PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – The Minister of Justice Mr. Egbert Jurendy Doran on Saturday December 14th, 2019, issued the following statement regarding the demonstrations currently taking place on the French side of the Island;
Yesterday, December 13th, 2019 in the late afternoon, the Police force, KPSM was officially informed of the situation on the French side by the French Gendarme.
The French authorities requested assistance from the KPSM in order to deviate the flow of traffic from the Dutch side going towards the French side at the Bellevue and Oyster Pond borders, as these roads were completely blocked just after passing the borders at Cupecoy and Belvedere.
The Minister of Justice was notified of the situation, and KPSM followed through on the request of the Gendarme to guide traffic away from the Cupecoy and Belvedere borders.
However, it was noted that in a few instances, drivers mainly in the area of Belvedere were reluctant to follow police instructions, which in turn led to the officers being forced to take measures in order to maintain their own safety and to keep the situation from escalating. Important to note, is that the border at this area was however never closed by KPSM staff during these events.
Considering this very serious ongoing situation, The Minister of Justice immediately called a meeting with Prime Minister of Sint Maarten, the Chief of Police as well as other related stakeholders.
It was decided during this meeting that the KPSM will heighten its preparedness and increase their presence through patrols in strategic areas on the Dutch side, in order to avoid any unwanted situation from emanating from the escalations on the French side.
The Minister of Justice through the Prime Minister will also be requesting the Voluntary Corpse of Sint Maarten (VKS) to be on the alert, in order to be able to assist in maintaining the public order on the Dutch side at all times.
The Minister of Justice wishes to thank the local law enforcement officers and to let them know that the hard work put into keeping our people safe did not go unnoticed. At the same time the Minister discourages Dutch side residents from going to the French side during these trying times, unless for emergencies.
In closing, Minister Doran expresses his regrets regarding this serious situation and wished his French counterparts and our sisters and brothers of the French side much strength and the wisdom for both parties to find a speedy resolution to this very serious situation.
“You are in our thoughts” the Minister said.
