Why are the French protesting BlackRock?
France is burning. “Violence, arson, clashes that’s what happened across France.” Thousands of tons of garbage are lying just like that on the roads, and a billion people have taken to the streets to protest against the government. This chaos became so big that King Charles of Britain was about to come to France, but he said, no boss, I do want to go to another country. where the environment is so bad and Why France is protesting? but why?
We consider France to be a developed country. If Paris is the world’s capital of love, then why are the people there so angry? Democracy is a very positive word, but today we will learn how democracy and freedom can be used to spread anarchy when people get angry.
What’s happening?
A few days back, I was shocked after seeing these photos on Instagram. Looking at it, it seemed that it would be a country like Syria or Lebanon. where the atmosphere must have been spoiled by war, but I came to know that it is Paris. I could not believe it. There’s fire in the back street, and people are eating croissants. At least 500 people have been arrested so far, and more than 100 police officers have been seriously injured. Why are people so angry? because pension reforms are being brought to France. Basically, in today’s time, people retire at the age of 62, and after that, they get a pension. But the new law in France says that you have to work until the age of 64, and only then will you get a pension. When will it come into action? not today or tomorrow after 2030.
Today, when people complete working for 42 years and then retire, companies and the government together have to give them pensions. But now these numbers will go from 42 to 43. This means working for a few extra years. That’s it; that’s the issue. Cities are burning for this simple thing. When a poll was taken across the country, 70% of people said that they don’t want to work until the age of 64. People think that it is unfair. The government thinks that it is necessary. Now there are two sides to the argument. To understand who is right and who is wrong, we have to understand both sides of the argument.
The French System
First of all, let’s understand the culture of France. France is a western country, but only by geography, it is very different from other western countries in its ideology. What does that mean? America is a purely capitalist country, where the primary focus is on profit. Doing business is relatively easy. Laws are made in favor of businesspeople, and government restrictions are less on how to do business. As long as there is profit and money, nothing else matters. The environment doesn’t matter. America is the biggest polluter in the world. Gun violence doesn’t matter. There are a couple of shootings every week. They care more about profitability than responsibility. But France is a mixed economy where there is a balance between capitalism and socialism, somewhat like India. The primary focus of socialism is not only profit but also the welfare of the country and its people.
France’s focus is on welfare. There’s a lavish expanse on education, unemployment benefits, and pensions. The labor unions are very strong there. talking about minimum wages Despite America being more developed and advanced than France, the minimum wage in France is 25% higher than in America. In America, thousands of people can be fired by taking out a notice. It is not that easy to fire people in France. Similarly, France is different from America regarding retirement and pension. In developed countries like America and Germany, people retire at the age of 67. In France, this number is 5 years less, 62 years. If the average of the world is taken out, then this number is 64, and that is why this retirement age is being increased by 2 years by passing a new law in France.
let’s understand why does the government want to increase this retirement age. there are two types of population, productive population and dependent population.
- Productive population: A productive population is a population that earns its own money and takes care of itself and its family.
- Dependent population: A dependent population is a population that cannot earn money by itself.
India’s population is a young population where 50% of India. which means exactly half the people are below the age of 25, and only 7% of people are 65 or older. A young population is very important for a country, because a young population is a productive population. Youth have more energy, they can learn new skills, and they can progress in their jobs.
Similarly, there is a situation today in India where one person leaves the job. There are 10 people there to get the same job. but in Europe, it is the opposite. Only 22% of people in France are under 25, and 23% are above 60, which means retired or about to retire. When a person retires, they stop earning money, but their expenses increase. and because of universal health care in France, the government bears the responsibility for their expenses. This means that the responsibility of retired people falls on the young population, and due to this, the economy slows down. Just a clarification over here: taking care of senior citizens and your family is not a bad thing. Ethically and morally, it is the right thing, but it is different economically. when we say that the young population bears the burden of the senior citizens. It means the tax revenue generated by the young population funds the senior citizen benefits. It goes into tax revenue, pensions, and healthcare, and very little is left to be used for the development of the economy. What’s happening in France is that even after the productive, tax-paying population of France pays taxes, They are not able to take on the burden of the retired and dependent population.
