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Minister Lake Says Public Housing Needs To Be Restructured By Holding Those Accountable For Lack Of Action

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (Ministry of VROMI) Hon. Maurice Lake, says the current functioning of the St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation (SMHDF) leaves a lot to be desired and needs to be restructured.

"I have been able for the past 12 months to meet with the board and management of SMHDF, but there hasn't been any change coming for the tenants Read more

Theo: Dp Only Interested In Piggy-Backing, Not Governing

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten — Leader of the United People (UP) party Theo Heyliger on Wednesday asked the general public to ask themselves a very important question: What kind of political party chooses to contest an election and says it doesn't want to win which means it has no interest in governing and doing good by the people? The answer, Heyliger said, is the Democratic Party of St Read more

Up Invites The People North And South To Second Public Meeting On Thursday In Dutch Quarter

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – The United People's party (UP) will kick off its second out of six scheduled public meetings on Thursday, August 7 in Dutch Quarter at the Plantz property near the Mc. Donald's establishment at 7:00pm.

Party leader Theo Heyliger as well as the candidates of the < Read more

Social Affairs Minister Not Pleased With Vromi Minister

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Minister in charge of Health, Social Affairs and Labor, the Honorable Cornelius de Weever has lashed out at Minister with the responsibility for VROMI; the Honorable Maurice Lake for what he says was meddling with matters pertaining to his ministry.

Minister de Weever who was at the time speaking at the weekly Council of Ministers press briefing on Wednesday, also providing an update to the media regarding the recent fire in St Read more

Crime meeting stalled due to lack of quorum

PHILIPSBURG--Tuesday's Central Committee of Parliament meeting about the crime situation in the country was stalled due to a lack of quorum. Only three fractions – National Alliance (NA), United People's (UP) people, and independent Member of Parliament Patrick Illidge – were present for the meeting with Justice Minister Dennis Richardson and the top brass of the police force.

Parliament has seven fractions thus representatives of at least four fractions are requested for a Central Committee meeting to take place.

The meeting in Parliament House was scheduled to start at 10:00am Read more

Woman mauled to death by pit bulls

LAMAHA SPRINGS, Guyana--Joan Carter (51) died Tuesday, August 5, after she was viciously attacked by two pit bulls at her Lamaha Springs home.

The woman's brother-in-law Leslie Thomside told iNews he found her dead on her knees at the door of the apartment. Thomside is now considering "putting the dogs down" even though they pose no threat to him or his wife [Carter's sister – Ed.] and serve as a form of security for them.

Thomside explained that his sister-in-law would be in the dogs' company whenever he or his wife is at home Read more

Argentina rights activist will meet kidnapped grandson after 36 years

BUENOS AIRES--A leading human rights activist in Argentina will finally meet the grandson torn from her family 36 years ago when he was kidnapped by agents of the country's right-wing dictatorship.

Guido was born in 1978 to an imprisoned mother who was executed shortly afterwards by the junta that ruled the South American country from 1976 to 1983, in a case that has come to symbolize the struggle of families riven by the U.S.-backed dictatorship.

The junta ordered that hundreds of children of assassinated leftists be handed over to families more sympathetic to the dictatorship Read more

Draft law to prevent youth criminal behaviour soon

PHILIPSBURG--A draft law regulating methods of social reform for youngsters will soon be before Parliament. The law will pertain to youth who have had a brush with crime and those who may be at risk for criminal behaviour and may fall through the cracks of society. The law will outline opportunities for them to receive training and support.

The Ministry of Justice is working on the draft law to regulate a "Social Formation Programme" for youngsters ages 16 to 20.

President of Parliament Gracita Arrindell said she requested the cooperation of Justice Minister Dennis Richardson earlier this year to work on this programme.

"An important aspect of this formation programme is the cooperation of the Ministry of Justice, police, the Voluntary Corps St Read more

style="text-align: center;">Development of Human Resources, Thinking Schools, Education in Nation Building, Education Reform, and Tertiary Education Pillars of DP Education Platform

PHILIPSBURG:--- On Monday the Democratic Party of St. Maarten presented its Party Platform on Education to the people of St. Maarten. The Democratic Party's vision for education is predicated on the belief that the development of our human resources is vital to the economic development of our island Read more

style="text-align: center;">"In order to achieve a safe nation, we need to focus on education, foster care, youth facilities, and work training to stop the cycle of crime before it starts."

