Another grève, another overdue revolution? Citizenship Participation in France.

BY DAVID MACLEAN

It’s a cold December day in Paris and the holiday spirit that is beginning to fill the air is quickly being drowned out by the familiar cacophony and chaos of a grève.

December 5th marked the beginning of a Grève illimité or an ‘unlimited strike’, France’s largest strike in twenty-four years. Metro and commuter train conductors, rail line signalers, airline ground personnel, air traffic controllers, ferry operators, teachers, and postal workers are all on strike with no end in sight. Once again, Paris is thrown into confusion, frustration, protest, counterprotest, delay, and somewhere in the midst of it all, labored negotiation.

The Parisians I have talked to regarding the strike simply roll their eyes, smile, and say “Ufff, mais ç’est la France.” Let me be clear, I am an outsider and do not claim to know everything about the French cultural and political context. However, at the end of the day, I wonder if crippling disruption and chaos can be something to roll your eyes at and accept as normal while your city chokes to death around you.

Strikes are a common expression of public participation in France dating back as early as 1229. In 1864 strikes were legalized, and throughout the centuries, strikes have been an important part of citizenship participation.

The evolution of technology, in particular technological communication, has created more enhanced opportunities for public participation and expression in democratic societies. The concept of ‘Open Data’ has opened up the French political system to French society and allowed the public to influence, learn about, and scrutinize the legislative process. For example, the Yellow Vest movement could be seen as a watershed moment for public participation. It produced Le Gran Debat, a high degree of public consultation which, most-significantly, was largely facilitated online and involved an unprecedented level of interaction. Through Le Gran Debat’s online platform, citizens were able to participate in the legislative process and contribute their ideas and viewpoints for the purpose of informing policy development.

Other institutions such as Etalab or the National Commission for Public Debate are permanent and help French citizens to have a guaranteed voice. Through their portals, citizens can find projects on issues they care about, contribute their opinions to the deliberations, and be involved in the legislation process.

Paris’s Participatory Budget is another example of an innovative process involving technology. Through the use of an online platform, citizens are able to propose ideas and vote on how they think public funds should be spent by City Hall.

Rather than immediately turn to protest or only concentrate on the ballot box, technology has enabled the potential for a participatory revolution of sorts where citizens have access to platforms where they can express their views more thoughtfully, more directly, and in a manner that is more time and cost-effective.

Some technology has the potential to revolutionize methods of protests and democratic participation, can it revolutionize strikes as well?

Technology has the capacity to connect, enhance, and coordinate the decision-making process. By utilizing the technology-supported means of consultation and facilitation, decisions that would have otherwise been centralized ‘behind closed doors,’ with potentially dangerous fallout, are opened up for broader public participation. Technology could be a platform by which the demands and timelines for strikes are clearly outlined by the relevant parties that are closely involved. It could also be utilized as a forum for facilitating and mediating discussion between government and unions thus reducing the need to mobilize people and resources, enhancing the connection between the involved parties and relevant authorities, and maintaining ongoing communication. Considering how much protest and democratic participation in France have been enhanced through online forums, there is significant potential for strikes to evolve in this way as well.

As the current Grève continues and the delays mount, I can’t help but think that this situation could play out in a much better way. Citizenship participation is changing and technology is providing an exciting new frontier to bring government and the citizenry closer together. It is my hope that strikes can advance with the digital age and move towards movements of progress as opposed to this seemingly endless cycle of shut downs, chaos, and recovery.

References:
1. Government & Citoyen: government-et-citoyens.consultation.etalab.gouv.fr. Web. 09 December. 2019.
2. Gran Dèbat: granddebat.fr. Web. 06 Oct. 2019.
3. Le projets en dèbat: Commission nationale du dèbat public. debatpublic.fr/projets-en-debat. Web. 09 December. 2019.
4. The Local: “11 Metro lines to close. How Paris Public Transport will be crippled by Thursday’s strike action.” 03 December. 2019. Web. 09 December. 2019.

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