Suriname's Independence

Date: November 25, 1975 • Location: Rome, Italy

Upon Suriname's independence from the Netherlands, Johan Ferrier (pictured) became its first president.

Johan Henri Eliza Ferrier was a Surinamese politician who served as the first president of Suriname from 1975 to 1980. He was also the country's last governor-general before independence, serving from 1968 to 1975, before becoming the first president upon independence from the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1975 and also served as the fifth prime minister from 1955 to 1958.