Miguel Goede

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Thu, 24 May 2012 21:55:00 +0000

Parallel to this process of replacing CEOs of SOE, the names of institutions were changed as an act of nationalism (Millett, 2003). Names that were linked to colonialism were replaced by names that were declared more patriotic. The two most visible cases were the change of names of the National University and Peter Stuyvesant College.

A climate of fear was created. This is the effect of the vilification of the elites and institutions through the media. In August 2010 the media itself became the target of the populists. The PS accused the media of being biased and against the government, mainly against the PS. Wiels called for his followers to boycott the sponsors of the media. Observers state that PS was becoming paranoid and was becoming like a religious cult. This led to furious reactions from the PS. The PS correctly referred to cases from the recent past where media personalities had been fired be cause they sympathized with the opposition, and nobody had protested then.

At the end of August 2011 a parliamentary investigation of the judicial system was announced. The atmosphere was hostile because of the verbal aggression on the part of the protagonists. Crime was on the rise. Some linked these two phenomena.

At the end of September 2011 Curaçao was audited by the IMF. The IMF was concerned about the financial and economic development of the island. Shortly afterwards the judicial institutions expressed their concern about the wide spread verbal aggression and intimidation by the populists[1].This led to an attack on these institutions by the PS. This attack extended and developed the conspiracy theories that had been advanced by the populists (Vossen,2010).

Schotte traveled as much as possible, especially in the Caribbean region, to portray himself as a statesman. In a short period he visited Brazil, the Netherlands, Trinidad, the United States, Cuba, Spain, Peru, Barbados and Haiti, sometimes at the request of the Netherlands as a representative of the Kingdom. At the end of September 2011 Schotte was part of the Dutch delegation attending the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. Schotte gave interviews for Fox News and CNN. These activities are examples of Schotte’s populist tactics. He raised his personal profile, mainly abroad through the international media and domestically through photographic reports by is personal photographer.

[1] http://amigoe.com/english/85286-attorney-general-piar-concerned-about-increasing-verbal-assault(Accessed on 28 September 2011)

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Wed, 23 May 2012 12:10:00 +0000

In the state owned companies all supervisory board members were replaced. This was in direct conflict with new legislation designed to inhibit such activity[1]. The new coalition started a process of scrutinizing CEOs, suspecting them of bad management and corruption, and starting investigations on their doings in thepast[2].These investigations are called operational audits and forensic investigations. In this very public process senior managers in state owned enterprises were described as the black jetset, and were accused of having acquired wealth by stealing from the companies of the people[3]. Some of the institutions be deviled by this patronage are the Homeland SecurityService, the Central Bank, the utility company, the state owned telecomcompany, and the state owned company that operates the harbour. These actions were justified on the grounds that the existing heads of state enterprises constituted a conspiracy against the people, a tactic that has been identifiedas typical of populists (Vossen, 2010).

State owned enterprises were considered to be a result of neo-liberalism. Neo-liberalism is condemned, together with everything and everybody associated with it. The more populist parties framed the PAR as a neo-liberal party, and people associated with or sympathizing with them are investigated. People with unknown affiliations are investigated as well. People who are able to think for themselves, if they are in key positions are also scrutinized.

Parallel to this process, the names of institutions were changed as an act of nationalism (Millett, 2003). Names that were linked to colonialism were replaced by names that were declared more patriotic. The two most visible cases were the change of names of the National University and Peter Stuyvesant College.

[1] http://www.soab.an/files/20101201%20Advies%20inzake%20collectief%20ontslag%20commissarissen.pdf(Accessed on 27 September 2011)

[2] http://www.thedailyherald.com/islands/1-islands-news/20398-a-number-of-probes-at-government-companies.html(Accessed on 27 September 2011)

[3] http://amigoe.com/english/83884-martinas-departure-does-not-lead-to-exodus-of-man-members(Accessed on 27 September 2011)

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Tue, 22 May 2012 11:50:00 +0000

In August 2010, the MFK of Gerrit Schotte fielded candidates in the elections for the first time. Schotte started his political career in the FOL party, led by Anthony Godett, also a populist in his own right, who obtained 33.9% of the votes in 2003. After wandering around in the political world, Schotte ended up in the MAN party, where he became the main vote winner. After much deliberation about becoming the partyleader, he left the MAN four months before the next elections. Schotte was a proven fundraiser. He ran an aggressive and very personal electoral campaign.

