Dési Bouterse

Dési Bouterse
President of Suriname
Incumbent
Assumed office 12 August 2010
Vice President	Robert Ameerali
Preceded by	Ronald Venetiaan
Personal details
Born	13 October 1945 (1945-10-13) (age 66) Domburg, Suriname
Political party	National Democratic Party
Spouse(s)	Ingrid Bouterse-Figueira
Profession	Army Officer
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Desiré Delano "Dési" Bouterse^[1] (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbɑutərsə]) (born 13 October 1945) is the 9th and current President of Suriname.

As an army officer, he was the de facto leader of Suriname through most of the 1980s, serving as Chairman of the National Military Council. As leader of the National Democratic Party (Nationale Democratische Partij, NDP) Bouterse was elected on 19 July 2010^[2] and installed as the new President of Suriname on 12 August 2010.^[3]

Biography

Bouterse as military leader in 1985

Early years

Born in Paramaribo District, Bouterse grew up in Suriname. He attended the Middelbare Handelsschool and acquired the MULO diploma (roughly equivalent to junior secondary general education).^[4] He received his military education in the Netherlands.^[5]

Chairman of the National Military Council

Bouterse's name is closely bound with the military regime that controlled Suriname from the 1980 Surinamese coup d'état until the beginning of the 1990s. On 25 February 1980, the government of newly-independent Suriname underwent a military coup which declared the country to be a Socialist Republic^[6] and Bouterse became Chairman of the National Military Council. President Johan Ferrier was forced out of office by Bouterse pressure in August 1980, and several months after the coup d'état by Bouterse most of the political authority transferred to the military leadership. From then until 1988, the titular Presidents were essentially army-installed by Bouterse, who ruled as a de facto leader with few practical checks on his power.

Drug trafficking

Since the return of democratic government, Bouterse has been accused on various occasions of involvement in illegal drug trafficking. In July 1999, he was convicted in absentia in the Netherlands to nine years in prison for cocaine trafficking.^[7] Since 1999 there is an international warrant for his arrest ordered by Europol. According to the United Nations Convention against illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, since he was convicted before his election as Head of State since 2010 he has no immunity. This was confirmed by various specialists in International law.^[8] Wikileaks published in 2011 a cable in which the American embassy confirmed Bouterse's involvement, together with that of Shaheed Roger Khan from Guyana, in the drugs trade.^[9] Representatives of the parliament say that President Bouterse should give an explanation for the Wikileaks cable, but officials from the government discard this as not being their problem.

December murders

Although he was convicted in the Netherlands, he has remained free in Suriname. The Surinamese government has said that it is preparing a case against the perpetrators of the December murders to be brought before a judge. The cases were ongoing as of April 2006. Bouterse has denied any involvement in the killings on 8 December 1982 at Fort Zeelandia, in which 15 prominent opponents of the military regime were shot dead. He denied being present and that the decision was made by the commander of the battalion, Paul Bhagwandas, who died in 1996. He did, however, accept political responsibility.^[10]

President of Suriname

After the return of democratic government, led in succession by Ronald Venetiaan, Jules Wijdenbosch, and Venetiaan again, Bouterse tried repeatedly to return to power through elections. In the 2010 Surinamese legislative election, Bouterse and his coalition, the Mega Combination (De Mega Combinatie) were voted to become the biggest party in Suriname. The coalition failed to gain an absolute majority in parliament by three seats, requiring 51 seats. In order to secure the votes necessary to become President, Bouterse needed to cooperate with either Ronnie Brunswijk - his former enemy - or the Javanese leader Salam Somohardjo of the Peoples Alliance (Volks Alliantie), who had left the New Front party before the election.^[11] On July 19, 2010, Bouterse was elected as President of Suriname; he was installed to the office on August 12, 2010.

References

1. ^ According to the Statutes of the DNP written as Desiré
2. ^ Bouterse gekozen tot president Suriname - NRC.nl (Dutch)
3. ^ Omstreden Bouterse beëdigd als president - Volkskrant.nl (Dutch)
4. ^ http://www.ibe.unesco.org/International/ICE47/English/Natreps/reports/suriname.pdf
5. ^ http://historiek.net/index.php/Personen/Algemeen/desi-bouterse-1945.html
6. ^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ns.html
7. ^ Neilan, Terence (17 July 1999). "World Briefing". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9804E1DD123FF934A25754C0A96F958260. Retrieved 1 May 2010. 
8. ^ See article (Dutch) [1]
9. ^ http://wikileaks.org/cable/2006/06/06PARAMARIBO399.html
10. ^ "Ex-Suriname head faces murder trial". Al Jazeera. 2009-02-21. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2009/02/2009220201340400544.html. 
11. ^ Volkskrant.nl <http://www.volkskrant.nl/buitenland/article1382767.ece/Enorme_winst_voor_Bouterse_in_Suriname>

Political offices
Preceded by Ronald Venetiaan	President of Suriname 2010–present	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Bouterse, Dési
Alternative names	Bouterse, Desiré Delano
Short description	Military; Politician; President of Suriname
Date of birth	13 October 1945
Place of birth	Domburg, Suriname
Date of death
Place of death