Do not set fire to the West Indies. This is the barely veiled aim of paragraph 58 of article 1 of the text establishing the vaccination pass. “When local circumstances justify it”, the “representative of the territorially competent State” can “adapt the measures” of restrictions, indicates the bill “reinforcing the tools for managing the health crisis”, definitively adopted last Sunday. No territory is mentioned so as not to anger the Constitutional Council, but all eyes are on Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyana where vaccination is far from unanimous…
This provision was the subject of a consensus. It comes from an amendment tabled by the MoDem deputy from Guadeloupe Justine Benin, modified by senators LR and retained at the last reading by the National Assembly. In fact, the prefects will be able to impose the vaccination pass… But later. “The vaccination pass will not replace the health pass in certain territories, we decipher in the government. There will be delayed implementation.”
The reason ? “The situation is not the same as in France. The vaccination pass will make sense when there are more people vaccinated. It is not laxity. At the moment, Guadeloupe and Martinique are subject to a curfew and the closure of establishments open to the public. »
“Avoid a cleaver effect”
The Minister of Health Olivier Véran had announced the color at the end of December. “Overseas, the government will be in favor of an amendment” to “avoid a cleaver effect (…) in certain overseas territories, which will make way for negotiation and discussion with local actors”, he declared during the debates. in committee.
And to add: “We do not want to rekindle a social conflict”. Especially since the climate remains tense in the West Indies, once morest a background of refusal of compulsory vaccination of caregivers – the boss of the CHU of Guadeloupe even had to be exfiltrated, two weeks ago, following an attempt at sequestration by pure antivax and hard.
“In terms of principles, the texts apply everywhere in the same way in the Republic but there is a principle of reality, underlines PS senator and former Minister for Overseas Victorin Lurel. If this measure came into force immediately and rigidly in Guadeloupe, the economy would be blocked because there are approximately 60% of unvaccinated people there”.
