Like Canada, will truck convoys travel the roads of France to reach Paris and Brussels?

Since Saturday, January 29, thousands of truckers from several Canadian provinces have gathered in Ottawa to protest health measures. The movement, dubbed The Freedom Convoy, blocked the city to demand that the government end health restrictions. The siege of the federal capital lasted ten days. Ottawa’s mayor has declared a state of emergency after another weekend of tensions.

Also read:
“Freedom Convoy”: Ottawa Mayor declares state of emergency

In France, several discussion groups have already sprung up on Facebook and Telegram, and published maps and data from convoys across the country in February. The shipping make the point

Is there an impact in France?

In France, mobilization is just beginning to organize on social networks. A Facebook group called “The Convoy of Freedom” was founded on January 26, 2022. In eight days it reached nearly 270,000 members.

It states that “citizens intend to regain their liberties, fundamental rights, unconditional access to healthcare, education and culture, and respect for the essential values ​​of our Constitution.”

Some truck drivers have already posted “I Support the Freedom Convoy” placards in their cabs. Asked by The shipping, Ludivine Dubernet, General Delegate of Unostra, the employers’ association of road hauliers, assures that she “has no information on the start of the French mobilization of truck drivers”. The Interior Ministry has not responded to our request.

What actions are planned?

Several convoys have already been announced: Nice-Paris, Perpignan-Paris and Bayonne-Paris on February 9; Brest-Paris and Quimper-Paris on February 10; and convoys from Strasbourg, Charleville-Mézières, Lille and Cherbourg on February 11. The leaflets circulating on social networks announce a rally in Paris on Friday February 11, 2022 at 8 p.m. and a European convergence in Brussels on February 14, 2022.

(Click on the map to enlarge it).

Who organizes this movement in France?

It is a certain Rémi Monde, a hitherto unknown citizen, who is the origin of the movement in France. He is followed by 12,000 people on Facebook and 14,000 people on Telegram. For several months he has been calling for demonstrations against health restrictions, vaccination certificates and vaccinations. He did not respond to our interview request.

Who supports the movement?

The Freedom Convoy movement has already garnered the support of Florian Philippot, leader of the Patriots and former National Rally, Jean-Frédéric Poisson, former candidate for the LR primary, who has been joined by Eric Zemmour. He will also be joined by essayist Idriss Aberkane, Antivax’s new spokesperson.

Can the movement grow in France?

Can the Freedom Convoy settle in France? Jean-François Amadieu, specialist in social relations, explains this with caution The shipping : “If the movement was extended to the entire historical Yellow Vests platform, it would work. The “freedom convoy” seems to me to be quite centered on the vaccination certificate, the vaccine and freedom issues. Fuel, tax and purchasing power issues are defended by the yellow vests in 2018. The base of the “convoy of freedom” seems narrower to me”.

As the movements of road workers in the past have shown, a few trucks are enough to block an axle and cause delays of kilometers. However, these demonstrations had the support of the trucking unions. That’s not the case with The Freedom Convoy.

What answer from the government?

On Tuesday February 8, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin spoke about the movement and called for traffic to be blocked. “We use the means of intelligence and action if ever people wanted to block freedom, especially access to the capital,” he said at the microphone BFM TV before confiding that the police would be mobilized in numbers. “We will assume our responsibility to never allow freedom of movement to be hindered,” declared Gérald Darmanin. “The state’s response will be extremely decisive.”