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MARIGOT:---The Movement for the Advancement of the People (MAP) will be replaced by a new political movement, this was concluded in a recent general assembly with party members, said Louis Mussington president of the MAP.
The party’s members gathered to discuss the political future of the party, and how best to prepare for the March 2017 collectivity elections.
“The MAP has lived its time, it time is to move on to something new,” said the political leader.
Founded in November 1996, the MAP made an impressive impact on the political landscape of the country by winning its first contested elections in March 1998 Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- On January 28, 2016 an article in the Daily Herald reported that effective immediately and due to a court ruling, which stated that the old resident and work permit issued to Exotic Dancers by the Sint Maarten Government amounted to “conspiracy in human slavery” according to international standards, no new permits would be issued to club owners.
The ruling basically says that the Sint Maarten government for decades has been involved as a conspirator in committing crimes in the area of human slavery Read more

Remember Emancipation,
When, Where and Why?
by His Excellency Governor E.B. Holiday
Delivered on the Occasion of the Observance of the
153rd anniversary of Emancipation Day

July 1, 2016
Emilio Wilson Estate,
Sint Maarten

My Fellow Sint Maarteners,
Good Afternoon,
And happy Emancipation Day. I say happy because today we celebrate a triumph of freedom, symbolizing an end of an unpleasant and the beginning of a new promising chapter in our history.
Since 2012, I have talked to you on various topics for Emancipation Day Read more

Fellow St. Maarteners,
Residents of our beloved island,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen.

Good afternoon.
As we gather here once again on these haloed grounds of the Emilio Wilson Park, with the flamboyant tree or July tree in full bloom, we should remember when this place was a plantation where, according to some accounts, One Tete Lokhay, that female freedom fighter of immortal memory, came ransacking for food to feed some of our enslaved ancestors she had helped escape into freedom.

We all know the price she had to pay for her courage and bravery: they cut off one of her breasts to deter others from following in her footsteps.

She may not have saved as many enslaved ancestors as Harriet Tubman did with the Underground Railroad, however, I'm sure like Tubman, she could have saved many more had they realized they were enslaved.

Emancipation is about freedom and freedom is the birthright of every human being Read more

Minister Silveria Jacobs Emancipation Day Address

Black National Anthem
"Lift every voice and sing Till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise, High as the list'ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.

Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us,
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.

Stony the road we trod, Bitter the chastening rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, Have not our weary feet Come to the place for which our fathers died

We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered, Out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way; Thou who has by Thy might Led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray.

Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee, Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forgot Thee, Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand, True to our God, true to our native land."
- James Weldon Johnson

Having learned this song as a young adult during Caribbean History, it touches my soul every time I hear it and I am reminded of the battle that was fought for freedom.
Today July 1st 2016 as we celebrate Emancipation Day for only the 5th time- I call on all people to remember the atrocities of the past, of how a people were enslaved and fought to be free, declared themselves free and today can say we have achieved what our ancestors have dreamed, prayed and fought for Read more

Minister Silveria Jacobs Emancipation Day Address

Black National Anthem
"Lift every voice and sing Till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise, High as the list'ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.

Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us,
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.

Stony the road we trod, Bitter the chastening rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, Have not our weary feet Come to the place for which our fathers died

We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered, Out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way; Thou who has by Thy might Led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray.

Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee, Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forgot Thee, Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand, True to our God, true to our native land."
- James Weldon Johnson

Having learned this song as a young adult during Caribbean History, it touches my soul every time I hear it and I am reminded of the battle that was fought for freedom.
Today July 1st 2016 as we celebrate Emancipation Day for only the 5th time- I call on all people to remember the atrocities of the past, of how a people were enslaved and fought to be free, declared themselves free and today can say we have achieved what our ancestors have dreamed, prayed and fought for Read more

Award And Promotion Day Ceremony At Mlk Primary

DUTCH QUARTER – The staff and students of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Primary School celebrated in grand style on Wednesday morning, June 29, during a special award and promotion day ceremony.

“I am so proud of the great strides our school continues to make notwithstanding the unique challenges we face at times. Also, I wish to thank the staff for their commitment and unwavering support,” remarked School Manager of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Primary School Stuart Johnson.

The Award and Promotion Day ceremony was to highlight student achievement in the areas of academics, sports, music and behavior.

