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Jennifer van Dijk-Silos

b. 1954

Surinamese teacher, lawyer and government minister of Justice and Police

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About Jennifer van Dijk-Silos

Born 1954. Jennifer van Dijk-Silos is a teacher, jurist, politician and lawyer.

Jennifer Victorine van Dijk-Silos (born 13 December 1954) is a Surinamese politician of the National Democratic Party. She was Minister of Justice and Police between August 2015 and March 2017. Van Dijk-Silos served as chair of the (Independent Electoral Commission) between 2004 and 2015 and once more from 2018 to 2020.

Career Van-Dijk Silos was born on 13 December 1954 in Suriname. Van Dijk-Silos was chair of the (Independent Electoral Commission) between 2004 and 2015 before she was appointed minister. She also had her own law firm, which she transferred to her daughter. In August 2015 Van Dijk-Silos was appointed Minister of Justice and Police. She succeeded Edward Belfort.

On 7 July 2016 the opposition parties Democratic Alternative '91 and Surinamese Labour Party, demanded the resignation of Van Dijk-Silos due to comments she had made about the trial over the December murders. The next day more parliamentarians joined the call. Van Dijk-Silos reacted by first saying she had no message to the calls for her resignation and subsequently that the opposition parliamentarians had lied in their letter to President Dési Bouterse. In 2017 Van Dijk-Silos started consultations for the recognition of LGBTQ rights.

On 21 March 2017 Van Dijk-Silos was asked to resign by President Dési Bouterse, he cited her troublesome relations with the judicial power as reason. Judges of the High Court of Justice of Suriname earlier withdrew support for her in a letter, stating that she was "impossible to communicate and cooperate with". Van Dijk-Silos refused to resign and she was subsequently relieved of her position with honor by Bouterse. On 23 March 2017 Van Dijk-Silos was succeeded by in an interim capacity. In November 2023 she repeated her views that her sacking was unjust. She also stated to have no more political ambitions.

From 2018 Van Dijk-Silos once again served as chair of the Independent Electoral Commission. On 26 September 2020 President Chan Santokhi replaced her as chair with .

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Suriname
Positions held
Minister
Also known as
Jennifer Victorine van Dijk-Silos

People in Jennifer van Dijk-Silos's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Jennifer van Dijk-Silos's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Jennifer van Dijk-Silos?

Surinamese teacher, lawyer and government minister of Justice and Police

When was Jennifer van Dijk-Silos born?

Jennifer van Dijk-Silos was born on 13 December 1954.

What is Jennifer van Dijk-Silos's occupation?

Jennifer van Dijk-Silos is a teacher, jurist, politician and lawyer.

What nationality is Jennifer van Dijk-Silos?

Jennifer van Dijk-Silos's recorded nationality: Suriname.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Jennifer van Dijk-Silos

· Wikidata: Q26251626

· DBpedia: Jennifer van Dijk-Silos

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Jennifer van Dijk-Silos. https://biography.guide/jennifer-van-dijk-silos/

MLA: "Jennifer van Dijk-Silos." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/jennifer-van-dijk-silos/.

Chicago: "Jennifer van Dijk-Silos." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/jennifer-van-dijk-silos/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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