Human rights body warns: Basic rights under pressure in Caribbean Netherlands

Access to basic needs such as hous­ing and a clean, healthy, and sustainable environ­ment is under serious pressure in the Caribbean Netherlands. This was re­ported by the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights (College voor de Rechten van de Mens), the national human rights watchdog.

The body recently pub­lished two independent analyses on the state of housing and environmen­tal rights in the Caribbean Netherlands, highlighting significant shortcomings.

The right to adequate housing is a fundamental human right in the Neth­erlands, including in the Caribbean territories. It guarantees every person “a place to live in safety, peace, and dignity”, as well as access to housing at a reasonable cost, leaving room to meet other basic needs.

According to the Insti­tute, life in the Caribbean Netherlands is expensive, and there is currently a shortage of affordable and social rental housing. Ac­cess to rent subsidies is limited, and on Saba and St. Eustatius no rental tribunal is available. The watchdog warns that these issues undermine people’s security and well-being.

The right to a dean, healthy, and sustainable environment is also under threat due to pollution and environmental degrada­tion. The Institute stresses the human rights dimen­sion: clean air, safe drink­ing water, and freedom

from harmful substances are essential to health, safety, and quality of life. States, including the Neth­erlands, are obligated to protect their citizens from serious environmental harm. Such protection, the Institute argues, should not be viewed only as en­vironmental or climate policy but also as a human rights obligation.

The situation at the La-gun landfill on Bonaire is a striking example. For years, hazardous waste was processed there without permits or adequate safe­guards, leading to fires, smoke, foul odours, and health concerns. Accord­ing to the Institute, this failure to regulate and enforce touches multiple rights: health, family life, and access to effective le­gal remedies.

In addition, Bonaire fac­es the impacts of climate change, including salinisa­tion of farmland, coral reef damage, and vulnerability to rising sea levels.

While Bonaire provides the most urgent examples, Saba and St. Eustatius also face environmental pressure. Across all three islands, nature is in poor condition due to overgraz­ing, reef decline, waste management challenges, and limited conservation capacity. Both Saba and St. Eustatius lie in the hur­ricane belt, leaving them highly exposed to infra­structure and environmen­tal damage.

Because the islands rely heavily on fisheries and tourism, these environ­mental threats extend be­yond biodiversity, affecting livelihoods, food security, and cultural heritage.

The Institute points to structural challenges: in­sufficient funding, weak enforcement, and a lack of consistent, long-term poli­cies. Local governments often have limited exper­tise and resources, while the legal and institutional framework for environ­mental protection is weak­er than in the European Netherlands.

This, the Institute argues, cannot be separated from the unequal and historical­ly sensitive relationship be­tween the Caribbean Neth­erlands and the European Netherlands. The result is that rights theoretically guaranteed to all Dutch citizens — such as health, an adequate standard of living, and public partici­pation — are less effectively protected in practice.

Ultimately, responsibil­ity lies with the Dutch government. Since 2021, the “comply or explain” principle has applied: laws should, in principle, he the same as in the European Netherlands, unless spe­cific circumstances require deviations, which must then be justified with alter­native protections.

The Institute emphasis­es that both the local is­land governments and the Dutch state share respon­sibility for ensuring equal human rights protections. Where local capacity is lacking, the Dutch govern­ment has a duty to provide support.

The Daily Herald.