Maximum prison sentences for drug-related crimes on Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba (BES islands) will not be raised, as they are already significantly higher than those in the European part of the Netherlands.

Caretaker Minister of Justice David van Weel made this clear in response to parliamentary questions from the right-wing parties People’s Party for Free­dom and Democracy VVD and Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA).

While the Dutch govern­ment is preparing to in­crease penalties for drug offences in the European Netherlands in an effort to crack down on serious drug crime, these changes will not extend to the BES islands. According to the minister, the legal frame­work in the Caribbean Netherlands already pro­vides courts with ample sentencing options.

“Increasing maximum penalties gives judges more room to impose ap­propriate punishments in the most severe cases,” the government explained when announcing the pro­posed changes. These in­clude raising the maximum sentence for importing or exporting hard drugs from 12 to 16 years, and for producing or selling hard drugs from 8 to 12 years. Possession of large quanti­ties or engaging in prepa­ratory activities would car­ry a maximum of 8 years, up from 6.

By comparison, the Ca­ribbean Netherlands al­ready imposes far stricter penalties. Producing a hard drug like cocaine can carry a sentence of up to 24 years, or even life imprisonment under certain circumstances.

In their questions, the VVD and CDA asked why these penalties are higher than those in the Euro­pean Netherlands and whether there is a need to further align sentencing standards.

Minister Van Weel noted that the legal disparity has historical roots. When the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved in 2010, it was decided to maintain the existing criminal codes in the Caribbean Nether­lands. This decision aimed to ensure continuity and align sentencing more closely with neighbour­ing jurisdictions such as Curacao, Aruba, and St. Maarten.

“Indeed, the statutory maximum sentences in the Caribbean Netherlands differ in some cases—not just for drug offences—from those in the Euro­pean Netherlands,” Van Weel acknowledged. “But since the current limits are already high, there is no need to increase them further.”

He also confirmed that no request to raise sentenc­ing limits has come from authorities in the Carib­bean Netherlands. Do­ing so would only widen the existing disparity with the European part of the Kingdom, the minister added.

When asked whether courts in the Caribbean Netherlands actually hand down tougher sentences in practice, Van Weel said the data is difficult to compare. Sentences often cover multiple offences, making it hard to isolate outcomes for drug crimes alone. Nonetheless, he re­iterated that the current sentencing framework
already offers judges the tools needed to address serious drug-related of­fences.

The Daily Herald.