When more than a million people rallied throughout France on Thursday against unpopular pension changes, French unions called for more statewide strikes and demonstrations the following week, which would coincide with King Charles III’s anticipated visit.
According to the Interior Ministry, the march in Paris attracted 119,000 participants, setting a record for the city’s capital during the pension demonstrations. Nevertheless, the march was plagued by violence, as were many other marches. According to polls, the majority of French people are against President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, which he claims is vital to maintain the system.
The unions quickly announced fresh demonstrations and strikes for Tuesday, the day the British monarch is expected to visit Bordeaux as part of his tour to France, building on the significant turnout. According to the Sud Ouest newspaper, participants of an unapproved protest set fire to and rapidly damaged the impressive Bordeaux City Hall’s hefty wooden entrance on Thursday evening.
In cities and towns around the nation on Thursday, more than a million people participated in protest marches, according to the ministry.
While flames continued to burn in certain Parisian districts on Thursday night, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin visited the police headquarters and assured the public that security “poses no difficulty” and that the British monarch would be “received and welcomed graciously.”
He said that on Thursday, there was “enormous degradation” of public structures and business, “much more significant than in past protests.”
There are troublemakers, often from the radical left, who wish to overthrow institutions and overthrow the state by killing cops.
The protests were conducted the day after Macron infuriated his detractors even more by refusing to back down on the retirement reform that his administration rushed through parliament without a vote.
The eight unions coordinating the demonstrations stated in a statement that “while the (president) seeks to turn the page, this social and union action… affirms the commitment of the world of workers and youth to win the withdrawal of the reform.” On Tuesday, further countrywide strikes and demonstrations were called for in addition to localized action this weekend.
Travel was disrupted by strikes as demonstrators surrounded ports, refineries, and Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.
In Paris, clashes between police and groups wearing black and masks that assaulted at least two fast food establishments, a supermarket, and a bank served as a reflection of the violence’s escalation and diverted attention from the tens of thousands of nonviolent demonstrators.
Officers charged repeatedly and fired tear gas to disperse the crowd after being attacked with Molotov cocktails, items, and pyrotechnics. At the conclusion of the march, protesters gathered on the Place de l’Opera, which was partially obscured by a tear gas cloud. Radicals, according to Darmanin, number about 1,500.
Some marches were plagued by violence, particularly in Lyon in the southeast and the western towns of Nantes, Rennes, and Lorient, where an administrative building was stormed and its courtyard set ablaze and its windows destroyed.
The nine union-organized rallies that took place around the country on Thursday were the ninth to occur since January, when opponents of Macron’s proposal to increase the retirement age still held out hope that parliament would reject it. Yet, the administration used a unique constitutional provision to push it through.
In French interview on Wednesday, Macron remained steadfast in his belief that new legislation is required to keep retirement funds maintained. Other suggestions made by opponents included raising taxes on the affluent or businesses, which according to Macron would harm the economy. He maintained that before the end of the year, the government’s law to increase the retirement age must be put into effect.
The proposal now has to be approved by the Constitutional Council.
“We are attempting to suggest that before the bill is passed that we need to find a way out and that way out is the law being withdrawn, “According to Laurent Berger, president of the moderate CFDT union, to The Associated Press.
Public transportation networks in other significant cities, the Paris metro, and high-speed and regional trains were also affected. In Paris Orly Airport, almost 30% of scheduled flights were canceled.
The strikes on Thursday caused the Eiffel Tower and the Versailles Palace, where the British monarch will dine with Macron, to be shuttered.
Violence, a regular problem during demonstrations, has been worse recently. According to Darmanin, 12,000 security personnel, including 5,000 in Paris, were on the streets of France on Thursday.
In a statement, the Education Ministry said that 15% of instructors in high schools and roughly 24% of teachers in elementary and intermediate schools both took a sick day on Thursday.
Several strikers carrying flares and yelling “and we will go, and we will go till withdrawal” blocked trains from moving at the Gare de Lyon train station in Paris “as well as “Macron, go.”
“Maybe our vacations won’t be as enjoyable this year, “Maxime Monin, 46, emphasized that workers in public transportation, like himself, are not paid on strike days. Yet I believe the price was worthwhile.
A bus depot in Pantin, in the northern suburbs of Paris, was stopped by several dozen union members during rush hour, preventing 200 vehicles from leaving.
A 48-year-old bus driver who was involved in the protest, Nadia Belhoum, condemned Macron’s choice to push through the higher retirement age.
“The Republic’s president… is not a monarch, and he should respect the will of the people, “She remarked.
