PHILIPSBURG--Minister of Justice Cornelius de Weever in cooperation with the office of the Representative of the Netherlands in Philipsburg will be hosting a two-day working conference between St. Maarten and the Netherlands on the topics of Border Control and the recovery of the local Justice system post-Hurricane Irma.

 

The conference will seek to discuss ways and means of further strengthening partnerships with regard to protecting St. Maarten’s borders and increasing the organisational capacity of in particular the Police Force, the Customs Services and the prison system, amongst other topics.

 

The Pointe Blanche prison suffered severe damage as a consequence of Hurricane Irma and assessments made by local as well as Dutch experts have advised the island to pursue the construction of an entirely new prison complex.

 

The conference begins today, Monday, and will end on Tuesday, according to a press release from the Justice Ministry.

 

Participating in the conference will be officials of the St. Maarten Police Force, the prison, Customs, Coast Guard, Prosecutor’s Office, Royal Marechaussee, Court of Guardianship, Foundation Judicial Institutes St. Maarten, St. Maarten Ministry of Justice and St. Maarten National Security Service, and the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security, Dutch Customs, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (BZK), Kingdom Detective Cooperation Team RST and the Dutch National Police.

 

Minister Cornelius de Weever welcomes the delegation from the Netherlands to the island and looks forward to two days of productive discussions.