Seeing the clock tower of Limoges’ City Hall collapsing in a blazing heap, I wondered whether we will see it restored in a few years’ time or whether it will remain as it is, a reminder of the current uprising. Will it be revived, like Paris’ Notre Dame cathedral after the catastrophic fire of April 2019? Or will it remain an empty ruin, like the Attikon Cinema in Athens that was set ablaze in February 2012 and has still not reopened, a reminder of endemic violence and the inability of our state and citizens to agree on things, no matter how much time passes?
For us in Greece, the turmoil in France and elsewhere is familiar. Because we have experience of what happens when things spin out of control, we know that much will depend on whether the damage (in Limoges, in Paris and other cities) will be repaired, on whether order will be restored in a strict and just way, or whether the authorities, politicians and society will be unable to undertake the restoration of damage to buildings and the healing of wounds in society.
In France today, the extreme left wing presidential candidate’s encouragement of the protests works to his advantage, while the backlash by many against the violence is wind in the sails of his extreme right wing rival. If these two get to the second round of the presidential elections in a few months’ time, it is almost certain that Marine Le Pen, with her commitment to impose order, will win. She will then be up against those who, with their violence, will have helped her win.
Which of these two camps will attempt reconciliation and cooperation? Who will take on the deficits, the debt, the inequality and the necessary spending cuts which have provoked today’s turmoil? If things get worse, not only will Limoges’ tower remain a ruin, but other monuments, too, will be destroyed.
If in Greece we boast that “we lived through all this first” and got through the crisis, let’s not forget that the Attikon is still closed, a large part of our “growth” has come at the cost of the country’s beauty, and young people see no future here. We are not a good example.