French Nobel literature winner and others urge protests against Macron as inflation bites

A group of French intellectuals, including Annie Ernaux, Nobel Literature Prize winner, urged people on Sunday (9 October) to join the protests organized by the Left. They accused President Emmanuel Macron of not doing enough to help the poor deal with high prices, while some companies reap huge profits.

In a text published by the Journal Du Dimanche, the group of 69 signatories stated that "Emmanuel Macron is using inflation to widen the wealth disparity, to increase capital income at the cost of the rest," among other things.

"It's all a matter if political will," said the text co-signed by Ernaux who became first French woman winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Text stated that the government has not done enough in order to combat spiralling energy prices. It also declined to increase taxes on windfall profits resulting from high inflation.

Although French inflation is up sharply this year, due to the conflict in Ukraine, it is still among the lowest in euro-zone countries since the French government implemented measures that included a gas price freeze, food cheques, and special subsidies for pump prices.

Signatories called for participation in the 16 October protest march that was organized by the political party of the hard-left France Unbowed, which this year formed France's largest opposition bloc.

France Unbowed promotes the march as being "against high cost of living" and climate inaction. This comes as Macron faces strong resistance from unions regarding a planned reform to pensions and as strikes by workers calling for a raise from retail to refineries have disrupted some parts of the economy.

In awarding Ernaux, 82, the Nobel prize, the Swedish Academy stated that Ernaux "consistently examines a life markedly by strong disparities in gender, language, and class".

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