WILLEMSTAD – Sixteen years after Curaçao became an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the government has finally established a more comprehensive legal framework governing the employment conditions of the Ombudsman and the Deputy Ombudsman. However, one of the most important issues, their pension entitlements, remains unresolved.
A new national decree, adopted on September 29, 2026, entered into force on Saturday, October 24. It regulates several employment benefits that had remained without a proper legal basis since Curaçao obtained its autonomous status on October 10, 2010.
The decree covers vacation allowances, child allowances, representation expenses, official travel, and transitional payments following the completion of an Ombudsman's term of office.
The development follows years of warnings from the Council of Advice and repeated requests from Ombudsman Keursly Concincion for the government to establish clear regulations governing his employment conditions and pension rights.
In an advisory opinion published with government documents on Friday, October 23, the Council of Advice described the prolonged delay in establishing the necessary regulations as unacceptable.
Although the Ombudsman's salary was formally regulated through a national ordinance in November 2021, other employment conditions and pension arrangements continued to require separate legislation.
The newly implemented decree addresses several of those outstanding matters, but the government acknowledges that the legal framework remains incomplete.
One of the most serious unresolved issues concerns pension rights.
The Ombudsman National Ordinance refers to a pension arrangement for political officeholders that was not continued for Curaçao following the constitutional changes of 2010. This created a legal gap that has persisted for more than sixteen years.
Despite the absence of a proper statutory pension framework, previous government information indicated that pension contributions were deducted from the Ombudsman's salary and transferred to the General Pension Fund of Curaçao (APC).
Concincion has repeatedly sought clarification about his pension entitlements. Through his attorney, Karly Bertrand, he recently issued an ultimatum to the government and Curaçao Parliament demanding action.
According to the demands communicated through his attorney, the legislative process must begin no later than January 1, 2027, and the pension arrangement must enter into force before June 1, 2027.
The Ombudsman is also seeking retroactive application of the pension provisions to October 10, 2010, when Curaçao became an autonomous country.
Concincion has commissioned an actuary at his own expense to calculate possible pension arrangements and their financial implications.
His current term of office expires on October 27, 2027, making the resolution of his pension rights increasingly urgent.
In its latest report, the government acknowledged that it had not been possible to prepare all the necessary regulations simultaneously.
According to the government, the pension provisions are being incorporated into a proposed amendment to the Ombudsman National Ordinance. That amendment is also connected to plans to establish a national human rights institution.
A separate legislative amendment is also required to include the Ombudsman and Deputy Ombudsman in supplementary healthcare arrangements available to certain government officials.
The government indicated that the financial assessment of the proposed healthcare amendment has been completed.
The new decree also incorporates several recommendations from the Council of Advice.
For example, the period during which a former Ombudsman may apply for transitional benefits has been extended from one month to six months, bringing it into line with the arrangement applicable to former members of Parliament.
Provisions concerning death benefits, additional income, and the calculation of allowances have also been clarified.
Despite these developments, the Ombudsman's legal position remains only partially regulated.
The government must still determine how to address pension entitlements accumulated since 2010, including possible claims involving former Ombudsmen.
The new decree therefore represents an important administrative step, but it does not resolve the pension dispute that has continued for more than a decade and a half.