Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets of several French cities this Saturday, starting with the capital, Paris, in a new protest against the government’s planned pension reform where organizers, led by the unions, expect to break attendance records.
The march in Paris started at 13.00 and has developed so far relatively normally although some participants have thrown some objects against the police, according to ‘Le Figaro’.
The most remarkable event has taken place at Orly international airport, south of Paris, where a surprise stoppage has forced the cancellation of half of the flights.
French media estimates put the number of participants at more than 321,000 as of 2:30 p.m., compared to the 262,000 registered last Tuesday in the same localities where the marches are taking place, such as Nantes or Lyon.
The French government is still planning to gradually raise the retirement age to 64 — two years higher than the current 62 — and to increase the contribution period required to qualify for the maximum pension. The text also eliminates specific privileges for certain groups.
However, the Government does not have a guaranteed majority to push through a reform, which has been criticized from both sides of the political spectrum. The former presidential candidate of La France Insoumise (LFI), Jean-Luc Mélenchon, has called on the country’s president, Emmanuel Macron, to be «reasonable» and not «authoritarian».
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
