Hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated in France on May 1 against President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial pension reform, which often resulted in violent riots. There were arrests and injuries in Paris and other major cities, and police used tear gas. Protesters set fire to cars and rubbish bins and smashed the windows of banks and shops.
In the evening, authorities spoke of 782,000 participants across the country, with 112,000 in Paris alone. According to union figures, there were 2.3 million people.
stone-throwing and arson
In the afternoon, the first skirmishes and 30 arrests broke out in Paris. In the capital, black-clad demonstrators threw objects at police officers, set rental bicycles on fire, destroyed bus stops and smashed shop windows. There were also violent scenes in Toulouse in the south of France. In Lyon, several vehicles were set on fire and business premises destroyed. In Nantes in western France, protesters also threw projectiles at police, who used tear gas. Stone-throwing and arson also took place in other cities.
The vast majority of protesters, of course, remained peaceful, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said. But especially in Paris, Lyon and Nantes, law enforcement had to deal with extremely violent rioters who had only one goal: to kill police officers and attack other people’s property. In Paris, a police officer was seriously injured, he suffered burns from a Molotov cocktail. “This violence must be condemned without reservation.” Video footage from several cities shows massive damage to property.
180 arrested, several injured
By late afternoon, there had been 180 arrests nationwide, 53 of them in Paris, the broadcaster BFMTV reported, citing authorities. In Lyon, 16 police officers and 6 demonstrators were injured. In the capital and other major cities, the police used drones for the first time to monitor the situation.
The unions had called for nationwide protests on Labor Day on Monday. The president of the left-wing trade union CGT, Sophie Binet, criticized Macron for self-isolating as a result of the pension reform. “The executive cannot rule without the support of the people,” she said ahead of the Paris protests. Her union has not yet decided whether to take up the government’s offer to discuss other labor market issues.
Source: Krone
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