Four decades after the devastating December 8, 1982 killings that shook Suriname, the legacy of unresolved justice remains a open wound for grieving families and a stain on the country’s democratic institutions. In a forceful statement released September 16, Stichting 8 December 1982 (the December 8, 1982 Foundation) has issued a sharp condemnation of the Surinamese government’s ongoing failure to detain Leendert Dijksteel, a convicted murderer directly implicated in the 1982 mass killing case, who remains at large decades after his conviction.
For the relatives of the 15 unarmed civilian victims killed in the 1982 incident, this unaddressed injustice has turned a court verdict into a hollow promise. While a court has formally handed down a guilty finding against Dijksteel, no authority has moved to enforce that ruling, leaving the convicted killer free to move across the country while victim’s families continue to grapple with the pain of losing their loved ones. The foundation describes this reality as completely unacceptable: a core violation of the basic promise of justice that a state owes to its citizens.
Worse, the foundation argues, this ongoing failure to enforce the conviction undermines the very foundations of Suriname’s rule of law. A nation that allows convicted violent offenders to evade custody and lets suspects disappear without trace cannot credibly claim to be a functioning, rights-respecting state. The persistent impunity for Dijksteel carries four far-reaching harms that damage Suriname’s social and political fabric, the foundation outlines.
First, it enables outright impunity for a severe crime against humanity, sending a dangerous message that grave violence against civilians can go unpunished. Second, it systematically erodes public trust in the country’s judiciary and law enforcement agencies, when citizens see that even finalized court rulings are not enforced. Third, it poses a direct, ongoing threat to public safety: a convicted mass murderer is able to move freely through communities, with no oversight to prevent further harm. Fourth, the failure to act violates Suriname’s binding international human rights obligations, as the country is a signatory to multiple international treaties that require states to guarantee equal access to justice and uphold the rule of law for all.
In closing, the foundation issued an urgent demand to Suriname’s national authorities: launch immediate, full-scale efforts using every available resource to locate and take Dijksteel into custody without delay. Only through decisive, forceful action can Suriname demonstrate that its legal system does not bend to political convenience or bureaucratic apathy, the foundation says. Only by enforcing this conviction can the country prove that its justice system exists first to protect its citizens, and to honor the memory of the 15 people killed on December 8, 1982.
The statement was signed by Sunil Oemrawsingh, chair of Stichting 8 December 1982.
