 Wathey championed political independence for the island in 1989, but was later convicted on charges of perjury; however, many on Sint Maarten felt the trial was nothing more than a witch hunt conducted by his rivals and adversaries in Curaçao and the Netherlands in order to break his monopoly on political power in Sint Maarten and to destroy his credibility.Despite this, he remains a popular figure, even after his death.The Wathey family is an old Caribbean family of Belgian origin, from the city of Tongeren.