A Dutchman was arrested at the end of last week in the former Dutch colony Surinam for sexual abuse of children at a children's home. The man is believed to have raped a four-year-old girl.

The man is a former soldier who has lived in Surinam since 2008. He ran a children's home Lobi-Blesi in a village just outside Paramaribo. The children's home looked after around 20 children from socially weak backgrounds.

The case came to light when a former volunteer went to the police after one of the children told him she was being abused. The volunteer told Radio Netherlands Worldwide that the man is also suspected of physically abusing children. One girl told the volunteer that he had chased her with a stick and throttled her. Other children say he spoke to them in a commando style and repeatedly threatened to give them a "kick in the pants", a threat for which he had an abbreviation. This meant that the children had to stand still and wait to be kicked.

The headmaster at the children's school said he had also heard stories from the children and had summoned the suspect to his office.

At first the Surinamese police appeared reluctant to arrest the man, but a police spokesman said it was necessary to collect sufficient evidence before arresting the man.

(nc)

© Radio Netherlands Worldwide