Emile Linus Alfred Wijntuin (22 September 1924 – 7 May 2020) was a Surinamese politician who served as Chairman of the National Assembly of Suriname from 1975 until the aftermath of the

1980 Surinamese coup d'état The 1980 Surinamese coup d'état, usually referred to as the Sergeants' Coup (), was a military coup in Suriname which occurred on 25 February 1980, when a group of 16 sergeants () of the Surinamese Armed Forces (SKM) led by Dési Bouterse ...

. Wijntuin was a member of the

Progressive Surinamese People's Party The Progressive Surinamese People's Party ( nl, Progressieve Surinaamse Volkspartij, PSV) was a political party in Suriname. The party was a member of the Christian Democrat Organization of America. The party was founded in August 1946 by, among ...

(PSV).

Biography

Wijntuin was born in the

Coronie District Coronie is a district of Suriname, situated on the coast. Coronie's capital city is Totness. The district border the Atlantic Ocean to the north, the Surinamese district of Saramacca to the east, the Surinamese district of Sipaliwini to the so ...

on 22 September 1924 in a family of farmers. At age 12, he was sent to Paramaribo for high school education. In 1943, he became an assistant teacher and received his teaching degree in 1947. During this period, he befriended father

Jozef Weidmann Leonardus Josephus "Jozef" Weidmann (3 October 1899 – 15 September 1962) was a Dutch-Surinamese Catholic priest, politician and union leader. He is one of the founders of the Progressive Surinamese People's Party (PSV). Weidmann played a leadi ...

and became interested in politics. In August 1926, Weidmann was one of the founder of PSV as a Christian democratic party. Wijntuin joined the PSV shortly after its foundation. He first ran for office in 1955, but lost to

Johan Kraag Johan * Johan (given name) * ''Johan'' (film), a 1921 Swedish film directed by Mauritz Stiller * Johan (band), a Dutch pop-group ** ''Johan'' (album), a 1996 album by the group * Johan Peninsula, Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada * Jo-Han, a manu ...

. From 1958 to 1967 and 1968 to 1980, he was a member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

. Wijntuin became chairman of PSV in 1971. He served as the Chairman of the Estates of Suriname from 1973 to 1975. After the 1980 coup d'etat, Wijntuin was placed under house arrest. In 1982, he left Suriname, and lived in

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. He tried to gather support from the European and South American Christian democrats but found himself increasingly isolated. Wijntuin returned after the restoration of democracy in 1991, but refrained from politics, and started to focus on writing books. Wijntuin died on 7 May 2020 at the age of 95.

Other activities

In 1962, the Father Weidmann Foundation, was established. The foundation operates a home for stray children, and was chaired by Wijntuin until his death. In 1994, he published his autobiography ''Reflekties uit een politiek verleden''. In 1998, Wijntuin wrote ''Louis Doedel, martelaar voor het Surinaamse volk'', about

Louis Doedel Louis Alfred Gerardus Doedel (26 July 1905 – 10 January 1980) was a Surinamese trade unionist. On 29 May 1937, he was involuntarily committed at the psychiatric hospital by Governor Johannes Kielstra. Doedel was forgotten by the public and oft ...

, a union leader who was involuntary committed in psychiatric hospital on 28 May 1937 by Governor Kielstra. Doedel was forgotten and presumed dead. It wasn't until 1980, that he was released.

Honours

*: ''Grand Cordon''

Honorary Order of the Yellow Star The Honorary Order of the Yellow Star (Dutch language, Dutch: ''Ere-Orde van de Gele Ster'') is the highest state decoration of the Republic of Suriname. The Order was instituted in 1975 at the Suriname#Independence, independence of Suriname and r ...

*: Officer in the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

(April 1967) *: Knight in the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands ( nl, De Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw, french: L'Ordre du Lion Néerlandais) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on ...

(November 1975) *: ''

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice ''Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice'' ("For Church and Pope" in Latin) is a decoration of the Holy See. It is currently conferred for distinguished service to the Catholic Church by lay people and clergy. History The medal was established by Leo XIII o ...

'' (October 2020)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wijntuin, Emile 1924 births 2020 deaths People from Coronie District Speakers of the National Assembly (Suriname) Surinamese male writers Chairmen of the Estates of Suriname Grand Cordons of the Honorary Order of the Yellow Star Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion