Non-Countries of the World - Bonaire
The third non-country in this new portion of my geography series - from this point on I will alternate each rotation between an Oceanic country and a non-country (so expect to see one in this group every 6-8 weeks on average)
Section I - Basic Info on Bonaire
Official Name: Bonaire (a special municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
Population: 26,552 (would be the 48th largest in the Americas)
Area/Size: 111 square miles (a little smaller than the area of the city of Atlanta)
Capital: Kralendijk (10,600 - sister city of Fukuyama, Japan)
Spoken Languages: Papiamentu, Dutch (official), Spanish
Religions: Catholic (68%), Protestant (16%), none (12%)
Life Expectancy: Unknown Internet Access Rate: Unknown
Per Capita Income: $25,500 Unemployment: Unknown
What do they Export?: Salt production, oil storage, orthopedics, medical equipment
Export Partners: Netherlands, Belgium, United Kingdom, Luxembourg
Import Partners: Canada, Colombia, Netherlands, Germany
Why are they not independent?: A referendum was held in 2010 with 85% of the population voting to remain part of the Netherlands
Section II - Images of Bonaire
5 Key Dates in Bonaire's History
1450 BC - 1499 AD - The earliest evidence of human habitation on the islands is from the Archaic period; archaeological evidence suggests the people lived in family-based groups of approximately 100 and were semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers and fishers. The earliest evidence of human habitation in Bonaire is at Lagun and dates to approximately 1450 BC. The Caquetío Indians, a branch of the Arawak arrived in the islands from South America around 500 AD. Archaeological remains of the Caquetío culture have been found at sites northeast of Kralendijk and near Lac Bay. The Caquetíos apparently appeared very tall to the first Spaniards encountering them, for the Spanish name for the ABC islands was las Islas de los Gigantes, 'the islands of the giants'. Remnants of Bonaire's indigenous population can be seen in some of the island's current inhabitants.
1499 - 1600 - In 1499, Alonso de Ojeda arrived in Curaçao and a neighboring island that was almost certainly Bonaire. The Spanish decided that the three ABC Islands were useless (at least in the short term) because they did not have known metal deposits, and in 1515 the Caquetío were enslaved to work in the copper mines of Santo Domingo on the island of Hispaniola; the total number may have been between 500 and 2,000. In 1526, Juan Martínez de Ampiés was appointed Spanish commander of the ABC Islands, bringing back some of the original Caquetio Indian inhabitants to Bonaire and Curaçao. Ampies also imported domesticated animals from Spain, including cows, donkeys, goats, horses, pigs and sheep, in an attempt to turn Bonaire into a cattle plantation worked by natives. The cattle were raised for hides rather than meat.
1600 - 1900 - The Dutch West India Company was founded in 1602. Starting in 1623, ships of the West India Company called at Bonaire to obtain meat, water and wood. The Dutch and the Spanish fought from 1568 to 1648 in what is now known as the Eighty Years War. In 1633, the Dutch – having lost the island of St. Maarten to the Spanish – retaliated by attacking Curaçao, Bonaire and Aruba. Bonaire was conquered in March 1636. While Curaçao emerged as a center of the slave trade, Bonaire became a plantation of the Dutch West India Company. Salt became a major export product of the island; a small number of African slaves were put to work alongside Indians and convicts, cultivating dyewood and maize and harvesting solar salt around Blue Pan. The slave population grew in the 1710s when a famine and social unrest on Curaçao caused the Dutch to relocate a large number of slaves to Bonaire. During the Napoleonic Wars, the Netherlands lost control of Bonaire twice, once from 1800 to 1803, and again from 1807 to 1816. During these intervals, the British had control of the neighboring island of Curaçao and of Bonaire. The ABC islands were returned to the Netherlands under the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814. From 1816 until 1868, Bonaire remained a government plantation, but gradually many of the slaves were freed and became freemen with an obligation to render some services to the government. The remaining slaves were freed in Sep 1862 under the Emancipation Regulation.