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Democratic Party of St. Maarten outlined its Party Platform on Safety and Security on Tuesday, highlighting the DP's vision with regards to the safety and security of the St. Maarten Population Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- St. Maarten Hospitality & Trade Association (SHTA) announced the nomination categories for the 9th Crystal Pineapple Awards (CPA) to be held on Friday November the 21st at the Sonesta Maho Beach Resort & Casino. CPA is the ONLY event on the island that recognizes Hospitality & Trade personnel, organizations and associations, for their contribution towards the tourism industry, the island's main economic pillar, directly and indirectly employing 87% of the workforce on the island.

The following categories will be open for nominations: Employee, Supervisor, Department Manager, General Manager, Timeshare Sales Person and Rookie of the Year in the Accommodations Division; Employee, Supervisor/Manager, Restaurateur, Chef, Bartender and Rookie of the Year in the Restaurants & Bars Division; Employee, Supervisor, Manager and Rookie of the Year in the Trade Division; and Outstanding Community Service Achievement.
SHTA is appealing to the private sector and community of St Read more

AVS First Live Political Debate Set For August 10.

>GREAT BAY:--- AVS Live Political Debates on the parliamentary elections will be held Sunday, August 10, August 17 And Sunday, August 24 At The Belair Community Center In Cay Hill.
The debates will be aired via Sxm Cable TV Channel 120 and WTN Cable TV Carib Channel 10 and Will Stream Live via Avsnewsonline.com TV Channel.
On Saturday, August 2, the leaders or an authorizing representative of the six political parties were invited to an informative session regarding the rules & regulations of the debate by the organizing committee who consist Of Clarence Richardson, Chairman, Edward Benjamin, Vice Chair, Terry Woods, Member, Florence Marlin, Member And Mireya Ostiana, Member Read more

Dp Blames Up And Na For Hurricane Season Elections

St. Maarten – The Theo Heyliger / National Alliance coalition is to blame for the fact that elections in St. Maarten take place during the hurricane season. That is the position of Prime Minister and leader of the Democratic Party Sarah Wescot-Williams.

In a press release issued yesterday afternoon, Wescot-Williams points out that the Heyliger / National Alliance government that was in office in 2009-2010 decided that the date for transition to country status would be October 10, 2010.

“Someone of that government must have been asleep at the wheel when it agreed to that date for country status Read more

Election Fraud Trial: Prosecution Wants To Revoke Voting Rights All Defendants

St. Maarten – The prosecution has demanded conditional prison sentences, community service and revoking the active voting rights of the four suspects in the 2010 election fraud case. From one suspect, UP-representative Roy H., the prosecution also wants to take away the passive voting rights. The court will pronounce its verdict in all cases four days before the August 29 elections, on Monday August 25.

There were four defendants in court yesterday morning for a session that would take all of five hours Read more

Prosecutor: “This Is Absolutely Not A Witch Hunt” Attorneys Want Acquittal For All Election Fraud Defendants

St. Maarten – The attorneys for the four defendants in the 2010 election fraud case all zeroed in on the fact that the prosecution had exceeded the reasonable term for bringing the case to court, and they all asked the court to declare the prosecution inadmissible.

A hot item surfaced late in the day when attorney Eldon Sulvaran spoke up for his client Roy H. It started quietly with remarks that it is “impossible to prove that the freedom to vote has been affected,” that the initiative for the bribes had not come from his client and that nobody told the other defendants that they had to vote for the UP.

“Should non-elected judges intervene in this?” Sulvaran wondered, before quoting a witness who had said “that the investigation targets the Wathey and Heyliger families.” From there on, Sulvaran spoke of “secret trajectories” and of “wrong conclusions before the investigation even started.” In the end, he told the court: “There is a threat of political administration of justice.”

The attorney added, “That any ruling in this case will affect the outcome of the elections and that is a dangerous development.” He also suggested postponing the court ruling until after the elections – a request the court did not honor because the law prescribes that rulings are pronounced two or three weeks after a trial.

“It is not correct to handle political cases before the elections,” Sulvaran said Read more

Prosecution Takes Election Fraud Serious: “Defendants Put Integrity Police And Country At Risk”

St. Maarten – Prosecutor Maarten Noordzij called the election fraud that allegedly took place in 2010 is a serious wrong. “All defendants work for the police. They should be role models and stay far from morally reprehensible behavior. They put the integrity of the police at risk and they caused damage to the reputation of the police, the volunteer corps and the country.”

The prosecutor noted that the case had caused a lot of commotion in St Maarten and at the Kingdom level. “In spite of the time lapse it is important that the criminal court handles this case now.”

