Wat is het? Wie de jeugd heeft, heeft de toekomst? (What is it? Whoever has the youth, has the future?)

Wat is het? Wie de jeugd heeft, heeft de toekomst? (What is it? Whoever has the youth, has the future?)

21 April 2026

“Wie de jeugd heeft, heeft de toekomst” (“Whoever has the youth has the future”). Or is it: “De jeugd ís de toekomst” (“The youth is the future”)? However you look at it, youth and future are inextricably linked.

In my early years as a scenario builder, I approached things in a very complicated way. Until the insight came that the future was simply sitting in the lecture halls. How they are doing—that is the future.

In recent days, I have been thinking a lot about the youth.

Last week, the dysfunction of the government-run youth detention center dominated the front pages for days. One could argue that young people there were systematically mistreated and that their human rights were violated (NU.cw, 2026). The director of the JJIC eventually stepped down after ongoing unrest.

This week—and it is only Tuesday—the newspaper reports that the number of children who cannot keep up in regular education and must move into special education has increased (Antilliaans Dagblad, 2026). That says a great deal about the state of education.

Last week, when poverty once again made the front pages, I was reminded of one of its most recognizable profiles: a single mother with two children, earning barely a minimum wage. She is forced to feed her children macaroni and sausages, simply because there is not enough money for better-quality food.

Stanley Brown said it years ago: disadvantages often begin in the womb. Add to that the food bank’s report that it can distribute even fewer packages, and the picture becomes even more troubling.

Those of us who are better off tend to romanticize childhood as the best years of life. But for far too many children, that is not the case.

What is striking is how little we hear from institutions that are supposed to stand up for this group. Organizations such as the Children’s Helpline and the Child Ombudsman remain largely in the background. The Convention on the Rights of the Child risks becoming a paper tiger—without even a symbolic impact.

And this situation is not new. Research by UNICEF (2019) already pointed this out. Other studies consistently paint an equally alarming picture of the position of young people.

It is therefore not surprising that those who get the opportunity to leave for abroad do so, and often do not return.

The situation is serious, yet adults in Curaçao seem primarily preoccupied with themselves, leaving children to fend for themselves.

The child pays the price.

Miguel Goede

Bronnen (APA)

NU.cw. (2026, april 16). Directeur JJIC legt functie neer na onrust in jeugdinstelling.

Antilliaans Dagblad. (2026, april 19). Crisis speciaal onderwijs.

UNICEF. (2019). Situatie van kinderen op Curaçao.