AMSTERDAM–More than 2.5 million TV viewers witnessed a highly uncomfortable moment during the Remembrance Day ceremony in Amsterdam on Friday, May 4, when St. Maarten’s Acting Minister Plenipotentiary Hasani Ellis walked off prematurely at the end of the official wreath-laying.
Ellis represented St. Maarten during the solemn ceremony which is held annually on the Dam in Amsterdam in the presence of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. The King and Queen are always the first to lay a wreath at the War Memorial for the victims of WWII, subsequent wars and peace-keeping missions.
After that the Last Post is played, followed by two minutes of silence, the singing of the national anthem, the reading of a poem and a speech, and representatives of the different groups laying wreaths.
Ellis was part of the group of six persons who represented the Kingdom Council of Ministers, headed by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. The others were: Dutch Defence Minister Ank Bijleveld-Schouten, State Secretary of Public Health Paul Blokhuis and Ministers Plenipotentiary Anthony Begina of Curaçao and Guillfred Besaril of Aruba.
Ellis was the last person in the line when the group walked towards the War Memorial where Rutte and Blokhuis proceeded to lay a wreath. Ellis appeared not to be walking in sync with the rest. Then, at the end, after the moment of observance immediately following the wreath-laying, Ellis made a cardinal mistake by walking off too early.
The mistake lasted only a second or two, but it did not go unnoticed: the live broadcast registered the surprise of the public present at the Dam and the dismay of others who were there. “It was as if he was disoriented, as if he wasn’t part of the group,” said one observer over the weekend. St. Maarteners in the Netherlands responded with disappointment and annoyance. Some said Ellis’ action was clumsy and even called it an embarrassment.
The Acting Minister Plenipotentiary had received clear instructions on how to act and he had been informed beforehand about the protocol at the ceremony. Besides, Ellis was not new to this solemn ceremony.
Ellis also participated in the Remembrance Day event in Amsterdam on May 4 last year, representing St. Maarten and replacing then-Minister Plenipotentiary Henrietta Doran-York who was in St. Maarten for the funeral of a family member. At that time, his performance was flawless.
The incident showed the importance of having a heavyweight representative of the St. Maarten Government in The Hague, a person who emits authority and who has the knowledge and skills to operate in a diplomatic environment.
Appointing a heavyweight to the position of Minister Plenipotentiary has become even more relevant with St. Maarten having entered the phase of reconstruction with the aid of the Recovery Fund that is financed by the Dutch Government.
Without a Minister Plenipotentiary in the Netherlands since the February 2018 elections, Ellis is now the official representative of St. Maarten in the Netherlands. A new Minister Plenipotentiary has not been appointed yet.
The Daily Herald tried via telephone, e-mail and WhatsApp to get a reaction from Ellis on Sunday but was unable to reach him to hear his side of the story.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/76335-ellis-blunders-during-remembrance-day
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