SXMElections.com

Independence referendum possible in less than 4 years

PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten could possibly see a referendum on independence before the current Parliamentary term ends in 2018. At least this is the hope of staunch independence advocates such as activists Jose Lake Jr., Leo Friday Sr., Elton Jones and Drs. Rhoda Arrindell.

This hope was expressed by representatives of Independence for St Read more

Former tourism marketing head facing suspended prison sentence

~ Prosecutor: LaBega not off the hook ~

PHILIPSBURG--More than four years after criminal complaints were filed against him in his capacity as Head of Marketing of the St. Maarten Tourist Bureau Edward Dest finally had his day in court on Wednesday. He is facing charges of embezzlement in his capacity as civil servant.

Prosecutor Nanouk Lemmers found it proven that Dest had embezzled funds belonging to the St. Maarten Tourist Office in New York for promoting tourism to St. Maarten in North America and instead had used the money to pay for airfare, hotel rooms, daily allowances, the Tourist Bureau's Christmas dinner and Boardwalk Mas 2010 expenditures.

For these crimes, which allegedly were committed between June 1, 2009, and August 23, 2010, the Prosecutor requested a suspended sentence of two months, with two years' probation Read more

Editorial - Reassuring

That Arke will be flying to Princess Juliana International Airport SXM twice weekly from Schiphol in Amsterdam starting next winter (see related story) is obviously good news. After all, attracting more visitors from the Netherlands, but also the rest of Europe so far has proved a challenge for St. Maarten.

That is certainly the case compared to the ABC-islands (Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao), which have been very successful in this regard. As a matter of fact, the alternative Arke provided to Royal Dutch airline KLM over there especially concerning fares no doubt played a big role in that development.

To be sure, St Read more

BlackBerry unveils new mid-market smartphone

BARCELONA/TORONTO--BlackBerry unveiled a new mid-market smartphone on Tuesday dubbed the BlackBerry Leap that is set to replace the Z3 device launched a year ago, in a move to woo buyers in certain emerging markets where BlackBerry still has a fairly large client base.
  The Waterloo, Ontario-based company said the phone, unveiled at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, would initially hit stores in U.S and European markets around April and be priced around $275.
  The company also said it planned to roll out two more models over the course of the next months, both with a keyboard Read more

Arke Airline returns to St. Maarten November

RIJSWIJK--After ceasing service to St. Maarten six years ago, Arkefly (Shortened to Arke in the current corporate design to match the travel agency) is resuming flights to St. Maarten per November this year, the Dutch airline announced on Tuesday.

Flights from Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport to St. Maarten will be carried out with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner at considerably lower fares, some twenty per cent cheaper at least, than competitors Royal Dutch Airline KLM and Air France.

Arke, a subsidiary of travel organisation TUI Netherlands, will be scheduling two flights per week, on Wednesdays and Sundays Read more

Cuba signals its readiness to fast-track US diplomatic ties

MIAMI/HAVANA--Cuba is willing to restore diplomatic relations with the United States as soon as the Obama administration declares its intent to take the country off a list of state sponsors of terrorism, according to a senior Cuban official.

That could take place before both sides are ready to open embassies, Josefina Vidal, the head of the United States division at the Cuban Foreign Ministry told state media Read more

Rand Paul wins Republican straw poll

NATIONAL HARBOR, Maryland--Senator Rand Paul won a straw poll of conservative activists on Saturday, giving his potential bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 a boost, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker came in second in a surprising show of strength.

Whether the victory for Paul will have long-lasting benefit is unclear since his libertarian views may not have broad appeal in the Republican Party.

Paul, a 52-year-old Kentucky Republican, outdistanced most other potential candidates by taking 25.7 percent of the vote at the Conservative Political Action Conference, a gathering of activists on Washington's outskirts of Washington Read more

Minville family in crisis over domain land debacle

MARIGOT--The Minville family of Sandy Ground is facing expulsion from their property. In addition, the Appeals Court of Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe, has condemned the family to pay large sums of money to Société des Hôtels Caraïbes for occupying the land. The family insists the land rightfully belongs to them and has written to the Minister of Justice requesting that he intervene in the matter.

The penalties imposed include 135,000 euros for past occupation between May 25, 2000, and January 25, 2014, and 700 euros per month retroactive to December 25, 2013, until the property is evacuated, as well as 6,000 euros relating to Article 700 of the Civil Procedure Code.

A press conference was convened on Friday by a support committee that included True Hope for St Read more

22 NGOs got funding from SMDF in 2014

~ Much emphasis on children ~

PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten Development Fund (SMDF) provided grants to 22 non-governmental organisations in 2014 and twelve in the previous year. Beneficiaries of those grants total more than 2,168 as well as 180 full and part-time employees of the organisations that provide youth care, social and community activities.

