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A minister plenipotentiary (Dutch : gevolmachtigd minister) represents the government of one of the Caribbean constituent countries as part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The minister is part of the government of that country, but resides in the Netherlands, where they are part of the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
A significant difference between the Netherlands ministers and the ministers plenipotentiary is that the former ministers are accountable for their politics and policies to the Dutch parliament. The ministers plenipotentiary, however, are accountable to their national governments. Therefore, the ministers plenipotentiary usually do not resign in the event of a Dutch cabinet crisis. [1]
The following three ministers plenipotentiary currently exist:
In addition ministers plenipotentiary have existed for the former Caribbean Netherlands Antilles (1954−2010) before its dissolution; and for the former South American colony of Suriname (1667–1954) before its independence
Aruba, officially the Country of Aruba, is a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the southern Caribbean Sea 29 kilometres (18 mi) north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná and 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Curaçao. In 1986, it became a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands and acquired the formal name the Country of Aruba.
The Netherlands Antilles, also known as the Dutch Antilles, was a constituent Caribbean country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands consisting of the islands of Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten in the Lesser Antilles, and Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire in the Leeward Antilles. The country came into being in 1954 as the autonomous successor of the Dutch colony of Curaçao and Dependencies, and it was dissolved in 2010, when like Aruba in 1986, Sint Maarten and Curaçao gained status of constituent countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Bonaire gained status of special municipality of Netherlands as the Caribbean Netherlands. The neighboring Dutch colony of Surinam in continental South America, did not become part of the Netherlands Antilles but became a separate autonomous country in 1954. All the territories that belonged to the Netherlands Antilles remain part of the kingdom today, although the legal status of each differs. As a group they are still commonly called the Dutch Caribbean, regardless of their legal status. People from this former territory continue to be called Antilleans in the Netherlands.
The ABC islands is the physical group of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, the three westernmost islands of the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. These islands have a shared political history and a status of Dutch underlying ownership, since the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 ceded them back to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as Curaçao and Dependencies from 1815. They are a short distance north of the Falcón State, Venezuela. Aruba and Curaçao are autonomous, self governing constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, while Bonaire is a special municipality of the Netherlands. Territories of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the countries, and its special municipalities, are outside the European Union; citizens have Dutch nationality and the former colonial power benefits from preferential trade, mineral and natural resource rights, particularly offshore.
The Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands is a legal instrument that sets out the political relationship among the four countries that constitute the Kingdom of the Netherlands: Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten in the Caribbean and the Netherlands in Europe. It is the leading legal document of the Kingdom. The Constitution of the Netherlands and the Basic Laws of the three other countries are legally subordinate to the Charter.
The Netherlands Antilles was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was dissolved on 10 October 2010.
The Council of Ministers of the Kingdom is the executive council of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which is a state consisting of four constituent countries: Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten.
The Minister Plenipotentiary of Aruba represents the constituent country of Aruba in the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The current Minister Plenipotentiary of Aruba is Ady Thijsen. The Minister Plenipotentiary and his cabinet are seated in the Arubahuis in The Hague.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Netherlands Antilles:
Francisco Walfrido "Frido" Croes was an Aruban politician and schoolteacher who held the office of Minister Plenipotentiary of Aruba from 2005 to 2009. Prior to that, he served as a member of the Estates of Aruba from 1989 to 1994, and as its President from 2001 to 2004. He also served as Minister of Education from 2004 to 2005.
The Kingdom of the Netherlands, commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The realm is not a federation; it is a unitary monarchy with its largest subdivision, the eponymous Netherlands, predominantly located in Northwestern Europe and with several smaller island territories located in the Caribbean.
The following is an alphabetical list of topics related to the former nation of the Netherlands Antilles.
A common visa exists since the end of 2010 for the territories of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and the Caribbean Netherlands which form together the territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean. The visa is not valid for the European part of the Netherlands, which is part of the Schengen Area.
The Minister Plenipotentiary of Curaçao represents the constituent country of Curaçao in the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The current Minister Plenipotentiary of Curaçao is Carlson Manuel. The Minister Plenipotentiary and his cabinet are seated in the "Curaçaohuis" in The Hague.
The Minister Plenipotentiary of Sint Maarten represents the constituent country of Sint Maarten in the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The current Minister Plenipotentiary is Patrice Gumbs with Gracita Arrindell as the acting deputy.
A Kingdom Act is an act of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which scope goes beyond the constituent country the Netherlands, and which is (also) effective in the other constituent countries Aruba, Curaçao and/or Sint Maarten. Kingdom Acts are used for specific areas of law set out in the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, or for those areas where countries in the Kingdom of the Netherlands cooperate voluntarily.
The Dutch Caribbean are the New World territories, colonies, and countries of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea, mainly the northern and southwestern regions of the Lesser Antilles archipelago.
Suriname was a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands between 1954 and 1975. The country had full autonomy, except in areas of defence and foreign policy, and participated on a basis of equality with the Netherlands Antilles and the Netherlands itself in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The country became fully independent as the Republic of Suriname on 25 November 1975.
The 1969 Curaçao uprising was a series of riots on the Caribbean island of Curaçao, then part of the Netherlands Antilles, a semi-independent country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The uprising took place mainly on 30 May but continued into the night of 31 May – 1 June 1969. The riots arose from a strike by workers in the oil industry. A protest rally during the strike turned violent, leading to widespread looting and destruction of buildings and vehicles in the central business district of Curaçao's capital, Willemstad.
The Minister Plenipotentiary of Suriname represented the constituent country of Suriname in the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has existed from 1954 until the Independence of Suriname on 25 November 1975.
Efraïn Jonckheer was a businessman and politician of the Netherlands Antilles. Jonckheer served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands Antilles from 8 November 1954 until 14 February 1968. He served as Minister Plenipotentiary of the Netherlands Antilles from 1968 until 1971, Ambassador of the Netherlands to Venezuela from 1971 until 1976, and to Costa Rica from 1976 until 1982. As of 2022, Jonckheer was the longest serving Prime Minister in the history of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
