Since September, Martinique has been in the grip of a mobilization against the high cost of living initiated by a movement called the Rally for the Protection of Afro-Caribbean Peoples and Resources (RPPRAC), which has degenerated with urban violence.
This violence seems to have reached a milestone since the night of Wednesday to Thursday on the island with numerous episodes of looting and acts of vandalism which continued during the night of Thursday to Friday despite a curfew of 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. A man was notably shot and killed in the parking lot of a shopping center.
The movement against the high cost of living, a recurring theme in Overseas Territories, demands an alignment of the prices of food products in Francedisplayed 40% more expensive in Martinique in 2023 (according to INSEE).
Myriam lives in Fort-de-France. Without condoning this violence, she says she understands it. “The price of a soap of the same brand ranges from 1 euro in France to 4 euros here,” she stressed on RTL. So much so that every time she returns from the mainland, she fills an entire suitcase “with hygiene products”. Because on the island, “It’s excessively expensive.”
“Here, there is not a single product at the same price” as in mainland France, she confirmed. Saying “a little surprised that it has escalated to this point. The looted stores are not just any stores. They are basketball stores, telephone stores, products that are as expensive in France, or even more.”
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