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PHILIPSBURG:--- September 17th is allocated as the International Coastal Cleanup Day and Carnival Cruise Line’s vessel, Carnival Fascination gave back to the St. Maarten community via a beach cleanup.
Fourteen crew members of the Carnival Fascination volunteered their free time on the island to assist in cleaning Great Bay Beach from the Walter Plantz Square to the Great Bay Hotel parking lot on the internationally recognized day for coastal cleanups. The energized crew decided to enjoy a nice walk back to the ship alongside the Great Bay Beach after the cleanup.
Port Agent for Carnival Cruises, S.E.L Read more

Ospp Welcomes The Proposed Contributions That Can Be Derived From Pearl Of China; Questions Company’S Pedigree

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Questions as to the Pedigree of the New Life Town Investment and Development Ltd have been put forward by leader of the OSPP Leonard “Lenny” Priest, who states in a media release, “We are greatfull for the many proposed contributions we envision the Pearl of China Project will bring to the island, however we cannot help needing some reassurances from the responsible parties regarding the pedigree of this company Read more

Urgent Parliament Meeting Requested On Pearl Of China

PHILIPSBURG--An urgent public meeting of Parliament has been requested by three Members of Parliament about the Pearl of China project slated for the Belair beachfront.

The request comes two days after the symbolic ground-breaking, about three weeks following the announcement by Finance Minister Richard Gibson Sr. of the 326-room hotel with showroom and 450 executive apartments and less than a week before the September 26 Parliamentary election Read more

Mp Maurice Lake: Calls For Govt. To Treat Civil Servants Better

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — Member of Parliament Maurice Lake said St. Maarten is at a crossroad right now and Government has to start taking care of our local people and professionals such as the Fire Department, VKS, Casino Controllers, Prison Guards, cleaners, Immigration, Police and civil servants.

The sad part is they are not asking for much only to revise their “Functie Book” which includes their salary structure, safety, hiring of extra personnel and insurance Read more

Mp Marlin-Romeo: Request Made For Urgent Public Meeting Of Parliament About Pearl Of China Project

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – Member of Parliament (MP) Leona Marlin-Romeo on Monday stated that a request has been made to the Chair of Parliament to call an urgent public meeting regarding the Pearl of China project for Belair.

MP Marlin-Romeo said that there were too many questions out in the community that needed to be add Read more

Mp Maurice Lake: Calls For Govt. To Treat Civil Servants Better

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Member of Parliament Maurice Lake said St. Maarten is at a crossroad right now and Government has to start taking care of our local people and professionals such as the Fire Department, VKS, Casino Controllers, Prison Guards, cleaners, Immigration, Police and civil servants.

The sad part is they are not asking for much only to revise their “Functie Book” which includes their salary structure, safety, hiring of extra personnel and insurance Read more

“If getting St. Maarten a new hospital is against the law I am all the way behind it.’

PHILIPSBURG: --- The tripartite, consisting of the St. Maarten Medical Center, USZV, and the government of St. Maarten signed the Design, Build and Management contract with the contractor INSO on Monday. Among those at the ceremony were Prime Minister William Marlin, Minster of VSA Emil Lee, Kees Klarenbeek of SMMC and representatives of INSO.
Klareenbeek outlined the need for the new hospital which he said will provide more services which also included oncology and dialysis which is currently being offered at SMMC.
USZV Director Glen Carty said that finally, they have reached another step especially for USZV because the health insurance company pays approximately NAF20 to Naf 30M per year to other countries to provide health care for St Read more

Mullet Pond Listed As A Protected Ramsar Site Wetland Of International Importance

~ First Such Site for St. Maarten ~

MULLET BAY, Sint Maarten — One of Sint Maarten’s most important wetlands, Mullet Pond, has been listed and protected as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Treaty last week, marking a significant advancement in the conservation of wetland biodiversity on the island.

The Ramsar Convention, signed in Iran in 1971, is a global commitment to maintain the ecological character of global wetland areas, including in the wider Caribbean region.

