Gracita Arrindell

Gracita Arrindell
President of Parliament
In office
10 October 2010[1] – 14 July 2012
MonarchWillem-Alexander
GovernorEugene Holiday
Preceded byOffice created
Succeeded byRodolphe E. Samuel
In office
24 June 2013 – 9 October 2014
Preceded byRodolphe E. Samuel
Succeeded byLloyd J. Richardson
Personal details
Born (1956-03-04) 4 March 1956 (age 68)
Sint Maarten
Political partyUnified Resilient St. Maarten Movement

Gracita Arrindell (born 4 March 1956) is a Dutch politician, writer and women's rights activist, who was the first President of the Parliament of Sint Maarten, a role she held for two non-consecutive terms.

Biography

Born in Sint Maarten,[2] she was awarded an MA degree in political science from the Catholic University, Nijmegen. In 1988, she became deputy secretary of the Island Council.[3] In 1994 she was the chair of the Constitutional Referendum Committee. In 1999 she was a candidate in the Island Council (IC) elections, representing the Democratic Party. However she later joined the People's Progressive Alliance (PPA), who won their first seat in 2003.[3]

Arrindell was the first to be elected President of the Parliament of Sint Maarten. She held the role of President for two terms: the first from 10 October 2010 to 14 July 2012; the second from 24 June 2013 to 9 October 2014.[4][5] During her tenure she was also the leader of the PPA.[6] She has spoken out against the nepotism that has been common in political appointments on the island.[7]

In Looking Back to Move Forward, Arrindell edited a collection of speeches by former Prime Ministers of the Netherlands Antilles.[3] She is president of the Peridot Foundation, an organisation she founded to combat domestic violence in Saba, Sint Eustasius and Sint Maarten.[8][3] She was also chair of the supervisory board of Directors of the Princess Juliana International Airport.[3]

Awards

In 2009 she was recognised with an Emerald Award from the Women of Great Esteem (WGE) Organization.[9]

References

  1. ^ "President". Parliament of Sint Maarten. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  2. ^ "Arrindell: High Councils of State & First Responders Carried Our Democracy". SXM Talks. 19 October 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Welcome to House of Nehesi Publishers". www.houseofnehesipublish.com. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  4. ^ "Arrindell elected president of first parliament of St. Maarten" (PDF). The Daily Herald. 11 October 2010. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 June 2016.
  5. ^ "Gracita Arrindell back as President of the Parliament" (PDF). The Daily Herald. 25 June 2013. pp. 1, 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 November 2016.
  6. ^ "Gracita: Parliament's Electoral Reform Ad-Hoc Committee Slumbers". SXM Talks. 24 October 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  7. ^ "Gracita: Time to Rise to the Occasion". SXM Talks. 13 July 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  8. ^ "Peridot Foundation to Celebrate International Women's Day 2022 Theme: #Break the Bias Exciting Program". SXM Talks. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  9. ^ "Two Jamaicans Among 2009 Woman of Great Esteem – Jamaica Information Service". jis.gov.jm. Retrieved 2 March 2022.