After the election, a coalition of the MFK, PS and MAN was formed with a narrow majority of one seat, like the PAR, FOL and PNP government before it. The three parties combined obtained 49% of the votes but as an effect of the electoral system they still had 11 of the 21 seats. The coalition was formed by the socialist MAN, the more radical left PS and the rightist MFK. It was said that the only unifying factor of the coalition was their resentment of the PAR. The new coalition agreed that the PAR, which they argued represented the elite, should never govern again after staying in powerfor 16 years. The PS claimed that they had a preference for the opposition benches in parliament and that they joined the coalition under pressure to collaborate to keep the PAR out of government. Wiels did not accept a post as a minister in the government headed by Schotte. This is typical of populists (Ramirez, 2009). He headed the party in parliament, criticizing everyone, including his coalition partners and his own ministers. Within a few months he fired four of the ministers of from his own party.

The coalition accommodated their own people in the civil service apparatus[1] and in the state owned companies to an even greater extent than had happened previously. This expansion of the state is also typical of populism (Millett,2003). The civil service was under reconstruction, due to the constitutional change process, and in a way this made it relatively easy to appoint new people.

[1] www.amigoe.com/english/72810-cabinet-chooses-for-political-appointments(Accessed on 27 September 2011)

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Mon, 21 May 2012 12:20:00 +0000

The noticeable growth of populism on the island can be explained as part of the process of constitutional reform in the context of decolonization (Millett, 2003). In a constitutional referendum in 2005, 68% of the voters voted for the island to have autonomous status within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. As part of the process PS demanded an additional option on the ballot paper: Curaçao should have the status of Freely Associated State. This entails a transitional stage towards full independence. From that point PS became the main movement in favour of the independence of the island. During the whole process of implementing the preferred option of the majority, namely that Curaçao would be an autonomous country within the Dutch Kingdom, PS opposed the process and the outcome. The first indication of the strength of the movement was the rejection of the covenant between the Kingdom partners by the Parliament of Curaçao in November 2007 and the subsequent upheaval and social protest. The movement reached a new height during the referendum of 2009, when the arrangements for the new constitutional status were accepted by a slim majority of only 52%. This result indicated that there was great dissatisfaction among the voters with the process, the outcome and the established politicians who were responsible. This dissatisfaction was exploited, and reinforced, by the constant opposition of a number of opposition parties, including the PS. The opposition argued that the constitutional change was a process of re-colonization, because the Netherlands would have a greater say in matters of finance and justice. The members of the coalition were labeled as “bende patria” (sellers of the country). On several occasions there were small but rather violent demonstrations in the streets.

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Mon, 21 May 2012 11:45:00 +0000

The noticeable growth of populism can be explained as part of the process of constitutional reform in the context of decolonization (Millett, 2003). In a constitutional referendum in 2005, 68% of the voters voted for the island to have autonomous status within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. As part of the process PS demanded an additional option on the ballot paper: Curaçao should have the status of Freely Associated State. This entails a transitional stage towards full independence. From that point PS became the main movement in favour of the independence of the island. Duringthe whole process of implementing the preferred option of the majority, namely that Curaçao would be an autonomous country within the Dutch Kingdom, PS opposed the process and the outcome. The first indication of the strength of the movement was the rejection of the covenant between the Kingdom partners by the Parliament of Curaçao in November 2007 and the subsequent upheaval and social protest. The movement reached a new height during the referendum of 2009, when the arrangements for the new constitutional status were accepted by a slim majority of only 52%. This result indicated that there was great dissatisfaction among the voters with the process, the outcome and the established politicians who were responsible. This dissatisfaction was exploited, and reinforced, by the constant opposition of a number of opposition parties,including the PS. The opposition argued that the constitutional change was aprocess of re-colonization, because the Netherlands would have a greater say in matters of finance and justice. The members of the coalition were labeled as “bende patria” (sellers of the country). On several occasions there were small but rather violent demonstrations in the streets.

