With the so called “yellow vests” protests raging in France since November, it appears that the weary French police officers may stage protests of their own.
According to The Local, French police union Alliance Police Nationale called for a “black day for the police” in France on December 19, calling this upcoming protest “Act 1” – just like the "yellow vests" called their protests.
The Alliance reportedly intends to resort to these measures in order to urge Macron to invest more in the country’s security forces and to protest against the impending cuts for the police budget.
"Police are not doing well and nobody is listening," Frédéric Lagache, deputy secretary general of the Alliance union, said as quoted by The Daily Express, claiming that the 2010 budget is "insufficient."
Another union, UNSA-Police, has reportedly announced that its members would only provide minimal services starting Tuesday, while a third union, Unité SGP-Police FO, called upon cops to take part in protests on January 26 if the government fails to address the union’s concerns in time.
"Without satisfactory response from the government, we will all come down on January 26"
"We demand a salary increase of about € 115 for all peacekeepers and graded by the revaluation of the master's allowance, we demand strong measures for the officers, peacekeepers, ASD and PATS"
This development comes as French police officers appear exhausted due to constant deployments at the “yellow vests” protest rallies, La Depeche newspaper notes.
"In the field, fatigue is felt and the police have been sacrificing their family life for almost a month, but they remain determined and their involvement is total even if they expect support and recognition of their administration ", Didier Martinez, a representative of Unité SGP-Police FO, told the newspaper.
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France has been facing a wave of mass protests since mid-November, when the so-called yellow vest ralliers took to the streets to protest rising fuel prices and a planned hike in tax on diesel and carbon fuels. The French government has scrapped its planned hike in diesel taxes, but the "yellow vests" have since morphed into a broader movement against government policies and rising living costs.