"Lack of Curaçao citizens in committee is insulting"

May 26, 2011 4:18 PM

Lawyer Chester Peterson is withdrawing as member of the Progress Committee Plans of Approach Curaçao after his appointment on May 9th last.

He does not agree that the secretary of the Progress Committee was appointed prior to recommendation of the Progress Committee in conformity with the law. Moreover, it is a thorn in his flesh that he is the only Curaçao citizen in the committee. He expressed this in unmistakable terms in a letter to the Queen.

In his letter to Queen Beatrix, Peterson – a lawyer in everyday life – writes: ‘it is very strange that most of the members – including the secretary – of the Progress Committee domiciled in Curaçao, which committee is to test the implementation of plans of approach in Curaçao institutions are not Curaçao residents’. According to Peterson, the composition of the Progress Committee attests to ‘the different character of the policy of your country during the past three to four centuries in the countries that belong or belonged to the Kingdom of The Netherlands and it seems this is also an infringement on the autonomy of Curaçao’. “I conclude that I am the only member of the committee residing on Curaçao. I see no valid reason why the other two members – including the chairperson of the committee – should not be Curaçao residents.”

Peterson believes there are sufficient reasons to appoint Curaçao residents for these two positions. “On Curaçao, the Progress Committee is to test the implementation of plans of approach regarding institutions domiciled on Curaçao, namely the Corps Police Curaçao and the Penitentiary Sentro di Detenshon i Korekshon Kòrsou.”

Peterson also states the following in his letter to the Queen. “That the Minister President or the Minister of Justice of your country does not have sufficient feelings to find professional and experienced residents on Curaçao, who could become a member and/or chairperson of the Progress Committee, doesn’t ring true and in my opinion underlines aforementioned different character that typifies your kingdom or your country for centuries.”

Peterson also thinks the ‘mentioned state of affairs’ is an insult to all Curaçao authorities working with the Corps Police Curaçao and/or aforementioned penitentiary. “I understand that with an appeal to the guarantee function of The Netherlands – excluding the Charter (a position that in any case The Netherlands have not held since the realization of the Charter) – one states or rather suggests that only native Dutch citizens are capable of monitoring the implementation of the plans of approach and advising and reporting on such. In other words, the Curaçao authorities are corrupt and there are no Curaçao citizens with the obligation, capacity and experience to test the good governance of the two mentioned institutions.”\

(Source: National Newspaper amigoe)

26 May 2011