A Petition

Above, a clipping from Libération (Feb 18) with pictures taken of barricades in Pointe-à-Pitre.

If I haven't written about politics since the first days of the strike, it is not because things have settled down. Indeed, the strike eventually lasted a total of 44 days, bringing the entire island to a complete standstill, and its economic and political leaders to its knees. It also resulted in one unfortunate death: a strike leader shot dead by armed youths in a dangerous housing project. The agreement, signed by Elie Domota and the Prefect Nicolas Desforges at the end of the strike, would be named after the strike leader, Jacques Bino. Officially, with the signing of this agreement, the strike was over. But the movement continues. LKP continues to put pressure on MEDEF, the business union, and other large companies who have yet to sign the agreement. LKP also moves to ensure that the conditions of agreement are applied. And so, it goes on.

I have not written about this mainly because I do not feel qualified. There are so many details, so many circumstances which make the politics here difficult to understand. More importantly, though, I admit that I am rather sick of it all. I could barely put up with one week of strike; I was lucky enough to have been away for the majority of it. Guadeloupe is far from being my country, and these are not my people. This is not my fight. I'd rather write about things that interest me, things that are closer to my heart.

Left, Elie Domota and the LKP take over the General Council chamber (FranceAntilles).

However, yesterday a petition was published in France-Antilles which drew my interest. The petition was entitled, Soutenons les luttes sociales mais défendons les principes démocratiques, We support social battles but defend democratic principles. It was written in response to LKP having taken over the opening meeting of the General Council last Thursday. I felt compelled to write about it because I share the opinions expressed in the petition. The tactics used by this movement have far too much in common with those used by common thugs. It is reassuring to know that Guadeloupeans are not ready to sacrifice principles for what is, essentially, monetary gain.

Below, a quick translation of the petition:

We support social battles but defend democratic principles
Something very serious happened on Thursday May 7th in Basse-Terre, something that we, Guadeloupean citizens, cannot tolerate and which must be brought to light.

The President of the General Council, Jacques Gillot, had decided to assemble the elected officials of Guadeloupe and numerous players of civil society, including Elie Domota and LKP. As stated in the invitation sent to all parties, Mr. Gillot was hoping “to give the floor to the citizens,” inviting them to “build a Guadeloupean societal project together” – words which seemed to take into account criticisms often made against elected officials. The President of the General Council stated that a method would be drawn up together. He added that he was seeking a more ‘participatory’ democracy.

We, the signatories of this declaration, do not all agree with the political alternatives of Presidents Gillot and Lurel. However, whatever one might think of the appropriateness of such an assembly – of its political, even politician, aims – we are fervent in our solemn affirmation that the democratically elected political representatives of the Guadeloupean people have every right to draw up, as they intend, their political strategy. To refuse them this right is to undermine the democratic liberties of the Guadeloupean people. And yet, this is exactly what has happened in Basse-Terre: an act whose fundamental nature consisted of refusing elected officials the right to exercise their mandate. But this was subtle. It was subtle because this act disguised itself to avoid being correctly identified. It was an attack on democracy which resembled an insurrection. The disguise? A particular use of time and order: acting before the opening of the assembly and pretending to put the chamber in order (a supposed symbolic occupation) to escape suspicion of undemocratic actions. This tumultuous occupation, with intimidation of administrative personnel and the moving of chairs and equipment necessary for the organization of the meeting constituted a de facto exclusion of the participants. A normal debate being all but impossible under such conditions, the cancellation of the Assembly by the President of the General Council was unavoidable.

LKP is playing with fire on a powder keg. Invading the General Council, the emblematic place for the exercise of democracy since the abolition of slavery, and declaring a "notice" to elected officials, definitely constitutes a reconsideration of the electoral legitimacy. We can only bring attention to the ambiguity of the term notice: a warning or a threat?

