Articles

On the board of directors the only independent is executive director Claret Connor.
Social activist Jose Lake, Jr. who happens to be on the same page with Vice PM Heyliger about St. Maarten 's future independence.
February 3, 2012

The principal and most important duty and responsibility of any politician "worth his salt or her salt " in colony St. Maarten (officially named Country St. Maarten) is to lead St.Martin's People to Independence. (Seek Ye first the Political Kingdom and All things will be added unto You......Kwame Nkrumah).
This undisputed truth of self determination and independence is recognized by the overwhelming majority of humankind (more than 95% of the more than 7 billion people on planet earth) who make up more than 180 independent nations ( countries) with seats in the United Nations .(Country St. Maarten has NO seat in the United Nations).
This right and desire for independence is also recognized by the Dutch colonial bosses in The Hague whose ancestors fought at least three independence wars against Spain, France and Germany and who advocated sending us( St.Martiners and other Dutch colonies in the Caribbean) our independence by registered mail or selling us on Ebay the way they sold us during the centuries of slavery.
To publicly write that Jose Lake Jr. and Theo Heyliger are "on the same page" is to disrespect and insult the intelligence of the People of St. Martin. Jose Lake Jr., for example , wrote a book "The Republic Of St. Martin" advocating and outlining his vision of an independent St. Martin. Theo Heyliger has never publicly verbalized his vision of an independent St. Martin. Jose Lake Jr. has publicly campaigned in two referenda for an independent St. Martin. Theo Heyliger has always publicly campaigned for a political party. Jose Lake Jr. is an advocate of a St. Martin People's Democratic Republic rooted in a united St. Martin(North and South) culture. Theo Heyliger has never publicly stated whether he believes an independent St. Martin should be a Kingdom or a Republic.
Jose Lake Jr. and Theo Heyliger , however, are by far not the only advocates of independence for St. Martin. Legendary St. Martin figures who supported independence for St. Martin who have passed on are such men as Felix Choisy, Deputy mayor of St. Martin, Jose Lake Sr. , Father of Journalism of St. Martin, and Claude Wathey and Clem Labega, Founders of the Democratic Party of St. Martin. Furthermore active and elected politicians who stated that they voted for independence during the last referendum can be found amongst all the political fractions in parliament from the United People's Party (UP), the National Alliance (NA), the Democratic Party (DP) and even the independent members of St.Martin's parliament. And above all the more than one thousand people who voted for independence during the last referendum and the thousands who now publicly support independence.
To champion St. Martin's independence and the creation of a People's Republic of St. Martin is not just the right thing to do, it is the ONLY thing to do politically. To try and link independence to one specific political party (UP) is a selfish political and malicious journalistic act carried out against the People of St. Martin . A demonic act rooted in racism (Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet) and inhumanity (slavery . Independence is the birthright and God given right of all St. Martiners.The liberation of St. Martin People is directly and intricately linked to the very Soul of the St. Martin Nation.To reduce independence to party politics (UP, DP, NA) when none of these parties have made independence part of their political ideology and commitment, is to commit a mortal sin against the People of St. Martin.........St.Martin's independence cannot be bought or sold for 30 pieces of silver.

By Jose Lake Jr.
President of the Independence of St. Martin Foundation

St. Maarten, January 31, 2012

Dear Brenda,

Some 7 months have now passed since the courts verdict ordering you all to hand over all documents dating back to 2001 to me and to include me in the estate of the late N. C. Wathey as legitimate shareholder. To date you have refused to do so.
Some 2 months have also passed since I started a new court case against you all including notary Gijsbertha, asking the court to order you all to pay to me $. 70,000.00 per day for each and every day you still refuse to hand over same documents and include me in the day to day operations of the estate of N. C. Wathey. This judgment will also come soon.

Brenda, you took it upon yourself to appoint yourself as sole representative of the estate of N. C. Wathey after my father's death, today you are still acting as such without my specific authorization, and you are acting in violation of the courts orders. I must be included in every aspect relating to my father's estate, I am Chester Wathey's oldest and only son and as such I must be treated as such!

In view of the above, I am hereby giving you until February 6, 2012 to relinquish your illegitimate hold on the estate of N. C. Wathey or I will be issuing a statement to the press informing all persons or entities having contracts signed with you all on behalf of the estate of N. C. Wathey that I will not be honoring those contracts as they stand and will not be renewing these contracts should they continue to make payments for these contracts to companies or persons designated by you to avoid any further embezzlement of funds or goods.

I also will be reporting any cases of suspected fraud to the competent authorities for further investigation and prosecution.

I trust that you will comply with my request.

Norman C. Wathey

St. Barths proudly became an OCT (Overseas Country and Territory) on January 1st, 2012. The reason for this proud move is that since 1977 the successive leaders, in all aspects of life and development on their island, have consistently worked towards the goal of managing their own affairs, even though St. Barths is and wants to remain a part of the French Republic.

Mr. Bruno Magras, the last mayor of the Commune and the first president of the new Collectivity, who is a role model of a politician for small economies like ours, is to be commended, together with his predecessors since 1977 for having attained this milestone for their people. They have demonstrated a common sense of purpose, for they have never deviated from their goal focused on safeguarding the interests of their island and its people. The upcoming retirement of President Bruno Magras from political office may seem risky, as the great concern lies in the fact that outsiders' political forces can overpower the common sense of purpose of the St. Barths people, the leaders' success being truly grounded in their determination throughout the years to put 'country above self.'

'Country above self' is definitely not a defining feature of the ruling political body in St. Martin, whether majority or minority. The sense of purpose aimed at is blatantly the empowerment and betterment of the leaders' social and family standards at the expense of the people of St. Martin. They seek to neglect their professional careers and make politics, which is the business of the people, their personal business, and thence easily become the enemy and traitor of the people, as they cannot handle both their personal advancement and the advancement of the people. They dive into major conflicts of interest. This have been going on in St. Martin as long as the St. Barths politicians and people have been working towards making their island less dependent on outside entities, such as Guadeloupe, France, and Europe, thus crafting their specific kind of governance and suiting their budget to serve the interest of their people.

The widely publicized notion, promoted by outsider-dominated groups during electoral times, that St. Martin must remain a UPT (Ultra-peripheral Territory) in order to ensure its development, is the biggest fallacy and wildest illusion. This notion was clearly stated in the July 2003 ROAD MAP (Document d'Orientation) proposed by politicians and socio-professionals who were pushing for article 74. Actually, it is not the quantity of money available to politicians that ensures the prosperity of their territory; it is how they manage it in the interest of their country and its people. This calls for sacrifice, balance, and total absence of greed. Where close family is concerned, the individual politician has to balance his concerns, in order not to compromise his close family in the process of serving his country and its people, which is what political commitment is all about. Which politician do you know does just that? Comparing both the South, an OCT with much less investment money than the North, a UPT with millions more investment money throughout the last 25 years, the difference of infrastructural development only is a blatant proof that it is not the quantity of money available to politicians that create jobs for their people and economic growth for their territory.

Daniella JEFFRY

It was with a great sense of pride last October when I heard St. Maarten had became a member of Interpol. This Tuesday the international organization will meet in St. Maarten to discuss a range of issues, one of which is the extremely important issue of pharmaceutical crimes.

Residents of St. Maarten should be encouraged by our political leaders to take an interest in the information presented, as it directly affects all of us, including our children and their children. The practice of trafficking "medications" which are actually fake brews that can kill or cause permanent damage is most serious. We trust our medical professionals to exercise the best care possible when they diagnose and treat us for medical issues. Often that trust must extend to the writing of prescriptions and the receipt of the correct medications in the correct dosages from the pharmacy.

Counterfeit and illicit medicines is truly an international problem which adversely affects hundreds of millions of trusting patients with dire consequences. In 2004 the world saw counterfeit baby formula kill 60 infants in China from malnutrition. Patients who have taken counterfeit antibiotics have died needlessly over the past decade, largely due to the increase of organized crime in distributing such highly profitable "knock offs". The most vulnerable - the poor in small countries where drug purification tests are not available. How can you, as a resident of this beautiful island, know for sure where your prescription medication came from, and whether it is genuine and in the correct dosage?

Interpol's selection of St. Maarten for its conference 28 February through 1 March 2012 is a source of pride to the government and the people. This is a wonderful opportunity to become involved through education of the information that comes from this important conference. Hopefully the Health Minister will make a presentation following this conference to the public.

Claude F. Bordelon

The bet consisting of making year 2011, the year of the Overseas was kept. It was one year rich in events particularly in Metropole France. Among the most outstanding events, such as the Carnival on the Champs Elysée, the SMA (Adapted Military Service for the Overseas) at the head of July 14th parade, the Conferences on Water and Biodiversity, the handing-out of the Prizes to the Overseas young talents...

At the level of the CESE, our Overseas group concretized several projects. Thus we made studies on: renewable Energies and Reinforcement of the Co-operation with our neighbors. We also completed work on: The dependency particularly of our elderly, The inequalities at school, the Climate changing & warming, the Common agricultural policy, the vocational training, the competitiveness of the companies, the Common Policy of Fishing, the ANRU (National Agency for Urban Renovation), the forest, and especially, we produced the report on the situation of France. All these studies and works incontestably constitute true tracks of reflection and decision-making aid for our Government.

At this time when France is crossing a severe period of turbulence, related to the economic and financial crisis and which became the crisis of the sovereign debt of the states, the Overseas Territories seems more and more as an oxygen relief for our economy.

At the local level, in spite of the obstacles, the Collectivity continued its efforts in the installation of its competences. I contributed to the signature of the convention between LADOM and our Collectivity and I am particularly asking our youth in search of mobility, training and employment to make this convention live.

The year 2011 will remain engraved in the Saint Martin and especially Grand-Case people's memory as being the year of the death of a great man, Robert Weinum, who was General, Regional, and Municipal Councilor during long years. This is why, with Senator Louis Constant Fleming and President Frantz Gumbs, we started the process to re-baptize "Aéroport de l'Espérance" of Grand case, « Aéroport Robert Weinum ».

The year 2012 is the year of all challenges. Many will be rewarded for their efforts... I hope that the elections, which will soon arrive, are for our population a true moment of freedom of expression, democratic participation and a real choice of society. Provided that Saint Martin, France but also the United States experience a higher growth !

On the CESE level, we come to launch a specific study on the jurisdiction and the exploitation of the Maritime Continental platforms which will have to make it possible for France to better explore its maritime depths (discovery of oil in Guyana...). Following the creation of a Delegation specific to the Overseas in the Senate, our Delegation with the CESE is considering to establish a bridge to facilitate exchanges with this new body.

In conclusion, I would ask you to retain the past, even if per moments we had to "compose" with it, to take part fully and preferably in a constructive way in our present in order to offer to Saint Martin, France and the United States, a future more than perfect!!!.

Good Health, Good participation and Good Year 2012.

Have you been to Motorworld recently? You'll think you've walked into a scene of romance; you can actually smell the sweet perfume of the flowers and see the happy hearts dancing in the air.....

Motorworld is celebrating Valentine's Day early this year. They are making it easy to surprise your loved one for this special lovers' day. Not only are the vehicles well priced, they have the Best Brands and Best Cars! But the Best Special is: Buy any car at the show tomorrow and receive a cruise for two. Yes, a Cruise for 2, either to the Bahamas, Mexico or the Caribbean.

RBTT bank will be present for "On The Spot Financing", making it a "One Stop Shopping" experience. Choose the car you like, get a pro forma, go to the bank and let them do the rest. Even more fun is that the first 5 early birds, that take their pro formas to the bank, will receive a special Valentine's day gift.

All of this is done in a romantic ambience as they will be serving Pink Champagne and Cake and the atmosphere will be charged with awesome Romantic Music.

Documents that would be needed for the bank:
Pro forma invoice from Motorworld
2 last pay slips
Proof of address (e.g. GEBE)
Job Letter (if you don't have it, you can always bring it at a later date)
Valid ID
Driver's license
That's it; it's that simple!
It just never ends at Motorworld; they are always trying to make your car shopping experience the BEST!

• PRE-VALENTINE'S DAY CAR SHOW
• FEBRUARY 4TH, 2012
• MOTORWORLD, COLE BAY
• 8 AM – 4 PM
• BUY ANY CAR AND RECEIVE A CRUISE FOR 2
• RBTT BANK AVAILABLE FOR ON THE SPOT FINANCING
• FIRST FIVE CLIENTS TO TAKE A PROFORMA TO THE BANK WILL RECEIVE A SPECIAL VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT
• PINK CHAMPAGNE AND CAKE WILL BE SERVED

If you would like more information, please call Ami Bora at 586 6239 / 0690 224416 or e-mail her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

A New Year often brings a renewed sense of commitment to improving the various facets of our lives. Both personally and professionally, every New Year provides a new lens through which we tend to see things differently. I see that Change is happening quickly around us- as a newly established nation, St. Maarten is tackling enormous reform issues that will impact generations to come. I encourage us all to remain ever mindful of the words of President Kennedy: There are risks and costs to a program of action. But they are far less than the long-term risks and costs of comfortable inaction. I believe that we are all motivated by the same goals- to secure the future of St. Maarten. It is how to achieve these goals that we may sometimes disagree about. During this Year I pledge to support brave and responsible policies that include a long-term vision for sustainability; I will continue to make my Ministry transparent and accountable to the people for whom it serves. I realize that it is not entirely about policy- our attitude, character, and approach are all a part of what needs to be a new era of politics in St. Maarten.

In the coming year I personally plan to recommit to my health- and I am encouraging all of you to join me in this endeavor. Over time, my definition of health has broadened immensely, as well as my belief as to how to improve it. Beyond the commitment we must make to ourselves to exercise regularly and eat healthy foods, we must create a social and physical environment which promote healthy lifestyles: An environment where people are living in loving homes, have a strong sense of family, social responsibility, and a belief that success of any kind can be a reality with determination. It is in this environment that all people, adults as well as children, have the greatest chance of succeeding in adopting life long healthy habits- both physically and emotionally. This Ministry is committed to the prevention and urge all residents of St. Maarten to explore our Get Checked St. Maarten campaign to discover how it can help them improve the quality of their own lives. This commitment continues with the improvement and expansion of a competent, accessible health care system that provides the services needed most in St. Maarten. Health care is a trifecta- patients, health care providers, and government- we are all accountable if a system fails to meet the needs of the society which it is meant to serve. I urge all residents of St. Maarten to take control of their health and see their physicians regularly. I encourage health care providers to give the time and attention that is necessary for each patient to feel cared for. As a representative of government, I urge Parliament members to support health care policies that provide our citizens with access to the best that modern medicine has to offer. We. Simply. Must. The effects of poor health are far reaching; there is an indisputable link between the health of a nation and its potential for prosperity.

The effects of the global economic crisis continue to impact our prosperity in St. Maarten and undoubtedly the recovery process will test our strength. In order for our nation to recover from our current economic challenges and return to a pattern of growth, our workforce must collectively move towards the brave resolution of problems. There is a set of Japanese principles that are often quoted as the pillars of business practice: We must always do our sincere best, place importance on integrity, and not act rashly or carelessly in pursuit of easy gains. I believe that St. Maarten will well be on the road to becoming a prosperous nation by adhering to these principles, committing to corporate social responsibility, solving problems with patience, and paying fair wages to hard working people. I urge businesses to cultivate a deeper sense of compassion and create a workplace culture that brings out the best in all workers. As a workforce, we must take pride in achieving our objectives in a timely fashion and doing our part in strengthening outcomes in the places where we work; we are all stakeholders in the economic future of St. Maarten.
In the same respect, Government is a stakeholder with respect to individual well being in a social context as well as the well being of society. We must pay particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, or living in poverty. The famous sociologist C. Wright Mills differentiated between Private Troubles and Public Issues- private problems happen to one person- its potential to affect us all makes it a public issue. Difficult times can fall upon us all, and the government must play its part in providing a helping hand when its citizens are need. As we continue with social policy reform in the coming year, It is my sincere hope that the assistance process is streamlined to make guidelines very clear and services expeditious and readily available to all those who qualify. We will continue to research a sustainable pension reform that will effectively protect employees from a loss of benefits should there be a change or loss in job status. These are ambitious systematic changes being presented, and evidence based decisions must be made in order to protect the integrity of our governmental system and taxpayer monies. I invite all St. Maarteners to be part of the change- I have had the privilege of hearing extraordinary ideas from people of all walks of life, and I look forward to creating and supporting reforms in the coming year that truly reflect the voices of the people.
Being at the head of the Department of Public Health, Social Development and Labor is both a privilege and a great responsibility. It is with sincere and humble gratitude that I serve my people and my country, as we ALL do every day. I resolve this Year to do for you what I ask YOU to do for yourselves and for St. Maarten- I will do my sincere best. It is my belief that our country as well as our individual selves must pursue a dream, or an ideal, to grow and develop and have a fulfilling future. I wish you and your family the very best in achieving those dreams as well as a healthy and prosperous 2012.

Hon VH Cornelius de Weever
Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labour
Government of St. Maarten

Philipsburg:--- On Saturday February 18th during a routine control of a driver of a car in the Sint Peters area a suspect with initials L.G. was arrested.

During this control the suspect was found with an illegal firearm in his possession. The suspect was then transported to the Philipsburg Police Station. The suspect was brought before an acting prosecutor at which time, because of the description of the suspect given by the victims of the robberies matched his, he was identified as a possible suspect of these cases. The suspect was then handed over to the Detective Department for questioning. During the investigation
L.G. has been identified as the culprit in at least 14 armed robberies in Sint Peters area.

 

On every February 2nd since 1997 countries around the World observe the adoption of the convention of wetlands in the city of Ramsar, Iran in 1971. Governments, NGOs and communities across the globe use this day to raise awareness and highlight the importance of the world's wetlands.

"The Convention's mission is the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local, regional and national actions and international cooperation, as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world". (Ramsar COP8, 2002). Presently there are over 150 signatories to the convention with more than 1800 wetland sites designated for inclusion in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Significance.

This year's World Wetlands Day theme "Wetlands and Tourism" is of particular significance to St. Maarten considering that Tourism and tourism related services are the driving force of the island's economy. Largely unplanned and unregulated development over the past 40 years has lead to the destruction of 14 of St. Maarten's 19 ponds an alarming three quarters of the island's wetlands.

"Dutch St. Maarten is in trouble. St. Martin, the French side of the island, is promising in terms of balancing development with the natural resources. The environmental and ecological quality of Dutch St. Maarten is threatened by overdevelopment". National Geographic, Traveler, 2009.

EPIC and St. Maarten Pride Foundation will therefore be bringing extra attention to the need to protect St. Maarten's few remaining wetlands with excursions, clean-ups, tree planting events and other activities planned for the month of February.

The Foundations reiterate their calls for government to pass and enforce environmental and conservation legislation aimed at protecting the island's remaining wetlands and other ecologically, historically and culturally significant areas for current and future generations of residents and visitors to enjoy.

This Saturday February 4th, as of 10:00am the Library will celebrate the Chinese New Year. The Library will be decorated in Chinese style an there will be an exhibition and a movie about China. There will be a performance of the Lion dance and Chinese tea can be tasted and will be sold. The celebration is organized in close cooperation with the St. Maarten Chinese community Foundation and closes off the afternoon with storytelling activities about Chinese new year in the library bus.
All children and their parents are welcome!
The library would like to wish our Chinese community a happy Chinese new year!

Great Bay (DCOMM):--- Three drainage road crossings will be installed on the Welfare road, Cole Bay starting Tuesday, 14 February at 8:00pm.

The three drainage road crossings will be installed between Cole Bay Round-a-bout and Marshall Motors. The aforementioned will address water that is constantly running on the public road at several locations in that area.

Those areas were not hooked up initially due to other buildings in the area that needed to be hooked up to the drainage system.

The infrastructure works will be carried out throughout the night until it is completed. Motorists are hereby being asked to drive with caution when approaching the area between the Cole Bay Round-a-bout and Marshall Motors.

In order to facilitate the movement of traffic, various traffic signs will be set up and motorists are requested to pay attention when transiting through the area.

The road will not be closed to traffic, but will function as a one-way during the infrastructure works and alternating between directions.

Motorists are also recommended to use the Orange Grove Road if coming from Philipsburg and heading in the direction of Simpson Bay and Maho Reef which would facilitate a quicker transit.

The Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure, apologizes for any inconvenience that the infrastructure works may cause.

Philipsburg:--- WazzUpp TV, the locally produced magazine show has been picked up by the regional cable network, Caribvision. The Caribbean Media Corporation's (CMC) 24-hour cable channel, which was launched in August 2006 in efforts to deliver quality programming to Caribbean people and those with a genuine interest in Caribbean culture.
WazzUpp TV is the first television show from St. Maarten to air regionally on a weekly basis in two prime time spots on Tuesdays 9:30pm and Saturdays 8:30pm on the cable network. Caribvison also broadcasts the show at various times during the day on Sunday & Wednesday along with various ads promoting the program throughout the whole week.
Caribvision's reach on various cable companies is about 5 million in the Caribbean region and in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut market on CableVision( Channel 1104) which has about 3.3 million subscribers.
Producer and Host of WazzUp TV Ronny Busby said "We are very proud of this first for St. Maarten. The potential to show our work in 21 Caribbean Territories on Caribvision and on CableVision in the NY, NJ and Connecticut area is huge". All of our first 16 shows are also on Youtube, which gives us a global reach.
Locally, WazzUpp TV is rebroadcasting all of the first season shows on St. Maarten Cable TV 15 on Monday and Tuesday at 9pm, WTN and St. Martin Cable TV in addition to Anguilla, Aruba, Saba, Statia, Nevis, Tortola, St. Thomas, St. Croix & St. Johns.

The Sonesta Great Bay was this past Friday, 10 February, venue for the Real Estate Association St. Maarten (RAM) first annual meeting. The meeting opened with a recap of the first year of this young association and was followed by the ambitions plans RAM has for the coming year of 2012. RAM president, Arun Jagtiani then introduced the attorneys of the recently landed commercial law firm, VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne. The RAM members turned their attention to the center stage where for the next 2 hours, three interactive presentations were held by the attorneys. St. Maarten based attorney, Michael Druijts kicked off with an introduction to legal real estate structuring intended to demystify this often misunderstood topic where corporate entities are used to optimize real estate assets. Next, VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne's associated firm on Anguilla, St. Kits & Nevis, Webster Dyrud Mitchell, represented by Head of Corporate & Commercial Jeremy Leese, took the presentation further, discussing the examples of real estate structures in practice. Understandably, the over 40 realtors got fired up and Jeremy had many questions to answer. Last but not least, and probably the most interactive presentation of the morning was when local VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne attorney, Peter van Dort, involved with the new St. Maarten legislation, offered a Q&A on sale and lease agreements. Even after the allocated time, the questions kept coming. RAM plans similar information sessions in the near future with topics on tax legislation, permits & zoning issues, rental laws, and new laws which may impact the real estate industry. "Overall I believe this event was an incredible success, the turn out was better then expected, and it seems like everyone is eager to have a follow up session," Said Arun Jagtiani owner of Island Real Estate Team and president of RAM. RAM's membership consists of 60 real estate agents from 20 companies in St. Maarten and turned its activities this past year towards providing Parliament, the Minister of Finance, the Central Bank and the Tax Department with input from St. Maarten's important real estate industry. Ram is planning to have follow up info sessions in the coming months to ensure all members are given the opportunity to have the most up to date information so they can provide their clients with educated advice, thereby improving the integrity of the industry. VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne is the leading Dutch Caribbean law firm for local, intra-insular and international matters. It is the largest law firm in the Dutch Caribbean, with offices in Curacao, Aruba, Bonaire, Sint Maarten and a Dutch Caribbean Desk in Amsterdam. VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne officially opened its offices in St. Maarten in November 2011 and the law firm is now present on all islands of the Dutch Caribbean. With the St. Maarten office also offering services to clients in St. Eustatius and Saba, as well as teaming up with lawyers in neighboring Anguilla and Nevis to serve their clients better.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams on Monday met with His Excellency Governor Eugene Holiday as part of their weekly meetings.

The meeting on Monday focused on the quarterly review of progress regarding the issuance of passports by the Civil Registry Department.

The Governor and the Prime Minister also discussed the recent progress report on the Plan of Approach for the Civil Registry, and according to Prime Minister Wescot, the Civil Registry Department is making great strides overall.

Other matters reviewed were office staffing, training, "cleaning up" of the registry database and security related matters.

Philipsburg:--- It all began on Feb. 23, 1905 in the City of Chicago, Paul Harris, Gustavus Loehr, Hiram Shorey, and Silvester Schiele met to talk about their personal experiences. During this meeting Harris presented his general plan for their club meetings. The world's first service club was born; the Rotary Club of Chicago.
Presently, Rotary is a global network of people that volunteer their time and other resources for the community and it is one of the largest and most influential international humanitarian service organizations worldwide. Rotary worldwide consists of more than 1.2 million members belonging to 33,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries.
Rotary members focus on projects that address today's humanitarian challenges including illiteracy, disease, hunger, poverty, lack of clean water, and environmental concerns while encouraging, supporting, and recognizing high standards in all vocations.
The Rotary Club of St. Maarten in advance of today's 107th birthday, celebrated during the regular Wednesday meeting held at Great Bay hotel. President Rebecca Low and Past District Governor Reinier Heere cut the cake while past presidents, Past District Governor Aadu Abel, incoming president Elie Bendaly and members looked on. Rotary Club of St. Maarten joins Rotary clubs around the world in recognizing the day this service club was born.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Central Committee of Parliament will continue with the 2012 National Budget discussion on Monday after the meeting was adjourned on Wednesday.

The meeting will start at 2:00pm in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament on Wilhelmina Straat #2.1 in Philipsburg.

Members of the Council of Ministers are expected to be present for the meeting in order to provide additional information to Members of Parliament with respect to the national budget.

The committee meeting will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and via Pearl Radio FM 98.1. The audio will be carried via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

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Philipsburg:--- St. Maarten Cable TV reminds its subscribers that effective February 1, 2012, everyone is required to switch to a Motorola digital box to continue receiving service. Subscribers are asked to visit the office at Madame Estate to exchange their analog box in order to continue viewing the exciting channel line-up.
To provide all customers the opportunity to gradually transition to the digital platform and to accommodate the change, St. Maarten Cable TV will simulcast the analog channels until May 1, 2012. Thereafter, the Company will cease transmission of the analog channels and Pioneer boxes will no longer receive the signal.
To accommodate subscribers who may not be able to swap their box during the week, the business office at Madame Estate will be open on Saturday, February 4, 2012 and Saturday, February 11, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The team anticipates that another branch office will be open to process customers in the Simpson Bay area by February 20, 2012.
Subscribers in the areas listed below should come in during the periods mentioned to swap their analog cable box for a digital box. Customers must also bring their remote(s), coupon book and a valid ID. Those subscribers that have a shield on the cable box or not able to remove their cable box should call the customer service department at 542-4361 for further instructions.

Area #1: February 1, 2012 to February 13, 2012

• Madame Estate/Arch Road
• Sucker Garden, Upper & Lower

Area #2: February 14, 2012 to February 24, 2012

• Philipsburg / Fort William
• Guano Bay / Hope Estate

Area #3: February 27, 2012 to March 9, 2012

• Dawn Beach / Oyster Pond / Red Pond
• Defiance / Middle Region

Area #4: March 1, 2012 to March 13, 2012

• Pelican
• Simpson Bay

Area #5: March 12, 2012 to March 22, 2012

• Belvedere / Rice Hill
• Dutch Quarter / Union Farm
• Mount William

Area #6: March 14, 2012 to March 23, 2012

• Airport Road
• Beacon Hill

Area #7: March 23, 2012 to April 4, 2012

• Illidge Road / Bush Road / Cul De Sac
• Betty's Estate / Saunders / Mary's Fancy

Area #8: March 26, 2012 to April 5, 2012

• Cole Bay
• Cay Bay

Area #9: April 5, 2012 to April 17, 2012

• Cay Hill / Belair
• Ebenezer / St. Peters / South Reward / L.B. Scott Road

Area #10: April 10, 2012 to April 20, 2012

• Maho / Pointe Pirouette
• Low Lands

Area #11: April 18, 2012 to April 30, 2012

• Pointe Blanche

Customers are also encouraged to visit St. Maarten Cable TV's new website for additional information about digital cable TV, the interactive digital guide and the installation process at www.innovativevi.net/sxmcable.

Simpsonbay, St. Maarten:--- Red Cross St. Maarten is proud to introduce its two newly re-certified American Red Cross First Aid/CPR/AED Instructors, Reangelo Martiena and Julia Boasman who left the island last week for Aruba to take part in the course together with colleagues from the Saba, St. Eustatius, Bonaire and Aruba Red Cross branches.

Six volunteers from the Aruba Red Cross were trained last year by the Washington D.C. chapter of the American Red Cross and became Instructor Trainers for this new and updated version of First Aid/CPR/AED training. With this certification Aruba started to train and upgrade their sister islands. The training was very intense and at a very high level but because of the professional guidance of the Red Cross Aruba Trainers everybody passed their exams.

Before starting the course each participant had to do an online exam and had to score at least 80% before they could travel to Aruba.

"Due to large requests from our community for First Aid/CPR/AED classes, we are looking at possibilities to organize a next training session to get at least two more instructors certified so we will be able to better serve the community and get more people trained in the much needed skills of First Aid/CPR/AED" says Red Cross St. Maarten Manager Marjan van der Steen.

A big thank you goes out to the wonderful "Aruba group" for their great effort and support in conducting this class.

Clients and staff of the Sister Basilia Center were treated during the valentine season by the Rotary Club of St. Maarten.
The buses of Russell Bell and the Sr. Basilia Center arrived early in the morning to take the clients for a ride to Chesterfields' restaurant where they were welcomed by Jeff Heilmann and the Rotary Club of St. Maarten with a nice breakfast. After this loving treat for all 55 clients and staff and the exchange of gifts, the morning's activities continued with boarding a boat provided by Bobby's Marina. The entire group was taken under perfectly blue skies sailing conditions for a smooth boat ride through Great Bay providing a wonderful opportunity to view a part the island from the sea.
The Rotary Club of St. Maarten would like to thank Chesterfield's Restaurant, Russel Bell, and Bobby's Marina for their contribution in making this community service event once again a great success.

TALLAHASSEE, Florida:--- The Tallahassee-St. Maarten Foundation Inc. (TLH-SXMF) Director Arthur Lugisse, along with the President of the TLH-SXMF Ben Harris on Sunday afternoon, welcomed St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce & Industry Executive Director Claret Connor and Board member Tamara Leonard to Tallahassee, Florida.

Connor and Leonard are on a fact-finding three-day working visit to Florida's Capital City Tallahassee at the behest of Chamber President Arthur Bute who was part of a delegation that visited the Capital back in 2000.

