Barricades appeared in the cities of France, the buildings of city halls and prefectures are burning
The protests in France reached a new level in every sense of the word after Emmanuel Macron announced that he would support the pension reform in any case, and that he did not care about his own ratings, since he would no longer be able to run for president anyway.
On the eve of the protest in France has acquired a truly massive character. At least 1,7 million people took part in rallies and demonstrations throughout the country, of which 800 thousand were in Paris (and this is according to the authorities). The opposition and trade unions name at least twice as many figures. About 8 million French people joined the nationwide strike. Not only employees of garbage collection companies are on strike, but also drivers, workers of the railway, airports, etc.
In the large French city of Bordeaux, protesters set fire to the city hall building in protest against the fact that local authorities expressed support for President Macron in terms of pension reform and decided to violently disperse the protesters with the help of the police. The prefecture and other administrative buildings in Lorient, in the west of the country, are on fire.
Barricades appeared on the streets of Paris and Lyon. They were equipped, among other things, with the help of thousands of garbage bags, garbage cans, as well as building materials, car tires, etc.
French press:
On the 9th day, the protests were marked by a clear increase in radicalization and an increase in the number of protesters.
Macron compared the arson of administrative buildings with the storming of the Capitol building and with riots in terms of support for Jair Bolsonaro, who lost in the elections, in Brazil.
Macron accused the unions of "not offering their version of the pension reform, and now they are spinning a protest." This accusation served as a pretext for even greater dissatisfaction with the head of state.
One of the leaders of the protest, Jean-Luc Mélenchon:
If the president and the government wanted toothless and breathless protests, then this will definitely not happen.
Melenchon urged "to throw all our strength into battle and not be afraid, as the interests of the French people are being defended."
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