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Wednesday 23 september 2020

Heroes among us: Guests

jumped to the rescue at

the Marriott Ocean Club

PALM BEACH — Recently, words to express their grati-
a representative from the tude and appreciation for
Aruba Tourism Authority what Mr. DeMatteo had
(A.T.A.), Kimberly Richard- done to save his life.
son, had the great pleasure
in honoring Mr. and Mrs. Al DeMatteo’s are from Yon-
and RoseMarie DeMatteo. kers, New York and have
been visiting our island for
A sunny day on the ‘One about 20 years. They have
Happy Island’ took a quick been staying at the Mar-
turn as Mr. DeMatteo no- riott Ocean Club and they
ticed a person in the ocean are one of the many re-
who was unresponsive. This peat visitors that our island
is when, without hesitation, is well-known for.
he jumped to the rescue
and successfully managed As a token of appreciation
to revive this person who on behalf of the ‘One Hap-
preferred to stay anony- py Island’, A.T.A. represen-
mous. Thankfully, the fam- tative Kimberley Richard-
ily of this person explained son honored Mr. DeMatteo generosity. He was present- nizing the family as ‘Good- of saying ‘Masha Danki’ for
that there are not enough for his act of bravery and ed with a certificate recog- will Ambassadors’ as a way his heroic act.q

Marines 32 Raiding Squadron train “Junior Leadership”

SAVANETA — For the next two weeks, Aruba on the leadership development of the offi-
will be the setting for the military exercise “Dia- cers and non-commissioned officers. During Defense tasks for the Dutch Caribbean
bel Preto” (“Black Devil”; reference to the he- Diabel Preto they will be challenged with dif- The Netherlands is responsible for the imple-
roic marines at the Maas bridges in Rotterdam ferent scenarios. Defense attaches great im- mentation of the defense tasks of the Kingdom
during World War II). portance to the development of these leaders of the Netherlands in the Caribbean.
within the organization.
From September 22 to October 2, 120 soldiers Military tasks in the Caribbean
participate in a varied program, in which the COVID-19 The 800 armed forces personnel in the Carib-
leadership qualities of the soldiers are trained. During Diabel Preto, the COVID measures are bean are tasked with:
The units practice basic infantry skills such as fully observed. Rules such as “good hand hy- • protecting the borders of the Carib-
amphibious assault, shooting, patrolling and giene”, “social distancing” and “stay at home bean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands;
moving VIPs in a crisis situation. Civilians of Aru- in case of complaints” are applied in full. All • supporting civil authorities;
ba can witness these defense activities for the participating soldiers were asked in advance • maintaining the (inter)national rule of
next two weeks. about the presence of suspicious complaints law in the context of, for example:
The exercise is important to continue to guar- or symptoms. In case of complaints, the soldier o The international drug trade. Because
antee the basic readiness of the military in will be excluded from further participation in of the location of its islands, the Caribbean is
Aruba. In addition, there is a great emphasis the exercise after consulting a doctor. vulnerable to drug trafficking by sea. The navy
is part of Joint Inter Agency Task Force South,
an international organization that conducts
operations to counter drug trafficking.
o Military assistance. The navy’s military
units provide humanitarian assistance or main-
tain public order following disasters or acci-
dents caused by the passage of hurricanes,
for example. Each year, the navy is on standby
from 1 June to 1 December to perform these
tasks.
o Illegal fishing and environmental of-
fences. The navy supports the Dutch Carib-
bean Coastguard in conducting surveillance
and taking action against illegal fishing and
environmental offences. The navy also assists
in search and rescue missions in Caribbean
waters.q