Collective members Albert Blake, Lenny Mussington, Cédrick André, Lucien Gamiette (partly hidden) and Horace Whit talk to reporters on Monday about the protests. (Robert Luckock photo)
MARIGOT--Spokesman for the collectives Lenny Mussington at a press conference in Sandy Ground on Monday accused Préfet Serge Gouteyron of “criminalising” young St. Martiners with remarks that Mussington said exacerbated the protests and raised the tension level.
The collective negotiating group convened the press to give their reasons for the escalation in the protests.
“First we did not get the protocol meeting we wanted for our counterproposals on October 20 and in the same week the préfet decided to label St. Martiners who protested as ‘tyrants, drug traffickers, terrorists and descendants of slaves’,” he explained. “The young people have heard this as they follow social media and have been humiliated by those remarks. Perhaps the préfet doesn’t realise it, but he put a match to the gunpowder.
“You cannot solve social problems with repressive force,” Mussington insisted. “You have to build projects and realise them, and integrate those who are suffering. There’s a high school failure rate here. When you fail in school you don’t have the tools to survive properly and become marginalised. Without qualifications you can’t get a job to earn money and survive.
“When you are not employed that leads to poverty and unhealthy environments that lead to crime. This is the vicious circle that too many of our youngsters are in actually. The préfet well knows the figures on unemployment.”
“You cannot solve this by bringing in more Gendarmes,” he continued. “You have to get the right specialist people and as many partners involved as possible, including us. Have round table discussions and find the ways and means to deal with these fundamental issues right now. But it seems to me, the authorities are not understanding that, so the problems will continue.”
Mussington did not think discussing the issues with the Territorial Councillors, Députée and Senator was the right approach. Despite the misunderstandings with the préfet, he said the collectives still want to resume the dialogue and negotiations with him.
“We have said we are willing to resume when the situation calms down.”
Cédrick André said the préfet made his remarks referring to only a minority. “But look at the consequences now of what he said.”
It was not clear if the collectives were in control of the situation in French Quarter, but André said what was going on there was not normal and that an effort will be made to step in and calm the situation there. He also added it was “not the moment” to be imposing mandatory vaccinations and health pass on top of already pressing social issues.
Horace Whit added: “We hope, and we will be looking at the attitude of our local politicians and parliamentarians and warning them not to endorse any politics, and not to give the préfet authorisation to brutalise our people because they (politicians) should be defending the St. Martin people.
“Let’s see if they can stand up and say ‘No’ to the préfet. What he is doing is not right. We know there is money coming in for St. Martin but the people are not benefitting from it. The young people are doing what they have to do to get justice, to get jobs, to get treated like people, to be treated like they have opportunities. We are warning our politicians, don’t sell your people out.”
Other remarks came from Albert Blake of the UNI-T 978 union and Marceline Dessout of Confédération Général des Travailleurs de Guadeloupe (CGTG).
Barricades were set up in Oyster Pond in the Coralita area on Monday. A fire was also seen near the Look Out Point and Whale Observatory. Residents of Oyster Pond were angry and said several attempts to block the public road had taken place. Garbage bins were set on fire at the sub-division and barricades were dismantled by residents.
“Racketeering was organised with complete impunity by masked and helmeted individuals at the Whale Observatory,” a resident reported. “If the border has remained open, we owe it to the intervention of the Dutch-side police but individuals on scooters coming from French Quarter are constantly monitoring and will block this passage as soon as the Dutch police have turned their backs. What a shame, what a humiliation. We did not see any Gendarmes.”
The Rendezvous Tour Company was forced to cancel a bus tour tourist excursion to Orient Beach today, Tuesday, due to the situation in French Quarter.
A fire burns on Coralita Road near Oyster Pond on Monday afternoon.
Cars unable to access Sandy Ground are seen stuck at the bridge on Monday morning. (Robert Luckock photo)
https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/prefet-s-remarks-lit-a-touch-paper-for-the-protests-say-collectives
