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Netherlands–Suriname relations refers to the current and historical relations between 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 ...
and
Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...
. Both nations share historic ties and a common language ( Dutch) and are members of the Dutch Language Union.


History


Dutch colonization

In February 1667, Suriname became a Dutch colony after the signing of the Treaty of Breda between the Netherlands and the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
which ended the
Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War or the Second Dutch War (4 March 1665 – 31 July 1667; nl, Tweede Engelse Oorlog "Second English War") was a conflict between England and the Dutch Republic partly for control over the seas and trade routes, whe ...
. In exchange for sugar-rich Guiana, the Netherlands surrendered
New Netherland New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva ...
(in present-day
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
) to the British.History of Suriname
/ref> Immediately, the
Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company ( nl, Geoctrooieerde Westindische Compagnie, ''WIC'' or ''GWC''; ; en, Chartered West India Company) was a chartered company of Dutch merchants as well as foreign investors. Among its founders was Willem Usselincx ( ...
became partial owner of the colony and began importing slaves from
West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mau ...
to work on the sugar, cotton, coffee and indigo plantations in the colony. Surinam became the most important colony in the Americas for the Netherlands after the loss of Dutch Brazil in 1654. In the 1700s, many African slaves known as ''
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. ...
'' began escaping to the south of the colony and creating their own tribes and began a small uprising against Dutch rule. In 1762, the Maroons won their freedom and signed a treaty with the Dutch Crown to acknowledge their territorial rights and trading privileges. From 1799 to 1816, Suriname became a British colony after the Netherlands became part of the
First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental ...
under Napoléon Bonaparte. After the end of the
Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, the Netherlands regained its independence and Surinam was returned to the Dutch. In 1863, the Dutch ended the slave trade and in need of new labor, began importing Javanese people from the Dutch East Indies (
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
) and from
India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
and China to work in Surinam as indentured laborers. At the same time, several thousand poor Dutch farmers left the Netherlands to work in the colony. By the early 20th century, production in Surinam moved to rubber, gold and bauxite, the latter becoming the biggest export of the colony (used for the production of aluminum).


Independence

During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, Surinam was host to U.S soldiers after the Netherlands was invaded by Germany in 1940 and the Royal family fled to exile in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...
. In 1942, Prince Bernhard, husband of Dutch Crown Princess Juliana visited the colony. In 1943, Crown Princess Juliana paid a visit to Surinam.Suriname in World War II
/ref> Several primarily white Surinamese fought for the Liberation of the Netherlands during the war. Surinam became an important provider of bauxite for the war. At the end of World War II, the Netherlands began providing more autonomy to Surinam. The
Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands The Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands (in Dutch: ''Statuut voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden''; in Papiamentu: ''Statuut di Reino Hulandes'') is a legal instrument that sets out the political relationship between the four countries t ...
came into effect in December 1954, granting Surinam full autonomy within the nation, except in areas of defence, foreign policy, and nationality. After the independence of the Dutch colony of
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
, the Netherlands searched for ways to grant independence for its colonies in the Americas, as maintaining the colonies was too costly. In 1973, Dutch Prime Minister Joop den Uyl declared that its last remaining Dutch colonies would become independent during his administration. Only Surinam seemed motivated for independence, however, obtaining its independence on 25 November 1975, and changing its name to "Suriname". Crown Princess
Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husband ...
and Prime Minister den Uyl were in attendance at the independence ceremony in
Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's ...
.


Post Independence

Soon after Suriname obtained its independence, most Europeans returned to the Netherlands. Around 300,000 Surinamese also decided to move to Europe and take Dutch citizenship. In February 1980 Dési Bouterse, head of the Surinamese military, staged a violent coup d'état against Prime Minister Henck Arron and Bouterse became ''de facto'' military leader of the nation. In December 1982, 15 prominent young men, most of them journalists and lawyers, criticized the military dictatorship of Bouterse. These 15 men were rounded up and taken to Fort Zeelandia (the then headquarters of Bouterse) where they were tortured and killed. The incident became known as the " December murders". As a result of the murders, the Netherlands froze all development aid to Suriname. From 1986 to 1992, Suriname was embattled in a civil war known as the
Surinamese Interior War The Surinamese Interior War ( nl, Binnenlandse Oorlog) was a civil war waged in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname between 1986 and 1992. It was fought by the Tucayana Amazonas led by Thomas Sabajo and the Jungle Commando led by Ronnie Brunswij ...
against mainly
Maroon Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown". According to multiple dictionaries, there are var ...
fighters. In 1986, the Netherlands planned an invasion of Suriname to remove Bouterse from power, however, it was called off at the last minute. In 1999, Bouterse was convicted '' in absentia'' by a court in the Netherlands to 11 years imprisonment for drug trafficking.Returned to Power, a Leader Celebrates a Checkered Past
/ref> In 2007, Bouterse was charged for the December murders. In 2010, Bouterse became President of Suriname and therefore immune to prosecution. Since his return to power, the Netherlands has had limited contact with the Surinamese government and has stated that Bouterse is not welcome in the Netherlands. In 2013, the Netherlands called for the arrest of Bouterse in South Africa where he was attending the funeral of
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African anti-apartheid activist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the ...
. After the
2020 Surinamese general election General elections were held in Suriname on 25 May 2020. The elections occurred concurrently with an economic crisis in Suriname, as well as the COVID-19 crisis. Electoral system The 51 seats in the National Assembly are elected using party-list ...
and the appointment of
Chan Santokhi Chandrikapersad "Chan" Santokhi (Sarnami: चान संतोखी; ; born 3 February 1959) is a Surinamese politician and former police officer who is the 9th president of Suriname, since 2020. After winning the 2020 elections, Santokhi w ...
as president, both Suriname and the Netherlands expressed the desire to restore diplomatic relations and to reappoint ambassadors. Santokhi stressed that the current financial crisis will lead to a re-evaluation of the existing diplomatic missions. In August 2020, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Albert Ramdin Albert Ramchand Ramdin (born 27 February 1958) is a Surinamese diplomat serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Santokhi cabinet since 16 July 2020. He is a member of the Progressive Reform Party (VHP). Early life and education Ramdin w ...
was the first Surinamese member of government in ten years to pay an official visit to the Netherlands.


