Natalee Case Discussion #822 7/28/09 - 8/13/09

[texasmom]

For reference purposes, I'm sure it's probably already here somewhere; but here it is again. 

http://www.ahata.travel/ahata/do/getPage/page/ABOUT_HISTORY.html

History
Founded on September 14, 1965, the Aruba Hotel Association (AHA) was formed by a group of hotel pioneers interested in fostering the development and diversification of the Aruban economy with tourism.

The decree included the following names as founders and first board members:

President - Lorenzo Arends - Cactus Inn
Vice President - Ike Cohen - Strand Hotel
Secretary/Treasurer - Richard Tuschek - Hotel Nassau
Board Member - Henry Steeber - Aruba Caribbean Hotel
Board Member - Rory Arends - Aruba Tourism Bureau
Other charter members included Chaiban Neme of The Strand Hotel, George Camara, Basi Ruti Hotel, Jan van Gijn Sr. of the Hotel Scala and Michael Kuiperi of the Aruba Tourism Board.

In the early years, the association included hotels exclusively and there was no administrative office or headquarters.
In the late 1970's, the association was expanded to include other tourism related businesses and the AHA became the Aruba Hotel and Tourism Association (AHATA) and a more expanded organization. The AHA was one of the first members of the newly formed Caribbean Hotel Association (1964). The CHA originated from a commission of the private sector within the Caribbean Tourism Association (CTA) which today is known as the Caribbean Tourism Organization.

During the AHATA's most recent history, the organization has grown to become recognized as Aruba's dominant tourism voice on behalf of the private sector. It enjoys broad support from the entire community and has established a unique partnership with the other private sector trade organizations uniting together to present historic and ongoing dialogue on a wide spectrum of relevant issues dealing with Aruba's economic growth and quality tourism development.


Past presidents

1965 Lorenzo Arends Cactus Inn
1966-1967 Ike Cohen The Strand Hotel
1968-1975 UNKNOWN
1977-1978 Chris Perks Americana Hotel
1979-1986 Jan de Ruyter Holiday Inn
1987 Brian Reeve Holiday Inn
1988-1990 Gerrit Griffith Divi Resorts
1991-1995 Ed Malone American Hotel
1996-1998 Hendrick Santos Hyatt Regency Aruba
1999-2001 Eduardo de Veer Sonesta Resorts
2002-2004 Alex Nieuwmeijer Divi Resorts
2005 Jeff Lesker Radisson Aruba Resort

2006-2007 Ewald Biemans


Past executive directors/CEO's

1976-1978 Bob Lopez Henriquez
1979 Rafael Estrada
1980-1986 Henk Smouter
1986-1987 Michael Kuiperi
1988-1990 Adwina Arends
1990-2000 Rory Arends
2000-2004 Horace Hord
2004-2007 Jorge Pesquera

2007-Present Rob Smith

[Tamikosmom]

Are all of them, including Rob Smith and the Dark Lard working for Dompig?

I would think Smith would be at the top of that pile, rather than Dompig.

??

I think Mark Purcell is in the pile, but not on the top of it.

When you consider their respective involvement with the tourist/hotel industry on the Island ... I believe that Mark Purcell and Rob Smith are thisclose in furthering/ controlling the distraction from the Persistence betrayal.

I tend to believe that these two are the masters of deception controling all the intentional and unintentional distractors.

I could be wrong and ... in all sincereity I hope I am but ... I believe that Dave Holloway's connection with Purcell and Smith has deterred the cause of justice for his daughter.

I will expand later.

Janet

[texasmom]

http://www.aruba.com/news/business/jorge-pesquera-announces-resignation-board-of-directors-appoints-rob-smith-to-lead-ahata/

Jorge Pesquera Announces Resignation, Board of Directors Appoints Rob Smith To Lead AHATA
 
September 11th, 2007

The Board of Directors of the Aruba Hotel and Tourism Association has accepted the resignation of Jorge Pesquera, President and CEO effective November 1, 2007. Chairman of the Board Ewald Biemans said: “We are very sorry to see Jorge leave Aruba as he approaches his fourth year of dedicated service, but realize that he has a great opportunity in Florida that would be very hard to pass up.” Pesquera has accepted the position of President and CEO of the Palm Beach County Convention and Visitors Bureau overseeing all tourism marketing for Florida’s largest county with 16,000 hotel rooms, a new convention center and some of the most upscale resorts in the country.

