Figure of the movement against the high cost of living in Martinique, Rodrigue PetitotRodrigue Petitot, head of the Rassemblement pour la protection des peuples et des ressources afro caribéens (RPPRAC), was arrested on the evening of Tuesday November 12 in Fort-de-France, according to the public prosecutor’s office. The man, who also goes by “le R”, was taken into custody at the central police station in the island’s capital following a complaint of home invasion and acts of intimidation against public officials, according to the same source.

On Monday evening, Rodrigue Petitot and three other people broke into the prefectural residence in the upmarket Didier district of Fort-de-France. The purpose of this intrusion was to obtain an interview with Minister for Overseas France, François-Noël Buffetcurrently on a visit to Martinique. It was the Prefect of Martinique, Jean Christophe Bouvier, who physically prevented the RPPRAC president from entering the residence. The attitude of the collective’s leaders was “unacceptable, unimaginable, intolerable”.said Christophe Bouvier.

Tonight I fear another night of disruption, which will be the responsibility of the prefect and the minister.”

Aude Goussard, RPPRAC secretary

“We are waiting for the R to be released. Tonight I fear another night of disruption, which will be the responsibility of the prefect and the minister.”RPPRAC secretary Aude Goussard reacted on Tuesday evening, speaking to local radio station RCI. Following the announcement of Rodrigue Petitot’s arrest, around a hundred people gathered outside the Fort-de-France police station to demand his release, as an AFP journalist observed at around 8.30pm on Tuesday. According to the Régie des Transports de Martinique, a flaming roadblock was set up on Maurice Bishop Avenue in the Sainte-Thérèse district, where Rodrigue Petitot claimed to live. The Régie has suspended public transport in the center of the island.

François-Noël Buffet, who arrived in Martinique on Monday evening for a four-day visit, said he was “very concerned” by the situation. “willing to meet everyone”. on the island, 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 hit by an anti-cost-of-living movement that has degenerated into a series of protests. urban riots and violenceAccording to figures from the prefecture, more than 230 vehicles were deliberately burnt and dozens of commercial premises were set on fire, vandalized or looted.