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Fiery Paris Protests Continue as Nation Revolts Against Macron’s Globalist Government

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Violent protests continued in Paris again on Tuesday evening on the tenth straight day of demonstrations against the government of President Emmanuel Macron, which enraged the nation by steamrolling through reforms to the pension system without a vote through the use of a constitutional loophole earlier this month.

At least 70 people were arrested in Paris on Tuesday as France once again saw nationwide demonstrations against President Macron’s push to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64-years-old was rammed through the National Assembly earlier this month without a vote.

PARIS, FRANCE - MARCH 28: A protester holds a placard next to fire during a rally against pension reforms on March 28, 2023 in Paris, France. The country has experienced weeks of protests and strike actions related to a rise in the pension age, which was passed last week. The 10th day of nationwide protests in France against the pension reforms are also calling out the police brutality from pervious strikes. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

PARIS, FRANCE – MARCH 28: A protester holds a placard next to fire during a rally against pension reforms on March 28, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

According to the Ministry of Interior some 740,000 people protested throughout the country, 93,000 of whom demonstrated in the capital city. The organising CGT trade union confederation — which also has been coordinating labour strikes across France — claimed that two million protesters came out on the streets of France, with 450,000 in Paris, Le Figaro reported. It is possible the true number fell somewhere in between.

French media noted that the demo in Paris did not raise to the level forecast by the Ministry of the Interior, who anticipated “very significant risks of disturbance to public order” on Tuesday evening.

However, some radical protesters continued to clash with police, set fires in the streets, and loot and vandalise businesses, showing that the chaos enveloping the country is likely to continue.

Some 10,000 gendarmes and police officers were deployed in the city of love ahead of the protest and carried out preventative arrests of 27 people believed to be violent instigators. The police forces claimed have seized weapons from black bloc Antifa-style radicals, including knives, hammers, ‘mortar’ explosive devices — quite likely powerful fireworks — and other types of bladed weapons.

Police were also once again seen firing off tear gas canisters into the rowdy crowds, and were seen using forceful tactics to subdue apparent agitators.

The tenth straight day of protests comes amid national strikes that have seen labour union workers walk off the job, causing severe disruptions to social services, notably including the collection of trash, which has seen thousands of tonnes of garbage line the streets of Paris over the past weeks.

The buildup has literally been fuelling the protests, with trash fires frequently being set during protests over the past two weeks.

PARIS, FRANCE - MARCH 28: A man adds a placard to a street fire during a rally against pension reforms on March 28, 2023 in Paris, France. The country has experienced weeks of protests and strike actions related to a rise in the pension age, which was passed last week. The 10th day of nationwide protests in France against the pension reforms are also calling out the police brutality from pervious strikes. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

PARIS, FRANCE – MARCH 28: A man adds a placard to a street fire during a rally against pension reforms on March 28, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

The CTG announced that the strike for garbage collectors would be suspended on Wednesday in order to clear the rubbish — the build-up of which has sparked concerns of disease outbreaks and an invasion of rats — but the trade union confederation did warn that the strike could once again commence if the government does not withdraw its pension reforms.

The strikes have also seen shortages of fuel at the pump across the country, with workers not only walking out of refineries but some actively enacting blockades to prevent processed fuel from being shipped out.

PARIS, FRANCE - MARCH 28: Police officers pass by a fire as they charge protesters during a rally against pension reforms on March 28, 2023 in Paris, France. The country has experienced weeks of protests and strike actions related to a rise in the pension age, which was passed last week. The 10th day of nationwide protests in France against the pension reforms are also calling out the police brutality from pervious strikes. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

PARIS, FRANCE – MARCH 28: Police officers pass by a fire as they charge protesters during a rally against pension reforms on March 28, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

While Macron’s government appears to be content to try to wait out the protesters, the nationwide chaos will likely continue to serve as a major distraction from his globalist-minded agenda. Mr Macron, who won re-election last year but later lost his majority in the National Assembly, used much of the first year of his second term to jet around the world to various international conferences focussing on nebulous issues such as climate change or on the war in Ukraine.

