Para is known as a district in which many resistance activities took place during the slave period. This has its origins in two backgrounds that were special for this area. The first was that it was close to Paramaribo and served as a base for the Maroons to carry out their guerrilla attacks, both in the area and towards the city. That is why the Black Hunters and the Mulatto Corps patrolled the Wanica Trail to signal and stop any attacks. In addition, the area was unsuitable for growing sugar or coffee, because of the Savannah, whose sandy soils were not fertile enough for plantation agriculture, but did provide a lot of suitable timber for house construction.
Checkout against the runaways
In 1778, the Court of Justice and Police of the colony of Suriname complained that insufficient taxes were received for the cash register against the runaways. What was collected was insufficient to cover the costs of defense against the ‘enemy at home’, and it was feared that even less would be collected in the coming year. The proceeds from the products were meager, but payments from the cash register had to be continued. It was therefore decided that no one would be exempt from direct payments anymore, except soldiers, preachers and conductors of the Frei Korps. Everyone else must pay on time, according to the placard, Captain A. Milly announced on February 8, 1778.
Para in four segments
He immediately issued an addition to the general regulations in the event of an alarm in the Para division. This area would be divided into four parts. The first part consisted of plantation Berlin, Orange, Munckensteijn, Bernard’s estate, L’Inquietude, de Vrede, de Eendragt, and de Nieuwe Hoop. The owners will prepare the plantations by supplying the following troops, ammunition and dry food for 4 to 5 days (in a good command bag). Each shooter must be provided with 12 live cartridges, some powder and two flints. Berlin would have 10 riflemen ready, Orange 3, Munckensteijn 2, Bernhard 2, L’inquietude 3, De Vrede 5, Eendracht 2 and Nieuwe Hoop 2. A total of 30 men who had to join Berlin after the first alarm shot and, once there, rush to the Savanna with the first non-commissioned officer and then set course for the Boterbalikreek. When the alarm would go off on the Suriname River side, they would move to the Marshall Creek to stop the enemy if possible.
Other divisions
The second division is from Welgedacht to Loefbeek, left and right, including Matuaribo, Mawakabo, Jagersburg, Hannover, Beaulieu, 32 pieces in total. They gather at Hannover or Mawakabo and join the officer on the course towards the west, to arrange for Worsteling Jacobs according to the urgency of the matter. The third division is the plantations including the Tawajakoera Creek and Coropina. De Waakbaarheid supplies 2 men, Indigoveld 4, Gloria 4, Vreeland 2, Vierkinderen 8 and La Prosperité as well. Mijnhoop 2, Sempoce (sic) 2, Kweeklust 8 Overtoom 10 and Osembo 10 and Bossé 6. These 58 men gather at Vierkinderen and move up or down. If the alarm comes from the Pararac, Osembo will be the assembly point. From there they will rush from behind to the great Savana to ‘cut’ the enemy there. Then you join the Communication Path behind the Vredenburg plantation.
The fourth division is from the Path of Wanica to Onverdacht. Onverdacht, (…) ribo, Welgedacht, Guldenvlies, L’Esperance, Nieuw Mocha, La Bonne Amitié, Altona, Vredenburg Ornamibo, Houttuin, Tout Lui Faut, Dijkveld, Houtvlied and Beekhuijzen, 55 men in total, join the Vredenburg plantation. The nearest neighbors and those across the street provide assistance to ‘liberate’ the attacked plantation from damage. They will then not have to send troops, but will repel the nearest attacks.
The Communication Path
In order to allow the troops to move properly, it was necessary to build a communication path behind the Plantations, 5 feet wide, as much as possible on the route from Ongelegen to the Wanica Creek, so that they could patrol over it at speed.
50 men could be stationed at Post Hama so that there was a Picket behind the Carolina Creek. Post Saron was reinforced with 30 men. Post Berlin could remain as it was. Good shooting negroes would be posted there, and sailors from the plantations. Everyone involved had to strictly comply with these orders, under penalty of f50,- the first time and f100,- the second time. The third time, after exigence (severity) of matters, they were corrected and an appropriate punishment followed.
This account clearly shows that the government, in addition to the construction of the Cordonpad from Jodensavanne around the plantations, also took similar measures in the Para to stop attacks by the Maroons.
Hilde Neus
