Sint Maarten
Encyclopedia
Sint Maarten is a constituent country
of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
. It encompasses the southern half of Saint Martin
island, while the northern half of the island constitutes the French overseas collectivity of Saint-Martin. Its capital is Philipsburg.
Before 10 October 2010, Sint Maarten was known as the Island Territory of Sint Maarten , and was one of five island territories (Eilandgebieden) that constituted the Netherlands Antilles
.
' second voyages
to the West Indies, upon first sighting the island he named it Isla de San Martín after Saint Martin of Tours
because it was 11 November, St. Martin Day. However, though he claimed it as a Spanish
territory, Columbus never landed there, and Spain made the settlement of the island a low priority.
The French
and Dutch
, on the other hand, both coveted the island. While the French wanted to colonize the islands between Trinidad
and Bermuda
, the Dutch found San Martín a convenient halfway point between their colonies in New Amsterdam
(present day New York
) and Brazil
. With few people inhabiting the island, the Dutch easily founded a settlement there in 1631, erecting Fort Amsterdam as protection from invaders. Jan Claeszen Van Campen became its first governor, and soon thereafter the Dutch East India Company
began their salt mining operations. French and British
settlements sprang up on the island as well. Taking note of these successful colonies and wanting to maintain their control of the salt trade, the Spanish now found St. Martin much more appealing. The Eighty Years' War which had been raging between Spain and the Netherlands provided further incentive to attack.
Spanish forces captured Saint Martin from the Dutch in 1633, seizing control and driving most or all of the colonists off the island. At Point Blanche, they built what is now Old Spanish Fort to secure the territory. Although the Dutch retaliated in several attempts to win back
St. Martin, they failed. Fifteen years after the Spanish conquered the island, the Eighty Years' War ended. Since they no longer needed a base in the Caribbean and St. Martin barely turned a profit, the Spanish lost their inclination to continue defending it. In 1648, they deserted the island.
With St. Martin free again, both the Dutch and the French jumped at the chance to re-establish their settlements. Dutch colonists came from St. Eustatius, while the French came from St. Kitts. After some initial conflict, both sides realized that neither would yield easily. Preferring to avoid an all-out war, they signed the Treaty of Concordia
in 1648, which divided the island in two. During the treaty's negotiation, the French had a fleet of naval
ships off shore, which they used as a threat to bargain more land for themselves. In spite of the treaty, relations between the two sides were not always cordial. Between 1648 and 1816, conflicts changed the border sixteen times. In the end, the French came out ahead with 21 square miles (54.4 km²) to the 16 square miles (41.4 km²) of the Dutch side.
Although the Spanish had been the first to import slaves to the island, their numbers had been few. But with the new cultivation of cotton
, tobacco
, and sugar
, mass numbers of slaves were imported to work on the plantation
s. The slave population quickly grew larger than that of the land owners. Subjected to cruel treatment, slaves staged rebellions, and their overwhelming numbers made them impossible to ignore. On 12 July 1848, the French abolished slavery on their side of St. Martin. The Dutch followed suit fifteen years later.
in the 1950s, with the French side following suit two decades later. Because of being split up into a Dutch and a French part, the tourist boom was heavier on Sint Maarten than on the surrounding islands. Its Princess Juliana International Airport
became one of the busiest in the Eastern Caribbean. For much of this period, Sint Maarten was governed by business tycoon Claude Wathey
of the Democratic Party
.
The island's demographics changed dramatically during this period as well. The island's population increased from a mere 5,000 people to around 80,000 people in the mid-1990s. Immigration from the neighbouring Lesser Antilles, Curaçao
, Haiti
, the Dominican Republic
, the United States
, Europe
, and Asia
turned the native population into a minority.
