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Strike escalates into riot, vehicles burnt, rock wall damaged while pharmacy looted.

sylviefeucher13122019~ Protesters demanding written agreement from State on the abolition of PPRN. ~

MARIGOT:--- Protestors on the French side of St. Martin continued their protest action on Friday blocking all roads leading to the French side, the actions of the residents crippled the economy in the past two days as businesses had to shut down since there are no roads that are unblocked.
The strikers took the protest to another level when they begin rioting, setting fires on the roadways, on vehicles and even destroyed a historical rock wall in the vicinity of the border. Things worsened when cocktail Molotov made and sent after law enforcement. A video is circulating on social media about how the cocktail Molotov is being made with beer bottles and gasoline. This led to the closing of some gas stations and a ban on the sale of gasoline in containers.
The situation became even tenser when a pharmacy was looted in Marigot while emergency vehicles were not allowed to pass through. Some residents have expressed their concerns about the level of destruction since these actions will not improve the living conditions on St. Martin.
The Prefette Sylvie Feucher displaced on Friday morning to meet with the striking residents and was in several sectors along with some elected members of the Collectivity including President Daniel Gibbs. The protesters basically want the State and the Collectivity to issue a written agreement that they will cancel the PPRN. During the encounter with the Prefette many residents expressed the unequal treatment meted out to local “black” residents verses the metropolitans such as those living in Orient Bay.
fireonroad13122019President Gibbs also expressed to the residents in the presence of the Prefette that his government along with the opposition in the Territorial Council does not agree with the PPRN as it is since there is an article in the draft law that clearly states that persons who rebuilt their homes can end up losing it in five years. Gibbs agreed with the residents that they along with persons from the Collectivity should be involved in the negotiations on the draft PPRN law.
Gendarmes tried to battle the fires and rioters with the use of tear gas, while the Gendarmes seems to be overpowered by the rioter’s extra forces including the French Army was brought on Friday afternoon.
Up to the time, this article was written the situation remains the same as the roads are still blocked while the protest actions are still ongoing in various areas such as St. James, Sandy Ground, and Grand Case.

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