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Desiré Delano Bouterse of Suriname
Suriname

Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname is a country in northern South America. Originally, the country was spelled Surinam by English settlers who founded the first colony at Marshall's Creek, along the Suriname River, and was Geographical renaming Nederlands Guyana, Netherlands Guiana or Dutch Guiana....
 (born October 13, 1945) has been a military sports instructor, coup
Coup d'état

A coup d??tat , often simply called a coup, is the sudden unconstitutional overthrow of a government by a part of the state establishment – usually the military – to replace the branch of the stricken government, either with another civil government or with a military government....
 leader, army leader and a politician
Politician

A politician is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making through the influence of politics or a person who influences the way a society is governed....
 in the Nationale Democratische Partij
National Democratic Party (Suriname)

The National Democratic Party is the main opposition political party in Suriname. It was founded in 1987 shortly before the downfall of military dictator D?si Bouterse....
 (NDP).

Bouterse’s name is closely bound with the military regime that controlled Suriname from 1980 until the beginning of the 1990s. On February 25, 1980, the government of newly-independent Suriname underwent a military coup and Bouterse became Chairman of the National Military Council.






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Desiré Delano Bouterse of Suriname
Suriname

Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname is a country in northern South America. Originally, the country was spelled Surinam by English settlers who founded the first colony at Marshall's Creek, along the Suriname River, and was Geographical renaming Nederlands Guyana, Netherlands Guiana or Dutch Guiana....
 (born October 13, 1945) has been a military sports instructor, coup
Coup d'état

A coup d??tat , often simply called a coup, is the sudden unconstitutional overthrow of a government by a part of the state establishment – usually the military – to replace the branch of the stricken government, either with another civil government or with a military government....
 leader, army leader and a politician
Politician

A politician is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making through the influence of politics or a person who influences the way a society is governed....
 in the Nationale Democratische Partij
National Democratic Party (Suriname)

The National Democratic Party is the main opposition political party in Suriname. It was founded in 1987 shortly before the downfall of military dictator D?si Bouterse....
 (NDP).

Bouterse’s name is closely bound with the military regime that controlled Suriname from 1980 until the beginning of the 1990s. On February 25, 1980, the government of newly-independent Suriname underwent a military coup and Bouterse became Chairman of the National Military Council. Though the Suriname Presidency was retained, Bouterse was the nation’s de facto
De facto

De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning the fact" or in practice but not necessarily ordained by law. It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or technique that are found in the common experience as created or developed without or contrary to a regulation....
 ruler until his resignation in 1988. He had served briefly as president himself for a period in 1982.

Bouterse was a leading figure in Suriname’s post-independence civil war
Civil war

A civil war is a war between organized groups to take control of a nation or region, or to change government policies. It is high-intensity conflict, often involving Regular Army, that is sustained, organized and large-scale....
, and is responsible for the infamous “December murders” of 1982 and events in the Maroon (Bosneger) village of Moiwana
Moiwana

Moiwana is a Maroon village in the Marowijne district in the east of Suriname.The village was the scene of the Moiwana Wiktionary:massacre on November 29, 1986, during the civil war between the Surinamese military regime, headed by D?si Bouterse and the Jungle Commando led by Ronnie Brunswijk....
 in 1986. Since then he has been accused on various occasions of involvement in illegal drug trafficking. In July 1999, he was convicted in absentia
In absentia

In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use it usually pertains to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings....
 in the Netherlands
Netherlands

The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....
 for cocaine
Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine....
-trafficking. The Netherlands has an international warrant for his arrest, which makes it almost impossible for him to leave Suriname. Suriname cannot extradite him because he is a former head of state.

After the return of democratic government, led in succession by Ronald Venetiaan
Ronald Venetiaan

Ronald Runaldo Venetiaan is a mathematician and the current president of Suriname. His first term as president was from 1991 to 1996, but he lost presidential elections to Jules Wijdenbosch....
, Jules Wijdenbosch
Jules Wijdenbosch

Jules Albert Wijdenbosch is a politician in Suriname. He is a member of the National Democratic Party , which held absolute power in Suriname during the 1980s....
 and Venetiaan again, Bouterse tried unsuccessfully to return to power in elections.

Although he has been convicted in the Netherlands, he has remained free in Suriname. The Suriname government has said that it is preparing a case against the perpetrators of the December murders to be brought before a judge. The cases are ongoing as of April 2006. Bouterse has denied any involvement in the killings on 8 December 1982 at Fort Zeelandia
Fort Zeelandia (Paramaribo)

Fort Zeelandia is a fortress in Paramaribo, Suriname, that was built by United Kingdom colonisation in 1651 around a small trading post, created by the Dutch....
, in which 15 prominent opponents of the military regime were shot dead. He has said that he wasn’t present and that the decision was made by the commander of the battalion, Paul Bhagwandas, who died in 1996. He did however, claim political responsibility.