Baku-Hosted International Conference Highlights Urgent Need to Address Neo-Colonialism
Baku, The Gulf Observer: An international conference addressing the situation on the island of Bonaire, which remains under the colonial administration of the Netherlands, has commenced in Baku. The event, co-organized by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Bonaire Movement for Human Rights and Change, is titled “Bonaire’s Pathway from Baku through UN General Assembly to Self Determination.”
The conference brings together representatives of the Bonairean people, who are actively campaigning against colonialism and for self-determination, alongside officials and dignitaries from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the United Kingdom, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations. Human rights activists, NGO leaders, experts, and researchers specializing in decolonization issues are also in attendance, according to a report by NHC.
Among the notable participants are the Special Representative of the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Permanent Representative of Belize to the UN, the UNICEF Youth Envoy, the Youth Ambassador of the Caribbean Community, and the Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.
This conference is taking place at a critical juncture for the future of Bonaire, as several states are preparing to submit a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly in the coming weeks. This resolution aims to re-include Bonaire on the UN list of territories yet to be decolonized, and one of the primary objectives of the conference is to gather international support for this initiative.
Azerbaijan’s role in hosting such a significant event underscores the nation’s growing prominence as a leading center in the global fight against colonization.
