Constitutional Court of Suriname: no amnesty for December murders

The Constitutional Court in Suriname has determined that the so-called December murders from 1982 are definitively ineligible for amnesty. Suspects of the murders of prominent critics of the then military regime cannot therefore go unpunished. Former president Desi Bouterse was sentenced to 20 years in prison at the end of 2019.

Initially, it seemed that suspects could go free, because in 2012 the existing amnesty law from 1989 was amended. The Court-martial then stopped the lawsuit against Bouterse, but determined in 2016 that the amnesty law was invalid and continued with the case against Bouterse and other suspects.

The Constitutional Court, established last year in Suriname, was asked by Bouterse’s party to review the amnesty law. This now determines that the amnesty law is contrary to the constitution and human rights treaties.

Also, the truth and reconciliation commission that would be set up after the promulgation of the amended amnesty law to represent the interests of victims, relatives and suspects never came about.

Back support

The decision of the Constitutional Court is a confirmation of the earlier judgment of the Court Martial. “It is also a support in the back of the relatives of the victims of the murders. They have been fighting for justice for almost 40 years now,” says correspondent Nina Jurna.

On December 8, 1982, fifteen leading critics of the military regime, including journalists and lawyers, were executed in the 17th-century Fort Zeelandia.

At the end of 2019, Bouterse was sentenced in absentia to 20 years in prison for the murders. Bouterse, who has not been president since last year, has objected to this.

Here’s a look back at the December Murders and the trial:

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