Suriname deports Mennonite farmers despite pending court appeal
Most of the group of more than 60 were flown back to Bolivia, while their lawyer says a judge had been due to hear a last-minute appeal.
PARAMARIBO, Suriname. Authorities in Suriname have carried out a pledge to expel more than 60 white Mennonite farmers, saying they were in the country illegally and had broken laws and regulations.
Most of the group, who had been preparing to set up permanent homes and farms in the interior, were put on a specially chartered flight back to Bolivia, from where they had come in the past year at the invitation of a local agricultural company. A handful of others from a Mennonite group in Mexico remain in Suriname until officials can return them. The expulsions took place at the weekend.
Lawyer's dismay
Attorney Derrick Veira, who has represented the group in recent months, expressed dismay that the deportations went ahead, as a judge had set Monday of this week to hear a last-minute appeal for them to stay on humanitarian and other grounds. He argues that most had been granted updated permission from the relevant ministries to remain legally.
Local media reported that police and the military removed the group from their interior location last week and held them at an isolated facility near the main international airport, cut off from their lawyer, the media and rights groups.
Forest concerns
Local environmental groups had feared that the Mennonites, known for large-scale farming, would clear large areas of forest for mega farms, as officials in other countries have accused them of doing.
Belize is the only other CARICOM member that hosts Mennonites, with a population officials put at around 15,000. Most shun modern amenities such as electricity, cars and mobile phones, but some groups in Belize have used heavy machinery to clear and plough land, and they have been credited with significantly improving food production there.
