Caribbean News
Sint Maarten to close Kim Sha Marketplace to make way for future construction
#SintMaarten, July 5, 2019 — The Ministry of Tourism Economic Affairs Transport & Telecommunication TEATT and the Ministry of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Development and Infrastructure VROMI has decided to close the temporary vending outlets at the Kim Sha Beach Marketplace in preparation for the planned improvement project for that area.
Minister of TEATT, the honourable Stuart Johnson, told the Parliament of St. Maarten of his intention during the 2019/2020 Budget Debate last week. On Monday July 1, Johnson said the decision was not an easy one as it regards the livelihood of several individuals. He held discussions with the Vendors in both Simpson Bay and Philipsburg earlier this year and gave them an idea of what was planned. The TEATT and VROMI Ministry intends to build hurricane-resistant structures that were modern and attractive.
Both Ministers Johnson and VROMI Minister Miklos Giterson also explained that the intention was to work on finding an alternative location for vending during the time of the construction project for both Kim Sha Beach Parking Lot and Philipsburg vendors. The temporary location was created based on the need to accommodate cruise passengers since there was severe damage to Orient Beach and the Great Bay Beach, post Hurricane-Irma.
In a letter sent to the Vendors explaining the motivation for the decision not to extend the Vending Permits which expired at the end of June. Johnson said the original intention was to create a village of a variety of local food and beverage options to give our cruise and stayover visitors an authentic experience during the day and early evening hours. He noted that he had received several complaints regarding how some vendors managed their booths. Charges included loud noise, hygiene concerns and extended opening hours without prior authorization, which was a violation of their vending permits.
He said, “The intention was never for the marketplace to act as a late night hang out, especially considering the current issue of noise pollution in the Simpson Bay area and Government’s attempts to mitigate such pollution. It is for this reason that a ban was placed on (loud) music and a closing time of 10 pm was implemented for the Kim Sha market place.”
Once the new facilities are constructed, vendors will have to adhere to strict rules governing their operation. Johnson said the concern that some have over Inspectors and Police targeting specifically the Market Vendors was based largely on misinformation. “When it comes to noise pollution and the disruption of the otherwise pleasant experience of our visitors on whom we depend for economic activity, no business is exempt from controls,” said Johnson.
He said Inspectors conduct routine checks to see how much decibels of noise is produced by the various sound systems throughout Dutch St. Maarten. Police officers are also called regularly to different areas on the island where either residents or business owners are alleged to be causing a nuisance with their music. Johnson said the Control Officers from the Ministry of TEATT have a clear mandate on what they should look for, and that has always been in place.
Where it concerns the Police officers who may from time to time close businesses found to be violating the law, Johnson said: “the police are just doing their jobs.”
“If the police get complaints about loud noise coming from these vendors after certain hours and find that the permits in their possession do not allow them to open at that hour, the decision is within the prevue of the Police and Justice Department to determine that the Vendor must close,” said Johnson.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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