Dear Editor,
I can already imagine it, on November 16, 2026, the successors of Dutch Prime Minister Rutte and US President Trump, together at Fort Oranje in St. Eustatius.
On that day it will be exactly 250 years ago that this Caribbean island claimed its place in American history. On November 16, 1776 a cannon was fired from this fort in the direction of an American ship as a salute, in response to the greeting of the naval ship that sailed under the American flag. With this symbol, the Netherlands became the first country that recognised the United States as an independent nation.
The Americans fought for independence against the British and Statia was a centre of slave trade, but also of arms trade. The American insurgents were armed on a large scale from this small Dutch colony.
In Fort Oranje there is now a proud memorial with a flagpole and a plaque, which was presented to the island in 1939 by the American president F.D. Roosevelt, commemorating the historic First Salute.
This old fort is unfortunately somewhat neglected, as is the rest of Statia. Many people live in poverty on the island, because jobs are scarce and the cost of living is high. Roads are badly kept, sometimes even impassable, and there is a lot of rubbish and debris.
However, it is not the fault of the residents that Statia is in this neglected state. The fault mainly lies with the local administrators who have rejected help and interference from The Hague. Like after Hurricane Irma last year, when we sent soldiers to help. But Clyde van Putten, the most important politician on the island, threatened to “kill and burn” the Dutch soldiers in the “Statia streets.”
In February 2018, the Dutch government, with the consent of all parties in the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament, the House of Representatives, decided to implement the most far-reaching measure by placing the island under direct supervision. The Executive Council and the Island Council were put aside and Statia is currently managed by a National Government Commissioner. It was a very difficult decision that we took in February 2018 to put democracy aside on this island.
When I visited Statia with a parliamentary committee in July this year, the residents appeared to be very relaxed about the current situation. Most people had no confidence in their own politicians and hoped that the civil servants in The Hague would do better. Unfortunately, they had not yet seen many improvements so far.
On Thursday, the Second Chamber will discuss the situation on Statia and the plans that have been made in the meantime to improve roads and to fight poverty, but also to stimulate the economy and improve governance. The Dutch government has reserved funds to renovate Fort Oranje, but I think we can do a lot more.
Let Statia in eight years be the centre of the commemoration of 250 years of ties between the US and the Netherlands, with the leaders of both countries shaking hands. A good time to reflect on the dark sides of our past, such as colonialism and the slave trade. But also a reason to build up this beautiful island and to facilitate tourists who want to visit this historical heritage.
Ronald van Raak, Member of the Second Chamber for the Socialist Party (SP)
