WORLD / EUROPE
Macron turns to Tik Tok, Instagram to push COVID-19 vaccine truths
Published: Aug 03, 2021 06:28 PM
French President Emmanuel Macron attends a European Union (EU) summit over video conference with French minister for European affairs Clement Beaune (L) at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on March 25, 2021. Photo: VCG

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a European Union (EU) summit over video conference with French minister for European affairs Clement Beaune (L) at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on March 25, 2021. Photo: VCG

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday took to Tik Tok and Instagram to try counter misinformation about vaccines following a third weekend of demonstrations over a controversial COVID-19 health pass.

Macron discarded his customary dark suit and tie for a black T-shirt in a short video from the presidency's holiday residence in southern France, in which he repeated that vaccines were the "only weapon" that could beat back a fourth wave of coronavirus.

"Some of you have been hearing false rumors, some of it rubbish it has to be said," he said in the selfie video, in which he urged the vaccine-shy to put their questions and concerns directly to him.

He was speaking after an estimated 200,000 people demonstrated across France on Saturday.

The protests were the biggest since Macron in July announced that people would have to furnish proof of vaccination, a negative COVID-19 test or recent recovery from COVID-19 to gain entry to most museums, cinemas and sports venues.

The rules will be extended to bars, restaurants, long-distance trains and shopping centers on Monday.

Opponents accuse Macron of running a health "dictatorship," saying the measures impinge on freedom of choice.

In scenes reminiscent of the "yellow vest" anti-government protests of 2018-19, tens of thousands have staged protests, some of which have ended in rioting. 

Macron, who is expected to seek re-election in 2022, has been the chief target of the demonstrators' ire.

On Saturday night, a vaccine center on the French Caribbean island of Martinique was set alight, while in the southern city of Montpellier demonstrators rounded on a pharmacist conducting COVID-19 tests, accusing him of being a "murderer" and a "traitor."

So far, 42.6 million people in France have received at least one vaccine shot, representing 63.2 percent of the population. Of these, 35.7 million are fully vaccinated. A further 19,600 infections were recorded on Sunday, up from under 5,000 in mid-June.

AFP