Demonstration in France: Only the grill is still burning – opinion

The “march against the expensive life” on Sunday did not turn out to be a revolution, as the old leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon had wished for in advance. Nevertheless, the demo in Paris showed that many French people are dissatisfied to angry, they are afraid of rising prices in supermarkets and high energy costs. They blame that, in France, statism has a tradition: the state. The French government is not idle in the energy crisis. It has been capping gas and electricity prices for months now, and at six percent, France has one of the lowest inflation rates in Europe.

But, President Macron and his government have a communication problem. While in turtleneck sweaters and down jackets they urge people to save electricity, the main thing that comes across to many in the population is that we should do without, while the big corporations and their shareholders make super profits. That’s the impression people have on the streets of Paris who are demanding a tax on excess profits, and that’s the impression it has on workers in French refineries who have been on strike for weeks for higher wages.

And Macron? Operates anything but détente policy. Instead of calming down, the President is heating up the mood. In the television interview on the strikes, he first declared that he was not responsible and then criticized the unions. He repeatedly insists on getting his controversial pension reform through this winter, and in the event of a vote of no confidence in his government he is bringing new elections into play.

Quite a few of the current unrest in France are reminiscent of the beginnings of the yellow vest protests, which were sparked by rising petrol prices four years ago in the autumn. Only the grill is still burning at the demo in Paris, and only a minority is still wearing yellow safety vests. The mood hasn’t boiled over yet – but it’s simmering.

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