Today, there are three pillars of France’s pension system, which are divided into three categories: responsibility, government, and employer. but for this blog, we will only focus on government expenses. Every year, the government gives up to 11,000 euros to every retired person. 11,000 euros mean Rs.9,82,000. Its pressure comes from the GDP of France. Every year, 13% of their GDP goes only to pay pensions; this expenditure is 136 billion dollars. So what does the government do? They take out loans. France’s debt-to-GDP ratio has reached the highest in Europe. If France earns Rs.100, then they have a debt of Rs. 350 on their head. For comparison, if India earns Rs. 100, then we have a debt of Rs. France is in dire need of reducing this debt. to solve this problem in the future if the retirement age increases from 62 to 64. then those who used to retire at the age of 62 will work for two more years, that is, they will remain productive for two more years and contribute to the economy and pay some more tax.
Now we understand the points of view of the government. So have all these people who have taken to the streets gone mad? Of course not. Protesters say the pension system provides a safety net to retirees. For healthy people, 2 years is not a big deal, but some people work in a stressful environment. for example, nurses who at times work longer than their shift are beset by death and tragedy, which has an impact on their health as well. So it is valid for them to retire at the age of 62. They should not be forced to work for two more years. Today, those who are young say that we have paid for the pension of our older generation to date, and some part of the 11,000 euros that the government talks about come from the taxpayer’s pocket, so when we are old, why shouldn’t we get this benefit? I mean, it’s logical.
Protesters say that working two years extra should be voluntary, not mandatory. When old people retire, young people take their place. the same thing happens in labor-intensive jobs like construction. So if old people have to do mandatory work for another 2 years, unemployment among people will increase. Those who are senior in age will get promotions, and young people will have to wait. as a result people are angry they are blocking trains, workers are refusing to pick up garbage and have come into the roads. Tear gas and water cannons are being used to stop them, and the government is trying to convey the rationality of these reforms to the people, but till now the government has not been successful.
Will the France government fail?
Today 67% of France people say remove Macron. In the last few days, two attempts have been made to remove Macron’s government, but the opposition failed both times. This means that somewhere, France’s leaders believe that these reforms are controversial but necessary. France has made many mistakes in this whole issue, from which India, as a democracy, needs to learn.
- The first mistake is that they passed this law in a hurry. Protesters say that there were no discussions on this.
- The second mistake they made was that they underestimated the French protest culture. France is a country that not only deposed King Louis in the French Revolution but decapitated him literally. There is a culture of protest in France, and the public can get out of control; the government forgot this.
- The third mistake is that in any democracy, no matter how good a reform is, it should be gradual. slowly, not with a bang.
this lesson is not only for the government of France but also for the government of India.
Conclusion
Labor laws and pension laws are changing in France; does it make any difference to India? not at all. But one thing is to be learned from this whole incident: a pattern emerges here in France as well as in India. The basic thing is: why do people get upset? There are three reasons why people are angry in France. People consider Emmanuel Macron authoritarian. They think that he listens to the companies, not the general public, and does what is good for the companies. New and controversial laws are passed in haste with little discussion, and there is a lack of transparency. People do not believe that these laws are for their good. protesters believe that if Macron is concerned about the economy, He can raise taxes on the rich, but he is making people’s means lesser.
If you think a little carefully, then during the farmers protest, the same complaint was made by the Northern farmers to the government. whenever a new law comes along that wants to change the existing system. Communication and discussion need to start beforehand. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter how good or bad a law is. It does not matter. The only difference is how well it reaches people. India is not perfect, and we always blame our system. that’s correct. India’s political system is flawed because we do not focus on reforms. Many of our laws date from the British era. Important laws that were made to suppress people are still followed even after 75 years of independence. For example, the Indian Penal Code was made in 1860. when my great-grandfather was not even born; I don’t know how many things have changed since then. But our police still work in the same way as they did in the British era. Reforms are needed. Don’t our leaders know this? Of course, they know it all. but everyone is afraid of bringing about reforms. Because who knows what will be the reaction of the people? If control is lost, there will be riots, and who will stop them? This is an example. Now you think about what other laws there are that are in dire need of change in India.