A Cold Day

MP Omar Ottley finally said out loud what many politicos whisper. “It will be a cold day in hell before this Member of Parliament sits and watches Curaçao take over Mullet Bay.” For once, St. Maarten heard a clear line in the sand on the island’s most watched piece of land.

Curaçao has been more direct on this file, sometimes blunt. St. Maarten has leaned on careful updates and soft language. All the while, many eyes are on Mullet Bay, yes including some in Curaçao. In that context, Ottley’s words meet the moment, they tell the public, and anyone circling above, that St. Maarten will not drift into a decision by silence.

He also offered a plan that reads like common sense. First, take control of the planning, write and adopt a development framework so government decides what can be built, where access runs, and how the area serves people and business. Second, line up real financing that matches the likely price and timeline, prove that the right of first refusal can be used with leverage, not just talked about. Third, use that right only when the country can close. Put simply, do not be caught unprepared when the window opens.

Years ago, the late Edgar Lynch called for expropriation of Mullet Bay. All hell broke loose. Some warned that even members of the United States Congress would be upset if a country claimed control over land on its own soil. That panic said more about our nerves than our rights. Today the picture is fuller. There are court matters, there are agreements, there are rules that guide how assets are handled. We should acknowledge those facts, and still hold our ground.

The tone from some in Curaçao has sounded like ownership of the process. St. Maarten does not need to shout back, St. Maarten needs to be clear. No one should pretend this is simple. Agreements must be respected, courts must be heard, the numbers must add up. That is why clarity helps.

People need to feel, not only hear, that hell would freeze over before St. Maarten loses Mullet Bay. Ottley gave voice to that feeling. Now the executive must match it with steps the public can see, with a financing plan, and a ready playbook. We can be nuanced and firm at the same time, we can keep faith with process and still show spine. The country deserves a government ready to fight if the time comes.

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