WILLEMSTAD – The residents’ movement Movimentu Save Zakitó has gone to court for the second time in a legal challenge against the Curaçao government over the large-scale Zakitó development project. The new case follows an earlier appeal last year and centers on two separate disputes related to the project’s permitting and oversight.
The first legal action, filed in 2025, focused on what the residents described as a failure by the Minister of Traffic, Transport and Urban Planning to enforce existing rules and regulations at the Zakitó site. According to the movement, repeated requests for enforcement action went unanswered while construction activities continued.
The second appeal challenges a decision taken on January 14, 2026, by the Ministry of Health, Environment and Nature (GMN). In that decision, the ministry stated that the Zakitó project does not require nuisance permits. GMN argues that construction projects do not fall under permits for environmentally burdensome activities, allowing the development to proceed without nuisance permits, an environmental impact assessment or formal participation by nearby residents.
The Zakitó project includes high-rise construction, a marina, dredging activities and the construction of a movable bridge.
Movimentu Save Zakitó strongly disputes the ministry’s interpretation of the law. According to the residents, the project should be assessed as a single, integrated development and not artificially divided into separate components to avoid legal obligations. They argue that this approach minimizes environmental impacts on paper and circumvents statutory requirements.
The movement also points to recent court rulings that reaffirm the status of nearby residents as interested parties in projects of this scale, particularly when there are potential environmental and health consequences.
Residents say they have endured more than three years of disruption linked to the construction activities, including heavy construction traffic, persistent noise and significant dust pollution. According to the movement, residents have reported health complaints such as respiratory problems and sleep disturbances.
They further warn that damage to mangroves and coastal buffer zones has worsened the situation. Stagnant water caused by construction works, they say, has led to an increase in mosquitoes and related nuisance.
In their court filing, the residents also question the legal basis used by GMN, stating that the ministry relied in part on an exemption that is no longer valid. The Rif Management Ordinance, which previously governed certain activities in the area, expired in May 2025.
Additionally, the movement criticizes the issuance of a dredging permit after a formal request for enforcement had already been submitted. According to the residents, this amounts to retroactively legalizing a potentially unlawful situation.
With the new court case, Movimentu Save Zakitó says it hopes to force a comprehensive legal review of the Zakitó project and to ensure that environmental protection, public participation and the health of residents are properly taken into account. The government has not yet publicly responded to the latest legal challenge.