“I am leaving with very mixed feelings” said Pesquera, “Aruba is a great destination and I have been honored by the opportunity given to me by the board and the membership. It has been a great ride and a learning experience, but opportunities such as Palm Beach only come around once in a lifetime. I take comfort in the conviction that AHATA and our group marketing division of Meet Aruba are much more solid organizations today than they were four years ago. We have assembled a terrific team of professionals who truly care about our association and about Aruba and parting with them has made this decision so much more difficult. I am also thrilled to pass the baton to a highly seasoned tourism executive and first class guy.”

Ewald Biemans was pleased to announce the appointment of Rob Smith, currently GM of the Westin Aruba Resort to the CEO position effective October 1: “we are fortunate that Rob was willing and available to take on this most critical position and ensure continuity in the expanding role AHATA has undertaken as it pertains to destination marketing, advocacy and member support services. He has repeatedly shown his leadership qualities in programs and initiatives such as the Hospitality and Security Foundation and, most recently, the Marketing Committee. He has an intimate understanding of Aruba’s key markets and channels of distribution and has acquired extensive experience in the meetings and conventions arena. I am sure this will be a smooth and productive transition”.

Rob Smith is currently employed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts as General Manager of the Westin Aruba. He has been serving this resort since April 1998, and held the role of Vice President of the previous ownership group, Aruba Hotel Enterprises, and General Manager of the then Wyndham prior to the sale of the hotel. During his ten years in Aruba he has served the association in multiple capacities including:
- Board member of The Caribbean Hotel Association (2000 to present)
- Chairman of the AHATA Nominations Committee (2001 to present)
- Chairman of the CEO Search Committee (2003)
- Member of the Aruba Strategic Communications Task Force
- Chairman of the Aruba Hospitality and Security Foundation (02 to 06)
- Treasurer of the AH & SF (2006 to present)
- AHATA Board of Director (2006 to present)
- Chairman of the Marketing Committee (2007)
Rob was recognized as the Hotelier of the Year for AHATA in 2005 and was nominated for the same award on a regional basis with the Caribbean Hotel Association. He has served at a General Manager level for the past 14 years, is married and has two daughters and one son. Smith said: “I am thrilled to take on this key position in an association that I truly believe has been critical to Aruba’s success. The fine team at the former Wyndham - now Westin - has been my family for an entire decade and I will miss their camaraderie most of all. However, I am confident that at AHATA we will be able to create or influence destination wide initiatives aimed at improving business levels across the board. Aruba is my home and my family has deep roots in this island. In many respects I have been unconsciously preparing for this position for a long time and I am looking forward to carrying on the fine tradition that has been established with Rory, Horace and Jorge most recently.”

[Blue Moon]

Klaas, when you have time you have mail.

[texasmom]

http://www.caribbeannewsdigital.com/en/news/9857/q-&-a-with-edison-briesen-aruba%E2%80%99s-tourism-and-transportation-minister

Q & A with Edison Briesen, Aruba’s Tourism and Transportation Minister

Thursday, 24/01/2008

by Jose Carlos de Santiago

CHA Caribbean Marketplace 2008 - Bahamas

Aruba wrapped up 2007 with good-looking numbers on the board as far as tourism is concerned and prospects for the now-unfolding 2008 can’t look any better. As Aruba is willing to split the outbound travel markets on wiser shares in an effort to cut down on the heavy reliance it has on the U.S., more Spanish hotel companies are planning to open properties on the island. In this exclusive interview with Caribbean News Digital, tourism Minister Edison Briesen talks about his country’s projects on the road ahead.

Q.- How do you assess the results of Aruba’s travel industry in 2007 and what plans are now in store for 2007?

A.- 2007 witnessed a number of major changes for Aruba’s tourism, like the transformation of the Oranjestad seaport to accommodate cruise liners and the debut of Spanish hotel company Sol Meliá. We now have the cruise terminal in the crosshairs and that’s one of the things we’ll have to make a decision on quite soon in order to go ahead with all necessary changes that must be done at the Oranjestad port.

Another major project is the one led by the Divi Group. We now have a corridor somewhere between Eagle Beach and Palm Beach, yet we’re planning to open a second corridor not far from there. The Divi Group made an excellent presentation back in December and they’re ready to start the groundbreaking job as soon as we authorize them to do so, based on a number of conditions they laid out, such as the local government’s commitment to contributing part of the project’s infrastructure, more specifically a brand-new golf course and three hotels for a grand total of 1,200 guestrooms.

