A lesson from the history of Sint Maarten

appointed as the new commander by the WIC in February 1790. Rink was a welcome guest for many in the community and had a good relationship with the commander of the French side of the island.

In June 1790, Rink sent a letter to the Directors of the WIC with the request to build an administrative office. The cost estimate for the construction was 14,000 florins. I assume he got zilch on the request.

Art Therapy

Salt Pond. They were intended for the people of the entire island, according to the treaty of Concordia concluded in 1648. All waterworks and improvements to the Great Salt Pond were made in the 19th century.

Recently, through Facebook posts from the island archivist Alfonso Blijden, we got to know something about the history of Sint Maarten. Thanks to the writings of architect and historian Elso Kraai, I can retell the above about Sint Maarten in this column. Elso has recorded a lot about the architectural history of Sint Maarten. He recently told me a lot about the history of the ‘Courthouse,’ the first administrative office on Sint Maarten. Together with several others, Elso is now busy with the restoration and renovation of the courthouse.

Before that, they did a lot of research in the archives of Sint Maarten. In archival records from 1780 to 1830, when the Netherlands transitioned from a republic to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Sint Maarten was a trading post under the administration of the United West Indies Company before it became a municipality of the Netherlands. During that period, many petitions were sent to the Netherlands asking for help. Documents can be found in the archives wherein the commanders requested the Directors of the WIC to help Sint Maarten financially solve technical and social issues. The reactions kept coming back with the answer that the colonies had to solve their own problems. At that time, Sint Maarten was left to its own devices.

At some point, there was a turning point. Abuses had arisen in the regime that led to irregularities on Sint Maarten between 1785 and 1787. Two years later, a commission of inquiry was sent by the Supreme Director of the WIC.

In early 1790, during the investigation, the resignation of Commander Gibbes and the entire Council was accepted.

Dr. W.H. Rink, a lawyer who lived on the island and owned the plantation ‘Retreat,’ was

Fortunately, the salt harvest of 1789 was very successful. After 1790 when the WIC went bankrupt, no more payments were made to the WIC for the sale of salt and goods.

Although salt production failed for several years in the 1890s due to heavy rainfall and hurricanes, the salt industry in St. Maarten picked up again because the young nation of America and Canada needed a lot of salt for the fishing industry and the preservation of food. Money was received in abundance from the sale and taxes of salt. Some studies show that more than a quarter of a million guilders were collected during that time. At the time, that was a fortune, of course.

Several factors played an important role that forced the Council of Sint Maarten to make their ‘own’ decisions. They had income from the sale of salt, the WIC no longer existed and the Republic was in turmoil. This allowed the island to initiate a major project.

Like the administration building, what we now know as the Courthouse. Finally, there was a building in Philipsburg for and of the municipality itself. The island council members at that time in 1793 were W.H. Rink, as chairman; R.F. Muller, H. Godet, I. Pantophlet, A. Van Heijningen and A. Cannegieter, all names of well-known families that still exist in Sint Maarten today. From this, we can conclude that Sint Maarten, in a period when the island was left to its own devices, had the courage and good fortune to support itself. Parallels with the present can be drawn by comparing the salt production from Sint Maarten’s days of old with the possibility to generate income via the internet today. For example, by setting up a solar panel park to mine bitcoins electronically. With that, I want to end this column with the question of whether Sint Maarten could support itself, for example, by investing in crypto-currency and generating income for the island by offering digital money. In this pandemic period, there is a lot of money in circulation looking for a safe haven to be secured against devaluation and inflation. In other words, Sint Maarten has the opportunity, among other things, to become a digital trading post for crypto-currency and thus not be dependent on the Netherlands for liquidity support. Many lessons can be learned from the past for Sint Maarten to ensure a sustainable future, just as the Cannegieters, the Van Heijningens, the Pantophlets and many others did for the island in the 18th century. The Courthouse in Philipsburg is as a monument a testimony to that legacy.

“I know art is capable of healing,” says Clara Reyes, Head of the Culture Department and Co-Founder of National Institute of Arts. “I know it. Without a doubt. As a matter of fact, just as I breathe air in, and I breathe air out. Art heals, and that’s it. Art heals through a variety of reasons: it’s a dialogue with the self, and you’re always questioning yourself. Art heals because of its absorption into the body. It heals in very pragmatic ways. It allows people to access their emotional state and investigate. Through various therapies and investigative journeys into the self, we dig deeper into the emotional psyche.”

Art Therapy is the use of artistic activities, such as coloring, drawing, painting, photography, and sculpting, to treat psychological disorders and improve one’s mental health. Other forms of creative therapy include dance therapy, drama therapy, expressive therapy, music therapy, and writing therapy.

