Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
PHILIPSBURG--Parliament's Permanent Committee for Kingdom Affairs and Inter-Parliamentary Relations, chaired by outgoing Member of Parliament (MP) Roy Marlin Democratic Party ((DP)), swiftly dealt with a twelve-point agenda covering several kingdom treaties, motions and other business on Tuesday morning, in Parliament House.
Marlin outlined the agenda and suggested the points that needed the committee simply to take note of and the ones that needed to be left for the incoming committee and its new chairman to handle.
A list of treaties in the preparatory phase and Country St. Maarten's Foreign Policy Document will be sent by the committee to "formateur" of the new government National Alliance (NA) leader MP William Marlin for possible including in the next governing programme.
The two motions related to the establishment of a dispute committee for the kingdom will be forwarded to the general assembly of Parliament for handling, as will be done by the Parliament of Curaçao and Aruba. The intention is that after the motions are passed by all three countries within the Dutch Kingdom, that they will form a delegation to meet with the Dutch Second Chamber of Parliament to further the matter.
The plans by the Kingdom Government to impose a kingdom law about all partners in the kingdom adhering to the Sanctions Ordinance of the European Union. St. Maarten and Curaçao have already agenda via their parliaments to uphold any sanction, but Curaçao's refusal has led to the Kingdom Government to move ahead with a kingdom law. Marlin said this was not a fair way to have dealt with the situation by the kingdom government, considering the agreement already given by Aruba and St. Maarten. Advice on how to move forward on this will be sought by the incoming committee.
Also taken note of were an international treaty related to shipping; arms treaty and a treaty related to persons with physical challenges; a draft kingdom law related to terrorism and the European Union and a report from the Dutch Commission of Social Affairs and Labour of the Dutch Second Chamber of Parliament also are on the agenda.
There are two resolutions that were approved on August 18, 2014, with respect to the role of the Kingdom Council of State related to the Kingdom Council of Ministers Integrity instruction to the Governor of St. Maarten, and the second motion is related to having an independent institution review interpretations of the Kingdom Charter ("Statuut") when kingdom partners have a difference of opinion.
Three other agenda points were related to a letter from the Curaçao political fractions in Parliament - MFK and MAN, a complaint against the Cabinet of Aruba Prime Minister Mike Eman and the General Audit Chamber Annual Report 2013, and copies of two motions adopted by Parliament of Aruba on September 8. All of these were taken note of by the committee.
Roy Marlin thanked the committee members and other MPs for their cooperation with him in his four-year tenure as committee chairman. He urged the new chairman, when one is appointed, to continue to use the committee as "an instrument" to continue pursuing issues within the kingdom and to build relationships. Marlin was not re-elected to Parliament.
National Alliance (NA) Parliamentarian George Pantophlet commended Marlin for his "good job" and for setting "a foundation for others to follow" as members of the committee. The outgoing MP's "expertise and experience will be missed" in the committee and Parliament, but he "will be called upon to give advice."
Independent MP Dr. Lloyd Richardson said Marlin's had made a valuable contribution as "a stalwart who has defended the country." His efforts will be "greatly missed." Richardson said he hopes Roy Marlin "will still play a role in some capacity."
Independent MP Frans Richardson said Marlin should be commended for "a job well done" and for conducting the committee's work in "a business-like way."
