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On Friday March 28, the Member of Parliament for Saint-Barth and Saint-Martin took part in a meeting at the Ministry of Culture, with the aim of "addressing the structural challenges and lack of recognition of the cultural specificities" of the Northern Isles. During the meeting, long requested by Frantz Gumbs, he had the opportunity to exchange views with Delphine Christophe, the deputy director of the Culture Minister's cabinet, and Cyrielle Convers, parliamentary advisor to Rachida Dati.
"Relationship difficulties
The meeting was above all an opportunity to respond to requests from the Saint-Martin local authority, which is complaining of "relational difficulties" with the Direction des Affaires Culturelles (DAC) based in the Guadeloupe prefecture, but which has jurisdiction over Saint-Martin and Saint-Barth. "Since we have a fully-fledged prefecture for Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy, why not set up a cultural affairs department there?" suggested the deputy. When the State's major decentralized departments are based in Basse-Terre, they are not fully aware of the particular realities of Saint-Martin and Saint-Barth. He assures us that his interlocutors were receptive to this proposal.
Little-known schemes
Should such a scheme be implemented, the MP assures us that "the DAC will exercise the same powers" as the regional office based in Guadeloupe. Frantz Gumbs adds : "Except that there is a proximity that will make the operation more efficient. The Ministry of Culture has a number of schemes, of which few people are aware." In his view, having a dedicated contact for both territories would give cultural players easier access to these schemes. This would be an opportunity, for example, to extend the use of the Pass Culture, which is under-utilized in the Northern Islands, which do not benefit from adequate infrastructures or the necessary information to claim it.
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The Saint-Barth d'Abord group's response
"During a recent exchange with Madame Delphine CHRISTOPHE, Deputy Cabinet Director, and Madame Cyrielle CONVERS, Parliamentary Advisor at the Ministry of Culture, you addressed several subjects relating to the culture and heritage of the islands of Saint-Barthélemy and Saint- Martin. On this occasion, you put forward a number of proposals, including :
- Strengthening government action on the two islands in terms of culture;
- The creation of a shared Department of Cultural Affairs (DAC) ;
- Dedicated funding and training programs for young journalists;
- State intervention in heritage preservation ;
- Reinforced support for the roll-out of the Pass Culture ;
- The organization of a mission dedicated to the conservation of historic monuments. Allow me to express my astonishment at these proposals.
Although Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin form a single legislative district, they are two distinct Collectivités, each with its own vision and relationship with the State. It is therefore as an elected representative and member of the Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy that I am speaking here.
The autonomous status enjoyed by the Collectivité of Saint-Barthélemy commits us to a clear rationale: to do things ourselves rather than wait for the State to do them for us. The powers conferred on us by the organic law enable us to manage our local affairs in an efficient, pragmatic way, adapted to our island reality.
Culture and heritage remain the responsibility of the State. It's true that the absence of a transfer of jurisdiction in this area can sometimes lead to administrative delays, for example when it comes to the classification of buildings or archaeological excavations .
Nevertheless, in Saint-Barthélemy, the answer is not to call for greater State intervention, but to explore ways of strengthening our autonomy, in order to free ourselves from administrative structures that are often far removed from our reality.
It is with this in mind that the proposal for a DAC shared between Saint-Barthélemy and Saint- Martin corresponds neither to our needs nor to our philosophy of governance. Our Collectivité has the fiscal authority, and thanks to the economic model we have built up, it has sufficient capacity for action to initiate, finance and implement projects.action to initiate, finance and support projects in favor of youth, culture and communication - without the need for state coordination.
This is the ambition of our Culture Commission, in conjunction with our actions to promote young talent in other fields such as sport.
As far as heritage is concerned, even without formal competence, we have integrated into our Town Planning Code tools enabling us to preserve certain emblematic elements of our local identity, such as the Grands Fonds wells. And if the Collectivité wishes to go further, it can do so within a framework that respects its logic of autonomy and institutional innovation, including by participating, on the basis of a clear agreement, in the exercise of the State's competences. To give you just one example, the Catholic churches in Lorient and Gustavia, the Wall House, the former Swedish court house and the Swedish bell tower have all been renovated without recourse to the DAC.
In this spirit of doing things ourselves, and in line with the relationship we wish to maintain with the state, on March 14 2023, our senator, Madame Micheline Jacques, President of the Délégation aux Outre-mer (French Overseas Departments and Territories Delegation), had a bill passed unanimously. a proposal for an organic law to enable Saint Barthélemy to participate in the exercise of certain sovereign powers, notably in the field of health. This text, supported by a number of senators from the French overseas territories, including Victorin Lurel, Catherine Conconne, Stéphane Artano and Anick Petrus, reflects a clear desire to take control of our destiny.
However, this text, which is currently stuck in the parliamentary shuttle, has not been taken up by the National Assembly. Given that you are speaking on behalf of Saint-Barthélemy, I wonder why you didn't take action to have it placed on the Assembly's agenda.
Article 39 of the Constitution states that the initiative for legislation belongs concurrently to the Prime Minister and the members of Parliament. I'm well aware that the difficulty in carrying out your duties is to take into account the specific characteristics of our two territories, despite the fact that they are part of the same constituency. Close coordination between senators and deputies is therefore essential, regardless of political affiliations, to effectively defend the interests of our territories.
Finally, I would like to remind you that your mandate is to represent the people. With this in mind, and given the complexity and uniqueness of our status, I invite you to engage in direct and constructive dialogue with all the elected representatives of Saint-Barthélemy. Together, we will be able to avoid inappropriate proposals and work towards concrete solutions that are consistent with our political choices and the interests of our population."
A document signed by the group's leader, Alexandra Questel.
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The Action-Équilibre group's response
" Monsieur le Député de Saint-Barthélemy et de Saint-Martin,
We have been informed of your interventions with the Ministry of Culture by the Journal de St Barth, and even if an upstream exchange on this subject would have been relevant, we are in favor of the steps you have taken.
The Collectivities of St Martin and St Barthélemy are dependent on decisions taken by the DAC Guadeloupe regarding archaeological excavations and the classification of buildings, which, given the geographical remoteness of the area, can take a long time and waste a lot of time.
If we have understood your approach correctly, and following the same logic as the State, which has just created a fully-fledged prefecture grouping together the two collectivities, it would be beneficial for the Guadeloupean authorities to have a single prefecture.s, it would be beneficial for both communities if the State were to create a Department of Cultural Affairs.
The local authority and the DAC can work together to promote culture in general, and share it with as many people as possible.
As you know, we have our own culture commission within the territorial council, and your proposal in no way calls into question its local action or its work.
Our culture commission is very active, with numerous projects aimed at enhancing our local heritage and developing culture in all its forms, and cultural events organized throughout the year. The commission works in liaison with local associations, which are very dynamic.
The local authority provides them with the resources they need to carry out their projects, and assists them with the administrative and material aspects of organizing their events.
For us, the " culture " remit cannot be summed up in a budget line, but rather in raising awareness of the wealth offered by all the Republic's territories, while reacting swiftly to the DAC's administrative procedures.
Your proposal seems to us to be a step in the right direction, and we thank you for it.
As a result, we await the response that the State is sure to give you on the administrative side of cultural competence, and remain at your disposal to discuss this subject, as on all other subjects that may have an impact on our community and its population.
Yours sincerely ".
A letter signed by Bettina Cointre, second vice-president of the Collectivité territoriale and president of the culture commission.
