Something worthwhile
People from the Dominican Republic in St. Maarten/St. Martin have initiated a week-long celebration of that country’s independence. That the Dominicano community has grown steadily in both numbers and economic importance over the years is evident when one listens to the radio and hears the number of Spanish-language programmes, while there was even a Spanish-language daily newspaper until recently.
The same holds true for several other groups of foreign residents, such as those from India, China, Haiti, Guyana, Jamaica, Dominica, Suriname, etc. The rapid development of the island has brought countless people from elsewhere to “The Friendly Island,” most of them to provide much-needed labour.
The specific figures for the upcoming elections are not out yet, but past experience shows that less than half the voters are actually from St. Maarten or the Netherlands Antilles. Mind you, that figure represents only adults with Dutch nationality, not the many legal foreign residents without it and certainly not the thousands residing on the island illegally.
Commissioner of Labour Louie Laveist too has come to realise that these foreign workers and their families have become an inextricable part of St. Maarten and its tourism economy. He is now working on simplifying the legalisation process for undocumented persons, also in light of the new, tighter immigration policy.
As stated before, it is also high time legal foreign workers who have been here for some time are given more security in terms of residence and employment permits, so that they can feel more part of local society and act as such, rather than having a sword of Damocles constantly hanging over their head in terms of having to wait to see if the renewal of their permits will be approved on an annual or biennial basis.
But the other side of the coin cannot be ignored either. Tuesday evening’s well attended panel discussion on “St. Maarteness” was obviously prompted by legitimate concerns among locals about the influx of foreigners and its impact on the social fabric of the island. It remains a sensitive issue that must be handled with care, but the bottom line is that supply and demand are ultimately the determining factors in any free-enterprise society, unless government regulates the growth in terms of its immigration policy, zoning and the like.
The new Dutch Government in any case plans to stem the flow of foreigners who obtain Dutch nationality through five years of legal residence on the islands and end up in Holland without real prospects of becoming productive members of society. That’s why it wants to require that such people at least speak the Dutch language.
That is not something many foreigners hoping to get Dutch passports may want to hear, but it is understandable. After all, to become a permanent resident and keep one’s own nationality takes 10 years, twice as long as naturalisation.
On the French side the requirement already exists, and while English is the main language used on the Dutch side, it seems reasonable that people who want Dutch passports speak the official language and have at least some basic knowledge of the Dutch Kingdom. After all, if Dutch nationality is to maintain its value, it should be more than just a passport and social security in Holland, it should be a feeling of belonging to something that is worthwhile.
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