — Judge Mauritsz de Kort is per November 4, 2025, the new Governor of Curacao. He succeeds Lucille George-Wout. His 6-year term can be extended once. Ruthsella Agueda Jansen has been appointed as deputy governor. She succeeds Michèle Russel-Capriles, whose term ended on September 1, 2025. De Kort (51) is Curacao’s youngest governor since the island became an autonomous country within the kingdom the Netherlands on October 10, 2010. De Kort was born in Oranjestad, Aruba, in 1973. He attended VWO at the Colegio Arubano, and HEAO in Arnhem. He then went on to study law at Leiden University…
PHILIPSBURG — The Court in First Instance brought down the hammer on former politician Theo Heyliger with a verdict that orders him to pay project developer Zebec $92.1 million for his role in pushing the company out of the Dutch Village project at the harbor cruise facilities. The court denied Zebec’s claim against other parties: the St. Maarten Dutch Quarter Development Company (SMDQC), Danny Ramchandani, Peter Murpuri, and Ocean Drive Properties. But Heyliger, who is already imprisoned for bribery, is the sole loser in this procedure that has by now lasted more than three years. The court ruled that Zebec…
