PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – Minister of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI) Hon. Maurice Lake says he stands for the protection of the Great Salt Pond, and looks forward in the new governing period to continue with the community consultation regarding the draft development plans.

Minister Lake said he took note of a petition that was presented more than a year ago which called for a stop to the landfill expansion, dumping and pollution in the Great Salt Pond.

“I agree we have to maintain the current status of the Great Salt Pond.  It is a natural reservoir for rain runoff which then goes into the sea once it reaches a certain capacity.

“I agree with the protection of the people, wildlife, and the wetlands of the country.  The new waste to energy plant which I have been working on during my tenure has reached a finalization point and once established and operational, it will lead to the processing of our country’s waste.

“The dump fires should be considerably reduced or become non-existent. I do believe that the Great Salt Pond is a national resource and should be treated in that manner.

“The process of public consultation with the various districts regarding the draft national development plans is one way to go to have all those ideas as presented in the petition to be discussed and become part of the planning where our natural resources that exist today are protected for generations to come.

“I look forward to continuing with the draft development plan process in the new governing period,” Minister Hon. Maurice Lake concluded.

GREAT BAY—“Pelican Heart – An Anthology of Poems by Lasana M. Sekou made the 2014 summer reading list in Spain, said Jacqueline Sample, president of HNP, the book’s publisher.

“The St. Martin book was selected by Italian and Hispanic studies researchers José Sarzi Amade and Leonor Taiano Campoverde for the July reading list of Mito | Revista Cultural. The culture-savvy magazine is based in Spain,” said Sample, who was here recently for the annual editorial planning meeting of HNP.

“The July reading selection in a historically and highly competitive literary environment such as Spain, four years after Pelican Heart first appeared, speaks volumes of Emilio Jorge Rodriguez’s confidence in Lasana’s writings. It also tells us what others might be thinking about the developing literary culture of our island,” said Sample.

The Pelican poems were selected from nine of Sekou’s poetry books and translated from English to Spanish by the Cuban scholar Emilio Jorge Rodriguez. He also wrote the analytical introduction to the bilingual book that was published in 2010. 

Along with the 432-page Pelican Heart, the 16 books selected for readers of Mito | Revista Cultural in July 2014, include: La teoría del todo by Stephen Hawking; Supreme City. New York Jazz and Modern America by Donald L. Miller; Giorni di spasimato amore by Romana Petri; Felipe VI: Así se formó el príncipe heredero by José Antonio Alcina; and Sentido y Paz, an anthology of children’s stories by renowned Argentinian authors. http://revistamito.com/los-libros-de-julio/ 

Another HNP title that appears to be a St. Martin gift of poetry that keeps on giving is “The Frock & Other Poems” by Laurelle “Yaya” Richards.

“We just found out that Yaya’s book was reviewed in Wasafiri,”said Sample last Monday before returning to New York. The review by Moira Richards appeared in Volume 28:1 of the London-based international literature magazine.

The reviewer wrote that, “Richards’ poems are intended to record and reclaim,” and that The Frock & Other Poems, which was “Published posthumously, demonstrates how [Yaya] used words to celebrate the cultural history of her Caribbean home.”

“I still feel sad that Yaya passed away just a few months before her only book was published,” said Sample. “But I’m happy to know that The Frock is in stores, libraries, and homes in St. Martin. And with this review from thousands of miles away, you get more than just a sense that her work lives on in her book, at home and abroad.”Yaya Richards was the leading St. Martin folklorist when she passed away in May 2010, five months before The Frock was published. She hailed from St. Louis village. 

The Frock and the English/Spanish edition of Pelican Heart are available at Van Dorp and Arnia’s, and Amazon.com, spdbooks.org, and other Internet bookstores.

RING ROAD, PHILIPSBURG – The United People’s party (UP) will have its final public meeting on Wednesday, August 27^th at the Ring Road in Philipsburg at 7:00pm.

Party leader Theo Heyliger as well as the 22 candidates of the UP Party, the number three slate on the election ballot is inviting the nation to come out to the meeting including the residents of Cole Bay, Cay Bay, Pelican, Simpson Bay, Sandy Ground and Marigot who couldn’t attend the fifth public meeting last week Thursday because it had to be cancelled due to inclement weather. 

The leader and candidates of the UP party will once again present the issues and the solutions that a United People’s (UP) Party Government will deliver to the people of the country once elected in the Friday, August 29 polls.

August 29 represents the people’s opportunity to elect the first majority Government for country Sint Maarten under its new constitutional status.  Under the 2010 September elections, Sint Maarten was still an Island Territory and those elected were Island Council members who transitioned into the new country status as Members of Parliament on October 10, 2010.

To move forward and upward, and for the economy and the people to grow, a one party Government is necessary, and the UP Party is ready to deliver to the people and calls on all voter’s to exercise their democratic right on August 29^th and give the UP party the mandate to govern the country for the next four years – we ready.

The UP party’s website can be found at www.upparty.com.  You will find all information about the 23 candidates; campaign jingles; the party’s manifesto outlining the vision of the party on the many issues and areas that concern the grassroots and up of the country; and videos about the UP journey leading to the green road to victory come August 29th.

If you have any questions or would like information about the party’s programs for an UP Sint Maarten you can email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

GREAT BAY - Minister of Public Health Social Development & Labor, Cornelius De Weever on Friday, August 22, 2014 signed a partnership commitment between Dutch St. Maarten and French St. Martin to collaborate on the ‘Health Observatory’.

“This is really a very important step as an island working jointly towards the needs of the island,” said Minister De Weever.

Considering St. Maarten’s small scale and the fact that many people live, work as well as make use of medical services on both sides of the island, to get a clear descriptive picture of the general health status of the general adult population it is of utter importance to, this time around, execute the Health Study on both sides of the island. This will provide more current reliable data as well as bring forth a more accurate picture  for the planning of policies and programs and identifying where healthcare changes and education/awareness is necessary.

The purpose of the ‘Health Observatory’ is to improve general health and well-being of the population, therefore the collaboration on public health related matters. This observatory will facilitate future endeavors between both sides of the island. A project has already been identified, which will be executed by the ‘Health Observatory’, consisting of the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development & Labor, the Collectivite and the Louis Constant Fleming Hospital, this is the ‘How Healthy is St. Maarten/Saint Martin’ study. (From the Cabinet of the Minister of Health)