PHILIPSBURG – The dump on Pond Island was on fire again for the past couple of days. On Saturday the fire seemed to intensify and these was no visible action to douse it. A heavy cloud of poisonous smoke drifted towards town and according to one observation, it even reached the hospital in Cay Hill. The outgoing government prided itself in having put a stop to the dump fires, saying that increased security at the site had prevented people from setting fires at the location. Photo Hilbert Haar
Author: The Publisher
Once upon a time there was a sleepy salt blasted mosquito ridden island called Soualiga or Qualichi by the Caribs and more recently dubbed Sunshine City by the DJs of Voice of St. Martin. This island‘s history, though not written anywhere for posterity, is proudly told by our elders who witnessed and could relate to the metamorphosis of our lovely island. While the greater Caribbean was into agriculture on a large scale, we mainly subsisted on backyard gardens and fishing. Our main economic activity was the remittances sent from abroad to support family at home. Our people like so many…
Dear All, I write these words with a heavy heart. The destructive damage caused by Irma has affected us all. Our country and communities have come together to help each other. I have seen feuding neighbors set aside their differences to work together. The theme of Sint Maarten is people helping people. The powerful force of Hurricane Irma has affected each and every one of us. Many of us have lost our homes, cars, loved ones and mental balance. I believe that we as a nation can recover, rebuild and restore the island to it’s former beauty. There are currently…
by Cdr. Bud Slabbaert Would female leadership change the Caribbean? Most likely it will! It is all about the characteristics of how the members of the male and female gender have a different way of approaching a task, a challenge, or stress. Women leaders take care, whereas men leaders take charge. Researchers suggest that the vital difference might all come down to one gene that only men have, called the SRY gene. According to scientists it is demonstrated in the men’s response to stress with ‘Fight-Or-Flight’, while women ‘Tend-And-Befriend’. While men favor punching or running away, women are more likely…
PHILIPSBURG – Hurricane Irma destroyed St. Maarten, caused economic uncertainty and disrupted the community, Rik Haverman reports on Caribisch Netwerk. St. Maarten was also a favored spot for interns and they created employment. The number of interns that wants to go to St. Maarten is now declining, but some science and engineering students also see opportunities. According to Georgette Berghuis-Leutscher, owner of the only internship bureau on the island, the number of requests for internships is declining sharply. Before Irma she had around 120 requests per year; in 2018 she expects to place no more than 60 interns. “The commercial-touristic…
Simpson Bay – The Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) will soon erect two big, air-conditioned tents that is intended to better accommodate the passengers and other users of the facility temporarily, until the Terminal Building can be restored to its pre-Hurricane Irma state. “We are aware of the fact that passengers and other users of the airport facilities would like to return as quickly as possible to experience the award-winning service we offered before Hurricane Irma struck. We appreciate their patience and we will soon set up the tents, to further make passenger flow easier and more comfortable, particularly during…
When you have deep pockets, you can use your money to pester anyone and everyone with court cases, because even if you lose the court case, the financial and psychological impact on your opponent is great enough for you to ultimately win. So what if you lose the battle, you will win the war, right? That is what is going on at Alegria Resort. The resort pester anyone and everyone in courts who is on, linked to or affiliated with its property, and eventhough it loses court case after court case, it winds up chasing most of these people off…
PHILIPSBURG – “The term binding advice is an oxymoron.” UP-MP Franklin Meyers said on Friday during a debate in the central committee of Parliament about the draft national ordinance Integrity Chamber. “An advice is an advice and it is up to the Council of Ministers to adhere to it or not. If it is binding it should be called an instruction.” The debate in Parliament lasted about 2.5 hours. Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs, Rafael Boasman, walked the Parliament through the history of the Integrity Chamber legislation, ending with a remark about the negative advice that came back…
By Hilbert Haar Local politicians are – for the most part – playing nice with the draft national ordinance Integrity Chamber. That institution has to be established sooner rather than later and with the Dutch demand to make this a condition for the release of a 550 million recovery fund, the matter has become rather urgent. That Parliament will approve the law is already a done deal, even though – as USp-MP Frans Richardson pointed out on Friday – most parliamentarians haven’t even read the 90-page document that contains all the details about the legislation. Richardson noted that at least…
CAY HILL — On Thursday, December 7th, at approximately 4:50pm the Police Traffic Department was called to investigate a traffic accident that occurred. A police vehicle traveling down the hill on A.J.C Brouwers Road with sirens on, transporting a suspect, collided with a red quad traveling up the hill behind a grey van. Driver of the grey van pulled to the extreme right to allow the police vehicle to pass. The driver of the quad who did not hear the sirens, started to pass the grey van and collided with the police vehicle. The driver of the quad got…
