~Justice Minister pushes HALT programme as youth violence, intimidation and criminal behavior raise alarm~
PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Justice Nathalie Tackling has warned that violence, intimidation and criminal behavior cannot be allowed to become normalized among Sint Maarten’s youth.
Tackling addressed the growing concern over recent incidents involving young people during Wednesday’s Council of Ministers press briefing.
“Let me be clear: we cannot accept violence, intimidation and criminal behavior becoming normalized with our youth,” Tackling stated.
While recognizing the importance of law enforcement, the minister said enforcement alone will not solve the problem.
The Ministry of Justice is therefore continuing its efforts to implement the HALT programme, an early-intervention initiative for eligible first-time youth offenders between 12 and 18 years old.
The program is intended to promote accountability, education, and repairing harm while helping young people make better decisions before criminal behavior escalates.
According to Tackling, the objective is to intervene early, protect the young person’s future and reduce the likelihood of reoffending.
Direct Appeal to Parents
The minister also made a direct appeal to parents and guardians, stressing that government cannot carry the responsibility of raising children on its own.
“Government cannot raise our children for us,” Tackling said.
She said everyone has a responsibility to intervene before poor decisions develop into criminal behavior.
Tackling commended the parents who took their children to the police station after recognizing them in a video connected to a recent incident.
The minister said their actions represented an important step toward rebuilding the sense of community that has been lost over time.
She also praised other parents who have cooperated with law enforcement when their children became involved in criminal activity.
According to Tackling, those conversations and decisions are not easy, but they demonstrate that accountability begins at home.
Prevention Raised at Kingdom Meeting
Tackling said youth-crime prevention was among the priorities she raised during the Judicial Four-Party Consultation held in Curaçao earlier this month.
The meeting brought together the Ministers of Justice from across the Kingdom to discuss shared justice and security challenges.
Tackling stressed during the consultation that prevention and early intervention must remain central to the response to youth crime.
She also linked literacy to building safer communities, noting that September is Literacy Month.
According to the minister, investing in young people must begin long before they come into contact with the justice system.
