Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Suriname
conventional short form:
Suriname
local long form:
Republiek Suriname
local short form:
Suriname
former:
Netherlands Guiana, Dutch Guiana
Government type:
constitutional democracy
Capital:
name: Paramaribo
geographic coordinates:
5 50 N, 55 10 W
time difference:
UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
10 districts (distrikten, singular - distrikt); Brokopondo, Commewijne, Coronie, Marowijne, Nickerie, Para, Paramaribo, Saramacca, Sipaliwini, Wanica
Independence:
25 November 1975 (from the Netherlands)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 25 November (1975)
Constitution:
previous 1975; latest ratified 30 September 1987, effective 30 October 1987; amended 1992; note - in 2012, the president appointed a commission to revise the constitution (2012)
Legal system:
civil law system influenced by Dutch civil law; note - the Commissie Nieuw Surinaamse Burgerlijk Wetboek completed drafting a new civil code in February 2009
International law organization participation:
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Desire Delano BOUTERSE (since 12 August 2010); Vice President Robert AMEERALI (since 12 August 2010); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government:
President Desire Delano BOUTERSE (since 12 August 2010); Vice President Robert AMEERALI (since 12 August 2010)
cabinet:
Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president
elections:
president and vice president elected by the National Assembly or, if no presidential or vice presidential candidate receives a two-thirds constitutional majority in the National Assembly after two votes, by a simple majority in the larger United People's Assembly (893 representatives from the national, local, and regional councils), for five-year terms (no term limits); election last held on 19 July 2010 (next to be held in 2015)
election results:
Desire Delano BOUTERSE elected president; percent of vote - Desire Delano BOUTERSE 70.6%, Chandrikapersad SATOKHI 25.5%, other 3.9%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Nationale Assemblee (51 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections:
last held on 25 May 2010 (next to be held in May 2015)
election results:
percent of vote by party - Mega Combination 45.1%, New Front 27.5%, A-Com 13.7%, People's Alliance 11.8%, DOE 1.9%; seats by party - Mega Combination 23, New Front 14, A-Com 7, People's Alliance 6, DOE 1
Judicial branch:
highest court(s): High Court of Justice of Suriname (consists of the court president, vice president, and 4 judges)
judge selection and term of office: court judges appointed by the national president after consultation with the High Court; judges appointed for life
subordinate courts: cantonal courts
Political parties and leaders:
A-Combination (a coalition that includes the General Liberation and Development Party ABOP [Ronnie BRUNSWIJK], and SEEKA [Paul ABENA])
note: BVD and PVF participated in the elections as a coalition (BVD/PVF) in the most recent elections, but separated after the election
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Association of Indigenous Village Chiefs [Ricardo PANE]
International organization participation:
ACP, AOSIS, Caricom, CD, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, Petrocaribe, UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Subhas-Chandra MUNGRA (since 28 January 2011)
chancery:
Suite 460, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 244-7488
FAX:
[1] (202) 244-5878
consulate(s) general:
Miami
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jay N. ANANIA (since 1 October 2012)
embassy:
Dr. Sophie Redmondstraat 129, Paramaribo
mailing address:
US Department of State, PO Box 1821, Paramaribo
telephone:
[597] 472-900
FAX:
[597] 410-972
Flag description:
five horizontal bands of green (top, double width), white, red (quadruple width), white, and green (double width); a large, yellow, five-pointed star is centered in the red band; red stands for progress and love; green symbolizes hope and fertility; white signifies peace, justice, and freedom; the star represents the unity of all ethnic groups; from its yellow light the nation draws strength to bear sacrifices patiently while working toward a golden future
National anthem:
name: "God zij met ons Suriname!" (God Be With Our Suriname)
lyrics/music:
Cornelis Atses HOEKSTRA and Henry DE ZIEL/Johannes Corstianus DE PUY
note:
adopted 1959; the anthem, originally adapted from a Sunday school song written in 1893, contains lyrics in both Dutch and Sranang Tongo
NOTE: 1) The information regarding Suriname on this page is re-published from the 2014 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Suriname Government 2014 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Suriname Government 2014 should be addressed to the CIA.
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may habe the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assignes counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order
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