THE HAGUE – Children and teenagers facing criminal proceedings in the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands are subject to different privacy standards than their counterparts in the European Netherlands. This disparity has drawn concern from Member of Parliament Don Ceder (ChristenUnie), who is now calling for a uniform approach to juvenile justice across the Kingdom.
Ceder has submitted written questions to State Secretary for Legal Protection Maarten Struyken and State Secretary for Kingdom Relations Zsolt Szabó, urging them to address inconsistencies in how the privacy of minors is protected during criminal trials.
In the European Netherlands, juvenile criminal cases involving suspects under 18 are by default held behind closed doors, in accordance with Article 495b of the Dutch Code of Criminal Procedure. Ceder asks whether the state secretaries are aware of this standard practice.
He contrasts this with the situation in the Caribbean Netherlands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba) and other territories such as Curaçao, where criminal hearings for youths aged 16 and older are generally held in public, as allowed by Article 488 of the BES Criminal Code. Ceder questions the legal and practical justification for this discrepancy.
The MP further challenges the fairness of exposing 16- and 17-year-olds—who are still legally minors and often in critical stages of development—to public trials, while the same age group enjoys privacy protections in the European Netherlands.
He also raises concerns about the compatibility of this practice with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), which states that all individuals under 18 are entitled to privacy protection in criminal proceedings.
Ceder asks how the current system accounts for vulnerable youth, such as those with mild intellectual disabilities, who face increased risks of stigma and psychological harm when subjected to public hearings.
He then questions whether the government sees value in creating a uniform standard across the Kingdom that ensures privacy protections for all minors up to age 18. He emphasizes that such standardization should be considered carefully in relation to the autonomy of the individual countries within the Kingdom.
Finally, Ceder asks whether the state secretaries are willing to engage in dialogue with the Ministers of Justice of Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten, and whether they are prepared to collaborate with local governments and judicial partners to explore how equal protections for minors can be implemented in the short term. He requests clarification on what timeline and approach the government would pursue if it agrees to address the issue.
Ceder’s initiative highlights a growing call in Dutch politics for legal coherence and equal rights for children throughout all parts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
