With all the complaints about the temporary arrival facility at Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA), an agreement signed for a RADEX Border Control Management System (BCMS) by Justice Minister Anna Richardson (see related story) can be seen as a significant step for the country’s main gateway. According to government’s release, this “new and improved” system in the renovated Departure Hall is to enhance national security and lead to a smoother travel experience.
Notably, there will be monthly reports of non-residents who overstay so they can be contacted by officials at the address where registered. The stated goal is to get more of these persons to request an extension if desired and prevent regrettable deportation scenarios.
Hopefully the latter will indeed prove to be the case, because what St. Maarten certainly does not need is immigration raids at guest-accommodations. If the process of getting permission for a longer stay becomes not only easily but also quickly done online and over-stayers are approached with appropriate tact, what was called a “turn-key” and “state-of-the art” solution already used in Aruba could well turn out to be a blessing.
Important is to always maintain a professional and courteous attitude when dealing with visitors from anywhere. That also goes for incoming travellers at the makeshift arrival hall, no matter how annoyed they may – understandably – be after waiting on the tarmac sometimes for up to an hour or more, often in the blazing sun.
A letter to the editor on last Wednesday’s opinion pages was an example of how a small oversight by passengers might lead to dramatic consequences even for loyal and law-abiding repeat guests. A supervisor thankfully intervened in their favour because that was the reasonable thing to do under the circumstances.
At the of the day it’s about living up to the “Friendly Island” reputation of the destination while still effectively supervising its frontiers. The two should not be mutually exclusive.
