For the complete report in the International Herald Tribune click on this link
Netherlands, Antilles sign agreement to restructure Caribbean territories' status
The Dutch government and the Netherlands Antilles have signed a long-awaited agreement granting the Caribbean territories of Curacao and St. Maarten autonomy, and giving smaller islands in the group the status of Dutch municipalities, officials said Friday.
The Netherlands Antilles — which includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, St. Eustatius and St. Maarten — has been a self-governing territory since 1954, deferring only the issues of foreign policy and defense to the Netherlands.
The agreement signed Friday followed referendums on both Curacao, with a population of about 250,000, and St. Maarten, with 39,000 residents. As of July 1, they each will govern themselves independently except on matters of defense, foreign policy and law enforcement, which will be decided at The Hague — an arrangement similar to Aruba's. Bonaire, with 13,000 residents, and tiny Saba, with 1,200, and St. Eustatius, with 3,000, will take on city status within the Netherlands. The Dutch government agreed to take over the islands' debts of €2.3 billion (US$3.2 billion).
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