Government held emergency talks with Amerindian leaders on Tuesday night following the riots in the Pikin Saron area, southwest of the capital, earlier in the day that left two people dead, a police station and 11 lumber trucks set ablaze.
Justice and Police Minister, Kenneth Amoksi, said the Pikin Saron area remains inaccessible to civilians as the police and army continue their operations detaining persons associated with the attacks.
Chairman of the Association of Indigenous Village Chiefs in Suriname (VIDS), Muriel Fernandes, said that while her organisation was taken by surprise, the situation however had been brewing for some time among the indigenous population, who feel that they are being treated unfairly by the government.
Fernandes said she regrets the acts of violence and the deaths and injuries linked to the rioting.
She said the protest has created the space for dialogue with the government, now that the pleas of the indigenous people are now finally being heard.
The government delegation to the meeting was headed by Foreign Affairs Minister Albert Ramdin.
