There are some encouraging reports regarding law enforcement today, starting with the recovery on the Dutch side of a car stolen at gunpoint in French Quarter. That the victim was a baker sleeping in the vehicle to await his shift on the job makes the outcome feel even better.
This also shows that cross-border cooperation between authorities
is possible and does occur with positive results, despite a recent incident between Dutch St. Maarten police and French-side Gendarmes. It remains something on which one has to keep working though, as is the case with practically all aspects of a unique relationship between two different countries sharing one island on the basis of a centuries-old treaty that calls for free movement of people and goods.
That a number of police- and Coast Guard officers received their usually-long-overdue promotion decrees is positive too. After all, it’s something they had rights to and several were apparently waiting for close to two years, which can have a de-motivating effect.
It was mentioned as well that the police have received five window-tint metres, three K9 vehicles and radios. Of course, with elections on the horizon the party that nominated Justice Minister Edson Kirindongo turned it into a bit of a campaign show, but fact of the matter is that these items were badly needed.
The same goes for the life, accident and disability coverage for Justice officials to be provided by NAGICO. Sure, some might question whether these civil servants should not fall under the same insurance as other Government employees, but one can hardly deny that enforcing the law does bring with it an added risk and could be considered special circumstances.
