France retirement protests: Paris bans gatherings near key sites to quell unrest
Paris police have banned gatherings in areas around key government sites across the city in an effort to quell anti-government protests. France’s plan Extending the state pension age by two years without a vote.
According to an AFP report, police said, “Due to serious threats to public order and security … any gathering in and around the Place de la Concorde, as well as in the area of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.” Is prohibited.” “People who try to gather there will be systematically evicted by the police.”
French President Emmanuel Macron has decided to push through new legislation using Article 49.3 of the constitution, which would raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, which allows it to pass the law without a parliamentary vote. His decision has proven highly unpopular, sparking nationwide protests.
Demonstrators gathered in cities. including in Bordeaux, Marseille and elsewhere as they continue to demand votes, which Macron does not believe he will have.
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Demonstrators hold banners as they gather on de la Concorde near the National Assembly, with the Eiffel Tower in the background, after French Prime Minister Elisabeth Bourne gave a speech to announce the invocation of Article 49.3. To protest, which is a special provision in the constitution. The French constitution to push a pension reform bill through the lower house of parliament without a vote by lawmakers, March 16, 2023, in Paris, France. (Reuters/Pascal Rossignol)
Despite the Paris ban, protests continued on Saturday, instead gathering in Les Halles, a shopping area in central Paris, according to Politico.
A protester holds a cutout showing French President Emmanuel Macron near a fire during a demonstration on the Place de la Concorde to protest the French government’s use of Article 49.3, which is part of the French constitution. There is a special provision, through which the Pension Reforms Bill can be pushed forward. On March 17, 2023, in Paris, France, the National Assembly without a vote of legislators. (Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes)
More than eight in 10 people are unhappy with the government. The decision to abstain from voting in parliament, and 65% want strikes and protests to continue, a Toluna Harris Interactive poll for RTL radio showed.
French gendarmes and CRS riot police stand near a fire during a gathering on Place de la Concorde near the National Assembly on March 16, 2023 in Paris, France. (Reuters/Lucien Libert)
The protests have affected many. Major industriesThat includes refineries, waste collection and railways, The Guardian reported.
CGT union leader Philippe Martínez stressed that the group had made it clear to Macron that protests would continue as long as he followed through on his plan to scrap the legislation.
Members of the gendarmerie stand guard during a demonstration at the Place de la Concorde on March 17, 2023 in Paris, France. (Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes)
“Nobody can say we didn’t say anything: we told him,” Martinez said, adding that “the situation was explosive.”
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Street protests have been largely peaceful, but police clashed with protesters on Friday night, arresting 61 people after setting fires near the National Assembly. Protesters chanted “Macron, resign”. When they square off against a line of riot police.
A protester throws a projectile amid clashes after French Prime Minister Elisabeth Bourne used a special clause 49.3 of the French constitution to introduce it to the National Assembly without a vote by lawmakers. March 16, 2023. (Reuters/Stephen Mahe)
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More than 300 people have been arrested across the country, 258 of them in areas around the National Assembly in recent days.
A broad coalition of France’s central unions said they would continue to push for a U-turn on the changes.
Reuters contributed to this report.