Strengthen ties between legislative officials in Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and the Netherlands
On Friday, March 22nd, the first Kingdom Legislative Congress Working Together from Our Own Strength was concluded. More than 50 participants from Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and the Netherlands were inspired by lectures and interactive workshops during these days. For example, workshops on making Project initiation documentation, human rights treaties, cooperation in national legislation and AI in legal practice were on the agenda. The workshops were provided by lawyers who work as (government) civil servants, professors, lawyers, judges or entrepreneurs. Every day there was an inspiring opening lecture by speakers Maria van der Sluijs – Plantz, Sjoerd Zijlstra, Arjen van Rijn and Raúl Maduro. The conference was also a good time for the various legislative officials to hear from each other what they are working on and to network.
Country packages
The conference was made possible by the Temporary Work Organization (TWO) in the context of the projects in the Country Packages of Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten. With the arrival of the Country Packages, all three countries are faced with the challenge that various (outdated) legislation needs to be amended, but don’t have enough manpower to do this.
Will to work together
The will to collaborate was a common thread throughout the conference, both among the participants and the speakers and administrators. State Secretary for Kingdom Relations Alexandra van Huffelen and Minister of General Affairs Curaçao Gilmar Pisas joined the closing ceremony. The managers of the Legislation and Legal Affairs departments Mirjam Deekman (SXM), George Croes (Aruba) and Jennifer Pawirodihardjo-Fer (Curaçao) presented, with input from the participants, what opportunities and support options there are to strengthen the legislative function together and reforms implemented
State Secretary Van Huffelen: “This legislative conference shows how extremely important your role as a legislative lawyer is in the broad range of reforms on the road to a resilient economy. Collaboration and coordination is where it all starts. And that is only possible by bringing together people like you who seek each other out, share expertise and support each other. Because although you work in very different areas, you are all part of the legal chain that contributes to legal certainty in Aruba, Curacao and Sint Maarten.”
Minister Pisas: “These days have shown that there is a need for knowledge sharing and that we need to connect with each other because we face similar challenges in many matters. There are major social problems to solve. There is a lot of knowledge and experience in this room. Perhaps technology can also help us work more efficiently. We should not only think in terms of problems, but rather in solutions and creative possibilities to bring about improvements. Such as improving the quality of legislation. Ultimately, it is about doing our work for the benefit of society.”
With these events, the TWO wants to strengthen ties between the countries within the kingdom and encourage more cooperation. In addition, where necessary, (financial) support is provided to implement the programs.
