Photo taken from DossierKoninkrijksrelaties.nlPHILIPSBURG — Eleven of the projects St. Maarten submitted to obtain subsidies from the Slavery Fund have been approved. It is at this moment unclear which projects have qualified. The fund will make this information public later this year.
Countries in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom submitted 34 applications; 24 of them have been approved and the successful applicants will receive a total of $240,000. The subsidy for each project is capped at $10,000. In a second round, the fund will grant subsidies of $10,000 to a maximum of $25,000, but the deadline for applications has in the meantime closed. These applications are currently under consideration.
With eleven successful applications, St. Maarten leads the dance among the Caribbean applicants. Curacao got approval for six projects, Aruba and Bonaire for three each and Statia for one. According to a report on Dossierkoninkrijksrelaties.nl Saba is not among the recipients.
In June, then Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Judith Uitermark announced the establishment of the slavery fund. There is €100 million (approximately $118 million) in subsidies available, equally divided over the three regions in the kingdom: the autonomous countries Aruba, Curacao and St. Maarten, de BES-islands (Bonaire, Statia and Saba) and the Netherlands.
The objective of the fund is to support projects that aim to raise awareness about the history of slavery, to foster healing and to address the suffering of descendants of enslaved people.
The fund contains an additional €100 million in subsidies for governments that want to establish policy incentives.
The establishment of the fund drew criticism from PVV-parliamentarian Peter van Haasen in June. He said during a debate in the Dutch parliament that the slavery fund was not an historical reflection but “the perpetuation of a subsidy-driven victim-industry.”
Joost Eerdmans, leader of JA21 agreed with Van Haasen saying that the there is a better use for the 200 million than spending it on “nonsensical projects.”
In a letter published on Sabanews.com, Van Haasen quoted from his party’s 2023 election program: “The PVV loves the Netherlands. We are proud of our culture, identity, and traditions, which we must preserve rather than erase. We will put an end to the left-wing vilification of historical figures. The apologies for the slavery past and colonial military actions, as issued by the King, will be withdrawn. And Black Pete will remain.”
###
Related links:HC-SLV.orgCultuurfonds Caribisch Gebied
At StMaartenNews.com, we are dedicated to delivering timely and insightful coverage of events, developments, and issues affecting St. Maarten. Our platform features a diverse range of content—including news articles, opinion pieces, reviews, and interviews—providing readers with a well-rounded perspective on both local and regional matters. From politics to community events, we aim to inform, engage, and spark conversation through reliable reporting and thoughtful commentary.
