French High Commissioner blockaded by protestors

Updated November 14, 2008 15:12:51

A protest by public servants in French Polynesia has prevented the French High Commissioner from leaving his residence. The strike also affected the court system, the meteorological service and forced a shutdown of all customs services at the port and airport. The French High Commissioner, Adolphe Colrat, had his house surrounded by protesters and was unable to get to the airport. The editor of Tahiti Pacifique magazine, Alex Du Prel told Bruce Hill there's little public sympathy for the demonstrators, who have not attracted substantial support on the streets.

presenter: Bruce Hill
speaker: Alex Du Prel, the editor of Tahiti Pacifique magazine

ALEX DU PREL: Well, it was really - actually what happened was they expected some 8,000 people and maybe 1,500-2,000 showed up so what they did, they locked the high commissioner into his residence - to just surround the residence, at the gate. And the high commissioner was supposed to meet the overseas minister in Noumea and he couldn't get out of his residence and he couldn't take the plane. But otherwise it's pretty friendly, you know. Everybody's sitting in front of the gates and they have big posters up.

BRUCE HILL: I suppose, though, to actually surround the house of the French high commissioner and prevent him leaving for New Caledonia, that's quite a serious thing, isn't it?

ALEX DU PREL: Well, yes. The high commissioner - it's putting an intrigue onto the liberty of circulation and so on. But, you know, when he goes into it the French role is very, very, very soft.

BRUCE HILL: So what is this about? It's about the 75% extra loading that public servants get on their pension if they retire to overseas territories like French Polynesia. That seems like an awful lot, and they're protesting about this being taken away?

ALEX DU PREL: Yeah, that's correct. The thing is, there was a law introduced in 1952 to entice people from France to go in the overseas territories. Normally, at the beginning it was only for people who had worked overseas that they could get their retirement bonus overseas, but then they managed, French unions managed to wiggle it the way that any French civil servant could move to French overseas territory and then not only do they get 75% on top of their normal retirement pay, but also - as we have no income tax - they pay no income tax. So we've had, since this was really got to be known with the event of the internet in France, we've had an influx of about 5,000 retirees, French civil servant retirees who came to French Polynesia.

BRUCE HILL: So is there much sympathy from the general public for their cause?

ALEX DU PREL: No, we call it all a revolution of the rich. You know, the rich are making a revolution. But having said that, the French central government have been trying for many, many years - for the past 25 years - trying to put an end to this injustice, because it is a real injustice. And it keeps the prices high in the territories, especially the real estate market.