GREAT BAY--St. Maarten resident and entrepreneur Loic Bryan has launched a citizen petition calling for structural reforms aimed at expanding access to laws, legal information and court proceedings in English, arguing that the current system creates barriers for residents who are not proficient in Dutch.
The petition is directed to the Dutch House of Representatives, the Government of St. Maarten and the Joint Court of Justice. Bryan stressed that the initiative is not connected to any individual court case or dispute, but is intended to address what he describes as a longstanding systemic issue affecting residents, professionals and businesses.
Under Article 1 of St. Maarten’s Constitution, Dutch and English are both recognized as official languages. Bryan argues that despite this constitutional recognition, much of the country’s statutory and administrative framework continues to operate primarily in Dutch.
“Forcing our community to navigate complex legal, administrative, and financial obligations in a language the vast majority cannot fluently read or understand creates an arbitrary barrier to basic justice,” Bryan stated.
He said residents should be able to understand the laws and procedures that govern their lives without having to depend on translations or specialized assistance to determine their basic legal obligations.
Four reforms proposed
Bryan’s petition calls for four principal changes. The first is the systematic translation of St. Maarten’s statutory laws into English, allowing the public to access legislation in both of the country’s official languages.
The second calls for the laws to be compiled and made readily available to the public in Dutch and English, either through printed publications or free digital access.
His third proposal seeks broader official acceptance of English-language filings, submissions and proceedings within the Joint Court of Justice. The fourth calls for an end to the rejection of legal submissions solely because they have been submitted in English.
Bryan said the objective is to establish what he considers greater procedural equality between residents who function primarily in English and those who are proficient in Dutch.
Current government drafting guidelines state that legislation should, as much as possible, be prepared in Dutch. The Government of St. Maarten also makes legislation containing generally binding regulations digitally available, although it notes that those electronic versions are provided for information and are not the official authoritative versions of the laws.
Fair trial argument
Bryan also linked the petition to fair-trial protections under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Article 6 contains specific language protections in criminal proceedings, including the right of a person charged with an offence to be informed of the accusation in a language the person understands and to receive free assistance from an interpreter when unable to understand or speak the language used in court. The European Court of Human Rights has clarified that these protections are intended to ensure that an accused person can understand the case and exercise his or her defence rights.
St. Maarten’s Constitution contains similar protections in criminal proceedings, including the right to be informed of accusations in a language understood by the accused and access to an interpreter when the person does not understand or speak the language used at trial.
Bryan’s petition goes further by seeking broader English-language access throughout the legislative, administrative and judicial systems.
“This initiative is strictly focused on securing structural equality and protecting the fundamental rights of all citizens of St. Maarten,” Bryan said, adding that he does not intend to use the initiative to comment on individual legal cases.
He is encouraging residents to read, sign and share the petition so that the issue can be considered by authorities in both St. Maarten and the Netherlands.
“Justice cannot be served in a language the public cannot read,” Bryan stated.
The petition can be accessed athttps://c.org/xNs2qtkFrT
