WILLEMSTAD – Human Rights Defense Curaçao (HRDC) recently conducted a training session for attorneys focused on the position of the Caribbean countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands in relation to human rights.
During the session, participants explored the responsibilities of the islands in connection with the Kingdom’s so-called safeguarding function. This function refers to the constitutional obligation of the Kingdom to ensure the protection of fundamental human rights, freedoms, legal certainty, and good governance across all its constituent countries.
The training also addressed the revised policy of the Ministry of Justice concerning Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which came into force in 2025. Discussions focused on the balance between policy and effective protection, as well as recent case law developments. This part of the training was led by HRDC attorney Alicia Blonk of Triple A Attorneys at Law.
In addition, Helen Rollbühler of VluchtelingenWerk Nederland (VWN) provided a session on Article 13 of the ECHR, which deals with the right to an effective remedy.
The training brought together a range of legal professionals and stakeholders from various organizations, highlighting ongoing efforts to strengthen knowledge and awareness of human rights within Curaçao’s legal community.
Present at the training were: Simone de Brabander (Director, HRDC), Gabriela Engelbrecht (Project Officer, HRDC), Geraldine Scheperboer- Parris (SP Lawyers), Nicole Brown (Support Officer, HRDC), Shafny Vierbergen (SVB), Danyelle Vervoorn (MXLaw); Alicia Blonk (Triple A Attorneys at Law), Nissi Dare (SVB), Inki Brouwers (I for all), Milushka Martinus (TaxAssist & Business Solution), Angelique Balootje (Bakhuis Advocaten), Ellen Frins (Soliana Bonapart & Aardenburg), Rejauna Rojer (HBN Law & Tax) en Selvin Larmonie (Larmonie Advocaten).