View source for Politics of the Netherlands Antilles

{{short description|Political system of the Netherlands Antilles}}
{{Politics of the Netherlands Antilles}}
The '''politics of the Netherlands Antilles''', a former constituent country of the [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]], existed in a framework of a [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[representative democracy|representative democratic]] [[country]], in which the [[Prime Minister of the Netherlands Antilles|prime minister]] was the [[head of government]], and of a [[multi-party system]]. [[Executive power]] was exercised by the government. Federal [[legislative power]] was vested in both the [[government]] and parliament. The [[Judiciary]] was independent of the executive and the legislature. The [[Netherlands Antilles]] had full autonomy on most matters. Exceptions were defence, foreign affairs, and the Supreme Court.

Executive power rested with a governor, and a [[Prime Minister of the Netherlands Antilles|prime minister]] headed an eight-member Cabinet. The governor was appointed for a six-year term by the monarch, and the prime minister and deputy prime minister were elected by the Staten for four-year terms. The legislature or Staten elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms.

The judicial system, which had mainly been derived from the Dutch system, operated independently of the legislature and the executive. Jurisdiction, including appeal, lied with the Common Court of Justice of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba and the Supreme Court of Justice in the Netherlands.

The Netherlands Antilles were [[Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles|disbanded]] on 10 October 2010.<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://www.expatica.com/nl/news/dutch-news/end-of-the-road-for-dutch-antilles_101761.html|title=End of the road for Dutch Antilles < Dutch news | publisher= Expatica The Netherlands|accessdate=10 October 2010}}</ref>

==Executive branch==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
|+ Main office holders
|-
! Office
! Name 
! Party
! Since
! Until
|-
!align=left|Monarch
|[[Beatrix of the Netherlands|Beatrix]]
|
|30 April 1980
|10 October 2010
|-
!Governor
|[[Frits Goedgedrag]]
|
|1 July 2002
|10 October 2010
|-
!align=left|[[Prime Minister of the Netherlands Antilles|Prime Minister]]
|[[Emily de Jongh-Elhage]]
|[[Party for the Restructured Antilles|PAR]]
|26 March 2006
|10 October 2010
|}
The Governor was appointed by the [[Monarch of the Netherlands|monarch]] for a six-year term.<br>
The Council of Ministers was elected by the Staten.

==Legislative branch==
Unicameral [[Estates of the Netherlands Antilles]] (22 seats; members were elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

==Political parties and elections==
{{elect|List of political parties in the Netherlands Antilles|Elections in the Netherlands Antilles}}
Political parties were indigenous to each island.

==Judicial branch==
Joint High Court of Justice, judges appointed by the monarch

==Administrative divisions==
The Antilles were divided into five insular territories: [[Curaçao]], [[Bonaire]], [[Sint Maarten]], [[Saba (island)|Saba]], [[Sint Eustatius]]. On 10 October 2010 the Netherlands Antilles were [[Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles|disbanded]].

==Reform==
{{Main|Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles}}

== International organization participation ==
[[Caricom]] (observer), ECLAC (associate), [[Interpol (organization)|Interpol]], IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WMO, WToO (associate)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Caribbean topic|Politics of}}
{{North America topic|Politics of}}
{{South America topic|Politics of}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Politics Of The Netherlands Antilles}}
[[Category:Politics of the Netherlands Antilles| ]]