Another highlight in the program was a gospel presentation by the G.I.F.T.E.D Foundation and a presentation by Community Police Officer Arcella Leonard.

“We hope today’s special ceremony shall inspire our students to continue excelling both inside and outside of the classroom Read more

Award And Promotion Day Ceremony At Mlk Primary

DUTCH QUARTER – The staff and students of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Primary School celebrated in grand style on Wednesday morning, June 29, during a special award and promotion day ceremony.

“I am so proud of the great strides our school continues to make notwithstanding the unique challenges we face at times. Also, I wish to thank the staff for their commitment and unwavering support,” remarked School Manager of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Primary School Stuart Johnson.

The Award and Promotion Day ceremony was to highlight student achievement in the areas of academics, sports, music and behavior.

Another highlight in the program was a gospel presentation by the G.I.F.T.E.D Foundation and a presentation by Community Police Officer Arcella Leonard.

“We hope today’s special ceremony shall inspire our students to continue excelling both inside and outside of the classroom Read more

Stuart Urged To Lead On Regional Integration And Liat

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – An Opposition parliamentarian is calling on Prime Minister Freundel Stuart to reassert Barbados’ position as a leader in the regional integration movement and help steer regional airline LIAT in the right direction.

The Barbados Labour Party (BLP) Member of Parliament for St Michael South East Santia Bradshaw made the call as she expressed concern about the increasing cost of intra-regional travel and the complaints about LIAT’s service and scheduling.

Barbados is the largest shareholder government in LIAT Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Minister of VROMI, The Honorable Angel Meyers, Ms. Chantale Groeneveldt, Executive Assistant for the Cabinet of the Minister VROMI, Claire Hooft Graafland, Senior Policy Advisor Nature and Environment VROM/Energy Expert and Olivia Lake, Policy Advisor Donor Coordination BAK/Representative of the Regional Authorizing Officer formed the St. Maarten delegation who attended the 2nd Summit of the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCT) Energy Ministers and side events in Brussels which took place from 14-15 June, 2016 Read more

GREAT BAY:--- On Tuesday, NAGICO Insurances; awarded six (6) students with a one year scholarship, from the Methodist Agogic Center MAC (Reverend John A Gumbs Campus located in Betty's Estate) under the NAGICO Little Stars Educational Program.
The students were the top achievers and overall the most outstanding students in their respective groups, ranging from groups 1-6 and were rewarded with a full scholarship for the next school year to cover their tuition, book list and school uniforms."We are very proud at NAGICO to be able to reward these students for their hard work throughout the school year," Lisa Brown; Marketing Manager of NAGICO Insurances said Read more

Mlk Host Award Ceremony

DUTCH QUARTER, St. Maarten -- The staff and students of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Primary School celebrated in grand style on Wednesday morning during a special award and promotion day ceremony.   "I am so proud of the great strides our school continues to make notwithstanding the unique challenges we face at times. Also, I wish to thank the staff for their commitment and unwavering support," remarked Stuart Johnson School Manager of Dr Read more

Nature Foundations Increases Sea Turtle Conservation Work

PHILIPSBURG – St. Maarten has recorded its first successful Sea Turtle nest of the 2016 Sea Turtle Nesting Season, with a successful nest being recorded at Gibbs Bay Beach recently.

The Foundation has also been collaborating with the University of Groningen (NL) and IMARES Wageningen UR (NL) on a Dutch Caribbean sea turtle project funded by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research in measuring and tagging green and hawksbill turtles foraging in the waters around St. Maarten.

“This project is a part of our work to conserve and protect these endangered species from extinction, and we hope that with the results we can conduct better management actions to ensure that these very important animals make a successful recovery,” commented Nature Foundation Manager Tadzio Bervoets.

Sea turtle population numbers have plummeted to dangerously low numbers throughout the past century due to human impacts, bringing many species close to extinction and causing them to be listed as critically endangered Read more

New Politicians Complete Good Governance Course

Party leaders Wycliffe Smith and Mercedes van der Waals-Wyatt show their certificates. Photo contributed

St. Maarten News – Party leaders, Mercedes “Elektra” van der Waals-Wyatt of Hope and Wycliffe Smith of Sint Maarten Christian Party, were part of the first graduating class of Scell’s good governance course offered by the University of St Read more

Up Party Was Abused And Trampled Upon Says Party President, Seeking Full Term In Office

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Returning President of the UP party Silvia Meyers stated this week that the UP party was abused and trampled upon.

