The pension reform of Emmanuel Macron has unleashed chaos in more than 200 cities in France. The President of the Republic has managed to carry out his project in the National Assembly, but the idea of raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 does not convince the French. The tension of the last few days has given way to violence in most of the country’s streets and the worst incidents have taken place in Bordeaux, where the mob has set fire to the Town Hall.
Thus, on what has been the ninth day of protests, the vandals have set fire to the main door of the Rohan Palace, a building rebuilt in 1784 and which has been the seat of the town hall since 1837.
According to local media reports, Around 8:30 p.m., the protesters set up a barricade at the door of the City Hall and set it on firecausing a large fire whose flames have reached several meters in height, devouring the large wooden door that has remained standing although charred.
The crowd sets fire to the Bordeaux City Hall amid protests against Macron’s pension reform.
Two fire trucks managed to put out the flames minutes later, while the Police chased the protesters, managing to arrest one of them at that time.
The mayor of Bordeaux, Pierre Humic, has condemned this act of vandalism, assuring that he is “psychologically very shocked, very impressed.” “The right to demonstrate is a constitutional right, looting is not,” he stressed.
[Macron espera que la reforma de las pensiones entre en vigor este año: “Asumo la impopularidad”]
riots across the country
The peaceful social protests in the afternoon gave way to riots in a large part of the country as night fell. The Parisian authorities registered at least 140 fires in the capitalin which the vandals took advantage of the urban furniture or the mountains of garbage accumulated in recent days to light bonfires.
In addition, the Minister of the Interior, Gerald Darmanin, has reported that 150 agents have been injured and 172 people have been arrested. According to the Police, in Paris there were approximately 1,200 violent protesters, who the minister has identified in many cases with far-left activists. At this time they are still on the streets of the city, which has led the Macron Executive to carry out a large police deployment. “Violence will not be tolerated”they emphasize from the Government.
Image of the streets of Paris on the ninth day of protests against Macron’s pension reform.
Reuters
Along the same lines, the French Prime Minister, Elisabeth Bornehas condemned on his Twitter account “the violence and degradation” that has occurred during the day this Thursday, and has shown his support for the security forces and bodies.
The French Government has created an inter-ministerial crisis unit to try to find a solution to the social unrest that has been taking place in recent weeks, and which have worsened after the failure of the two motions of censure last Monday that could have paralyzed pension reform.