The Tallahassee - St. Maarten sister-city partnership according to Lugisse with respect to this trip is focused on economic development, business linkages/ventures and looking at the opportunities in renewable energy and expansion on business development.
"The small delegation is here to familiarize themselves with the positive opportunities for joint-ventures between Tallahassee and Sint Maarten public and private sectors to promote business development as a program starting in 2012, the 3s Community-Culture and Commerce {Caribbean-USA } and 20-20 Vision.
"President Obama has just made a good move to offer financing to U.S. companies to match their foreign competitors with the goal of helping American industries compete on a large scale.
"I think it's the right time to provide USA small businesses the opportunity to do joint ventures with the Caribbean. Potentially speaking, some USA companies might be doing 20% business locally and 30% regionally but with an added 40% internationally they would be doing 90%, a definite increase to their bottom line. They would become stronger, more sustainable, and able to better support their existence in the business market.
"The platform to promote our country in the USA, with focus on creating opportunities is the Sister City relations between Tallahassee and St.Maarten based on the 12-year-old agreement," Lugisse explained on Sunday.
The support for local USA companies to engage in the international markets is provided by entities such as the EXIM-BANK, Small Business Association, eFLORIDA, Economic Development Corporation, Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Commissioner Akim Akinyemi, Cariamerica, Mayor John Marks, Commissioner Andrew Gillum, City Manager Anita Favors, Commissioner Bill Proctor, Obersi Group of Companies, Omni Global LLC, King Arthur's Tools, Simpler Solar Systems, and the Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce.
"We believe we can be the networking agent between all and more of these various organizations and individuals to create a deeper, broader marketplace for Florida and the Caribbean. We can make a significant difference in bridging the gaps, connecting the dots and seamlessly transitioning the present Florida/Caribbean marketplace into a new more vigorous one.
"St. Maarten as a stepping stone to the Caribbean and Tallahassee as the springboard to the rest of the USA, offer unlimited possibilities for growth and development globally," TLH-SXM Foundation Executive Director Arthur Lugisse concluded.
Lugisse added that a new TV program about economic and development will soon be aired on WTN TV Channel 10, a TLH-SXM Foundation partner. The program will be called, "The Voice of the People," addressing doing business on Sint Maarten, cost of living, telecommunications, the environment, unemployment, business opportunities, training, education and certification.

Great Bay:--- The Embassy of India in Caracas, Venezuela, recently offered a full scholarship to a St. Martin student in the context of the friendly cooperation programme launched in 1964 by the Government of India in which some 156 countries currently participate.
To choose the candidate for this India Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) scholarship, the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs, Dr. Rhoda Arrindell, has decided to invite suitable candidates to apply for nomination for the scholarship which will include all expenditures such as airfare, course fee, accommodation, allowances, etc., being taken care of by the Government of India for the selected candidate.
Applicants must meet the following criteria:

1. They must fulfill the admission criteria for the courses they intend to study
2. They must have a working knowledge of English needed to follow the Course
3. They must be between 25 to 45 years of age
4. They must be medically fit to undertake the training.

Government officials, persons from the Public and Private Sectors, Universities, Chambers of Commerce and Industry, etc. may apply for the scholarship.
Application forms can be obtained online at: http://itec.mea.gov.in/how%20to%20apply.html. Details about the ITEC programme and the list of courses are also available at the website: www.embindia.org.
The forms must be filled in carefully, without leaving any column incomplete or blank. An undertaking by the applicant and certification from his/her employer (Part II of Application Form) are mandatory.
The duly completed forms must be submitted no later than Monday, March 5th, 2012, to the Head of Study Financing Division, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs, Vlaun Building, #3, N. Debrot Street, Philipsburg, St. Martin.
The decision to accept applications/nominations or not rests solely with the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Motorists are hereby informed that the Hulda B. Richardson Road in Middle Region/Defiance area will be temporarily closed to motorized traffic as of 8:00pm Friday, 24 February, 2012 until Saturday morning 6:00am.

Motorists are advised to observe the traffic signs and directional signs in order to ensure a smooth transit through the area via other roads being used to detour traffic from the closed section of the road during the aforementioned period of time.

The road closure is in connection with the infrastructure upgrading works that is being carried out by General Contractor MNO which is related to the on-going Middle Region road project.

The contractor apologizes for any inconvenience that this temporary road closure may cause.

Philipsburg:--- The General Audit Chamber of Sint Maarten achieves membership in the CARIBBEAN ORGANIZATION OF SUPREME AUDIT INSTITUTIONS (CAROSAI).
By letter of February 7th 2012, the Secretary General of CAROSAI informed the Chairman of the General Audit Chamber, Mr. Roland Tuitt, of the approval of its membership request.
The Caribbean Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions is a regional organization wherein the Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI's) of over 20 (island) nations are represented, among which Aruba, Antigua, the U.S.V.I., Bahamas, Bermuda, Grenada, St. Lucia, Jamaica, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad. CAROSAI's objectives are to increase the exchange of knowledge and experiences among member Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI's) as well as expand training and continuing education possibilities among these institutions. Additionally, CAROSAI seeks to increase the importance of internal audit function in the public sector as well as render technical assistance and support to the member institutions. The Secretariat of the Caribbean Organization of Supreme Audit Chambers is situated in Castries, St. Lucia W.I.
As the General Audit Chamber of Sint Maarten was recently established (10-10-10), participation in international organizations is crucial to the continued institutional development.
Approval of the membership to CAROSAI occurred during the meeting of its membership that was held on February 1 & 2 in Antigua. In the notification to the General Audit Chamber, CAROSAI's General Secretary , Ms. Averil James-Bonnette, indicated that the organization believes that "the Supreme Audit Institution of Sint Maarten will play a vital role in enabling CAROSAI to achieve its objectives".
Board and management of the General Audit Chamber are proud to be able to join the regional institution and in so doing both represent Country Sint Maarten as well as contribute to CAROSAI's objectives.

Philipsburg:--- Seven local participants completed a 5 day training of Cito International and can now call themselves "Certified Screeners of SBO Tests".

Cito is a renowned institute for test construction in The Netherlands. They produce the final exams of the Dutch secondary schools, which on the island are being used at the PSVE, HAVO and VWO schools. They have already trained 8 local persons to become trainers of fellow teachers in producing high quality tests at the secondary school level.

The screeners training that was completed on Friday, February the 17th, was geared towards monitoring the quality of tests produced for programs of Advanced Secondary Professional and Technical Education (SBO). By law, 50% plus 1 of all the tests that are made by teachers within this type of tertiary professional training must be screened and approved by an external institute. Before 10/10/10 this task was executed by ETE, the Exambureau of the Netherlands Antilles, often assisted by Cito. From now on, however, the tests can be screened locally by the Division of Exams, of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs, which will make use of the skills and expertise of the newly certified screeners.

The training trajectory has been made possible through Dutch Development Funds for Education and Youth.

Philipsburg:--- The 5th Annual Rotary Youth Table Tennis Tournament took place this Saturday February 25th 2012, at the LB Scott Sports Auditorium. The Minister of Education Culture Sport & Youth officially opened the event along with the Rotary Club of St. Maarten Mid Isle President Ramesh Manek. The Table Tennis Tournament was a one day event in which players from St. Maarten and a three from Anguilla competed for individual and team trophies.

Simpson Bay:--- Postal Services St. Maarten (PSS) was vandalized/broken into earlier this evening at its Simpson Bay location.

The Police Department was called to the scene and they did the necessary checks and ensured that nothing has been stolen.

Provisions were made to ensure that a security team stayed at the location throughout the evening.

Further investigations will take place with regards to this unfortunate occurrence.

More details on this incident will be given in a subsequent article.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Vice Prime Minister Theo Heyliger would like to congratulate the approximately 400 persons who have become naturalized citizens last week.

The naturalisation ceremony took place at Divi Little Bay Beach Resort in the presence of His Excellency Governor Eugene Holiday.

The 387 persons hailed from 13 nationalities, ages eight to 58.

Heyliger also calls on the new citizens to consider a life of service to others, staying true to their core values as citizens and family members.

"Congratulations on becoming citizens. This is the Sint Maarten dream. Hundreds have taken this route in the past and continue to make a contribution to the national wellbeing of this country. Persons who take the oath have dedication and a sense of civic responsibility to the country.

Immigrants have benefited from this great country of ours. Their contributions have been made and continue to be made in socio-cultural and economic sectors to name a few, and that is how we have progressed and developed over the decades as a nation.

To the naturalized citizens, we look forward to you in advancing our national development as hundreds have done seeking prosperity and opportunity of country Sint Maarten in the 21st century.

We look forward to you being an engaged citizen, and not only enjoy the privileges that flow from citizenship, but to serve and to give back to your country.

Join social groups in our community, sign-up with your parents-teachers association, or form a community group in your neighbourhood. We all have the tasks of making our country even better for the next generation. Remember, our differences are what make our nation's diversity so valuable.

Congratulations once again on becoming our nation's newest citizens. May God bless you all and May God bless Country Sint Maarten," Vice Prime Minister Hon. Theo Heyliger said on Wednesday.

Great Bay (DCOMM):--- Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams met with representatives of the athletic organization Speedy Plus recently.

The organization is preparing local youngsters for athletic encounters and competitions. Those present at the meeting were Leona Romeo-Marlin and Coach Calvin Brian.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico:--- Having raised $1,396,150 in scholarship funds for Caribbean youth seeking to continue their education since its inception, the non-profit Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) Education Foundation has put out a plea to hoteliers, airlines and other stakeholders in the region to support the initiative by donating stays for the highly visible Caribbean Auction at The New York Times Travel Show. There is only one week remaining to sign up, so please send in the donation form by Feb. 15 or contact the foundation for more info.
The Education Foundation's single largest annual fundraising activity, the Caribbean Auction attracts thousands of affluent eyeballs as New York City's most avid travelers research and bid on the Caribbean resort and tourism-related prizes available at the silent charity auction. With the support of hoteliers, airlines and tourism partners, the Education Foundation plans to increase its total contribution to the education of Caribbean nationals beyond $1.5 million.
"Supporting our human resources by participating in the Caribbean Auction ensures the future sustainability of our tourism and helps to raise living standards across the region in the long run," said Tom Pas, chairman of the Education Foundation.
"But with more than 18,000 consumers and retail agents attending The New York Times Travel Show annually, its also an impactful promotional vehicle," added Pas, noting that many tech-saavy New Yorkers research hotel websites and TripAdvisor reviews on their smart phones before bidding. "This results in brand recognition and may lead to bookings when determined travelers are outbid."
The Education Foundation expanded last year's fundraising efforts by including additional auctions items beyond Caribbean hotel and resort stays. The move resulted in a frenzy of interest from consumers who were able to bid on air tickets and attractions, as well as an air-inclusive London vacation contributed by Virgin Holidays.
"This year we're accepting donations from a wide variety of partners in order to raise as much as we can to support our beneficiaries," said Pas. Nothing is too small or insignificant. Regardless of your business model, you can become a hero to a deserving young professional."
Click here for the donation form or contact the CHTA Education Foundation for more info. Learn more about the foundation's mission, projects and accomplishments at www.chtaeducationfoundation.com.


The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association Education Foundation (CHTAEF) was established in 1987 as a stand-alone non-profit / tax-exempt organization, through which scholarships and special assistance would be made available for the education of Caribbean hotel industry personnel and students pursuing careers in tourism. As part of its mission, the Education Foundation provides people throughout the Caribbean region with an awareness of the industry's varied career opportunities, as well as technical and professional development. Since 1987, the Education Foundation has awarded over a US$1.25 million in scholarships and grants to applicants who demonstrate a strong commitment to the hotel and tourism industry.
The Education Foundation is also active in supporting Haitians students & industry personnel following the earthquake in January 2010 by facilitating a holistic Spoken English/ Practical Hospitality Skills & Academic training project in Port au Prince.
For more information www.chtaeducationfoundation.com.

The Department of Sports and Youth Affairs of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs, in collaboration with the St. Maarten Early Childhood Association, Day Care and Early Stimulation Centers will be holding activities in recognition of the Rights of Children on Saturday February 11th 2012 for children ages 0-4 years under the theme "Rights of the Child, not an Option but an Obligation".

The festivities will commence with a parade starting at 10:00am from the Board Walk at Sea Palace Hotel through Front Street to the Sundial School where activities consisting of storytelling, face painting, puppet show, sports and special presentations by the children will also take place.

Day Care and Early Stimulation Centers that have not yet registered to participate can still do so by contacting the Youth and Sports Department or the St. Maarten Early Childhood Association.

"Our heartfelt sympathy goes out especially to her daughter Bobbi- Christina her mother Gospel singer Ms.Cissy Houston and her cousin, a singing legend in her own right, Ms. Dionne Warwick."

Philipsburg:--- Gracita stated: "I too was very saddened to hear about the passing of Singer Whitney Houston Saturday night. As the world comes to grips with the untimely death of the beautiful and exceptionally talented singer Whitney Houston, many in Sint Maarten also feel and share this great loss in the world of music.

Peridot Foundation takes this opportunity to share in this grief and extend our deepest condolences to all who mourn the loss of Whitney."

"From the moment the sad news hit the networks, I received many calls expressing warm sympathy and great support to Ms Warwick and her family.
In May of 2011 charming Ms. Dionne Warwick, graced our shores when she took time out of her very busy schedule to lend her support to help bring awareness to the cause of Peridot Foundation, which aims to eradicate relational violence, domestic violence from our community. We deeply appreciated Dionne's presence on Sint Maarten and support then, we stand firmly in support of her now in her time of bereavement".

Gracita said; "Whitney was a source of tremendous inspiration to hundreds of millions of people around the world. Part of the lyrics of her hit song 'The greatest love of all' ....I believe the children are our future...' was used as an inspiration to young students who visited Parliament for an information session last year".

Gracita concludes: "As we mourn this great loss, the golden voice of Whitney, may have been silenced forever, but her legacy lives on, her songs live on, her inspiration lives on.
May God continue to bring his love, grace and support to the Houston, Warwick and Brown families, may her soul rest in eternal peace. We will always love you!"

GREAT BAY:--- Author Loekie Morales presented her children’s book Mina Marina on Wednesday at the Jose Marti Cultural Center in Havana, Cuba.

The author of a number of children’s books said that she also “presented Overseas Bloodline for adults” earlier this week. The biographical title appears in Dutch as Bloedlijn overzee.

Morales could choose no better time to present her books in Cuba. The 21^st annual Cuba International Book Fair (Feb 9 – 19) is taking place as one of the country’s largest cultural events. According to one Associated Press article, the “exuberant popular fair” is known to draw millions of visitors from Cuba and abroad.

Morales is a program manager with the St. Maarten government.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Last week a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Haiti identifying a number of areas in which CARICOM can assist its Member State, Haiti.

"I welcome the agreement! Haiti is a Caribbean country that has been suffering many challenges of late. There was the devastating earthquake two years ago followed by impacts from tropical weather systems and the cholera outbreak.

The Caribbean community of nations has a role to play in assisting their fellow Caribbean brothers and sisters, and Haiti is no different. The assistance to be provided without a doubt will make an impact on the lives of our fellow brothers and sisters in Haiti," Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams said on Sunday.

The areas agreed upon between CARICOM and Haiti are: capacity building in government agencies for investment, technical assistance in education, agriculture, public health, transportation, tourism, and youth exchange initiatives.

An on-going assistance program to Haiti is a consignment of three containers of anti-cholera drugs provided by CARICOM which was delivered to the Haiti Ministry of Health early last week in the fight against the cholera epidemic.

The MOU was signed after a two-day mission to the country by the Bureau of Heads of Government of CARICOM led by Chairman His Excellency Desi Bouterse, President of Suriname, Right Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas, Prime Minister of St. Kitts & Nevis, the Hon. Phillip Pierre, Deputy Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, CARICOM Secretary General LaRocque, and Special Representative of the Heads of Government on Haiti, the Most Hon. PJ Patterson.

HAVANA, Cuba:--- The Cuban book publisher Arte y Literatura launched Musa desnuda by Lasana M. Sekou at the 21st annual International Book Fair of Havana (February 9-19, 2012).
The book fair invited Sekou to the presentation of the new poetry anthology, according to Alberto Fuentes, international relations VP, Institute of the Cuban Book.
The St. Martin author recited at the February 12 launch in the Nuestra América hall of the Morro Castle park complex, the main book fair venue overlooking the Havana bay. This is the first time that a major publisher has published an entire volume by Sekou.
On February 13, Sekou read his poetry at the Caribbean Forum hosted by the prestigious Casa de las Americas in its Che Guevara Hall.
Cuban critic and essayist Emilio Jorge Rodríguez edited the Spanish-only Musa desnuda (Naked Muse). Before both readings, Rodriquez provided a commentary about Sekou's writings, his St. Martin background, the Caribbean and universal themes, "personal aesthetics," and "literary strategies" in his work.
Sekou recited selected poems in English and Rodriguez read the translation in Musa desnuda to guests from Cuba, throughout the Caribbean, Latin America, USA, and Canada. Among the poems recited were "Carnival Village night," "Where we live," "the perfect black," and "for akeem."
Rodriguez compiled Musa desnuda at the request of Arte y Literatura after the publisher saw Corazón de pelícano / Pelican Heart, a bilingual poetry anthology by Sekou that was edited by Rodríguez and published by HNP in 2010.
Editorial Arte y Literatura focuses on publishing Cuban editions of books by foreign writers and Cuban authors writing about foreign writers for the huge book-reading Cuban market.
The 248-page Musa desnuda is among some 25 books launched by the publisher at this year's book fair, along with titles by Ernest Pepin, Hazel Robinson, Abdul H. Sadoun, Olive Senior, Javier Egea, Marcel Proust, and Rodriguez.
Nearly 130 publishing houses from 27 countries took part in the literary festival.
Dalia del Toro, president of the Cuba Chamber of Books, stated that the 21st edition of the book fair honored "Caribbean cultures, ... which encompass the fourteen island States, Mexico, the six Central American countries, the four South American countries with Caribbean coasts, plus the territories that are still subjects of European governments. The US state of Louisiana ... due to the similar nature of its links with the Caribbean region" was also included.
Prensa Latina reported that "over 200 prominent figures from 40 countries" were invited, including Sir Hilary Beckles, Suzy Castor, Norman Girvan, Chiqui Vicioso, Cynthia Abrahams, Silvio Torres-Saillant, Mighty Gabby, Kendel Hyppolite, Alejandro Carpio, Pauline Melville, and Humberto García Muñiz.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Mexican writer Sergio Pitol (Cervantes Prize, 2005), and Brazilian theologian Frei Betto also participated in the literary event that, according to Del Toro, draws over 1 million people to its activities.
With a host of Cuban counterparts, guest participants read papers, performed, met with peers, the general public, attended book launches and other book fair activities.
"The festival consists of book vendors, poetry readings, children's activities, art exhibitions, and concerts in the evenings. It is considered Cuba's premier cultural event, as well as the event with the highest attendance in Havana." (wikipedia.org)
While the fair closed in Havana on Sunday, it continues to tour the country until March 4, and rallies to a finale in the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba.
Cuban Book Institute president Zuleica Romay had Lasana Sekou listed among the 69 authors from 21 countries and territories invited to meet with former Cuban president Fidel Castro on February 10 (www.cubadebate.cu). But the Caribbean author arrived in Havana late at night on February 10 and was unable to attend the meeting. According to Reuters, the "former Cuban leader Fidel Castro held a nine-hour session with writers and intellectuals" as "part of Havana's annual international book fair."

Great Bay:--- Wednesday February 15th marked the start of the Licensed Practical Nurse Course for 22 elated students. The LPN program is a new course of Advanced Secondary, Professional & Technical Education (formerly referred to as SBO).
The course will train mostly youngsters between the ages of 16 and 24, but also some adult students. It takes three years to be a full fledged Licensed Practical Nurse at the White and Yellow Cross, St Maarten Medical Center, Mental Health Foundation or the Department of Health. Four students that completed the Nursing Assistant Course last year are also part of this LPN group.

The students will receive 6 weeks of an introductory training consisting of the modules "Basic Care", "Professional Interaction", "Care for Household", and an introduction program consisting of Anatomy, Reporting skills for nurses, Maths, Psychology, Anatomy and Physiotherapy (e.g. how to properly lift a patient out of bed).

After the first 6 weeks, the LPN course will continue with three days of job training and two days of school. The other modules that will be covered during the three year course are: Planning and Coordination of Care, Prevention and Health Info, Quality Care & Expertise, Nursing Skills, Care for Chronically ill patients/ the elderly/the mentally handicapped and Obgyn.

The course has been developed with Dutch Development Funds for Education and was a cooperative effort of the renowned nursing school IFE (Curacao), White and Yellow Cross, SMMC, SVOBE and SBO Service Center.

During the selection procedure, the students showed an enormous drive to work in the care sector and Wednesday they expressed their joy that their dream to pursue a nursing career will finally become a reality, with the actual start of the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) classes and receipt of their books and readers. The next nursing course that is expected to commence next year is the "Registered Nurse Course".

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Government of Sint Maarten recognizes that affordable electricity and other energy sources such as transportation, energy intensive enterprises as well as for cooking, are of vital importance for the country's population as well as for its national economy.

The country's current energy situation is fully dependent on petroleum products, which have unpredictable price volatility and which are burdening the environment with greenhouse gases and other air pollutants.

The Government of Sint Maarten has identified energy issues that are of great importance for the island and has subsequently developed a draft energy policy addressing the energy issues and the actions needed to move policy to implementation, with the ultimate goal of ensuring a sustainable, affordable and environmental friendly energy situation for the country.

Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Development, Environment, Infrastructure and Energy Affairs Hon. Theo Heyliger, says the draft energy policy for the country identifies several energy issues such as moving away from the use of diesel #2 and heavy fuel oil for power production; the introduction of a country-wide energy efficiency program; and pursue improved efficiency at GEBE.

Seek for renewable energy options such as a wind farm or solar panel arrays; enabling households and commercial clients to install small renewable energy sources like solar and wind power. Tax incentives and attractive loans for individual consumers would be also considered.

A study would also be made of the impact of introducing Smart Grid concepts for an improved electric supply chain from the power plant to the customer premises.

Next to renewable energy options, introduction of LNG should also be studied. The impact on tariffs as well as on the environmental advantages looks interesting according to the draft policy document. The LNG study may also cover natural gas supply for household cooking gas and for the transportation sector.

Sint Maarten would also look at whether it could benefit from inter-island cable connections that are currently being studied from Nevis/St. Kitts up to Puerto Rico, which could enable power delivery from geothermal sources in Nevis as well as power delivery from Puerto Rico. Sint Maarten would also look at the possible purchasing of geothermal energy from Saba by means of a submarine cable connection.

Sint Maarten would also continue to seek an attractive solution to a Waste Energy solution.

"These are some of the things that would be looked into and is part and parcel of our country's draft energy policy plan. We would like to initiate a supply side energy efficiency program with which fuel efficiency with GEBE will be improved with five per cent after two and a half years.

"Preparations for a Green Energy Plan are already underway. We need to assess the country's green policy and the objective is to have 20 per cent of the electricity demand of the country generated with renewable energy sources by the year 2015 and by the year 2020, this should be 50 per cent. ," Minister of Energy Affairs Hon. Theo Heyliger said on Sunday.

Mid-January 2012 kicked off the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All, and governments, the private sector, and civil society, have been called upon to help expand energy access, improve efficiency and increase the use of renewables.

"The international year represents building a new energy future for country Sint Maarten by harnessing the power of technology and innovation. This draft policy sets us on a course to making Sint Maarten energy efficient," Minister of Energy Affairs Hon. Theo Heyliger said on Sunday.

Globally, one person in five still lacks access to modern electricity and twice that number – three billion people – rely on wood, coal, charcoal, or animal waste for cooking and heating.

The new international initiative seeks to ensure universal access to modern energy services, double the rate of improvement in energy efficiency and double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix, all by 2030.

Philipsburg:--- Minister of Finance Hon. Hiro Shigemoto announced on Wednesday that the Ministry of Finance received the advice from the Council of Advice on Tuesday afternoon, and preparations are now underway to send the 2012 National Budget to the Governor who then forwards it to Parliament.

The Committee of Financial Supervision CFT has already submitted its advice which was also sent to the Advisory Council.

"I am looking forward to Parliament handling the budget before March 1 and this seems feasible as long as there aren't any changes that Parliament would like to make to the financial document," Minister of Finance Hon. Hiro Shigemoto said on Wednesday.

In December Parliament, the Governor and the General Audit Chamber were informed that the process to complete the national budget and have it submitted to Parliament by the December 15 timeline would not be met.

The 2012 national budget is Naf. 432,549,600 million while the 2011 budget is Naf. 420,916,597 million. Figures from the latter are currently being used until the 2012 budget has been approved.

Philipsburg:--- A Central Committee Hearing is planned for 6 February about a Centralized Registration System for Child Abuse, and a representative from Women's Desk will be present for the parliamentary session.

The Central Committee of Parliament Hearing is scheduled for Monday afternoon at 2:00pm in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament.

The Women's Desk will give their input with respect to the national ordinance to amend Book 1 of the Civil Code.

The parliamentary hearings are part of the process to deal with amendments to the Civil and Penal Codes. Parliament in a session of October 3, 2011 requested that other entities be heard with respect to the changes that are to be made to various laws that govern the country.

The committee hearing will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and only the audio can be heard via Pearl Radio FM 98.1 as well as via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

Philipsburg:--- On Friday February 3rd at approximately 2:40am while patrolling on Bush Road, a Philipsburg police patrol saw a man driving towards Philipsburg without headlights on. When the driver of this car passed next to the police car, he started behaving quite nervous.
The patrol decided to check out the driver to find out if the documents of vehicle were in order and why he was behaving so suspiciously. The driver was stopped by the police and he was not in possession of a driver's license. While being questioned he became increasingly nervous. The patrol decided to search him. During the search, a plastic bag containing 11 smaller plastic bags, each containing a small amount of marijuana, which were prepared for distribution was found and confiscated. The suspect with the initials C.N.N. was arrested on the spot and taken to the Philipsburg Police Station where he is being held for questioning.

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten:--- The Tallahassee-St. Maarten Foundation Inc. (TLH-SXMF) Director Arthur Lugisse, after spending six months on the island, recently returned to Tallahassee, Florida to execute a new platform with respect to the Tallahassee-St. Maarten Partnership.
"After talking to many persons on the island, and partnering with groups and individuals that have the same goals and objectives, I have designed a new platform to promote our country in the USA, with focus on creating opportunities for the Sister City relations between Tallahassee and St. Maarten based on the 12-year-old agreement.
"The new platform is to move forward in the development of joint ventures between business exchange and marketing and promotions. Our country has been a distribution center of goods and services for the past years and now many more doors have been opened since the status change, and the TLH-SXMF will be doing the needful in 2012," Executive Director Lugisse said on Wednesday.

Lugisse kicked off the platform this week by attending the Green Energy Symposium at the State Capitol court yard in Tallahassee, Florida from February 7-9. Many renewable energy companies and ancillary businesses are exhibiting their green products.

Vertical Turbine Power LLC (VTP) revealed to exhibitor attendees two units, a solar powered golf cart and VTP Solar Power Mobile Unit, designed and fabricated by the development company.

The mobile unit is a portable power generator and water filtration system powered by renewable energy. It can be used as a power and waste water plant for a village with no required government input.

Lugisse said now is the time to go green. "Green technology is being promoted all over the world especially with the high costs of fuel, the way to move forward is green. Country St. Maarten needs to also do more in this area and I was very pleased to hear about the plans for the harbor that are being explored in the area of renewable energy.

"This year is International Year of Sustainable Energy for All. The United Nations has called on governments, the private sector and civil society to use renewable and to build a new energy future by using new technology. The TLH-SXMF will be promoting this area throughout 2012 and will work on bringing St. Maarten and Tallahassee entrepreneurs together to develop sustainable energy projects to benefit the development of our country St. Maarten," Arthur Lugisse said on Wednesday.

The Department of Sports and Youth Affairs in collaboration with the St. Maarten Early Childhood Association, Day Care and Early Stimulation Centers will be holding activities in recognition of the Rights of Children on Saturday February 11th 2012.

The festivities will commence with a parade starting at 10:00am from the board walk at Sea Palace Hotel through Front Street to the Sundial School.

At the Sundial School the activities will continue with a festival for children ages 0-4 years consisting of storytelling, face painting, puppet show and sports. Special presentations by the children will also take place.

The general public and particularly families are invited to come out and enjoy a wonderful day with the little ones in our community.

For the parents there will be an EXPO comprising of Governmental and Non-governmental Organizations that will be present to give valuable information to benefit their children.

Day Care and Early Stimulation Centers that have not yet registered to participate can still do so by contacting the Youth and Sports Department or the St. Maarten Early Childhood Association.

All participants for the parade have to be present no later than 9:45am for the parade.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Last week 19 persons from various government entities on Sint Maarten (17), Anguilla (1) and the British Virgin Islands (BVI) (1) took part in part two of the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing Course for Infrastructure Management and Disaster Risk Reduction.

There has been a rapid growth in the use of digital spatial and temporal data in many aspects of disaster management, for example, preventive planning, response and recovery.

Section Head of Disaster Management Paul Martens said the course was successfully concluded last week. "The aim of the course was to provide both a theoretical understanding and practical hands on introduction to the use of GIS and remote sensing technologies for the analysis and solution of different infrastructure and disaster management problems," Martens told the Department of Communication (DCOMM) on Sunday.

The course is the second one on GIS and Remote Sensing, with the first one held back in August 2011.

The 17 participants from Sint Maarten came from the Fire Department and the Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Development, Environment and Infrastructure.

The course was scheduled from February 6-8 and was held in the conference room at the Sint Maarten Fire Department in Cay Hill.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Ujima Foundation/Centre for Knowledge and Learning, celebrated its fifth anniversary on 16 February, and the President of Parliament Hon. drs. Gracita Arrindell would like to congratulate the organization on this special occasion.

Ujima will also be opening the Charlotte Brookson Academy of the Performing Arts for the 2012/2013 academic year.

President Arrindell says that education is the eternal foundation of a nation's development.

"The addition of Ujima to the landscape of the nation five years was a plus when we were an island territory. Today, as a country, Ujima is on its way to establishing an academy of performing arts.

"We can only build a stronger nation through education. Sint Maarten as a young country, our future lies with an educated population. Much has been achieved during the past years with respect to the different professionals who have graduated and serve in different positions on the island today.

"These persons did their primary and most of their secondary education on the island before leaving to continue with their studies abroad. We have much to be grateful for and what we have achieved as a nation is still the envy of others throughout the region.

"The quality of our nation's human resources is easily judged by the number of literate population living on the island. As a people we continue to aspire for further growth and development. Ujima's new school will be an important asset to our education sector.

"Once again, on behalf of the Parliament of Sint Maarten, congratulations on your fifth anniversary and we look forward to the opening of the academy of performing arts," President of Parliament Hon. Gracita Arrindell said on the fifth anniversary of Ujima on Thursday.

SIMPSON BAY:--- The Princess Juliana International Airport operating company (PJIAE) is to investigate the latest fuel stock-out that affected several airlines Saturday.
According to Larry Donker, PJIA Director of Operations, "PJIAE maintains close contact with SOL and moreover was informed via e-mail on Friday, February 17, 2012, at 3:39 PM, of normal operations to be maintained throughout the weekend. Needless to say the stock-out which occurred was a total surprise to us and the airport community."
"PJIAE was totally surprised by this sudden information and event which negatively affected the airport community operation, not to mention our mutual customers," Donker stressed.
Calling the situation "stressful," the Director of Operations further explained that "SOL received a fuel tanker on Saturday and the fuel sample was delivered to Antigua during the early evening for certification."
"This fuel was certified at approximately 2 AM, early Sunday morning, after which fuel was being delivered to PJIA depot. Normal fueling operation is expected throughout the day," said Donker.
PJIAE Managing Director, Regina Labega, who is currently attending an airlines' conference in The Bahamas, joined Donker in extending her appreciation to all airport partners for their support and patience.
This latest incident, she pointed out, "certainly exemplifies the need for performance standards," which she had called for when a similar situation occurred last month when SOL experienced difficulties in supplying the necessary jet fuel to its depot at the airport.

PHILIPSBURG:--- A Central Committee of Parliament hearing is planned for 21 February about Inheritance and Legacies.

The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon at 2.00pm in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament.

The law that parliamentarians will be dealing with is the National Ordinance establishing Book 4 and Title 7.3 of the Civil Code, National Ordinance on Inheritance and Legacies.

The National Bar of Lawyers will give their input with respect to the aforementioned national ordinance.

The establishment of the new Penal Code will also be discussed.

The committee hearings for the week will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and only the audio can be heard via Pearl Radio FM 98.1 as well as via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Social justice is an undeniable principle for peaceful and prosperous coexistence within and among nations.

