France: protests continue

Written by David Fletcher 26 Sep 2019
France: protests continue

Protests against President Macron and globalisation, neoliberalism, corruption, labour code reform and high taxes have been happening weekly by the ‘yellow vest’ movement since 17 November 2018. They have attracted hundreds of thousands of people across France - constructing barricades, lighting fires, breaking windows, and blocking roads in a choreography of street demonstrations amongst fumes of the various gases and car explosions / fires. Black Bloc activists added violence to the yellow-vest protest march, and 120 arrests were made by police. In January 2019 counter-demonstrators emerged, identified by their red scarves, denouncing the rebellious climate and verbal abuse created by yellow vests. Each Saturday there are also anti-Semitic expressions by extreme groups of radical Islamist or anti-Zionist and on 20 September climate change and pension reform caused disruption elsewhere in the French capital.

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