Dutch Parliament refuses to
give carte blanche for RTC
THE HAGUE--The Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament made it clear on Tuesday that a decision can’t be taken at the December 15 Round Table Conference (RTC) without Parliament’s consent. Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende has been invited to give an explanation in a meeting next week Thursday.
The Prime Minister will attend a meeting of the Second Chamber’s Permanent Committee for Antillean and Aruban Affairs NAAZ on the request of Member of Parliament Johan Remkes of the opposition party VVD, who was supported in his call by members of the Socialist Party (SP).
The meeting on December 11, one day before the Dutch delegation travels to Curaçao for the RTC, had already been planned, with an update by Dutch State Secretary of Kingdom Relations Ank Bijleveld-Schouten about the constitutional restructuring process on the agenda.
Remkes was very clear in his statement during a session of Parliament on Tuesday afternoon. “It cannot be that on the 15th, under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister, all kinds of issues are being approved, especially those issues that we have our doubts about, like St. Maarten,” he said.
Clearly the Second Chamber doesn’t want irreversible decisions taken at the RTC without Parliament’s consent. Remkes has already said on various occasions that he thinks Parliament should be updated regularly, not at the last moment.
Remkes initially asked for a public debate about the RTC, but he didn’t muster enough support from his colleagues for that request. He did garner enough support to have Balkenende invited to the December 11 meeting.
Remkes referred to the successful November 26 political consultation in St. Maarten, where parties voiced their optimism about the upcoming RTC. “We were gladly informed last week about the fact that agreements had been made about police legislation and legislation for financial supervision, issues that will be approved during the RTC. Parliament is confronted with this while we have our doubts,” said Remkes.
The Dutch Government, on behalf of State Secretary Bijleveld-Schouten, in a press release on November 26 spoke of “nothing standing in the way of a successful RTC.” In the press release, the RTC was described as an historical meeting where the “floor plan,” the drawings for a new Kingdom with four countries and three “public entities” as part of the Netherlands would be signed off. “All necessary legislation is ready and will be on the table for approval,” it was stated.
This euphoria is now being killed by the Second Chamber, which seems to be sticking to its October 23 motion. In that motion, Parliament made it clear that St. Maarten cannot attain country status until the island has complied with all conditions. Several MP’s doubted that St. Maarten would be ready to assume greater responsibility by January 2010.