It’s a technique that comes from the idea that creative expression can assist in healing and mental well-being. The goal is to use the creative process to help people explore self-expression and, in doing so, find new ways to gain personal insight and develop new coping skills. When creating art, people have the ability to explore their emotions, develop self-awareness, cope with stress, boost self-esteem, and work on social skills.

It can be used to treat mental disorders and psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders, family and relationship problems, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and stress, especially when used together with other psychotherapy techniques such as group therapy or cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).

However, art therapy isn’t for everyone. While being talented isn’t a requirement for art therapy to be successful, people who believe they’re not creative might be hesitant or skeptical of the process. Additionally, it hasn’t been found effective for all types of mental health conditions such as schizophrenia. Further research is needed to explore how and when art therapy would be most beneficial.

“Whether you’re a dancer, an actor, a performer, a circus performer. You develop strong physical strength because of all the dexterity involved, virtuosity, and physical skill sets that are required. Art heals in terms of psycho-social wellness. It heals in cognitive skills development. It heals through its activity. Art has an entry point into the human experience that allows for dialogue, discovery, and repairing.”

An example of art being used to help mental health is the Art Heals program written by Clara Reyes for the National Institute of Arts (N.I.A.). This program took place after Irma devastated St. Maarten in 2017.

“We used the program to give children a voice after the hurricane, because the arts allow you a vehicle to express yourself. We created poetry, and the kids wrote and talked about the fear they experienced during the hurricane. Stephanie Hassett, who worked at the Mental Health Foundation, worked with us and explained the signs of Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD), which is what a lot of people were facing. Through the program, we found fun, creative ways to express the things we were dealing with in our bodies - not letting the fear overtake you.”

PHILIPSBURG -- A team of teenaged debaters from St. Maarten won a debating competition in Antigua earlier this month. St. Maarten beat St. Kitts in the finals, debating the topic: “The Caribbean’s failure to take mental illness seriously has caused irreparable damage to families and communities.” Debaters Pooja Ramkripaul and Adio Williams successfully supported this proposition.

Ramkripaul, a student from St. Dominic High won the prize for the best debater of the competition. St Maarten’s team consisted of eight members, aged between 14 and 19. Apart from Ramkripaul they were Odinakachukwu Nwoke (Milton Peters College), Nysette Gomes (MPC), Fayah Ortega (MPC), Adio Williams (St. Dominic High), Radharani Natram (St. Dominic), Seybian Ortega (Learning Unlimited), Mahuli Richardson (Learning Unlimited) and Radiah Mathew (MPC).

The Leeward Island Debating competition took place on Saturday, March 14, at the John E. St. Luce Finance and Conference Center in Antigua.

To reach the finals, St. Maarten beat Anguilla in a debate over the topic: “Caribbean countries should prescribe that one-third of parliamentary representatives must be females.” Debaters Mathew and Nwoke opposed this proposition and won.

St. Kitts bested Antigua over the topic “Efforts to reverse climate change are doomed to fail.”

“Debating is a great skill to enroll your child in,” assistant coach Norisca Fleming said. “It helps them with public speaking, critical thinking and research skills. They can use it for their curriculum if they intend to go to college. It is also useful in their daily lives.”

The coaching team consisted of Roberto Arrindell, Norisca Fleming, Reverend Liana Richardson-Woods and Nicole Williams-Wynter.

The Hyacinth Richardson Educational Awareness foundation has been a member of the Leeward Islands Debate Competition since 2005. Richardson, a Member of Parliament, traveled with the debaters to Antigua as their coordinator.

Odinakachukwu Nwoke said before the beginning of the contest that getting ready for the debate was very stressful.

“I feel like everything was worth it because I feel like we are prepared to go in, have a good time, show our best selves and possibly win.”

Adio Williams: “It is a fun pastime. You learn a lot, exchange ideas and hear different perspectives.”

Nwoke was not so sure before she tried her hand at debating.

“I never saw myself as a debater until my English teacher, Miss Fleming, convinced me to try out for the debate club at my school. At my first try-out I realized that love bringing up my opinion based on facts and articulating my words. From there, my passion grew.”

Coach Fleming said that the participating students are very dedicated and that they had worked hard in preparation for the competition. “Most of them are in exam class, so having to do both too some good dedication.”

Coach Roberto Arrindell had some prophetic words before the beginning of the competition. “The students are very well prepared despite the circumstances. We expect to go there, do our best and return with the trophy.”

The debate streamed live on Sunday, March 5. Readers can watch the video recording on YouTube via: https://www. youtube.com/live/-Kdf_aYaxU?feature=share.

Final debate: https://www. youtube.com/live/dggnRE2ngY?feature=share