These are two largest projects we’re working on right now. However, we’re a bit concerned about all this due to the amount of new rooms which will be opening in Aruba. There are 2,000 new condo rooms under construction, and if we add the new expansions and the new projects, we’ll be sooner rather than later jumping from 7,200 rooms to as many as 13,000 or 14,000 accommodations on the island. Aruba has never been a massive travel destination, but a high-end, top-quality one.

Q.- How is Aruba’s Tourism Ministry going to tackle the new openings coming from European markets?

A.- Once all ongoing projects are done –including the Grand Occidental, RIU and Meliá projects- Spanish hotel companies will have as much as 14 percent of all guestrooms in Aruba. The Pullmantur cruise operation, on the other hand, is generating large tourist arrivals with the Boeing 747 aircraft that takes off in Madrid and lands in Aruba every Saturday, not to mention the Aida Tours cruises with four charter flights from Germany and a couple of other charter flights from UK. That adds up to a total of seven charter flights from Europe that arrive in Aruba every two weeks. In addition to all that, we can’t forget to mention our commitments with KLM.

I believe we’re doing well because the openings of new hotels from Spain-based companies in Aruba is giving us the possibility of reeling in far more travelers from Europe, visitors who come to our island nation with a strong currency in their pockets and who book average stays in the neighborhood of 13 to 14 nights.

Q.- Spanish hotel groups rely on all-inclusive operations in an effort to provide a better service at a lower price. That differs from the way U.S. hotel companies conduct business on the island and elsewhere in the Caribbean. How do you think this difference might affect the U.S. market and the way Americans run lodgings in your country?

A.- I must say we still have a heavy reliance on the U.S. market, somewhere between 73 and 74 percent of all travelers. We’d like to slash it down to 50 or 55 percent and yet that’ll be the lion’s share of the total because we just can’t rule out how much that particular outbound market means to us in terms of magnitude and nearness. Nonetheless, we’d like to raise the share of European trekkers to 15 percent, and have an equal share of 15 percent from Latin American visitors. That’s the formula we want to work on. We continue to rely way too much on the U.S. market and that poses some threats. That explains how important it is to us to have European and Latin American investors coming to Aruba. A better, evener proportion of the market pie among those three markets is the right thing to do and we’re working hard on that.

Q.- Is there any real possibility for Aruba to launch a true promotional effort in Europe before the coming elections on the island?

A.- We are well aware of the need to press that issue, but promotions take airlift, plane seats and with that view in mind we ought to sit down with KLM and try to negotiate openings with other airlines as well. As I said earlier in this interview, as much as 14 percent of Aruba’s hotel rooms will soon be in Spanish hands, so that means that we need to hold talks with Iberia, press this issue with Spanish groups to open a Madrid-Aruba route, not only for the Spanish market but also for the Portuguese and Italian markets as well.

[texasmom]

http://www.eturbonews.com/865/us-still-drives-business-aruba-after-holloway-case-closed

Aruba

US still drives business to Aruba after Holloway case closed
 
Image via Aruba Tourism Authority



By Hazel Heyer | Jan 16, 2008

Nassau, Bahamas (eTN) - Aruba’s recent tourism numbers are expected to look positive compared to previous years. Travel & Tourism in Aruba was expected to rake in US$2354.9 million in economic activity as of 2007 end. Aruba's Travel & Tourism Economy (direct and indirect impact) is expected to account for 70.1 percent of GDP and for 52000 jobs (82.4 percent of total employment), according to the World Travel & Tourism Council. Despite a highly-sensationalized case involving tourist Natalee Holloway, an Alabaman teenager who traveled to the island but mysteriously disappeared two years ago, Aruba's Travel & Tourism is expected to report 2.1 percent growth in 2007 and 3.3 percent per annum, in real terms, between 2008 and 2017.

With good news about Aruba reported by the tourism authorities, last December however, the media revisited an old, but not long- forgotten story. Prosecutors closed the case on Holloway’s disappearance in May 2005 on the Dutch Caribbean island. Authorities said they do not have evidence to charge suspects Joran van der Sloot and the Kalpoe brothers, Satish and Deepak, who were last seen with Holloway. They have been notified by the public prosecutor that they will not be charged. The press was abuzz with the latest developments.

eTN caught up with Aruba’s minister of tourism and transportation, Edison Briesen, who said the island is back in business despite the revival of the Holloway incident, which has become fodder for the media. In an exclusive interview at the Caribbean Hotel Association Marketplace held January 13-15 on Paradise Island, Bahamas, Briesen confirmed the US remains strong as its number one market.

eTN: How is the Aruban tourism industry reacting to the developments on the Holloway case being over?

