the electoral process of Jamaica in the last two decades
Independence Aspirations in the Non-Sovereign Caribbean
A comparison of two Caribbean islands’ independence movements: Guadeloupe and Puerto Rico
PUERTO RICO
GUADELOUPE
Key Facts GUADELOUPE
Status: Overseas department of France
Population: 465,000
Area: 1,705 sq km (658 sq miles)
Major languages: French, Creole dialect
Major religion: Christianity
Currency: Euro
Political System: Guadeloupe is administered as a French region. Paris is represented by a prefect, appointed by the French president. Legislative and day-to-day administration are overseen by General and Regional Councils. Guadeloupe has two representatives in the National Assembly and in the Senate in Paris.
PUERTO RICO
Status: Self-governing overseas territory of the United States
Population: 3.7 million
Area: 8,959 sq km (3,459 sq miles)
Main languages: Spanish, English
Main religion: Christianity
Currency: US dollar
Political system: The commonwealth constitution is modelled on the United States’, with a governor elected for a four-year term and a bicameral legislature. Puerto Rico sends a delegate to Congress, who acts like a representative but does not have the right to vote. The United States retains authority over many matters such as foreign policy, public health or immigration.
Timeline - 1493 to 1940 GUADELOUPE
1493: Explorer Christopher Columbus visits Guadeloupe, but the Carib Indian inhabitants resist Spanish attempts to settle. 1635: French settlers are sent to Guadeloupe by the Compagnie des Îles d’Amérique to evangelize the local indigenous people. 1674: Guadeloupe becomes a French colony, directly under the power of Louis XIV. 1700-1800s: Several British occupations and a brief period under Swedish rule before the territory comes back under French control in 1816.
PUERTO RICO
1493: Christopher Colombus claims the island for Spain on his second voyage to the Americas. 1508: First Spanish settlement on the island of Puerto Rico. 1868: A popular uprising against Spanish rule is suppressed but becomes a symbol of the independence struggle. 1898: Spain cedes Puerto Rico to the US as part of the terms ending the Spanish- American War. 1900: US Congress establishes a civil government under the Foraker Act but maintains strict control over island affairs.
1917: Citizenship is imposed on Puerto Ricans are granted US citizenship under the Jones Act. 1940s: Puerto Rico gains partial self-rule with popularly elected governors.
Timeline - 1900 to Present GUADELOUPE
1946: Guadeloupe becomes a French overseas department. 1958: Guadeloupeens choose to remain a French possession over independence. 1980: Guadeloupe becomes a French administrative region. 1980s: Campaign for secession flares up when pro-independence groups bomb hotels and government buildings. 2009: Violent protests follow a general strike over the cost of living.
PUERTO RICO
1952: Puerto Rico becomes a self-governing commonwealth of the United States. Under US administration, it experiences growth but nationalist sentiment is still present. 1960-70s: Violent separatism - a series of bombings and killings in the 1970s and 1980s. 1998: Puerto Ricans back continued commonwealth status in a referendum. 2006: The expiry of a federal tax break for US corporations in place since 1976 triggers economic recession. 2012: Puerto Ricans vote for US statehood for the first time in a non-binding referendum on the island's status. 2017: The territory declares bankruptcy - the largest ever for a US local government. In a non-binding referendum afterward, it votes again to become a US state though only 23 percent of voters take part.
The Puerto Rican Independence Movement Puerto’s Rico’s independence movement dates back to1868, when a
nationalist movement was born, inspired by the French Revolution and Simon Bolivar’s struggle against Spanish rule. Several rebellions against
the Spanish government for the following three decades would lead Spain to grant the island a certain degree of autonomy in 1898. This was short lived, however, as the island would come under U.S. control just a
few months later, following the Spanish-American war.
• In 1914, Puerto Rico’s Congress, which lacked any real powers under American rule, voted for independence - but to no avail.
