~ St. Maarten’s underground economy has been grounded to a halt. StMaartenNews.com brings you an analysis ~ The current population of St. Maarten is 42,797 as of Tuesday, May 4, 2020, based on the latest United Nations estimates. The exact number may be twice as high. According to the Justice Department, one in two persons in St. Maarten is an undocumented immigrant who operates ‘underground’. COVID-19 is now forcing them to come out of the shadows. St. Maarten has, by far, the largest informal economy within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Unregistered businesses, craft workers, street and beach vendors, literally…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG – A little more than a week after some of them received help from some Good Samaritans, scores of Venezuelans on Dutch St. Maarten are without food still and begging for help. A group in Cay Hill wants to plead with Parliament for a temporary residence and work permit. “Please accept and help us for now.” Contrary to general belief, Venezuelans are not granted political asylum on the French side but are deported when caught by the gendarmerie. A group of Venezuelans in Philipsburg recall the story of Alfonso, who, after arriving at Grand Case airport, was arrested by…
~ BES-islands get subsidy to waive fixed tariffs ~ PHILIPSBURG – Saba Electric, the distributor of electricity in Saba, Statia and Bonaire has waived the fixed tariff for all customers until the end of the year. The Dutch government has granted the three islands a subsidy to make this possible. In St. Maarten, utilities company GEBE has not gone that way: it has instead lowered the fuel clause from $0.23 to $0.18 per kilowatt. The country’s National Energy Policy (April 2014) put the average electricity consumption at 1,500 kilowatts per month. Based on this number, the lower fuel clause will…
PHILIPSBURG – Utility customers on Saba, St. Eustatius and Bonaire are exempted from paying the fixed tariff for electricity and water until next year. The Dutch government has reduced the rate to zero to help the population of the islands meet their basic needs. The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the tourism-dependent economies of the three small islands. As part of an emergency relief package for the islands, the Dutch government has removed the fixed tariff. It gives all users an extra in the form of an amount equal to the connection tariff for water and electricity. This amount…
HARBOUR VIEW – Today, May 4, 2020, we observed 2 minutes of silence in remembrance of the men and women who gave their lives in the fight to protect our democracy and freedom during War and Peacekeeping Missions. Our yearly commemoration is a display of our appreciation for their sacrifices. And this year, it takes on even greater significance against the backdrop of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s commemoration comes at a time when our generation is called upon to help fight the global war against COVID-19. A war that has disrupted our lives and way of living in…
WILLEMSTAD – The government’s plan to impose a solidarity tax on all income above the ceiling for healthcare and accident insurance premium (5,781 guilders or $3,230) will have a negative effect on the economy of Curacao, the Central Bank for Curacao and Sint Maarten states in a press release. Minister Suzy Camelia-Römer announced the initiative on April 7. But the Central Bank has calculated that such a levy, at an assumed percentage of 10 percent, will generate at best 67 million guilders ($47.4 million). The bank’s interim-president, José Jardim, expects that Curacao’s economy will shrink by 18.9 percent (instead of…
PHILIPSBURG – After years of legal battles, the Timeshare Owners at Caravanserai Association (TOCA) has claimed victory over the Alegria Resort. The Supreme Court’s Attorney General Valk writes in his conclusion published on March 11 that the rights of the timeshare owners have to be respected. “The significant economic interests that are at stake for St. Maarten offering protection to timeshare-owners is obvious,” Valk wrote. The attorney general referred to the protection St. Maarten intends to offer to timeshare-owners in its Timeshare Ordinance. While the parliament has approved this legislation, the government has not ratified it yet. “The government can…
PHILIPSBURG — When it comes to crisis analysis in post-disaster situations, Clifford Illis is our go-to expert. After hurricane Irma in 2017, Illis’ analysis of the subsequent insurance crisis that unfolded and his detailed explanation of the ‘under-insurance’ phenomenon was a pivotal point in our understanding of the insurance business and the fact that insurance should be seen as a financial risk mitigating tool. Once again, StMaartenNews.com invited Clifford Illis to share his expertise. We asked for his analysis of the COVID-19 crisis and of the post-pandemic period that the island of St. Maarten will be facing. We were also…
Dear Editor, Thank you for allowing me space in your publication. On April 28, 2020, I read an article on the website StMaartenNews.com with the headline “MP Emmanuel: Legalize marijuana now”. While I am pleased to see this discussion taking place in Parliament, I have some concern with the manner in which this subject is being handled. There seems to be a misconception that simply legalizing this industry is a fool proof way for government to quickly make money. Yes there is tremendous economic potential, but if its not done responsibly there can be detrimental consequences. If the only focus…
PHILIPSBURG – Former Minister of Finance Michael Ferrier has expressed his displeasure with the attitude of the head of the labor department, Peggy Ann Dros towards the private sector. “To have a loud mouth constantly riling up employees against employers is unacceptable to me,” Ferrier wrote in a statement. “No civil servant, including the head of the labor department, ever worries where their next paycheck is coming from. In the private sector we do; we have to.” Ferrier also included the parliament’s president Rolando Brison in his criticism. Brison, in one of his livestreams, threatened the Maho Group of Companies…
