In theNetherlands, the termpublic body (a literal translation from theDutch termopenbaar lichaam) is the general denomination foradministrative divisions within the Dutch state, such as the central government, aprovince, amunicipality or awater board. These types of political entities are defined by theConstitution of the Netherlands.[1]
In addition, Article 134 of the constitution provides for the definition of other public bodies by law.[1] Such bodies can be professionally oriented, like theDutch Order of Advocates (Dutch:Nederlandse Orde van Advocaten), or be constituted to perform functions in a specific region. This means that the termpublic body is sometimes used to indicate a special or irregular type of public body (without a specifically defined name), which can also be an administrative division or a certain other type of governmental organisation.
After thedissolution of the Netherlands Antilles on October 10, 2010, the three islands ofBonaire,Sint Eustatius, andSaba became public bodies of the Netherlands. They are not part of any province. Since 2017, they are public bodies of a special constitutional category,Caribbean public bodies. Collectively, they are officially known asCaribbean Netherlands (Dutch:Caribisch Nederland).[2] Although part of the Netherlands, these special municipalities (as they are also called) remainedoverseas territories[3] of theEuropean Union until 2015.[4]
In the absence of a King's Commissioner the Islands have a joint "Kingdom Representative" (Dutch:Rijksvertegenwoordiger voor de openbare lichamen Bonaire, Sint Eustatius en Saba), who has an office on each of the Islands. As of 2018, the incumbent Kingdom Representative is Jan Helmond.
| Flag | Arms | Special municipality | Capital | Lieutenant Governor | Area(km2)[5] | Population[6] | Density (per km2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  | Bonaire (Papiamento:Boneiru) | Kralendijk | Edison Rijna | 294 | 15,414 | 52 |
 |  | Sint Eustatius (Locally:Statia) | Oranjestad | Alida Francis | 21 | 3,300 | 157 |
 |  | Saba | The Bottom | Jonathan Johnson | 13 | 2,000 | 154 |
Another notable example of an administrative division merely denoted as "public body" isRijnmond (Dutch:openbaar lichaam Rijnmond), which existed from 1964 to 1986.[7] Also, before the establishment of theProvince of Flevoland, the newly reclaimed polders were under the jurisdiction of the "Public Body Southern IJsselmeerpolders" (Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijke IJsselmeerpolders, also abbreviated as OL ZIJP).[8]
On a regional level, municipalities, provinces, water boards and the Caribbean public bodies can constitute internal or umbrella public bodies, as defined by thelaw on common arrangements (Dutch:wet gemeenschappelijke regelingen). Examples of such bodies include:
De openbare lichamen vallen rechtstreeks onder het Rijk omdat zij geen deel uitmaken van een provincie. (The public bodies (...), because they are not part of a Province).
