Mayor Pierre Hurmic calls for “decisions to prevent the country from catching fire”

The entrance door to the City Hall of Bordeaux (Gironde) was set on fire on Thursday evening March 23 after the demonstration against the pension reform, noted the reporter from France Bleu Gironde on the spot. The door of the Town Hall, several meters high, caught fire around 8:15 p.m., the fire was quickly brought under control and extinguished by the firefighters.

>> Pension reform: these nocturnal “rapid” demonstrations which add to the union mobilization

“I am extremely saddened, shocked, indignant that we can attack the town hall, the house of all Bordeaux residents”, reacted Pierre Hurmic, the mayor of Bordeaux, Friday March 24 on franceinfo. He came from q Follow the town hall at the time of the fire. He immediately returned to the scene: “It was above all a reaction of indignation more than of fear. Above all, I do not want to please those who stupidly wanted to mark our town hall with their imprint of violence.” Pierre Hurmic was marked by a “show of desolation” observing the porch devastated by the flames: “A historic door from the 18ᵉ century which marks the welcome of the people of Bordeaux in their town hall. This is what we wanted to soil, which we wanted to damage, which we wanted to destroy.”

The mayor immediately brought together all the elected officials and municipal officials concerned. He found them “shocked and at the same time very united, very republican, saying: violence will not deter us from exercising our public service missions. The town hall will continue to operate normally from this morning”. Pierre Hurmic called on the government and Emmanuel Macron to do “significant and strong gestures to put an end to this situation”. According to him, “these are warnings that should encourage the public authorities at the highest level to take decisions to prevent the country from catching fire on the occasion of this reform”.

“The city of Bordeaux is always willing and motivated to welcome the visit of the King of England.”

Pierre Hurmic, Mayor of Bordeaux

on franceinfo

It is in this context of violence that the sovereign Charles III must go to Bordeaux on the occasion of his visit to France from March 26 to 29. The decision to cancel this visit is not up to him, he says. “There have been adaptations that have been made in agreement with the French authorities and the British Embassy so that this visit can take place in the best possible security conditions”. A visit to Bordeaux by tram was notably canceled.