Minister Briesen: We were strongly hit by this incident. Unfortunately last year, they’ve closed the case. But in the Dutch justice system, the case is not close. It will remain a silent, open case should any lead come in. We have spent a lot of money bringing in experts from day one to the last day of December 2007, including Dutch investigation experts. We heard the mother and the Holloway family will seek publicity again in the US, which we’ll have to counter.

From 2005 to early 2006, Aruba was badly hit by the incident due to the negative publicity. In October 2006, Aruba tourism recovered. I think we’ve turned the corner.

eTN: With an image of being a peaceful island on the Caribbean, why do you think this incident has been lingering and has continued to impact the tourism industry of Aruba?

Briesen: I don’t know about the family problems they have which seem to be the reason behind this case. In the Caribbean, this is the first time an island has been pounded this long by a single event. It’s been over a year and a half now and the publicity has not ended. I don’t know what other reasons there exist. We’ve opened our doors to help the family solve their issue. We’ve been cooperative and have spent a lot of government money on the investigation.

eTN: Could this have been a bad example of security loophole?

Briesen: We’ve had the FBI, the Aruban special task force, F16’s and special recovery vessels searching the island. Nothing turned up. It’s really a strange mystery. The island is so small, social ties are strong. Everybody knows everybody in Aruba. For us, this has been a mystery as well. Unfortunately, there is no closure just yet.

eTN: Has this been a big challenge to tourism?

Briesen: Among all challenges we’ve faced, including airlift, US economy slowdown, gas prices etc, this particularly has taken up our time and resources. Everybody got involved in this case. People from the tourism department have been moved to the justice department to help solve the disappearance. This incident has kept us ‘hostage’ for more than a year. In 2006, we even launched an ad campaign worth $5 M in the US to counter the negative broadcast. On the other side of the coin, more people now know about Aruba. But I would not want Aruba to be known in the same way Iraq is known. One reason why we think it has been a hard blow to us.

We are the safest island in the entire western hemisphere. Things like this don’t happen in Aruba.

eTN: Do you want closure for the family?

Briesen: Of course, we went out of our way to help them. We’ve been very cooperative.

eTN: What message do you have for the US travelers?

Briesen: What happened in Aruba has given us and the Caribbean a hard lesson to learn, which has become for us and everybody a model for crisis management on the islands. This is one case which we, as a member of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, have learned from and employed as a crisis model. We’ve received support from the CTO and the CHA through the years, with sustaining the US market, our loyal clients for over 30 years. Three of four visitors to Aruba are Americans. This is a case that boggles us. But we’d like to forget and move on.

We got tremendous support from the US market. Forty-two percent of our rooms are timeshare, booked primarily by Americans. They’ve helped us turn the corner so Aruba can move on.

[Tamikosmom]

I cannot understand Dave Holloway's logic.  He concedes that a corrupt investigation is denying his daughter justice but ... his heart goes out to the Aruban people in regards to a voluntary boycott.  What about "other" unsuspecting "Natalees" who may become victims of Aruba in more ways than one.

Janet

++++++


DAVE HOLOWAY - DENOUNCING THE BOYCOTT

Corruption in Paradise - Dave Holloway

Page 156/157:  It is true that we have not been happy with the way the investigation into Natalee's disappearance was going, but we had no gripe with the general population.  ... That is why I felt uncomfortable supporting a boycott.

On September 19, 2005, I met with Taylor Northrop.  The Aruban government hired him for damage control.  He was working with the Strategic Communications Task Force which was comprised of approximately thirteen members of the community, including government spokesperson Rueben Trappenburg, Rob Smith of the Aruban Hospitality & Security Foundation, and other business and political leaders.  Taylor thanked me for the press interview I had given denouncing the boycott and advised me that it made his job easier.


DAVE HOLLOWAY - IMPRESSIONS OF ARUBA AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

Corruption in Paradise - Dave Holloway

Page 9:  It was June 1, 2005, our first evening in Aruba, my daughter was missing and a detective was telling us to go to a local bar and have a beer. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He said it was the hot spot for vacationing kids. "Maybe she will show up." In fact, he was so confident that she was just partying it up or on drugs that he told us this particular bar would be the best place to find her. However, he did warn us to watch our drinks very carefully, adding that sometimes people put drugs into them.

