Voters in the constituent country of Sint Maarten are set to elect fifteen members of the unicameral Parliament on August 29.
The small territory on the Caribbean, which is a semi-autonomous entity in the Kingdom of Netherlands, has 13,708 registered voters out of the roughly 37,000 population.
The Sint Maarten Parliament is primarily tasked with the function to enact laws. It does so alongside the Government, earning it the appellation of co-legislator. The other major function of the body is to provide a check and balance to the Government’s policy.
To carry out these tasks, the Parliament is vested with a number of powers 1) The right to approve and amend the budget 2) The right of interpellation where each Member of Parliament (MP) has the right to question ministers of government in the General Assembly of Parliament 3) The right of initiative allows MPs to submit draft laws on their own initiative 4) The right to amendment, allows MPs to amend legislation that has been submitted to Parliament 5) The right to ask questions, every MP can question a Minister orally or in writing; 6) The right to instigate inquiries allows parliament to institute an inquiry into the state of affairs in an event in which Government is involved.
Members of the Sint Maarten Parliament serve out a term of 4 years.
Image courtesy of http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_Sint_Maarten.svg
