PHILIPSBURG–Attorney-at-law Remco Stomp reacted on Monday to the front page article that appeared in the Saturday, June 29, edition of this newspaper, in which three Cuban immigrants talked about their ordeal of some 40 days behind bars at the Philipsburg police station.
Cuban nationals Yoandy Diaz Fernandez (35), Reynaldo Haten Riesch (49) and Marisleyvis de la Caridad Lamos Castro (30) are traumatised by the experience of their extended stay in the police holding cells since respectively April 17, 18 and 28 of this year. The three accused Stomp of not being clear about what the money given to him while they were incarcerated was for.
“I found out about the situation of the Cuban nationals by chance, when I visited the station for a criminal case. I felt sorry for them and offered to help, for no one else did,” stated the lawyer. “I have assisted many stranded immigrants in similar situations in the past, among them Cuban nationals, of which many times without getting paid.”
In fact, the money Stomp received, which was almost all the Cubans had at the time, barely covered the court fees. “The three Cuban nationals in this case paid US $600 in total for the 6 procedures (two each) I initiated on their behalf, mainly covering the fees to be paid to the court for each procedure. Normally the minimum cost for a court procedure is around $1,500 per procedure, exclusive court fees, but often much more,” Stomp pointed out.
“Cases like these, in which nothing or little is being charged, are called pro bono, pro deo or simply charity,” he added.
“The objectives in this case were to get the Cuban nationals released and to inform the public about the precarious situations in our cells and human rights in general. These objectives have been met,” stated Stomp.
He appealed to the general public to also look on the positive side of this story.
“The Cubans have been released, which is great news. Great efforts, in and out of court, have been made, by myself and various other individuals, to get them out of jail. They have been released even though the judge recently decided they could be held captive and instantly deported,” he noted. “The Minister of Justice therefore could have taken the decision to put them on the next flight to Havana, but he did not; on the contrary.
“Meanwhile country St. Maarten is working hard on improving the situation and progress is being made, which is perhaps the most important news in this case.”
Stomp said, “Great efforts in and out of court have been made by me and various other individuals to get them out of jail. They have been released even though the judge recently decided they could be held captive and instantly deported. The Minister of Justice therefore could have taken the decision to put them on the next flight to Havana, but he did not.
“I found out about the situation of the Cuban nationals by chance when I visited the station for a criminal case. I felt sorry for them and offered to help, for no one else did. I have assisted many stranded immigrants in similar situations in the past, among them Cuban nationals, … many times without getting paid,” stated the lawyer.
“The three Cuban nationals in this case paid US $600 in total for the six procedures (two each) I initiated on their behalf, mainly covering the fees to be paid to the court for each procedure. Normally the minimum cost for a court procedure is around $1,500 per procedure, exclusive court fees, but often much more. Cases like these, in which nothing or little is being charged, are called pro-bono, pro deo or simply charity.
“The objectives in this case were to get the Cuban nationals released and to inform the public about the precarious situation in our cells and human rights in general. These objectives have been met. Meanwhile, country St. Maarten is working hard on improving the situation and progress is being made, which is perhaps the most important news in this case.”
The three Cubans wish to not think about the ordeal anymore and cautioned the St. Maarten justice system to take a serious look at the way it deals with individuals in the Immigration system.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/88782-stomp-reacts-to-cubans
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