SIMPSON BAY--Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams says she is personally against the construction of a ship pier in Simpson Bay. A pier was presented in the draft zoning plan to residents for the second time by the Infrastructure Ministry. She called on residents to voice their concerns against any such project. "I personally do not think any pier should come there and that is my personal opinion....
PHILIPSBURG--Former GEBE Managing Director Julius Lambert passed away at home on Saturday, March 15. He was 67. Although he was involved in his community on various levels, including as part of the Emilio Wilson Estate managing team, Lambert will be remembered primarily for his legacy at GEBE, built over three decades of service. Since his retirement as GEBE Managing Director at age 60, Lambert made...
THE HAGUE--The Health Care Insurance Office ZVK arranged more than 7,000 medical referrals for patients in Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba in 2013. The majority of the referrals were to Aruba, Curaçao, Colombia and the Netherlands, stated Dutch Minister of Public Health, Wellbeing and Sports Edith Schippers in a letter to the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament on Thursday. The minister did so...
PHILIPSBURG--As of Sunday, March 16, the price of unleaded gasoline will increase while the price of diesel will decrease. Unleaded gasoline will increase from NAf. 2.401 cents per litre to NAf. 2.526 cents per litre. Diesel will decrease to NAf. 2.198 per litre from NAf. 2.205 per litre. ...
~ For Household Listing Survey ~ PELICAN-- The Department of Statistics STAT would like to invite the residents of Pelican and Billy Folly to an interview drive in connection with the Household Listing Survey currently ongoing. The interview drive is today, Saturday from 10:00am to 4:00pm at the Simpson Bay Community Centre in Simpson Bay next to the basketball court in the vicinity of the cemetery....
PHILIPSBURG--Two suspects were sent home by the Prosecution Service last week because of overcrowding in the Pointe Blanche prison. The prison is being rebuilt wing by wing and 30 fewer detention places are available as a result. The suspects who were sent home are D.R., suspected of firearm possession, and M.H.K., suspected of human smuggling. The two suspects had been in pre-trial detention and...
COLE BAY--Newly appointed Attorney-General Guus Schram (45) visited St. Maarten for the first time this week. He is the new chief of the Prosecutor's Offices in Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten, and of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba. As per February 1, Schram replaced Dick Piar who went on pension. After attending Sunday's closing party of the Heineken Regatta, Schram held talks with Governor Eugene...
POINTE BLANCHE--A man was shot in the leg on Wednesday in Pointe Blanche, a police report states. The shooting incident took place around 8:00pm at a bar located on Juancho Yrausquin Boulevard opposite Sol Gas Station in Pointe Blanche. According to the victim, he was standing in front of the bar when a man he knows and with whom he had problems in the past, drove up in a car and fired two shots at...
PHILIPSBURG--For the second consecutive year the St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) is forced to cancel the Senior Road March competition due to lack of cooperation from the singers, despite the efforts of the SCDF to wait until March, two weeks before the event is scheduled to be held. Last year, the competition was also cancelled in December when there were not enough registrants...
SABA/ST. EUSTATIUS--The Court of First Instance of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba on Wednesday rejected the claim filed by citizens of these three islands for payment of the old age pension AOV to be equal to the AOW pension in the European Netherlands. The three administrative lawsuits against the Minister of Social Affairs and Employment were heard by the Court in Bonaire. The cases were filed...
PHILIPSBURG--Home away from Home – Taking care of the Golden Age Foundation organised its second annual stroll for senior citizens yesterday in collaboration with St. Maarten Vocational Training School (SMVTS). The stroll saw a large group of senior citizens enjoying a walk through central Philipsburg, assisted by SMVTS students. Wheelchairs were made available for the walk, to which all senior citizens...
PHILIPSBURG--Minister Dennis Richardson, St. Maarten's Shareholder Representative for United Telecommunication Services (UTS) has sent his counterpart in Curaçao, Minister Earl Balborda, a letter in which the government of St. Maarten expresses its preference to swap its shares in the company for control of UTS Eastern Caribbean. Presumably the latter then would be merged with the TelEm Group of Companies,...
~ Live in isolation, lack social support ~ PHILIPSBURG--The findings of an extensive research into the needs of the elderly conducted by the Department of Social Development paints a grim picture of the living situation of senior citizens in St. Maarten. A total of 366 elderly persons (above age 60) and 25 organisations that provide services to the elderly participated in the research, which was carried...
~ PvdA to agree to revised law proposal ~ THE HAGUE--The Dutch Labour Party PvdA is willing to give its consent to a law that will specifically regulate the residency of deprived, poorly educated, criminal persons from Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten in the Netherlands and not target all new immigrants from the islands. This means that there will be majority support if the law proposal's initiative-taker...
PHILIPSBURG--New fees for temporary and permanent residence permits and other related declarations will come into effect soon. Immigration and Border Protection (IBP) Service Director Geronimo Juliet has announced that with the ratification of the National Ordinance of January 30, 2014, amending the National Ordinance on Admission and Expulsion and the Fee Ordinance (AB 2014, no.23), the new fees...
THE HAGUE--Children’s rights and economic cooperation will head the agenda of the upcoming Kingdom Conference in Aruba on April 2. The Dutch government considers these two topics of importance to discuss with the overseas partners, countries Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten. Representing the Dutch government at this conference will be Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk along...
~ Wants investigation into Marlin's actions ~ PHILIPSBURG--The agreement to purchase a substantial part of Industry and Golden Rock Plantations, commonly called Emilio Wilson Estate (EWE), for some US $17 million was signed by Infrastructure and Environmental Affairs Minister Maurice Lake on Tuesday in keeping with the court order for government to do so or face stiff financial penalties. He signed...
POINTE BLANCHE--The Port of St. Maarten is attending Cruise Shipping Miami 2014 at the Miami Beach Convention Center, the thirtieth anniversary edition of the cruise industry's premier annual event, set for March 10-13. St. Maarten Harbour Group of Companies Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mark Mingo was invited to be a panellist on Monday morning for the session, "How Can Destinations and Ports Maximize...
POINTE BLANCHE--A forty-year-old man from Jamaica was arrested yesterday morning after attempting to rob a man at Sol Gas station on Juancho Yrausquin Boulevard whilst armed with a knife. The police were called to the gas station around 11:00am on Monday. On the scene they spoke to the victim who stated that he was attacked by a man with a knife who tried to rob him of his bag. After the victim resisted...
PHILIPSBURG--Seventeen undocumented Haitian immigrants were greeted by the Immigration Service, Customs and the Coast Guard on attempting to enter St. Maarten without visas on Saturday. It is believed their transportation was arranged at same time as the regatta so their entry on the island might go unnoticed. The Coast Guard initially received an emergency call from a ship some 50 miles off the coast...