Hundreds of Thousands Protest in France Over Cost of Living and Schools
Police used tear gas as protests entered a third weekend, with authorities estimating 320,000 participants nationwide and youth groups claiming up to half a million.
Police deployed tear gas in Paris and Lyon as hundreds of thousands of mostly young demonstrators marched across France to protest the cost of living and conditions in schools. The rallies marked the third consecutive weekend of nationwide demonstrations.
A coalition of youth organisations and student unions reported that nearly 500,000 people took part, including about 200,000 in Paris, while officials put the total at 320,000, with 70,000 in the capital. The Paris march began peacefully but turned violent near its planned endpoint, with bins and street furniture set alight and smoke visible over the city.
"What we’ve been seeing … is the police firing a lot of tear gas into this crowd," reported Al Jazeera correspondent Natacha Butler, adding that her team had to move away because the tear-gas was overwhelming.
Riot police warned that additional tear gas would be used if protesters did not clear the street. Medics treated injured participants, and some demonstrators raised their hands to signal non-violence. Masked individuals in black used hammers to pry up paving stones and threw them at police, and at least one incendiary device was thrown, prompting further tear-gas and baton charges.
The French Ministry of the Interior said at least 290 arrests had been made nationwide. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez warned of a “very high risk” of disorder, especially after dark on Halloween, and about 70,000 police and gendarmes were deployed across the country.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said the government had met with student unions and was considering measures to ease the cost of living. Unaccompanied minors faced a 9 p.m. curfew around the Champs-Élysées after a last-minute court decision moved the main Paris march to the city’s eastern edge.
The protests, which began last month over neglected school facilities, teacher shortages and perceived unfair university admissions, have spread to other European cities. In Germany, thousands gathered in Cologne, where police used water cannons. In Barcelona, regional police raised alert levels after rioting led to about 130 arrests, mostly of minors, and Italian police were on standby after clashes in Milan, Turin and Bologna.