By Hilbert Haar It’s been two years since I left St. Maarten. Yeah, I left because I never wanted to experience another hurricane again, so if you want to interpret that as a lack of stamina that’s just fine with me; I don’t care. But while I have left the island, the island has never really left me. That’s probably because I spent a significant part of my professional career there – more than ten years. Among all the places where I have lived during the past seven decades, St. Maarten will always remain very special. The other day, traveling…
Author: The Publisher
By ir. Damien Richardson Actions speak louder than words. It is pivotal to use Caribbean data as a new communication tool to let leisure and opportunities lead to new regional ventures. The Caribbean should begin executing a regional vision and encourage the diaspora to collaborate and invest in a joint vision. A united vision can be expressed in three key aspects. Firstly, it is a privilege and benefit to enjoy being home in the Caribbean. Secondly, taking comfort in the fact that there are ample opportunities available to live and grow these cultural advancements and attributes in a sustainable and…
PHILIPSBURG — APAP, Association of Psychologists and Allied Professionals St.Maarten, would like to inform the general public that the private Psychological Practices of APAP members are available and currently offering their services online and/or by phone. “We have noticed that in general in the last years, an increase in request for psychological support and treatment has been seen.” their press release stated. With the COVID-19 worldwide situation, and the current preventive measurements taken on St.Maarten, APAP would like to ensure that the psychological professionals are available and discussed the options with their relevant members. “Online therapy has been proven to…
OYSTER POND — The police patrol was sent on several occasions to the border in Oyster Pond for person’s who were breaching the border crossing without permission, the police said on Wednesday evening. It appears that residents of both sides of the island were taking the opportunity to cross the closed border in the afternoon hours knowing that it’s not being controlled 24/7. Later in the afternoon, the police patrol fined four persons who were caught breaching the border crossing. A car that was parked was also towed away from the border when the police became aware that the owner…
PHILIPSBURG – 48 mariniers die afgelopen vrijdag aan boord van het marineschip Zr.Ms. Karel Doorman naar St. Maarten kwamen, worden vanaf vandaag ingezet bij de bewaking van grenzen en handhaving van de openbare orde op St. Maarten. “De mariniers zijn allemaal negatief getest op het coronavirus. Zij hebben de verplichte veertien dagen quarantaine erop zitten,” zegt Canan Babayigit, woordvoerster van Defensie in het Caribisch gebied. De elf dagen durende reis van Den Helder naar St. Maarten gold als quarantaine. Na aankomst in St. Maarten moesten de mariniers nog drie dagen in quarantaine blijven om de veertien dagen vol te maken.…
PHILIPSBURG – 48 Marines who boarded the naval vessel Zr.Ms. Karel Doorman came to St. Maarten, as of today they will be deployed in guarding borders and maintaining public order in St. Maarten. “The Marines have all been tested negative for the corona virus. They have completed the mandatory 14-day quarantine,” says Canan Babayigit, Defense spokesperson for the Caribbean. The eleven-day journey from Den Helder to St. Maarten was regarded as quarantine. After arriving in St. Maarten, the Marines had to remain in quarantine for three days to complete the fortnight. “The mission is well prepared medically,” says Babayigit. “We…
GREAT BAY—- NAGICO Insurances made a donation of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) yesterday to the Justice Department as we continue to battle the Coronavirus pandemic. The equipment provided included hundreds of surgical masks, N95 masks, gloves and face shields which will be distributed among the Immigration, Customs, Prison and Police Departments. “This is an unprecedented situation,” Eric Ellis, Managing Director of NAGICO Insurances said. “Our first responders continue to work daily to help us with the first phase of controlling the spread and eradicating the virus so that we can all gain some level of normalcy again. It is therefore…
PHILIPSBURG – Reluctantly, Parliament accepted a motion tabled by National Alliance MP Ludmilla Duncan to cut salaries of parliamentarians and ministers, while it rejected a further-reaching motion with the same objective, tabled by the Party for Progress. However, the parliament approved the 2020 budget without including any paycuts. Duncan’s motion asks the minister of finance for “a comprehensive approach to cost-cutting measures within fifteen days.” It furthermore asks to reduce the salaries of parliamentarians and ministers by 5 percent for a period of six months and to reduce material costs at the Council of Ministers and the Parliament by 20…
PHILIPSBURG – “The Central bank of Curacao and Sint Maarten has not done near enough to assist the people of St. Maarten,” chairman of parliament MP Rolando Brison said during the meeting of parliament about the 2020 budget. “It is crucial that they come through now.” Brison reacted to the criticism he received over his letter to Central Bank president José Jardim in which he pushed for action within two weeks to help soften the blow of the COVID-19 crisis for St. Maarten. Brison said that the Central Bank does most of the work for putting together the budget of…
PHILIPSBURG – Ten thousand people in St. Maarten are smoking marijuana and they spend $20 to $30 a day on it, MP Christophe Emmanuel said during his plea for legalizing the soft drug the budget debate. If Emmanuel’s numbers reflect reality this would mean that ganja-users spend between $600 and $900 a month on marijuana. The current monthly minimum wage on the island is around $845. Consumption for all users on an annual basis would be between $73 million and $109.5 million if the parliamentarian’s numbers check out. “Legalize it now, he said, holding up a sheet from an exercise…
