Overseas French colonies await Hollande’s visit.

Posted on May 8, 2015 by bill

L’Outremer attend François Hollande

par Louise Bodet vendredi 8 mai 2015 21:45

Depuis de nombreuses années les logements sociaux se développent aux Antilles, notamment a Saint-Martin, pour répondre à une demande de plus en plus forte © Maxppp. For many years in the Antilles social housing is growing, notable in Saint Martin, to satisfy a strong demand.

François Hollande entame sa visite dans la Caraïbe par une tournée des Antilles françaises, il a atterri sur place vendredi soir. Direction la Guadeloupe, la Martinique et Saint-Martin. C’est une île qui peut faire rêver mais où la réalité économique est difficile. The president starts his Caribbean visit with a stop in the French Antilles, he lands on Friday evening (Remember he presided at the May 8 commemoration in Paris this morning!). He’s heading for Guadeloupe, la Martinique et Saint-Martin (A French/Dutch protectorate where the Dutch sector still uses the Guilder). An ideal island to dream about but in reality with economic problems.

Saint-Martin, ses hôtels de luxe, ses plages paradisiaques baignées de soleil, mais aussi sa misère. Une jeunesse très peu formée, un taux de chômage record, ici un actif sur quatre n’a pas de travail, et il y a plus de bénéficiaires du RSA que de gens qui paient l’impôt sur le revenu, certains travaillant dans la partie hollandaise de l’île, sans le déclarer.         Saint-Martin, with it’s luxury hotels, paradise beaches bathed in sunshine, but also misery. Little youth education, a record unemployment, here one in four has no work, and no more social benefits for the people who pay tax on their income. Many work in the Dutch sector without declaring.

A 25 km de là, la très sélecte Saint Barth a un tout autre problème : apurer une énorme dette fiscale  en trouvant un accord avec l’Etat. Sur ces deux îles, François Hollande est donc attendu de pied ferme. En 2012, il n’a pas été ici plébiscité comme dans le reste de l’outremer. Saint Martin lui a accordé une courte majorité, Saint-Barth a choisi Sarkozy à 83%. Mais les attentes sont nombreuses.                                                                                        25 kms away, the very select Saint Barth there is another problem: a huge debt and looking for a State solution. On both islands Hollande will find stubborness. In 2012, they didn’t vote with the other colonies. Saint-Martin returned a slight majority but Saint Barth gave 83% to Sarkozy with a large abstention on voting.

Elles le seront encore plus demain en Martinique, et dimanche en Guadeloupe. Vie chère, chômage des jeunes, taux de pauvreté trois à quatre fois plus élevé qu’en métropole. On est loin de l’égalité économique réclamée par les insulaires. Il y 3 ans, le candidat Hollande prenait 30 engagements pour l’outremer et les scores électoraux suivaient : 70% des Guadeloupéens et Martiniquais votaient pour lui. Le chef de l’Etat pourrait annoncer un projet de loi consacré à l’égalité réelle au Palais des sports de Gosier, en Guadeloupe, dimanche soir.                                                                                        He’ll move on tomorrow to Martinique, and on Sunday to Guadeloupe. High cost of living, youth unemployment three or four times that of France. A long way from economic equality claimed by the island communities. Three years ago as a candidate he met 30 communities and reaped the benefit: 70% of Guadeloupe and Martinique voted for him. The president will announce an equality pact in Gosier, Guadeloupe on Sunday evening.
par Louise Bodet vendredi 8 mai 2015 21:45

About bill

Worked in the technical / engineering area as a Science Laboratory Technician and as an Aeronautics Engineer. The artistic side involves writing under the nom de plume of Billy Olsenn, his recently written play 'A Case of Wine' was staged by the players group Straight Make-Up at the 2012 Birr one act drama festival. It's next staging was in the one act circuit is in Cavan, at Maudebawn on Sat 10 Nov 2012. Then it was performed in the Bray, Co.Wicklow at the very popular one act festival in January 2013. Next play is FEAR. A dark tale about revenge on the cruel death of two pensioners by young thugs. Neighbours hatch a devious and dangerous plan to exact old-style revenge. Bill is a member of the Drama League of Ireland and his plays have been critically vetted and certified as original pieces of work by the DLI. Another literary project is that of commemoration of an aircraft crash on Djouce mountain in Wicklow in 1946. Bill wrote articles for the 50th, 60th and most recently the 70th anniversary, (12 Aug 2016) all were published in the Wicklow Times and ensured the survivors of the crash, all French Girl Guides, were not forgotten. Articles reproduced on this website. But mostly this site gives a more general European and specific French slant on popular and not so popular articles of French news, translated to English by the author. Each article is translated on a paragraph by paragraph basis so easy to read in either language and even possible to improve either language by comparison of the short English and French paragraphs. Amusez vous bien. The author is currently writing an easy to read technical aviation book centered around the Fokker 50. Another interest is that dealt with in another of Bill's websites www.realnamara.net, a Statue of the mother of God, Mary. It was erected in 1972 in Dublin, at the end of the Bull Wall near Clontarf, and my grandfather William Nelson, was the main instigator of that project. I give talks on the history of the statue and my grandfather's adventurous and dangerous life at sea. Technical assistance with each website is by J O'N.
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