The leaders of LKP justify themselves by declaring that they are the people, that it is the streets that govern and admit that they want to replace representative democracy by direct democracy under the pretext that the former is “out of order.” Even if suffrage alone does not constitute a democracy –certainly insufficient - it is a prerequisite and necessary. The leading question that we pose to LKP: What right? The defense of workers should in no case be detrimental to democracy. When LKP decides to invade the General Council under the pretext that democracy is “out of order,” LKP grant themselves a right with which the sovereign people have not entrusted them. This is a use of might. Believing that the representative democracy is “out of order” is an opinion. We can share that opinion or not. Invading the General Council is an act that calls for qualification. Committing the act in authorizing oneself his opinion only is dangerous to democracy. Carelessly confusing the mob with the people, pretending to represent the people without mediation or any collectively drawn and approved process, this is what seems to us very serious. LKP's notebook of demands is not the Constitution of Guadeloupe.

Many of us supported the social demands expressed by LKP, and today still, the main demands of workers are legitimate. However, with this unfortunate event in Basse-Terre, a social and societal demand supported by the majority of Guadeloupeans has become a political posture of the LKP. This posturing plays with the fundamental principles of democracy and we, Guadeloupean citizens concerned about the positive evolution of our country, whatever our individual political choices, are united in declaring that this game is dangerous. It constitutes a veiled reconsideration of these democratic principles.

Therefore, a firm clarification is necessary. It is all the more necessary because this reconsideration, disguised, was put forward in the chamber of the General Council. We declare ourselves to be profoundly attached to the democratic principles that must structure public life, the exercise of citizenship, all things for which our ancestors fought. Not only do these principles alone allow for a constructive and peaceful debate at the heart of Guadeloupean society, but more importantly, the very survival of that society.

For us, democracy is as much the freedom to express all opinions – including minority opinions –, public debate, political representation expressed by the vote (what is called representative democracy), as the right to demonstrate our dissatisfaction in the street. But social power legitimately demonstrated in the street – however successful – that can positively reinforce the political choice of elected officials, cannot take the place of political power, unless, of course, the conditions of a democratic political life are not fulfilled, which is not the case in Guadeloupe today. Otherwise, we enter into a rationale where the charismatic authority of the leader or the group overcomes that of common law.

In conclusion, even if we recognize the right of LKP to further its demands, without a doubt legitimate, we firmly condemn his double pretentions:

1. his pretension to portray himself and only himself as the people, all people, and thus to speak in its name;
2. his pretension in holding power coming directly from the street, thus disqualifying political representation and consequently denying the legitimacy of the vote.

These two pretensions are heavy with all the excesses, including those that would turn us towards the deadly cycle of violence and civil war or serious confrontations between Guadeloupeans. Is this in the interest of Guadeloupe? Most certainly no!

Because we support the social battles while being firm on the fundamental principles of democracy in our country, we are want urgently to shed light on the gravity of the events of Basse-Terre.

I spent the whole day watching the inauguration online and now I am pooped. But thank God for live streaming video! Similar to election night, the inauguration was covered on TV, but commentary was provided by French journalists, and the speeches were dubbed. And I really want to hear the words from the man himself.

In other news media, the inauguration made the front page of the three major French newspapers:

Libération, a center-left daily;




















Le Figaro, a center right daily;




















And Le Monde, the French equivalent of The New York Times where the inauguration shares the front page with the bank bail-outs.



















Obama's inauguration made the front page of France-Antilles as well:

In Guadeloupe;




















In Martinique;




















And in Guyane. Though its relegated to the small box on the right. While I realize that this is the inauguration of the American president, and not the French president, I wonder what made the Guyanese editors decide that some leaky pipes should be the top story?














Watching the inauguration is obviously not the same thing as being there. I am sure that if I were back in New York, I could at least share my enthusiasm with other fellow citizens. As it is, it was just me and my laptop. But, I was still so happy to see it, and seeing the enormous crowds of fellow citizens so absolutely thrilled...it gives me great joy. I didn't need to be there to feel that.