Page 10:  While customers must pass by a bouncer at the door, there was no indication that he was stopping anyone from entering. The bar was packed with teenagers doing Jell-O shots and sleazy-looking island boys preying on the beautiful young female tourist ...

I did not want to stay inside, so we hung out around the street corners. In less than two hours, we probably experienced at least ten to fifteen offers from various drug dealers who wanted us to buy from them.

Page 16:  During our daylight searches throughout the island, our group came across many abandoned houses where drug addicts had left razors and other drug paraphernalia. Some were filled with foul smelling odors, feces, urine, cardboard boxes they used as blankets or beds, and general trash. One of those houses was located right next to a fine restaurant near the hotel area and a McDonald’s ...

Several times, people came into the hotel to meet with other locals and an apparent drug deal was taking place. The person would come in to scope out the area prior to doing the deal.

Page 183:  I commented to Jacobs about how short my statement was. He said that I could add anything I wanted to it. Also, I noticed that Eric Soemers's name was on it, but that detective was not even present during the interview. Now I wondered if Jacobs was making up everyone's statement and getting Eric to sign on to them. If that were the case, he could state anything he wanted, and it would look like an official statement made in front of a witness.

Page 10:  Jacobs also told us that the day before we arrived, he had interviewed the boys who eventually became the three main suspects in Natalee's disappearance ...... Jacobs considered the boys' statements to be consistent in that they had all said that they dropped Natalee off at the hotel. However, I did not realize at the time that Beth had already told him that the tapes did not show Natalee returning to the Holiday Inn that night.

Page 153/154:  We arrived in Aruba with reinforcements.  The authorities sent us to every corner of the island.  They had the FBI there for show, and the police held up every phase of the investigation.  It seems it was nothing more than a game to them.  We thought we were participating in what was happening, but maybe we were just pawns doing their bidding and following their leads.  After all, they were the ones who invented the game, and the suspects were the real players.  As in Joran's quote, don't hate the players, hate the game.  We do, but it isn't over yet.

[Magnolia]

Wasn't it  Edison Briesen who made such a fuss over the two wacko mediums and paid their way to Aruba?
He then said they had to something because Beth appeared on Oprah.

Anything to create a diversion, I guess.

[Tamikosmom]

Wasn't it  Edison Briesen who made such a fuss over the two wacko mediums and paid their way to Aruba?
He then said they had to something because Beth appeared on Oprah.

Anything to create a diversion, I guess.

I believe that was Hans Mos.

I will look.

Janet

[texasmom]

jdsurveyor1 Newbie Posts: 11
John Silvetti, the Persistence and the Search for Natalee «
Reply #13 on: April 03, 2008, 07:52:13 PM »

The important thing is to raise funds. It will require corporate support as well as private donations. Dave and Beth have been doing a great job getting the word out and while I was on the island, Dave put me in contact with the head of the Hotel Association who is working on raising a sizeable amount.  So many on the island are supporting our efforts as well as people from all over the world. The media really blew the cage out of proportion. Although the cage initially provided some moments of "what is in there", I warned all on board that none of this information was to leave the boat. It was very suspect that a cage of this size was found where it was on the seafloor relative to the coast. My feelings were this was highly unusual and probably had something to do with something, but not what we were after. It was decided that the cage would be investigated further by divers, however, it was designated as only a target of interest. The crew moved onto other targets. Unfortunately, inexperience and frustration led to premature statements, including that we had found her I don't think anyone was more upset than I that this information came off the boat and caused the Holloway family more grief!

http://blogsfornatalee.com/forum/index.php?topic=8476.msg334979#msg334979


IMO, Rob Smith would have more than likely needed the approval of the Board of Directors of AHATA to approach the hoteliers, etc. in order to raise a sizeable amount of money to donate to the Persistence search.  He was fairly new in the position of CEO of AHATA (only since October 1, 2007).  Although he was not new to the organization, I don't think he would have made that move without agreement from the Board of Directors.

IMO, based on media comments by Minister of Tourism Edison Briesen; he was probably very irritated at the Perisistence presence for over three months in Aruba which was in the news.  I don't think he would have contributed to any effort that would have continued their presence and the daily reminder of what they were supposed to be there for.  I just don't see him approving a sizable donation; if he did there would have also been a press conference to announce it to the world.  

JMO

Who else might they have been referring to?

Do we think they ever got a sizable donation?  I have serious doubts about that.  Again, jmo.

