Protesters marching against the French government’s planned pension reform clashed with the police in Paris yesterday as police fired tear gas to disperse some groups of demonstrators.
French trade unions have spearheaded nationwide strikes since early December in an outcry over President Emmanuel Macron’s pensions overhaul, disrupting schools, railways and roads, while lending support to regular protests.
Yesterday “yellow vests” – an anti-government movement that sprung up a year ago as a backlash against the high cost of living – joined a rally of several thousand people against the pensions shake-up.
Riot police used tear gas against protesters close to tourists hotspots like the Centre Pompidou museum of modern art, where some demonstrators had attempted to erect barricades and set fire to them, and smashed up a bus stop.
Clashes broke out at other points of the demonstration too, although the protest was dying down by the late afternoon.
Jerome Rodrigues, a prominent figure in the “yellow vest” movement, was hurt in the eye although it was not immediately clear how he had sustained the injury.
It was later reported that he was hurt after being struck with the shield of an anti-riot police officer, who was pushing back a row of protesters.
Rodrigues was blinded in the same eye earlier this year during another demonstration.
France’s transport network remained disrupted across the country and in Paris on the last weekend of the year, and rail and metro workers have so far insisted they will keep pressure on Macron to abandon his overhaul.
“We’re ready to hold for quite a while,” said Laurent Djebali, a representative of the metro branch of the Unsa union as he joined the march.
Train travel in France was slightly improved yesterday ahead of New Year’s festivities, though a strike by local and long-distance public transport workers still led to a few kinks.
Six out of 10 high-speed TGV trains were running as scheduled yesterday, among the best numbers since early December.
French Environment Minister Elisabeth Borne said that train services had improved a little, and there were still free seats on many trains.
However, connections on popular routes had been booked up for days, according to the homepage of state rail company SNCF.
Trains for which tickets were still available for purchase online were guaranteed to run, said SNCF.
In Paris, six metro lines remained completely closed yesterday, while seven lines were only operating from 1-6pm (1200-1700 GMT), according to the French capital’s transport authority RATP.
The French capital is currently preparing for the influx of visitors that New Year’s Eve celebrations bring.
Bus services will be increased from late December 31 to January 1 in response, RATP announced.
An ongoing strike since December 5 has paralysed public transport in Paris and long-distance travel nationwide, with no solution in sight in the power struggle between the unions and the government of French President Emmanuel Macron.
Macron has touted his reform as conducive to a fairer system that will incentivise workers to stay in the labour force until 64 instead of 62 and balance the pension budget, while eliminating many special regimes.
A pause in strikes over the holidays, as wished for by Macron – never materialised.
The French government is expected to meet again with union negotiators on January 7.