Mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps
Climate
Tropical; moderated by trade winds
Natural Hazards
Mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps
Note:
Smallest independent country on South American continent; mostly tropical rain forest; great diversity of flora and fauna that for the most part is increasingly threatened by new development; relatively small population mostly along the coast
First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then settled by the English in the mid-17th century Suriname became a Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of slavery in 1863 workers were brought in from India and Java. Independence from the Netherlands was granted in 1975. Five years later the civilian government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared a socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987 when international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In 1990 the military overthrew the civilian leadership but a democratically elected government - a four-party New Front coalition - returned to power in 1991 and has ruled since; the coalition expanded to eight parties in 2005. Read more on Wikipedia
