Shortly before Christmas former Surinamese president Desi Bouterse died
at the age of 79.
And almost immediately he was depicted as a sort of Saint by ”
birds of various feathers”
So in the Surinamese parliament, the ”Nationale Assemblee”,
Bouterse was called ”a courageous leader”, a ”great son” and ”inspiring”
Others called him a ”People’s hero’, the man, who pursued social reforms,
a man, ”who fought for the poor”.
Many people, including the prime minister of Barbados, mrs Mottley [who
gave a statement at the death of ex president Bouterse], called Desi Bouterse
”charismatic”
Memorial services were being held, as in Suriname as in the Netherlands
[Suriname’s former colonizer, where many Surinamese live nowadays]
and not a few numer of people let their tears flow freely and recalled Bouterse’s
”social engagement”
Now it is true, that in his time as president, Bouterse pursued a number of
social reforms, which meant a lot for many people in a poor country
like Suriname, but there was handled irresponsibly with the financial
resources of the country with as a consequence, that after two periods of
presidency, Bouterse plunged Suriname into near-bankruptcy.
And not to forget:
Bouterse greatly enriched himself and his political friends at the cost
of the Surinamese people.
We call that theft and corruption!
People should realize that yet apart from the misery he brought to
thousands and thousands of young peole with the opening of
the country to the drug trade.
But there is more….
Bouterse appeared on the Surinamese political scene as the leader
of the 25 february 1980 military coup, with which he overthrew the
democratic system.
After an initial false-friendly Period, soon sordid human rights violations
made their appearance:
The death, after a suspicious police intrrogation, of alleged contra coup plotter,
the Surinamese ex KNIL [former Dutch colonial Army in then Dutch East Indies,
since 1948 Indonesia] military Fred Ormskerk [1980], the arrest and detention without trial of former politicians, the execution of contra coup plotter major Hawker, lying wounded on a brancard, [march 1982], with as one of the darkest events, the arrest and extrajudicial execution [after torture] of fifteen political opponents of
the Bouterse military regime, theDecembermurders [december 1982]!
The two courageous women’s marches as a protest against the Decembermurders must be mentioned here and deserve an honourable
page in Surinamese history!
Then major Horb, former right hand man of Bouterse, died under suspicious
circumstances in a police cell, after his arrest. [ February 1983]
After the Decembermurders, Bouterse c.s. established a dictatorship,
that would last until 1987, when the first free elections took place.
During the civil war with former bodyguard Brunswijk [leader of
the Jungle Commando], one of the worst human rights violations
under Bouterse took place:
In the maroon village Moiwana, more then 39 civilians were
killed by the National Army under responsibility of commander in Chief, Desi
Bouterse/A mass slaughter and crime against humanity!
In 1987 Bouterse established his political party NDP [that led a big defeat
at the 1987 elections!] and during the years Bouterse made himself popular
with populist and nice sounding speeches, presents to his political fans and
some social reforms.
That may be so, but fact remains, that Bouterse and co are guilty of
theft, torture, executions and mass slaughter: Crimes against humanity.
Because of the ”Saint Declaration” of Bouterse, this Letter is written.
Your Eyewitness must say he was quite dumbfounded when he read the tributes of the Guyanese delegation to the funeral of ex-Surinamese dictator Desi Bouterse. Your Eyewitness is quite aware that we Guyanese – as good colonial subjects – imbibed the British stiff upper lip tradition expressed in Latin, “De mortuis nil, nisi bonnum – of the dead, speak only the good”. But jeez, our delegates were so over the top!! “One of the Caribbean’s great souls”, crooned ex-president Donald Ramotar!! Doesn’t say much about the Caribbean of Loverture and Cuffy, does it??!! Criticising Western nations’ support for Israel’s genocidal actions in Gaza and Ukraine’s stance against Russia, Ramotar declared, “It is those same morally bankrupt and decadent politicians that have persecuted Comrade Bouterse. Those are the same ones that persecuted and accused him of all types of things.” Now, whatever else Bouterse might’ve achieved, can the Guyanese politicos who offered those peans to his glory forget he was CONVICTED by a Surinamese Court of ordering the 1982 round up, torture and murder of FIFTEEN civil society critics – including lawyers, journalists, and a university professor – of his 1980 “Sergeants’ coup”, that led to a seven-year military dictatorship?? The former dictator had conceded “political responsibility”, but had insisted that since he wasn’t present for the killings – known as the “December murders – he shouldn’t be prosecuted.” He had unsuccessfully tried to push through an amnesty law after being elected in 2010. Then, in 2016, he had ordered Suriname’s Attorney General to halt legal proceedings for alleged “national security” reasons. A court rejected that. All of us know that there’s no morality in international politics, where nations cold-bloodedly pursue their interests; but, surely, we gotta draw the line somewhere when it comes to political leaders murdering their own citizens for merely expressing their opinions. To say – as the Guyanese ex-president did – that Bouterse was for the ordinary working people, and then use this as an excuse for canonising him as a national hero is really too much. Would he say the same about Forbes Burnham, whom a Commission of Inquiry concluded was responsible for the assassination of Walter Rodney?? Burnham was also for “the little man”, wasn’t he?? And he wasn’t actually at Bent and George Streets when Gregory Smith detonated that bomb which blew away Rodney’s face, was he?? Most interestingly, Joseph Harmon – who had been a major in the GDF then – said Burnham had picked him to discuss an “international issue” with Bouterse – the Suriname military dictator!! “From that day onwards, we have had long meetings,” reminisced Harmon fondly. After a 2004 MOU signed between Bouterse’s party and the PNC, according to Wikileaks, Bouterse’s son took weapons into Buxton!!
…on Exxon’s reach?? Your Eyewitness is surprised at the continued war of attrition being waged by a recalcitrant minority to force the Government to “force” Exxon to the “renegotiation table”!! Yet, these are the same people who snicker at Cheddi Jagan’s “naivete” in denouncing the Americans as “imperialists” who were sucking out our wealth and enriching themselves. Now, your Eyewitness has emphasized that, with changed circumstances, the reactions of countries may also change. For example, by 1990, Gorbachev’s Glasnost had made Cheddi acceptable to the Yanks – cause their interests weren’t threatened no mo’. But ideological affinity ain’t the only interest, and in fact mightn’t even be the most important one to the Yanks. American business was, is, and will always be numero uno – around which all others revolve. So, do these “negotiators” think Exxon does not influence its government when it comes to protecting its interests in an age where energy security trumps all?? Remember Tillerton?? And please…we’re no Canada, or even Newfoundland, when it comes to breaking the sanctity of contracts!!
…confession? In explaining its stubborn efforts to forge a coalition of opposition parties to contest the 2025 General Elections, the remnants of Rodney’s party admitted their motivation: “WPA realistically cannot win an election on its own”!! You think ever?
Reacties uitgeschakeld voor Mail Astrid Essed to the Guyana Times/Desi Bouterse is no ”People’s hero”/Thief/Dictator/Criminal against humanity/Letter to the Editor]
ANP