BOUTERSE RETRACTS SLANDEROUS STATEMENTS AGAINST

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARAMARIBO 000409

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

WHA/CAR FOR JACKIE ROSHOLT

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL SNAR NS
SUBJECT: BOUTERSE RETRACTS SLANDEROUS STATEMENTS AGAINST
JUSTICE MINISTER, BUT WILL APPEAL COURT DECISION

REF: A. PARAMARIBO 323

B. 2007 PARAMARIBO 176


1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Seen as a prelude to Suriname's 2010
elections, an internal power struggle reached fever pitch
this month as former military strongman Desi Bouterse engaged
in commonly-used smear-and-taint tactics against Minister of
Justice and Police Chandrikapersad Santokhi. On September
23, Bouterse complied with the court decision that he
publically retract his earlier accusations that Santokhi had
ties with drug criminals. Santokhi had taken the battle to
the courts, which on September 19 handed down the verdict
that Bouterse must retract his comments. Santokhi, a
consistent counternarcotics ally of the United States, has
had his public reputation as a crime-fighter tainted.
Bouterse has announced he will appeal the court's verdict.
This case is reminiscent of accusations Bouterse made against
former Minister of Justice and Police Siegfried Gilds, which
finally gained credibility after a Dutch drug investigation
incriminated the former Minister. With elections two years
away, and Bouterse currently on trial for murder, no end to
Bouterse's diversionary tactics is in sight. END SUMMARY.

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BOUTERSE: "OUR JUSTICE MINISTER IS A CRIMINAL"
-------------- -


2. (U) Desi Bouterse, chairman of largest political party in
Suriname (the opposition National Democratic Party, NDP),
former military strongman, and the main suspect in the
ongoing trial of the 1982 murder of fifteen political
opponents (Ref A) has periodically stated that "he won't go
down alone," and that he has damaging information on his
bitter political enemy (Ref B),Minister of Justice and
Police Chandrikapersad Santokhi.


3. (U) On August 30, Bouterse unveiled a new attack on the
Justice Minister, a consistent counternarcotics ally of the
United States, when he announced that Santokhi's wife had
purchased a home from suspected drug criminal August Adjoeba
in November 2006 at a "below-market" price. Bouterse
provided the media with a copy of the deed of sale, which
showed that the property, valued at SRD 75,000 (USD 26,785),
was sold for SRD 18,000 (USD 6,428). This sale showed that
Santokhi is a "criminal himself," Bouterse claimed, and that
Santokhi must have had some business connection with Adjoeba.
(Note: Adjoeba was recently murdered in the Netherlands.
This presumably drug/criminal-related incident was a
prominent news story in Suriname. End Note).


4. (U) Santokhi refuted Bouterse's claims by saying that his
wife is from a "rich family," and that he was not aware of
his wife's plans to buy the house from Adjoeba until after
the sale was made. He added that, after learning of the
purchase, he did a background check and told his wife that
Adjoeba was "a bit shady." (Note: Later, the media carried
the story that Santokhi and his wife had long-standing
marital problems, which could explain their separation of
finances and lack of communication. End Note).


5. (U) On September 6, Bouterse continued his attack,
claiming that Santokhi's relations with drug criminals dated
back to when Santokhi was a police officer. Bouterse also
showed film footage of a mother recounting how her son had
been killed (as a criminal) in the 1980s by Santokhi when he
was Inspector of Police, and that although she had filed a
complaint, it was never fully investigated.

-------------- --------------
SANTOKHI: BOUTERSE'S COMMENTS "SLANDEROUS, OFFENSIVE AND
INSULTING"
-------------- --------------


6. (U) Following Bouterse's September 6 remarks, Santokhi
responded that they were "slanderous, offensive and
insulting" and filed a defamation suit. In the suit,
Santokhi requested Bouterse publish a retraction on the front
page of all local newspapers. On September 19, the courts
handed down the verdict that Bouterse must retract in all the
major media sources his statements about Santokhi. Bouterse
complied with the verdict on September 23, but announced his
plans to appeal the court's decision.


7. (SBU) COMMENT. The Santokhi/Bouterse affair dominated
Surinamese news for two weeks. Santokhi wished to cast this

PARAMARIBO 00000409 002 OF 002


controversy as a legal matter. Bouterse, however,
successfully set this as a battle for public perception --
which he may be winning, despite the court's verdict.
Santokhi, regularly hailed for his energetic crime-fighting,
has begun to lose his Teflon coating. Post's review of media
sources and internet sites showed that public opinion was not
on Santokhi's side. One reason for this may be that the case
reminds the public too much of Bouterse's repeated
allegations that former Minister of Justice and Police
Siegfried Gilds had criminal ties, which were supported by a
Dutch investigation that eventually incriminated the former
Minister. Credibility gained for Bouterse from that case may
influence public opinion this time around. It is too soon to
tell, though doubtful, that Bouterse's retraction will change
the public's siding with him in the short term. Nor is it
certain Santokhi will regain his image. With the 2010
elections just two years away, and Bouterse on trial for
murder, Bouterse's smear-and-taint machine will surely stay
on the roll. END COMMENT.
SCHREIBER HUGHES