[imagesource:wikicommons]

South Africans are no strangers to protest. When it comes to giving law enforcement, and anyone else unfortunate enough to stand in the way, a hard time, we stand toe to toe with the best of them. But even with all our burning and chanting, we still can’t beat the French when they get pissed off.

Perhaps it’s the ‘first world country’ label that makes their protest so much more shocking, but either way, when the Frenchies get going, they tear it up with the best of them. It is for this reason that everyone in France is a little on edge following President Macron’s unilateral decision to increase the minimum retirement age in France from 62 to 64.

President Emmanuel Macron’s proposed reform of the pension age is ostensibly being done to preserve France’s much-prized “share-out” system. The central fund is under pressure to increase the age as the only alternatives would be to cut the value of pensions or increase contributions from those in work.

Pensions have always been a key part of President Macron’s vision for reforming France. But his plans were disrupted – first by widespread protests; then by Covid. Now in his second and final term in office, this is perhaps his last chance to get the job done.

Macron has noted that France is still behind other countries in adjusting their retirement age, and as life expectancy increases, more and more people need to remain at work to afford the increased cost of living for older people. BBC reported Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire as saying the changes would also ‘boost the employment rate among 60-64 year-olds which is low compared with other European countries.’

Many protesters are calling not just for an end to the reform, but actually for a lowering of the retirement age, back to where it was before 2010, when it was just 60.

Thousands of people have now taken to the streets in Paris and police are clashing with disgruntled workers. With trash bags piled high in Paris from an ongoing public service strike, many believe this is the biggest threat to President Emmanuel Macron’s authority since the so-called “Gilets Jaunes”, or Yellow Vests protests, which began in late 2018.

Municipal authorities had banned rallies on Paris’s central Place de la Concorde and nearby Champ-Elysees on Saturday night after demonstrations that resulted in 61 arrests the previous night. There were 81 arrests on Saturday night.

Macron ordered his prime minister on Thursday to use special constitutional power in order to enforce the change without having it go through parliament first. The notice was given minutes before the vote would have been decided and is clearly in reaction to the fact that the bill did not have enough votes to pass. In political speak, this simply means that he said ‘Screw what everyone thinks, just do it cause I say so’.

Opposition parties have joined the chorus in condemning the move, saying it is a gross abuse of power and indicative of a president that has no support or numbers to implement his agenda.

On a day when South Africa is also facing a ‘revolution’ of sorts, it is going to be interesting to see how the powers that be respond to an increasingly gatvol citizenry. Is it just me or does it seem like every country on the planet seems to be eating its own entrails at the moment?

If the below video is anything to go by, we are in for a violent 2023.

[source:bbc&nbc]