Sint Maarten became an "island territory" (eilandgebied in Dutch
) of the Netherlands Antilles
in 1983. Before that date, Saint Martin was part of the island territory of the Windward Islands, together with Saba and Sint Eustatius. The status of an island territory entails considerable autonomy summed up in the Island Regulation of the Netherlands Antilles. The island territory of Sint Maarten was ruled by an island council, an executive council, and an administrator appointed by the Dutch Crown.
On 5 September 1995, Hurricane Luis
severely pounded the islands causing extensive damage 35 years to the day after Hurricane Donna
.
and France
signed the Franco-Dutch treaty on Saint Martin border controls
, which allows for joint Franco-Dutch border controls on so-called "risk flights". After some delay, the treaty was ratified in November 2006 in the Netherlands, and subsequently entered into force on 1 August 2007. Though the treaty is now in force, its provisions are not yet implemented as the working group specified in the treaty is not yet installed.
On 10 October 2010, Sint Maarten became a constituent country
within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, making it a constitutional equal partner with Aruba
, Curaçao
, and the Netherlands
proper. Sint Maarten has been assigned the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2
country code of SX, but the .sx
Internet ccTLD is not yet in use.
The Constitution of Sint Maarten
was unanimously adopted by the island council of Sint Maarten on 21 July 2010. Elections for a new island council were held on 17 September 2010
, since the number of seats was increased from 11 to 15. The newly elected island council became the Estates of Sint Maarten
on 10 October.
Eugene Holiday
was appointed as the first Governor of Sint Maarten
by the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
in September 2010. He also assumed office on 10 October 2010.
. In August 1990, the public prosecutor of the Netherlands Antilles started an investigation into the alleged ties between the island government of Sint Maarten and the Sicilian Mafia, and in 1991 the Court of Audit
of the Netherlands Antilles issued a report which concluded that the island government of Sint Maarten was ailing.
In the government and parliament of the Netherlands, the call for measures became louder and louder. With Dutch pressure, the government of the Netherlands Antilles installed the Pourier Commission tasked with investigating the state of affairs of the island government of Sint Maarten in December 1991. Its report concluded that the island was in a severe financial crisis, that rules of democratic decision-making were continuously broken, and that the island government constituted an oligarchy
. In short, the island government failed completely according to the report. After long negotiations, the Kingdom government
enacted an Order-in-Council for the Kingdom in early 1993, placing Sint Maarten under direct supervision by the Kingdom. Although originally meant for one year, the Order-in-Council for the Kingdom was eventually extended until 1 March 1996.
Though much has changed since, allegations of criminal activities continue to plague Sint Maarten. In 2004, the Minister of Justice of the Netherlands Antilles asked the Scientific Research and Documentation Centre ( (WODC)) of the Dutch Ministry of Justice to conduct research into organized crime in Sint Maarten. The report concluded that money laundering
and cocaine trade are widespread on Sint Maarten. It also alleged that money from the island was used to finance terrorist networks Hamas
, its associate Holy Land Foundation, and the Taliban.
In April 2009, former Commissioner Louie Laveist was convicted to an 18-month prison sentence by the Sint Maarten Court of First Instance, on accounts of forgery, fraud, and bribery. He was later acquitted for forgery and fraud by the Common Court of Justice of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba, but not for bribery.
The official languages are Dutch
and English
. A local English-based creole dialect is also spoken. An annual regatta
is also held on around March.
has its headquarters on the grounds of Princess Juliana Airport in Sint Maarten.
Universities
Secondary Education
Tourism
News and Opinion
Constituent country
Constituent country is a phrase sometimes used in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity. The term constituent country does not have any defined legal meaning, and is used simply to refer to a country which is a part Constituent country is a phrase sometimes used in contexts...
of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with territory in Western Europe and in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are referred to as "countries", and participate on a basis of equality...
. It encompasses the southern half of Saint Martin
Saint Martin
Saint Martin is an island in the northeast Caribbean, approximately east of Puerto Rico. The 87 km2 island is divided roughly 60/40 between France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands ; however, the Dutch side has the larger population. It is one of the smallest sea islands divided between...
island, while the northern half of the island constitutes the French overseas collectivity of Saint-Martin. Its capital is Philipsburg.
