A total lockdown has been announced in Suriname for the next two and a half weeks. Code black will apply to hospitals from Monday, while Suriname as country code purple will have the highest risk levels. Within the Surinamese community there are many concerns about relatives living in Suriname.
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Sacha Rowling is a doctor in a hospital in Paramaribo. “People arrive dead tired because they haven’t had the right treatment for a while.” Rowling finds the young age of the patients the most intense. “People in their 40s who die an hour after entering the hospital.” She says there is no room for these people in the ICU or room for a breathing apparatus.
Concerns about family members in Suriname
Roy Carter, the presenter of radio show Mart, is phoned daily by concerned listeners about the situation in Suriname. “What you hear is that people are very concerned about their loved ones,” Carter said. Amsterdammers on the street are also concerned. “I have another mother and grandmother who live there, so I’m worried about my family”
The Netherlands will send vaccines vaccin
The Dutch Ministry of Health announced on Friday that it would send between 500,000 to 750,000 AstraZeneca vaccines to Suriname due to the precarious situation. Those vaccines will be delivered by the end of June at the earliest. “The numbers are skyrocketing, so by the end of the month there have been so many more deaths. Not just dead people, but very sick people,” Rowling said of the late delivery of the vaccines. “The sooner the better.”
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