LKP Guadeloupe

Glossary

The LKP is a Guadeloupean movement and collective bringing together around fifty unions and political or cultural organizations that denounces the exploitation of the island as well as the relatively low standard of living of the population. LKP is the acronym for Liyannaj Kont Pwotiasyon, which means "collective against overexploitation".

The LKP is a movement whose origins date back to December 2008 and whose initial purpose was to protest against the sharp rise in fuel prices on the island. The group's spokesperson is Eric Domota, who is also the secretary general of the UGTG, the majority union in Guadeloupe. The movement gained considerable scale from 2009 onward and denounced more broadly the high cost of living in Guadeloupe. Food prices were then exorbitant, far higher than in mainland France, while the average salary of a Guadeloupean was significantly lower.

The movement then began a series of general strikes that paralyzed the island for several weeks. The movement also denounced the capture of the local economy by the békés, even though they are only a minority. The slogan carried by the group at the time was "Guadeloupe belongs to us, Guadeloupe does not belong to them, they will not do what they want in our country".

The slogan was mainly directed against the békés who come from neighboring Martinique and who then controlled the island's economy, in particular the two large shopping centers located in Guadeloupe. The LKP therefore wants the population's standard of living to be improved economically as well as culturally and socially.

According to the group's detractors, the LKP sometimes resorted to violence and threats to achieve its ends; this is what the CLSR, among others, denounces, while trying to bring contradictory solutions to the LKP. The LKP continues its action against the exploitation of the island and against all the injustices that may take place there. It also generally denounces all remnants of colonialism that may occur around the world, particularly on the African continent and in other French islands and overseas territories.