The government opens access to the notebooks of complaints written by the French

A part of the history of France now accessible to everyone. The government decreed on Wednesday, April 30, the opening to all citizens who request it from the notebooks of grievances written after the crisis of “yellow vests”. In a decree published at Official JournalThe Ministry of Culture stresses that the writings produced during this debate, so far open to researchers, “Can be freely communicated”on site or by sending copies.

These notebooks had allowed the French to express their complaints during the great national debate, a citizen consultation carried out from January to March 2019 and wanted by Emmanuel Macron in response to the vast popular movement of “yellow vests”, at the end of 2018, against dear life, the breakage of public services, the inequalities and the shortcomings of democracy.

“As of this Friday, everyone will be able to go to a departmental archive center or to the national archives without any particular constraint for a consultation of the notebooks”welcomed Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday evening. The president said he hoped that, “During 2026, these notebooks are also accessible online”. The government first wishes to anonymize contributions, long -term work that is underway.

The National Assembly unanimously adopted, on March 11, a resolution calling on the government to open these archives to all. The democratic exercise of the great debate, unprecedented in modern times, had led to the collection of “19 000 Citizens’ notebooks “And “National Treasury”According to the environmental member of Drôme Marie Pochon, at the origin of this resolution. The also rapid opening of archives to all, without derogation, “is exceptional”underlines the Ministry of Culture, while the legal deadline for archives of this type is 50 years.