Irene Lalji

Irene Lalji (died 2 November 2021) was a Surinamese lawyer and television presenter. She was involved with several publicized legal cases, in the last of which she defended former finance minister Gillmore Hoefdraad.

Irene Lalji
Interviewed on Artiesten Club
Died(2021-11-02)2 November 2021
Suriname
Other namesIrene Asarfi-Lalji
Alma materAnton de Kom University of Suriname
OccupationLawyer

Biography

Lalji's father was a goldsmith. Her mother was a housewife at first, but became a school cleaner during a national economic downturn. Lalji began her career at the Legislation Bureau of the Ministry of Finance. Later on, she moved to the registry of the district court system, intending to become a court clerk. She graduated in law from the Anton de Kom University of Suriname. Soon after, she moved to private practice due to issues with the management at work. In the internship years that followed, she received no wages and was supported by her then-husband. They had one son.[1]

Her criminal law mentor during these years was Oscar Koulen. She sometimes worked with Irwin Kanhai, who was associated with the same law firm as Koulen. She had two other mentors in the field of private law. In 1998, Lalji was admitted as a lawyer, and started her own law firm.[1] In addition to her work as a lawyer, she championed better working conditions in the courthouse.[2][3] On the television channel RBN, Lalji hosted the program DeJure, where she would discuss common legal issues citizens can encounter.[4]

Lalji took on numerous cases in areas such as drug trafficking,[5] murder,[6][7] domestic violence,[8] sex crimes,[9][10] and embezzlement.[11] She also served in cases that attracted publicity: she defended the son of minister Roline Samsoedien in a 2019 assault case,[12] and in the 2020 corruption case regarding the Surinamese Postal Savings Bank (SPSB), she represented the Trinidadian suspect.[13] She also defended former minister Gillmore Hoefdraad in the corruption scandal surrounding De Surinaamsche Bank.[14] At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Suriname, she represented the interests of a group of 150 stranded Surinam Airways passengers.[15]

In October 2021, Lalji publicly criticised the government for mandating COVID-19 tests of unvaccinated public service employees, as the employees were required to pay for the tests themselves.[16] She herself did not receive the vaccine despite having underlying conditions. By mid-October, she was hospitalized after contracting COVID-19.[17] She died from the effects of the virus on 2 November 2021.[18]

References
  1. "Artiesten Club". Youtube (in Dutch). RBN Suriname. 16 October 2021.
  2. "Advocaat wil Bouterse en minister in rechtszaal". Waterkant (in Dutch). 21 July 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  3. "Surinaamse advocaten zijn troep gerechtsgebouw zat". Waterkant (in Dutch). 25 October 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  4. "Advocaat Lalji overleden". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 3 November 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  5. "Psychische overmacht reden posten drugsdoos". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 25 April 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  6. "Hof veroordeelt Rishi Gopalrai tot 14 jaar met psychiatrische begeleiding". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 8 June 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  7. "Advocaat Lalji: 'Staat moet zorgvuldiger omgaan met belangen verdachten'". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 7 June 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  8. "Ouders 4-jarige doodgeslagen Damien veroordeeld tot 7 jaar". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 8 February 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  9. "Advocaat Irene Lalji: Men moet zorgvuldig omgaan met vooral zedenzaken". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 9 June 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  10. "Voetbaltrainer veroordeeld voor seksueel misbruik". Starnieuws (in Dutch). 3 August 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  11. "Advocaat oneens met strafeis oud directeur Havo 2". De Ware Tijd (in Dutch). 22 November 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via fathh.com.
  12. "Ex-ministerszoon op vrije voeten". De Ware Tijd (in Dutch). 19 July 2019. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via fathh.com.
  13. "'Accentverlegging en justitiële intriges in zaak Trinidadiaanse opiniepeiler'". De Ware Tijd (in Dutch). 27 October 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via fathh.com.
  14. "Advocaat Lalji: "Ook Gillmore Hoefdraad heeft recht op rechtsbijstand"". Suriname Herald (in Dutch). 13 August 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  15. "Advocaat behartigt belangen gestrande passagiers in groepsapp". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 17 April 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  16. "Lalji constateert tweeslachtig beleid over vaccinatie". Starnieuws (in Dutch). 3 October 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  17. "Advocaat Irene Lalji overleden". Dagblad De West (in Dutch). 3 November 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  18. "Zus advocaat Lalji: "Ze is de dupe geworden van het in elkaar gestorte medisch zorgstelsel"". Suriname Herald (in Dutch). 9 November 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
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