Before 10 October 2010, Sint Maarten was known as the Island Territory of Sint Maarten , and was one of five island territories (Eilandgebieden) that constituted the Netherlands Antilles
Netherlands Antilles
The Netherlands Antilles , also referred to informally as the Dutch Antilles, was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of two groups of islands in the Lesser Antilles: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao , in Leeward Antilles just off the Venezuelan coast; and Sint...
.
History
In 1493, during Christopher ColumbusChristopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
' second voyages
Voyages of Christopher Columbus
In the early modern period, the voyages of Columbus initiated European exploration and colonization of the American continents, and are thus of great significance in world history. Christopher Columbus was a navigator and an admiral for Castile, a country that later founded modern Spain...
to the West Indies, upon first sighting the island he named it Isla de San Martín after Saint Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours was a Bishop of Tours whose shrine became a famous stopping-point for pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela. Around his name much legendary material accrued, and he has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints...
because it was 11 November, St. Martin Day. However, though he claimed it as a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
territory, Columbus never landed there, and Spain made the settlement of the island a low priority.
The French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, on the other hand, both coveted the island. While the French wanted to colonize the islands between Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
and Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
, the Dutch found San Martín a convenient halfway point between their colonies in New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam was a 17th-century Dutch colonial settlement that served as the capital of New Netherland. It later became New York City....
(present day New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
) and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. With few people inhabiting the island, the Dutch easily founded a settlement there in 1631, erecting Fort Amsterdam as protection from invaders. Jan Claeszen Van Campen became its first governor, and soon thereafter the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
began their salt mining operations. French and British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
settlements sprang up on the island as well. Taking note of these successful colonies and wanting to maintain their control of the salt trade, the Spanish now found St. Martin much more appealing. The Eighty Years' War which had been raging between Spain and the Netherlands provided further incentive to attack.
Spanish forces captured Saint Martin from the Dutch in 1633, seizing control and driving most or all of the colonists off the island. At Point Blanche, they built what is now Old Spanish Fort to secure the territory. Although the Dutch retaliated in several attempts to win back
Attack on Saint Martin
The Attack on Saint Martin was a failed attempt by the Dutch Republic to recapture the island and former base of the Dutch West India Company from the Spanish. In 1633 the Spanish had invaded Saint-Martin and Anguilla, driving off the French and Dutch inhabitants...
St. Martin, they failed. Fifteen years after the Spanish conquered the island, the Eighty Years' War ended. Since they no longer needed a base in the Caribbean and St. Martin barely turned a profit, the Spanish lost their inclination to continue defending it. In 1648, they deserted the island.
With St. Martin free again, both the Dutch and the French jumped at the chance to re-establish their settlements. Dutch colonists came from St. Eustatius, while the French came from St. Kitts. After some initial conflict, both sides realized that neither would yield easily. Preferring to avoid an all-out war, they signed the Treaty of Concordia
Treaty of Concordia
The Treaty of Concordia was signed on March 23, 1648 between the French and the Dutch. The signing took place atop Mount Concordia. Based on the terms of the agreement, the island of Saint Martin was to be divided between the French Kingdom and the Dutch Republic and that the peoples of St.Martin...
in 1648, which divided the island in two. During the treaty's negotiation, the French had a fleet of naval
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
ships off shore, which they used as a threat to bargain more land for themselves. In spite of the treaty, relations between the two sides were not always cordial. Between 1648 and 1816, conflicts changed the border sixteen times. In the end, the French came out ahead with 21 square miles (54.4 km²) to the 16 square miles (41.4 km²) of the Dutch side.
