French citizens riot in opposition to President Macron’s proposal to make vaccination passports a requirement to enter shopping malls, restaurants, bars, hospitals, bars, cafés, and public transportation.
Beginning in August, they will require visitors to provide evidence of vaccination or a negative COVID test to enter any of these locations.
In doing so, the French president went further than most other European nations have done as the highly contagious Delta variant fans a new wave of cases, and other governments are watching carefully to see how the French public responds.
Given that they would have to pay for every single PCR test, the limitations would effectively make the vaccination necessary for anybody who wants to live everyday life.
On Bastille Day, Paris staged an unruly demonstration, prompting French police to use tear gas to disperse them.
“The police stepped in shortly after scores of protesters marched down a boulevard in central Paris on Wednesday without permission from the Paris authorities,” reports Reuters. “Some wore badges saying “No to the health pass.”
Police vehicles and riot police also shut roads off to hinder the protest’s march and clashed with protesters railing against President Emmanuel Macron’s plan.
There were also riots and protests after the French government attempted to make vaccination a requirement for accessing public transportation, which resulted in the planned measure being cancelled.
It remains to be seen if the discontent will grow to where Macron is forced to do another U-turn.
France was besieged for months by Yellow Vest protests, which began in late 2018 and concluded only in March 2020 because of the first COVID-19 shutdown.
The Gilets Jaunes is a populist movement that unites issues shared by both the left and the right, which means it might resurface as a rebellion against COVID if the French government continues to impose such Draconian restrictions.
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