Haste makes waste
The statement by State Secretary of Kingdom Relations Ank Bijleveld-Schouten that the target date of December 15, 2008, for the islands of the Netherlands Antilles to achieve their new statuses is no longer feasible does not come as a surprise. To those directly involved in the talks and negotiations for especially St. Maarten and Curaçao to become autonomous countries in the Dutch Kingdom, it was becoming increasingly obvious that the necessary work won’t be completed on time.
That is certainly not the end of the world and reaction to the news in both Willemstad and Philipsburg so far has been sensible. The Island Territories simply plan to continue their preparations with the target date in mind, which is the only right attitude to take.
It has been said before by, among others, this newspaper: the date is not as important as the content. The constitutional changes must be well-prepared to assure they make things better for the people of the islands, rather than worse.
For St. Maarten, a delay would in any case have the advantage that the duly elected 11-seat Island Council won’t be in office for just over a year, but closer to the official term of four years. It will also give the future country time to prepare and have elections for a 15-seat St. Maarten Parliament.
As far as the BES islands Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba that are becoming part of the Netherlands are concerned, the Dutch Government is striving to take over certain tasks of the Antillean Government in the meantime. How exactly this will be arranged legally – also considering the fact that the islands have representatives in the Antillean Parliament – remains to be seen, but it will certainly free up federal resources and enable the Central Government to focus on dismantling the Netherlands Antilles and assisting St. Maarten and Curaçao in obtaining country status.
A possible new date being mentioned now is 2010, when the Antillean Parliament completes its current term. That would indeed seem a more realistic and feasible target. Haste makes waste.
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