A crash course in the new Dutch municipalities! A few months still to go and our country obtains three Caribbean islands: Saba, St Eustatius and Bonaire. Be prepared and be informed on the language, literature and history of these tropical islands, by the writers and musicians who have been flown in especially for Winternachten.

The highest point in the Netherlands will no longer be in Limburg, but on Saba. Dutch nature conservationists will have to worry about coral reefs. But language and culture will also change. Will Papiamentu and Antillean English qualify for the same status as Frisian? That remains to be seen. In any case it can do no harm when the Dutch citizens learn a few words of Papiamentu and Antillean English and get some basic knowledge about the history and culture of the new Dutch municipalities. That chance is given to the audience during this Winternachten programme.

A light-footed programme with a crash course in new languages in the Netherlands, an introduction to literature, the folktales and the history and an introduction to the musical traditions of the three islands. Writers and musicians from Saba, Statia and Bonaire will provide the audience with everything it has to know about language and culture of the new Netherlands.

Gilbert Wawoe (former member of the Council of State) was closely involved in the transition process of the three islands. He tells about the at times odd administrative and legal problems accompanying this unique political change. Can you apply Dutch law to (sub)tropical islands just like that? Wycliffe Smith, a writer from Saba, provides the audience with an image of the culture and history of Saba and Statia. Writer and journalist Bòi Antoin, sympathetic to the fate of the island he was born, Bonaire, tells tales about the history and culture of Bonaire. Musician Victor Sams (from Statia) performs with the base player Jeffrey Sams, and with the inseparable steelpan duo Cornel Brown and Leroy James, all from Statia. The programme is in Dutch, and is hosted by actress Paulette Smit and Ruben Severina.