After agitation against the government pushing through a rise in the pension age intensified on Saturday, France banned protests in front of the parliament, according to news agency AFP.
“Due to serious risks of disturbances to public order… all gatherings on the public thoroughfare in Place de la Concorde and its surroundings, as well as in the area of the Champs Elysees, are banned,” police said.
As a result of President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to bypass the parliament and push through his pension reform, which includes raising the pension age from 62 to 64, over 300 people have been arrested in the previous 24 hours.
Invoking Article 49.3 of the Constitution, which enables the French government to enact legislation without a legislative vote, was the president Macron’s directive to prime minister Élisabeth Borne.
He made the choice because he believed that if MPs opposed the law, there would be an excessive economic danger to the nation.
According to reports, held a protest in major cities like Paris and Rennes as well as smaller towns like Laval and Évreux as opposition politicians accused the government of taking a harsh and undemocratic action.
Early on Friday morning, 200 people briefly backed up traffic on the Paris ring road. At the main train station in Bordeaux, dozens of protesters could be seen standing on the tracks.
Others threw bottles and fireworks at the security personnel, who then used tear gas to try to clear the angry crowd.
In the south-eastern city of Lyon, protestors allegedly attempted to break into a town hall and set fire to the structure.
“There is no place for violence. One must respect parliamentary democracy,” news agency Reuters quoted Digital Transition and Telecommunications Minister Jean-Noel Barrot as saying.
Meanwhile, a broad alliance of France’s main unions has said it would continue to stage protests to try to force the government change its decision. A day of nationwide industrial action has also been scheduled for Thursday, Reuters reported.
The opposition lawmakers have filed two motions of no confidence in the government that will be debated in parliament on Monday afternoon, AFP reported.
Also Read: OnePlus 11: Top variant with innovative features to launch in India, specs and all other details here
Keep watching our YouTube Channel ‘DNP INDIA’. Also, please subscribe and follow us on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, and TWITTER
