The political meeting of the “united left forces” (Nupes) did not go at all as planned on Wednesday evening at the city hall reindeer. Around 8 p.m., a group of demonstrators of just over 200 people and composed mainly of students noisily invaded the room located in the city center. The political meeting was then interrupted, the organizers were even dislodged from the stage.
Faced with the confusion, and the desire of the students to occupy the premises, the meeting was canceled. According to one participant, about 70 people spent the night in the hall, which has long hosted concerts. Banners have been hung in front of the entrance and stacked chairs leave only a narrow passage to access the building. A situation that generated some tension with some parents coming to drop off their children at the nursery this Thursday morning.
City hall calls for eviction
For its part, the Rennes town hall requires the evacuation of the room it owns. “Faced with this illegal occupation of a municipal building, the city of Rennes asked the prefecture for the assistance of the police to evacuate the premises as soon as possible,” she said.
The occupation of the hall of the City had been voted on Wednesday, at the end of the afternoon, on the university campus of Rennes-2, during a general student assembly relating to the fight against the project of pension reforms. The blockade of the campus has been renewed.
This is not the first time that the room has been occupied during social conflicts. In 2016, the building had been occupied by opponents of the Labor Law. The mayor of Rennes Nathalie Appéré had asked for the expulsion of the room, before signing an occupancy agreement.