• Following the appointment of a American Governor by the United States in 1917, and the granting of American citizenship to all Puerto Rican residents, politics on the island became polarized around the issue of independence: some believed in full independence, some believed in fully becoming a state, and some preferred a slightly improved version of the status quo. This ideological divide remains true to this day.
• The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party was founded in 1922, with the objective of reaching Puerto Rican independence.
The Early Years
The Armed Struggle Years 1930s - 1950
In the 1930s, the struggle for independence turned violent. Assassinations and violent attacks against government representatives became the main tactics of the Nationalist Party. Its leader, Pedro Albizu Campos, founded Los Cadetes de la Repùbicla, an armed militia tasked with leading the struggle for independence. Albizu Campos was arrested and sent to prison in the United States following the assassination of a police official in 1936. In 1950, just three years after his release, he called for an armed uprising and with his followers launched a series of violent attacks against government targets in several different towns. While the uprising was supressed in a matter of days, it was followed by an assassination attempt on President Truman in Washington the November 1st, 1950. Pedro Albizu Campos was promptly sent back to prison.
The Armed Struggle Years 1951 – 1980s
Fearing that Puerto Rico’s independence struggle was loosing international visibility, Albizu Campo’s followers launched one last attack against congressmen in Washington in 1954, during which five representatives were wounded. This would be the last major a r m e d a t t a c k o f t h e i n d e p e n d e n c e movement.
In the 1960s and 1970s, several small clandestine groups launched violent campaigns to gain independence. The Armed Forces of National Liberation (FALN) and the Macheteros (the “cane cutters”) became particularly notorious, and carried out dozens of bombings, assassinations and armed expropriations. These organizations never enjoyed broad public support in Puerto Rico, and after suffering many losses at the end of the 1980s, they effectively ceased to exist.
Year Results Voter Turnout Rate
1967 Commonwealth: 60.4% Statehood: 39.0%
Independence: 0.6%
65.9%
1993 Commonwealth: 48.6% Statehood: 46.3%
Independence: 4.4%
73.5%
1998 Statehood: 46.5% Independence: 2.5%
Free Association: 0.3% Commonwealth: 0.1%
None of the Above: 50.3%
71.3%
2012 Statehood: 61.2% Free Association: 33.3%
Independence: 5.5%
78.2%
2017 Statehood: 97.2% Free Association/Independence: 1.5%
Current Territorial Status: 1.3%
23.0%
Public Opinion Status Referenda
Public Opinion Evolution
Public opinion hasn’t strongly favoured independence in Puerto Rico in the last fifty years. But the nature of the relationship with
the United States has been the subject of much debate, and remains at the heart of the political divide. One thing is certain;
very few are happy with the island’s current status. As Puerto Rico’s economy went into recession in 2006, social
inequality became more evident than ever and political tensions flared up. Mass protests followed the strong neoliberal policies imposed on the island, leading many to question once more the
island’s relationship with the United States. More recently, Washington’s handling of the aftermath of
Hurricane Maria left many Puerto Ricans feeling frustrated with the US administration, and could lead to renewed demands for a
change in status.
Guadeloupe’s Independence Movement Following the départementalisation of Guadeloupe in 1946, when Guadeloupe became
a French department, many hoped that living conditions would improve for Guadeloupeens, and that they would no longer be treated as a colony, but as French
citizens. Indeed, prior to 1946, the population of French Antilles suffered from high infant mortality, severe malnutrition and high levels of poverty. When ten years on,
these high hopes did not materialize, resentment towards Paris led to the creation of an anti-colonialist movement, which in turn rejuvenated nationalist sentiment.
• The 1960s in Guadeloupe saw the emergence of a strong nationalist movement, compounded by the events of May 1967, when dozens of Guadeloupeens were killed during the brutal repression of protests in support of a 2% wage increase for construction workers.
