Act XX of the Yellow Vests focus on getting rid of Macron

The website launched by Yellow Vests in late January, in parallel with the Big Debate of the executive, has identified several of the demands of participants.

Those who accused the executive of having control over the Big Debate, will undoubtedly see a salutary response on the site le-vrai-debat.fr.

On Thursday, March 28, the first results were announced: after one million votes, 25 000 proposals and 93 000 arguments, the analysis of the Laboratoire d’études et de recherches appliquées en sciences sociales de Toulouse (Lerass), in collaboration with the Laboratoire Triangle du CNRS in Lyon, has revealed the proposals which are “most consensual”, reported LCI.

In first position, is the Referendum by the citizens’ initiative (RIC), with 91 percent of the votes expressed being favorable. The RIC drive is widely acknowleged as a move to vote out President Macron.

Some 89 percent of respondents also voted in favor of taking the so-called vote blanc into account. In an election, the vote blanc is neither voting for any of the candidates, nor any of the proposals in the case of a referendum, suggesting a position halfway between abstention and voter turnout. It is thus different from abstention (no vote) and disqualified vote (an invalid ballot paper).

In fifth position, is discontinuing the remuneration of elected official after their term is completed.

Voters also showed their commitment to the fight against tax evasion and fraud, including through sanctions. They have also endorsed the ban on glyphosate, and aid to farmers for conversion to organic.

The Macron administration deployed 113 units of mobile police forces over the weekend. They were positioned on the all around the country, according to LCI, counting 12 000 police officers as well as gendarmes. In Paris, 40 units were in place near Avenue des Champs-Elysées and at “strategic points”, such as the National Assembly and the Presidential Palace.

But the police is not happy about the continuous deployments against the marchers. The spokesman for the Alliance police union expressed his exasperation on Saturday, March 30 about being called for duty against Act XX of the social movement.

The executive is now facing a dual problem and they will have to be vigilant. Since November 17, the police have been on duty for the demonstrations of Yellow Vests and officers are exhausted, according to the secretary general of the Alliance police union, in an interview with French weekly le Point.

“It’s been twenty weekends in a row that we are mobilized, twenty weekends in a row without rest and twenty week-ends in a row that we are criticized,” said Frédéric Lagache. “We’re fed up.”

According to Lagache: “If it’s not about the use of flashballs, it’s the police officers. Each time they find a scapegoat. On the other hand, we forget that police and gendarmes act to restore order when they are faced with either thugs or people who go beyond the limits of demonstrating.”

“Enough is enough. We, the police are fed up with all these criticisms. Some minority groups want to make you believe that the police are the bad guys trying to manipulate public opinion”, the trade unionist complained, estimating that “policemen and gendarmes need the support of the public much more than the anonymous critics, and those with an unacceptable minority status”.

Notably in Paris, two demonstrations left from the Gare de l’Est to the Trocadero square, according to media reports. In the capital, according to the police headquarters, 32 arrests were made and 21 people received police warnings near the perimeter of the Champs-Elysées.

Some 11 945 preventive controls were also carried out in the French capital city. During the day, Place Beauvau – the seat of the Interior Ministry – registered 33 700 demonstrators in France, including 4 000 in Paris. But in actual fact, the protesters numbered 102 713 participants, as specified by the Yellow Number on Facebook.

And many protests were also prohibited. The prefects of Saint-Etienne, Rouen or Avignon had pronounced bans on demonstrations. Also in Paris, the Champs-Elysées was a forbidden area to the demonstrators. In Bordeaux, the mayor said he was very worried because his city is one of the convergence points of the movement.

In the capital, the association Droit au logement had called for a rally on Place du Châtelet, as the winter break was ending this Saturday. This march was to join the demonstration of Yellow Vests heading for Trocadero, according to BFM TV.