As a direct outcome of the BES Summit held in Saba on February 12, the Island Councils of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba have jointly sent a protest letter to Dutch State Secretary of Kingdom Relations and Digitisation Zsolt Szabo.

This letter addresses con­cerns raised by Szabo’s let­ter to the Dutch Second Chamber of Parliament on February 6, which outlines changes to the Public Enti­ties Act of Bonaire, St. Eu­statius and Saba WolBES and the Finance Act of the Public Entities of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba Fin­BES. These laws outline the structure and financial obligations of the local gov­ernments of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba in rela­tion to The Hague.

The islands wanted the supervisory position of Kingdom Representative abolished, but Szabo’s new amendment retains the post.

Citing recent interven­tions in Bonaire and St. Eustatius, Szabo described the position as the Dutch government’s “administra­tive eyes and ears in the re­gion” and told Members of Parliament (MPs) that it is needed for “good intergov­ernmental supervision on Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba.”

According to Szabo, the islands getting permanent representation is not an ad­equate solution.

“Intergovernmental su­pervision, where and when necessary, requires inten­sive administrative involve­ment. This can be shaped more effectively and ap­propriately by the King­dom Representative than by a representative in The Hague. The Kingdom Rep­resentative is much bet­ter able to be on location quickly and is very familiar with the special circum­stances of the governments of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba,” Szabo said in his letter.

The Island Councils of Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba confirmed and agreed on their joint letter last week and formally submit­ted it to the State Secre­tary’s office and other gov­ernmental bodies.

“The response highlights the concerns regarding uni­lateral changes to agree­ments that were carefully negotiated during the work conference held in March 2024 in De Bilt,” a press re­lease issued by the three Is­land Councils said. “These agreements were estab­lished in collaboration with the former State Secretary and were intended to guide future governance and fi­nancial structures for the islands.”

The Island Councils said they strongly oppose Sza­bo’s amendments because “no consultation with the islands was conducted prior to these proposed chang­es.” They also are request­ing an urgent meeting with the State Secretary “before the consultation process for the legislative amendments begins.”

“The Island Councils find this lack of dialogue both disrespectful and dismis­sive of the collaborative ef­forts made during the work conference,” according to the press release. “Given that these agreements were established in good faith, [we — Ed.] expect the State Secretary to engage in a constructive conversation before any amendments are made.”

Szabo told MPs in his letter that, because of the amendment, they should not expect the draft laws to be submitted to parlia­ment before the beginning of 2026.

This delay will have di­rect consequences for the planned increase in the number of Island Council Members and Commission­ers in the three islands. This was supposed to go into ef­fect in 2027, but Szabo said it will now be pushed back to 2031.

Under the original plan introduced by former State Secretary Alexandra van Huffelen, Bonaire’s Island Council was set to increase from 9 to 15 seats by 2027, with a further expansion to 19 seats by 2031. St. Eusta­tius was expected to see its council grow from 5 to 11 seats in 2027, while Saba’s council would expand from 5 to 9 seats.

The Daily Herald.