PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – The House of Parliament is open to the general public. Plenary and Central Committee meetings can be attended by members of the community unless otherwise indicated.
A dress code is in place and the public is reminded to adhere to the requirements when visiting the House of Parliament whether it’s to attend a public meeting or to meet with a Member of Parliament of faction staff. Persons who visit Parliament are reminded to visit the reception desk in the lobby where they would be assisted further.
Proper attire is required by all including the media when visiting and attending meetings of the House of Parliament. It is strictly prohibited to anyone who is in the public tribune to use mobile phones, video cameras, laptops, etc. during the meeting.
For the public, the dress code is wearing clothing that is neat, clean along with appropriate footwear. No shorts or slippers are allowed. For formal events and other special occasions, the President may stipulate a special dress code such as a dark suit.
For the media, the rule applies that with a jacket without a tie, members of the media have access to the press room. If a member of the press comes without a jacket, he must take a seat in the public tribune.
For invited guests, proper attire could be described as formal and semi-formal wear. You can envision in that case the European model of “jacket and tie” and the models as we described under the term “Nehru jacket” (with the so-called stand up collar) appearing in the Caribbean region, the “Mau Zedong jacket”, originating from China, the safari suit and the Guayabera which is also very often worn in the Caribbean and Latin American region, as well as the “liquiliqui”-model that is often seen in Venezuela. Provided that these models all have long sleeves they meet the qualification of proper attire.
For the meetings of the central committee the requirement is that the clothing can be a “jacket without a tie”, or the above mentioned models, the latter with short sleeves.
For female invited guests smart casual and also business casual applies. If the ladies wear skirts, then it should be at least knee length. It should be clear that wearing provocative clothing in this case is not permitted; thus no tight fitting, no see-through, nor revealing clothing. With regard to footwear, modern fashionable slippers are allowed.
