A major dispute has broken out over conflicting event announcements tied to Suriname’s National Assembly Speaker Ashwin Adhin’s private trip to the Netherlands, leaving attendees and stakeholders in confusion ahead of two competing gatherings scheduled for Sunday, May 3. Both the Diaspora Institute Netherlands (DIN) and the Surinamese Embassy in The Hague have advertised separate networking events headlined by Adhin, but the speaker himself has explicitly disavowed any connection to the DIN-organized meeting, confirming only the embassy-backed event has his official approval.
DIN leadership has claimed strong public interest in their May 3 event, with DIN chair John Brewster reporting that more than 100 paid participants have already registered for the gathering. According to Brewster, the venue secured for the DIN event is already struggling to accommodate the unexpectedly high number of attendees. The organization frames the gathering as a targeted networking opportunity for diaspora community members, including Surinamese entrepreneurs, investors, elite professional football players, and other industry professionals. The event is billed as focused on advancing cross-community collaboration, unlocking new economic opportunities for Suriname, and coordinating collective action to support the South American nation.
However, when contacted by Suriname-based outlet Starnieuws, Adhin pushed back sharply against DIN’s claims, accusing the organization of creating unnecessary confusion by moving forward with the event without any prior coordination or official approval from him or his team. Adhin confirmed that only one networking event has his explicit consent: the gathering scheduled for Sunday in Amsterdam, organized in coordination with Surinamese Ambassador Panka. “I have no agreement whatsoever with DIN to host an event. My team knows nothing about this gathering. No permission was granted to Mr. Brewster to organize an event using my name,” Adhin emphasized in his statement.
Ambassador Panka subsequently backed Adhin’s account, confirming that the speaker had informed his office that no formal arrangements had been made with DIN. “We are proceeding with our planned event as normal,” Panka noted in a brief response to inquiries.
Despite the denial from Adhin and the embassy, Brewster has stood by DIN’s version of events, claiming the organization agreed to organize the gathering at the request of one of Adhin’s own advisors. To date, however, DIN has not publicly identified the unnamed advisor, leaving the claim unconfirmed. Adhin has held firm to his position, stating he had no prior knowledge of the DIN event, did not initiate any such gathering, and will not be in attendance at the DIN-organized meeting.