As of December 31, 2014, SMDF, headed by Keith Franca, started to evaluate 20 funding requests, of which 14 were clients in 2013/2014 and six are new clients.

Belvedere Community Foundation was a recipient of a grant from SMDF for its after-school activities that cater to some 170 children of Belvedere, Dutch Quarter and Middle Region.

No Kidding with our Kids Foundation, operating in Sucker Garden and Retreat Estate and caters to 130 children, Alpha and Omega Projects Foundation on Long Wall Road with 40 children, and the SECEO after-school programme, catering to Regina Primary School with some 90 children, also received grants to continue their programmes.

More than 458 children, ages 4-15 are enrolled with these long established after-school programmes.

The four after-school activities foundations were funding recipients from July 2013 to present.

SMDF was established in May 2012 by government with the objective to mediate in the development and financing of projects that will contribute to the social and community development of St Read more

India finds itself in "sweet spot" of lower deficits, more growth

NEW DELHI--India can increase investment to drive economic growth without borrowing more, a key government report said on Friday, in an indication that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will stick to debt targets in his maiden full-year budget on Saturday.

The Economic Survey, the basis for Jaitley's budget for the fiscal year starting April 1, forecast growth of 8.1 percent to 8.5 percent under new calculations that make India the world's most dynamic big economy. The forecast marks an acceleration from growth of 7.4 percent in the current fiscal year.

"India has reached a sweet spot and .. Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:---  United People's (UP) Party Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Maurice Lake is preparing to send a letter through the Chairman of Parliament to the Minister of Finance about getting rid of the expat ruling which is costing Government more than half a million guilders.

"As a country, Government has to get serious with the expat agreement Read more

Mp Lake To Look Into Expat Ruling. Local Professionals Need Improved Incentives

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten – United People's (UP) Party Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Maurice Lake is preparing to send a letter through the Chairman of Parliament to the Minister of Finance about getting rid of the expat ruling which is costing Government more than half a million guilders.

"As a country, Government has to get serious with the expat agreement Read more

Princess Heights Awarded Prestigious Green Key Eco-Label Certification

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - The Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) awarded Princess Heights Luxury Boutique Condo Hotel with the first and only Green Key Eco-label certification in St. Maarten, solidifying St. Maarten's reputation as a destination that is serious about the environment.

"Here at Princess Heights, we've been using Green Key guidelines as a model for best practices for many years," said Emil Lee, General Manager of Princess Heights.

"If 'being green' translated to higher prices, it would not be sustainable for businesses to make green choices.

We believe that the Green Key model is straightforward, good for the environment, good for the island and good for tourism," Lee continued.

International Green Key Director Finn Thomsen of the non-profit Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), which owns and runs the program, was on hand to mark the hotel's Green Key inauguration.

This was the first inauguration he has attended in the Caribbean Read more

Princess Heights Awarded Green Key Eco-Label

St. Maarten -The Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) awarded Princess Heights Luxury Boutique Condo Hotel with the first and only Green Key Eco-Label certification in St. Maarten, solidifying St. Maarten’s reputation as a destination that is serious about the environment.

“Here at Princess Heights, we’ve been using Green Key guidelines as a model for best practices for many years,” said Emil Lee, General Manager of Princess Heights.  “If ‘being green’ translated to higher prices, it would not be sustainable for businesses to make green choices Read more

‘Welkom op St. Maarten’ on top 5 travel guides list

SIMPSON BAY--The book Welkom op Sint Maarten: The Friendly Island is now among the country's top five travel guides thanks to a list compiled by Website

stmaartenvakantie.nl . The book is noted as worthwhile to read and to take on vacation to the Dutch Caribbean.

The Dutch language book was launched internationally last year with a limited edition presented to then-Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams by authors Ina Kruize, Esther de Vries and Marlene van Asten.

The book informs people who are moving to St Read more

New political party emerges with goal to be deal breaker

GEORGETOWN, Guyana--A new political party has emerged in Guyana with hopes of truly breaking away from an ethnic divide and providing a balance between Guyana's two main political parties – a united Alliance For Change (AFC)/A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) and the incumbent People's Progressive Party.

The Healing the Nation Theocracy Party (HTNTP) believes that it can rally the support of Guyanese at the upcoming May 11 polls by opening "your eyes to the poverty we are experiencing .. Read more

Schotte, Heyliger met with security service man in 2010

~ Ronald van Raak publishes online article ~

THE HAGUE--Secret documents, supplied to Member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament Ronald van Raak of the Socialist Party (SP) and published on Tuesday on the website ThePostOnline.nl, revealed a meeting on or around the 2010 elections in St. Maarten between a member of the Curaçao Security Agency VDC, candidate Curaçao Prime Minister Gerrit Schotte, candidate minister George Jamaloodin and United People's Party Leader Theo Heyliger.

