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My name is Nataly Linzey. I’m 22 years old. I was born on St. Maarten, raised in Saba, but I moved to The Netherlands in 2011, where I am currently a third year law student at the Leidse Hogeschool. I enjoy traveling, reading and working with young people. Anyone that knows me will know that I have a passion for stimulating my generation and those coming up after me.
In November 2013, the Dutch Kingdom marked its 200 year existence. To celebrate this, the Kingdom (represented by a committee), has decided to organize several activities in the coming two years. One of the activities which will be hosted is a debate on St. Maarten between the Kingdom Youth Parliament. The parliament consists of 50 youngsters between the ages of 16 to 23 years of age. There are 5 teams, consisting of 10 members. Each team is then coached by a person with a great amount of experience and knowledge in the field of politics. I, along with Elsa Peterson, was chosen to represent Saba in Team BES.
The funding is made possible by the Committee of Kingdom Relations, the committee for the 200 year celebrations and a few particular (private) sponsors.
My motivation
The reason why I decided to take part in this initiative is because I am a young person who believes in being proactive. Mahatma Ghandi once said ‘be the change you want to see’ and I live by that. I am a person who believes in being involved, especially where it comes to matters pertaining Saba, and the Dutch Kingdom. I like to bring people together to exchange ideas and to actually do something with those ideas. I am proud to be a part of the Dutch Kingdom and I believe that though we may have our differences as bodies within this Kingdom, we should be able to see past those differences and still see the need to work together. I see us as a family: every family has issues, every family member has their own identity, but those differences shouldn’t break apart that family. Instead, they should embrace their unique identities and personalities and work towards bettering each other. I see our Kingdom just like that.
Believe it or not, my generation is the generation which decides whether or not our Kingdom will see another 200 years or not and I will definitely be on the side of seeing that 200 years together. All things considered, I wouldn’t want us to be divided and my wish is to see us work together instead of against each other. Another wish of mine is that the young people on this island stand up and go after what they want. I would like to see my generation have a vision for this island. Where would you like to see Saba in the next 10 years? How will you make that happen? What will be our role in the Dutch Kingdom? Will we still be silenced because of size in population or will we see to it that we measure up? Do not let size fool you! I see a people that have capability, but aren’t making use of it.
It has never been my intention to really go into politics because I don’t really like to be on the public platform. I am more a behind the scenes kind of person. I like to stimulate people to be the best they can be, but I do stand open to going into the political arena, if it would be necessary. I am no stranger to the issues that we face on the islands, in the Netherlands, in the kingdom and in the European Union. I challenge myself to think critically towards these issues and I have confidence in my ability to function well at whichever capacity I am placed.
Signed,
Nataly Linzey
Note Ed,. Saba-News: Nataly is also the author of the “Student Checklist“. This document lists an important set of subjects that are important for students that are planning to move to The Netherlands for continuing their studies.
Check it out on the Saba-Online section on this site or click here