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POND ISLAND--Vendors from the demolished Philipsburg Marketplace were consulted recently by Tourism and Economic Affairs Minister Cornelius de Weever on plans to revamp the area.

The 32 vendors shared their recommendations with the Minister in the meeting. These included the need for storage spaces, their inclusion in discussions with the architect, and the symbols/monuments that should be included in the final design Read more

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PHILIPSBURG--Despite government’s dire financial circumstances, Justice Minister Cornelius de Weever said on Wednesday that authorities are looking into the possibility of delaying the payment of motor vehicle tax by half a year.

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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

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De Weever Weighs In On Commercial Sex Workers

PHILIPSBURG--Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Cornelius de Weever called the debacle with commercial sex workers a catastrophic situation on Sunday.

  â€œGovernment is trying to figure out whether a work permit is needed, or if a database for registration of commercial sex workers is the key, or whether they will be issued a license as an entrepreneur to provide their services to any club, and finally while the court cases continue, our population and visitors are again put at risk,” De Weever stated in a press release issued over the weekend.

  De Weever further stated that businesses are suffering, and the owners, workers and their families are being impacted as well Read more

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Kingdom Law Proposal Debated With Dutch Caribbean Delegates

THE HAGUE--It was quite an exceptional setting in the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament on Tuesday, with seven special delegates from the Dutch Caribbean Parliaments seated in the benches: Rene Herdé, Desiree de Sousa-Croes, Ady Thijsen and Andin Bikker of Aruba, Glenn Sulvaran of Curaçao and Cornelius de Weever and Leona Marlin-Romeo of St Read more

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Parliaments Have Candid Debate On Integrity Issue

THE HAGUE--Members of the St. Maarten Parliament, Chairperson Sarah Wescot-Williams (Democratic Party DP) and Read more

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Adult Clubs Taking Govt. To Court Over Abrupt Stopping Of Permits

~ Move stifling their operations ~

PHILIPSBURG--Nine of the eleven adult entertainment centres operating in St. Maarten are taking Government to court over the abrupt discontinuation of the processing of employment and residence permits for exotic dancers, pending the finalisation of a new policy.
The clubs are particularly concerned that since the discontinuation four months ago, no mechanism has been put in place for them to bring in girls in the interim to sustain their operations while the new policy is being ironed out Read more

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 It felt like a party walking into Educare’s SXMDOET project. Volunteers assisted in making the foundations playground child friendly, safe, fun and colorful. (Photo credit: Claudia Vingatama-Arrindell)

(more pictures below)

PHILIPSBURG – Sint Maarten’s community came out in full force for the second annual SXM DOET event held on March 11th and 12th. Around 1000 volunteers successfully completed 43 projects registered by 30 various organizations from all around the Dutch side of the island Read more

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Mps Pepper Ministers With Questions In Budget Debate

Independent MP Leona Marlin-Romeo (standing) speaks in the budget debate on Monday.

 PHILIPSBURG--The 2016 draft budget was tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Richard Gibson on Monday morning in Parliament House. Members of Parliament (MPs), who had up to 90 minutes to speak, peppered the Council of Ministers with a barrage of questions spanning from the budget and Government policies to general topics of interest.

  The seven Ministers, who all made presentations about the working of their Ministries on Monday, will be back in Parliament today, Tuesday, starting at 2:00pm to deliver answers to the questions from MPs Read more

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‘Shotgun Budget’ Tabled In Parliament By Gibson

Finance Minister Richard Gibson (right) with MP Maurice Lake. 

PHILIPSBURG--Parliament is faced with a “shotgun budget” as the draft 2016 budget was described by Finance Minister Richard Gibson Read more

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‘Shotgun Budget’ Tabled In Parliament By Gibson

PHILIPSBURG--Parliament is faced with a “shotgun budget” as the draft 2016 budget was described by Finance Minister Richard Gibson. The Minister tabled the budget, totaling NAf 438,000 in the Central Committee meeting of Parliament on this morning.  

  There is “no time to do the budget as it should have been done” and to get all policies from the seven ministries covered, said the Minister Read more

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Urgent Parliament Meeting Requested About Nipa Issue

PHILIPSBURG--An urgent Parliament meeting has been requested about issues related to the National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA) by Members of Parliament (MPs) Leona Marlin-Romeo (independent), Read more

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I Am King forum hones in on empowering young men

DAWN BEACH--Nearly 200 young men attended a motivational and interactive I Am King Men's Empowerment Conference on Thursday, where they were addressed by a number of speakers, shared issues affecting them in groups, and interacted with facilitators.

The day-long conference centred on topics affecting male youth focusing on personal development. Keynote speaker Shane “Rizon” Gibson, an international Caribbean/ Gospel musician and sportsman, was given a standing ovation for his words, which focused on advice to the young men in their development into driven and accomplished adults.

Advice included training in the right habits, visualising goals, having heart, not giving up, having a mentor and speaking mindfully Read more

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Sarah elected new Parliament Chair in spite of De Weever’s cancellation

PHILIPSBURG--Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams is again at the helm of Parliament. She was elected Parliament Chairwoman by the new National Alliance (NA)-led coalition in an extraordinary meeting of Parliament on Thursday evening Read more

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Government has ‘autonomous right’ to dissolve Parliament

~ Governor wrote in 2013 letter ~

PHILIPSBURG--“The right to dissolve Parliament by national decree is a constitutional and autonomous right of the Government,” wrote Governor Eugene Holiday in a letter dated May 16, 2013, to then-Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams when she tried to stopped the then-National Alliance (NA)-led Council of Ministers from invoking Article 59 of the Constitution.

The letter came to light this week as political tension intensified between the newest NA-led coalition with a majority in Parliament and the UP/De Weever/Marlin-Romeo-supported Council of Ministers, after the crumbling of the United People’s (UP) party-led coalition.

The current Marcel Gumbs Cabinet has held tight to the view that it is its right to dissolve Parliament in the face of the shifted majority in Parliament Read more

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De Weever cancels NA meeting, cites safety, security challenges

PHILIPSBURG--Second Deputy Chairman Cornelius de Weever has cancelled the Parliament meeting called by the new National Alliance (NA)-led coalition for today, Thursday, at 6:00pm citing in a letter to Members of Parliament (MPs) “the current safety and security challenges.”

The new coalition had decided to bypass submitting a request for a Parliament meeting to De Weever and had instead sent out on convocation letter on Wednesday to all MPs directly to attend an “urgent meeting” today.

The meeting had as its main agenda point the appointment of a chairperson, and a second deputy chairperson.

The letter, signed by the eight MPs of the new coalition, stated “in view of the recent developments” during meetings of Parliament, they have “all agreed” that today’s meeting would be chaired by MP George Pantophlet (NA).

De Weever in his letter to the MPs this afternoon said he took note of meeting time Read more

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Editorial - Something has to give

The latest news last night in the ongoing constitutional saga was that the “new majority” has organised a Parliament meeting of its own to elect a new president, vice-president and second vice-president in place of those of the former UP-led coalition. This obviously will not be a “regular” meeting called by the secretariat on the instruction of the current chairperson and the legality of any decisions taken consequently will no doubt be questioned by those who favour dissolving the legislature and going back to the polls.

When the same thing happened in Curaçao in 2012, the new majority’s gatherings created a situation where at one point there were two different persons claiming to be President of Parliament Read more

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New coalition calls Parliament meeting for today at 6:00pm

PHILIPSBURG--The new National Alliance (NA)-led coalition has decided to bypass submitting a request for a meeting of Parliament to Second Deputy Parliament Chairman Cornelius de Weever, and instead has sent out a convocation letter directly to all Members of Parliament (MPs) to attend an “urgent meeting” today, Thursday, in Parliament House, starting at 6:00pm.

The meeting has as its main agenda point the appointment of a chairperson and a second vice-chairperson Read more

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New coalition says De Weever acted illegally, calls for urgent meeting

PHILIPSBURG--Second Vice-Chairman of Parliament Cornelius de Weever performed an “illegal act” when he chaired Tuesday’s plenary session of Parliament and closed it swiftly without giving Members of Parliament (MPs) the possibility to react, say representatives of the new coalition in Parliament.

After De Weever closed the session they submitted a request for an urgent meeting of Parliament to talk about his “illegal act” as well as “the consequences for the functioning of Parliament and for the representation of the people of St Read more

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De Weever seeks legal advice, suspends Parliament meeting

PHILIPSBURG--Second Deputy Parliament Chairman Cornelius de Weever took charge of one of the shortest Parliament meetings in the country's history on Tuesday and effectively thwarted the new coalition's move to appoint a new chairperson and two deputy chairpersons of Parliament.
  The meeting for which nine Members of Parliament (MPs) signed in, lasted approximately a minute and nine seconds Read more

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Editorial - Deadlocked for now

Anybody expecting that the Parliament session on Tuesday to elect a new President and two Vice-Presidents might lead to some breakthrough in the current constitutional impasse between the new majority and the Gumbs cabinet was disappointed. Although both President Dr. Lloyd Richardson and First Vice-President Leona Marlin-Romeo had publicly made their positions available, they were not present and Second Vice-President Cornelius de Weever, part of the same former UP-led coalition, closed the proceedings as soon as they had begun, saying he needed legal clarification due to the Council of Ministers having passed a national decree to dissolve the legislature and hold snap elections.

The incoming NA/DP/UPS/Matser/Lake coalition did not appreciate this and called for an urgent new meeting about De Weever’s “illegal act” and its impact on the country’s democratic representation Read more

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Sarah confirms she will assume Chairmanship of Parliament

PHILIPSBURG--Democratic Party (DP) leader Member of Parliament (MP) Sarah Wescot-Williams confirmed on Friday that she will be assuming the position of the new Chairperson of Parliament.

DP forms part of the new eight-seat-majority coalition in Parliament Read more

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MPs defer talk on double taxation

PHILIPSBURG--Members of Parliament (MPs) have deferred discussions about the new tax treaty between St. Maarten and the Netherlands until they can hear from Finance Minister Martin Hassink.

The treaty, said to be in conformity with internationally accepted regulations, was on the agenda of Tuesday's Central Committee sitting in Parliament House. However, independent MP Cornelius de Weever said he had questions about the treaty, especially the effects of it on St Read more

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Minister Richardson answers MPs on Harbour/Zebec settlement

PHILIPSBURG--Deputy Prime Minister Dennis Richardson provided answers on Tuesday to questions Members of Parliament (MPs) had asked about the Harbour’s settlement with Zebec Development in a first round of questions during an emergency meeting the day before.

Richardson first tackled the reasoning for both the court case and the settlement, then went on to more individual questions asked.

Case/settlement

The core issue is that Zebec intended to develop the Dutch Village on long-lease land of the Harbour Read more

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