Mothers were concerned about their children who arrived in Curaçao by boat illegally.
WILLEMSTAD - On September 21st, a boat was intercepted in the early morning hours. According to reports, the boat originated from Venezuela, carrying 7 men, 7 women, and 5 minors.
After the boat arrived on the coast of Curaçao, some undocumented individuals who were already in Curaçao reported to the Immigration Department, indicating that they were the parents of the children who arrived on the boat. These individuals were detained on suspicion of human trafficking. Considering that the occupants of the boat were undocumented and accompanied by 5 minors, authorities launched an investigation into human trafficking.
Two Venezuelan mothers, with the assistance of Human Right Defense Curaçao, initiated a summary proceeding against the country of Curaçao. The summary proceeding is aimed at enabling the mothers to be reunited with their children who arrived in Curaçao on the mentioned day. According to international laws, various documents need to be verified to establish the true parentage of the children. However, one of the mothers indicated that the Venezuelan government would never collaborate in providing verification documentation. The discussion went so far that the Venezuelan consulate stated that they would not help the mothers because they left Venezuela in an illegal manner, which is considered a disgrace to the country.
Related to international children's rights, a government has an obligation to provide adequate care to a minor when they do not have parents. In this case, 5 minors originated from Venezuela by boat, and the adults who presented themselves to the police did not have sufficient evidence that they were the true parents. Therefore, in such a case, the government of Curaçao has an obligation to provide proper care to the minors. This is why the mothers attempted to provide birth certificates for the children, but these certificates were not verified by, among other things, a notary. In the world of human trafficking, there can be document falsification, so in this case, falsification cannot be ruled out.
Attorneys Chester Peterson and Andreina Faria explained the government's point of view, emphasizing that the mothers did not have verified documentation, so the government cannot simply give the children to the mothers.
To provide evidence that the mothers are indeed the mothers of the children who arrived by boat, defense attorneys for the mothers provided various photographs indicating signs of pregnancy and pictures showing the mothers with the children. Based on this information, the judge indicated that there was sufficient indication that the mothers in the courtroom were the mothers of the children who were on the boat on September 21st. Nonetheless, both mothers were willing to undergo DNA tests to obtain sufficient proof.
Also during the summary trial, it was revealed that the mothers had no contact with their children from the moment the children arrived in Curaçao on September 21st. According to lawyer Blonk, who defended the Venezuelan mothers, they found out through unofficial channels that their children were likely staying at Huize St Jozef. Lawyer Blonk explained that the information kept changing. At one point, they were told the children were in a quarantine facility, and then they were informed that the children were with private families. Eventually, it turned out that the children were indeed at Huize Sint Jozef.
The guardian could not receive any comments from government representatives, but there was sufficient indication that the children may have spent an entire night in the Rio Canario cell. Furthermore, the mothers testified in court that when they went to look for their children who had arrived in Curaçao by boat, they noticed that their children smelled of urine. However, one of the mothers explained to the judge that her child even told her that he was hungry.
Putting all the facts together, the court rendered its verdict just one hour after closing the case. This is how the mothers were reunited with their children, as they immediately went to look for their children in Santa Rosa in the late afternoon.