Dear Editor,
The General Audit Chamber of the Netherlands is preparing a report on the recovery aid which after its completion is scheduled to be discussed in a closed-door meeting on December 13, 2018. The report is being prepared because numerous complaints have been made about the slow progress of the reconstruction aid. The investigation has to do with the governance and financing structure of the reconstruction process in relation to the Dutch funding and the trust fund.
The Chamber talks about the importance of the funding being spent in a careful and effective manner that serves St. Maarten people and mechanisms to make sure the funding ends up in the right place. See article in the newspaper of November 26, 2018. What caught my attention in the article is the familiar phrase “a briefing will take place behind closed doors and afterwards it will be made public”.
I continue to have a serious problem with these behind closed-doors meetings. We live in a democracy and especially in the Kingdom where emphasis is placed on good governance and transparency. The reconstruction fund indeed has to do with the people of St. Maarten and therefore in the name of transparency the people who are experiencing serious hardships because of this slow process have a right to hear first-hand what is causing the delays.
It is not a political matter I hope but one of a social and economic nature and it shows total disrespect for the intelligence of the people of St. Maarten by keeping such an important meeting which concerns them behind closed doors. Are we going to get the exact information disseminated during such a meeting or are we going to get a watered-down version?
Will the report include figures from beginning to the end? An example how did the 550 million become 470 million? Will we get a complete breakdown of where the funds were spent? On what projects? The people need to be kept abreast as to how much was spent, on what it was spent, when it was spent and how much of it remains. There was a closed-door meeting with members of the World Bank, to date we do not know what was discussed.
What the people would also like to know is how much has the World Bank collected to date for services rendered? I am tempted to ask this question of government but since they don’t manage the funds, I am asking the World Bank and/or Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten to inform the public as to the present status of the fund.
It would be Interesting to know if during the planned December 13 meeting minutes will be made in written form or will it be done verbally?
George Pantophlet
Dear Editor,
Seventy years later, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) remains even more relevant than ever as we witness a rolling back of rights around the world. We note with distress the continued lack of progress towards achieving justice and equality for all in the Eastern Caribbean, as we join the world in observing Human Rights Day 2018 and the 70th anniversary of this historic document.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people in the EC remain among the most vulnerable and at risk for marginalisation simply for expressing their authentic selves. Seventy years ago, the world came together to establish through the UDHR, that we should not penalise people for who they love, for how or where they were born. Further, it established that the most vulnerable and marginalised among us must be provided the necessary protection and support. We are way behind in recognising that these inalienable and indivisible rights belong to all.
We are founded on, and work with, human rights organisation across the Eastern Caribbean to advance the principles of the UDHR which states that: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights” and “All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law”.
We take the opportunity to call on governments of the Caribbean to stand for human rights by adopting the relevant human rights in various stages of ratification across the EC.
As UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet states in her 2018 message, “We are born ‘free and equal,’ but millions of people on this planet do not stay free and equal. Their dignity is trampled and their rights are violated on a daily basis.
“Everyone is entitled to all the freedoms listed in the Universal Declaration ‘without distinction of any kind such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.’
“The last words of that sentence – ‘other status’ – have frequently been cited to expand the list of people specifically protected. Not just LGBTI people, but also persons with disabilities, elderly people, indigenous peoples. Minorities of all sorts.
Everyone.”
We reaffirm on this Human Rights Day 2018, that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. We call on our government, civil society and every Caribbean person to stand up for human rights and pledge that:
* I will respect your rights regardless of who you are. I will uphold your rights even when I disagree with you;
* When anyone’s human rights are denied, everyone’s rights are undermined, so I will stand up;
* I will raise my voice. I will take action. I will use my rights to stand up for your rights.”
Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality (ECADE)
Dear GEBE,
More than a year after Hurricane Irma some of the streetlights on Monte Vista hill are 24 hours on and some need to be replaced or just a new led bulb.
Why does it take this long for the streetlights to be fixed?
It's for the safety of our neighbourhood !
I'm looking forward to working streetlights for Christmas this year !
Monte Vista hill resident
Name withheld at author's request.
