The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Suriname

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This page contains a list of the greatest Surinamer Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 11 of which were born in Suriname. This makes Suriname the birth place of the 144th most number of Politicians behind Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Surinamer Politicians of all time. This list of famous Surinamer Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Surinamer Politicians.

Photo of Dési Bouterse

1. Dési Bouterse (1945 - 2024)

With an HPI of 72.50, Dési Bouterse is the most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 59 different languages on wikipedia.

Desiré Delano Bouterse (13 October 1945 – 23 December 2024) was a Surinamese military officer, politician, and convicted drug trafficker who served as the eighth president of Suriname from 2010 to 2020. From 1980 to 1987, he was Suriname's de facto leader after conducting a military coup and establishing a period of military rule. In 1987, Bouterse founded the National Democratic Party (NDP). On 25 May 2010, Bouterse's political alliance, the Megacombinatie ("Mega combination"), which included the NDP, won the parliamentary elections, and on 19 July 2010, Bouterse was elected as President of Suriname with 36 of 50 parliament votes. He was inaugurated on 12 August 2010. Bouterse was a controversial figure, held responsible by some for numerous human rights violations committed during his military rule in the 1980s. Most notable were the December murders in 1982. He was prosecuted for the murders, and a trial was initiated, but the National Assembly extended amnesty to him in 2012. After the trial was forced to continue, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison on 29 November 2019. He was also suspected of having directed the Moiwana massacre in 1986 against a village of Maroons during the Surinamese Interior War which pitted his government first against the maroon guerrilla group Jungle Commando, led by his former bodyguard, Ronnie Brunswijk, and then against the indigenous group Tucayana Amazonas. On 16 July 1999, Bouterse was sentenced in absentia in the Netherlands to 11 years' imprisonment after being convicted of trafficking 474 kg (1,045 lb) of cocaine. Bouterse always maintained his innocence. He claimed the star witness in the case, Patrick van Loon, was bribed by the Dutch government. According to the United States diplomatic cables leak released in 2011, Bouterse was active in the drug trade until 2006. Europol issued a warrant for his arrest. At that time, he could not be arrested in Suriname, because he was still president. As the conviction came before his election as president, he risked arrest if he left Suriname. In 2023, he was sentenced to twenty years' imprisonment for the 1982 murders of fifteen political dissidents. He was reported missing by the Surinamese authorities in January 2024 after refusing to report to prison. He was considered a fugitive until his death. Bouterse died on 23 December 2024, at the age of 79, while on the run following his conviction.

Photo of Jules Wijdenbosch

2. Jules Wijdenbosch (1942 - 2025)

With an HPI of 67.48, Jules Wijdenbosch is the 2nd most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Jules Albert Wijdenbosch (2 May 1941 – 30 April 2025) was a Surinamese politician who was President of Suriname from 1996 to 2000 and prime minister from 1987 to 1988.

Photo of Ronald Venetiaan

3. Ronald Venetiaan (b. 1937)

With an HPI of 65.46, Ronald Venetiaan is the 3rd most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 39 different languages.

Ronald Runaldo Venetiaan (born 18 June 1936) is a Surinamese former politician who served as the sixth president of Suriname.

Photo of Johan Ferrier

4. Johan Ferrier (1910 - 2010)

With an HPI of 64.85, Johan Ferrier is the 4th most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 35 different languages.

Johan Henri Eliza Ferrier (12 May 1910 – 4 January 2010) was a Surinamese politician who served as the 1st president of Suriname from 1975 to 1980. He was also the country's last governor-general before independence, serving from 1968 to 1975, before becoming the first president upon independence from the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1975. He was named the twentieth century's most important politician in Suriname in 1999.

Photo of Chan Santokhi

5. Chan Santokhi (b. 1959)

With an HPI of 63.62, Chan Santokhi is the 5th most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 44 different languages.

Chandrikapersad "Chan" Santokhi (Dutch: [tɕɑnˈdrikaːpɛrˌsɑt sɑnˈtɔki]; Sarnami: चंद्रिकापेर्साद संतोखी, pronounced [cⁿd̪rikɑːpərəsɑːd̪ə sⁿt̪oːkʰiː]; born 3 February 1959) is a Surinamese politician and former police officer who is the 9th president of Suriname, since 2020. After winning the 2020 elections, Santokhi was the sole nominee for president of Suriname. On 13 July, Santokhi was elected president by acclamation in an uncontested election. He was inaugurated on 16 July.

Photo of Henck Arron

6. Henck Arron (1936 - 2000)

With an HPI of 59.22, Henck Arron is the 6th most famous Surinamer Politician.  Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Henck Alphonsus Eugène Arron (25 April 1936 – 4 December 2000) was a Surinamese politician who served as the first Prime Minister of Suriname after it gained independence in 1975. A member of the National Party of Suriname, he served from 24 December 1973 with the transition government, to 25 February 1980. He was overthrown in a coup d'état by the military, led by Dési Bouterse. Released in 1981 after charges of corruption were dropped, he returned to banking, his previous career. In 1987, Arron was elected as Vice President of Suriname and served until another coup in 1990 overthrew the government.

Photo of Hendrick Chin A Sen

7. Hendrick Chin A Sen (1934 - 1999)

With an HPI of 59.19, Hendrick Chin A Sen is the 7th most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Hendrik Rudolf "Henk" Chin A Sen (Chinese: 陳亞先; pinyin: Chén Yàxiān; 18 January 1934 – 11 August 1999) was a Surinamese politician who served as the President of Suriname from 15 August 1980 until 4 February 1982.

Photo of Ramsewak Shankar

8. Ramsewak Shankar (b. 1937)

With an HPI of 57.78, Ramsewak Shankar is the 8th most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Ramsewak Shankar (born 6 November 1937) is a Surinamese politician who was the 4th President of Suriname, serving from 1988 to 1990. His government was overthrown by Dési Bouterse leading a bloodless military coup. Shankar had previously served as Agriculture & Fisheries Minister from 1969 to 1971. Shankar is a member of the large ethnic South Asian community in Suriname. He had studied at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. After his return to Suriname, he became active in the Progressive Reform Party. He supported independence in 1975.

Photo of Johan Kraag

9. Johan Kraag (1913 - 1996)

With an HPI of 57.48, Johan Kraag is the 9th most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Johannes Samuel Petrus "Johan" Kraag (29 July 1913 – 24 May 1996) was a Surinamese politician who served as the President of Suriname from 29 December 1990, until 16 September 1991.

Photo of Fred Ramdat Misier

10. Fred Ramdat Misier (1926 - 2004)

With an HPI of 55.52, Fred Ramdat Misier is the 10th most famous Surinamer Politician.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Lachmipersad Frederik "Fred" Ramdat Misier (28 October 1926 – 25 June 2004) was the 3rd President of Suriname, serving from 1982 to 1988.

People

Pantheon has 11 people classified as Surinamer politicians born between 1910 and 1976. Of these 11, 4 (36.36%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Surinamer politicians include Ronald Venetiaan, Chan Santokhi, and Ramsewak Shankar. The most famous deceased Surinamer politicians include Dési Bouterse, Jules Wijdenbosch, and Johan Ferrier. As of April 2024, 11 new Surinamer politicians have been added to Pantheon including Dési Bouterse, Jules Wijdenbosch, and Ronald Venetiaan.

Living Surinamer Politicians

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Deceased Surinamer Politicians

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Newly Added Surinamer Politicians (2024)

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Overlapping Lives

Which Politicians were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 6 most globally memorable Politicians since 1700.