Island Origins

Above, Lilian Thuram on the left, Teddy Riner on the right.

The Tuesday edition of FranceAntilles featured as its leading article what its editors considered the top 10 things Guadeloupe has going for it in a time of economic uncertainty. High on that list was its athletes. While there is quite a long list of high performance atheletes originating from Guadeloupe, two stand out from the rest.

Lilian Thuram was born in Pointe-à-Pitre on January 1st 1973. Thuram is considered by some to be "one of the most successful footballers in the history of the game" (1). He made a name for himself as a dynamic and incredibly performant defender in some of the best soccer clubs in Europe, including Juventus and FC Barcelona. In addition, having been selected 142 times to play for the French national team, he holds the record for France's most capped player. Though his greatest exploit maybe his participation in the 1998 World Cup, where France won 3-0 against Brazil, the favorite. Thuram retired this past summer upon the discovery of a malformation of the heart.

Teddy Riner was also born in Pointe-à-Pitre on April 7th 1989. Riner is a judoka who has exploded into the judo world. He began wonderfully by becoming Junior World Champion in 2006 and in 2008. He made vice champion of France in 2007, and champion the following year. He brought home a bronze during the Olympics in Beijing. For the 2007 World Championships, he won the gold medal for his category (100kg+). His most recent exploit was becoming the youngest judoka to win the gold medal in the 2008 World Championships (all categories). He is 19 years old.

The claim that they are Guadeloupean is an exercise in semantics. While both were indeed born in Guadeloupe, both moved to France métropole soon after. Time actually spent on the island amounts to infancy and school vacations. But If Thuram and Riner are accepted as Guadeloupean by Guadeloupeans themselves, it is perhaps a testament to both their success and their popularity; Guadeloupeans are not always so welcoming. Indeed, those like Thuram and Riner are given a name here: they are called négropolitains. There doesn't seem to be an exact definition: the term négropolitain can define people like Thuram and Riner, that is, those who were born in the Antilles, but raised in France métropole. Or, the term can apply specifically to Antillais who have lived for many years in métropole and who have returned to the West Indies. Or, it can apply to the offspring of Antillais in France. What is clear is that it is usually used in a pejorative sense.

I'm sure no one has ever called Thuram or Riner négropolitains. For winners like Thuram and Riner, there must be some unwritten understanding that if you succeed fabulously, you'll always be welcome.

(1) Soccernews.com

The Love Continues

The weekend edition of France Antilles had a two-page spread featuring high-profile politicians, administrators, and others, who had been asked to share their thoughts about the past year, and their hopes for Guadeloupe for 2009. Every single person mentioned the election of Barack Obama to the presidency. That his victory in the presidential elections marked their impressions of 2008 is not surprising. What is surprising is the importance that they all ascribed to his election to Guadeloupe.

Victorin Lurel
President of the Regional Council
"The election of Barack Obama is an event in the history of the world. Obama is in the process of taking down a very old curse. Its an event with historic impact. That the strongest power in the world is led by an African descendant, it's exceptional..." (1)

Jeanny Marc
Deputy and Mayor of Deshaies
"The happy event occurred on the world scale with the election of Barack Obama: the first Black president of the United States, the most powerful country in the world. This election carries strong a symbol: solidarity, fraternity, engagement. It foreshadows the world as a panetary village. As a supporter of world peace, this election gave rise in me much hope. (2)

Jacques Gillot
Senator and President of the General Council
"Hope, all the same, with the emergence of unifying symbols showing that work, courage, and competence allow you to overcome all obstacles, from the historic victory of Barack Obama..." (3)

Eric Jalton
Deputy and Mayor of Abymes
"The election of Barack Obama is also a great victory for humanity. I admit that I would not have bet on a mixed-race president in the United States in 2008. Its a huge event and therefore we should not lose hope in the ability of one another to transcend obstacles, divides, racial prejudices. Its a strong sign for all racial, social, cultural, religious minorities. We can, from now on, reach very high level positions." (4)

Jalton's comments really exemplify the optimism that Guadeloupeans have about the future of French politics. As I wrote in my previous post about Barack Obama in Guadeloupe, most - if not all - French people would readily admit that the election of a minority to the highest office of power in France is an impossibility. But, as I also noted, attitudes between Guadeloupeans and French in the métropole, differ. Whereas in Guadeloupe, Obama's victory brought hope, in France métropole, the French seemed to be reminded far more of the challenges still to be overcome.

