Ronnie Brunswijk
| Ronnie Brunswijk | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
7 March 1961 Moengotapoe, Suriname |
| Nationality | Surinamese |
Political party | General Liberation and Development Party |
Ronnie Brunswijk (born March 7, 1961) is a Surinamese ex-rebel leader, politician, business man, football player and convict. After having been the personal body guard of Desi Bouterse in the early 1980s, he turned against him by forming the Surinamese Liberation Army, better known as the Jungle Commando, which fought against soldiers of Bouterse in the Suriname Guerrilla War "to free Suriname from the military dictatorship". On 29 November 1986 the Surinamese army went to the village of Brunswijk and killed at least 39 villagers, mostly women and children. They could not find Brunswijk, but they did burn down his house.[1] Brunswijk was convicted in absentia in the Netherlands to six years imprisonment for cocaine smuggling by a Dutch court in Haarlem. He has an international arrest warrant issued against him.[2]
Brunswijk is also chairman of the Surinamese political party ABOP ( Algemene Bevrijdings- en Ontwikkelingspartij), which currently has three seats in the parliament. Brunswijk occupies one of them.
Brunswijk is also player and owner of Marowijne football club Inter Moengotapoe. The disciplinary committee of the Surinamese Football Association suspended him for five years because he threatened some players with a handgun during a match in 2005. Later on the suspension was retracted due to lack of evidence. In June 2012, he was suspended for 1 year because he behaved violently towards the referee and a player in football match.
In 2002, Brunswijk built a soccer stadium in Moengo which he named the Ronnie Brunswijkstadion.
In December, 2007, Brunswijk beat up Rashied Doekhi, member of Desi Bouterse's party, in the Surinamese parliament after Doekhi insulted Paul Somohardjo, then chair of the Surinamese parliament.