The CONSTITUTION of every country is not just another piece of legislation.
The CONSTITUTION is the most important document of any country.
The CONSTITUTION is like a of secular kind of 'Bible' for any Christian country.
The CONSTITUTION is about the people of that particular land; it identifies who are the people of that land; in other words, it clearly states who is the host-population .
The CONSTITUTION sets the ground-rules for how the land is to be governed and is therefore the basis for all the laws of the country.
Those people not mentioned in the CONSTITUTION, either are in fact non- existent, or at best, irrelevant- and insignificant, as far as that particular country is concerned.
The so-called CONSTITUTION for 'Country St. Maarten', nowhere mentions the word 'St. Martiner' or 'St. Maartener'.
Rather, it focuses on-, and describes the rights/obligations of Dutch citizens residing on (Dutch-) St. Maarten.
For the record.
There are many St. Martiners/St. Maarteners living on the island and abroad (like on the 'French'- side) who are not Dutch citizens.
These people are our very own blood relatives who happen to live in another part of the land, which has always been shared by us as a people, giving real content to the Treat of Concordia.
In addition, our collective ancestors' blood-, sweat- and tears contributed to building the foundation of the post-slavery island.
This was the price they paid to allow for us, their descendants to inherit the land and to thus become 'St. Martiners of heritage' or native, indigenous St. Martiners.
As long as our constitution denies our existence as a St. Martin People, that means that as a people, we officially we do not exist, nor ever existed as a people, let alone that we have any rights as such in 'Country St. Maarten'.
That is a betrayal of the highest possible order.
Therefore, as it now stands this so-called constitution de-facto has become the 'Official document of the betrayal of the St. Martin people' and therefore clearly emboldens others to take St. Martiners for granted, to disregard and disrespect us, our children and all future generations of yet unborn St. Martiners.
Our movement, intends to have this so-called constitution for 'Country St. Maarten' amended to include the recognition of the native, indigenous St. Martin people, their rights to be protected, preserved and to have first rights to any opportunities in their land (Affirmative action, positive discrimination) without diminishing the justified human rights of others in the process.
Fellow St. Martiners, if you care to preserve your St. Martin heritage and to provide a future for your children, we invite you to support this effort, which as time goes by, will be stepped up to yet another level.
Confront on a daily basis, all your elected officials on both sides of the island and do not take 'we can not', for an answer, because they prove daily to be willing to 'bend backwards' and reward others who broke our laws to be here in the first place.
Once we have formulated, with your help a draft amendment to the Constitution to be presented to Parliament/COM, we will be willing to support the calls for an island-wide demonstration under the 'banner' saying;
'Time to amend the constitution - St. Martiners to come first'
Drs. Leopold JAMES
President SNBF/ Association L' Esprit de Concordia