Talk:Netherlands Antilles

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[edit] accurate?

Both size and population of the Netherlands Antilles are some more than half those of Zeeland.

Is this accurate? The area of the Antilles is given as 960 sq km in the article, Zeeland is 2683 sq km according to [1]. But maybe the latter includes a lot of water? ( 11:53, 26 Aug 2003 (UTC)

According to [2] almost 1140 sq km of 2930 is water, leaving 1790 sq km land. So the comparison seems ok ( 11:58, 26 Aug 2003 (UTC)

[edit] "Discovery"

Were there people in the Netherlands Antilles prior to the arrivals of Columbus and de Ojeda? If so, we can't say they "discovered" or suggest they were the initial settlers of the islands. Beginning 16:19, Sep 5, 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Wikipedia:Caribbean Wikipedians' notice board

I would like to announce the establishment of the Wikipedia:Caribbean Wikipedians' notice board. Anyone with an interest in the Caribbean is welcome to join in. Guettarda 1 July 2005 13:37 (UTC)


[edit] Het Wilhelmus

Before you put Het Wilhelmus out of the infobox,the Netherlands Antilles is an dependent area of The Netherlands,and therefore Het Wilhelmus is also an official national anthem,and that also counts for Aruba.

It's not a dependent area of the Netherlands, it's an autonomous part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, of which the Netherlands is the European part and the Antilles and Aruba are the Caribbean parts. The Wilhelmus is only the anthem of the European part of the kingdom. Aecis 09:11, 14 July 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Confirmation: Curaçao and Sint Maarten are to leave the Neth. Ant.

Reaching out to the Caribbean Monday, December 19, 2005 http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/2005/12/19/out.shtml

[. . .] (quote)

Mr. Alex Rosaria, Minister in charge of Economic and Labour Affairs opened the conference and talked about the position of the Netherlands Antilles in the Caribbean as part of the geographic region with a common history, an equal present and a future in which each island has an important role to play in the Caribbean region.

Mr. Rosaria emphasized that the Netherlands Antilles is on the verge of profound constitutional changes. Sint Maarten and Curaçao are about to become autonomous countries in the Dutch Kingdom.

(/quote)

CaribDigita 18:56, 19 December 2005 (UTC)

Two questions:
  1. Will Sint Eustatius, Sint Maarten and Bonaire become integral parts of the Netherlands now, similar to e.g. Guadeloupe? IIRC, something like Kingdom Islands had been proposed as the name...
  2. Has there been any specific date? The only thing I've read was "before July 2007", which doesn't really say too much about when exactly it'll happen...
Thanks! ナイトスタリオン ✉ 19:51, 19 December 2005 (UTC)
Interesting this! Does this mean that these "Kingdom Islands" will be (re-)integrated into the Netherlands and become EU territory, while the two others are loosening their ties with the Metropole even more than what Aruba has done? Has there been any talk of federation, similar to what the British West Indies had at one point? //Big Adamsky 17:23, 21 December 2005 (UTC)
The working date for the constitutional changes is July 1, 2007, although the responsible minister in the Netherlands stated that in his point of view this is too early. The constitutional changes provide the creation of two more countries in the Kingdom of the Netherlands (it now consists of Aruba, NA and Netherlands, it will consist of Aruba, Curacao, Sint-Maarten and Netherlands) and the creation of three Kindom Islands (Saba, Sint-Eustatius and Bonaire), these Islands will be represented in the Kingdom Government by the Netherlands, and become kind of part of the Netherlands. It is likely that these islands will get the same status as the French overseas departments in the EU, the status of Outermost regions[3]. NA and Aruba now have the status of Overseas countries and territories [4]. There is also a good chance that Aruba, Sint-Maarten and Curacao will get the status of Outermost regions, because that status has some economic advantages. But it is on the islands to decide. A recent report by the Dutch government states that changes in the status are possible. Sint-Maarten will be able to introduce the euro if the island changes status, so that one currency is used on the island instead of two. Maartenvdbent 20:50, 21 December 2005 (UTC)
St. Maarten: Voting steady for new Parliament According to this article the Netherlands Antilles should become history around July 2007.

[edit] Drug trafficking

If anyone can provide a reference to how the economy and drug trafficking relates to each other, then you are more than welcome to put that back in, but for now I've removed it from the first paragraph. Leftist 04:10, 8 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Same-sex marriage

Is same-sex marriage legal in the Netherlands Antilles? I imagine it would be, considering that it is on the mainland. Should something about it go in the article?Hihellowhatsup 05:51, 12 February 2006 (UTC)

Same-sex marriage in the NA is not legal. However, since every "authentic act" from one part of the kingdom is legal everywhere in the kingdom, and marriage is an "authentic act", it will only be a matter of time before same-sex marriages will be recognised in the NA. However, it will probably remain illegal to perform same-sex marriages in the NA locally. Shinobu 16:53, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Proposed WikiProject

There is now a proposed WikiProject for the Caribbean area, including Anguilla, at Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Proposals#Caribbean. Interested parties should add their names there so we can determine if there is enough interest to start such a project in earnest. Thank you for your attention. Badbilltucker 17:02, 13 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Marijuana

From "Future Status", I've removed marijuana. It was mentioned alongside same-sex marriage and prostitution as legal on the mainland. However, in The Netherlands it's still illegal to import, grow, sell and own marijuana, but ownership is tolerated (this does not mean it's legal) in most cases when for personal use and in quantities below 5 grams. However, marijuana's illegal status has been used by courts to convict some owners of small quantities in special cases. I feel reluctant to introduce all of this in an article that is not about marijuana, and chose to rather remove it than to explain and ruin the flow and the focus of the article. So: does marijuana need to be mentioned, you think? In case, can it be done in a short way? Wurdnurd 12:52, 16 January 2007 (UTC)

Well, it could be mentioned as "tolerance" for marijuana use, since laws regarding cannabis are far more strict than they are in the mainland of the Netherlands.Hihellowhatsup 23:44, 22 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Official languages

Isn't English the/an official language of the three northerly islands? Dedden 18:24, 21 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Date of the Breakup, and Municipality Status

Wasn't the breakup supposed to be for July 1, 2007? Why then the delay by nearly a year and half? And am I understanding the municipality status of Bonaire, Saba, and St. Eustasius correctly in that they will be separate political entities from each other? They will NOT form one political entity known as the "Kingdom Islands", and they will NOT either join with an existing province or form their own province? Inkan1969 22:37, 6 March 2007 (UTC)

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