A curfew, from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., and police reinforcements in large numbers. Martinique was put under lockdown after several nights of clashes, mainly in Fort-de-France (972), capital of Martinique. Looted stores, burning barricades on the main roads or the tarmac of the invaded airport, the island department turned into a veritable powder keg, with a climax reached on the night of October 6 to 7, when mobile gendarmes suffered around ten gunshots, which injured one of them in the groin. The unprecedented deployment of the CRS 8, specialized in the fight against drug trafficking, has exacerbated tensions.
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The protest movement against the high cost of living has lasted for more than a month on the island. At the origin of the mobilizations, the Rally for the Protection of Afro-Caribbean Peoples and Resources (RPPRAC) which demands an alignment with France of food prices, some 40% more expensive in Martinique. A request that some consider fanciful. “It is unfortunately impossibleexplains Emmanuel de Reynal, a local entrepreneur, to JDD. All island economies in the world are subject to structural differences with mainland prices. This is simply linked to the fact that the production sites are several thousand kilometers apart, as is the case in Martinique! »
The rioters mainly targeted the large distribution chains, accused of deliberately fueling the rise in prices
The fact remains that the prices displayed in Martinique supermarkets are frightening, a bag of pasta or a pack of water can cost three to four times more than in mainland France. An exorbitant cost of living, in one of the poorest departments in France. “We must give assurances to the population by asking major retailers to make efforts”tells the JDD Marcellin Nadeau, NFP deputy for Martinique. According to the elected official, there is the possibility of “put the State to work” in order to compensate for the potential losses of intermediaries, particularly freight carriers. But Marcellin Nadeau “call for calm”assured that “concrete measures” will restore social peace on the island.
Because the rioters mainly targeted the large distribution chains, accused of deliberately fueling the rise in prices. Several gatherings were also infiltrated by more violent actors, sometimes linked to delinquency and drug trafficking. “We observe the presence of gangs or professional looters once night falls,” explains a local police source. Some even take advantage of it to settle scores, worsening the state of ambient chaos. » If the situation in Martinique seemed to calm down in recent weeks, this renewed tension makes the authorities fear a general conflagration, comparable to the insurrectional climate experienced in New Caledonia.
