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Prime Minister of Aruba at OAS: Cooperation on Security Essential for Prosperity

The Prime Minister of Aruba, Michiel Godfried Eman, said today at the Thirty-third Policy Round Table of the Organization of American States (OAS) that current conditions of prosperity in the territory of the Netherlands would not be possible without the security ties it shares with the European country, the United States and other governments of the region.

The Caribbean leader was the keynote speaker at the debate titled, "Peace and Security: the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean; its geo-strategic importance in advancing security in the region," in which he was joined by the Naval Attaché and Assistant Defense Attaché for the Netherlands in the United States, Jos Coumans; the OAS Secretary for Multidimensional Security, Ambassador Adam Blackwell; and the Chairman of the Inter-American Defense Board (IDB), Guy Thibault.

On the issue of security in the Caribbean, Prime Minister Eman said that "when you look at the peace and security in Aruba and the opportunity to prosper because of this security, you could as politicians take the credit for making these choices, but in reality if you look at the circumstances this credit should be given to the people of Aruba." The Aruban politician asserted that a people's "sense of autonomy and sovereignty" often is an obstacle to international cooperation on security.

In the case of Aruba, he continued, "the people have chosen to maintain relations with the Dutch Kingdom in order to have foreign affairs, defense, and legal security all arranged on a broader base in order to secure objectivity and effective enforcement to confront these world-scale and international threats." In other cases, he said, if the electorate is not willing to give its authorities "the necessary space" to enter into international agreements, it will be difficult to implement effective visions on security.

As examples of the cooperation that Aruba has developed with the Netherlands and other governments of the region, Prime Minister Eman mentioned the efforts against drug trafficking, a coast guard system based on cooperation with other countries, and collaboration with the United States Border Patrol. "Our geographic location definitely gives us challenges to secure our borders," he asserted. "Aruba is at the front of the South American coast, we know that is where many of the drugs come from, and we are between the markets in the upper North and the producers down South, and being in between we have the natural challenge to keep the territory safe and to keep other territories safe," he added.

For his part, the OAS Secretary for Multidimensional Security, Adam Blackwell, recalled that the relation between Aruba and the Netherlands "is of great interest to the OAS, since geographically the Caribbean island is part of our Hemisphere." In this sense, he recalled that the hemispheric Organization "is building a multidimensional platform" on security, and mentioned some of the areas in which it is currently working on: customs and border control in the Caribbean, maritime and aviation security, money laundering, trafficking in people, firearms marking and tracing, prevention and combating human trafficking, and inter-American police training.

The Naval Attaché and Assistant Defense Attaché for the Netherlands in the United States, Jos Coumans, offered a presentation on the role played by the military and civilian forces of his country in strengthening security in Aruba and the Caribbean region. In particular, he noted that among the principal tasks are the promotion of regional stability and security, support for civilian authorities, maritime security and maritime law enforcement, and he added that regional cooperation includes ties to the governments of the United States, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Venezuela, and Suriname, among others.

The Chairman of the Inter-American Defense Board (IADB), Guy Thibault, recalled that the subject of security is essential to guaranteeing progress among the pillars of development of nations, and advocated for the creation of a comprehensive approach that links the military forces of different countries. In particular, he insisted on greater information and intelligence sharing, especially during crises; maintaining and deepening relations to ensure that the IADB is connected; confidence- and security-building measures among the countries; and improving preparation and capacity-building to enhance response in situations of emergency.

The OAS Policy Round Table program, launched in 2007, seeks to enrich the discussion of the hemispheric agenda by bringing together political analysts and members of the diplomatic community to talk about the principal issues affecting the region. The event was held in the Hall of the Americas at OAS headquarters in Washington, DC, and included a question and answer session.

A gallery of photos of the event is available here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-896/11