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The Netherlands Antilles is a group of five islands in the Caribbean: the two Leeward Islands; Curaçao and Bonaire and the three Windward Islands; Saba, St. Maarten and St. Eustatius. Curaçao, St. Maarten and Bonaire are the more widely known. Curaçao, situated near the northern coast of Venezuela, is the principal island of the Netherlands Antilles where the central government is located. The geographical location is favorable, with the Netherlands Antilles located at the trading cross­roads between Europe, the United States and South America. Curaçao, with its illustrious natural harbor and oil terminal facilities, provides extensive travel, transport and business services. In 1953 the Netherlands Antilles became an autonomous part of the Kingdom of The Netherlands. The islands have been under Dutch rule since the beginning of the 17th century. Although the Netherlands Antilles regulate and govern their internal affairs, defense and representation in foreign affairs are still principally provided by The Netherlands. The central government and the territorial government are the two levels of this parliamentary democracy. The Netherlands Antilles is a politically stable jurisdiction based on a strong democratic foundation. The legal system in the Netherlands Antilles is based on the laws of The Netherlands. The procedural legal system has been tailored on the Dutch example as well, and the High Court of The Netherlands (the "Hoge Raad") is also the highest court of appeals of the Netherlands Antilles. The local currency is the Netherlands Antilles guilder, which is tied to the U.S. Dollar at a fixed exchange rate of Nafl, 1.78 to every U.S. $1.00. The four pillars to the economy are: ­ off­shore investment and financial industry; ­ harbor and trade facilities; ­ oil refinery and terminal services; and ­ tourism. The Netherlands Antilles has a strong infrastructure supporting the largest commercial dry dock in the western hemisphere and advanced telecommunications, computerized data processing and transportation facilities.