[texasmom]

Wasn't it  Edison Briesen who made such a fuss over the two wacko mediums and paid their way to Aruba?
He then said they had to something because Beth appeared on Oprah.

Anything to create a diversion, I guess.

Rudy Croes, I think.

[Tamikosmom]

Wasn't it  Edison Briesen who made such a fuss over the two wacko mediums and paid their way to Aruba?
He then said they had to something because Beth appeared on Oprah.

Anything to create a diversion, I guess.

Rudy Croes, I think.

You are right texasmom.

Janet

+++++

Amigoe - January 17, 2008

ORANJESTAD — ... (Rudy) Croes is of the opinion that now that the case against the suspects Joran and the brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe has brought no results, the Public Prosecution must also consider other scenarios. Castillo and Young’s findings must therefore be seriously investigated, said the minister. “After Beth has been in Oprah’s program, it will be good to tell the other side of the story.” Oprah Winfrey has spent some time on the Holiday-matter in her show yesterday.

http://www.amigoe.com/artman/publish/artikel_38773.php

[texasmom]

Rudy Croes also valued the wackos "visions" on the Jose Manuel Vicenzo Tromp case.


http://www.24ora.com/content/view/3177/5/

[texasmom]

Thank you Janet!   

[Magnolia]

Thanks, Janet.

[texasmom]

If it was Edison Briesen that he met with and the money was coming from the government, would that have also involved the Minister of Finance?  I believe that would have been Nilo Swaen.

[Tamikosmom]

You are welcome Magnolia and Texasmom.  However ... I will give credit to SM's trusty search engine.

 

I am working behind the scenes with DIL who has afforded me one more hour of her precious time.  I will emerged later.

I hope you all had a good afternoon.

Janet
6:20 PM PT

[texasmom]

I don't think they got a donation from the head of the Hotel Association.

If they did, and they still haven't been back; I think somebody would be wanting their money back. 

Or maybe they just applied it to another invoice?   

I know, that was baaaaad tm.   

I'll be quiet for a while....off to check the news.

[Anna]

jdsurveyor1 Newbie Posts: 11
John Silvetti, the Persistence and the Search for Natalee «
Reply #13 on: April 03, 2008, 07:52:13 PM »

The important thing is to raise funds. It will require corporate support as well as private donations. Dave and Beth have been doing a great job getting the word out and while I was on the island, Dave put me in contact with the head of the Hotel Association who is working on raising a sizeable amount.  So many on the island are supporting our efforts as well as people from all over the world. The media really blew the cage out of proportion. Although the cage initially provided some moments of "what is in there", I warned all on board that none of this information was to leave the boat. It was very suspect that a cage of this size was found where it was on the seafloor relative to the coast. My feelings were this was highly unusual and probably had something to do with something, but not what we were after. It was decided that the cage would be investigated further by divers, however, it was designated as only a target of interest. The crew moved onto other targets. Unfortunately, inexperience and frustration led to premature statements, including that we had found her I don't think anyone was more upset than I that this information came off the boat and caused the Holloway family more grief!

http://blogsfornatalee.com/forum/index.php?topic=8476.msg334979#msg334979


IMO, Rob Smith would have more than likely needed the approval of the Board of Directors of AHATA to approach the hoteliers, etc. in order to raise a sizeable amount of money to donate to the Persistence search.  He was fairly new in the position of CEO of AHATA (only since October 1, 2007).  Although he was not new to the organization, I don't think he would have made that move without agreement from the Board of Directors.

IMO, based on media comments by Minister of Tourism Edison Briesen; he was probably very irritated at the Perisistence presence for over three months in Aruba which was in the news.  I don't think he would have contributed to any effort that would have continued their presence and the daily reminder of what they were supposed to be there for.  I just don't see him approving a sizable donation; if he did there would have also been a press conference to announce it to the world.  

JMO

Who else might they have been referring to?

Do we think they ever got a sizable donation?  I have serious doubts about that.  Again, jmo.

It might depend on what the "donation" was actually for, IMO.  Maybe to go away, lol.

[Tamikosmom]

I don't think they got a donation from the head of the Hotel Association.

If they did, and they still haven't been back; I think somebody would be wanting their money back. 

Or maybe they just applied it to another invoice?   

I know, that was baaaaad tm.   

I'll be quiet for a while....off to check the news.

BINGO!!!

If Mark Purcell and Rob Smith ... who are affiliated with the "Hotel Association" ... are the masters of deception who are overseeing/influencing the Persistence distractors ... distractors whose cooperation comes with a price ...

 

Janet