That the death last week of former Suriname President Mr Desire Delano Bouterse has been acknowledged by nothing more than a mere whimper in this region is understandable.

Perhaps it is that Caricom is still smarting from the fact that it did not act to prevent Mr Bouterse becoming chair of the regional body in 2012 and, as such, has decided to not put pen to paper on his passing. If that is the case, Caricom is correct. Because, as we said in this space at the time when it became Suriname’s turn to chair Caricom, given Mr Bouterse’s chequered history of undemocratic actions, he had no moral authority to lead the region. We had also stated that he would not have been able to advance, with any credibility, Caricom’s interests abroad, especially in Europe where he had a criminal conviction in a European Union member state.

Readers will recall that in 1980 Mr Bouterse, as a young sergeant major in the army, rose to power after participating in a coup against the elected Government of Suriname. Initially he acted as a spokesman for the military but soon took over the regime, becoming commander-in-chief and de facto ruler.

Seven years later he stepped down under international pressure in the wake of political violence he was accused of orchestrating.

After democracy was restored in 1988 with the election of Mr Ramsewak Shankar as president, Mr Bouterse rejected an accord reached between the Government and the Surinamese Liberation Army and, in 1990 President Shankar was ousted in a military coup allegedly masterminded by Mr Bouterse.

In 1999 Interpol issued an arrest warrant for Mr Bouterse, who had been repeatedly accused of involvement in cocaine trafficking. He was convicted in absentia in The Netherlands to 11 years in prison but his status as leader shielded him from extradition.

Eleven years later when he formed a coalition and contested and won the general election, he was embraced by Caricom leaders.

However, in 2019 he was convicted in absentia for the 1982 execution of 15 political opponents, including lawyers, military personnel and journalists. He denied involvement in the killings, saying that the victims were held for plotting a counter-coup with help from the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency, and were shot while trying to escape.

Over the 12-year trial he never appeared in court, and, after an appeal his conviction was ultimately upheld in December 2023.

Although the Government had agreed to let him serve his 20-year sentence in a purpose-built isolated detention cell at the Suriname Military Hospital complex near downtown Paramaribo, he refused to turn himself in and lived in hiding until his death.

Naturally he had supporters and wire service reports tell us that after his death the National Democratic Party expressed sorrow over his “unexpected passing” and described him as their “spiritual father”.

We, however, shed no tears for Mr Bouterse as in our view he showed very little regard for upholding the ideals of democracy.

That he died a fugitive from justice for the killing of political opponents reflects negatively on him and his leadership of Suriname.

How the Surinamese people choose to remember him is their choice, but Caricom should ensure that it never again embraces leaders of his ilk.