The General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) proclaimed 20 February as World Day of Social Justice in 2007, inviting Member States to devote the day to promoting national activities in accordance with the objectives and goals of the World Summit for Social Development and the 24th session of the General Assembly.

Observance of World Day of Social Justice should support efforts of the international community in poverty eradication, the promotion of full employment and decent work, gender equity and access to social well-being and justice for all.

The principles of social justice are upheld when one promotes gender equality or the rights of indigenous peoples and migrants.

Social justice is advanced when barriers that people face because of gender, age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture or disability are removed.

For the UN, the pursuit of social justice for all is at the core of the organization's global mission to promote human development, and human dignity.

The adoption by the International Labour Organization of the Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization is just one recent example of the UN system's commitment to social justice.

That Declaration focuses on guaranteeing fair outcomes for all through employment, social protection, social dialogue, and fundamental principles and rights at work.

"Country Sint Maarten is committed to social justice in poverty eradication, the promotion of full employment and decent work, gender equity and access to social well-being and justice for all.

"The Millennium Development Goals (MDG), for example, deal with eight internationally-agreed targets aimed at reducing poverty and hunger, maternal and child deaths, diseases, inadequate shelter, gender inequality and environmental degradation by 2015.

"Last year February, just over a year ago, this Government presented its first MDG Report for Sint Maarten to a number of stakeholders. The MDG report aims to capture our country's progress towards these goals while at the same time highlighting the challenges and strategic policy interventions needed to meet them on or before 2015.

"We are committed and are working diligently to collectively build awareness, set policies and plan around the MDGs," Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams said on Monday.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Economic & Tourism Affairs, Telecommunications & Transport Hon. Franklin Meyers, is encouraging young adults to sign-up for the Youth Entrepreneurship Training programme that further develops the skills of young people.

Registration started this week and courses being offered are website design, sewing and baking classes. The training is free and open to early high school leavers and single parents

The project is a collaboration of the Small Business Development Foundation (SBDF) and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports Affairs "Get off the block, Get on the bus, Get busy" programme.

Registration for the courses can take place at the SBDF office which is near Affoo Supermarket in Philipsburg and in the vicinity of the Philipsburg Jubilee Library and Sundial School, tel. 543-0777 or the Cabinet of the Minister of Education, Culture, Youth & Sports tel. 586-2780.

Persons must be between the ages of 16-28 and unemployed.

"This programme is about creating the opportunity for single parents and those that didn't complete their high school, to gain and improve skills that would increase employability of these young adults within the Sint Maarten economy," Minister of Tourism & Economic Affairs Hon. Franklin Meyers said on Wednesday.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Dominicano's around the world will be celebrating the 168th anniversary of the Dominican Republic's independence on February 27.

"On behalf of the people and the Government of Sint Maarten, I extend best wishes to the people of the Dominican Republic as they celebrate your country's birth, 168 years ago.

"Our countries share a long-time friendship based on many common interests, not only commercial, but also strong family, cultural and social ties.

"Many Dominicanos have made our country their home, thereby contributing to their homeland as well as making a significant contribution to our development in many different areas. Our landscape is decked with activities by Dominican nationals.

"As always, I use this occasion once more to encourage the Dominicanos amongst us to join with us in making Sint Maarten a country we all can be proud of and to instill in younger generations the love for the country they are part of. Many of the younger generation of Dominicanos know no other place than Sint Maarten and they should therefore see a role for themselves in building country Sint Maarten as they continue to show pride and respect for their heritage.

"Once again, to the Sint Maarten Dominicano community, those living abroad and in the Dominican Republic, a happy 168th anniversary from the people and Government of Sint Maarten," Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams said on Sunday in her independence celebration message to the Dominicano community .

Last week the Foundation Semana Dominicana officially opened its 12th celebration of the Dominican Republic's culture and traditions with a ceremony at Philipsburg Jubilee Library.

The foundation organized a week of activities to showcase Sint Maarten's Dominicano community as talented, hard-working people with an amazing culture and history.

The Simpson Bay Lagoon shoreline bordering on Bellevue received a cleanup on Sunday February 26th, 2012 with several groups hauling away trash from the land bordering the lagoon. Organized by the Sint Maarten PRIDE Foundation and Budget Marine staff, over 50 filled trash bags and loose debris were hauled away by over 100 volunteers attending the cleanup exercise.
Volunteers found a kitchen sink and an old boat anchor among the notable trash items.
The Voice of Our Children Foundation, The Seventh Day Adventist Pathfinders, and Interact Clubs from the St. Dominic School and Learning Unlimited School volunteers were among several youth groups represented at the environmental event.
Sint Maarten PRIDE Foundation commends Budget Marine marketing department Justin Rosen and Charissa Martis for encouraging their staff to get involved in a community activity. This event displayed a true strong character of Budget Marine employees and management volunteering as part of their corporate responsibility. PRIDE urges other companies to follow in their footsteps.
After the cleanup several prizes were raffled among them a Dominoes Pizza and game sets of dominoes donated by Dominoes Pizza Sint Maarten.
We thank the Fleming family for allowing our volunteers access to their land in Bellevue.

Click here to view more photos of Sunday's Lagoon Coastal Cleanup.

PHILIPSBURG:--- President of Parliament Hon. drs. Gracita Arrindell was very pleased to learn about the latest developments regarding the University of St. Martin (USM) when its President Annelies van den Assem along with other reps made a presentation to the President last week.

Arrindell will inform the chairperson of parliament's permanent committee on Education, Youth, Sports and Culture about the presentation and propose to the chairperson to also meet with USM.

The presentation described USM's goals of self-sustainability; strengthening USM's position within the community; USM becoming economically driven; USM becoming a hub in the region; and building up the student body.

Arrindell was informed about the issues that university is confronted with; the 2011 business plan and outcome; an accredited institution and an accredited education; USM new style, online and distance learning; and affiliation with other universities.

"I was very happy to hear about the on-going efforts to renew and restore the image of USM. The plans once fully implemented will be a win win for the university, the business sector, students and government," President of Parliament Hon. Gracita Arrindell said on Monday.

Annelies van den Assem was accompanied by USM Acting Dean of Academic Affairs Glen Yeung and member of USM board Al Wathey.

Philipsburg:--- President of the Windward Islands Teachers Union Claire Elshot said the registration process in the pension fund for the teachers of the St. Maarten Academy PSVE and for some teachers of the Academic section is yet to be completed. Elshot said that the teachers have completed their medical but the school board still has to submit some other information before the registration can take place. She said that the various school boards withheld the pension premiums from the teachers' salaries and whenever they are registered it has to be done retroactively. She called on then teachers who are awaiting their registration to carefully check the form whenever it is sent to them to see as of when they were registered. Elshot said since January 1998 it became compulsory for all teachers and civil servants despite their nationality be registered in the pension fund.
In the meantime, Elshot said the unions are monitoring the functionality of APS since the unions are yet to be apprised of the transfer process from APNA to APS. Elshot told reporters on Thursday during the weekly press briefing that while some pensioners have received letters from the APS the unions that are representing pensioners and civil servants are yet to be updated. One of the concerns of the unions is the amount of monies the former civil servants are receiving as pension. She said it is time for government to get rid of the discrimination when it comes to pensioners.
In the meantime, Elshot said she was informed that government is working on making the Cost of Living Adjustment payments, while civil servants might be able to collect their Christmas bonuses by February 6th, 2012.

Philipsburg:--- The Miss Mature Carnival Queen Pageant is back with a bang! St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) will be introducing the contestants for their pageants for Carnival 2012 this week and has started with an impressive amount of 9 for the mature pageant that caters to women 26 years of age or older.

Last held 5 years ago, the Mature Pageant has since been one of the most popular requested shows by Carnival and pageant lovers. The SCDF decided in 2012 to give the show another shot and has been rewarded with high participation, growing excitement and a group of participants from various walks of life. Some of which, are former queens while others are no strangers to the stage.

The pageant will be held on Monday, April 23 in Carnival Village. The nine ladies will participate in five categories of competition, talent, sports, Carnival costume, evening wear and the interview segment on stage. Contestants will also participate in various public outings and make appearances at SCDF events in the lead-up to their big night.

The backgrounds of the nine contestants vary from school teacher, hotel reservation manager to executive secretaries, medical workers and more. They are Tatiana Arrindell, Lisette Carty, Shanna Cornet de Riggs, Mireya Ostiana-Wijman, Davia Bailey-Wilson, Diana Gumbs, Lavinia Marsham, Sharon Layne and Charmain Radjouki.

"The hype around this show is already very high, just from word-of-mouth. When we start to promote all of our local events, we expect this to increase and expect the show to get terrific support from the general public," President of the SCDF Stuart Johnson said.

"The mature pageant is for professional women who just feel like having a good time for Carnival and doing something different. Some of our contestants have been in pageant before, some are past queens. We are excited that they chose to be part of Carnival in this fashion and guarantee that this will be a show that no one should miss," Johnson said.

He added that the show is being coordinated by veteran pageant coordinator Rhoda Smith-Fowler and her team and is sponsored by United Telecommunication Services (UTS) Chippie. UTS have also stepped up as a sponsor for the Teen and Senior Carnival Queen Pageants. The contestants for those pageants will also be introduced this week.

Great Bay:--- The first Community Helpdesk under the umbrella of the Integrated Neighborhood Development Program was opened in St. Peters in December 2011 at the Rupert Maynard Community Center by Minister of Public Health Social Development & Labor, Cornelius de Weever. The purpose of the Community Helpdesk will be to reach out to the residents in those particular neighborhoods and assist them by giving information on services offered at the Ministry of Public Health Social Development & Labor. Official daily opening hours for the Community Helpdesk is 8:30AM-5PM, but on Tuesdays afternoons closed as the staff is undergoing training sessions.
A job placement Officer and a complaints officer from the Department of Labor Affairs is available in St. Peters as of February 1, 2012 from 8:30AM – 12noon only on Wednesdays.
"Persons can also come in to the Community Helpdesk to make complaints about the private sector as it relates to infringement of the labor laws, employee rights and dismissal procedures," said Dros-Richardson.
With the implementation of the Integrated Neighborhood Development Program/Community Helpdesk the aim is to have the establishment manned at all times with someone from Labor Affairs and Social Affairs. Head of Labor Affairs, Peggy-Ann Dros-Richardson mentioned that staff from her department will be at the Community Helpdesk in St. Peters to assist persons with the services they offer, such as job placement. Persons who are registering or seeking employment can visit the Community Helpdesk in St. Peters to get assistance, instead of going to the main office in Philipsburg.
The Community Helpdesk in St. Peters is located at the Rupert Maynard Community Center on St. Peters main road and can be reached on telephone numbers 548-4633 or 548-4634.

Simpson Bay:--- Arriving passengers will step out to the sound of music, assorted Valentine's Day gifts for some lucky couples and an atmosphere of love and friendliness as the Princess Juliana International Airport rolls out the red carpet for them starting at noon on February 14.
An initiative of the Managing Director, Regina Labega, the "Meet and Greet" area of the airport will be dressed up for Valentine's Day, with the well-known Sopranos Piano Bar – St. Maarten providing appropriate music for the occasion on a baby grand piano.
The piano will be set up on a stage specially decorated with red and white balloon columns and intertwined balloon hearts, courtesy of Unique Balloon Décor, which has collaborated on several major projects with PJIA in the past.
Passengers may request the pianist to play their favorite songs for their loved ones from a song book. The Sopranos Piano Bar has already carried out a similar performance at Schipol Airport in Amsterdam with great success.
It will also be gifts galore for the passengers as some 200 heart-shaped chocolates from chocolate specialist, the Jeff de Bruges store, will be distributed in decorative baskets to both arriving and departing passengers in the vicinity. The Jeff de Bruges store, which also operates at PJIA, has donated two boxes of assorted chocolates to be won by two lucky couples chosen at random.
Similarly, the Penha Perfume store, with a branch at the airport, has offered two baskets of his and hers perfumes and beauty products as a special gift for two arriving couples.
The Swatch store, also with a branch at the airport, has contributed a beautiful Swatch bracelet for another lucky passenger arriving on Valentine's Day at PJIA.
The recipients of the gifts will be chosen by the staff of the Marketing Department of PJIAE, headed by Ms. Kalifa Hickinson, with representatives of the sponsors in attendance where possible.
PJIA personnel have not been forgotten in this Valentine's Day largesse: they will be able to obtain a whopping 20% discount on all perfumes bought at the Penha Perfume store at the airport.
"Valentine's Day is an international event and the whole initiative is meant to enhance the atmosphere at the Princess Juliana International Airport for our visitors and employees alike in recognition of this day marked globally," said Managing Director, Regina Labega.
"I guess you can say that on Valentine's Day, love is in the air at PJIA," Labega added.

The Bureau Telecommunications and Post St. Maarten (BTPSXM) is tasked with regulating the Telecommunications and Post Industries on St. Maarten, to support and advice the Minister of Tourism Economics Affairs Traffic and Telecommunications on matters and policies relating to these industries. In light of this task execution the BTPSXM will place special focus on the television provisioning on St. Maarten.

The BTPSXM is developing and will present to the Minister within short quality of service standards for all participants in the Telecommunications and Broadcasting industry to comply with, so including that segment that provides television services on St. Maarten irrespective of the means/ technology used. Much attention is needed in this segment of the industry to ensure customer satisfaction and affordable access for all to such services.

The current imbalance in this segment of the industry needs to be addressed as the television provisioning through satellites directly competes with the television provisioning by license holders on St. Maarten. The license holders on St. Maarten are obligated to pay annual license fees for their right to offer services on St. Maarten and have to comply with conditions of their license that stipulate that they must be in possession of an agreement for each channel offered on St. Maarten. Due to US regulations, that has proven to be a problem resulting in the license holders not being permitted to offer certain channels. Any channel offered without an agreement and payment of royalties will result in huge damage claims, for which the country can be held responsible. Satellite providers who sell the hardware (satellite dishes and boxes) do not fall under any regulation, whilst a license is required for anyone or entity that provides content/programming on St. Maarten.

The BTPSXM shall therefore focus on addressing the problems faced by the license holders on St. Maarten and formulate recommendations to the Minister on how to address these problems. The aim is to ensure that the product offered by the license holders meets the quality of service standards and is accessible to all on St. Maarten. Having excellent television provisioning on St. Maarten will benefit the people of St. Maarten and will support the further economic growth of the country.

This release answers to any misconceptions that may have been created to misconstrued words of the Director.

The Director

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Monday, 13 February, marks the world's first World Radio Day. The day is being observed for the first time by the United Nations (UN) Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Radio has the ability to reach up to 95 per cent of the world's population, and is the most prevalent mass medium which has the ability to reach remote communities and marginalized groups at a low cost.

Free independent and pluralistic radio is essential for healthy societies as it is seen as a facilitator of education, freedom of expression and public debate.

Radio has also been used as a vital source of information during natural disasters, and as a central instrument in community life with the potential of mobilizing social change.

The observance of the day on 13 February also marks the anniversary of UN Radio, which was launched in 1946.

"I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the radio broadcast community on World Radio Day. At the same time I would like to commend them for their role that they have played and continue to play in our society by providing, news, information, talk shows and entertainment.

The public can celebrate World Radio Day by visiting UNESCO's website. The website has audio messages in several languages and handbooks for community radio stations.

The site also provides free access to UNESCO's audio archives showcasing interviews with renowned figures such as Nelson Mandela and many others. This is also a great tool for schools as well," Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams said on Sunday.

To tune in to World Radio Day, visit the following website: http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/

Great Bay:--- The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School in Dutch Quarter will reopen for normal classes Wednesday, February 15, 2012 at the usual time.
The repairs to the school have been completed and the premises cleaned up in time for school, to resume normally following the short mid-term break.
Parents and guardians of students at the school are hereby notified that all the necessary works have been carried out by a crew of VROMI, which worked tirelessly throughout the weekend to ensure that school could resume without any hitches.
The Department of Public Education Services has confirmed that indeed the school is now in proper conditions and learning could continue following some unforeseen challenges which have now been resolved.

After successful presentations in The Netherlands and in Suriname, on Saturday morning February 18 upcoming storyteller and author Hilli Arduin will be presenting her book "Prinses Ivana" on Sint Maarten at the Philipsburg Library. "Prinses Ivana" is a fairytale about a little princess that did not want to comb her hair. Hilli Arduin is no stranger to Sint Maarten. Apart from experiencing her as a storyteller, she shared her knowledge as a teacher, special educator and psychologist on The Law in Focus in the past. As an introduction to the presentation of her first children book "Prnses Ivana", which is written in the Dutch language, The law in Focus will rebroadcast a two part series of an interview with Hilli Arduin on education, starting this Thursday February 16, 2012.
While the public will be invited by the organizers to attend the book presentation at the library, the producer of The Law in Focus invites you to tune in this Thursday at 9:30 PM, Channel 15, to learn more about methods used to deal with among others the problems of 'drop outs' in The Netherlands.
"The Law in Focus" is an informative and educational program for the entire family, aired every Thursday night from 9.30 – 10.00 p.m. on Sint Maarten T.V., Channel 15, with rebroadcasts on the Wednesdays following from 6.00 - 6.30 p.m., on Mondays on Cable TV Saba and Tuesdays on Cable TV Statia from 7.00 – 7.30 p.m. The program is aired on Statia radio on Tuesdays at 12.30 noon with a repeat on Sundays at 6.00 p.m. The public is encouraged to send questions on legal issues to email: lawinfocus@ burofocus.com.

Dr. Nilda Arduin,
President Foundation Focus

St. Maarten Youth Development Program is a second chance educational program that aims to train youngsters between the ages of 16 and 24 years who were unable to complete secondary education. The goal of the program is to provide these youngsters with start qualifications so that they can enter the labor market or further their education at the SBO/ASVE. The program is executed by DERPI and fully funded by USONA.

The youngsters that received their computer training certificates on Saturday February 11th, are currently enrolled in the preparatory phase of YDP Hospitality program. In the preparatory phase of the program (which lasted for 18 weeks); the students follow courses such as the AHLEI START (General introduction to Hospitality), Career preparation, Social Skills, English Business writing and computer training in MS XP 2007 and  MS Word beginner/intermediate level. After completion of the preparatory program, these students will follow training to become Front Desk Agents, Bartenders or Restaurant Servers.

The Computer Training was facilitated by Joan Adult Advancement Program and classes were taught by Mrs. Joan Hanson. The students excelled in the computer training course and achieved final grades that ranged from 88 percentile to 100 percentile. For further information about the Youth Development Program, please feel free to contact us at either 543-0497 or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. You can also visit us at the SBO Service Center upstairs Carl & Sons on the Pondfill Road.

Philipsburg:--- Eric Rochester, a national of St. Kitts was badly beaten while in police custody over the weekend pending deportation. SMN News learnt that Rochester was arrested last week when Germain and Giovanni Violenus fingered him as another person who was molesting their 10 and 3 year old sisters.
SMN News learnt that police arrested Rochester when they were looking for Jasmin Violenus (the mother of the suspects) in Middle Region. The source said that it turned out that the two brothers tried to implicate their stepfather in the sexual molestation scandal when they learnt that their stepfather is the one who enlightened their father about the acts they were committing against their two sisters. SMN News learnt that when police realized that the two brothers were lying to them they decided to turn the man over to immigration since he is living on the island illegally. A source close to police said that Rochester and the Violenus brothers were kept in the same cell at the Philipsburg Police Station and the Violenus brothers along with other prisoners in the cell beat the man on Friday since he is considered to be a snitch.
SMN News learnt that an acquaintance of Rochester tried to meet with immigration authorities last week when he learnt that Rochester is being held for deportation. The source said the acquaintance requested to see Rochester because he wanted to purchase a ticket but the immigration authority that is handling the case refused to authorize the visit. The source said that the acquaintance tried on numerous occasions to convince the immigration authority to allow him access but she refused. "I called the immigration officer on her cellular phone since she could not be found at the police station and she told me I should not call her on her cellular phone and that she could be reached between 8 and 4pm at the Police Station. This immigration officer at the Philipsburg Police Station violated Rochester's right to freedom when she refused to allow someone to get access to him I wanted the detainee's passport information and to inform him of the conditions under which I was going to purchase his plane ticket. No one should be kept in police custody unless it is absolutely necessary. If I had gotten access to the prisoner or his passport details this man would not have been beaten by the suspects he turned in and other prisoners," the acquaintance told SMN News.
Director of the Prison Rudssel Ricardo said he is responsible for the safety of all prisoners while they are in custody but he was not informed of Rochester's assault on Friday. Ricardo said that after he was contacted by SMN News he investigated and the watch commander at the Philipsburg Holding Cells told him that the suspects are not being held in the same holding cell. Ricardo confirmed that Rochester was beaten by two suspects who claimed that he raped their smaller sisters. The attack he said occurred around 1:15pm on Friday while the prisoners were taking fresh air. When asked if the prisoner (Rochester) was taken to see a doctor, Ricardo said he did not know.
It should be noted that Eric Rochester is the boyfriend of Jasmin Violenus whose sons sexually molested their two sisters. It is Rochester who told the two suspects father of the molestation which led to them being arrested. Police is still busy investigating the case of the sexual molestation of two minor girls and that investigation is far from being complete, yet the police opted to deport their only witness that was living in the house where the sexual molestation was taking place.
Two years ago some Jamaicans who were residing illegally on the island tried to assist police in solving the Afoo murder that took place in Dutch Quarter. The Jamaican nationals were the ones who saw the fleeing suspects and they assisted police in finding the gun that was used to shoot Eric. However, police chose to deport those witnesses because of their status on the island before they were able to identify the Afoo killers. The murder of Eric "Afoo Murder" still remains unsolved.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams earlier this week received from Ombudsman Nilda Arduin the first copy of the bureau's manual.

This is a document that is both for the bureau and the general public, and it serves as a guide for the government departments. It also lists relevant laws and policies. The extensive version will contain laws.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Penny's Department Store on Backstreet has teamed up with Fun Miles to offer customers an even more rewarding shopping experience. Fun Miles can be saved as well as redeemed at the popular department store. To kick off the partnership, Penny's will raffle off 5,000 Fun Miles every week. Fun Miles is the Caribbean's largest and most exciting customer reward program.

ABOUT PENNY'S DEPARTMENT STORE
Penny's Department Store is an institution on our island, a one stop family shopping center with five floors and thousands of products. Penny's basement offers everything for bed and bath. The first floor has a wide selection of fashion and footwear for men and women, while the second floor houses the baby and children's departments. The third floor is dedicated to housewares and the fourth floor has an excellent selection of fitness equipment. By enabling its customers to save and redeem Fun Miles (1 Fun Mile = ANG 2,50), Penny's makes shopping even more fun.

WIN 5,000 FUN MILES
Shoppers who swipe their Fun Miles card at Penny's before March 13 will automatically enter a raffle to win five thousand Fun Miles every week! The winners will be contacted and announced in the media.

ABOUT FUN MILES
For more than 13 years, Fun Miles has been the Caribbean's biggest free saving and redemption program. With over 100.000 members on four islands, Fun Miles has become part of the community. The program owes its popularity to the wide range of fun things that it brings within reach. For example, you can redeem your Fun Miles for a Big Mac, jewelry, call credit or gasoline, but also for a ticket from InselAir or Travel Planners. With Penny's Department Store as a partner, the Fun Miles program has just become even more attractive!

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT FUN MILES & PENNY'S DEPARTMENT STORE
Please get in touch with Fun Miles Customer Service: 543-3301, or visit www.funmiles.net.

The Secretary General of the Bureau Ombudsman Sint Maarten has returned from Bermuda after a one week exchange visit and training at the Bureau Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman of Bermuda, Mrs. Arlene Brock, is one of the Ombudsman in the Caribbean who organizes training for staff members of other Ombudsman institutions. The training consisted of reviewing the complaint management system, the steps relating to general and systemic investigations, statistics gathering, preparation and presentation of the Annual Reports. Ms. Philips sat in on complaints assessment meetings with directors of various Departments and was able to experience firsthand the installation of the first Public Access Group. This Group is initially established for one year and will serve as an advisory group for the Ombudsman.

During her stay Ms. Philips visited the Human Rights Commission and the Consumer Affairs and met with the chairman of the Police Complaints Authority. These agencies are complaint authorities in their respective areas.

As the Ombudsman of Sint Maarten will be organizing the upcoming CAROA conference in 2013, and considering that the Ombudsman of Bermuda has organized the CAROA Conference in 2008, one of the subjects of the training was Conference Logistics.

The training/exchange was very fruitful and again it shows the tight nit relationship that exits among the Ombudsman institutions.

This visit was sponsored by USONA.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams is encouraged by the strides that have been made by United Nations (UN) UN Women which celebrated its one-year anniversary earlier this month.

The UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) focused on its first year on building a strong organization with clear goals and strategies by establishing a presence in 75 countries.

Examples of UN Women's response to advance the cause of women's equality included the support provided for women's participation in constitutional reform, elections and political transition in Tunisia and Egypt.

Last October, UN Women called out for concrete proposals from governments and civil society in Arab States to support women's political participation and empowerment.

UN Women provided US$4.8 million through the Gender Equality Fund to advance women's empowerment in the Arab World.

The agency also provided support to candidates, political parties, voters, electoral commissions and legislative efforts in more than 25 countries over the past year to ensure that more women voted and got elected.

For 2012, UN Women will support women's movements in 52 countries.

Contributions to UN Women last year totaled US$235 million, a 33 per cent increase from 2010, and the agency intends to intensify its efforts to raise US$700 million for its work this year.

"I would like to commend Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of UN Women on her efforts during the first year of existence of the organization.

I have met with Bachelet at different settings and I am confident of her total and selfless commitment to the cause of women's advancement all over the world.

With half of the world's population made up of women, women have a role to play in all facets of national development.

"In recognizing and advancing this, societies stand to gain from the vast potentials and talents of all women," Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams said on Wednesday.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The University of St. Martin, in collaboration with the Philipsburg Jubilee Library, will be hosting a lecture to highlight the historical and cultural importance of Anansi stories.
The lecture entitled "Anansesem legacy in the Caribbean: a chronotope voyage of Anansesem: Ghana-Caribbean-Europe-Ghana" will be held on Wednesday, February 29, at the University of St. Martin Lecture Hall at 7pm.

The Lecture will be given by Drs. Mirto Laclé who is not only a well known lecturer at the Instituto Pedagogico Arubana ( IPA), the teacher training institute of Aruba, but he is also a linguist, researcher and expert on Anansi stories.

According to Mr. Laclé the historical and cultural impact of these folktales should not be underestimated. The stories about spider Anansi are historical marking points of the oral storytelling culture in our region.

"The stories would never have reached the Caribbean if the slave trade had not taken place. It is only two hundred years ago that hundreds of thousands of Africans were traded en transported under miserable circumstances to a foreign region and were forced to work on plantations," says Mr. Laclé.

He adds that the telling of Anansi stories was not only entertainment for these slaves but was also a source of consolation, encouragement and resistance. For centuries the stories of the spider Anansi have traveled from West Africa to the Caribbean and America, and even to Europe.

"Any place where the European black history page of slavery has left its traces, the stories can be found. Writers have written them down, actors have put them on stage and television makers used them to enrich their programs," Laclé adds.

The spiders is known under the name Anansi as Kwaku Ananse, as Compa Nanzi or even as Aunt Nancy in different parts of the world. In our modern societies many young people are not familiar anymore with Anansi stories. Storytelling culture is threatened by modern communication tools. Projects like the Anansimasters project use this modern technology to honor Anansi and put him on top of the cultural agenda.

The lecture is free and open to the general public. The University of St. Martin Lecture Hall has a seating capacity for 200 persons.

PHILIPSBURG:--- A Central Committee of Parliament hearing about the Sole Proprietorship Law will continue on February 24 after it was handled in the first week of February.

The hearing is scheduled for Friday morning at 10:00am in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament.

The law that parliamentarians will be dealing with is the National Ordinance establishing Title 13 of Book 7 of the Civil Code, National Ordinance Sole Proprietorship.

Representatives from the St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the bar Association of Lawyers will give their input with respect to the aforementioned national ordinance.

The committee hearing will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and only the audio can be heard via Pearl Radio FM 98.1 as well as via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

Philipsburg:--- Recently, management, staff, agents and brokers of NAGICO Insurances gathered in a private setting to toast to their 30th anniversary, which has seen a small local insurance office evolve into one of the largest regional insurance companies with offices across 18 territories.

The gathering was personal and low-key beginning with a brief message by the Group C.E.O who reminisced about the journey of NAGICO from February 1, 1982 when their doors first opened, until now 30 years later. Group Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Michael Bishop, also addressed the gathering with congratulatory remarks.

Imran McSood-Amjad: "We have come a long way, we started out with just a handful of us in a very small office," he explained. "When NAGICO first opened its doors, we faced several challenges, we were up against giants of the industry and we were a new company who no one knew much about. It was years before brokers and agents decided to do business with NAGICO. It was hard work and dedication that got us this far."

"During the 30 years, we have seen our fair share of catastrophe losses with at least 13 storms, ranging from category 1 to category 5, a volcano, small earthquakes and small to large fires and other losses. We have weathered these losses exceptionally well and developed a reputation for fast and fair claims settlement."

Despite this success, McSood urged his staff to continue to excel academically, to be service minded and courteous to their brokers and agents and most of all, to their clients.

To mark this success, the attendees raised their glasses followed by the symbolic cutting of the cakes. The event was held in the newly renovated, state of the art customer service area at the corporate head office in Philipsburg.

French Quarter:--- As the 2012 Territorial Election approaches, SMN News will be bringing you a series of interviews on our Election Countdown programme. The first round of the Territorial Election is scheduled for March 18th while the second round will be held on March 25th, 2012. This year it is expected that at least six groups of persons will be presenting their own list. Based on what we have seen thus far, four of those lists will be headed by persons who were part of the incumbent government.
Senator Louis Constant Fleming, the founder of Union Pour Les Progres is expected to present his list early next month which he will be heading. Daniel Gibbs, a former UPP Vice President already presented his list "Team Daniel Gibbs" while Marthe Ogoundele Tessi another former UPP Vice President presented her list earlier this month. She is backed by Jean Paul Fisher, the former Director of Semsamar.
Information is also circulating that Louis Jeffry another UPP Vice President is looking to put his list together while the RRR already presented their list and the MAP is expected to release the names of their candidates on Monday. If these politicians were to remain together there would have been only two lists contesting the March 18th Territorial Election since the RRR and the MAP leaders were together in the past elections.
The election campaign is scheduled to start on March 5th, 2012 and while the politicians and those persons that will be postulating will be politicking, SMN News will be interviewing the people of St. Martin. Our objective is to make sure the politicians know the grievances of the people they want to represent, we will be asking those looking on the sidelines to give our politicians some idea of what they believe should be done to move St. Martin forward under the status of article 74 which was achieved some five years ago.

On Election Countdown our first interview was done with a veteran politician and accountant, Mr. Leopold Baly.

 

Here is the interview with Mr. Emile Larmonie, former deputy mayor, with his concerns of the upcoming elections.

The St. Maarten Youth Beat Foundation in Collaboration with the St. Maarten Junior District Basketball Association would like to bring the following information to your attention.
On Friday 2nd March, 2012 at 5:30pm we will have an informative session for all Youth Basketball players & specifically their parents that are interested in being part of the 2012 Summer Youth Basketball Camp in Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA that is organized by the NBA 76ers Basketball Team/Club from the 14th – 21st July, 2012.
This is the second year that we will be participating in the above mentioned camp after having successfully participated last year.
This year we will also be attending the NBA Orlando Magic Summer Youth Basketball camp as well.
We will not meet with any player that is not accompanied with their parents. Only parents of the players will receive the required documentations pertaining to the camp, not the players. The Youth Basketball Players that are interested in being part of the camp should be from 13 years to 18 years.
Players are asked to get involved as we will be doing fundraising activities and it is very important that prospective players & parents be part of and involved with all aspects of the coordination of the travel to the camp.
Parents of prospective players are asked to come out to the meeting so that they can be properly and duly informed first hand on what is required in order for their child to be a part of these camps.
It should be also noted that the NBA has officially granted the 76ers Basketball organization permission to host a camp in St. Maarten in the month of October during the St. Maarten Schools mid-term break.
This should be viewed as a major accomplishment in having an NBA team keep one of their camps in St.Maarten as it is officially sanctioned by the NBA.
Players or parents that need more information are asked to call 5207565 or 5530238.

