Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Government & Economy
As with the entire Caribbean, the ABC Islands were
plunged into economic disaster by the abolition of slav-
ery in 1863. Fewer than 7,000 islanders gained their free-
dom, but the abrupt halt of slave trading through the port in
Curaçao cut off the islands' lifeline and forced many resi-
dents out of work.
When oil was discovered in nearby Venezuela early in the 20th century,
Curaçao's deepwater harbor became a booming international transporta-
tion hub for the fuel. In 1918, Royal Dutch Shell opened a refinery on
Curaçao, and in 1924 the Lago Refinery opened on Aruba. (Standard Oil
- now Exxon - took over in 1932.) The islands' economies soared.
When war broke out around the world in 1939, the Allied Forces turned
to the Netherlands Antilles for oil. French and US soldiers were stationed
in the region to protect the islands from prowling German ships, and Hol-
land transferred the bulk of its commercial assets to the offshore financial
centers.
World War II won the islands official recognition and economic impor-
tance. In 1954 Holland granted the Netherlands Antilles political auton-
omy within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. This meant that the islands
could establish their own Parliament, elect their own officials, and man-
age their own domestic affairs, but depend on Holland for their defense
and foreign policy.
Distinct political parties had existed on Curaçao and Aruba since 1936
and, after autonomy was granted in 1954, the islands began to elect native
officials. Holland continued to appoint governors for all the islands until
1986 when Aruba withdrew from the Netherlands Antilles and became an
autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with the right to
elect all of its government representatives.
Today, Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao belong to two parts of the three-
component Kingdom of the Netherlands. Aruba enjoys status aparte ,
while Bonaire and Curaçao belong to the Netherlands Antilles, along with
Sint Maarten, St. Eustatius, and Saba.
Aruba maintains strong links with Bonaire and Curaçao, but elects its
own parliament headed by a prime minister, who is selected by the major-
ity party. The Netherlands Antilles (NA) is ruled by a separate but similar
coalition government composed of a 22-member elected parliament, a
prime minister and a seven-member Council of Ministers, who are
selected by the winning political party. A representative governor is
appointed for a six-year term by the sovereign of the Netherlands on the
recommendation of local officials. Willemstad, Curaçao serves as the seat
of government for the five-island NA.
 
 
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