Suriname Guerrilla War

The Suriname Guerrilla War (Binnenlandse Oorlog, 'Internal War') was an internal conflict in Suriname between 1986 and 1992. The war was fought between the Jungle Commando lead by Ronnie Brunswijk whose members originated from the Maroon ethnic group, and the national army lead by then-army chief and de facto head of state Dési Bouterse.

Background
Suriname has one of the most ethnically diverse populations in South America, with groups of East Indian, Indonesian, Chinese, European, Amerindian and black (Creole and Maroon) origin. The Maroons' ancestors were African slaves who escaped from coastal Suriname between the mid-seventeenth and late eighteenth centuries to form independent settlements. They settled in interior parts of Suriname, and gained independence by signing a peace treaty with the Dutch in the 1760's.

In 1975 Suriname gained full independence. Five years later, in 1980, an army sergeant named Desi Bouterse led a bloodless coup against the country's government. Bouterse started to eventually consolidate all power to himself.

The war revolved around power over Eastern Suriname and control of the trade in cocaine. The war had serious consequences for the Maroons (especially the Ndyuka) and Suriname: villages were demolished, roads (including much of the eastern East-West Link), water pipelines and power lines, schools, public buildings, clinics, and businesses were destroyed.

The period of the most intensive fighting took place between 1986 and 1989. In March 1991 a peace agreement was signed in Kourou led by Romeo Russel in May 1992 signed Brunswijk's guerrilla army and supported by Bouterse Angulagroep, Group Mandela, Kofimakagroep, and Tucajana Amazons (led by Thomas Sabajo) peace with the Surinamese government, which was endorsed by President Venetiaan on August 8, 1992.