Marigot/Philipsburg:--- Minister of Justice Roland Duncan confirmed on Tuesday night on the Online Radio talk show that he is awaiting an advice from the Police Department regarding the tow trucks that are operating on the Dutch side of the island. Minister Duncan responded to a questions posed by one caller who expressed frustration on the towing of vehicles on the Dutch side of the island. The Minister of Justice said that he did not sign any contract with the towing companies for them to be towing away people's vehicles even if the tow trucks are called by police. Minister Duncan said the police have their own tow truck and there is no need to call private tow trucks to tow away vehicles. "I would like for these people to show me the contract they have with the police to tow away vehicles because I did not sign any."
He said he is totally against the towing of vehicles because if someone parks illegally the police can give the owner/ driver of the vehicle a fine. He said many times when these tow trucks tow away vehicles they damage them. Furthermore, the Minister said that several persons has placed signs on Cannegieter Street all of which are illegal. "Those signs and obstructions that are placed on Cannegieter Street to safeguard parking spaces for businesses and residents are illegal."
The caller said that on several occasions the island's visitors are affected by the towing of their rental cars. "There are places on Front Street that has no signs and when the visitors park there they are towed away. Many times these visitors will go to the police station to report their vehicles missing and the police themselves have no records to show they instructed the towing companies to tow away the vehicles."

Philipsburg:--- On Thursday February 2nd at approximately 11:30pm, several Philipsburg police patrols responded to a call regarding shots being fired in the vicinity of Le Petit Chateau on the Soualiga Road. On the scene, the investigating officers learned that the driver of a green colored Dodge Caravan with license plate M-8441 for unknown reasons fired a gunshot in the area and then drove in the direction Arch Road.
During a search of the area the vehicle in question with the suspect as the driver was spotted driving on the Sucker Garden Road towards Philipsburg. The suspect was stopped after a short car chase and his vehicle was searched. During the search, a silver coloured Smith and Wesson caliber .38 revolver was found under the rear seat and confiscated. Three bullets and two spent cartridges were also confiscated. The suspect was arrested on the spot for the illegal possession of a fire-arm and ammunition. The suspect with initials D.R. from the Dominican Republic (54) remains in custody for further investigation.

The St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF), law enforcement, emergency services and support services of Carnival have once again focused their efforts on enforcing a policy that makes no compromises on safety and security for the upcoming Carnival season.

The aforementioned parties met on Friday last to go over details for the upcoming season and to ensure that all are on the same page in terms of regulations and safety procedures. All other stakeholders, such as band leaders, booth holders and troupe leaders, will now be apprised of the rules and

regulations with regards to safety and security in respective meetings.

Among other things, discussions centered on band truck inspections, the mandatory availability of fire extinguishers on these trucks and in the booths, access for the ambulance department, outlining of the jump-up and parade routes etc.

Represented at the meeting were the Fire Department, Ambulance Department, the Ministry of VROMI, the entity responsible for the Festival Village Stichting Overheids Gebouwen St. Maarten (SOG-SXM) and board members of the SCDF. The Police Department could not be present on this particular day, but there will be a follow-up meeting.

"Basically we went over details that worked well for us in 2011 and discussed some things that could be improved upon for this year," SCDF President Stuart Johnson said.

"We hope by now that everyone realizes that we will not compromise on the safety and security of Carnival participants as well as the general public. Regulations are not in place to be a nuisance to anyone, but to protect them. All of the services that met on Friday is on the same page in this regard and we look forward to the kind cooperation of all Carnival stakeholders again this year," Johnson added.

On October 20, 2011 a meeting was called by AMFO at the Belvedere Community Center, informing NGOs about the eminent stoppage of Dutch development funds by December 2012.
Since November 2010 a group of NGOs backed by St. Martin United NGO Federation (SUNFed) has continued working with stakeholders seeking information and possible solutions for continuation of NGO funding. Pivotal to this was meeting key stakeholders including our local Government, departments and others.
St. Maarten opted to set up its own funding agency, and we welcome such wholeheartedly. However, we are most concerned about the process, and if we (St. Maarten) are ready to take over the workload executed by AMFO over the past eight years (8) without interrupting the ongoing NGO programs and their target groups.
Poverty affects us all: it is a known fact that we are living during difficult moments. As NGOs regardless of the areas of service, be it social, religious, arts or culture, environment, gender, economics, education, sports, you name it, we are all affected one way or another by poverty. We need to find common ground in addressing this issue that is sweeping cancerously through our community.
A meeting is scheduled for Thursday February 16, 2012 at 6:00PM at the Belvedere Community Center where information on the following areas would be outlined to you:

• • Assessment of 2012 plans (financial plans of NGOs)
• • Report INDP (Integrated Neighborhood Development)
• • Status of new funding agency

Let us UNITE IN FIGHTING POVERTY!

Great Bay:--- The Community Helpdesk in St. Peters is open daily, with Social Services being offered by a case worker from 9AM-1PM. The location of the Community Helpdesk in St. Peters is the Rupert Maynard Community Center on St. Peters main road, and can be reached at telephone numbers 548-4633 or 548-4634. Official opening hours at the Community Helpdesk is 8:30AM-5PM, but closed on Tuesday afternoons for training sessions of the staff.
Minister of Public Health, Social Development & Labor, Cornelius de Weever is encouraging the residents of St. Peters to make use of the services being provided at the Community Helpdesk from the Department of Social Services.
The Community Helpdesk in St. Peters is there to serve the residents of those areas with Social Services, as it relates to Financial Aid, Medical Aid, Legal Aid and any other services the Department of Social Services has to offer. The purpose of the Community Helpdesk will be to reach out to the residents in those particular neighborhoods and assist them by giving information on services offered at the Ministry of Public Health Social Development & Labor.
According to Mark Schloss, Head of the Department of Social Services, they are also offering counseling to clients that need the service. "Persons that are facing psycho-social problems can make an appointment to see the social worker for counseling regarding problems they are facing," said Schloss.
The social worker and the case worker will work together to try and solve whatever problem the client might be facing, and house visits are usually done to become familiar with the situation at home as a means of getting a concrete picture of the conditions.
"With the various entities working together through the Integrated Neighborhood Development program at the Community Helpdesk the capacity is there to help more persons. In this approach no one is working separate from each other," Schloss stated.

Honorable Prime Minister,
Honorable Colleagues in the Council of Ministers,
Members of the Media,
People of our beloved St. Martin,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good Morning.

 

Let me begin by announcing that the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs will be closed to the public this Friday, February 10th, due to our annual retreat which will be held on that day. You will recall that last year, we began with the retreat as a forum for ALL members of the Ministry to get together, share their respective plans for the year, strategize together, and brainstorm to find ways to function more efficiently and effectively, always with the aim of improving our service to the community. The theme of the retreat this year is: "Planning, Accountability and Team Building in the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs."
On a sad note, I am distressed about reports of violence among our students. The recent stabbing incident on a school bus is a stark reminder that this problem is much bigger than we may have initially thought and has deep roots in our social make-up. It is not a problem for the schools alone to tackle: it calls for a concerted collective effort which should start with responsible parenting, and include the churches, social organizations, etc. It is probably time that we seek such a comprehensive approach to dealing with this cankerworm. I will be making specific proposals shortly that would involve all the various groups coming together to finding a way out of this quagmire. It has always been a basic assumption that our students must feel safe boarding a bus to go to school. We will do all in our power to ensure that this remains so.
Still on the issue of schools, I recently paid unscheduled visits to a couple of schools to see for myself the state of affairs as it concerns the learning environment of students in those schools. The reports reaching me indicate that there is a systemic and structured need for proper maintenance of our public schools. This is being worked on by an inter-ministerial group as we speak. However, I have met with the staff of the Division of Public Education Services in an attempt to make sure that plans are put in place for regular, efficient, and structured maintenance of all our schools.
This brings me to another related matter. A total of 235 applications have been received for Study Financing at the closure of the process in December. Almost half of this – 106 to be precise – are for The Netherlands, while there are 62 applicants for the US. Some 67 applications were received for studies in the region, including Aruba, Curacao, and St. Martin.
The Division of Study Financing is now processing all the applications, following which it will submit its findings to the Study Financing Committee before it gets to my desk for final approval.
In connection with this, I wish to inform you that a young St. Martin student, Jagdeo Gumbs, is now at the Monroe College in New York, as the first recipient of a full scholarship from the College resulting from the Memorandum of Understanding we signed with that institution last year. Mr. Gumbs left to further his studies at Monroe College last month. I am confident that other deserving students will soon follow in his footsteps.
I wish to emphasize that it is not only about sending our students abroad to study, we are working very hard to put in place initiatives to bring them back after they conclude their studies. We will be working in close collaboration with other ministries and the private sector to review our priorities list for study financing and to come up with effective means of luring them back to the island. Definitely, what we cannot continue to do is to finance their studies for other countries which may not need them as much as we do, to take advantage of their newly-acquired expertise. St. Martin needs its own to return to build the new nation we all want for our future generations.
I wish to also take this opportunity to remind you that this Saturday, we will be kicking off the activities for the celebration of this year's Rights of the Child, under the theme: "Rights of the Child, not an option, but an obligation."
The events will be held in collaboration with the St. Maarten Early Childhood Association, Day Care and Early Stimulation Centers. We will be having a parade on Saturday starting at 10:00am from the Board Walk at Sea Palace Hotel through Front Street to the Sundial School where the activities will continue with a festival for children ages 0-4 years consisting of storytelling, face painting, puppet show and sports. Special presentations by the children will also take place.
In the area of Sports, we are now in the final stages of establishing a Sports Foundation which will be charged with executing our Sports policy, including the upkeep of our sports facilities. I will inform you accordingly as soon as this is completed.
You will also recall that we recently played host to a group with connections to the Washington Redskins interested in setting up a Youth Football Camp, possibly this summer. I'm sure you would have noticed the tremendous interest shown on the island in the Super Bowl. (By the way, congratulations to the Giants' fans). This proposal is being worked out in close collaboration with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Tourism with which we hosted the 9-member group during their site inspection a couple of weeks ago. We are convinced this will be a very positive addition to sports and youth development and everything is being done to ensure its success.
With regards to Culture, we are also on the brink of setting up a Monuments' Council which will advise the Minister on issues related to monuments on the island. In fact, I have in this connection, recommended that the Methodist Church and the Passangrahann Royal Guest House be considered to receive funding from the Dutch Monuments Preservation Fund. This is now being processed. The total amount involved is some 1.3 million euros which has been allocated to St. Martin.
I will stop here and look forward to any questions you may have for me.
I thank you.

Member of Parliament says that time is up for the Minister of Everything (VROMI) Theo Heyliger. During the meeting of Parliament held on the Infrastructure of St. Maarten several questions were asked concerning among others the problem with the midges. The Minister had stated that in the next three weeks a committee would be set up and a bidding process would begin. The Member of Parliament finds this strange indeed as the problem with the midges is nothing new but of course we understand how the politics is played. The people of St. Maarten and the visitors need to know what kind of progress the Minister has made in this area so far and what he doing regarding the marking of the roads. It will not be business as usual where he makes promises and then it becomes water under the bridge. Another question or information requested of the Minister was the letters of ad-measurement for the land given out at the ring road. He alluded to the fact that the information is public and can be attained at the office of the Kadaster. But the Member of Parliament had requested to be provided with these documents. The Employer asks and the employee provides. The Member of Parliament says that he will be requesting the letter of ad-measurement of the land on which plans are to build the Dutch Village. The Minister had said that the land is owned by government. Therefore, this information should be readily available. The Member of Parliament also needs to know if there are already drawings of the structure, how many lots and the size of those lots that are going to be given out. On another issue the Minister can expect a request from the Member of Parliament through the President of Parliament for information regarding requests submitted for 1) government land, 2) how far back do these requests go, 3) where are those lots or land available and 4) what happens to government or long lease land when nothing is build on the land can one continue paying the long lease? I am giving the Minister notice so he has time to start compiling the information. Time is up.

Great Bay (DCOMM):--- With immediate effect the Cole Bay Baby Wellness Clinic located at the Charles Leopold Bell School has been closed.

An alternative location has been identified and preparations are well underway to finalize agreements with respect to this and the community will be informed when the new location will be open for baby wellness services.

The vacated location at the Charles Leopold Bell School will be utilized by the latter.

Parents who have been utilizing the services at the Cole Bay clinic and who require additional information can contact Youth Health Care at tel. 542-3003, 542-2078 or 542-3553.

Philipsburg:--- Representatives of the Tax Reform Workgroup led by Sissy Gonzalez-Fung met last week Wednesday with the President of the Central Bank of Curacao and Sint Maarten (CBCS), Dr. Emsley Tromp and colleagues to brief the President on progress and incorporate the President's input into the reform exercise, disclosed Minister of Finance Hon. Hiro Shigemoto.

Dr. Tromp stressed the importance of tax policies which encourage the greater diversification of the Sint Maarten national economy as well as providing some valuable insights into inter-island trade issues and how tax policy should be appropriately sensitised to prevent unhelpful distortions of trade between the islands.

The CBCS President was very supportive of the underlying principles of the reform exercise which aim to simplify the tax system and broaden the tax base so that tax rates can be as low as possible for Sint Maarten in the long term.

Further meetings have now been scheduled to continue the dialogue and the extent of input from the CBCS.

Member of Parliament George Pantophlet said he had asked Minister of Finance Hiro Shigemoto what he thought should be the actual budget of the Corporate Governance Council (CGC). The Minister had said that Government could only make suggestions and at present the Budget for the Corporate Governance Council had not been approved because certain queries had not been answered. This has triggered the Member of Parliament George Pantophlet to ask the following questions: 1) To Whom and when did Government make these queries? 2) How were these queries made verbally or in written form? 3) If they were made verbally to whom were they made? 4) And if they were in written form can the Member please be provided with a copy? 5) If copy cannot be provided then why not? And finally in one of the Daily Newspapers of December 2011, A statement in reference to the Corporate Governance Council on the matter of a national decree was made. I believe it was by the Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams and I quote: "To regulate the situation, a new national decree for the Corporate Governance Council needs to be established by Government. Wescot-Williams expect this shortly," end of quote. This statement was made almost 2 months ago. My question to the Prime Minister is what is happening with the new national decree? Because shortly cannot mean 2 months and counting.

If you have ever wondered, "What is that bird?" this is your chance to find out. Join Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) St. Maarten for an easy walk to explore the birds and other wildlife around Le Galion. Many species spend their winters on the island, resulting in impressive flocks of waterbirds at local ponds. The birds will soon begin departing for their breeding grounds in The United States and Canada. This is a great opportunity to see and learn about the true snowbirds before they head north while enjoying the beauty of the Reserve Naturelle St. Martin.

EPIC's free public Bird Walk will take place at Salines d'Orient by Le Galion on Saturday February 18th, starting at 9:00 a.m. Meet near the Butterfly Farm. Spotting scopes, binoculars, and bird identification guides will be available, but bring your own if you have them. For questions contact Ronald Pieters at 520-8538.

Environmental Protection In the Caribbean

Airport:--- A number of air-crafts including Air Canada and Canjet could not leave the Princess Juliana International Airport on Saturday afternoon due to the lack of airplane fuel. SMN News learnt that Halley Aviation Services was forced to find hotel accommodations for passengers when the air-crafts could not leave on their scheduled flights. A source at the Princess Juliana International Airport told SMN News that Air Caraibes was also affected on Saturday but they managed to obtain fuel late Saturday evening which allowed them to depart later that evening to Paris.
SMN News learnt that while the handlers and other airport authorities were busy trying to find a solution, the Airport Director Regina Labega was reportedly off island attending a conference.
SMN News learnt that a barge with fuel arrived late Saturday evening but that could not be confirmed.
Minister of Aviation Affairs Theodore Heyliger said that he was told that the planned strike in Trinidad is cause of the shortage of Aircraft fuel. Industrial actions were to be taken in Trinidad last week where SOL gets its fuel but that action was called off late Friday afternoon. The workers union in Trinidad was planning to go on strike as of Saturday February 18th to demand higher wages.
Heyliger said the Princess Juliana International Airport is faced with fuel shortages due to the bad planning of the former management and board. Heyliger said the airport fuel facilities are way under capacity and this has been known for years. The Minister also stated that Government cannot do anything about the shortage or the expansion of the fuel capacity. "The only person to tell you all about expansion of the fuel capacity is the board of PJIAE. As Government we can only ask questions, we cannot tell the board what to do, that is how corporate governance works," Heyliger said.

Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) a local non-governmental, non-profit foundation has been managing and carrying-out nature conservation projects, research and environmental education programs on Sint Maarten since 2001.

In March of 2007 the Foundation launched its Love the Lagoon project which is aimed at raising environmental awareness and addressing the Simpson Bay Lagoon's pollution problems through educational programs and stakeholder participation.

The Foundation's environmental education program has reached thousands of primary as well as secondary school students and members of a wide range of organisations. In addition to its environmental education program EPIC is also the National Operator for the Blue Flag Program an international eco-label for beaches and marinas. As of October 2011 St. Maarten has two internationally recognized Blue Flag locations.

EPIC-St. Maarten would hereby like to introduce its newest members of the Board of Directors, Tajiana Ancora-Brown, Oldine Bryson-Pantophlet, and Alexandra Halley who join previous Board members Adam Brown and Natalia Collier. While all Board Members share a concern for environmental conservation, each also brings their own particular assets to the organization. Mrs. Ancora-Brown has an excellent understanding of communications and marketing as well as Board experience. Mrs. Bryson-Pantophlet offers extensive experience in the fields of education, non-profit management, and advocacy. Mrs. Halley has a valuable perspective as a local eco-tourism business owner who is also active in the non-profit sector. The Board has begun meeting regularly to fulfil EPIC's mission of protecting the Caribbean environment through research and community-based action.

Local environmental conservationist Rueben J. Thompson, Project Manager for EPIC's Love the Lagoon Program, serves as media relations officer for the organization, communicating with the public and third parties on behalf of the Board of Directors, while also providing a respected perspective on environmental issues. The Board has entrusted and fully supports Thompson with carrying out daily management activities.

EPIC looks forward to continuing and expanding its efforts to provide long-term research, environmental education, and community-based remedies to the environmental challenges St. Maarten faces.

Distinguished Consul of the Dominican Republic in St. Martin,
President of the Fundacion Semana Dominicana,
Invited Guests,
Brothers and sisters, particularly those of you of our Dominican Community,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Buenas noches.

I am addressing you in English this evening because I believe it is important for all who have made St. Martin their home, whether temporarily or permanently, to speak the language of the St. Martin people.
The start of La Semana Dominicana today, which will culminate in the celebration of your Independence Day, exactly a week from today, offers an opportunity for us to renew the ties of family, friendship and fraternity that exist between our people.
For a dozen years consecutively at least, the Semana Dominicana has become a time of coming together of our people joined by bonds of history, culture, and shared values. Let me point out here that not only sweat and blood unite us, but also a common destiny as Caribbean people.
According to conservative figures from very reliable sources, there are some 50,000 people of St. Martin origin living in the Dominican Republic. Conversely, there are an estimated 10,000 dominicanos living on our island, both with or without the necessary legal documents. Your Voter Registration List for the forthcoming presidential elections in the Dominican Republic shows that there are more than 3,000 of you who can actually vote in those elections. The number that can vote in elections on St. Martin may not be too far apart from that, either.
The significance of this statistical data cannot be overemphasized. Politicians in St. Martin have regularly seen the dominicano vote as an important part of their quest for electoral victory. Now, presidential candidates in the Dominican Republic have also become aware of the importance of this vote and have added St. Martin as an important stop in their campaign trail.
But there is a strong and natural relationship between dominicanos and St. Martiners that goes deeper than politics. It permeates our economy, runs through our music, dance, and culinary arts, and gives texture to our common aspirations and ideals.
I explained at the beginning why I chose to address you in English. As you probably know, Spanish is the second most spoken language on St. Martin. This is no coincidence. In fact, it has as much to do with the historical ties that have bound us for more than a century as with the attractiveness of the dominicana for the St. Martin man. The linguistic versatility of the St. Martiner is now evidently being acquired by a new generation of dominicanos who were either born here or have grown up and gone to school here. This generation can move effortlessly from speaking Spanish to their parents at home to sharing a joke with their peers on the playground in English, or answering a question in Dutch posed by their teacher at school. They are as St. Martiner as they come.
This is, in my humble view, the future we are called to celebrate together. Your glorious history and traditions have not only enriched us here, but in return our own culture and versatility have also enriched you. This mutual enrichment is at the heart of what makes us one Caribbean family. Imagine what it would be like if we were to build on this together.
From the point of view of my ministry, I want to restate here that compulsory education is the law and every child of school going age, regardless of his or her immigration status should be in school, not packing groceries or loitering around during school hours. Truancy officers of my ministry will soon be deployed to ensure that this law is implemented to the letter, and parents found wanting in this regard, will be fined.
In the area of language, it is my goal to ensure that every child that finishes secondary school in St. Martin is proficient in at least three to four languages: English, Spanish, French and Dutch, not necessarily in that order. As a linguist myself, I know the role language plays in bridging the gap among our Caribbean people, and bringing us closer together.
Also, you may wish to take note that it is my policy as Minister of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs, to encourage studying in the Caribbean region. For this year, there is one student who has applied for study financing to study in the Dominican Republic. I am sure the numbers will only increase in the future.
Ladies and gentlemen, hermanos y hermanas,
We owe it to our children and our children's children to give concrete expression to our dreams of Caribbean unity. La Semana Dominicana is not only for dominicanos living on St. Martin, it is for all of us as St. Martin Day is not only for St. Martiners but for all those who reside and make their living on this beautiful island.
I wish you a very happy Semana Dominicana. Viva la Republica Dominicana! Viva St. Martin!
I thank you. Muchas gracias.

Anansi the ages old spider still has an important message for us in the the 21st century. To demonstrate this Anansi expert Mr. Mirto Laclé and popular storyteller Hillie Arduin will team up on Friday February 24th for a unique presentation about Anansi folktales at the Library.
Hillie Arduin is well known in the Netherlands, Surinam, and Curacao as a masterful storyteller, writer, and trainer. Mrs. Arduin makes use of Anansi stories for her educational workshops and counseling sessions .
As part of the presentation this Friday, Hillie will perform one of her famous Anansi stories.
Drs. Mirto Laclé a linguist, researcher, and expert on Anansi stories from Aruba will highlight the cultural and historical importance of Anansi-folktales.
This special presentation will be held on Friday February 24th between 5:30 and 7:00 pm at the Philipsburg Jubilee library.
Come to the library this this Friday to hear what Anansi has to tell us!

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao:--- On 30 January 2012, a contingent of 35 volunteers from the 429th Expeditionary Operations Squadron located at the U.S. Forward Operating Location (USFOL) spent the afternoon cleaning the beach and the areas alongside JFK Blvd and local beaches near the Holiday Beach Resort corridor. The men and women of the USFOL celebrated the rich treasure that is Curaçao's natural beauty. They regularly work with the community to help protect its unique natural resources benefitting both residents and tourists alike. A USFOL volunteer observed, "Being able to clean-up the corridor that we use every week for running was a privilege. Giving back to the people of this country who have supported us and our time here was an honor." USFOL personnel have been long-time advocates for the local community and this was yet another outstanding effort to promote a continued healthy environment and well-being for the citizens and habitat of Curaçao.

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Central Committee of Parliament will be having a hearing with the Notaries on 23, February.

The public hearing of Parliament will be held on Thursday afternoon at 4:00pm in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament.

Parliamentarians will hear the views of the civil law notaries under the umbrella of the Association of Notaries with respect to the National Ordinance supplementing Title 1 of Book 7 of the Civil Code regarding provisions on the Sale of Property and Assets, and determination of Title 12 of Book 7 of the Civil Code, National Ordinance Sale of Property and Acceptance/Contracting of Work.

The committee meeting will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and via Pearl Radio FM 98.1. The audio will be carried via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao:--- On 1 February 2012, 11 volunteers from the 429th Expeditionary Operations Squadron located at the U.S. Forward Operating Location (USFOL) assisted the Felisidat Espasio Libertat I Speransa (F.E.L.I.S) Foundation with a grounds clean-up. Volunteers armed with shovels, rakes, and shrub clippers cleared large sections of overgrown grass and weeds on the foundation's property. One USFOL volunteer commented, "Being able to help a foundation that has taken an interested in helping the lives of the children makes me feel like I was making a real difference." USFOL personnel have been long-time advocates for the local community and this was yet another outstanding effort to assist a local community organization.

PHILIPSBURG:--- On Tuesday morning 16 six graders from the Sister Marie Genevieve de Weever primary school along with their teachers and support staff, visited the House of Parliament at Wilhelmina Straat in Philipsburg.

The students were welcomed by the President of Parliament Hon. drs. Gracita Arrindell.

The students were very enthusiastic to be in the House of Parliament.

Arrindell explained the group about the workings of the country's parliamentary democracy with respect to the roles of Members of Parliament (MPs); who were the MPs and Council of Ministers; and the difference between the Executive and Legislative branches of Government.

During the enactment of a parliamentary session, students posed a number of questions to their fellow students who were acting as Ministers. They also asked the President of Parliament several questions.

Students either asked about the following or addressed several questions to the other students who were acting as Ministers: roads; high consumer prices; MPs who don't show up to work; fuel shortage at the airport; school fees; increases in gas for cars; high GEBE bills and blackouts; how to curb youth violence and crime; vote-buying; the Ombudsman; and why children are not allowed to vote.

Concluding remarks by the President of Parliament Arrindell were that she would like to have all primary and secondary schools visit the House of Parliament allowing the youngsters to feel and live what Parliament does.

"I am impressed with the disciplined and inquisitive interaction displayed by the enthusiastic young girls and boys. The pupils are very aware of the issues that live in the community.

"I applaud the teachers for their hard work and who are doing a great job in teaching the younger generation, the leaders of tomorrow," President of Parliament Arrindell told the teachers and sixth graders on Tuesday.

This is the second school visit for 2012.

Cole Bay:--- On Wednesday February 23rd, 2012 at approximately 09:45pm, two unknown men each armed with a handgun, climbed through the drive-thru window of Kentucky Fried Chicken in Cole Bay. Threatening the manager
and other workers with their fire arms, the robbers managed to steal a small amount of cash from the cash register. After committing this act both robbers fled the scene by climbing back through the same window.
The detectives have been questioning witnesses as the investigation is in the hands of the Special Robbery Unit and Forensic Department.

Sucker Garden:--- A man with initials P.R., a crew member on board of the M/V Eclipse (Celebrity Cruise Line) reported that on Wednesday February 22nd at approximately 12:00pm while walking in the vicinity of Seamans Club he was attacked and threatened by an unknown man who was carrying a handgun. The victim further stated that the suspect threatened to use his gun if no cooperation was given. The victim took-off running towards El Capitan. The suspect chased him down and pushed him to the ground causing him to suffer several bruises to his body. The suspect then fled the scene taking the victims wallet containing a small
amount of cash and identification. The Special Robbery Unit has this case under investigation.

Marigot:--- As the date for the upcoming territorial election draws near, politicians on the French side of the island are releasing their lists. Already the RRR headed by Alain Richardson and Saint Martin pour Tous headed by Marthe Ogoundele have released their lists. On Thursday, Daniel Gibbs released his list under the name Team Daniel Gibbs. Gibbs told reporters that he is proud and happy to present the list of candidates that will be contesting the March 18th territorial election. He described his team as the fruit from a group that began working several months ago. Gibbs said his mission is to make sure St. Martin returns to its rightful place and thus he was able to build a strong team. He further explained that besides the candidates that will be postulating for the upcoming elections he was also able to build an effective team of volunteers who have been working behind the scenes for months now. The team of candidates on "Team Daniel Gibbs" he said has one and only one ambition which is to serve St. Martin.
March 18th he said will be the beginning the reconstruction of St. Martin which is required by the winning team.
"TEAM DANIEL GIBBS has thought, evaluated and planned this restructuring. We are all committed to a specific program," said Daniel Gibbs. This program is not based on dreams or on good intentions. It is within the powers of the Collectivity, within its real abilities of implementing Article 74. "TEAM DANIEL GIBBS 2012" program is based on a foundation of two engagements that are priorities of his team which is to change the governance and create jobs. All the other commitments derive from this capacity to governed in collegiality, in cooperation with the social and economical actors and in consultation with the population, particularly through the District Councils with extended power. Job creation has to be our utmost objective.

Those that will be contesting the March 18th election under Team Daniel Gibbs are:-

ARRONDELL MARIE-ANNICK Assistante familiale
ASCENT – GIBBS MAUD Retraitée de l'État
AUBERT DOMINIQUE Directrice de centre de formation
DAMASEAU VALÉRIE Directrice d'entreprise
CARTI SOFIA Entrepreneur
CHARBE RAJ Auxiliaire financier
CHARLES DANIEL Entrepreneur
CHARVILLE JULES Gérant d'entreprise
DELDEVERT GUY Entrepreneur
GAMIETTE MARLÈNE Gérante de société
GIBBS DANIEL Notaire
HABICHDOBINGER STEPHANE Assistant de direction
HANSON EUGÈNE Entrepreneur
HENOCQ CHRISTOPHE Directeur du Musée, directeur d'association
HERAULT MYRIAM Commerçante
HUNT HÉLÈNE Administratrice
HUNT JUDITH Assistante dentaire
LAKE AMBROISE Responsable exploitation et maintenance, aéroport Grand Case
MANUEL - PHILIPS ANNETTE Cadre de banque
PAROTTE GEORGES Chauffeur de taxi
RAMPHORT MARIE DOMINIQUE Expert-comptable
RIBOUD DOMINIQUE Dentiste
THEMINE RYTA LAURE Psychiatre
TONDU CAROLE Directrice de centre de formation
WELLINGTON LUC Entrepreneur
WILLIAMS RÉMY Homme d'affaire

Philipsburg:--- The Interpol will be holding a three day conference on St. Maarten from February 28th to March 1st, 2012 at the Sonesta Maho Resort, announced Police Spokesman Ricardo Henson. Interpol is the world's largest international police organization with 190 members. Last year October, St. Maarten became a member of Interpol and is listed as the 189th member country of Interpol.
Henson told reporters on Sunday that the program for the three day seminar was put together by Interpol. Henson further explained that Interpol is presently focusing on online sexual exploitation of children, maritime piracy, human trafficking, and fugitive investigations. These topics he said were discussed in their last meetings in Vietnam when St. Maarten was accepted as a member of Interpol. Henson said St. Maarten being a member of Interpol has given the police an edge on cross border investigations when it comes to the exchanging of information.
During the three day seminar and workshop topics such as medical products, counterfeiting, and pharmaceutical crimes will be expounded upon. Henson said pharmaceutical crimes has become a major threat to public health since many persons have lost their lives after using expired or fake drugs that have been doctored or tampered with. The police spokesman said pharmaceutical crimes have attracted large criminal networks due to the huge profits that are being made. Henson explained that Interpol is of the opinion that pharmaceutical crimes are committed across the borders since they are exporting, manufacturing, and distributing counterfeit and illicit medicines. Henson said the St. Maarten Police Department and Customs will be representing the island. He also confirmed that the Health Minister will be participating in the three day seminar.