In 2007, at the beginning of the presidential primaries, Francois Durpaire, a researcher at the Center for Research of North American History (Centre de recherches d'histoire nord-américaine), published a book about Barack Obama, titled l'Amérique de Barack Obama (5). Durpaire entitles his conclusion as 'Obama, symbol for visible minorities in France' writing, "This enthousiasm translates as much into a infatuation for Obama the candidate, as the frustration of a section of the French population who do not recognize themselves in its political system" (6). Durpaire interviews Rama Yade, the Secretary of State for Human Rights, to reflect on Obama's election (7). She is far less hopeful than Guadeloupeans:

"Barack Obama is for me the American dream, this American dream that regularly appears from no where and makes what America what it is...Its beautiful. But its also sad because I cannot help but think of France. Many people say that my nomination to the government as Secretary of State is historic. A such a slow pace, how much time will it take for France to have a Black person at the doors of the presidency?"(8)

Perhaps it is because in Guadeloupe, the people live in close proximity to its history of slavery. One can only be hopeful, ever optimistic, with such a past.


(1) "L'élection de Barack Obama est aussi une grande victoire pour l'humanité. J'avoue que je n'aurais jamais parié, en 2008, sur un président métis aux États-Unis. C'est un grand événement et donc on ne doit pas désespérer de la capacité des uns et des autres à transcender des obstacles, clivages, préjugés raciaux. C'est un signal fort pour toutes les minorités raciales, sociales, culturelles, religieuses. On peut désormais accéder à des postes très élèvés."

(2) "L'événement heureux s'est déroulé sur le plan mondial avec l'élection de Barack Obama : le premier président noir des États-Unis, le pays le plus puissant du monde. Cette élection est porteuse de symbole très forts : la solidarité, la fraternité, l'engagement. Elle préfigure le monde comme un village planétaire. En tant que militante de la paix dans le monde, cette élection a fait naître chez moi beaucoup d'espoir."

(3) "Espérance, tout de même, avec l'émergence de symboles fédérateurs démontrant que le travail, le courage, et la compétence permettent de surmonter tous les obstacles, au travers de la victoire historique de Barack Obama ..."

(4) "L'élection de Barack Obama est un événement dans l'histoire du monde. Obama est en train de faire tomber une très vielle malédiction. C'est un événement de portée historique. Que la première puissance du monde soit dirigée par un desendent d'Africain, c'est exceptionnel..."

(5)
Durpaire, François and Olivier Richomme. L'Amérique de Barack Obama. Paris: Demopolis, 2007.
ISBN 978-2-35457-040-8


(6) "Cet enthousiasme traduit autant l'engouement que suscite le candidat Obama que la frustration d'une partie de la population française qui ne se reconnaît pas dans son système politique." 184

(7) Rade, a French citizen of Senegalese origins, is one of the few minorities who holds a position in the French government. She was appointed by Nicolas Sarkozy.

(8) "Barack Obama est pour moi un rêve américain, ce rêve américain qui régulièrement surgit de nulle part et fait que l'Amérique est ce qu'elle est...C'est beau. Mais c'est triste aussi car je ne peux m'empêcher de penser à la France. Beaucoup disent que ma nomination au Gouvernement comme secrétaire d'État est historique. À ce rhythme si lent, combien de temps faudra-t-il pour que la France ait un Noir aux portes d'Élysée ?"182

Interesting Ads

Two interesting ads in the paper today:

The first is to mark World Aids Day, today. Specifically, in France, its the 20ème Journée mondiale de lutte contre le sida.

