Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs.
PHILIPSBURG--The Government of St. Maarten has not yet received a response from the Miss World Organisation on concerns about Spain-born, locally-raised Lara Mateo, who was scouted and registered by a licence holder in Guadeloupe and accepted to represent Dutch St. Maarten at the Miss World pageant.
The pageant has since been postponed by its organisers because of concerns over COVID-19. The finale was due to take place in Coliseo de Puerto Rico in San Juan on Thursday, December 16, but was pushed back after at least 17 positive COVID-19 test results. The Miss World Organisation said it had decided to delay the event after discussions with the Puerto Rican Health Department. The final will be rescheduled and held in in the same location within the next 90 days.
In an update to Parliament on Thursday, Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs said government is also conducting further research into the person from Guadeloupe who used their licence to register a candidate to represent St. Maarten.
Jacobs said government had sent a letter to the Miss World organisers, but “We have not received a response to date and we will continue to follow up on that.
“It is unfortunate that she [Mateo – Ed.] is the one in the … spotlight as being the one acting out of turn, but she was put forth by someone. It is not authorised from St. Maarten and so the [Miss World] organisation has been informed that this candidate does not have the endorsement of the St. Maarten government.
“I have also back-checked and double-checked with the French government, the Collectivité, also the Tourism Department nor the Culture Department has no knowledge of the candidate and, if that is the case, going through their course, the person would have had to go to France to compete and then via France, the winner would have had to go to represent France and not represent St. Martin.
“It is clear that there has been a serious discrepancy. Some may say it is not the first time, but definitely in today’s technology these things would not go unnoticed and as it received the attention it did, it has been dealt with.
“We will continue to communicate with the organisers to ensure that their vetting process is tightened, because in essence, if the St. Maarten delegation did not put forth someone, it should not be acceptable that that persons should be under the St. Maarten flag.
“That is being dealt with and publication of the procedures to be able to represent St. Maarten will be made much more public so that any and all organisations, licence-holders, etc., would know through which venue they will have to pass to say that they are representing St. Maarten.”