Philipsburg:--- Police Spokesman Inspector Ricardo Henson was placed under the radar by members of the community some months ago when it became known that his 28 year old son Brian Henson might be involved in criminal activities. Some months ago young Henson was arrested when it was believed that he snatched someone's gold chain. On another occasion, Brian Henson was arrested when police found a gun in his vehicle that was parked on Pond Island.
A few weeks ago Police arrested Brian Henson along with another person after trailing suspected robbers that were targeting jewelry stores. The investigation is still ongoing and Brian Henson remains in pre-trial detention. Police and the colleagues of Ricardo Henson searched his home shortly after they arrested his son. A police radio was found among the younger Henson's belongings while an illegal firearm was found in his car.
SMN News asked Inspector Henson how the arrest of his son affected him as a police officer and a parent. The Police Spokesman said that it is an unfortunate situation to be in. However, he made clear that his son is a grown man of 28 years old and if it is proven that his son is guilty of the crimes he is accused of then he will have to face the consequences of his actions. "As a parent I want to let everyone know that we, "my wife and I" have done everything to raise our son correctly and to put him on the right track but if he chose otherwise then he will have to face the consequences of his actions if he is proven guilty. I would like to say one thing, having to be in this situation is not a very nice feeling but I have to continue to do the things I have to do." Henson said it hurts somewhat but the pain is going away slowly. He assured the members of the media that he loves his son very much and he will do whatever he has to do for him.
"You people know me and you know what I stand for, I am totally innocent of any wrong doing regarding my son," Henson said. The police spokesman then told reporters after the press conference that was held on Sunday that the situation is affecting his entire family. "As the husband and father I am forced to deal with the situation on all fronts. This is affecting my wife who is the mother of my son very much as well as my two other children both of whom are police officers. Henson said one thing he wants to tell parents is that they should not to provide children with everything they want. "My son got everything, I gave my children everything, they did not have to buy anything. My son was living at home with us and he did not have to contribute. I take blame for this because if he had to contribute by paying his dues he would not have found the time to do the things he is accused of. Henson further explained that while several persons have said a lot about the ongoing investigation and the arrest of his son no one has ever approached him and asked him about it.

From February until June, Ms. Tineke Van Bussel, a Master's Degree student researcher at the Vrije Universiteit of Amsterdam will be looking at the pressure that the invasive lionfish is having on local fish species, particularly fish which are already in low abundance in the waters surrounding St. Maarten. The St. Maarten Nature Foundation will be hosting Ms. Van Bussel for the duration of her research.

Ms. Van Bussel will be researching the effects lionfish are having on the food resources of native St. Maarten fish species. "It is essential to know to what extent these species are both endangering juvenile fish and how they are competing for food with adult fish. For example; certain species of snapper may be badly affected not only by lionfish eating young snapper, but also because lionfish eat the same food snappers do. With the results we can suggest measures for the protection of certain fish species that are being most affected by the lionfish invasion," commented Ms. Van Bussel. Further research will also look at how much the lionfish are effecting the fish population on reefs both within the Man of War Shoal Marine Park and on reefs outside of it and how it affects the complex food web that exists on coral reefs.

Lionfish are an invasive venomous fish that can inflict a painful and sometimes fatal sting. Lionfish are usually found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans but were introduced into the Atlantic thru the aquarium trade. Native fish species don't recognize the Lionfish as a threat so they are unable to defend themselves against it. In other places were lionfish were spotted there are hardly any snappers and grouper left because those are the type of fish the lionfish likes to eat.

The Nature Foundation encourages fishermen, divers and all those who may have captured or sighted lionfish to report their catch or sightings to the Nature Foundation through calling 5270490 or via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Founder of the Speedy Plus Club, Mr. Calvin Bryan will be hosting the first international track and field sports event on St. Martin at the Alberic Stadium in Sandy Ground. This sports event includes the International Track and Field Meet, the "Plan Caraibe" and the Sprint and Hurdled Clinics from May 5th – 9th, 2012.

Countries participating in the upcoming International Track & Field Meet are the U.S.A, Cuba, Canada, Italy, France, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Bahamas, Ukraine, Antigua, St. Kitts-Nevis, scheduled for May 5th.

The "Plan Caraibe" meet consist of Cuba, Trinidad, French Guyana, St. Barths, Anguilla, Martinique, Guadeloupe and St.Martin-Sint Maarten scheduled for May 5th. In this event St. Martin-Sint Maarten will be competing as one island.

The Clinic is scheduled for May 6th and 7th and will be conducted by the world renowned speed and conditioning coach Loren Seagrave.

The host, Mr. Calvin Bryan, the master mind behind this event is a legend in this field. He is a former professional sports instructor, named the best 1996 coach in Track and Field in France, trainer for almost all of the athletes in Guadeloupe that went to the world championships and Olympics from 1966-2002, receiver of a gold medal from the Ministry of Sports of France, receiver of a gold medal from the French Federation of Track and Field. Mr. Bryan brought home 2 gold medal champions within 3 years of training, when 8 years was the predications. This consists of coaches, trainers, participants and a host of caliber.

This event will give the island additional international exposure and the community is invited to schedule the dates and come out and support as St. Martin–Sint Maarten showcases its finest athletes.

Cay Hill:--- The medical staff of St. Maarten Medical Center is now placing male and female patients in the same room due to the lack of space. Several persons voiced their opinions about the situation at the St. Maarten Medical Center on Monday during a call in radio program. Minister of Health Cornelius De Weever said on Wednesday that he was contacted via his office and on the public roads by several persons who informed him of the situation.
Minister De Weever said his office already contacted the inspectorate and requested that they do their jobs in this regard while he spoke to Dr. George Scot about the matter. Minister De Weever told members of the media that he was supposed to meet with the Board of St. Maarten Medical Center last week and that meeting could not take place. He said he intends to meet with the SMMC board sometime this week and he will address the matter of having male and female patients sharing rooms.
When asked why the Government of St. Maarten did not grant the St. Maarten Medical Center a guarantee letter that would allow them to get the necessary financing for the hospital's expansion, Minister De Weever said to date the board of the St. Maarten Medical Center has not submitted a request in writing to government requesting a guarantee letter. Minister De Weever said the government of St. Maarten has been facilitating the St. Maarten Medical Center through the Central Bank with bonds. Minister de Weever made clear that Government has been working with the board of the St. Maarten Medical Center and government is supporting the expansion. However, he said he does not think the SMMC needs to have a guarantee letter from government to do their expansion. He said based on the information he has, the SMMC is financially strong enough to execute the expansion. "You should know that government supports the expansion and will do whatever we can to assist." When asked if he knew why the banks on St. Maarten denied the SMMC the loan they are seeking for the expansion, Minister De Weever said he cannot see any reason why any banking institution would deny the SMMC a loan when they are the only hospital on St. Maarten.
In the meantime, SMN News learnt that the SMMC has strong bank account which amounts to 12 million dollars. The former board of the St. Maarten Medical Center took over the institution with 25 million guilders in arrears, one of the former board members told SMN News on Wednesday. "We took over a hospital with 25 million guilders in arrears and when we left the board, it had a surplus of 12 million dollars." The former board member also pointed out that the President of the Supervisory board and Medical Director is now also the Chairman of the Board and he urged government to rectify the matter as soon as possible. "The members of the former board made Dr. George Scot the Director of the Hospital and we made clear to him that he cannot be the Chairman of the Board."
When SMN News contacted Dr. George Scot on Wednesday for a reaction on mixing patients and the letter of guarantee he said he requested from government Dr. George Scott said he had no comments on either issue.

Letter of Intent Granted to American Medical Clinic.

In the meantime, the Minister confirmed on Wednesday that the government of St. Maarten has granted a letter of intent to the Dr. Samuel Hess who is seeking to build a Medical Tourism Center in the Simpson Bay area. Minister De Weever also clarified that several organizations submitted requests to government asking for letters of intent to build more hospitals on the Dutch side of the island. Minister De Weever said the letter of intent has a timeline in which the foreign investors have to begin construction. Minister De Weever also announced that the government of St. Maarten will be issuing another letter of intent to an investor who is also interested in building a hospital here.
When asked by SMN News if he believed building more hospitals on the Dutch side of the island will hinder the progress of SMMC, Minister De Weever said based on all the discussions that have taken place thus far the hospitals are supposed to work together. "It is supposed to be a compliment to each other and not a competition to each other."

Philipsburg:--- Minister of Labour Health and Social Affairs Cornelius De Weever clarified on Wednesday that Member of Parliament Romain La Ville did not send him any letter as was stated in one of the daily newspapers.
Minister De Weever said he is aware that the current governmental structure is new to many persons as well as Members of Parliament but one should know that no individual Member of Parliament can send him an ultimatum. "If the body of Parliament gives me a directive that will be executed, but no one Member of Parliament can send me directives. The Members of Parliament can make recommendations and suggestions. This is the reason my door is always open," Minister De Weever said.

Great Bay:--- Dancer/Choreographer Indhira Marlin, carnival costume designer and sculptor Randolph Scot, youth group, Voice of our Children foundation and new author, Lydia Henderson were among first-time nominees for the annual Culture Time Awards who took top honors when the winners were announced Sunday, February 5, 2012 in a special edition of the island's longest-running cultural program on PJD-2 radio 1300AM.
Indhira Marlin "whose consistency in producing quality work with the island's youth ensures the continuity of excellent output in dance on the island," took over from Broadway star Nicole de Weever, winner of the dance category for the last couple of years.
Producer and host of Culture Time, now in its 25th consecutive year, Fabian Badejo, expressed the hope that a National Dance Ensemble could emerge from the work of artistes like Indhira Marlin, Clara Reyes of Imbali Creative Movement Center, and groups like the Motiance Dance Company, the other two nominees in the Dance category for 2011.
The Mighty Dow, who had a stellar year during 2011, with accolades pouring in for him both at home and abroad, won the Music category against nominees like Addy "Shadowman" Richardson and the band, Control. Others nominated in this category included Tanny and the Boys, the Jolly Boys (both leading exponents of stringband music) and the Ebony Steel Orchestra.
However, Addy Richardson would not be denied a well-deserved recognition when his song, "In your eyes" was adjudged "Song of the Year" in a mano-a-mano with Control band's rendition of the Sparrow classic, "No money, no love."
"Shadowman has come out of the shadows to enter the spotlight of Caribbean music with his undeniable success on regional charts and on Tempo," noted Badejo. Culture Time co-host, Fernando Clark, stressed that "Shadowman has been consistently on the radar in the region, producing quality work that has made him stand out as a frontline musician."
However, it was not a matter of musical chairs when Control took the "Band of the Year" award in a category that included nominees "Youth Waves" and "No Limits". It is the second year consecutively that Control has won this category.
Randolph Scot, one of the island's leading carnival costume and set designers, won the Fine Art category in his first year of being nominated, while Lydia Henderson, another first-timer in the nominations race, won the Book of the Year award with her controversial autobiography, "Lydia; from heterosexual to homosexual to bisexual to God."
"Yori Yori" by Bracket, won the "Foreign Song of the Year" title, while "DJ of the Year" was won by Mix Master Pauly.
The Culture Time Lifetime Achievement Award went to artist/musician Urmain Dormoy who has gone from "Slujj to New Status Generation Drum Band in a lifetime full of hard work, dedication and breaking new grounds," according to Clark.
Chef Dino Jagtiani, won "Chef of the Year" award, instituted last year in recognition of the fact that the island is commonly referred to as the 'Culinary Capital of the Caribbean'. His Rare and Temptations restaurants offer "creative and innovative fare that soothe the palate," the judges noted.
"Culture Time Person of the Year" is Jacques Hamlet (better known as "Billie D") of SOS Radio in Marigot. "This is also a first for us," said Badejo, who observed that not only Billie D's work as Radio Personality but also as "local entrepreneur in the broadcast field has had a significant impact on the island's cultural field which has not escaped the notice of our judges."
There were a total of 16 categories for the Culture Time Awards, with two being declared vacant – Theatre and the Fashion Designer of the Year categories.
The Culture Time Awards do not carry any monetary or other material value but have become a prestigious recognition of consistent and excellent work in the field of culture by those who are in the field.

Click here to view detailed list of winners of Culture Time 2011 Awards.

Philipsburg:--- A Central Committee of Parliament hearing is planned for 7 February about Inheritance and Legacies.

The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon at 4:00pm in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament.

The law that parliamentarians will be dealing with is the National Ordinance establishing Book 4 and Title 7.3 of the Civil Code, National Ordinance on Inheritance and Legacies.

The Association of Notaries will give their input with respect to the aforementioned national ordinance.

The committee hearing will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and only the audio can be heard via Pearl Radio FM 98.1 as well as via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

Great Bay (DCOMM):--- On Monday, the Secretary General to the Council of Ministers Cassandra Jansen took the oath before His Excellency Governor Eugene Holiday. Also in attendance were Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams, family and colleagues.

At the ceremony, Governor Holiday stressed the importance of oath-taking as well as the function of Secretary General to the Council of Ministers, described as a unique and challenging position catering to seven ministers.

The Government is ensuring that all civil servants of the country take their oath and a special session is planned for all civil servants at the end of February.

Great Bay:--- During the last Tri-Partite Committee meeting, nominations were made for the first and second vice chair of the committee. The employer representatives nominated Jim Rosen as first vice chair and the employees representatives nominated Theophilus Thompson as the second vice chair.
The proposal for sub-committees, rules of order and membership to Tri-Partite will be discussed in the next meeting on Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at the A.C. Wathey Legislative Hall. Tripartite Committee meetings are held every month with Minister of Public Health, Social Development & Labor, Cornelius De Weever serving as chairman. The Tripartite Committee is made up of representatives for employers, employees and government.
The Tri-Partite Committee serves as a consultative body to the Minister of Public Health Social Development & Labor with regards to ILO related topics. In addition, the committee also places an appropriate request or on its own initiative advises the minister with regard to labor market topics.

Philipsburg:--- Minister of Economic & Tourism Affairs, Telecommunications & Transport Hon. Franklin Meyers, would like to congratulate the 100+ staff at Flamingo Beach Resort who successfully completed the American Hotel and Lodging Association Education Institute course and received the 'Golden Hospitality' certificate recently.

The training dealt with guest service factoids and gold guest service leading to great customer service.

Housekeeping attendants, supervisors and managers, some of them, took an intensive course in 'Certified Guestroom Attendant, and Flamingo Front Desk team member Jules Skinner won the annual Diamond Resorts Chairman Award for 'Excellence in Customer Service and The Meaning of YES.'

Skinner was selected for the recognition from more than 70 nominees from Diamond Resorts worldwide.

"We are living in an extremely demanding economic climate which is both a challenge and opportunity for our country. The tourism and travel environment overall will remain very difficult, but government recognizes the importance of the hospitality sector.

"The international marketplace is extremely competitive, and countries around the world catering to tourism are making significant in-roads in developing their sectors. Tourism around the world has become very competitive.

"One of the most important areas is training of hotel staff. The hospitality industry is an industry that rewards employees who work hard, demonstrate flexibility and team work and deliver great service.

"I commend Flamingo Beach Resort for developing their staff and to keep up the good work. For the staff, continue to take every opportunity offered to you by your employer where it concerns upgrading your skills. Congratulations once again," Minister of Tourism & Economic Affairs Hon. Franklin Meyers said on Wednesday.

The certification was conducted with the cooperation of the St. Maarten Timeshare Association and the St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association.

Philipsburg:--- A Plenary public session of Parliament is scheduled for February 13 regarding the voting on a motion by Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Jules James.

The meeting will take place on Monday morning at 10:00am in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament on Wilhelmina Straat #2.1 in Philipsburg.

The National Alliance (NA) faction requested the plenary session in its letter dated February 01, 2012.

The NA faction would like to discuss the voting of MP Jules James on November 17, 2011 on a draft motion of the NA; the position of the NA that MP Jules James was not allowed to vote on the motion; the letter of the Governor of Sint Maarten to Parliament, dated December 5, 2011; and the reactions of the Chairlady of Parliament to the aforementioned.

The plenary public session will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and via Pearl Radio FM 98.1. The audio will be carried via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

Member of Parliament George Pantophlet says that Parliament does not have enough eyes and ears to keep an eye on the manner in which this government is functioning. While his focus is on the Minister of Everything, as a representative of the people he has to also monitor the Minister of Economic Affairs Franklyn Meyers. The Member of Parliament understood that there is a moratorium on Jet Ski's. The information is that someone submitted a request to obtain a Jet Ski license to operate at the Great Bay Beach. Apparently, the advice from the office of the Minister (Economic Affairs) was negative. Seemingly the Minister is neglecting the advice of the department and has requested that the documents be sent to him as he plans to approve the permit for the Jet Ski. There are stakeholders who are objecting to this and are preparing to follow legal recourse. The Member of Parliament will be sending a letter to the Minister of Economic Affairs Franklyn Meyers requesting information on the following: How many persons are in possession of a license to operate Jet Skis? When and why was the moratorium placed? What criteria are the Jet Ski license holders suppose to adhere to? The Member of Parliament also wants to know if it is true that the Minister intends to approve this request against the advice of his department. There is so much going on that is not transparent. Now the people can understand the need for a Corporate Governance Council, not enough eyes and ears.

Philipsburg:--- President of Parliament Hon. drs. Gracita Arrindell says the Central Committee will start to discuss the 2012 National Budget on February 22.

The meeting will take place on Wednesday morning at 10:00am in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament on Wilhelmina Straat #2.1 in Philipsburg.

The committee meeting will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and via Pearl Radio FM 98.1. The audio will be carried via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

Great Bay:--- The Charles Leopold Bell School in Cole Bay will reopen for normal classes at the usual time on Monday, February 20, 2012.
The school has been undergoing the necessary repairs to its deteriorating structures which have resulted in a couple of classrooms being out of commission.
Parents and guardians of students at the school are hereby notified that there will be no school until Monday when the repairs would have been completed.
According to the Department of Public Education Services of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs, the contractor is working diligently to ensure that everything is in place for school to resume by Monday.

Philipsburg:--- Minister of Finance Hon. Hiro Shigemoto said the meeting that the Council of Ministers (CoM) had with the President of the Central Bank of Curacao and Sint Maarten (CBCS) E. Tromp last week Thursday was very informative.

The presentation was about the social economic impact of dollarization; dissolution of the monetary union; blueprint for the Central Bank of Sint Maarten; supervision financial sector Sint Maarten; and the Development Bank of Sint Maarten.

"The CoM had asked the CBCS several months ago to do some research into a number of areas of strategic economic importance that we needed additional information. We are very pleased with the information received as this will assist with decision-making," Minister of Finance Hon. Hiro Shigemoto said on Tuesday.

The CBCS President last week also made a presentation to the Sint Maarten General Pension Fund as well as to insurance agencies about investing.

Last week Monday the Minister of Finance and other dignitaries attended a dinner to commemorate the upcoming 184th anniversary of the Bank.

The investigation into the death of Olivier PETIT (58 years old) on December 6, 2011, has been concluded. The results of the investigation have shown that Mr. PETIT took his own life.
On the morning of December 6, 2011, the lifeless body of Mr. Petit was discovered in the front yard of a house in Madame's Estate. A forensic examination showed that there was a cord around the neck of the body, that was strongly tightened with the use of a garotte.
At first, it was believed a crime was involved. Further examination, in cooperation with the French Gendarmerie, showed however, that Mr. Petit had tried to take his life several months before, using almost exactly the same technique.
This week, the Prosecutor's office received the results from the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI), concerning the DNA testing it had ordered. These results confirm the suspicion that it was in fact a suicide. Both the knot in the cord and the garotte, contained solely the DNA of the victim.
The next of kin of the deceased have been informed.

PHILIPSBURG:--- "There is obviously a serious intention on the part of both the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus and the Anguilla Community College (ACC) to cooperate with the University of St. Martin (USM). USM shares those intentions and I will do what it takes to formalize these mutual intentions within soonest," says University of St. Martin President Annlies van den Assem.
This remark comes after the USM President and the USM Acting Dean of Academic Affairs Glen Yeung paid courtesy calls to the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus in Anguilla and the Anguilla Community College (ACC) earlier this month. During the one day visit USM President and the Acting Dean met with UWI Open Campus Director Cheryl Sloley, Board member of the UWI Open Campus Anguilla and Board member of the Anguilla Community College Mrs. Phillis Fleming-Banks, PhD, and the President of the Anguilla Community College Professor Delroy M. Louden.
According to President van den Assem, the purpose of the visit was threefold:

1. To explore the cooperation possibilities with the UWI open campus in order to connect with the institution.
2. To secure a seamless transition to UWI for USM graduates, who wish to continue their studies after obtaining their associate's degree.
3. To forge sustainable cooperation and seek information from UWI Open Campus (an institution that has 60 years experience providing education in the Caribbean) on how USM could prepare for an educational model that would enhance its product by offering courses online as well as in hybrid form.

"What came out of our visit is that it appears that USM is pretty much in synchronization with the trend in education for all universities at least region wide. We all, as universities in the Caribbean, have issues of complicated scale, issues of funding, issues of distance and most remarkably issues of low enrollment. And still we as universities in the Caribbean are required to provide tertiary education for the public at large and are asked to be all things to all people," says USM President van den Assem.
USM Acting Dean Glen Yeung adds that for example what came up in discussion with UWI Open Campus director is that from their experience, having gone through the motions in the past 60 years in the Caribbean, in her opinion, we were on the right direction with our focus on our programs, on provision of online education and in our direction to connect as broad as possible to other universities for our students.
"As far as the provision of online education however she shared that their findings point to the online-with-a-tutor-system model for the Caribbean which is the direction USM has embarked upon," Yeung notes further.
The USM officials also learned that ACC will soon begin the accreditation process with the University Council of Jamaica and continue in the development of partnerships with the University of the Virgin Islands, University of Technology, Jamaica, University of the West Indies Open Campus and the Chartered Management Institute. Acting Dean of Academics Yeung notes that USM is embarking on connecting on this same trajectory to ensure a seamless and sustained connectivity to tertiary education institutions in the region for St. Maarten students.
Other points that were discussed include:

• UWI in conjunction with USM offering online courses with tutor system
• Lecture series cooperation between ACC and USM
• Exchange of instructors
• Internship cooperation with USM for Anguilla hospitality students.

"Cooperation in education is USM's mantra. USM showed its disposition to cooperate with UWI open campus as recent as December 2011 when a request came for USM to invigilate their exams at USM. USM immediately obliged and we will continue to cooperate with UWI open campus in that regard and otherwise," Yeung adds.
Follow up meetings are planned in order to formalize intentions for cooperation. UWI Open Campus officials are expected to visit USM in order to consider how to proceed.
USM's Board President Mrs. Valerie Giterson-Pantophlet, USM President Ms. van den Assem and the Acting Dean Mr. Yeung have also been invited to the investment ceremony for the first president of the Anguilla Community College scheduled for March.
USM, the UWI Open Campus, and the Anguilla Community College are all members of the Association of Caribbean Tertiary Institutions (ACTI).

The Anguilla Community College is to commence associate degree programmes in Hospitality Studies, Communications, Business Administration, Secretarial Studies and Humanities. USM already offers associate degrees in Hospitality and Tourism Management, Business, General Liberal Arts and Bachelors of Science degrees in Education and Hospitality and Tourism Management.
Other USM programs in development include bachelor programs in International Law, Business Administration in International Business and Commercial Facility Management and a Masters in Law. Persons interested in more information about the University of St. Martin and its programs can call 542-5171 ext. 1000 or visit us online at www.usmonline.net.

Airport/Grand Case:--- The lack of jet fuel on St. Maarten has raised concerns for several airlines that were affected on Saturday and Sunday afternoon, which has forced the Manager of Air Caraibes Daniel Richardson to speak out. In an exclusive interview with SMN News, Richardson said that no one from the Princess Juliana International Airport or SOL informed the airlines that there was no fuel on St. Maarten over the weekend. Richardson said Air Caraibes learnt of the fuel shortage around 4:30pm on Saturday afternoon when they contacted SOL to request fuel for their plane. "It was when I called SOL they told me there was no more fuel. I pleaded with SOL to see if they could find enough fuel for the aircraft to go over to Guadeloupe for fuel before heading to Paris. It took a while for me to convince SOL to drain their tanks and to supply Air Caraibes with fuel because all the other Airlines on the ground had to find hotel accommodations for their passengers Saturday evening," Richardson said.
Richardson further explained that SOL told him that there was a barge outside of St. Maarten with the jet fuel but the fuel was not tested and therefore they could not supply the air-crafts with fuel on Saturday but they were assured that there would have been enough jet fuel on the island on Sunday. "When SOL told me that they were going to have fuel on Sunday I informed Paris and the captain that there was fuel on St. Maarten. However, when we began fueling up on Sunday afternoon SOL told us they did not have enough fuel for us. This situation placed Air Caraibes in a precarious situation because there was too much fuel in the plane to land in Guadeloupe and too little to take the plane to its scheduled airport. Air Caraibes plane had to make a stop in Nantes to get some fuel to take them to their destination. Because of that, the Airline suffered more expenses because they had to house the passengers that missed their connecting flights in other areas of Europe." Richardson said besides the additional expenses their flights are also delayed and they are forced to call in additional crew members when the crew over spent their time on board the flights. "On Saturday, an additional co-pilot and stewardess had to be called in to reinforce the flight crew before they could continue to Paris."
Richardson said so far PJIAE and SOL have not met with the Airlines to inform them of the current situation. Richardson said that he is of opinion that Air Caraibes is the only one that was affected on Sunday. He said currently his bosses in Guadeloupe are in communication with SOL and PJIAE to see if they could find a solution for the ongoing fuel shortage.
According to Richardson, a number of airlines were affected on Saturday. He said on the ground there were air-crafts from United Airways, Caribbean Airlines, Air Caraibes, Air Canada and two from US Airways.
A press release issued by DCOMM on Sunday stated that an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fuel shortage.

DATE: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2012
VENUE: AXUM
LOCATION: FRONT STREET. PHILIPSBURG
TIME: 8:30PM TO MIDNIGHT
WALK WITH YOUR POEMS.
FREE ENTRANCE, FREE SNACKS.
PERFORMANCES BY:

• SHABA
• ROSADA
• RUBY BUTE
• OMPO AND MANY OTHERS

Come celebrate Black History Month.

BE THERE!

PHILIPSBURG:--- Ombudsman Nilda Arduin presented President of Parliament Hon. drs. Gracita Arrindell on Tuesday morning with the bureau's handbook 2011-2012.

The handbook which will be updated on an annual basis comprises of established guidelines for the bureau; work procedures; tasks of the ombudsman; formation plan; a compilation of all main documents that guide the Ombudsman bureau; 10-year strategic plan; budget of the ombudsman bureau; communications plan; case investigation and complaints processes; standards of proper conduct of the ombudsman; and the code of conduct for civil servants.

Ombudsman Nilda Arduin said the handbook served two objectives, firstly, it gives direction for the office, and secondly, it acts as an archive where you can trace the establishment of the bureau as a new high council of state.

Arduin added that the handbook demonstrates transparency of this particular high council of state and a copy will be presented to the Philipsburg Jubilee Library for public perusal.

President Arrindell highly commended Arduin for her hard work since the inception of the bureau and added that she is very confident that the Ombudsman will reach the goals set out in its planning documents for 2012 and for the future.

"I admire the manner you have approached your work. We all had to build our respective democratic institutions from the ground up when we achieved country status and the same thing can be said for Parliament.

"I am very impressed with the handbook and I know the bureau will not become a toothless tiger as it is one of the key institutions of our democracy," President of Parliament Gracita Arrindell said on Tuesday.

The Ombudsman handbook will be placed in the archives of Parliament for Members of Parliament (MPs) to peruse at their own leisure.

During the presentation on Tuesday morning, Nilda Arduin enthusiastically welcomed the proposal by the President of Parliament to have a yearly presentation to Parliament starting in 2012. The exact date will be coordinated and made known soonest to all concerned entities.

CUL DE SAC:--- The St. Maarten Academy has launched its “Choose P.E.A.C.E.” project with a series of activities, particularly geared towards their first formers. The project, which kicked off on Wednesday (February 22, 2012), will run until March. It is being spearheaded by student counsellor Tallulah Baly-Vanterpool and the Student Care Department. Tephany Baptist, a social work intern from Holland (now famous for the FlashMobproject) as well as Sabine Smith, a recent graduate of the Academy, is assisting with the project organization.

The “Choose P.E.A.C.E.” project is a positive approach to violence prevention that is needed in the St. Maarten community. The acronym P.E.A.C.E. represents Principles, Excellence, Attitude, Courage, and Empathy - all values that St. Maarten’s youth and elders must embrace for a brighter future.

On Wednesday, there were two presentations on Principles. Miss St. Maarten 2011 Trumane Trotman took the first form girls through activities that highlighted their principles and how difficult it might be to change them. The girls learnt the importance of inculcating lady-like behaviours, and how to handle peer pressure and conflict. They ended their session with a ‘poise and posture’ demonstration. All forty-five girls walked out as new-found “Miss Principles”.

At the same time, the young boys were engaged in a lively discussion with Lenworth Wilson, Jr., host of CPR radio program on Youth Radio 92.5FM. Wilson, teacher by profession, is well known for his involvement with St. Maarten youth as a mentor. He presented the K.I.N.G. principles to the young princes, and encouraged them to demonstrate Kindness, Intelligence, Naturalness, and Growth.  The forty first form boys shared what they understood about becoming a man, and were taught the principles of kings and gentlemen.

The “Choose PEACE” activities will continue on Friday where all students are being encouraged to wear white shirts with the PEACE emblem. As part of this initiative, the school has already embraced one letter in the acronym by awarding the Honour Roll students and presenting them to the entire school as examples of Excellence. The student body was encouraged to strive for excellence in all that they do. In the coming weeks, the students will be engaged in other lessons in P.E.A.C.E.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Everything is in place for the information day/open house at the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) on Friday, 24 February, where the public are invited to visit the office and receive information about the services provided by IND.

The Information Day at its offices on the A.T. Illidge Road #8 (next to NAPA) is from 7:30am and 2:00pm.

Staff will be available to answer questions and brochures will be on display and available to take-away as well.

IND has a very important role to play where it concerns country Sint Maarten as it relates to admittance, border and territorial control.

The three main areas when carrying out its work are transparency, consistency and customer friendly service.

The IND has extended an open invitation to all and is looking forward to meeting with those who require additional information about the services of the department during the Information Day on Friday.

CUL DE SAC:--- The United Student Government Front (USGF) has embarked on a series of trainings in parliamentary procedures for high school student councils. The workshops, which started last Friday (February 17, 2012), will run until April 20.
Jaycees trainers and senators Elroy Hughes and John Hodge are conducting the sessions, which will teach the students how to plan and execute their meetings.
Last Friday, representatives of St. Dominic High School, St. Maarten Academy, St. Maarten Vocational Training School and Sundial met at the St. Maarten Academy's academic campus for the first workshop. Hughes explained the origin of parliamentary procedures and traced its history from the 19th century to present.
The interactive session explored techniques in planning agendas for meetings, taking control of chaotic situations, and respecting decisions set by the council. Students were encouraged to put aside friendship and be professional in their conduct, especially since they are the voice of their student body.
"It is important that you listen to other leaders when they speak on television and you will learn how to conduct your own meetings. You will also learn leadership skills. As a leader, you must always be prepared," Hughes told the students.
He took them through the steps in planning an agenda, and urged them to send out their agendas at least one week in advance. As the executive body of the student council, he told them, they will be doing all the work for the entire student body; therefore, it is imperative that they meet as a board prior to any general meeting to plan and make decisions.
"When your board sits together, they all have to agree with the final decision. The majority rules. So when the president talks about a project, he/she has the full backing of the majority. But this does not take away the rights of the minority."
The workshops will continue on March 23 at Sundial School and on April 20 at St. Maarten Vocational Training School. All meetings start at 3:30pm and end at 5:00pm.
Aside from the trainings, the USGF is seeking to collaborate with the St. Maarten Youth Council Association. Ms. Connie Francis-Gumbs, of the latter organization, used the forum on Friday to present the roles and constitution of the Youth Council.