Although the Spanish had been the first to import slaves to the island, their numbers had been few. But with the new cultivation of cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
, tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, and sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
, mass numbers of slaves were imported to work on the plantation
Plantation (settlement or colony)
Plantation was an early method of colonization in which settlers were "planted" abroad in order to establish a permanent or semi-permanent colonial base. Such plantations were also frequently intended to promote Western culture and Christianity among nearby indigenous peoples, as can be seen in the...
s. The slave population quickly grew larger than that of the land owners. Subjected to cruel treatment, slaves staged rebellions, and their overwhelming numbers made them impossible to ignore. On 12 July 1848, the French abolished slavery on their side of St. Martin. The Dutch followed suit fifteen years later.
20th century
After abolition of slavery, plantation culture declined and the island's economy suffered. In 1939, St. Martin received a major boost when it was declared a duty-free port. The Dutch side began focusing on tourismTourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
in the 1950s, with the French side following suit two decades later. Because of being split up into a Dutch and a French part, the tourist boom was heavier on Sint Maarten than on the surrounding islands. Its Princess Juliana International Airport
Princess Juliana International Airport
Princess Juliana International Airport serves the Dutch part of the island of Sint Maarten. In 2007, the airport handled 1,647,824 passengers and 103,650 aircraft movements. The airport serves as a hub for Windward Islands Airways and is the major gateway for the smaller Leeward Islands,...
became one of the busiest in the Eastern Caribbean. For much of this period, Sint Maarten was governed by business tycoon Claude Wathey
Claude Wathey
Claude Wathey , was a prominent politician of the Democratic Party from the island of Sint Maarten. He was knighted by the Dutch Crown for his political longevity...
of the Democratic Party
Democratic Party Sint Maarten
The Democratic Party Sint Maarten is a political party in Sint Maarten. The party has long been associated with its powerful leader and business tycoon Claude Wathey...
.
The island's demographics changed dramatically during this period as well. The island's population increased from a mere 5,000 people to around 80,000 people in the mid-1990s. Immigration from the neighbouring Lesser Antilles, Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
, Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
turned the native population into a minority.
Sint Maarten became an "island territory" (eilandgebied in Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
) of the Netherlands Antilles
Netherlands Antilles
The Netherlands Antilles , also referred to informally as the Dutch Antilles, was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of two groups of islands in the Lesser Antilles: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao , in Leeward Antilles just off the Venezuelan coast; and Sint...
in 1983. Before that date, Saint Martin was part of the island territory of the Windward Islands, together with Saba and Sint Eustatius. The status of an island territory entails considerable autonomy summed up in the Island Regulation of the Netherlands Antilles. The island territory of Sint Maarten was ruled by an island council, an executive council, and an administrator appointed by the Dutch Crown.
On 5 September 1995, Hurricane Luis
Hurricane Luis
Hurricane Luis was one of the deadliest and most destructive hurricanes of the 1995 Atlantic hurricane season, with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph . The storm was the twelfth tropical storm, sixth hurricane, and second major hurricane of the season...
severely pounded the islands causing extensive damage 35 years to the day after Hurricane Donna
Hurricane Donna
Hurricane Donna in the 1960 Atlantic hurricane season was a Cape Verde-type hurricane which moved across the Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispanola, Cuba, The Bahamas, and every state on the East Coast of the United States...
.
21st century
In 1994, the Kingdom of the NetherlandsKingdom of the Netherlands
The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with territory in Western Europe and in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are referred to as "countries", and participate on a basis of equality...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
signed the Franco-Dutch treaty on Saint Martin border controls
Franco-Dutch treaty on Saint Martin border controls
The Franco-Dutch treaty on Saint Martin border controls, often called the Franco-Dutch Treaty is a treaty between the Kingdom of the Netherlands and France aimed at improving border controls at the two airports on the island of...
, which allows for joint Franco-Dutch border controls on so-called "risk flights". After some delay, the treaty was ratified in November 2006 in the Netherlands, and subsequently entered into force on 1 August 2007. Though the treaty is now in force, its provisions are not yet implemented as the working group specified in the treaty is not yet installed.
