political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
in
Suriname
Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...
founded on 29 April 1973.
History
It was originally founded as the Bush Negro Unity Party () to represent the
Maroon
Maroon ( , ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word , meaning chestnut. ''Marron'' is also one of the French translations for "brown".
Terms describing interchangeable shades, with overlapping RGB ranges, inc ...
community in interior areas of the country and was renamed in 1987. It turned its focus away from the promotion of a specific ethnicity's interests, although it still enjoys popularity among the Maroon community.
The party did not participate in the elections of 1987, because the
Surinamese Interior War
The Surinamese Interior War () was a civil war fought in eastern Suriname between 1986 and 1992. The conflict primarily involved the Jungle Commando, a rebel group composed largely of Saramaka (Maroon) fighters and led by former soldier Ronnie ...
made it difficult to access their members in the
interior
Interior may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''Interior'' (Degas) (also known as ''The Rape''), painting by Edgar Degas
* ''Interior'' (play), 1895 play by Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck
* ''The Interior'' (novel), by Lisa See
* Interior de ...
A-Combination
The A-Combination () was a political alliance in Suriname.
History
The A-Combinatie was formed in 2005 as an alliance of Brotherhood and Unity in Politics (BEP), the General Liberation and Development Party (ABOP) and Seeka, an alliance that won 7.5% of the popular vote and five out of 51 seats in the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...
.
In 2012, there was an internal struggle within the party. The party was part of the
A-Combination
The A-Combination () was a political alliance in Suriname.
History
The A-Combinatie was formed in 2005 as an alliance of Brotherhood and Unity in Politics (BEP), the General Liberation and Development Party (ABOP) and Seeka,Maroon
Maroon ( , ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word , meaning chestnut. ''Marron'' is also one of the French translations for "brown".
Terms describing interchangeable shades, with overlapping RGB ranges, inc ...
parties, but wanted to leave the alliance, however deputies Diana Pokie and Waldie Adjaiso opposed the suggestion causing a split within the party. In April 2012, BEP refused to support the
Amnesty Law
An amnesty law is any legislative, constitutional or executive arrangement that retroactively exempts a select group of people, usually military leaders and government leaders, from criminal liability for the crimes that they committed. More speci ...
which would grant the suspects in the
December Murders
The December murders (Dutch: ''Decembermoorden'') were the murders on 7, 8, and 9 December 1982, of fifteen prominent young Surinamese men who had criticized the military dictatorship then ruling Suriname. Thirteen of these men were arrested on De ...
, including
Dési Bouterse
Desiré Delano Bouterse (; 13 October 1945 – 23 December 2024De Ware Tijd‘Bouterse maandagavond overleden’ 27 december 2024 StarnieuwsAmbassades tekenen condoleanceregister in Ocer 27 december 2024 ) was a Surinamese military officer, poli ...
, immunity. In May 2012, the two ministers of the BEP were dismissed by Bouterse.Caprino Alendy who had been the chairperson since 1987 stepped down to be replaced by .
In 2018, was elected as the Chairperson of the party. In the
2020 elections
The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2020. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems maintains a comprehensive list of upcoming elections on its E-Guide Platform. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calend ...
, the BEP won 2 seats. It contested in only 6 of the districts, and did not run in Nickerie, Commewijne, Coronie and Saramacca. The BEP is not part of the 2020 coalition.