She further stated that the party needs a full term in office, in order to prove themselves.

Her statement came in response to a question about the party’s track record in government Read more

14 Political Parties Registered To Contest September 26Th Elections

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Some 14 political parties, including the Democratic Party, the United People’s Party, the United St. Maarten Party and the National Alliance have registered at the Electoral Council as political organizations to contest the scheduled September 26th parliamentary elections.

Initially, there were some 15 parties to contest the elections; however, one party opted to drop out Read more

Government Said To Be Reviewing Proposed Election Ordinance

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - During its meeting on Thursday, June 23rd, the Parliament of St. Maarten dealt with the approval report on exchange of views with Dr. Julio Robelto Romney on the proposed Election Ordinance.

The proposal of Dr. Romney to amend the draft Election Ordinance was a point of discussion in the Parliament of St. Maarten in November of 2015 and again in January and March of this year, during a Central Committee meeting.

The proposal of Dr. Romney calls for amendments to be made to the legislation to correspond with the constitutional requirement of the proportional representation in article 47 section 1 of the constitution Read more

Meeting With School Bus Operators On Thursday

PHILIPSBURG – In the general interest and safety of students and the public, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports (MECYS) as well as the Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunication (TEATT) are of the opinion that all school bus activities must be regulated by law, and there must be certain binding agreements in place to ensure that all parties are aware of their rights and responsibilities.

Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports Silveria Jacobs, and on behalf of Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunication (TEATTT) Ingrid Arrindell are inviting all School Bus Operators to a meeting scheduled for June 30, at the Dr Read more

Meeting With School Bus Operators To Discuss The Draft School Bus Policy And Service Level Agreement To Be Held On Thursday

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - In the general interest and safety of students and the public both the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports (MECYS) as well as the Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunication (TEATT) are of the opinion that all school bus activities must be regulated by law and there must be certain binding agreements in place to ensure that all parties are aware of their rights and responsibilities.

The Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports (MECYS),Ms Read more

Meeting With School Bus Operators To Discuss The Draft School Bus Policy And Service Level Agreement To Be Held On Thursday.

PHILIPSBURG:--- In the general interest and safety of students and the public both the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports (MECYS) as well as the Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunication (TEATT) are of the opinion that all school bus activities must be regulated by law and there must be certain binding agreements in place to ensure that all parties are aware of their rights and responsibilities.

The Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports (MECYS), Ms Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- On Friday June 24th, 2016, the Foundation Catholic Education St. Maarten (SKOS)held its annual Commencement Ceremony for 158 students of group 8. The theme for the evening was “We are called to spread The Good News” The students were from the following schools: St. Joseph Primary School, Sr. Regina Primary School, Sr. Borgia Elementary School, Sr. Magda Primary School, Sr. Marie Laurence Primary School and the St. Dominic Primary School. The venue was at Port de Plaissance.
The Commencement Ceremony was opened with a word of welcome from the Executive Director of the Foundation Catholic Education St Read more

Rotary Mid-Isle Club Inducts Four New Paul Harris Fellows

COLE BAY--Rotary Club Mid-Isle inducted four new Paul Harris Fellows at its change of board dinner held on Saturday night in Melange restaurant at Princess Port de Plaisance. The new board is headed by Veronica Jansen-Webster.

Read more

Heyliger Calls On People ‘To Take Country Back’

~ Meyers-Olivacce reelected as party president ~

BELAIR--United People’s (UP) party Member of Parliament (MP) Theo Heyliger, thanking the people for their continued confidence in him at the party’s congress on Saturday, said: “It is time for us as a people to rise up and show that we want our country back Read more

C-Tec Announces Dates And Venue For 2016 Education Technology Conference

~More technology, more creativity, more local and international input~

PHILIPSBURG – The first installment of the Caribbean Technology and Education conference in 2015 was a resounding success. Building on that achievement, the C-TEC organizing committee proudly announced that the 2016 conference will take place in the Hillside Christian School (Asha Stevens Campus) and the adjoining NIPA building, October 23-25 Read more