On 10 October 2010, Sint Maarten became a constituent country
Constituent country
Constituent country is a phrase sometimes used in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity. The term constituent country does not have any defined legal meaning, and is used simply to refer to a country which is a part Constituent country is a phrase sometimes used in contexts...
within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, making it a constitutional equal partner with Aruba
Aruba
Aruba is a 33 km-long island of the Lesser Antilles in the southern Caribbean Sea, located 27 km north of the coast of Venezuela and 130 km east of Guajira Peninsula...
, Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
, and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
proper. Sint Maarten has been assigned the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2
ISO 3166-1 alpha-2
ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes are two-letter country codes defined in ISO 3166-1, part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization , to represent countries, dependent territories, and special areas of geographical interest...
country code of SX, but the .sx
.sx
.sx is a future Internet country code top-level domain that is likely to be created for Sint Maarten, following the decision on December 15, 2010 by the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency to allocate SX as the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code for Sint Maarten...
Internet ccTLD is not yet in use.
Government and politics
Constitution of Sint Maarten
The Constitution of Sint Maarten was unanimously adopted by the island council of Sint Maarten on 21 July 2010....
was unanimously adopted by the island council of Sint Maarten on 21 July 2010. Elections for a new island council were held on 17 September 2010
Sint Maarten general election, 2010
The Sint Maarten general election of 2010 were held on 17 September 2010. The election was formally held for the island council of the island area Sint Maarten , but its members automatically became members of the Estates of Sint Maarten after Sint Maarten received country status within the...
, since the number of seats was increased from 11 to 15. The newly elected island council became the Estates of Sint Maarten
Estates of Sint Maarten
The Parliament of Sint Maarten consists of 15 members, each elected for a four year term in a general election. The first Parliament was installed on 10 October 2010, the date of the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, and consist of the members of the island council elected on 17 September...
on 10 October.
Eugene Holiday
Eugene Holiday
Eugene Holiday is the first Governor of Sint Maarten, which became an constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands on 10 October 2010. He was installed by the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands on 7 September 2010. He was president of Princess Juliana International...
was appointed as the first Governor of Sint Maarten
Governor of Sint Maarten
The Governor of Sint Maarten is the representative on Sint Maarten of the Dutch head of state . The governors duties are twofold: he represents and guards the general interests of the Kingdom and is head of the government of Sint Maarten. He is accountable to the government of the Kingdom of the...
by the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Council of Ministers of the Kingdom is the executive council of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which is a state consisting of four constituent countries: Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten...
in September 2010. He also assumed office on 10 October 2010.
Corruption
In 1978, the government of the Netherlands Antilles installed a Research Committee on the Windward Islands to investigate claims of corruption in the island government. Even though the report issued by this commission was damaging for the island's government, measures were not put into place to curb corruption, arguably because the government of the Netherlands Antilles depended on the support of Wathey's Democratic Party in the Estates of the Netherlands AntillesEstates of the Netherlands Antilles
The Estates of the Netherlands Antilles were the parliament of the Netherlands Antilles. They had 22 members, elected for a four year term in three multi-seat constuencies and 2 single-seat constuencies. On 10 October 2010 the Netherlands Antilles were dissolved, and so were their Estates.-2010...
. In August 1990, the public prosecutor of the Netherlands Antilles started an investigation into the alleged ties between the island government of Sint Maarten and the Sicilian Mafia, and in 1991 the Court of Audit
Court of Audit
A Court of Audit or Court of Accounts is a Supreme audit institution, i.e. a government institution performing financial and/or legal audit A Court of Audit or Court of Accounts is a Supreme audit institution, i.e. a government institution performing financial and/or legal audit A Court of Audit or...
of the Netherlands Antilles issued a report which concluded that the island government of Sint Maarten was ailing.
