PHILIPSBURG:---  The House of Parliament will sit in a public meeting on January 14, 2025.

The public meeting, which was adjourned on January 13, 2025, will reconvene on Tuesday at 10.00 hrs in the Legislative Hall at Wilhelminastraat #1 in Philipsburg. The Council of Ministers will be in attendance.

The agenda point is:
4. Ontwerplandsverordening tot vaststelling van de begroting van het Land Sint Maarten voor het dienstjaar 2025 (Landsverordening begroting 2025)(Zittingsjaar 2024-2025-182) (IS/371/2024-2025 d.d. 11 december 2024)

National Ordinance stipulating the Budget for Country Sint Maarten for the service year 2025 (National Ordinance Budget 2025) (Parliamentary Year 2024-2025-182) (IS/371/2024-2025 dated December 11, 2024).

Members of the public are invited to the House of Parliament to attend parliamentary deliberations. All persons visiting the House of Parliament must adhere to the house rules.

The House of Parliament is located across from the Court House in Philipsburg.

The parliamentary sessions will be carried live on TV 15, Soualiga Headlines, via SXM GOV radio FM 107.9, via Pearl Radio FM 98.1, the audio via the internet www.sxmparliament.org, www.pearlfmradio.sx and www.youtube.com/c/SintMaartenParliament

PHILIPSBURG (DCOMM):--- It’s a new year – 2025 - and many set out their goals which also include achieving and maintaining a healthy weight.

In order to achieve this, you have to eat healthy, get a good sleep every night, reduce daily stress, and step up your daily physical activity.

Every year, Collective Prevention Services (CPS), a department within the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labor (Ministry VSA), as part of its annual calendar of observances, highlights and creates awareness about health matters.

In its annual calendar for the month of January, CPS profiles healthy weight and nutrition.
Healthy eating has to do with eating healthy food such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products.

Physical activity could be a leisure walk for 60-90 minutes daily, but it all depends on your intended goal. Do you want to lose weight or maintain your current weight? You can do brisk walking for 30 minutes a day, five days a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity each week, such as swimming laps.

Make sure to include seafood, lean meats and poultry, eggs, beans/peas, soy products, nuts, and seeds. Your new way of eating for 2025 should be low in added sugars, salt, saturated fats, trans fats, and cholesterol.

Eating healthy doesn’t mean that you have to give up those comfort foods; on the contrary. You can still enjoy your favorite foods but eat them less often (once a week); eat smaller amounts; and try a lower-calorie version.

Physical activity is always good for anyone’s lifestyle. A person who suffers from obesity will have serious consequences eventually, where it concerns diseases and other health challenges.

Make sure you have regular physical activity as it will have immediate and long-term health benefits. It improves brain health, reduces the risk of disease, strengthens bones and muscles, and further improves your ability to do everyday activities.

Other examples of physical activity are light yard work, actively playing with children, biking, jogging, running, and most competitive sports.

Contact your family physician or CPS at 914 for more information on maintaining a healthy weight and the nutritional benefits for 2025.

PHILIPSBURG:---  In a new partnership, the Royal Institute of Southeast Asia and Caribbean Studies (KITLV) and Kadaster St. Maarten have signed a collaboration agreement to advance historical document conservation, preservation, and management. This initiative, arranged by Prof. Francio Guadeloupe under the "Islanders on the Helm" project, aims to safeguard important heritage records housed at Kadaster, an essential step in preserving the region’s history for future generations.
The agreement outlines a collaborative effort between KITLV and Kadaster to provide specialized training for Kadaster staff. The training will cover both the technical aspects of document preservation and the soft skills required for effective file management.
Additionally, the agreement paves the way for internships between the two organizations, offering opportunities for both KITLV and Kadaster personnel to learn from one another. The collaboration will allow them to refine their approaches to land management and better understand the historical context of critical documents. Anelski Jundri Richardson, Kadaster's Internal Archive and Digitization Assistant, will be further trained to specialize in the conservation and management of heritage files and documents under the collaboration agreement.
As part of the initiative, Kadaster is also making significant strides toward creating a dedicated space for heritage conservation. A contract for a two-year lease on an alternative location, which will serve as a "heritage office," is nearing completion. This space will provide a sterile environment where the conservation, preparation, and scanning of historical documentation will occur, ensuring that these invaluable resources are preserved and made accessible for future research and education.
The project is part of a larger training program for Kadaster’s management and staff, which is scheduled to be formally presented in the second quarter of 2025.
Kadaster Director Benjamin Ortega said of the MOU: "This collaboration between KITLV and Kadaster marks a significant step forward in the preservation of the region’s heritage. Both organizations are committed to working together to ensure that historical documents are safeguarded and properly managed for the benefit of future generations."
About Kadaster

~ Two-time cancer survivor struggling to be alive yet being disrespected by superiors. ~

MARIGOT:--- Pascale Modesse has served as the Police Nationale since 1989. Instead of being recognized and honored for 36 years of dedicated service, Modesse is fighting for respect from her superiors.

In an exclusive interview with SMN News, Modesse explained that she is a two-time cancer survivor; she was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, and even though treated and went back to work, in 2019, she received the worst news when her doctors told her that the cancer was back and that she needed to undergo emergency surgery. Since then, Modesse has been on sick leave, which was approved by the doctors that represent the Police Nationale.

Despite being ill and not released from sick leave, Modesse went back to work but was ordered by her doctors to remain home as she needed more rest to recuperate from the chemotherapy she received. In explaining her medical history, Modesse said she underwent seven surgeries in a two-and-a-half-year period.

Modesse explained that in 2023, the service chef at the Saint Martin Bureau was changed, and this person (name provided) sent her several WhatsApp messages instructing her to pick up her personal belongings from their office since he had replaced her.

Modese said that the new captain did not follow the law because he was not supposed to communicate such information by WhatsApp, and most of all, he knew that she was on medical leave and that the doctors had approved the medical leave. “The new chef said in his messages that I should look for an opening at the PAF (DTPN) or the Prefecture of Saint Martin.”

The 64-year-old agent said that she has since written several letters reporting the injustice, but so far, not one of the persons she wrote responded to her letter of grievance.

“Letters were sent to the Minister of Interior Affairs and the Inspection Generale de la Police Nationale (IGPN). I am yet to get a response from the Minister of Interior Affairs. While the IGPN did respond to me and said they would investigate, since then, I was not updated on the outcome of the investigation even though I provided all the proof needed for the investigation. Most recently a letter was sent to the Director of the Territorial Police Nationale, and he too did not respond.”

Modesse said that even though she has not been officially released from sick leave, she is prepared to return to work to serve her country faithfully as she did for 36 years. However, she said she wants to return to her post at the Bureau on Saint Martin.  She is calling on all relevant authorities to grant her the respect and honor she deserves and to send her a written letter so that she can take up her position until she retires.

Police Officers are not being respected.

Modesse said that she does not intend to back down or allow anyone to walk over her because she has a medical condition. “I did not ask for cancer to attack me twice; I am trying to survive and to live. Besides that, my husband and partner committed suicide a few years ago because he too was a police officer, and he could not continue with the abuse and disrespect from his superiors, thus he took his life.

The Police Nationale agent said that while they are not speaking out, several of her colleagues who have served faithfully have since resigned and are now working in the private sector. “I will be sending a clear message to those that are above me: I will not buckle to cowards; my father served the same Police Nationale, and I will do so until I go on retirement.”