The following is the text of a speech given by myself in a
meeting at the Great Bay Beach Hotel in St. Maarten, June 26th
1984:
Mr. Chairman,
I cannot let this opportunity pass without making some appropriate general remarks. With my love for history and the people of the Windward Islands and in this case St. Maarten in particular I want it recorded that, on the long and sometimes bitter road to Windward Islands autonomy, we stand today on hallowed soil.
St. Maarten, with its beautiful landscapes, its serene setting among the islands, its peculiar historical development, seems to have had the necessary ingredients to inspire poets and writers.
It is only in recent years that people of my generation, natives to these islands, have started to inquire into the history of our own people. Now we realize how many men and women of letters St. Maarten has produced and inspired. Although not born on St. Maarten, Mr. Netherwood with his "Bovenwindse Stemmen", Mr. Boetchie Brouwer with his "Slag om Slag", Mr. Joseph H. Lake with his "Windward Islands Opinion", and myself with the former "Labour Spokesman" were all in the vanguard of social and political agitation for more autonomy for these islands. It was generally the journalists who were the political vanguard in the struggle for autonomy for these islands.
What I say here today may not amount to more than a pinch of snuff, but I am convinced that there are things that must be said for the sake of saving the dignity of those who went on before us and who struggled in vain in their time for the autonomy which is within our grasp today. History would not forgive me should I let this moment pass unchallenged-a moment in which to record the struggle of our Windward Islands people for the privilege and the dignity of managing their own affairs.
As early as 1864 a planter named Romney published the first flier in search of autonomy by writing a letter to the Colonial Government stating that St. Maarten should be separated from Curacao and ruled directly from Holland. Historical research has proven that his motives were purely based on personal grievances. Nevertheless, in later years time and again on St. Maarten voices were raised against rule from Curacao and in favour of direct rule from Holland. This in effect meant a larger measure of local autonomy for these islands.
In former times, before this century, the Dutch Windward Islands knew such a degree of autonomy that they functioned practically as independent islands. It was only at the close of the nineteenth century and at the beginning of the twentieth that the colonial administration termed as "Curacao" started to tighten the reins of control over the Windward Islands. This they did by appointing Lt. Governors from prominent families on Curacao. Before that time the Lt. Governors and Commanders of these three islands had been natives or longtime residents of the islands.
History shows that from the very beginning there was resistance to attempts to centralize all authority on Curacao under the colonial "Governor".
Before 1880 the Dutch Windward Islands were seldom paid a visit by a Governor from Curacao. From 1880 to 1914, a period of 34 years, a Governor visited the Windward Islands only eleven times. Gov. De Jong (1901-1909) made seven of those eleven visits.
In 1911 St. Maarten-born Josiah Charles Waymouth, son of an English Methodist Minister, started a newspaper called "St. Martin Day by Day". In this newspaper Mr. Waymouth lamented the fact that most of the government officials in these islands were from the Curacao civil service body.
The constant tug-of-war between those on St. Maarten and those on Curacao resulted in Mr. Diederick J. van Romondt's letter to President Woodrow Wilson in which he argued for annexation by the United States (1917).
A similar letter appeared in the New York Herald on May 7th 1917 which read as follows:
MEMBER OF THE COURT OF POLICY OF ST. MAARTEN TELLS OF DESIRE THERE FOR ANNEXATION.
To the Editor of the Herald,
Isolated as we are from the marvelous events that daily occur on our globe, save by the weekly arrival from St. Christopher of a small schooner that brings us the cable news, we are deprived of the knowledge of those stirring events, except at such intervals, and then only the outlines thereof come to us. We sometimes get a few of our city papers from our friends in New York. It was my privilege recently to get your paper of the 14th of March, when I read with interest an article entitled "Our Naval Bases in the Caribbean", by Professor Jones.
The writer seems to ignore our existence and he is certainly ignorant of our geographical position, for from this point one of the principal ships lanes-the Sombrero Passage-is "commandable". There is no large land locked port in our island, but there are numerous spacious bays with good anchorage, and adjoining one in the southwestern part there is a large island lagoon connected by a small channel, which could be easily made to give anchorage to the United States fleet. Our island is owned by the Dutch and the French, with ports being dependent on the United States for all commodities necessary for our existence. English is the language of all, New York the goal of all who emigrate or go away for pleasure. We exist under the aegis of the old regime, but our hearts are with your great republic our aspirations are to be annexed, and now that the Danish Islands, our neighbors, have been acquired by your government, our jealousies are aroused and we are ready and willing to live under the Stars and Stripes.
signed: D.J. van Romondt, April 28th 1917 Planter and Member Court of Policy
St. Maarten.
In an open letter to the" Amigoe", which was published in "St. Martin Day by Day" No. 293 of 1917, the same Mr. van Romondt took issue with the Curacao editor and told him that he had 'advocated a change of regime' because he thought it essential to his native land. He went on to remind the editor of the" Amigoe" that he was speaking as a representative of the people as he had been a member of the Court of Policy for the past 25 years.
Shortly after the death of D. J. van Romondt in 1918 another van Romondt, Ernest Gerald better known as "Mr. Nessie", had himself elected as a member of the Court of Policy with the intention of furthering the call for direct rule from Holland. Mr. E.G. van Romondt only remained in the Court of Policy for one year. When the Court opened its session on December 7th 1918, however, he left on record a speech which was published later and alluded to in "Day by Day" as one "proposing very radical and highly needed changes." The proposed changes were:
1. A locale for the Council where they could have access to translations of the local Ordinances affecting the island.
2. Wider enfranchisement by reduced property qualifications for voters.
3. Alteration of the provisions of Ordiance 1869, No. 24, so as to enact that the ballots shall be delivered otherwise than by the Gezaghebber, and
4. The number of local councilors be extended from two to six members.
The van Romondts, however, being the elite of the island could not identify with the Waymouth movement, which attracted the poorer classes. In his book "Memories of St. Martin" Mr. Josiah Way mouth recalls some public meetings which were held on St. Maarten, and we quote from his book:
During the month of August (1918) some interesting events took place. There was one more concentrated effort by way of a lecture to draw the attention of the Home Authorities to our strivings for home administration instead of that emanating from Curacao; the lecture with Governor Tymstra's permission was given in the school house on Friday evening 29th inst. by schoolmaster Labega (William Frederick Adolphus), who, after expatiating on the frivolities of our 540-mile distant administration, procured from his audience an expression of
consentaneity as to the fitness of our islands to be governed by the Home Office. Notice was directed at the close of his lecture to a Mass Meeting advertised to take place on the 12th of September.
