Despite the Junior Carnival Parade and whatever else was going on over the weekend, many were commenting on the instruction by the Kingdom Government to St. Maarten regarding a much-discussed Integrity Chamber. Prime Minister William Marlin immediately announced a so-called fortified crown appeal with the Council of State, which at any rate has to give an advice on the General Measure of Kingdom Governance in question.
The latest draft is said to have taken into account objections against the national ordinance passed by the Parliament in Philipsburg that was revoked by St. Maarten’s Constitutional Court on review at the request of the Ombudsman. To what extent the latter is indeed the case will no doubt be one of the aspects the Council of State considers.
Marlin also said his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte had told him St. Maarten should stop whining or get out of the kingdom if it didn’t like it. If correct, that seems unbecoming for a public administrator and cabinet member in The Hague, but especially the chairman of the Kingdom Council of Ministers.
Perhaps the expectedly difficult formation talks now taking place in the Netherlands between left- and right-wing parties was a factor in his reportedly being “very agitated.” However, that’s no reason to adopt such a “take it or leave it” attitude and certainly not in keeping with the spirit of the 1954 Kingdom Charter, which speaks of “partners of equal value.”
Playing the independence card in this manner with every disagreement isn’t conducive to the stability and long-term interest of the kingdom as a whole and the Dutch Caribbean countries in particular. And while Rutte may not always be happy about it, he currently has a constitutional responsibility for not just the Netherlands but the entire kingdom.
If and when the islands become independent should have to do not so much with arguments between politicians or even governments, but whether their people and elected leaders are actually ready for such a fundamental step.
