PHILIPSBURG:--- The Plenary of the Permanent Conference of Political Parties of Latin America and the Caribbean (COPPPAL) unanimously elected James Finies as the new President of the COPPPAL Decolonization Committee.
COPPPAL brings together 80 political parties from 30 countries and is headquartered in Mexico City, the capital of the United Mexican States.
In recognition of Finies international and worldwide advocacy concerning Bonaire and other Caribbean territories administered by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the 43rd COPPPAL Plenary Meeting appointed James Finies to chair the Decolonization Committee.
The Committee's mandate is to promote dialogue and international attention on decolonization issues relating to Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius (Statia), and Saba, as well as matters concerning Puerto Rico and the Malvinas (Falkland Islands).
During its plenary session at the former Senate building of Mexico, COPPPAL reaffirmed its longstanding position opposing colonialism in all its forms.
The organization encouraged continued discussion of these issues within the United Nations and other international forums and expressed its support for ongoing international engagement regarding Bonaire and other non-self-governing territorial matters.
COPPPAL also reiterated its solidarity with Puerto Rico and reaffirmed Argentina's position regarding the Malvinas (Falkland Islands).
As part of the plenary program, James Finies addressed delegates from Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, Europe, and Asia on contemporary decolonization issues.
In his presentation, he highlighted concerns regarding the protection of Bonaire's cultural identity, the implementation of international legal standards, and the importance of ensuring that matters relating to the island continue to receive appropriate international attention through established multilateral mechanisms.
James Finies also drew special attention to what he described as the increasing marginalization of the people of Bonaire through institutionally steered laws and policies resulting into significant demographic changes over recent years.
Finies noted concerns that the proportion of the island's natives and long-established local population has steadily systematically declined as a minority percentage of the total population, raising important questions about the ongoing erasure of Bonaire's cultural heritage, identity, language, and meaningful participation in public affairs.
James Finies emphasized that these developments warrant continued dialogue and consideration within the framework of applicable international standards and the United Nations decolonization process.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Swift action by hotel security personnel led to the arrest of a robbery suspect and the recovery of stolen property following an incident involving a tourist in the early hours of Wednesday, July 8, 2026.

According to the Police Force of St. Maarten (KPSM), officers responded at approximately 12:30 a.m. to reports of a robbery at a hotel in the Oyster Pond area, where a visitor had been robbed of a gold chain.

Police said the hotel's security officer immediately intervened after the robbery and managed to corner the suspect, preventing him from fleeing the premises. The suspect was held until KPSM patrol officers arrived and took him into custody without incident.

The victim later filed an official complaint with police, and the stolen gold chain was recovered and returned to its rightful owner.

The suspect remains in police custody while detectives continue their investigation into the case. KPSM has indicated that additional arrests have not been ruled out as investigators seek to determine whether other individuals may have been involved in the robbery.

Police praised the prompt response and professionalism of the hotel's security personnel, noting that their quick intervention played a crucial role in the successful apprehension of the suspect and the recovery of the stolen property.

KPSM also expressed appreciation to security officers across the island and members of the public who continue to assist law enforcement in maintaining public safety and combating crime on St. Maarten.

The investigation remains ongoing.

PHILIPSBURG:---  Detectives of the Police Force of St. Maarten (KPSM) have launched an investigation into an armed robbery that took place at a supermarket in Dutch Quarter on Wednesday afternoon, July 8, 2026.

According to preliminary information released by KPSM, the robbery occurred at approximately 4:00 p.m. when two-armed men entered the supermarket carrying handguns.

Police said the suspects confronted the cashier and demanded cash. Fearing for their safety, the cashier complied with the demands, after which the suspects fled the establishment with an undisclosed amount of money.

The two suspects escaped on a scooter, traveling in the direction of French Quarter, before police arrived on the scene.

Officers responded immediately after receiving reports of the robbery and secured the area while detectives and forensic personnel began gathering evidence and interviewing potential witnesses. Investigators are working to determine the identities of the suspects and whether surveillance footage from the supermarket or nearby businesses captured the robbery or the suspects' escape.

KPSM has not released descriptions of the suspects at this stage, as the investigation remains in its early phases.

Police are urging members of the public who were in the Dutch Quarter area around 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday and may have witnessed suspicious activity or have information that could assist the investigation to come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Police Force of St. Maarten by calling the police station at +1 (721) 542-2222, the emergency number 911, or the anonymous tip line 9300.

The investigation remains ongoing.

"Judge Draws the Line at Mullet Bay: Beach Belongs to the Public, Government Ordered to Respect Private Property Behind Shoreline."

