An I-petition ‘For the love of Haiti and its People’, has just been launched online. This I-petition is the initiative of the well known St Martin nation-building grassroot movement on the island of St Martin/Sint Maarten. While this grassroot St Martin movement has already committed itself financially and otherwise... read more...

---

LONDON, England -- Trayport Exchange Systems on Thursday announced two new contracts with the Barbados Stock Exchange and the Dutch Caribbean Securities Exchange NV. Trayport’s Exchange Trading System will provide both exchanges with a fully integrated trading platform. read more...

---

HOUSTON, USA (Reuters) -- Aruba's government hopes the settlement of a tax dispute with Valero Energy Corp over its idled refinery on the island will win approval from parliament "as soon as possible," a government spokesman said. The dispute has been seen as a roadblock to the sale of the refinery. read more...

---

HOUSTON, USA (Reuters) -- Valero Energy Corp said a framework to resolve a long-standing dispute over taxes on its Aruba refinery had been worked out with the Aruban government, but must be approved by parliament. A representative of the Aruban prime minister's office was not available to comment. read more...

---

It was simply heart-rending to watch the images of Haitians living among the dead as they waited for food and water; to say nothing of those who waited for emergency medical treatment or to be rescued before earthquake rubble became their tomb. But this emotion was mollified somewhat by... read more...

---

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -- An ArkeFly flight carrying 235 people from Amsterdam to Aruba in the Caribbean was forced to divert to Ireland on Wednesday after an unruly Dutch passenger made bomb threats during the flight. ArkeFly said Flight 361 landed at Shannon Airport, where the man was handed over to authorities. read more...

---

TORONTO, Canada (Reuters) -- Valero Energy Corp, state oil giant PetroChina and Aruba's Prime Minister Mike Eman on Tuesday were negotiating the sale of Valero's refinery located in the Caribbean nation, according to a government spokesman. The refinery has been on the sales block for at least a year. read more...

---

UTRECHT, The Netherlands (Reuters) -- Dutch teenage sailor Laura Dekker whose round-the-world voyage was blocked by the courts fled last week to the Caribbean island of St Martin to buy a boat and start her voyage, her lawyer said Wednesday. Dekker, 14, went missing last Thursday but was found on St Martin. read more...

---

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (Reuters) -- A Dutch teenager who went missing after child welfare authorities thwarted her attempt to become the youngest person to sail singlehanded round the world has been found in the Dutch Antilles.  Laura Dekker, 14, had been found on the Caribbean island of St Martin. read more...

---

PHILIPSBURG, St Maarten -- Windward Islands Airways International (Winair) hosted its first Tourist Office conference. The one day conference was held in St Maarten and was attended by a number of tourist board representatives from the airline’s destinations. Vice President and Director of Marketing... read more...

---

PARAMARIBO, Suriname -- Parliaments from Aruba, Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles vowed to strengthen cooperation in several fields during discussions here in Paramaribo. Delegations from Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles concluded a three-day visit to Suriname over the weekend expressing optimism. read more...

---

PHILIPSBURG, St Maarten -- Chatting happily with new friends around the bar at Boleros, the Latin music and dance spot on the Oasis of the Seas, Bonnie Simpson is having a good time. The ship is hours outside of the port of Philipsburg, St Maarten, but the party continues on the decks well into the night. read more...

---

PHILIPSBURG, St Maarten -- Regional carrier Windward Islands Airline (Winair) has announced that it will be terminating the route from St Maarten to Anguilla with effect from December 1, 2009. According to Vice President of Marketing, Claudio Buncamper, this is as a result of the airline suffering significant losses. read more...

---

PHILIPSBURG, Netherlands Antilles -- Regional airline, Windward Islands Airways International (WINNAIR) has announced special fares in observance of three special events to take place in three of its nine destinations. The events are St Maarten Day, which will be observed on November 11... read more...

---

WASHINGTON, USA (Reuters) -- The founder of the defunct online offshore gambling firm BetOnSports, Gary Kaplan, was sentenced to the maximum 51 months in prison for conspiring to violate US racketeering and other laws. Kaplan set up business entities offshore in Aruba, Antigua and Costa Rica. read more...

---

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands-- The Cayman Islands signed a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with the Netherlands Antilles on 29 October 2009 whilst attending the CFATF Plenary, held in Curacao. The agreement is the fourteenth TIEA signed by the Cayman Islands. read more...

---

HAMILTON, Bermuda -- Bermuda's Minister of Finance Paula Cox announced on Tuesday that Bermuda has concluded a bilateral agreement with Aruba that provides for a full exchange of information on criminal and civil tax matters between Bermuda and Aruba. The tax information exchange agreement... read more...

---

CORAL GABLES, USA -- In the current economic climate, the hospitality industry has been feeling the effects of travelers cutting back, and no place is this more evident than in the Caribbean. In spite of this, some Caribbean resorts are weathering the storm thanks to solid service and marketing programs. read more...

---

HONG KONG, China (Bloomberg) -- Aruban Prime Minister Nelson Oduber expects to be able to agree soon with PetroChina Co. about the sale of a Valero Energy Corp. refinery on the island, Dutch news agency ANP reported, citing the politician. Valero said in July it was continuing talks with PetroChina. read more...

