French protest groups demand more rallies as Macron faces tough choices
French unions and protest groups called for more rallies on Oct 31 and a nationwide strike on Nov 5, pressing the government over wages, living costs and public services after mass protests.
PARIS – French protest groups and unions on Oct 25 called for further demonstrations as they sought to maintain pressure on the government after a huge security operation helped contain unrest during nationwide rallies on Oct 24.
The Interior Ministry said 410,000 people took part in the Oct 24 marches as the authorities deployed 70,000 police officers, helping to avert a repeat of the looting and vandalism that swept through many cities on Oct 17.
Labour leaders urged further protests on Oct 31 and a nationwide strike on Nov 5, saying frustration over wages, living costs and public services had spread far beyond the student movement that first mobilised in September.
Murielle Guilbert, co-leader of the left-wing Solidaires trade union federation, told BFM TV: “We see an aggregation of anger.”
She said grievances among students, workers, firefighters and other groups were converging.
“We call on people to take to the streets next Saturday.”
The SUD Education teaching union said it would join the Oct 31 demonstration, while the large CGT union said it would decide during the week.
Macron’s scope to respond is minimal
The Yellow Vests, a grassroots movement that emerged in 2018 as a revolt against fuel taxes, also called for mass rallies on Oct 31, including sit-ins outside town halls and the National Assembly.
“There is anger in this country. It’s growing in schools and universities, on roundabouts, in neighbourhoods, on farms and in workplaces,” activist Azelma Sigaux told reporters.
In 2019, President Emmanuel Macron was able to find the resources to reduce fuel costs in response to the Yellow Vests.
Seven years on, strained public finances have left him with little room to meet protesters’ demands. His mandate also expires in April 2027, and his centrist party no longer has the majority needed to pass major legislation.
The government has begun talks with unions and student representatives to defuse the crisis, but protest leaders say the measures it has proposed so far are inadequate.
“We have received no response at all from this government,” Guilbert said.
Police unions said on Oct 25 that they did not have enough staff to maintain for any length of time the high level of deployment that on Oct 24, which helped limit disorder to sporadic clashes in a number of cities, including Paris and Marseille.
A total of 1,314 people were arrested on Oct 24, half of last week’s numbers, the Interior Ministry said on Oct 25, and about 50 police were injured, compared with more than 1,000 last week.
The protests have also resonated beyond France’s borders.
On Oct 24, Belgian police used tear gas and pepper spray as they clashed in Brussels with anti-government demonstrators.
In Albania, peaceful protests that began at the end of May turned into violent unrest in October, and skirmishes have taken place in several Italian cities for a second week running. REUTERS
Source: The Straits Times https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/french-protest-groups-demand-more-rallies-as-macron-faces-tough-choices
