Since last week in Petit-Goâve, several high schools are paralyzed by a teachers' strike (Faustin Soulouque, EFACAP and the Nissage David National School). Some claim wage arrears, others their letter of appointment and others are in solidarity...

Early Monday morning, the students of Lycée Faustin Soulouque sparked a protest movement to demand the resumption of classes in the classrooms.

The situation became tense when a group of high school students went to the college Pierre Baptiste to ask the college students to join them in solidarity and an exchange of stones and bottles suddenly began between students of both institutions. A clash that lasted nearly 30 minutes before the arrival of the police who was welcomed by copiously throwing stones from all sides.

The police apprehended a student from the Collège Pierre Baptiste on the public road that they brought to the Commissariat of Petit-Goave. Faced with this arrest, the two students of the two institutions united against the police and demanded with one voice the immediate release of their comrade.

Information spread rapidly in the city and the group of protesters grew with the arrival of other schoolchildren and young people to join them. The demonstrators forced the leaders of EFACAP, the Sisters' School and Wesleyen College to release their students.

The demonstration, which had become imposing and highly motivated, went to the police station, threatening the police officers if their comrade was not released within 5 minutes... The time elapsed, they began throwing stones at the police officers and the police station.

Faced with the intensification of the confrontation and the risk of overflowing, the police finally released the arrested student. It was the journalists on the scene who took him to their angry comrades.

The students continued their protest in other streets of the city and the police finally had to use tear gas to disperse the protests and restore law and order.

The high school students have given themselves rendezvous for this Tuesday, January 24 on the streets to pursue their claim.

HL/ HaitiLibre / Guyto Mathieu (Correspondant Petit-Goâve)