From 1934 to 1950, he worked as a judge in the Dutch East Indies, and its successor Indonesia.

[1] Between 1952 and 1955, he served as Surinamese Minister of Finance in the Currie government.

[2] In 1958, he was working for the Dutch embassy in Washington, D.C.[3] Formateur Johan Adolf Pengel asked Emanuels to lead a government[4] which he accepted, and he arrived in Suriname on 14 July 1958.

[1] In September 1959, he asked the States General of the Netherlands to boycott South Africa which was denied, however Suriname was permitted to implement their own trade boycott.

[6]: 16 In 1963, Emanuels was succeeded by Pengel, and appointed Minister Plenipotentiary of Suriname.