The various searches and arrests on Wednesday led to predictable comments and blanket statements like “St. Maarten is full of corruption.” While such reactions are understandable under the circumstances, that’s only one way to look at it.
The heightened police activity is also evidence that at least something is being done against perceived white-collar crime on the island. In addition, looking at the number of high profile investigations and trials over the past years indicates that this effort has been ongoing for a quite a while.
Of course, it’s never nice to read about these things happening within the local community, but the rotten apples must be removed so they don’t spoil the whole barrel. Conclusions that, for example, nobody in government can be trusted anymore are therefore premature and downright unfair to others.
It’s true that the Dutch side has seen a relatively large number of scandals and irregularities in the public sector during last two decades, some involving law enforcement personnel. However, the fact that these cases came to light shows that actions to punish those responsible continue to be taken.
Everyone is obviously innocent until proven guilty, including what may be considered so-called “public figures.” Still, corruption and organised crime do indeed undermine society and must be taken seriously.
In that sense it could easily be argued that the proverbial glass is half full, rather than half empty.
