The night of Thursday 19 to Friday 20 September was ” agitated ” in Martinique – a French island in the Caribbean. Four people were arrested there and some municipalities have been subject to a curfew since Wednesday, September 18, due to a resurgence of tensions and riots against the high cost of living, the prefecture indicated.
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This second night of partial curfew, decided by the prefect at the beginning of the week on certain areas of Fort-de-France, was nevertheless agitated. This is despite the fact that this violence remained below what has happened on the island since Monday, September 16, reports Claude Gratiensenior reporter for our colleagues at Martinique 1st.
These acts of violence have therefore moved rather outside the city and into the territory of other municipalities. Some roadblocks have been erected and set on fire at certain points of the road network, particularly in the territory of municipalities in the south of the island. They have been removed by the forces of law and order, police officers and gendarmes who have sometimes been targeted again by gunfire and several people have been arrested this night.
Since the beginning of the events, nearly thirty people, including minors, have been arrested after dozens of stores were looted and ransacked. It should be noted that this violence is being carried out on the fringes of the protest movement launched against the high cost of living by the leaders of the Rally for the Protection of Afro-Caribbean Peoples and Resources (RPPRAC), which initiated the mobilization. Violence that they themselves have condemned.
” This reminds us of the movement of “yellow vests”
The people of Martinique support the movement despite their concerns. This is what Elhona, a student, testifies, contacted by Olivier Chermann from the French service of RFI. Before, the interactions took place much later at night, but now we find ourselves from about 8:30 p.m. until 4 a.m. with explosions all night long. There is a lot of debris. It reminds us a little bit of the movement of the “yellow vests“. The roundabouts are actually blocked and that is mainly what is blocking road access. ” she describes.
Then, Elhona continues: “ To get around, even on a daily basis, it becomes problematic and also to go out in the evening for example. We, as we have our studies and we still want to have a personal life on the side, even if it is only to get around at night in fact, or in any case already at the end of the afternoon, our parents can worry. »
” I feel prepared for any eventuality, but I wouldn’t say that I’m worried either because in fact it’s still a cause that I support, even if I don’t support the way it’s being conveyed. “, assures the student.
In some neighborhoods affected by the riots, “there are cars on fire in the middle of the roads,” says Nathan.
Also readViolence in Martinique: curfew imposed in certain districts of Fort-de-France
Government emissaries from Paris for round tables
Significant reinforcements of police and gendarmes have begun to arrive in Martinique and discussions with government emissaries from Paris have taken place, he stressed. Claude Gratiensenior reporter for Martinique 1ère. Two tax and financial experts came to bring back to the government the proposals from the various round tables that took place this week. There have already been three since the start of the mobilization.
There is a priority that has been defined, examined, the structural causes of price formation on the island, such as the costs of the approach, but also the margins of distributors and then also putting an end to certain monopolies. For a majority of the population, nothing has changed since the great movement against the high cost of living in 2009. That is 15 years later
Things have even gotten worse for some: the number of families in difficulty has exploded. Some have difficulty getting supplies for 100 euros, with some products costing more than double compared to mainland France: a yogurt costing three euros costs more than seven euros in Martinique, an increase of more than 125%. An even more worrying figure, since nearly 30% of the population lives below the poverty line.
Also readIn Martinique, mobilizations against the high cost of living