While since the 1er August 2020, traffic between Saint-Martin and Sint Maarten was restricted in order to fight against the spread of the Coronavirus on the French part, the extension of this restriction beyond the 1er September 2020 has created significant hardship for families and businesses on both sides of the island.
Following the meeting with the territorial executive, Tuesday, September 1, the Prefecture heard the appeal of the Collectivity and the families and undertook to take into consideration the situation of the students domiciled in Sint Maarten requesting access to the school in Saint-Martin. Indeed, even though the children were deprived of a conventional school curriculum during the period of confinement from March to June, it is imperative today to allow them to resume lessons within their establishment and not by teleworking, whatever their place of residence.
In the same vein, the Collectivité of Saint-Martin considers that it is now a priority to restore the free movement of goods and people throughout the island, in the spirit of the Treaty of Concordia. If this restriction could be justified in August by an argument of sanitary preservation, it no longer appears relevant today. All the indicators show that border controls have failed to stop the circulation of the virus. Their effectiveness is illusory, in particular due to the fact that many pedestrians bypass checkpoints
Anyway, it is now appropriate that the prefecture of Saint-Martin / Saint-Barthélemy, competent in public health, relaunch discussions with the government of Sint Maarten to establish a joint health plan at the scale of the island allowing the Saint-Martinois to move freely between the North and the South while respecting strict sanitary rules. We are convinced that this joint plan would bring back the serenity necessary for the economic and social reconstruction of the territory.
The role of the Collectivity also consists of alerting the State to the underlying social crisis caused by border restrictions. Although we are all unanimous on the need to stop Covid cases in the territory, we believe that border control is not a timely response in the current context. In view of this unsuitable situation, President Daniel Gibbs requested an emergency meeting of the Q4 cell (France - Holland - Saint-Martin Sint Maarten), so that the stakeholders come together and find solutions other than the closure of borders. The real answer lies in the dialogue and the implementation of a joint health plan for both parts of the island. We are currently awaiting the response from the ministry and the implementation of this plan, which is the only way to act effectively to protect the health of the inhabitants of the island as a whole and allow a gradual economic recovery.
In order to promote economic recovery, the Executive Council voted in favor, on Wednesday September 9, a deliberation on the current health situation and on the prospects for opening up the territory to leisure and business visits from November 1, 2020. This deliberation will be presented to the Territorial Council for a vote on September 24, with a view to preparing for the next tourist season and to discussing the possibility of requesting an exemption from France. The economic aspect cannot be minimized, on the contrary it must be at the center of all our attention.
In order to unblock this alarming situation as quickly as possible following the implementation by France of border controls, President Daniel Gibbs alerted Overseas Minister Sébastien Lecornu on September 7. He reiterated to the Minister the need to lift border controls and strengthen the means and health protocols in the territory of Saint-Martin. It would be inappropriate today not to take into account the socio-economic issues inherent in these controls and to want to extend them beyond September 15.
The Collectivity repeats it: the urgency today consists of working hand in hand with Sint Maarten by jointly fighting against the spread of Covid19 and by creating together the conditions for economic recovery. The Collectivity of Saint-Martin reiterates to the State the lifting of traffic restrictions between Saint-Martin and Sint Maarten as of Tuesday, September 15, 2020, end of the extension period.
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