Flights to France have been sorely affected by a a nationwide strike over proposed changes in retirement age. There is a belief sweeping through the country that this could be the beginning of a new political age. The current retirement age in France is 60 and the change will see it knocked back 2 years. This does not please the French masses: many believe that it could spark a knock on effect.
Over the past week a number of unions have come to blows with the authorities. What began as workers downing tools and walking out into the street has escalated into a series of violent demonstrations. The president Nicolas Sarkozy is adamant that he will not relent until protests are quashed and the political decision has been passed and accepted.
Fuel is scarce country-wide as many depots ground to a halt following road blocks put into place by protesters. Shipments from the North and West have been blocked causing issues with imports. 13,000 petrol stations are still struggling to receive supplies as of this morning – more than a week into the strike. The vote will not pass until mid next week and strikes are planned to continue. The president had this to say:
Mr. Sarkozy, referring to several days of clashes between police and protesters in Lyon, said the “troublemakers will not have the last word in a democracy, a republic.”
“It is not acceptable,” he said. “They will be stopped, tracked down and punished, in Lyon and anywhere else, with no weakness. Because in our democracy there are many ways to express yourself. But violence is the most cowardly, the most gratuitous and that is not acceptable.”
In the midst of midterm holidays for the school kids the protesters have managed to block supplies from entering airports across the country. Flights to Paris, Marseille and elsewhere are heavily affected. If you have a trip arranged it may be worth reconsidering – especially if you’re driving. The red areas in the following picture are under the most amount of stress.
The implications of such a movement are unfathomable – the economy will be the first to suffer, and there is no doubt that it will spread to neighbouring countries. Many of the union leaders have begun to step down, but the body of the strikes seems to have lost it’s head. It is hoped that the weekend will bring relative calm, but only time will tell.