The USGF is encouraging more high school students to participate. They can contact their respective student councils to do so. The first workshop was free, but students will be required to pay $1 for each of the remaining sessions. At the end of the three workshops, students will be given an evaluation and a Certificate of Participation.
USGF coordinators Sinatra Rouse, mentor of St. Dominic Student Council; and Kim Lucas-Felix, mentor of St. Maarten Academy Student Government Association would like to thank the presenters for volunteering their time towards enriching our future leaders.
Hughes, who voluntarily conducts training for the youth, said, "Giving these types of trainings to young people always make me feel good, especially when you see they are eager to learn something new."

PHILIPSBURG:--- The Central Committee of Parliament will continue with the 2012 National Budget discussion on March 1st after the meeting was adjourned on Monday.

The Thursday meeting will start at 10:00am in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament on Wilhelmina Straat #2.1 in Philipsburg.

Members of the Council of Ministers are expected to be present for the meeting in order to provide additional information to Members of Parliament (MPs) with respect to the national budget.

Questions were submitted to MPs during Monday's session and additional questions could be asked on Thursday.

The committee meeting will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and via Pearl Radio FM 98.1. The audio will be carried via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

Dear friends and former colleagues of Ivy Wyatt, better known as Radio personality "Poison Ivy".
Ms. Wyatt will be hosting what she terms as her "AWAKE".

Having recently been diagnosed with inoperable stage 4 cancer, she has decided that, rather than have a wake after she is dead, she would prefer to host an 'AWAKE", a gathering with her close friends and family where she can personally tell them all goodbye.

Ivy Wyatt or "Poison Ivy" her radio name, started in the radio business 1988 when she was a part of the administrative staff at PJD2 and also hosted a radio program in the evenings from Monday to Fridays 8pm to 12 midnight.

She left St. Maarten for a period of time and upon her return, she rejoined the staff of PJD2 where the she created a radio show called "Just the 2 of us."

In the early 90's, Ivy transitioned to work for Eddy Williams at 99.9 Great Bay Broadcasting. There she worked with Mike Jarvis and Phyllis Meit. In addition to being part of the administrative staff at 99.9, Ivy was the on air personally from 2pm to 6pm, did the news, and hosted her radio program "Ivy's Neighborhood" on Saturday afternoon from 2 to 6pm.

During her time at 99.9 Ivy was invited to be the Master of Ceremonies at the Heineken Regatta which featured singing sensation Chaka Can, and Co-produced with Phyllis Meit "The Great Bay Salt Pond Reading Club", a 30 minute program geared to introduce young listeners celebrating music from local artists as well as world music, Caribbean folklore such as Anansi Tales and other Caribbean Classics.

In 1994 Ivy moved to work with GEM RADIO, which later became JAM'N 94.7 under the direction of Norman Wathey. It was that this point when "Poison Ivy" the radio personality was born. Working as station manager as well as morning disc jockey "Poison Ivy" brought her creative and innovative style to JAM'N 94.7 making it the hippest station in its hey day until the station was sold.

During that era "Poison Ivy became very popular with the station frequent live broadcasting format, doing many live broad casts from high schools such as Sundial to Moon Splash with Banki Banks and August Monday in Anguilla. During that period JAM'N 94.7 also and became the official radio station for the Sinbad Soul Music Festival and many other live concert.

Right now Ivy is at home in the care of her family. As many inquiries have been made with reference to her absence, she has decided that an "awake" would be a nice way to let her loved ones share some quality time with her before the cancer takes a turn for the worst.

The awake will take place at the John Larmonie Center this Thursday February 2 at 6:30pm to 8:30pm. As her condition is very frail, she ask that people please be courteous and respect the time of the gathering.
She also insists, that this is not, as they say in St. Maarten English a time to come "MACCO."

For more information please call 554-9364 or 523-7418 or visit her Facebook page.

Philipsburg:--- Minister of Labour, Public Health, and Social Development Dr. Cornelius de Weever announced on Wednesday during the Council of Ministers press briefing that he discovered some more inconsistencies at the Department of Social Affairs and therefore he has decided to retract the mandate of the signing power given to the head and interim head of the Social Affairs Department. Minister De Weever said the retraction of the signing power took effect on Wednesday, the head and interim head can no longer sign the letters to clients informing them whether or not they qualified for social assistance. The Minister said since his last message to the Department head which was either to "shape up or ship out" there have been some improvements, however, it is clear that he has to do what he needs to do given the responsibility he has to the people of St. Maarten. "I understand the plight of the physically and mentally challenged and I will not and cannot allow this to continue without making improvements. Anyone can make mistakes but when mistakes become too common and people's lives are affected I must act if not I heed my own call. What applies to this Ministry also applies to me and when poor people cannot be helped in the United States of America they would say Houston we have a problem, then I say in St. Maarten we have one too. Let there be no doubt that this Ministry is about taking care of the people and when this is being jeopardized then I must act." Minister De Weever said that retracting the mandate to sign letters is an action he took which he believes is the right direction.
Minister De Weever is expected to deliver his New Years address to the workers of the Department of Social and Labour Affairs on Thursday when the department closes its doors for an extended staff meeting and the presentation of their year plan. The Minister said the theme for 2012 is Customer Service and Innovative Technology.

Philipsburg:--- The Minister of Health and Labour Cornelius De Weever announced on Wednesday that he will be meeting with the board of the Mental Health Foundation on Thursday. The meeting was requested by the Minister of Health based on statements made by the foundation regarding work permits. He said he already sent the Mental Health Foundation the agenda for Thursday's meeting. Minister De Weever said that it is his honest opinion that the truth must be told. Without divulging any details, the Minister said that as long as his Ministry is subsidizing any foundation they must adhere to the laws of the land.
Minister de Weever said he already requested a complete overview from the Head of Labour Affairs Peggy–Ann Dros- Richardson regarding the work permits that were requested by the Mental Health Foundation, this and other issues he said will be addressed with the board on Thursday.

Philipsburg:--- The head of the Department of Labour has dispatched a letter to the chairman of the Tenants Association of Pelican Resort Club (TAPRC) Arthur D'Italia informing him that the Department of Labour cannot process the dismissal request he submitted to them on January 12, 2012. Head of the Labour Department Peggy- Ann Dros Richardson said the department took note of the letter but they are unable to process the request since it does not serve as sufficient basis for processing the dismissal of the workers.
Dros also sent a copy of the letter to the Workers Institute for Organized Labour where she indicated that said letter was also sent to the legal representatives of TAPRC informing them to file a petition by completing the relevant form which was also sent to them and to ensure the employer is TAPRC. TAPRC is asked to provide the evidence that identifies the statutory director of the company.
In the meantime, the President of the Workers Union for Organized Labour Theophillus Thompson told reporters on Thursday that to date he has not gotten any response from the labour department regarding the dismissal request that was filed by the SBRMC to dismiss 49 of the Pelican workers since July 2011.
The unionist said he met with officials of the Labour Department on Wednesday to discuss the Pelican workers who are still fighting a legal battle with SBRMC and it was then he was informed that the department has rejected the request of January 2012 but the status of the 49 workers was not discussed.
Minister of Labour Cornelius de Weever announced some weeks ago that he ordered an internal investigation to determine exactly what delayed the dismissal process of the 49 workers. On Wednesday, the Minister of Labour said he got a report on the investigation which he is studying while he asked the company SBRMC to submit to him a summary report so that he can properly evaluate the situation and take a decision.

Labour Department Promised to take Action against SBRMC with regards to Workers Rights.

The President of the WIFOL and WICLU Theophilus Thompson said he met with officials of the Labour Department including the Secretary General Joireen Wuite and Raphael Boasman on Wednesday where they discussed the latest development at the Simpson Bay Resort Management Company (SBRMC) and the Labour Department has since promised to take some action to safeguard the rights of the workers.
Thompson explained that the SBRMC extended an invitation to the workers to reapply for their jobs at the resort and many of the workers responded to the invitation. However, the workers were denied copies of the contracts they signed while some of them were not even allowed to read the contract they are were asked to sign. Thompson said a letter was sent to the company requesting copies of the contracts that were signed by the workers and to date SBRMC did not respond. In the meantime, the labour department obtained a copy of a contract but not one that was signed by the workers. Thompson said that one of the employees who worked for the resort for 18 years was even denied the opportunity to read the contract he was expected to sign. The WIFOL President said that someone from the human resource department read the contract for the employee and it was then he realized that he was asked to sign a contract that specified that he must undergo a two month trial period. Thompson said the former Pelican worker did not sign the contract but informed his union of what had happened when he went to SBRMC. Thompson further explained that some 60 workers signed the contract under duress and they too do not have copies of their contract which the labour department is trying to obtain. Thompson said 30 of the workers who applied for work at SBRMC refused to sign the contract based on the fact that they could not get a copy of the contract to read and to keep.
The WIFOL President made clear that the SBRMC is violating the rights of workers and he informed the labour department of the injustices and violation. He considered the meeting to be successful and the Labour Department has committed themselves to take decisive actions to ensure that the workers' rights are maintained.
Thompson said currently workers of SBRMC are treated like slaves based on what they are told are in the contracts the workers had to sign. He said the workers' rights are being violated because they are not allowed to go to lunch unless they finish their tasks or if they are not authorized to do so by a supervisor. Thompson said had the union received a copy of the contact the union would have denounced it.
Thompson said that WIFOL will not give up fighting for the rights of the SBRMC workers because the rights of all workers are currently at stake.

Marigot:--- Scores of Taxi Drivers from both the French and Dutch side of the island joined their forces together on Friday morning to fight against the implementation of the €150 parking tax that was implemented this year for French taxi drivers. Taxi Drivers from the French side of the island told SMN News that they received a letter last week informing them that they are required to pay €210 before the end of February. The €210 includes the €60 annual registration fee along with the parking tax. The French drivers said they are obliged to renew their registration every year and the Collectivity decided to combine the parking tax with the annual registration fees. "Some of our drivers were forced to pay the €150 if not they could not renew their identification cards." They said the letter was given to them by the taxi dispatcher at the Waterfront Taxi stand.
The taxi drivers dressed in their respective uniforms gathered at the Galisbay Pier as of 7am where they mobilized themselves before making their way through the streets of Marigot to the Waterfront. Members of the Dutch Taxi Drivers Association (DSTA) and their President Otis Hughes embraced their colleagues of the Saint Martin United Taxi Drivers Association (SMUTA) to fight what they describe as unfair taxation. Among them were the President and members of the Airport Taxi Association (ATA) and Genesis Taxi Association. It is the first time in recent history all taxi drivers from the different Associations came together to protest against government. The drivers drove from Galisbay unto the main road of Rue de Hollande (RN7) creating traffic go slow as they sent their message to the elected officials at the Collectivity of St. Martin. Friday's protest can be considered a thorn in the ruling UPP party's flesh now that the party is busy campaigning for the upcoming elections.
The taxi drivers then moved from the Marigot Waterfront to the Collectivity by foot where they stormed in and demanded a meeting with the President of the Collectivity Frantz Gumbs. At the COM, several drivers were seen expressing their frustration with Territorial Councilor Daniel Arnell who is currently in charge of public transportation. Shortly after the gathering at the Collectivity President Gumbs showed up at the Collectivity and agreed to meet with a delegation that is representing the taxi drivers. A total of 16 persons were allowed to enter the meeting with President Frantz Gumbs, and Territorial Councilor Daniel Arnell along with the staff of the public transportation sector Marilyn Hughes and Pierre Brange. Territorial and Executive Councilor Alain Richardson also joined the meeting with the President and the Taxi Drivers
When the meeting ended President Frantz Gumbs told reporters that he has withdrawn the €150 parking tax for now because some error was made with the implementation of the parking tax. "Because there were some errors with the implementation we have decided to put it on the back burner. The law was made for everybody, both Dutch and French and if you cannot implement it for everyone then you cannot implement it for none. That is the decision I took here today." President Gumbs said he is not in a position to waive the cost of the registration fee of €60, therefore he informed the French Drivers that it has to be maintained every year. President Gumbs said that the Governments of the two sides of the island will have to get back around the table at another time to discuss the implementation of the parking tax. "Right now, everybody is busy campaigning for the upcoming elections so we will not discuss this right now. Unfortunately, the meeting with the Government and the Taxi Associations did not take place because of circumstances beyond our control and right now it makes no sense for us to resume talks because maybe in the next two months we will have a new set of people running the country and they may not have the same ideas as this government had."
President Gumbs said that a decision was taken for all taxi drivers to pay the parking tax and what appears to have happened is that the Dutch side taxi drivers were exempted as such the tax cannot be implemented for now.
Last year, taxi drivers on the Dutch side of the island received a letter from the French side Transportation department informing them of the law that was passed by the Collectivity for all taxi drivers to pay a parking tax to park anywhere on the French side. Areas that are included as taxi parking zone are Rue General de Gaulle, Marigot Waterfront, and Orient Bay. That letter sparked a meeting with the Minister of Transportation and Economic Affairs Franklin Meyers and President Gumbs at the Collectivity of St. Martin. It was decided that President Gumbs would meet with all the Taxi Associations and inform them of the new law and the implementation of the new taxes.

More taxes no work --- French Drivers already paying to work.

It should be noted that the French taxi drivers are already paying to work on the Dutch side of the island because there is no work on the French side for them. The SMUTA drivers told SMN News that they are already paying a fee to the DSTA to work at the A.C. Wathey Cruise Facility while they are also paying a fee to work at the Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIAE). "We are not the only ones paying to work at the harbor and the airport; our colleagues on the Dutch side also have to pay to work at both locations. They are paying less than us but they too have to pay, the difference is the Dutch side provides work for all taxi drivers. All taxi drivers that work on the Dutch side are able to get some work. Yes, we pay to work but we get work there. On the other hand, the French side (Collectivity) has implemented a fee for its drivers and they do nothing to create work for taxi drivers," said one SMUTA driver.
"We used to be get the tourist that goes and comes from Anguilla to take to and from the Airport to Marigot but today we no longer get that work. The Collectivity has allowed 20 charter boats to begin operations from Anguilla to PJIAE. Those charter boats use the French waters because they pass under the Sandy Ground Bridge to go the Airport and they are not contributing anything. We want them to tax those charter boats because they took away monies from the taxi drivers, the ten ferry boats that are operating daily from Anguilla to Marigot while the Collectivity no longer get its head tax from the tourists that are passing through St. Martin to Anguilla, so instead of targeting the taxi drivers who have to go elsewhere to get their bread they need to target the charter boats," another SMUTA driver told SMN News. The angry taxi driver said that the because of the charter boats businesses such as restaurants and vendors on the market place are also losing monies. "When the tourists come from Anguilla or the airport they sometimes eat lunch at the market place before continuing their journeys but all of that stopped because of the 20 charter boats that nobody has paid any attention to."

Click here to view more photos of the Taxi Drivers' Protest.

Philipsburg:--- The second and final night of the 2012 Winter's Words series will take place on Wednesday, February 8, at 7:30pm sharp, at Top Carrot Restaurant in Simpson Bay.
Event organizer Lysanne Charles said that the theme of the last night would be The Naked Truth: Sounds and Fury. The featured poets are all expected recite several poems in line with that theme, though they do have some liberty to deviate in order to read other pieces.
The poets scheduled to perform are Sharella Richarson, Roberto Arrindell, Stephen "Stretch" Rodney and Lucinda "LaRich" Audain.
"Last week's theme was just The Naked Truth and Giovanni "Gino" Olivacce and I performed. I have to say for the both of us, I think that night we stepped up both our poetic games and opened up to our audience in new ways," Charles said.
Charles said the poems of the night had covered education migration, love lost, healing, molestation, and mental illness and noted that the audience had really responded well to both performers.
"For me it was the first time performing all my pieces to music and trying to do something tangibly different with my performances. I loved it and I enjoyed the feedback so I think I will do more of that in the future and of course encourage the other poets to do so as well. Gino was explosive as as expected and really delved deep into issues many people would shy away from. His delivery as well as his content was powerful," Charles said.
She said that she was in discussion with Clara Reyes of Imbali Center for Creative Movement to have several workshops with the poets to further develop their spoken word and performance skills. These workshops would most probably take place between March and April of 2012, but definitely before July's Summer Speaks.
Charles said that during the open mic parts of the evening one of her PSVE students Gabriella Pensa had recited a poem she had written for the school's upcoming fourth form showcase themed Our History. Marianne Tefft had also performed several pieces to the delight of the audience. Audience members were also treated to songs from rising local singers Morenika Arrindell and Julia Bates.
"We really opened up the show to the full participation of the audience and everyone had a great time at the end of the night. We had a really delicious, abundant hors d'oeuvres plate and some drinks at the beginning of the night prepared and served by Top Carrot's Peter and Lydia Bonev.
Charles encouraged all poetry aficionados to come out and support the poets on Wednesday night.
"Unfortunately this is the last night of the season, but already I know of some poetry events in the works, both on the Dutch and French side with Lucinda "LaRich" Audain and Melissa "One Poet" Fleming, so we, as local artists are doing our part and now we need publics to do their parts and support the efforts," Charles said.
Cost of the evening is $15, which includes a great platter of food and one drink of choice. Reservations should be made with Charles at 586-1266 or at Top Carrot Restaurant at 544-3381.

Philipsburg:--- Head of the Detective Department Denise Jacob told SMN News that the police managed to solve about 60% of the murders committed last year. Jacob took up her position as the head of the detective department in September 2010. She said in the beginning the crime rate was very high and her workload was extremely heavy. Jacob said in the beginning she was working night and day and almost every day she was on a new crime scene. She described her early days on St. Maarten as a very rough period while she was trying to find her way on her new job. "At first, I needed to learn the organization and the culture of St. Maarten and determine exactly what was hindering the police organization while I had to support the people of the island."
The department head said she quickly learned that there were a lot of good officers who did their best to get the job done but they lacked material, manpower and proper training. Jacob said when she took office she met a lot of unsolved murders "cold cases" but despite that the murders that were committed daily took priority. "Whenever a murder was committed we literally dropped everything to focus on that case and gather as much information in the first 24 hours. It was a slight but important change made." Another change the top cop made was to organize the work schedule of the officers so that each officer could have gotten some rest. "Officers were working too long hours and they needed to rest so that they could focus on solving the cases before them and increase their output."
Jacob explained that she had to do a lot of re-organizing with the structure since everyone was working hard but they were not able to achieve their goals. The new management team quickly realized that the police on St. Maarten did not have the proper tools and manpower to execute their duties so while they had an implementation plan they also needed to find manpower and tools.
Jacob said she is of the opinion that the former Netherlands Antilles (Federal Government) did not know what St. Maarten needed for it to function properly. "I am not complaining but it's my honest opinion that they were too far away and I don't think they did not want to care for St. Maarten but they simply did not know how to care for this island because there was a lot of things that were not in place. St. Maarten's Police Organization had good leaders but they needed motivation and more knowledge on certain skills. There was need to educate the officers. For example, letting them know that when they do wrong they will be punished and when they do good they will be rewarded. I also know that a lot of officers were hurting and we had to deal with all of that prior to making changes," Jacob said.
The new management team plans to continue with the implementation plan even though they are hindered by the lack of funds. In the past, the police organization was separated and there was no information sharing but all of that has changed since the new management team took office, this is one of the main reasons the police managed to solve a large number of the cases. "To have optimal performance there needed to be proper communication and information sharing."
Jacob said despite the efforts and changes taking place within the police organization there is still need for them to acquire more manpower. "We did get some Dutch officers and the BAVOL officers but we have to continue training them." As for her department, Jacob said that there is need for more officers in the detective department.
When asked about the allegations made by some of the detectives earlier this year, Jacob said she did not read the article because she was on vacation at the time it was published. "I don't really need to react to what anyone said, I know what my objectives are for this Police Organization and that is what I am working on."

The St. Maarten Marine Trades Association recently presented St. Maarten Sea Rescue Foundation with a check for $2500 to assist the foundation with their future goals to ensure that they can continue to provide sea rescue operations.
The St. Maarten Sea Rescue Foundation (SSRF) was established in 1982 and has been providing rescue services for vessels off of the coast of St. Maarten. The SSRF is a volunteer organization and is able to carry out life- saving operations due to the generosity of various organizations and individuals as well as the dedication and hard work or their volunteers. Today, the SRF comprises 14 active members who are operating the foundation's two rescue vessels under just about any sea and weather conditions.
The St. Maarten Marine Trades Association during the months of November and December held their annual Spotlight St. Maarten event which is a month- long celebration of education and recreation geared toward the promotion of yachting on St. Maarten. The goal of the SMMTA– the organizers of Spotlight St. Maarten - is to showcase the island, offer residents exposure to the marine industry and the SMMTA, and to encourage vessels to come to the region earlier by providing discounts, educational seminars, and highlighting recreational and cultural events on St. Maarten/St. Martin and the surrounding islands.
The SMMTA commends the St. Maarten Sea Rescue Foundation for providing a very valuable necessary service to sailors and passengers who find themselves in danger in our surrounding waters. The SSRF has saved many people and even animals from life- threatening situations on a voluntary basis and therefore the SMMTA feels it is of the utmost importance to support them, said SMMTA President Brian Deher. The funds were raised through a raffle and silent auction that were held during Spotlight St. Maarten's V.I.P Event featuring Orange Grove and G Love at Yacht Club Isle de Sol. Some items from the silent auction included a new Blackberry Torch from UTS, beautiful pearl jewelry sets from Diamonds International and a hotel stay at L'Esplanade. Other items that were raffled were spa and beauty treatments at various spas and salons on the island, a half- day fishing charter, airline tickets on LIAT and a Magnum of Rose.
The SMMTA is very happy with the success of the first- ever Spotlight St. Maarten and are proud to present the St. Maarten Sea Rescue Foundation with a donation. Their hope is that the 2012 Spotlight St. Maarten will be even more successful and can provide additional opportunities for work with charitable causes.

Philipsburg:--- The seven suspects in the Vesuvius investigation that are currently behind bars as suspects in several murders, attempted murder, and weapons possession appeared in the Court of First Instance on Wednesday. The prosecutors believe that the seven suspects are in one way or another involved in the murders of Miguel and Rodolfo Arrindell, Kevin Gumbs, Eric Lake and Anthony Whyte while at least two of them are involved in the attempted murder of the St. Kitts national that was shot in his leg in Dutch Quarter. That case is known as the "Tan Tan investigation." The court was told that the person who it is believed shot Amador Jones is currently in custody in St. Kitts.
Wednesday's hearing was mainly to convince the judge that the suspects were arrested after severe suspicion of their involvement in multiple murders that occurred during 2011. While charges of some of the crimes were laid out before the court the prosecution requested from the court that they be given sufficient time to conduct their investigations and mainly to conclude the ballistics tests on the weapon's that were found at the various homes that were searched during and after the arrests of several of the suspect. The court has decided to postpone the trial until June 6th 2012. Some of the suspects were represented by Attorneys at law Brenda Brooks, Peggy Ann Brandon and Remko Stomp.
Security around the Court of House on Wednesday was upgraded to high. Police and snipers from the Zero Tolerance Team surrounded the court house hours before the suspects were transported to the Court of First Instance. Relatives of the suspects also flocked the area as early as 8am.
The first suspects were transported to the Court of First Instance in private vehicles. The first suspect was transported alone in his prison garb and with his eyes covered. His hearing was conducted alone while the other suspects came in twos an hour apart. The commotion and high amount of officers around the Court House attracted a huge crowd on Front Street.

Click here to view more photos of the scene around the Court of First Instance on Wednesday.

Simpson Bay:--- Four new traffic signs have been added in front of the Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) to aid in the drop-off and pick-up of physically-challenged persons, said Justin Joe, the airport's Facility Maintenance Manager.
Joe said the signs were painted in the public access lane at each pedestrian crossing where there is a ramp to facilitate wheelchair access. This brings to 12, the total number of spots designated for the physically-challenged.
The manager made it clear that the spots in front of the airport are only for drop-off and pick-ups and not for parking, as they are in the tow-away zone. Wheelchair parking is provided in the airport's parking lots.
The request for the signs, Joe said, came from the airport's Managing Director, Regina Labega after she identified the need.
"As an international airport, PJIA must cater to all users, including the physically-challenged," Labega said. "Our signage must therefore clearly reflect this philosophy."
The signs were painted in January. At the same time, the airport used the opportunity to refresh the paint on the other eight signs in the employees' and visitors' parking areas.

On February 8th, The Soualiga Corporate Toastmasters Club increased its membership in 2012 with two Civil Servants, namely Danae Daal a Treaty Lawyer at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Harriette Rogers an administrative worker of the Receivers Office. Both Civil Servants have taken great initiative by giving their first "ICE BREAKER" speeches during the pinning ceremony.
These 2 new Toastmaster have set a wonderful tone of commitment in the club, leaving the rest of the club members eager to hear their upcoming speeches. The Soualiga Corporate Toastmasters club continues to emphasize the importance of the program, as it relates to the enhancement of Civil Servants communication and leadership skills. All Civil Servants and the general public are encouraged to come out and experience the Toastmasters program by joining one of 5 clubs on Sint Maarten.
The Toastmasters motto is "Where Leaders Are Made".

Philipsburg:--- Last week Minister of Economic & Tourism Affairs, Telecommunications & Transport Hon. Franklin Meyers, met with officials from Aruba's Air Safety First "The Registry of Aruba."

The objective of the meeting was to discuss aviation matters such as air safety and the registry of aircraft.

"One of the primary areas is for Aruba's Air Safety First to assist us with regaining Category 1 status. Additional discussions will take place on this matter in the coming months as this was only an introductory meeting.

"Another area that we are seriously looking at developing is an aircraft registry which will bring tremendous benefits to our country," Minister of Tourism & Economic Affairs Hon. Franklin Meyers said on Sunday.

Aruba's Air Safety First the Registry of Aruba aim is to link gaps between the regulator and the client by making regulatory compliance and safety oversight a reliable and cost effective service. Its aims are carried out in cooperation with the Department of Civil Aviation Aruba.

Aruba established its privately managed Category 1 Aircraft Registration Program for owners, operators, banks and leasing companies of commercial and private aircraft across the globe in 1994.

Philipsburg:--- The Permanent Committee of Parliament on Health, Social Development & Labour, will be in a closed door session on February 14.

The committee will discuss a report of the Sint Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) which deals with the expansion of the island's medical facility as well as cooperation in the field of public health within the Kingdom.

The meeting will take place on Tuesday morning in-house camera at 10:00am in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament on Wilhelmina Straat #2.1 in Philipsburg.

The committee is headed by Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Leroy De Weever, Chairman, MP Hon. Romain Laville, Vice Chair, and MP Hon. Lloyd Richardson.

On Saturday, 18th February 2012 Coach Donnie Arey from The Warner University Royals Basketball Team together with professional Basketball Players Will Graham and other trainers will be on St.Maarten to conduct a "1 DAY Basketball CAMP" at the L. B. Scott Sports Auditorium with other American Basketball Coaches and some American Players.
The camp will take place from 8:00am to 12:00pm for players from the ages of 15 years and under, and from 2:00pm to 6:00pm for players from the ages of 16 years and over.
All players are asked to wear a white T-Shirt to the camp and have a black or dark blue T-Shirt also with them.
All Youth Basketball players on St.Maarten/St.Martin are invited to attend the camp, and it is FREE of charge.
Time: 8am – 12pm for 15 years and under
2pm – 6pm for 16 years and over
Place: L. B. Scott Sports Auditorium
All participating players are required to be present at least 30 minutes before the camp starts.
ALL YOUTH BASKETBALL PLAYERS ON SXM are INVITED AND CAN PARTICIPATE.
The Camp is open for Boys & Girls Basketball Players.
The camp is also open to coaches from St.Maarten to attend and get some tips on coaching skills on how to improve on your coaching techniques from professional College basketball coaches and trainers.
Players are requested to wear a white T-Shirt and have a black T-Shirt or dark Blue T-Shirt with you also at the camp
All Players must have on a Basketball pants/shorts (No jean pants or long pants will be permitted)
All shoes must be properly tied/laced up.
Players must have on socks properly exposed above their shoes
Players are also encouraged to Bring their Discipline, Bring their Ball and Bring their Game to the training.
This is an opportunity for St.Maarten Youth Basketball players to take advantage of this opportunity to learn from these professional on ways to improve their skills by attending this 1 Day Camp.
At the Camp their will be topics that will be dealt with such as Education, Scholarships, Dangers of using banned substances/drugs and proper nutrition and eating habits.
ALL BALLERS ON ST.MAARTEN/ST.MARTIN ARE INVITED TO BE PART OF THIS BASKETBALL CAMP
This camp is brought to you in collaboration with St. Maarten Youth Beat Foundation, St. Maarten Junior District Basketball Association, Lyonel Agnes, Association des Basketteurs de Saint Martin (ABSM), and Donnie Arey.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT 5530238 OR 5207565.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- The Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) will be having an Information Day at its Open House on Friday, 24 February, and the public is invited to attend.

Persons interested in learning more about what services the IND provides can visit the Information Day at its offices on the A.T. Illidge Road #8 (next to NAPA) between 7:30am and 2:00pm.

Staff will be available to answer questions and brochures will be on display and available to take-away as well.

IND is currently in the process of preparing itself to be able to offer additional and improved services required by country Sint Maarten where it relates to admittance, border and territorial control.

One of the main objectives was to clear the backlog in admittance requests and that was realized in 2011. At the moment, the legal period for processing permits is four months and the goal for this year is to reduce the processing time to two months.

The three main areas when carrying out its work are transparency, consistency and customer friendly service.

The IND would also like to further improve and develop its relationship with external stakeholders such as Embassies and other organizations that carry out similar responsibilities.

IND will also be enhancing its current webpage on the Government website www.sintmaartengov.org which the public can also utilize to receive information about services that the department provides.

The IND is looking forward to meeting with those who require additional information during the Information Day for the 24 of February.

The St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) released its official Carnival 2012 schedule on Thursday, outlining two weeks of mostly local events and concerts from the opening of Carnival Village on April 19 to the Burning of King Momo on May 2. Carnival lovers will also get four local events prior to the opening of the Village.

The official schedule has once again been sponsored by Scotia Bank, who has been a partner of the SCDF in the production of the calendar of events for well over a decade.

The calendar, adorned with the reigning Junior and Senior Queens as well as revelers, also features three international nights towards the tail-end of the schedule, including the popular Latin Night by promoter Francois "Cuchi" Hunt and the One Love Soca Explosion by promoter Jacqueline Louis.

The SCDF noted that it could not mention everything in detail on its calendar of events, so the general public can expect some additional announcements via the media regarding artists appearing on various nights. For the most part, the schedule for Carnival 2012 predominantly features local shows including the "re-igniting" of three: the Teen Carnival Queen Pageant, the Miss Mature Carnival Queen Pageant and the Soca Monarch competition which replaces the Road March competition.

The SCDF explained that the Soca Monarch competition will only be for individual calypsonians, while a new competition, called a "Road Jam" competition, will be exclusively for the bands and will be judged on the road based on criteria. More information about this will be released at a later date.

The SCDF will also be hosting what it termed a "long overdue and very special event" on the same night of the Calypso Eliminations. The event, entitled "Honoring Local Carnival Legends" will pay homage to 6 persons directly affiliated with calypso who are "in every sense legends in their own right," the SCDF said. The names of these persons will be released in the next few weeks.

In total, the 2012 schedule futures 8 local shows, 3 international concerts, 4 jump-ups and 3 parades. "We are very happy with the balance that we've been able to present to the people of St. Maarten, the region and the world for Carnival 2012," President of the SCDF Stuart Johnson said. "We have something for everyone while still maintaining our hold on all things local, which is of utmost importance to the SCDF. Carnival is many things, but is driven by the local stakeholders who continue to work to elevate our festival. As such, we hope to get overwhelming support from the public for our local events on the same level we do for our international events," Johnson added.

