WILLEMSTAD – The Curaçao government has formally taken note of a parliamentary motion demanding that the island be consulted before the Kingdom of the Netherlands adopts positions at the United Nations or other international forums on matters that directly affect Curaçao.
The motion was adopted by the Curaçao Parliament on September 7 and was presented to the Council of Ministers on September 16.
The issue goes considerably further than consultation. Parliament is asking the government to push for formal arrangements among the four countries of the Kingdom governing how international positions are determined when the interests of Curaçao, Aruba or Sint Maarten are involved.
The motion arose from controversy over the Kingdom's decision on March 25, 2026 to abstain from voting on a United Nations resolution concerning slavery.
According to the official parliamentary text, Parliament is urging the Curaçao government to require the Kingdom government to consult Curaçao before adopting any position or decision at the UN, another international organization or toward another country when the matter concerns Curaçao.
Parliament also wants Curaçao to pursue a formal mutual arrangement under Article 38(1) of the Charter for the Kingdom.
Such an arrangement would establish procedures and criteria for determining Kingdom positions internationally. The proposal refers specifically to the Council of State of the Kingdom's 2024 advice marking 70 years of the Charter, which emphasized cooperation based on mutual understanding.
The motion additionally calls on the government to publish Curaçao's own position on the March 25 UN resolution and communicate that position to the United Nations.
The underlying constitutional issue is that foreign affairs are a Kingdom responsibility, while international decisions can directly affect matters of significant political, historical or economic importance to the individual countries.
The Council of Ministers has so far only stated that it has taken note of the motion. It has not announced whether it will pursue the Article 38 arrangement requested by Parliament.
The issue could therefore become an important test of Curaçao's influence over Kingdom foreign policy: not whether Curaçao may express its opinion after a decision has been made, but whether the country must be involved before the Kingdom establishes its position.