THE HAGUE - The Netherlands plans to reassess its support for strengthening the rule of law in Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten. This was announced by State Secretary for Kingdom Relations, Szabó, and Minister of Justice, Van Weel, in a letter titled "Reassessment of Dutch Involvement in the Rule of Law in Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten", addressed to the Dutch Parliament.
“The Kingdom as a whole, and Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, and the Netherlands, including Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba, individually, have a direct interest in a strong and resilient rule of law in the Caribbean parts of the Kingdom. It is important to not only focus on law enforcement but also on other rule of law themes such as integrity, good governance, and strengthening civil society. To achieve this, the Netherlands will support Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, as well as Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba, in strengthening their rule of law,” the officials stated.
Over the past decade, the Netherlands has significantly increased its investment in law enforcement in the CAS countries (Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten). However, the contributions from these countries themselves have lagged far behind. Despite ‘The Hague’ repeatedly pointing out this imbalance to the governments, the disparity has only widened over time.