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Fri, 18 May 2012 11:45:00 +0000

In Curaçao the political spectrum can be described as follows. None of the parties claim to be right wing. Adversaries place the PAR (established in 1993) to the right of centre, but PAR claims to be a Christian party. The FOL and the MAN are established socialist parties.The PNP is one of the oldest political parties, a traditional Christian party. NPA and PS are relatively new parties. They are on the extreme left wing. They are inspired by, among others, President Chavez. The MFK is a brand new political party established in 2010. The programme of the MFK places MFK on the right of the spectrum.

Populism is a part of politics and should be analyzed as part of the election results over the years. All parties are to some degree populist. But the most populist parties today are the PS, NPA, MFK and certain activists in the PAR. In the recent past the FOL was a successful populist party. The populism of the PAR is partly a response to the success of other populist parties.

The rise of modernpopulism in Curaçao

Nelson Pierre’s NPA (Nu’un Paso Atras) was the first to utilize the populist agenda as we now know it in Curaçao. He invented the modus operandi of hosting a daily talk show to in form the people of the wrong doing of what he called ‘the prophets of evil’ and their networks, who rob the poor and create an industry of poverty. He stood for election for the first time in 2003. He received 5.7% of the votes and obtained representation. Pierre went on to participate in a government coalition and became an elected executive.

Very early on, NPA split because of disagreements between Pierre and his colleagues. Pierre is a successful, recovered drug addict. This is often exploited by his adversaries. It is stated that soon after the elections of 2003, Pierre had a relapse and this led to Helmin Wiels, the deputy leader, leaving the NPA and starting Pueblo Soberano (PS).The agenda of PS is very similar to that of the NPA with an emphasis on the independence of the island. Also, the methods, strategy and tactics are the same. The discourse of PS is a blend of socialism, anti-colonialism, slave heritage or race and Christian religion, with a touch of misogyny and pro-masculinity. PS stood for election for the first time in2006. Both NPA and PS obtained a significant number of votes in 2006 (5.5% and9.8%), but neither of them obtained representation at that time. From then on PS continued to grow and entered the Island Council in 2007, becoming a force to be reckoned with in the opposition. The PS became a governing party in the first government of the new country, Curaçao, on 10 October 2010.

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Wed, 16 May 2012 12:15:00 +0000

Populism in Curaçao exhibits the universal features such as the denunciation of the elites and the glorification of the people. The media are an important channel for these elements of populism. It also has some local features, including the inclination towards conspiracy theory, a preference for direct democracy, anti-colonialism, and a dependence upon the rhetoric of ethnicity, socialism,religion, patronage and nepotism. The populists draw inspiration from President Chavez of Venezuela and to a lesser extent Geert Wilders, the populist in theNetherlands who followed in the footsteps of his countryman Pim Fortuyn. The example of Wilders is ironic, because part of Wilders’ agenda is to get rid of Curaçao and the other Dutch islands. It is also very critical of migration from the islands.

The inclination towards conspiracy theory

Populists in Curaçao promote theories about how elites construct networks. They argue that the elites use these networks to extract wealth from society systematically, especially by sponsoring political parties and the media in order to gain control over the government apparatus and state owned companies. These are the methods that the elites are supposed to use to maintain the status quo. The explicit objective of the populists is to free these institutions,especially the state owned companies, and give them back to the people.

Patronage and nepotism is part of this theory. Populists state that the elites have gained control over these institutions and organizations by appointing loyalists. Ironically the remedy the populists offer is the same; they appoint persons loyal to the populist.

The process of constitutional change has made it easier for populist politicians to remove persons that they regarded as disloyal. Most senior civil servants have been removed and new ones appointed, as were members of supervisory boards. Many chief executive officers of state owned enterprises have also been removed and are under political pressure.

A preference for direct democracy

The populists communicate their messagethat they want to be closer to the people, and that they want to change theelectoral system to involve neighborhoods in government, although this is not aclaim that is exclusive to the populists. All notions of democracy that arebased on the principle of sovereignty of the people share this ideal.

Local factors

Anti-colonialism

Most populists want Curaçao to becomeindependent from the Netherlands. They say that the people are second class citizens within the Kingdom of the Netherlands Antilles. There are several arguments supporting this claim. First, the welfare arrangements within the Kingdom have great discrepancies. Second, citizens from the island do not enjoyequal rights in the Netherlands and are stigmatized.

