PARAMARIBO, Suriname (CMC):

A court has ordered former Suriname army leader and Member of Parliament Desi Bouterse to publish an apology to the Minister of Justice and Police, Chandrikapersad Santokhi.

The court ruled that the apology should be published on the front pages of four local newspapers and broadcast on radio and television.

Santokhi had taken the ex-dictator to court following comments linking him to drug traffickers. Bouterse had claimed that in November 2006 the ex-wife of the minister purchased a house from August Adjoeba, a drug trafficker who was shot and killed in the Netherlands last month.

The minister said he did not know the individual and denied any wrongdoing. He told reporters that his ex-wife had bought the house and he was only informed about the transaction after it had been completed.

Legal documents

"My wife and I made legal documents which gave her the right to purchase independently. I was not involved, not before, during or after the acquisition," Santokhi said.

On Monday, Bouterse's lawyer, Irwin Kanhai, produced documents to the court he said were proof of the acquisition, but Justice Suzanne Chu ruled that the minister's ex-wife bought the house from a foundation.

She said that there were no official criminal investigations against Santokhi and that Bouterse did not substantiate his allegations.

She said that Bouterse's allegations were not in the public's interest as he claimed, but were meant to damage the minister's reputation.

The ruling was welcomed by several legislators warning that politicians would be more careful in the future when making allegations.

"The judge made history with this ruling and from now on, politicians will seriously take this into consideration in targeting opponents. I hope the judgment will have a positive impact on the campaigns for the coming elections," said Mahinder Rathipal.

"Politicians in the future will stick to their manifestos and intended policies and refrain from personal attacks. Now the issues will count," he added.