China Daily Global Edition (USA)
High alert
A protesterin in a yellow vest, a symbol of dissatisfaction over higher fuel prices, holds the French flag as he hangs by a crane at a roundabout in Cissac-Medoc, France, on Wednesdays.
Protests continued on Wednesday, with petrol depots, service stations, and shopping centers among the targets of the “yellow vests” — so named for the high-visibility road safety jackets they wear.
Macron, whose approval ratings are down to just 23 percent, is yet to comment publicly since returning to France from a G20 summit in Argentina on Sunday.
But his office said he told ministers he would stick to his decision to cut a “fortune tax” on high-earners — a move which has infuriated many protesters.
Macron had made cutting wealth taxes a key campaign pledge ahead of his election in May 2017, arguing such levies discourage investment and drive away entrepreneurs.
But the policy, along with comments deemed insensitive to the working class, has prompted many of the ex-banker’s critics to label him a “president of the rich”.
Some experts say the government may have reacted too late to the protests — a regular feature of French political life which have repeatedly forced previous presidents into U-turns. “When you leave things to fester too long, it costs more,” said JeanFrancois Amadieu, a sociologist.