THE HAGUE – The ink on the draft bill from the parliaments of Aruba, Curaçao, and St. Maarten introducing a dispute settlement mechanism within the Kingdom is barely dry, yet the Dutch government has already torn it apart.

In its official response, published today, the Schoof cabinet dismissed the recommendations of the Council of State, which last year issued unsolicited advice on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Kingdom Charter. In that advice, the Council offered several ideas to strengthen cooperation within the Kingdom, including finally implementing a dispute settlement mechanism, which has been enshrined in the Charter since 2010 but never put into practice.

The Dutch government, however, was unimpressed. “The proposed solutions bring their own problems,” the cabinet wrote in a position paper. Instead, The Hague expressed preference for its earlier, unilaterally drafted version of a Kingdom law. That proposal was shelved after strong opposition from the Caribbean countries, but the cabinet now suggests it is prepared to revive it. “The government is of the opinion that the earlier draft is the most feasible option. The government is therefore willing to bring it back if desired,” the statement reads.

The House of Representatives had requested that the cabinet’s response to the Council of State be shared before the Interparliamentary Kingdom Consultation (IPKO). That did not happen, meaning the announcement at least did not spoil the atmosphere of the four-parliament meeting, which concluded today.