The ideal of independence is not the exclusive domain of populists; others also share this ideal, but they do not denigratethe mother country.

Ethnicity

One of the populists, a typically, discriminates against colored people, calling the elite the black jetset. But, in general, the populists also hate the Dutch government. This is an example of their discourse about culture and history. Ethnicity is a sensitive topic that has to be handled with care, because populists do notwant to scare off minorities.

Socialism

Most populists state that the poor are poor because they are robbed by the elites. They declare that wealth should be taken from the rich and given to the poor.

Religion

The populists claim that they are sentand guided by God. In their discourse they often refer to God and recite fromthe bible. They associate the elite with evil and the devil.

Patronage and nepotism

Patronage and nepotism have already been discussed. The populists create jobs for the people, especially those who are loyal to the leader and the party or who are responsible for mobilizing votes. Also relatives are often accommodated. The objective often extends beyond securing votes. The objective is also to gain control of institutions and organizations.

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Fri, 11 May 2012 11:40:00 +0000

Social and economic conditions

The distribution of income in Curaçao is uneven and the cost of living is high. Unemployment is high. The proportion of highly educated citizens is relatively low. Poverty is a great concern (Vierbergen, 2004). The cleavage between the “haves” and “have nots” is, to acertain extent, the divide between “black” and “white”.

The population is relatively small.Consequently there is no critical mass or economy of scale. The small scale also forges relationships that are extremely close, so that objectivity is almost impossible. This means that there is a tendency to nepotism and patronage. People have a preference for hiring and contracting people they know. People they know personally are considered not only loyal but also more knowledge able[1].

Erosion of institutions

The institutions of Curaçao have been rapidly eroded by several factors. First, there was a lack of financial resources, because of the poor economy and the high national debt in the recent past. Secondly, all attention and resources have been dedicated to the constitutional changes, especially between 2005 and 2010, after the referendum held in 2005 which started the process of constitutional change. This has resulted in institutional problems in the civil service, healthcare system, educational system and judicial system, while there has also been a general deterioration of the infrastructure.

Charismatic leaders

Most leaders in Curaçao, as in other parts of the Caribbean (Allahar, 2011), are charismatic and to a certain degree populist. The leaders appeal directly to the people. They have good verbal and nonverbal presentation. They play the media very well. One can say that leaders in the Caribbean have always been charismatic (Goede 1999; Goede, 2004).But only a few of them have fully embraced a populist agenda.

In this context the erosion of established political parties should be mentioned. This creates the space for the emergence of populist leaders and movements.

The proliferation of media

The proliferation of media in Curaçao has been notable. The number of media in proportion to the population is extraordinary(Goede, 2006). This has become one of the most important factors for populists to gain ground. Despite having the population of a moderately sized city, Curaçao has 26 radio stations, three television stations and nine newspapers.

There has been an explosive growth ofthe use of social media, like Facebook and Twitter. Smart phones are an important aspect of the technical platform for the development of the social media. Public demonstrations are often organized via these media. Although figures are not available, one gets the impression that access to social media is universal. Combined with the small scale of society, this interconnectedness gives an additional dimension.

The media are dependent upon the sponsorship of the private sector and state owned enterprises. These sponsors are also the sponsors of the political parties.

[1] http://www.commissieonderzoekcuracao.info/wp-content/uploads/DOE-HET-ZELF-30-september-2011.pdf(Accessed on 12 October 2011)

Populism in the Caribbean; Curacao

Thu, 10 May 2012 12:25:00 +0000

Curaçao is an interesting location for the study of populism. With its 444 square kilometres, Curaçao is inhabited by approximately149,679 inhabitants of over forty nationalities. This means that it has tremendous heterogeneity in a population and geographical location that is comparable in size with a small city.

Since 10 October 2010 it has been an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has three official languages: Dutch, Papiamentu and English.

