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April 6, 2023 | 2:14 p.m
A new wave of unrest over pension reforms swept Paris and other French cities on Thursday. Angry protesters occupied the building of US investment firm BlackRock and set fire to a popular restaurant favored by President Emmanuel Macron.
Dozens of union members flocked to BlackRock’s Paris office in the historic Centorial building, where they set off firecrackers and shouted slogans at the company’s private pension fund.
“The government wants to throw away pensions, they want to force people to finance their own retirement with private pension funds, but what we know is that only the wealthy can benefit from such a facility,” said protester Françoise Onic, a school teacher.
BlackRock’s temporary occupation came on the 11th day of nationwide strikes and demonstrations criticizing Macron’s plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 to save France’s pension system from collapsing.
Loudly chanting the favorite slogan of French anti-pension reform protesters, “On est la” (“We are here”), the protesters retreated from the BlackRock building after about 30 minutes, leaving the lobby filled with smoke from the firecrackers.
Dozens of rail workers occupied the Paris office of US investment firm BlackRock to protest pension reforms. On the 11th day of the riots, AP riot police used tear gas across France to disperse protesters. Portal At least 20 protesters were arrested in Paris on Thursday after clashing with police officers. AP
Another financial institution that drew the ire of protesters was a branch of Credit Agricole, whose windows were smashed before police used tear gas to disperse the rioters.
Elsewhere in the French capital, protesters vented their anger at Brasserie La Rotonde on the Left Bank, where Macron hosted a celebratory dinner during the 2017 presidential election.
Protesters threw stones at the restaurant, set fire to its awning and hurled bottles and paint at police, who arrived to quell the riots.
A riot police officer was briefly knocked unconscious by a cobblestone in hand-to-hand combat.
Demonstrators set fire to the awning of the Parisian brasserie La Rotonde, which hosted President Emmanuel Macron’s 2017 feast. AP Angry activists threw stones and paint at riot police. AFP via Getty Images Protesters set fire to trash cans to express their dismay at the raise of the national retirement age from 62 to 64. Portal
In the western city of Reims, police fired tear gas at protesters who clashed with them and set trash cans on fire while shouting: “Strike, blockade, Macron, go away!”
Police also responded with tear gas in Lyon, where a Nespresso coffee shop was looted.
The pension reform that has become the centerpiece of Macron’s turbulent second term has met with widespread opposition, which intensified after raising the retirement age was pushed through the French parliament without a vote.
Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne met with union leaders on Wednesday to try to break the impasse, but their talks broke down after just an hour, with no solution found.
Masked protesters hold inflatable ducks during Thursday’s protest in Rennes, France. Portal Demonstrators waving open umbrellas clashed with police in Nantes on Thursday. AP A protester wearing a French General Confederation of Labor (CGT) union sticker and a communist face mask takes part in the 11th day of action in Montpellier, France. AFP via Getty Images
The protesters said the only way out of the crisis is to abolish the unpopular pension reform – an option Borne and Macron have rejected.
“There is no other solution than to withdraw the reform,” said the new chair of the hard-liner union CGT, Sophie Binet, at the beginning of the rally in Paris.
Both the government and the protesters expect the building council – France’s highest constitutional authority – to make its decision on the pension law on June 14.
Constitutional experts say the body is unlikely to strike down the law, which could take the wind out of protests that have been raging in France since January.
Latest data suggests the movement could lose momentum.
Macron has repeatedly ruled out abandoning the deeply unpopular pension reform. AP Latest figures show fewer people than before are taking part in nationwide protest days. AFP via Getty Images Unions have said they are determined to continue protests until the government reverses course on pension reform.Portal
About 400,000 people joined the protests in Paris on Thursday, up from 450,000 the week before, union CGT confirmed.
Across France, the previous nationwide day of protests on March 28 drew fewer crowds than the previous one, according to the Interior Ministry, with 740,000 taking part in strikes and rallies.
As early as March 7, a record 1.28 million French people took part in protests by blocking traffic, disrupting trade and walking out of work.
With mail wires
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