A dozen activists from the Last Renovation environmental movement blocked the A6a motorway near Arcueil south of Paris on Friday, October 28, causing heavy traffic jams. In the evening, an activist of the movement interrupted a performance at the Opéra Bastille, in the 12th arrondissement of the capital, journalists noted.
The purpose of the action “civil disobedience” on the highway, which took about half an hour, is “force the government to adopt an ambitious plan for the thermal renovation of buildings by 2040, the first step towards a significant reduction in France’s carbon emissions”according to a press release.
The blocking of cars, which began at 6 p.m., created moments of tension with motorists, who were sometimes violent. The police began to intervene around 6:30 p.m. The action ended about ten minutes later.
The activists of @last_renov block the A6 motorway (in the direction of the airport).
They want to ask for the “energy renovation of buildings”. pic.twitter.com/cXcGJeZswr
— Clement Lanot (@ClementLanot) October 28, 2022
In the evening, a young man wearing a white T-shirt that read “We have 879 days left” in English interrupted a performance of The Magic Flute at the Opéra Bastille, in Paris, by attaching himself by the neck with a bicycle lock to a ladder which was one of the elements of the decor.
The young man, who got on the stage during act 2 around 9:30 p.m., only had time to shout “If I’m here tonight, it’s not for pleasure” before the curtain fell to whistles and boos from the audience, some of whom were shouting “clear”.
The performance was interrupted for ten minutes, the young man was evacuated, said a member of the opera staff. Last Renovation claimed on Twitter this action of “civil resistance” attributed to “Victor, 25, committed citizen” who wanted “Warning about the danger of climate change”.