Rodrigue Petitot known as the “R” arrested two days after his attempted incursion into the prefect’s residence in Fort-de-France

The arrest of the leader of “the fight against the high cost of living” Rodrigue Petitot, known as “R”, who demanded to meet the Minister of Overseas Territories in Fort-de-France triggered a new wave of violence on the island

Things are heating up in Martinique. During the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, November 13, fires were lit in front of the Police Hall, in the very center of Fort-de-France. Protesters stole a bus and rushed through the city streets. Cars burned. Last week, Rodrigue Petitot called “the R”, the leader of “movement against the high cost of living” – arrested last night by the police – had promised to launch phase 2 of the movement… Here we are. While calm seemed to have returned after two months of blockades, fires and looting, since Monday, “island of flowers” descended into violence again. What happened?

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It was 8:45 p.m. this Monday, November 11, when “the R”, as the sulphurous leader calls himself, and around fifty sympathizers of his movement, the RPPRAC (Rally for the Protection of Afro-Caribbean Peoples and Resources) , tries to force the security cordon which protects the entrance gate to the prefect's residence. Officially created last July to fight against the high cost of living, a very real and very old problem facing all West Indians, the RPPRAC, which refused to sign the memorandum of understanding to lower prices signed by almost all of the public and private partners of the island at the end of October, is strongly tinged with independence desires.

The prefect Jean-Christophe Bouvier therefore received the island's elected officials that evening, on the occasion of the arrival in Martinique of François-Noël Buffet, the much-awaited minister responsible for Overseas Territories, who finally made the shift.

Rodrigue Petitot, Aude Goussard and Gwladys Roger landed at the airport a few hours earlier. They returned from France where they mobilized the West Indian diaspora, but without managing to meet representatives of the State, as they requested. Learning that the minister was going to Martinique, they rushed back to meet him. It was a private dinner that took place that evening at the prefect's residence. The press is not invited, nor are unions or representatives of civil society. In Fort-de-France, RPPRAC supporters, on social networks, are in turmoil and are calling for protests against “this insult to the people”.

Followed by around fifty of them, Rodrigue Petitot arrives at the gate with Gwladys Roger and his bodyguard, determined to disrupt the festivities. They demand to meet the minister immediately. Several cars follow him and threaten to force their way. There is a stampede. The “R” and his acolytes manage to enter the well-guarded enclosure of the residence. How ? Mystery. Flaw in the security system or complicity, many in Fort-de-France are still wondering. Faced with the incursion, a police officer draws his weapon. The prefect comes out to try to calm things down. “We came to see the minister”Lance Rodrigue Petitot. “I have not received any requests”retorts the prefect, reminding the demonstrators of the protocol: any association, any union can request an audience during an official trip by contacting the prefecture; but they received no such thing.

« Faux » retorts Gwladys Roger, who affirms that a “request has been made”. Very quickly, the tone rises. The scene, worthy of the great era of the Yellow Vests, is surreal. Threatening, “the R” violently calls out to the prefect, and demands to meet the minister immediately, while a security agent tries to intervene between the two men. Between invectives and shoving, the prefect asks them to leave the premises immediately. “It was extremely tense, says a stunned witness. There could have been injuries.”.

Police officers eventually surround the insurgents and expel them. The “R” leaves freely that evening, but the next day, in the early morning, he is arrested. Fires are lit in front of the Police Headquarters. For the moment, the minister has formally refused to accept the representatives of the RPPRAC. On TikTok and Telegram, those close to the “R” are calling for mobilization.