[SADXA] FW: Latest news on the upcoming BREAKUP OF NETHERLAND ANTILLES and resulting new DXCC entities

[Keith Schlottman]

>From the NJDXA.org DX-news mailing list:

There was an interesting article last Thursday in The
Daily Herald from Philipsburg, Sint Martin, which talks
about the restructuring of the Netherlands Antilles. That
is currently expected to happen October 10, 2010 and,
we think means two current DXCC entities will go on the
deleted list and four "new ones" will go onto the active
list. PJ2, PJ4 and PJ9, Bonaire, Curacao, would be
deleted, and PJ5, PJ6, PJ7 and PJ8, St. Maarten, Saba
and St. Eustatius would also be deleted. Two definite
new ones would be Curacao and St. Maarten. The most
likely two additional ones, making four total, would be
Bonaire and Saba/St. Eustatius. Much could change
between now and then but that is how it currently looks.

The full article is at:
http://www.thedailyherald.com/news/daily/m117/sxmm117.html

=======================================================

10-10-10 for Country St. Maarten

WILLEMSTAD--St. Maarten and Curaçao will become separate countries 
within the Dutch Kingdom on October 10, 2010, and this date is irrevocable.

This is the agreement reached in the Kingdom Political Steering Group 
meeting held in the World Trade Center in Curaçao on Wednesday.

However, while this date of 10-10-10 on which the Netherlands Antilles 
will officially cease to exist is irrevocable, the two new countries 
will be subjected to conditions should they not meet certain agreed 
criteria such as getting their Justice systems, police and good 
governance in order and up to acceptable levels.

Should the imposition of such conditions become necessary, a ministerial 
committee comprising the prime minister of the new country, the Dutch 
Minister/State Secretary for Kingdom Relations and the Minister 
responsible for the deficient area will be established to overlook the 
progress of any improvement plan. This committee will have a lifespan of 
two years with a possible extension for another two years.

Assistance from the Dutch Government to get these areas up to speed will 
be given where necessary.

Already, due to insufficient progress in the justice system, a main 
concern of the Dutch, the island territories have agreed that the 
Kingdom Detective Cooperation Team RST will continue to work along with 
the local police forces to fight organised and cross-border crimes until 
the new joint police cooperation team is in place.

St. Maarten’s Leader of Government Constitutional Affairs Commissioner 
William Marlin could not disguise his satisfaction with the outcome of 
Wednesday’s meeting. He said St. Maarten had finally achieved its goal 
to become a country within the kingdom as voted for in the June 23, 
2000, referendum, after more than nine years of hard work.

He praised his delegation members – opposition Democratic Party leader 
Island Councilwoman Sarah Wescot-Williams, Finance Commissioner Xavier 
Blackman and the team of advisors – for their respective roles in 
accomplishing this goal.

But Marlin was careful to stress that the pinning down of a date for the 
attainment of country status was by no means the end of the road in the 
process. There is still much more work to be done to build up St. 
Maarten, Marlin told a press conference Wednesday night.

One area is putting the infrastructure in place to receive the 
decentralised tasks from the Central Government that should begin in 
earnest as of January 2010 with the passing of the decentralisation law. 
The budgeted amounts for these tasks will also be transferred to the 
islands along with the new responsibilities.

Dutch State Secretary for Kingdom Relations Ank Bijleveld-Schouten has 
pledged support from the Dutch Government to get St. Maarten’s 
infrastructure ready in advance for the date of the new status. 
Assistance will also come from the Central Government because, unlike 
Curaçao which is set to inherit the operations of the Central 
Government, St. Maarten has to build most of its ministries and 
departments from scratch.

St. Maarten’s Project Director for Constitutional Affairs Dennis 
Richardson will head to the Netherlands in the second week of October to 
finalise how the Dutch Government can render assistance, particularly 
financing, to put the infrastructure in place.

Marlin said it had seemed at the start of Wednesday’s meeting as though 
no agreement would be reached, but it was good to be in the “final 
stretch” at the end of the evening. He added that several target dates 
had been set in the past, but these had never been realised for various 
reasons. This is the first time a date has been put on paper and signed 
by all parties.

Additionally, the Consensus Kingdom Laws are making their way through 
the Antillean Parliament and the Dutch Parliament’s Second Chamber, a 
process that was not ongoing when past target dates were set. There is 
enough time between now and October 10, 2010, for all laws to be vetted, 
passed and enacted for the new countries.

Bijleveld-Schouten, Antillean Prime Minister Emily de Jongh-Elhage, 
Antillean Finance Minister Ersilia de Lannooy and Curaçao Constitutional 
Affairs Commissioner Zita Jesus-Leito also expressed contentment with 
the pinning of a date for the attainment of country status.

==========================================================

73,

John, K9MM


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