High-level visits

Royal and Prime Ministerial visits from the Netherlands to Suriname *
Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld , house = Lippe , father = Prince Bernhard of Lippe , mother = Armgard von Cramm , birth_date = , birth_name = Count Bernhard of Biesterfeld , birth_place = Jena, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Germany , death_date = ...
(1942) * Crown Princess Juliana of the Netherlands (1943) * Queen Juliana of the Netherlands (1955, 1978) * Crown Princess
Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husband ...
(1975) * Prime Minister Joop den Uyl (1975) * Prime Minister
Jan Peter Balkenende Jan Pieter "Jan Peter" Balkenende Jr. (; born 7 May 1956) is a Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 to 14 October 2010. Balkenende studied ...
(2005, 2008) Presidential visits from Suriname to the Netherlands * President
Johan Ferrier Johan Henri Eliza Ferrier (12 May 1910 – 4 January 2010) was a Surinamese politician who served as the 1st president of Suriname from 1975 to 1980. He was also the country's last governor-general before independence, serving from 1968 to 1975 ...
(1977) * President Ronald Venetiaan (2006) * President
Chan Santokhi Chandrikapersad "Chan" Santokhi (Sarnami: चान संतोखी; ; born 3 February 1959) is a Surinamese politician and former police officer who is the 9th president of Suriname, since 2020. After winning the 2020 elections, Santokhi w ...
(2021)


Trade

In 2016, trade between the Netherlands and Suriname totaled 174 million Euros.Handel en economie Suriname (in Dutch)
/ref> Dutch exports to Suriname include: chemical based products, machinery, electrical and transport equipment. Surinamese exports to the Netherlands include: live animals and food, raw materials and beverages. The Netherlands ranks second among countries from which Suriname imports goods and services, after the United States.


Resident diplomatic missions

* Netherlands has an embassy in
Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's ...
. * Suriname has an embassy
The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a list of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's ad ...
and consulates-general in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
and in
Willemstad Willemstad ( , ; ; en, William Town, italic=yes) is the capital city of Curaçao, an island in the southern Caribbean Sea that forms a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was the capital of the Netherlands Antilles p ...
,
Curaçao Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coas ...
.


Ambassadors of Suriname to the Netherlands

* Wim van Eer (1975–1980) * Hans Prade (1981–1982) * (1982–1984) * (1984–1985) On July 1985, Dirk Jan van Houten, was expelled. The Netherlands responded by expelling Heidweiller. Diplomatic affairs were handled by ''
chargé d'affaires A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassado ...
''. * (1988–1994) *
Evert Gonesh Evert Guillaume Gonesh (formerly known as Evert Guillaume Azimullah; born 21 August 1938) is a Surinamese diplomat, politician, and writer of Indian descent. He served as the Surinamese Ambassador to the Netherlands. Biography After completing of ...
(1994–2001) * (2001–2006) * (2006–2010) No ambassadors appointed. Only ''chargé d'affaires''. *
Rajendre Khargi Rajendre Khargi (27 July 1955) is a Surinamese journalist and diplomat. He has worked for the Nederlandse Omroep Stichting and Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau among others. He was an advisor and speechwriter for Chan Santokhi. Since 10 February ...
(2021–)


Ambassadors of the Netherlands to Suriname

* Hendricus Leopold (1975–1978) *
Maximilien Vegelin van Claerbergen Jonkheer Mr. Maximilien Vegelin van Claerbergen (17 August 1927 – 11 April 2011) was a Dutch diplomat and founder of Biblionef International. Van Claerbergen was born on 17 August 1927 in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France. On 8 December 1978, he wa ...
(1978–1981) * (1981–1983) * (1984–1985) No ambassadors appointed. Only ''chargé d'affaires''. * Joop Hoekman (1988–1990) * (1990–1994) * Schelto baron van Heemstra (1994–1998) * (1998–2002) * (2002–2006) * 2006–2009) * (2009–2012) Jacobi was recalled in April 2012 after the Bouterse government passed the amnesty law for the December murders. Diplomatic affairs were handled by ''chargé d'affaires''. *
Henk van der Zwan Henk Ary Christiaan van der Zwan (20 May 1956) is a Dutch diplomat. He served as ambassador of the Netherlands to Estonia (2006–2010), Canada (2016–2020), and since 2021, Suriname. Biography Van der Zwan was born on 20 May 1956 in Leeuwarden ...
(2021–)


See also

* Foreign relations of the Netherlands *
Foreign relations of Suriname As part of the foreign relations of Suriname, the country is a participant in numerous international organizations. International tensions have arisen due to Suriname's status as a trans-shipment point for South American recreational drugs destin ...
* Dutch Empire * Dutch Surinamese *
Surinamese people in the Netherlands Surinamese people in the Netherlands are people in the Netherlands who come from a Surinamese background. From 1667 to 1975, Suriname was a colony of the Netherlands. Migration began during the colonial era. Initially this was mainly the colo ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Netherlands-Suriname relations
Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...
Bilateral relations of Suriname
Surinam Surinam may refer to: * Surinam (Dutch colony) (1667–1954), Dutch plantation colony in Guiana, South America * Surinam (English colony) (1650–1667), English short-lived colony in South America * Surinam, alternative spelling for Suriname ...