He went on to thank Scotia Bank and Director of the Bank Elie Bendaly for once again being a dependable partner for Carnival on St. Maarten. "Mr. Bendaly and Scotia has remained steadfast in their support and for that we are extremely grateful," Johnson said.
The 2012 calendar also has links to the SCDF's Facebook page as well as www.wheretheflex.com

<http://www.wheretheflex.com/> the other online portal that the SCDF will be utilizing in partnership for Carnival 2012.

Philipsburg:--- Police arrested two brothers ages 18 and 19 years old for sexually molesting their 10 and 3 year old sisters. According to reliable information reaching SMN News, the two brothers were arrested last week Tuesday after their biological father turned them in to police. Sources close to the family who lives in Middle Region said that the children came from a dysfunctional home and their mother who was also arrested and released last week is an alcoholic.
The source said the woman identified as Jasmin Violenus is the mother of nine children, none of which she raised by herself. They said the two brothers were once living by their biological father Over the Bank and they allegedly molested some children in the area. The source further explained that when the boys' father heard of the allegations he "evicted" them from his home sometime late last year.
SMN News further learnt that the 18 and 19 year old then went to live with their mother and her boyfriend in Middle Region. A source close to the family said Jasmin would leave her two young daughters alone home with their brothers and it was during this period of time they were sexually molested. SMN News learnt that the 10 year old girl even moved out of her mother's house and went to live in Dutch Quarter with another relative when her mother did not take action against her sons who were constantly molesting her 10 year old daughter.
SMN News learnt that at some point Jasmin's live in boyfriend went to the boys' biological father and informed him of the sexual molestation that was being committed by his two sons against their sisters and the father eventually turned them in to police. SMN News further learnt that the two suspects Germain and Giovanni Violenus confessed to sexually molesting their sisters. However, their mother who was also arrested for gross negligence and for enabling her sons' behavior was released by the Judge of Instruction after she claimed not to have known what her sons were doing. The Court of Guardianship has since moved the two victims and placed them into protective custody.
In an invited comment, Prosecutor Bart den Hartigh confirmed the arrest of the Violenus brothers and the release of their mother. Den Hartigh said police is still busy investigating the case and his office is yet to decide if the boys will be charged with sexual molestation or rape. If convicted the two young men can spend anywhere between six months to 10 years in prison depending on the charges.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot Williams says that the nation is praying for the wellbeing and recovery of Prince Friso, the second son of Her Majesty (HM) Queen Beatrix, who was involved in a ski accident.

On Friday around midday Prince Friso (43) was seriously injured in an avalanche in Austria. He was admitted to the Innsbruck hospital where he is currently undergoing treatment.

The prime minister said on Saturday morning that the people of Sint Maarten were shocked with hearing the news and is deeply concerned with respect to the Prince's wellbeing.

"Our prayers are with HM Queen Beatrix and Prince Friso's wife Princess Mabel, and the other members of the Royal Family," Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams said on Saturday.

Prince Friso married Mabel Wisse Smit in 2004 and has two daughters, Emma and Joanna.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- In preparation of the Cycle II final examination, grade six (year 4) of the Marie Genevieve de Weever Primary School visited the Council of Ministers on Tuesday.

The school is currently covering the topic 'Government of St. Maarten' and in this regard the school took the initiative of organizing an excursion to the various governmental institutions.

After a brief introduction by the Ministers on their portfolio, the children received the opportunity to ask the Council several questions ranging from blackouts at GEBE, the electoral system, to the fuel shortage at the airport and maintenance of streetlights.

In general the students received an interactive, informative and educational session at both institutions.

The Ministers who were present for the class visit were: Prime Minister Hon. Sarah Wescot-Williams, Vice Prime Minister Hon. Theo Heyliger, Minister of Finance Hon. Hiro Shigemoto, Minister of Tourism & Economic Affairs Hon. Franklin Meyers, Minister of Education & Youth Affairs Hon. Dr. Rhoda Arrindell, Minister of Justice Hon. Roland Duncan and Minister of Public Health Hon. Cornelius de Weever.

Philipsburg:--- The Members of Parliament posed several questions on the 2012 budget that was debated during a Central Committee meeting on Wednesday. The entire Council of Ministers comprising of seven Ministers was present when Minister of Finance Hiro Shigemoto presented the draft 2012 budget. It is unclear why the other Ministers appeared on Wednesday since they were not the ones questioned after the opening of the meeting. Member of Parliament Frans Richardson suggested to the Chairlady that it would have been better if the Ministers reported to Parliament separately to answer to Parliament on their respective Ministries. However, the Chairlady did not entertain the proposal claiming that she preferred to have the Ministers present during the first half of budget presentation.
The 2012 budget has a ball park figure of 432.5 million guilders compared to the 2011 budget which was 420.9 million guilders. The increase stands at 2.8% which amounts to 11.6 million guilders. While youth unemployment stands at 30% according to the 2012 budget.
Minister of Finance Hiro Shigemoto said the budget does not comprise of any grants from USONA or other entities. However, there are measures that were taken to increase the country's income. He said wage and income tax stands 24 million guilders. The Finance Minister said that government is focusing on the compliance tax laws to generate more income. The 2012 budget he said is balanced. There is no deficit neither surplus. Personnel expense exceeds 40% of the operational cost of the budget, while goods and services have a price tag of 27% of the budget.
Shigemoto said that based on the projections, Government and Parliament will not surpass the annual income. The 2012 budget shows 9 million guilders set aside for traveling expenses, especially for Members of Parliament.
Member of Parliament from the Democratic Party Leroy De Weever requested clarity on certain figures regarding the interest on the loan to be paid to the Windward Islands Bank. De Weever also requested more information on the real estate tax that has been added to the 2012 budget. De Weever said it appears as though government intends to go after foreign real estate owners, but that is not something he will buy. He said he cannot understand how government can realistically include such tax in its budget.
Independent Member of Parliament Patrick Illidge blasted government for the lack of control on the government owned companies, especially GEBE. Member of Parliament Illidge said he has no questions about the budget since he knows we are struggling as a young country. He however, wants to know what government is doing to soften the burden of the people. He said government has a task to undertake and as such it is not always about the dollars and cents but it is about the services that are given to the people of St. Maarten. The Independent MP called on government to take some time and focus on the quality of service that is provided to the people of St. Maarten by government owned companies, especially GEBE. He said he wants to know if government will sit and wait on GEBE to respond to them or if they intend to take control of the company. Illidge said government is busy fiddling with figures to make ends meet while the government owned companies are walking around with deaf ears.
Leader of the National Alliance William Marlin asked the Finance Minister to give Parliament some clarity on the collection of loans given through study financing mentioned in the budget because according to him government is not authorized to grant loans to students through study financing. Marlin also called on Government to provide more data on the amount of ghost employees that are currently being paid every month. Marlin also wants to know what government intends to do with the government owned companies regarding accessing their financials. Marlin requested from government the Service Level Agreements that were signed since St. Maarten became country. Marlin said he wants to know with whom these SLA's were signed, for what period and the cost of each SLA. He also asked government to provide more clarity on the pension plan for civil servants and the placement of civil servants that are still not placed after 10/10/10. Marlin said he wanted to know exactly how many civil servants are sitting at home awaiting placement.

Philipsburg:--- A national of St. Kitts who turned in two brothers that were sexually molesting their two young sisters was beaten at least twice while in police custody. The prisoner Eric Rochester told SMN News on Wednesday that he was beaten on Friday while taking fresh air. He said the second beating he received on Tuesday was instigated by a prison guard he identified as Blake. Rochester said on Tuesday officer Blake took him out of his cell and placed him in another cell claiming that the other inmates had to clean the cell he was in. Rochester said shortly after that Blake told him to return to his cell and he begged the officer to escort him since he was afraid. He said Officer Blake told him that everything was going to be okay and that he should go alone. "As I walked towards the cell one of the inmates was hiding behind a wall and he slapped me, I ran inside the cell not knowing that another inmate identified as Tony was hiding inside the cell. The other inmate and Tony beat me with a broom stick and they kicked me all over my body. I screamed and called for help but officer Blake did not come right away. When Officer Blake reached the cell he told the prisoners to stop now because he was of the opinion that I got enough blows. When police called the Ambulance paramedics told me I needed to get a stitch or two in my head and I heard when Officer Blake told the other prisoners who beat me to stick to their word." Rochester said the police officer who escorted him to the St. Maarten Medical Center urged him to file a complaint with the police which he did and he said the police also took the medical report from the doctor at the hospital. "I heard when these guys were planning to beat me they said I raped a three year old child. One of them said show me the bitch and I will fix him, this nonsense and abuse towards children has to stop. I knew they were talking about me because on Friday when I was beaten this is what the Violenus brothers told them." Rochester said that was the reason he asked Blake to escort him because he was in fear for his life. He further explained that he is the one who enlightened the police about the sexual abuse of the two young girls.
Rochester said he wants a thorough investigation to be conducted. He said he is currently discussing with lawyers because he intends to take the Police Department and the Prison Authority to court.
Sources within the police force said Rochester was beaten on Tuesday and he had to be taken to the St. Maarten Medical Center for stitches to his head, he was deported later that day, the source said. SMN News learnt that Rochester filed a complaint with the police for the ill-treatment he received during his stint behind bars.

Philipsburg:--- The St. Maarten Marine Trades Association (SMMTA) would like to take this opportunity to thank the police force of St. Maarten for increasing the police presence in the Simpson Bay area. A consistent increased presence of patrol officers in cars and on bicycles has been noticed as of late.

The yachting industry was negatively affected by a series of crimes last season, several meetings with the police were had and promises were made to improve presence. We commend them for following through, especially with the bike patrol concept as traffic in the area can be heavy at times. Using a bicycle allows the police more flexibility of movement and also more opportunities to survey the surrounding area as they pass. We would also like to commend the Police Force for capturing the culprits of the most serious crimes and hope that those apprehended were convicted with heaviest penalties allowable.

The increased police presence is a deterrent to those considering committing crime and the response time when it does occur is lessened by having more police in the area; providing peace of mind for tourists and residents alike.

Bush Road:--- Le Grand Marche supermarket introduced back in 2009 reusable shopping bags with a beautiful photo of the Emilio Wilson Cultural and Historical park for sale to their customers who are conscious of the plastic litter problem on the island. The bags were endorsed by 3 local environmental groups who advocated reducing and eventually banning single use plastic bags on Sint Maarten. It was decided in 2009 that part of the proceeds of the reusable bag sales would fund the environmental groups.
At a small hand over on Wednesday, Mr. Anil Sabnani presented the Sint Maarten PRIDE Foundation, EPIC, and the Emilio Wilson Cultural and Historical Park Foundation with donations from the reusable bag sales.
Mr. Sabnani told the groups that Le Grand Marche will be phasing out single use plastic bags in the near future and will replace them with paper and a new stock of re-usable bags.
Single use plastic bags pose serious pollution issues not only locally but are a main source of marine litter worldwide. Marine wildlife often choke and die from eating pieces of plastic that resembles food in the ocean. Sint Maarten PRIDE Foundation and EPIC have been advocating for years to ban single use plastic bags in grocery stores as they end up in landfills for several decades never biodegrading. Many countries around the world have eliminated single use plastic bags as they too have experienced immense litter problems on land and at sea. Countries such as Italy, Mexico, Kenya, and the Hawaiian islands have banned plastic bags offered at grocery stores. Local environmental groups suggest that shoppers use a re-usable bag to carry their groceries in order to preserve our natural environment free from plastic pollution.

TALLAHASSEE, Florida:--- The Tallahassee-St. Maarten Foundation Inc. (TLH-SXMF) Director Arthur Lugisse, described the three-day visit of St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce & Industry Executive Director Claret Connor and Board member Tamara Leonard to Tallahassee, Florida as fruitful and very informative. Connor and Leonard left for St. Maarten on Wednesday and will be informing the Chamber Board about the successful visit. During their three-day fact-finding visit, they met with various officials from the public and private sector.

Philipsburg:--- Several teachers working for the Department of Public Education Services (DPES) are miffed about a memo that was sent to them by the department head.
The Memo which is called "Cooperation" addresses the concerns of the Department on the amount of leave of absence requests they are receiving and the effect it is having on students attending public school. The department stated in its memo to all school managers, directors, and the general staff of all public schools that it is becoming a norm for public school teachers to plan extra ordinary vacations and family activities during regular school periods. Teachers and school personnel have 61 vacation days per year which is already putting extra strain on the department because of the lack of substitute teachers and especially because a number of teachers are out on long term sick leave. The Department also reminded its personnel that they are fully responsible for their students' performance at the end of the school year and it is their moral obligation to ensure that the students that are entrusted to them receive well rounded classroom instructions. Students in the various schools need their teachers in the classroom, while the teachers are employed to provide quality instructions on a daily basis during the allotted work period of each school year.
Therefore, the DPES has decided to create an internal solution to the growing problem by asking that the school managers submit the request for leave of absence for their staff to the DPES and they will be the one who will decide on granting the request. Teachers requesting long leave must submit all related documents with their request to DPES. In cases that are necessary, the request will be submitted to the Secretary General of DPES or the Minister's cabinet. Persons who fail to comply with the new procedure will face unpleasant consequences.
DPES also attached a letter of intent that has to be filled out by all teachers indicating whether or not they will be available for the 2012- 2013 school year. Included in the letter of intent is a liability clause that has all teachers working in public education miffed. The liability clause reads: - "In the event one is unable to live up to the Letter of Intent, one shall notify the Department of Public Education Services (DPES) of such no later than May 30th 2012 in writing. Failure to do so will result in liability issues which will result in DPES filing a claim for recompenses as a result of the breach of expressed of intention. The pursuing of claims will be done at the discretion of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, and Youth Affairs. The teachers are also angry about the calculations of the vacation days. One teacher told SMN News that the Ministry has included all public holidays in the 61 day vacation period while they fail to count the extra week teachers spend in the classrooms at the beginning of every school year.

CUL DE SAC:--- Twenty students at the St. Maarten Academy's academic campus were on Monday presented with Honour Roll certificates for outstanding performance during the first term.
To be on the Honour Roll students cannot fail any subject, and must achieve 76 per cent and higher in 10 subjects. Among the awardees were eight first formers who maintained an excellent academic record in all 14 mandatory subjects. Success for these high school freshmen came after hard work.
According to Kyle Regis, he studied hard in advance for exams and received great support from his parents. He credited them for always supporting and encouraging him to do well. With their continued motivation, Kyle hopes to become a pilot one day.
His classmate, Candace Ford, too, credits her success to her parents, Christopher and Ann-Marie Ford. Her sister, Christine, also encouraged her to work diligently.
"My parents teach me the importance of education and how much I can achieve with it. They accept nothing but my best in everything. They teach me to thank God for all my achievements. My teachers, both past and present, also encourage me to do my best. Seeing both of my parents' success urges me to pursue my goals," the 12-year-old said.
Like any other first former, Candace faces challenges, but she has her way of dealing with them. "First, I pray and ask God for His wisdom. Then I say Philippians 4:13. I think that challenges are to be faced head on, not ignored."
She plans to maintain the Honour Roll, improve in Physical Education and Information Technology and be promoted to form two. "My tips are self-discipline to get the job done, determination, hard work, perseverance, focus, self-confidence, patience and, most importantly, [to acknowledge that] failure and rejection are temporary."
Another first former who is not afraid of hard work is Fordicha Balborda. She made the Honour Roll by "working hard in all my subjects, studying as hard as I can, and completing all class assignments on time."
Like her contemporaries, she credited her parents for her success.
"My parents' attitude towards their work influences me. They are both dedicated to their work, always on time, and give their all towards whatever tasks given. That really inspires me," the 13-year-old said.
Whenever she is faced with challenges, she goes to an older God-sister and can count on getting good advice that helps her overcome challenges.
Two other first formers who made the coveted list were Jovany Arrindell and Genora Jankee. The self-motivated Jovany reaches out to his teachers when he cannot complete a task and that has been his secret to being an Honour Roll student.
"When you see that a task is difficult, never say you cannot do it. Always try your best. My mom always tells me to do best in school," said Jovany, who wants to become a pro-ball player.
His classmate, Genora, on the other hand, has her goals set a little closer to school. She wants to become valedictorian of Class of 2016. "My mom always influences me to do great in school so that I can become a successful person," the 12-year-old Genora said. So when she does not understand a concept, she does not hesitate to ask the teachers to explain.
"Never say you cannot do something and always believe in yourself," is her motto.
Other first formers who made the Honour Roll are Tuwanna Jones, Fatimah Karim, and Ciaram Staber.
However, at the second form level, only one student, Tatiana Narine, copped the top award for excellent academic performance. Her message for success is simple: "Focus on school and stop idling." The 12-year-old credits her parents for motivating her by showing her the positive side to challenges.
"I think of something that has got me through other challenges, and I remember how that worked out for me." Her ambition is to remain an Honour Roll student and be the best she can be.
At the upper level, two sets of senior sisters continue their reign on the Honours list. Sisters Suaad and Manar Mohammed continue to shine academically, as well as twins Janice and Jenice Forbes.
Manaar, an honours science student, wants to be an accomplished author and poet. It is no wonder then that her favourite subjects are Physics, English, literature, and French. Like many other top-performing students, she always studies ahead of time, but still remembers that there is a time for fun and a time for work.
When asked what motivates her, the 14-year-old replied: "Every time I think of all the stereotypes against black people, I want to try harder to prove them wrong. My parents [also] encourage me to do better all the time."
The middle child of five, Manaar said if children in her third form class are making too much noise, she can endure it because she can study with noise around her. But whenever she does not understand certain things, she asks another student or the subject teacher.
In the same class as Manaar, is Janice Forbes, who was the top-performing second form student at the end of the last academic year. The 15-year-old, who listed Mathematics, Chemistry, Spanish, Physical Education, Additional Mathematics, Music, and English as her favourite subjects, knows that in order to excel one should "never procrastinate on doing your homework, projects and assignments. Make your time useful."
When asked what motivates her, she said the thought of making a difference, being a great person, and knowing that she will make it no matter what may come her way.
"My parents influence me, especially my mother. She is very powerful. Sometimes when I get a certain grade, she will often say that I could have got higher. [So] I do not let my task or work pile up. I sometimes ask my teachers in private after class for extra work for a better understanding of the work," Janice explained.
These challenges, Janice said, she overcomes with the help of God. Her goals in life are to make history in her generation and give hope to all those who think that they are failures and cannot make it in life.
But she is not the only one with such ambitions. Her twin sister, Jenice, too wants to be great in every area of her life so that she "can be able to create a generation of success."
To be successful, she stays focused and gives her best. "Most of all, never give up. If you should ever fall, just get back up and get going because there is always hope," Jenice said.
Asked what motivates her, she said: "My mother motivates me. I am also motivated by the idea of being great. My mom constantly tells me not to be contented with where I am, but to strive to reach higher heights, and to never settle for less."
She deals with challenges in class by confronting them in order to do her best. Like her twin, she prays about issues and asks the Lord to give her the strength.
Meanwhile, Roan Soriano, who is motivated by family, friends and music, likes to avoid problems and thinks communication is important. According to the 15-year-old third former, students must be focused on their education and always listen to their parents. She wants to become a musician or an accountant. The fifth third former who made the Honour Roll was Jeffeny Fidel.
At the fourth form level, Devesh Laungani and Aldair Petronilia share the spotlight. Devish, a science major, loves Mathematics, Physics and Physical Education. According to the 15-year-old, the best tip for success is to start working hard from the beginning of the year.
"Do not relax during the year. Keep in your mind that you want to get Honour Roll. Every time you do something new in class, you should practice it at home. This will help you to understand the topic totally. It will then be just a matter of reviewing. If you do this, then the test will be very simple for you because you have already studied everything. When you have done excellent in your test then that means your grades are high. High Grades will definitely mean you will get on the Honour Roll student list," Devesh explained.
The thing that motivates him the most is the idea of being successful in life and having a sound education. He lives by the motto, "Education is the key to success."
Like other students, when he does not understand, he seeks his teachers' assistance, or research online.
"My parents influence me by reminding me that having a good education is important in life. My career goal is to become a computer engineer. My ulterior goal in life is to live life to the fullest. As they say, 'You have only one life, so live it to the fullest.'"
Meanwhile, Suaad Mohammed, who is in her final year at Academy, has always maintained stellar grades because she studies hard, concentrates in class and pays keen attention when the teacher is explaining something.
"It is best to study way beforehand and to study to understand, not to memorize. My parents always encourage me to do my best even when it seems too hard to accomplish. They give me stories of how they used to handle things at my age, so I could get a proper understanding of how to do things myself.
"My mom, especially, gives me good advice on certain things, while my father encourages and pushes me to do well in school. My siblings, especially my older sister, tell me that I have the potential and tell me that I am smart enough to excel," the 16-year-old explained.
Like others in her category, when she does not understand, she seeks help from her teachers.
"I also ask the other students for help and their views and advice about certain things." Her goal is to be the valedictorian of Class of 2012.
"I know it would not be easy. There are others willing to be the valedictorian as well. I can say my competition is great," said the teenager of her peers, among them other fifth form Honour Roll student Linedia Masson.
Two other fifth formers also in the running for the top spots at this year's Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) exams are Glory Waakzaam and Sahaira Hughes. The 16-year-old Glory is motivated by God and is working hard now in order to attend a good college and be successful in the future.
Among her favourite subjects are Dutch, Spanish and English, all of which will serve her well when she becomes a lawyer and has her own law firm.
"If you know you are not trying hard enough, then study and work harder. If I do not understand something, I ask either the teacher or someone else who understands it. If other students have problems with me, I just ignore them and do what I have to do to succeed in school," the demure teen said.
She credits her parents for greatly influencing her.
"They are always telling me to study hard so I can have a better and more successful life than they have."
Sahaira, too, is advising other teens to work hard to achieve their goals.
"The best tip for achieving success/ Honour Roll is to have self-determination and perseverance. You must also study, work hard and remain focused toward your goal. Once you put your mind to do something, it can be done because nothing is impossible; you just have to work hard to achieve it."
For motivation, she looks to her parents, other family members, friends, and her teachers.
"They encourage me constantly to stay focused and to keep my head on. I am also a very self-motivated person. I like to challenge myself to be above the average, to do better, to be the best."
Presently, she is working on doing very well at the May/June CXC examinations. Thereafter, she plans to head off to The Netherlands, where she will further her studies.
As an incentive for such commendable performance, all students received an Honour Roll certificate, an Honour Roll bumper sticker for their parent's vehicle and other individual class awards from their homeroom and subject teachers.
Parents were also commended for their part in ensuring that their children performed well. During the morning assembly Monday, at which the certificates were handed out, other students were encouraged to work for the accolade. Parents and guardians are also being encouraged to monitor, guide and assist their children to this end.
The school's principal, Mr. Shareed Hussain, said he was extremely happy. He said that students continue to excel at the school because of the diligent efforts of teachers and parents. He further mentioned that the students always do a fantastic job, and he encouraged them to keep the St. Maarten Academy's Honour Roll flag flying high.
All of the students are encouraged to strive to attain the Honour Roll. It is hoped that the number of students who will attain the Honour Roll will increase tremendously at the end of the second term and the end of the 2011-2012 school year.

Philipsburg:--- Leader of the National Alliance, Member of Parliament William Marlin, said on Thursday, that the decision taken by Health Minister, Dr. Cornelius de Weever, has triggered several answers that require immediate answers.
When reading the decision the Minister has taken to retract the mandate of the signing powers given to the head and interim head of the Social Affairs Department, one would think that the Minister was just appointed and immediately took control of the situation.
For several months now the faction of the National Alliance has been complaining to the Minister, repeating the cries coming from the public. It appeared as if most people receiving social aid were being taken off the list; physically and mentally challenged persons and many senior citizens. Too many have been the complaints of persons who went to collect the few guilders they get every month, only to be told that nothing was there for them. They were told to check with the Social Welfare Department, and when arriving there, they would be given a letter with a decision that was taken, sometimes, two months ago, advising them that because of their financial situation they have been removed from the list.
When this issue was raised in a meeting of Parliament with the Minister, his answer was, that he was following the law and that he had a responsibility to spend the tax payer's money wisely.
Now that the complaints have hit home and are reportedly causing some heavy discussions among the coalition partners, as some family members close to the assistant to at the least one other Minister, Minister de Weever is finally "hearing the cries of the people". Was he not listening all these months? Did he believe that the poor people were fabricating stories that they had been removed from the list of Social Aid recipients? Did he not take the complaints from Members of Parliament seriously?
But without giving any explanations whatsoever, the Minister discloses that he has decided to retract the mandate. Instead of taking full responsibility as the Minister in charge, Minister de Weever is trying to make it look like he had no idea at all what had been going on all along, and that just the other day he found out that the head and interim head of the Social Welfare Department have been doing wrong or illegal things.
For the sake of Good Governance and Transparency, the Minister should come out and explain to the general public, what exactly it is that these civil servants have been doing wrong, that forced him to act by retracting the mandate.
What rules and our regulations and policies have they been violating or not carrying out? What are all those persons who have been removed from the list to do now? Will they all be placed back on the list? Will they have to re-apply for social assistance? Will the Minister now personally scrutinize every request? Will the civil servants now be removed from their posts, or will they be relieved from certain duties.
You see, we fail to believe that the civil servants in question have been acting all these months on their own without the blessing and knowledge of the Minister. The civil servants in question had to be following policies and guidelines approved by the Minister.
Now that the pressure started coming from within, the Minister played politics and passed the blame entirely to the civil servants. Worse yet, he placed the blame squarely in their laps. And to prove to the public that he is on their side, the Minister has decided to punish them, by taking away their signing authority.
We publicly call on the Minister to provide a complete picture to the public of St. Maarten, failure to do so, will make his decision just seem like another political move, played with the people of St. Maarten, some of who have had to suffer for months now.
While the National Alliance is happy, that hopefully now the suffering of many people will come to an end, we call on the Minister to take full responsibility for what was done to all these persons over the past months.

Philipsburg:--- The theme for World Cancer Day observed over the weekend across the world was, "Together it is Possible."

President of Parliament Hon. drs. Gracita Arrindell calls on women and men to seek early screening to detect the disease promptly as that is the key to reducing the nearly eight million deaths caused by cancer across the globe annually.

Each year on 4 February, the World Health Organization (WHO) and International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) supports International Union against Cancer (UICC) to promote ways to ease the global burden of cancer.

Preventing cancer and raising the quality of life for cancer patients are recurring themes. WHO and IARC will focus their efforts this year on screening and vaccination.

Cancer is a generic term for a large group of diseases that can affect any part of the body. Other terms used are malignant tumours and neoplasm.

One defining feature of cancer is the rapid creation of abnormal cells that grow beyond their usual boundaries, and which can then invade adjoining parts of the body and spread to other organs. This process is referred to as metastasis and is a major cause of death from cancer.

"Breast cancer is currently the top cancer in women worldwide, both in developed and the developing world. Together it is possible to reduce the number of women who die from breast cancer annually.

I would like to commend local cancer awareness groups who deserve our continued support as a community in their efforts to educate the populace.

It's critically important to take your screening as prescribed by your family physician. This fact hit home, when just this past week a very good friend of mine shared with me her fear of perhaps having breast cancer. I hope and pray for her that her diagnosis is not life threatening.

Early screening and vaccinations, especially the latter, can prevent infections associated with cancers. Vaccination is available against cervical cancer, which is caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV) and liver cancer, which results from infection with the hepatitis B virus (HBV).

I appeal to the women of this great country to make it a priority when it comes to preventive health and get screened and also look into the aforementioned vaccinations that can prevent cancer," President of Parliament Hon. Gracita Arrindell said on Sunday.

Philipsburg:--- A student of the Milton Peters College had to be admitted to the St. Maarten Medical Center early Monday morning after he was stabbed at least twice by a student of Sundial School while on a school bus. On Monday February 6th, 2012, Kevon Russell was on a school bus and for unknown reasons he attacked two other students that were on the bus. A student of Milton Peters College identified as J.H. was stabbed on his hand and also on his back. Police Spokesman Ricardo Henson said the student was bleeding profusely from the wound he sustained in his back and he had to be taken to the St. Maarten Medical Center for emergency treatment. Henson said another victim S.E. had a stab wound between her fingers while a third student was in possession of a letter that showed they were all threatened by the suspect. Henson said police managed to recover the weapon that was used in the stabbing and has since confiscated it.
It should be noted that the suspect was already in police custody in November 2011 when he attacked his mother and broke her jaw at the Sundial School. The 15 year old Jamaican youth identified as Kevon Russell was arrested after his mother filed a complaint with the police for ill-treatment. SMN News understands that the young man was released by the Prosecutor's Office after recommendations were given to his mother for him to receive after care treatment. SMN News learnt that the 15 year old youth was residing at the Keys to Freedom Drug Rehabilitation Center before he moved back in with his mother for the Christmas holidays. SMN News also learnt that the young man was also allowed to work with the Facility Services of Government under the guidance of Rick Martina when he was suspended from school. The source said Kevon Russell was accepted back at school but his behavior never changed.
Chief Prosecutor Hans Mos confirmed that police arrested K.R. and he is the suspect that was arrested for breaking his mother's jaw late last year.
Sources close to the Police Department said that the student will be handed over to the Court of Guardianship since it is not possible for police to keep him behind bars. SMN News learnt that the troubled young man might be placed at one of the Drug Rehab Centers on St. Maarten prior to arrangements being made for him to join his father in the United States.

Philipsburg:--- Chief Prosecutor Hans Mos confirmed on Monday that one of the three suspects arrested last week Wednesday is the son of Police Spokesman Ricardo Henson. Police arrested three suspects after an all night operation as they followed the suspects they believed to be involved in a series of burglaries in the Philipsburg area. The investigating officers also searched three locations, one of which is the home of the Police Spokesman.
SMN News learnt that police arrested the officer's son and his girlfriend while they searched a home in Belvedere and confiscated a set of expensive jewelry. Police also arrested a third suspect, sources close to the investigation say the third suspect is an employee of Diamond Casino.
Head of the Detective Department Denise Jacob told SMN News in an exclusive interview that two of the three suspects that are behind bars are the main suspects in a spate of robberies. Jacob said at least three jewelry stores were robbed in recent weeks and three locations were searched, two homes and a Guest House in Pointe Blanche area.
She said that the jewelry they confiscated are expensive items such as rings and bracelets. Jacob did not divulge much information on the ongoing investigation. When asked by SMN News if there is any fear among the officers that they might be victimized after arresting a close relative of their colleague. Jacob said the police organization is busy creating awareness among themselves ensuring that everyone within the organization knows that all persons whether they are relatives of police officers or fellow police officers that are suspected of any crime must be treated equally. "In my book no one is above the law, and the officers must be able to do their jobs without the fear of victimization. As the head of this detective department I will not stand for that," Jacob assured.

The St. Maarten Nature Foundation recently conducted its first bi-yearly research for 2012 on offshore coral reefs in the Proselyte area and on Frenchman's Reef. The research was conducted using the Reef Check scientific diving protocols and conducted by Nature Foundation Staff and Volunteers.

Results from the Coral Reef monitoring aspect shows that although there are significant challenges facing St. Maarten's most important coral reef area; the Man of War Shoal Marine Park, there have been some gains in coral cover which is up 3% and there is a slow increase of some fish species. However on other coral reef areas which were also research there is a significant lack of important fish species and challenges facing run-off from land which smothers and kills reefs.

The Man of War Shoal Marine Park is St. Maarten's first and only protected area and the economic value of the Coral Reef Ecosystem contributes almost 6o Million dollars to the economy of St. Maarten. The Nature Foundation will continue its various management and research projects within the Man of War Shoal Marine Park and other Coral Reef areas in order to continue with its efforts of coral reef conservation.

