Regional leaders and the Caribbean Community (Caricom) have decried the actions of Suriname protesters, who on Friday stormed Suriname’s parliament, broke windows and looted businesses to protest higher electricity and fuel prices.
At the closing press conference of the 44th regular meeting of the Caricom Heads of Government in Nassau, Bahamas on Friday, Dominica Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley called for peace and order to be restored in the Dutch-speaking country.
Caricom also issued a statement on Friday condemning the acts of violence.
Skerrit told reporters that while regional leaders respected citizens’ rights to protest within the confines of the constitution and relevant laws, they stood in solidarity in recognising the democratically elected government led by President Chandrikapersad Santokhi.
“And we do hope that all actors can respect the rule of law and respect people’s right to move freely. And we certainly condemn the storming of the parliament. It appears that this is becoming a practice in our hemisphere and is something that we all need to seek to condemn and stamp out in our hemisphere,” he said.
“We call for calm and a restoration of peace and order and allow for dialogue to take place and the issues among the Surinamese people can be addressed in a respectful, lawful manner,” he added.
Mottley echoed Skerrit’s call for peace and stability to be restored in Suriname.
She said what happened on Friday was “most unfortunate”.
She said it was unacceptable for anyone to put people’s lives at risk.
“People can express their views but there is no excuse for violence in any manner, form or fashion,” she said. “And to the extent that persons have been injured, and to the extent that property has been damaged, the ultimate loss is also to the stability of the country.”
Santokhi has
Caricom support
In a statement on Friday, Caricom said it received a report from the Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Business and International Co-operation of Suriname on the ongoing disturbances in that country.
“Caricom reaffirms its support for the democratically elected Government of Suriname under the leadership of President Chandrikapersad Santokhi,” it stated.
“The Heads of Government took note of the unfolding situation in Suriname and strongly condemned the violent attacks on people as well as private and public facilities including the parliament,” it said.
“They recognised the right to freedom of expression and the right to peaceful protest but expressed the view that there can be no excuse for the use of violence in any type of demonstration. They affirmed that these actions only serve to undermine the rule of law and the stability of democracies. Furthermore, they threaten the lives and livelihoods of our citizens and are inimical to the interest of our population,” the statement added.
What began as a peaceful demonstration by thousands of people in Suriname’s capital Paramaribo against the removal of subsidies, escalated into protesters clashing with police, storming the National Assembly (Suriname’s parliament), vandalising the lobby, smashing windows with stones and looting stores.
Reports said police were forced to fire tear gas to quell the chaotic crowd.
Businesses in the capital were shut down on Friday afternoon and a curfew put into effect until yesterday
In a statement Friday, the Surinamese government warned that it would not tolerate lawlessness.
“We condemn and reject in the strongest terms what has taken place today in and around The National Assembly. Buildings and spaces of the House of Democracy have been reported to have been forcibly entered, causing destruction. Vigorous action will be taken against those who instructed, carried out and caused these attacks,” it said.
The government said a special task force was set up to find, detain and hand over to the authorities those responsible for the attacks.
