Under a cloud of profound grief, Suriname laid to rest seven-year-old Javian Schattevoo and his 80-year-old grandmother Edith Brammerloo on Wednesday. The funeral service was marked by raw emotional outpouring as heart-wrenching cries of anguish echoed through the ceremony. In a poignant tribute to the young victim’s favorite toy, Javian’s casket was crafted in the distinctive shape of an airplane.
Singing pallbearers carried the coffins from the service while trumpet music accompanied the ceremonial procession to the gravesites at René’s Hof cemetery, where mourners participated in traditional dancing carries as part of the burial rituals.
The victims represent two of the ten lives lost in December’s horrific family massacre in Commewijne district. The perpetrator, Dennis Aroma, took nine lives including four of his own children before ending his own life within 24 hours of the atrocity.
Aroma’s four children were buried on New Year’s Eve, while the assailant himself was laid to rest on Tuesday. Two survivors of the attack continue to recover from their injuries.
In response to the tragedy, the Psychiatric Center Suriname (PCS) has deployed around-the-clock psychosocial support teams to assist grieving family members and affected community residents. Justice and Police Minister Harish Monorath attended Wednesday’s funeral to express official condolences and solidarity with the devastated families.
The mourning process in Commewijne continues with Friday’s scheduled burial of married couple Oron, two additional victims of the massacre. The community remains deeply traumatized by a tragedy that has left permanent scars on this close-knit Surinamese district.