Macron, a former Parisian Rothschild banker, has also faced widespread criticism at home for being the “president of the rich“, with the government doing little to try to mitigate the ongoing cost of living crisis, which came as a result, in large part, of his government’s decision to enact strict lockdown measures during the Chinese coronavirus crisis.

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Fuel Shortages and Cabinet Infighting Mark Day 10 of France Strikes as Police Brace for Fresh Protests

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France remains in a state of chaos on Tuesday as the 10th straight day of union strikes is marked by fuel-pump shortages and government infighting.

Officials within the Emmanuel Macron government are reportedly bickering on what to do next amid ongoing chaos on the streets of France, which is currently seeing its tenth day of union strikes.

On and off protests ostensibly over the country’s planned pension reforms have been regularly taking in the country since January this year, with demonstrations intensifying over the last number of days into regular union strikes and even rioting in some locations. Police say they expect a violent minority to be active overnight.

In response to the public unrest, the country’s “Jupitarian” President Emmanuel Macron has lashed out at many members of the general public, accusing those taking part in ongoing demonstrations of having “no legitimacy” compared to him and his government, who have been forcing through desired reforms without consulting parliament via the use of a constitutional loophole.

Such an inflammatory statement has only provoked further fury amongst the general population, with recent polling showing that the vast majority of people in the country now view the head of state as having little understanding of the true severity of the current situation.

This view may be starting to spread to Macron’s own government, with POLITICO‘s insider reporting as part of its Playbook Paris series indicating that infighting is starting to take hold within the French cabinet, with the country’s Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, reportedly breaking ranks on some issues seemingly in the hopes of placating an ever-growing opposition.

For instance, Borne has now publicly said that it is her intention to stop using the Section 49.3 loophole to force through government legislation without the approval of parliament, unless the legislation is purely to do with the country’s budget.

“We need to calm down,” she reportedly remarked regarding her decision, arguing that she wanted to take part in more “bilateral meetings” with French trade unions in the hopes of ending the ongoing protest movement.

Borne’s public statement does not appear to have been pre-approved by Macron however, who reportedly described her statement on the constitutional loophole as “stupid” and not representing the position of the rest of the government.

Such a position appears to be shared by a number within Macron’s Renaissance party, with one ex-staffer criticising Borne’s effective denunciation of the 49.3 loophole as being a “huge mess”.

“It’s like she’s saying, ‘I’m quitting cocaine’,” the former Elysée insider remarked. “If it’s toxic, you shouldn’t get started!”.

Nevertheless, the mass movement against Macron’s pension reforms only appears to grow in intensity as time goes on.

Tuesday could very well see ongoing protests reach new heights, with 900,000 people all across France expected to take to the streets in order to demand the reforms be repealed.

In response, authorities have deployed 13,000 members of law enforcement to deal with the demos, with 5,000 being dedicated to controlling protests in Paris alone, though it is unclear how effective the deployed units will ultimately be in preventing the kind of violence that has so far plagued recent demonstrations.

Regardless of how effective such countermeasures end up being though, they will likely do nothing to solve the damage ongoing general strikes in the country are causing, with a wide variety of services and amenities having long since ceased to properly function in the country as workers protest the government.

Of the many failing amenities keeping government ministers up at night, what is likely the most problematic at the moment are ongoing fuel shortages facing certain gas stations, with over 16 per cent of outlets in the country reporting that they are running critically low on the supply of petrol and diesel.

Such a figure is far higher in Paris, where just under one in three gas stations are running low on fuel.

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Riots in France are Emmanuel Macron’s Fault, Former President Hollande Claims

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Former French President François Hollande has blamed his successor, Emmanuel Macron, for the ongoing riots in France.

François Hollande, France’s former left-wing president, has publicly lashed out at his successor, Emmanuel Macron, blaming him for the ongoing riots plaguing the country.

Sparked by pension reforms forced through parliament by the Macron government — and evidently against the wishes of many — France has seen widespread strikes and protests since January that only appear to be increasing in intensity as time goes on.

Speaking with French broadcaster BFMTV, Hollande has now attributed this widespread public unrest to Macron, arguing that both he and his government have repeatedly botched their handling of the pension reforms.

