Twice handcuffs
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It was still early in the morning, about 5 o'clock to be precise, when the rain fell a lot on the roofs of Port-Beauharnais. The rustling of the palm leaves and the waves of the Caribbean Sea that threw themselves on the nofoaganese beaches once again demonstrated the paradisiacal atmosphere of the island state. Most of the several hundred residents of the capital, still lay on their mats. Because of the rain, people could hear the inhabitants counting turtles to sleep back in. But for some, the alarm has already gone off. Time to roll up your sleeves and, what has been happening daily for several months, rebuild houses and in a broader sense the country.
The road infrastructure was still not what it was supposed to be. Many of the roads were lost during the disaster earlier this year. Tamped earth and improvised routes give Port-Beauharnais and the other settlements still new forms. In the distance, between the palm trees, two lights emerged. Gravel and Earth splashes up. A car rushes by quickly and is followed by 4 other cars. The gravel taps against the poor walls of the newly built houses and awakens many a citizen.
What's happening? As the cars pass by in collone, some window shutters open. The streets are illuminated by the White lamps of the houses that shine from the inside out. There's some yelling. The cars drive on and take their turns at a dangerous speed. For a moment, it seems that one of the cars would turn over. The driver knows the tricks of the trade. Only with some fright do the few watchers get rid of it.
An attentive spectator sees with some sleep in the eyes what is on the doors of the cars: POLICE. "It's the police!" calls out a few who can read the inscriptions now.
5 cars packed with armed agents. Problems? Drugs? Hostage or something else? The cars smell like sweat. The bright blue uniforms of the agents turn dark due to the humidity. Obviously everyone is nervous.
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The day has come and the officers get out of the cars. Only now does it become clear how heavily armed the men are. Place of intervention: the private residence of Jacques Salé, the man who led Nofoaga to independence and is now president of the small republic again. The commander goes over the course of the mission with his men for one last time.
Meanwhile, Jacques Salé was also awakened by the noise outside. The officers didn't make much of an effort to hide their presence. Before he knew it, the officers broke into the house, the front door being smashed in with a battering ram.
The officers shouted loudly "Everyone on the ground! Everyone on the ground! Now! Don't move! Hands off, hands off!" They shouted so loud it was almost unintelligible what they were trying to say. There was shouting from the other rooms. Jacques Salé got a bag over the head. He was also handcuffed.
Sitting on the floor with his head bent over, he heard footsteps approaching. A deep voice said in a paradoxical calm but convincing tone: "Jaques Salé, Citizen and President of the Republic of Nofoaga, you are being transferred to a safe location".
The president was helped to his right and, together with his wife, he was led out by some heavily armed officers.
Once in the car, Jacques Salé dared to let his voice be heard and asked "what's going on?" There was no answer. His wife also made herself heard. "Answer the President's Question!"
The couple only got a chuckle in response. "Answer!" cried the woman again. Gripping by the collar, one of the officers said, "Shut up!" Shhhh… said the deep voice that briefly told the president earlier in the residence that he would be transferred to a safe location. "As I said before, you will be led away to a safe location."
