Lieutenant Colonel Vernon W. Pengel has made concrete proposals for amendments to the Chemical Weapons Convention Implementation Act in his master’s thesis.
His research focuses on the feasibility of the supervisory powers of the Suriname Non-proliferatie Autoriteit (SNA). Minister of Defence Uraiqit Ramsaran received a copy of the thesis on Monday, October 12.
Pengel earlier this year completed the Post Master’s programme in Legislation at the Faculty of Legal Sciences of the Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname. He thereby obtained the degree of Master in Legislation.
In his research, Pengel assessed whether the SNA’s powers are defined clearly enough to enable supervision in practice. Based on his findings, he formulated proposals to tighten and supplement the law.
The SNA falls under the Ministry of Defence. In addition to the 2022 Chemical Weapons Convention Implementation Act, Pengel examined the 2024 Suriname Non-proliferatie Autoriteit Decree. He also included in his analysis the obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention and its accompanying Verification Annex and Confidentiality Annex.
Ramsaran expressed appreciation for the research. According to the minister, the findings and recommendations will be studied with a view to improving the legislation. The intended result is the effective and lawful implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention in Suriname.
