The Senate voted on Tuesday, October 7, on a bill to provide protection against discrimination in Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (BES): the Law on Protection Against Discrimination in the BES. The bill was adopted. The factions of GroenLinks-PvdA, D66, Volt, CDA, SP, PvdD, JA21, ChristenUnie, BBB, OPNL, 50PLUS, and Fractie-Walenkamp voted in favor of the bill, while the factions of SGP, PVV, and FVD voted against it.
A week earlier, during the debate with caretaker Minister Rijkaart of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, the senators discussed the implementation of the law, the administrative and financial burdens for, for example, businesses, and the attention to the local context. The Chamber rejected a motion from the PVV that was submitted during the debate.
About the Bill
The purpose of this bill is to bring the approach to discrimination in Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba to the same level as in European Netherlands. It regulates the integral implementation of equal treatment laws in Caribbean Netherlands. A local anti-discrimination reporting point will also be established. Additionally, the College for Human Rights will be given the authority to assess individual discrimination complaints on the islands.
Rejected Motion
The Chamber rejected a motion from the PVV which stated that the anti-discrimination provision (ADV) BES back office should be neutral and independent and calls on the government to refrain from joining discrimination.nl for the back office and training of ADV BES. The motion was advised against by the minister.
