00:00But first, the Bastille has been retaken.
00:02The words of French left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon
00:06after days of high school goers and student protests
00:09culminated in a mass gathering around the famous Place de la Bastille in Paris.
00:13For more on these strikes that look like they're here to stay,
00:16we can bring in now the French MEP Emma Ravovich from the Socialist Party.
00:20Good morning, Emma. Thank you so much for joining us here live on Europe Today.
00:24So, Luc Mélenchon saying the Bastille has been retaken.
00:27Do you endorse this revolutionary talk?
00:30I'm not going to speak about Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
00:32I think that what we are going to speak about and what is really important right now
00:36is the situation of high schoolers in France.
00:40Myself, actually, 15 years ago, I was also protesting.
00:44And what is completely striking for all of us here
00:48is how the situation hasn't changed for the youth.
00:51So why has there been such little investment in this sector?
00:55What are the main issues here?
00:56Well, I would say that the main issue is the government.
01:00Who actually isn't doing anything for the youth.
01:02Who isn't respecting the young people,
01:05especially when they are coming from, I would say,
01:08poorer neighbourhoods or departments of the country.
01:11When we are literally all over seeing high schools in shambles in France.
01:17You know, ceiling falling down, rats in school,
01:20lunches being basically not moment for quality time
01:24because, well, basically, there are sometimes rats or insects in the food.
01:28This is happening right now in France, which is a rich country.
01:32And this means that there is disrespect for the young people.
01:36But the protests, of course, have been hijacked by violence.
01:38They're the images that are being captured, of course,
01:40on the front pages of all the newspapers across Europe.
01:42How can CAM return to the streets of France here?
01:45Well, to me, honestly, there is something really good in protesting.
01:52And I really respect that.
01:53The problem right now is that we are seeing violence.
01:56Violence from, first of all, from the police side.
02:00The minister of the interior minister actually asked
02:03that the police shows no restraint
02:06when it was basically framing or organizing these mobilizations.
02:12And on the other side, of course, there are individuals
02:16who are deciding to basically profit this mobilization
02:20to make violence movements.
02:22But I want to say that this is not what is happening in the country.
02:26Violence is not the general thing.
02:29What is happening is protesting respectful one.
02:32We even see singing everywhere in the country.
02:34The youth are actually mobilizing quite well.
02:37And what is the government doing?
02:39Are they just closing their eyes and hoping it'll go away
02:41and then suddenly it'll be Halloween holidays?
02:43Well, you said it.
02:45I feel like it is that way, yes.
02:47And to be honest, I don't understand.
02:49I don't understand what they are doing.
02:51I feel like, you know, they are just looking the other way,
02:54hoping that the holiday will come soon
02:58and basically that the kids will not be in the streets.
03:01I feel like they are completely irresponsible.
03:04And just one final question.
03:06Meanwhile, while all this is happening,
03:08we've seen France heading towards a potential debt crisis.
03:11How could that impact France and, of course, the wider Eurozone?
03:14The debt also is something that shows just basically
03:18how Macron was completely irresponsible.
03:21Of course, in Europe, we all had the situation during COVID,
03:25taking really important choices
03:26and obviously increasing the debt of our countries.
03:30But today we also see a government
03:32that decided month after month, years after years,
03:35to give gifts, basically fiscal gifts, to the richest
03:40and basically deciding now is saying now that it is a problem
03:44and that the poor people, for example, in retirement
03:47should do big choices.
03:49And of course, we have the AI bubble on the market
03:52who is basically, well, I would say,
03:55disrupting the entire debt system
03:57and the bonds for France, of course,
03:59but for a lot of countries in Europe today.
04:03And I feel like, you know, we should say stop,
04:06that this is not enough
04:07and we should not let that go.
04:08Okay.
04:09Emma Ravovic, thank you so much for joining us this morning.
04:11You're, of course, very critical of the French government.
04:13We'll soon bring on a voice from there
04:14to have their view as well.