The meeting in St Read more

EU patience frays as Greek PM refuses "blackmail"

BRUSSELS/ATHENS--A war of words between Greece and EU paymaster Germany escalated on Tuesday with Athens' new leftist prime minister rejecting what he called "blackmail" to extend an international bailout and vowing to rush through laws to reverse labour reforms.

A source close to the government said Greece intends to ask on Wednesday for an extension for up to six months of a loan agreement with the euro zone, on conditions to be negotiated. The source drew a distinction between a loan agreement and the full bailout programme which the government insists is dead.

However hardline German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble dismissed the Greek gambit, telling broadcaster ZDF: "It's not about extending a credit programme but about whether this bailout programme will be fulfilled, yes or no."

Financial markets held their nerve after the latest talks among euro zone finance ministers broke down late on Monday and EU partners gave Greece until the end of the week to request an extension or lose financial assistance Read more

Princess Heights Awarded Prestigious Green Key Eco-Label Certification.

>PHILIPSBURG:---- The Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) awarded Princess Heights Luxury Boutique Condo Hotel with the first and only Green Key Eco-label certification in St. Maarten, solidifying St. Maarten's reputation as a destination that is serious about the environment.
"Here at Princess Heights, we've been using Green Key guidelines as a model for best practices for many years," said Emil Lee, General Manager of Princess Heights Read more

Cuban agriculture needs better roads

CAUTO CRISTO, Cuba--When it rains, trucks get stuck in the mud on the poor roads in this rural municipality in eastern Cuba. The local population needs more and better roads to improve their lives and help give a much-needed boost to the country's farming industry.

"When the roads are fixed, living conditions and opportunities will be bolstered in the lowlands, where most of our agricultural production is concentrated," deputy mayor of Cauto Cristo Alberto López told IPS.

Most of the 21,000 inhabitants of this rural municipality, located on a broad plain prone to flooding during the May-October rainy season, are scattered around the countryside on individual or state-run farms or in farming cooperatives Read more

Glimmer of hope for Ukraine after new ceasefire deal

MINSK--Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine agreed to a deal offering a "glimmer of hope" for an end to conflict in eastern Ukraine, but the United States and NATO said further intense fighting on Thursday ran counter to the spirit of the accord.

The agreement, announced after more than 16 hours of discussions in the Belarussian capital Minsk, was followed swiftly by allegations from Kiev of a new, mass influx of Russian armour into rebel-held eastern Ukraine Read more

European leaders hold Ukraine peace talks as fighting surges

MINSK--The leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine held peace talks in Belarus on Wednesday, while in Ukraine pro-Moscow separatists tightened the pressure on Kiev by launching some of the war's worst fighting.

Ukraine's army said 19 of its soldiers were killed in pro-Russian separatist assaults near the railway town of Debaltseve, some of the worst losses it has reported in nine months of war. Rebels who tore up a five-month-old truce in January are trying to encircle government forces in Debaltseve, a strategic location that would let them link up their main strongholds.

Fighting has already killed more than 5,000 people, and Washington is now openly talking of arming Ukraine to defend itself from "Russian aggression", raising the prospect of a proxy war in the heart of Europe between Cold War foes.

A surge in fighting in the 24 hours before the summit, including a rocket attack that killed 17 people in government-held territory on Tuesday, could be intended to force Ukraine to accept a deal recognising the rebel advance.

The summit was being held in neighbouring Belarus under a Franco-German proposal to try to halt the fighting Read more

Mayotte Delegation on visit to Collectivité

MARIGOT--A delegation of high-ranking technicians from the island of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean has been on a three-day visit to St. Martin to discuss issues common to both territories as well as issues related to Europe, Ultra Peripheral Regions RUP and to exchange information.

The delegation comprised Jacques Toto, Secretary-General in charge of General and Human Resources, Assistant Cabinet Director for European Affairs Dayane Saïd Mohamed, and Chargé de Mission RUP and European Affairs, Adrachi Velou.

President of the Conseil Général was not able to make the trip due to other commitments.

The delegation arrived Saturday from Guadeloupe where they attended the 20th conference of RUP territories Read more

Mp Sarah Wescot-Williams: “This Is A Slap In The Face Of St.Maarten”

St. Maarten – “Nothing Sint Maarten has done with respect to tackling integrity issues has made any difference for Minister Plasterk and his colleagues in the Dutch cabinet,” Democratic Party MP Sarah Wescot-Williams states in a press release, adding that an article-51 measure amounts to imposing higher supervision.

Wescot-Williams notes that Kingdom Relations Minister Plasterk “has been fencing with the measure for a long time” thereby “making it appear as if St Read more