After WW2 Indonesian nationalists proclaimed an independent Indonesia and what followed
was a bloody colonial war, but what actually happened to Suriname? Because Suriname got
its independence in 1975 and there was no Surinamese war of independence... so
how did this process go? That is what you will learn in this video! In this video
you're gonna learn how Suriname gained its independence from the Netherlands.
Suriname was for centuries under Dutch rule and by of turn of the 20th century
a melting pot of different peoples. There were the Creols/Marrons, those with African roots,
as well as Javanese, Hindustanis and Chinese that came to Suriname as contract labourers
after slavery was abolished. And of course the indiginous population that formed a
small portion of the entire population. During WW2 Suriname as a whole behaved
loyal towards the Dutch government-in-exile. Dutch administration decreased and coupled to
economic growth nationalist feelings among the educated population grew. People from this class
were closely related to Dutch cultural identity. They strived for more autonomy after the war.
In 1943 the Unie Suriname was founded. Established for all population groups
but in reality dominated by Creols. After WW2 Surinamese political parties emerged.
In 1946 there was the Moeslim Partij (MP) by a hindustani notary clerk (Asgar Karamat Ali).
Their goal was to counterbalance the Creole role at negotiations with the Dutch about the
transition towards autonomy. Several months later de Progressieve Surinaamse Volkspartij
(PSV) was founded as well as the Nationale Partij Suriname (NPS). Other parties were
founded in the years after WW2. Most of these parties were not ideological, but aimed to
provide a power base for one's own religious or ethnic group. Due to limited suffrage,
the Creole Protestants dominated the so-called States (till 1937 named 'Colonial States').
Suriname's requests for a round table conference were postponed and this was mostly due to the fact
that the Dutch were focusing their attention to the east. I'm talking about Indonesia where the
Indonesian War of Independence was fought but in 1948 the first round table conference was
held also representatives of the Dutch Antilles took part in negotiations. There were two main
topics to be discussed: one was suffrage; the other autonomy. Regarding suffrage the Dutch decided that
the States of Suriname had to determine this and this resulted in an electoral system that
was beneficial for the Creoles and it was left unchanged till 1963. As for autonomy there was
more friction because the representatives of the Surinamese delegation demanded more
autonomy than the Dutch were willing to give. Eventually the Dutch gave in and complied to
most of the Surinamese demands. In 1954 this led to the Statute for the Kingdom of the
Netherlands; it was decided that Suriname became a constituent country within the Kingdom of the
Netherlands. It gave Suriname autonomy while the Dutch government managed defense, foreign relations,
international trade agreements, guaranteeing human rights and legal certainty. Nowhere in
the statute was a right for self-determination, in other words independence, laid down but Dutch
financial aid made up for a lot. In other words: the Dutch bought power over Suriname
and the Dutch Antilles. For a while the question of independence did not receive much attention.
It was mostly advocated by the Creole elite since they had higher positions in the Surinamese
society and they encountered the limitations of their power. As for Javanese and Hindustani
there was not much enthusiasm for a possible independence because they feared Creole dominance.
Demands for independence did not come from Suriname but from Surinamese in the
Netherlands in the early 1950s. In July 1951, the cultural association Wi Egi Sani (meaning:
Our Own Case), WES, was born, led by Eddy Bruma. They were inspired by Anton de Kom,
an anti-colonial activist that was exiled to the Netherlands, joined the resistance in WW2 and died
in a concentration camp. In 1959 the Partij van de Nationalistische Republiek (PNR) was founded.
They strived for independence on 1 July 1963: exactly one century after the Dutch abolition
of slavery. As a reaction the earlier mentioned Creole party NPS advocated more nationalism
also. Where the Creoles became polarized, more distance was created between them and
the Hindustani and Javanese which feared Creole domination after independence. Tensions rose in
1962 as in neighboring British Guyana race riots broke out but it did not spill over to Suriname.
During the 1973 election campaigns the idea of independence was brought up again. NPS
and government leader Henck Arron said he would strive to independence. The year would be 1975.
As early as January 1972, the Dutch Biesheuvel cabinet had set up a Kingdom
Commission (Koninkrijkscommissie) to consider new relations between the three parts of the
country. Consideration was given to further independence for Suriname and the Antilles.
After the Arron government's statement, the position of the Kingdom Commission
changed. A timetable was drawn up for Suriname to achieve independence.
This also had to do with the ongoing migration waves of Surinamese to the Netherlands. In 1970,
7,000 Surinamese left for the Netherlands, in 1971 already 10,000. It is precisely the migration that
prompts the Dutch government to make haste with the independence of Suriname. Negotiations were
started between the governments of Suriname and the Netherlands on, among other things,
defence, aviation, development cooperation and the nationality of residents. In June 1975,
those negotiations were successfully concluded. It was determined that Suriname's debt would
expire and that NLG 3 billion in development aid would be available for the next 10 to 15 years, in
addition to previously pledged funds. Surinamese who stayed in the Netherlands on the day of
independence would retain their Dutch nationality, unless they themselves opted for Surinamese.
After independence, a stay of three months was possible without a visa requirement. For longer
stays (for work, study or family reunification) a visa requirement would apply. Shortly after
the decision in the Dutch parliament, the States of Suriname adopted a Constitution. Independence
became a fact on November 25, 1975. Crown Princess Beatrix and Prince Claus and Prime Minister Den
Uyl were present at the ceremonies in Paramaribo. Suriname's first president became the last
Governor, Dr. Johan Ferrier. After independence more Surinamese came to the Netherlands. In total
300,000 came in the 1970s. Their reception was anything but warm, literally and figuratively:
the climate was cold, the reception as well. When a conflict broke out in February 1980
between the Arron government and professional soldiers over the formation of a union,
the army seized power. A National Military Council (Nationale Militaire Raad) was set up under the
leadership of Desi Bouterse. Although a civilian government was formed by Chin A Sen in March,
the role of parliament was limited by an Enabling Act (Machtigingswet). On December 8, 1982,
fifteen prominent opposition figures were murdered (known as the December Murders). The deteriorating
economy and an internal military struggle eventually led to the return of civilian rule
in 1987. It was not until 1991 that development aid from the Netherlands was resumed. Since 1991,
development aid to Suriname has regularly been discontinued due to political developments there.
I hope you find this video interesting; if you want to learn about the rise and fall
of the Dutch Empire, an overview video about the Dutch colonial history, click
here. Thank you so much for watching and best wishes from Paramaribo, Suriname.