France protests spread as students and workers press demands

Protests over living costs and conditions in French schools spread across France on Saturday, drawing students, labor activists and supporters of the “yellow vest” movement. Police clashed with small groups in Paris as authorities reported more than 30,000 demonstrators at actions outside the capital region by midday.

The Interior Ministry recorded 140 protest actions outside the Paris region and at least 166 arrests nationwide, according to CBS News. In Paris, police used tear gas near Place de la République against people wearing hoods and masks who threw fireworks and other objects at officers. Riot police filled the square and nearby streets.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez’s office said masked people had also carried out violence in Marseille, Rennes, Toulouse and Angers, including attacks on officers, fires and attempted looting. In Marseille, shops and a municipal police station were damaged, and protesters briefly entered the lobby of City Hall. Mayor Benoît Payan described the damage there as “limited” after police dispersed them, CBS News reported.

The demonstrations grew from student protests that began in mid-September. Al Jazeera reported that students at a high school in the Paris suburb of Créteil first took to the streets over deteriorating buildings, crowded classrooms, teacher shortages and what they see as inequality in education. The movement has since spread to thousands of upper secondary schools, with teachers and university students joining in.

The CGT labor union backed Saturday’s protests, calling for “higher wages and pensions, lower prices and the protection of public services that meet people’s needs.” Supporters also urged a revival of the “yellow vest” movement, which emerged in 2018. “Our paths may differ, but our concerns can converge,” prominent yellow vest activist Jérôme Rodrigues said in a video calling for people to join the demonstrations, according to Al Jazeera.

The unrest has brought scrutiny of police tactics. More than 6,700 children had been taken into police custody since mid-September, according to reports cited by Al Jazeera, which also said authorities reported more than 900 injured police officers. A 15-year-old lost a hand in a stun-grenade explosion outside a school in Lens, while a 16-year-old in Tours lost his sight after a rubber-bullet injury, Al Jazeera reported. France suspended stun grenades for student demonstrations, though Nuñez said Friday he had authorized their use in cases of what he called “urban violence.”

The government has dropped plans to raise some higher-education registration fees, promised 3,000 substitute teachers for high schools and opened an online survey for pupils, according to Al Jazeera. It faces demands for stronger public services while seeking to reduce a deficit that reached 152.5 billion euros ($171.3 billion), or 5.1% of gross domestic product, last year. Its proposed 2027 budget includes a public-sector pay freeze and limits on pension increases.

President Emmanuel Macron appealed for calm on Friday. “There is a constitutional right to protest and to express oneself,” he said. “But this right comes with the need to respect. Respect for people, respect for property, and therefore a commitment not to insult or destroy.”