In the government and parliament of the Netherlands, the call for measures became louder and louder. With Dutch pressure, the government of the Netherlands Antilles installed the Pourier Commission tasked with investigating the state of affairs of the island government of Sint Maarten in December 1991. Its report concluded that the island was in a severe financial crisis, that rules of democratic decision-making were continuously broken, and that the island government constituted an oligarchy
Oligarchy
Oligarchy is a form of power structure in which power effectively rests with an elite class distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, commercial, and/or military legitimacy...
. In short, the island government failed completely according to the report. After long negotiations, the Kingdom government
Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Council of Ministers of the Kingdom is the executive council of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which is a state consisting of four constituent countries: Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten...
enacted an Order-in-Council for the Kingdom in early 1993, placing Sint Maarten under direct supervision by the Kingdom. Although originally meant for one year, the Order-in-Council for the Kingdom was eventually extended until 1 March 1996.
Though much has changed since, allegations of criminal activities continue to plague Sint Maarten. In 2004, the Minister of Justice of the Netherlands Antilles asked the Scientific Research and Documentation Centre ( (WODC)) of the Dutch Ministry of Justice to conduct research into organized crime in Sint Maarten. The report concluded that money laundering
Money laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
and cocaine trade are widespread on Sint Maarten. It also alleged that money from the island was used to finance terrorist networks Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
, its associate Holy Land Foundation, and the Taliban.
In April 2009, former Commissioner Louie Laveist was convicted to an 18-month prison sentence by the Sint Maarten Court of First Instance, on accounts of forgery, fraud, and bribery. He was later acquitted for forgery and fraud by the Common Court of Justice of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba, but not for bribery.
Settlements
- PhilipsburgPhilipsburg, Netherlands AntillesPhilipsburg is the main town and capital of the country of Sint Maarten, on a narrow stretch of land between Great Bay and the Great Salt Pond. It functions as the commercial center of Saint Martin island, whereof Sint Maarten encompasses the southern half...
with 1,228 inhabitants - Lower Prince's Quarter with 8,123 inhabitants
- Cul de Sac with 7,880 inhabitants
- Cole Bay with 6,046 inhabitants
- Upper Prince's Quarter with 4,020 inhabitants
- Little Bay (Fort Amsterdam) with 2,176 inhabitants
- Simpson Bay with 736 inhabitants
- Lowlands with 232 inhabitants
Demographics
In the 2001 Netherlands Antilles census, the population of the Eilandgebied was 30,594. The official estimate of the population as of 1 January 2010 was 37,429 for a population density of 1,100 inhabitants per km².Culture
The official languages are Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. A local English-based creole dialect is also spoken. An annual regatta
Sint Maarten Heineken Regatta
The St. Maarten Heineken Regatta is a yacht race on the island of Sint Maarten, held every year. The Regatta is both named after its location and sponsor, the island of Sint Maarten and Heineken. Which its slogan of 'Serious Fun' it represent the two sides of sailing in the Caribbean...
is also held on around March.
Education
- American University of the CaribbeanAmerican University of the CaribbeanThe American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine is an international, for-profit, U.S. curriculum-based medical school with a main basic science campus in Sint Maarten, and is based in Coral Gables, Florida...
School of Medicine (AUC), founded in 1978, was previously located on MontserratMontserratMontserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. This island measures approximately long and wide, giving of coastline...
. Because of the eruption of the Soufrière Hills volcano in 1995, AUC moved its campus to St. Maarten later that year. A permanent campus was completed in 1998 in Cupecoy.
- University of St. MartinUniversity of St. MartinThe University of St. Martin is a university in Philipsburg, Sint-Maarten founded in 1989. It has about 400 full-time and part-time students, and more than 500 alumni. Its president is Annalies van den Assem....
(USM) in PhilipsburgPhilipsburg, Netherlands AntillesPhilipsburg is the main town and capital of the country of Sint Maarten, on a narrow stretch of land between Great Bay and the Great Salt Pond. It functions as the commercial center of Saint Martin island, whereof Sint Maarten encompasses the southern half...
