Dutch government says Caribbean forensic psychiatric care capacity is insufficient

Dutch State Secretary for Justice and Security Claudia van Bruggen said on Friday 16 October that forensic psychiatric treatment capacity in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom remains insufficient. In written replies to the Dutch Parliament, she also said Sint Maarten’s current legislation does not allow judges to impose a TBS measure, a court-ordered psychiatric treatment and security measure for certain offenders with serious mental disorders.

Van Bruggen said a fully equipped TBS institution like those in the European Netherlands would probably not be feasible on the Caribbean islands because of their smaller populations. She said the Netherlands would provide money, expertise and support to a Kingdom-wide programme over four to five years, while the individual countries set priorities and plans for their own treatment needs.

According to Van Bruggen, a Kingdom-wide programme manager was appointed in April 2026. Steps taken under the programme include training related to psychiatric and psychological assessments in criminal cases. The programme remains an agenda item for the Judicial Four-Party Consultation of justice ministers from Sint Maarten, Aruba, Curaçao and the Netherlands.

The Law Enforcement Council had identified shortcomings in Sint Maarten’s forensic care system in its State of Law Enforcement Sint Maarten 2025 report, according to the report. Van Bruggen also said the Kingdom submitted an action plan to the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers on 30 September 2026 in response to the 2016 Murray judgment.