After another night of riots on the fringes of the protest movement against the high cost of living, the prefect of Martinique decrees the establishment of a curfew in certain districts of Fort-de-France and Lamentin particularly affected by the violence. It runs from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. and will remain in force at least until September 23.
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A curfew was declared on the evening of Wednesday, September 18 in certain districts of Fort-de-France and Lamentin, in Martiniqueafter another night of urban violence in a context of mobilization against the high cost of living. The prefect of Martinique, Jean-Christophe Bouvier, announced “ having signed a curfew order » which runs from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time in the neighborhoods most affected by the violence.
A press release from the prefecture specifies that this decree will remain in force at least until September 23 and that it concerns ” certain districts of the municipalities of Fort-de-France and Lamentin »For several nights, urban violence has been shaking certain districts of Fort-de-France, the capital of the island of Martinique, populated by around 350,000 inhabitants.
A squadron of gendarmes sent as reinforcements
On the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, a McDonald’s in the Dillon district was set on fire, leaving its employees technically unemployed, and barricades were set on fire. In the same district, a hypermarket was also ” invaded by around fifty individuals who set up a barricade on the parking lot and tried to set it on fire »authorities told AFP. Fleeing on a scooter at the time of the dispersal by the police, a man fell, slightly injuring himself. He was arrested.
” I have asked the internal security forces to saturate the roads and roundabouts with their presence, and to carry out as many arrests as possible. “, the prefect said at a press conference, adding that reinforcements ” significant ” had arrived and that others would arrive” in the next few days “A squadron of gendarmes, around a hundred soldiers, has already been sent to the scene.
Tensions in protest movement against high cost of living
Violence had already broken out in the working-class district of Sainte-Thérèse on the night of September 2 to 3, during which police officers were targeted with live ammunition. On the night of Friday September 13 to Saturday September 14, two people also opened fire on the facade of the Fort-de-France police station, without causing any injuries. These tensions are part of a protest movement against the cost of living that began in early September. Food prices are 40% higher in Martinique than in mainland France, according to an INSEE study published in 2022.
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