Suriname, officially the Republiek Suriname, is a country in northern South America. Other common names are Surinam or Sranang. It was formerly known as Nederlands Guyana, Netherlands Guiana or Dutch Guiana. It lies in between French Guiana to the east and Guyana to the west. The southern border is shared with Brazil and the northern border is the Atlantic coast. The most southern parts of the borders with Guyana and French Guiana are disputed (upper Corantijn and Marowijne rivers; the map shows the Guyana and French Guiana versions of the border). The country is the smallest sovereign state in terms of area and population in South America.
» Suriname History
Native Americans of the Arawak and Carib tribes were the first to inhabit Suriname in 3000 BC. In the seventeenth century, there were several attempts by the Dutch and English to colonize Suriname, with the Dutch eventually gaining stable control. The Netherlands, and therefore Suriname, had a system of slave labour, with slaves mostly of African descent. The slaves were treated badly, and many escaped to the jungle. These Maroons (also known as "Djukas" or "Bakabusi Nengre") often returned to attack the plantations. Slave labour was only abolished in 1863, placing the Netherlands among the last European countries to do so. (Spanish-controlled Cuba and Puerto Rico had slaves until 1880 and 1873, respectively.) However, slaves were not released until 1873. After that, labourers were imported from the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia) and India.
In 1954, Suriname gained self-government, with the Netherlands retaining control of defense and foreign affairs. In 1973, the local government, led by the NPK (a largely Creole party) started negotiations with the Dutch government about independence, which was granted at 25 November 1975. The first President of the country was Johan Ferrier, with Henck Arron (leader of the Surinam National Party) as Prime Minister. Roughly a third of the population emigrated to the Netherlands, fearing that the new country would not be able to survive. A series of military coups in 1980 led to the breakdown in Dutch-Suriname relations, but elections were held and a new constitution written in 1987. A coup in 1990 interrupted this process, but elections were held again in 1991. With democracy, the Dutch government resumed aid. Since 1990, the four-party New Front coalition, led by Ronald Venetiaan has held government. In recent years, developing the economy has been one of the most difficult issues for Suriname.
In the autumn of 2006, Suriname's army was dispatched to Nickerie in anticipation of the possible illegal immigration of Guyanese who would be trying to escape potential violence during Guyana's election on August 28, 2006. The election proved peaceful and there was no immigration crisis.