---

ORLANDO, USA -- AirTran Airways has released schedules for new service to Aruba. These flights will mark the airline's fifth Caribbean destination and are in addition to recently announced service to Montego Bay, Jamaica, and Nassau, Bahamas and existing service to Cancun, Mexico, and San Juan, Puerto Rico. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao -- The status of the Netherlands Antilles as a co-operative, transparent and internationally responsible jurisdiction has been recognized by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on September 11 2009. According to a press release on Saturday... read more...

---

NEW YORK, USA -- JetBlue Airways will waive change fees and fare differences to allow customers booked to or from St Maarten to postpone their travel plans due to the projected path of Tropical Storm Erika. JetBlue serves St Maarten with nonstop flights from Boston and New York/JFK. read more...

---

PHILIPSBURG, St Maarten -- Winair has announced there will be a number of changes to its schedule for Thursday, 3rd September 2009. Despite the following destinations: Nevis, St Barths, Statia and Saba operating normally on Wednesday, they will join the other destinations on Thursday in not operating. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao -- The Netherlands Antilles and Mexico have signed a tax agreement which spells out a framework under which both nations will exchange information on tax matters in order to prevent tax fraud, financing of terrorism and money laundering. State Secretary of Finance... read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao -- The Netherlands Antilles and Canada have signed a bilateral agreement for the exchange of information for tax purposes. The Netherlands Antilles will in the next two weeks sign similar deals with Mexico, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Faroe Islands and Greenland. read more...

---

DALLAS, USA (Bloomberg) -- Valero Energy Corp. said its Aruba refinery, the third-largest in the Caribbean, will be closed indefinitely and “nearly all” the remaining contract workers fired. The refinery stopped production July 16. Valero notified workers Wednesday that the shutdown will continue. read more...

---

ATLANTA, USA (Reuters) -- Low-cost airline AirTran Airways said on Tuesday it filed applications with the US Department of Transportation to offer flights to three stops in the Caribbean in a bid to expand its international service. The unit of AirTran Holdings Inc said it has proposed offering service to Nassau... read more...

---

PHILIPSBURG, St Maarten -- Frans George Richardson has been appointed as Commissioner of Tourism and Economic Affairs, Aviation and Sports for St Maarten. Prior to this position, Richardson served for three years as a Senator representing St Maarten in the Netherlands Antilles Parliament. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao -- The Netherlands Antilles will sign tax information exchange agreements with Canada on the 30th August in Vancouver and with Mexico on 1st September in Los Cabos. These agreements will provide for full exchange of information on criminal and civil tax matters. read more...

---

BASSETERRE, St Kitts (SKNIS) -- Commissioner of Culture, Sport and Youth Affairs in French St Martin, Jean David Richardson, has officially apologized to the government and people of St Kitts and Nevis for an incident that occurred on July 17, when a visiting Under 17 and Under 15 football team was attacked. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curaçao -- Effective November 19, 2009, American Airlines will fly twice daily to the island of Curaçao, often referred to as the Caribbean’s Hidden Treasure. The additional non-stop service from Miami International (MIA) offers travelers more flexibility in their vacation planning. read more...

---

PHILLIPSBURG, St Maarten -- Windward Islands Airways (WINAIR) has once again made a significant announcement which is geared at providing relief to the travelling public. The airline through its Managing Director, Edwin Hodge has announced the airline’s sizzling, spicy summer carnival special. read more...

---

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands -- Technical negotiating teams from the Cayman Islands and the Netherlands have finalised the terms of an agreement and protocol for the exchange of information with respect to tax matters. The proposed Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) was drafted in George Town. read more...

---

NEW YORK, USA (Bloomberg) -- Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA, Brazil’s second-largest airline, is adding routes to the Caribbean and smaller domestic cities while scaling back flights in the rest of South America as demand slows, Chief Executive Officer Constantino de Oliveira Jr. said. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curaçao -- Ten lucky North Americans will be put to the test when they compete in a real treasure hunt on the island of Curaçao in hopes of winning half a million dollars. The Curaçao Treasure Hunt will take place from August 23-25, 2009.  Stretching from California to New York, and as far north as Canada... read more...

---

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) -- A Spanish cruise ship hit by an outbreak of the H1N1 flu virus among its crew headed for its final stop at the Caribbean island of Aruba on Thursday, the ship operator said. The Ocean Dream, owned by Royal Caribbean Cruises, was on a week-long cruise due to end on Friday. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curaçao -- By September 2009, the Netherlands Antilles will have signed nine new tax treaties bringing its total to sixteen. Of these treaties, a total of fourteen treaties will have been concluded with OECD countries. Scheduled to be signed are tax information exchange agreements with Canada, Mexico, Denmark... read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Netherlands Antilles (Reuters) -- A refinery on Curacao operated by Venezuela's state oil company is damaging people's health and must cut emissions or face multi-million dollar fines, a court on the Caribbean island ruled on Thursday. Critics also say PDVSA provides few benefits to the island. read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao -- Caribbean tourism human resources professionals meeting in Curacao have been challenged to adopt a new approach to human resources that will lead to a more hospitable experience for visitors. The conference is organised by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO). read more...

---

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao -- Tourism leaders across the region are being encouraged to value the importance of human resources in the sector. The subject of investment in human resources development was a key talking point at the opening of the 5th Annual Caribbean Tourism Human Resources Conference. read more...

---