Eric van der Burg, the State Secretary for Justice and Security, will pay a four-day working visit to the Caribbean part of the Kingdom. From the 13th to the 16th of March, he will successively visit Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire. Through talks with staff members and various site visits, the State Secretary will be updated on migration policy, the fight against human trafficking and people smuggling, and border control on the islands. The purpose of the visit is to retain an overview of the current situation and migration issues on the islands.
Topics to be discussed during his Aruba visit will include opportunities in terms of fostering collaboration between the border authorities. The programme will also encompass talks on possible optimisations in the immigration chain as well as on migration policy and border control.
The visit will continue in Curaçao, where the State Secretary will speak with staff from the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) and be updated on migration policy and the fight against human trafficking and people smuggling.
In Bonaire, the State Secretary will receive an update on the regime for immigration detention.
Van der Burg had intended to visit the islands sooner but was forced to cancel his trip for health reasons.