A bit of translation:

Nou Pli Fo = Nous sommes plus forts (We are stronger)

Doubout Kont le Sida = Debout Contre le Sida (Stand Up Against AIDS)

Ansanm Kont le SIDA = Ensemble contre le SIDA
(Together against AIDS)

Earlier in the week, I saw large posters along the nationale, with just the words Nou Pli Fo, and a large line drawing of a conch shell in black. Quite arresting, a mysterious call to arms (or conchs), evoking stylized Che against the red backdrop.

The imagery is aggressive, perhaps, because AIDS is a real problem in Guadeloupe. According to the article in France-Antilles today, the département of Guadeloupe has the second highest number of AIDS patients undergoing treatment, and AIDS deaths. Prevalence is four times that of France métropole.

The second is an ad for France-Antilles itself. The campaign accompanies the launch of France-Antilles' online content.

The image is almost transparent, but behind the text is a map of France, with dots representing the large cities. Except, the names have been replaced with names of cities in Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyane.

A bit of translation:

France-Antilles is online...
And ever since, its crazy how the Antilles influence the métropole.

The ad is a bit of marketing folly. The métropole was not incredibly influenced by the Antilles before France-Antilles went online, and it certainly isn't any more so after. Case in point: There has been a massive strike in Guyane this past week. The roads in Cayenne, the capital of Guyane, and elsewhere had been completely blocked for more than 4 days by strikes and there was no mention of it on the evening national news. It wasn't until the day before officials in Guyane announced the closure of the port (essentially sealing the département) that the strike made evening headlines. Its as if Marseille had been held hostage by the city's population, closing all roads, the port, the airport, and the story doesn't make the evening news. But, as M.'s brother noted, Guyane is far away...

FranceAntilles Goes Online

Our local paper, FranceAntilles, is available online starting today: FranceAntilles.fr.

FranceAntilles is Guadeloupe's primary newspaper, and comes out 6 days a week. A standard paper costs 0.80, more when there are supplements. We don't manage to buy all 6, but I would say at least 3 each week.

To be honest, its not a great paper. Its not so much journalism than reporting. The stories are not always very interesting (though, I may be biased there...there are just lots of local stuff that doesn't interest me because I'm not local...at least not yet). Too much space is given to 'news in brief' sorts of items, where boyfriends beat their pregnant girlfriends, or where people are given tickets for speeding, or where girlfriend-beating boyfriends speed and get a ticket. An average of three pages are dedicated to the horse races. National and International News gets squished into one page.

Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks the paper could use some improvement. When I searched France Antilles on Wikipedia, a short stub came up. It was not so much an encyclopedic entry as a scathing criticism (1). The writer was much harsher than I am, pointing out that there are grammar problems, spelling mistakes, and questioned the credentials of the journalists themselves. The issue about boring stories came up, too.

Still, its my local paper now. I read it so I know about whats going on in Guadeloupe. I don't want to miss the banana festivals and such. Its also the best way to understand the people themselves: what concerns them, what moves them, what interests them.

Even if I still read the New York Times faithfully online everyday.

(1) Ce journal fait lieu à plusieurs débats et est au centre de nombreuses critiques négatives à son sujet. Effectivement, plusieurs personnes se plaignent du journal quant à la qualité de l'expression écrite, de l'orthographe et doutent fortement des qualifications des journalistes. Aussi les sujets traités sont dites très souvent "inintéressants", avec en grande majorité des faits divers, comme de simples accidents mineurs, des constats, des altercations entre personnes dans la rue. On aurait pour ainsi dire pu croire que les articles sont le résumé d'histoires futiles transmis par quelques voisins au regard déplacé. Il est aussi profondément ancré dans le pays Martinique et sait retranscrire les émotions de la population de ce département d'Outre-Mer. (Source: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/France_Antilles)