Philipsburg:--- SMN News has been reliably informed that police recovered one of their radios while searching the home of one of the main robbery suspects last week. SMN News learnt that police made the startling discovery when they were searching the home of one of their colleagues last week Wednesday. The police radio, they said, was found among the belongings of B.H. while they also found a firearm in his car.
They said that while their colleague did not report his radio missing or lost they are at loss as to how the suspect got hold of a police radio which enabled him to monitor the movement of law enforcement officers. The source said that the investigating officers are now busy investigating to find out which of their officers might have been assisting the culprits to evade police. "I think they are trying to see if the suspect ever went to see his father or any other officer and stole the radio while in their office, or if any officer among them is assisting the suspect by providing him with a police radio. Besides the investigation into the robberies, the police are also investigating themselves."
SMN News learnt that the police was not even aware that one of their radios was missing and the discovery has shocked them all.
Police arrested two suspects early last week Wednesday morning after a long investigation. Police focused on the two suspects after three jewelry stores were robbed on Front Street. On the night of their arrest, it is understood that the two culprits were planning to rob another store when police decided to move in. So far, the police and prosecutor's office remain tightlipped on the ongoing investigation.

Philipsburg:--- Postal Services St. Maarten NV (PSS) will be officially launching its MoneyGram Services at the Post Office this Friday 24th February 2012.
The services will be available to everyone on this day and will be marked by a special launch event on Friday 24th February at 10am in the presence of Hon. Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams. PSS invites the general public to come and witness the re-launch of the MoneyGram services at the Post Office. The services will be offered at two locations, the main branch in Philipsburg and Simpson Bay.
The PSS team is happy and looks forward to serving the masses once more. PSS will also have some special treats for its long time and new customers during the day.
The MoneyGram services at the Post Office will be offered from Monday through Friday during regular opening hours.

Madame Estate:--- Global recession, currency fluctuations, tight credit and declining consumer confidence are all major risk factors in today's economic climate. As these factors are likely to have a significant negative impact on a company's performance, business owners are forced to pay closer attention to the factors driving the business' performance.
Harnessing the full potential of a family business, while satisfying the expectations of family members, is difficult but certainly achievable with the right kind of help. Regardless of the economic times, running a family business is a juggling act. The needs of the business to grow and prosper have to be balanced against the needs and expectations of family members. While strategic primary concerns of any family business can include profitability, business growth, planning, and other issues, business concerns are overlaid with specific family considerations. The most important of these concerns are balancing short- and long-term business decisions, maintaining the loyalty of family members, and the grooming of willing and able successors. Renowned for resilience, family businesses inherently have the flexibility and resolve required to be best positioned for growth and to adapt more easily to change.
During an afternoon Seminar organized on Tuesday, February 28th KPMG will touch on the most important topics influencing Family Business. Guest speaker Grant Walsh, Director and founder of the KPMG Centre for Family Business in Ottawa, Canada will be key note speaker during the seminar. Given Grant's extensive experience as a family business advisor, he is uniquely equipped to advise families in business, locally on strategies and structures to ensure that their business is meeting the professional standards required to compete successfully, while managing challenges peculiar to family companies such as smooth transitions from one generation to the next. He brings to the table a profound understanding of the commercial realities faced by businesses of all sizes.
Wendell Meriaan, Tax Partner of KPMG Meijburg Caribbean will present his view on local tax issues for Family Business.
Ronald Pieters, Director of the KPMG St. Maarten office will also explain his views on strategies for family businesses.
The topics to be covered at this event will include:

• Why do Family Businesses Have a Competitive Advantage?
• Family Dynamics: Constructive or Destructive?
• Proven Communication Strategies
• Managing the All-Important Family Component

This seminar has been held with success in various other territories in the Caribbean, such as Barbados, the Bahamas Grenada and Guyana. In case you are a business owner and you are interested in attending this KPMG seminar, please send an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Maho:--- Several dignitaries and Ministers from the Council of Ministers took time out on Tuesday morning to address the visiting members of Interpol that are currently participating in a three day seminar on the island. Prime Minister Sarah Wescot Williams, Minister of Justice Roland Duncan, Minister of Health Cornelius de Weever and Chairlady of Parliament Gracita Arrindell applauded Interpol for choosing St. Maarten to host their Awareness Seminar and Workshop during the opening ceremony.
Chief Commissioner of Police Peter de Witte considered it an honor for St. Maarten to host the first congress soon after the island became a member of Interpol. De Witte said the congress is an important asset for crime fighting internationally. The top cop said that the police organization normally places their focus on security, the fight against drugs, violence, and weapons. However, since the advancement of medical science Interpol is better equipped to monitor pharmaceutical crimes.
He said right now focus has to be placed on a simple pain killer for the flu, complicated cancer medications, and the treatment of HIV/AIDS. De Witte said anything that attracts financial investments casts its own shadow and attracts unscrupulous people who want to make a huge profit, something which is now prevalent in health care. "The topic chosen by Interpol for this seminar may not be the most exciting topic for international crime fighting but one must realize that the topic surrounds the most precious thing, which is health and human life," De Witte said.
Rosinete de Santana Barbosa, assistant director of NCB told the gathering that criminals do not know their boundaries in their dark activities and as such they have not left the international police community with any choice but to work together in order for them to combat common threats. Therefore, Interpol has numerous tools and services available to its members to facilitate international law enforcement agencies around the world. Barbosa said one of the main reasons for hosting the seminar on St. Maarten is for Interpol to share its tools and services and to provide support for national and regional policing. She said Interpol has heeded the call of the Caribbean nations to further protect their people from counterfeit medicine. Barbosa said Interpol will support all its members to the fullest to combat what has now become prevalent in the Caribbean.
She said Interpol is able to provide 24 hour response while connecting their members through a special system which would give police real time access to information and their criminal data base. Their forensic experts are also able to provide their members with support regarding fingerprints, DNA analysis, and disaster victim identification.

During the three day seminar, Interpol officials will share their concerns on the serious health issues that counterfeit medical products pose to citizens. She described the distribution of counterfeit medicine as a cruel form of crime which undermines corporate innovations, creativity, and intellectual property and targets vulnerable and innocent persons. The high profit in counterfeit medicine and the slim risk of catching the perpetrators has attracted the organized criminals. She said currently medical products are facing a huge challenge by counterfeit medicine. Certain criminal organizations are able to replicate drugs making it almost impossible to distinguish the real products from the counterfeit.
Barbosa said besides the ideal packaging and embedded security features used by the criminals, law enforcement is facing challenges by not having the right legislation, corruption, and lack of sufficient law enforcement agencies to tackle the problem.
Therefore, Interpol has developed a multi-sectorial approach by building a global network for their partners ranging from law enforcement health and regulatory authorities such as customs in order to carry out their activities aimed at dismantling the organized criminal groups that are involved in the counterfeiting.
Interpol has an agreement with the World Health Organization and they have joined the WHO's Medical Products and Anti-Counterfeiting Taskforce known as IMPACT. So far, Interpol has been able to shut down 13,000 websites that were trafficking counterfeit pharmaceutical products. They also managed to confiscate 2.4 million individual doses of potentially harmful drugs including antibiotics, anti cancer, anti epileptic pills, steroids, and food supplements from the black market which has a price tag of 6.3 million United States Dollars. Thus far, fifty five persons have been arrested in 15 countries around the world.

Marigot:--- The Gendarmerie plans to open a new location in Concordia as of February 13, 2012. When the new outpost is open the general public is advised to file their complaints at Concordia or at the French Quarter Brigade since the La Savane location will be closed to the public.
Captain of the Gendarmerie Stephen Brunet and the heads of the substations told reporters on Tuesday at a press conference that the new location at the Spring Concordia will be open from 8am to 6pm on Monday thru Friday and on Saturdays at 8am to 12 noon then at 2pm to 6pm. While on public holidays the Concordia outpost will be open from 9am to 12 noon and at 3pm to 6pm.
The French Quarter Brigade will also be receiving the public three days per week which is Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The bureau will be open on Mondays and Fridays from 8am to 12 noon and at 2pm to 6pm while on Wednesdays they are open to the public from 2pm to 6pm.
Brunet said they made the changes to mostly accommodate the public in better way; one is to be closer to the people while offering faster service.
Members of the general public are asked to pay special attention to the new location and its opening hours since the La Savane Bureau will be closed to the general public.

Marigot:--- The Gendarmes confiscated a truck carrying dangerous materials on Saturday afternoon. The driver of the vehicle has since been detained for not having proper documents.
A press release from the Gendarmerie states that the truck was stopped during a routine control in Grand Case when the officers discovered that the driver was not authorized to transport the "dangerous materials", no details on what type of materials the driver was transporting has been released. The Gendarmerie said the driver did not have the relevant permits and neither was he registered as an authorized truck driver. The driver had been engaged in this activity for three years and he did not declare any income of his financial services. The French Prosecutor ordered that the truck be seized while the driver will have to appear in court at a later date to answer charges of several traffic violations.

Cole Bay:--- On Friday February 3rd at approximately 1:00am, a Simpson Bay police patrol was directed to a yacht harbored on the premises of Port de Plaisance to investigate a case of ill-treatment. On the scene, police spoke to a man with initials T.E.W. from the U.S.A., who had a wound in his face. He stated that he was ill-treated and threatened by the captain of the yacht on which he was staying called "MARLENA". He also stated that the captain had several firearms on board the yacht. The patrol then spoke to the captain of the yacht with initials T.F.D. also from the U.S.A., who stated that he was also struck by the victim. The captain denied having any firearms on board the yacht and said if there were any firearms on board he had no knowledge of them. After contacting the acting prosecutor a search was done on the yacht. During this search one double barrel shotgun, two revolvers, and 116 bullets were found. T.F.D. was arrested on the spot for the illegal possession of fire-arms and ammunition, ill-treatment, and threatening. He was taken to the police headquarters in Philipsburg where he is being held for questioning. These weapons and ammunition were confiscated for further investigation.

Philipsburg:--- Parliament has four additional hearings planned for this week excluding the one for Monday.

Parliamentarians will be dealing with Inheritance and Legacies on Tuesday afternoon at 4:00pm; the Sole Proprietorship Law on Wednesday afternoon 4:00pm; Common Law Marriage on Thursday 4:00pm; and Amendment Book 2 Civil Code on Friday at 10:00am.

A Central Committee Hearing is planned for Monday, 6 February about a Centralized Registration System for Child Abuse.

A representative from Women's Desk will be present for the parliamentary session that starts Monday afternoon at 2:00pm in the General Assembly Chamber of the House of Parliament.

The Women's Desk will give their input with respect to the national ordinance to amend Book 1 of the Civil Code.

The committee hearings for the week will be carried live on St. Maarten Cable TV Channel 20 and only the audio can be heard via Pearl Radio FM 98.1 as well as via the Internet www.pearlfmradio.com and www.sxmparliament.org.

GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- On Wednesday, February 1st, an agreement with the purpose of strengthening administrative co-operation in the field of taxation was signed between the Attorney-General, the Chief Public Prosecutor, the acting Head of Fiscal Affairs and the Head of the Tax Administration Sint Maarten.

This agreement will contribute to the prevention and effective combating of tax fraud through co-operation and the exchange of information that is relevant to the determination, assessment and collection of taxes, the recovery and enforcement of tax claims and the investigation or prosecution of tax matters.

Regular meetings are planned and a policy plan will be drafted with the priorities being laid on investigation and prosecution of tax fraud cases.

The strengthened co-operation between the different organizations must ensure better enforcement of the tax laws. This initiative is a prerequisite to further improve tax compliance.

Great Bay (DCOMM):--- School Busing & Taxi Dispatching Section Head M. Thewet described the school bus stabbing incident of Monday as unfortunate, and added that the department has no tolerance for violence on school busses.

Thewet pointed out that the safety of students using the public school bussing system will not be compromised. "Our goal is comfort, safety and reliability while students are being transported from one point to the next.

"The actions by the department have been noticeable in the past with bi-annual inspections, and random controls in conjunction with the uniformed services. The last control was carried out just two Thursdays ago, and more controls are forthcoming," Section Head M. Thewet said on Tuesday.

The incident will be a topic of discussion at the next general bus drivers meeting to be organized soon. This meeting takes place twice a year and the topics to be addressed are safety, loading and un-loading, dress code, and cooperation with government policies.

Thewet wished the injured students a speedy recovery and called on drivers and students to cooperate with the Police Department who are currently investigating the incident.

The Section School Bussing is also appealing to parents to speak with their children about proper behavior while being transported on a school bus to and from school.

"Safety is our main concern! Any bus driver who experiences any challenges while bussing school children, are asked to contact the school principal and the School Bus Inspection Section immediately.

"Everybody has to abide by the rules and regulations governing the safe transport of school children," School Busing Section Head M. Thewet said on Tuesday.

Parents who would like bussing information can call the section at telephone number 542-4511 or 542-4509 for additional information or clarification.

The School Busing & Taxi Dispatching Section is part of the Inspection Department of Economic Affairs under the Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic and Telecommunications.

Marigot:--- The founder of the United Saint Martin Movement, author, and former municipal councilor Daniela Jeffry is advising voters on the French side not to sell their votes. Jeffry said the registered voters should go out and vote on Election Day. "I cannot tell anyone who to vote for, but what I will say is chose the best from the worst and when you vote for them make sure you demand what they have promised to do for the country. If you take monies for your votes you will not be able to make your demands or hold the politicians accountable."
Jeffry made the call during an interview on SMN News Election Countdown. Jeffry said the native St. Mariners are becoming more vocal since they are demanding protection from the politicians. "Right now, the natives are outnumbered and they feel threatened since they are not allowed to play their respective roles. The situation on St. Martin is very bad," Jeffry said.
Jeffry further explained that the influx of foreigners on St. Martin has created numerous problems for the island and the politicians that are contesting the upcoming election does not have any idea as to how they will solve those problems. Jeffry said most politicians are promising to create jobs when they are elected but politicians or the local government are not the ones to create jobs they are supposed enhance the private sector so they can hire people.

Here is the video of the interview in full with Daniela Jeffry:

Philipsburg:--- The board of the St. Maarten Academy suspended Vice Principal of the PSVE section Marvin Woods on Tuesday pending an internal investigation that is being conducted by the school board confirmed President of the School Board Alstain Van Dyke Bell. Bell said the school is busy investigating the complaints of the students and currently three of the teachers that were accused of inappropriate behavior have been suspended. They are Marvin Woods, Francisco Lacroes, and Rijnaldo Euson. SMN News has been reliably informed that detectives from the Juvenile Department of the Police Department have already visited the learning institution as they will be launching an investigation into the students' allegations.
During the Council of Ministers press briefing on Wednesday, Minister of Justice Roland Duncan responded to questions posed by SMN News regarding the scandal at the vocational school. The teachers of the St. Maarten Academy that were suspended a week ago by the school board pending an investigation can face prosecution said Minister of Justice Roland Duncan. The Minister said teachers, health care workers, police, prison guards, and other persons who are in authority over anyone have a moral obligation to uphold and if those persons acted in violation of the trust placed in them they can be prosecuted and be given at least 25% more prison time. Minister Duncan said there are laws that these types of caregivers have to abide by and if there is any evidence of sexual molestation or harassment then they can be held responsible. The Justice Minister said sexual molestation is not necessarily sexual intercourse but it could be intimidation, forcing the person to act in a certain way, touching, and there are articles in the criminal code that deals with every possible situation in cases such as these.
Minister Duncan said he is personally following the situation at the St. Maarten Academy PSVE because it's a school he was very closely connected to (he was the former president of school board and the Minister's wife is the Principal of the PSVE section of Academy).
However, the Justice Minister said the school board is still investigating the case regarding the three teachers and they have not yet filed any complaint with the police department. When asked if the age of consent will play a role in the investigation when a complaint is filed. The Minister said that compulsory education is up to the age of 18 therefore, age of consent has nothing to do with it. If anyone thinks the age of consent will play a role they are interpreting the law incorrectly. Minister Duncan said that after the school board finishes their investigation they will decide whether or not a complaint needs to be filed with the police.

Philipsburg:--- Chief Prosecutor Hans Mos has issued a call to the general public of St. Maarten urging all citizens and residents to call the police tip line to inform them about the locations of any and all types of illegal weapons.
The Chief Prosecutor said it appears as though the people residing on St. Maarten are regaining some confidence in the police. He said recently members of the public provided police with some valuable information as to where they could find illegal weapons. "Recently, the police managed to receive information on at least three occasions about illegal weapons and when the police responded by searching the areas they were successful in finding guns. I think this is a good sign and if the people should continue this trend then police will be able to take most of the illegal weapons off the streets of St. Maarten," Mos said.
Recently the police conducted searches at a well known resident's home and they managed to recover a number of illegal weapons and ammunition. The residents of the home were detained but subsequently released after one of the Vesuvius suspects admitted to police that he was responsible for putting the weapons where they were found.

St. Peters:--- The St. Peters Supermarket located at the entrance of St. Peters Road was robbed again Thursday evening. The Chinese owner of the supermarket told SMN News that they were robbed around 8:10 pm by an armed gunman. The culprit managed to take off with about $400.00 that was inside the cash register at the time of the robbery. Chief of Police Peter De Witte confirmed that the St. Peters Supermarket was robbed Thursday evening. De Witte said the Police is busy investigating the case. It should be noted that the St. Peters Supermarket was robbed six times within recent weeks.

...

Bellevue:--- The Solidarity Organization and the "We Agree with Culture Association" held their two day Agricultural Fair this past weekend at the We Agree Exploitation in Bellevue.
The Agricultural Fair kicked off on Saturday February 4th with a great Reggae Show featuring the Youth Waves and Freedom Fighters featuring Sister Seagone Marlene.
The main event the Agricultural Fair was held on Sunday February 5th. The event kicked off at 7am with local breakfast. At 10am there was an exhibition of freshly grown local fruits, vegetables, arts and craft, and ital food all of which were on sale. Several stands were on site selling cakes, tarts, patties, sugar-cakes, local fruit juices, and locally made coconut and sour-sop ice cream. The two day event did not attract as much people as it did in the past. This event this past weekend was the 5th Annual Agricultural Fair since the Solidarity Association began developing the Bellevue plantation.
Several persons on the plantation said the residents and visitors that support the local plantation were not in any mood to listen to the politicians who might have used the event to campaign for the upcoming elections.
However, a number of persons from both the French and Dutch side flocked the area where the fresh vegetables and ground food were sold. There were groups of people that sat under the trees and waited for the ital kitchen to begin selling its specialties. At noon, the crowd rushed over to the kitchen area to make sure they got a bowl of the soups, or the specially made pea's balls.
On the hill the actual plantation graced the eyes of many persons who toured the farm which was once dry lands. SMN News was told that the land is cultivated by some 15 young men that live on the island. There are a number of the Jamaican Ackee trees that are filled with the red looking fruit. One of the of the men from the Solidarity Group said that while the Ackee trees are attractive they are also very deadly. "This is a Jamaican delicacy but there is a flower inside that has to be taken out before it is prepared. You just cannot pick this fruit and cook it; it must be matured and open before you can remove the toxic flower," the Solidarity member said.
The We Agree Exploitation has bananas, Tanya's, pumpkins, christophine, fresh lettuce and tomatoes, peppers, egg plants, green onions, packchoy and other vegetables and herbs that are sold daily.
Several speakers such as Nicole Piper, Jos Richardson, Julien Richardson, President Frantz Gumbs and Senator Louis Constant Fleming delivered speeches. Most of them encouraged the Solidarity members and the We Agree to continue the island's culture by planting fresh fruits and vegetables. Senator Louis Constant Fleming said that five years ago he provided the land for the Solidarity members to explore their ideas but now the time has come for them to go to the next step which is to expand.
Jah Bash, the founder of Solidarity Association honored 174 elderly persons from the community for their contribution and development of St. Martin.

Click here to view more photos of the 5th Annual Agricultural Fair on Sunday.

Philipsburg:--- The Deputy Managing Director of Windward Islands Bank Derek Downes announced that Ms. Elaine Romou emerged as the winner of the WIB Swipe and Win. Ms. Roumou won herself Naf. 5000,00 for using her WIB Bankomatiko card during the WIB swipe and win campaign which began on November 1 2011 and ended on January 30th 2012. The Windward Islands Bank offered all Bankomatiko card holders the opportunity to win Naf. 5000,00 for every purchase of over Naf. 50.00. WIB Deputy Managing Director Downes said the winner was declared after an electronic query was conducted.
Ms. Roumou told reporters that she used her Bankomatiko card to pay all her bills rather than standing in lines to withdraw monies.

The St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) introduced its last set of contestants on Tuesday for its most important pageant: The Miss St. Maarten Senior Carnival Queen Pageant. Five young women between the ages of 17 and 25 will compete for the coveted crown and a title that will take her throughout the region to represent The Friendly Island.

The five contestants are Leysha de la Rosa, Jenneath Provacia, Carlisha Philips, Glenicia Mitchell and Khalela Warno. All of the contestants have been on stage in front of crowds before and, according to the SCDF, are eager to take center stage on Wednesday, April 25 in Carnival Village.

The Senior Pageant and Teen Pageant will be held on the same night, and will feature a combined ten girls competing for the two crowns. The Senior Queen contestants will compete in five segments, introduction, talent, Carnival costume, swim wear and evening wear.

Just like the teen contestants, the Seniors will also have to compete in a Speech & Culture Wear competition on Saturday, April 14. The points from that competition will carry over to the final score on the night of the pageant.

"We are happy with all our pageants but the Senior pageant is important because the young lady who will eventually be crowned will also be our flag bearer at pageants overseas," President of the SCDF Stuart Johnson said. "She will carry the distinction of Miss St. Maarten and as such we place great emphasis on this pageant. The contestants will go through all sorts of training, from Toastmasters training to their modeling skills, everything will be covered," he added.

The SCDF also announced that the Junior Carnival Queen Pageant, for children between the ages of 7 to 12, will not be held for Carnival 2012 due to low registration. "We are sure that the pageant will make a comeback in 2012," Johnson said. The Senior Carnival Queen Pageant is sponsored by United Telecommunication Services (UTS) Chippie.

Marigot:--- The Movement for the Advancement of the People (MAP) headed by Louis Mussington has released the names of the persons that will be contesting the March 18th and March 25th Territorial Election. Mussington called on his candidates not to get side tracked by the poll conducted by one of the local newspapers. Mussington said that elections are not won in the newspapers instead its won on the field. "The MAP candidates have three more weeks to change the polls around therefore we will put in the extra work," Mussington said. Already the MAP leader said they have won the battle of ideas and the other political parties that will be contesting the election are copying the ideas of the MAP. One such idea he said is their rally behind bilingual education.
The MAP leader told reporters and his candidates that they will hit the ground running to ensure they win the upcoming election. Mussington said that he also looked at the reports of the polls but he is confident that the MAP will be victorious on Election Day. He gave his candidates an example of what took place in Paris in the year 1995 when newspapers predicted that Édouard Balladur would win the French Elections and at the end of Election Day Jacques Chirac won. He stressed that the candidates of the MAP list have a lot of work to do and they can be victorious if they commit themselves.
Mussington said his list comprises of people that are competent, honest, and most importantly with people that are serious. The MAP leader said that while other political parties had to make deals with people to complete their list the MAP did not have to make deals with the persons that are contesting the elections on the MAP slate. Mussington said his candidates did not want to know what is in it for them instead they are committed to work for the people of St. Martin. The MAP leader assured that they will continue to campaign for bilingual education and tourism development by developing the deep water pier in Marigot and the Marigot Bay to cater to cruise ships.

The 26 candidates on the MAP list are:--

1. Louis Mussington
2. Dominique Democrite ep.Louisy
3. Julien Gumbs
4. Annick Petrus
5. Francisque Jabouley
6. Mabel Wellington ep Duran
7. Ali Laggoune
8. Lourdie Jacotin
9. Olivier Walwyn
10. Sandrine Cazabnne- Dubern
11. David Manicom
12. Jeannette Webster ep Harrigan
13. Victor Paines
14. Mellissa Fleming
15. Leonard Mussington
16. Nathlie Benjamin
17. Jacques Ruby
18. Marie Therese Richardson
19. Miguel Mingau
20. Ginette Griffith
21. Marc Lake
22. Karine Balon
23. Thierry Lainez
24. Nicole Mondesir
25. Jean Claude Simon
26. Gisele Baly

It should be noted that the MAP political party will be holding a fundraising Bar B Que on Saturday in Grand Case to raise funds for their campaign. Mussington said the MAP is one of the poorest parties contesting the election and as such they will be holding the Bar Be Que to raise much needed funds.

...

Marigot:--- Daniel Gibbs has submitted his resignation letter to President Frantz Gumbs as the first Vice President who was elected on the Union pour les Progres slate in 2007. Gibbs said he submitted his resignation on Monday. He cited the reasons for his resignation as "too many barriers" and "no support for development projects" that he had proposed, among other reasons.
"I regret to say St. Martin today finds itself in a very serious situation. This situation is the result of the incapability of the majority party to rise to the challenges of resolving our economic situation. This party is responsible for the distress of St. Martiners."
Gibbs told reporters on Tuesday at a press conference that he also resigned as President of the Union Democratie to focus on the Territorial Elections which are scheduled for March 18th and 25th, 2012.
Gibbs said he already submitted his information (the statues of the political party) to the Prefecture of Saint Martin under the name "Team Daniel Gibbs." Gibbs said he will be heading the list "Team Daniel Gibbs" and so far he has done everything in accordance with the law to be able to contest the elections.
Gibbs created the Union Democratie in 2011 when he declared himself independent from the UPP group. It is under the UD that Gibbs started off his political movement. However, the UD will remain the brainchild of "Team Daniel Gibbs" and it will also remain active for the purpose it was created for. "UD will be our idea factory and the think tank of the political party." Gibbs said the intention is to have the UD above the French National Political Parties while they maintain that their concern is Saint Martin. He said to do that UD will have to stay away from the National Political Parties.
Gibbs also promised to present the list of candidates that will be on Team Daniel Gibbs to contest the upcoming Territorial Elections later this month. He said he is in the final stages of selecting his candidates based on their skills and forces.

Philipsburg:--- Police arrested four suspects early Wednesday morning after tailing a group of young men who they believed to be robbing several stores around Philipsburg. Head of the Detective Department Denise Jacob told SMN News that the police did an in depth investigation after a number of businesses in Philipsburg were robbed. Jacob said Tuesday night the suspects were planning to rob another establishment and due to intensive police work they managed to capture two suspects that are directly involved in the robberies.
The top cop said that two other suspects that were in the vicinity when the arrests took place were also arrested when they acted suspiciously."The two other suspects ran when they saw the police and that led to a chase, it turned out that the suspects were in possession of an illegal firearm when they were arrested. Jacob said police seized two illegal firearms during the operation and arrests Wednesday. In the meantime, one of the suspects was released while three of them remain behind bars. Jacob also confirmed that two searches were conducted Wednesday. One of the searches took place at a hotel in the Pointe Blanche area while the other one at a home in Belvedere. Police recovered jewellery in both locations which they believed derived from the earlier robberies.

Philipsburg:--- In recent months the police have issued a number of calls to the general public asking that they cooperate with police and lead them to where they could remove illegal firearms from the streets of St. Maarten. In a previous interview, Chief Prosecutor Hans Mos said some people had tipped off the police on where to find some illegal firearms. Mos said in each case the police acted and they did find illegal weapons. He urged the community of St. Maarten to start trusting the police and continue providing information to law enforcement so that they could rid the streets of illegal weapons.
Head of the Detective Department Denise Jacob confirmed on Monday during an interview with SMN News that the police did confiscate over 30 illegal weapons within a three month time span. "I can say we did confiscate more than 30 guns from November 2011 to January 2012, that does not include those confiscated during the Vesuvius investigation and those that were placed on the Insel Air Flight," Jacob said.

St. Peters:--- The board of the St. Maarten Academy is currently investigating two teachers and one of its Vice Principals that have been accused of making sexual advances towards some of their female students. The two teachers and Vice Principal are assigned at the PSVE section of the St. Maarten Academy.
According to a letter sent by a concerned father to all media houses on St. Maarten, two teachers and a Vice Principal have made sexual advances towards several female students attending the learning institution.
A member of the board of the St. Maarten Academy confirmed that two of the teachers have been suspended pending a preliminary investigation. SMN News learnt that the two teachers that were suspended are Francisco Lacroes and Rijnaldo Euson. The board member said that the teachers engaged in some sort of "frontish" behavior when they made sexual advances to the students. "We don't believe the students were sexually molested but there were things the two male teachers said to the students that were inappropriate. However, the Vice Principal has claimed his innocence and told the board that he is being framed by the female students. The allegation has also left the Vice Principal totally devastated." In an invited comment, Vice Principal Marvin Woods said that the person or persons who made the allegations against him made some false allegations. "All I can tell you right now is that those allegations are wrong and I don't even know who made them."
Research conducted by SMN News shows that Marvin Woods was a Pastor of the Seven Days Adventist Church (SDA) and was working for the North Caribbean Conference in Antigua. SMN News learnt that Woods was dismissed from his post when the SDA found out he was involved in an illicit relationship with a member of the church he was leading. Sources within the SDA said Woods was still married at the time he engaged in the illicit relationship and as such he was dismissed from his post.
SMN News also learnt that the Management Team of the St. Maarten Academy (PSVE) section conducted an internal investigation when several students made allegations against the two teachers and Vice Principal but the management team has chosen to withhold the information they gathered from the School Board. One source within the school said that the Management Team even refused to suspend the two teachers when they were instructed to do so because they felt the three male teachers should be given counseling rather than have disciplinary measures taken against them.
In an invited comment, Francisco Lacroes told SMN News that he has never engaged in any type of inappropriate behavior with any of the students attending the school. However, Lacroes said he was in a relationship with a former student who is now 20 years old. He said he filed several complaints at the police station against the student when she threatened to frame him and destroy his career as a teacher. "The former student (name provided) was living in my apartment since we were having a relationship that lasted about three to four months. When the relationship ended I asked the person to vacate my apartment and that is when the threats started." Lacroes said he has about one hundred text messages from the person in question threatening him. He said the board of the St. Maarten Academy also has those messages and they are currently trying to find the former student but she did her damage and then left the island. Lacroes said he met with the board two Fridays ago and he was suspended last Monday pending the outcome of the investigation. The teacher made clear that he did not have a relationship with the student while she was attending school.
The gym teacher of the school Rijnaldo Euson said when he was contacted for a comment that he is innocent. He said the board called him to a meeting and requested information on a situation to which he provided the answers. Euson said the board is presently conducting an investigation and when it is completed he knows he will be vindicated. "At the end of the investigation, I will be making a full statement to the media," Euson said.
President of the St. Maarten Academy Board Alstain Van Dyke Bell said that the board took a decision based on the information that was provided to them by the management of the school. When he was asked why they did not suspend the Vice Principal pending the outcome of the investigation, Bell said the board has some information and documentation to suspend two of the three teachers but there was not enough to suspend the third, the Vice Principal. He further explained that a meeting was held on Friday where the board managed to gather more information on the allegations made against Vice Principal Marvin Woods and as such the board of the St. Maarten Academy will be taking another decision regarding Woods within the next forty eight hours. When asked how many female students filed complaints against the three male teachers of the vocational school, Bell said based on the advice and information that was provided to the board by the management team it appears as though several students filed complaints.

Philipsburg:--- The students and teachers of the various Catholic Schools on St. Maarten opened their week of activities to celebrate the Catholic School Week with a mass and march through the streets of Philipsburg on Tuesday.
The students gathered at the Sports Auditorium after attending a mass on Tuesday morning, they then marched through the streets of Philipsburg carrying posters of their themes. Students and some parents who joined their children in the celebration were chanting "shelter the homeless, visit the imprisoned, feed the poor and clothe the naked."
A Principal from the St. Dominic School told SMN News that Catholic School Week commenced on Monday but the official opening was held on Tuesday. She said each school was given a theme to focus on this week. The themes, she explained, focused mostly on humanitarian needs.

Click here to view more photos of the march held on Tuesday to celebrate Catholic School Week.