Let’s face it; there probably wasn’t great concern locally over indications that the biannual Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultation IPKO scheduled for early next year in Curaçao might not take place.
After all, discussions at these meetings rarely lead to quick and decisive action with tangible results by either the Kingdom Council of Ministers or the governments of the individual counties involved St. Maarten, Aruba, Curaçao and the Netherlands also on behalf of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba (the BES islands).
The host nation had asked to postpone the upcoming edition until after the Dutch Second Chamber elections in mid-March. The recent installation of new Members of Parliament (MPs) in both Curaçao and St. Maarten unfamiliar with their role as such was another reason mentioned, but whatever significant delay would have made it too close to the second IPKO of 2017 normally held during the month of June in The Hague.
While the gathering will now continue as planned January 10-13, the format is to be less formal, without the customary decision list. The respective delegations, including first-time participants, can use the occasion as platform to get better acquainted.
Several of the likely topics on the agenda are of a continuing nature, so no major positions would probably need to be taken on them anyway. The focus will therefore be on maintaining and strengthening relations between the four legislatures, which especially considering possible political developments on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean in the near future could prove more important than ever.
