KRALENDIJK - “A lot has been said. Intensive, sometimes lengthy, but always constructive conversations.” That is the conclusion of delegation leader of the Senate, Paul Rosenmöller, after the Interparliamentary Kingdom Consultation (IPKO) that was held on Bonaire between 23 and 25 August.
Delegations of parliaments from Aruba, Curacao, Sint Maarten and the Netherlands discussed the future of the Kingdom for three days. “This has led to a very long list of new plans and ideas about cooperation in areas such as aid packages, country packages, climate, international treaties and elections,” said Jan Patternotte, chairman of IPKO.
"The IPKO is mainly about further strengthening the relationship between parliamentarians from the four countries of the Kingdom" - Paul Rosenmöller, delegation leader of the Senate
In addition to drawing up the action list, according to Rosenmöller, IPKO is mainly about further strengthening the relationship between parliamentarians from the four countries. “That relationship needs to improve. It must be given more priority.” William Marlin, vice-president of the parliament of Sint Maarten, also says that the islands consider this an important point. “Unfortunately, the relationship is not as good as we all would like. But we do want it to improve and we hope we will continue to talk about that.”
Dispute Resolution
Dispute settlement has been a hot topic within IPKO meetings for more than ten years. Several years ago, the parliaments themselves were convinced of the need for an independent institute that can provide legally binding advice if there are problems between countries. In practice, however, it is not possible to get the Dutch government to install such a dispute settlement procedure.
In 2019, the Dutch Parliament still approved a draft, but when it was subsequently discussed by the Senate, Undersecretary Raymond Knops (Kingdom Relations) waited almost a year before answering questions before brushing off the subject. Delegation leader of Curaçao, Amerigo Thodé, announced during the press conference that "the dispute settlement has been put back on the table". "We have reached agreement again that should lead to such an arrangement."
Points of concern
A further point of concern from the Aruban and Curaçao delegations was that very heavy conditions are attached to the various loans provided to the islands in the context of the so-called Country Packages. Such as, among other things, a cutback of 60 million in health care.
“I think the consequences of these cuts have been made clear. This was heard by all delegations and it is also included in the aid and assistance section that this should receive the necessary attention," said Rocco Tjon, committee chair of Aruba. Delegations agree to share requests for assistance among themselves.
Irma
Sint Maarten also expressed its concern about the slow availability of resources after Hurricane Irma. More than four years after the disaster, not even half of the money made available by the Netherlands has been used for projects to help the island get back on its feet.
Four years after the disaster with Hurricane Irma, Sint Maarten has not even been able to use half of the money for reconstruction due to bureaucratic rules.
Marlin said he was particularly concerned about the problems with the landfill. Money is needed for this, but because of all kinds of bureaucratic rules at the World Bank (where the Netherlands has placed the money for the reconstruction of Sint Maarten), the situation at the landfill has been the same for years, according to Marlin.
COHO
Perhaps the most important topic of the IPKO concerns the Caribbean Agency for Reform and Development, the COHO. If all goes well, this will be discussed in the Kingdom Council of Ministers on 3 September, after which all parliaments can take note of the large-scale investment program that the Netherlands has set up in collaboration with the islands.
Curaçao, Aruba and St. Maarten are afraid of a loss of autonomy on the one hand, and of delay on the other. According to Paul Rosenmöller, the Dutch parliaments will do everything they can to give 'higher priority' to COHO. “But that only works if we are open with each other and we trust each other instead of mistrust.” According to him, a new step was taken during the IPKO.
Poverty problem
The IPKO took place on Bonaire. In the Caribbean Netherlands, the wish for the introduction of a social minimum wage has often been expressed by local politicians. According to Rosenmöller, no concrete agreements were made during the meetings. “That is also complicated.” However, the Dutch MPs spoke personally on Monday with people on Bonaire who are in a dire situation due to poverty.
“In any case, as the entire Dutch delegation, we have that very sharply in mind and that naturally requires a follow-up action,” says Rosenmöller. "I hope the Dutch government will come up with this soon, so that an answer can be given to this problem."