Suriname: An Imagined Community

Rens Labadie

Studentnr. 3133583

Postcolonial Theory, Utrecht University, The Netherlands

Teacher: Paula Esteves dos Santos Jordão

14th of April 2009

Suriname:

An Imagined Community.

Suriname: An Imagined Community.

Suriname is a small country, a little over 163,000 square kilometers big, located on the north-eastern shore of the Latin-American sub-continent. (CIA ‘The World Factbook’, 2007). It was, of course, only after colonization of the area by the Dutch, the French and the British, that its borders were established. Within these borders, nowadays, a wide range of people from different cultures, religions and races is found among the approximately 450.00 inhabitants. Some are rich, but most are poor: according to a 2002 estimate by the CIA, 70% of the population lived below the poverty line (CIA ; 216). Only 500 years ago, Suriname probably had around 60.000 inhabitants, al off them native-American. (Bakker et. al., ‘Geschiedenis van Suriname; Van Stam tot Staat’, 1998. p20-21).

Nowadays, although some 12.000 Native Americans remain, Suriname is also  home to people of African, Indian, Indonesian, Chinese and European decent, among others (CIA ; 216).

How did the demographic make-up of this particular country change so rapidly?

(How) did, eventually, a national consciousness develop itself in this human melting pot?

Speaking in Benedict Anderson’s terminology, how do the Surinamese imagine their community?

This question is the main one I put forward in this essay. I will argue that, as a result of centuries of living – or sometimes surviving – together, the ‘peoples of Suriname’ have definitely got a sense of national belonging, and seem to be living together in harmony. On the other hand, strong ties remain with their respective ethnic, political and religious communities. I will address these ‘ethnic’ issues in relation to historical events to support my argument. These events are, among others: Suriname’s colonial history, it’s independence from Holland in 1975 and the military junta that reigned for almost ten years, and I will show how all these events are interrelated in (de-) constructing Surinamese national identity. Besides the work of Anderson, I will make use of Eric Hobsbawm’s article ‘The Perils of the New Nationalism’. I will reflect on the testimonies by Surinamese citizens in John Jansen van Galen’s book ‘Kapotte Plantage; Suriname, een Hollandse erfenis’ (‘Broken Plantation; Suriname, a Dutch legacy’) as well as in the documentary ‘Het is zo fijn om Surinamer te zijn’ (‘It is so nice to be a Surinamese’) by In-Soo Radstake. I will analyze these in the light of Andersons ‘Imagined Communities’. If my reflections on the historical facts seem a bit extensive this is because I really want to make sure that the reader can place the theoretical part of this essay in the proper context.