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'Yellow Vests' Call for New Riots, Say Macron 'No Longer Credible' - Open Letter

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The so-called "yellow vest" protesters have written an open letter to French President Emmanuel Macron in response to his New Year's speech and called for new demonstrations on Saturday.
Sputnik

"Anger will turn into hatred if you – you and your supporters – continue to look from your pedestal at the ordinary people as beggars," the letter stated appealing to Macron.

The letter also said "national consultations" announced by Macron in late November were "a political trap," aimed at avoiding discussions of one of the "yellow vest" protesters' key demands – the right to hold "citizens’ initiative referendums" that would overrule parliamentary votes.

READ MORE: French Author Houellebecq Releases Novel With Plot Echoing Yellow Vest Revolt

"When will you understand that you and your [supporters] are no longer credible and that you have lost the confidence of those who believed in you and your movement 19 months ago," the post noted.

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The letter, which said that Macron "failed to understand the legitimate expectations of the French people," was published on Thursday by the Facebook group called "La France en colere" (Angry France).

The wave of the so-called yellow vest protests — named after the obligatory attribute of French drivers — started in mid-November. While the French government has scrapped its planned hike in diesel taxes, which is what initially sparked the protests, the "yellow vests" have evolved into a broader movement against government policies and rising living costs. The rallies have been marked by violent clashes between protesters and the police.

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