Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
By Suzanne Koelega
WILLEMSTAD--The Dutch delegation at Tuesday's Kingdom Conference in Curaçao proposed to create a temporary provision for a dispute regulation via the Council of State until the Kingdom Law has materialised, said Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations. However, the islands didn't agree with that proposal.
Plasterk said in an interview with The Daily Herald the day after the Kingdom Conference that he checked with the delegations of Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten whether they supported a proposal to create a temporary provision, which would be approved by the Kingdom Council of Ministers.
As long as there is no Kingdom Law for the dispute regulation ("geschillenregeling"), parties could take their objections to the Council of State. The decision-taking process could be temporarily deferred to seek advice from the Council of State, explained Plasterk.
The advice of the Council of State could then become part of the process in the final decision-taking of the Kingdom Council of Ministers. That possibility doesn't exist at this moment. Plasterk said it could take several years before the Kingdom Law materialised and at least until that time there would be a temporary provision in place. "Unfortunately, the other countries didn't want this," he said.
Asked about the lengthy negotiations at the Kingdom Conference on the issue of the dispute regulation, which was the major challenge at the conference, Plasterk said that it was not an easy discussion since the countries had different views on the format and the legal interpretation of that regulation.
"The impression is that this matter was solved at the recent Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultations IPKO. But that is not entirely true. The opinions vary a lot on who should be carrying out the dispute regulation," the minister said.
According to Plasterk, it wasn't entirely clear where to make the cut in the legal interpretations of the dispute regulation, what would resort under it and what not. The IPKO agreement speaks of issues that strictly touch on the Kingdom Charter.
However, as Plasterk pointed out, the recent disputes with Aruba and St. Maarten were not about the interpretation of the Charter, but the use of the Regulation of the Governor. The Kingdom Council of Ministers issued an instruction to these countries via the Governor.
Looking back at Tuesday's Kingdom Conference, Plasterk said he was satisfied that the countries had taken a number of decisions in the area of, for example, children's rights, economic cooperation and cohesion in the Kingdom. "We sealed the plans that were thoroughly prepared by the different work groups. The fact that we didn't have lengthy discussions on these issues doesn't mean that they are less important," he said.
Issues such as improving children's rights and promoting economic cooperation are tangible things for the people, things which make the Kingdom a better place for everyone. In that sense, he agreed with the observation of St. Maarten Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs, who said on Tuesday that in order to build a nation it was important to focus on the (well-being of -ED.) children. He commended Gumbs for his positive energy and contribution.
"You can have lengthy discussions on the relations in the Kingdom, but these talks are hushed when children are growing up in poverty. We have decided that we are going to address the issue of children's rights together," said Plasterk. He called it a positive thing that the countries had decided to work on a number of issues on which they all agreed on, issues that truly benefitted the people.
The Minister also mentioned the commitment of the countries to look at the possibilities of establishing a fast ferry service between Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. This ferry could contribute to more economic activities and increased movement of people between the islands, a rate that was cheaper than airfare. "Families can visit more easily, sports teams can participate in events on the other islands. There is a world of possibilities."
The Kingdom Conference provided the countries an opportunity to create more comprehension for each other's views and to make progress. "The conference presented an important moment to talk about our differences. We have had serious disputes with Aruba and St. Maarten; heavy accusations were ventilated, also via the media. We don't always have to agree, but after all, we need to proceed together."