.
Economy
Windward Islands AirwaysWindward Islands Airways
Winair, an abbreviation of Windward Islands Airways, is a government-owned airline based in the Netherlands Antilles. Founded in 1961 by Georges Greaux, It has a fleet of four aircraft serving ten destinations, all within the Leeward Islands group of the Lesser Antilles in the North East Caribbean...
has its headquarters on the grounds of Princess Juliana Airport in Sint Maarten.
See also
- CaribbeanCaribbeanThe Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
- Leeward IslandsLeeward IslandsThe Leeward Islands are a group of islands in the West Indies. They are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles chain. As a group they start east of Puerto Rico and reach southward to Dominica. They are situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean...
- Saint MartinSaint MartinSaint Martin is an island in the northeast Caribbean, approximately east of Puerto Rico. The 87 km2 island is divided roughly 60/40 between France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands ; however, the Dutch side has the larger population. It is one of the smallest sea islands divided between...
- Collectivity of Saint Martin
- FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- Overseas departments and territories of FranceOverseas departments and territories of FranceThe French Overseas Departments and Territories consist broadly of French-administered territories outside of the European continent. These territories have varying legal status and different levels of autonomy, although all have representation in the Parliament of France , and consequently the...
- Région Guadeloupe et Saint Martin (Scouting)
- Overseas departments and territories of France
- France
- Sint Maarten
- Kingdom of the NetherlandsKingdom of the NetherlandsThe Kingdom of the Netherlands is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with territory in Western Europe and in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are referred to as "countries", and participate on a basis of equality...
- Caribbean Netherlands
- List of Sint Maarten governors
- Princess Juliana International AirportPrincess Juliana International AirportPrincess Juliana International Airport serves the Dutch part of the island of Sint Maarten. In 2007, the airport handled 1,647,824 passengers and 103,650 aircraft movements. The airport serves as a hub for Windward Islands Airways and is the major gateway for the smaller Leeward Islands,...
- Maho BeachMaho BeachMaho Beach is a beach on the Dutch side of the Caribbean island of Saint Martin, in the country of Sint Maarten. It is famous for the Princess Juliana International Airport adjacent to the beach....
, famous viewing area for airport takeoffs and landings.
- Kingdom of the Netherlands
- Collectivity of Saint Martin
- Culture of St. MartinCulture of St. MartinThe culture of St. Martin owes a great deal to its African, French, British, and Dutch heritage. Although St. Martin is a single island, it contains two separate nations: Saint Martin, a French overseas collectivity; and Sint Maarten, part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
- O sweet Saint-Martin's LandO sweet Saint-Martin's LandO Sweet Saint Martin's Land is the bi-national song of Saint Martin/Sint-Maarten island, in the Caribbean, this island being divided between France and Kingdom of the Netherlands....
(bi-national song/anthem of Saint-Martin/Sint-Maarten)
- O sweet Saint-Martin's Land
- History of St. MartinHistory of St. MartinSt. Martin's history shares many commonalities with other Caribbean islands. Its earliest inhabitants were Amerindians, followed by Europeans who brought slavery to exploit commercial interests.-Early history:...
- Saint Martin
- Leeward Islands
- List of divided islands
External links
Organizations- Philipsburg Jubilee Public Library
- St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce and Industry - Official site
- St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association - Official trade association site
Universities
Secondary Education
- Caribbean International Academy
- Learning Unlimited Preparatory School
- St. Dominic High School
- St. Maarten Academy
Tourism
- St. Maarten Tourist Bureau - Official site of St. Maarten's Tourist Office
- St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (visitor information) - Destination site
- Princess Juliana International Airport - Official site
News and Opinion
- St. Maarten Daily Herald - Local newspaper
- St. Maarten Island Times - News and current events
- St. Martin News Network - Local news and opinion