Saint-Jean-du-Maroni is a village in

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...

, in the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni (; gcr, Senloran di Maronni) is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni is one of the three sub-prefectures of French Guiana and the seat ...

on the river Maroni. The village is mainly inhabited by Ndyuka

Maroons Maroons are descendants of Africans in the Americas who escaped from slavery and formed their own settlements. They often mixed with indigenous peoples, eventually evolving into separate creole cultures such as the Garifuna and the Mascogos. ...

History

Saint-Jean-du-Maroni was established in 1857 as a sub camp of the

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer to ...

Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, where the convicts had to perform forced labour. When the first prisoners arrived in ''Camp de la Rélégation'' on 20 June 1887, nothing was ready and they had to built the camp themselves. Most prisoners were housed in straw huts. The camps were abolished in 1946. Between 1890 and 1897, a 16 kilometre Decauville railway was constructed between Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni and Saint-Jean-du-Maroni. The railway was abandoned after the penal camps closed. In 1987, Jacques Chirac as

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

established Zones of Collective Use Rights (ZDUC). Saint-Jean-du-Maroni is the only Ndyuka village in France with a ZDUC status. ZDUC means that the village has

communal land Communal land is a (mostly rural) territory in possession of a community, rather than an individual or company . This sort of arrangement existed in almost all Europe until the 18th century, by which the king or the church officially owned the l ...

for hunting, fishing, agriculture and gathering. During 27 and 28 June 1988, a secret meeting was held in Saint-Jean-du-Maroni between the

Suriname National Army , image = , alt = , caption = , image2 = , alt2 = , caption2 = , motto = , founded = 1975 , current_form = , disbanded ...

, Jungle Commando, and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

as mediator to discuss peace after the Surinamese Interior War which resulted in the 1989 Kourou ceasefire accords. Saint-Jean-du-Maroni is home to a military base of the Regiment of the Adapted Military Service (RSMA), and is the site where the General Staff is located.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint-Jean-Du-Maroni Former penal colonies Ndyuka settlements Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni Villages in French Guiana