Dear Editor,

  Whether you believe that “criminals” are good or bad people, I’m sure that we can all agree that they are human too. Moreover, that also means that they are deserving of their basic human rights and the rights lawfully approved to be instated by the government.

  The Ministers of Justice over the last few years have come in and out of the prison for photo ops promising change but nothing has yet to be done. There are many areas in our local “point blanche” prison in Sint Maarten that lack the attention it needs. Don’t be surprised these injustices are not only to the inmates but to the prison guards as well. After numerous pleas to the director of the prison and their superiors, today we would like to shine some light on these areas as follows:

  Medical – on November 4, 2022, an inmate requested medical help at around 8:00pm, he was not attended to until 9:45pm. Reason being, there are no nurses or doctors on call, not even a medical assistant in case of any emergencies at the Pointe Blanche Prison. It is a game of Russian roulette with our lives.

  Another inmate has a cyst for the past 2 years and has been given antibiotics by the nurse here for most of the time, whereas we know antibiotics are usually administered for a 2-4 weeks period followed by a doctor’s recommendation, just to name a few of our more minor medical issues.

  Rehabilitation –- whether you care about the wellbeing of us or not, once our time is served, we have to re-enter society. Consequently, with a stain on our records and a frown from employers and without learning a proper trade or being given the tools inside to progress outside you end up with repeat offenders. Sometimes we believe that is what the system wants, to keep the prison filled. Meanwhile there are broken homes, children without a parent and misery for the inmates when it has been proven by research that inmates do better when treated better.

  Fundamentally, we’ve suggested that the ones who can make the decision would initiate a collaboration between the prison and NIPA school for trade and educational programs for inmates. For funding they should start by creating more jobs in the prison that can partially be used to fund their education.

  People believe that by sending people to prison they should change and become great again because of severity. That usually has the opposite effect. Reform, patience and the right tools are what enable the change.

  Verlof and Labor (time off) – it is being picked and chosen as to who gets “verlof” (leave of absence) or not. Usually verlof is given to an inmate to seek medical care with a family member, to attend a funeral or to even witness the birth of his child. Some inmates get the authority to leave more easily due to connections and others are given a hard time. That is inhumane and unjust and not to mention a legal violation; it needs to be rectified!

  Time off – when we work in the prison, we are entitled to time off of our sentence. Not forgetting that we are legally entitled to be considered for up to 18 months off of our sentence with electronic supervision. This has yet to be practiced for quite some time now. I would like the readers to understand that we are not asking for anything that isn’t already written in black and white as our rights of the Dutch system.

  Communication with family/friends – without a doubt what keeps inmates sane and grounded is communication with their loved ones. There are no phone privileges in the prison whatsoever. People have to wait on a visit to communicate or beg for favors to reach to the outside world. Again, it is so unjust! Solution: three phone lines that are recorded, of course, where everyone gets phone time is the bare minimum that can be provided. Needless to say, the authorities can revoke phone privileges as a means of punishment as well.

  Food and menu – the foods being served are not based on a well-balanced diet. In the long run, we are looking at heart disease which is the leading cause of death, high blood pressure and lack of nutrients. We were accustomed of getting a fruit once a day and now we’re getting them twice a week on a good week if we’re lucky, just to give you a small insight.

  Prosecutorial misconduct – to request an early release, a submission is given to the parole/release board. Vindictively enough, only in Sint Maarten the prosecutor sits on the board which of course usually prohibits inmates from getting their early release. These are the same prosecutors who put us away in the first place. Keeping us in here keeps the taxpayers’ money spending on us when in reality the money is mainly going into their pockets. No other Dutch governed island or the Netherlands itself has the prosecutor involved in this decision. Why are we being treated this way? We are just a dollar sign for them.

  No one from the parole board ever comes to visit or explores our legal right of early releases for the inmates who meet the requirements and it is unacceptable.

  Lastly but certainly not the least:

  Prison Guards – they are not always as helpful and attentive as they should be but we understand that sometimes it isn’t even their fault. They are overworked, underpaid, and understaffed. For example, a day shift should consist of 8 prison guards. Right now, most days consist of 2 to 3 prison guards for 80 male inmates. I would like you to picture how would 2 to 3 guards separate a fight or an act of violence even towards them. It is a set up for failure, injury and even death.

  Ladies and gentlemen, we are not asking for anything much or anything that isn’t within our rights. We are requesting the tools to be better so we can do better. We are requesting our basic human rights!

  I hope the governor is reading, I hope the Minister of Justice is reading, I hope the Parliamentarians are reading. This is our cry for help before we just have to help ourselves the way we know how to. Enough is enough!

Pointe Blanche prisoners

Dear Editor,

  On behalf of the entire URSM family, my wife and my children, I would like to wish you a blessed, safe, healthy and hopeful New Year.

  Every holiday season we reflect on the highs and lows of the past year and set our sights on the year ahead. At the beginning of 2022, I promised you that as a party, URSM would be taking another road, a different approach towards politics, a new attitude to ensure that we capture and focus on what counts and what is important in building a future for the next generation, and the generations to come.

  In doing so, we worked tirelessly as a party to find competent and qualified candidates who are compassionate, who have an unconditional love for their country, and will always put our country above self. We continued to focus on solution-based suggestions, based on reliable and proper research and factual data.

  In 2023, we promise to continue to build on the steppingstones of 2022, as we prepare for the upcoming elections. As leader of the URSM, I speak to many of you on a daily basis. Your personal stories and daily life challenges touch and motivate me to continue to lead and guide our URSM candidates as we focus on solutions that will combat poverty, improve the overall wellbeing of all St. Maarteners, raise the quality and accessibility of education and healthcare for our people, and dare promote solutions that will contribute to a much-needed nation building since 10-10-10.

  The entire URSM family is asking you humbly for your support by the upcoming elections for us in embracement and collaboration to make St. Maarten the country that we all envision and dream of.

Dr. Luc Mercelina

Political leader of the URSM

Dear Editor,

  When you are thinking about what you want for the future of your country should you look to the past or to the future?

  If you are a Caribbean person and a descendant of slaves, looking to the past shows you great injustices that explain many parts of your existence. If you are a Caribbean person and you look to the future, the picture is quite different.

  The major influences of the Caribbean past are slavery followed by economic collapse due to the decline of sugar. That sad past does relate to the near- and long-term future of the Caribbean in a world with very different circumstances.

  The future of the Caribbean has thoroughly different threats that exist in an environment that is globalized and dominated by major powers, both sovereign and private. Here are some key issues for our future: Small states are not going to be determining much about their future, it will be large states and large associations of states. Climate change impacts have a good chance of being much greater than small states will be able to endure financially. Trade will be (and is) controlled by large sovereignties. To be globally competitive governance has to be at a high level and the governance skills and financing are most likely to emanate from large sovereignties.

  Many of those projecting a future for Sint Maarten on the basis of the past rely on a psychological turnaround when ties with colonial powers are broken. Recent history of comparative jurisdictions shows that breaking ties with colonial powers does not produce a psychological turnaround that suddenly stimulates development and solves underdevelopment problems. The states liberated from colonial associations continue with the ever-present challenges of underdevelopment, financing shortages, productivity limitations and deficits. Their populations still make every effort to move developed brainpower via migration to jurisdictions with a higher level of development (and remuneration).

  The anger that exists as a result of slavery and colonialism is real, undeniable and justified. But should it cloud the planning of a future in which there are likely to be very different challenges, possibly no less severe, that will require very different planning and development strategies?

  When the future unfolds itself, the fact that the colonial ties were with the Dutch will be an inconsequential detail of what will then be history. The testy friction of a complex kingdom structure will be an unimportant by-note. The greater theme in history will be how the micro-sized small country that is called St. Maarten (or a new name) will have positioned itself in the context of what the future economic sector called tourism (or some very different economic activity) will look like and how they (us) have made their economy sustainable on a tiny land mass with no natural resources that is shared with a major power.

Robbie Ferron

Dear Editor,

  I have been writing on this topic every December for the last couple of years as I think it’s an important topic and I don’t mind repeating some things as a yearly reminder for my readers. The last day of the year should be an important day for all of us, at least all those of us who take time out to reflect on mistakes, good and not-so-good experiences, and missed opportunities of the past year and plan not to repeat the same mistakes in the coming year.