WILLEMSTAD – The Curaçao government is regularly failing to implement final decisions issued by the civil servants’ court, according to the Ombudsman. In some cases, rulings are carried out only after lengthy delays, incompletely, or not at all, creating financial and emotional hardship for affected employees and weakening public confidence in the rule of law.
The findings come from an investigation by the Ombudsman into how government authorities handle judicial decisions in civil servant cases. The investigation was launched after repeated complaints from employees who had won their cases but were left waiting months or even years for the government to comply with the court’s decision.
Between April 2020 and March 2025, nearly 1,600 civil servant cases were filed. In 154 cases, employees complained about the absence of a government decision or response. Fifteen of those complaints specifically concerned the failure to execute an earlier court ruling.
The Ombudsman also identified sixteen published civil cases in which civil servants went back to court to force the government to comply with previous judgments. The actual number may be higher, as not all court proceedings are publicly available.
According to the Ombudsman, the problem is not caused by isolated incidents but represents a structural administrative failure.
No central monitoring system
One of the main problems identified is the absence of a central system within government to monitor court decisions, deadlines and the departments responsible for implementation.
After government lawyers provide advice on how a ruling should be executed, there is no central authority that verifies whether the decision has actually been carried out.
The Ombudsman also points to limited legal capacity within government. Across all ministries, only two permanent legal officers are available to handle civil servant cases. This creates a risk that decisions remain pending, responsibilities are shifted between departments and legal compensation or restoration of rights is unnecessarily delayed.
The Ombudsman stressed that government cannot simply participate in court proceedings and then ignore a final judgment.
“A court ruling only has meaning when it is actually implemented,” the report concludes.
Financial and personal impact
As part of the investigation, eighteen current and former civil servants completed a questionnaire. In 62.5 percent of the reported cases, the court decision had still not been implemented.
Among respondents who experienced delays, nearly two-thirds waited longer than one year.
Almost three-quarters reported direct financial consequences, including unpaid salaries, delayed promotions and missing allowances. Nearly half reported psychological or emotional stress caused by the prolonged uncertainty.
In 80 percent of the cases, respondents said they received no information from the government about the progress of implementation.
The Ombudsman noted that these figures are based on a limited number of respondents and cannot automatically be considered representative of all civil servant cases. However, they demonstrate the potential impact of delayed execution of court decisions.
Minister did not provide response
The Ombudsman also criticized the lack of cooperation from the Minister of Governance, Planning and Public Services during the investigation.
The minister did not provide substantive input despite an initial request for information, three reminders and telephone contact. After requesting and receiving additional time, the minister also failed to respond to the preliminary findings.
According to the Ombudsman, this behavior conflicts with principles of proper administration and obstructs the constitutional oversight role of the institution.
Six months for improvements
The Ombudsman has given the minister six months to introduce improvements. Recommendations include creating a central monitoring system for court decisions and deadlines, clearly assigning responsibilities within ministries and increasing legal capacity.
The Ombudsman also recommends that government periodically report to the Curaçao Parliament on outstanding court rulings and progress in implementing them.
In addition, the report suggests examining whether the civil servants’ court should receive stronger tools to enforce compliance, such as the possibility of imposing penalties for non-compliance.
The Ombudsman emphasized that citizens and civil servants must be able to rely on government respecting judicial decisions.
“When the government structurally fails to execute court rulings, legal protection loses its practical value,” the Ombudsman stated.