THE HAGUE - The eagerly anticipated dispute resolution mechanism sought by Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten is once again missing from the agenda of the Interparliamentary Kingdom Consultation (IpKo), scheduled for June 7 to 10 in The Hague.
Following the rejection of a unilaterally conceived dispute resolution mechanism by former Minister Ronald Plasterk in 2021, it was agreed that the parliaments of the CAS countries (Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten) would take the lead in developing a new mechanism. However, the delegations have not been able to reach a consensus, leaving the 2010 Charter's obligation to establish such a mechanism unmet.
Topics for Discussion at IPKO
Despite the absence of the dispute resolution mechanism, several significant topics are set to be discussed at this IPKO, including poverty alleviation, education, the fight against transnational crime and undermining activities, neighborhood safety and livability, the democratic deficit, the history of slavery, and the availability and access to EU funds.
The meeting will kick off on Friday, June 7, 2024, with an opening session where leaders from the Caribbean parliamentary delegations and the delegation leader of the Dutch States General, Paul Rosenmöller (Chair of the KOREL Committee, Dutch Senate), will present recent developments in the four countries. Following this, IPKO will visit Amsterdam North to observe various projects and initiatives related to poverty alleviation and social security, such as the Social Market and the Pek Neighborhood Center.
On Saturday, June 8, 2024, IPKO will convene in the Dutch Senate. Discussions will focus on poverty alleviation, featuring presentations from the Commission for the Social Minimum in the Caribbean Netherlands and the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP). Education will also be a key topic, with Caribbean students in the Netherlands sharing their challenges in the country and upon their return to the islands. In the afternoon, the delegations will address transnational crime and efforts to combat undermining activities, with a presentation by the director of the National Cooperation against Undermining Crime (NSOC). The day will conclude with a discussion on the democratic deficit within the Kingdom.
On Monday, June 10, the delegations will discuss the history of slavery, guided by a presentation from the National Slavery Museum. This will be followed by a representative from the European Commission explaining the availability and access to EU funds for the Caribbean part of the Kingdom, leading to a discussion. The interparliamentary consultation will conclude in the afternoon with the adoption and signing of the agreements list and a joint press conference by the chairs of the four delegations.