Yesterday's approval of the so-called BES laws by the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament is good news for particularly Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba, which now have a greater assurance that their long-awaited change of status to become special overseas public entities of the Netherlands indeed will become a reality in the not-too-distant future. It is important to remember that amending the Kingdom Charter to formalise the new constitutional relations will be left to the next second Chamber to be voted into office on June 9, but all the groundwork can be done in the meantime, of course.
To be sure, the three "smaller islands" have always struggled with structural deficits because of their size and economic limitations, often practically having to beg for first "federal contributions" and later their share of the Solidarity Fund intended to help cover those shortages. What they receive from the latter fund was only increased after it had been clear for years that it did not suffice, causing them to accumulate considerable payment backlogs.
That problem is being tackled already as the Dutch Government takes more and more responsibility for the BES islands, bringing some much needed financial security for their respective populations.
As can be expected, there are also perceived downsides to becoming part of the Netherlands, such as the recent decision to enforce existing Dutch legislation on locally controversial matters such as same-sex marriages and euthanasia in two years, and abortion in one year. This, while there had been an agreement in principle to take a period of five years to evaluate these issues, considering their sensitive nature on the islands involved.
In the long run, however, these laws probably would have been introduced anyway, as that is the European trend based on the promotion of individual rights. It may be seen now by some as a big price to pay, but ultimately the end result probably would have been the same, as can be expected throughout the Dutch Kingdom sooner or later based also on applicable international treaties and rulings to which the islands indirectly are parties.
