Suriname’s President Jennifer Simons said on Saturday 7 November 2026 that the Constitutional Court must be re-staffed and its law changed so that its rulings can be appealed. The court, which checks whether laws respect the constitution, has been practically idle since its members’ terms expired on 7 May 2025.
This matters to readers in the United States because Suriname is preparing for its first offshore oil, and investors and lenders rely on working courts to settle disputes over laws and contracts.
Key Facts
- Who. President Jennifer Simons spoke on Kal Aaj Aur Kal, a talk programme presented by Rashied Pierkhan, on Saturday 7 November 2026.
- Ask. She wants the Constitutional Court re-staffed and the law that governs it amended.
- Appeals. Simons says no ruling of the court can be challenged today, so every decision is final.
- Status. The former members’ terms expired on 7 May 2025, and the court has been practically idle since.
- Unknown. The reported remarks name no specific ruling and give no date for new appointments.
What the President Said
Simons spoke on Kal Aaj Aur Kal, a talk programme presented by Rashied Pierkhan. She said the law on the court “must be amended” and that appeals should be possible inside the same institution, without sending a case to another body.
“There is not even a possibility of appeal,” she said, adding that once the court rules on a filed case, the matter is closed. The line used as a headline in Surinamese coverage, “We have a Constitutional Court that delivered a divine judgment”, describes a court whose verdicts cannot be questioned.
Why the Court Has Gone Quiet
Suriname’s Constitutional Court tests laws against the constitution and protects basic rights and freedoms. Two new members, vice-chair Richel Apinsa and member Geetapersad Gangaram Panday, were sworn in on Thursday 15 February 2024, when the government of the day said the court was fully operational again.
The terms of the former members then expired on 7 May 2025. In November 2025 Chuanrui Wang, a member of Suriname’s parliament, the National Assembly, for the opposition Progressive Reform Party (VHP), said the court worked without a chair or secretary and with only two or three members.
He added that Simons had promised in her annual speech to make the appointments herself.
What It Means for Suriname and for Investors
Without a working Constitutional Court, nobody can ask the country’s highest authority on the constitution whether a new law is valid. That gap matters more as Suriname prepares for oil income and passes laws on budgets, fuel prices and contracts, topics we have covered in our report on the fuel subsidy decision and in our guide to who holds power in Suriname.
Simons’ proposal cuts two ways. Allowing appeals could correct mistakes, but an appeal inside the same court raises the question of who reviews the reviewers, and she has not said which design she prefers.
What Is Not Known
The reported remarks do not name a case that prompted them. No timetable for appointing new members or for amending the court’s law has been announced, and it is not clear how many seats are currently filled.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Suriname’s Constitutional Court?
It is the court that tests laws against the constitution and protects fundamental rights. It was installed in May 2020, after decades without one.
Why is Suriname’s Constitutional Court idle?
The terms of its former members expired on 7 May 2025, and new appointments have not followed. The president says the court must be re-staffed.
Can Constitutional Court rulings in Suriname be appealed?
Simons said on 7 November 2026 that there is no possibility of appeal today, so any ruling is final as she described it.
Sources: Reports of President Jennifer Simons’ remarks of 7 November 2026, published in Suriname on 9 November 2026; Government of Suriname (gov.sr) release on the swearing-in of Constitutional Court members, 15 February 2024; Surinamese parliamentary reporting of November 2025; Suriname press report of the court’s installation, 7 May 2020.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error