ULSCF Secretary General Fatima Boukhari (fourth left), President Sofia Carti-Codrington (fifth left), and L’Union Departmentale de Guadeloupe Vice President Claude Philomin (fifth from right) with association representatives. (Robert Luckock photo)
MARIGOT--A new structure specifically tailored to assist families in St. Martin, in addition to what is currently available, was presented at a press conference in Sandy Ground on Wednesday.
Union Locale de la Confédération Syndicale des Familles de Saint-Martin (ULCSF) is a local branch created on January 26, 2024, which is affiliated to the national association Confédération Syndicale des Familles (CSF).
The entity has more than 70 departmental unions in France, with each department having a local union. It was created after World War II to help bereaved families.
St. Martin is the third local union to be created, falling under L’Union Departmentale de Guadeloupe (UD CSF) which has two already. The national CSF is celebrating its 76th year in existence.
“We defend everything to do with families; that means consummation, education, parenthood, health, sports, and culture,” explained President Sofia Carti-Codrington. “One association can’t do all that. It’s a federation of different associations working as one to properly help the population. When we created it, some 12 of 14 associations who were present joined us straight-away.”
Coming over especially from Guadeloupe to confirm the creation of ULCSF and to give more context to the work of CSF and its benefits was Union Departmentale de Guadeloupe Vice President Claude Philomin.
Carti-Codrington said the Philomin family is well known in St. Martin, having assisted in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma to place evacuated elderly persons with families in Guadeloupe. The core value of CSF to this day is to promote equality among the population, Philomin noted.
Sandy Ground on the Move Insertion President Georges Richardson, no stranger to creating associations, welcomed ULCSF, as did Sandy Ground Ball Stars (SGBS) President Martin Hughes and other association members present.
“Any endeavour such as this is entirely to our benefit, so thank you for considering us and giving us the means of assistance to move forward,” said Hughes.
Hughes pointed out that legally every citizen, no matter their status or nationality, is entitled to open a bank account in St. Martin, but many persons testify to the difficulty of opening a bank account for various reasons.
“Refusing to open a bank account for someone is in contradiction to the French constitution. This attitude has to change,” he said.
Carti-Codrington agreed. “We didn’t know this before, but you can complain to Banque de la France that you have been refused an account. It’s why most people do on-line banking.”
Some businesses have already jumped in to get ULCSF up and running with materials. Dauphin Telecom donated cellular phones, Carti Codrington noted.
The contacts for ULCSF are tel. (0690) 22.90.69 and email
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The office address is Residence Les Hirondelles in French Quarter, apartment 501. Office hours as of May 14 will be Tuesdays and Thursdays to welcome other associations that want to join.
Each association will be requited to fill a registration form detailing the name of the association, name of the president, its legal status, and other details which can be obtained from ULCSF.
