ANN CROTTY: The elite are under fire
How the world has changed, at least from an SA perspective
The roundabout just five minutes’ drive from Carcassonne airport was lit up with bonfires. For a split second I thought it was part of the Christmas celebrations intended to welcome travellers on cold, dark December nights. Then I noticed the yellow vests, les gilets jaunes, and heard the cacophony of horns from passing drivers hooting their support for one of the largest protest movements seen in France since 1968. Unlike Paris, which has been rendered a no-go zone by police and violent protesters, who have been accused of hijacking the movement, every weekend since early November, across rural France the mood has been much more peaceful. Those not out stoking fires at roundabouts show their support by putting the gilet jaune, which every French car is obliged to carry, on the dashboard. But even in the rural far south of the country there is anger. It’s impossible to know if it will swell or subside in the run-up to Christmas. President Emmanuel Macron’s few concessions may or may...
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