France retirement protests: Paris bans gatherings near key sites to quell unrest
Paris police have banned gatherings in city venues in areas around important government sites in an effort to end protests against France’s plan to raise the state pension age by two years without a vote.
According to an AFP report, the police said, “Due to serious risks of disturbance to public order and security … any gathering is prohibited in the area of the Place de la Concorde and its surroundings, as well as the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.” Has been done.” “Those who try to assemble there will be systematically evicted by the police.”
French President Emmanuel Macron has decided to push through new legislation that would raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, using Article 49.3 of the constitution, which allows him to pass legislation without a parliamentary vote. His decision has proved deeply unpopular, prompting nationwide protests.
Protesters gathered in Bordeaux, Marseille and other cities as they demanded a vote, which Macron did not believe would pass.
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Demonstrators hold banners as they gather on the place de la Concorde near the National Assembly, with the Eiffel Tower in the background, to protest after French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne made a speech announcing the use of Article 49.3. The French constitution, in Paris, France March 16, 2023, to push a pension reform bill through the lower house of parliament without a vote of lawmakers. (Reuters/Pascal Rossignol)
According to Politico, protests continued on Saturday despite the Paris ban, instead gathering in Les Halles, a shopping area in the center of Paris.
A demonstrator holds French President Emmanuel Macron close to a fire during a demonstration on the Place de la Concorde to protest the French government’s use of Article 49.3, a special clause in the French constitution, So that the pension reform bill can be carried forward. The National Assembly without a vote by MPs on March 17, 2023 in Paris, France. (Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes)
More than eight out of 10 people are unhappy with the government’s decision to leave the vote 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 in position near fire as protesters gather in the Place de la Concorde near the National Assembly on March 16, 2023 in Paris, France. (Reuters/Lucien Liebert)
The Guardian reported that the protests have affected a number of vital industries, including refineries, waste collection and railways.
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Philippe Martinez, leader of the CGT union, insisted the group had made it clear to Macron that the protest would continue as long as he followed through with his plan to enact the law.
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, “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 a fire broke out near the National Assembly. Protesters chanted “Macron, resign!” as he did against a line of riot police.
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne throws a protester amid a protest in Nantes, France, after using Article 49.3, a special clause of the French constitution, to push a pension reform bill through the National Assembly without the vote of MPs. March 16, 2023. (Reuters/Stephen Mahe)
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More than 300 people have been arrested nationwide, 258 of them in the area around the National Assembly in recent days.
A broad coalition of France’s main unions said they would continue to try to force a U-turn on the changes.
Reuters contributed to this report.
