News item | 23-06-2023 | 06:16
On June 22, 2023, the semi-annual Judicial Four-Party Consultation (JVO) was held between the Minister for Legal Protection (Weerwind) and the ministers of Aruba (Tjon), Curaçao (Hato) and Sint Maarten (Richardson). Minister Weerwind replaced Minister Yesilgöz-Zegerius of Justice and Security on behalf of the Netherlands. The consultations took place on Sint Maarten, under the chairmanship of Sint Maarten.
The countries within the kingdom work closely together to combat crime. For the Dutch cabinet, this cooperation is crucial for law enforcement.
During the JVO, various topics in the field of law enforcement were discussed. For example, it was discussed how better forensic care can be given to young people and adults in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom. Minister Weerwind will take the lead in this together with the Minister of Justice of Curaçao, Shalten Hato. The efforts of all parties involved to train more prosecutors for the Public Prosecutions Departments in the Caribbean were also discussed, so that the inhabitants of the Caribbean countries would be better represented in the Public Prosecutions Departments in the Caribbean. In addition, the joint intention to shorten the extradition procedure for the Caribbean countries of the Kingdom was discussed.
In addition, the activities of the Coastguard, cooperation to prevent juvenile crime and the Kingdom Act on Harmonization of Data Protection were also discussed.
Finally, during the JVO, the capacity of the law enforcement organizations was discussed. The Caribbean countries experience an imbalance in the law enforcement chain. Priorities and capacity are not well aligned. During the JVO, Minister Weerwind discussed this imbalance with his fellow ministers. In recent years, the Netherlands has invested in cooperation with the countries within the kingdom in the field of cross-border and subversive crime. To this end, the Netherlands supported the countries in investigation, prosecution and trial. This subject will be discussed further in the coming period. The Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security is working on this together with, among others, the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations and the Ministry of Defence.