Guadeloupe and Martinique workers remain defiant

Guadeloupean trade unionist Jacques Bino was eulogized on Feb. 21 in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, as a general strike continued in this French-controlled territory in the Caribbean. Bino was shot dead on Feb. 16 when French riot police opened fire on strikers who have been engaged in a struggle on the islands for more than a month.

Demonstration Feb. 16, where a confrontation between French riot police and strikers occurred. Seventy were arrested, and one striker was badly injured. All were released a few hours later by the mass pressure of thousands of people who assembled in front of the Pointe-à-Pître police station. Photo: LKP-Duport Production Team

French authorities have blamed Bino’s death on strike supporters, who have defended themselves against the repressive actions of the riot police. The Collective against Exploitation (LKP) has denied the allegations of the French authorities and accused them of using state violence to break the strike.

In the aftermath of Bino’s murder, rebellions erupted in several parts of the country, where workers and youth set fire to French-owned businesses, automobiles and government offices. Workers set up barricades to control the flow of traffic and monitor the activities of French riot police, who were deployed to Guadeloupe in an attempt to break the strike.

French authorities resumed negotiations on Feb. 19 with the LKP, a united front of 47 unions and political associations that have effectively shut down the islands since late January. However, the LKP demands were not met and negotiations were suspended on Feb. 20 for the weekend. Talks resumed on Feb. 23.

LKP leader Elie Domota has described the negotiating posture of the business owners, who are largely descendants of the French colonial elite that has controlled Guadeloupe since the days of slavery, as insufficient. The workers are demanding a 200 euros monthly pay increase. However, the employers are only offering 50 to 70 euros.

A large crowd of strike supporters stood in the square at the Pointe-à-Pitre port authority where negotiations were taking place on Feb. 20. The general mood was defiant, as workers chanted slogans in support of the strike and against the continuing colonial rule of France.

In an interview with Radio France International on Feb. 21, Domota exemplified the mood of the workers: “Concerning the strike movement, it continues, obviously. We are still on strike.” (RFI, Feb. 21)

Robert Fabert, former deputy secretary general of the General Federation of Trade Unions, wrote in a statement, “Discussions are moving very slowly because the proposals put forward by the French government appear to be more like assistance to the poorest families rather than an across-the-board wage increase.”

French response to the crisis

In response to the general strike in Guadeloupe and Martinique, in addition to a work stoppage in France in January, the Conservative government of Nicolas Sarkozy has adopted a series of measures supposedly aimed at lessening the impact of growing unemployment resulting from the global financial meltdown.

Finance Minister Christine Lagarde reported in early February that the country’s gross domestic product decreased by 1.2 percent in the final quarter of 2008.

President Sarkozy on Feb. 18 announced a package which included tax breaks and social service benefits valued at 2.65 billion euros ($3.3 billion). This effort will provide aid directly to laid-off workers as well as retraining for idle employees. Just last year, the Conservative government set aside 50 million euros ($64 million) to assist businesses.

Sarkozy on Feb. 21 declared that the worst of the social unrest in Guadeloupe and Martinique was over. “Negotiations are under way. I hope they will be completed and that everyone understands that demands are not satisfied through violence but rather through calm, dialogue and serenity,” the president told the French Press Agency (AFP).

Nonetheless, LKP leaders have strongly disagreed with the assessment and proposals offered by the French government. “At the moment, the proposals seem particularly vague to us,” Domota said after meeting with the island’s prefect, Nicolas Desforges, and two French government envoys dispatched to negotiate a settlement. (AFP, Feb. 20)

The strikes in Guadeloupe and Martinique are not just about economic demands centered on wage increases and opportunities in education and employment. The continuing social legacy of slavery in the French-controlled Caribbean lies at the root of the unrest.

The fact that these territories still remain departments of France in the 21st century is a source of resentment and growing militancy among the majority of the African populations, which number approximately 400,000 in both Guadeloupe and Martinique.

“They’ve got the money, they’ve got the power, they’ve got Guadeloupe,” said protester Lollia Naily. “This is not a race thing. It is a money thing and it is a power thing.” (Medicine Hat News, Feb. 22)

The French elites known as “bekes” control most of the businesses in both territories and work in close collaboration with the colonial state based in Paris. In Martinique, where a general strike has continued since early February, the demonstrators have chanted, “Martinique is ours, not theirs!”

There are pronounced economic and social differences between France and the islands. In Guadeloupe, unemployment is officially reported at 23 percent, in comparison to 8 percent in mainland France. Twelve percent of the population in Guadeloupe is classified as poor, whereas only 6 percent is designated poor in France.

In Martinique, workers and employers have agreed to lower prices on 100 commodities by 20 percent. Nonetheless, strike leaders are still demanding that the price of housing, gasoline, water and electricity also be reduced.

Serge Romana, president of the association that organizes commemorations of the 19th-century abolition of slavery, said that French President Sarkozy “must absolutely abolish all traces of neocolonialism and vestiges of slavery in the overseas regions.” (Medicine Hat News, Feb. 22)

Martinican intellectual and artist Victor Permal called the French proposals “general and blurry.” He condemned the French decision to send 450 riot police to suppress the strike. “The people are starting to gain a clear notion of what belongs to them. So they become conscious that it is not France who should define their path and needs,” he stated. (Medicine Hat News, Feb. 22)

Meanwhile in France, there have been increasing mass actions of solidarity with the workers in Guadeloupe and Martinique. On Feb. 20, French leftist politician Olivier Besancenot attended the rally outside the port authority in Pointe-à-Pitre. He expressed support for the LKP in their negotiations with the employers and the French Conservative government.

On Feb. 19, 30,000 people demonstrated in Paris to show their solidarity. Well-known personalities, including socialist politician Harlem Desir and Guadeloupe actress Firmine Richard, were present.

“The government has to bring clear solutions to the table when negotiations begin again,” Desir told AFP. The protesters in Paris alternated between chants in the creole language, raising their fists and shouting, “Down with colonization!” “200 euros, yes we can!” and “Life is dear under those coconut trees!”

Demonstrations were held in France on Feb. 21 in solidarity with the LKP demands and in sympathy with the murdered Jacques Bino.