Tenth day of mobilization against pension reform in France on Tuesday, with 200 demonstrations organized across the country. Some tensions were noted in Nantes and Rennes. Update on mobilization with the France Bleu network.
Around 200 demonstrations are taking place on Tuesday March 28 in France for the tenth day of mobilization against the pension reform. Some tensions were noted in Nantes and Rennes. Overview with the France Bleu network.
BRITTANY
In Rennes, in Ille-et-Vilaine, the demonstration started around 11 a.m. from Place de Bretagne, reports France Bleu Armorique. The procession gathered 25,000 people according to the unions, 13,600 according to the prefecture of Ille-et-Vilaine. If the ranks of the demonstrators are a little more sparse than last week, the mobilization of young people is however strong, with in particular students from the universities of Rennes 1 and Rennes 2.
Tensions enamelled the procession from midday towards the Place de la République with the first shots of tear gas. The prefecture asked the organizers of the procession to temporarily stop the parade because of the presence of thugs at the head of the procession. Police and gendarmes used water cannons to disperse the demonstrators. Six people were arrested for carrying weapons by destination, including one with a bag of bolts on him.
PAYS DE LA LOIRE
In Nantes, in Loire-Atlantique, the inter-union claims 60,000 demonstrators, 18,000 according to the police. On March 23, the mobilization had gathered 80,000 people according to the unions, 25,000 according to the prefecture, reports France Bleu Loire Océan.
The procession was fraught with tension from midday. A flaming barricade was erected while young demonstrators threw projectiles at the police, a fire quickly extinguished by firefighters. Shortly after 2 p.m., tractors advanced towards the police, causing the CRS contingent to retreat. Black blocks erected a barricade near Gloriette Island, according to France Bleu Loire Océan. Garbage cans placed in front of the door of the administrative court were set on fire, but the fire, which did not spread to the building, was extinguished.
In Saint-Nazaire, in Loire-Atlantique, 8,500 people demonstrated according to the police, 15,000 according to the unions. On March 23, they were 9,000 according to the police, 13,000 according to the unions, recalls France Bleu Loire Océan. There too, tensions enamelled the demonstration. Exchanges of rockets and tear gas took place in front of the sub-prefecture. The police also made use of defensive ball launchers, according to France Bleu Loire Océan.
In Laval, in Mayenne, 5,000 people marched in the streets, according to Force Ouvrière, 2,900 according to the police, reports France Bleu Mayenne.
PROVENCE-ALPES-COTE D’AZUR
In Marseille, in the Bouches-du-Rhône, 180,000 people marched in the streets, according to the unions, 11,000 according to the police, reports France Bleu Provence. On March 23, the unions claimed 280,000 people against 16,000 for the police. Participation is also down in Arles, with 1,500 people according to the police headquarters, against 6,000 on March 23, and 4,000 according to the unions.
In Toulon, in the Var, the procession is also less provided than last Thursday with 6,500 people according to the prefecture against 12,000 on March 23. In Draguignan, the prefecture announces 1,300 demonstrators.
France Bleu Provence reports that traffic was disrupted earlier in the morning around the Ecopôle of Saint-Martin-de-Crau causing some traffic jams. And on the Old Port of Marseille, hotel maintenance staff gather in front of the Radisson hotel from 9 a.m., supported by the National Confederation of Workers (CNT).
In Avignon in the Vaucluse, between 25,000 and 30,000 people came to parade, according to the unions, reports France Bleu Vaucluse, or as many as on March 23.
NEW AQUITAINE
In Bordeaux, in Gironde, the procession gathered 10,000 people according to the prefecture, 80,000 for the CGT, reports France Bleu Gironde. Students and high school students were present in the demonstration with the slogan “retirement, a matter of young people”. A large police force framed the mobilization.
In Dax in the Landes, the event brought together more than 3,000 people, according to France Bleu Gascogne. At midday, demonstrators invaded the tracks of the station for a few minutes. But this did not cause any delays or cancellations of trains, many were already canceled due to the strike day.
In Bayonne, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, the procession gathered fewer people than the previous week, with 13,000 participants according to the unions and 6,500 according to the prefecture, reports France Bleu Pays Basque. In Pau, also in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, the unions claimed 10,500 people in the demonstration, reports France Bleu Béarn Bigorre. This 10th day of mobilization took place calmly, without any overflow.
In Tarbes, in the Hautes-Pyrénées, 15,000 demonstrators marched Tuesday morning according to the inter-union, 5,000 according to the police. The demonstration took place calmly, reports France Bleu Béarn Bigorre.
In Guéret, in the Creuse, the demonstrators were 2,500 according to the prefecture, 3,000 according to the unions, reports France Bleu Creuse, half less than on March 23.
GREAT EAST
In Strasbourg, in the Bas-Rhin, the procession gathered 15,000 demonstrators according to the unions, 6,500 according to the prefecture, reports France Bleu Alsace. They were double on March 23.
In Nancy, in Meurthe-et-Moselle, between 10,000 and 15,000 people mobilized in the streets of the city center, according to the unions, reports France Bleu Sud Lorraine.
In Reims, in the Marne, 4,500 demonstrators marched through the city center at the end of the morning, according to the unions, 2,500 according to the police, a mobilization down from Thursday March 23, according to France Bleu Champagne Ardenne. In the morning, the Reims youth left the main procession, heading first to Notre-Dame de Reims cathedral. The demonstrators sat on an avenue to block traffic, before taking the direction of the station in a rather calm atmosphere.
BURGUNDY-FRANCHE-COMTE
In Belfort, in the Territoire de Belfort, the 10th day of mobilization brought together 4,000 participants according to the unions, 2,200 according to the police, reports France Bleu Belfort Montbéliard, a lower participation compared to March 23. At the end of the morning, 200 people tried to block the A36. Yellow garbage containers were burned on the roadway. But the demonstrators were repelled by the police by the use of tear gas. The outbreak of the fire was brought under control by firefighters. Two people were arrested for contempt, violence against a public servant and burning a trash can, according to the police.
CENTRE-VAL DE LOIRE
In Tours, in Indre-et-Loire, the 10th day of mobilization brought together 5,700 demonstrators according to the police, 9,000 according to the unions, reports France Bleu Touraine.
In Orléans, in Loiret, between 8,000 and 10,000 people marched in the streets, according to estimates by France Bleu Orléans.
TOPS-DE-FRANCE
In Amiens, in the Somme, the procession which set off at 2.30 p.m. brought together 4,800 demonstrators, according to France Bleu Picardie. They were 6,000 on March 23.
NORMANDY
In Le Havre, in Seine-Maritime, 50,000 people marched according to the inter-union, 7,200 according to the prefecture, reports France Bleu Normandie. On March 23, the unions claimed 50,000 demonstrators, and the prefecture 10,000.
In Cherbourg, in Manche, 12,000 people responded to the call to demonstrate, according to the inter-union, 6,000 according to the prefecture, reports France Bleu Cotentin. On March 23, the unions claimed 15,000 people, against 8,000 for the police. In Saint-Lô, the parade brought together 1,300 people, according to police and unions.
AUVERGNE-RHÔNE-ALPES
In Saint-Etienne, in the Loire, the prefecture announced 5,100 demonstrators present in the procession, reports France Bleu Saint-Etienne Loire. 2,700 people marched in Roanne, again according to the prefecture. In Puy-en-Velay, in Haute-Loire, 2,800 people were counted, according to the prefecture.
In Clermont-Ferrand, in Puy-de-Dôme, the 10th day of mobilization brought together 35,000 people according to the unions, 11,000 according to the prefecture, reports France Bleu Pays d’Auvergne.