It was a premonitory militant action that remains groundbreaking twenty years later. On August 12, 1999, twenty years ago to the day, took place the dismantling of McDonald's Millau, sub-prefecture of Aveyron.
Originally, a reaction to an American decision
Against a backdrop of a trade war with the United States, 200 to 300 sheep farmers gathered around the spokesman of the peasant Confederation, José Bové, landed as a tractor on the site McDonald's of the city to dismantle it. By attacking a symbol of the "industrial food", they intended to protest against a recent US decision to overtax imports of Roquefort, foie gras, truffles or mustard, in reaction to the European ban on beef hormones.
A flourishing mustache, that of José Bové, then became the symbol of the dispute, and August 12 a key date of altermondialism and the fight against junk food. The manager of the establishment - which opened however at the end of September - evoked a damage of 150.000 euros, before bringing back the invoice to 64.000 euros.
"It was a great action"
The years did not affect the determination of these activists. Twenty years later they are still activists, always peasants. The band of Larzac, gathered one evening "at Tintin", a small troquet a few kilometers from Millau, remained welded around what they still call their "idea of genius". Richard, Frederic, John Paul, Gilbert, and Jose, his pipe and his mustache, took part twenty years ago in this historical dispute.
"We went to a small demo, and then everything was packed," remembers Leon Maillet on Europe 1. The media were excited when there was prison, but we thought that after all for the good cause, it's great to go to jail. Besides, I think that when the judge told José that she was putting him in prison, he said "thank you Madam Justice". Because he understood that it was a brilliant action, "remembers Leon, a friend of the famous mustachioed man's fight." If we won against shale gas and GMOs, it is also thanks to the fervor activist who started at the time of McDonald's, "he believes today.
On June 30 and July 1, 2000, the trial of ten defendants was before the Millau Criminal Court. On September 13, José Bové, as leader of the troops, was sentenced to three months in prison, and eight of his co-defendants to sentences between two months suspended and 300 euros fine.
McDo yesterday CETA today
At 66, his colleague and friend Christian Roqueirol never gave up. His fight of the moment is CETA. "What we were denouncing at the time, we continue to denounce it today in relation to the CETA agreements, we must be able to produce all the food we need without necessarily having to import".
Twenty years later, in Millau, McDonald's of Bové, as he is nicknamed, is still standing. "The irony of the story, smiles Leon, is that by wanting to destroy McDo, it was finally made a huge publicity".