Status: 07/24/2021 7:14 p.m.
Once again, thousands of French took to the streets against stricter corona rules. According to media reports, there were clashes with the police. The government plans to expand the obligation to provide evidence in the future.
In Paris and other French cities, thousands of people demonstrated again against the tightening of the corona rules. In addition to the mandatory vaccination for health workers, the protest is also directed against the health passport, which provides information about a vaccination or a negative test.
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Paris and Toulouse that afternoon. Protests were announced in the course of the day for Lyon, Strasbourg, Lille and Marseille, among others. According to the authorities, more than a hundred thousand demonstrators were expected across the country.
The TV news channel BFM showed pictures of riots on the sidelines of the protest in Paris – the police used tear gas. According to France Info, some demonstrators attacked police officers.
Little sympathy for demonstrators
According to the Interior Ministry, around 114,000 people took to the streets across the country last weekend. The participants warned against a “health dictatorship”.
However, the protesters apparently do not represent the majority of the population: In a survey by the Elabe Institute for the broadcaster BFMTV on July 13, 76 percent of the French spoke out in favor of mandatory vaccination. The expansion of the health pass also met with a majority of approval.
The obligation to provide evidence is expanded
According to the central government of Prime Minister Jean Castex, the country is in a fourth corona wave. Due to the rampant delta variant, the number of cases is increasing. President Emmanuel Macron therefore announced tightened measures in July, which the Prime Minister Castex has now initiated.
The amendment to the law was approved by the National Assembly on Friday. It should be sealed by the Senate in a fast-track procedure by Sunday. The amendment provides that the obligation to provide evidence of a negative corona test, vaccination or recovery is expanded. Proof of this should be required from August for the use and visit of long-distance trains, bars, restaurants and shopping centers. All health and care workers as well as fire fighters and other rescue workers must be vaccinated by September 15th at the latest. Otherwise there is a risk of an occupational ban.
48 percent fully vaccinated
Health Minister Olivier Véran defended the health passport and promised: “We will put an end to this as soon as we can.” He added, “If 90 or 95 percent of the population is vaccinated, we will have 300 cases a day instead of 20,000. We will then live with Covid until it goes away on its own.”
The announcement of the stricter corona rules alone has accelerated the vaccination rate in France: By Friday, 58 percent of the population had received at least one vaccination dose, 48 percent were already fully vaccinated.