PRESIDENT, TOP OFFICIALS WARN OF DESTABILIZATION

UNCLAS PARAMARIBO 000596

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

WHA/CAR FOR JACKIE ROSHOLT, INR FOR BOB CARHART, DS/IP/WHA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV ASIC NS
SUBJECT: PRESIDENT, TOP OFFICIALS WARN OF DESTABILIZATION
EFFORTS

REF: A. PARAMARIBO 589


B. PARAMARIBO 586

C. PARAMARIBO 584


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Government of Suriname (GOS) President
Ronald Venetiaan and other officials warned on November 14 of
attempts by the political opposition to destabilize the
government. However, citizen reactions have been calm, and
tended to blame the government for creating fear. Meanwhile,
the fifth protest by the Youth Collective Suriname (YCS; ref
B, ref C) attracted around 200 participants and was peaceful.
Alienation and cynicism seem to be driving public reaction.
END SUMMARY


2. (U) In a radio interview on November 14, Government of
Suriname President Ronald Venetiaan warned citizens not to be
provoked by those preaching anarchy, and compared the
situation to that preceding the 1980 coup, 1982 political
murders, and 1986 outbreak of civil war. Venetiaan said he
felt the opposition National Democratic Party (NDP),led by
former military strongman and 1982 murder defendant (ref A)
Desi Bouterse, is behind a handful of protests and
"scenarios8 designed to topple the government. On the same
day, Vice President Ram Sardjoe told the press there are
attempts to create instability in Suriname. Minister of
Justice and Police Chandrikapersad Santokhi said more police
will be on the streets in order to give citizens a feeling of
safety, and that he has increased prison security in response
to evidence that prison outbreaks and riots are being planned
in connection with destabilization attempts.


3. (SBU) In an informal survey of citizens by Suriname,s
leading newspaper on the following day, November 15, most
said they felt safe and unthreatened, and criticized the
government for creating concern. Meanwhile, in their
conversations with Post, most Surinamers express a seemingly
contradictory mix of nonchalance and expectation of unrest.
Politician and businessman Surindra Mungra,s comments are
typical: ¬hing will happen,8 but &there will be some
riots.8


4. (U) The most visible sign of possible unrest has been
protests by the Youth Collective Suriname (YCS; ref B, ref
C). On November 15, YCS took to the streets for the fifth
time since October 30. However, their numbers declined to
approximately 200 after attracting around 300 participants to
their November 9 protest. The November 15 protest was
peaceful, delivering a petition on the concerns of youth to
the Inter-Faith Council of Suriname. In earlier protests,
the YCS gave an identical petition to parliament and to the
Dutch Embassy.


5. (SBU) COMMENT: While the stability of Suriname has been
hotly debated in the international community (ref B) and now
has the official concern of President Venetiaan, the
alienated populace, as usual, has reacted with cynicism. If
the protests and "scenarios" really are Bouterse-orchestrated
attempts to topple the government, the low number of protest
participants indicates relative public disinterest, and the
inability of the "scenarios" to emerge from the realm of
rumor into the limelight of reality indicates an
unwillingness to follow through on Bouterse's desires for
upheaval. However, public criticism of the President
emphasizes that Bouterse's failure does not equal approval of
the government. The evaluation of the average Surinamer
shows a weary familiarity with the machinations of Suriname's
byzantine political system: while the powers-that-be may be
willing to go so far as to foment fear or possible riots to
serve their own ends, in the end it will be mere politics,
which for the citizenry amounts, in Mungra's words, to
"nothing." END COMMENT
SCHREIBER HUGHES