Students continue to demonstrate against pension reform. This Thursday, at the call of various youth organizations, dozens of high schools and universities are the scene of protest actions against the pension reform throughout France, AFP noted.
In Paris, access to several high schools was blocked by young people, often perched on garbage cans, in particular at Louis-le-Grand (5th arrondissement), Rodin (12th), Jules Ferry (9th), Racine (8th), Bergson or Brassens (19th). In front of Louis-le-Grand, 150 to 200 people were gathered, with signs “Macron resignation” or “Retirement before arthritis”, chanting “Paris, Paris rise up”, according to an AFP journalist. “We disagree with various government actions, including the misuse of 49.3,” said Emma, a 19-year-old student from khâgne.
“77 incidents in high schools in France”
Contacted by AFP, the Ministry of National Education reported Thursday noon of “77 incidents in high schools in France: 27 blockages, 37 filtering blockages, nine blocking attempts and four other forms of disturbance such as rallies or a localized power outage in an establishment. In front of Louis-le-Grand, 150 to 200 people were gathered, with signs “Macron resignation” or “Retirement before arthritis”, chanting “Paris, Paris rise up”, according to an AFP journalist.
“We disagree with various government actions, including the misuse of 49.3,” said Emma, a 19-year-old student from khâgne. “For a week, there has been a popular effervescence because the 49.3 does not pass. We continue to fight, we have no choice, ”said Manès Nadel, Paris federal head of La Voix lycéenne, to AFP. The student union L’Alternative counted some 80 schools and universities mobilized in France, including around sixty blocked at least partially or occupied.
Lockdowns in all major cities in France
The law school of Assas, in Paris, was notably blocked for the first time since the start of the movement on pensions, with a hundred students present in front of a banner “General strike, Assas the red”, reports AFP . In Marseille, a rally was held on the forecourt of the Thiers high school (downtown) and access to the Saint-Charles university is blocked. “There is a lot of anger, also because of the custody of students and police repression,” testifies Grégoire, a computer science student.
In Lyon, the management of the Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS) announced the cancellation of classes after the blocking of access to two sites. In Toulouse, the entrance to the University of Toulouse-Mirail was also blocked, according to students on site, as were Sciences po Toulouse, the Insa engineering school and the Saint-Sernin high school (downtown). The other two faculties in the city, on the other hand, operate – despite a vote of students in GA the day before – due to an insufficient number of students mobilized. In Rennes, several high schools were blocked and courses suspended at the University of Rennes-2, spearhead of the protest.