The Nature Foundation, the VROMI Ministry, EPIC, the Department of Foreign Relations, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ramsar Europe Secretariat have been working for almost four years to have Mullet Pond listed as a Ramsar site of global importance;

“We have been working so hard for such a long time to first get the political commitment followed by the application process to get the area listed under the Ramsar Treaty Read more

Matser Believes In Economic Development For St. Maarten

PHILIPSBURG--Chairman of Parliament’s Committee of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transportation and Telecommunication (TEATT) independent Member of Parliament (MP) Silvio Matser says he has been working in collaboration with the TEATT Minister Read more

Gracita: Personal Invitation To All Political Party Leaders For “Blue Economy” Model Presentation On Tuesday

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten — “I have personally invited all political party leaders in St. Maarten to attend the presentation of Prof. Gunter Pauli on ‘The Blue Economy’ model for St. Maarten,” at Belair Community Center, Cay Hill, on Tuesday, September 20, at 8 PM, said Gracita Arrindell.

“Along with the open invitation to the public, this is a unique opportunity for everyone, regardless of political affiliation, sentiments or views, to hear about and even start practicing the economic model by Prof Read more

Frans: I Remain Hopeful, Confident In Future And People Of St. Maarten

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Member of Parliament and leader of the United St. Maarten (US) party Frans Richardson stated recently that he remains very hopeful in the future of St. Maarten primarily because he believes in the people of St. Maarten.

This belief he said, is not grounded in the typical political rhetoric, but in the fact that St Read more

Pearl Of China Fast Becoming An ‘Edifice Of Contempt’ – Smcp Calls For More Information-

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — The Sint Maarten Christian Party (SMCP) views with grave concern the groundbreaking ceremony for the Pearl of China project that took place on Saturday on the Belair Beach. While as a party we are not opposed to economic development nor sound investor relations, it is the right of the people to be adequately informed, prior to the launching of a project of such a large magnitude.

The government has yet to confirm whether any environmental impact assessments or carrying capacity studies were conducted. What are the long term ramifications of this project on government’s coffers? Where is the feasibility study to suggest how much revenue this development would generate for St Read more

Frans: I Remain Hopeful, Confident In Future And People Of St. Maarten

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — Member of Parliament and leader of the United St. Maarten (US) party Frans Richardson stated recently that he remains very hopeful in the future of St. Maarten primarily because he believes in the people of St. Maarten. This belief he said, is not grounded in the typical political rhetoric, but in the fact that St Read more

Helipad/Hospital Made Smaller, Put On Ground And Poses Major Risks

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten —New information brought to light on the present coalition government’s proposed design of the new medical centre has raised safety, regulatory and liability issues and in particular increases possible negative outcomes for emergency patients which Member of Parliament Dr Cornelius de Weever says must be brought to the public. He said In addition to the normal provisioning for patient handling and care considerations should be paramount to the hospital’s design.

With the dialysis center already been excluded from the design, this increases concerns as to whether the coalition government sought to cut corners in its bid to produce a hospital ahead of election to sway voter confidence their way Read more

Us Praise Reusable Bag Use, Says Frans Its Still Priority For Frans

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — The board of the United St. Maarten (US) party on Friday applauded the initiave by Le Grand Marché, Le Gourmet Marché, Carrefour Market and Prime Distributors Cash and Carry, to start switching from plastic bags to resusable shopping bags.

The board took the opportunity to remind the public that its leader, the Honorable Member of Parliament Frans Richardson, is the legislator that has championed the ban on plastic bags, tabled the legislation to get it done and continues to push for the use of reusable bags instead of plastic.

“Along with the Honorable MP Janchi Leonard, Frans is the only MP to consistently push this effort and will continue to call on all supermarkets to follow-suit, as well as ensure that the legislation is finalized Read more

Academy Hosts ‘Generation Hope’ Panel Discussion

CUL DE SAC, St. Maarten - St. Maarten Academy’s academic campus has taken the initiative to host a panel discussion with the representatives of the various political parties and high school students in the run-up to Parliamentary Elections.