PHILIPSBURG:--- In one of the most consequential property rulings in recent years, the Court of First Instance has ruled that Mullet Bay Beach is public property, rejecting Sun Resorts Limited's attempt to establish private ownership over the island's renowned beach while simultaneously confirming that the company remains the lawful owner of the land situated behind the beach.
The judgment, handed down on July 7, 2026, under ECLI:NL:OGEAM:2026:84, brings legal clarity to a dispute with implications not only for Mullet Bay but also for the interpretation of beachfront ownership throughout St. Maarten.

At the heart of the case was Sun Resorts' contention that an 1852 notarial deed transferred ownership of the former Mullet Bay plantation, including the beach extending to the sea. The company argued that the historical description of the property, together with subsequent cadastral registrations and decades of ownership, established that the beach itself formed part of its private estate.
The Court, however, rejected that interpretation after conducting an extensive review of historical deeds, colonial legislation, cadastral records, Roman Dutch legal principles, and the Civil Code.

The judge concluded that the wording contained in the nineteenth-century deed did not convey ownership of the sandy beach itself. Instead, the Court found that references to the property's boundary at the sea merely described the plantation's limits and did not transfer ownership of the public shoreline.
The Court further held that, under the legal principles governing St. Maarten since the nineteenth century, the beach forms part of the public domain. Beaches have historically been intended for public use and enjoyment and cannot be presumed to become private property simply because adjacent land is privately owned.

Prescription Claim Also Fails
Sun Resorts alternatively argued that even if the original deed did not transfer ownership of the beach, it had nevertheless acquired ownership through prescription after exercising control over the area for many decades.
The Court dismissed that argument as well.
The judge found that the evidence presented failed to establish the continuous, exclusive, unequivocal and public possession required by law to obtain ownership through prescription. The Court noted that public access to Mullet Bay Beach has existed for generations and that the company failed to demonstrate sufficient acts of ownership to extinguish the beach's public character.

Government also found to have acted unlawfully
While Sun Resorts lost its claim over the beach itself, the company prevailed on another major aspect of the litigation.
The Court ruled that the land located behind the public beach, extending inland from the normal high-water line, remains the private property of Sun Resorts.
According to the judgment, the Government of St. Maarten unlawfully treated portions of that privately owned property as government land by granting rights and allowing third parties to occupy or use the area despite lacking ownership.
The Court ordered the Government to immediately cease presenting itself as the owner of those lands and prohibited it from leasing, licensing or otherwise granting rights over property belonging to Sun Resorts.

To ensure compliance, the Court imposed exceptionally severe penalties.
Should the Government again interfere with Sun Resorts' ownership rights, it faces a US$1 million penalty for each violation.
In addition, the Government has been ordered to notify all affected third parties within 14 days that it is not the owner of the disputed parcels and therefore lacked authority to issue leases, permits or other rights over the property. Failure to comply with that order carries an additional penalty of US$10,000 per day, up to a maximum of US$250,000.

Kalatua Property Addressed
The judgment also examined the area currently occupied by the Kalatua beach establishment.
Sun Resorts argued that the restaurant is not situated on the public beach but on privately owned land behind the shoreline, explaining that vegetation and trees had previously existed there before the site was cleared for development.
The Court observed that the Government did not meaningfully dispute those factual assertions during the proceedings, strengthening Sun Resorts' position regarding ownership of the land behind the beach.

Historical Documents Examined
A significant portion of the judgment is devoted to the Court's examination of historical documents dating back more than 170 years.
The judge analyzed the 1852 conveyance deed, subsequent cadastral maps, historical boundary descriptions, and applicable legislation governing coastal property. The Court concluded that none of those documents demonstrated an intention to privatize the sandy beach itself.
The ruling also distinguishes between ownership of upland property and the beach's public nature. According to the Court, ownership of land bordering the coastline does not automatically include ownership of the beach extending to the sea.

Major Precedent for St. Maarten
Legal observers are expected to view the decision as one of the most important rulings on coastal property rights in St. Maarten in recent years.
The judgment confirms that beaches remain accessible to the public while simultaneously reinforcing constitutional and property-law protections for privately owned land adjoining those beaches.
For residents and visitors alike, the decision means that Mullet Bay Beach remains a public beach. At the same time, the Government cannot treat privately owned land behind the shoreline as public property or grant rights over such land without lawful authority.
The ruling is expected to influence future disputes involving beach access, coastal development, government leases, tourism projects and shoreline management across St. Maarten, providing a clearer legal framework for determining where the public beach ends and private ownership begins.

Click here for the official court verdict.