Frenchman self-immolates after being denied joblessness benefits
Workers of French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen demonstrate in front of the factory in Aulnay-sous-Bois, outside Paris, on July 12, 2012, after the group announced it would slash 8,000 jobs. Unions slammed the announcement as a “declaration of war” and an “earthquake,” with the hardline stance certain to add to the problems facing the new Socialist government as it deals with France’s flagging economy.
A forty-three year old French man lit himself on fire outside of a state unemployment agency on February 13th, killing himself after discovering he was to be denied joblessness benefits.
The self-immolation occurred in Nantes, reports DW.com, and police found themselves unable to stop the man from proceeding with his suicide.
Read more from GlobalPost: Moody's downgrades French credit to AA1
The man appears to have warned local media that he would self-immolate if he was denied the benefits, notes RT.com, causing police to set up a surveillance — which failed to prevent him from carrying out his plans.
A British monk died in November 2012 after self-immolating at a Buddhist monastery in Southern France, in a protest apparently linked to Tibet's protest against China.
The French unemployment rate stood at 10.3 percent in the third quarter of 2012, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies — slightly lower than the EU unemployment rate, which stood at 11.8 percent in November 2012, the highest rate on record, according to the Guardian.
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