The event, which takes place on Tuesday, September 20, 2016 under the theme, "Generation Hope; Our Future Leaders", will see an interactive discussion among the party representatives and students from the host school, Charlotte Brookson Academy, MAC Comprehensive High School, St Read more

Tapping Into The American Chinese Market More Sustainable And Realistic

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — Former Minister Claret Connor served as Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications (Ministry TEATT) as well as Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI).  Serving in both areas after being part of the United People’s (UP) Party short stint in Government from December 2014 to November 2015, allowed me to work on a number of important issues, projects and programs for the people of Sint Maarten.

The Chinese are investing all around the world.  They have shown interests in Sint Maarten since back in 2014 when I was a Minister. And the approach to this new market interest has been one of properly preparing our people to deal with a new and emerging tourist market.  Globally the Chinese tourism market is over 100 million annual travelers Read more

Mp Maurice Lake Lobbies For Sucker Garden Speedbumps

SUCKER GARDEN – The simple things make the biggest difference in a community and this is why independent Member of Parliament (MP) and United St. Maarten Party USP candidate Maurice Lake has taken the need for two speedbumps on Arch Road in Sucker Garden to VROMI Minister Angel Meyers. “Sucker Garden is a forgotten area which needs Government’s full attention to upgrade and beautify Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- Member of Parliament and leader of the United St. Maarten (US) party Frans Richardson stated recently that he remains very hopeful in the future of St. Maarten primarily because he believes in the people of St. Maarten. This belief he said, is not grounded in the typical political rhetoric, but in the fact that St. Maarteners “are a resilient people who always finds a way through.”
MP Richardson acknowledged that like everyone else, he feels the disappointment many people carry over what has happened politically since 10-10-10 Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- Veteran businessman Imran Macsood Amjad, did not mingle with words when he was asked if he is endorsing the Pearl Caribbean China. Amjad said NAGICO is the one who sold the investors the land where the China-Caribbean hub will be constructed, since the developers who had planned to construct a resort in that area had borrowed monies from NAGICO when the economy began going down, he said NAGICO acquired the land since it was given as gratuity for the load but since NAGICO is not in the business of building resorts or hotels, NAGICO sold the land when they were approached by the investors of Pearl Caribbean China Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- The developers of the Pearl Caribbean China held a forum at the Sonesta Great Bay Resort on Saturday morning prior to the groundbreaking ceremony which was held at Belair Beach. At the forum, the developers shared information about their company New Lifetown that have been doing in several countries such as Malaysia which generated a huge response, they also do business in South East Asia. The Chinese have placed lots of energy in creating the silk rope which enables them to conduct trade with several countries such as Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Netherlands where they have 500 projects and created 8,600 jobs Read more

Political Parties mostly involved in the peaceful protest at the groundbreaking site.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The chairman of New Lifetown Shuqiang Cui aka Trey called on the less than 50 persons that showed up at the Belair Beach where the groundbreaking ceremony for the Pearl Caribbean China was taking place Saturday afternoon to put their hands together and join them as they seek to develop St. Maarten and its economy with the Pearl Caribbean China Resort that will be constructed in Belair.
At Belair beach the protestors with no more than 50 persons bearing placards included the leader of the St Read more

Court Reinforced With Three Criminal Judges

PHILIPSBURG--Three new judges were officially installed during an extraordinary sitting of the Joint Court of Justice at the Courthouse on Friday. An audience consisting of Acting Governor Reynold Groeneveldt, Minister of Finance and Acting Minister of Justice Richard Gibson, officials of the Court, the Prosecutor’s Office, the Police Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- The board of the United St. Maarten (US) party on Friday applauded the initiative by Le Grand Marché, Le Gourmet Marché, Carrefour Market and Prime Distributors Cash and Carry, to start switching from plastic bags to reusable shopping bags.

The board took the opportunity to remind the public that its leader, the Honorable Member of Parliament Frans Richardson, is the legislator that has championed the ban on plastic bags, tabled the legislation to get it done and continues to push for the use of reusable bags instead of plastic.

"Along with the Honorable MP Janchi Leonard, Frans is the only MP to consistently push this effort and will continue to call on all supermarkets to follow suit, as well as ensure that the legislation is finalized Read more