Editing Dési Bouterse (section)

== Early life==
Bouterse was born on 13 October 1945 in [[Domburg, Suriname|Domburg]], located in Suriname's [[Wanica District]]. He was born in a [[Multiracial]] family of  [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Amerindian]], [[Afro-Surinamese|African]], [[Dutch Surinamese|Dutch]], [[French people|French]], and [[Chinese Surinamese|Chinese]] ancestry.<ref>[http://www.waterkant.net/suriname/2015/02/24/bouterse-achterachterkleinkind-van-zeeuwse-boerenzoon/ Bouterse achterachterkleinkind van Zeeuwse boerenzoon]. ''Waterkant.net'' (Dutch)</ref><ref name="vorige.nrc.nl">Joost Oranje, [http://vorige.nrc.nl/article1873683.ece Desi Bouterse is al een mythe: sportleraar, legerleider, zakenman], [[NRC Handelsblad]], 14 May 2005 (in Dutch)</ref> As a young boy he moved from Domburg to the capital [[Paramaribo]], where he was raised by an aunt. He attended St. Jozefschool (a boarding school) and later the ''Middelbare Handelsschool'' (roughly equivalent to junior secondary general education), which he did not finish.<ref name="vorige.nrc.nl"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibe.unesco.org/International/ICE47/English/Natreps/reports/suriname.pdf|title=Suriname|work=unesco.org|access-date=8 January 2012|archive-date=3 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160903064256/http://www.ibe.unesco.org/International/ICE47/English/Natreps/reports/suriname.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1968, Bouterse moved to the Netherlands, where he was conscripted into the [[armed forces of the Netherlands]] (''Nederlandse Krijgsmacht''). After completing his military service, he signed up to train as a [[non-commissioned officer]] at the ''[[Koninklijke Militaire School]]'' in [[Weert]]. In this period, Bouterse became known as an athlete, and he was chosen as head of the basketball team.<ref name=autogenerated6>{{cite web|url=http://historiek.net/index.php/Personen/Algemeen/desi-bouterse-1945.html |title=Desi Bouterse (1945) |access-date=4 March 2010 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://archive.today/20100304184914/http://historiek.net/index.php/Personen/Algemeen/desi-bouterse-1945.html |archive-date=4 March 2010 }}. historiek.net. 25 februari 2010</ref>

In 1970, Bouterse married Ingrid Figueira, whom he had known as a teenager in Suriname. They had two children: Peggy and [[Dino Bouterse|Dino]]. Shortly after the marriage, Bouterse was assigned to the Dutch military base in [[Seedorf, Lower Saxony|Seedorf]], Germany.<ref name=autogenerated6 />

On 11 November 1975, Bouterse returned with his family to Suriname after it gained independence from the Netherlands. He wanted to help establish the Surinamese army. In 1979, Bouterse accepted a request by [[Roy Horb]] to become chairman of a new Surinamese military union (union BoMiKa; ''Bond voor Militair Kader'').