Local principals and teachers in Bonaire Island schools are being replaced by their Dutch counterparts, human rights activist Felipe Santiago Melaan told a conference titled "Bonaire's Pathway from Baku through UN General Assembly to Self-Determination," jointly organized by BIG and the Bonaire Movement for Human Rights and Change, Report informs.
"Young people with academic potential are being forced to speak the language of the colonial government," Melaan stated. "By depriving people of their own language, they aim to instill a slave mentality. After all, stripping someone of their language is a way to turn them into a slave."
Melaan further revealed that all of Bonaire's school curricula have been dismantled. "If we don't want to change the perspectives of our youth, we must reclaim this right and ensure respect for our culture and language," he urged. "We must make our voices heard to develop educationally, culturally, economically, and politically."