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Johan Henri Eliza Ferrier (12 May 1910 – 4 January 2010) was a
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 ...
se politician who served as the 1st
president of Suriname The president of the Republic of Suriname () is, in accordance with the Constitution of 1987, the head of state and head of government of Suriname, and commander-in-chief of the Suriname National Army (SNL). The president also appoints a cab ...
from 1975 to 1980. He was also the country's last
governor-general Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...
before independence, serving from 1968 to 1975, before becoming the first president upon independence from the
Kingdom of the Netherlands The Kingdom of the Netherlands (, ;, , ), commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The re ...
in 1975. He was named the twentieth century's most important politician in Suriname in 1999.


Early life

Ferrier was born in 1910 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 ...
's largest city and capital,
Paramaribo Paramaribo ( , , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's p ...
. He trained as a teacher. In 1946 he assisted in the establishment of the country's National Party, while Suriname was a colony of the Netherlands.


Scouting

Ferrier was co-founder of the '' Boy Scouts van Suriname'' and its first Chief Scout. At age 16 he was a teacher in the Saramacca District and founded his first Scout Group. This group still exists and now bears the name "''De Johan Ferrier groep, de groep 2 Oranje Dassers''".


Politics

In 1946, Ferrier was one of the founding members of the
National Party of Suriname The National Party of Suriname (, NPS) is a political party in Suriname, founded in 1946, and since June 2012 led by Gregory Rusland. For a long time it was the largest ruling party in the country, and it has been in government for a total of ove ...
. Ferrier was a member of the National Council from 1946 until 1948. He then went to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
in the Netherlands to learn
education theory Education sciences, also known as education studies or education theory, and traditionally called ''pedagogy'', seek to describe, understand, and prescribe education including education policy. Subfields include comparative education, education ...
. In 1950, he received his
doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...
. When he went back to Suriname, which had by then become an autonomous country within the
Kingdom of the Netherlands The Kingdom of the Netherlands (, ;, , ), commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The re ...
, he continued to study and to have a career in education. He served as both
prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
and interior minister for a three-year period from 1955 until 1958. He also spent time as Suriname's head of education. From 1968 until 1975 he retained the post of governor. On 25 November 1975, Suriname was made independent, and Ferrier was sworn in as the first
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
of the country.
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 ...
's 1980 coup d'état prompted Ferrier to resign within six months. Prime Minister Henk Chin A Sen succeeded Ferrier as president. Ferrier was made a Grand Cordon in the Honorary Order of the Yellow Star by Chin A Sen on 3 September 1980. His wife was also made a Grand Officer in the Honorary Order of the Palm.


Later life

Ferrier then accompanied his relatives to live in the Netherlands. He lived with them in
Oegstgeest Oegstgeest () is a town and municipality in the province of South Holland in the western Netherlands. Its population was in . Etymology The portion ''geest'' in the name refers to the Geest, geest lands, which were excavated in the seventeent ...
. Ferrier used to tell stories about the spider
Anansi Anansi or Ananse ( ; literally translates to ''spider'') is a character in Akan religion and folklore associated with stories, wisdom, knowledge, and trickery, most commonly depicted as a spider. Anansi is a character who reflects the culture ...
on Dutch children's television. In 1986, ''Het Grote Anansi Boek'', a
picture book A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The ima ...
was released with illustrations by Noni Lichtveld. The original release was
monochrome A monochrome or monochromatic image, object or palette is composed of one color (or values of one color). Images using only shades of grey are called grayscale (typically digital) or black-and-white (typically analog). In physics, mon ...
. In 2010, it was re-released in colour. His daughter, Kathleen Ferrier, is a former member of the
House of Representatives of the Netherlands The House of Representatives ( , literally "Second Chamber of the States General", or simply ) is the lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of the Netherlands, the States General of the Netherlands, States General, the other one ...
for the
Christian Democratic Appeal The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands. Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...
. In 2005, Ferrier's memoirs ''Last Governor, First President: The Century of Johan Ferrier, Surinamese'' were published. The Dutch Queen gave him a knighthood. An obituary in the national morning daily ''
De Volkskrant ''De Volkskrant'' (; ), stylized as de Volkskrant, is a Dutch daily morning newspaper. Founded in 1919, it has a nationwide circulation of about 250,000. Formerly a leading centre-left Catholic broadsheet, ''de Volkskrant'' today is a medium- ...
'' said he had claimed: "Even in the darkest days, I kept my optimism".


Death

Ferrier died from
heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...
while sleeping at home in Oegstgeest at the age of 99. His body was found in the early morning on 4 January 2010.
Queen Beatrix Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 30 April 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix was born during the reign of her maternal gr ...
of the Netherlands paid tribute.
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Jan Peter Balkenende Jan Pieter Balkenende Jr. ( ; born 7 May 1956), commonly known as Jan Peter Balkenende, is a Dutch jurist and politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 to 14 October 20 ...
said Ferrier was "an authoritative and wise statesman". Politician and diplomat
Jan Pronk Johannes Pieter "Jan" Pronk Jr. (; born 16 March 1940) is a retired Dutch politician and diplomat of the Labour Party (Netherlands), Labour Party (PvdA) and activist. Pronk studied Economics at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam School ...
paid tribute to his work at uniting divisions. Ferrier was buried on 11 January 2010, in the Dutch town of
Oegstgeest Oegstgeest () is a town and municipality in the province of South Holland in the western Netherlands. Its population was in . Etymology The portion ''geest'' in the name refers to the Geest, geest lands, which were excavated in the seventeent ...
, where he had been living since 1980.


Johan Ferrier Fund

On 12 May 2010, the day Ferrier would have celebrated his 100th birthday, the Johan Ferrier Fund was officially launched. The fund strives to follow in his footsteps in supporting Surinamese projects with educational and cultural goals. The Johan Ferrier Fund is an initiative of his daughter Joan Ferrier, who first presented the fund in the presence of her father in September 2009.


References


External links

*
Official website of the Johan Ferrier Fonds
*
Official Parliamentary Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrier, Johan 1910 births 2010 deaths Governors of Suriname National Party of Suriname politicians People from Oegstgeest Politicians from Paramaribo Presidents of Suriname Prime ministers of Suriname Scouting and Guiding in Suriname Surinamese Calvinist and Reformed Christians Surinamese educators Surinamese expatriates in the Netherlands Surinamese children's writers Grand Cordons of the Honorary Order of the Yellow Star Knights of the Order of Orange-Nassau University of Amsterdam alumni Surinamese independence activists Burials in South Holland