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French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday vigorously defended his move to push through a law raising the retirement age, sparking angry protests and strikes across the country.
In his most direct comments to the nation since the legislation was passed last week, Macron described the plan, which has had France in turmoil for weeks, as a necessity the people must endure together.
“We must move forward because it is in the nation’s highest interest,” he said in a live interview with TF1 and France 2 TV from the Elysee Palace.
He said the pension reform plan should come into effect by the end of the year, but he is now awaiting a decision from the Constitutional Council before moving forward.
The government’s use of the executive branch to pass the pensions bill without the approval of the lower house of parliament threw French politics into upheaval and escalated a simmering crisis.
The plan to raise the minimum retirement age from 62 to 64 has provoked such anger in France that protests have sparked clashes amid heavy police presences, strikes paralyzed trains and schools, and strikes by garbage collectors left piles of garbage bags rotting on the streets of Paris.
The 45-year-old French President has defended the increase in age as necessary to ensure the survival of France’s ailing pension system. “The longer we wait, the more it will be dismantled,” Macron said in an interview on Wednesday.
He struck a defiant tone, posing as the country’s administrator and saying there was nothing for him because he was not standing for re-election. The pension restructuring “doesn’t make me happy”, but it is necessary, he added.
France protests: what to know as Macron forces raising retirement age
While the French government survived two no-confidence votes in parliament this week, backlash over the controversial pension reform plan has only increased as ongoing protests take place in parts of France on Wednesday and unions plan another round of nationwide mobilizations for Thursday.
Macron stressed that he respects unions and protesters who opposed his plan, but said he condemned violence and said roadblocks must be lifted so the country can “get back to normal as soon as possible”.
In the past week, protests have been reported from cities such as Toulouse, Marseille and Lyon. Police fired tear gas and water cannons at protesters gathered in Paris’s Place de la Concorde, while protesters set fire to Nante’s rubbish bin.
Authorities have arrested hundreds of protesters in recent days, although few have been charged, French media reported, while the interior ministry said 94 officers have been injured in clashes since last Thursday.
Macron, nearly a year into his second five-year term, lost an outright parliamentary majority in last summer’s general election.
city… garbage? Paris is drowning in garbage amid strikes
While the pension bill won support from the Senate, the upper house of parliament, it drew fierce criticism from left and right in the National Assembly, or lower house, which was later to vote on the bill.
Even with the backing of some questionable centre-right lawmakers, the government sidestepped a vote with executive powers and avoided the risk of defeat.
The bill faces review by the Constitutional Council, the court that reviews the constitutionality of laws before they can become law.
Some union leaders have warned that broader social unrest could be looming, reminiscent of the Yellow Vests movement of 2018, which saw regular clashes with police until coronavirus pandemic restrictions hit. This movement, sparked by proposed tax increases, spread to other grievances, including over social inequality.
Rick Noack contributed to this report.