questioning of Rodrigue Petitot, figure of the movement against the high cost of living

Figure of the movement against the high cost of living in Martinique, Rodrigue Petitot, head of the Rally for the Protection of Afro-Caribbean Peoples and Resources (RPPRAC), was arrested on Tuesday, November 12, in Fort-de-France, informed the prosecution. Mr. Petitot, known as “the R”, was placed in police custody at the central police station of the capital of the island following a complaint for home invasion and acts of intimidation against people exercising a public function, according to the same source.

Monday evening, Rodrigue Petitot entered with three other people into the prefectural residence in the upscale Didier district of Fort-de-France. The aim of this intrusion was to obtain an interview with the Minister for Overseas Territories, François-Noël Buffet, currently visiting Martinique. It was the prefect of the island, Jean-Christophe Bouvier, who physically opposed the entry of the president of the RPPRAC into the residence. The attitude of the collective leaders was “unacceptable, unimaginable, intolerable”estimated Mr. Bouvier.

“We are waiting for the R to be released. I fear, this evening, another night of disturbances which will be the responsibility of the prefect and the minister”reacted Tuesday evening, the secretary of the RPPRAC, Aude Goussard, on local radio RCI.

Demonstration for his release

After the announcement of Rodrigue Petitot's arrest, around a hundred people gathered in front of the Fort-de-France police station to demand his release, a journalist from Agence France-Presse noted on Tuesday evening.

According to the Martinique Transport Authority, a flaming roadblock was erected on Avenue Maurice-Bishop, in the Sainte-Thérèse district, where Rodrigue Petitot claimed to live. The authority has suspended public transport in the center of the island.

Arriving Monday evening in Martinique for a four-day visit, Mr. Buffet said he “willing to meet everyone”including the leaders of the RPPRAC, who returned to the department on Monday after a ten-day stay in Paris to organize demonstrations.

Since September, Martinique has been affected by a movement against the high cost of living which degenerated with urban riots and violence, mainly at night, during which, according to figures from the prefecture, more than 230 vehicles were deliberately burned and dozens of commercial premises were set on fire, vandalized or looted.