Suriname Foreign Minister: Former Suriname President Desi Bouterse has died at the age of 79

Written by Ank Kuipers

PARAMARIBO (Reuters) – Suriname’s government said on Wednesday that fugitive former President Dessie Bouterse has died at the age of 79, nearly a year after he fled authorities to avoid prison after being convicted of killing 15 political activists in 1982.

“The government has been informed through the family and its own investigations of the death of Mr. Dr. Bouterse, former president of the Republic of Suriname,” Foreign Minister Albert Ramdin told Reuters.

The government said the former leader died on Tuesday, without confirming the location or country. Last week, Surinamese authorities raided his home – where his supporters gathered to pay their respects on Wednesday morning – but did not find him.

Bouterse dominated politics in the small South American country for decades, leading a coup in 1980 and finally leaving office in 2020.

In 2019, he and six others were convicted for their roles in the 1982 murders of 15 leading government critics – including lawyers, journalists, union leaders, soldiers and university professors – and Bouterse was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Bouterse had claimed that the dead men were linked to a planned invasion of the former Dutch colony.

After years of legal prosecution, Bouterse was ordered to appear in prison in January, but he did not show up on time.

Members of his political party told reporters that the former president’s family would make a statement later on Wednesday.