The island of Curaçao was “discovered” in 1499 by theSpanish and went through several life-cycles. The social and economic structureof Curaçao was formed over time, creating a complex, traditionally segregatedand partially rational western society. There are deep social divisions, andthe various actors do not trust one another. The heritage of slavery means thatethnicity plays an important role (Goede, 2008). The main stages in the island’s development were:

Anagricultural period from the seventeenth century until 1863, which was dominated by slavery;

The oil era started in 1918 and lasted until it went into decline in the 1960s. This was an industrial period. The refinery is still operating and is a hot issue on the political agenda, in connection with sustainability;

The financial services era started began in the 1960s and went into decline in the 1980s. This was the early post-industrial period;

Tourism started early in the 20th century, and since the late 1980s has grown to dominate the economy. It is currently in a phase of accelerated growth.

Curaçao has not done too well socially and economically over the last twenty years. In other words the conditions for therise of populism have existed for a prolonged period. The indications are that the economy is now coming out of those depressed conditions, having finally taken off in 2006 and 2007, and Curaçao partially escaped the global financialcrisis of 2008 and after. This was the result of special local conditions, including debt relief by the Netherlands which was offered as part of the process of constitutional change in October 2010. But on the negative side it also indicates that the local economy is not very well integrated into the global economy. The most recent figures from the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten indicate that the economy came to a halt again, as a consequence of poor government policies and excessive spending.

In very general terms, the conditions are favorable for the development of populism in Curaçao. The elites are under heavy pressure. Established political parties no longer appeal to the voters and institutions are heavily criticized. Young people have no interest in history. This has all lead to the growth of populism. The conditions of depressed social and economic development, the erosion of trust in political institutions, the presence of charismatic leaders and the spread of modern media are all pronounced elements in the society of Curaçao. In the following sub-sections, these conditions will be set out in detail.

Populism in the Caribbean

Wed, 09 May 2012 11:35:00 +0000

This study is a qualitative case study of the discourse and presentations of politicians in Curaçao. It is not a content analysis, as content analysis often involves a great deal of counting and coding that can obscure the context. The results and conclusions of this investigation are drawn from an interpretative analysis of the patterns that characterize the pronouncements of politicians in Curaçao over a period, focusing on similarities and differences between these politicians. Ultimately, the methods used in developing this thesis involve a great deal of intelligent reading. The investigation is an observational test of theory, without imposing external values.

Based on a review of the literature review, it can be assumed that every politician is, by definition, a populist to a certain extend. In that context, a politician is classified as a populist if he or she scores higher than his or her peers on the variable factors presented. Two sets of factorsare identified: basic or universal factors of populism and local factorsrelated to the Caribbean.

Basic factors:

Denunciation of the elites: the elites as part of the discourse

Glorification of the people

Inclination to conspiracy theories

Preference for direct democracy

Local factors:

The mother country as part of the discourse/ Colonization

Ethnicity: race as part of the discourse

Socialism

Religion

The media were monitored from January 2010 to October 2011. The discourse and presentations of politicians were recorded and analyzed. The media were sampled according to the following schedule. The news and talk shows on three of the twenty-six radio stations were monitored daily. The news and talk shows on two of the three local television stations were monitored daily. All nine news papers were monitored daily. Interviews with and presentations by politicians were carefully examined. Not only was the content observed but also the style of presentation. The texts were studied looking for the following key words or equivalents associated with populism: “The people”, “The elite”, “The establishment”, “Networks”, “Colonists”, “Corruption”, “God”, “Socialism” and “Neoliberalism”.

There is always a chance of in accurate sampling, and this a rises from two sources:the data collected may not be representative of the universe from which data issought, and in the process of analysis there may be a focus on a section of thedata that is not representative of the whole body of data collected. To reduce the likelihood of the former source of error, all other media were also randomly sampled during the period of the investigation. To avoid the latter, analyses were shared and debated with political observers and other stakeholders. The draft of this paper was reviewed by a number of peers who added some critical insights.[1]

The value of this kind of case study is that studying several case studies can contribute to theory and hypothesis development.

[1] I thank the following peers for their contribution: Miriam Sluis Bac, Michiel van der Veurt MSc, Gerda Fokker MSc, Mike Jacobs MSc, Prof. Dr. Roel in ‘t Veld,Prof. Dr. Paul Frissen, Prof. Dr. Leo Huberts, Prof. David Turner.