The Chief Commissioner submitted the internal dossier from the police force about the election fraud to the prosecutor’s office on October 28, 2010 Read more

Dp Presents Platform On Education: Life-Long Learning In Thinking Schools

St. Maarten - The Democratic Party presented its party platform on education on Monday. The party’s vision is predicated on the belief that the development of human resources is vital to the island’s economic development. The focus of the Democratic Party is to create the national culture and social environment necessary to promote life-long learning opportunities for the people of St. Maarten.

“It is the party’s belief that all of our citizens have the ability to continuously learn, both for professional development as well as personal enrichment Read more

Outpouring Of Sympathy For Deceased Unionist Pantophlet

St. Maarten – Unionists and politicians expressed their respects to unionist Patricia Pantophlet who passed away last weekend in Colombia at the age of 57.

“Deeply saddened by the passing of a great trade union leader, Patricia Pantophlet, sister of the General Secretary of the Windward Islands Teachers’ Union, Roxsana Pantophlet,” Witu-President Claire Elshot wrote.
“Affectionately known to all as Patsy, she has left a legacy with her contributions to the workers’ organizations in defending the rights of civil servants as President of Windward Islands Civil Servants Union (WICSU) Read more

Dp Women's Wing Mourns Loss Of Patricia Pantophlet

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - "Mourning the loss of one of its great women and social activists; a woman who was the embodiment of courage and perseverance; the voice of the disenfranchised and less fortunate".

The Women's Wing of the Democratic Party of St. Maarten joined the community in mourning the loss of former president of the Windward Island Civil Servants Union (WICSU-PSI) and the Chamber Labor of Unions, Patricia "Patsy" Pantophlet.

"The Women's Wing of the Democratic Party joins the community of St Read more

President Arrindell Says Social Formation Program A Step Forward For Prevention Of Criminality

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – President of Parliament Hon. Gracita Arrindell is very pleased with the cooperation of the Ministry of Justice as it is working diligently preparing the draft ordinance regulating a Social Formation Program for young people between the ages of 16 and 20 years.

"Safety and security of our people and visitors is a critically important aspect of the quality of life of our island.

"Prevention of criminality under our young people is key in working towards this goal Read more

New Vks Commander States Intentions

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Antonio Rogers is now the new Commander of the Voluntary Corp of St. Maarten.

He was sworn in, during an installation ceremony attended by many persons particularly from the Justice chain held in front of the Government Administration Building over the weekend.

Whilst speaking at the oath taking ceremony on Saturday, Commander Rogers seized the opportunity to apologize to his family for what he says they had to endure because of his appointment at the helm of the VKS.

He also expressed his gratitude to the former Commander Jean Illidge for recommending him for the position.

The newly installed VKS Commander also told attendees at the ceremony that the organization will be headed by a person with a strong character.

He remarked: "I'll upgrade with the advice and help from the foundation." The VKS organization, according to Mr Read more

Up Board Jamaica Day Message

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – The board of the United People's Party (UP) is extending its best wishes to the Sint Maarten Jamaican community who will be celebrating Jamaica Day on August 6th.

"We extend best wishes and festive greetings to the Sint Maarten Jamaican community.

The UP family recognizes the indispensable contributions to the economic development of our nation," remarked the UP Board.

"Congratulations to the Government and people of Jamaica who will celebrate their 52nd year of independence Read more

Neighborhood Watches, Public Private Partnerships, Strengthening Police Force, Alternative Punishment For Light Crimes Components Of Democratic Party Platform On Safety And Security

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The Democratic Party of St. Maarten outlined its Party Platform on Safety and Security on Tuesday, highlighting the DP's vision with regards to the safety and security of the St. Maarten Population.

The platform reads that Safety and Security remains a concern for DP and that the party is committed to improving the internal security of St Read more

Avs First Live Political Debate Set For August 10

GREAT BAY, St. Maarten - AVS Live Political Debates on the parliamentary elections will be held Sunday, August 10, August 17 And Sunday, August 24 At The Belair Community Center In Cay Hill.

The debates will be aired via Sxm Cable TV Channel 120 and WTN Cable TV Carib Channel 10 and Will Stream Live via Avsnewsonline.com TV Channel.

On Saturday, August 2, the leaders or an authorizing representative of the six political parties were invited to an informative session regarding the rules & regulations of the debate by the organizing committee who consist Of Clarence Richardson, Chairman, Edward Benjamin, Vice Chair, Terry Woods, Member, Florence Marlin, Member and Mireya Ostiana, Member.

The session was held at The Yogesh Commercial Complex on A.J.C Read more