BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY: SLAVERY AND SLAVE TRADE IN SURINAME :

The British and Dutch like other European Colonizers attempted to use Native American as Slave Labor. As in other countries, the Native Americans did not prove a long term solution and very limited settlement took place. Many of the Native American died in captivity through mistreatment and lack of resistance to European diseases. Many escape deep into the jungle. The Dutch played a key role in the development of plantation sugar agriculture during their brief control of Brazil during the European Colonial Wars (17th Century).  Dutch planters driven out of Brazil brought that knowledge to Suriname.

Labor in Suriname was carried out by African Slaves. The Dutch were one of the principal European Naval powers and extensively involved in the Atlantic Slave Trade.  Thus their was a ready supply of captive African to the planters in Suriname. Considerable development subsequently took place in Suriname (early 18th century)  The most  important was plantation focusing on sugar production. Most of the Labor was done by African Slaves in plantation and the slaves were abused, ill treated and over worked. There was a large number of escapees into the interior as they rejected enslavement.