(de ware Tijd) THE HAGUE – Many member states of the European Union (EU) are not that much concerned about Suriname, Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Uri Rosenthal told the Lower House on Thursday during a short debate on Suriname’s Amnesty Act. He added that he had made every effort to make clear to his EU colleagues how serious the Act’s adoption was. The EU’s Foreign Affairs Council will meet on Monday and Rosenthal will make an attempt then to put Suriname and the Amnesty Act on the agenda. The minister made these statements in reply to a question by legislator Kathleen Ferrier (CDA), who wants the Netherlands and possibly other countries to issue a statement expressing international support for the court-martial. The debate on Suriname was short, as only Ferrier and Louis Bontes (PVV) took the floor.
The Foreign Affairs committee met for two hours on 11 April to discuss the Amnesty Act. On Thursday, Bontes introduced three motions, the first one asking for the expulsion of Suriname’s chargé d’affaires ad interim Chantal Doekhie. The second motion asks for Dutch Ambassador Art Jacobi not to return to Suriname as long as Desi Bouterse is President, and the third calls for travel restrictions on the 28 legislators who voted for the Amnesty Act. The Lower House will vote on the motions on Tuesday, but Rosenthal advised against all three.
