While it’s not exactly what the Second Chamber of Parliament in The Hague ordered, the temporary Kingdom Dispute Regulation offered by Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Minister Ronald
Plasterk (see Saturday paper) is worth considering. The idea of placing the Council of State in charge of this matter for the time being was rejected at first by the Inter-parliamentary Kingdom Consultation IPKO, because the legislators wanted a structural approach.
However, the Prime Ministers of Aruba and Curaçao now have agreed to study it as a transitory phase of two years or so, while a more formal setup is prepared. The proposal still needs to be discussed with the Government of St. Maarten, but it seems like a no-brainer.
After all, reaching agreement on the exact content of a permanent arrangement could take a while also in light of the vast difference in scale between the Netherlands and the three Dutch Caribbean countries. In addition, the Council of State already exists and is the highest advisory body in the kingdom where appeals of decisions at that level must be launched.
In the latter scenario no new, costly administrative structures would have to be created and a lot of money undoubtedly can be saved on accommodations, travel, etc. Especially if the islands are to share in the cost, this is probably not the right moment to create yet another burden on their already strapped budgets.
Of course, the Council of State consists chiefly of European Dutchmen and only one representative each for Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten, but this kind of situation is likely to repeat in any joint body due to the aforementioned issue of respective population sizes. It’s important as well that the members aren’t active politicians, so they can be expected to take reasonable positions not based on what part of the kingdom they are from, but rather in the best general interest.
