PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – From May 27-29, 2015 delegations from the Parliaments of the Netherlands, Curaçao, Aruba and Sint Maarten will be meeting in The Hague, the Netherlands for the Inter-parliamentary Kingdom Consultations (IPKO).
The four parliamentary delegations will be discussing a number of issues that include the following: feedback from workgroup education (especially where DUO-study financing and repayment is concerned), workgroup energy matters, health care and the Health Care Conference to take place in Aruba June 1-4, 2015, workgroup youth affairs, workgroup economic opportunities, workgroup integrity and workgroup discrimination.
Integrity, dispute regulation and the draft initiative Kingdom Law to amend articles 14 and 38 of the Kingdom Charter of (former) Second Chamber Member Van Oven are also on the agenda to be discussed. A work visit to the harbor of Rotterdam will conclude the three-days of consultations.
The delegation from Sint Maarten has been preparing for months for its participation in these meetings. The Committee of Kingdom Affairs and Inter-parliamentary Relations (CKAIR) met on numerous occasions to discuss the aforementioned workgroup topics and to establish the position of the Sint Maarten delegation.
The Inter-parliamentary Consultations will conclude on Friday, 29 May with the adoption and signing of the decision list and a joint press conference of the four delegations. This can be followed through a live stream starting at 16.00 hrs Dutch time and 10.00 AM Sint Maarten time on the website of the Second Chamber,www.tweedekamer.nl.
The deliberations between the delegations are open to the public and can be followed directly through a live stream on the web site of the First Chamber and the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliaments, and dependent on the location of the meeting.
Prior to the start of the Inter-parliamentary Consultations, from 25–26 May, the delegation of Sint Maarten will also be participating in the Tripartite meeting along with delegations from sister islands of Curaçao and Aruba.
The Tripartite meeting will take place at the Mercure hotel in The Hague. Among the topics to be discussed are appeal in tax cases, the use of articles 15 and 21 of the Regulation of the Governor by the Kingdom Council of Ministers, screening of candidate ministers with a joint standards system, dispute regulation, nationality research as well as the feedback from several IPKO workgroups.
The goal of the meeting is to prepare for the Inter-parliamentary Consultation as well as discuss topics of mutual interest.
The Sint Maarten delegation partaking in the IPKO and Tripartite meetings will consist of the following members:
Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Leona M. Marlin-Romeo, Vice President of Parliament, Delegation leader;
MP Hon. Sarah A. Wescot-Williams, Chairlady Committee Kingdom Affairs and Inter-parliamentary Relations;
MP Hon. Van Hugh C. de Weever;
MP Hon. Frans G. Richardson;
MP Hon. Johan E. Leonard;
MP Hon. William V. Marlin;
N.R. Joubert, LL.M., Secretary General;
mr Ralph R.H. Richardson, advisor.
