Police try to control crowds as nearly 800,000 people protest new retirement age - Photo by Sky News
PARIS, May 1 (Reuters) – French police clashed with hundreds of black-clad anarchists in Paris and other cities during union-led protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s increase in the retirement age, as workers staged Labour Day rallies across Europe.
Demonstrators pelted Paris police with Molotov cocktails and fireworks, torched building materials, and smashed up bus stops. Protesters marching peacefully booed the police as they responded with tear gas and baton charges.
Emergency services used water canon to put out a fire that blackened the windows of nearby flats. One officer was badly injured when he was struck by a fiery projectile.
Violence also erupted in Lyon and Nantes, where some vehicles were set ablaze and business premises were trashed. Nearly 200 people were arrested on a day some 782,000 people took to the streets, according to the interior ministry.
Police rush in to beat back rioters at the Paris May Day riot. pic.twitter.com/hVnCLVnGZa
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) May 1, 2023
Macron last month raised the retirement age by two years to 64 despite multi-sector strikes, in a move that drove his popularity down to near the record lows seen during the “Yellow Vest” crisis of 2018-2019.
The reform has crystallized discontent against a president perceived by many as aloof and indifferent to their daily hardships, and he has been met during walkabouts aimed at rebuilding support by heckling and pot-banging.
“They (the government) are trying to change the subject quite quickly, but let’s say it’s not working. So much the better!” said sculptor Antoine Eveillo.
Trade unions had called for a big turnout as they seek to force a U-turn by Macron’s government, which forced its pension law through without a final vote in the National Assembly, where it lacks a working majority.
Opinion polls show a substantial majority of French people oppose the higher retirement age.
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