Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
Chief Prosecutor Ton Maan: “The Word Class Justice Has Hurt Us A Lotâ€
Chief Prosecutor Ton Maan: “We have indicated to the Minister of Justice that the prostitution policy violates international treaties.†Photo Today / Hilbert Haar
St. Maarten – “The word class justice has hurt us a lot and the effect is that you are almost going to have reverse class justice whereby you are inclined to prosecute dignitaries sooner than criminal citizens, if only to prove that you are not practicing class justice. That is not good either,†Chief Prosecutor Ton Maan says Read more
MPs still have reservations about Integrity Chamber
~ Meyers: Independence only choice ~
PHILIPSBURG--Several Members of Parliament (MPs) made it crystal clear on Monday that if the proposed Integrity Chamber stagnates the growth of the country and hampers St. Maarteners from prospering, the law to establish the chamber will not receive their support.
Chief among those speaking out about the draft law was coalition member MP Franklin Meyers (United People's (UP) party) Read more
“I will prefer dying on my feet than living on my knees, It’s time for Independence†--- MP Franklin Meyers.
Country has 480 taxis and 263 bus licences
PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten has a total of 480 taxi licences and 263 bus licences on the roads. There are 39 large “tour†buses with “T†(tour bus) licence plate numbers and a total of 31 “G†licence plate numbers. This is based on numbers given to Parliament’s Permanent Committee for Transportation by Transport Minister Claret Conner on Thursday.
He also informed MPs the moratorium on the issuance of bus and taxi licences remains in place until a study on the state of the industry is conducted Read more
Voting Bureau petitioned court twice to allow inmates to vote
~ Says it's up to MPs to amend laws ~
PHILIPSBURG--The Central Voting Bureau petitioned the court twice prior to the August 29, 2014, parliamentary election to legally allow inmates who were registered to vote in another district to cast their ballot at the polling station at the prison and to allow a prison official to vouch for the identity of inmates who did not have identification cards.
The issues at the polling station at the prison were amongst several electoral concerns broached during a meeting of the Central Committee of Parliament on Wednesday.
Central Voting Bureau Chairman Jason Rogers told Members of Parliament (MPs) that it was up to them to change the legislation to rectify this issue in future elections.
Rogers said "a number" of inmates initially had not been allowed to vote because, although they were in possession of their voting cards, they were assigned to vote in another district Read more