December 10, 2018, marks the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a milestone document that proclaimed the inalienable rights which everyone is inherently entitled to as a human being – regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status – that was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.
The Declaration sets out universal values and a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations. It establishes the equal dignity and worth of every person. Thanks to the Declaration, and States’ commitments to its principles, the dignity of millions has been uplifted and the foundation for a more just world has been laid.
The Declaration lists 30 articles each outlining and addressing specific areas in upholding fundamental human rights. Personally, there are three articles that really speak to me and I would like to share them with you.
“Article 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
“Article 2: Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
“Article 7: All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.”
As a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Government of St. Maarten strives to uphold all International Declarations, Treaties and Laws. In conclusion, I wish everyone a wonderful Human Rights Day 2018.
Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin
Dear Editor,
I feel it’s my duty as a loving daughter to update everyone on what occurred with the above insurance company when last my mother wrote about her experience trying to get a fair settlement.
Not getting anywhere, my mother engaged the services of a mediator who would mediate on her behalf to get a decent settlement to fix her house. My mother, at that time, chose to be less vocal in the media because her case was under mediation and she didn’t want to have a less-than-favourable outcome due to her speaking out. I, for one, feel she should have written every week about the way this company treated her.
Even my mother’s mediator was shocked, during negotiations, at the lengths NAGICO went to teach my mother a lesson, employing less than ethical tactics to “shut her up.”
When NAGICO strong-armed my mother into accepting a less than a fair offer they included – which was never part of any negotiations – a non-disclosure or confidentiality clause. This shocked my mom and her mediator, who immediately saw this was their payback to my mom for talking about them. Even an insurance expert said this move was illegal, and the clause was added after my mom accepted NAGICO's pitiful offer.
My mom, of course, refused to sign the agreement. And hit back at them. Of course, she did. As her daughter, my mother’s most lethal weapon was her mouth and her ability to use her power with words to expose. Growing up with her, she used her words with lethal precision, often after we did wrong, to teach us some valuable life lessons.
NAGICO tried to stop my mom by flexing their financial muscles, backing her into a corner, where she had no choice but to accept and still not satisfied, they tried to suppress my mother’s freedom of speech.
Well, after much back and forth and NAGICO refusing to back down from taking out that clause, through her mediator, she signed under protest, maintaining all her rights. And not before filing a 2nd complaint at the Central Bank and emailing NAGICO's reinsurers.
I chose to write this letter because I knew that no confidentiality clause would ever shut my mother up. She fought till the end and even when she was backed into a corner, she still fought on.
And this is what I want to highlight about this woman. The lessons she taught us as children were simple. Fight for what you think is right; don’t let anyone or any company abuse you and speak out! Talk! Because by going public you may help more people in similar situations.
I’m proud to see my mom fight NAGICO – a so-called powerful insurance company that has no regard for long-term customers like my mother – tooth and nail using all the tools she had at her disposal. I’m proud to be the daughter of such a woman. And by doing this, I want my mom to now focus on rebuilding her home after fighting this 14-month-long battle.
I didn’t sign any confidentiality clause with NAGICO and I will talk how I want. By the way, did the airport sign such an agreement, our government or any of the other persons or entities you claim to protect and have settlements with? Hah! My mom was special in that regard, wasn’t she? She made you guys uncomfortable. And how do you pay her back? “Non-disclosure.” As much as you may say differently, you’ve never acted in good faith with my mother.
Well, it’s over now and I wanted to publicly thank all my mother’s supporters, Gromyko Wilson for being in your face about how you were treating her and her mediator, who worked hard on her behalf and saw from day one your goal was never to be fair with my mother, but to get back at her for using her right to free speech. But it’s all good NAGICO. My mother’s fight with you is over and you have certainly succeeded in paying her as little as possible and chasing her away as a continued customer.
My mother never loses. She either wins or she learns. And as much as she learned a lot from you, NAGICO, I know you also learned from her and what a mere woman can do to a million-dollar company. God forbid you have more customers like her. I’m laughing just thinking about it.
Now, who am I? If you didn’t already know NAGICO, I’m the first-born child of Mrs. Corinne Lejuez-Van Putten, soon to be ex-policyholder HOC…
Claire A. Van Putten
Daughter
