Former Sous-Préfet for St. Martin Dominique Lacroix.
MARIGOT–The Collectivité announced that two working committees, one on youth and the other on urban planning, will be installed mid-January as part of the action plan it promised to implement following the latest meeting with the Heads Together collective on January 4.
Both parties continue their efforts to defuse tension and address the collective’s issues and demands, among which is the contentious natural risk prevention plan PPRN.
The Collectivité said the latest meeting at which Heads Together had presented its list of demands to the elected representatives had been “fruitful and constructive.” Meetings also continue with the Préfecture on other issues for which the State has responsibility.
The common position of both parties is that the PPRN for St. Martin implemented “by anticipation” on August 6 by the Préfecture must be re-written. The Collectivité said after discussions with the Heads Together delegation that concerns over the PPRN being enacted by anticipation impact the future of the territory and its inhabitants negatively in the social and economic sense, and were the trigger for the week-long protests that began on December 14.
“Fears about the possession of land and houses are real,” the Collectivité reasoned in its release on the latest developments.
Aside from the PPRN, the Collectivité acknowledges the deep-rooted and long-running social issues reflected in a list of some 30 demands to be addressed. They were first brought to light by the then-named “Collective Union du Peuple-Travailleur Saint-Martinois.”
The meetings coincide with the arrival Tuesday of former Sous-Préfet for St. Martin and St. Barths Dominique Lacroix and his delegation who are charged by the French government to “give an opinion on the provisions of the new PPRN.”
Lacroix will be meeting with President Daniel Gibbs and the Territorial Council today, Wednesday.
“If the State has so far refused to hear the elected representatives, members of the collective and the population who have been asking for several months for the PPRN to be withdrawn, it is in full responsibility that we have all decided together to welcome this mission in order to once again bring our vision of our territory and its future to the forefront,” the Collectivité asserted. “Make no mistake, this mission is our last chance to make our voice heard by the State.
“Behind this, a deeper social crisis has emerged. Unfortunately, this is not new to the people of St. Martin. The Collectivité has been working relentlessly for several months, despite the obstacles it has encountered, to establish a policy commensurate with the stakes of the territory and the legitimate expectations of the population. President Daniel Gibbs announced it in his speech at the last territorial council that, ‘2020 will be the year of social cohesion and development’.”
Numerous social, economic and youth-related actions have already started and were outlined in the Budgetary Orientation Debate validated by the Territorial Council on December 20. They are listed under the following headings:
Anti-Poverty Plan
Support for the creation of Maisons d’Assistants Maternelles (MAM) to improve the early childhood care offer in the territory; sustainable and voluntary third-party child welfare system; The Young Adult Contract to extend support provided to young adults until the age of 21, within the framework of child welfare; strengthening the fight against Revenue Solidarité Active (RSA) fraud.
Social policy
The social policy of the Collectivité includes a chapter dedicated to the social and solidarity economy and social innovation. Five actions will be undertaken from the first quarter of 2020:
Creation of a civic mission for environment and neighbourhood beautification; implementation of a personal assistance service dedicated to seniors (service aimed at facilitating travel of seniors); creation of a Territorial Centre for the social and solidarity economy to structure this economic sector and to support project leaders and companies; opening of a social and solidarity grocery store for families in difficulty; the Assises du Social et de l’Emploi (Social and Employment Conference) will be organised soon.
The objective is to work in conjunction with the neighbourhoods to ascertain their needs and identify complementary actions to be carried out in the framework of social policy.
Education
Validation of teacher training for the CRPE 2020 competition to help registrants prepare for the competition; installation in 2019 of educational games in the kindergarten classes of all public schools.
Vocational training
The establishment of a Conservatory of Arts and Crafts in St. Martin. The Collectivité has already set up its 2018-2020 Vocational Training Plan to enable the people of St. Martin to improve their skills in a particular field. A number of qualifications are open, with 26 training modules currently available to help St. Martiners upgrade their skills.
The Collectivité and its elected representatives intend to step up their efforts through new actions programmed in the Vocational Training Plan 2018-2020 and to take up the challenge of this social crisis.
“In the same way that it recently signed the Convergence Plan with the State for the development of public infrastructure, including a number of social, educational and sports facilities, we propose that the State supports the Collectivité, while respecting the competences of each one, through a Social Convergence Plan,” the Collectivité explained.
“This plan should be drawn up in partnership and will be presented to the population on a regular basis. However, it is important that everyone takes their share of responsibility in the social situation. And in a constructive but uncompromising dialogue, the State will be asked to take full responsibility in such areas as fighting illegal immigration, crime and drugs, and the maintenance of public security and tranquillity.”
The elected representatives, in response to the members of the collective, proposed the same timeline as the PPRN mission to develop this social convergence plan, i.e. three months. Working committees will be set up to make progress on the claims within its jurisdiction.
A committee on the theme of youth will be set up in mid-January under the supervision of First Vice-President Valérie Damaseau. A working committee on urban planning will also be set up from mid-January, supervised by fourth Vice-President Steven Patrick, to deal with issues relating to building regulations and the regularisation of titles in the “50 pas geometriques” zone.
The Collectivité has undertaken to renew the permanent offices of the urban planning department in the neighbourhoods to enable people living in the 50 pas geometriques zone to obtain an individual appointment to discuss their situation and be informed of the steps to be taken for regularisation. The Collectivité wants as soon as possible to give title to parcels located in the 50 pas geometriques zone within the framework provided by the law.
In return for the commitments they have made, the elected representatives asked the Heads Together collective to intervene in removing the blockades and to interact with public services so that a complete clean-up of Sandy Ground can be carried out quickly, allowing the population to return to its usual living environment.
“This meeting therefore made it possible to agree on a joint action plan with the members of the collective Heads Together to establish a PPRN that respects the specific characteristics of St. Martin and to make progress on the social demands falling within the responsibility of the Collectivité.
“The local government is now counting on the spirit of responsibility and the will of each party in this crisis (State, Collectivité, collective), to move forward together towards a more peaceful St. Martin, more representative of its specificities and more united,” the Collectivité concluded.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/93827-youth-and-urban-planning-working-committees-to-start-mid-january
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