Princess of the Netherlands
In radio and television broadcasts on 31 January 1980, Queen Juliana announced that she would abdicate on 30 April in favour of her daughter Beatrix. In her speech, she expressed the hope that she could continue to serve the country after her abdication.
She became honorary chair of the National Committee of the International Year of the Handicapped in 1981 and continued to pay frequent visits to care institutions. In 1983 Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard went to the Netherlands Antilles to visit the projects financed from the money presented to the Princess as a gift on her seventieth birthday.
In the course of the 1990s, Princess Juliana gradually reduced her public commitments. She wrote to the press on 23 February 1999, announcing that in view of her advanced age she was unable to accept any further official invitations. With her ninetieth birthday approaching, she also explained that it would not be possible for her to reply to her well-wishers in the future.