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DE RUEHPO #0120/01 0861308
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R 261308Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY PARAMARIBO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0073
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE
RUEHGE/AMEMBASSY GEORGETOWN 2052
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 1653
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE 1642

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARAMARIBO 000120 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR WHA - JROSHOLT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL NS
 
SUBJECT: LEADING UP TO SURINAMESE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS IN 2010, 
DESI BOUTERSE STRENGTHENS HIS POLITICAL BLOC 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY. Jules Wijdenbosch and Desi Bouterse agreed to 
re-unite their two political parties, the Democratic National 
Platform 2000 (DNP 2000) and the National Democratic Party (NDP), 
according to reports.  A union of Bouterse and Wijdenbosch, who went 
from party colleagues and close personal friends to foes during 
Wijdenbosch's tenure as President (1996-2000), would create a 
politically stronger opposition.  With general elections scheduled 
for 2010, this is bad news for the ruling New Front Plus coalition, 
which is small and still not yet in election mode.  END SUMMARY 
 
----------- 
BACKGROUND 
----------- 
 
¶2.  (U)  When Desi Bouterse's National Democratic Party (NDP) won 
elections in 1996, Bouterse nominated his protg Jules Wijdenbosch 
for President, knowing their friendship would assure him a powerful 
behind-the-scenes role.  In 1997, Wijdenbosch appointed Bouterse as 
"Advisor of State" in response to a Dutch warrant for Bouterse's 
arrest on drug charges.  The position of Advisor brought former 
military strongman Bouterse back to the center of power and provided 
him the cover of diplomatic immunity when traveling abroad. 
However, the relationship between Suriname and the Netherlands 
soured due to Bouterse's involvement in government, and the 
country's economy deteriorated; Wijdenbosch fired Bouterse in early 
1999, and later that year saw himself and his government kicked out 
of power by mass demonstrations in May.  The subsequent election 
brought the New Front coalition into its leadership role, and the 
National Party of Suriname's (NPS) Ronald Venetiaan into the 
presidency.  Wijdenbosch subsequently established his own political 
party, Democratic National Platform 2000 (DNP 2000), seeming to put 
a definitive end not only to his partnership with Bouterse, but to 
the power struggle within the NDP. 
 
--------------------------------- 
Gearing Up for the 2010 Elections 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  The rivalry between NDP and DNP 2000 hurt them both 
during the 2005 elections (when President Venetiaan and his New 
Front Plus coalition won again), with the DNP 2000's showing 
particularly disappointing.  The opposition in Suriname's 51-member 
Parliament consists of NDP with 15 seats, the Alliance for Progress 
(VVV) with 5 seats, and Alternative 1 (A1) with 2 seats.  VVV is a 
coalition of DNP 2000 (3 seats) and two smaller parties (1 seat 
each).  Guno Castelen, Member of Parliament and Secretary of ruling 
coalition party the SPA (Suriname Labor Party), told Embassy staff 
it is unlikely that DNP 2000 formally joining the NDP now will shake 
Parliament up; the opposition parties in Parliament have already 
been working together informally since 2006. Castelen said he is 
convinced that the move is part of the current NDP roadmap to the 
2010 elections, and conveyed that the ruling New Front Plus 
coalition, as a whole, is not yet in election mode.  When asked if 
there is a plan to counter the NDP move, the senior politician 
admitted the eight-party coalition is so caught up in trying to stay 
together that planning for the 2010 elections is not yet on the 
agenda. 
 
¶5. (U) Desi Bouterse and Jules Wijdenbosch are both charismatic 
figures with large followings.  Many Surinamers will never vote for 
Bouterse because of his involvement in the December 1982 killing of 
15 opponents to his regime, and Wijdenbosch is seen as a safer 
choice.  However, many Surinamers dislike Wijdenbosch because of 
alleged corruption during his presidency and his poor management of 
the country's economy.  His stock soared in 2007, however, when the 
United National International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea decided 
the maritime border dispute with Guyana in a manner widely 
considered favorable to Guyana.  Wijdenbosch's defense of national 
interests in keeping the maritime area free of Guyanese oil 
prospecting during his Presidency remains his strongest calling 
card. 
 
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COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  Since October 2005, the NDP party objective has been to 
send the Venetiaan government home early, but nothing has worked 
thus far.  However, with government approval ratings in the teens 
and public cynicism towards the government high, if elections were 
held today, the opposition would be a sure-fire winner.  With just 
over two years to go before general elections, NDP's merger with DNP 
2000 is a smart move.  It broadens the party base and helps take off 
some of the NDP's rough edges (the 1980s military rule legacy 
remains unpalatable for many).  Bouterse and Wijdenbosch may 
 
PARAMARIBO 00000120  002 OF 002 
 
 
subscribe to the theory "keep your friends close, but keep your 
enemies closer," but the only real surprise of the alliance is that 
Bouterse and Wijdenbosch put aside the personal animosity stemming 
from their bitter break-up in 1999.  The public must choose whether 
to set aside similar animosities in 2010. 
 
LBSCHREIBERHUGHES