1940 - 2010 - During the German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II, Bonaire was a protectorate of Britain and the United States. The authorities declared martial law, and many German and Austrian citizens, as well as Dutch thought to be German sympathizers, were interned in a camp on Bonaire. After the war, the economy of Bonaire continued to develop. The military airstrip built during the war was converted to civilian use and the former internment camp became the first hotel on Bonaire. Salt production resumed in 1966 when the salt pans were expanded and modernized by the Antilles International Salt Company, a subsidiary of the International Salt Company. Part of the facilities extend into the Caribbean Sea and form the popular dive site known as Salt Pier. The Bonaire Petroleum Corporation (BOPEC) oil terminal was opened in 1975 for trans-shipping oil. Politically Bonaire formed part of the Netherlands Antilles from 1954 to 2010; in 2011 the island officially adopted the US dollar as its currency.
2010 - present - In Oct 2010, the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved. As a result, the government of the Netherlands assumed the task of public administration of the Caribbean Netherlands or BES Islands comprising Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba. The three islands acquired new status as "special municipalities", making them part of the Netherlands itself. As a special municipality, Bonaire is very much like ordinary Dutch municipalities in that it has a mayor, aldermen and a municipal council, and is governed according to most Dutch laws. It was believed best for the island to not introduce the entire body of Dutch legislation at one time as it would cause confusion. Therefore, Dutch legislation is being introduced in stages. Bonaire retained its own unique culture while residents enjoy the same rights as Dutch citizens, including the right to vote in Dutch parliamentary elections in the Netherlands. While the three islands are considered to be land of the Netherlands, they are not a part of the European Union, therefore not subject to European Union Law. They are considered to be an overseas country and territory.
Other Non-Political Issues
Section III - Issues of Bonaire
General Information on Bonaire:
“Bonaire", Wikipedia, Aug 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonaire
“General (economic) Information about Bonaire”, KvK (Kamer van Koophandel en Nijverheid, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry), 2026, https://bonairechamber.com/en/running-a-business-on-bonaire/general-information/
"The Island of Bonaire - It’s In Our Nature" (official tourism site), Tourism Corporation Bonaire, 2026, https://bonaireisland.com/
"This Is Our Island, This Is Bonaire!" (video), Bonaire Island, Sep 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNz4QNoMDDk
Current Events and History Stories on Bonaire:
“Bonaire’s coral reef is disappearing, researchers warn", Dutch News, Aug 2026, https://www.dutchnews.nl/2026/08/bonaires-coral-reef-is-disappearing-researchers-warn/
"Court Orders the Netherlands to Protect a Caribbean Island From Climate Change", New York Times, Jan 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/28/climate/netherlands-bonaire-climate-ruling.html
“Dutch military helps clean oil along beaches in Caribbean island of Bonaire", Associated Press (AP) News, Mar 2024, https://apnews.com/article/dutch-forces-oil-spill-bonaire-tobago-6cefd9d3b881fbf72e68280d5e7a703c
In The Americas Classroom Lesson 301 - “ABC Islands: The Dutch legacy in the Caribbean", In the Americas and PBS, Jan 2022, https://intheamericas.org/lesson/lesson-301-abc-islands-the-dutch-legacy-in-the-caribbean/
Other Interesting Links Related To Bonaire:
"Bonaire Is the World’s First ‘Blue Destination,’ and It Has 85+ Dive Sites", Travel + Leisure, Jul 2026, https://www.travelandleisure.com/bonaire-travel-guide-11873650
“The Beauty of Bonaire", Oklahoma Magazine, Mar 2025, https://okmag.com/blog/the-beauty-of-bonaire/
"Bonaire", Outlook Travel Magazine, Jan 2026, https://www.outlooktravelmag.com/travel-guides/the-caribbean/bonaire
"Bonaire: The First Blue Destination In The Caribbean", University of Central Florida, May 2026, https://www.ucf.edu/hospitality-tourism/how-bonaire-became-the-worlds-first-blue-destination/
“I'm a world traveler but never heard of Bonaire until I visited. Here are 16 surprising things I learned about the Caribbean island.", Business Insider, Feb 2023, https://www.businessinsider.com/bonaire-caribbean-island-surprising-things-world-traveler-2023-2
"Unveiling the Beauty of Bonaire Island Caribbean : A Caribbean Escape" (video), 10Minutes-Travel, Apr 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwFvYKBcPjk
Section IV - Resources About Bonaire
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