The French took to the streets this Thursday for the 11th day of protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reform, eight days ahead of a crucial decision by the Constitutional Council that could unblock a social conflict. A protest marked by violence and tension between police and demonstrators, with television images showing the awning of the famous La Rotonde restaurant, in the Montparnasse district of Paris, being set on fire. Trade unions speak of about 400,000 demonstrators in Paris.
“The only solution is to withdraw from the reform,” declared at the beginning of the demonstration in Paris the new leader of the CGT union, Sophie Binet, for whom, despite the “deep revolt”, the government “is acting as if nothing happens” and “living in a parallel reality”.
A meeting on Wednesday between the Prime Minister, Élisabeth Borne, and union leaders served only to confirm that the two sides maintain their rigid positions and await the decision of the Constitutional Council, scheduled for April 14.
The government denies abandoning the reform, which raises the age from 62 to 64 from 2030 and brings the contribution requirement forward to 2027 for 43, not 42, for entitlement to a full pension. The measures are rejected by two-thirds of the French, according to polls.
The presentation of the reform in January sparked a wave of protests, which became even more radical on March 16, when Emmanuel Macron decided to pass the law by decree, fearing defeat in parliament, where the government has no absolute say. majority.
The government says raising one of the lowest retirement ages in Europe will prevent a future pension fund deficit, but critics say the reform penalizes women with children and those who start work too young.
Since March 7, when unions mobilized 1.28 million people, according to the police, and 3.5 million according to the CGT union, the demonstrations have lost intensity. On March 28, 740,000 and 2 million people took to the streets.
Authorities expect between 600,000 and 800,000 protesters on the streets on Thursday. France, according to the political scientist Dominique Andolfatto, is living an “intermediate moment before the decision of the Constitutional Council”.
“Democratic Crisis”
All eyes are on the Constitutional Council. The decision whether or not the reform is valid marks the evolution of a deep-rooted social conflict that analysts and polls believe favors far-right leader Marine Le Pen.
The leader of the moderate trade union CFDT, Laurent Berger, blamed Emmanuel Macron for the situation and warned the president of the “democratic crisis” and the “risk of the rise of the far right”.
The 45-year-old liberal president’s team rejects the analysis, pointing out that reform was on the campaign agenda, winning reelection in 2022, with nearly 59% of the second-round vote against Le Pen.
For Andolfatto, a possible “way out” for the continuity of the social movement, in case the reform is validated, is for the members of the Constitutional Council to accept the referendum on the retirement age, as demanded by the left-wing opposition. temporarily block the law.
Source: DN
