The Minister of Justice gives notice of the new weapons policy

On November 25, 2016 the Minister of Justice approved the policy paper on weapons, which paper has been published on November 25, 2016 in National Gazette 2016, no. 23. The policy which is targeted to reduce the number of weapons in the public domain, has been developed in close cooperation with the police and Public prosecutor’s office. 

In the past weapon permits have been very liberally given out to individuals for all kinds of firearms and ammunition without any clear and transparent assessment procedure. As a consequence a great number of firearms are circulating in St. Maarten, posing a considerable potential risk to public order and safety. In order to prevent and reduce the amount of guns and other dangerous weapons in the public domain the ministry of Justice, together with the police force and the prosecutor’s office have adopted a strict and conservative approach and have developed a more clear and transparent framework for the issuing of weapon permits. This is set out in aforementioned policy paper. 

The public is hereby reminded that the possession of (fire) weapons without having a valid permit for these weapons is illegal and considered a crime (an offence) punishable by law. A weapon permit is only valid for a maximum of one year from the date of issue. An expired weapon permit is not a valid permit. All illegal weapons must be handed over to the police, even if an application for renewal of the weapon permit has been filed.

The policy paper can be found on the government website www.sintmaartengov.org (go to National Gazette>Landscourant, November 25, 2016) and is also available at the secretariat of the Ministry of Justice. An English translation will soon be available.