Today’s urgent Central Committee meeting for an update on negotiations with the Netherlands about a third tranche of liquidity support and the Caribbean Entity for Reform & Development COHO might prove crucial. Dutch State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops in a weekend exchange of letters with St. Maarten Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs (see related story) demanded a clear signal from Parliament that it too backs the current draft accord to be signed next Friday.
The main reason is a motion adopted by the legislature calling for a speedy completion of the decolonisation process. This was done during a November 5 session on the appointment of a permanent Committee for Constitutional Affairs and Decolonisation.
The latter received unanimous legislative support, but that was not the case for the motion, with the Party for Progress (PFP) and United Democrats (UD) opposition factions saying it involved prior positions taken on topics that were supposed to first be discussed in the new committee and with stakeholders. The public later learned an American law firm had already been approached on October 1 to assist in finalising the decolonisation process – which is to include reparations – involving the United Nations (UN) and others by next July.
The plan is to do this together with the other Dutch Caribbean countries Curaçao and Aruba, whereby the three each pay this law firm US $7,000 per month. However, the legislatures in Willemstad and Oranjestad respectively have not decided on the matter yet and do not seem in a particular hurry to do so.
The Netherlands appears concerned that this direction taken by a large majority of elected representatives in Philipsburg would undermine what it is trying to do by providing soft loans and guidance with restructuring measures to help St. Maarten overcome the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the hard-hit tourism economy. After all, this regards a multi-annual effort.
The biggest problem is that the motion in question mentions endorsing legal actions by Pro Soualiga Foundation, which has recently taken the Dutch state to court twice trying to stop any so-called Kingdom Consensus Act to establish the COHO and claiming the Kingdom Charter violates international law. The Hague wants guarantees there is no inconsistency in that sense.
On the other hand, the right of self-determination remains sacred and was arguably not exhausted with either the Kingdom Charter signed on December 15, 1954, or the dismantling of the former Netherlands Antilles effective 10-10-10. Setting not making use of this right as requirement for financial assistance needed due to an unprecedented global crisis could be frowned on abroad.
But Knops did not ask to revoke the controversial motion, only for a new one or statement that Parliament backs the deal accepted by the Jacobs Cabinet, also needed to obtain another extension from the Netherlands for a NAf. 50 million loan that has been due since October 21. Under the circumstances and considering that the parliaments of Aruba and Curaçao did approve similar agreements their respective governments made with the Netherlands, there should be no major issue with providing the assurance requested.