According to the former French head-of-state, Macron’s reforms are not fair to many. He said: “When you propose a pension reform that requires effort from those who worked hard and early, and nothing from those with the highest incomes, it is the wrong way round,” he remarked.

Macron’s administration also made a litany of other errors to boot according to Hollande, including not consulting the trade unions in relation to the reforms, implementing the changes during a cost of living crisis, and forcing through the reforms without letting the French parliament vote on them.

Hollande also attacked Macron for failing to properly communicate with the French public, with the sitting President speaking in an inflammatory way about the protests rather than trying to calm things down.

“We were waiting for the president to appease [political tensions],” Hollande said regarding recent outbursts by the President. “He exacerbated [them].”

Overall, Hollande warned that things in France overall is in a particularly poor political situation, with many in the country feeling that the country under Macron is plagued by “injustice“.

“There have been crises in the past… but here, we have a level of anger and resentment that I’ve rarely known,” Hollande remarked.

“In many parts of the population there is this same anger – this feeling that democracy does not work as it should,” he went on to say.

Such a claim does not appear to be farfetched, with images of burning refuse and police vehicles now regularly emerging out of France as mass demonstrations against the pension reforms continue.

Some on the country’s left have even warned that the violence could yet get worse, with France’s answer to Bernie Sanders, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, warning that there has yet to be real violence during the protests, comparing them to the student riots of 1968.

“You haven’t seen May 68!” the parliamentarian reportedly said. “You don’t know what a violent demonstration is!”.

The level of discontent is sufficient that there is now some discussion of a ‘Sixth French Republic’. A key part of the French political system, since it overthrew the monarchy and declared the First Republic in 1792, is a periodic tearing-down and re-writing of the constitution.

The Fifth Republic, created in 1958, has features that suited its creator, strongman Charles De Gaulle, which naturally includes a strong head of state — the president — who has executive powers including the ability to pass laws without a vote. It is this power which has so intensified the recent protests and strikes after it was used to push through the pensions act.

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Bordeaux City Hall Set on Fire Amid French Retirement Age Rise Protests

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Five people have been arrested by French police after the doors to the city hall of Bordeaux were set on fire on Thursday evening amid ongoing country-wide protests against increasing the state pension age.

The fire was lit in the evening, with the first person arrested, a 25-year-old, caught throwing objects at the fire in order to try and make it spread around 8:30 p.m.

In total, five people were arrested at the scene and are currently in the custody of the zonal directorate of the judicial police for the south-west, which is investigating the detainees for acts of arson, Sud Ouest reports.

Investigators say that two of the suspects in the incident are homeless people in their twenties. Two others are said to be aged 16 and 19.

It remains unclear whether any of the suspects were the ones who started the fire, or if they simply tried to make it spread by throwing objects onto it.

The five arrests came after four others were apprehended by police in the city following the end of a demonstration against the recent pension age increase pushed through by the government of President Emmanuel Macron, which used an article of the constitution to pass the legislation without a vote in the National Assembly.

Among those arrested earlier in the evening in Bordeaux was a 50-year-old man who allegedly set fire to a barricade, a 43-year-old homeless man who threw objects at police, a 17-year-old and a 23-year-old who also threw objects at officials, and a 23-year-old woman who attacked police and tried to spread fires.

Bordeaux was not the only city to see rioting and urban violence on Thursday evening, however. In Nantes, significant damage was caused to the local administrative court, which was also ransacked by demonstrators.

As many as 80,000 people marched on the streets of Nantes on Thursday to protest the retirement age being increased, with the protest described as the largest mobilisation since the demonstrations against Macron’s scheme began several weeks prior.

Johanna Rolland, Mayor of Nantes, spoke out and condemned the violence, saying: “People who commit these unjustifiable acts penalize the message peacefully carried by thousands of people for two months.”

Despite the protests, Macron has stood firm on his decision to force through the controversial pension changes, claiming that he had no regrets despite days of rioting and protests.

Follow Chris Tomlinson on Twitter at @TomlinsonCJ or email at ctomlinson(at)breitbart.com.