Can the mobilization in Martinique extend to Guyana?

The high cost of living is at the heart of a large-scale social movement which has shaken Martinique for two months. It is led by the Rally for the Protection of Afro-Caribbean Peoples and Resources (RPRAC). The Minister of Overseas Territories, François-Noël Buffet is currently on site to try to put in place a protocol against the high cost of living.

This Wednesday, November 13, the cost of living is also the theme of the special edition of Guyane La 1^era. Can the mobilization in Martinique extend to Guyana?

Océlia Cartesse and Géniale Attoumani are welcoming several guests this morning to discuss it: Yvane Goua from the Trop Violans association, Fabien Canavy from the Movement for Decolonization and Social Emancipation (MDES) and Rodolphe Alexandre from Guyane Rassemblement.

It all started on September 1 last. Hundreds of people dressed in red respond to the RPRAC's call for mobilization, in Fort-de-France. This is the start of a vast movement. Nights of tension followed and a curfew was imposed. In the coming days, CRS reinforcements will arrive on the island. The tension rises another notch.

The October 16after seven days of negotiation, an agreement is signed with the distributors in particular. He plans to decrease, “20% on average”the prices of 54 families of the most consumed food products in Martinique.

At the same time, in Guyana, associations are also tackling the issue of the cost of living. In our territory, the average price differences with mainland France are 13.7%, according to INSEE. The Martinique movement revives the local fight against the high cost of living.

The October 31four Guyanese associations are bringing the issue to the Territorial Community. Tròp Violans, CLCV, UTCCAS and Nou paré pou, as well as the political parties MDES and Guyane Rally are joining forces. Together, they filed a request for an audience with Gabriel Serville, president of the CTG.

The November 8, the CTG takes a position on the issue of the cost of living in Guyana in a press release. Gabriel Serville reaffirms “its determination to defend the interests of the territory through the continuation of the process of institutional evolution”.

According to the community, a special status of autonomy in the Republic would constitute a legal framework which would allow it to act in favor of an increase in the purchasing power of its inhabitants.

A conference on the cost of living is planned soon with local stakeholders.