LEIDEN -- The situation under which more than 90,000 children grow up in the Dutch Caribbean does not comply with the International Treaty of Children's Rights. Too many children on the islands grow up in an unsafe and unhealthy environment.

 

That is one of the main conclusions of the extensive research by the Dutch branch of the United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF on all six islands. UNICEF Nederland, which interviewed several hundred children, youngsters and experts, is calling on governments to take action to improve the situation of children's rights.

 

A true Kingdom takes care of its children, was the common consensus at the Kingdom Children Symposium that was held at the University of Leiden on Thursday. The most important conclusions were discussed at the symposium that consisted of presentations and individual island workshops.

 

UNICEF Nederland director Jan Bouke Wijbrandi presented the individual island reports to Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Ronald Plasterk in the presence of delegations from the islands and a large audience. The reports were already presented in Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten last week. The tone at those presentations was a lot milder than that at Thursday's symposium.

 

A large delegation from St. Maarten attended Thursday's symposium: Acting Head of the Department of Youth and Sports Affairs of the Ministry of Education Shermina Powell-Richardson, Angela Dekker of SIFMA, Director of the Court of Guardianship Richelda Emmanuel, Implementation Manager at the Ministry of Justice Carmelita Smits-Rombley, Policy Advisor at the Ministry of Justice Kelly Busby, Cynthia van Samson of the Foundation of Judicial Institutions SJIB, Youth Public Prosecutor Karola van Nie, Elmora Aventurin of the Department of Youth and Sports Affairs, and Youmay Dormoy and Jessica Richardson on behalf of the Non-Governmental Organisations. Member of the Council of State of the Kingdom Dennis Richardson was also present.

 

Despite the fact that infant mortality is lower on the islands compared to the region and that most children go to school, many children on the islands face serious challenges such as poverty, domestic violence and financial problems. A healthy meal and a safe and clean place to live are not self-evident for many children.

 

There are insufficient schooling possibilities and activities for children. The school drop-out and teenage pregnancy figures are high. Special facilities for handicapped children are lacking. The situation of many immigrant children, many of them with an illegal status, is very worrisome as they have limited entry to education and health care.

 

Teachers, police officers, and youth care professionals, but also children and youngsters mentioned domestic violence, serious neglect, abuse, incest, poverty and hunger as major problems. Domestic violence, including physical and emotional abuse and incest is not openly discussed. The head of the household, in most cases the mother, has to work long hours and children are often left to fend for themselves.

 

The absence of the father in many families and the limited role of fathers in the upbringing of their children affect children. Bonaire born Chris Frans of the Consultative Body for Dutch Caribbean persons in The Netherlands OCAN said the birth certificate of many children said "father unknown," including his own document of birth. He asked everyone to support OCAN's fight to change this.

 

Bastiaan van 't Hoff of the UNICEF office in Panama pointed out that St. Maarten had adopted a law last year which makes it mandatory to state the father's identity on the birth certificate. In general, there needs to be more participation of social organisations on all islands. He said that the local governments have much attention for children's rights but that there is much room for improvement in the cooperation between the governments and the social organisations. Children and their parents have to be actively involved.

 

Minister Plasterk also referred to the role of fathers. He referred to the murdered Curaçao politician Helmin Wiels whose memorial service he attended last week. "Wiels said that fathers had to become more involved in the upbringing of their children. He tried to give the right example to his children. Unfortunately there are still fathers who are a bad example to their children, who like to beat up," he said.

 

Plasterk said that he felt responsible for the wellbeing of children in the Kingdom, but pointed out that children's rights in Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten were an internal matter and as such a responsibility of the governments of the three countries. He said that he was responsible for the Dutch public entities Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba where he promised that he would get to work with UNICEF's recommendations. He called on the other countries in the Kingdom to work together in this area "so the children are better off, so they can have a better future."

 

Plasterk reminded the audience that there are several programmes and initiatives in the Kingdom that are beneficiary to the rights of children and which are financially supported by the Dutch Government. He mentioned projects for children and youngsters that are funded via the SIFMA, the social formation, the Social Economic Initiative (SEI) projects aimed at combating poverty and improving education, sports and the districts.

 

"But that doesn't mean that all is fine and dandy. There is still a lot of work to be done. A number of things are going well, especially when you compare the situation of children in the region. Compared to the poorer countries in the region, the Dutch Caribbean is the best place to grow up on as a child. But that should be no reason to leave it at that," said the Minister.

 

Powell-Richardson agreed that it was important for everyone to collaborate. She acknowledged that there was room for improvement in St. Maarten, but that government and her department were working hard on improving children's rights. "The report's recommendations are not strange to us. We are taking action to tackle this." She said that youth development was a specific item on the country's budget to ensure that funds were available.

 

Children's rights are civil rights, said Ron van der Veer of the Committee Kingdom Relations and Curaçao singer/song writer Izaline Calister. "And, because children are weak, it may be the most important right," said Calister. "Unfortunately children's rights are not self-evident. That is why it is important to keep the finger on the pulse and to do something about it together in the Kingdom," said Van der Veer.