Authorities to clamp down on illegal gypsy transportation | THE DAILY HERALD

PHILIPSBURG–Authorities are looking to clamp down on illegal gypsy transportation, particularly at Port St. Maarten.

  Stakeholders from a number of areas met on Tuesday to discuss the issue and come up with solutions on how to tackle it. At the meeting were representatives of the Ministry of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Development and Infrastructure VROMI; Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT); Port St. Maarten; St. Maarten Tourist Bureau; Dutch-side Taxi Association; Downtown Taxi Association;  Airport Taxi Association; Prosecutor’s Office; and St. Maarten Police Force.

  The objective of the meeting was for parties to jointly come up with solutions to combat “the ongoing and growing illegal public transport” situation (gypsies) on the island, primarily at the entrance of Port St. Maarten when cruise ships are in port, police spokesperson Chief Inspector Ricardo Henson said in a press release on Wednesday.

  “This situation has been ongoing for a number of years and many attempts by authorities have been made to have this problem taken care of,” he said.

  Community Police Officer (CPO) Felix Richards delivered an extensive PowerPoint presentation of the current situation, during the meeting. Following the presentation representatives of the various departments had a chance to give their opinions and concerns on the matter.

  “The meeting was a very informative one whereby all stakeholders’ representatives involved vowed to bring their ideas forward and to give their fullest cooperation to jointly come up with solutions on how to best solve this ongoing problem,” Henson said. In the meantime, police “will continue to tackle the situation the best way they can until other legal measures can be taken against this illegal form of public transportation.”

  Stakeholders will meet again in the next two weeks on the matter.

Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/84862-authorities-to-clamp-down-on-illegal-gypsy-transportation

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