• 1963 saw the creation of the National Organization Group of Guadeloupe (GONG, for its French acronym), a separatist group which, although short-lived, would inspire and influence many nationalists in years to come, particularly in trade unions.
• Creole language became the symbol of Guadeloupe’s resistance to cultural assimilation, and strongly associated with nationalist sentiment. In the 1970s, much effort was put into developing and standardizing the language to widen its use in the public sphere.
• Political efforts in support of independence were very fragmented. Starting in the 1970s, nationalists disillusioned with the lack of public support for independence increasingly turned to violence as a means to influence political outcomes.
• More than 80 bombings occurred between 1980 and 1989, resulting in many fatalities. Two groups are believed to be responsible for these attacks; the Armed Liberation Group (GLA, for its French acronym), and the Revolutionary Caribbean Alliance (ARC, for its French acronym).
• Independence groups have never attracted a large political following in Guadeloupe. But while few people wish to break away from France altogether, there is widespread dissatisfaction with the current status of the island.
1960s to Present
• Today, Guadeloupeens and Puerto Ricans have ambivalent feelings towards independence. The majority of the population in both countries does not support breaking ties with the mainland. But most people also want some degree of autonomy, and self-governance. Should Puerto Rico achieve statehood, its status would be very similar to that of Guadeloupe: a state enjoying the same rights and obligations as any other in the United States. Yet real social equality is yet to materialize for Guadeloupe, along with a true recognition of its people’s right to choose their own future.
Today
Why has independence lost its appeal for Puerto Ricans and
Guadeloupeens? Perhaps the answer lies in part with their Caribbean neighbours' experiences as independent nations. As Yarimar Bonilla suggests in her essay Non Sovereign
Futures? French Caribbean Politics in the Wake of Disenchantment, maybe “the
seemingly exceptional disinterest in ‘political freedom’ among non-sovereign populations is
rooted less in an actual dependence on foreign subsidies than in a political
disenchantment with Western categories of sovereignty and freedom” (Bonilla, 2013:
215). Indeed, witnessing the constant foreign interference that has marked their Caribbean
neighbors’ histories since independence would hardly inspire Guadeloupeens or
Puerto Ricans to follow the same path, and surrender the few advantages of their current
status without the promise of enjoying full sovereignty.
Resources • Cornevin, Robert. 2018. “Guadeloupe”. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/place/Guadeloupe
• Guadeloupe Profile. 2018. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-20313500
• Puerto Rico Profile. 2018. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-17139243
• Daniel, Justin. Undated. “Extended Statehood In The Caribbean ~ The French Départements D’Outre Mer. Guadeloupe And Martinique”. Retrieved from http://rozenbergquarterly.com/extended-statehood-the-french-departements-doutre-mer-guadeloupe-and- martinique/
• Baquet, Cécile. 2016. “La départementalisation, 70 ans et après : vers un "big bang" social ?” Retrieved from https:// la1ere.francetvinfo.fr/la-departementalisation-70-ans-et-apres-vers-un-big-bang-social-342091.html
• Webber, Tim. October 13th, 2017. “What Does Being A U.S. Territory Mean For Puerto Rico?” Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/ 2017/10/13/557500279/what-does-being-a-u-s-territory-mean-for-puerto-rico
• Anderson, Jon Lee. December 27th, 2017. “The Dream of Puerto Rican Independence, and the Story of Heriberto Marín”. Retrieved from https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-dream-of-puerto-rican-independence-and-the-story-of-heriberto-marin
• Bonilla, Yarimar. 2013. “Nonsovereign Futures? French Caribbean Politics in the Wake of Disenchantment.” In Caribbean Sovereignty, Development and Democracy in an Age of Globalization edited by Linden Lewis. New York: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group, 208-227.
• Guiolet, Mario. November 16th, 2015. “Quand les bombes résonnaient en Guadeloupe…” Retrieved from https://www.mediaphore.com/ 2015/11/quand-les-bombes-resonnaient-en-guadeloupe/