Yellow Vests Unrest: French Government Grants Public Access to Grievance Logs
Unveiling the Yellow Vests' grievances: France's historical document now within the public's reach. France's government has declared, on Wednesday, April 30, that the grievance books penned post the "Yellow Vests" turmoil will be made accessible to every citizen who requests it. According to an order published in the Official Journal, the Ministry of Culture highlights that these writings, previously confined to researchists, "can now be freely shared," whether on-site or by sending copies.
: "A soupçon of chaos": what lies within the thousand-strong Yellow Vests' grievance books that François Bayrou wishes to reopen? These books provided the French populace a platform to voice their complaints during the Great National Debate, a citizen-led consultation held from January to March 2019, initiated by Emmanuel Macron in response to the widespread uprising of the "Yellow Vests," late 2018, against the exorbitant cost of living, the decay of public services, inequalities, and the drawbacks of democracy.
Will the grievance books be accessible online "by 2026"?
"From this coming Friday, everyone can visit a departmental archives center or the National Archives without any special requirements to examine the books", Emmanuel Macron expressed on Wednesday evening. The President of the Republic stated his intention "to make these books available online by 2026". The government first intends to anonymize the contributions, a time-consuming task currently underway.
The National Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on March 11 last, urging the government to open these archives to everyone. The democratic exercise of the Great Debate, unprecedented in modern times, resulted in the collection of "19,000 citizen books", a "national treasure", according to the environmental deputy of the Drôme, Marie Pochon, who proposed this resolution. A rapid opening of archives to all, without exceptions, "is exceptional", underscores the Minister of Culture, while the legal deadline for archives of this kind is 50 years.
The government's intention is to make the Yellow Vests' grievance books accessible online by 2026, as stated by President Emmanuel Macron. This decision follows a unanimous resolution adopted by the National Assembly on March 11, 2021, urging the government to open these archives to everyone. From this coming Friday, citizens can visit departmental archives centers or the National Archives to examine the books, with no special requirements. The government is currently anonymizing the contributions, a time-consuming task.
