SXMElections.com

MARIGOT--Assurance was given on Friday by protest organisers that there will be no further actions or civil unrest between now and Tuesday, March 15, the date protestors meet again with the Collectivité and Préfète Anne Laubies to hopefully hammer out an agreement acceptable to both the Orient Beach tenants and the Collectivité.

Calm descended on French Quarter after two days of unrest marked by blocked roads culminating Thursday night with a brief episode of violence as Gendarmes forcibly removed barricades.

Capitaine Emmanuel Maignan confirmed that the operation to clear the streets and remove barricades had lasted from 5:00pm to 7:30pm. Some 60 Gendarmes were involved. He said no arrests had been made. Gendarmes came under fire from projectiles thrown at them by some 20-25 young persons, which lasted for around 30 minutes.

Saint Martin Wake-Up organising committee member Victor Paines told The Daily Herald the two days of protest by the people was “an outcry of pent-up frustration.”

He stressed he was talking to this newspaper as a citizen and that his views did not necessarily reflect those of the Saint Martin Wake-Up movement, members of which will be involved in the meeting at 9:30am Tuesday.

“I want to thank everyone that participated in the protest on both days even though on a personal note it was not my intention to carry on the protest on Thursday, but due to some miscommunication some of us received orders to continue,” he said. “What happened on Thursday was an expression of frustration that has been held inside for so long. The people feel government representation has let them down and regard it as incapable of dialogue.

“We’re saying enough is enough. … We want to see St. Martiners taken into consideration. The government’s petty answers do not calm our frustration. How can you explain to people that after four hours of negotiations we got nothing? This government is mediocre and does not understand what is going on in the country and is not capable of going to the lengths to defend the interests of St. Martiners.”

Asked what would happen if satisfactory answers are not obtained on Tuesday, Paines said: “The people need to pay keen attention. If we don’t get satisfactory answers on all the points we present, we will have no alternative but to go back to protest action. It’s our last resort. We have exhausted all avenues already.”

He said he accepted that Gendarmes had to do what they had to do to maintain law and order.

“The majority of protestors showed restraint and control. I would say to the young people and older ones that even if you are frustrated, you should not go to those extremes that occurred last night.”

Paines said that while the Orient Beach issue with the tenants was a very important one he did not class that as more important than all the other issues to be addressed. He declined to summarise what would be on the table on Tuesday, as the list of grievances is “only a fraction of what has to be solved.”

On a final point, he took a parting shot at Vice-President Guillaume Arnell, who he said “had added insult to injury by having the audacity to claim we are spoiled kids,” describing Arnell as a “nightmare” to the St. Martin people.

He said a press conference might be convened on Monday for Saint Martin Wake-Up to re-assert its position regarding the negotiations.