André R.M. Pakosie (born 25 May 1955) is a Surinamese historian, poet, Ndyuka activist and ''Edebukuman'' (head of experts) of the

Afaka script The Afaka script ( ''afaka sikifi'') is a syllabary of 56 letters devised in 1910 for the Ndyuka language, an English-based creole of Suriname. The script is named after its inventor, Afáka Atumisi. It continues to be used to write Ndyuka in t ...

. Pakosie comes from a family of herbal doctors and is himself a phytotherapist in the Surinamese

Maroon Maroon ( , ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word , meaning chestnut. ''Marron'' is also one of the French translations for "brown". Terms describing interchangeable shades, with overlapping RGB ranges, inc ...

tradition. He founded the Sabanapeti health center and the Maroon Institute Sabanapeti Foundation. In the 1980s he had to leave

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

because of the Suriname Guerrilla War and settled in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. He has received honors from the Queen of the Netherlands and the President of Suriname. He was the founder of "Maroon Day", celebrating the Maroon struggle for freedom. In his teens he rejected Christianity as he felt it hostile to pre-Christian traditions. In addition to being a herbalist and activist he is also a poet and historian. He is noted for his writing concerning the Maroon peoples. André Pakosie has written more than 30 books as of 1972, in the following languages: Dutch,

Sranan Tongo Sranan Tongo (Sranantongo, "Surinamese tongue", Sranan, Surinamese Creole) is an English-based creole language from Suriname, in South America, where it is the first or second language for 519,600 Surinamese people (approximately 80% of the popu ...

and the Ndyuka or Okanisi language. The books are mainly about the history of Suriname and culture of the Maroons. The Ndyuka mainly have an oral tradition, and to encourage the development of writing, Pakosie had founded in 1974 the National Institute to Combat Illiteracy in Suriname, of which he had been the director. Pakosie is editor-in-chief of the Marron magazine Siboga in which he has published extensively. He has also published among others in the Weekkrant Suriname,

Trouw ''Trouw'' (; ) is a Dutch daily newspaper appearing in compact size. It was founded in 1943 as an orthodox Protestant underground newspaper during World War II. Since 2009, it has been owned by DPG Media (known as De Persgroep until 2019). '' ...

., Volksnieuws, De Gids, Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law (University of Birmingham, England) and New West Indian Guide/Nieuwe West-Indische Gids. As ''Edebukuman'' of the Afáka syllabary, he is working to systematize that script. In 2015 Pakosie was sentenced to 6 years in prison and fined €10,000 for years of incest with his teenage daughter and the production of child pornography. The victim's mother and stepmother were sentenced to 3 years for complicity; her step-sister was given a probationary sentence due to herself being a victim of her father.

References

External links

André Pakosie at Digital Library for Dutch Literature
(in Dutch - ''Tuka: klaagliederen bij de bosnegerstam der Ndyuka'' available for free download) {{DEFAULTSORT:Pakosie, Andre 1955 births Converts to pagan religions from Christianity Herbalists Living people People from Sipaliwini District Ndyuka people Surinamese emigrants to the Netherlands Surinamese poets Surinamese historians Surinamese Maroons Writers in Sranan Tongo