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On Friday, about 2,000 citizens took to the streets of Paramaribo with banners accusing the Santokhi administration of corruption.
On Monday, Suriname President Chan Santokhi stated that he will attempt to restore stability to his country after citizens rejecting the high cost of living looted shops in Paramaribo and tried to take over Parliament.
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"We have decided to increase security. More police agents will patrol roads in the upcoming days," Santokhi said, stressing that there will be no classes in schools and most shops will remain closed.
He also pointed out that the avenues that give access to the National Assembly and his cabinet offices will remain closed. "We believe that the economic situation, the main reason for the protest, should be normalized as quickly as possible," he said.
A small northeastern South American country of about 600,000 inhabitants, Suriname currently experiences a severe economic recession. Last year, the National Central Bank registered a 54.6 percent inflation rate.
We have reached escalation points #Suriname #Protests @cnni @cnnbrk @cnnbrk @Reuters @NosNederland pic.twitter.com/e6XSJIjRyl
— Jeanne R (@Suritweet) February 17, 2023
The Santokhi administration insists that it must reduce social spending to counteract this situation. So far, the government has abolished electricity, water, and gasoline subsidies and has established a new sales tax.
Opposition politicians and trade unions have forcibly rejected these initiatives. On Friday, about 2,000 people took to the streets of Paramaribo with banners accusing the Santokhi administration of corruption.
"These events are a serious violation of the rule of law. All persons directly and indirectly involved in crimes will be prosecuted," Santokhi stated. So far, 74 out of 119 people arrested during the protests remain in jail.
Video News:#Venezuela , #Suriname , #Colombia Committed to the protection of the #Amazon #rainforest #VideoViral pic.twitter.com/mlpQnBxYW1
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) November 9, 2022
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