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Emmanuel Macron faces 200 protests across France over pension changes Mass protests in France call for government to drop pension changes
(about 7 hours later)
Police gear up for march of hundreds of thousands in Paris as anger grows over president’s ‘arrogance’ Hundreds of thousands take part in Paris march as anger grows over Emmanuel Macron’s ‘arrogance’
Emmanuel Macron was expected to feel the full force of French anger on Thursday as protesters gathered across the country to demonstrate their opposition to the pension age being raised from 62 to 64. Emmanuel Macron felt the full force of French anger on Thursday as protesters gathered across the country to demonstrate their opposition to the pension age being raised from 62 to 64.
Even before the president’s centrist government pushed the fiercely contested legislation through parliament using a constitutional measure that avoided a vote a week ago, record numbers of workers had taken to the streets. Hundreds of thousands of people took part in mostly peaceful marches in Paris and other French cities to demand the government drop the fiercely contested change.
Since then, Macron’s administration has narrowly survived a vote of no confidence – by nine votes – but the way the law was passed has inflamed the public mood. In Paris, the official demonstration, made up of a large cross-section of French society – young, old, professional, unemployed – set off from Place de la Bastille in the early afternoon and made its way to Place de l’Opéra along the Grands Boulevards, the main east-west road through the northern part of central Paris.
On Thursday, police had been notified of more than 200 protests across France and were gearing up for a massive turnout of hundreds of thousands of people at the main march in Paris. Along the route from Bastille to the opera house, the main east-west axis across the north of the city, shops, banks and businesses were boarded up early in the morning and vanloads of police and gendarmes stationed along roads. French union members, carrying flags and banners, were flanked by their own stewards to ensure their security. The crowd was dense and angry with the government and president, but the mood was also festive and motivated by a show of solidarity. The country’s second largest union, the General Confederation of Labour (CGT), claimed that 800,000 people had turned out.
Protesters have been galvanised by Macron’s appearance on television on Wednesday in which he said the protests were “legitimate” but would not lead to a U-turn on the controversial law, which not only raises the official retirement age but requires workers to contribute into the pension system for longer. The atmosphere was marred, however, by a group of young people called casseurs (smashers), dressed in black and wearing masks, who destroyed bus shelters, advertising hoardings, shop windows, the front of a McDonald’s, and newspaper kiosks, leaving a trail of glass and piles of burning bins in their wake.
The president was accused of showing “contempt and arrogance” for those opposed to the changes, which were a keystone of his re-election campaign last year. They also pulled up cast-iron grilles around trees and broke up paving stones, which they then threw at police.
Widespread strikes and industrial action led to major transport disruption on the roads and in the air, with flights cancelled. Airport authorities said the protests would have a knock-on effect on the weekend’s flights, with up to 30% of those scheduled to depart from Orly, south of Paris, cancelled on Friday and Saturday along with up to 20% of departures from Marseille, Bordeaux and Lyon. Protesters blocked terminal 1 at Charles de Gaulle airport north of Paris on Thursday morning. The worst clashes took place in Place de l’Opéra, where police attempted to disperse them with teargas. Police said they had arrested 26 people by 6pm, but there were fears of more violence as night fell.
Schools have closed and colleges were blocked around France including in Paris, Rouen, Marseille and Toulouse. Elsewhere, a woman had part of her hand blown off, reportedly by a teargas grenade, in the city of Rouen, where between 14,800 and 23,000 protesters gathered, according to figures from police and unions. There were large protests in Marseille, Lyon, Besançon, Rennes and Arles, as well as other French towns and cities.
In his 30-minute televised interview on Wednesday, Macron ruled out the dissolution of parliament, a reshuffle of his centrist government and the resignation of his prime minister, Élisabeth Borne, as the opposition has demanded. Even before the president’s centrist government pushed the pension changes through parliament last week using a constitutional measure that avoided a vote, record numbers of workers had taken to the streets in the previous weeks.
He said his only regret was “that I have not succeeded in convincing people of the necessity of this reform”. On Monday, Macron’s administration narrowly survived a vote of no confidence – by nine votes – but the way the law was passed inflamed the public mood.
On Thursday, police had been notified of more than 200 protests across France and were gearing up for a massive turnout . Along the route from Bastille to the opera house, , banks and businesses were boarded up early in the morning and vanloads of police and gendarmes were stationed along roads.
Many of the protesters, particularly the young, said they had been galvanised by Macron’s appearance on television on Wednesday in which he said the protests were “legitimate” but would not lead to a U-turn on the law, which not only raises the official retirement age but requires workers to make contributions to the pension system for longer.
Among the most angry were women protesters who said the new legislation was a double punishment for those who had taken time out of their careers to raise children and who were more likely to have low-paid and menial jobs.
“Everyone is angry. Everyone thinks this law is unfair, but it particularly penalises women who are expected to produce future generations of the nation, and then find they are punished for doing so,” said Marie, 46, a social worker.
Juliette, 51, a teacher, said: “They want to raise it to 64 today. Will it be 66, 67, 68 tomorrow? They tell us life expectancy is longer but are we to work until we collapse and are carted off to the crematorium?”
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Many protesters accused the president of showing “contempt and arrogance” for those opposed to the changes, which were a keystone of his re-election campaign last year.
Widespread strikes and industrial action led to major transport disruption on the roads and in the air, with flights cancelled. Airport authorities said the protests would have a knock-on effect on the weekend’s flights, with up to 30% of those scheduled to depart from Orly, south of Paris, cancelled on Friday and Saturday along with up to 20% of departures from Marseille, Bordeaux and Lyon. Protesters blocked terminal 1 at Charles de Gaulle airport north of Paris on Thursday morning.
Schools were closed and colleges were blocked around France, including in Paris, Rouen, Marseille and Toulouse. Protesters blocked the entry to a petrol depot in the Bouches-du-Rhône.
In his 30-minute televised interview on Wednesday, Macron ruled out the dissolution of parliament, a reshuffle of his centrist government and the resignation of his prime minister, Élisabeth Borne, as the opposition has demanded.
He said his only regret was “that I have not succeeded in convincing people of the necessity of this reform”.
Valérie Rabault, the president of the Socialist party group in the national assembly, called on Macron to order a final debate in parliament before the pensions law is enacted.Valérie Rabault, the president of the Socialist party group in the national assembly, called on Macron to order a final debate in parliament before the pensions law is enacted.
“We’re putting all the options on the table. We have entered a very serious democratic crisis less than a year since the president of the republic was elected,” she said, adding that the “blockades damage our democracy and damage France’s image abroad”.“We’re putting all the options on the table. We have entered a very serious democratic crisis less than a year since the president of the republic was elected,” she said, adding that the “blockades damage our democracy and damage France’s image abroad”.
Marie Buisson of the powerful General Confederation of Labour union told France Info radio that protesters were “determined”. “Since the [law] was passed by force there is anger,” she said. “Our objective is for the maximum number of people stop work.” Marie Buisson, of the CGT union, told France Info radio that protesters were “determined”. “Since the [law] was passed by force, there is anger,” she said. “Our objective is for the maximum number of people to stop work.”